The highlight of my New Year occurred yesterday afternoon right after halftime of the Tech-Bama game when my girls made it back from Arkansas! I thought when they left it would be great to have a little quiet, downtime to read and reflect. But once they were gone, I missed them terribly. One night was okay, but beyond that the silence truly was deafening.

I did get a lot of reading knocked out, though. I finished off N.T. Wright's fresh perspective on Paul. I also picked up at Barnes & Noble, thanks to a gift certificate from my sister and brother-in-law, Allen Barra's The Last Coach: A Life of Paul "Bear" Bryant. Barra's book is voluminous with over 500 pages but for college football fans, it is a great historical tour through the life and times of arguably, the greatest coach in the history of the game.

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Also while the girls were gone, I spent a lot of time thinking about the future and trying to dream some of the dreams God has for the Marble Falls church. I am indebted to two people when it comes to vision planning, George Barna and Clyde Berry. Barna's book, The Power of Vision, is a wonderful primer on the way vision motivates and energizes congregations for future growth. Clyde, as a former elder at Overland Park and current member of the Village church, taught me how vision is best communicated with word pictures that convey of an image of the future.

On Sunday, January 15th, the elders and I will be communicating this vision to the church in Marble Falls.

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Here's a little New Year's Resolution planning for you. I don't know if you're into making resolutions or not but it is a great idea for a fresh, new start in your life.

I love what is said of Jesus in Luke 2.52 at the close of that episode when he, as a 12-year old, was left behind in Jerusalem for four days. After he is found by his parents in the temple, amazing the priests with his knowledge of God and then scolded by his mother for bringing pain to her heart, the text says, "Jesus grew in wisdom (intellectual growth) and stature (physical growth) and in favor with God (spiritual growth) and man (social growth)."

The description of Jesus's four-fold growth provides an excellent framework for us to think through our new resolve in 2006. Think for a moment about your own life: in what way(s) would you like to grow intellectually? physically? spiritually? socially?

Why not carve out some time in your schedule today to make resolutions in each of these areas. For example, your intellectual resolution might be to read more or to learn a new skill. Your physical resolution might be to exercise more or to lose weight. Your spiritual resolution might be to read through the Bible in '06 or to be a better, more unashamed witness for Jesus. And your social resolution might be to offer hospitality or to join a civic group that would allow you to make new friends while you serve the needs of others.

I challenge you today to find some time to make a few resolutions that will reflect in your own life the growth and development of Jesus himself.