How About a Gentle January?

Wouldn’t you prefer a gentle January over the push and rush of New Year’s resolutions? Who decided that the best way to kick off a new year was to take down the twinkle lights, cut out the baked good, sweat our faces off, and start the hustle?

It’s such an abrupt slap in the face to go from the worship, magic, and beauty of December to self-guilt and personal makeovers during the darkest, coldest days of January.

Gentle January Clarifies Vision

Could it be that these are the days for introspection? Can we spend these cold months mulling on the person we want to become and clarify what our values and vision are?

Should we really jump in on a 10-step plan that society tells us we need to complete to live a healthy successful life? Maybe it is better to look inside at what we feel the most called to. Maybe that would keep us from burning out halfway through the first month because these goals would be born from a place of our own conviction and passion.

(Though I do enjoy planning and these are my favorite year end questions to ask …)

Boy playing on a farm in January with bare branches

What if…

…if you pushed less at the gym and took more walks in silence at sunset (even if it’s cold)?

…you read books and had cups of tea under blankets?

….slowly, you started removing things from our home that didn’t bring joy?

Can you still make warm pots of soup to eat with family and friends?

Building in Buffer Days

Together let’s work toward change and build in buffer days. Days that are meant to rest and heal. Let’s cuddle, love, cook, and move. Not for the sake of trying to “Have it All” but from a place of fulling our callings.

Life isn’t to be overhauled, but to be gradually changed by being near to Him. We are stamped with the image of God at birth, but then miraculously transformed into his image. This is a lifelong journey, not a sprint to be completed in a year or a decade. If you want more on this topic I’ve written much more here.

Would life look different if we lived in the light of that truth? ‘