I’m Escaping Survival Mode

A few weeks ago, my husband called me while he was at work and asked if I felt bad about him not getting me anything for Christmas. For context, we had already agreed that gifts are on hold for the foreseeable future because we have financial goals that take priority. It was such an unexpected question that I started laughing, but he was serious. His coworkers had been asking what he was getting me, and he didn’t really have an answer. Not that it’s anyone’s business (LOL), but I understood why he asked. So he proposed that instead of exchanging gifts, we could allocate some of our budget to finally decorating our home. After three years in a new-construction home, our walls were still bare and the most we’d done was paint and add a fence to the backyard.

I told him it wasn’t necessary, that I was still willing to wait, but he insisted we should try—even if it was small stuff like getting our family photos hung up. I then told him that one of the biggest things I’d love to do is get a new couch. Years ago, we fell into the trap of buying what I consider the ugly gray “Millennial” couch, and we were both over it for many reasons. My thought was that if we started with the first floor, decorating around the style of the new couch would be the easiest way to go. He agreed, and we set out to look for one.

Here’s the issue though—I had (and still have) my heart set on a dark green couch. With the aesthetic I want for our home, I think it would go so well, and I’m just not known for choosing things that are ordinary or typical.

After spending about a week looking, I was ready to give up and settle. My husband protested, and God definitely checked me on that too. I was desperate to be done with this step and move forward. As I was contemplating everything and what I wanted for our home, I started questioning why I was so quick to settle. That’s when it hit me: my life is not fully the life I’d choose in my head. What I mean is that who I am, how I dress, how I live day to day does not match who I know myself to be and who I KNOW God has called me to be. Not fully. And somehow over the years I convinced myself that things were “good enough.” Why? Because I was in survival mode.

Now, don’t get me wrong. This isn’t about me being ungrateful or blind to the blessings all around me. If I never got anything more, I would still be grateful for the life I live. But after years of healing from traumatic events, climbing out of pits of depression, anxiety, and grief (with God’s help, of course), I realize that even though God has done such a beautiful work in me internally, it’s not fully reflected externally. I got comfortable with the environment I built up in survival, and while the Lord was transforming me on the inside, I forgot to shift everything on the outside.

The search for our green couch brought me to the realization that my mindset of settling, taking the path of least resistance, and staying comfortable in survival mode—even long after the things I was surviving ended—built a life around me full of limitations. Limitations God never authored and definitely doesn’t want for me now.

The more I thought about it, the more frustrated I became. My eyes were opened to how many of those limits came from my own choices and from the ceiling I placed on my faith. And realizing that without immediately knowing what to do about it felt overwhelming.

As I processed with the Lord, He gave me my word for 2026: Upgrade. I had a vision when I received the word—me dressed the way I would outside of the survival-mode version of myself.

Ever since then, I can feel my mindset being challenged. I can sense God desiring the outward manifestation of the inner work He’s done in me to come forth. What would it look like to live in the fullness of the life God intended for me when He formed me? Will I finally agree with living as the Giselle God has called me to be—inside AND out? Will I position myself to receive all He desires to give me and give all He desires me to give? Will I fully let go of old mindsets and old seasons and step into the new, the permanent?

The answer is yes.

To be clear, this isn’t about materialism. Everything I am and everything I do must and will be for the glory of God—not my own gain or ambition. But walking with the Lord, walking in your inheritance from the Father, looks like something. God is not poor. He is the God of exceedingly and abundantly.

I sit and imagine the impact I could have with both my prayers and the resources God is ready to release to me. How much more could be accomplished for His kingdom if I stopped living beneath what He’s spoken? I could go on and on.

My 2026 has already started. And with it, my upgrade.

Maybe you’re at a similar crossroads. So I pose the same questions to you:

What would it look like to live in the fullness of the life God intended for you when He formed you?

Will you finally agree with living as the person God has called you to be—inside AND out?

Will you get in position to receive all that He desires to give you and give all that He desires you to give?

Will you let go of old mindsets and old seasons and step into the new, the permanent?

I pray your answer is a resounding ‘yes,’ and that this year and beyond is more than you can dream or imagine, according to God’s will for your life.

Here’s a verse I’ve been meditating on lately:

“Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.” Romans 12:2 NLT

If you want to share what God has been speaking to you about this next season and the upcoming new year, I’d love to hear from you! Feel free to email me at giselle@creatinghallelujahs.com or message me on Instagram @creatinghallelujahs. I check those regularly, and everything stays confidential unless you give permission to share.