New beginnings

I feel like it is a part of the good, old American tradition to sit around before New Years and make up some sort of list (whether it's long or short) of things that you resolve to do during the new year--a time of new beginnings...a fresh start. Everyone does that. I've always had at least one resolution each year since I remember being old enough to know what resolutions were.

But I also know that there are other times in your life when it might not be the 1st of January, but you just need a fresh start and a new beginning...you need to give yourself some resolutions. And sometimes it's up to you to give yourself that new beginning.

Maybe something major happened, or maybe it was something small.Maybe you lost a job, maybe your pet died, maybe you're tired of spending money on stupid things, maybe you've realized you could be doing better things with your time, or maybe you lost someone you love, and you've come to the realization that it's time to move on. It may sound corny, but you don't have to sit around waiting for New Years Eve to roll around just to call it quits and move on to better things. Yet that can be a really hard decision to make--moving on--because it means you have to instigate this new beginning yourself. Sometimes it feels like you can't do that...like it's too hard and too much work.But you can. Sometimes you have to.

Because you deserve a new beginning. You deserve to have the chance to move on to better things. You have got to make the conscious decision (which nobody else can make for you) to let go. Let go because it's frustrating. Let go because it makes you angry. Let go because it makes you cry or breaks your heart. Let go because it's exhausting to hold on. And then grab ahold of something else. It's time to focus on YOU. Do something you've always wanted to do. Go somewhere you've always wanted to go. Drop your cellphone/iphone/computer, and take a well deserved break for a while. Be grateful for the friends and other support you have, and spend time appreciating them and the gifts they have to offer. Read your Bible...read any book in general--make a whole list of them and read them all. Pray..a lot. Exercise and keep yourself busy.

At first it might feel like all of these things are just attempting to fill a void, and that they don't really mean anything. But if you stick to it and really just focus on yourself and living your own life, you'll slowly realize that's exactly what you should be doing...and you start to realize that you're doing it because you want to, and because it means something. It makes you happy.

I don't know who you are or what you're going through. But maybe it's time to sit back, evaluate your priorities, and make some changes. Sometimes it's up to you to give yourself that new beginning. You have to want it first, and then...go get it.