I recently took up golf, and I love it. Go figure! As busy as I am, and I decide to learn to golf. It has not been easy; it’s a game you never master. Chasing perfection is part of the challenge. One day, just after an approach shot from about 150 yards, my partner said, “I’ve got good news and bad news. The bad news is that you are in the water. The good news is that you hit the ball in the exact direction you were lined up.” I hit a shot with a slight draw, right to left, just like I wanted. But I was lined up wrong. My feet, hips and shoulders were not pointed at my target. My coach said to me one day, “Make sure you are lined up toward your target — just in case you make a good shot.” This principle is true in all aspects of life. Where will you be in one year, three years or five years if your life actually goes in the direction you are aiming? What kind of family will you have? Career? What will your spiritual life look like? If you are not lined up right, you will probably end up in a place you don’t want to be. That would be a very avoidable tragedy. There is a line in a “‘rap” by a group called Cross Movement that goes like this, “Look, you aimed at nothing and congratulations, you hit dead on the button.” As you start this new year, don’t set yourself up for failure by being lined up wrong. Make sure that your heart and mind are both lined up toward an honorable target. Decide soon what your goals are for the year, the month or maybe just today. The goal can be related to your finances, a relationship, your spiritual life or your career. Since there are endless goals to choose from, start simple and make one goal for the year. Consider improving on one aspect of who you are as a person. Identify the most likely aspect of your character to be criticized. Set a goal to be more loving, patient, generous or disciplined. Ask three or four of your friends for one way you can improve your character. If you are brave, consider asking an enemy or two. Keep in mind that the “wounds of a friend are faithful, but the kisses of an enemy are deceitful.” (Proverbs 27:6) In others words, your real friends will be honest, even if they have to tell you something you might not want to hear. And sometimes your critics will give you your best advice. Consider asking for God’s help in the execution of your plan. He knows you better than anyone and can actually shape your heart. Simply say, “God, I want to be the person you made me to be. Please guide me in my journey.” Say it to Him every day. And then watch out; He might just answer you. Pastor Miles McPherson leads The Rock Church, located at 2277 Rosecrans St. in Point Loma.