THE NEW YEAR'S RESOLUTION

'A good name is more desirable than great riches; to be esteemed is better than silver or gold.' Proverbs 22:1 

For 65 years I have been around for the changing of the year. For many years I was too young to understand what was happening. Then there was the excitement of the 'New Year', the changing of the date and staying up late to partake in the festivities.

In my youth I would watch and listen to the older people (probably in their sixties!) talk about their 'New Year's Resolutions' and the laughter that would ensue. It seemed that no one really took the resolutions seriously - eat less chocolate, lose weight, no speeding. Resolutions seemed sacrificial and self-punishing, "so just how long are we going to torture ourselves before we fall back into our old patterns?" And then the talk of how quickly last year's resolutions were forgotten. 

Perhaps the New Year's Resolution is a genuine opportunity to pause and consider how I really can become a better person. Like so many things in life, one year at a time, I grow older and then I look back at my legacy and what I have given over the years. 

Can we become more kind?...more encouraging?...a better servant to those around us?...more grateful for what we have?...and more generous to those who have less? These are the qualities that have lasting value and build a legacy of good.