Resolutions

Well, this is a little late but I just wanted to wish everyone a Happy New Year! We had a great three day weekend! We went over to my parents for soup and rolls, then looked at pictures from Chris and Chantelle's trip to Dubai. What a cool place!

After dinner Chantelle and I went out with Esau to play in the snow and built a snow man...

Briant named him Mitch.

While Briant was watching Football with my dad, the rest of us put together a puzzle and just talked. It was a very relaxing day, which is just how I wanted it to be! It's always good to spend time with loved ones.

I have always loved New Years because it gives you the feeling of starting new. I love having the opportunity to make resolutions, giving yourself another chance to do better, and having a fresh start.

I was thinking about this a little more deeply today because our Stake President visited our Fast and Testimony Meeting this last Sunday. He got up to bare his testimony and said, "It is nice to have a New Year, but we don't need a new year to make new goals" (or something like that).

It is inevitable that we are going to screw up now and again. We are human, and we were sent here to learn and grow from those mistakes.

I gave a talk in church about New Years Resolutions when I was a young teenager. I really don't remember much about what I said but I do remember one thing I learned. I talked with my mom earlier that week about my topic and about what I should say. As we talked she told me that if you don't succeed with your goal, you should never give up; just change the goal so that it better suits you.

For example, you set a goal to read the BOM for 30 minutes everyday before you go to bed, but every time you try, you fall asleep. Instead of giving up, you can try to read you scriptures earlier in the day when you aren't tired, or read for 15 minutes in the morning and 15 minutes after school/work.

I have come to learn over the years that we change, our schedules change, and sometimes our Resolutions become outdated with what is going on in our lives. Don't me wrong I think it is a great time to set new goals each year, but I think it is also useful to set mini goals each week/month.

I think that taking the sacrament each week is a good time for setting new goals and starting anew. It is a time to take a deep breath and say to yourself, "Keep going, you can do it!" But it is also a time to remember that even though you can't make it all the way by yourself, we have someone who will help us reach our goals. Jesus Christ is our coach, our friend, our guidance counseler, our Savior. When I think about him while I set my goals, I feel like my goals are more reachable.

How grateful I am for a new year, for an opportunity to set new goals and try to be a better person, and for the help I receive from those that love me.