It was the night before the New Year, and all through the night, people were making their goals, in hopes that this might be the year they’ve been waiting for …

I don’t know about you, but I love the excuse the New Year brings to start fresh. I love reflecting on the past year and dreaming for the next. Yet, it can be quite overwhelming, can’t it?

Maybe you have been reflecting on this past year, and it wasn’t all that you had hoped for this time last year. Maybe you set goals and you’re finding that you didn’t meet them all, if any. Maybe you had dreamed of a big accomplishment, and it ended up not going your way. Maybe you’re planning the year ahead, and rather than having goals and excitement for the future, you’re questioning what is ahead and if anything good will come from it.

In Philippians 3, we read about Paul “goal setting,” if you will. Verse 12 starts with a reflection—let’s picture that Paul is writing this in the new year: “I don’t mean to say that I have already achieved these things or that I have already reached perfection.” In reflection, Paul is saying that he hasn’t reached it all; he is still looking for more. Yet, Paul gives us hope and a way to dream and set goals that go deeper than our usual “New Year, New Me.”

Paul says in verses 13 and 14, “No, dear brothers and sisters, I have not achieved it, but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us.”

Paul sets these goals and aims to reach them, not because of his own strength, but because of the prize that awaits him. Now this prize isn’t something he can earn from how well he does things, but rather it is a prize that already awaits him through Christ Jesus. It is a prize that has already been gifted to him; he needs only to receive it.

The same is true for you and for me. Through Christ Jesus, we are given the ultimate prize of salvation and grace through Christ alone. This isn’t a prize you can earn through your goals. Rather, what if your goals were shaped by this prize? What if, as you dream for the year ahead, rather than looking at what you can get out of it, you set your goals with heaven in mind?

Heaven-minded goals mean asking questions like:

  • Is this going to bring heaven closer to earth?
  • Through this goal, will the people around me encounter more of Jesus’ love and grace? Will I?
  • Does this goal help me reach the mission to “go and make disciples”? (Matthew 28:19)
  • Am I loving God, myself, and others through this goal?

As we reflect on the year and prepare for the next, I pray you invite God into it. May all that you do be done for the glory of God. “Whatever you do or say, do it as a representative of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through him to God the Father” (Colossians 3:17).

Reflection:

  • Take time reflecting on where heaven has met earth this past year in your life—where has God shown up?
  • As you prepare and set goals for the new year, ask yourself heaven-minded questions and invite God into your plans.