How to keep resolutions - Christian Personal Development

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This Bible Short Report will show you how to keep resolutions. It’s another edition in our Bible Short Reports series.

Many people have struggled with keeping their yearly resolutions. This is a weakness and it can go a long way to affect and derail the success aspirations of the people.

The Bible Short Reports series is a Christian problem-solving book series. We have used inspired biblical contents to produce this ebook guide. Please read it free and share with your friends. Let me alo read your comment.

Related: Read other editions of the Bible Short Reports series free online today 

How To Turn Your Resolutions Into Actions 

How To Set And Achieve New Year Resolutions

 Sesan Oguntade

Published by Sesan Oguntade at NowNowBooks store 

Copyright 2018 Sesan Oguntade 

Discover other titles by Sesan Oguntade at NowNowBooks store 

https://sesanoguntade.com/category/Bible-short-reports 

Leave a Review

I’ll be very happy if you can go back to the online channel where you got this book to leave a review. This will go a long way to help the spread of this book. I’ll be glad if you do this and I know God will be happy with you.  

Book Text 

“Write the vision. And make it plain on tablets, that he may run who reads it. For the vision is yet for an appointed time; But at the end it will speak, and it will not lie. Though it tarries, wait for it; because it will surely come, It will not tarry.” (Habakkuk 2: 2-3)

Chapter 1: Introduction to how to keep resolutions 

“Do you know something,” my friend said to me sometimes ago. “I’ve found it difficult keeping to my resolution to stop smoking for the past 5 years now.” 

“Really,” I replied stunned. “For the past 5 years?”

“Yes,” he continued with deep sadness. “I make the resolution but I always find it difficult keeping it even from the first month of the year.”

This is usually the sad situation with most people. They always find it difficult not just in keeping to their personal resolutions for the New Year but also their set goals and objectives.

It’s likely you’re in the same position. If you’ve reached out to grab this book, then I believe the book title must have grabbed your attention and you truly want to find out how you can begin to turn your lofty resolutions into actions. This book will try to show you practical Christian strategies that can go a long way to help you.

Resolutions come in various shades and forms especially at the end of every year. They come on board as a result of the need in somebody’s life to bring about a positive change in his life, work business, family or marriage. 

Agreed some evil-minded people make the wrong resolutions to do more wickedness and evil but my focus here is on people who make the right resolutions to bring about positive changes in their lives and their societies. 

Since good resolutions bring about positive changes in the lives of the people and the society and also help to solve personal and societal problems, this agrees perfectly with our Bible Short Report (BSR) vision and this edition will just proffer some useful tips on how you can turn your resolutions into actions. 

In case you’re reading our BSR series for the first time, I say welcome to you. There are over 30 editions (comprising of ebooks, PDF Checklists, Videos, Podcasts, Video courses) in this series already teaching Christian “How to” contents. They are all free!

You can read more about this book series and subscribe to receive email alerts when a new edition is released. 

Download Our Bible Short Reports Series:

There are over 25 titles in this series already. There are titles like, How to Fly With Your Faith, How to Overcome Worry and Anxiety, How to Exit the Cage of Fear, How to Maintain Focus and Concentration, Jesus and Your Success and more (see banner below). Visit  https://sesanoguntade.com/

Chapter 2: How to keep resolutions: You Can Do It

“But Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself with the portion of the king’s delicacies nor with the wine which he drunk; therefore he requested of the Chief of the Eunuchs that he might not defile himself.” (Daniel 1:8). 

This interesting story of this young bible Daniel has always inspired me. In a foreign country and as a slave, he took a decision not to defile himself with the food from the king’s palace. He purposed in his heart. He took a decision. He resolved in his heart. He made a tough resolution not to eat from the table of the gentile king. 

He achieved his resolution. He turned it into action.

 “And it came to pass after these things that his master’s wife cast longing eyes on Joseph and she said, ‘Lie with me’. But he refused and said to his master’s wife… ‘How then can I do this great wickedness and sin against God.” (Genesis 39: 7-9).

Joseph, from this story resolved not to do anything that will go against the rules of the God that he served. He was wrongly and wickedly treated by his brother and sold into slavery in Egypt. He had every opportunity to forsake the rules of his God and abandon his lofty resolutions to live a clean and Godly life. But he did not. He turned down the evil sexual overtures of his master’s wife. He made one of the most inspiring statement by a teenager that I’ve read in the bible, “‘How then can I do this great wickedness and sin against God.”

These boys made resolutions and followed it up with actions in very tough situations. If they could do it you can do it too.

