Seven Reminders To Begin The Year

By Lisa S. Tarno

I listened to this podcast today on my walk outside and wanted to share some insights along with her bullet points. I summarized her first point because it’s not a “Christian” message but the take away was. There are a lot of spiritual parallels that I will draw upon despite some of the salty language in the podcast.

1. Boundaries
2. You’re not lazy, you only have a certain amount of energy right now and you’re using it to survive
3. You know who is going through a tough time right now? EVERYONE…BE KIND
4. I’m not everything I want to be yet, but I’m a lot of things I wanted to be two years ago
5. Take Nothing personally
6. Becoming the best version of yourself comes with a lot of goodbyes
7. Love who loves you, and enjoy your life

From Mel Robbins podcast 1/27/26 7 Things You Need To Hear Right Now

#1 Boundaries:

She begins the podcast with talking about the importance of having boundaries in our lives. I’ve read many books and lived out this advice over the years. When I was in my twenties and thirties, I knew nothing of this and blindly trusted that all people were basically good and meant well. Also, my people pleasing nature at that time didn’t master the complete sentence of “No!” With much of live and learn in the rear view, I have become a savvy student of living with boundaries and it has served me well. 

Boundaries are all over scripture from guarding our hearts found in Proverbs 4:23 “Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life,” to literal scripture passages of cities of long ago being protected by a wall and gates…the imagery is not lost on the real need for boundaries in our lives.  Then there is how we spend our time kind of wisdom. “You say, ‘I am allowed to do anything,’ but not everything is good for you. You say, ‘I am allowed to do anything,’ but not everything is beneficial.” 1 Cor. 10:23 We must learn to master our time allotted here on earth as best we can or we either end up wasting it and being frustrated or harnessing it to be fruitful and productive.

#2 Be Compassionate To Yourself

She comments that the best thing her therapist ever told her was that she wasn’t lazy, rather she had a certain amount of energy and at that time she was using every bit of it to survive. I totally GET THAT! I’ve just come through a season of being OVERWHELMED and I am finally getting to exhale! It takes a lot of energy just to get out of bed and pull oneself together in those moments. Every normal decision to be made seems monumental in those moments. So self care is allowing time for rest and recouping and that is definitely OKAY to do! 

I think this would fall under the category of having grace for yourself and in the Christian beliefs we have Jesus to take our cares and concerns to and allow Him to tend to us as the Great Shepherd. See Psalm 23 for this imagery and application. There’s a time for rest and it is required in order for us to heal and carry on in life. How one factors in rest in their life is their own business, but a caution is to label that as being “lazy”. No, we all need down times to rest, relax and rejuvenate. Grace!

#3 Everyone Is Dealing With Something…BE KIND!

In her very Mel way of speaking she delivers this message that if we just look around outside of ourselves, we need to notice that ALL of us are dealing with something. It’s a message of awareness and realizing we are not alone with life’s struggles. I love her message of “Be Kind!” The world could certainly use a little more of kindness. As believers in Christ, we are admonished to this, “Since God chose you to be the holy people he loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.” Colossians 3:12 

Do we always do this? No, sadly we don’t because we are human and have our own troubles, misgivings and failures. Yet it is our aspiration and ability with the power of the Holy Spirit residing in us. The message is just a good reminder that we are all dealing with something and to give each other grace in those moments that are less than lovely. For the person who sped up and cut me off…grace….maybe they were in a hurry to deal with an emergency? And so forth…

#4 “I’m Not Everything I Want To Be Yet, But I’m A Lot Of Things I Wanted To Be Two Years Ago!”

Basically this is advice to not sell yourself short and recognize your achievements in life as well as the things you need to do better. She says to look at your social media feed and pictures from two years ago and remind yourself of what you have accomplished. Sometimes we can be really down on ourselves and be our worst critic. This is to remind us that it’s not just one view…remember the good as well.

Another favorite teacher/speaker, Joyce Meyers, says, “I may not be where I need to be but thank God I’m not where I used to be!” We need to remind ourselves just how far we have traveled sometimes and acknowledge growth and wisdom over the years. This life is all about the journey and learning to become better equipped to handle a myriad of situations well. 

#5 Take Nothing Personally

Good advice! This is something that I have had to learn incrementally over the years. It took many difficult people to be in relationship with either at work or in life to get a handle on. Some people master this better and quicker because they may have a thicker skin, but that was not my case. I personally feel that being overly sensitive has something to do with insecurities we are dealing with more than thick skin, per se, and some people have a better grasp on it than others. Being sensitive is a good quality to have, but to take things too personally is a filtering problem. It takes time and perspective to work it out.

Spiritually speaking, this is where the devil works: Offense. We are warned in 1 Peter 5:8, “Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.” In John Bevere’s book, The Bait of Satan, he talks about how “offense” is one of the enemy’s most effective tools to destroy people and relationships. We are advised in Proverbs 19:11, “A person’s wisdom yields patience; it is to one’s glory to overlook an offense.” 

#6 Becoming The Best Version Of Yourself Comes With A Lot Of Goodbyes

This bit of advice was very truthful. Sometimes we outgrow people in our lives and we need to make space for new relationships that are more aligned where we are at today. Sometimes it’s not just people but habits, places or whatever that seems to hold you back. Life is like that. It’s constantly evolving and with that comes a lot of goodbyes both literally and figuratively. We need to best position ourselves to be in the reception of what’s new and good for our lives…for growth and progress. 

It’s kind of a bittersweet admonition. Goodbyes can conjure up sadness to what is known and familiar. But on the positive side, it’s an invitation to embrace what is truly meant for our lives at the different seasons. Change is a constant in our lives and we have to be able to adapt in order to thrive.

#7 Love Who Loves You, & Enjoy Your Life

This all sounds good in theory. We need to be careful to protect ourselves from people that would drain us and there’s nothing wrong with enjoying our lives…we should. That’s where boundaries come into play and we need them in our relationships and with our time. I am taking it as “spend more time with those who bring you joy and peace than not” and on that point I totally agree. And yes, we should aspire to enjoy our lives and be grateful and thankful everyday for the goodness we get to experience. That’s a worthwhile prescription! 

I get where she is coming from but this is a very secular view and in contrast to what the Bible teaches believers. In Luke 6:32 & 35 paint a different picture. Jesus said, “If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners love those who love them….v.35 But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High, because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked.” What was Jesus after? I believe it was to develop in us a character that looks like God…loving the undeserving, being kind to the unkind, being merciful to those who deserve judgement. We are encouraged to become more like Him and His character. That will serve us well. 

We are really called to love all, and that doesn’t mean let people walk all over you, but on the whole our character should be one of living a life of love towards all. Do we do that?….again….we try and we enlist the help the Holy Spirit to empower us to love even the unlovely. We are called to do things that aren’t always comfortable. That tension of discomfort to do what is right is the very force that enacts character development in each of us. I’m not saying that I’ve mastered that…but I aspire to love better…even the difficult people. Each time that I step into the uncomfortable and allow the Holy Spirit to love through me, I know I make God smile! At the end of the day, that is my advice to us all: Do something each day that makes God smile! And then you know you’re living on the right track!