Stop Starting New Habits This Year

I heard recently, “Many people look forward to the new year for a new start on old habits.” Uh, that’s me — guilty! When the calendar turned from 2016 to 2017, many of us me included— turned our focus to what we want to “start” doing or what new habits we want to “begin.”

I made a list of resolutions. I narrowed it down to the doable. I chose the one biggie and I tried really hard and… well… my old habits have tagged along into this new year, uninvited, unwelcome, but here they are!  I think that is because most of the time, we need to let go of old habits  so the new habits can have a place to grow.

When It Hurts and You Don’t Know What To Do

When we’re hurting, often our heads are cloudy and our hearts are so heavy we can’t bear the weight of our next decision.

We often feel stressed and fearful and disappointed. And, we don’t always feel capable of the small things we need to do — much less the big things that our soul really needs, like trusting God and praying. I know, I have been there.

When I was facing all the unknowns that go with a lumpectomy, the simplest tasks felt complicated; the most ordinary decisions seemed to take extraordinary effort.