Annually, I lament the absurdity of following sugary sweet and cuddly December with January's VERY HIGH BAR for all things. The resolutions, the meal-planning, the budgeting, the fitness, the vegetables—I can't take it! I miss you, December!

I only partially mean it. Fresh starts are fun. New Year's Resolutions are noble. But something about January's brand of hustle irks me a bit, and this year I finally figured it out: the things we start must be rooted in Jesus's finished work on the cross. Anything else is asking a goal to be a god.

I kept struggling to find the time to write this whole thing out, so instead, I talked it out with my iPhone in my lap in the car last night. Maybe later I'll write it out and iron out the kinks, but for some reason it feels kind of appropriate to offer some casual car chat (you'll literally hear my blinker here and there) in lieu of fully fleshed out text (though I did include a summary below). 

Maybe have a listen during your next 8-minute chore?

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Summary:

The FINISHED work of the cross that our "STARTS" should rest upon:

1. Our SHAME is finished. Jesus took our shame, and it no longer needs to weigh upon us. "Everyone who believes in him will not be put to shame.” Romans 10:11

2. Our RIGHTEOUSNESS is finished. Jesus exchanged our sinfulness for His righteousness. We don't have to manufacture our own. "For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God." 2 Corinthians 5:21

3. Our WILL is finished. Following Christ means surrendering control. "If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow Me. " Luke 9:23

May God give us the discernment to know if the goals we set are rooted in shame, are an attempt to conjure our own righteousness, or are a faithless desire for control. If they are, our primary goal should be this: to better understand the truth of the gospel.