Why Am I Dreading December Already?

Why Am I Dreading December Already? Feeling anxious about the holiday season before it even kicks off? Yeah, you're not alone, my friend. A whopping 72% of folks say this time of year is their most stressful. But don't sweat it; we’re diving into how to find peace before December even starts. It’s all about surrendering to God and making space in your schedule for some chill time. So, grab a cup of your favorite brew, kick back, and let's chat about planning for peace, not panic, this holiday season!

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Check out the full podcast episode here

December rolls around, and suddenly, it feels like the world is piling on the stress like it’s a competition. I kick things off by sharing my own struggles with holiday anxiety, and let me tell you, I know I’m not alone in this! A staggering 72% of adults say this season is their most stressful time, and I totally get it. From to-do lists that seem to mock you before even the first Christmas tune plays, to the guilt of not feeling festive, it’s a lot. But here's the kicker: peace doesn’t come from checking off a list; it comes from letting go and surrendering to God. We dive into how preparation can lead to peace, and I talk about my own journey of learning that sometimes, it's okay to be a bit selfish with your time. We’ve all got to set boundaries and say no to things that steal our joy. It's all about figuring out what truly matters during the holidays, rather than getting caught up in the chaos.

Takeaways:

• December can be a super stressful time, but you're definitely not alone in feeling that pressure.
• Planning ahead is key to maintaining peace during the hectic holiday season, so don't skip it!
• Setting boundaries is essential; saying no can actually free you to say yes to what truly matters.
• Joy comes from God's presence, not from those perfect decorations or gifts under the tree.
• Gratitude can shift your focus from what's missing to appreciating what you have right now.
• Scheduling time for peace is crucial; carve out moments for reflection and thankfulness this December.

Links referenced in this episode:

• financiallyconfidentchristian.com
• truthunveiledwithralph.com

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Episode Transcript

(00:28):
Hey, Ralph, why do I alwaysfeel so anxious and overwhelmed as
soon as December starts? Iwant to enjoy the season, but every
year I lose my peace before iteven begins. You ever catch yourself
sighing before December evenbegins? Like you haven't even heard
the first Christmas song, butyour shoulders are already starting
to tense up and you feel likethat to do list feels like it's mocking

(00:48):
you. Maybe you even feelguilty for not feeling joyful, like
you're supposed to be merry.But all you feel is pressure. If
that's you, I'm gonna tell youright now, rest assured you're not
alone in that. So many peoplebelieve that same thing. Listen to
this one. A 2025 survey by theAmerican Psychological association
found this 72% adults say theholiday season is their most stressful

(01:10):
time of year. And for many,that stress starts before December
even hits. But here's thetruth. Peace doesn't come from having
everything done. You need tohear that right off the jump here.
It comes from surrendering itall to God before the rushing begins.
So let's talk about findingpeace today before December even
starts. That's what we'regoing to cover on today's show.

(01:32):
This is Financially ConfidentChristian, your daily dose of gospel,
grounded insight and faithdriven tips to help you break the
cycle of financial shame with confidence.
Welcome to the show,everybody. I'm Ralph. I'm so happy
you chose to join me today. Iso grateful for the confidence you
place in me by coming to seeme every day. And my goal every day

(01:53):
is pretty simple. It's to helpyou break that cycle of financial
shame and truly live inconfidence. If you can say, ralph,
you're helping me break thecycle, then I've done my job for
today. And I've helpedcountless people just like you plan
for peace and not panic duringthe holidays. Listen, I've learned
this personally. Peace takespreparation, just like your finances.

(02:13):
I'm good at finances, butpeace, man, that's something I'm
still working on, but. But wehave to prepare for it. I'll never
forget this. I had a clientcome into me one time and she says,
ralph, I always run out ofpeace before I run out of money.
I know that that line wasgreat. We were talking about financial
stuff. She goes, ralph, I'mcool with the money side, but I always
run out of peace before I runout of money. And that stuck with

(02:34):
me. And I encourage her to dosomething. I said, listen, here's
one of the things I'm going toencourage you to do. Why don't you
start journaling your Decemberintention. Just spend 10 minutes
a day and just journal whatyou're feeling. Set that down in
paper, because, listen, you'rerunning out of peace. You got to
figure out why that is. AndI'm going to forget. She came to
me a couple months later. Iremember it's February and March.

