Merredin Uniting Church

Sermon: New Years Resolution by Kevin Tengvall

Texts: Ecclesiastes 5:8-20 & Isaiah 40:28-31

Learn Something New

Well here we are one month down, or a twelth of a year gone already. why is it that the older one gets the quicker the years flash past at several times the speed of light? ( well it seems like it does)

I wonder, is it Gods sense of Humour? or is it us getting wiser and realising finally that our sojourn here is a brief one indeed?

Some of you might have read the my say colum in the Mercury the week before last, where I spoke about New Years resolutions and why do we make them? why do we set our selves up for failure? why do we make a resolution that we can’t or maybe won’t keep?

And why can’t or won’t we keep them?

As I said in the paper it’s Possibly because we ( when I say we I’m talking rehtorically) tend to make these resolutions when we are at our most vulnerable.  just after midnight when one may be anebriated or the next day when the same one may be suffering a hangover. I can remember back to my youth hearing people say that they will never drink again after a heavy night on New Years Eve.( funny that?)

New Year’s Eve has always been a time for looking back to the past, and more importantly, forward to the coming year. It’s a time to reflect on the changes we want (or need) to make and resolve to follow through on those changes. Did your New Year resolutions make the top ten list.

This list and comentary’s was taken from the NYE website Australia.  I ‘m slightly gobsmacked that there was a website dedicated to NYE and frivolous resolutions which I’m sure the vast majority have no intention of keeping.

If you have a look at the Celebrity Resolutions it is enough to make your mind like mine, boggle at the inane and down right stupid things people make resolutions about. ( why I ask after reading this drivell are celebrities put up on pedastals?)

Anyway I digress here is the list of The Top Ten New Years Resolutions  for 2010 made by every day Australians like you and I.

1. Spend More Time with Family & Friends

Recent polls conducted by General Nutrition Centers, Quicken, and others show that more than 50% of Australians vow to appreciate loved ones and spend more time with family and friends this year.

2. Fit in Fitness

The evidence is in for fitness. Regular exercise has been associated with more health benefits than anything else known to man. Studies show that it reduces the risk of some cancers, increases longevity, helps achieve and maintain weight loss, enhances mood, lowers blood pressure, and even improves arthritis. In short, exercise keeps you healthy and makes you look and feel better.

3. Tame the Bulge

Fifty-five percent of adults in Australia are overweight, so it is not surprising to find that weight loss is one of the most popular New Year’s resolutions. Setting reasonable goals and staying focused are the two most important factors in sticking with a weight loss program, and the key to success for those millions of Australians who made a New Year’s commitment to shed extra pounds.

4. Quit Smoking

If you have resolved to make this the year that you stamp out your smoking habit, over-the-counter availability of nicotine replacement therapy now provides easier access to proven quit-smoking aids. Even if you’ve tried to quit before and failed, don’t let it get you down. On average, smokers try about four times before they quit for good. Start enjoying the rest of your smoke-free life!

5. Enjoy Life More

Given the hectic, stressful lifestyles of millions of Australians, it is no wonder that “enjoying life more” has become a popular resolution in recent years.

6. Quit Drinking

While many people use the New Year as an incentive to finally stop drinking, most are not equipped to make such a drastic lifestyle change all at once. Many heavy drinkers fail to quit cold turkey but do much better when they taper gradually, or even learn to moderate their drinking. If you have decided that you want to stop drinking, there is a world of help and support available.

7. Get Out of Debt

Was money a big source of stress in your life last year? Join the millions of Australians who have resolved to spend this year getting a handle on their finances. It’s a promise that will repay itself many times over in the year ahead.

8. Learn Something New

Have you vowed to make this year the year to learn something new? Perhaps you are considering a career change, want to learn a new language, or just how to fix your computer? Whether you take a course or read a book, you’ll find education to be one of the easiest, most motivating New Year’s resolutions to keep. Challenge your mind in the coming year, and your horizons will expand.

9. Help Others

A popular, non-selfish New Year’s resolution, volunteerism can take many forms. Whether you choose to spend time helping out at your local library, mentoring a child, or building a house, these nonprofit volunteer organizations could really use your help.

10. Get Organized

On just about every New Year resolution top ten list, organization can be a very reasonable goal. Whether you want your home organized enough that you can invite someone over on a whim, or your office organized enough that you can find the stapler when you need it, these tips and links should get you started on the way to a more organized life.

All these are well worthwhile resolutions, has anyone one here made one of these resolutions? And have you so far kept them?

A New Year resolution is a commitment that an individual makes to a project or a habit, often a lifestyle change that is generally interpreted as advantageous. The name comes from the fact that these commitments normally go into effect on New Year’s Day and remain until the set goal has been achieved, although many resolutions go unachieved & are often broken fairly shortly after they are set.

All this got me to thinking that as Chritians we well know, or should know, that trying to do things in our own strength is usually a recipe for disaster.

For instance how does one forgive ones nieghbour? When we’d much rather hold a grudge, thereby feeling superior in our self-righteousness. How do we  love our enemies? etc. the answer,we know, is that alone  we can’t. but if we ask God and trust in him then all things are possible. in   Matthew 19:26 also Mark 10:27 Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible. ( the camel through the eye of a needle quote)

So? Should we make New Years Resolutions? I believe so. If we have things in our lives that are not glorifying to God then it probably is a good idea to change that which is holding us back.

Although I generally don’t make resolutions, New Years or otherwise I think there are probably quite a few times when a New Resolution may be just the thing I need to keep me on track with God. How about you?

I found this Quote on a website called Clarity in God which sums up what I’m trying to say…

ALL THINGS ARE POSSIBLE

It is not God that you must convince…. It I is you that you must convince. God knows He loves you. You must know and believe He loves you. God knows health and healing is already paid for and settled. You must know that as well. God has done His part in all areas. And we must do our part.

So if you happen to be someone who makes New Years resolutions or even if you don’t. It really is important to Know that all things ARE possible in Christ Jesus Our Lord and Saviour. AMEN

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