Anxiety and Stress Threatening Your Christmas? Practical Steps to Find Holiday Peace

2025-12-09

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If the holidays leave you overwhelmed, overstretched, or anxious, you’re not alone. In this episode of Faith Over Fear, Jennifer Slattery and guest Kelly Hall unpack the story of Mary and Martha to reveal practical, grace-filled ways to reduce holiday stress, avoid codependent patterns, set healthy boundaries, and re-center on what matters most. Whether you’re navigating grief, family tension, perfectionism, or people-pleasing, this conversation offers gentle guidance to help you enter Christmas with more calm, clarity, and joy. You’ll learn how to: Recognize your emotional capacity Resist the pressure to meet everyone’s expecta...

If the holidays leave you overwhelmed, overstretched, or anxious, you’re not alone. In this episode of Faith Over Fear, Jennifer Slattery and guest Kelly Hall unpack the story of Mary and Martha to reveal practical, grace-filled ways to reduce holiday stress, avoid codependent patterns, set healthy boundaries, and re-center on what matters most. Whether you’re navigating grief, family tension, perfectionism, or people-pleasing, this conversation offers gentle guidance to help you enter Christmas with more calm, clarity, and joy.

You’ll learn how to:

Recognize your emotional capacity
Resist the pressure to meet everyone’s expectations
Simplify your celebrations
Experience deeper peace by staying aligned with Jesus rather than holiday chaos

Scripture discussed:

Luke 10, Mark 1:35-39

Resources Recommended: Courageous Faith by Kelly Hall, Having a Mary Heart in a Martha World: Finding Intimacy with God in the Busyness of Life by Joanna Weaver

Free Bible Reading Plan: "Embracing Your True Self: Living in Your Christ-Centered Identity"

Free Resource: Practical Steps to Reduced Anxiety and Overwhelm This Christmas

Find Kelly Hall:

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Unshakable Hope Podcast

Find Jennifer Slattery:

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Discussion/Reflective Question:

What resonated with you most in this episode
Where do I feel the most pressure during the holiday season—and whose expectations are driving that pressure?
What signs tell me I’m reaching or exceeding my emotional capacity? How can I respond with grace rather than reacting from overwhelm?
In what situations do I tend to “Martha”—trying to control people or outcomes rather than pausing to sit at Jesus’ feet?
Where might I be slipping into codependent behavior (fixing, appeasing, rescuing) instead of allowing others to own their emotions?
What boundaries do I need to set this holiday season to protect peace, joy, and emotional/spiritual health?
What one simple shift could help me keep “the most important thing” at the center of my celebrations?