(02:54):
We were doing our taxes. Shesays, ralph, man, that changed everything
about the holiday season. Ijust wrote what I was feeling every
day. I put it on the paper, Iclosed the notebook, and then I went
back to living ingratefulness. And I love what Pastor
Rick Warren said. He said, youcan't have the peace of God until
you make peace with. With God.And it's so easy in our culture to
forget about that. But I lovewhat he says. He says, you can't

(03:16):
have the peace of God untilyou make peace with God. So today
on the show, let's talk aboutwhy we always feel so anxious and
overwhelmed as soon asDecember starts. But bigger than
those things, let me tell youhow you can get past that. First
thing I'm going to tell you todo. It all starts with planning.
You got to look ahead. You gotto put a schedule together. Now you're
like, Ralph, that soundspretty regimented. That sounds pretty

(03:38):
legalistic. But. But listen, aschedule gives you room to breathe.
Because here's the thing Iwant you to hear. Peace isn't going
to happen by accident. Youneed to really be intentional. I'm
going to call it yourintentional peace plan. Kind of like,
you know, at United nations,they come up with these peace plans.
Well, that's what you need todo for December because you need
space to grow. Think of peaceas a savings account. Think about

(03:59):
this for just a second. Youput money in a savings account, but
you got to deposit dailybefore you draw anything out during
those hard days, if you're notputting contributions into that savings
account, listen, and then anemergency comes up, there's nothing
in the account. Well, peaceworks the same way. You've got to
build that into your schedule.That's the first thing. Second thing.

(04:19):
And listen, Mom's out there.I'm going to speak to you for a second.
It's okay to set boundariesbecause every yes costs time and
rests. It's okay to say no.You. You probably said, ralph, I've
heard that the last few dayson you. It's so important because
so many people don'tunderstand yes, you can say no in
love so that you can say yesto what truly matters. Because your

(04:40):
calendar is Like a financialbudget. We talk on the show about
financial budgets all thetime. But if you're overspending
the time, guess what happens?Like my client said, you're going
to be spiritually broke. Andwhen you're spiritually broke, everyone's
going to suffer from that. Butwhen you take your time back, when
you say no to things, you'vegot time to honor and you've got

(05:00):
time to consider what's trulyimportant in the holidays. And here's
another thing I'm going toencourage you to do. Simplify those
expectations. There's thishuge contrast between what culture
and faith is telling us. Italk about this on my show all the
time. I'm going to do a littleplug here right quick. I do a weekly
show. It's called TruthUnveiled with Ralph. And in that
show, I talk about how we'reconstantly battling culture and faith.

(05:22):
I'm going to encourage you tocheck it out. We'll put it in the
show notes. But it's realsimple to get to. It's truth unveiled
with Ralph.com because theworld says joy comes from those perfect
decorations. You know, thatbeautiful Christmas tree and all
the sparkling lights, thosebig moments. But God says something
so completely different thanthat. God says joy comes from his
presence, not the presenceunder the tree. And your family needs

(05:46):
this. Your family needs thatcalm spirit more than that picture
perfect holiday. We spend somuch time in our life struggling
for that picture perfectholiday. But God just wants us to
have joy and he wants us tohave peace. Well, how do you do that?
You got to schedule this time.Listen again, I'm going to harp on
this for a second, but setaside 10 to 15 minutes each morning.
This is why I encourage you todo for the month of December, set

(06:09):
aside 10 or 15 minutes eachmorning for just prayer and reflection.
Maybe a slow cup of coffee. Idon't drink coffee, but I do drink
tea. I got my teacup righthere. I start the day every day with
some tea. But before the dayeven begins, just pray about what's
going to happen today. Reflecton what God has given you. Because
listen, peace is built in thatstillness. And like I talked about

