From The Pastor

By now you are settled in to a brand new year and have either experienced success or failure when it comes to your New Year resolutions.  What you have experienced depends on how you approached the desired change.

If we approach our goal with the idea that we are going to try a new diet, a new exercise program, a new Bible reading program, etc. and see how it goes; then our New Year resolution will probably end up like many others we have tried.

Statistics reveal that of those who make a New Year resolution, only 75% will have maintained it after the first week.  After 6 months, that number drops to 46%.  Why do some of us excel in our resolution while over half of us fail?  I believe the answer is whether we are giving something a try, or seriously desiring a life-long, life-change!

In his book The Social Animal, David Brooks points to current research that shows a common denominator in those who attain excellence:  a long-term commitment to discipline and practice.  Brooks writes:

In 1997 Gary McPherson studied 157 randomly selected children as they picked out and learned a musical instrument. Some went on to become fine musicians and some faltered. McPherson searched for the traits that separated those who progressed from those who did not. IQ was not a good
predictor. Neither were aural sensitivity, math skills, income, or a sense of rhythm. The best single predictor was a question McPherson asked the
students before they even selected their instruments: How long do you think you will play? The students who planned to play for a short time did not
become very proficient. The students who planned to play for a few years had modest success. But there were some children who said, in effect: “I want to be a musician. I’m going to play my whole life.” Those children soared.

Growing Christians need to approach discipleship with a similar attitude: “I want to be a Christ follower.  I’m going to follow Jesus my whole life.”   We may find that we will stumble from time to time.  But in the long run, we will have attained the goal of real life change.