A New Year's Revolution! By Linda Kozar

Are you compiling a list of New Year's Resolutions again?

I am not a big fan of resolutions. I resolve not to do this. I resolve not to do that. And who keeps those resolutions? By the end of January, you are off your diet, exercising sporadically and most of your other resolutions have failed to launch as well.

A resolution is "a course of action determined or decided on," (according to the FreeOnline Dictionary). But there is absolutely no wiggle room with a resolution. It's like hitting the execute key on your computer. 

Why not set goals instead? I propose a resolution revolution!

Let's set goals to strive toward instead of drawing lines in the sand. Setting goals each year for the future twelve-month period is sensible, far more attainable action to take.

In October, I attended the Books & Such Literary Agency retreat in Monterey, California. One of the things our agents inspired us to do was to dream big for the year, to allow our imaginations, inner dreams and desires to run their course, and to write them down, no matter how outlandish.

The first thing we all did was to write down a scripture that defines our life. Some people already have a scripture chosen for their lives and I commend those people. I had one in mind, but it was one that God gave me many years ago and is specific to the ministry he called me to. Many of us visited a website that assigns a scripture according to birthdate, though the best thing to do would be to find one through a time of prayerful intercession. But for the purpose of this exercise, you might want to try it. The site is called Birth Verse:

http://www.birthverse.com

Once you have your verse, try playing off the words in the verse to come up with categories. My verse was Matthew 6:21 "For where your treasure is, there your heart will also be." So I thought of my life in terms of treasure. I divided my live into Faith Treasure, Family Treasure, Creative Treasure and Sharing Treasure.

Faith Treasure: faith, church, witnessing, listening to God

Family Treasure: husband, children, extended family, friends

Creative Treasure: writing, painting, crafts

Sharing Treasure: writer's groups, speaking, Bible Study, giving, encouraging

So, take heart! Spend some time in prayer. Write down the goals hidden in your heart. God already knows about them. He knows everything about you. There is nothing hidden from Him. Go ahead and write them all down. Find your verse. Break the heart of that verse into categories and subcategories and build your dream goals into it.

May the Lord richly bless your new year and your dream goals!

Linda Kozar is the co-author of Babes With A Beatitude—Devotions For Smart, Savvy Women of Faith (Hardcover/Ebook, Howard/Simon & Schuster 2009) and author of Misfortune Cookies (Print, Barbour Publishing 2008), Misfortune Cookies, A Tisket, A Casket, and Dead As A Doornail, (“When The Fat Ladies Sing Series,” eBooks, Spyglass Lane Mysteries, 2012). Her latest novel Strands of Fate released October 2012 (Hardcover/Ebook, Creative Woman Mysteries). She received the ACFW Mentor of the Year Award in 2007, founded and served as president of Writers On The Storm, The Woodlands, Texas ACFW chapter for three years. In 2003, she co-founded, co-directed and later served as Southwest Texas Director of Words For The Journey Christian Writers Guild. She and her husband Michael, married 24 years, have two lovely daughters, Katie and Lauren and a Rat Terrier princess named Patches.

Represented by: Wendy Lawton, Books & Such Literary Agency

Member of: CAN (Christian Authors Network), RWA (Romance Writers of American), WHRWA (West Houston Romance Writers of America), ACFW (American Christian Fiction Writers), Writers On The Storm, The Woodlands, Texas Chapter of ACFW, Toastmasters (Area 56) The Woodlands, Texas, The Woodlands Church, The Woodlands, TX.