Are Your Holiday Traditions Creating Stress or Joy?

The holidays can be a total whirlwind, right? Are Your Holiday Traditions Creating Stress or Joy? We dive into how to chill out and swap out the chaos for some good ol’ meaningful traditions that won’t break the bank. A whopping 81% of us feel more stressed during this time, and let’s be real, that’s just not how it’s supposed to be! So, let’s chat about building those simple, heartfelt moments that create lasting memories instead of just empty wallets. Join me as we explore ways to keep the spirit of Christmas alive through connection and love, not just gifts!

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As the holiday season creeps up on us, it's like a whirlwind of shopping, parties, and a sprinkle of chaos, am I right? Ralph dives into the reality that many of us feel the pressure of the holidays ramping up, and instead of joy, we often find ourselves drowning in stress. He drops some serious numbers, like 81% of adults feeling more stressed during this time, and let’s be real, who hasn’t lost sleep because of holiday worries? But here’s the kicker: Ralph reminds us that the true essence of Christmas isn’t about the flashy gifts or the hustle and bustle; it’s all about the connections we cherish. He emphasizes that the best memories aren’t bought but are built through simple traditions that resonate with love and connection.

Ralph shares his own nostalgic tales of family gatherings, pointing out that those moments spent with loved ones are what we remember the most—not the stuff we exchanged. He highlights the wisdom of family counselor Gary Chapman, who said, “Traditions are love repeated.” So, how can we slow down and create those meaningful moments? Ralph gets into five actionable strategies to keep the holiday spirit alive without breaking the bank. From anchoring our celebrations in traditions that provide emotional security to focusing on the meaning behind the season, he gives us the lowdown on how to make Christmas a time of genuine joy instead of a seasonal sprint.

So, if you’re feeling the holiday blues or just want to bring back the warmth of simpler times, this episode is your go-to guide for crafting those low-cost, heartwarming traditions that’ll make your family gatherings unforgettable. Let’s ditch the stress and embrace the love this Christmas—because at the end of the day, it’s all about the people we share it with!

Takeaways:

• Every Christmas just keeps getting busier and more expensive, right? Let's slow down!
• Nearly 60% of folks feel the holidays are way too overwhelming and stressful, yikes!
• The best holiday memories are built on connection, not on buying gifts, remember that!
• Traditions are love repeated – they give us emotional security and joy during the season.
• Keep it simple during the holidays; it’s not a competition to outdo each other!
• Make sure your family traditions are centered on Christ; that’s the heartbeat of the season!

Links referenced in this episode:

• financiallyconfidentchristian.com

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Episode Transcript

(00:27):
Ralph, it feels like everyChristmas gets busier and more expensive.
How can I slow down and bringmy family back to simple, meaningful
traditions? Great question.Nearly 6 in 10Americans feel the
holidays have become too busyand overwhelming. Many say they struggle
to find time to rest andconnect with family. Hey, this is
supposed to be a joyousseason. 81% of adults say they're

(00:49):
more stressed during theholiday season. And 30% listen to
this one say their sleepsuffers. They get fewer hours and
poor quality. Let me tell youright now, we all need to get our
sleep. And 46% of Americanssay they don't get the alone time
they need during the holidays.Even though, listen to this. 56%
say such time is important fortheir mental health. Now this one

(01:11):
I'm not sure I agree with. ButAbby, my producer found this one
and it found that 63% ofrespondents say that holiday season
is more stressful than taxseason. Now listen, I'm a tax guy.
I'm not sure that that's true,but maybe it is. Which just tells
us how overwhelming this timeof year can feel. So let me tell
you this. The best memoriesaren't bought. Hear that loud and

(01:32):
clear, they're built. Trueholiday joy comes from connection,
not consumption. So on today'sshow, let's talk about how to build
meaningful holiday traditionsthat won't cost you much. That's
we're going to cover ontoday's show.
This is Financially ConfidentChristian, your daily dose of gospel,
grounded insight and faithdriven tips to to help you break

