We all are inspired to give up our bad habits when the calendar flips to January 1. The new year gives us hope I guess. We feel like the date on a calendar wipes our slate clean.

The tradition is actually an ancient one. The Babylonians started each new year paying up all their debts and returning anything they borrowed.

The Romans, who named January after the god of beginnings and transitions, Janus, began the year making promises to Janus for the service they would offer.

And so it stuck.

We make promises, goals and lists to redo, restart and refocus on everything from our weight, exercise routine, time with our family and how much money we spend.

Have you ever done one of these lists and then felt like a total loser on January 15 when you gained 5 pounds and skipped 3 days at the gym already?

So this is it… NO NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTION

 

Just stop it. Stop making promises you can’t keep. Stop chasing bullet points on a list.

Start doing something that will really produce change. Start pursuing Jesus.

Maybe you are thinking, great! But how? How do I pursue Jesus? How do I get closer to him?

I have been asking myself that same question because I have realized that my relationship with Jesus doesn’t come naturally. I gravitate toward God my Father. My prayers, my praise, my thoughts, my meditations usually focus on my familiar, paternal relationship with God as my Father. I am feeling like there is something more. Something I am missing.

So I am spending 31 days in January on a personal journey with Jesus and I am inviting you to come with me. I am going to meet Jesus on the streets where he walked. I will sit in the crowd and listen to his words of life. I will trade places with the women who felt his touch on their skin and his whisper in their ear.

Will you join me?

Let’s do it. Let’s experience more Jesus.

And if you do not carry your own cross and follow me, you cannot be my disciple. Luke 14: 27