Well the new year is in full swing! It’s rocking along and we’re already a few weeks in. But New Year’s day didn’t bring refreshment and renewal for me. How about you?
With the whirlwinds of December full of travel, parties, and family gatherings it was hard to stop and catch a breath. My mind raced all month trying to stay caught up on what needed to be done and that left no time to be quiet and hear what my focus should be for the new year.
New Year’s day was more of a let down.
I needed rest. I needed organization. I needed time to absorb the past year’s lessons and highlights. And while I hadn’t yet accomplished any of that, my heart was ready to race ahead. It was time to take on a new year and I was missing out.
And so the struggle began . . .
I’m ready to run this year’s race.
I’m not sure what I learned from last year.
I’m longing to set goals and go.
I need rest.
The battle in your soul will leave you weary, if you don’t conquer it. [click to tweet] Do you know what I mean? Oh please tell me you’ve had some of this going on in your life too. These inward struggles are hard.
There might be situations we’re up against that seem hard, but the more we play out that scenario in our mind the heavier that situation becomes on our souls.
We need to put boundaries on our finances, but we never get a plan in place.
We need to get in shape, but we don’t figure out how to make that happen.
We need to eat better, yet we never make a menu or healthy shopping list.
We need more family time, but we don’t make the effort to put it on the calendar.
So we toss and turn and fret and think about these things 24/7 because we know we should be working on them. And all that tossing and turning leaves us more worn out than if we would just take the time to take the first steps.
Permission to lag behind.
And so as the new year rolled in with firecrackers and party hats, there I was a twisted up mess with no direction. And that place left me paralyzed with no action for days. I know call me crazy!
I believe that everyday can be a new beginning. I do! It’s scriptural. It’s truth. But there is something seriously magical about new years day. And I had missed it.
Finally after being drawn further into my own pity party, I decided to just recreate my own January 1st. And January 11th seemed perfect for a second chance start since it was two 1st put together for the 11th. 1 + 1 = 11 Ingenious, right? Hey, I get that it’s totally dorky and unmathematical . . . but this worked for me.
I gave myself permission to lag behind, get a plan and make a new start that would work.
And because I gave myself permission to lag behind, now I’m ahead of the game and not still wallowing around in my own self pity.
How’s your new start, new year going?
If you’re still behind, that’s ok. Quit beating yourself up — that does not work. Quit thinking about it. If you’re serious about a new start, then set a date. How about February 1st? Then you’ll have a few weeks to prepare for your new beginning and make a plan.
And you know what else? No one told me I was lagging behind. I put that burden on myself because I was longing for a fresh start. So you’re not lagging behind friend, you just haven’t prepared for a good start yet. You can turn that around today.
Are you lagging behind? What can you do to claim your new start?
My New Years’ was rough too. I went to an event that wasn’t at all what I expected and I ended up leaving at 12:15 without watching the ball drop or really ringing in 2016 because we got off schedule too. I spent the next few days in a serious funk. Jesus gave me a fresh start a few days into the year. And reality is: we have an endless supply of those. We get a fresh start every morning. I’m glad you’ve taken advantage of that too!