New Year's Resolution for My Catholic Faith

“Train yourself for devotion, for, while physical training is of limited value, devotion is valuable in every respect, since it holds a promise of life both for the present and for the future.” - 1 Timothy 4:7, 8.

Every year, I make the resolution to loose weight, exercise more, and to eat better.  That usually last until dessert is ready at the New Year's Day celebration meal. 

To diet, exercise, and eat better is a resolution of the human body.  Maybe, we should make resolutions for our devotional life. It is building of the spirit. Through our spiritual self, we receive the promise of eternal life in Christ. 

To grow in your faith, maybe there are some resolutions that we can make and keep. Here are some resolutions to choose from, you may want to pick one or several and work on them in the New Year. You may want to make your own.

Love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.

I resolve to improve my Prayer Life - Prayer is our foundation which you learn to die to yourself and the world and are reborn in Christ.

• I will build a foundation of prayer for my life. 
• I will pray daily.
• I will pray for others.
• I will pray with my family, my friends, or with a group.
• I will read the Bible and contemplate what I have read.
• I will pray the Hours.
• I will recite the Rosary and contemplate its mysteries.
• I will sit quietly to ask for God’s forgiveness and direction in my life.

I resolve to truly worship - True worship is done every day.

• I will worship and praise God with every breath.
• Daily, I will praise God and rest in the awareness of God's presence in my life.  It is good to try to attend mass every day.
• I will attend mass on Sundays and Holy Days of Obligation. 
• If I travel or work or vacation, I will find local mass times and attend mass when I travel.  
• I will find a rhythm of rest and work that allows for an active worship and spiritual life.
• I will honor the Sacraments.
• I will participate in the Sacrament of Reconciliation on a regular basis.
• I will partake in the Sacrament of the Eucharist with a pure heart.
• I will pray for vocations.
• I will attend a retreat offered sponsored by my parish or a retreat house. 

I resolve to recognize God’s Presence - Sometimes we all have questions because be may be unsure or just do not know.

• I will try to continually grow in Christ.
• I will read faith based and spiritual books by Catholic authors to grow in my faith and understanding.
• If I have questions, I will seek answers through studying the Catechism and my faith.
• I will attend a faith based bible study.
• I will find a trained spiritual companion such as a priest, a deacon, or other religious to help guide me. 
• I will seek out a spiritual director I can trust to reflect back to me God's presence in my life and the world.

You shall love your neighbor as yourself.

I resolve to work for God - God is Love and Jesus Christ is that manifestation of God’s love. 

• I will see Christ is others.
• I will allow the natural abundance of love that comes from Christ to flow outward in acts service and compassion for justice and healing to humanity and the environment.
• I will remember that love is not about me but what I bring in love to others.
• I will remember living a good life is not about me but all those I touch.
• I will bring Christ’s love to others.

Every year I say I am going to loose weight. Some years I do, some years I don’t. But to be healthy is one of the place to which I am always traveling.  It is the same with God.  I am always traveling towards the mystery that is God. The gift of understanding is always there to try to open a little bit at a time.  I find these resolutions more satisfying and easier to stick too than my diet.

We grow gradually with spurts and stagnation. It is this way in these resolutions.  Do not give up; they are paths to the gift awaiting you. Choose what you can commit to and pray to stay committed.

“The valiant one whose steps are guided by the LORD, who will delight in his way, may stumble, but he will never fall, for the LORD holds his hand.” Psalm 37:23-24

Amen and Happy New Year.