Are you a hot mess who longs for genuine, lasting change in 2025?
Goals of self-improvement peak on January 1 worldwide. But good intentions crash in the weeks that follow. Dr. Asin Shah, professor of psychiatry at Baylor College of Medicine, reports that 88% of people give up on their New Year’s resolutions by the end of the month.1
But what if the problem isnt you—it’s the approach? What is God’s better plan for change?
The Resolution Rollercoaster: Sarah’s Story
Meet Sarah, a poster child for resolution burnout. Her story might sound familiar. “I signed up for a year-long gym membership last January,” she shares. “I went all in—new workout clothes, meal prep containers, the works. By March, my expensive gym bag was collecting dust in the trunk of my car.”
But Sarah’s story doesn’t end there. “What changed wasn’t my desire for better health. It was my understanding of true transformation. And that made all the difference.”
Why Traditional Resolutions Don’t Work
Traditional resolutions often fail because they:
- Rely on willpower alone
- Focus on external changes
- Ignore spiritual dimensions
- Lack sustainable motivation
The Missing Piece: An Exchanged Life
While we make resolutions and strive for personal growth, Jesus’ desire for us is straightforward: Exchange your life for mine. He calls us not to a changed life, but to an exchanged life.
In The Overcoming Life, Watchman Nee tells a story that illustrates the difference between a changed and exchanged life:
“A few years ago, I bought a watch. The company that sold the watch put a two-year warranty on the watch. But the days that the watch was in the shop were more than the days it was in my home. Every few days the watch would break down, and I had to send it back to the shop for repair. This happened repeatedly. I went to the shop once, twice, even ten or more times. Eventually, I was exhausted. The watch was repaired over and over again, but it was never quite fixed.
“I asked the company if I could exchange it for another watch. The company said that it could not offer an exchange; it could only repair the watch, but it was never fixed. I became so exhausted that eventually I said, ‘You can have the watch. I do not want it anymore.’
“The human way is the way of constant repair. During the two years that I owned the watch, it was constantly under repair. With the human way, there is no exchange; there is only the way of repair.”
The Concept of an Exchanged Life
Sarah’s breakthrough came when she stopped trying to transform herself and started surrendering to God’s transformation. “Instead of seeing exercise as punishment for my body’s flaws, I began viewing it as stewardship of God’s temple,” she explains. “Everything shifted when my motivation changed from ‘fixing myself’ to ‘honoring God.’”
With Jesus as Lord, change comes not as a function of how hard I strive or how much willpower I can muster, but through his spirit in me.
I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.
3 Steps to Positive, Lasting Change
#1 – Identify WHO the change is for
If my sole focus for change is to feel better about myself, I am free to adjust my goals at my whim. On the good days, I follow through and on the bad days, I compromise. My resolutions are subject to the rollercoaster of my emotions and energy. So is my self-esteem.
But if my identity is in Christ, I am loved and accepted the way I am. I can’t earn my way to a better relationship with God. By dying for my sins, Jesus offers me continual acceptance and access. I am loved unconditionally.
As a result, my efforts to improve—turn away from bad behaviors (sin) or add good practices—come from a heart of gratitude. I want to offer my best for the One who gave his life for me and with whom I will live eternally.
#2 – Determine WHY you want to change
Desiring personal growth, relational improvement, or professional advancement is not inherently bad. But ask yourself why these goals are important. Are they to make your life easier? Add to your happiness? Improve your self-image?
The answer to “Why change?” takes on more significance when it moves from finite, earthly goals to eternal, spiritual motivations. Destructive behaviors not only hurt us, but they also create a separation—a wall of shame, guilt, or regret—between us and God. And it gets worse. They injure our relationships with one another. The same result happens with sins of omission—those things I know I should do, but I don’t. Most resolutions fall into one of these two categories.
So, the best motivation for change is deeper, unimpeded fellowship with God and with it greater joy, contentment, and purpose. This will lead to healthier and more meaningful relationships with our families, friends, and others.
#3 – Understand HOW the change will take place
God did not call us to be achievers. Rather, he called us to humble ourselves and become receivers. The power to live a life pleasing to God comes from the power we receive from him.
In a God-centered, root-to-fruit approach to change, I ask God where I need to focus my efforts to serve him better. I acknowledge and invite the Holy Spirit—the “Helper”—to inform and empower me.
Those who obey God’s commandments remain in fellowship with him, and he with them. And we know he lives in us because the Spirit he gave us lives in us.
Once I’m rooted in my what and why, I offer all I have—strengths and weaknesses—and trust God to pilot me to the end goal. Setbacks and obstacles won’t discourage me. If I’m walking in his will, I won’t fail. I have the power of heaven behind me.
God’s Blueprint for Genuine Change
Identity Before Actions
- Embrace who you are in Christ
- Let changes flow from acceptance, not striving
- Base goals on godly purpose, not social pressure
Spirit-led Motivation and Partnership
- Align desires with God’s will
- Seek eternal impact over temporary results
- Find joy in the journey of transformation
Divine Partnership
- Start with surrender—exchange human willpower for Holy Spirit power
- Welcome accountability in Christian community
- Celebrate progress through prayer and praise
Jesus: The Overcomer
With an exchanged life—I in Christ and he in me—I can tap into resources that exceed my human capabilities.
When I am weak, Jesus is strong
But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.
For it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose.
When I am tempted, Jesus provides a way out.
No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.
When I am defeated, Jesus is victorious.
Jesus replied, “What is impossible with man is possible with God.”
The Fruit of an Exchanged Life
Apart from God, self-improvement efforts hyperfocus on me. I decide the goals; and with my resources and willpower, I try to achieve them to better my life. In contrast, change through an exchanged life in Christ shifts the focus away from me. The what, why, and how of my personal growth are God-directed and God-enabled.
With an exchanged life, I gain more than self-improvement. I grow in sanctification. To be sanctified—used by God, set apart for a sacred purpose—brings unmeasurable joy and satisfaction. Instead of walking in the flesh, I manifest more fruit of the Spirit—love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control (Galatians 5:22-23).
And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.
To exchange my life for Christ’s is a radical shift from New Year’s resolutions or self-improvement campaigns. It transforms me from the inside out. It flows from my heart and enriches my relationships, work, and ministry. It’s the path to a happy new year and a fulfilled life.
Your Turn: Practical Application
Whether you have made New Year’s resolutions or not, ask the Lord to reveal attitudes or behaviors that have distanced you from him. Ask that he would guide you in making changes this year that would lead to a deeper fellowship with him and a more effective ministry to others.
Check out the resources below for a free, downloadable worksheet to help you achieve genuine, lasting change in 2025!
My Scriptural Prayer for You
May 2025 be a year of spiritual growth and exchange—you in Jesus and Jesus in you.
May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless. The one who calls you is faithful, and he will do it. For I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns.
(1 Thessalonians 5:23-24 , Philippians 1:6)
Resources
Click on the image below for a downloadable PDF Worksheet: From Self-Directed Change to Spirit-Led Exchange.
Medicine for the Mess – a free monthly email newsletter focused on finding God in the daily struggles and tough seasons of life
About the Author
Cheryl Liberatore is the author of the Amazon best-seller, Healing or Homecoming: Finding God When Life Is in the Balance. In it, she shares her husband’s and daughter’s journeys with terminal cancer—one ending in miraculous healing and one leading to eternal homecoming. Cheryl continues to write from her home, where she caretakes her severely handicapped brother. From her experience of God’s faithfulness during hardships, the God in the Mess ministry arose to encourage others experiencing adversity.
