Make each day count for you in new year

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By Julie Olmsted, Contributing Writer 4:59 PM Friday, January 15, 2010

The new year brings with it a renewed sense of fresh starts and possibility. Skeptics and cynics notwithstanding, the time-honored ritual of making resolutions, I believe that every opportunity to take stock and determine anew to live with excellence should be embraced.

I remember sharing resolutions with those who would sneer at my ambitions. I remember failing miserably and I remember having some measure of success. As a teacher of mine once said, “If you shoot for the moon, you will surely get over the fence.” “Try, try again” is one of our oldest axioms for success.

I believe in resolutions. I always have. How many times did I quit smoking before I finally succeeded? About 100 times.

“Never, never, never, never give up,” Winston Churchill said. Such sayings, although easy to dismiss, have power and meaning when they are taken seriously. It’s how we hear them, more than how we say them, that counts. That leads me to my own New Year’s resolutions, and more significantly, my wishes for you in 2010.

• Make every day count. Most of us know the song, “This is the Day that the Lord Has Made.” I will rejoice and be glad in it. What if we say this as a promise? What if we see it as a discipline? This should not be used as a way to feel guilty if we are not busy every moment. It should be in the background of every new dawn.

Motivational speaker and author Wayne Dyer challenges us to change, “Oh God, it’s morning,” to “Good morning, God!” That will require good health habits, like not overeating or drinking to excess. That will require a disciplined approach to bedtime and sleep. Does this sound like fun? It can be. It’s a lot more fun than wishing you had lived yesterday differently.

• Be inspired. Be responsible for keeping yourself inspired. This is good news. Listen to music, go to concerts, read, exercise and get dolled up regularly. Church is a great place to do this. Offer the best you have, in appearance, work and habits.

One of the definitions of inspiration is a divine influence directly and immediately exerted upon the mind and soul. Where do you receive divine influence? Go there. With whom do you receive divine influence? Spend time with those people. When you are inspired, everything is possible, because God is in charge. Hold in perspective and perhaps establish distance from those things and people who don’t love or validate you.

Step into your future with faith and confidence. Godspeed.

The Rev. Julie G. Olmsted is pastor of Trinity United Church of Christ in Miamisburg. Contact her at julie.olmsted@att.net.

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