The week between Christmas and New Year’s can feel like a soft landing: sweatpants, slow mornings, and a rare sense of completion. We lean into that pause and ask a bigger question—how do we finish the year well so we can begin the next aligned with God’s heart? With Scripture as our guide, we explore the joy of ending strong without striving, and the freedom to rest while still preparing our steps for what’s ahead.
We start by reframing the calendar as training for a longer race. Drawing from 2 Timothy 4, we talk about what it means to “keep the faith” when distractions multiply and itching ears chase easy answers. Then we pivot to purpose: we were made to worship and enjoy God, image-bearers restored by Christ’s coming. From there, we offer three practical anchors for the final stretch of December—purpose, praise, and prayer—each grounded in passages like Ephesians 2:10, Psalms 103/145/150, Proverbs 16:3, and Hebrews 12:1–2. You’ll hear simple, honest reflection prompts to assess drift and fruit, and encouragement to let praise become the daily soundtrack that builds trust for the year ahead.
As we close, Psalm 90 gives language for wisdom and work: teach us to number our days, establish the work of our hands. We celebrate the small victory of completion, enjoy the gift of rest, and lace up for the next lap with our eyes fixed on Jesus. If you’re craving a clear, faith-filled roadmap into the new year—one that trades pressure for presence and resolutions for reliance—this conversation will steady your heart and sharpen your focus.
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Episode Transcript
In just over a week from now, you will be basking in
that after Christmas glow, thatglorious week between Christmas
and New Year's, when no oneknows what day it is, and your
only agenda is to wearsweatpants, sleep, and maybe eat
a little bit too many cookies.
(01:11):
And yet, before we get there, Iwant to give you some
encouragement to consider andreflect on.
Personally, I've always lovedthe exhilaration of completion.
That satisfaction that comeswith finishing a job, a project,
a goal, or a book.
(01:31):
Getting to check it off yourlist, right?
There is this feeling oftriumph that is worth
celebrating, even if just for amoment.
Laundry cleaned and put away,an empty kitchen sink, your
inbox clear, and all theChristmas presents wrapped and
under the tree.
We all know that the laundry isgoing to need to be done again,
(01:56):
and the sink will be full ofdishes after your next meal.
Your email will need to besorted tomorrow, and Christmas
will come again next year.
But just for a minute, there iscompletion.
If you follow me on Instagram,then you likely know that I post
almost daily some encouragementto embrace excellence.
(02:17):
And on Fridays, I like toremind you to make the most of
the last day of the week beforethe weekend so that you can
really enjoy and delight in thatrest-filled Sabbath.
And right now, we are in theyearly equivalent of that last
day, best day philosophy.
You are in the home stretch of2025, and a brand new year is
(02:42):
just on the horizon.
And it seemed like a good thingto do, a good thing to check
off the list before I turned 30.
(03:02):
I wasn't, however, prepared forall of the recommended like
little races that you'resupposed to do before the big
race, all those little 5Ks, oror even the longer races or
longer runs that are recommendedeach week to prepare.
And I remember looking at myhusband in shock, saying, You
(03:23):
mean I have to run more thanonce?
I think about this experienceevery time we get close to the
end of the year.
If our life is like one biggiant marathon, then each year
is kind of like those little 5ksthat lead up to the big life
race.
And each of those little racesis designed to prepare us for
(03:46):
whatever comes next.
And I do want to be ready forwhat God has planned for me,
don't you?
Paul talks about his race in 2Timothy 4:7.
He says, I have fought the goodfight, I have finished the
race, I have kept the faith.
Henceforth there is laid up forme the crown of righteousness,
(04:08):
which the Lord, the righteousjudge, will award to me on that
day, and not only to me, butalso to all who have loved his
appearing.
So while Paul wrote thesewords, actually just before he
died, at the end of his life, Ithink we can still be encouraged
to run well and finish strong,to be able to someday hear those
(04:31):
words, well done, good andfaithful servant.
That's the reward that I willkeep running towards.
So as we get closer to the endof the year, I want to encourage
you to finish this year well,so that we can start the next
one aligned with God's heart andmission.
(04:51):
How, you might ask?
Well, thankfully, Paul providedsome insight to that question
just before he spoke offinishing his race.
