Resolution #4 - Resolve To Forgive

Forgive as much as you have been forgiven, now that's a lot of forgiveness.

Ephesians 4:31-32 Get rid of all bitterness, rage, anger, harsh words, and slander, as well as all types of malicious behavior. 32 Instead, be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you. 

Luke 6:36-37  You must be compassionate, just as your Father is compassionate. 37 "Stop judging others, and you will not be judged. Stop criticizing others, or it will all come back on you. If you forgive others, you will be forgiven.

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We love to keep score, I'm not talking about an athletic event, I am referring to the history of good and bad things that we do to each other. It is tempting to try to keep the score in balance, if you think that somebody has been a bit worse to you than you have been to them, then it is time to do something to even up the score.

Jesus set the bar really high when he told us "forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you" Now that is a lot of forgiveness that we have to pass on to the ones that have wronged us. It is easy to think that we need to even up the score but we do not have permission to be unforgiving or even bitter or to even say something to get at them, instead of permission to settle the score we have a command to forgive just as much as we have been forgiven by our creator.

Micah 7:18 Where is another God like you, who pardons the guilt of the remnant, overlooking the sins of his special people? You will not stay angry with your people forever, because you delight in showing unfailing love.

Jesus didn't demand that people treat him special so none of us are so special that we can demand to be treated special or demand that we get our own way. I must strive to be just as compassionate as God is, Jesus didn't come to earth to condemn it, rather he came to show us a better way to live, in a loving relationship with our creator and with our fellow man.

Help us Lord to exercise the same forgiveness that you gave to us. Thank you for the gift of forgiveness.

Resolution #3 - Read My Bible Each Day

He'll keep the light on for you.

Psalm 119:1-6 Happy are people of integrity, who follow the law of the LORD. 2 Happy are those who obey his decrees and search for him with all their hearts. 3 They do not compromise with evil, and they walk only in his paths.

4 You have charged us to keep your commandments carefully. 5 Oh, that my actions would consistently reflect your principles! 6 Then I will not be disgraced when I compare my life with your commands.

Psalm 119:105 Your word is a lamp for my feet and a light for my path.

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Digging the word each day is the best way to keep the straight and narrow road lit up so that we do not stumble. It would be crazy to walk through the deep forest that we encounter in life without a flashlight to keep us on the trail, God has given us the light that we need in his word.

You don't have to be a scholar and it doesn't require a lot of effort or study, just a few moments with God's word, listening to him as he guides our steps for another day. What it does require is a determination to do it each day, after all the devil is going to hit you with everything that he can find so that you will put it off for another day.

When the Word of God changes our lives and makes us more like Jesus, that's when we realize what the real purpose of life is, what true joy is, and what it means for God to change the world through us.

-Rick Warren 

When you first start it may not be pleasant but eventually the time you spend with God in his word each day will become the highlight of your day. A great way to start the habit and get past the devil's plan to discourage you is to use the "40 Days In The Word", subscribe to a devotional email, use a paper Bible or download free software it doesn't really matter, just do it!

Resolution #2 - Say I Love You

Three simple words that are so powerful.

1 Corinthians 13:1-3  If I could speak in any language in heaven or on earth but didn't love others, I would only be making meaningless noise like a loud gong or a clanging cymbal.

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The libraries of the world are full of books about love, you would think that we would be better at it, we should have figured out by now who the expert is on the subject and would have learned to be much better at it.

Some of the books on love are about people that are in love, some of them try and define what love is and some of them try and teach us how to do it but there isn't any book that measures up to the Bible, it has everything that those books have and so much more.

The Bible is the greatest love story every written

The Bible tells us the story of God pursuing his love, from cover to cover the Bible tells us about the greatest love story ever, God loves his creation and he is especially crazy in love for mankind. God has been in pursuit of man since the Garden of Eden, he has always desired a relationship with us, he is reaching out to us patiently and waiting for us to respond.

God has really gone to the extreme to have a relationship with us, he did everything to make it possible by providing salvation through the death of his son, the sacrifice for our sins.

Exodus 15:13 “With your unfailing love you lead the people you have redeemed. In your might, you guide them to your sacred home."

The Bible gives me the real definition of love

The world needs a good working definition of love, you can look at the books that are written or you can search the internet or you could watch the media for the definition of love in society today but you won't get much help.

1 Corinthians 13:4-7 Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged. It does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance.

One of the most famous passages of scripture is 1 Corinthians 13:1-13, it is an extended definition of real love, quoted by so many people and put into practice by so few.

