8 Tips For New Year's Resolutions

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I have never been one to make New Year's Resolutions. I'm not sure why.

Maybe the practical side of me realized that I would be putting too much pressure on myself to succeed when I wasn't ready to move forward. Perhaps it was because most of the people I knew were making them, and I purposely go against the tide. Or, maybe I tend to find ways to improve myself consistently throughout the year, rather than only once at the beginning.

We all know what the statistics say: Last year, after only six days into the new year, 11 percent of adults had already given up on their resolutions; 22 percent had cheated at least once.

One poll found that just 28 percent who make resolutions succeeded in keeping them, while a whopping 46 percent never get started.

What does this tell us? Perhaps one of two things: Either we are a people who can't keep commitments, or we don't know how to keep commitments.

More often than not, people make commitments to do things without crafting a plan, and if they do have a plan, they aren't successful with implementing it. If that is the case, then the solution may not be too difficult.

Here are a few tips that my help you keep your New Year's Resolutions:

• Think of your resolution as a lifestyle change, rather than a specific area to focus on.
• Keep your list short: A long list of resolutions can be overwhelming. You can always work on other areas of your life throughout the year after you've mastered your list.
• Instead of stating a generality (I'm going to lose weight this year), give a specific, measurable, and achievable goal: I'm going to lose 15 pounds by June 1st.
• Set regular intervals to gauge your progress: Weekly weigh-in.
• Elect someone to hold you accountable: Rather than someone who is seeking to achieve the same goals (it's easy for both of you to "mutually cheat"), choose someone with no stake in the outcome.
• Challenge yourself, rather than chastise yourself.
• Reward yourself with successes, but not with reverting back to what moved you to make a resolution in the first place. (I don't get it when people do this, but I am OCD: Does a smoker have a cigarette after going 30 days smoke-free?)
• Record (journal or electronic) not only your progress, but also your feelings, thoughts, struggles, and emotions during this time.

I am no expert on New Year's Resolutions, but I do know a thing or two about changing a lifestyle. Go ahead: Give it a shot, make the commitment. You can do it!

Question: What have been helpful practices that made you successful in keeping your New Year's Resolutions? Share your thoughts below in 'comments'.

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Saturated Second Stanza

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What in the world is he taking about with that title? Saturated Second Stanza. Read on and I will explain...

I love music, and I love Christmas. Therefore, I really love the music of Christmas.

Old Christmas Hymns, modern Christmas worship songs, and rearranged old Christmas Hymns with new choruses and bridges. To a musician, Christmas music is heavenly!

One of my favorite Christmas songs is Hark The Herald Angels Sing, first published by Charles Wesley in 1739. It is full of rich lyric and melody.

Hidden in the second verse is one of the most profound grouping of words that I have ever encountered in a song:

• Christ, by highest heaven adored (the greatest in heaven worship Jesus)
• Christ, the everlasting Lord (Jesus is eternal, Jesus is Lord)
• Late in time behold Him come (Jesus is the fulfillment of the prophet's words)
• Offspring of a virgin’s womb (Jesus was miraculously conceived)
• Veiled in flesh the Godhead see, Hail the incarnate Deity (Jesus is fully man, yet fully God)
• Pleased as man with man to dwell, Jesus our Immanuel (Jesus willingly became a man to dwell among us)
• Hark the herald angels sing, glory to the newborn King (the angels declare Jesus' birth)

I hope you will take the time to "sing" through the second stanza above and meditate on the profound truths that seep through the lyrics. It truly is a Saturated Second Stanza.

Question? Have you listened to the words that you sing in Christmas songs? What do you hear? Share your thoughts below in 'comments'.

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Christmas Caroling Kindness

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A few years ago while serving as a worship pastor in a church, a few of my team and I thought we ought to go Christmas Caroling. But instead of walking through neighborhoods and singing on the lawns of friends and neighbors, we came up with a different plan.

I asked one of our office staff to compile a list of people who were a part of our church, but for health or reasons otherwise, weren't able to leave their homes.