In 2 Timothy 4, 2 through 5, hesays, preach the word, be ready
in and out of season, reprove,rebuke, and exhort with complete
patience and teaching.
(05:12):
For the time is coming whenpeople will not endure sound
teaching, but having itchingears, they will accumulate for
themselves teachers to suittheir own passions.
They will turn away fromlistening to the truth and
wander off into myths.
But as for you, always besober-minded, endure suffering,
do the work of an evangelist,fulfill your ministry.
(05:35):
Right here, Paul lets us knowwhat we can still be doing, even
here at the end of the year.
Now is the time to reflect andthen look towards a new year
with our intentions clear andour eyes fixed on God and the
work he has set aside for eachof us, so that we can be ready
(05:58):
in this season and in the next.
Practically speaking, what doesit look like for you and me at
the end of December?
What does this look like tofinish the year well?
I can think of three things tohelp us and prepare our hearts
and minds for the coming yearwith purpose, praise, and
(06:20):
prayer.
unknown (06:22):
A.
Leanne (06:22):
W.
Tozer says that the purpose ofmankind is to worship God and
enjoy him forever.
This is our entire purpose.
The reason we exist in thefirst place.
God created humans to bedifferent from all of creation.
Genesis 1, 26 and 27 says, ThenGod said, Let us make man in
(06:46):
our image after our likeness.
So God created man in his ownimage.
In the image of God, he createdhim, male and female, he
created them.
Only mankind is made in theimage of God, made from the
overflow of love that God theFather, God the Son, and God the
Holy Spirit already enjoy.
(07:07):
We were made to worship God,our Creator, and to enjoy being
with Him forever.
Now we all know how the storyplays out.
We know that sin entered theworld and our purpose was lost
in the midst of rebellion andunbelief.
We chose to worship creationmore than our Creator.
(07:30):
And today we still strugglewith understanding our purpose
when really it isn't all thatcomplicated.
Every year I find myselfwrestling with my purpose and
what am I supposed to be doing?
I think we all struggle withthis to some degree.
It's why we make New Year'sresolutions and why we vow to
(07:51):
eat less sweets or exercise moreor read more books.
We want to run our race well.
This reminder of our truepurpose is important always, but
especially right now as we getready to celebrate Christmas.
The reason for this joyouscelebration is because God's
(08:12):
plans were not thwarted that dayin the garden when the serpent
tempted Eve, and then she andAdam chose disobedience.
Sending Jesus to be our Saviorwas always God's plan A.
He always knew that we wouldfall short and need to be
rescued.
Christmas is all about thefulfillment of his promise to
(08:34):
send his one and only Son.
Jesus restores our purpose.
Because of Jesus, we cancontinue to worship God and
enjoy him forever.
It is my hope that you and Ican cling to this truth in these
last few weeks of December.
May we step into the new yearwith the assurance of who we are
(08:57):
in Christ and truly know ourpurpose as his daughters.
And our purpose isn't just acalling, it is obedience in the
small and faithfulness in theordinary.
Ephesians 2, 10 says, For weare his workmanship, created in
Christ Jesus for good works,which God prepared beforehand
(09:19):
that we should walk in them.
The end of the year is awonderful time to ask these
three questions.
Where have I walked in God'spurposes this year?
Where have I drifted?
What fruit has he produced inme?
In light of the eternity thatwe get to spend with God as
(09:41):
believers, praise should comenaturally.
What a joy-filled time topraise our King.
And yet, in the midst of all ofthe packages and bows and
cookies and concerts, it's easyto get lost in the hustle and
bustle of the holidays andforget that praise is our gift
to God.
(10:01):
I love that song, The LittleDrummer Boy, even though I know
it's a fictitious story, butit's one of my favorite
Christmas songs because I lovethat it's just the simple gift
of playing his drum for Jesusthat was all he needed to bring.
Your praise is a sweet aromaoffered up to God.
It is your worship andthanksgiving for the gift of
(10:25):
Jesus.
He has done everything for us,and our praise and worship is
what he loves most from us inreturn.
He doesn't need our praise, buthe knows in his infinite wisdom
(11:08):
that we need him to be the oneto receive our praise.
He created us to worship, andno one else can receive our
worship with the same humilityand gentleness and love.
