4 Ways I'll be Increasing in 2025

This past year was marked by much increase, in both big and small ways. Some of the growth has left the scars of stretch marks on my life, but mostly, it has just widened my world in immeasurable ways.

My oldest entered her junior year at a Christian university on the other side of the country and joined a church all on her own; my second-born went on a short-term mission trip to an orphanage in Belize, graduated high school, and left home to serve his country; my middle son started taking online dual-enrollment courses at a Christian university and got his driver's license; my fourth-born won the Congressional Art Competition for our district, won the Cy Young pitcher's award for our high school's baseball team, and went on an inner-city missions trip to St. Louis; my last born played on two different local baseball teams and one football team.

As they stepped out, I had to learn to step back. In many ways, their growth was also my growth. 

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But I've also experienced my own personal expansion. At the start of 2024, I set four goals for myself. They were as follows:

1. Complete a few of the books in the 31-Day Devotions series with a small group of friends to further equip us in counseling others on topics such as anxiety, fearing others, pornography, wayward children, etc. We finished Shame: Being Known and Loved and Fearing Others: Putting God First.
2. Make two new recipes each week using The Church Supper Cookbook. In March, after enduring two months' worth of sub-par meals, my family asked me to forgo this particular goal. My husband said, "You are a fantastic cook! These recipes are beneath you and aren't worth your time learning." At the risk of sounding arrogant, I agreed with him. The recipes were all very bland, basic, and not very challenging. So, I donated the book to my Free Lending Library and never looked back. 
3. Read through The Power of Praying Through the Bible and a vintage copy of Corrie ten Boon's Each New Day devotional. I am only halfway through the former because I got distracted by a different Bible study this past spring, but I am on target to finish the latter by December 31st. Either way, I was in the Word nearly every day. And isn't that the point?
4. Complete a daily conversation question with my husband using the Paired app and write one card a month to both of my adult children. The Paired app experiment started well, but midway through the year, the questions became increasingly odd and rather probing, so we discontinued our free membership. To be honest, I'm not sure if I sent one card a month to each of my grown children, but since I had to reorder boxes of cards three different times, I think I sent quite a few. 

Now that I've looked back. It's time to look forward. As always, when plotting out a few year-long goals for myself, I've braced all of my good intentions on Luke 2:52--my litmus test for personal growth.

"And Jesus increased in wisdom and in stature and in favor with God and man."

After mentally sifting through some trouble spots of my last 365 days, I've prayerfully landed on the following: 

In wisdom

It's been six years since I attended a writing conference or retreat. While I can read books and listen to podcasts to continue my education in wordsmithing, neither outlet fills my relational tank. There's something magical about being in a room with people who share your passions and understand the unique labor pains of birthing a book. By year's end, I would like to attend a writerly-themed event not only to begin forming new professional connections but also to invest in my skills. There are many nonfiction writers' conferences around the country that I plan on looking into. Currently, I have my eye on Daughter's First: A Retreat for the Communicator's Soul.

Additionally, after years of crocheting coffee cozies, dish rags, hats, mittens, blankets, toys, and now a sweater from online patterns, I would like to begin creating items from scratch. My first project will be to make a book sleeve (like one of these) to prevent the pages of my books from bending when I put them in my purse.

In stature

The tundra-like weather of northern Minnesota is not a friend to me or my skin. A combination of goat's milk soap and a shea butter-based skin salve has always been my silver-bullet solution to survive the winter months. I used to make big batches of each every summer in preparation for the biting temps that were sure to come. But since moving to a new town six years ago, I haven't had any luck finding a goat's milk source. Consequently, I've had to buy my soap from local vendors. But not anymore! I've been given the name of an area goat farmer and have high hopes of dusting off my equipment at the end of the school year. I've only ever made this recipe, but I will probably branch out to others if my first few batches are successful. 

Additionally, as a "woman of a certain age," I plan to spend the next twelve months learning all I can about natural solutions for hormone imbalance, perimenopause symptoms and treatments, and overall mid-life female health. The following three books are on my radar: 

Hormone Repair Manual: Every Woman's Guide to Healthy Hormones After 40

The New Menopause

Manage Your Menopause Naturally

In Favor with God

To fix my eyes on Jesus, I'll join many others in my local church for a month-long social media sabbatical. On January 1st, I'll remove any social apps from my phone and only log on to Facebook on my laptop to check in with the Biblio-files (kid-lit vetting) community when necessary. Admittedly, the thought of a digital detox is somewhat worrisome. I make my living online, after all. I will undoubtedly see a dip in income. But I have walked with God long enough to know that He will protect my finances in ways that only He can. I look forward to seeing how He multiplies my five loaves and two fish.

It's not enough to just unplug, however.  The subtraction of Instagram and Facebook in my life will hopefully make room for the addition of more time to commune with Christ. To that end, I'll read daily excerpts from The 40-Day Social Media Fast, a book specifically designed to help you put the Word before the world.

As I disconnect from my online life for a bit, I aim to strengthen and more deeply connect with my real-life faith community as we explore what it means to be a Disciple. My small group will take the eight-week Practicing the Way Course using the online videos and the Companion Guide. My husband and I will also listen to the audio version together. 

In Favor with Man

I turned in the first draft of my new book a few weeks ago. This project tugged on my heart in some painful ways. It made me examine how I was spending my days. And it confirmed everything I know to be true about the sustaining and steadfast work of God. In the past twelve years of writing publicly, I’ve received the same question nearly every day. This book is my long-winded answer. I will spend the first half of the new year going back and forth with my editor, polishing it until it shines.

In the scraps and snatches of writing time I have left, I hope to finish drafting two digital ebooks I started years ago but have never found time to complete. They are resources that I think will be valuable to a particular niche of homeschool moms. 

Final Word

God is at work every year, every week, every moment, making all things new, including me. While there's nothing holy or sacred about January 1, I think it's as good a time for me to pause, reflect, and consider how I might increase in the same way Jesus did when he walked the earth wearing the flesh of humanity. I look forward to seeing how I might look more like Him in the coming year as I grow in wisdom, stature, and favor with God and man.

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