By:    Bro. Chris Afekolu

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PREAMBLE

A New Year’s resolution is a tradition, most common in the world, in which a person makes a promise or resolve to do an act of self-improvement or something slightly nice.

Self-help, or self-improvement, is a self-guided improvement—economically, intellectually, or emotionally or your spiritual life—often with an extensive psychological basis.

When we were very much younger and started using Pen holder or fountain Pen in primary school, and mistake is made while writing, one would try hard to erase it before submitting assignment to the teacher. Sometimes, chalk is used to clean the mistake, but it later re-appeared. There are some that attempted to use saliva and Eraser, it worked, but only to leave holes in books and very untidy.

The teachers then used to punish the pupils for being outrageously dirty. But effort of the Pupil was to try to cover up the error. Effort made then tends to expose the Pupil the more. Trying to erase your mistakes would only damage your book to nothing and make it very dirty.

Later in life, we were taught that “Anytime you make a mistake, just cross it and move on”.

We all go out to erase our mistakes because we don’t want people to see them. Trying to erase your mistake will make more people know about your mess and the stigma is for life.

Have you made some mistakes in life? Cross it over and move on. Don’t expose yourself as a result of trying to cover your mistakes. Better things are ahead of you. Strike your 2021 mistakes and move into 2022 with a fresh note.

Our brother Apostle Paul expressed it thus … Brethren, I do not imagine that I have yet laid hold of it. But this one thing I do–forgetting everything which is past and stretching forward to what lies in front of me, with my eyes fixed on the goal I push on to secure the prize of God’s heavenward call in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 3:13-14 WNT) 

Examples of Resolutions made in the Bible

Jos 24:15 And if it seems evil unto you to serve the LORD, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.

Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego answered and said to the king, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer you in this matter. “If that is the case, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver us from your hand, O king. “But if not, let it be known to you, O king, that we do not serve your gods, nor will we worship the gold image which you have set up.” (Daniel 3:16-18 NKJV)

Then King David said to Ornan, “No, but I will surely buy it for the full price, for I will not take what is yours for the LORD, nor offer burnt offerings with that which costs me nothing.” (1 Chronicles 21:24 NKJV)

For I determined not to know anything among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified. (1 Corinthians 2:2 NKJV)

Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 3:13-14 NKJV)

New Year Resolutions are a bit like babies; they are fun to make but extremely difficult to maintain. The commitments we make in a moment of enthusiasm don’t have the sustaining power to carry us all the way to successful achievement of our New Year resolutions. It’s hard to keep up the enthusiasm (Passion, Zeal, eagerness or interest) months after months, but it is not impossible. Hence, I will approach this discussion from goal setting angle! Better to approach it as setting goals. What is your goal(s) for 2022?

Goal setting is obviously a powerful process. It’s based on the principle of focus that allows us to concentrate rays of diffused sunlight into a force powerful enough to state a fire. It’s a concentrated energy towards achieving a set goal or purpose. It’s the manifestation of the creative imagination and independent will. It is the practicality of translating vision into achievable, actionable doing. Goal setting is a superb tool for measurement of successful Individuals and organisations.

What are your goals?

• Short term goal (1 to 90 days plan)
• Intermediate goal (90 days to 2- or 3-years plan)
• Long range goal of the business {2 or 3 to 5 years plan, 5year to 10 years plan, ..to life time
• Goals are the stepping – stones that guide you to your vision of who you are, what you are about, and whatever you want to achieve, you may make a goal of anything you wish to accomplish. A performance indicator or Key performance indicator (KPI) should be included in your plan as a performance measurement tool that can give room for identification of potential improvement.
• Once you specifically define your vision {desired future position} of yourself – you better life – you should establish goals as the specific steps that will lead you to the realization of your vision.
• What? What do I desire to accomplish? What is the contribution I want to make? What is the end I have in mind?
• Why? Why do I want to do it? Does my goal grow out of mission, need and principles? Does it empower me to contribute through my role? The key to motivation is motive. It’s the “why”. It’s what gives you the energy to stay strong in hard moments. It gives us the strength to say “no” because we connect with a deeper “yes” burning inside.
• The stronger the connection, the stronger and more sustained the motivation. No wonder Children of God are advised to renew their inner mind daily.
• Therefore, we do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day. (2 Corinthians 4:16 NKJV)

Why should I focus on Spiritual growth in 2022?

