Who Else Wants To Finish Strong?

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. [Hebrews 12:1]

Did you make any resolutions this year?

I’ve never been a big fan of the annual tradition of making firm commitments on January 1, falling short within a few days, and then abandoning the whole notion. I have enough shortcomings—I don’t need to artificially manufacture failure.

However, I began 2009 with a different sort of resolution: Living Intentionally.

I resolved to act as though each day, each moment, matters. Living intentionally, on purpose, means actively choosing what fills the jar. And it means making sure the big stuff gets in first before the space is occupied by smaller, less important stuff.

This week the calendar flipped into December, a good time to refresh my resolution: I want to finish strong. I don’t want to stumble to the end of the year.

For me, that means a renewed focus on the gift of Christmas. I don’t want merely to endure and survive the rush of a holiday season filled with a mish-mash of cultural expectations.

My December resolution is an Intentional Christmas. That means enjoying the love of family and friends, marveling at the wonder and magic of children and Santa, and reveling in the beauty of decorations and lights. It means slowing down to take in the joy and generosity that abound.

But—an intentional Christmas means doing it all with my eyes on the star above a humble stable. It means purposely seeing it all in the context of the love and wonder of the gift of Jesus.

I want to finish the year on purpose. Want to join me?

What does finishing 2009 intentionally mean for you?

“His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!’ [Matthew 25:23]