“Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth.” (3 John 1:2)

It is hard to believe another calendar year is coming to an end. The time between Thanksgiving and Christmas is one of, if not the busiest, seasons of the year. These days are filled with many wonderful events and celebrations. In just a few days, another year will begin. For most of us, our schedule looks a little different in the days following Christmas. There seems to be more “downtime.”

Let me encourage you as a Christian to take some time to consider your life. I know in the new year, most will make some resolutions or goals to achieve. Before we can effectively set some new goals, we must first do an end-of-year review.

Take Your Year-End Spiritual Exam

Prayerfully and honestly ask yourself some questions. What am I doing well? In what areas do I need to work? How can I improve? What needs to be eliminated or reduced in my life? We can use the list below to ask God to prod our hearts and minds.

• Spiritual Life: How is my personal fellowship with the Lord? Is it stagnant? Am I growing spiritually?
• Service to the Lord: How am I doing serving the Lord in my church and in my community? If others worshipped and served at the same rate I do, would I consider them faithful?
• Spouse: How am I doing serving and prioritizing my spouse over every other human relationship? Are their needs growing or changing in the new year? (Click HERE for resources on Marriage and Family.)
• Children: Am I emphasizing the spiritual over the earthly? What priorities need to change? How are my responses and interactions with them?
• Family: How am I doing as an extended family member?
• Work/Career: Am I maintaining my Christian influence at work? Do others respect me? Should I change jobs to better serve the Lord or my family according to Scripture? Am I doing my work as unto the Lord? (Read more about the Christian and his work HERE.)
• Finances: Am I honoring the Lord with my tithes and offerings? How is my stewardship? Do spending habits need to change?
• Health: How am I doing with the things I can control?
• Time: On what am I spending too much time? On what am I spending too little time?

Life is always changing. There are many things out of our control. I’m challenging us to examine the areas in which we have some control. It is important to start with a sincere end-of-year checkup before setting goals and resolutions for the new year. If we are dishonest, we truly just cheat ourselves. Include your spouse in your evaluation.

Remember, before you know where you need to go, you must first realize where you are. Every journey has a starting point. Where are you today?

About Mark Fowler

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