Feeling Overwhelmed? Your 5-Step December Checklist for Financial Peace

Speaker A00:00:28

Listen to this. Only one in three people create a year end financial checklist. But think about this one though. But those who do report 50% less stress.Do you want more stress in your life? I got the answer today because peace doesn't come from luck, it comes from order. Which leads me to today's listener question.Ralph, I feel pulled in a hundred directions this December. Money, family, deadlines, how do I keep peace in the middle of all this chaos? And I got this measure. I thought, wow, I feel that chaos too.Listen, it's only the 2nd of December and I'm already starting to feel it as well. And the end of the year can feel like a financial whirlwind. Talk about overwhelm.But there is a way to keep order and keep peace because a few small steps today can prevent big stress tomorrow. So let's talk about living in peace during the chaos. That's what I'm going to cover on today's show.

Speaker B00:01:17

This is Financially Confident Christian, your daily dose of gospel, grounded insight and faith driven tips to help you break the cycle of financial shame with confidence.

Speaker A00:01:29

Hello there and welcome. I'm Ralph and thank you so much for joining me today. My goal every day is to help you break that cycle of financial shame and do it with confidence.Right now, my goal is to help you break that cycle of chaos and have a plan. And I'm so happy you're joining us. We're in our second day of our December series, what I'm calling the December Reset.That is reflect, refocus and prepare for the new year. So I'm so happy that you joined me today and I've helped many families and business owners finish the year strong.And that's exactly what we're building up to. All of December. We're going to talk about how to build up to a strong 2026.Listen, like you, I've lived through plenty of Decembers and here's the thing. I know peace doesn't happen by accident. If you think it's going to, all of a sudden, bam, it's going to happen. It doesn't work that way.Peace comes through preparation. And I love what a client once told me. She said, ralph, she said, December used to be pure panic until my husband and I finally made a checklist.And I said, checklists are great. Just got to make sure you get the stuff done. But one change, just one single change can turn that holiday stress into calm confidence.And each year since, she said, it's not perfect, Ralph, but it's peaceful and it's amazing what a little order can do to transform that chaos into calm. So let's get to our question today again, that's how do I keep peace in the middle of all this chaos?And I'm going to give you what I say some items to add to your checklist.This is kind of some things that as I work with individuals and I work with small business clients, these are the things to really put on that checklist. I'm going to encourage you later. I'll give you your action item for today. But these are some things that you can add to it.First thing, charitable giving. A lot of people don't think about this one till it's too late.But give before you're in because, listen, you're on the cash basis in the United States especially, you want to make sure you make those contributions before the end of the year. It's a great way to bless others and it can reduce your taxes at the same time. And what does it point to? It points to generosity and stewardship.That's one of the big things we talk about on this show just about every single day. We want to live in that financial confidence. Well, no greater way to do that than to be generous and steward. Those two things go hand in hand.So start with charitable giving. Here's another great idea. Check on those retirement contributions.A lot of people don't think about this until after the beginning of the year, but this is a great idea to maybe put a little bit more money away before the end of the year because those small deposits we mentioned on the show back in October when we did our investment series, how those little deposits can really grow big later on and it's an easy win for your future. So check those retirement contributions. Make sure you're putting as much as you can.Listen, I'm going to tell you, I like to put about 15% a year into that. If you're not quite there, well, make it maybe a 1% increase or a 2% increase, but really focus on that.Here's another thing a lot of people don't think about this. Look at those flexible spending or HSA funds. Now if you've got a flexible spending account, guess what?You're going to have to use that stuff before the end of the year or you lose it. So make sure you've checked those balances. Make sure you're aware of what you can spend.Maybe go get some new eyeglasses, maybe buy some contact lenses, maybe get some medications that you can prepay for for for the year. But don't lose those monies.And if you're funding an hsa, make sure you get that funding in before the end of the year, because, yes, it'll give you a little bit of a tax deduction, and you don't want to lose out when those Money's expiring at FSA on December 31st. I've seen that happen way too many times. Go buy some aspirin. Go buy some things that you can just spend a little bit of money on.Here's another great idea. You want to find some ways to save some money.It's