Welcome In 2025!

Welcome 2025! Let’s make this the best year yet! How was your 2024? Was it the year you needed? Was it as successful as you hoped? Was it rougher than you expected? No matter what happened, you are standing here (or sitting here) today. You are taking breath. You can feel things you might not want to feel or haven’t felt in a while. You survived. At the end of the day, that’s the goal for all of us. Some of us couldn’t reach that goal. Some of us had that goal taken away from us. Some of us reached that goal sooner than we thought. While we mourn and grieve those who aren’t crossing the threshold with us, whether that would be the death of a loved one, the ending of a relationship or close friendship, the ending of a pattern that wasn’t working for us but made us comfortable. We can celebrate the fact that we made. Despite all that you went through, both good and bad, you’re still here. I appreciate you’re still here. I appreciate that you chose to stick through things. I appreciate that, when the voices said to give up, you chose to rebel and fight forward. Above all, I am glad you’re here.

2024 for me was the year of confidence. To do things that terrify me, do things that push me outside of my comfort zone, have tough conversations with friends, make new friends, and learn not to dwell and overthink.

The first four months of the year were all about taxes, taxes, and taxes. I survived my first season as a tax preparer, and it was amazing. The relationships I built with my clients and my coworkers were unforgettable. It was long hours and stressful days at times, but I wouldn’t ask for anything better. It challenged and stressed me, but it also made me laugh and smile more than ever. I am extremely excited to walk into season two and see where this season will take me.

After tax season, life went on full swing. I spent the rest of April attempting to decompress and figuring out what’s next. I tried to get unemployment wages, as I learned some tax preparers do in the offseason and couldn’t. So, I had to resort to Plan B: job hunting. Y’all, I tried so dang hard for 5-6 months. I applied to 20-30 jobs and couldn’t get in anywhere. I think I had one interview in that entire span and didn’t get passed the second round. I was frustrated, irritated, angry, and confused as to why I couldn’t make any progress. I even went through and had Indeed review my resume to see if it could be improved in any way, but nothing worked.

About halfway through that struggle, I decided to pause. I was going to get certifications to bolster my resume. I had heard that was a good thing and started to research what finance certificates I could get. I found places, most were too expensive, but found Coursera. For $40 a month, I could take a great majority of classes to work on getting accredited certificates. I started working on an Intuit one since my Treasurer job (yes – I still work as an Admin and Treasurer) uses QuickBooks for their finance service. I worked about halfway through the course and then got a call.

I was chosen by an insurance company to conduct life insurance sales transactions (not including cold calling thank goodness). It was W-2 work, it was remote, and it paid well. I said yes. I went through the schooling to get life insurance producer license and passed, and I will be able to start that work after this tax season. The freedom to find a guaranteed job after tax season this year is a blessing beyond comprehension. The class work was hard, more so because it didn’t gel with my learning style and the courseload was more than expected, but I did it.

I also started driving. I got my permit and have been practicing off and on for the past six months learning the basics and lessening my anxiety. I feel good and nervous about it all at the same time. I will be starting to drive around the town in a little bit, which is terrifying me, but I will do it.

I also became more sociable, which was a huge step forward for me. I found a community that was all about reading. I didn’t read at the time, but then I started to read more. I started to talk about reading more. I got involved with their discord community. I learned that this community was more about reading. This community was about caring for the marginalized, speaking out for those who are suffering, helping our neighbors, and spreading love and joy in a world that has beaten and bruised us. I started talking with different people in that community. Then I got involved with their game nights. Then it was their movie night. I also became a moderator. This community has been transforming in me. The end of 2023 had me just wanting to be present in this space. The end of 2024 allows me to have a presence in this space.

Another big accomplishment this year, was you all. I made a goal at the beginning of the year to write 5 blogs a week (when it was 3 at most before). I did it. I even had weeks with 6 or 7 blogs. The response has been nothing but love. More people seen it this year. More people reacted to it this year. While I try to not focus on the analytics, let me share key statistics for you:

• 276 posts this year
• 349K+ words written
• 5,243 views this year
• 14 views on average per day
• 642 views in November (monthly record)
• 210 views on Manna for the Mind #26 (blog record)

I’ve wrestled with the belief: “Of course it’s higher, you posted WAY more.” However, these are still record numbers. The one that stands out that I can see progression is the average per day. Even with less blogs, the views can be the same on average. Last year, we had 3 views per day. This year, we had 14 per day. God did something real this year.

The biggest question is: What am I doing in 2025 with the blog? (I’d share with life, but God’s changed my plans a lot.)

BLOGS:

Over 2025, we are looking at 4 books of the Bible: Revelation, Song of Songs, Jonah, and Leviticus. Why? I’ll get to that in the close paragraph. We’ll take journey through books slowly, looking at 5-10 verses at a time, and understanding what these books are about, dissecting the imagery, and seeing what they teach us today. These blogs will come out on Mondays and Fridays at midnight.

There will be no “Manna for the Minds” this year. Instead, we are doing a “Year in Leviticus.” We’ll apply the same premise to Leviticus as we will to Revelation, Song of Songs, and Jonah. We’ll take a slow journey through this highly controversial book.

I will do more “Worship With Me” blogs, but that’ll depend on the headspace during the Summer and December.

SOCIAL MEDIA:

I have thought long and hard about this. I think God has shown me the plan that will be most effective both me and my presence in 2025. I will be focusing on 2 platforms: Instagram and TikTok (either moving to YouTube or staying on Instagram full-time if the TikTok ban effectively holds up).

I will post scripture images with snippets of my blogs to these platforms, removing the typical daily devotionals that I posted in 2024. On TikTok, you will see more heavier video series as I have been on a journey of “Deep Understanding.” I will share my learnings about topics such as abortion, gay rights, women’s rights, and more. Topics that I often hear Christians using scripture to condemn. Topics that have been under the microscope in the Christian teaching and preaching. The TikTok videos will be slow this year as I make sure I talk about these topics delicately and knowledgably.

On Instagram, you will see more of my life. I have a unique way I want to at least try in January, but I want to keep that a surprise.

Overall, my word for 2025 is SLOW. 2024 was a fast motion blur of productivity for me. While not inherently bad, it was draining. Next year, I want to be productive, but slower. I want to take my time with things. I want to be intentional with what I do. I want to be attentive to where I am and more in the present with myself – body, mind, and soul. I want to slow down the video/sermons/podcasts I listen to and allow myself to hear what’s being taught properly instead of just glazing it by.

My focus verse (which will probably change) for 2025 is Psalm 37:7, which says: “Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him; do not fret when men succeed in their ways, when they carry out wicked schemes.”

Let’s make 2025 our best year yet. I’ll see you on January 6^th (not at the US Capitol) when I introduce the book of Revelation. Until then, stay blessed!