We’re a week into the new year. If you made any resolutions, how are you doing?

Maybe your goal is to get more organized or stop spending so much or begin making more time for family. Maybe it’s to exercise more and eat less.

I’m always sad to see the Christmas season end, but I do like the hope of a new year. It’s a blank slate. No regrets or mistakes or failures to obsess over. There’s hope and possibilities and dreams to be fulfilled.

Maybe you’re going strong after one week, but if you’re already starting to lose hope, let me encourage you to give yourself some grace and call a “do-over.” If a friend came to you feeling discouraged about not sticking with a new exercise plan, I’m pretty sure you wouldn’t condemn her. So let’s not do it to ourselves.

I’m going to encourage you to start the year over with one goal. Just one. If you’ll stick with this one for the rest of January, then you can start to add some others in after that.

So here it is. Here’s your one goal. It’s from Psalm 37:4…

“Take delight in the Lord…”

That’s it. Make that your #1 goal. Make that your priority.

To delight in the Lord means to find your pleasure and enjoyment in Him. It’s not about trying to be better or praying more or stopping a bad habit. And it’s not about seeking God so He’ll give you something or make your life easier. It’s about seeking a deeper friendship with Him. It’s choosing to look to Him for satisfaction and fulfillment, not the temporal pleasures and diversions we so easily turn to.

I can’t tell you what taking delight in Him will look like for you. You may feel like you’re delighting in Him most when taking a long walk or when you’re serving others or spending the first hour of your day quietly with Him. At some point, it will probably mean spending more time reading His word, but when and how much time is up to you.

Will you try it? Will you choose to delight in Him? If so, you will experience the second half of the verse…

“…and He will give you the desires of your heart.”

Don’t focus on that part though. Focus on delighting in Him. Then trust Him to do the second part.