The truth is that making resolutions and turning them into actions or achieving them is the hallmark of great people. Daniel and Joseph became great men. Their stories inspire us today. 

If you want to be great, you must become someone who achieves his or her resolutions. In essence, this book will help your desire to become great in life. 

These guys in the bible above and their likes followed practical, tested strategies to achieve different resolutions they set for themselves in their lifetime. The truth is that these strategies can be used by anyone who wants to follow in their footsteps. 

I have described these strategies here in simple language. Please follow me on this journey…

Chapter 3: Check Your Resolutions

I want to believe you have already made your New Year resolutions. Now I want you to check it now. Is it what I call a righteous or clean resolution?

It’s of no good to you if you use the powerful tips in this book to pursue the wrong resolutions. 

Good, righteous and clean resolutions help you to solve personal, business, family or societal problems. They bring development and progress. 

So I want you to check it now.

If you’ve made the wrong resolutions, cancel them out now!

Have you done that?

Now let’s go to the practical tips I’ve got for you in this short guide.  

Chapter 4: Write Your Resolutions

Write your resolutions out clearly on paper. This is important. Prophet Habakkuk wrote God’s instructions to him in Habakkuk 2: 2-3:. “Write the vision. And make it plain on tablets, that he may run who reads it. 3 For the vision is yet for an appointed time; But at the end it will speak, and it will not lie. Though it tarries, wait for it; because it will surely come, It will not tarry.” (Emphasis mine). 

I agreed we’re not talking about visions here but I believe the resolutions you’ve made are to make you achieve some certain level of efficiency, success and progress.  

If this is the case, then achieving resolutions and visions follow almost the process.

So you should learn to write out your resolutions plainly on paper or on your note-taking device. You should know that this is not an exercise you leave only at the mercy of your memory alone, let your ‘paper memory’ help you out. 

There’s another good purpose for this, you’ll find out in subsequent chapters in this book. 

For example, the following can be your resolutions: 

  1. I want to stop smoking.
  2. I want to spend more time with my family.
  3. I want to spend more time working on my present project.

Write all of them out if it is not a single-statement or a one-task resolution.

Chapter 5: Split Each Task

I guess most people don’t do this and that is one of the major reasons why they find it difficult turning their resolutions into actions or achieving their resolutions. For example, in a particular end of the year, I took a resolution to listen less to sports analysis on Radio (I love sports analysis, I use it to relax) in the New Year. So my resolution was: In this New Year, I want to listen to less of sports analysis on Radio.

I decided to split the task into simple sections this way (I call this the split theorem):

  1. Pick two of the most favorite sports programmes I listened to on Radio.
  2. Take my Radio and mobile phone away from me at the time when these Radio programmes are aired on their various channels.
  3. Use this period to separate and pray and also brainstorm fresh ideas for our organisation.
  4. Tell my spouse about this resolution.

When you split the general task in your resolution into different, simple and achievable tasks, you’ll be able to have a simple-to-follow diagrammatic representation of what you’re to do to turn your resolutions into actions. Your job then is simplified, you’ll be able to follow each simplified steps to achieve your main goal.

This strategy was inspired in my heart still from Habakkuk 2:2-3,”Write the vision. And make it plain on tablets, that he may run who reads it. For the vision is yet for an appointed time; But at the end it will speak, and it will not lie. Though it tarries, wait for it; because it will surely come, It will not tarry.” (Emphasis mine).

Making it plain involves representing your resolutions clearly or splitting it clearly on paper or on whatever device you use in note taking. 

Chapter 6: Keep Your Resolutions Where You’ll Always See It

Still I got this from the wise statement of God to Prophet Habakkuk, “Write the vision. And make it plain on tablets, that he may run who reads it. For the vision is yet for an appointed time; But at the end it will speak, and it will not lie. Though it tarries, wait for it; because it will surely come, it will not tarry.” (Emphasis mine).

You don’t make, write your resolutions and keep it away from yourself or from your face. You must learn to read it loudly to yourself from time to time.

The bible in Proverbs 18: 20-21 has this to say: “A man’s stomach shall be satisfied from the fruit of his mouth; from the produce of his lips he shall be filled.”

What you speak from your mouth goes a long way to fill and nourish what you have in your heart. This is a proven principle.

God recommended this to Joshua in Joshua 1: 8, “This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it.”

Reading and seeing your resolutions consistently drives the content into your heart. When it has settled in your heart, it becomes your default reactions and actions because as a man thinks so is he (Proverbs 23:7).

So reading and seeing it is meant to influence your heart consistently with the content of the resolution and also to help you acquire the strength to keep the resolution you have made.

