Around each New Year's Eve, many people make a couple of resolutions for the coming new year. I, too, did exactly that this year. Even though there are plenty of possibilities that I can't even remember, some of them forgotten not long after, it is much better to start the year with new plans rather than to start without any plans.

First, for my physical health, I bought two things: golf clubs and an indoor exercise bike. During the wintertime, the best thing I can do for golfing inside is to work on putting, but the bike gives me a great chance to keep myself in good shape regardless of the weather outside. On the other hand, for my mental health, I started learning and playing chess. I should mention that this was attempted after watching the successful Netflix drama series The Queen's Gambit. Thanks to an online website for chess lovers, I can also enjoy learning and playing with people from around the world.

But what about my spiritual growth? I encouraged myself to go back to my old routine, starting each day reading devotions using Our Daily Bread and reading scriptures designated for each day. Also, I resumed working on some books related to the subjects of theology, worship, and music that I got from the worship symposium at Calvin University and from Pastor Steve.

Although the first few weeks of this new year were going well with my plans, I was challenged by a new message while reading a devotion in the morning. Its title was "Pruned to Thrive," based on the verse "Every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful" (John 15:2). It struck me that doing and finding some new activities aren't the only things we can do for our growth. Cleaning up and removing unhealthy or bad habits can be an even more useful way to improve our lives and reach our goals.

During the Lenten season, many people try to give up plenty of things that they usually love and enjoy. All those that practice this can be considered to be "fasting" during this period of time. There are various ways we can try, but the ultimate goal of sacrifice and self-discipline will be the same: We want to approach God one step closer and hear his voice. If we don't offer our efforts to come closer to him, we cannot follow and go with God's guidance. Jesus said, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." This was in reply to Thomas, who said, "We do not know where you are going" (John 14:5-6).

During this Lenten season, we again need to recall how Jesus suffered and sacrificed himself for our sins and how he was resurrected to save us and be with us.

But we should also remember that we should strive to get rid of many things that keep us from learning and listening to God's voice and Jesus' teaching. We should keep praying to God for the wisdom and strength to recognize these obstacles and keep them away from us with God's help.