What Does Your Spotify Unwrapped Say About You? You'll Never Guess What It Said About Me...

When most people listen to their Spotify Wrapped at the end of the year, they reflect on which artists and genres defined their year. They might laugh at an embarrassing guilty pleasure song or reminisce about a favorite summer anthem. But while listening through my 2024 Spotify Wrapped, I realized that my music choices throughout the year weren’t just about taste—they revealed where my heart was. In seasons where I was seeking God, my playlists were filled with worship. But in other seasons, they told a different story. Explicit pump-up anthems dominated when I was chasing another triathlon PR. Vacation daydream songs took over when I was mentally checked out. My music reflected my focus, my priorities, and sometimes, my distance from God.

I wasn’t exactly proud of where my heart had been. It felt like I had been searching for meaning, purpose, and validation in all the wrong places.

So, as one does in the New Year, I grabbed a notebook and started listing all the ways I was going to be better in 2025. 2025 was going to be different. But then I remembered why I hate New Year’s Resolutions.

The Problem with New Year's Resolutions

The truth is, I am a doer. New Year's Resolutions dangle a glittery carrot in front of me and tempt me to make another goal that will make me feel worthy, a badass, or successful. As if I can't be any of those things already. But what they fail to acknowledge is the process and my life holistically outside of those goals.

My strength has always been reaching my goals. I can look back and see that I achieved some pretty cool things. But truthfully, that's kinda all it is at the end of the day—just things. It’s awards and trophies and certificates, bonuses and atta-girls. But what they don’t reflect is how good a friend I was, how loving a sister or daughter I was, or most importantly, how faithfully I followed Christ.

Without Jesus, those things are worthless. They give me something nice to hang on the wall, but there is no eternal impact in them. While chasing these achievements, I would often find myself lonely, burnt out, frustrated, and, if it was sports-related, probably injured. The pursuit left me insecure instead of fulfilled.

The Mary and Martha Dilemma

This reminds me of the story of Mary and Martha in Luke 10:38-42. Martha was busy preparing everything, serving, and getting things done, while Mary simply sat at the feet of Jesus, listening. When Martha complained, Jesus gently corrected her:

"Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her." (Luke 10:41-42 ESV)

For years, I was Martha. Busy in the kitchen, making sure everything was done. But this past year, I finally surrendered. I stopped chasing the gold medals, the promotions, the weight loss, and the endless striving. I definitely got distracted by a shiny carrot or two, but I started to think—what if going into 2025, I listed out and pursued my priorities, not another PR, not a number on the scale, not a dollar figure?

Shifting Priorities in 2025

What would that look like? I think it would mean being intentional about how I am growing in my relationship with Christ, my family, my friends, my church community, and the things I know God has called me to professionally and personally.

Because at the end of the day, is it possible that in the surrender of DOING, I can experience the fruit of just BEING? Is it possible that I will find more purpose, love, belonging, and acceptance by sitting at the feet of Jesus rather than trying to accomplish my own will in my own strength?

And maybe you church-going folk are thinking right about now, "Well, duh?!" And you would be right. DUH! The Bible is all about surrendering and trusting in Jesus.

The Challenge of Letting Go

But when push comes to shove, it’s not that easy. Society constantly tells us what we SHOULD have and accomplish. You SHOULD have the good-paying job. You SHOULD get good grades. You SHOULD be starting on your team. You SHOULD have a family that loves and supports you. Your kids SHOULD be excelling in life. But what happens when they DON’T?

When we don’t get the thing we think we SHOULD have, I see one of two responses: Either we cast blame and shift responsibility, or we double down and try to make it happen ourselves.

I don’t know about you, but I grew up in a household that told you to double down. I’m pretty good at doubling down. And isn’t that the American Way? We love a good underdog story, the idea of picking ourselves up by the bootstraps and pushing forward no matter what.

Seeking God's Plan Over Our Own

But James 4:2 challenges this mindset:

"You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel. You do not have, because you do not ask."

In the process of doubling down, do we ever check in with the Lord and ask Him what His plan is? Do we actually surrender ours to Him? Or do we just hope He waves a magic wand over our situation and fixes it? Sometimes He does. Sometimes the things we are wanting are 100% in alignment with His will for us. But I can’t say that God necessarily desires me to break my triathlon PR over pursuing a deeper relationship with Him.

Well, can’t I have both? Maybe. But did it come from sitting at the feet of Jesus and making Him my priority, or did it come from me being busy in the kitchen and glancing at Jesus every once in a while to make sure He’s still there?

A Call to Surrender

I don’t know about you, but at the feet of Jesus is where I hope you find me in 2025. While wrestling with insecurity and comparison, while looking for a house, while struggling with my job and finances, while not knowing how to handle relationship conflicts, while living in a world filled with brokenness and longing—I want to be at the feet of Jesus.

So how do we surrender practically? One way is through intentional prayer. Instead of asking God to bless what we are already doing, we can start by asking, "Lord, what do You want me to pursue? Where do You want me to focus?" Another way is by creating space in our schedules for stillness—whether through daily quiet time, worship, or just sitting in silence and listening. Surrender isn’t about passivity; it’s about shifting from striving to abiding.

"Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it, prone to leave the God I love. Take my heart, Lord, take and seal it, seal it for Thy courts above."