Do you make New Year’s resolutions? Do you make annual commitments to stop bad habits, begin better habits or otherwise improve your lifestyle? Come February, do you keep those commitments?

What if, in 2012, we all decided not to worry as much about how much we weigh or how often we exercise and made our spiritual health our first priority? What if we put as much energy into studying God’s word as we do into establishing a workout routine?

When the time came for the prophet Samuel to evaluate Jesse’s sons so that he could determine who would be the next king, the Lord cautioned him against making superficial judgments. (You may recall that it ended up being Jesse’s youngest son, David – the seemingly least qualified – who was anointed.) God spoke to Samuel during that process and reminded him, “The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart” (I Samuel 16:7b, NIV).

What if we didn’t care what other people thought about our appearance, qualifications or other outwardly obvious traits and only concerned ourselves with our “heart” health in God’s eyes? Like physical exercise, spiritual fitness is a process – it takes effort and determination. Using a treadmill as a clothesline won’t help you get slim; neither will leaving your Bible on the bookshelf bring you closer to God.

Let’s make 2012 the year that we get spiritually fit. Let’s forget about what the world thinks of us and focus on strengthening our hearts for God’s service. When our spiritual health is in check, then the other pieces of our lives will fall into place much more smoothly. “Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will” (Romans 12:2, NIV).