It's that time of year again, out with the old and in with the new. It's the time of year we start to evaluate what we may have accomplished in the past year, or failed to accomplish, and begin to dream about setting new goals with a clean slate for the coming year. It's time to turn over not only a new page, but to get out a whole new calendar. This time of year lends itself to a time of self examination, goal setting, and really getting honest with God. If we put off this practice until New Year's, no wonder we might find ourselves dreading the task. We try to do too much at one time. John Wesley had a habit of coming clean with God on a daily basis. It was not a once a year deal between John Wesley and the Lord, it was a daily walk in humility.The 22 Questions Wesley used on a daily basis can still be of great value to us. We believe that once we accept Christ to be our Lord and Savior, God gives us grace to become a more holy people, and this is not of our own doing, but in the accepting of what Christ has already done for us by paying the price for our sin. On a daily basis, we can give God the chance to do a holy work within us by giving God some time, by learning to be honest with God about all of our thoughts and feelings, by praying for strength to be closer to God when we are facing a time of hardship, and by practicing the habits of a Christian, like reading the Bible and praying. We try to clean up our own lives, but that holy work is actually not within our reach. Only God can give us the power to live for him, through him, and give us the power to change what is not holy in our lives. God will put the people we need in our lives to help us draw closer to Christ. That is grace made flesh. If we are expecting 2010 to fall into our lap, and bring new possibilities just because the calendar has a new number, we are placing our hope in the wrong place. God is the source of our hope. God is the source of our wisdom to set wise goals for the coming year, and God is the only one that can help us see them through. Let's start our new year on a holy note, by being humble before God, open and honest with him, and ask God to help us every day to become more like Christ our Lord. I hope you will save these questions and use them. I hope you will share them with a friend, your husband or wife or child. Let God do a holy work in each of us in the coming year.
The 22 Questions For Reflection
1. Am I consciously or unconsciously creating the impression that I am better than I really am? In other words, am I a hypocrite?
2. Am I honest in all my acts and words, or do I exaggerate?
3. Do I confidentially pass on to another what was told to me in confidence?
4. Can I be trusted?
5. Am I a slave to dress, friends, work or habits?
6. Am I self-conscious, self-pitying or self-justifying?
7. Did the Bible live in me today?
8. Do I give it time to speak to me every day?
9. Am I enjoying prayer?
10. When did I last speak to someone else about my faith?
11. Do I pray about the money I spend?
12. Do I go to bed on time and get up on time?
13. Do I disobey God in anything?
14. Do I insist upon doing something about which my conscience is uneasy?
15. Am I defeated in any part of my life?
16. Am I jealous, impure, critical, irritable, touchy or distrustful?
17. How do I spend my spare time?
18. Am I proud?
19. Do I thank God that I am not like other people?
20. Is there anyone whom I fear, dislike, disown, criticize, hold a resentment toward or disregard?
21. Do I grumble or complain constantly?
22. Is Christ real to me?
John Wesley, 1784 Service Book,
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