Every year, I try choose a word to guide the season ahead. Not a resolution. Not a checklist. A truth — something that sets the tone for how I show up in the world. Usually, I have this word in November. I jump into canva and I create images for my phone and to print and put up on my mirror at home, and my bulletin board at the office. I like being constantly reminded of my "mantra" for the year.
But this year, I'd choose a word... ponder it... and then choose another one. I just didn't get that "ahhah" moment. And then something shifted Tuesday Night, January 5th.
Without getting super-spiritual, I do feel like it was dropped into the depths of my soul as I was going over my Goal Card, finishing the book - The Miracle Morning by Hal Elrod - and reading through Proverbs. I jumped on my computer to hash it out... everything I was feeling, everything I wanted to say. I tried to put it into one word. Steward. Abide. Joy. Joy came close and yet, it didn't give me enough emotion... until the phrase popped into my head:
2026 is my year of Exceeding, Great Joy.
That phrase comes from Matthew 2:10, when the wise men finally saw the star they had been following and “rejoiced with exceeding great joy.”
This wasn’t mild happiness. It wasn’t circumstantial relief. It was joy so full it overflowed — joy that spilled into obedience, generosity, courage, and excellence.
These wise men - scholars, studied men, kings even - were searching for something. Life was incomplete even though they had so much... so they went on a journey... and when they found what they were looking for, they rejoiced with exceeding, great joy!
That’s the joy I’m choosing this year.
Not outcome-based joy.
Not “when everything goes my way” joy.
But joy that abides.
What Exceeding, Great Joy Looks Like
It means choosing joy in my career — not just in closings, but in the calling behind them. It means Exceeding, Great Joy for every client I get to serve, every home I get to market, and every family that trusts me with their story.
It means Exceeding, Great Joy in my relationships — and in the waiting for who God has yet to introduce me to.
It means Exceeding, Great Joy at home, on this beautiful piece of land God has given my family to steward — in growing our own food, living healthier, and remembering that everything I have is a gift from the Master Creator.
This kind of joy doesn’t shrink when circumstances change. It expands.
My 2026 Declaration
This is what I will speak over my days:
I choose Exceeding, Great Joy.
I own nothing — I steward everything.
My circumstances do not control my spirit.
Every opportunity is God-given,
and I answer it with excellence.
I do not react — I rejoice.
This is my year of Exceeding, Great Joy.
An Invitation
In all things in 2026, I plan to live with Exceeding, Great Joy — and I hope you’ll join me.
I’d love to hear from you. What is your word or phrase for the year? Share it with me in the comments or send me a message.
And if life is changing, dreams are shifting, and home might look a little different this year…
Maybe it’s time for a conversation.