These twelve resolutions are built around an acrostic that spells the words "Happy New Year." Each goal is one that could move you ahead in your spiritual development.

I must confess to you that last week, when the clock struck midnight on December 31^st, I was sound asleep. Well, I was asleep until all of the noise outside my folks' house woke me up. In Northern California this past week I visited my parents and was lying there in the bedroom where I grew up, in the same house my folks have lived in since 1956. Outside there was a huge explosion along with the sound of guns and the popping of firecrackers. In the distance I could hear partygoers screaming at the top of their lungs. It was a funny case of nostalgia really. I found myself reflecting upon all the other December 31^sts that had passed for me in this room.

My parents never were ones to celebrate on New Year's Eve, so as a child and then a teenager, I was usually right there listening to all the things going on beyond the windows of the house.

As I listened to all the noise that went on for about 10 or 15 minutes, I found myself wondering why people celebrate the changing of the year with such abandon. Is it that they've messed up the old year so badly that they are happy to see it go? Is it that the New Year with its history waiting to be written holds an excitement for them? Or is it just because they need an excuse to party? Perhaps it’s the last. I don't really know.

Then there is the nearly universal practice of making New Year's resolutions. Have you made any this year? Perhaps you have.

If you haven't, I have twelve of them I'd like to offer by way of suggestion. I don't recommend that you try to adopt all of them, but one or two might benefit you. As you listen to these then, do it with the thought in mind of considering a couple that might be worth your time.

These twelve resolutions are built around an acrostic that spells the words "Happy New Year." Each goal is one that could move you ahead in your spiritual development in 1998. You can follow along by filling in the blanks of the handout your received this morning.

The first letter in "Happy New Year" is "H" and from that letter I suggest that in 1998, you consider aiming for:

1. Harmony in Your Home.

We live in a world of increasing instability. Cruelty, violence, disregard for authority, selfish hate crimes are in every community of our country. It used to be that those in the city could move to a small town somewhere to get away from it. They could escape to a place where it wasn't necessary to lock the doors at night or arm the Brink's Alarm System before leaving the house. Anymore, such "safe" places exist in very few places.

In many places children must pass through metal detectors when they go to school because of the presence of guns and knives. Gangs are increasingly prevalent and law enforcement, as diligent and commendable as it is, seems unable to stop them. "Going Postal" has become a cliche; for taking out a gun and shooting your fellow workers.

Is there no place to get away from it? There can be. You can determine to make your home a haven of safety and harmony. If you still have children in your home, it is essential. If your children are grown you can make it a refuge for yourself and those who visit you.

The Apostle Peter said, "To sum up, let all be harmonious, sympathetic, brotherly, kindhearted, and humble in spirit; not returning evil for evil, or insult for insult, but giving a blessing instead; for you were called for the very purpose that you might inherit a blessing."

That would be a great motto to hang in your living room.

We cannot always control what goes on in the world or in our communities, but we can control what goes on in our homes. Why not set harmony in your home as a goal for 1998? Make your home a city of refuge from all the craziness around us.

The second letter in "Happy New Year" is "A" and perhaps that could suggest a goal of:

2. Adoration for God.

Adoration is an attitude of worship. It is reverence. It is holding someone or something in very high regard or esteem. It is cherishing something above all other things. When we "adore" someone, we regard him or her with deep love.

You probably know by now that many things compete for that position of what we adore and value most. You probably also know there is a being who would love nothing more than for that object of our adoration to be anything besides the Creator. The devil doesn't sleep day or night in his efforts to take away what rightly belongs to our God.

Deep adoration of something other than the creator is called idolatry in the Bible. While most people - at least in our country - do not worship idols of stone and wood, they most certainly "idolize" many things.

If you haven't decided for sure what is most important in your life, this year would be a great year to resolve it once and for all. Put your God in His rightful position.

The third letter in "Happy New Year" is "P" and that suggests a resolution of

3. Praise to God.

During Israel's "golden age," when the Kingdom was united and the boundaries of the nation stretched farther then they ever had before or have since, the Psalmist wrote this note to God: "You are holy, enthroned in the praises of Israel." (NKJ)

Is God enthroned in the praises of our congregation? Is He enthroned in the praises of the Redick household or the Morehead household or the Vasey household or your household?

We exist to praise Him. When we gather, we should praise Him together. As we go through life we should praise Him privately. This is for Him, but it also greatly benefits us.

A certain man decided to sell his small estate. He was tired of living there - bored with his possessions. He instructed his real estate agent to write an ad describing the house and the land so it could be sold. When the ad was ready, the agent took it to the owner and read it to him. "Read that again," said the owner. The agent read the description of the estate once more. "You know, I don't think I will sell after all," said the owner. "I have been looking for an estate like that all my life, and until right now I didn't realize that I owned it!"

One of the great side benefits of praise is that we begin to realize the precious nature of our relationship with God. You will benefit if you make 1998 a year of praise to God.

Next in the acrostic is a second "P" which could stand very well as a reminder to make 1998 a year of:

4. Prayer.

The trouble with prayer is that it is easy to talk about it but hard to do.

How easy it is to say "I'm praying for you," and then not do it.

