This is the time of year that many do some self-examination. We want to improve ourselves, make changes and begin healthier habits. There is something about a new year that tells us that we can have a new beginning as well. So, we start out the new year with the best intentions to finally make the changes that we always wanted. However, there is research that shows up to 92% of people who start a new habit or behvaior gives up before they see it through.

Stop eating junk food, don’t procrastinate, stop spending so much money, quit being codependent on others. We have good intentions to change but ultimately, we dont always succeed. The failure comes when we do not set ourselves up to be successful. Real change comes when we put ourselves in a position to succeed.

Part of that is developing routines and habits. In fact, Steven Covey tells us that our habits will make us or break us. We become what we repeatedly do. Those who are successful (at anything) do consistently what other people do occasionally. Jesus, for example, would get away from the crowds on a regular basis so that He can spend some one on one time with the Father. The apostle Paul would often go into the synagogue to teach when he came to a new city in order to share the gospel.

They made certain things a priority to give them the best chance to succeed. That is true with everything we do. We always make time for the things that are important to us. Whether good or bad. For better or for worse. We will sacrifice other things in order to the things that we consider essential to our wellbeing.

But in the end, we all make choices that effect us either positively or negatively. Sometimes we just make dumb decisons. Paul talks about this in Romans chapter 7:

I don’t really understand myself for I want to do what is right but I don’t do it. Instead, I do what I hate. I want to do  what is right but I can’t. I want to do what is good but I don’t. I don’t want to do what is wrong but I do it anyway. Oh what a miserable person I am! Who will free me from this life that is dominated by sin and death? Thank God! the answer is in Jesus Christ our Lord

Romans 7:15,18-19,24-25

Paul struggles with what we all struggle with. We have good intentions but end up making poor choices. Sometimes it seems that we just cant help it. So how do we make successful changes and what can we do to prevent us from getting off track?

Reasons Why We Don’t Succeed

We often know what we want to take place but we don’t know how to get there. It is okay to have goals but our goals alone don’t determine whether we are going to be successful at getting where we want to be. What type of systems are we putting in place that will help us reach our goal? What measures are we implementing to prevent us from falling back into those old habits. We need those systems and measures in place when we encounter stress or other obstacles that could get us off track. Again, goals are helpful and beneficial to have successful change as long as those systems or measures are in place as well.

Another reason we don’t succeed in our quest for change is that we give up too soon. If we dont see the changes fast enough we get discouraged and give up. We say to ouselves “what’s the use?”, “Why bother?” or fall back into our negative disparaging self-talk like “I’m never going to change” and “Im always going to be the same.” However, we need to remember that nobody develops those unhealthy habits (or attitudes) overnight. Any type of change starts with making small steps, sometimes one day at a time, one moment at a time.

We also don’t succeed because of our distorted identity of who we think we are. It ends up sabotaging our own success. We make excuses for why we can not be or were not successful. Like Moses, who complained that no one would listen to him because he was not a good speaker- we set up our own roadblocks on the pathway to success. What we are actually doing is defining our identity by our past failures. If that is the way we see ourselves, it should be no wonder that we are producing unhealthy habits, behaviors or attitudes in return.

The Power of Routines

Therefore, in order to develop new behviors, we have to develop new thought processes. Our thoughts lead to emotions and they in return to our behaviors. Healthy routines help heal us from past behaviors. Healthy routines starts with thinking differently then what we normally would. No one starts a diet one day and then the next day is the weight that they want to be. There is a lot of “in between” stuff that we go through in order to lose that weight. Those healthy routines helps us navigate through those “in between” times. Routines give us structure and support. It gives us predictability. It replaces addictive and destructive behaviors with healthy and constructive ones. Finally, thinking, feeling, behaving different allows us to see a new perspective than what we have trained oursleves to believe in. Those positive changes can bring us some sort of sanity in our already crazy life. It is ok to try something different when your current path is not working. As we know, the defintion of insanity is doing the same things over and over but expecting different results.

You Are Not Finished Yet

Finally, our motto this new year needs to be based on that you are a work in progress. The scriptures tell us that “…God will complete the work that He started in me until the day that Jesus Christ returns.” In addition, we need to continue to tell ouselves that “I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength.”

Therefore, in the midst of us trying to reach our goals and seeing the lasting change in our life, and in all the “in between” things that we face, there are a couple things that we can remember. The first is that you have the ability to do “all things through Christ” and reach you goals. It is He who gives you the strength to accomplish them. The second is that when we do fail or fall, we can remmeber that we are still a work in progress. God is not done with us yet. He has not given up on us. Therefore, we should not give up on ourselves or our goals for the new year.