Tuesday, December 28th, 2021

The last week of 2021 is here and it is often a time of self-reflection. This has certainly been a challenging year in many ways, and next year will have more challenges, both old and new. When we reflect on what we did well this year, and what we did not, our next logical step is usually to make decisions on what to continue doing and what to stop doing – we call them “New Years Resolutions.” However, this misses the mark for what God desires from us. God does not just want us to stop sinning, He wants us to repent of our sins. Repentance centers on change. However, repentance differs from just changing our minds or making new resolutions because repentance changes our mind towards God and his will, not just any new idea we are attracted to or what is popular today. When we repent, we acknowledge Jesus as the source of truth, goodness, blessings, and light and honor him as the one we follow. Repentance places Jesus on the throne of our lives, his rightful place. It asserts the One from whom all blessings flow as the one we rely on for all things. Repentance surrenders to Jesus the temptations of control over our own lives. Paul wrote, “…do you show contempt for the riches of his kindness, forbearance and patience, not realizing that God’s kindness is intended to lead you to repentance?” New Years Resolutions are, at their core, decisions we make to better control our own lives. This year, honor God with your repentance instead of your resolutions.

“Or do you show contempt for the riches of his kindness, forbearance and patience, not realizing that God’s kindness is intended to lead you to repentance?” – Romans 2:4 NIV