Chapter 7: Say It Out To Someone

If you checked the split theorem I shared with you in Chapter 5 about myself, I showed you the following as the content of the last split task I must carry out: “Tell my spouse about this resolution.”

I hope you remember that.

In the last chapter, I asked you to read your resolutions to yourself consistently. But here I’m asking you to say it out to someone close to you.  These people must be people you have some level of trust in.  They must be people you’ll not naturally love to disappoint. They must be people you hold in high esteem. 

This is what I call the extra-mile commitment. You’re going the extra mile to make yourself get committed to the job of turning your resolutions into actions. 

Jesus had resolved to die on the cross for the sin of the world as part of His mission to the earth so he severally told His disciples and the people around Him about His resolution to do so.

I’m not surprised He had the strength and also the focus to achieve His resolutions.

Get yourself on the higher level or scale of commitment to your resolutions by telling someone close to you about what you’ve resolved to do or achieved for yourself, business, work, and ministry in the New Year.

Chapter 8: Brace Up To Act

There is nothing as good and gratifying as to put some actions into your resolutions.

Splitting the task using the split theorem and other tips in this ebook will help you to act out your resolution.

God’s instructions to Prophet Habakkuk further reads, “Write the vision. And make it plain on tablets, that he may run who reads it.” The purpose of writing and reading it to yourself is to get you running with it, that is, to take action on it. (Emphasis mine).

Do the simplified task one by one and step by step. Don’t put much pressure on yourself. Do something and check how far you’re doing. 

For example, you can decide to achieve a main resolution of stopping alcoholic drink using the following simplified tasks:

  1. I’ll stop hanging out with friends in evenings and weekends at beer hangouts.
  2. I’ll stop seeing friends who drink alcohol. You can go ahead to name them on your resolution sheet. 
  3. I’ll put a stop to every form of partying for now.
  4. I’ll take out every appearance of alcoholic drinks in my apartment.
  5. I’ll tell my spouse (If you’re married) or a close friend who does not drink alcohol about my resolution.

You should begin to act on those simplified tasks one by one. Don’t tell yourself it’s difficult and that they cannot be achieved. Just start doing something and you’ll find out that it’s not difficult to do after you must have taken the first step of action.

Don’t tell yourself the whole world will descend on you and crush you if you fail at the early stage of taking actions. Instead, you should expect the good forces of God to come to your aid.

Even when it appears your actions seem not to be yielding results, keep on acting out the simplified tasks you have on paper.

Chapter 9:  Pray Over Your Resolutions

The truth that some people don’t want to agree with is that there may be some evil spiritual forces behind the dirty habits they get involved in like smoking, alcohol drinking, lying, laziness and which they’ve struggled to stop for many years. 

If there are evil spiritual forces behind your inability to keep your resolutions for many years then you’ll need a stronger spiritual force to overcome them or else you’ll not be able to turn your resolutions into actions!

This is the power that Christians have. They can tap into this stronger power of God to overcome any problem or evil spiritual forces. 

If you’re yet to become a child of God through Jesus Christ, you’ll need to say a simple prayer. Please pray this way:

“Father in heaven, forgive my sinful past. I believe Jesus Christ died for my sins and His shed blood has wiped away my sins. I believe He is the Son of the Living God. I accept Him as my Lord and Saviour. I want Him to begin to rule in my life as from now on. I believe I am saved. Thank you God for hearing my prayer”.

Congratulations! This is going to be the greatest decision you will ever take. Congratulations once again! Now begin to enjoy Christ unlimited and good success will never elude you again. Please let me read from you about your experience or how this book has helped you. You can contact me in either of these ways: Send your comments to: infobooksng@gmail.com or infobooks@sesanoguntade.com

I want you to be educated and inspired by the following scriptures:

“We overcame him (the devil) by the blood of the Lamb (blood of the slain Jesus Christ) and the word of our testimonies.” (Revelation 12:11). 

“Whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.” (Matthew 18:18).

Heaven or the stronger spiritual force of God will come to your aid when you pray as a child of God.

Chapter 10: Don’t Get Discouraged

If it appears you’re not making a head way with your resolutions or it appears you’re always falling back to your old habits, don’t be discouraged and abandon your resolutions. 

Some people do this! When they observe they seem to be making no headway with their resolutions in the first month of the year, they turn their backs on their cherished resolutions that are meant to solve an important problem in their lives, family and business. This should not be so.

Most times, God wants to test your resolution to turn your resolution into action and delay granting you the necessary help. If He finds out that you’re not committed to your resolutions, you may end up forfeiting the opportunity to have God’s help.

