In today’s culture, we don’t often take time to reflect. After completing one task or assignment, we usually move on to the next. When one event finishes up, we push forward.

But reflection is a biblical principal, from laying down remembrance stones to prayerfully recalling the Lord’s goodness. Taking time to “consider what great things he has done for you,” as Samuel said in his farewell address (1 Samuel 12:24), can be a beneficial component of preparing for the next phase.

To get where we need to go, it’s important to understand where we’ve been. That can mean keeping track of God’s work by journaling, repeating personal testimonies, and reviewing the past year. Here is some biblical and practical advice on how to do just that.

Carve Out Specific Time for Reflection

If we’re not careful with our time and schedule, the holidays can be so full that we start the new year exhausted. Rather than refreshed, we find ourselves rushing headlong into January without a clear plan. Carve out time not just for reflection, but also for relaxation.

The Christmas season is all about remembering. We use the same biblical texts each year, from Luke 2 and Matthew 1. I think there’s a principle there. We continue to remember the same things — and those things focus on the goodness of God in our lives.

When it comes to personal review, take stock of the last year. What did God say to you? What did He do? What did He ask you to do? Begin in an attitude of prayer, asking Him to help you remember. Ask Him to show you places you never noticed Him before in the past year.

Go month by month, if that helps. What were the most significant events of the last year? Pull out notes or your journal as you take time to remember. If you’re the lead communicator at your church, go through your past year’s preaching schedule — not to see what you told your congregation, but to see what God said to you and through you.

If you had to sum up the last year in one word or sentence, what would it be?

Evaluate Your Past Year’s Goals

Before setting new goals, consider your track record over the previous year. Ask yourself honestly what went well and what didn’t. If you set goals at the beginning of the year, how did they work out for you? Do you have any carry-over goals or unfinished business? Were there goals you had to change or abandon?

Knowing the results of past goals will help you focus on accurate goals this year.

Find time to look back with joy and ahead with confidence.

But don’t just ask what went right. Find out why. If you fell short, can you identify why? There may be multiple sources of shortcomings, so dig deep. Accept the responsibility for your part, but don’t beat yourself up for not meeting an unattainable goal. Maybe there were unforeseen obstacles, factors outside your control or better goals to pursue.

Rather than just seeing your professional and personal successes and shortcomings, focus on spiritual growth. How did meeting that goal get you closer to Jesus? Was there anything that happened that stunted your spiritual growth? The goal above any other goal is to be more like Christ. That should be our true gauge of success in life.

Get a 360-Degree Evaluation

Get an assessment from all around you, including from family, coworkers and close friends. Ask those in positions of leadership over you and those who report to you. Ask your spouse, your parents and even your kids.

If you have school age kids, take an afternoon with them over ice cream and ask them, “How do you think I did this year being a mom?” or, “How do you think I could be a better dad this year?” Then, really listen to them.

Getting a 360-degree evaluation may reveal some blind spots in your life that you haven’t noticed before. We all have four areas of our lives: our personal lives that only we see, our public lives that everyone sees, our blind spots that others see but we don’t, and those places that only God can see.

Asking others who know you closely to evaluate you will uncover those things they see and you don’t.

You may find new areas of influence you didn’t see before, ways you were truly successful that you overlooked. Or you might uncover new areas you never previously considered. It will also encourage you to keep going and motivate you to lead with integrity, knowing that someone is watching.

No matter what the year was like, God is good! Make sure to give thanks for the ups and the downs. It’s easy to be excited for a new year when you only look at the past positives.

But every obstacle you faced, every missed opportunity, and even every failure can produce godly growth in your life if you’re intentional. What lessons was God teaching you? What mistakes can you avoid later?

When you’ve really taken the time to reflect on the year, you’re in a great position to look ahead to the new year. You’ll have professional goals you want to set. You’ll also have personal marks you want to achieve. But over and above that, there is a road map for spiritual growth you should not ignore.

Over the next couple of weeks, we’ll be discussing those things. But in the meantime, I pray that you find time to look back with joy and ahead with confidence.