Last year, one of my resolutions was to exercise more. I found an exercise accountability buddy, sat down, talked to my wife about exercising, and committed to walking an hour every night for the year – to improve my health and stuff.
And so I did. On Jan 1. And Jan 2. And then ‘real life’ got in the way, and the resolved became the dissolved.
So what about this year? What’s the point of setting resolutions if we can’t keep them anyway? I don’t wish to say any more about these questions in this post other than the fact that Paul made resolutions. Not New Year’s resolutions, in particular, but life resolutions – broad and specific ones. Consider the following passages:
13 Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, 14 I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. (Phil 3:13-14).
…and thus I make it my ambition to preach the gospel, not where Christ has already been named… (Romans 15:20).
And we can learn some lessons from the Spiritual Giant Jonathan Edwards. Much has been written about his resolutions, and there’s no need to rehash it here. But you can read it here: https://www.desiringgod.org/articles/the-resolutions-of-jonathan-edwards
What I want to reflect upon, in this post, is another related question. How should Christians make our resolutions? Or, asked differently, what is uniquely Christian about our resolutions?
The answer, I think, can be found in the famous Book of Common Prayer. There is a line in there, a refrain, from God’s people. In ARPC, we often repeat the same refrain. When couples are asked about their marriage vows (resolutions) to each other, they respond with the same refrain. When we baptise adults; and even infants, the church is called to respond with the same refrain. And the refrain: “I will, with God’s help.”
“Do you, xyz, take this man to be your lawfully wedded husband?” “I will, with God’s help.”
“Do you, as a Church, commit to loving this child and teaching her to walk in God’s ways?” “We will, with God’s help.”
So, what’s unique about Christian resolutions? We understand that apart from Him, we can do nothing. And so, we honestly, and modestly, respond to each of our resolutions: I will, with God’s help. So whatever your resolutions are this year, whether you make New Year’s resolutions, or simply make life resolutions, think about it, and pray about it, and always remember the refrain: with God’s help.