The New Year excites the emotions of most people, but for different and various reasons. For many, it’s the excitement of the New Year’s party. One poll conducted back in 2019, surveying more than 2000 participants, concluded average working Americans between ages 23-38 were willing to spend more than $220 for an evening of partying on New Year’s Eve. Not a few others are even willing to foot the $12k-plus dinner bill to eat at a restaurant in Times Square during the celebration.
On the other hand, there are also a number of people—probably more than most realize—for whom the New Year gives rise to a different emotion—angst. Angst about finances or pressure to perform, whether that be hosting or attending get-togethers or realizing and reflecting on personal failures, is one source of this negative emotion. Grief is another common source of angst. And seasonal affective disorder, or SAD, is also common during this time of year. Pair any of the above and you have a bona fide recipe for severe depression for a number of people.
Yet, the New Year remains positively stimulating for those who are hopeful or goal-oriented, for those who enjoy reflecting on past performance with an eye for improvement, and possess a genuinely optimistic outlook. (I should like to say some things about improvement but not in this post—perhaps tomorrow or the next day.) It is natural to see the New Year as a new beginning, a new start, a new opportunity for a better year. This is, of course, why making New Year’s Resolutions is a thing for many. (Our typical approach to resolutions is also the reason so many break them before the end of the first month.)
If you identify as part of the last category for which the New Year is a time of elation and hope, I offer, literally, one word of advice: incremental. Instead of making grandiose plans that ultimately end in disappointment, try improving in just one (or at most three) prioritized areas. Or, if you really feel that you have a list to work on, then prioritize and create a manageable list of areas with an eye for improving just 1% in each. Ultimately, the incremental approach is about lifestyle change in degrees—breaking bad habits by leaning into or starting good habits.
If you happen to identify as part of the second group, I recommend preaching the gospel to yourself daily, and actually listening to this message you preach. As the late Timothy Keller would often say,
“The gospel is this: We are more sinful and flawed in ourselves than we ever dared believe, yet at the very same time we are more loved and accepted in Jesus Christ than we ever dared hope.”
Believe the good news by acting as though you believe it.
If you identify with the first group, celebrate heartily—but do so in moderation. The next day, start a habit of hanging out with someone from the third group for a while.
Looking for some New Year’s resolution ideas? You might be inspired by Jonathan Edwards’ Seventy Resolutions.
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