The holiday season can cause drama, but you dont need to be a part of it. Here's an adaptation of the classic "Twas the Night Before Christmas" poem with a helpful holiday reminder.

‘Twas a few days before Christmas

and all through the house,

Mom was rushing and running,

she was trying not to grouse.

The stockings were missing, yet nobody cared,

Mom was excited that loved ones soon would be there.

The children had no interest in making their beds,

visions of candy and online games filling their heads.

While Mom clutched her Stanley cup and made herself a snack,

she checked her to-do list and planned her attack.

When her phone started buzzing, notifying her of chatter,

She rushed right over to see what was the matter.

Her sister text about an unfortunate mash,

between their mom, their aunt and an ugly verbal clash.

"Should we get involved?" Mom's sister begged to know.

Mom coached herself to pause real slow.

"Dear sister," Mom text back, "We love them so dear,"

"But this matter is between them, so we shouldn't interfere."

Her sister's reply was angry and quick.

Mom's advice was one her sister wouldn't pick.

Mom took a deep breath and saw a nearby frame.

A picture of her Bible study group - She knew each woman by name.

There was Ruth and Ora, plus Sandra and Jan,

Then Jessica and Ebonie, Dodi and Dianne,

These women covered Mom with prayer and check-in calls,

Through life's ups and downs, the triumphs and the falls.

They met every week to study and pray,

They learned how to let go, find peace, and trust God all the way.

Mom steeled her resolve to avoid taking a side.

Her sister wasn't happy, but took Mom's decision in stride.

They ended their convo and Mom set down her phone,

Grateful in the moment she wasn't alone.

"God, thank you for wisdom, grace, and peace,

I give over this problem, into Your hands I release,

my anxieties, my worries, and all of my fears,

I give thanks that You are God and so near."

Then, Mom picked up her cup, her tasks to restart,

and grateful for God's renewed peace in her heart.

-by Barb Roose, December 2024

Author's Note: This poem was originally shared in my weekly Happy Monday email devotional. The names in Mom's group are readers from that AMAZING devotional community.

It's my joy to write this weekly devotional and start off their week with Jesus and a smile. If you'd like to recieve my Happy Monday devotional, click here and I'd love to send it to you. 

Have you ever had a day when your attitude was so grumpy, negative or mean that you almost forgot that you were a Christian? Maybe you didn’t have a bad attitude, rather, but you said or did something that you regret. It’s the kind of day when you’d like to climb in the bed and pull the covers over your head.

Years ago, I heard a quote and it’s become one of my favorites: You can start your day over at anytime.

I love this saying because it’s true. At any point during a bad day, I can always reset my attitude, my perspective or my approach to how I’m handing myself.

This quote reminds me of one of the most comforting verses in scripture:

The faithful love of the Lord never ends!
His mercies never cease.
Great is his faithfulness;
his mercies begin afresh each morning.

-Lamentations 3:22-23 NLT

The reason why you can start over at anytime is that God’s flow of faithfulness and mercy are always available to you at any moment and any time. You are never stuck in a bad attitude and you don’t have feel hopeless in a difficult situation.

In light of this, let me introduce the “Bad Day Turn Around” prayer to you. There are some fill-in-the-blanks so that you can personalize it for your situation. If you engage with this exercise and it helps, hit reply and share that with me.

Even if you don’t need today’s turn-around prayer, keep this handy for a day when you do need it. You can take a screenshot of the prayer and keep it in your phone. If you know someone who needs a turn-around prayer, you can forward this email to her!

Do you ever experience impatience when a Christian friend can’t seem to get herself together? Maybe you’re tired of hearing the same problem repeated or you’re frustrated because she won’t take the needed steps to address her issues. What can you do?

Today's post offers a powerful biblical reminder and practical wisdom so we can love our friends well - especially when their healing journey with God is moving slower or messier than we'd like.

Why do we become impatient or frustrated when someone in our lives can’t get it together?

Maybe we’re tapping our feet wondering when God’s going to answer our prayers on their behalf. Perhaps, we feel like our friend isn’t working hard enough or trusting God enough to get it together. Or, are we struggling with our own control issues that sound like: "If she would only do what I'm telling her to do, then she’d get over this!"

Can you relate to any of these?

There could be other possibilities, but those came to mind. Now, what I'm not saying here is that we should be overlook or become complacent with a friend’s never-ending struggle, a repeating sin or spiritual immaturity. Galatians 6:1 teaches us to gentle and humbly help those who are struggling. Sometimes, we forget the gentle and humble part and instead, we become annoyed and impatient.

Here’s the question: How do we love our Christian sisters in a way that reflects God's grace, His desire for their freedom AND healthy boundaries?

Our attitude toward our Christian sisters should reflect the teaching in Colossians 3:12-14 NLT:

Since God chose you to be the holy people he loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. Make allowance for each other's faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others. Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds us all together in perfect harmony.

Look at all of the characteristics that we’re to display. Don’t miss this - notice the underlined portion. How do you make allowance for your friend’s struggle? Do you need to stop expecting her to get it together on your timeline?

Here are some practical tools that may help you today:

1. Validate her struggle as an act of love: This sounds like, "That must be so hard for you!" Validation doesn't mean that you approve of her struggle or behavior, only that you're listening to her pain with your head and heart. Bonus: I’ve included great “listening” questions to ask at the end of this devotional!

2. Avoid minimizing – Minimizing can happen when you say, "Oh, at least you're not going through what Susie experienced..." or shift from her struggle to talking about yours. While your attempt is to relate or show empathy, it conveys that others' experiences are more important than hers.

3. Don't panic! Don't apply your worst-case scenarios to her life.  Unless a friend is facing a physical threat, take your finger off the temptation trigger of "She’s doomed if she can’t get it together.” God is still in control, so remember that the Bible’s promises are just as true for her as they are for you.

