How Can I Prevent Feeling Drained After Christmas?

Speaker A00:00:28

Listen to this. A 2023 APA study found that 89% of US adults feel stressed during the holidays. Wait a second. It's supposed to be a joyous time of year.Listen to this one. 41% say their stress is higher than at any other time of year. And 43% describe the holidays as both joyful and stressful. Listen to this one.The Texas health resources report. 38% experience increased stress leading to depression, anxiety and burnout. Man, this is supposed to be a joy season.Which leads us to today's listener question. Ralph, every year I feel completely drained emotionally, financially and even spiritually after Christmas.I love the season, but by the time it's over, I'm exhausted and broke. How can I change that? You know, it's strange.Christmas is supposed to bring peace and joy, but for many of us, me included, sometimes it leaves us stressed and, and it leaves us worn out. We spend too much, we do too much, and we simply forget to be still sometimes.So let's discuss on today's show how to prevent that this year and truly have a joyous Christmas.

Speaker B00:01:35

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 A00:01:46

Welcome to the show everybody. I'm Ralph and this is the Daily show with the goal of helping you break that cycle of financial shame and live in financial confidence.And I'm an accountant, I'm a financial coach.And let me just tell you right now, having worked in this industry for 30 years, I've seen that post Christmas money hangover just completely suck the life out of people. And as a believer, I've learned firsthand to make this season about worship, not weariness.And I'm going to tell you today, I want to start a story about. I remember my kids were really young. My wife and I were so excited. It was Christmas. We can remember getting all the gifts in order.Man, we were doing everything, make sure all the toys were put together, all that sort of thing. Man, we just took all kinds of prep day, you know, several days before Christmas. And I'll never forget it.That morning, Christmas morning the kids were up super early. I think it was like 3am If I remember correctly.And we wandered downstairs and beautiful Christmas trees shining all the lights and man, it was the Rockwell version of Christmas. And let me think about when I think about it now, in about five minutes, man, these kids had torn these presents open. There was stuff everywhere.My wife and I just sat there and went, wow, all that work and it was over. Talk about a letdown. And of course, then came January's financial reality and I'll forget.A friend said to me, she said, if you need a vacation from celebrating Jesus, you're doing it wrong. And that line stuck with me ever since. And that's what we want to focus on today because it's so easy to forget the reason for the season.We hear that bantered around during Christmas and I spoke about this the other day and we talk about this during our whole series. So today I really want to focus in on how do I prevent that holiday drain.Because so many of us feel that holiday drain and if we're prepared for it, I truly believe we can conquer it and we really can find joy in the holiday season. So here's my four point plan to avoid that holiday drain. Number one thing, slow down and simplify. So many people let the calendar control them.They say yes to everything. But you, what you have to understand is when you say yes to everything, you're not saying yes to peace.You're not saying yes to margin doesn't have to be a production. So many families make Christmas this huge production.But really what it's all about, when you really think about it, when you think about the most memorable times of Christmas that you've ever had, it wasn't about the production, it wasn't about the gifts, it wasn't about the food. Now I like some good Christmas food and some good Christmas cookies. Now I'm going to tell you right there, I'm right there on that.But what I truly remember is family being the most important and really embracing the greatest gift of all. And that's our Savior, Jesus Christ. So first thing I'm going to encourage you to do is slow down and simplify. It's okay to say no sometimes.Which leads me to my second tip today. Set limits. This is both financial and boundaries. Make a budget.Make, you know, psychological boundaries, make some emotional boundaries before December even starts. That's why we're recording this episode in November. I want to bring these to you so you're prepared. Say no.Because those extras that drain your wallet or soul will just make this season so filled with anxiety and it'll make you get depressed and all those types of things. It's okay to say no. Listen to me right now. If you don't hear anything else I say today, it's okay to say no.Just communicate that in love to your family members. It's okay to say listen. This year we're going to take it down A little bit. We're not going to get so dramatic.We're going to be so elaborate with everything. But it's all about planning it. See, that's the key, communication and planning.Because listen, if you're one of those families that has these big elaborate things, well, if you just go cold turkey, all of a sudden, paper going away, what happened?You know, this wasn't the same Christmas we're used to, but make that budget, make those boundaries, set it ahead of time, communicate with it and lay out a plan. So that's my second thing. Third thing, and I've alluded to this a couple times already, this is a season to focus on people, focus on your