Resolution Solution

For me, and I am guessing many Catholics, the new year reminds me of the beginning of Lent. Not for any religious reasons but trying to make a good resolution is almost as nerve wracking as figuring out what to do during Lent. Do I give up some vice or guilty pleasure (so long Walking Dead)? Do I resolve to make a lifestyle change (goodbye morning coffee)? Do I challenge myself to reach a new health goal (farewell 20 lbs)? 

Judging by the number of people I see at the gym in January and the drop off by March, I would guess many people are challenged to both make resolutions and keep them. Like a Lenten sacrifice, I think the key to keeping a resolution is to pick something realistic, something that will make you a better person, and someone to hold you accountable.

At CKS, as some of you have picked up from previous posts, our mission this school year is to be agents of Peace. Bringing peace to others starts with bringing peace to ourselves. We live in a busy connected world. It is difficult for many, me included, to break away from that world and take a few moments for myself and spend them with God in silence. I find that when I do, I soon find peace.

My resolution this year is to take at least one minute each day and sit in silence listening to what God has to say. Too often my conversations with him are one-sided—not because God is silent but because I never give him a chance to talk. I fill our time with what I have to say and wrap up quickly with an “Amen” hardly giving Him a chance to respond.

In 2015, I hope I can change that by giving time each day to both talk to God and listen to His response. Hopefully, it will bring me more peace. If I start to fall off from keeping this resolution, hopefully you will hold me accountable.