And praising our gracious andloving God strengthens our faith
for his future guidance.
(11:28):
We know we can trust himbecause of his past
faithfulness.
Think about all the ways Godhas shown up for you in this
last year.
Think of this as a way ofremembering his goodness.
Maybe you could read adifferent psalm of praise as a
daily meditation during theselast couple of weeks of
December.
Psalm 103, Psalm 145, and evenPsalm 150 are all wonderful
(11:54):
psalms of praise.
And finally, in these last fewweeks of December, choose to
spend time in prayer.
Pray about what lies ahead,your fears, your worries, your
joys, pain.
Pray about all of it.
Surrender it to Jesus.
Pray for discernment and toknow the truth of God's word
(12:18):
even more clearly in the comingyear.
Pray for the Holy Spirit tolead and guide you towards the
things that need your time andattention in 2026.
You don't need a word for thenew year as much as you need his
word for your year.
Prayer places Jesus at thecenter of your plans and guards
(12:39):
us from self-reliance.
Proverbs 16:3 says, Commit yourwork to the Lord and your plans
will be established.
Now, this verse isn't intendedto be like ultimate Santa,
naughty or niceless, or even atransactional approach to
prayer.
What this verse means is thatthrough a deep and abiding
(13:01):
relationship with God, youinvite his wisdom, strength, and
correction into everything thatyou say and do.
Or, if you want to put itanother way, Proverbs 3, 5 and 6
says, Trust in the Lord withall of your heart, and do not
lean on your own understandings.
In all your ways, acknowledgeHim, and He will make straight
(13:23):
your paths.
So pray for your new year.
Pray about the things that youneed to keep doing so that you
can continue to worship God andenjoy Him always.
Pray about the things you needto stop doing, because they turn
you away from listening to thetruth.
And pray about what you need tostart doing so that you can
(13:45):
finish this year well and beginagain with renewed endurance.
Hebrews 12, 1 and 2 says,Therefore, since we are
surrounded by so great a cloudof witnesses, let us also lay
aside every weight and sin whichclings too closely, and let us
run with endurance the race thatis set before us, looking to
(14:08):
Jesus, the founder and perfecterof our faith, who for the joy
that was set before him enduredthe cross, despising the shame,
and is seated at the right handof the throne of God.
These verses give us theroadmap for our race.
We can finish this year wellbecause we have our eyes fixed
on Jesus.
Hebrews 11:1 says, Now faith isthe assurance of things hoped
(14:32):
for and the conviction of thingsnot seen.
We may not know what is instore for us next year, but we
will keep running our race infaith as women of excellence on
a mission to worship God andenjoy Him forever.
Well, this year comes to anend.
We get to enjoy that feeling ofcompletion.
(14:53):
We can close the book on 2025,and we can even take a moment to
breathe deeply and celebrate.
We can enjoy a week ofsweatpants and bottomless
cookies, and at the very least,we can rest.
So that we can lace up ourrunning shoes and be ready for
what comes in the new year.
(15:14):
We've got more kingdom work todo.
To close this episode and thisseason of Whatever is Excellent,
I want to read a portion ofPsalm 90 to you.
This psalm captures a heart ofreflection and longing for God's
presence, and it is a beautifulway to wrap up our year, too.
(15:36):
Psalm 90, verses 12 through 17.
So teach us to number our days,that we may get a heart of
wisdom.
Return, O Lord, how long?
Have pity on your servants.
Satisfy us in the morning withyour steadfast love, that we may
rejoice and be glad all ourdays.
(15:57):
Make us glad for as many daysas you have afflicted us and for
as many years as we have seenevil.
Let your work be shown to yourservants and your glorious power
to their children.
Let the favor of the Lord ourGod be upon us and establish the
work of our hands upon us.
Yes, establish the work of ourhands.
(16:18):
Thank you so much for yoursupport and for listening to
season four of Whatever isExcellent.
I pray that you have awonderful Christmas and a very
happy new year.
And I look forward to beginninga new season with you.
Season five of Whatever isExcellent will kick off on
January 6th.
So mark your calendars.
(16:39):
And until then, my friends,know that I do not cease to give
thanks for you, remembering youin my prayers.
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