What Are Your Goals For The New Year?

New year, new you. Well, not exactly.

I'm a goal setter by nature. At the end of each year, I find myself naturally reflecting on the previous year. Sometimes, this is met with thankfulness and joy because I've seen some success in my life. Often, though, I find myself wishing I would've stayed the course a little better in March and April. Regardless of how I feel, I'm always ready to look through my priorities and develop my goal list for the following year. 

Different Perspectives on Goal Setting
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People respond differently to the idea of setting goals. One of my pastor friends said that making resolutions and setting goals is stupid because we don't usually make it past the shortest month of the year before we've jumped ship. We've all seen people losing weight for too many Januarys only to find it again by March and April, so he's got a point. But he's a bit too pessimistic. When goals are reasonable, specific, and measurable, we get closer to success.

Another one of my friends has a knack for systems and structures, and he is a diehard planner. He has his days mapped out with a plan for how he will use his time most effectively and move toward his goals. He takes goal setting seriously. Unfortunately, I'm not even disciplined enough to create a daily plan, let alone actually trying to keep it. He's showing me some ways to keep my goals in the forefront of my mind throughout the new year. This is helpful since I love setting goals and planning my year but don't always do such a great job following through.

Rethinking My Yearly Goal Setting Ritual

This year, I've decided to think differently about my goals. I'll still have my overarching goals with my shorter term objectives. I'm planning to have some monthly check-ins to evaluate how I'm doing. However, I'm considering how to turn my objectives into short, doable habits that can be added to my daily routines. This won't work for every goal, but it should get me moving in the right direction.

For example, if my goal is to write and record an album by June 2021, I won't plan to work on music every day of the week. That's not feasible because I get lost for hours when working on music. It would wreak havoc on my goals. However, one of my goals is to spend more quality time with my daughters. My habit can be to spend 15 minutes at the end of each day spending intentional, distraction free Daddy time with my girls. Will I spend more than that with my daughters? Of course. But if I add 15 minutes a day of quality time with my girls and hit that goal 80% of the time, I'll spend an extra 73 hours—over 3 days—of additional undistracted time with them.

2 Major Influences: Big Picture Themes and Priorities

I have some big picture themes that I hope will permeate all areas of my life. In flawless Baptist preacher alliteration, here are my themes for 2020:

• Prayer: I need to spend more time with God and less time seeking Google, friends, or family for everything. 
• Presence: I want to abide more deeply in Christ and be more present with the important people in my life.
• Passion: I want to pursue the Lord and His will with a passion—including all of the priorities listed below.
• Patience: If I don't want to make a train wreck of my relationships, I need to put on patience.
• Perseverance: With friends and ministry leaders falling away from the faith, I need to keep pressing on in the faith.
• Purity: I want to pursue purity of heart, thoughts, and motives in every area of my life.

I also prioritize key areas of my life. My priorities don't change much, though there may be dynamics that need to shift in some of these areas priorities. My priorities include:

• Spiritual Life
• Marriage
• Parenting
• Ministry/Fellowship
• Work
• Finances
• Health and Wellness
• Writing and Music

As you can see, I have a lot going on. I'm going to have to walk by the Spirit if I don't want to crash and burn. However, if I can chip away day-by-day, week-by-week, and month-by-month, with the Lord's help, I can make progress.

God Has the Final Say

Lest I be self-reliant and focus too much on my methods and plans, here are a couple of passages that I keep in mind this time of year:

The heart of man plans his way, but the Lord establishes his steps.
-Proverbs 16:9

Trust in the LORD with all your heart,
and do not lean on your own understanding.
In all your ways acknowledge him,
and he will make straight your paths.
Be not wise in your own eyes;
fear the LORD, and turn away from evil.
It will be healing to your flesh
and refreshment to your bones.
-Proverbs 3:5-8

Unless the LORD builds the house, those who build it labor in vain. Unless the LORD watches over the city, the watchman stays awake in vain.
-Psalm 127:1

With these scriptures in mind, one truth must undergird all of this planning and goal setting: without God, I can do nothing (John 15:5). Nothing means nothing. If the Lord doesn't sustain my life, I won't even wake up tomorrow. If the Lord doesn't empower me to do good, my efforts will be no better than the self-righteous Pharisees who patted themselves on the back as they waited for the praise of men.

This very morning I was tempted to look in the mirror and think about how great I am. I had to immediately repent and pray for the pure heart required to be a truly godly man. Then, during corporate worship, my pastor reminded me that I'm not righteous apart from Christ. I'm a lost sheep brought home on the shoulders of a rejoicing Savior (Luke 15:6). I need the gospel in all of my plans and pursuits.

The Lord has the final say on what goals I reach and what goals I don't. He gets the glory for every success and goal that I reach. And if I've set goals that aren't in line with His purposes, I should be praying that He would purify my heart and show me the goals He would have for me. All of this comes through time in the Word and prayer in the personal devotion and community with other believers. God's means of showing me His will are right here in front of me if I will open my eyes, humble my heart, and resolve my will to obey His Word.

Have you set any goals, resolutions or plans for 2021? What methods are you using to track them and keep yourself accountable? Let me know in the comments! Happy New Year!