A New Year, a new you: Change doesn’t always come easy

I don’t get it. To me, it’s hard (really hard) not to love Jesus’ teaching. Throughout His life on this earth, Jesus preached love and hope. How can you not agree with that? In fact, recently I said to a group of friends that I don’t understand why everyone didn’t follow Christianity. Even if I didn’t believe in God or Christ, I would find the core message of Christianity (the central message of Love) to be the most compelling belief system of any that exist out there. Why isn’t everyone a Christian? Maybe, just maybe, we Christians should take some of the blame for that, somewhat complicating the message. Sometimes, turning it from one of Love and Hope into one of guilt and shame. 

Over the past few months, I’ve talked about the central message of Love and its implications for generosity, but today I want to focus on Hope. As Christians, we tend to talk about Hope in the context of a renewed relationship with God the Father (and it is correct to do so), but the message of Hope doesn’t have to stop there. It doesn’t have to be only about this big lofty evangelical message. It applies to you and me in the everyday little things too. Christ tells us that things don’t need to stay the way they are, that we don’t need to stay the way we are, that there is Hope for all aspects of our lives to get better. And I think for me, this is where the appeal is. Jesus doesn’t compel me to be a better person; to give more, to save more, to do all the ought’s that I ought to do. Rather He invites me to the Hope of a better life. 

The Hope of a better life applies to all areas of our lives. I just happen to be an expert on the financial side of things, so I talk mostly about the money. But this general principle applies to all areas of our lives. I am not stuck where I am. You are not stuck where you are. Christ offers the Hope of a better life, not just to the unbeliever, but to you and me in the everyday workings of our lives as well. And so, the early in the year is the perfect time to ask ourselves: what do I want to change? What areas of my life do I want to improve, or do I feel a stirring to change? Do I want greater financial freedom? Am I stressed about too much debt? Am I anxious because I just don’t know where I am financially?

And the New Year is the perfect time to consider how to make that change happen. I hate to say it, but it’s been my experience that I don’t achieve all the goals that I set, but it’s also been my experience that I do hit some of them. The old saying is true, “If you aim at nothing you are bound to hit it.” More to the point, I wouldn’t be where I am today if I didn’t set those goals and make plans to achieve them.

My advice: rather than setting a dozen resolutions, make a list of two or three goals that are really important to you. 

Having given thought to what you want to focus on, then talk about it. Get it out there.

• Talk to God. Pray about it. Not asking God to achieve it for you, but rather whether it is indeed something you should be striving for and then help to achieve it.
• Talk to an expert. Whether it’s faith, fitness, financial, or anything else, try to get expert help. 
• And talk to your friends. This one’s a bit scary even for me. It’s been proven that by sharing your goals with like-minded friends who can both encourage you and hold you accountable, you are more likely to achieve them.

If you really want to succeed, don’t stop there. There are a number of additional steps that have been shown to significantly increase the likelihood of success. Be specific …or if you can’t be specific make it a sub-goal to get specific. For each goal, write down (and it is important to write all of this down) why you want to attain that goal, how you will feel when you do and by when you want to hit the target. Also, keep in mind that goals work best when they are SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Results oriented, Timed).

I wish I could say all of this guarantees success, but sadly that wouldn’t be true. Fortunately, I think Jesus’ message of forgiveness applies not only to forgiving others, but also to forgiving ourselves. Rather than beating yourself up for past failures, shake it off and move forward in the Hope that He has given. And let Hope encourage you to set bigger goals than you’ve ever dreamed of before. Goals that are out of reach but not out of sight.

Enjoy the New Year. Enjoy the New You

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!” 

• 2 Corinthians 5:17 (NIV)

Arnold Machel lives, works, and worships in the White Rock/South Surrey area. In 1995, he founded Visionvest Financial Planning & Services with the dual goals of “effecting positive financial change” and assisting clients to “Invest with Vision”. Since that time Visionvest has received numerous recognitions, including being voted in the top three in the Best Investment/Financial Advisor category by Peace Arch News readers for the past three years in a row.

Arnold has held the Certified Financial Planner® designation since 1998 and has served on many boards, currently sitting on the board of Abundance Canada (formerly the Mennonite Foundation of Canada), a national charity focused on helping Canadians give generously. 

Questions and comments can be directed to him at dr.rrsp@visionvest.ca. Please note that all comments are of a general nature and should not be relied upon as individual advice. While every attempt is made to ensure accuracy, facts and figures are not guaranteed.