Should Old Acquaintance Be Forgot

In just under 6 hours by MST, it will be a brand new spankin' year. Out with the old and in with the new -- new goals, new ideas, new expectations and what not.

I was flipping through my rarely pulled-out journal last night and discovered I had indeed set some goals for '07. I did okay on some, totally forgot about others, and was struck by how I seem to set the same goals year after year after year.

Get in better shape/lose weight.

Do better at work.

Do better at my volunteer work.

Write more.

Spend less time watching TV/aimlessly surfing the 'Net/time-wasting activity of the month.

Basically, :-P. Same old, same old.

I was prompted out of my 'same old' mindset in church yesterday when my pastor taught on the Holy Spirit's work in us, through us, and with us as Christians. God wants us to be blessed, to be successful, to be free and prosperous in every sense of the word. We're not supposed to look back. Like Paul wrote to one of the early churches, this one thing he did was forget those things which were behind him and press on toward the goal of the upward call in Christ Jesus.

Hmmm.

So Paul wasn't looking back and he was moving onward and upward. And I need to do the same.

It's time for me to quit looking back at all the things I was going to do, but to look at where I want to be and figure out (prayerfully!) how to get there.

On that note, I have one goal already which is more defined than my . . . wait, I'm not looking back! Okay, here is the one goal I have thus far: Write one new chapter for my novel every 3 weeks (this is a minimum number -- if it's every two weeks, that's great).

Happy New Year, everyone!