(01:52):
the cycle of financial shamewith confidence.
Welcome to the show. I'mRalph. My goal every day is to help
you break that cycle offinancial shame and do it with confidence.
And listen, I've spentdecades, I'm talking about decades
watching families stress overmoney. And I've seen the lasting
peace that simple traditionsbring. I can remember my own family's

(02:14):
favorite memories. They didn'tcome from gifts. They didn't come
from anything but those smallconsistent traditions. And guess
what? They weren't bigexpensive plans either. I'll give
you a great example of that.When I was a kid, the big thing every
Christmas, I used to lookforward to this. It was the best
day of the year. We would goto my grandparents house. Now I'm
gonna tell you a little bit ofa side thing. I was chatting with

(02:36):
Abby before we got startedtoday. My grandmother liked to make
a Christmas turkey. Let metell you, she would start cooking
this turkey the day beforeChristmas. By the time it was Christmas
dinner, man, you Put the knifein the turkey and it like kind of
fell away because. But sheloved to do it. But it was really
the only day of the year thatthe family gets together. I had this
weird kind of family dynamicwhere one side didn't talk to the
other, but something about themagic of Christmas. Everybody just

(03:00):
got along. And to this day, Istill remember those days, those
times, just sitting there andtalking with family. These are family
members that I really didn'tsee any other time of year. Which
leads me to family counselorGary Chapman said this. Traditions
are love repeated. I want tosay that again because he said repeat.
I think it's so key.Traditions are love repeated. So

(03:24):
let's ask ourselves today'squestion. How can I build meaningful
holiday traditions? I've gotfive ways that you can do that. Number
one thing, you got to look atthis. Traditions are the anchor.
They really are. Familyroutines provide emotional security
for both kids and adults. Iremember as a kid, everybody knew
Christmas Day. You knew whereyou were going. And as a kid, I knew,

(03:45):
here's what we're going to do.I didn't even make it. There was
no other thought process. Samething for the adults. They knew what
was going to happen. And youremember those things for a long
time. So that's the firstthing. Let that tradition anchor
the celebration. Second thing,a lot of people drive themselves
crazy. It's not a competition.Keep it simple. You don't need to
outdo everyone. Just repeatwhat brings peace. Peace. Don't do

(04:07):
those things that cause morepressure. I see moms, I see grandmothers.
I see people just absolutelystressed out over the holidays because
they're trying to one upsomebody else. It's not about that.
Keep it simple. Keep itpeaceful. That's what you're going
to remember. Which leads me tothe third thing. Focus on meaning.
We're celebrating Christmasfor a reason. Maybe for you it's

(04:28):
lighting candles. Or maybehere's a great idea. Read Luke, chapter
two. It's all about the birthof Jesus. So many people don't even
know what that's all about. Ormaybe it's a great day to write some
gratitude notes. They don'tcost you anything. See, it's not
about the gifts. The wholepoint, Listen, the whole point of
Christmas I can encapsulate,really simple, is to celebrate the
birth of Jesus. That's a gift.We will never get a better gift than

(04:51):
that. That's the whole pointof the season. Number four thing,
be consistent. I loveconsistency, especially as a young
kid. A small act Repeatedevery year after year becomes sacred
in memory. That was my sacredthing. Those traditions were consistent.
I remember. Here's a sadstory. I remember my mom and dad
split up. And all of a suddenthere was this big question, what

(05:11):
are we going to do? And Iremember that particular year, my
dad sat on the sideline and Iremember talking to him that night.
And he was crushed because itwas such a thing that held the family
together. And even though mymom and dad's marriage was falling
apart, man, next year he wasback there because he needed to be
there. It was so important tohim. And number five, and again,
I probably could have startedwith this one first. Make sure it's

