Resolutions

Today's class started with a brief history of the modern standard calendar. Randall indicated that the later material would be a little heavy and thus he wanted to start with a light-hearted topic.

Because of the date, the discussion today centered on making resolutions, especially because so many people will make resolutions to change or improve at the start of the new year.

Here are some suggestions on things we can do prior to making a resolution.

1. Remember that this isn't my life, it's God's life.
Proverbs 3:5-6 gives us some good direction to follow. One example we discussed was that of Joseph and Pharaoh. If they had leaned on their own understanding of events, there would have been 7 years of partying followed by 7 disastrous years rather than the storing of food for 7 years that God desired for them. We spent a little time thinking about how bad things can get when we rely on our own knowledge of things. Randall discussed how as a child he could not fathom the discipline of his parents. As he grew, he knew that even when he didn't understand his parents' decisions, they were still done in his best interests. God is like that with us. We do not understand His decisions. He has a purpose for us and the world that is greater than our comprehension. As we grow in faith, we can understand that God wants the best for us and can trust His guidance even when it doesn't make sense at the time.

This tied in to a discussion on sovereignty and lordship. We are bondservants of Christ. This doesn't sit well with us in the USA because we really value freedom. Slavery is a horror to us. However, when put in the correct context, we realize that we are slaves or servants to something no matter what. God is the best master for us because He wants the best for us. Thus we can throw off the old master (as Paul puts it - being a slave to sin) and have a far better master. Then when we are under God's authority, we can exercise the authority He gives to us appropriately.

2. Be a worshiper.
Job 1:20-21 - "The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away. Blessed be the name of the Lord." We spent some time on this topic and how we can worship through the good and bad times. When we have a good relationship with God, we can worship Him no matter what happens because we know that He has our best interests in mind. He may take something away to draw us closer to Him or to enable us to minister to those who go through similar scenarios. Worship is always to be a part of our lives, no matter the circumstances.

One of our goals as a Christian is to help other people become worshipers. We can help them understand who God really is and clear up their misconceptions about Him. Once they know who God is and not who they think God is, they can begin to move towards a life where they can give Him the honor that is due.

3. Move past our pain and fears
Psalm 139:23-24 - The psalmist asks for God to search him, to know his heart, his sin, his anxieties. We talked about how people called to the ministry in some denominations or countries are questioned about sins that they are snared by. These sins are not those that happen once in a while, but regularly and often. The leaders then work with the person called into ministry to help him be free of that sin so he will be free to minister to others. This will obviously not make the person sinless, but will help that person have freedom to do the job God has called him or her to.

We then talked about some common resolutions people make at the beginning of the year and what fears those typically address.

1. Get in shape (lose weight, etc) - addresses our fears of sickness/death and rejection
2. New Job - addresses our fear of not having security

While other resolutions may be made, Randall suggests that our resolutions tend to fall into the categories of helping us ease our fears of sickness, rejection, and security. He then issued some challenges prior to making a resolution.


Put God's word to the test.
Daniel 1:8,12 - Daniel very graciously invites the king's servant to put their faith to a test. In this case, by politely requesting that they be given foods that met the criteria of the law rather than unclean foods of the land. When put to the test, they came out stronger and healthier than the other candidates.

This is not to be confused with testing God by putting ourselves in harm's way when not called to do so. However, when we are confronted with a passage in the scripture that challenges our current, familiar way of living we should go with God's word over our familiar and comfortable choices. Ideally, verify that what we see in God's word is what is actually there and that we are interpreting it correctly. However, we can put God's word to a test in our own lives in the same way that Daniel suggested - a short term test to see what God will do.


Are we addressing real issues or surface issues?

Is the church today addressing real issues or surface issues? Many conferences discuss how to get more people in the pews or how to lead different music styles or similar topics. While these are of some importance, are we neglecting the true issue of people's souls by concentrating so hard on getting people in the door? Do we compromise the gospel message in order to attract more people? Do we concentrate so hard on being [contemporary|traditional|blended|a capella] music-wise, that we may not see that some of the words we're singing contradict God's word? Do we water down the fact that we are sinners and in need of a savior because that message offends people?

Similarly, when we make a resolution are we making a choice that affects us on the surface or that will affect us for the long term? e.g. Will a new job really help us or will we just change locations? Will that job have an importance greater than that of putting in our time and going home? Is that new job where God has called us to be?


Our Conceptions
Finally, where do our conceptions come from as Christians? Our conceptions tend to originate with our Denomination, Generation, and Location. That is, those of us living in the DFW area who are Southern Baptist and in our 20's and 30's will have slightly different ideas on how to live our lives than Methodists or Lutherans in the area, or different ideas than people slightly older or younger than us, or different ideas than believers in another country.

With that in mind, we talked about some things to watch out for when considering what has been revealed to us and others.

• Other Denominations have truth as well. We still need to check that against the word of God, but one denomination may be very strong in certain areas which other denominations do not practice to the same extent.
• Other Generations have truth. We can step outside of our own generation to learn from those younger than us and those from the near and distant past. Reading through some of the sermons of preachers such as C.H. Spurgeon or George Whitefield can help us to grow in our own faith.
  
• Other Locations may have a different set of instructions than we do. China was brought up as an excellent example of a country where Christians want to spread the gospel to nations closed to American or European Christians. Those Christians are ready to lay down their lives for the gospel. They have a different location and thus have different opportunities for service.

Where do we go from here?
1. Put God's word to the test. Give God an opportunity to bless you by following His guidelines for living. Give God's word priority over the way our own understanding says is right.

2. Ensure that when making a resolution to change that you are making the right change. Don't just look for a surface change or a quick-fix. Ask God to help you get to the root of your problem and fix that.

3. Seek help from another person. Ecclesiastes 4:9-12 offers some great advice on this. A wiser person or someone who does not struggle in the area you feel led to change will be a great help when you are tempted to stray from your resolution.