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Ways to Start The New Year With a New You in The Presence of God By Brian Taylor It never fails. People look forward to a new year with great anticipation that it will be a great year. The challenge for most comes in how to go about having that great new year. Even more, is the thought of having a great year in God's presence. It's not enough to just start a new year on a good foot, but you want to truly be in a place where you know that things between you and God are running on all cylinders. Like a well oiled machine, you have to give yourself a good maintenance and run a checklist to be sure that when the new year comes in, you're not just starting well but you can get the momentum you need to carry you through the entire year. Here are some things that you will want to consider for doing just that:
Reflection: Some people have trouble with this one. It's often difficult to go back over the previous year to see what worked in your spiritual life and what didn't. Some just don't want to even think about where they may have come up short. Yet, it is in seeing those pitfalls and successes that you can see what needs to be tweaked and where improvements can be made. It's like in business, where you are performing your own personal SWOT analysis. You want to see your strengths, weaknesses, opportunities for improvement and threats. If you discover a threat to your relationship with God such as overscheduling, or spending too much time in foolish things that are not profiting your spiritual growth, consider eliminating those things so that you are focusing on things that truly matter.
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Resolution:
Relationships:
I know, this one seems to be what gets everyone in trouble year after year. Yet, I've found that in making resolutions, it is the Christian who is most capable of fulfilling them. God tells us that we should be careful in the vows we make. The way we do this is by making sure that when we make one, it is obtainable. There is no sense in making a resolution or vow that is out of reach. Perhaps you set your resolution up in stages so that you are giving yourself the ability to achieve them. Remind yourself that when you make a resolution, it is something that you've determined in your heart that it is important to give your attention to this specific thing.
Don't forget the power of the relationships of other people in your life. You want to give consideration to both those that are good for you and those that are not good. The ones that are good, you want to maintain, strengthen, and utilize effectively. These are the relationships that you can count on as accountability partners who can help you stay focused on your goals to do well throughout the year, keep you motivated, encouraged when things get tough, and help you keep your eyes open to those things that you might be missing because certain things may be out of your peripheral view. The ones that aren't so good may have to be dealt with through more care. Those that you know are absolute contamination and curses to your progress and growth into a new you in your relationship with God, they may need to be pruned out of your life. Others may simply be relationships that God is wanting you to be a light to so that you become a source of renewal for them.
More importantly, is to include God in the process of your achieving the goal. What I mean by this is to pray intently that God will enable you with the strength, the wherewithal, and the fortitude to follow through.
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In the life of a Christian, we are disciples of one another, so we have the responsibility to build one another up and hold each other up when we see someone weakened, knowing that it could be us in that same situation. So, in looking to the new year, you can start it new with a new you in God's presence as you focus on your reflections, your resolutions, and your relationships. These three things should position you in such a way that when you get into the presence of God, not only will He draw you closer to Him, but He will empower you to face the new year in a new and more glorious way. Have a great new year with a new you in His presence!
Visit Brian’s Blog at www.apreachaskid.wordpress.com
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