Resolute

The future is something which everyone reaches at the rate of 60 minutes an hour, whatever he does, whoever he is. – C. S. Lewis

So here we are, at the beginning of a new year, 2013.  Facebook is abuzz with resolution posts, Twitter is trending.  Thing is, I’m not a big resolution guy, as I don’t find them particularly useful.  According to one study. “Less than a quarter of those asked had managed to stick to their resolutions. Of those who failed, many had followed the spurious advice of self-help gurus – which almost guarantees disaster, apparently.”  That study went on to state “making resolutions is a near pointless exercise, psychologists say. We break them, become dispirited in the process and finally more despondent than we were before.”  Well, that's not very encouraging!

Instead of something that I might want to do, or not do, I think I’ll focus on what I want to be: Resolute.  Resolute means you are purposeful, determined, and unwavering. It means you are determined, firm, decided, resolved, and decisive.  Resolute doesn't deal with what I want to try and do, but rather addresses how I am going to live. A resolution is a not-yet-fulfilled promise - being resolute is a state of being.

One of the pastors in our town recently wrote a book titled “My One Word,” because in their church they encourage the congregation to pick a single word, and focus on it all year.  I think resolute would be a good “one word.”

You see, each day you wake up, you are given a gift: one full day of life, and the sum of your life will be the sum of those days.  The question I would ask you is this:  How will you spend the hours, the minutes, the seconds, of your day? I think the Apostle Paul had some good advise:

See then that you walk circumspectly [careful, mindful], not as fools but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is. - Eph 5:15-17

I particularly like the NLT translation:

So be careful how you live. Don’t live like fools, but like those who are wise. Make the most of every opportunity in these evil days. Don’t act thoughtlessly, but understand what the Lord wants you to do. – Eph 5:15-17 NLT

I like it:  Understand what God wants me to do, be resolute in my pursuit of that calling, and make the most of every moment, because I've been given a limited amount of time to get it done.

Pastor Clay