kids.You know, one of the things I think about now, my kids are 24 and 28 years old. And what I remember now is the laughter. I remember the connection. I don't remember the gifts. I don't remember all the wrapping paper and mess, man.I remember just sitting on the ground with them and playing with their toys and just kind of kicking around on Christmas Day and just enjoying all that went into it. Because you're not going to remember the gifts, but you will remember the people. And especially as I get older and there's.There's more people in the rear view mirror, if you know what I mean. More people that have passed on that just aren't there anymore. That's what I really focus in on Christmas.So listen, before you even get started in December, focus on the people. And last but not least, this is a time to rest and reflect.You might be saying, wait, wait a second, Ralph, you probably should have put that one first. Yeah, probably should have. Because this is the time to spend time thanking God for what he's already done.He's already given you the greatest gift that you will ever receive. No one can go to Neiman Marcus or to one of the fancy department stores and get you a gift that Christ has already given you.So make this season a time to focus on your faith. What's the reason that you're celebrating? What does the birth of Jesus really mean to you?Make this a time of renewal and make it a time to build a better perspective.We can get so lost in the busyness of this and all the noise of the holiday that we lose sight of this time of renewal and faith and really deep down, get into a better perspective. Which leads us to our Bible verse today. This one comes to us from the book of Matthew. It's from chapter 11, verse 28. And it says this.It says, come to Me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. And I just love that because what I think the scriptures are speaking to us here.When you're weary, when you're burdened, listen, the holidays bring that out. It starts in Thanksgiving. You know, it starts in November with Thanksgiving, and then it just kind of climaxes in Christmas.But so many people are weary, they're burdened, they're wore out. So just lean into Christ during those times because he made this promise to you. Come to me, all of you who are weary and burdened, and.And I will give you rest. But while we're talking about rest, how about we pray right now?Father God, we come to you and we just ask that you would help us to rest in your presence this holiday season, not in productivity, Lord. And we ask that you would grant us wisdom to create those boundaries and protect the peace that you've given us.Lord, you say to us, you gave us peace. Well, help us to create those boundaries and say no when we need to say no to protect our peace. And, Lord, we just thank you so much for the.The gift of simplicity. And we can really say this in complete assurance that you are enough. It's not about the gifts under the tree.It's not about the beautiful Christmas settings and all the Christmas lights and all the dormants that go around it, Lord. It's really about that simple gift of Jesus being sent to us, the best gift we'll ever receive. So we ask all these things in the name of Jesus. Amen.Okay, you ready for your action item today? Here's what I want you to do. I want you to build rest into your schedule. What?Right now, before the weekends, I want you to block off one quiet night for yourself and for family. Listen, no shopping, no screens. Put those phones away. Just gratitude, prayer, and stillness. I talk about this on the show all the time.Sometimes we're so caught up in the noise that we can't hear God's just silent voice. So just plan on that. And as you do that this week, I'm going to encourage you, get that calendar out and plan several of these for over the holidays.Man, you will see a huge impact because you're building in that rest. You're building in that renewal, and you're building in that truly getting to the point of what is the reason we're celebrating this season.Now, before I wrap up today, I want to tell you something. We just launched something amazing. I want to invite you to be part of something special. We just launched.What I'm calling the Financially Confident Christian Community Now. This is the place where believers just like you can grow together.We can share encouragement, we can share prayer requests and, and help spread God's truth about money. And listen, here's how you do it. It's really super simple. All you gotta do is go to this website, go to financiallyconfidentchristian.com/join.I'll give you that one more time and we'll put it in the show notes.But it's financially confidentchristian.com join because there you're not just supporting the show, you're helping to build a community of faith and freedom that reaches people all over the world. So I'm gonna encourage you right now. Come be a part of what God is doing through this mission. Again, that's at financiallyconfidentchristian.com/join.It won't cost you a dime. But please, please consider joining our community today. And listen to me. You don't have to recover from Christmas. You can be renewed through it.Because true rest doesn't come from control. It actually comes from surrender. And it comes from Christ. So let peace, not pressure, define your season this year.Remember, the greatest gift after Christmas is a heart of rest in him. So go out there today and be that financially confident Christian that I know you can be. Stay financially savvy. Go. God bless you.And I'll see you again tomorrow on the show.