Habakkuk 2:2
Then the Lord answered me and said, “Write down the vision and inscribe it clearly on tablets, so that one who reads it may run.”
I cannot resist writing just one more New Year’s message. This passage always resonates with me at this time of the year. Now, I know something about you guys. Quite a few of you have already made your goals and plans for this new year. A few of you have written them down. Those who have written down their goals are the most likely to achieve them. Why is that? God told us above, write it down so you can run with it. You can’t run towards a goal you cannot see.
There are many of us who don’t have goals yet for the year. We often have the best intentions, but don’t get them written. Let’s make that the first thing we do this year, our first accomplishment, if you will. Let’s set out some goals and write them down. Okay, so here is the deal, just write it down. The goal you are thinking of right now might seem too big. Write it down anyway. Another goal you inscribe may change over the year. Actually, writing it down helps you to revise your goals. When we don’t have a written record of our desires, everything gets muddled. Write down what you are thinking now and if in a week, if it needs revision, so be it. Revise it.
The passage says to write it clearly or plainly. Besides legibility I think this means to give the goal specificity. Let’s take this example. Let’s say my goal is to read more this year. Okay, what does “more” mean? Is that more than last year? Well, how many books did I read last year. Maybe my goal would be better stated as, “Read 5 books this year.” Good. Now, let’s say it’s May and I have already read five books. No worries, I get out my little journal and revise it to 8. It is also okay to revise a goal down. Maybe some opportunity arises that makes reading 5 books hard. Review your goal and make a reasoned decision about what adds the most value to your life. Is the opportunity stealing from you or adding value? Is the book reading goal more important to you than what the opportunity brings? If it’s really a great opportunity, then revise your reading goal down. That’s okay, but also record in your journal what you are hoping to gain from the opportunity.
Second, what am I going to have to do in order to reach my goal. If I work until 5:00 each day; cook dinner, eat and clean-up until 6:30 and plan to go to bed at 10:00 that leaves me 3 ½ hours to get some reading in. So, what needs to happen so that I can read for 30 minutes? Well, perhaps I decide to go to bed at 9:30 and read before I go to sleep. Or, maybe after the kitchen is clean, I need to take my 30 minutes right then before they get lost in a whirlwind of other activities. You get the point. Goals are not achieved without intentionality and a plan. Writing down a clear concise recitation of the goal is key but then develop a plan around that and write it down.
When I say that I want you to have a fabulous 2022, I mean it. I do not write these things lightly. All of the words I send to you come from within me. So, saying, Happy New Year means something. As wonderful as the sentiment is, I also feel a responsibility to help you have that good year. That’s why we do a Word of the Day. When I read today’s verse, I know that Yahweh is teaching us something important. Every word which proceeds from His lips has life in it. Therefore, I hope you will take this seriously and begin, today, to write down what you would like to achieve or see come to fruition in this year. Attach some dates too.
Write it down and review it regularly, at least weekly if not daily. If daily is too much, sit down Sunday night and remind yourself what you are believing for. Then start your week with determined purpose. You will find God leading you in amazing ways if you do this.
I pray you have a great year, full of new beginnings, accomplishments, and blessings!