This year has asked a lot of us.
It has asked for courage when we felt afraid, patience when the world felt impatient, and hope when it was easier to disengage.
As we turn toward a new year, it’s tempting to rush ahead — to make resolutions, fix what’s broken, and move on. But spiritual growth rarely happens by hurrying forward. It happens when we slow down enough to notice what God’s been forming in us all along.
At The Colossian Forum, we’ve seen again and again that transformation begins in the smallest moments — a breath, a prayer, an honest word, a step toward someone we’d rather avoid. So before this year closes, we gathered five simple practices we don’t want you to miss. These practices have helped many of us stay grounded, courageous, and connected through 2025.
Before the year ends, we invite you to pause and revisit these practices. Whether you missed them the first time or want to try them again, each one offers a small doorway back to hope.
1. Praying the Examen — When Emotions Run High
The examen is a prayer practice from Ignatian spirituality that invites you to reflect on your day with God — noticing your emotions, naming what stirred you, and discerning how the Spirit is at work. It’s a daily habit of honesty, presence, and grace. We invite you to engage the examen with a specific focus on your emotions. When relationships feel unsettled, this is an opportunity to pause and connect with God as you explore what’s coming up within you.
Unnamed emotions don’t just stay inside; they leak out, often in ways that cause confusion or hurt. Examining our heart through prayer helps us name emotions honestly, making space for the Spirit to heal and restore.
Consider these questions in conversation with God:
- What am I feeling right now? (Grief, fear, hope, anger, joy?)
- When did this feeling begin? (Trace it back to a moment, a word, or an encounter.)
- How is the Spirit inviting me to respond? (Through confession, prayer, courage, silence, forgiveness?)
👉 Try the simple daily Examen on Instagram
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2. Risk (and Fail) Forward — When Making a Big Decision
As a leader, risk is part of the job. Big decisions rarely come with guarantees, and conflict often makes the stakes feel even higher. But wisdom doesn’t grow from avoiding risk — it comes when we’re willing to try, stumble, and learn together.
This week, notice one place where discernment feels heavy and the “right” answer seems out of reach. Take a risk toward clarity:
- Offer one concrete idea, even if you’re unsure it will work.
- Ask a clarifying question when the room feels divided.
- Name the tension honestly and suggest a next step, even if it’s imperfect.
Every risk holds the possibility of failure — but also of growth. By moving forward in faith, you invite God’s love to turn mistakes into wisdom and missteps into new paths.
👉 Read “What I Learned When Consensus Failed” on The Latest
3. A Practice in Offering Feedback
For some of us, giving feedback feels scary. It makes us vulnerable, and we worry it might cost us connection. For others, feedback comes easily — but the real challenge is offering it with care, not just clarity.
This week, take one step in the direction of growth:
- If feedback feels hard: choose one person and share a clear word you’d normally hold back, spoken with kindness.
- If feedback feels easy: slow down and frame your words with encouragement, naming why their growth matters to you.
You don’t need to get it perfect. Just one small step — pairing honesty with love — can begin to build deeper trust. Additionally, following up in a timely way makes that trust even stronger. When you circle back, you show that the conversation wasn’t just about fixing a problem but about caring for the person. It communicates, You matter more than the issue at hand, and that simple act of “going toward” can turn a hard moment into a lasting connection.
Before your next tough conversation, take a moment with this quick self-check to prepare your heart and words.
👉 Read “Clarity is Kindness” on The Latest
4. Practice a Breath Prayer
Breath prayer is a simple breathing exercise where we recalibrate to God’s mercy throughout the day. With each breath, you repeat the line of a prayer or a Scripture verse.
We invite you to pair a breath prayer with the practice of “box breathing” — inhaling for four seconds, holding for four seconds, exhaling for four seconds, holding again. You can imagine your breathing in the shape of a square, each inhale and exhale creating another side.
Remember the sacredness of your breath — that God is present in each inhale and exhale — by praying this ancient prayer:
“Lord, have mercy. Christ, have mercy.”
👉 Find this practice and more in our Slowing Down guide
5. Map Your Conflict Formation
This simple practice helps you name and visualize the people and places that first shaped your response to conflict.
Grab a blank sheet of paper and draw a simple horizontal line across it. This is your timeline from early childhood to now.
Along the line, write down significant chapters in your life — places where you regularly experienced or witnessed conflict. These might include:
- Homes you lived in
- Schools or classrooms
- Churches or faith communities
- Jobs or teams
- Mentors, friends, or family members who shaped you
Then, next to each marker, write a word or phrase that describes what you learned about tension or conflict in that environment. This might include negative patterns (e.g., “avoid it,” “don’t rock the boat”) as well as positive growth or encouragement you experienced (e.g., “speak up,” “listen first,” “stay calm under pressure”).
Finally, step back and look for patterns. What lessons have shaped how you show up in tension today? You don’t need to fix anything. Just notice what formed you and begin inviting God into that story.
👉 Explore the full practice in our Staying Grounded guide
Keep Practicing Hope with Us
Each of these practices — prayer, breath, honesty, reflection, risk — helps form us into people who can hold tension with grace. This is the kind of formation the world needs right now: leaders who don’t rush to take sides, but who stay present long enough for love to do its quiet work.
That’s the vision we share with you. Every time you pause to pray, risk honesty, or choose compassion over control, you join a community of Christians practicing hope in a divided world.
As we close this year, may these small habits remind you that God is still at work in you, in your relationships, and in the places that feel most uncertain. Thank you for walking with us. We’re grateful for the ways you show up, stay open, and continue to choose the slow, steady work of love.