• Anything of God grows; as a child of God, you need spiritual growth. Hebrews 5:12-14
• Maintain status quo of being a new creature; old things (previous moral and spiritual condition) are passed away, all things have become new – 2 Corinthians 5:17
• Need to grow in your faith and strength in God; not being tossed about with any little offset. Ephesians 4:14
• Bear fruits; able to share the gospel and convince the gainsayers. John 15:5, Titus 1:9 and Jude 1:15
• Manifest the fruits of the Spirit; being a book one can read for godliness. Galatians 5:22-23
• The why is endless; you can consider more as you set your deliverables in 2022.

How do I achieve spiritual growth or growth for God in 2022?

• The first given is prayer; you must pray to God for help to achieve the proposed improvement plan.
• You need to list areas you need improvement or weakness you need to work on.
• You set the goals and key performance indicators to measure your performance.
• You look for enables that will help you achieve your goals
• Watch out for blockers or hindrances
• Know when to seek for Help
• Example;
• For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh; for these are opposed to each other, to prevent you from doing what you would. (Galatians 5:17 RSV)
• In my goal for 2022, I want to eliminate the desires of the flesh; as this is against the Spirit, which of cause can hinder my growth for God
• The word of God explicitly lists the works of the flesh.

“Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God”. (Galatians 5:19-21 NKJV)

Get a proper meaning of the listed works. Itemized them on a sheet of paper or spreadsheet; vertical axis while the horizontal will bear the date. The target for the year should be zero. One must strive to achieve this target on weekly basis by making adequate use of the enablers {teachings, sermons, personal studies etc.}. Any default in itemized works, will be recorded with red pen and scored 1 for each failure.

You can have a monthly review of these KPIs. Each month should be zero written in green. Not mandatory it should be zero in the initial months; it’s a journey towards covering weakness. Seeing spreadsheet will help you see areas you are making progress and areas that need improvement.

Same approach should be used depending on the areas of weakness you want to improve on.

Another example could be

In my goal for 2022, I want the manifestation of the fruit of the Spirit; as the presence of the Holy Spirit in my life will facilitate or promote my spiritual growth.

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law. (Galatians 5:22-23 NKJV)

Same process as above but scoring will be different. Because I am expected to achieve 100% on this as a child of God, each week will carry 7 units. When I default in a day it becomes less than 1. At the end of the year, your score will be summation of your score divided by 365 or 366 for leap year multiply by 100. This will give you your compliance percentage.

Your goal setting should focus on wellbeing; Growth in Economic, intellectually, Career….

Why?

• Greater support for the Lord’s work required; Contemporary challenge on evangelism demands great fund. Current approach of reaching out is – Door to door, Radio, open air peaching and personal contacts. They have limitations. Imagine sharing the undiluted word of God in National or international broadcast. Example –on Arise TV New Correspondent.
• Growing your income will minimise burden on the local congregation.
• Cost of living is always on the increase. We cannot control inflation. The trend may continue for some time to come even the beyond the current Administration. Economic indices continue to point south, our OPEX and debt servicing is far beyond our income as a Nation hence we continue to borrow. Blaming the government inadequacies cannot change or improve your source of income. Tougher times are ahead but not for God’s children, because He has promised to bless the works of our hands. { 28:12, Prov. 12:11, IThess. 4:11-12 & 2Cor, 9:8}
• Cost of living is always on the increase. We cannot control inflation. The trend may continue for some time to come even the beyond the current Administration. Economic indices continue to point south, our OPEX and debt servicing is far beyond our income as a Nation hence we continue to borrow. Blaming the government inadequacies cannot change or improve your source of income. Tougher times are ahead but not for God’s children, because He has promised to bless the works of our hands. { 28:12, Prov. 12:11, IThess. 4:11-12 & 2Cor, 9:8}

CONCLUSION
I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. (Philippians 4:13 NKJV)

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