Something dangerous happens to us when we get swept away by the busyness of life. We find ourselves running from workweek to workweek, feeling like our lives are running us rather than running our own lives. When was the last time you stopped to reflect and take a breather?
I often find myself doing short sprints to the next big event or deadline. By the time I get there, I am out of breath and exhausted. But by the time the big day arrives, I haven’t left any energy to keep going. So, as friends or family ask me what’s next, I always find myself answering, “I don’t know. I haven’t planned that far yet.” And I stumble into another Monday, unready for the workload ahead. It’s rhythms like this that drive us into burnout.
The Antidote to Burnout
As the Lord has graciously drawn me out of burnout and into rest, I’ve been challenged to ask myself more questions. Questions like these pull us out of the here-and-now stressors and help us look at our lives with greater perspective. When we ask ourselves questions like, “What do I truly want?” and, “What would have to happen to get there?” we start to look at our lives with more intention.
Every day, we make choices about how to spend each hour of our day. Without intention, though, we often make choices based on what people expect from us, what the next most urgent thing is, or what is directly in front of us RATHER than what is best for us, where God is leading, or what is most important. Making choices with intention helps us to live our lives on purpose, for a purpose, without burning out along the way.
Setting Yourself Up for Success in 2024
The first month of the new year is coming to a close, and many of us feel like we’ve only just recovered from the holiday season and settled back into our routines, which makes this the perfect time to pause and reflect. Rather than setting hyper-ambitious goals that will only drive you further into burnout, this is the time to reflect on what a healthy and fulfilling year might look like. So take an hour this week to sit down and reflect on a few of the following journal prompts:
1. What accomplishment am I most proud of from the past year?
Work is not meant to be something we hate. When we are working towards things we love, we feel satisfied and fulfilled. This is how God created us to function, and it’s a sign that we are working on things that we are gifted in. How can you prioritize this fulfillment in your work?
2. What activities are life-giving and restful for me?
Taking time to rest every week is crucial to avoid burnout, but true sabbath isn’t only comprised of sleeping. There are a variety of activities that may fill your soul and rejuvenate you. For some people, it may be reading a book, going on a walk, or playing a game with friends. For others, it may be working on a building, cleaning, or gardening project. How can you build more life-giving and restful activities into your life? Avoid putting activities that require screen time on this list since watching TV or scrolling on our phones can be a way to zone out rather than recharge.
3. What life event made me angry/disappointed last year?
Sometimes, we avoid dwelling on these moments without realizing that our avoidance can keep us from moving forward. We become scared to take risks or stretch ourselves because we are listening to a repetitive narrative telling us we can’t do it, we will be hurt, or something bad will happen again. The best way to move past negative events is to acknowledge them, identify the emotions they caused, and ask God to reveal the lies we have believed as a result. Write down what your 2024 might look like if you didn’t believe those lies.
4. What worship song or Bible passage resonated most last year?
Sometimes, a specific lyric or phrase just hits in a different way. Did you have a life verse this year? Or did you have a song that you always turned the volume up for? Print out the words and pray through them. What is the reason these words resonated so deeply over the past year? Are there any similar songs or Scripture passages that come to mind? Ask God if He has a word or phrase for you this year. Write it down or hang it up to keep it fresh on your mind each day.
5. What unfulfilled longings did I wrestle with last year?
Longing is healthy. But unfulfilled longing is difficult. It’s uncomfortable and even painful to acknowledge the things you’ve prayed for that God hasn’t provided. Write down the things you’re still waiting for from the Lord. There is a time and a season for everything, but it is hard to trust God’s timing. Give yourself permission to be honest with God about your disappointment. Be reminded that He hears your prayers, and write down how He has shown you his compassion and grace this year despite the disappointment you feel.
6. What blessings am I most grateful for from the year?
It’s so easy to pray hundreds of prayers throughout our year and never look back to see which ones He answered. Whenever I have taken a moment to flip through past prayer notebooks, I always come away deeply encouraged. I often forget the prayers I’ve prayed, but God does not. When I look back, I find myself saying, “Oh, I forgot I asked for this, but LOOK He answered!” So take some time before 2024 gets ahead of you to reflect on the answered prayers of 2023.
7. What moments brought out the worst version of myself this year?
We can’t always be perfect. As the stressors of the year wear us down, there are moments that definitely bring out the worst in us. Which moments can you identify from 2023? Can you identify the coping mechanisms you resort to in these moments? What comfort, stability, or escape do they provide? Ask God if He will help you depend on Him for those things instead.
8. What role did my church play in my life this year?
Our church involvement can deeply influence our day-to-day life. So, how did you feel supported by your church last year? How did you serve at church last year? How did your community bless you? Are there ways you want to get more or less involved in the New Year? Do you need to pray through any unresolved issues at your church or ways you felt hurt last year? Whether you’re searching for a new home church or have been involved for decades, it’s important to look at how this community will shape your year in 2024.
9. Were there any themes or lessons I see looking back on 2023?
When we are stuck in the up-close-and-personal moments of life, we don’t always see the bigger picture. Now that 2023 has come to a close, you have enough perspective to “zoom out” and look at your year from a bird’s eye view. What lessons did you learn? What themes do you see? Is there any momentum God was building that He may continue in the new year?
10. What did God provide last year? What am I still waiting for?
God provides so abundantly for His children when we ask, seek, and knock. What did He provide in the last year? Are there still things you’re waiting on Him to provide? Get practical and specific. Make a list of things you are specifically asking God for this year. It can be as specific as “a blue armchair for my living room” or “a full-time job that is less than 20 miles from my home.” When we pray specifically, God answers specifically. Keep going back to this list throughout your year, and continue to present your requests to your generous Father.
Be Your Own Life Coach
The invitation awaits. It’s up to you now whether you will carve out an hour or two this month to reflect on these questions. I’ve found that this kind of reflection often reveals to me more ways that God has shown His faithfulness that I never realized before. I often see patterns that I’d like to repeat in the coming year and patterns I’d rather not repeat. What are yours?
After reflecting on a few of these questions, action-oriented people will want to do something. We don’t like just sitting with our thoughts; we want to know what to do with them. If you were meeting with a life coach, they would likely give you reflection questions like this and then help you identify the next steps. But you don’t need a life coach to do this. You can look at what you wrote down and identify what action may be required to move forward. If you realized that you didn’t have consistent patterns of rest last year, you may need to ask how you can rectify this in the new year. If you identify prayers God answered, you may feel the urge to worship as a result. Every realization often brings forth a result…so what are yours?
How to Be Intentional with the Next 11 Months
To be intentional with your year, you need to decide where your priorities lie and which activities or interests you want to invest your time in. Here are a few questions you can ask to help:
- What step of obedience is God calling me into this year?
- What person is He calling me to pour into?
- What ministry should I give my time to?
- Where is He asking me to be more generous with my money?
- Where do I tend to overextend myself?
- Where in my schedule can I implement good habits of rest and wellness?
With these questions on your mind and a couple of action steps you’ve decided to prioritize in the next year, you can successfully enter into each day with intention and purpose rather than getting pulled into an unending cycle of crisis management and burnout.
