Hey mama, I don’t know about you but...
Times where “shifting” takes place, can be an opportunity for doubt and uncertainty and “ALL the feels” that aren’t all that positive to creep in.
I find myself again, on the shore of another major family transition. Change is often GOOD, but for me, it always brings some level of discomfort...and a foothold for me to easily feel lost or discouraged.
I wanted to find joy, confidence, and be reminded of the promises of God right now...so I went back to reflect on my notes from Joshua and wanted to pick back up with you too!
What the Lord reminded me of this week is that TRANSITION or CROSSING OVER is CONTINUAL. We need to continually be grounded in the Principles of God, because we are going to need them for success time and time again.
I KNOW you are going to be so encouraged by today’s episode and ALL the Biblical wisdom covered!
I can’t wait to share with you tips for how to march forward in confidence and victory...making progress in the midst!
We’ll talk about concepts like:
- Remember
- Consecrate
- Heal and celebrate
- March forward in God’s Timing
All Success strategies for God’s warriors... listen to hear the details!
LET’S STAY CONNECTED
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Michelle5Hiatt
Email: hello@nourishingmichelle.com
Full Episode Transcription:
Welcome back to The Nourishing Mompreneur Podcast, where we get encouraged and empowered as we pursue our greatest potential within the walls of our home. Hey Mama, my name is Michelle Hiatt, and I'm so thankful you're here. Do you feel like your life is good, but something in you feels unfulfilled? Do you feel stuck in the trenches of motherhood, exhausted and working so hard, but feeling like you're getting nowhere? Do you have big dreams you hold in your heart, but you've been living small? Are you motivated for more, but don't have the clarity or the courage to do anything about it? Do you want to discover God's best and see if it's really possible to be an excellent wife, an intentional mother, and be successful in business, all for the glory of God? As a wife of 16 years, a homeschooling mom of five, and an entrepreneur, I know exactly how you feel. Every bit of it. I truly believe that the most important work you will ever do is within the walls of your home and that there is purpose in every season. If you are a fellow business-minded mama, with a heart for home and a love for Jesus, let's process this journey and grow together.
0:03
Hey friend if you've been following along on this podcast for a while now, you remember I previously did several episodes rooted back in the book of Joshua from the Bible. You see, I was working through a significant transition in my life, a crossing over into deeper purpose and God brought me to the book of Joshua for encouragement step by step. it was amazing to see how when I was walking through paralleled the journey of the Israelites crossing over into the Promised Land. I connected and resonated with their journey so deeply and it gave me clarity as I took each step of faith. So if you haven't had a chance, I really encourage you to go back and listen to Episode 10.
2:26
That is about living in a place of ready principles for success from the book of Joshua. This is perfect if you feel like you're waiting on a promise of God to come to pass. If you feel stuck or stagnant in business, if you're feel like your days are circles of the same if you're ready for the next season, the next promotion the next blessing to come to pass. You're just wanting to get prepared. Now, we talk about in this episode three simple truths found in the book of Joshua that will help you live in a place of ready as you prepare to cross over into God's best and after that, you'll also want to go ahead and check out Episode 11.
3:04
This is kind of part two of success principles from Joshua. And in this episode, we talk about the two keys for your success and some crucial character qualities to instill in your children. Now these principles are straight from the book of Joshua, like I said on courage and obedient and this conversation is loaded with biblical truth and mom wisdom. It was probably one of my favorites to share. So definitely check those out. So I started simply going through my notes on what the Lord was showing me because I know that you as you pursue your greatest potential and God's best for your life. You need encouragement and you need support and this is a way that I can support you. And I know that this will resonate with you, too. I had intended to finish sharing all of my notes from Joshua basically it's just me sharing my bullet point journal with you, but I stopped and I shifted gears to talk about some other topics. But here I find myself again on the shore of another major family transition. You know, change is often good, but for me it always brings a level of discomfort. And that gives a foothold for me to easily feel lost or even discouraged. Times where shifting takes place in our life can often be an opportunity for doubt and uncertainty and all the fields that maybe aren't all that positive to come in or as James says in the book of James, I actually actually just read this this morning. Just consider these times as opportunity for great joy for when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So I wanted to find joy, confidence and to be reminded of the promises of God. So I went back to reflect on my notes from Joshua and I wanted to pick back up with you too.
