If you’re like me, you’re Christmas-ed out on December 26th, and your only goal is to stay in your pajamas all day. You smile over the pictures you took, look at everyone else’s pictures on Facebook, and eat leftovers.
But by December 27th, the holiday glow fades into post-holiday blues for some of us. You spent too much, you ate too much, and the fun celebration you looked forward to is over. Maybe it wasn’t as much fun as you hoped.
Then there’s the New Year coming. You’d better make some goals for yourself because everyone else is. You take a look at last year’s goals and realize you forgot all about them by February.
Sound familiar?
Before you start setting goals for 2015, remember this:
Sometimes you have to look back before you look forward.
Looking back first to remember what God has done has several benefits:
- It increases your sense of gratitude and abundance.
- It helps you grow as you reflect on what you’ve learned.
- It helps ward off post-holiday blues.
- It puts you in a better position to set goals for your future.
My favorite post-Christmas project is to write a recap of the past year.
You might be rolling your eyes and asking, “Who has time for that?” I keep it simple. I spend one or two hours making a list of highlights, blessings I’m thankful for, and ways I grew. I keep my summary under two pages.
This morning I got creative and made a mind map, complete with doodle drawings, to help me reflect back on the great things God did for me during 2014.
13 Questions for Reviewing Your Year:
1. Did you choose a word for yourself in 2014? Did it affect your year?
2. How did you grow?
3. Did you learn anything new?
4. What are you thankful for?
5. What blessings did you enjoy as a family?
6. How did you grow in your marriage?
7. Did you experience any milestone events? (weddings, special birthdays, births)
8. How did you see God’s faithfulness and provision?
9. What did you most enjoy doing?
10. Did you take any risks or make any steps of faith?
11. What special blessings or miracles did God send your way?
12. What Bible verses encouraged or challenged you the most?
13. What books did you read? Which ones impacted you most?
If you feel post-holiday blues coming on, how about taking some time to recall God’s goodness to you this past year? Your spirits will be lifted as you remember what He’s done for you.
Your recap of 2014 might be your best insurance against depression and doubt in 2015. I print mine and tape in to the inner cover of my new day-timer, so I can get it out whenever I need a reminder of God’s faithfulness.
Now it’s your turn. Will you share your answer to one of these questions in the comments?
Linking up with Barbie Swihart’s Weekend Brew.
Betsy, I really enjoyed this post especially the part about looking back on the last year and the questions you included! Great map too!
Hi Traci, I know you have a BIG blessing to look back on in 2014, the birth of your littlest one! Thanks for taking time to read today. 🙂
Betsy your post came at the perfect time for me. I’m getting ready to write about my year. I love the questions and the mind map.
My year – Thankful for two silly, healthy, loving kids! Thankful for a husband who supports me and loves me in the mess. I’m learning to grow as a parent as my children grow. Learning to change as the ages and stages of life change my kids.
Thanks Betsy for sharing your ideas.
It sounds ike you have a lot to be thankful for, Lisa! Blessings to you as you review God’s blessings over the past year.
I can’t wait to get started. Mind Mapping today.
I LOVE your creative mind map with its drawings!
Thanks, Deborah. I originally did it as a “rough draft,” with the plan to type it into a one or two page document, but now I think I might leave it at that! I’ll tape it into my daytimer as is. 🙂
Love the questions! My husband and I are going to breakfast this morning. I think I’ll take them along and look back over our year. Thanks so much for sharing this with us, Betsy!
Hope you have a wonderful breakfast with your husband, Sabra.
Update. Just got back from breakfast. It was a great time looking back over the year. We were wondering if you would allow us to use some of these questions on our marriage blog? It’s a great idea, and we’d give you credit and a link back to this post. Thanks so much, Betsy! You’re always an inspiration!
Certainly, Sabra, you can use these on your blog. Glad you had a nice breakfast.
Thanks so much, Betsy. I’ll let you know when it goes out.
Hi – I am here for the first time, from the Weekend Brew. I’ve subscribed; I like your style, and will return.
For me, life is a continuum; I don’t do milestones, because with PTSD and a terminal illness, I don’;t really have time for them. In a sense, every day is a milestone. Every day is a new chance for a new beginning.
But that said, I do have a “wod for 2015”. It’s Hirihokenten.
I’m cheating, though. It’s actually a Japanese transliteration of a phrase coined by a Chinese philosopher, meaning that it’s important to consider debt, but unimportant to think about death.
In other word, life is all about duty and responsibility.
It was the motto of one Masashige Kusunoki, an iconic figure in Japanese history, who met his end – by his own hand – at the Battle of the Minato River (Minatogawa) in 1366.
There’s a touching addendum to his story, and that comes from a letter Kusunoki’s wife sent with him on his last departure.
“I wish life were as a spool of thread, and that it could unroll, making the past become present.”
Thanks so much for subscribing to my blog, Andrew. I love that thought that every day is a milestone, a new chance for a new beginning. Blessings and grace to you in the coming year.
Thank you, Betsy!
Betsy-this is a perfect way to not only reflect but thank God for the many blessings the year has produced. The idea of looking back in order to look forward will help us to see that the path we thought didn’t make any sense, perhaps really does make sense. It will give a sense of purpose to our journey ahead and will allow us to let God use as effectively. Great questions to ponder too! Blessed you joined The Weekend Brew. Happy New Year!
Thanks for stopping by, Mary. So true that things make more sense as we look back. (Some things we won’t understand til heaven, though. 🙂 )
Love this Betsy! And LOVE your mind map! What a great way to look back at the past year!
I love this post – and the mind map. I may encourage my husband who battles depression to do this as well.
I fight back with humor!
http://55minutedrive.blogspot.com/2015/01/survive-monday-after-holidays.html