Google what Americans’ top resolutions are for 2026, and you’ll find all the usual suspects at the top of the list: lose weight, exercise more, eat healthier and save more money.
I skimmed a dozen articles from around the country and not one of the lists mentioned “be kinder” though, which I find a shame.
Also not on the list, be more neighborly, be more generous, volunteer more or be more civically engaged.
It seems that even in our resolutions that our thoughts turn only inwards, not outwards toward our fellow man.
Friends, if not now, when? Because there are millions of Americans who desperately could use a bit more neighborliness.
Oh sure, I know I need more exercise, and certainly to eat healthier. I know my family would appreciate that.
But honestly, as the calendar flips to another year, what I am praying for is the Holy Spirit to reach through to me and help me learn more patience, more empathy and more understanding. Because the world is not getting kinder for a whole of people.
The current affordability crisis is impacting those who are the most economically vulnerable in multiples many of us in the middle class can’t fathom.
As almost all the costs of daily living rise, even more Americans are pushed to the brink of homelessness, poverty and food insecurity. And it’s very easy for those who are elected and in seats of influence to turn a blind eye to such an overwhelming problem.
New SNAP requirements that took effect in November will continue to impact already struggling families. People who utilize the insurance offered through the Affordable Care Act may see their premiums double this year. And billions will be cut from the nation’s Medicare program. Not to mention the consistent lack of affordable housing in most places.
The turning of a new calendar year should be a time of hope, I know. And I am not paralyzed by my dismay over the current state of our affairs. After all, just a week ago I wrote about the fact that I still see good in this world every single day.
But as we enter into January, I will be diligently praying that fellow people of faith will take their mission as seriously as their beliefs this year. After all, a faith left at the doors of your place of worship as you leave isn’t much of a faith at all.
As fellow faith followers, we have an opportunity to express and demonstrate our faith in tangible ways and to help lead a new revolution in how we care for our nation’s most vulnerable people.
Most assuredly, if we want others to stop casting stones at us, then we should most certainly be on the vanguard of caring for our neighbors who need us the most. Amen.
Devlyn Brooks is the CEO of Churches United in Moorhead, MN, and an ordained pastor in the Evangelical Lutheran Church. [email protected]