New Years Resolutions--Is God on Your List?

It's a New Year. In fact, it's a brand new decade. Twenty-ten. Or, is it two-thousand and ten? People everywhere are debating how to say it. Well, however we say it, it's still a new year. And a new year always provides us the opportunity to begin with a new slate. So, I've been giving resolutions a great deal of thought.

If you're like me, year after year, you create a list of New Year’s resolutions. But every year, all of the things on the list are the same. They're just worded differently. Like get more organized. Exercise more often. Eat healthier. Be a better wife, mother, friend, and neighbor. Eat more vegetables. (My husband is calling for more broccoli. Does broccoli cheese soup count?) Anyhow, a few weeks ago, I read something that sparked a change in my thinking as far as resolutions go.



The question was: Where is God in your life?



I immediately thought, "Is God at the top of my list?"
I wanted to say, "Of course, he is." And sure enough, if I really spent time thinking about it there would be many evidences where I could support that thought. Scripture study. Check. Family scripture study. Check. Church attendance. Check. Service. Check. But then I thought about it. Does God really come first? And if he does, what does that look like? Well, if God comes first, then everything...EVERYTHING I do...has to show evidence that he really does come first.

If someone where to look at my life, would they see that God is first in my life? Would they know by talking to me that that was the case? Would they see that to be true in how I spend my time? Who I spend my time with and what I think about? What dreams I pursue? How I spend my money? How I treat people? How I serve people? What I do when no one's looking?

Needless to say, I concluded that if God really comes first then you and others around you will able to see it. Feel it. And so with some deep and introspective thought, I took inventory of my life, but not in a list form. I didn't create an endless list of resolutions. I just made one.

New Year’s Resolution for 2010: TO PUT GOD FIRST IN MY LIFE. That's it. There's nothing else on my list. Because with that at the top of my list, there really isn't a need for anything else.

President Ezra Taft Benson once said:  "We must put God in the forefront of everything else in our lives. He must come first, just as He declares in the first of His Ten Commandments: ‘Thou shalt have no other gods before me’ (Ex. 20:3). “When we put God first, all other things fall into their proper place or drop out of our lives."

Today is January 6th. And I have a lot to do. But I'm starting out the day with that one thing in mind--to put God first. It's going to be good day. I can feel it. I can't assume that for 359 more days I will be able to keep that resolution perfectly. I know there are going to be those days, those moments, when I mess up.  But that's where God has already put a plan in place for when I fall short of my resolution. Repentance. And the grace and mercy of Jesus Christ. God is really good at his job!  So I'm heading into a new year, excited and optimistic about 2010. 

I'm hoping that by doing this, when I get to the end of 2010, I will be able to see a difference in my life; in how I feel about my life; and where I've been and what I've done. And when I ask myself on December 31, 2010, "Where is God in your life, Jodi Robinson?" "Does God come first?"  "And what does that look like?" I'll be able to answer with a clear conscience.

"Well, he's first on my list."

What are your New Year's resolutions? And is God at the top of your list? Let me know how you intend to strengthen your relationship with God in 2010. Post your comments. I love hearing from you.


With love and friendship,

Jodi