New Year's Resolutions.

I hope that, like Ada and I, you can look back at good Christmas celebrations, with family, friends or even members of our churches. But this is also a time of year to make New Year's Resolutions to improve our lives or behaviour. For instance, losing weight or increasing fitness is achieved by following a diet or by doing regular exercise. Often these New Year's Resolutions are about achieving a certain discipline or behaviour - which then will lead to weight loss or a stronger and fitter body.

But apart from improving your physical health have you thought about improving your Spiritual health? With this I mean your knowledge of and relationship with God - Father, Son and Spirit. In order to maintain friendships it is important that you meet with your friends regularly. But God is more as a friend - not only is he your Saviour, but he loves you and he loves to spend time more with you. By getting to know him better through daily prayer and reading from the Bible you will improve your life and your relationship with him.

But it also takes discipline and a change in behaviour to do this. And like there are aids to lose weight (diets) and increase fitness (gyms), there are also daily prayer and Bible reading notes that can help you. Examples are New Daylight (BRF) or Day by day with God (BRF), Every day with Jesus (CWR) and Explore (The Good Book Company). All these have different styles to accommodate different people and most of these offer subscriptions by mail, but they all have in common that they won't take more than 15 minutes of your day (but you can spend more if you like to). Please talk to me if you want more information.

So maybe you would like to consider my proposal for a New Year's resolution in 2011, and resolve to spend some more daily time with God. But whatever you decide, Ada and I wish you a very blessed 2011.

Rev. Bernard Fidder