"Not  that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me.  Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it.  But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus." (Phillipians 3:12-14)

This time of year is customary for many people to make resolutions for the new year.  Sometimes my list bears a striking resemblance to the one from last year...but you probably do much better!

It is difficult for all of us to change old ways of doing things and to break ingrained habits.  We resolve to start doing something and we are lucky if it lasts through Super Bowl Sunday!  We are going to read our Bible and pray every day.  We are going to be in church and Sunday School every week.  We are going to exercise every day.  We are going to eat more nutritious food.  We are going to be nicer to our family and friends.  And we do it...for a while any way!

That is all well and good, but let me suggest a modified approach this year - how about a list of things "not to do" in 2012.

What if God has something huge in mind for you this year, but you are too busy with all the hustle and bustle of life and you can't seem to find time to get to it?  The "urgent" keeps crowding into our time and pushing the "important" items lower and lower on our to-do lists.  What keeps us from doing what is "great?"  Sometimes it is because we  are busy doing what is "good."

We should all be doing "good."  But maybe this year we can resolve, not to stop doing good, but to make sure that we prioritize on doing the "great," focusing our energies on accomplishing the truly important, and concentrating our efforts on what God has in store for the St. Luke family in the years ahead.  Hope you are, too. Let's make 2012 a GREAT year.

Learn more about St. Luke Church online: www.stlukechurchonline.org