3 Tips for Thriving Through The Holidays
This time of year, it feels as if we are off and running as soon as October ends. Every morning our feet hit the ground. We’re going from one to the next thing. We have Thanksgiving dinner to plan for. Company coming. Not to mention family birthdays, shopping, outings, therapies, and all the regularly scheduled stuff.
There are practices for our Christmas play, parties, caroling, shopping, and cookie baking.
The tips that I want to give you today are not tips about Pinteresty stuff such as – finding the perfect Christmas tree or the perfect ornament to make. Not that those are bad things. Those are fun things to do, but it’s more about self-care and taking care of yourself during the holidays.
Rest. Get some rest. Now let me dig a little deeper into what I mean by rest. I don’t necessarily mean just lying on the couch and watching Netflix all day, but maybe you need to do that some days.
Rest is different for each person. And when we want to enter into a season of rest during the day, that doesn’t mean that we don’t attend to our responsibilities. Because if we get into couch-potato-rest when we have small kids at home – we’re not doing any meal prep, or we’re not thinking about what they’re going to have for lunch, then obviously things are going to fall apart. This is a different kind of rest. This rest is an intentional kind of rest that you do with your children. It could be planning a movie one afternoon when you make the popcorn and the hot chocolate. You’re still doing the work. But it’s a kind of rest. The rest that we need is a kind of rest that will fill us back up. So when we go back to doing what we’re doing, we’re not exhausted and overwhelmed.
rest examples
One of the things I used to do with my youngest when he was still napping during the day was just lie down on the floor next to his crib because he didn’t go to sleep very well. And if that’s the kind of rest that you can get, then take it. Another kind of rest is doing something creative for me. I love that. I love projects. I love painting things. I love restoring furniture. I love decorating for Thanksgiving, Christmas, and every holiday. That’s refreshing and restful to me.
rest and work
Remember when Jesus said, come unto me, all you who are heavy ladened, and I will give you rest. He also says, “Take my yoke upon you.” Whenever there’s a yoke involved, then that means that there’s work. So don’t think that rest and work are on opposite ends of the spectrum. Often our rest involves work. Another thing that I like to do for rest is while I’m working on something in the kitchen or cleaning the house or whatever, I’ll listen to a podcast. And in a way, to me, that’s rest because I’m refreshing myself and I’m renewing myself, and I’m listening to good information that’s going to feed me. Another thing that my family does is we listen to a lot of books in the car, and there were specific books that we would read aloud at home during Christmas. The tip is to get some rest. You figure out what rest is for you and work it into your life and work it into this season.
Get an Advent devotional for yourself. It’s time to start planning for Advent! It’s really important for your younger kids to understand the meaning of the season, The way kids learn about something is through repetition. It’s layer upon layer upon layer. Well, as adults, we’re no different. We don’t get to a point in the Christmas season, no matter how many Christmases we’ve been alive, that were like, we know everything about Christmas.
Or the attitude -there’s no way I could grow any deeper spiritually. It’s important for us, to study the meaning of Christmas. Pray God will give you a new dimensional understanding of what Christmas is really about, about Jesus coming to Earth. I studied Joseph and Mary when I wrote my devotional, 25 Days of Thriving Through Christmas. I wrote a chapter on Jesus, a chapter on Mary, a chapter on the Wiseman, and a chapter on Joseph. I researched, read, listened to teachings, and learned some history that deepened my faith.
This year find some of the history of Jesus’ birth you can dig deeper. I know it’s very difficult when you’re really busy and you have young kids, so maybe you find a podcast or you find a devotional that’s very short and you can read it after your kids go to bed, before you watch a show.
FREE 7-Day Challenge
Get ready to thrive this holiday season!
What if you and your kiddos could thrive through the holidays this year? Join the 7-Day challenge, grab your free chapter of 25 Days of Thriving through Christmas and watch your inbox for the next steps!
Pray through. I think during this season, we need to have a little bit more emphasis on prayer. Raising my hand here because we can get so busy with everything that’s going on. And when we are celebrating and everything’s going right. We’re often just enjoying the celebration.
We don’t usually remember the days we did nothing, but we remember the days that we had everything to do and God pulled us through.
The Circle Maker
If you are overwhelmed and stressed and you have so much on your plate … maybe there aren’t any things that you can take off your plate right now. Maybe during this season, you have to follow through and do the things that committed to, then pray it through. Not only ask God to be with you but expect Him to be with you.
rest in believing God will show up
This is a lesson that I’ve learned and I’m still learning over and over and over again, is that I pray and I ask God to answer my prayer, but then I’m like hanging on by my fingernails waiting for the answer instead of thanking Him in advance.
Thank you, Lord, that you’ve answered my prayer.
Thank you that you will give me the strength and the ability to do what you have called me to do today.
Thank you, Lord, that your resources are endless.
So when I’m feeling like I can’t go on, I can, because my strength is in you, that Christ is sufficient. He is sufficient and he will give you the strength to do what he calls you to do.
FREE 7-Day Challenge
Get ready to thrive this holiday season!
What if you and your kiddos could thrive through the holidays this year? Join the 7-Day challenge, grab your free chapter of 25 Days of Thriving through Christmas and watch your inbox for the next steps!
recap
Thriving through the holidays is intentional. It involves us taking responsibility for our self-care – resting in the way that suits us and our family. Thriving also means we take the time to dig deeper into the Word and study. It’s a time for new revelations! Christmas is also a time to pray through which simply means pray until God shows up and changes your heart, your circumstances, or both.
As I shared in 25 Days Of Thriving Through Christmas:
Tip 21 – Christmas has needs.
I paced back and forth at the front of the house where large windows looked out over the front yard and the mailbox. The mailbox- what had been a symbol of Christmas cards and good news- had become my worst enemy. I dreaded the mailman coming bringing bills and more bills, and yet I watched, waited, and worried. When the mail truck pulled up to my box, I hid behind the curtains, afraid he would see me and hand deliver bills that said, “FINAL NOTICE”. I imagined him shaking his head in pity for me as he saw the stack of bills.
I’ve lived there, deep in the pit, where my prayers were only about my lack. Mortgage payments. Groceries. Presents
How do you have a silent night when your mind is full of need? Of worry? Of the reality of the barrenness of now?
I spent a great deal of time praying that season. Maybe that’s you right now, you are trying to survive! I get it. Thriving through Christmas doesn’t mean our circumstances are perfect. It means we have moments of joy despite our circumstances.
other resources:
- Sign up for the 7-Day Advent challenge Here (bypass the fancy landing page if you just want to sign up!)
- Purchase 25 Days of Thriving Through Christmas Here.
- Sign up for The 25 Days of Thriving Through Christmas Advent Course Here.
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