Forward Focus

I don’t know about New Year’s resolutions, but I do believe in resolution, which means having resolve or determination to do something. Every one of us should have resolution in our lives. We need goals. We need objectives. And we need things to aim for in life.

After years of walking with God, the apostle Paul wrote, “No, dear brothers and sisters, I have not achieved it, but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us” (Philippians 3:13–14 NLT).

We need to realize that we have a long way to go spiritually. I wish you could have met me when I was 21 because I thought I had come so far. And in many ways, I had because only a few years before, I was living in complete darkness without God in my life.

But now I realize that I have so far to go. I have a lot to change. I hope you see that in yourself as well. And I hope we all realize that we are works in progress. We all need to be growing and deepening our walk with the Lord.

However, we cannot be controlled by past mistakes or live in past victories. So if you blew it last year, then learn from it and don’t do it again. Make changes in your behavior, your habit patterns, and your choices so you won’t go down that road again.

At the same time, if God did something wonderful in your life last year, don’t live in past victories. A whole new year is before you with many new opportunities. So press on toward what God has for you.