Who else loves this time of year? I love the celebration and the hubbub created when lots of people come together! And I also value the contrast of quiet moments, alone with the Lord.
This verse always pops out to me from Luke 2:19 (KJV):
“But Mary kept all these things, and pondered them in her heart.”
Mary was witnessing unbelievable miracles! She was so young, yet so wise to carefully and intentionally capture these moments and memories to store up for reflection later.
Pondering often leads to gratitude.
I am naturally future-oriented and I love to dream about what is yet to come. However, as the year is about to come to a close, it serves as my reminder to intentionally reflect and think back to all the wonderful things that happened in the past 12 months.
Will you ponder with me now? What is your top ten list from this past year? What memories rise to the surface fastest for you? What relationships are you most grateful for and why? What habit from this calendar year ended up positively impacting the rest of your life?
My hunch is that answering these questions will help you cultivate a heart of gratitude! What if you took this one step further and verbalized your thankfulness to someone, anyone, who impacted you in this past year? Gratitude in action is contagious, so I’ll go first.
Here is my Top Ten list from 2021
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Favorite Bible Verse: My life verse is Matthew 6:33, so that is my favorite every year, but when I think of one specific to 2021, Ephesians 2:10 (AMP) stands out.
“For we are His workmanship [His own master work, a work of art], created in Christ Jesus [reborn from above—spiritually transformed, renewed, ready to be used] for good works, which God prepared [for us] beforehand [taking paths which He set], so that we would walk in them [living the good life which He prearranged and made ready for us].”
God used this verse repeatedly to remind me of His sovereignty and how this applies to me personally. As Mark and I gear up to start a non-profit to serve marriages, this verse was brought before me many times as affirmation from the Lord to get excited for taking paths He set for us beforehand.
What is your favorite Scripture from this year? What does it remind you of? What does it represent to you and why do you want to make sure you don’t forget the lessons God taught you through your meaningful verse? This would be a fun question to ask your friends or your spouse or your family next time you gather together!
One of my favorite episodes from 2021 that brought Scripture to life was Sherita Harkness. You definitely don’t want to miss her episode, Everyday Miracles.
Most Beneficial Physical Habit: The biggest return on investment physically came from a daily morning walk while listening to The Savvy Sauce. It stretched out my legs, got my blood flowing early in the morning, gave me long-lasting energy throughout the day, and woke me up mentally to be prepared to come home and spend focused time with the Lord before our kids were awake. This one habit made a significant impact on many other areas of my life. I am still not a clean eater and I’m not quick to reach for vegetables, but it was nice to get one thing right in the physical realm!
My dad has walked in the morning every day for as long as I can remember. This has been an impactful habit for him and I’ve heard of the health benefits from many others. The book that finally encouraged me to put this idea into practice was Rhythms of Renewal. Mark and I loved interviewing the author and her husband in Rhythms of Renewal with Gabe and Rebekah Lyons.
Favorite Product to Encourage Productivity: 2022 Powersheets Intentional Goal Planner . Do you have this yet?! I can’t recommend it enough, and I wrote more about it on My Top Four Resources for Intentional Living. This resource has helped me dream bigger dreams and then take bite-sized steps forward to making those a reality. God has used this resource to change my life and I am excited for it to possibly do the same for you!
Most Fruitful Relational Habit: One-on-One time. This time is so special and intentionally set apart that I consider it sacred and holy. With God this is the sacred morning hour spent reading His Word, journaling, praying, and listening to Him. With my husband, it is the sacred evening hour after the kids go to bed when we get to talk and connect and laugh and share about our days. With our daughters, the sacred hour of one-on-one time is the final hour of their day when we are enjoying the familiar bedtime routine with them. We also have special date nights for extended times, which you can read in the article about one-on-one time with kids.
In my quiet time today, God revealed the connection for me: relational one-on-one time leads me to turn my affections to the appropriate place . . . and that has the potential to affect everything.
“So above all, guard the affections of your heart, for they affect all that you are. Pay attention to the welfare of your innermost being, for from there flows the wellspring of life.” Proverbs 4:23 (TPT)
Favorite Book: Married Sex by Gary Thomas and Debra Fileta. This topic is dear to my heart as I studied Christian sex therapy as my specialization while I was pursuing licensure as a marriage and family therapist. Gary and Debra do a fantastic job educating on the connection between the emotionally connected relationship above the sheets that is correlated to the sexual satisfaction beneath the sheets. You can hear from both authors in Making Love in Marriage or Mutually Pleasing Sex in Marriage.
If you are looking for a good book on a different topic by one of the same authors, I recommend another one of Debra Fileta’s books entitled, Are You Really OK? I am not the only one who found these books to be useful. Both of these turned out to be best-sellers!
Favorite New Experience: Family Camp. There are so many family camps available and we loved trying this new experience. It was an incredible combination of a spiritual focus, tons of family-friendly activities, interesting people to meet, meals prepared and cleaned up for you, and a built-in date night! All six members of our family considered it to be one of the best weeks of our year. It was the ideal vacation for this season of life!
Favorite Date: For an extended date day in November, we splurged to hire a sitter from morning until evening and it was the most fulfilling day! Traveling with just my husband refills me for months to come.
We had a moment of clarity this year when we made the discovery that traveling is a practical way we have experienced the fruit of the Spirit being cultivated quickly in us. I believe God is pleased when couples enjoy being together and intentionally spend time delighting in one another. We know fruit is produced by the Spirit of God so we can’t boast in this, but we can be connected to God so that He can produce fruit in us.
When I pondered the question: is there any activity that aids the production of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control (See Galatians 5:22-23)? I realized my answer was getting away with my spouse. And traveling can be for just one day!
You’ve heard the saying that familiarity breeds contempt, so why not change it up and add some variety?! I highly recommend it because it is worth the investment! (See other recommended returns on investment in this worthwhile article or listen to the spiritual benefits of travel in Traveling with Your Family).
Favorite Gift to Give My Family: Personalized calendars. This picture is from January of this year when I presented our daughters with their calendars. I make one for Mark’s office as well and it makes me so happy to witness him enjoying the pictures all year long. It’s also really fun to surprise everyone with a bonus gift in January.
If you want to do this for your family too, I will share my process, in case it’s helpful: I don’t complete the gift until December 31st, so by the time it ships, it is usually the middle of January. For each calendar month I typically put a Scripture that was meaningful and family pictures from that same month of the previous year. So in September of 2022, my family will see pictures from September of 2021 in their calendar, along with a Scripture that was meaningful that month in 2021. I set aside one hour every Friday to work on photos and it’s a little reward each week to enjoy this creative outlet. It also helps me appreciate our memories, and it’s something I look so forward to sharing.
Favorite Idea: Mark and I love quarterly meetings and one produced this idea: Why don’t we start sharing a sitter with other families in a similar phase of life to us so the adults can go out to dinner while the kids are supervised and enjoying time together. Then we can all reunite for dessert. It’s a win for everyone! For more information on quarterly meetings, make sure you read Fun and Enriching Marital Habits.
Favorite New Endeavor: As I briefly mentioned earlier, Mark and I are working together to start a marriage non-profit to help people to grow closer to God and others. . . stay tuned! 😉
Your turn! What is your list? Will you share any of your top ten items on our Instagram or Facebook page?
Merry Christmas to you!
Much Love,
Laura
