Many people make New Year resolutions at the
beginning of a New Year and the most common resolution is "New Year, New
Me". People solemnly swear that they will not repeat the mistakes of the
previous year, they will not fall victim to the deceptions of the previous
year, and they will be so radically transformed that people who knew them
before the New Year will be shocked at the changes. While all of this is good,
in most cases, the people who make these resolutions only implement those
changes for the first few weeks of the New Year. By the time February rolls
around, the same people who swore how they will change will be back in the same
destructive patterns of the former year.
Why do these changes not last for the
year or better yet, the remainder of the individual's life? The changes are not
long-term changes because by our own power, we can only mask parts of our
former selves. We don't truly change; instead, we suppress our habits and
attempt to start fresh. As a result, while we might be able to live a
"changed" life for a few weeks, the remnants of our old selves will
always be around, ready to resurface at any given time. This is likened to
putting on new clothes on top of dirty clothes. If you do not remove the dirty
clothes first, you will still smell despite the new expensive designer clothes.
Only God can take us as we are, break us down, and mold us
into His image and His likeness that we may fulfill the purpose He has given
us.
"But now, O Lord, You are our Father; We
are the clay, and You are our potter; And we are all the work of Your
hand."- Isaiah 64:8