The time thief has struck again! We are knocking on the door of a quarter of a new century. I wish I could find the culprit who keeps giving steroids to that chubby little baby New Year and keeps needling the old man New Year to hobble faster and faster. I’d grab them by the throat and make them give me back my stolen days. It seems that time keeps speeding away quicker and quicker. We have 365 precious days, but they seem like hours.

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Yevet Crandell Tenney is a Christian columnist who loves American values and traditions. She writ...

I look back at the goals I put on my wall and ask, “What have I accomplished?” Despite the flying days, I have reached many of my goals and am amazed that the practice of small and simple things every day has amounted to big things. To name a few, I typed 20 100-page journals, finished my mother and dad’s histories, helped my sisters quilt 52 handmade quilts, raised a garden, practiced my Italian daily, did many service projects, learned many new songs on the piano, read 21 books, studied my scriptures daily and spent time with my family. I don’t write this to brag, but to let you know I found that small and simple rituals every day is better than 100 New Year’s resolutions.

At the beginning of last year, I made a chart of things I would do every day. I made them simple enough that I could do the task in five to 10 minutes. I got the idea from James Clear’s book, Atomic Habits. He gives ideas on how to change your life through creating habits of tiny changes that compound over time. I highly recommend his book.

Though I feel that I succeeded in my goals last year, there are things I will do differently this year. I think my rituals were not focused totally on what I needed to accomplish. I didn’t do well in my physical goals – things like getting enough exercise and eating right. I didn’t take enough time for gratitude, and I felt that I became focused on the ritual to the letter of the law instead of letting it come naturally. For example, I would look at the clock and say, “I have done enough,” if my few minutes had elapsed. I should have enjoyed the process more. Sometimes I felt like I had ADHD jumping from one task to the next.

I would not change the rules about setting small time goals and checking the box showing that I completed the task, because that works, but I would pay more attention to the “why” I am doing the project in the first place and not so much on checking the box. I think I became pharisaical in my journey by ignoring the weightier matter of the law.

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Next year, I want to focus more on a rounded approach to my goals and rituals. When I was younger, I was given an image of a wagon wheel that had one spoke that was longer than the rest. It stuck out too far, causing the wheel to get stuck. Sometimes my life gets that way. I spend too much time in one area, and I ignore everything else. That is not the path to true happiness. Luke describes Jesus’ youth this way. 

And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man.”—Luke 2:52 (KJV)

Jesus grew in all areas of His life. His life was not just carpentry work, though I’m sure He worked learning to build things. He must have learned the law because He was able to astound the doctors in the temple when He was 12 years old. He learned to be socially adept because He gained favor with others. He learned and studied the scriptures, pondered and prayed. He learned His mission from His Father.

“Though he were a Son, yet he learned obedience by the things which he suffered; And being made perfect, He became the author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey him;”—Hebrews 5:8-9 (KJV)

Jesus wasn’t given everything in the beginning. He had to learn and grow just like we do. Yes, He was a divine Son, but He had to grow in the same areas in which we grow: 

  • Mental growth: Focuses on the development of your mind, such as the way you think and learn
  • Social growth: Involves improving your communication skills
  • Spiritual growth: Refers to connecting with yourself on a holistic level, developing as a person and finding inner peace
  • Emotional growth
  • Physical growth    

These areas of growth are like the wagon wheel with spokes for each of the areas of growth. If one of those areas becomes our total focus and the others are neglected, our wheel of life gets stuck, and we feel confused and sometimes depressed. We need to nurture each area in order to be happy.

My rituals and goals last year were not focused on these areas of growth. I was just focused on the checklist and getting tasks completed. Next year, my list of rituals will include these areas, starting with the question, “What can I do in each area to help myself improve to become more like the Savior?” 

Mental: What ritual can I implement and do daily that will help me grow mentally? I need to keep the ritual of reading a few minutes before I go to sleep at night. I will keep the ritual of learning how to make new quilt patterns because it causes me to think mathematically with geometric patterns. I will learn new pieces on the piano because it forces my mind to think in a unique way. Learning and thinking in a different language creates new pathways in the brain. 

Social: Improving my communication skills and developing stronger relationships with other people. Last year, I spent time with family quilting, family gatherings and reunions. This year, I need to contact someone new and reach out to help more often.

Spiritual: I am good at praying and reading the scriptures, but I need to deepen my relationship with the Savior. Pondering is the key; thinking about what I have read and asking questions more often about my personal progress will help. I also need to be more diligent in asking what I can do to help build His kingdom on Earth. He prayed,“Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” What can I do more fervently to contribute to that request? The question now is, “How do I put that on a checklist?”

Emotional: I am stable emotionally. I don’t get depressed about the changes in the weather, politics or circumstances. I see myself realistically. I have little need for the approval of others, but I value the approval of God. I recognize and feel happy for others' successes. I feel successful because I don’t care who gets the credit. I seldom get angry or flare up unexpectedly, as in times past, but I need to be more compassionate to others' failings. I need to reach out to help those who are not emotionally stable. I have lived a long time and have learned strategies to cope with the rollercoaster of life. 

Physical: This is the most neglected. The spoke is not even touching the wheel. It’s not that I am looking to be body beautiful. The size 10 is never going to happen. The diet craze is a moot point. Grandmas are supposed to be fluffy and soft, but that is an excuse with a time bomb attached. I need to walk more and eat nutritiously. I can’t trust the internet because the opinions on nutrition are fanatical. You can’t eat this. You can’t eat that. If you eat that, you are cutting your life short. It goes on and on. Prayer is the key. What does God say? He created all things. What does He consider good for us? Maybe I should spend more time asking Him.

These are some of the things I am thinking about as we approach the half-century in a couple of hours. Time goes so fast; we need to chart our course with small and simple rituals that will pay great dividends for the future.