Every new year brings a wave of hope and possibility. You commit to eating better, smiling more, and capturing more memories. The calendar shift feels like a fresh start, and that excitement is real and powerful. Yet we also know the truth: change is hard. Only 10% of people accomplish their resolutions. But here’s the encouraging part—most plans don’t fail because we lack desire. They fail because we’ve been too vague, too ambitious too quickly, or we simply haven’t prepared for the journey ahead. And that’s something we can change.
Here’s a common pitfall: we rely solely on our own willpower to push through. But here’s the truth that can set you free—if willpower alone were enough, you would have already made those changes. This isn’t a failure on your part; it’s simply how we’re designed. We were created for community. One of the most powerful tools in lasting change is belonging to a group. Self-help support groups have proven this time and again. When facing major life changes—like breaking free from addictive patterns—a group provides what willpower cannot: consistent motivation, genuine support, and loving accountability, especially when the struggle feels overwhelming.
This didn’t happen by accident. Self-help groups didn’t invent this model—they discovered what the church has known for two thousand years. Motivation, support, and accountability aren’t just helpful strategies; they’re divine design, given to help us turn from what harms us and embrace what heals us. Consider these powerful passages:
1 Thessalonians 5:11 “Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing.”
Galatians 6:1-2 “Brothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness. Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted. 2 Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.”
Hebrews 10:24-25 “And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, 25 not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.”
Notice the beautiful truth woven through these passages: the Christian life is designed as a purposeful support group. You are meant to encourage and build others up. You are called to carry each other’s burdens, to gently restore those who have stumbled, to inspire one another toward love and good works. This is your calling, and you don’t walk it alone.
Hebrews 10:25 reminds us not to neglect meeting together. Some see this as a rule about attendance—”Go to church or else!” But the heart of this instruction is so much deeper and more beautiful. We gather because that’s how we motivate each other, support each other, and keep each other from stumbling. The world, with all its pressures and temptations, can be overwhelming. So how do we keep each other from falling? We show up. We meet together. We choose connection over isolation.
You want to change. You long to be transformed, to become more like Christ. This is a beautiful desire, and it’s absolutely possible—but it doesn’t happen accidentally. It takes more than grit and resolve, and it takes support. Here’s the good news: you’ve been fashioned together with others as a church, an assembly designed for this very purpose. It takes all of us—whether you’re 102 or a newborn, a seasoned elder or brand new to faith. Every single person matters. Imagining that you don’t need each other is a lie from the enemy. The truth? You were made for community, and together, you form a powerful support group.