4:58
What the Lord reminded me of this week is that transition or crossing over is continual we need to continually be grounded in the principles of God, the Word of God, because we are going to need them for success time and time again. God doesn't take us from A to Z and leave us there. In fact, we never arrive our whole life until we have every day that we wake up and we have breath in our lungs, He is still at work. He is still moving us he's still growing us and we should be on board for the journey. We don't want to resist that. I don't I don't know about you. But until the day I die, I just want to keep growing and I want to keep giving and I don't want to stop. He takes us From Glory to Glory. And I love that idea. I love that truth.
5:45
In 2 Corinthians 3:18 It says,
"But we all with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord."
6:00
So we are by His Spirit. That's the key being changed from glory to glory in faith. We've got to trust that God is continually doing a new thing and taking us to a new place. If we walk in surrender and obedience, it's His spirit at work in our lives. Sounds simple, right? Well, I think you understand how challenging this can be and actually is our faith is activated in the in between and I want to get back to my notes from the book of Joshua today. I need the reminder and I know you will be blessed by the truth of God's word I'm not sure where this is going to head or I'll need a couple episodes to get through this. But let's have a little heart-to-heart Bible study together asking God to reveal His perspective, His truth as we press on towards the promises of God in our life.
6:49
Lord real quick, I just pray over the mom listening guide that you would open our ears to hear what you have for her. Help her to hear Your word, Your truth and just to encourage her spirit in this conversation today. Lord, I pray that you would just open my mouth to speak only your word God I pray that you would just flow through me and use me and that anything that is not of you would just fall on deaf ears. In the name of Jesus.
7:12
Okay, so the first thing I want to share with you, or I want to ask of you really is that you would picture yourself as a warrior. You are God's daughter, the daughter of a king and a warrior princess for His Kingdom, created for good works for His great purpose. I know you might feel weak, weary, maybe even lost and broken, but you have to see yourself for who you are. So see yourself right now. Putting on the armor of God and preparing to march for with God as your army general. See yourself as strong, bold, powerful and equipped for battle. Why is this important? Well, because inhabiting the land and taking territory is hard. Just because you're a Christian doesn't mean the journey is going to be easy. It's not however, it means that you know who is in charge. And who's you are and that is where our victory lies. So back to my notes.
8:11
The first point is that the Israelites were ready when God told them to march there wasn't time to prepare, but they were just waiting for the word. We talked about this again in previous and it was episode 10. We've got to live ready and stay ready because we never know when an opportunity will come or God is going to promote us or move us forward. The second point is that when they crossed the Jordan, the ark went before them that represented the very presence of God. So that was actually their victory and miracle. It is always important to be in the presence of God. It is actually everything the only thing that matters on our journey, your success and your marriage as a mother and your business and your health and whatever you're pursuing in life. It will only come but by God. I'm talking about true success that is so if all you do is spend your days seeking and knowing your creator, you my friend, make no mistakes about it are a success. But the thing is that God has created each of us on purpose for a purpose. And His purpose is what we want to walk in for His glory. So he has not called us to do everything, but he has called all of us to do something and that's what we want to be pursuing in our life.
9:31
Again, go back to Episode 11 and check out more on that specific topic and idea there but the next thing to remember when you march forward is well to remember that Israelites set up stones, a monument to remember and honor God after they crossed over the Jordan into the promised land. Let me read this passage for you to hear from Joshua. It says "When all the people had crossed the Jordan, the Lord said to Joshua, "Now choose 12 men, one from each tribe, tell them take 12 stones from the very place where the priests are standing in the middle of the Jordan. Carry them out and pile them up at the place where you will camp tonight. We will use these stones to build a memorial. In the future your children will ask you, what do these stones mean? Then you can tell them they remind us that the Jordan River stopped flowing when the Ark of the Lord's covenant went across. These stones will stand as a memorial among the people of Israel forever.""
10:33
And then again, later on in that chapter. It's interesting. I think it's important when the Bible repeats itself it means that there is absolutely extra significance in that but it says again, "It was there at Gilgal that Joshua piled up the 12 stones taken from the Jordan River. Then Joshua said to the Israelites "In the future, your children will ask what do these stones mean? Then you can tell them this is where the Israelites crossed the Jordan on dry ground for the Lord your God dried up the river right before your eyes and He kept it dry until you were all across just as he did a red sea when he dried it up until all had crossed over. He did this so all the nations of the earth might know that the Lord's hand is powerful and so you might fear the Lord your God forever.""
