I once had a coach tell me:

I don’t need any proof that this is true.

A quick glance at the mounting list of items on my “want to do list” from quarterly planning earlier in the week and I know that there are not enough hours in a year to finish them all.

What about you, Reader?

Have you made big plans to accomplish all the things in 2025?

Is this the year you’ll finally…

[You fill in the blank, but in my mind it sounds like: write that book, finish going through that “really valuable” course I bought…2 years ago, read more, exercise more days per week, drink more water, memorize scripture. And the list goes on…]

What’s funny, in an ironic kind of way, is that we all know the drill.

New Year's resolutions come and go. And some go better than others. The stat (from Strava, heard via Jon Acuff) is that most people who made resolutions or set goals on Jan. 1st quit by the second Friday in January (ahem, yes, that’s today).

All that energy cultivated by the flip of a calendar page has fizzled out by Jan 10th!? How depressing.

If we leave it there, well, you’ll probably wish you hadn’t opened this email.

But let’s not do that.

Instead, let’s take a look at something that’s not this exact moment in time. Because I think the problem is this over/under-estimating thing I mentioned at the top of this email.

We have no conscious idea of how much we’ve actually accomplished since 2015.

So we get discouraged today when the 65 things on our To-Do list for the week are only whittled down to 62 by the time Friday rolls around.

But have you ever actually looked back at the previous decade of your life to celebrate what God has done and brought you through and how much you’ve learned and grown?

I don’t mean generally. I mean specifically.

Have you ever set aside a quiet hour with your journal and slowly looked back through the last 10 years? (Add in a cozy blanket, a crackling fire, and a warm mug ☕of your favorite steamy beverage—perfection!)

Sold yet? Okay, great!

Here’s what you’re going to do:

Pick up your pen and ask God to help you recall the woman you were, a decade younger, and start scanning the years for:

…prayers answered

…unexpected gifts received (not necessarily the ones wrapped in tissue paper)

…relationships mended

…hurdles overcome

…milestones reached

…Bible truths you finally believe

…wounds healed

…people He brought into your life

…significant life transitions

I could go on listing all the treasures you will dig up if you take me up on this endeavor. But that’s for you to uncover.

Maybe you already feel behind on this 10th day of January. Maybe you’re still hopeful that your goals and resolutions will stick this year.

Wherever you find yourself, this reflection exercise will take you into the new year more hopeful and optimistic that God is at work, even if you don’t see it at the moment.

Then, at the end, finish it out with a moment of praise, gratitude, and worship for our good, good God. (Dance parties, a favorite worship song, painting/drawing/doodling, out loud prayer, singing to Him—all responses are fair game).

Because all good things come from Him (James 1:17). He is all light and no darkness. So relish His goodness as you wrap up your time.

How about a quick pause, right now, to commit some time on your schedule—a date with yourself—for this reflection exercise?

It doesn’t have to take a long time. (But I bet, once you get started, you’ll wish you had more—take it, if you can!).

Will you tell me how it went for you?

With you in the dream,

~ Merritt

P.S. Want more guided opportunities to reflect and remember God’s goodness? Me too. Hit reply and let's talk it out.

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