Two New Year’s Resolutions I Make Every Year (that aren’t travel related)

I’m stepping away from my usual travel related posts to share with you my top two New Year’s resolutions that, moving forward, I will always make each new year.  I figured I might as well share these with you as well because they have made such a difference in my life, and who knows, maybe you will experience the benefits too! 

I think it’s good to set New Year’s resolutions as we prepare for another year.  It’s a great way to step back and look at the way our life is going and make goals for where we want to be the following year. I personally like to think about ways I can become a better wife, mother & friend when I set these goals.

I’ve made these two main New Year’s resolutions last year and I truly believe they have positively impacted my life this year in so many ways I had to share.

Here is my first New Year’s resolution… 

1. Read through the entire Bible in a year.
Matt has read the entire Bible every year for as long as I can remember, but I’ve only started doing this in the last three years.  I think I was always intimidated about starting the task because I was afraid I would eventually quit. I hate feeling like a failure, so I just refused to even bother trying. Finally, I decided that I needed to just do it.  After all, the Bible does say in Joshua 1:8: “This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.”  So I made the resolution to read the Bible cover to cover in one year and didn’t look back. 

One of the easiest ways to read the Bible is to listen to it on your phone. You can download the Bible App and add Bible in a year reading plans. In the past, I’ve done “The One Year Bible” which gives you reading plans with a little Old Testament, New Testament, Psalms and Proverbs. Also, I loved the reading plan: “The Bible Recap” (by D-Group) which shares a Bible ready plan chronically to when they happened in history. You can also listen to The Bible Recap podcast each day that helps to summarize what you read and is very helpful in providing practical applications to what the Bible teaches you about God.  

Holding myself accountable to reading a good amount of scripture every day sounded intimidating at first, but the best way I’ve found to read it is having it read to me using the Bible app. I do it while I take a shower, which I do every day, so it becomes an easy habit.  But if I don’t have time, or, for example, I’m showering at the gym, I’ll Bluetooth it in my car.  Added bonus, my kids are hearing the Bible as well that way.  

I just love hearing God’s Word spoken to me and I hope that as I enter each new day, I am even more equipped than the day before to handle each new circumstance according to Scriptural truths. 

Which leads me to my second New Year’s resolution…

 
2. Matt and I wake up early to pray… TOGETHER.
Again, as long as I’ve known Matt, he’s always set his alarm earlier to spend time in prayer. During my baby newborn seasons, my early morning prayer time with him were very few and far between.  There was a time between my second and third baby that I committed to waking up early every Wednesday to pray with him.  I remember noticing that Wednesdays always ended up being great days.  I felt like our relationship was stronger and my attitude & perspective was in check after our prayer time each Wednesday. But then, after a terrible third pregnancy and then having a newborn who woke me up in the middle of the night, the habit ceased.  Finally, last year, I committed every weekday morning to waking up 10 minutes earlier and praying with Matt. It is such a simple way to make a huge difference in our marriage.
According to Focus on the Family, “couples experience a great number of marital benefits when they regularly pray together. It increases forgivingness, emotional and sexual fidelity, relational happiness, trust and unity. It even improves conflict resolution, helping the couple realize that as they have individually been unconditionally forgiven by God, so they’re to forgive others.”

 I personally have noticed that as Matt & I hear each other‘s most inner thoughts through prayer and it has most definitely brought us closer together. 

I cannot recommend daily prayer and scripture reading enough!  I highly recommend adding these two small changes to your life and see what affects it may have on your overall outlook and attitude.