4. Consider whether your opinion or advice should be prayers to God instead:  It's so easy to use our words to fix others, but what if you stopped giving advice to your friend and put that effort into praying for her this week?

5. Know your boundaries & set your limits - You have permission to set limits on conversations for your own mental health and well-being. Wait to return texts or phone calls when you can handle them. Also, you can set a timer for the duration you can handle. Maybe it's ten minutes or even only two minutes. You have permission to say, "I can talk about this for five minutes. Then I want to pray for you, or else I'll be tempted to give advice, and you need God's help more than my opinion."

Ultimately, loving our Christian sisters means we must make allowances for their struggles, even when they aren't getting over them as quickly as we'd like. Healthy Christian sisterhood can include prayer and boundaries. Most of all, there’s hope in remembering that God sees your friend and you aren’t responsible for fixing her struggle.

Great Questions to Ask Your Struggling Friends - from my Stronger than Stress book:

• What is hard about this for you?

• How have you been praying about this?

• Where have you seen God working in this situation?

• What is the outcome that you are hoping for?

• What would it mean for you to trust God in this situation?

These questions are a way to point her back to letting the Holy Spirit speak without you attempting to play the Holy Spirit in her life.

I’D LOVE TO HEAR FROM YOU: What resonated with you ? What was challenging for you? Post a comment and share your thoughts with me.

Less Stress. More Peace. Every Day!

Do you ever get mad at the people you love because you've requested some change for the good or health of themselves or your relationship, but they won't or don't see the need for change?

For almost a decade, I lived with a spouse who struggled with alcohol addiction. In the early years of our crisis, I made polite requests like asking him to attend Al-Anon meetings, not drive the kids after he'd been drinking, or not to drain our bank account before payday to buy alcohol. Since I asked nicely and expressed my love for him and our family, I expected he would see the light and accept the help he needed.

As the months passed and there were no improvements, my repeated requests sounded less polite and less like requests. I began issuing demands and ultimatums. I was anxious because our lives were spinning out of control, and I was terrified that our family would fall apart. My frustrations turned into yelling, anger, and one embarrassing day when I threw a bunch of dishes through our kitchen window. It turns out that my struggling former spouse wasn't the only person who needed change.

Is there someone in your life—or maybe a group of people—who isn't bringing out God's best in you? Some indicators:

• Everything that they do irritates you.

• You spend a lot of mental energy rehearsing future conversations with them.

• Your words, actions, or attitudes around them don't reflect Jesus' words, actions, or attitudes.

• You see them as problems rather than remembering that they are beloved image bearers created by God.

In Matthew 7:3-5, Jesus taught us to pay more attention to the planks (our sins/character defects) than others. I definitely had NOT done that. Our addiction situation revealed my struggles and shortcomings. During those long months in my prayer closet, I sensed the Holy Spirit asking me: You can't change him, but are You willing to allow me to change You?

Even though they may be entirely wrong, your response is your responsibility. If you've been a part of this Happy Monday community, you've heard me advocate for healthy boundaries, accountability, and even legal action when necessary. At the same time, you are still accountable for how you handle yourself. Where safety isn't an issue, Satan would like nothing better for you to destroy your relationship with them because of your healthy, unhelpful, or unholy response.

What could it look like to accept that you can't change them but are willing to allow the Holy Spirit to change you?

In Colossians 3:12-15, the Apostle Paul uses clothing as an analogy to cast a vision. I love that he uses clothes because, as women, we can relate!

As you read, pay attention to how we're to respond to others:

Since God chose you to be the holy people he loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. Make allowance for each other's faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others. Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds us all together in perfect harmony.

And let the peace that comes from Christ rule in your hearts. For as members of one body, you are called to live in peace. And always be thankful. -Colossians 3:12-15 NLT

When I look at Paul's list of how I'm to clothe myself, it seems like it will keep me business enough to stay out of other people's business. Can I get an amen?

I can testify that God did change my reactions, and even though that didn't stop the progression of the addiction and it still broke my family, God's supernatural clothing protected me and my heart and led to my healing. Wearing those supernatural clothes may not fix your problems, but you will experience God's peace, which is more than enough for whatever you need.

I want to challenge you to make a vital mindset shift today. Check this out:

Instead of thinking: If I can get them to _____________ or to stop ________________, then they'll be much better (and I will be, too).

Your new prayer and mindset: God, help them, but clothe me with Your mercy, Your kindness, Your forgiveness, and Your patience. God, PLEASE help me keep those clothes on all day long!

We'll need God's help to put on these new spiritual clothes and focus on ourselves. Thankfully, God wants to answer that prayer when we trust His way.

I'D LOVE TO HEAR FROM YOU: Is there someone in your life that you've been trying to change, and it's not going well? Look back at Colossians 3, and what "spiritual clothing" do you need to wear this week?

Looking for Less Stress and More Peace? 

Most of us have men in our lives that we love and our deepest prayer is that those men love Jesus. What do you do when the Christian man in your life is struggling and you are not sure how to help?

Join me for today’s conversation with comedian Isaac Witty who has performed on some of America’s biggest stages and listen to his dramatic journey of faith from pastor’s kid to successful comedian who hit rock bottom and found his way back to God.

Isaac will share his story and address the 5 things that a Christian man must fight in order to have faith. His story will encourage you and help you pray more for the men in your life.

RESOURCES FROM THIS EPISODE

Connect with Isaac on Instagram

Check out Isaac's Dry Bar Comedy Special "Don't Worry About Me. I'm Fine."

Visit Isaac's Website

ABOUT OUR SPECIAL GUEST

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