New Year’s Burden

January is my least favorite month of the entire year. The sparkle of the holidays has worn off. You’re getting back to your normal routine. Your bank account is recovering from buying gifts, end-of-the-year birthdays (between my family and in-laws there are 5 December birthdays), and oh yeah – groceries, bills, and life. January never seems to end and on top of that IT GETS DARK AT 4:00 PM!

On top of all of that, we try and throw in resolutions. There is this massive blank canvas on January 1 and there is pressure to make this year the best one yet. While these aspirations are often well-intentioned, they can quickly turn into heavy burdens. The pressure to measure up, the guilt of falling short, and the never-ending quest for self-improvement can leave us weary and disheartened. From the moment the clock strikes midnight, we are trying to be in control of how this year goes. I don’t know about you, but the new year presents so much pressure to start on the right foot and I ALREADY feel discouraged about not living up to a standard I have set for myself.

While resolutions are not bad and they may drive us to some healthy practices – they can easily become idols in our lives, taking the focus away from the relationship and rhythms God has called us to. Where the world calls us to better ourselves, God calls us to lean into Him, trust in Him, and love Him more.

When Jesus died on the cross, He bore the ultimate burden of sin, failure, and inadequacy. Through His resurrection, He declared victory over these burdens, offering us a new identity and an opportunity to continually transform more and more into His own image. The freedom that Christ offers is not about striving harder but surrendering completely. It’s an acknowledgment that, on our own, we cannot achieve lasting transformation. True change begins when we place our trust in the One who has already accomplished everything on our behalf.

Our focus in a New Year resolution is often how to better ourselves, when our true and ongoing goal is Christlikeness. Here are a few scriptures to pray through and ponder as we walk into 2025.

Ephesians 5:1-2 “Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.”

What does it mean to imitate God in 2025?

2 Corinthians 5:17 “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.”

The day we began a relationship with Christ, we were made new. This transformation is ongoing for all our days on Earth. We don’t reset, we don’t have to start over.

Romans 12:2 “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.”

If you have resolutions for 2025, how do they align with the will of God? Are you striving for self-betterment or for a deeper relationship with the Living God?

God has been ready for what this year holds and He’s in control of it. 2025 can be a year of growing in our relationship with God. We don’t have to live with the burden or pressure of making this year the best it can possibly be. Live in the freedom that God’s hand is over this year and every year to come. Allow Christ’s victory over death to provide you the freedom to pursue Him joyfully. Let the Holy Spirit guide you, making you more like Him. Above all, trust your heavenly Father with whatever 2025 has in store – it is for the kingdom’s benefit and all for His glory.