The latest cockamamie, wackadoodle craze out there is “manifesting.”

Perhaps you’ve seen stories about it in your favorite magazine. Perhaps that one weird grandchild or cousin told you about it. Either way, long gone are the days of New Year’s resolutions, I fear, and goal-setting seems to be on the chopping block next. Even appealing to the deity of one’s choice seems to be a faux pas nowadays.

I don’t usually like to complain in my columns, but the millennials, Gen-Z and the in-between “cuspers” have driven me to it.

“Manifesting” is the act of training one’s brain to make dreams a reality. It’s most often used when one has a desire or aspiration they’d like to obtain, such as a bonus at work or a new handbag or the means to take an exotic vacation. The true goal of the concept is on par with goal-setting: You speak what you want and in turn, you work toward getting it.

However, many people have interpreted “manifesting” with a lazier, maybe more entitled approach. We all know there’s no way to click your heels three times and have the desires of your heart appear. The best way to get what you want is through hard work.

But let’s examine the notion of manifestation from a different standpoint. Imagine the mayor telling citizens, “Vicksburg is getting a three-story shopping mall,” and when asked how it will happen, he responds, “I’m thinking happy thoughts.”

Life doesn’t work that way.

In terms of religion, “manifesting” could be seen as an unsuitable substitute for prayer. As more focus turns to the idea of self-discovery, the power within oneself and the unbending will of the universe, the notion that anyone would stoop so low as to rely on God is fleeting.

Instead of praying about things you want or need or will for others, just “manifest” it into being. Who needs miracles when you are your own god? Perhaps keeping your spirituality confined to what you can control is easier than relying on the God of all creation.

Don’t get me wrong. There’s nothing wrong with being optimistic or voicing your goals. The problem arrives when one labors under the delusion that simply speaking one’s hopes and dreams will be enough to will them into reality.

My generation, the one below mine and perhaps more than a few in generations above mine, needs to remember the value of a little elbow grease and the gratification that comes from working hard to reach a goal.

In this new year, I’m resolving to find enough patience to wade through the sludge of manifestation.