The Bible tells me how to love

Not only does the Bible tell me about love but it also gives me an awesome example, Jesus told us that we have to love loud and crazy just like he did, he is the perfect example. Jesus lived out that definition of love from 1 Corinthians13:4-7 and he tells his followers that they need to do the same.

John 13:34 "So now I am giving you a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other. Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples.” 1 Peter 1:22 Now you can have sincere love for each other as brothers and sisters because you were cleansed from your sins when you accepted the truth of the Good News. So see to it that you really do love each other intensely with all your hearts.

Three little words is all that it takes to make somebodies day, it is so simple, just say them to somebody today and everyday. There are all kinds of ways to say it and it show it, tell them in person or write it down and if saying it is too hard then find a way to show it through a random act of kindness.

This world that is so full of hurt and so confused about love needs Christ followers to live a life that is screaming loud with love, after all if I am that full of love then somebody is going to ask me how I can be that way then I can tell them about the creator of love. Remember that Jesus said that they would know us by our love.

Thank you Jesus for your perfect love, you gave the perfect example of love while you were here on earth, help me to love loud.

Resolution #1 - Resolve To Pray

Start the day with God and keep him with you all day long.

Philippians 4:6  Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.

1 Thessalonians 5:17 Pray without ceasing.

Psalm 86:1 Bend down, O Lord, and hear my prayer; answer me, for I need your help.

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Worry is a universal trait, everybody does it, in fact it is probably the greatest time waster that is known to man. Worrying is so natural for us to do that we do it even when things are going well, we worry that things are going too good and that the bottom is about to fall out from under us.

God has a better plan, he wants us to trust in him no matter how things are going, through the good and the bad, he wants us to talk to him about it and leave it in his hands. I need to be determined to pray more in every circumstance because if I don't then it will get pushed off of my to-do list.

We should develop pray as a way of life seeking to know him so that we can react to every situation the way that he would. A prayerful lifestyle declares that I need God and that I trust him to handle whatever comes my way.

I need to:

• Set aside a time to talk to God each morning at the begining of the day
• Focus on worship, before I ask for anything that benefits me, leave the shopping list behind
• Ask God to shape me and help me to realize that everything works out for my good, he is working in every situation and sometimes the bad times are meant to shape my character.
• Remain in prayer throughout the day

Thank you Lord for wanting to hear from me. I confess that it is easier to pray for my wants and forget that I am talking to the God of the universe that deserves my praise and adoration before I make my request.

Resolution #6 - It's Time To Exercise

Everybody wants to take care of Mother Earth but what about God's Temple?

1 Corinthians 6:19-20   Or don't you know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God? You do not belong to yourself, 20 for God bought you with a high price. So you must honor God with your body.

1John 4:15-16  All who proclaim that Jesus is the Son of God have God living in them, and they live in God. 16 We know how much God loves us, and we have put our trust in him.God is love, and all who live in love live in God, and God lives in them.

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Exercise is a four letter word to most Americans, maybe it should be on the list of topics to not talk about, right next to religion and politics.

It doesn't matter what you do as long as you start moving around some more and burning more calories. The best form of exercise is the way that you enjoy the most, do something fun to take care of your temple!

I need to drop some pounds this year. I should park the car further away from the front door at work, take a walk in the evening and improve my diet.

Lord help me to take care of my body and treat it with the care that your temple deserves.

Resolution #5 - Make The Most Of Today

Sieze the day because time is ticking away.

Ephesian 2:10 For we are God's masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so that we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.

Ecclesiastes 3:12-13  I have concluded that there is nothing better for people than to be happy and to enjoy themselves as long as they live, and also that everyone should eat and drink, and find enjoyment in all his toil, for these things are a gift from God.

Philippians 4:4  Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I say, rejoice!

Psalm 144:4 For we are like a breath of air; our days are like a passing shadow.  

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When we are little our lives seem to be so long, each birthday seems to never get here and Christmas is an eternity away, but the older we get the faster the gears on the clock seem to turn. Even as fast as time seems to be moving it still seems like we have plenty of days left to take care of our good intentions.

There seems to be plenty of time to:

• Work less
• Increase family time
• Love more
• Listen to somebody that needs to share
• Get physically fit
• Be kinder 
• Focus on others

Before we know it we have spent too much of our day on the things that didn't matter. The urgent things that pop-up each day, the cares of life and the desire to accumulate wealth can easily get in the way of doing what I really intend to do.

I need to enjoy each day as a gift from God and invest my time in what really matters. People matter to God and he has called us to be his hands and feet to show the world his love, I want to be busy doing the work that God created me to do.

Help me Lord to be your hands and feet, showing your love to my family and to everyone around me. I want to be busy doing your work until my days on earth are gone.