A new kind of resolution

It seems like everywhere I turn right now I hear about New Year’s resolutions. I find it quite fascinating actually – it’s as though everyone in the western world suffers temporary bouts of amnesia, forgetting that last year (and every year before that) these same resolutions ended up in the crapper two weeks into it. But this year will be different right? You will finally drop that weight. You will finally run that marathon. You will finally learn to speak Arabic, read Moby Dick and knit socks for everyone in your family.

I can’t really judge; I am the worst at making unrealistic goals and then beating myself up when I don’t reach them. The beginning of every year usually goes something like this: In addition to learning a new language and writing the next great American novel, I will magically turn my body into something found in a Victoria Secret’s catalog by denying myself all desserts and anything else delicious. I will also plan to work out two hours a day (if Madonna can do it, so can I), getting up at 4 in the morning so I have enough time.

I end up spending all my time reading magazine articles about kicking bad habits and posting encouraging sticky notes on my mirror (“You can do it!”). I brought bags of celery in my purse to birthday parties and glared at anyone who dared to eat the cake in front of me (“Bastards!”).

Two weeks later would find me sleep-deprived and curled in a fetal position on the floor, clutching a pint of ice cream and with chocolate smeared all over my face.

So this year I’ve decided to stop. the. madness.

I’ve spent the last several months learning to accept my body the way God made it. I’ve ditched dieting. The extra junk in my trunk is going to stay where it is. And I’m determined that my resolution will not involve trying to change that.

Instead, I want to focus on what matters. I want to spend my time doing what I was put on Earth to do: Worship my God with a joyful heart.

But since my heart is rarely joyful, and I have an awful tendency to overdo it (see above), I’m going to start small, i.e., my one resolution is to read the Bible every day this year. The online reading plan promised me I could do it in 15 minutes a day. And I can handle 15 minutes.

What are your resolutions this year? Are they doable?