Romans 12:1-2 (ESV)
I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.

Dear Fellowship of the Burning Heart:

Have you ever felt like you were strapped spiritually to some kind of invisible ball and chain? Have you wondered what might be holding you back from the kind of spiritual life you really want to lead? Have you been wondering what steps you can take to move forward?

Since today is the first day of the New Year, I will offer some resolutions and tomorrow I will point out some obstacles. First, the resolutions:

1. Resolve to master the use of the word “NO”. To say YES to God, you must say NO to the world. To say YES to the best, you must say NO to the worst, and also to the good, and even to the better. The secret is knowing WHAT to say YES to and WHAT to say NO to!

2. Resolve to obey God without understanding, questioning, or whining. When we put stipulations on obedience, we are essentially deciding to disobey. If we demand that God explain to us WHY we should obey him, so that we can understand before we obey, we are deciding we can disobey. If we question God’s demands, as Eve did in the garden of Eden, and imply that God is making unreasonable demands or does not want what is best for us, we are deciding we can disobey. When we whine and complain about God’s demands and offer a grudging response, we are deciding we can disobey. NOTE to self: Disobedience has disastrous consequences!

3. Resolve to focus more time and energy on your spiritual life. Anything worth doing is not only worth doing right, it is worth the time and effort required. To think that I can become a deeply spiritual person and that I can have a dynamic relationship with God without spending any time or effort in the process flies in the face of all that we know about how things are accomplished in the world. God offers himself to us but only on the terms that we “seek him and search for him with all our hearts.” This is not something that happens with wishful thinking. You are as close to God as you want to put forth the effort to be.

4. Resolve to refuse and repulse the efforts of those around you who seem to want to drag you down to their level of immaturity, insecurity, immorality, impatience, irritation, or insanity. We don’t have the power to convert negative people into positive people, and we don’t always have the option of removing them from our lives, but we don’t have to let their negative energy drain us or tempt us to join them.

5. Resolve to surround yourself with positive, encouraging people who share your spiritual commitment and goal. The opposite of #4, this commitment brings the encouragement and support we need to combat the negative influences we face and to stay true to our goal. Most of us have experienced the power of positive encouragement and know the tremendous strength that a fellow companion brings to the pursuit.

6. Resolve to embrace the discomfort of being different, of pursuing God’s will, not yours, of not fitting into the mold of those around you. What we are talking about here is NOT natural and does not COME naturally. We are talking about a relationship with God that sets us apart from the crowd of people who are just wandering through life.

7. Resolve to pursue your relationship with God wholeheartedly and refuse to allow anything or anyone to deter you from this. “Seek first the kingdom of God,” Jesus says. St. Paul’s desire was “that I may know him.” It’s not uncommon to get sidetracked, but a serious commitment will propel us back toward the goal.