A lot of people I know are anti new year's resolutions. Our culture pushes back on commitment, discipline and hates failure. Resolutions in and of themselves are good, it's the not being able to keep them part that creates our hesitancy in considering resolutions personally.
Jonathan Edwards writes this preamble before his list of seventy resolutions:
Being sensible that I am unable to do any thing without God’s help, I do humbly entreat him, by his grace, to enable me to keep these Resolutions, so far as they are agreeable to his will, for Christ’s sake
Edward's insight points out the reasons why so many fail.
1. An underdeveloped theology of depravity: left alone to our own self efforts we will always fail in our attempts to reign in our sin and bad behavior-only through Christ are we set free to overcome sin.
2. An air of self-sufficiency: our continued progress in the Christian life is sustained and strengthened by and through Jesus.
3. We make self-centered resolutions: our goals are often rooted and centered in self. It's logically inconsistent to think that a self-centered person can overcome their own self centered destructive habits by focusing on self, what sets us free is breaking the cycle of selfishness and following Christ's example. He came not to be served but to serve.
Looking back on 2009 I see that I need Edward's filter which points me to Christ as I compose my list for 2010.