(06:29):
on yesterday's show, it allstarts with gratitude. It's all about
being grateful. See,thankfulness can become a huge decision
filter. If it doesn't bringgratitude or peace, it doesn't belong
in your life. I know that's astrong thing to say, but if what
you're fixing to do, mygrandfather, you are fixing all the
time, good Southern gentleman.But if what you're fixing to do isn't

(06:49):
bringing you gratitude orisn't bringing you peace, it doesn't
belong in that, becausegratitude will shift your focus from
what's missing to or what wealready have. And that's what we
got to focus on so many times.So I'm going to add a little something
to the show today. I'm goingto call this my reflective moment.
So before today, anything elsegoes on, before you rush into the
next thing, I want you to justpause a minute. I want you to ask

(07:10):
yourself this question, maybewrite this down and ask yourself
this every day. What's the onething stealing my peace right now?
Think about that for a second.What's that one thing that's stealing
your peace? And what would itlook like to give that to God instead
of trying to fix it myself?See that surrender we're talking
about? What's that one thingthat's stealing my peace right now?
And what would it feel like togive that to God instead of trying

(07:32):
to fix it myself? Which leadsus to today's Bible verse. It comes
to us from the book ofPhilippians, chapter 4, verses 6
to 7. It says this. And I wantyou to anchor you today in this.
Do not be anxious aboutanything, but in every situation,
by prayer and petition, withthanksgiving, present your request
to God. And the peace of God,which transcends all understanding,

(07:52):
will guard your hearts andyour minds in Christ Jesus. So let's
pray together, Lord, beforethe rush begins. I give you my December,
Lord. I just surrender it toyou. I surrender my schedule. I surrender
my spending. I surrender myspirit. And I just answer you. Replace
my worry with worship and mychaos with calm. Help me find peace

(08:12):
not in what I finish, but inwhat you've already finished for
me and in who you are. And Iask this in complete confidence in
the name of Jesus, Amen. Okay,here's your action item. Before December
begins, I want you to scheduleone peace hour this weekend. Just
one peace hour. No tasks, noscreens, no obligation. Just a time

(08:33):
to rest, a time to reflect andlisten. Be thankful for what God
has given you because God hasgiven you so much. And when we really
focus on what God has givenus, man, we will truly find the joy
and the reason for the season.Now, before I wrap up today, I want
to invite you to be part ofsomething special, something we just
launched. It's called theFinancially Confident Christian Community.

(08:54):
Now, this is a wonderful placewhere believers just like you can
grow together. We can shareencouragement. We can share those
blessings that we're feeling.We can share those challenges that
we're having. It's a way tohelp spread God's truth about money
and about all the deeds, thethings we're dealing with in our
spiritual lives. And you canjoin it real simple. It doesn't cost
you a dime. You go tofinanciallyconfidentchristian.com/join and

(09:16):
when you go there now, thereare some ways that you can support
the show there. I'm not goingto tell you that's not true. You
can, but you don't have to.You're not just supporting the show.
You're helping build acommunity of faith and you're building
community of freedom thatreaches people listen all over the
world. So I want to encourageyou right now, come be part of what
God is doing through thismission. It's super simple to get
there. That'satfinanciallyconfidentchristian.com/join. We'll

(09:38):
put that in the show notes.But again, that's financiallyconfidentchristian.com/join.
Why don't you consider joiningthat today? Listen to me as I end
today. Peace doesn't justhappen. If you think peace is going
to be like that Buddhistfellow who just sits there and the
peace just rains down on you,doesn't work that way. I'm sorry
to burst your bubble. It's achoice. It's an intentional decision

(09:58):
to live in peace. And youcan't control December, but you can
control your pace of Decemberbecause God's peace isn't seasonal.
It's steady. He's rock solidwith that. So prepare your heart
now and walk into it thisDecember. Go today and be that financially
confident Christian that Iknow you can be. You have the strength.
You can do this. Stayfinancially savvy. God bless you.

(10:21):
And I hope you join me againtomorrow on the show.