New year, same bills. Want a fresh start?

Speaker A00:00:27

Did you ever hit January already feeling stuck? You want that fresh start, but last year's stress is still clinging to you like that Christmas tree tinsel I remember. Ever still use that stuff?Giant flashback from when I was a kid. Friend, come close for a moment. A new year means new mercy, a fresh start. It's God's gift. It's not based on your performance. You don't need pressure.You don't need perfection. You just need permission to begin again. And the beautiful truth is this. God already gave it to you. So let's start this year with a clean slate.And today, I'm going to show you exactly how to do that. Welcome back, friend, and happy new year. It's January 1st. It's a brand new season. Yet it's hard to believe this is our eighth year of the show.It's a brand new chapter and a brand new book of grace from God. Yesterday, we looked back at his faithfulness throughout last year. And today we're going to look forward.We're going to look forward with hope, with clarity, and with a deeply needed reset for the mind, for your heart and your finances. You don't have to drag yesterday into today. You don't have to carry last year's weight into this brand new beginning.We're starting fresh and we're starting it together. A listener reached out and said, ralph, I want this year to be different, but I feel stuck. I'm carrying guilt and frustration from last year.How do I start fresh emotionally and financially? Friend, that question right there is raw, but it's real. And you are absolutely not alone in this.January 1st doesn't magically erase the heaviness of December 31st as many times I wish it could. Some things happened last year I just want to forget. And that's okay. We're going to walk through this gently, one step at a time.Let's be honest together. We walk into January, we're hoping for a new story, a fresh chapter, a clean page. But deep down, we're still holding on to the shame.That quiet, heavy feeling that it hits every time you open up that banking app, that memory of those overdrafts, those missed payments or decisions you wish you could rewrite. And that shame whispers. See, you're still not good at this. How about regret? Only if I had done that thought. If I had only saved earlier. If I.If I hadn't taken out that card. If only I hadn't listened. If only I had listened before things got tight.Regret is a way of replaying last year like A movie that you didn't want to watch, but somehow you know by heart. How about your money? Mistakes? Real things. I'm talking about not. Not imagined failures, just real things.Like buying that car that was too expensive, maybe ignored that credit card balance. You dipped into savings just this once. You forgot that quarterly tax payment. We carry these mistakes like receipts stuffed in a glove compartment.They're crumpled or hidden, but they're still there. How about that fear that this year might look exactly like the last? That sinking, familiar fear that nothing's gonna change?You wake up in June and realize you're still stressed, you're still behind, still spinning plates. Instead of moving forward, it's that fear that whispers, what if I don't grow? What if I try again and still fall short? And here's the thing.Shame will never motivate you. Shame paralyzes you. And God has never used shame to lead his children. If your heart feels heavy today, know this.God's plan for your year doesn't begin with weight. It begins with mercy. And research backs this up.People who start a year with a clean emotional slate, not guilt, not panic, make far healthier and more consistent financial decisions. Your nervous system needs breathing room. Your mind needs clarity. Your spirit needs hope.You think you need more discipline, but what you actually need is relief. More grace, more space, More mercy. Mercy fuels momentum, not pressure.After decades of helping people reset their financial lives, I've learned something simple and powerful. People don't need more pressure. They need more space. Transformation rarely begins when you squeeze harder.Transformation begins when your heart softens. God doesn't start with spreadsheets. He starts with mercy. And from that mercy, he shapes your habits and he guides your steps.A woman in our community told me something beautiful. She said, ralph, I kept trying to fix my finances with rules. But the moment everything changed is when I started the year with grace.So she tried one small thing. Every morning, she read Lamentations, Chapter 3, Verse 23 New mercies every morning. And she let those words sit right on her heart.And when she did, her financial journey shifted. Not because she worked harder, but because she stopped caring yesterday into today.That mercy activated her discipline, and that grace activated her courage. See, sometimes the heart just needs permission before the habits can follow. So how do you start fresh?How do you walk into 2026 without last year's weight on your shoulders? Let's walk gently through God's way of resetting your financial life.Number one thing you've got to do, you've got to release last year without Judgment before you plan anything, before you budget anything, before you set a single goal. Release the shame, friends. You can't build a new story on a condemned