Endings matter — sometimes even more than beginnings.

We pour so much heart into welcoming people in, yet often forget that farewells deserve the same intention. Off-boarding shouldn’t be just business or a tick-box exercise. It is a sacred moment of meaning, gratitude, and closure.

What if we designed our endings with the same care and creativity we give to new beginnings?🤔

Imagine a thoughtful off-boarding programme called “Your Next Move”, crafted to bring clarity, dignity, and continued connection. Instead of a cold goodbye, we’d celebrate the journey shared and bless the path ahead.

Of all the jobs I've held, the endings that stood out and brought the best memories are the ones where my contributions were acknowledged, none of them by management, but merely a farewell card from co-workers.

Recently, I experienced a season that tested my integrity, dignity & ability to heal through disappointment in profound ways. After months of faithful service and a sudden silence — six months without any meaningful communication — I received a termination letter giving me my four weeks’ notice. Suddenly, there were no more conversations except a short check-in once a month, no farewell, no moments of human connection until long after my contract had already ended.

It left me feeling rejected, unseen, and abandoned — not only as a professional but as a person — like I'd done something wrong. The ache was not simply about employment ending, but about the way it ended: without acknowledgement, honour, or closure. I had poured my heart into relationships and work that mattered deeply to me, only to be met with a sudden silence. Then, months after I left, when the acknowledgement came via the grapevine, it stung even more.

Through tears and prayer, I brought that pain before God, asking Him to teach me how to respond with grace rather than bitterness. Slowly, I began to see that even in endings that lack dignity, He remains faithful. What others leave unfinished, He redeems.

That experience deepened my conviction that endings matter. Integrity is not only tested in how we begin but in how we close a chapter. I still believe relationships, even professional ones, deserve to end with honour, gratitude, and blessing, because people’s worth extends far beyond contracts and timeframes.

A farewell could become a moment to honour the person: to gather around their favourite foods, share meaningful words and a few tears, give thoughtful gifts — perhaps a book of memories, tokens for their next chapter, or small treasures for their family — and most of all, to mark the ending well.

Why does this matter?🤔

• Because endings signal what we truly value.

• Because the way we say goodbye shapes how those who stay feel about belonging and trust.

• Because a person’s worth extends far beyond their job title or end date.

Goodbyes don’t have to be awkward, sterile, or uncaring. They can be beautiful moments that reinforce the truth Marcus Buckingham so eloquently expressed:

I couldn’t agree more.

May we learn to end well — with gratitude, grace, and blessing — so every chapter closes with the same love that began it.

💡Reflection:

• When you think about the way a season or relationship ended, what emotions surface for you?🤔

• How might God be inviting you to process those endings with grace rather than regret?🤔

• What would it look like to design a meaningful farewell or closure in your current context — whether at work, ministry, or in friendship?🤔

• How do your endings reflect your values?🤔

• In what ways can you offer honour and blessing to someone who is transitioning out of your life or organisation?🤔

🙌🏻Prayer:

Lord, help me to see endings not as failures but as sacred thresholds. Where I have felt unseen or dismissed, heal my heart and teach me to walk in grace. Let every closure become an altar of surrender, where You write the final word with compassion and purpose.