Here's a hack that will help you keep your New Year's Resolution

With God, all things are possible. Without Him, nothing is. We've all heard this, but we often forget it, especially when making big changes in our lives. The New Year is a time for making changes, but most fail because we fall back into old ways. And we often leave God out of our plans. 

Include God in your plans, so they will succeed.

Highlights

By Marshall Connolly (Catholic Online)
1/4/2023 (1 year ago)

Published in Health

Keywords: New, Year, Resolution, God

LOS ANGELES, CA (California Network) - If you want your New Year's resolution to work, then you must include God.

Imagine this. You choose exercise every day. The New Year begins, and you do so. For awhile. Then you get busy, and you stop. This is how most resolutions go. People just don't stick to things. But imagine this instead. You choose to exercise every day, and so when you pray in the morning, you pledge to God that you will do this for Him. Our bodies are temples of the Lord, and so we respect ourselves by taking care of ourselves. Now, when you are tempted to skip your exercise, you remember your pledge to God, and so you keep your pledge. 

There is a special grace that comes to each person via the Holy Spirit, when they truly work hard to keep their pledges to God. This grace will make it possible for you to do things you did not think you could do. But, it requires prayerful effort. You must pray, each morning that you will keep your pledge. Ask for the grace. 

There are many resolutions you can make. One might be to attend Mass more regularly. Doing so changes how we live and behave, and it changes our lives. This is a little-known benefit that is derived from the regular reception of Holy Communion. You cannot avoid the change! 

If you do not attend Mass presently, make a pledge to go once per month. A caveat: we are required, by the Commandments and Church Law, to attend Mass weekly. Going once a month is not enough. To skip Sunday Mass is to skip an obligation to our Lord. To do so knowingly is a grave sin. Nonetheless for those who don't go at all, attending once a month is an improvement. Do so prayerfully, and perhaps you will find yourself wanting to go weekly! When you understand the Mass and why we do what we do, many things "click" in your mind and make sense.  

Other resolutions include self-improvement. For another example, you may pledge to take and complete a class each week that teaches you something about your Catholic faith. There are a lot of things most Catholics do not know or understand about their faith. But by learning you will come to know and appreciate why we do what we do, say what we say, and act as we do. That appreciation is critical to living a full, Catholic life. Those who do not have it tend to wander and fall away from the Church. And that is a dangerous condition! 

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Whatever you New Year's resolution is, make sure to include God. Doing so is a powerful way to help yourself keep it.