We can make our plans, but the LORD determines our steps. Proverbs 16:9 NLT

Dear Friend,

I have a challenge for you as we close out this year.

How much time do you take for reflection? It isn’t part of our culture at all, is it? Go, go, go! Do more and do it faster! Make more money! Have more impact! Be more efficient! What if the more you are looking for is really about becoming who you want to be, who you were designed to be?

Here is my challenge: In these last few days of the year take time to stop, ponder, and determine what you want for next year.

To help you meet that challenge, I’m giving you some questions to jumpstart your reflection. Let them stir grief if needed, inspire celebration, and ignite desire for the new year. If you journal, have your pen nearby to jot down some thoughts.

What were your favorite moments from this past year?

What is a word or phrase that best describes this year?

What word or phrase would you like to describe next year?

What was your most meaningful accomplishment this year?

Where do you see the most growth in yourself?

What losses do you need to grieve over? How do you want to mark those losses?

What do you want to leave behind when the clock strikes midnight on December 31st?

What do you want to take with you into the new year?

What new attitudes or habits do you want to develop starting January 1st?

What are three things that you’d like to be celebrating this time next year?

What one area do you want to focus on for growth in the new year?

What do you want to be different about you this time next year?

Who are you most grateful for? How do you want to express to them what they mean to you?

How do you want to improve your most significant relationships this year? What will you do to improve them?

Dear Friend, don’t let this year end without taking time to reflect. Intentionality starts with introspection. Don’t just let this year pass. Celebrate what was. Acknowledge what wasn’t. And determine what you would like to see in the future. Enter 2024 with intention and purpose.

I wish you a New Year of possibility. Discover your MORE in 2024!

Much love,

Cathleen

P.S. I’d love to be a thought partner to help on your journey. My gift to you is a complimentary coaching conversation. Use this link to schedule an appointment. Blessings and Happy New Year!

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October 24, 2026

What To Do in the Dark (Repost)

'I want them to be encouraged and knit together by strong ties of love. I want them to have complete confidence that they understand God’s mysterious plan, which is Christ himself. In him lie hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. ' Colossians 2:2-3

It was a dark time, one of the darkest times I have ever lived through. A loved one was struggling through the shadows of depression and every day was a battle. Just getting out of bed and facing the mundane tasks of daily life took every ounce of my strength. The future was a wall of fog. The present was a slog through mud with a backpack full of rocks. It was all I could do to just get through today.

Maybe that is where you are right now, Dear Friend. I am so sorry that you find yourself in such a difficult time. One thing I heard from a conference speaker that helped me through my darkness and gave me perspective was this: Every trial will come to an end. As those words rang in the arena and resounded in my ears my heart knew that they were true. In the course of a time that seemed to last forever, I eventually experienced that truth in my circumstance. You will experience it in yours. You will.

But while you are in it, can I offer you some perspective? Something I learned from walking through my own fog? Jesus really is enough. He is!