This principle was taught by Jesus Christ in the popular importunity in prayer parable He told in Luke chapter 18:1-8.

In the parable, the poor widow who desired justice from the king did not abandon her cause; she pressed on. She ended up getting the attention of the king and she got the justice she was looking for. Likewise, you’ll also get the needed help from God over your decision to turn your resolutions into actions

Stick to your simplified tasks as highlighted on paper. When you fail in one area, go back to it and do it again. Be determined. There’s nothing as powerful as a determined mind. At the end of the year, you would have succeeded in achieving your aims and objectives of making these resolutions a reality. 

I’m wishing you all the best. Let me read from you.

Leave a Review

I’ll be very happy if you can go back to the online channel where you got this book to leave a review. This will go a long way to help the spread of this book. I’ll be glad if you do this and I know God will be happy with you. 

Thank you and God bless you. 

Sesan Ogunotade

Presiding Officer at Success Christian Home

infobooks@sesanoguntade.com

You may also be interested in this book:

How To Maintain Focus And Concentration…Practical tips on how to get to the end of projects

how to stay focused at work

How to maintain focus and concentration will help you to handle distractions.

It will help you to keep your focus on your business goals. It contains practical tips on how you can keep up the momentum when you start a business project until the end of the project.

Most times, it appears very easy to kick start a project, a company, an idea or an organisation but it takes a lot of works if the project or idea will move from the starting point to the finish point. In between these two important stages is the middle stage where the project executor needs lots of focus and concentration on the project. Usually, lots of distractions come around and lots of obstacles come knocking. You, the project executor must learn to keep these and any other “unwanted guests” away from yourself and your project. 

How to maintain focus and concentration will help you to keep to your set goals and objectives. 

This book used practical Christian tips and strategies that anyone can use to maintain focus and concentration to reach the end of personal and business projects.

Download a copy of this book today.

Visit https://sesanoguntade.com/category/Bible-short-reports 

Download Our Bible Short Reports Series: 

There are over 25 titles in this series already. There are titles like, How to Fly With Your Faith, How to Overcome Worry and Anxiety, How to Exit the Cage of Fear, How to Maintain Focus and Concentration, Jesus and Your Success and more (see banner below). Visit  https://sesanoguntade.com/

Are You Rapture Compatible?

Are you sure you will be rapturable today if the trumpet of the end comes suddenly? If you are not sure, you need to settle issues with God in prayer. The greatest prayer you can say if you are not a child of God through Jesus Christ is the one I have for you in the content under The Ultimate Decision below. Please say the prayer and let me read from you.

The Ultimate Decision 

“For with the heart man believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation” (Romans 10:10)

If you have not known Jesus but you have enjoyed the success principles described in this book and you want to give your life to Jesus Christ so that these principles can start working in your life, you can say the following in prayer:

“Father in heaven, forgive my sinful past. I believe Jesus Christ died for my sins and His shed blood has wiped away my sins. I believe He is the Son of the Living God. I accept Him as my Lord and Saviour. I want Him to begin to rule in my life as from now on. I believe I am saved. Thank you God for hearing my prayer”.

Congratulations! This is going to be the greatest decision you will ever take. Congratulations once again! Now begin to enjoy Christ unlimited and good success will never elude you again. Please let me read from you about your experience or how this book has helped you. You can contact me in either of these ways: Send your comments to: infobooksng@gmail.com or infobooks@sesanoguntade.com

234-08034300979, 234-07066360364

About The Author

Sesan Ogunotade is an insightful teacher of the Word, Bible Success Researcher, Success Motivator, Christian Personal Development Expert and Author of many books amongst which is the popular ‘Jesus and Your Success’ (available free at https://sesanoguntade.com ). He believes that the solution to ANY problem lies in the WORD of GOD. His central message to the world is “without Jesus, you cannot succeed” (John 15:5b). He presides over Success Christian Home, headquartered in Ogun state, Nigeria, a Christian organization with the vision of raising problem solvers in the society. 

He’s the Founder of The Success Laboratory International Seminars, a platform where pure Bible principles that solve practical societal and personal problems are taught. He also founded The Christian Business School, an academic arm of his Bible training school, where business owners and work-place professionals are trained to run their businesses and conduct affairs in their places of work using time-tested principles. 

You can add him on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/successebooks http://www.facebook.com/successchristianhome. You can follow him on twitter, @SesanOguntade. He is married to Olutoke Success Ogunotade and they are blessed with children, Abigael, Maranatha and Wisdom.

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