How easy it is to "Amen" the preacher's latest sermon on prayert, but continue to pray only in church and at meals.

With most of the kids grown, Kathi and I now have separate closets where we keep our clothes. During "tighter times" with six people in the house, I used to be able to say that all of that junk in the closet was hers, but now I'm exposed. I'm without excuse and my closet is in desperate need of a major "de-junking." If I'm true to my list of New Year's resolutions, it will get done (The wife says, "Amen!")

I wonder sometimes though, if our "prayer closets" aren't in that same condition. When Jesus said we should go into our closets and pray to our Heavenly Father in secret, I wonder if He imagined closets so full of junk that there wasn't even enough room for a pair of shoes, much less a praying person!

A prerequisite for a year of prayer for some of us may be some heavy duty "de-junking" of all those things that consume our time and crowd prayer right out of our lives.

1 Thess 5:17 says, "pray without ceasing..."

1 Timothy 2:8 says, "Therefore I want the men in every place to pray…"

Colossians 4:2 says we should, "Devote [ourselves] to prayer.."

Would this be a suitable resolution for you?

Moving on, the first "Y" in "Happy New Year" could remind us to:

John 16:8 tells us that one of the works of God's Spirit is to "convict the world of sin…"

We Christians are a part of that conviction as well if we're sensitive to it. We can become desensitized, though, if we're not careful.

I Thessalonians 5:19 warns us not to "quench the Spirit."

Ephesians 4:30 tells us not to "grieve the Spirit."

If you are looking for something to move you out of mediocrity and boredom in your faith in 1998, resolve to yield to God's Spirit whenever you are convicted. That means you acknowledge the conviction, and then you do something about it. Perhaps you cease a certain behavior or begin to do something you know you should do. Maybe it's an attitude you need to challenge. Perhaps it's an action. Why not make yielding to the Spirit your resolve?

The "N" in "Happy New Year" could suggest that you resolve to commit or recommit yourself to the:

We meet together here three times a week: Sunday morning, Sunday evening, and Wednesday evening. Though you may have wondered about it, this frequency wasn't really designed to be a hardship. It wasn't intended to produce guilt in those who are very busy with living. It wasn't designed because the preacher gets a great joy out of having additional sermons and lessons to prepare. It was designed to help - an opportunity for added input of godly things that are easily crowded out.

With the input of so many voices that can lead us away from the truths of God's word - radio, television, magazines, paperbacks, videos, movies, things said at work, things said in our neighborhoods, and the like - if there isn't a conscious effort made to counteract these influences, it isn't long before our minds get fully taken over by the thinking of the world.

Are you satisfied that your level of spirituality is progressing in a good way or are you in a retreat? Is the biblical way of thinking stronger in your mind each day or weaker? It could be simply that you are taking in far more of the things of the world than the things of God. Why not resolve to take advantage of the opportunities afforded by the other services of the church - the nightly ones. It could make a big difference.

The first "E" in "Happy New Year" might suggest another resolution possibility. I refer to:

The Great Commission is still in force. We are here to be witnesses for Christ. We are to be trying to win the lost before they are launched into a Christless eternity.

You know our congregation is at a difficult stage of development. Those who study church growth and behavior call it a "plateau." We are at that stage where it is very easy to think we have everything we need. We have enough members to pay the bills. We have a comfortable building. We can afford to pay someone full-time to teach us the Word. We can offer classes for all ages. We can take adequate care of our own. That's all very good.

The greatest danger for us, perhaps, is that we are comfortable and the problem with too much comfort is that it is easy to go to sleep.

The church at Ephesus was a beehive of activity and strong teaching. They carefully screened out false teachers. They endured and hadn't grown weary - but Jesus told them they had left their first love. The things that had originally gripped them and motivated them had gone by the wayside. They had become ingrown - existing solely for their own benefit.

In the meantime, just outside the walls of their meeting place, homes were falling apart, children were being abused, violence was increasing and people were living and dying without Christ. They had forgotten their original love and dedication to the cause of the Lord.

God has charged us to do something about the lost people around us. We need to continue to take evangelism seriously. Church leaders cannot do it all.

I know some of us do take it seriously. But others have gone to sleep in the light.

Perhaps you might resolve to invite some of your neighbors to church. Maybe you could resolve to open up your home for a neighborhood bible study. Maybe you could commit to praying every day for a certain family who needs the Lord.

We dare not allow evangelism to drift away from our minds in a sleepy, comfortable way.

The "W" in "Happy New Year" might serve to remind us of our:

8. Wealth and Our Need To Share What We Have.

We still live in the richest nation in the world. Our "poverty level" would be considered a rich man's wage in many other places.

Wealthy Christians (like we are) have a responsibility to share when needs arise. We need to share in the spreading of the gospel primarily, but we need also to be aware of other needs among us and around us.

"If a brother or sister is without clothing and in need of daily food," James says, "and one of you says to them, 'Go in peace, be warmed and be filled,' and yet you do not give them what is necessary for their body, what use is that?"

Our faith is seen or not seen in our willingness to share.

