According to author Maria Robinson, “Nobody can go back and start a new beginning, but anyone can start today and make a new ending.” And with the New Year upon us, now is the time to correct our path.
We can do this by incorporating new habits into our daily routine and altering old ones. Yes this may seem easy, but it is not; it takes grace, time and a full acceptance of the truth.
1) We must stay graceful even if we hit speed bumps along the way.
2) We must allow ourselves adequate time because achieving a goal may take longer than we would like.
3) And the hardest step of all–we must accept and acknowledge the truth in order to set the correct path and break bad habits.
Most people seek the truth in what they must change in order to reach their resolution or goals. Though this may be, the “truth” can be difficult to accept.
Recently while watching the reality television series Shark Tank, where aspiring entrepreneurs make business proposals to the panel of “shark” investors with the hope of receiving money to develop their products, a young woman pitched her product called the “skinny mirror.” This invention makes an individual appear to be 10 pounds less while looking in the mirror.
The contestant argued, “it makes people feel good and if so, confident about themselves.” After she presented, all five “sharks” declined to invest because the product was based on a lie. One panelist summed it up as, “people need to look in the mirror and see themselves as they are so they can take appropriate action.”
A “skinny mirror” may make us feel good while using it, but it won’t implement the changes needed in order to achieve our goals. Yes, at first the truth may cause us pain and make us upset, but in the end it will set us free.
If we want to improve our lives, no matter what we would like to change, we need to know and accept the truth. When we know and accept the truth, gracefully accept rough times along the way, and give ourselves plenty of time to make changes, there is hope for our New Year resolutions and life goals.
Lord give us the courage to accept the truth with grace and embrace the gift of time.