I Am Resolved

Kent Heaton

 The spirit of a fresh beginning brings out a supreme desire to make life better with a new opportunity. A new page invites new words; a new year suggests rededication; new relationships open doors for better conversation; the harmony of a road not travelled will inspire many to seek higher planes. Whatever the reason, the human spirit thrives on the unique character of new beginnings.

With each passing year a resolution is born of the remembrance of days gone by with its successes and failures. Birthdays celebrated remind us of the passing saga of age. Plans made are realized and sometimes dashed but the essence of life continues to thrive upon the reality of one more day giving rise to one more chance. The New Year is a sign post in life that helps man to remember the “vapor” of life (James 4:14). Was it not just yesterday the world was consumed by the “millennial bug” of fear for the changing of the calendar to another century? That was twelve years ago. Time marches on.

Separating us from all other forms of life is a desire to better our station in life. Being made in the image of an eternal being (Genesis 1:26-27) exalts our knowledge of the past with a dim hope of a future. The resolutions we seek to make and then try hard to keep come from an earnest need to rise above our failures and disappointment. “The ten pounds I resolved to lose last year will be accomplished this year,” we say. Myriad are the promises of resolution made from year to year and so often falling upon the cobblestone steps of apathy and disinterest.

In our efforts to better ourselves we must find the moral courage to stand against the despair that washes away our resolutions. We can seldom be more than we desire to become. Our hearts must be firmly planted upon the deeply devoted purpose of being everything to God He demands of our lives. Great is the challenge to resolve to serve God. “So the scribe said to [Jesus], ‘Well said, Teacher. You have spoken the truth, for there is one God, and there is no other but He. And to love Him with all the heart, with all the understanding, with all the soul, and with all the strength, and to love one’s neighbor as oneself, is more than all the whole burnt offerings and sacrifices.’” (Mark 12:32-33).

I am resolved to learn there is but one God (Ephesians 4:6). I am resolved to love God with every bit of my love, my understanding, my soul, my strength and to show love by caring for my neighbor. My resolution is built upon the promise of God’s love for me (John 3:16) and the debt I can never repay. I am resolved to meditate upon the words of God as they become my speech (Psalm 1). My thoughts will become His thoughts. The words that I speak will be seasoned with the salt of His grace (Colossians 4:6).

A new year has been granted along with each new day. The joy of a new day is not promised as the hope of tomorrow is a fleeting wisp of dew upon the ground. By God’s grace we live and breathe (Acts 17:25). My resolution is to live that I may die in Christ where life is found (Philippians 1:21). My purpose each day is to please God (1 Thessalonians 4:1). “I am resolved no longer to linger; charmed by the world’s delight. Things that are higher, things that are nobler; these have allured my sight.”