Hey guys, Pastor Burton here, and it's time for
a coffee break, and it is our first coffee break
of 2026. So, on Sunday, I made a comment, and
it's not the first time I've made this comment.
I make it every year. Matter of fact, usually
I even have a sermon about how we shouldn't have
New Year's resolutions, because for the vast
majority... And I do mean the vast majority.
It is the first promise that is broken. Now,
I'm not saying we shouldn't have things that
we want to do, but the resolution, you know,
there's a lot of pressure to have one, but it's
not the right answer. And I'll tell you why.
It's because as humans, as mankind, we continue
to fail and fail and fail. And what's worse is
usually when we make these resolutions, it's
a promise to ourselves, which is why we don't
worry so much about breaking it because we don't
always feel let down by ourselves, but we should.
We never stop to think that sometimes we make
a comment where we're actually not just making
this resolution to ourselves, this commitment
to ourselves, but we're also making a commitment
to God. And that's where some scripture is going
to come into play today. In Ecclesiastes chapter
5, verses 3 through 7. The word says a dream
comes when there are many cares and many words
mark the speech of a fool. When you make a vow
to God, do not delay to fulfill it. He has no
pleasure in fools. Fulfill your vow. It is better
not to make a vow than to make one and not fulfill
it. Do not let your mouth lead you into sin and
do not protest to the temple messenger. My vow
was a mistake. Why should God be angry at what
you say and destroy the work of your hands? Much
dreaming in many words are meaningless. Therefore,
fear God. Basically saying, don't let your mouth
write a check that you can't cash. Don't make
promises that you can't follow through on. I
bring this up because often when we make a resolution
and we're talking to other people, I swear to
God, I'm going to lose that weight, right? That's
a common one. Weight loss is one of the top promises
that people make every year. We see the gyms
are going to be just absolutely jam -packed for
the next few weeks, and then they're going to
thin back out, right? But it's not just that.
There are a lot of promises out there, and a
lot of them are broken. So at this point, You
know, I know some of you are already starting
to go the direction that I think. It was like,
well, what should I do instead? Well, I'm glad
you asked. I'm going to answer that. All right.
So yeah, I'm not a fan of the New Year's resolution.
Why? Because it's a promise made and it's usually
a promise broken. A promise broken is still sin,
right? And it comes from our own selfishness.
We need to be able to commit to ourselves. If
we can't commit to ourselves and keep our promises
to ourselves, how are we supposed to keep our
promises to God? So in lieu of having a resolution,
you know, this promise, this commitment, the
answer is right in front of us. We should have
goals. I love goals. Goal setting is wonderful.
Goal setting is something that we should all
have in our proverbial tool bag. Because when
you set a goal, it's something to work towards.
And this is the reason why most resolutions fail.
It's because we don't have a plan. We don't have
it mapped out. We don't have the steps on how
we're going to get there. But when we have a
goal, that changes. Because when we have a goal,
they're like... The first thing that we think
of, you know, is how do I get there? What do
I need to do to achieve this goal? What changes
do I need to make in my life to achieve this
goal? That is the answer to the question. Set
a goal. And just because you didn't achieve that
goal today doesn't mean you failed. Right? Because
you can still learn what's not going to work
in achieving that goal. Or you learn that, hey,
I need to put in a little bit more work to get
there. I need to go a little further down the
road to achieve it. So it's not that, hey, I
didn't achieve the goal. It's, I didn't achieve
the goal yet. And a big part of that is putting
God first and foremost in it. We need to pray
on it. We need to continually go to him and be
like, okay, Lord, I'm not there yet. I know I'm
getting there, but what else do I need to do?
Or, hey, Lord, I need your help. Whatever it
is that's going on, pray on it. Pray, because
we should be praying first and foremost. The
Lord should be first and foremost in everything
that we do. Right? So set that goal. Map out
how you're going to get to it. That is the answer,
and that is your coffee break. Have a great day,
and continue blessings in 2026.