It’s high time I made out my 2024 “To Do List,” as there are only 359 days left for me to get it all done.  I’m already on the seventh day of piddling the year away.  So, here goes.

First on my list:  read and write.  My goal for 2024 is to read—and review 65 books.  (I met my 2023 goal of 60 books.)  Jie thought I ought to let up on myself and set a lower goal.  A New York Times columnist wrote this past week that setting a goal for "number of books read" is a useless vanity.  But I’m a promiscuous reader.  In other words, my eyes are captivated by anything wearing a comma.  If I don’t discipline myself to read books, I’ll spend the whole year reading nothing but newspaper pundits, Facebook posts, and nutritional labels.  Since I’m going to chase after every phrase and sentence that passes before my eyes anyway—I might as well be reading something edifying.

Then there is writing.  It is on my list to write forty of these Sunday Posts this year, along with two books—one on the Sermon on the Mount, and the other on reforming Methodism.  I already know what I want to say.  Now I just need to make those topics interesting and readable.

Second on the list:  buy and sell.  I have to put both of these things on my list because otherwise, I wouldn’t do either of them. They both make me crabby. Like it or not, I’m going to need some groceries in the next 359 days, as well as some pharmaceuticals and copy paper etc.  And I’m going to have to sell some books to recover some of my publishing/marketing costs.  

But on the backside of this list, I also have a secondary list of what I don’t want to buy:  new clothes, anything electronic that I have to learn how to use, an extended car warranty, and anything I inadvertently buy because I forgot I already have it.

Item three on the “To Do List” is to exercise and rest.  Notice how I’ve paired something I despise with something I adore.  A little bit of sugar makes the medicine go down.  Exercise is spelled with eight letters. In other words, it is made up of two four-letter words—doubly obnoxiousness. Despite all my training as a pastor—to be tolerant and all that—I still do not understand people who like going to the gym.  But exercise is on my list because if I forego routine workouts, I won’t be able to get up off the couch without making a scene.  Plus, I have four grandchildren who like to horse around and have me pick them up occasionally.  

As for getting rest, that may be a little harder during 2024, as the neighbor behind me just installed spotlights in his yard that shine right into my bedroom. At least I can rest secure knowing that it will cut down on prowlers coming through that window while I’m sleeping. 

The fourth item is to both travel and to stay home—a little of the first, a lot of the second.  We already have a short “winter trip to warmer weather” planned for the end of January—to Mexico.  I’ll have several two and three day trips around the Midwest to introduce my book and take speaking engagements.  And at some point I’ll work in some trips to see family, friends, baseball games, and presidential sites.  But mostly I’m looking forward to staying home and enjoying every day routines and sharing hospitality with those who visit us.

Fifth on the list is to laugh and to cry.  I want to do more of each.  The 2024 presidential election will give me plenty to cry about, no doubt.  But I also want to be tuned in to the real world—neighbors near and far—so that do not become alienated and distant from people who are suffering.  The shortest verse of the Bible says, “Jesus wept.”  One can only cut down on tears if one refuses to see or hear.  

On the other hand, more tears demand more laughter.  I’ll take it any way I can get it: children, witty friends, entertainment, animals….

Sixth on my list is to argue more and listen more. By “argue” I don’t mean quarrel.  We quarrel in order to defeat our opponents.  We argue in order to learn from them—and from the give and take going on between us.  Even when I am “right” and my opponent “wrong,” I always learn something valuable from the interaction of an argument.  Sadly, almost no one wants to argue these days.  Folks either want to quarrel, or they want to avoid all controversial subjects.  And it will get worse as this election year proceeds.  But I’ll keep looking.  

The only way to make myself a worthy opponent in argument is for me to listen more—especially to those whose vantage points are different from my own.

Seventh on my list is to obey and rebel.  No healthy relationship lacks this paradox.  To obey is to listen and respond responsibly to another person. It involves following the essential rules that hold a relationship or system together.  Obedience is the temporary surrender of self-will for the greater good.  

But the greater good is never served by mere obedience.  Since both people and systems are fallible, rebellion is also necessary from time to time.  In other words, I plan to make trouble for everyone I know in 2024.  I just hope you also notice how often I’m obedient.

Eighth on my list is to say “yes” and to say “no.”  Not to be duplicitous—but to be more intentional and thoughtful about my commitments.  When my daughters were young, they knew I had an automatic tendency to say “yes” to whatever they asked.  Only later, when it dawned on me that they’d just asked for something like a horse, or a summer in Europe—would I have to substitute a “no.”  I think I’ll make a list this year of what I habitually say “yes” to and what normally elicits a “no.” This would be a good year to surprise everyone else—as well as my own self.

Ninth, in 2024, I will make lists of no longer than eight items. This is brilliant, even if I do say so myself.  Now I will have an excuse for anything above that I screw up.  I’ll just confess that my list was too long--and I had to cross that one off.  

Hope your New Year is still happy. --Mike