The new year is nearly upon us and that, for many, means taking stock of goals and ambitions for the next twelve months. The beginning point is often with physical fitness or monetary savings. While there is great wisdom in thinking through these types of goals and life changes, for the Christian the goals should be deeper. Perhaps we resolve to read the Bible through during the year or get involved in a small group. Just as our counterparts who want to run that marathon and save for that boat, life becomes busy and unanticipated monotony drives us to our old habits of laziness and isolation.
But if it is true that being more like Jesus is not antithetical to being happy, then one continuous and life-long goal for the Christian should be to become more holy. Holiness does not simply happen or occur, but is pursued with discipline in prayer, study, confession, worship, and community. While most Christians would affirm this basic and fundamental truth found in the Scriptures, many (including me) find that life responsibilities, family, work, and the energy to actually discipline daily routines for holiness is lacking.
That is why one of my goals for this new year is to read and study two books on holiness. You may think that only two books on holiness is not enough and a small goal. But here is where I want the reading to be different. I do not want to simply read to check it off on my reading list. I want to think and apply what is being said in the book into my life and that takes time. In order to do this well, I will be posting my thoughts and questions for each chapter of the book at the end of every week (Saturday). The first book will be A Serious Call to a Devout and Holy Life by William Law. It has 24 chapters, so it will consume just about half of the year. If you would like to purchase the book and follow along, I would be grateful for the company. If not, I do hope that you will consider how you can pursue being more holy for the new year, you will not regret the pursuit or the results.
A Serious Call to a Devout and Holy Life
Article by: Caleb Nedimyer
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