At the end of every year, I have this sudden panic attack. You know, the kind where you realize that all your good intentions to fulfill those well-thought-out resolutions from the previous year have somehow faded in the reality of the 365 busy and demanding days that have taken place since the inception of the resolutions. And all that is left is one sad disappointed mother drowning in a gigantic pile of mama guilt.
We moms are great at talking about goals. We can chat favorite planners and calendar apps all day long. But sometimes, between the feeding, the bathing, and the cleaning {add your daily To-Do list here}, our big plans and lofty aspirations get pushed to the wayside in favor of the immediate.
Crafting resolutions can be tricky business. We don’t want to set ourselves up for failure, and neither do we want to set our sights too low.
This is why I’m totally writing/speaking to ALL of us when I say:
We need to ponder and pour over our resolutions with serious amounts of prayer.
Before we stick those Post-It notes on our mirrors and jot long lists in our journals, let’s take a moment to pause and douse ourselves in Scripture and prayerful petitions.
And as we do so, let’s commit to asking ourselves the following:
– Is this physically and emotionally feasible? Making a goal that your 20 month old will talk in full sentences, know her complete alphabet and be reading by age 2 may not be in the realm of possibility for your family. Just sayin’.
– Am I called to this? Has God equipped you with the appropriate gifts and talents to fulfill this task? And is NOW the right time?
– What is my motivation in setting this goal? Is someone else pressuring you to join them in their resolution? Who are you trying to impress?
– Is this from God, or simply my selfish desires speaking? Is it for your gain or His glory?
Then if we’re still convinced this is a goal we should set (we’ve marinated in it thoroughly before creating our action steps), by all means, let’s write it in a prominent place. For promises that are quickly spoken can also be quickly broken. Having a visible reminder can be a very good thing. (Especially for those of us visual folks who need things written down and staring us in the face or we’ll forget them.)
And if life happens and we get a little sidetracked in our resolutions, let’s give ourselves a little grace, knowing that sometimes God likes to reformat our dreams and goals.
Or maybe we need a season to rest and refrain from making any resolutions. Maybe our only To-Do should be to simply be faithful in exactly what is right in front of us. And that is perfectly okay.
{Portions of this post were taken from Shopping for Resolutions, an original work written by Anne-Renee Gumley for The Masterpiece Mom in December 2014.}
Anne-Renee Gumley
Latest posts by Anne-Renee Gumley (see all)
- Pondering and Pouring Over Resolutions - December 28, 2021
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- The Courageous No - November 30, 2021
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