Why Intentional Living Matters More than Resolutions

How you frame your year matters. A clear framework — some guiding intentions — can make or break what today looks like 365 days from now. I’m not talking about a resolutions, or goals per se, but the stuff that resides beneath them. The inner ambition, the desire driving the goals.

If you were an actor I might ask you, ‘What is your motivation is for the scene called 2026.” If you can really nail that down, then the goals, the achievements, the desired moments will unfold organically–almost effortlessly. I’m not saying you won’t have to work, but what needs to be done will be obvious and feel natural.

Let me explain from a lesson I learned through acting.

A Life Lesson From Acting
Understanding Motivation, Subtext, and Inner Alignment

Years ago, I had the mixed blessing of landing my first lead role in a play. I was cast as Ebenezer Scrooge in A Christmas Carol. I was both elated and terrified. I wanted a lead – until I got it.

When I read through the script I was overwhelmed by two realizations. First, Scrooge never leaves the stage during the entire play. Second, you have to portray nearly every human emotion–and to an extremes: grief, joy, anger, joneliness, regret. and more. I had no small fear that I might be in over my head.

The Power of Subtext
What Drives Our Actions Beneath the Surface

I remember the turning point of that fear vividly. We were rehearsing the second scene, when Scrooge enters his home and is about to encounter the ghost of his dead partner, Jacob Marley. He has already been unnerved by seeing the door knocker transform into Marley’s face.

Forrest, the director, pulled me aside and explained that at any given moment every character has. multiple layers of subtext driving what they do. There is an emotional subtext, physical, subtext, spiritual, and others. Subtext is the hidden underlying meaning beneath what a character says and does. It is the “lines between the lines” that bring a character to life.

Forrest walked me through the scene moment by moment asking me subtext questions: What is Scrooge feeling? What does he want more than anything now? How does he physically feel? Then Forrest said something that changed everything for me:

“If you are in touch with these things, even if you miss a line, you will say and do the right thing for the scene. “

It was absolutely true.

Why Subtext Matter for Your Life and Faith
Desiging the Inner Script That Shapes Your Year

This is true for life as well. What you do — and how you experience it — is driven by the subtext within you. Here’s the good news – you can write and shapte the subtext. You don’t have to live out of old scripts. You don’t have to drift and merely react. You can intentionally design the underlying layer that shapes everything else.

Writing a New Story for the New Year
You Choose the Character You Become

Every morning as part of my journaling practice, I begin by finding an inspirational quote. Today’s quote was perfect.

“New Year – a new chapter, new verse, or just the same old story? Ultimately we write it. The choice is ours.”
– Alex Morritt.

Here is the critical thing to understand though. a great plot alone doesn’t create a great story. Great characters–characters with depth and meaning – do. And you don’t just get to decide the plot of your life; you determine the character you bring to it.

So what does this look like?

My Framework for 2026
Purpose, Theme, and Spiritual Truth

For me in 2026, there are three subtexts that will be critical. my purpose, my theme, and a spiritual truth.

• My Purpose – God has called me to be a healing presence and a guide to others , so they can have a deeper relationship with God and richer life. Whether it’s family, friends, acquaintances, or people I engage with online, I’m almost always striving to be a healing presence and a guide.

• My Theme- Since 2019, I’ve selected an overarching theme for each year. Having a theme binds together my goals at church and home, so they all pull in one direction. This creates greater synergy — and greater sanity. My theme for 2026 is cultivating peace and purpose in myself and others.

• A Spiritual Truth – Love first. This emerged in my devotional time today and feels like a calling. I’m currently using Experiencing God Day-by Day by Henry Balackaby as a devotional guide. Today’s lesson was based on John 21:18 “So when they had eaten breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, ‘Simon son of Jonah, do you love Me more than these?‘” Blackaby asserts that as we go into a new year, we may carry regrets. We may have failed God or disobeyed Him. We may have turned our backs at times we should have been faithful. Yet, God doe not come to chastise or berate. Instead, He lovingly invites – just as he invited Peter – to affirm our love again.

When Spiritual Practice Becomes Hallow
Doing for God vs. Loving God

This word was deeply timely for me.As I journaled, I realized a quiet tug: God wants more of my heart. I do many good and productive things in the morning—journaling, working out, reading devotional guides—but lately, it has become more about doing than connecting. I’ve given God more actions than affection.w

And if the heart isn’t present, the actions become hollow.

A Simple Spiritual Practice for the New Year
Writing a Daily Love Letter

It’s like an actor who flawlessly delivers the lines, yet something feels off. The performance falls flat. I don’t want to be that person. I want to fully inhabit the role God has called me to play. And if the greatest subtext of all—loving Him first—is missing, then my life will only be a shadow of what it could be.

So what does this mean practically?

For the first 31 days of this year, I’m going to write God a love letter every morning. I want to begin my year — and each day — invested in the greatest role and the greatest commandment of all:

“Loving the Lord my God all my heart, all my soul, and all my strength.”

Here is to a phenomenal year of cultivating peace and purpose in myself and others from a place of love.

An Invitation to Cultivate Peace and Purpose Together
Join the Peace and Purpose Design Lab

I would love for you to join me on the journey.

For the first three months of the year I’m offering a Christian online community called The Peace and Purpose Design Lab. This is a beta community where we will learn and live toward greater peace and purpose together. I’ll give you behind-the-scene glimpses of how I am living out my goals, along with practical, step-by-step guidance to help you clarify and move toward yours. We’ll also have opportunities to meet live for support and encouragement.

If this resonates with you — and you’re ready to design a meaningful new year instead of drifting — CLICK HERE to come join me.