Feeling Scattered Already?

Do you ever start January feeling strong only to find yourself drifting again by week two? You say to yourself, this year is going to be different. But the momentum slips almost immediately. Here's what I've learned, friend.Change really arrives in small, intentional choices. Just one tiny decision today can redirect the next 90 days because daily decisions become destiny, shaping habits.Let's talk about those small, intentional choices on today's show. Hey, friend. Ralph Eastep Jr. Here.Welcome to Financially Confident Christian, where we learn how to walk through life and walk through money with wisdom and peace, with a heart anchored in God's truth.My mission is pretty simple here to help you break that cycle of financial shame, build steady habits rooted in faith, and become the kind of believer who handles money with clarity, with confidence, and with spiritual purpose. If you're new here, welcome home. And if you're returning, I'm so grateful you came back. Today isn't about massive goals or big dramatic changes.It's about something far more powerful. Those tiny choices that shape your entire year. And, friend, those small choices matter so much more than you think. A listener wrote.Ralph, every year I start strong in January, and by week two, I find myself drifting again. I want to stay consistent. How do I actually live intentionally day to day? Friend, I hear that. And you're not alone in that. I'll be honest with you.I feel myself in that. Consistency is hard, but it's not complicated. Here's the real tension we're feeling.We want big transformation, but we drift because we never build the small, steady rhythms that hold us in place. We dream in giant leaps, but we live in daily choices. The good news, daily faithfulness creates the change you've been praying for.Inhabit research is clear. Small, repeatable actions outperform big, inconsistent bursts. And I love this truth. Excellence is the habit of daily decisions.Your life follows your habits, not your hopes. And for decades I've watched people trade those vague January hype for simple daily rhythms that actually build momentum.And I'll tell you something, personally, my biggest breakthroughs never came from giant leaps. They came from those tiny, boring, fateful steps done consistently day after day. Small is spiritual. Small is powerful.But bigger than anything else, small is sustainable. One listener added, just two habits is what she did. She prayed before every purchase and she logged her spending each and every night.No 21 day challenge, no massive program. She didn't go hire a coach and pay thousands of dollars just two microhabits. And listen to this. In six weeks, just six weeks, her peace increased.Her spending drop and bigger than all those things. Her confidence grew. No big overhaul required, just faithful consistency. So how do you stop drifting?How do you turn those daily choices into a lifestyle of intentionality and peace? Let's walk through it together.First thing you've got to do, you've got to reconnect to your why, because your calling is greater than your convenience. When your why is weak, the habit dies. Now your why could be this. Maybe, say your why is peace. Maybe your why is simply this.You're tired of waking up at 2am wondering if a bill slipped through the cracks, if your account is overdrawn, or if you're going to make payroll this month. Peace becomes your why. Because you're done living in that quiet anxiety. You want a home where the money conversation doesn't feel like a battlefield.Maybe your why is freedom. Freedom from debt collectors calling. Freedom from feeling chained to a job you don't love anymore.Freedom from that monthly panic when the rent and the mortgage or tuition hits your why is freedom because you're dreaming of a life where your money finally serves you instead of the other way around. Maybe your why is stewardship.Because you look at your kids or grandkids and you think, I want to handle God's money well so they can start ahead, not behind. You want to stop wasting. You want to stop scrambling and start managing your resources with intention, with wisdom and responsibility.Maybe your wise generosity because you're tired of seeing a need at church and thinking, I wish I could help them. Maybe next time you want to be that kind of person who doesn't hesitate to bless somebody.You want margin so you can give without fear and live with open hands.Maybe your why is honoring God because you feel the Holy Spirit just nudging you to live differently, to stop surviving financially and to start stewarding your finances in a way that reflects his trust and faith and obedience. You want your bank account to be a place of worship, not worry anymore. You want God to say, well done.But when your why is clear, your how becomes simple. Which leads me to this Pick one daily habit tied to your why. Just one habit. It's going to beat five hopes.We can have a lot of hopes, but choose something tiny. Maybe something like log your spending. Maybe you pray before your