“And no one pours new wine into old wineskins. For the wine would burst the wineskins and the wine and the skins would both be lost. New wine calls for new wineskins.”
-Mark 2:22 (NLT)
Quit this. Start that. Do more of this and less of that. Reconnect. Disconnect. Say “Yes!” Say “No.” This is the time of year when we try to change with a New Year’s Resolution. But change doesn’t require you to try. Change always happens with or without you. Did you know you get new skin every 27 days and that most cells in your body renew over time? It’s true. Your body gets brand new every 7-10 years, except… your brain. You get no new cells in the cerebral cortex after you are born. You are a completely new person every decade with the same old brain. Go figure! Changing your mind is more than a resolution. It has to be a evolution. You have to get brand new.
If you try to force a new life into the old you…well, as the scripture says, both will be destroyed. Think about people who suddenly get a lot of money (new wine) but they have the same mentality (old wineskin) as when they were broke. What happens? Yep, you got it. Either the money or the person gets lost.
“Change always happens with or without you.”
The Bible (Romans 12:2) tells us to be transformed by renewing our minds. Well, since God didn’t see fit for our brain cells to regenerate He must mean for us to change our thinking as we progress through life. This verse warns us not to just “go with the flow” of things, but to think about what you are doing and why you are doing it.
Be Real With Yourself
Acknowledge that you need to change. Take an mental assessment of your true character. Think about the things you do when nobody can see you. Add in the things you think but don’t say – these are matters of your heart. The real change has to be from inside you. Don’t make some thoughtless resolution. Keep it real! What are too embarrassed to acknowledge that needs to change?
Change The View
There will always be a tug-of-war between your desire for purpose and the inertia of the world around you. Don’t be conformed by an environment that is trying to keep you the same. What people, places or things need to change so that you can get brand new?
Choose ONE Thing
You will not become a new person tomorrow. It takes years to change inside out. So, set yourself up for lasting success one victory at a time. Take the first step in the right direction. What do you feel confident enough to change right now?
Write it Down
One of the reasons people fail at their New Year’s Resolutions is that they just blab it over chips and queso. They don’t have a plan to succeed at making real change in their lives. Habakkuk 2:2 says to write it down. Writing it: 1) makes your old brain accountable and 2) encourages you when you want to quit. When will you write it down?
Making a New Year’s resolution can be very beneficial to you. But in order for you to truly change anything in your life, it has to begin inside you. If you are going to make a resolution, make it an evolution. Do something that is going to change you from the inside out. Get Brand New!
Not sure what to do for next year? Get “Stay in Your Lane” and find the intersection between purpose and satisfaction in your life.
“Know Yourself. Love Yourself. Live on Purpose.”