A ninth idea for a New Year's resolution is suggested by the next "Y." Some of us would do well to resolve to deal with:

To have a successful New Year we really do have to put the old year behind us. All of the past, both the triumphs and the tragedies are gone as far as our reliving them. Nothing we can do will change them or amend them.

Is there triumph in your past? That's wonderful. If it is spiritual triumph, it's time to send it on ahead to be a part of your "treasure in heaven." Don't get so stuck on your success from yesterday that you fail to succeed today.

Is there failure in your past? It's time to put it under the forgiving, cleansing blood of Christ and move forward as a full-fledged heir of God. You can do that, you know. There is nothing you may have done that cannot be removed from the slate if you are a Christian or are willing to become one. If you are having trouble getting rid of the guilt, I suggest you write down what it is that you failed in, then find a good, hot, fireplace and toss it in. As it burns into nothingness, be reminded of what God has already done so that your worst failures can be erased. You don't have to drag them over into the New Year.

Is there tragedy in your past for which you have no explanation?

Perhaps you are a bit peeved with God because He allowed something to come into your life that you did not want. My recommendation is this: Cut it loose! Give it up! The name of the game is trust. Trust is what you do when you don't understand why. Therefore, trust God that He knows what it best even when you can't understand.

Paul said, "Brethren, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet; but one thing I do forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus."

This one thing could release many of us from those feelings of failure that have dogged our steps.

That next "E" in "Happy New Year?" I'm going to use it to remind us of:

10. Eagerness to Serve.

Charlie Reynolds recently took over managing our Sunday School from Russ Westbrook. Russ took it from Ed Seiber. Ed and Russ did a great job, and I'm sure Charlie will, too.
Ed and Russ and Charlie, would you say you found eagerness to serve when you began to fill the positions we have for Sunday School teachers?

Hmm. I think we could use some resolutions in this area, don't you? Folks, without teachers, we can't carry on the necessary education of our children and young people. If you are thinking, "Well, surely someone else will do it," or "I raised mine, now it's time to retire," you need to think again. It isn't getting done.

May I raise your sights just a moment? When someone comes to you and asks, "Will you help in this area," they aren't just asking you to help them. They are asking you to come and work for the Lord Jesus Christ! I know that it is sometimes hard to get excited about some of the low profile areas of service needed in the context of the church. There isn't often the amount of appreciation for these things that there should be. In reality though, these are opportunities to serve Christ. How can a Christian who has the ability and time turn away from such an offer?

Because of the willingness of a few men and women who took the time to witness to me and teach me when there was no other good reason to do so than their willingness to serve Christ, I have the promise of eternal life. That cannot be bought. There is nothing I have that is worthy of it. God has freely offered it. But if it hadn't been for these people, I'd still be out there on my way to hell. The same is true of you. Why not determine this year to give some back?

Just one "A" and one "R" left… That remaining "A" could stand for:

Another word for it is fellowship. In Acts 2:42, it is one of the four things the early church was dedicated to most.

Fellowship is sharing. It is associating. It is working together on worthwhile projects. It is giving and receiving help from one another. It's the thing that some people avoid like the plague!

They don't want to get too involved.

The passage I just cited, Acts 2:42, says, "And they were continually devoting themselves to the apostles' teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer."

It certainly appears to me that fellowship is right up there in importance with the apostles' teaching, the Lord's Supper, and prayer.

Why not commit this year to becoming more involved in the fellowship?

Finally, that last "R":

Repentance is when you make up your mind to get yourself turned around. It is when you realize you are headed in the wrong direction and you decide to change that direction to the right one.

All of us repented when we came to Christ. If we didn't we aren't saved. But that wasn't supposed to be the end of it.

Just like a rocket that is launched at the moon, there is the initial calibration that sends the missile in the right direction, then there are the smaller corrections as the rocket fires fore and aft thrusters to manage its course as it moves through space and nears the target.

In the spiritual life, repentance - both the tiny readjustments as we move along and major ones that correct an errant course - are necessary.

In 1998 you will probably hear a lot of preaching and teaching. You will probably realize some things you had not seen before. Your continuing on the right course will be dependent upon your willingness to be open to repentance.

Conclusion

I learned early in my life when my Dad and Grandfather took me hunting for ducks that if you shoot at the whole flock, you usually miss. The same is probably true of the things I've given you this morning. If you shoot at the whole flock, you may miss it all. So what I suggest is that you pick just a few of the items I have suggested that may be most relevant to you and resolve to do them in 1998. I believe you'll be glad you did. And oh, by the way, Happy New Year!

Author's Note: This message was produced in conjunction with my friend, Alan Walker. It was preached in 1998, but could easily be adapted to the current New Year. (Use your "back" button to return to the top)

Dave Redick is Minister of the Hwy 20 Church of Christ in Sweet Home, Oregon and Editor of The Preacher's Study. He may be reached at pstudysupport@comcast.net.

Copyright © 1996-2008 by The Preacher's Study. Permission is granted to subscribers to use this document in total or in sermon preparation in the context of the local congregation only. Publishing it in a book, on the Internet, or anyplace beyond the local congregation is prohibited.

All Scripture quotations and references are from the New American Standard Version unless otherwise stated.

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