It’s that time of year again. When folks take a look at their lives and make plans and resolutions to better their existence. What tops the list of resolutions most often is weight loss, followed by exercise, and then the forming of other healthier habits – to stop smoking, drink less, eat healthy and get more sleep.
Interestingly, the “season” of New Year’s resolutions also closely coincides with the Season of Epiphany, which commences on January 6th. Classically defined as the manifestation of Jesus as the Christ to the Gentiles, Epiphanytide walks us with Jesus, beginning with the visit of the Magi, to his baptism, and then to his first miracle at a wedding in Cana of Galilee. These, of course, are not the only manifestations of Christ. The hoped for outcome of our observance of the Season of Epiphany is a sharpened awareness of the multitude of ways Christ is being made known each and every day.
With all this in mind, I’m wondering what it would be like to merge our New Year’s resolutions with the Season of Epiphany. What if our New Year’s resolutions were to know and make known Christ in all things? Here’s what I think it would look like:
New Year’s – Epiphany Resolutions:
- I will continue in the apostles’ teaching and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in the prayers
- I will persevere in resisting evil, and, whenever I fall into sin, repent and return to the Lord
- I will proclaim by word and example the Good News of God in Christ
- I will seek and serve Christ in all persons, loving my neighbor as myself
- I will strive for justice and peace among all people, and respect the dignity of every human being
What better way to fully live into Epiphanytide than what we have promised in our Baptismal Covenant?