Commit thy works unto the Lord, and thy thoughts shall be established.
Proverbs 16:3 (KJV)
It’s that time of year again when in a fit of optimism, many of us make great promises or resolutions to ourselves about what we are going to do in the coming year. As a challenge, here are five commitments we can make this year:
Commit yourself to forgetting your failures.
13 Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before,
14 I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.
Philippians 3:13-14 (KJV)
We don’t have to live our lives imprisoned by our past. All of us have failed in some way in our lives over the last year. They are probably recorded in our hearts and minds. For many of us, our failures are painful memories.
We must not allow ourselves to be bogged down by our past failures. We should not dwell on our past so much that it stops us from moving forward into the future that God has for us.
When we become Christians, forgiveness becomes a reality in our lives. When we have received Christ’s forgiveness, it allows us to forgive ourselves and forget our failures.
Commit yourself to giving up your grudges.
Forbearing one another, and forgiving one another, if any man have a quarrel against any: even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye.
Colossians 3:13 (KJV)
God in those words is challenging us directly, and personally to give up our grudges. That is what He means when He says to forgive each other whatever quarrels you may have against one another. A grudge is a deep ongoing resentment that we cultivate in our hearts against someone else. A grudge is an unforgiving spirit that leads to unforgiving attitudes and unforgiving actions.
Grudges destroy marriages, break up families, ruin friendships, and split churches.
What are the benefits of forgiving someone? Letting go of grudges and bitterness can make way for improved health and peace of mind. Forgiveness can lead to healthier relationships, improved mental health, less anxiety, stress, and hostility, fewer symptoms of depression, lower blood pressure, a stronger immune system, improved heart health, and improved self-esteem.
If Christ can forgive us and our sins despite the fact that it cost the pain of the cross, then surely we can give up the grievances that we have with someone else. The question is, will you do it?
Commit yourself to restoring your relationships.
If it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men.
Romans 12:18 (KJV)
God by using that phrase is personally challenging each one of us to do all we can to restore our relationships. The Lord wants us to do everything we can to restore any relationships that may have gone wrong in our lives. Some relationships might have gone wrong in our lives because of what other people have done, and they might well not want that relationship restored. God recognizes that. But let’s be honest, some of our relationships have gone wrong because of what we have done.
What God’s word says here is that as far as it depends on us, “live peaceably with all men.” It means that if we have caused a rift in a relationship, then we have a responsibility to do everything we can to restore it. That everything includes the one thing we all probably find most difficult, asking for forgiveness.
Commit yourself to turning your back on your transgressions.
Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof.
Romans 6:12 (KJV)
When God says for us to not let sin control the way we live and to not give in to its lustful desires, He is issuing the challenge to turn our backs on our transgressions.
Christian writers used to talk about something called besetting sins or habitual sins. What they meant by besetting sins, were particular sins that a Christian was prone to doing time and time again.
For most of us, when we got saved, we give up certain sins easily. But there are other things that we know are wrong that we really battle with. Many of us end up choosing to give into our besetting sins and end up living double lives.
Many Christians won’t do anything about it and they learn to live with it. Are you one of those? Is your spiritual life crippled because you have learned to live with a habitual sin?
Do you have a quick temper that you constantly give into? Or a tongue that loves to assassinate other people’s characters or wound their feelings? Have you learned to live with that critical judgmental attitude you know is wrong? Is there some other sin that you keep on giving in to? God here in his word challenges us to turn our back on that sin whatever it is. The Holy Spirit can give us the power to resist sin.
Commit yourself to God.
Commit thy works unto the LORD, And thy thoughts shall be established.
Proverbs 16:3 (KJV)
Christ satisfies the deepest longing of our hearts in our lives.
Will this new year be just a calendar-changing event for you? Or are you willing to rise to these challenges from God’s word and make these commitments and make it a life-changing event?