(05:33):
centered on Christ. So manypeople don't get the reason for the
season. A popular saying outthere right now is, what's the real
reason for the season? Butmake faith the heartbeat of your
family rituals because itgrounds the celebration. Be so careful
it doesn't come this big giftexchange where everybody's just worrying
about what's the gift. Thinkabout this one. Abby found this statistic

(05:55):
also. Only 22% of Americanssay they could accurately tell the
Christmas story from the Biblefrom memory. And that just crushed
me because it showed how manyare unclear about the holiday's biblical
roots. Focus on that. And Ifound this Bible verse from the book
of Deuteronomy. Don't oftenquote that on the show, but Deuteronomy,
chapter 6, verses 6 to 7. Andthis is really leaning into that,

(06:18):
instilling that tradition inyour children. It says this again,
Deuteronomy, 6, 6, 7. Thesecommandments that I give you today
are to be on your hearts.Impress them on your children. Talk
about them when you sit athome and when you walk along the
road. What is the Bibletelling us there? Impress these traditions
on the hearts of yourchildren. Help them to understand
the reason for Christmas. Helpthem to see that it's all about relationships

(06:41):
and family. It's not thatstupid gift exchange where everybody
listen. We started off bytalking about people buy gifts that
they don't need. There's somany things that people are getting.
They don't want those things.They want you. They want to connect
with you. How about we praytogether, Lord, during this holiday
season, we just pray right nowthat you would help us to slow down
and really savor the season.Lord, help me to teach my family

(07:02):
to value of time and the valueof relationships over that stupid
gift exchange. And all thosetrying to one up everybody and outdo
everybody else. Lord, help usto really focus on traditions that
reflect our gratitude for whatyou've given us, Lord, and the faith
in Jesus Christ help us toreally understand the Bible story
and help us to really dwell onthe real and true reason. For this

(07:23):
season, we ask this inconfidence in the name of Jesus.
Amen. So here's your actionitem for today. I want you to start
thinking a littlebrainstorming today. Start one new
simple, low cost traditionduring the holiday season. Think
about it. Think aboutsomething that brings peace and something
that brings togethernesswithout spending a dime. This is
a great time to celebrate withfamily during the holidays. But think

(07:45):
about those traditions thatyou could start right now that your
grandchildren and people, yourgrandchildren's grandchildren will
someday say. I remember whenwe used to do that as a family. Those
things will matter so muchmore than the gifts down the road.
And if this episode spoke toyou, I want to encourage you right
now, share it with somebody.Share it with a friend or a family
member. You can do it. Simplytext them, say, hey, maybe you're

(08:06):
feeling overwhelmed by theholiday season. Remember, they don't
have to live in that feelingof overwhelm. Send them to the show.
Send them this episode if youwill. You can share it right in your
podcast app or if you're onYouTube, just click on share. Because
maybe this love can bring alittle piece this year to their show
or to their life. And if youthought of somebody while listening
to this, maybe you've gotsomebody in mind. You're thinking,

(08:27):
ralph, I know exactly whoneeds to hear this. That may be God
just speaking to you rightnow. So reach out and connect to
them this. Send them to ourwebsite. That's financiallyconfidentchristian.com
it could be a huge impact onthis. You know, so many people are
overwhelmed by Christmas.There's a lot of reasons for that.
A lot of times it brings uppeople they've lost and tough times

(08:49):
they've been through, man. Solet's put our arms around those people
and let's really embrace themand help them to find joy in the
holidays. Because rememberthis, the holidays were never meant
to drain our wallets and theycertainly weren't meant to drain
our energy. They were reallymeant to draw us closer and to celebrate
God, to be with one another.So take a breath right now. Choose
that connection over chaos.And remember this. The best traditions

(09:13):
aren't expensive, but man,they are super meaningful. So thank
you for joining me today. Iwant to encourage you right now,
go out there and be afinancially confident Christian.
Stay financially savvy andembrace the holidays with joy. God
bless you, and I'll see you ontomorrow's show.