Well, folks, it’s January and it’s time for the annual New Year’s Resolution discussion. Often we want to improve ourselves in the New Year. We repent for the quantities of sugar and carbs we consumed over the holidays. We bemoan our lack of activity. We lament our piles of unfiled bills and junk mail waiting for recycling. Or maybe that’s just me. Maybe you’re healthy, active, and organized. If so, more power to ya! That must be nice.

When you’re taking inventory of your areas for improvement, your opportunities for growth, your ideas for development, I want you to keep on the forefront of your mind that you are already loved and that you are already loveable.

It’s good to want to improve. We, as humans, are not unlike the intrepid shark, always wanting to move forward. It’s good to challenge yourself. It’s such a wonderful feeling when you can accomplish personal goals. I can imagine the feeling of pride and power when I am able to run a half marathon again. I am excited to look around a freshly organized house with all that adulting paperwork neatly organized and tucked away in files.  

But, the shark isn’t the only animal in the ocean valuable and treasured by our Creator. Our God also made the adorable manatee and is delighted by them. They might not be the fastest or impressive animal on the planet, but manatees are essential to the ecosystem they live in. They eat sea grass and invasive plants and they fertilize aquatic plants. They are gentle creatures and devoted to their young. They pose no threat to other animals and simply eat and float all day long. 

We might be tempted to find our self worth in how accomplished and how attractive we are. But that’s not what God is asking of us. God is asking us to live gently in this world. Be gentle to those around you, offering grace and compassion when it is needed. And also, be gentle with yourself. Accept yourself. Give yourself grace. Organize those files because you want to, not because it makes you a better adult. Work out and eat healthy because you want to care for your body, not because you think it should look a specific way. Give yourself grace because God already loves you, the way you are. May your New Year’s Resolution be one of gentleness and grace.