11:24
I don't know about you but mom brain is a real thing. I'm not sure if it's mom brain or just a human brain. But as people we forget so quickly. That was one of the biggest things you saw and notice when the Israelites were wandering in the wilderness, it's like God would perform a miracle you provide you just something beautiful and supernatural and then immediately they will start grumbling and complaining as if they never experienced that. I'm a big list person so I gotta write everything down to remember. Now my husband on the other hand has literally I'm sorry he has like probably never been in the list in his life. He operates completely different than me. I don't know how he does it. But he does forget a lot more details. However, he does great things. He's phenomenal. He's successful. He's awesome. Maybe his brain is just sharper than mine because he hasn't birthed by babies. I don't know. But either way, for me personally and I think for a lot of people when you're dealing with a lot of details and moving parts, especially for you as you are managing a household and pursuing a business and whatever you're doing as moms we got to write things down so we can remember we can probably all agree on that.
12:28
So on our journey as a kingdom entrepreneur, it is so important that we remember remember the miracles, the breakthroughs, the revelations from God, we've got to acknowledge and celebrate the growth. Because when we're in battle, when we're in struggling when we're in a downtime when we're in a place of loss, or it seems like we've taken a step back, it's these memories it's these moments that we can fall back on as we're reminded to trust God's character. I love how at the end, I'm just gonna scroll back up here or at the end of the Bible verse it talked about, so you might know that the Lord's hand is powerful. And so that you might fear the Lord your God forever. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. I was just reading about that today's Goddess has asked freely for wisdom and he will give it fear of the Lord. That is really key. I'm going to let you chew on that with the Lord today but I just wanted to bring that up and reiterate that concept.
13:30
If God brought us through before he can do it again. And when you receive a victory from the Lord, don't forget to make a monument and alter a place of worship and remember what God has done. Maybe you don't have a lot of stories that you can think of how God has brought you through at this point. But this is where the stories in the Bible reveal to us the strength and power of the God that we serve. Always seek truth when there's doubt and the truth is the word of God on a practical level now, one of the best ways that we can remember and honestly one of the best habits that we can practice and teach our kids is to write gratitude daily. As I've studied other people on my self development journey, I've learned that this is something that almost every successful person seems to do, whether they believe in God or not. It is simply a success principle and something that keeps us as humans, grounded and rooted on our journey because remember, like it is hard, it is uphill. And we need to be strong and grounded and rooted in gratitude is an amazing way to control our attitude, our emotions, to just manage our state and to keep our focus on the good in our life. Gratitude is like building an altar to the Lord. It's a way that we can solidify the blessings in our life, to savor God's goodness and offer up our worship to the Lord as a fragrant offering. We can always run back to our gratitude when our emotions get the best of us and we're spiraling out of control. The purpose is for us to remember to etch on our hearts the truth of who God is, and what he has done in our lives, to bring ourselves raw and uncut stones and dedicate our life to God's plan to act in our hearts, the blessings, the miracles, so that we might not forget what God has done and we would continually consecrate our lives to God. That's the thing that God has been reminding of this week is this is a continual process.
15:21
When I first went to the book of Joshua, it was so clear it was like there's a significant transition. I'm crossing over in this area, and God was walking me step by step. And then it was kind of like, okay, I got to the other side. But then here I am. It's like, oh wait, we're gonna just this is continual. This is a constant refining process. And we want to be consecrating our lives to God along the way. In the Bible, the next point is that they consecrated themselves through circumcision. It's interesting how the Israelites they didn't circumcise themselves before they cross the Jordan. They were already in the Promised Land. And God pause them to prepare them more deeply. He commanded them to circumcise themselves at that point. And I wonder if he didn't ask them to circumcise themselves. After experiencing God's miracle, the miracle of how he parted the Jordan River and help them cross on dry ground, because he knew that circumcision would be painful, and their faith needed to be strong.
16:24
In Deuteronomy 36 It says,
"The Lord your God will circumcise your heart and the hearts of your descendants so you may love Him with all your heart and with all your soul and live."
