The month of January is named after the Roman god Janus, the god of gates and doors, of beginnings and endings.  In fact, his statue in the Vatican museum has a head with two faces, one looking at the end of the past and one looking at the beginning of the future.  

 

That is not unlike our perspective today, as we have just watched one year come to an end and witnessed the arrival of another.  Last Sunday, our minds were most likely on year-end closeouts and family get-togethers.  But since those are now behind us, we turn our attention to resolutions for the new year. The good we did last year we will try to do more of in 2014. And the unpleasant memories of the past 12 months provide lessons to learn and hope for brighter days ahead.

 

When we make out our resolution list, we usually do so with the thought of trying some new diet or attempting to quit some habit.  If those doesn’t work, at least we gave them a shot.  But that is not the way the word “resolution” is meant to be used.   It actually means to “make up your mind, to decide firmly, to determine.”  For instance, Barnabas encouraged the new Christians in Antioch “with resolute heart to remain true to the Lord” (Acts 11:23).  Nothing half-hearted about that.

 

As we stand looking in two directions today, considering the past and planning for the future, we ought to say with a convicted heart, “I am resolved.”  To put it another way, “I have decided, I am determined, I have made up my mind.”  That involves more than simply trying. 

 

Here are some decisions you can make as you face the new year.

 

Be resolved to walk more wisely.  “Therefore be careful how you walk, not as unwise men but as wise” (Eph. 5:15). Earlier in the chapter, Paul admonished the Ephesians to “walk in love” (5:2) and to “walk as children of light” (5:8).  In this verse, he wrote, “be careful how you walk.”  The King James Version has “walk circumspectly,” literally meaning “look around.”  Fools rush in.  Christians walk wiser than that.

 

Evil is so prevalent in our world that if we’re not looking around, we will walk right into it.  And it is even more dangerous when you consider that you can access it without going anywhere at all.  We have vices and devices available to us that seemingly strip the shame and disgrace right out of sin.  What barriers and roadblocks will you put up in the new year?  Look around.  Be careful.  Walk wiser.

 

Be resolved to treasure your time.   “Making the most of your time, because the days are evil” (Eph. 5:16). The English Standard Version translates that “make the best use of your time,”and the KJV, “redeeming the time.”  2013 is gone; we can’t get it back.  But we can determine with a resolute heart that we will not squander the present.  We can redeem the time by rescuing what we have left from waste.

 

We won’t do that until we realize just how precious our time is.   Every minute and opportunity has value.  And we only have a fixed amount left.  Let’s make the most of them.  It takes time to teach.  It takes time to grow.  It takes time to be an influence.  It takes time to be holy. 

 

Be resolved to serve where you are needed.   “So then do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is” (5:17).  We must learn to appreciate what God wants for our lives.  He doesn’t wish for us to walk around as fools or waste our time.  The will of the Lord is that we make wise choices with the opportunities He sets before us.  That includes serving one another instead of just looking out for ourselves.

 

Such a resolution will make worship more meaningful.  “Speaking to one another is psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody with your heart to the Lord” (5:19).   It will bring you more contentment.  “Always giving thanks for all things in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God, even the Father” (5:20).  And it will help you be more attentive to the needs of those around you.  “And be subject to one another in the fear of Christ” (5:21). Being “subject” was a miliary term that meant “to line up under.”  That’s where service begins: with the realization that your place is not at the front of the line.

 

Someone has said, “The best thing to give up in the new year is to give up giving up.”  I am resolved to do just that.