Untangling the Mess of Holiday Stress

This is the time of year when my carefully crafted schedule begins to unravel.

As much as I love the Christmas season as a reminder that Christ took on human flesh to save me and as symbol of our joyful expectation of Christ’s second coming, it can be stressful.

Holiday Stress

Generally speaking, I live my days at or dangerously near capacity. Chances are, you do, too. It seems to be the plague of modern life. So when anything extra is heaped on, I’m likely to collapse. Right after Thanksgiving I usually enter crisis mode. On top of my already full schedule, I dump decorating and shopping and gift giving and baking and parties and exchanges and programs and travel. Oh my!

So many good things. So little time. So much stress.

Despite being the “most wonderful time of the year,” Christmas causes many of us anxiety.

Even if you manage your calendar to perfection you could still experience strain in the upcoming season. Perhaps the holidays aren’t so happy for you. Maybe they bring family feuds or painful reminders of lost loved ones. Or you stress about how you’ll manage to pay for it all come January. Maybe you are concerned about gaining back the weight you worked hard so to take off this year. Or crowds and long lines in the stores make you want to tear your hair out. Believe it or not, some people are even put off by the incessant Christmas music playing everywhere they go.

Does the holiday season stress you out? Find 4 strategies to untangle the mess of holiday stress here. Click To Tweet

But there is a better way.

Untangle the Mess of Holiday Stress

And together for the next four weeks, we are going to untangle the MESS of holiday stress.

Too much stress this time of year can put an end to your JOY (if you need some REAL JOY, my friend Stephanie has a great series going on now over at Real Women Ministries) just as quickly as a tangled strand of twinkly tree lights. No amount of egg nog can fix that.

Stress carries some catastrophic physical, emotional, and even spiritual side effects. When it hits you, you’ll be down for the count. I can’t fully enjoy the season until I untangle the MESS of holiday stress.

This year, let’s be intentional about how we handle the holidays so they won’t handle us.

I promise to keep the posts in this series short, because I wouldn’t want them to be just one more thing to stress either of us out! Join me back here for the next four Saturdays as we discuss these strategies to help us untangle the MESS of holiday stress.

Part 2: Fix Your Focus

Part 3: Fill Up Before You Fall Out

Part 4: Decide with Priorities Not Pride

Part 5: Restore with Regular Rest

I’ll be praying for you, and I hope you’ll return the favor!

All this month we will intentionally untangle the #MESS of holiday stress. Click To Tweet

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For more encouragement please join the discussions on these fabulous blog link ups - Suzanne Eller, Thought Provoking Thursday, Susan B. Mead, Faith Filled Friday, Grace and Truth, Faith and Fellowship Friday, Grace and Truth Friday, Good Morning Monday, Soul Survival, Monday Musings, Rah Rah Link Up, Tell His Story, Woman to Woman Wednesday, Women With Intention Wednesday, Sitting Among Friends, Word of God Speak, Testimony Tuesday.