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New Year’s Resolutions Don’t Have to Be Revolting

New Year’s Resolutions Don’t Have to Be Revolting

Sheryl Giesbrecht

“Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths, ask where the good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls.” Jeremiah 6:16

  1. Bless Yourself – Love God/Pray on the Armor/Affirm Your Identity

“God bless you” is often said to offer encouragement to someone when they sneeze or depart from our home. The word “bless” means to offer approval or encouragement. Did you know blessing others was a practice the Lord taught Moses to do for his brother Aaron and his priests? It’s fitting that we offer blessings to each other and also to bless ourselves. When we do this, we are speaking life over ourselves and those we love. The Lord showed Moses how to teach the priests to bless each other in Numbers 6:22-27 “The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you; the Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you; the Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace.”

God honors those who follow him by honoring them, like an earthy father gives special privileges to their children,God shows us favor when we delight in Him. Praying scripture over ourselves and our families is using God’s prayer book, the Bible, to give our words wings.

Another prayer of blessing is from I Kings 8:57-58 (MSG) Let’s pray this over ourselves and loved ones: “May God, our very own God, continue to be with us just as he was with our ancestors-may he never give up and walk out on us. May he keep us centered and devoted to him, following the life path he has cleared, watching the signposts, walking at the pace and rhythms he laid down for our ancestors.” In Jesus’ Name, Amen

“Remember not the former things, nor consider the things of old. Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.” Isaiah 43:18-9 ESV

Identity in Christ

I am Sheryl Giesbrecht. I am a woman, wife, mother, daughter, employee, writer, speaker, friend, mentor, runner. These titles describe things I do and relationships I have but they do not describe who I really am. But there’s a big difference between who you are in yourself and who you are in Christ.

The difference is I believe what God says about me is true.

I am a saint who sometimes sins. I am adopted into God’s family. I am a child of God. If we know who we are in Christ, we realize the victory has already been won. The battle is over, but we must claim the victory we have in Christ, our victor. Each of us must know our identity, that is, who we are in Christ.

Who am I in Christ? I am accepted. I am God’s child. (John 1:12) I am Christ’s friend. (John 15:15) I have been justified. (Rom. 5:1) I am united with the Lord and I am one spirit with Him. (I Cor. 6:17) I am secure. I am free forever from condemnation. (Rom. 8:1,2) I am assured that all things work together for good. (Rom. 8:28) I am a citizen of heaven. (Phil 3:20) I can find grace and mercy in time of need. (Heb. 4:16) I am significant. I am a branch of the true vine, a channel of His life. (John 15:1,5) I have been chosen and appointed to bear fruit. (John 15:16) I am God’s temple. (I Cor. 3:16) I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. (Phil. 4:13)

“See, I will create new heavens and a new earth. The former things will not be remembered, nor will they come to mind.” Isaiah 65:17 NIV

2. Bless Your Husband – Love Him/Pray for Him/Adore Him/Honor Him

Love him unconditionally – remember the qualities that drew you to him when you fell in love.