When we received the list and saw the many names on it, we realized that it was going to be a large undertaking. We shared the idea with our entire worship  ministry membership and the response was overwhelming!

We chose a Saturday in the month of December, split up the names and addresses geographically (we were in a large metropolitan area), secured several passenger vans, divided into teams, and prepared for a day of ministry.

There was about eight inches of snow on the ground from a previous snowfall, so the setting was perfect for some Christmas Caroling Kindness. We would knock on a door as a team (8-12 people per team), and when the door was answered we would break into song. Many times we were invited in because the person we were "targeting" wasn't able to come to the door.

It was glorious!

When we returned to the church building and shared our experiences with the other teams, it was obvious that this was a divine endeavor. Story after story emerged demonstrating how our simple act of Christmas Caroling Kindness literally "made" Christmas special for the receiver.

My favorite story actually happened with the team I was a part of. Our "target" was the wife of an elderly gentlemen who had suffered a stroke about eight months previously. He was bed-ridden, unable to take care of even the most basic of needs, and was for the most part unresponsive.

We wanted to encourage his wife, who except for very rare occasions, had not been able to attend our worship services nor get out for shopping or socializing because of his constant need for care and attention.

We sang for her on the porch, and she invited us into the house to "visit" her husband. Our simple choir of nine gathered around his hospital bed where he was laying and after praying for him, we broke into song and did a medley of Christmas carols.

When we finished, I noticed that the gentleman, who had laid still staring at the ceiling, had a tear running down his cheek.

Again, it was glorious!

What are some of your Christmas (Caroling) Kindness stories? Share your thoughts below in 'comments'.

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Christmas Decorations: In Your Neighborhood!

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Drive through any neighborhood and you will see them: Christmas decorations adorning houses.

Lights, wreaths, stars, manger scenes, trees, reindeer, sleds, and Santas. From giant blow-up snowmen to a single electric candle in a window, decorations are everywhere.

There are neighborhood decorating contests, neighborhood elfing (you've been Elf-ed!), and even neighborhood codes that restrict the size and amount of decorations.

I even found blogs, announcements, and articles touting the best neighborhoods to view decorations in your city.

Some houses remain undecorated for Christmas. Maybe the residents don't celebrate Christmas. Or maybe they do, but resist commercialization by doing nothing. Or maybe they are too busy working, or even shopping for Christmas presents.

I remember one family that staged a living Nativity scene one Christmas complete with animals and live "actors" (I'm not sure if the baby Jesus was an actual baby or a doll).

Where I used to live there was one family that filled almost every square foot of their generous front yard with Christmas decorations from the graceful to the gaudy. (My Maryland/DC readers know exactly what house I am referring to!).

Where am I going with all of this? Simple: As you pass by decorated houses, whether they be simple or sophisticated, observe and enjoy. Don't pass judgement. Do remember the true meaning of Christmas.

Question: What are your thoughts concerning decorating your house & yard for Christmas? Share your thoughts below in 'comments'.

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Christmas Cookies And Other Creativity

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I listened to a news report this morning on the radio indicating that Americans are spending much less on Christmas gifts this year than projected (no real news there). The reporter went on to indicate that after time, children forget what gifts they received, but remembered time spent.

I began to think about my childhood Christmas memories and the things I received, as opposed to the time spent. I realized that yes, I do remember events and relationships over things.

Even as an adult this holds true for me. (Christmas 1999 stands out in my mind, but don't ask...)

What about your memories?

Well, back to my title Christmas Cookies, And Other Creativity. What are you doing to create memories with your families?

Some ideas: Baking Christmas cookies, decorating the house & tree, driving the neighborhoods looking at the "lights" (one of my childhood memories), reading aloud Christmas stories (a tradition that our family began 15 years ago).

Even as we get older and our children move away and begin to develop their own events and relationships, new things may emerge as creative memory makers.

The bottom line in this post: Don't simply buy things. Bake some cookies... and be creative!

Question: What can you do this Christmas with your family that is creative? Share your thoughts below in 'comments'.

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