Keeping Your Resolutions

By Cindy Williams, RN

Coordinator, Health Ministries

Are you one of the estimated 188.9 million American adults who made a New Year’s resolution? A recent Finder study reveals that 74 percent of us say that we are determined to do something to better ourselves in 2021. The top six categories for resolutions are health, self-improvement, money, family, love, and career, in descending order.

The other pertinent question is “Will you keep your resolution?” Have you already broken it? In that same survey, nearly 75 percent of all Americans with resolutions believe that it’s “in the bag.” Just over 12 percent don’t believe they can meet their resolution. That makes sense — most of us wouldn’t make a resolution that we are pretty sure we can’t keep. But my observation has been that many people, maybe even most, don’t keep their New Year’s resolutions. 

What prevents us from meeting these personal goals that we set? Survey respondents blame their failures on a lack of willpower, a lack of self-control, being lazy, and forgetting about them. 

I asked my students in the high school Health class I teach to select a personal health goal. It needed to be a short-term goal since the class only lasts one semester. They chose activities to help them meet the goal, then kept track of their activities and their progress toward the goal. Most of them were pretty motivated to reach their goal because they believed that their grade was dependent on that. Many did meet their goals, others really struggled with the assignment. They blamed their failures on forgetfulness, being lazy, lack of willpower (as did the survey respondents) and added the excuses that they were too busy, had set unrealistic goals for themselves as high school students, and had set goals they really didn’t care much about. 

Should we even make resolutions if keeping them is so hard? I believe that the answer is yes. I call them goals instead of resolutions. The new calendar on the wall is an opportunity to reevaluate our lives, see where we are and where God might be leading us. Jesus asked if anyone would start building a tower without first estimating the cost. Paul said, “But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.”

My students didn’t automatically get an “A” for meeting their goal. They also didn’t fail if they didn’t meet their goal. What I really wanted was for them to look at themselves, look ahead, see where they could be in the future, and learn how to get there. 

Proverbs 20:4 says “May He grant your heart’s desires and make all your plans succeed.” 

Next time we’ll look at some things that we can do to work with God on this. 

References

https://www.finder.com/new-years-resolution-statistics

Luke 14:28

Philippians 3:14

This article is part of a continuing series of health during these COVID times. For other articles, please see www.uccsda.org/healthministries.

Photo by Tim Mossholder on Unsplash