a great time to audit your subscriptions, pull your bank statements out, pull your credit card statements out, and look at where you're spending your money. I'll give you a great example of this.I was talking to somebody the other day, and I said, hey, I was doing his business work, and I said, do you realize you're still paying for this particular event? He goes, ralph, I haven't been to that in two years. I said, yeah, but they're charging you $150 a month. That's a big deal.I said, that's a lot of money for you. Goes, that's a great idea, Ralph. I'm so glad you brought that up. But do the same thing. Look at your credit card statements.Read it line by and like, it's a. Like it's a compelling novel. Well, guess what? It is, because that's your money going out the door.And if you've got leaks, if you've got drafts, hey, if it's in the middle of winter, you don't want the heat to go out the doors, right? Do the same thing with your money. Cancel those recurring charges. If you're not using it, maybe you've forgotten about it. Cancel it.Another great thing to do at year end is look at your insurance and your beneficiaries, update your coverage and update those contacts, because this simple act of love is. Is for your family. You don't know how many times I've seen people who didn't think about it.They passed away, and those beneficiaries weren't updated, and it became a big, big issue. So here's my recap. Talk about charitable giving. Consider some charity.Check those retirement contributions, check those FSA and HSA balances, audit those subscriptions, and look at your insurance and beneficiaries, because, listen to this one. I had Abby, my producer, throw this into the show. But 45% of people miss simple tax deductions because they haven't planned before. December 31st.That's right, from the IRS and a Kiplinger analysis. That's money left on the table, oftentimes because people ran out of time. But you don't have to run out of time. It's only the 2nd of December.You've got plenty of time to set this year as a great ending and be prepared for 2026. I encourage you to do all those things. Let's get to our Bible verses. We actually have two today. First one is from First Corinthians 14:40.It says, but everything should be done in a fitting and orderly way. Now listen, as a type A personality, I love that Bible verse. A fitting and orderly way. Now some people don't live fitting and orderly.But listen, for what it's worth, planning. Put yourself in that realm of being prepared. Now the second one comes to us from Proverbs 21:5.Now this is a different translation than we usually use, but I kind of like this one. It's from the new living translation. It says good planning and hard work lead to prosperity, but hasty shortcuts lead to poverty.Well, that pretty much stands on its own, doesn't it? Good planning and hard work, prosperity.How about we pray together right now, Lord, as we think about finishing up the year strong, we ask that you would give us peace in the middle of this year and chaos in this middle of this year end busyness, Lord, and help me to manage my time and manage my money with order and not anxiety. It's so easy to get into a point of anxiety, to get in a feeling of overwhelm.So Lord, just teach me right now to finish the year with gratitude, to finish it with diligence, and to finish it with strong faith. You've given us so much, Lord, and we're just so thankful for what you've given us. And we ask this in confidence in the name of Jesus. Amen.Okay, here's your action item for today. I want you to go ahead and create that year end financial checklist. It doesn't have to be this 20 line item thing, just five items.Just pick five items. But here's what your commitment is. You got to complete these things before December 31st.So make sure when you put those things on the list, you're going to do them. Maybe they're things like taxes. Make sure you've done your tax deductions. Maybe it's giving or those benefits at work, spending or insurance.But find five and commit to doing those things before the end of the year because it's going to be a huge impact on you. One of the things I'd like to see you add to your list is why don't you join our community? We just launched a community.It's a great way to find tools, devotionals, and hey, how about some prayer partners to help you finish the year strong with your faith and your finances. And it's super simple to get there. You go to financiallyconfidentchristian.com/join again.That's financiallyconfidentchristian.com/Join and you can join for absolutely free. Now, if you want to support the show, there are some tiers where you can get some bonus content and actually support the show.So I encourage you to go and check it out. Again, that's financiallyconfidentchristian.com/join. Remember this. Peace starts with preparation. Remember, it's not all about chaos.And that order in your life shows faith, not control. So don't end the year frantic. Finish it faithful. Go out there today and be a financially confident Christian. Because I know this is the truth.You have the ability to do it. God has given you so many talents and so many gifts. You just have to harness those. Because guess what? I'm rooting for you and so is Christ.So stay financially savvy today. God bless you and you have a great day today.