“Negligence is the rust of the soul that corrodes through all her best resolves.” ― Owen Feltham
The calendar flips to a new year and the word resolution is quite common to hear. Why? Because too many of us did something last year that we’d wish not to repeat this year. Naturally, in our minds, there’s no better time to start than January. Fresh year. Fresh slate. We’re revved, got the goal identified and figure let’s do it! The first week goes great, the second is good, the third finds us overspending again and the downward spiral is in motion.
While it’s easy to toss around the word resolution, the follow through is often tougher to stick with over the long haul. Might I suggest that the majority of us don’t take making a resolution with much seriousness? As a result our finances can suffer.
For whatever reason, the nursery rhyme about Jack and Jill comes to mind as an example of two people working together, resolving to achieve a needed common objective. Teamwork was in motion as they set out to fetch a pail of water. The idea was good but the two of them didn’t factor in how not to trip, hurt themselves or keep the water in the pail from being lost. Isn’t that the same problem many resolution makers fall into?
The old adage talk is cheap seems to fit.
Things aren’t always as simple as they seem. As things go wrong, resolutions get tossed aside and the old familiar patterns we don’t like, like ruts in the road, return to mire us down in the new year. Sometimes nothing changes. We can get stuck. New levels of communication are needed to develop solutions that can move good intentions to true resolution of a problem.
How is it possible to keep a resolution? Start the year with a doable plan to implement financial change. Your new resolve could be called the “What if” life. A “What if” life is one where the family’s finances are treated with the respect they deserve. A resolution is made that takes into consideration those times when the bucket will spill. What if a job is lost? What if an illness prevents a primary wage earner from working? What if a traffic accident means a long hospital stay or extended recovery period? What if there is a difficult pregnancy? What if the unemployment runs out?
“What if” thinking pays off because “what if” thinkers systematically put aside money throughout the year to cover unexpected “what if” moments. Maybe it’s only $10 a week but over time $10 a week adds up to $520 a year.
The opening quote of this article was penned long ago by 1600’s English author Owen Feltham. From the condition of the economy today, it appears this still holds true. When there’s neglect to put action alongside resolution, it’s like storing money in a rusted out bucket and hoping the bottom won’t fall out. Nobody wants that to happen. With God’s help, you can muster up the wisdom and determination needed to follow through with this year’s resolutions.
If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. James 1:5 NIV
