Did you write out a list, large or small, of New Year’s resolutions? If so, what do think about what you put down? Did the items pep you up about 2019 or did they spark no enthusiasm?
I typed out my resolutions in Evernote (a great app to store information you don’t care to memorize!) but I dubbed the document “2019 Goals” instead. All the exposure I’ve had to the value of goals must’ve stuck with me!
And I tried to make them SMART, too: Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic (or Relevant), and Timely.
My list has only four items; while it seems short, accomplishing them all would bless me big time!
I contemplated adding other resolutions because I knew that the four couldn’t happen by themselves. Each resolution would need supporting efforts to get me where I wanted to go.
And then I realized that what we call disciplines or habits make possible the attaining of our goals. Regular, methodical decisions and efforts take us step by step toward fulfilling our intentions.
Disciplines and goals–they belong together. I called my resolutions list “2019 Goals” but should I have added “disciplines?”
Let’s explore this.
According to Inc. magazine, going on a diet or eating healthy is the most common New Year’s resolution. Exercising more comes in second. Know what’s third? Losing weight!
You could argue that all three are goals, but the first two function as disciplines which help people reach the third one. If you eat right and exercise, you’ll drop a few pounds.
See the difference between disciplines and goals? Habits are paths we travel to arrive at our desired destinations. The goals are the aims we have in mind.
So do we need goals? Consider the above example. If we develop the habits of eating nutritious foods and working out on a regular basis, our health will improve and we’ll lose some weight. Why not drop the goal, then, and focus on the disciplines?
A few days ago, I heard a podcast which had Rodrigo de la Sotta, a psychologist who works in a church planting organization, as a guest. He told a story about visiting a friend who was into competitive motorcycle racing. The lighter you make your motorcycle, the faster it’ll run, so he spent a lot of time and energy seeking ways to shed anything off that cycle he could get his hands on. He pursued that advantage.
When Rodrigo stopped by the man’s garage a few weeks later, his friend’s appearance surprised him.
“Hey, you look good,” Rodrigo declared, “it looks like you’ve lost some weight!”
“Yes, I did,” he replied. “I finally realized I could spend thousands of dollars swapping out lighter parts on my bike or I could lose ten pounds off myself for nothing!”
There are two ways to lose ten pounds; spend a fortune or do it for free! But the end results were the same. Whether he found lighter parts for the motorcycle or went on a diet, either way the reduced weight would help him compete.
Rodrigo’s friend practiced two disciplines: tinkering with his motorcycle and dieting. Why? What was his goal? He wanted to win races.
His disciplines served a larger purpose and so must ours. At the beginning of the year, many of us make resolutions. Are these goals or disciplines?
They’re both; a resolution is a commitment to something. Whether that’s a discipline or a goal is up to us.
Rodrigo cited the example of his friend to encourage us to pay attention to our personal lives, not only our techniques or skills. While that’s helpful advice, I hear the story emphasize the significance and power of goals. His friend lost weight because he wanted to win races. Goals motivate our disciplines.
Take a few minutes to review your New Year’s Resolutions. How many of them are goals? How many are disciplines? We need both.
If you have a mix, that’s great. If, like me, you wrote only goals, that’s okay, too. Just instill the habits you’ll need to hit your targets. And if you listed several disciplines, define the purposes behind them.
Jesus characterizes discipleship as a goal:
“And whoever does not carry their cross and follow me cannot be my disciple. 28Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Won’t you first sit down and estimate the cost to see if you have enough money to complete it? 29For if you lay the foundation and are not able to finish it, everyone who sees it will ridicule you, 30saying, ‘This person began to build and wasn’t able to finish.’ 31Or suppose a king is about to go to war against another king. Won’t he first sit down and consider whether he is able with ten thousand men to oppose the one coming against him with twenty thousand? 32If he is not able, he will send a delegation while the other is still a long way off and will ask for terms of peace. 33In the same way, those of you who do not give up everything you have cannot be my disciples.” – Luke 14:27-33
To have Christ count us as His disciples, we must abandon ourselves to Him without reservation. We do this through the disciplines of carrying our cross, following Him, and giving up everything we have. And Jesus pictures dedication to discipleship like building a house or going to war. People need to prepare or they won’t succeed.
How do we equip ourselves to have God acknowledge us as disciples of Jesus? By training ourselves in the habits of carrying the cross, following the Lord, and yielding our goods to Him. Demanding disciplines, yes, but they lead us to the goal of public identification with Jesus Christ as our Lord.
The apostle Paul reminds us that this process takes time, but it’s time well spent.
“Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, 14I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.” – Philippians 3:13-14
How do your New Year’s resolutions bring you closer to Jesus? What will they produce in you that will enable you to honor the Lord and serve others?
Nothing wrong with winning motorcycle races or losing weight, but seek to ground all your goals on the foundation of your commitment to Christ. When you do, you’ll succeed in ways you haven’t imagined!
Resolve to have a blessed 2019!
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