Pray for him without ceasing – The Power of A Praying Wife – Stormie O Martian

Lord, help me to be a good wife. I fully realize that I don’t have what it takes to be one without Your help. Take my selfishness, impatience, and irritability and turn them into kindness, long-suffering, and the willingness to bear all things. Take my old emotional habits, mind-sets, automatic reactions, rude assumptions, and self-protective stance, and make me patient, kind, good, faithful, gentle, and self-controlled. Take the hardness of my heart and break down the walls with Your battering ram of revelation. Give me anew heart and work in me Your love, peace, and joy (Galatians 5:22-23). I am not able to rise above who I am at this moment. Only You can transform me. Show me where there is sin in my heart, especially with regard to my husband. I confess the times I’ve been unloving, critical, angry, resentful, disrespectful, or unforgiving toward him. Help me to put aside any hurt, anger, or disappointment I feel and forgive him the way You do—totally and completely, no looking back. Make me a tool of reconciliation, peace, and healing in this marriage. Enable us to communicate well and rescue us from the threshold of separation where the realities of divorce begin. Make me my husband’s helpmate, companion, champion, friend, and support. Help me to create a peaceful, restful, safe place for him to come home to. Teach me how to take care of myself and stay attractive to him. Grow meinto a creative and confident woman who is rich in mind, soul, and spirit. Make me the kind of woman he can be proud to say is his wife. I lay all my expectations at Your cross. I release my husband from the burden of fulfilling me in areas where I should be looking to You. Help me to accept him the way he is and not try to change him. I realize that in some ways he may never change, but at the same time, I release him to change in ways I never thought he could. I leave any changing that needs to be done in Your hands, fully accepting that neither of us is perfect and never will be. Only You, Lord, are perfect, and I look to You to perfect us. Teach me how to pray for my husband and make my prayers a true language of love. Where love has died, create new love between us. Show me what unconditional love really is and how to communicate it in a way he can clearly perceive. Bring unity between us so that we can be in agreement about everything (Amos 3:3). May the God of patience and comfort grant us to be like-minded toward one another, according to Christ Jesus (Romans 15:5). Make us a team, not pursuing separate, competitive, or independent lives, but working together, overlooking each other’s faults and weaknesses for the greater good of the marriage. Help us to pursue the things which make for peace and the things by which one may edify another (Romans 14:19). May we be “perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment” (1 Corinthians 1:10). I pray that our commitment to You and to one another will grow stronger and more passionate every day. Enable him to be the head of the home as You made him to be, and show me how to support and respect him as he rises to that place of leadership. Help me to understand his dreams and see things from his perspective. Reveal to me what he wants and needs and show me potential problems before they arise. Breathe Your life into this marriage. Make me a new person, Lord. Give me a fresh perspective, a positive outlook, and a renewed relationship with the man You’ve given me. Help me see him with new eyes, new appreciation, new love, new compassion, and new acceptance. Give my husband a new wife, and let it be me. In Jesus’ Name amen

A Prayer for Your Husband When He’s Stressed

October 25, 2013 byMichelle Lindsey         Heavenly Father,

I ask you to surround my husband with your peace during this trying time in his life. Everything is demanding his time and attention and he feels torn in so many directions. With all of the extra distractions and frustrations in life, it is easy for him to forget how much you love him. I know you have good things for him. I trust you are in charge of each detail in his life. I know that he is safe in your Hands, and you will never forsake him. Remind him of your goodness and mercy. Let him rest in knowing You are there to care for him when things seem too impossible to conquer.I pray he casts all of his cares on You because you care for him (1 Peter 5:7). I pray he feel the peace that passes all understanding and is able to stand in the middle of difficult situations. I pray that peace will guard his heart and mind as you bring him through each day (Philippians 4:7). You provide strength when we feel weak, and he isn’t required to “work harder” in order to gain Your approval or acceptance. May we understand your transforming grace as we walk out this life with You. When we fail, remind us we are loved and forgiven because of Your sacrifice on the cross. Thank you for this gift. Even though life can be so painful, we know you have overcome this life and you are with us in our sufferings. I pray my husband will feel Your nearness during the dark times in his life.

I pray for protection over my husband in all areas of his life. At home, I pray you bless him as he leads his family. Thank you for his desire to bring you glory and to teach our children Your truths. Show me ways to bless him and support him in this. Help me to honor him, esteem him, and appreciate him. I pray you bless the work of his hands as he provides for his family. Guard his steps and and keep his heart safe while he is at work and away from home. When he feels discouraged, I pray he looks back over his life, and sees how faithful You have been. I pray this gives him peace, richer joy, and more stability in the middle of stressful times.Thank you for the covenant of marriage, and the blessing of family. I am so grateful for my husband and I thank you for bringing him into my life.  In Jesus’ Name,
Amen

“The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.” Lamentations 3:22-23 ESV

3. Bless Your Children – Love Them/Pray for Them/

Moms in Prayer (One hour per week)

  1. You’re special and unique.

There is no one else like your child. Letting them know this will build confidence in them. When they realize that no one else can take their place in your heart, they will know their value, and they won’t let others take advantage of them.

  1. You’re intelligent and have what it takes.

These words spoken repeatedly will build your child’s identity. And your child will believe what you say to them and about them, especially if you say it frequently. This is why it’s so important to make sure we are speaking positive things rather than negative ones.

  1. I’m proud of you.

Kids need to know that you see them. When you tell them you are proud of them, you are validating who they are and what they accomplish. Be specific about what makes you proud of them. When you use concrete examples of why you’re proud, it helps them to understand themselves better.

  1. I like you.

Most likely our kids already know we love them, but they also need to know we like them. Let them know what noteworthy qualities you see and admire in them.

  1. You can change the world.

I recently heard a father talk about how every night as he tucked his children into bed, he would encourage them that they had purpose. He repeatedly told them that they could change the world–that they may have been created to do something about the particular problems they noticed in the world.

http://www.imom.com/5-new-years-resolutions-moms-can-actually-keep/