purchases. Maybe something tiny is save $5 a day.Or maybe just review your categories for just two minutes a day. As I said earlier, small is spiritual, so small is sustainable, and small over time, becomes strength. Here's another thing I'm encouraging you to do.Stack that habit onto an existing routine habit stacking, as we call it, removes friction. Here's some ideas. Attach your new habit to your morning coffee. Picture this.You're standing in the kitchen waiting for the coffee to finish brewing, that smell rising, that quiet of the morning still holding. But before that first sip, you open up your banking app. You check one balance. You you move one small amount. Or maybe a prayer. Simple prayer.Lord, help me to steward today. Well, because a habit born out of a moment you really enjoy really works. Maybe for you, it's your commute.Maybe you've got 12 minutes in the car before work or school drop off instead of aimlessly scrolling at red lights or turning on talk radio and listen to stuff you don't want to hear. Use that drive to listen to a three minute devotional about money wisdom, or to mentally plan your spending for the day.Or simply breathe and ask Jesus to lead your decisions and your car becomes a moving classroom for growth. Maybe if you at your lunch break, think about your lunch hour for a second. You got your sandwich or chips, maybe leftovers from last night.If you're lucky, you can use those first two minutes to review yesterday's spending. You can look at your calendar for the week or send one quick email to take care of a financial task you've been avoiding.It's amazing what happens when you give small, intentional moments a purpose. Maybe for you, it's your evening routine. Maybe your evenings are a flurry of kids and dishes and work emails trying to wind down without collapsing.But after dinner, before that TV turns on, you take a moment to just log your spending for the day, maybe review your goals or schedule tomorrow's money tasks. It's like brushing your financial teeth. It's a simple rhythm that keeps things clean and healthy. Here's another one I'm going to encourage you.Maybe your bedtime prayer time before the lights go off. When the house is finally quiet, you whisper a simple prayer. Lord, thank you for what you provided today. Help me be faithful tomorrow.Jot one line in your journal a when you noticed a place you grew or something you want to improve. And then your day ends with gratitude, clarity and peace. The easier it is to start, the more likely it is to stick.And finally, listen to me measure streaks. Not perfection, but perfection leads to quitting. Streaks build identity. Say this boldly to yourself. I'm somebody who shows up. I'm someone who saves.I'm someone who prays before buying. Track the days, not the outcome. Because momentum comes from consistency, not intentionally.Which leads us to our Bible verse Today The Book of Colossians, chapter 3, verse 17. And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus.Even tiny habits become acts of worship when done intentionally for him. How about we pray together? Lord, give me a clear why. Teach me to be faithful in the little things. Give me joy in simple everyday obedience.Strengthen my consistency and steady my steps. And I ask this in Jesus name, Amen. Okay, here's your one action step for today. I want you to just pick one of these for January.Maybe it's track your spending, pray before purchases, save $5 a day, or review your goals for just two minutes. Write it down, put it on your calendar and start today. Because small faithfulness builds big piece.And that brings me to something that one of our community members wrote recently. Because the action step is powerful, but community is what helps you actually follow through, they said.Ralph I joined the financially confident Christian community because I was tired of trying to do everything alone. I didn't need another course. I needed people who actually cared. The daily habit prompts keep me grounded. The accountability is gentle, never pushy.And on the days I feel overwhelmed, someone always reaches out with prayer or encouragement. What surprised me the most is that the community is completely free. And even the optional ways to support the show never feel like pressure.Just an opportunity to help something that's helping me. For the first time in years, I feel like I'm growing again. I'm growing spiritually and financially and emotionally.I finally found a place where I don't have to walk this journey alone. Friend. That's the heart of the community. I'm gonna encourage you to join us at financiallyconfidentchristian.com/join again.That's financiallyconfidentchristian.com/join friend. Direction beats intensity. Daily faithfulness beats January enthusiasm that small obedience compounds into big transformation.Let today's tiny choice serve tomorrow's peace. Remember, you can do this because God is with you in the small, steady steps.Be a financially confident Christian, stay financially savvy, God bless you, and I'll see you on tomorrow's show.