house. Let go of the overspending. Let go of the missed budgets.Let go of the unexpected crisis. Let go of the guilt. Let go of the frustration. Let go of those moments you wish you'd handle differently. God has already reset the slate. You can too.Second thing, receive God's fresh mercy. Mercy isn't a feeling. Mercy is a spiritual reset. It tells your heart you're not behind, you're not disqualified, you're right on time.That new mercy makes room for new habits. You don't earn mercy. You begin from mercy. And choose one habit to carry forward. Don't pick 10. Don't pick five. Just pick one habit.Because small, faithful habits shape entire years. Just choose one. Maybe you track your spending. Maybe you pray before those purchases. Maybe you set a small daily spending limit for yourself.Maybe for you. You save $5 a day. You do a one minute nightly balance check. Or you do that weekly money reset.As I said a few days ago, small is spiritual and small builds peace. And number four, you know I love plans. Create a simple January start plan. Just January. Don't try to do it for the whole year.People try to overhaul their whole life at once, and that's why it falls apart. Your simple January plan might include things like this. I'm going to do one weekly money reset. Just 10 minutes.Every Sunday evening, right before you pack the lunches or pick out clothes for Monday, you sit down with a cup of tea, open your banking app, look at what came in and what went out, and ask one simple question. Did my spending match my values this week? See, that's calm. That's doable. It's clarity without chaos. Or maybe you do one giving goal.Maybe it's choosing one person or one ministry or one need you want to bless this month. Hey, I got some great ideas.It could be helping a single mom with groceries or support, supporting your church's outreach fund, or giving an extra $20 every payday to someone God puts on your heart. That small intentional giving goal keeps generosity alive even when life gets busy. Or maybe it's that savings target.Just set one simple number you want to hit this month. Not some giant goal, something attainable. Maybe for you, $50 or $100. Maybe it's a reach and you say, I want to save $250.Just enough to build momentum. Enough to remind you that your future matters.Maybe it's starting that Emergency fund because you need to rebuild it because you drained it last year. Maybe it's setting aside money for something meaningful you've been putting off. Hey, maybe your goal is one daily habit.Just one small thing you do every day that strengthens your stewardship muscles. It might be written down, just one purchase. Or praying one sentence about money. Maybe glancing at your budget or putting away one receipt.Just something tiny but intentional that keeps your heart anchored and your decisions aligned. Maybe you do one spending boundary, just a simple limit that protects your peace. Here's a great idea.No Amazon orders after 9pm Boy, I'll get in trouble on that one. Maybe you only eat out twice a week. Or no impulse purchases. Everything waits that 24 hours. Or maybe you cap that grocery budget at $150 per trip.That's not easy these days. But one boundary keeps one small leak from sinking the whole boat. That clarity creates confidence, and that confidence creates peace. And peace.That's what keeps you consistent. Which leads us to our Bible verse. I mentioned this earlier. Lamentations, chapter 3, verses 22 and 23. His compassions never fail.They are new every morning, not once a year, not just on January 1st. Every morning is a fresh financial start in God's eyes. Let's pray together. Lord, thank you for your mercies in this new year. Help me release shame.Help me walk in freedom. Help me build habits that honor you and bring priests into my home. Guide my steps, guide my decisions and guide my heart.And I ask this in confidence in Jesus name. Amen. Okay, here's your action step for the first day of the year. I want you to write two things down. Number one thing.One habit you're leaving behind in 2025. What is that? And second thing I want you to do. One habit you're going to embrace in this 2026 new year. Just one release. Just wanting to begin.As I said earlier, small steps create steady peace and listen to what one member shared. After joining our community, I didn't expect to find family here. Ralph. I signed up for help, but I stayed because I felt cared for.The accountability keeps me moving. That the prayers meet me at my lowest points and the daily prompts set my heart straight. And the best part? It's completely free.There's never pressure, just opportunities to give if you feel led. God, use this community to strengthen me in ways I didn't know I even needed. Friend, you're welcome here too. I want to encourage you.Come and join us at financiallyconfidentchristian.com/join. That's financiallyconfidentchristian.com/join friend, you don't need perfection to begin this new year.Well, you just need a fresh start and God's already handed it to you. Walk into 2026 with Mercy in your heart, clarity in your mind, and peace in your spirit. Because you can do this. You truly can do this.Go out there and be a financially confident Christian. Stay financially savvy. God bless you. And again, Happy New Year and I'll see you again tomorrow.