You always make a new resolution, or perhaps the same old resolutions… stop doing this, losing a bit of weight here, work to achieve that, and start doing that other thing. Always the same hope of achieving new things for the coming new year. You’re excited, can’t even wait to start using your new calendar. Some, with their new diaries, make a list of things they’ll get to as soon as January arrives. Why then doesn’t this excitement last? Why does it all vanish in just a couple of days or weeks into the New Year?

You always make a new resolution, or perhaps the same old resolutions… stop doing this, losing a bit of weight here, work to achieve that, and start doing that other thing. Always the same hope of achieving new things for the coming new year. You’re excited, can’t even wait to start using your new calendar. Some, with their new diaries, make a list of things they’ll get to as soon as January arrives. Why then doesn’t this excitement last? Why does it all vanish in just a couple of days or weeks into the New Year?

Hope is the complete opposite of faith. Hope is the feeling that ‘hopefully’ everything will work out… hopefully, I’ll get this by this time… it’s almost as saying, I wish, but I don’t know, perhaps, who knows! Which in my view can certainly be one of the best descriptions of DOUBT. To have a doubt is: to hope.

Why not do it differently this year? Start your diary by making a list of things you WILL do, having in mind that you’ll be doing them, no matter what happens. Next – believe. Believe that you can do these things, no matter how hard and impossible they may seem to be, or even how long they’ve been hanging about – BELIEVE that you can. If you don’t believe in yourself, how can you say you believe in God? One must believe in oneself first before believing in anything else or anyone else!

FOCUS is what you need to do next. Don’t put your goals aside for anything else in this world. Focus on them, think about them everyday. Do something about them every single day. Go to sleep thinking about them. Wake up thinking of them. Perhaps you can even put up a post-it note in your bathroom mirror, another one in your bedside table, and another one in your fridge. Let it be your desktop wallpaper. Whatever you need to do in order to focus on your goal – do it. Be tough with yourself about it. Don’t let yourself think not even a second that you can leave this goal for later this year. If you do that, you’ll certainly be including it in 2008 resolutions, I’m sorry to say.

PRACTICE, STUDY, RESEARCH about your goal. Use your time to invest on it, be it a new career or a business you want to start, or perhaps a change of character – whatever it is, you need to get involved in the subject, read about it, and do what you need to get closer to it everyday. Sometimes, you’ll need to distance yourself from people that usually put you off from working towards your goal, of course, you cannot distance yourself from your spouse or child, but you can certainly be more selective with your friends, church members, and coworkers. If they’re not helping, adding, or understanding – give yourself some space.

And finally, make sure God is involved in your goals. You know that if He’s not part of it, you can’t count on Him, and without Him – you’re alone! God is the best Partner anyone can have – always remember that. If He’s with you, then you can do and be whatever you want!

In Faith
by Cristiane Cardoso