For most Americans, a sense of guilt fills our thoughts as the holidays end and a new year begins. We feel the prick of our consciences from over eating, partying, drinking, sweets, and lack of proper exercising. Our response to this guilt is to make some New Year resolutions. I have found we often start off with great intentions, but they weaken as time goes on. Why is this?
Fr. Thomas Dubay, in his book: Deep Conversion/Deep Prayer, offers an explanation for this human phenomenon. He says, “Most of us would like to assume that when reasonable people hear about improving themselves notably in their personal lives they would more or less eagerly welcome the message and get to work applying it. But the rude fact is that such consistency in the human race is rather rare.”
He goes on to explain that just as we are not serious about physically improving ourselves from good to better, there is a similar correspondence in our spiritual life. He says, “Why do people who love God to some extent, knowingly choose not to love him completely? 
Why do they not give up their petty clingings? The answer is, a remarkable resistance. There is a great gap for most people between prayer and performance. At our devotions we can say sublime things about loving God with our whole heart, and then ten minutes later divide that heart with selfish overeating – or any one of a dozen other petty clingings.”
Citing a cover story of Newsweek Magazine from their August 2, 1999 issue, he shows how many Americans know what a healthy diet is and how poorly they live what they know is beneficial. He then states, “… we may wish that we were better. But a wishing is a velleity, a mere weak desire that leads nowhere… Unfortunately, this remarkable resistance in most people is a fact, an undoubted reality. Worse yet, the poll results suggest that what we know has very little effect on how we live.”
So, New Year resolutions are often doomed to failure unless, as Fr. Dubay points out, we “exercise a firm purpose of amendment.” This amendment is shown in our decisions and the various choices we continue to make each day to accomplish the tasks we have set for ourselves. In most cases, even the firm amendment will fall short unless there is a spiritual and moral component, conversion, and help from the Holy Spirit. Simply put, we need to get our spiritual lives aligned 
properly in order to face overcoming our tendency towards “remarkable resistance.” His solution calls for “deep conversion and deep prayer.”
St. Paul writes: “Train yourself in godliness, for, while physical training is of some value, godliness is valuable in every way, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come.” 1Tm.4:7
Spiritual training is important but if it is important, it needs to be important enough to make it important in our lives, and put on our schedules. To do this effectively, we need the help of the Holy Spirit or we will remain out of whack.
For Reflection:
Do I feel out of whack after the holidays? What do I sense the underlying cause of that unsettledness is? Have I made New Year resolutions in the past? Have they been successful? Why or why not? Do I see remarkable resistance in my life? Polls suggest that what we know has very little effect on how we live. Do I find this true in my life? How might I add the spiritual and moral component to my resolutions this year?
Prayer:
Lord I come, I confess; Bowing here I find my rest. Without You I fall apart. You’re the one that guides my heart. Lord, I need You, oh I need You. Every hour I need You. My one defense, my righteousness, Oh God I need You.
https://lyricstranslate.com/en/Chris-Tomlin-LORD-I-NEED-YOU-lyrics.html
(blogged November 1, 2024)
