Resolutions, Goals, and One Small Step to Change

Everyone makes resolutions. But not everyone thinks about the process. Think about it: Perhaps you made a mistake recently, and said to yourself that you would never make that mistake again. You just made a resolution.
Even if we do admit that they are important, we rarely consider what an impact they can have on our lives...and our lifestyle. I'm definitely someone who benefits from setting goals, so that's one reason they're especially useful to me. But even if you're not, know that resolutions mark an opportunity, a gateway for change. It's much more than just saying that we want to be different, that we want to improve, because we are making a concrete step in not just identifying what we want to be different but how we are going to work at getting there. And anything that helps us initiate positive change in our lives is a good thing.
I made one a week ago. I had been talking with my pastor about how to open up to people and connect with people in conversation. I was struggling with this during my first few days here in Texas City as I met a lot of new people. On Wednesday night, a week ago, he called me into his office right before the weekly Bible study and said he had an assignment for me. Every time someone tried to ask me a question or start a conversation, it was my job to ask a question in return, and so to keep the ball rolling. In other words, to be as socially responsive as possible. I realized later that this was empowering for me to have something to do. I am not in control of what happens, but I do influence what happens. In short, what I do matters. With that in mind, I made a resolution to always take advantage of opportunities to talk to people. This is not entirely comfortable for me, but it's a necessary thing for me to attempt because encounters of people with people are God's primary arena of working in our lives. It is one of my first areas of stewardship responsibility in my endeavor to live for Him.