16:36
That's the purpose of circumcision. That's what God his heart for us. That's what he wants to do in our heart and in our children's hearts. It also talks about in Romans how circumcision of the heart, it's by the Spirit. It's not for our praise from other people, but it's for God. God is going to circumcise our heart along the way. We are in a process and it may feel painful for a moment it actually probably will. But let God do what only He can do. He is after all, He is a gentle surgeon, we should continually ask him to cut away the hard spots in our heart. This heart work it's more about him and less about you. So just let him do it. I've been finding in my walk with God. So much it's more about receiving from him. It's less about us doing and it's more about us receiving because he's already done it. He's already paid the price he's already made the way he's already finished what he started. We're just in process. We just don't have all the answers yet. Our future is his past. It's already taken care of. We've just got to walk in faith and really trust him. So much is in the receiving and making space and allowing ourselves to be available to him.
17:51
I know for me personally, I invite God all the time to work in my heart while I sleep. I just need to rest and get myself out of the way I know during the day. I'm busy. I'm going I've got my list my agenda and there's no better time for him to work in my heart than when I'm just sleeping and like out of the way I want him to mold me and change my heart that better reflects his heart. So I challenge you before you go to bed at night, ask God to ask him to work in your heart while you sleep. AskHhim to do what only He could do. Ask Him to reveal the heart places in your heart and to circumcise your heart and to cut away the things that need to go and to burn away the things that need to go so that you'll be more beautiful and him and just to soften you. Maybe don't take the rawness that you feel in your heart as a bad thing, but as a holy thing as you offer it up to the Lord to heal. Maybe the very thing that hurts you is to consecrate you to set you apart for what is ahead. Be encouraged because you are a holy and a chosen generation.
18:51
1 Peter 2:9 says,
"For you are chosen people, you are royal priests a holy nation. God's very own possession. As a result you can show others the goodness of God for He called you out of darkness into His wonderful life."
19:07
This is our times mom to rise up and march in God's promises to walk in his ways like never before to seek His presence desperately to take back with me. I still wanted to embrace God's refining process that we might be marked for his great glory. God has more for you. I don't know where you're at. I don't know what you're going through. I don't know what your dreams your desires wrapped, but I can tell you confidently that God has more for you. So let him work even when it's hard and even when it hurts.
19:41
Another way that we can actively consecrate ourselves to God is through fasting. This is a powerful act of surrender to let God work and I highly encourage you to fast for the hard places in your heart for the hard people in your life to fast for the situations that seem impossible. I'll get around to talking more about this in a future podcast but I believe that this should be a part of our normal lifestyle as Christians. If Jesus fasted and said to us like "when you fast" not IF you fast but WHEN you fast. It tells us that this is to be expected. It's important part of your faith journey of our faith journey. For years now I fasted and incorporated intermittent fasting because I know how good it is for your health. I never really fasted for spiritual reasons until this year. In January, when I was weary and completely burnt out. I had set aside the month to unplug from all social media. I was going to rest relax restore just what I thought the doctor had ordered. some well deserved deeply needed me time. However, God called me to do a 21 day fast was a fast from food and he made it clear that it was actually His time. This was a spiritual fast completely. This is a time when he was going to consecrate me a new way. It was a sacred time. The definition of consecrate actually means to make holy or to dedicate for a higher purpose. Also remember that something consecrated is dedicated to God. That means it's sacred.
21:12
I pressed on in obedience and did my fast and it was really an experience. It was really challenging. So much of our journey is dying to ourselves so that we can allow God to be greater and us and there is no better way than when your flesh is super weak. Your Spirit can grow greater and God taught me a lot about surrender a lot about learning to rest in him during this time. Once I finished the fast I kept wanting to move ahead I was ready. I was like alright God I fasted in obedience. I'm ready to move forward but I was determined not to outpace God. Get I was anxious to get things going to the next thing the next thing that he had called me to and the next thing on my plate. The next thing that I knew was for sure hands down the right next step was this podcast, getting it together, getting it launched and all of that. So before I launched the podcast and everything my husband and I slipped away to the beach for a little just some quality time. I woke up one morning Tyler was on a walk and I was ready to write my first podcast episode, seemed like the perfect time. He was gone. I sat down at the table there's quiet, no kids around. It's peaceful. It's beautiful, I've got the doors open, I can hear the ocean everything's ready like everything's, the stage is set to sit down and write this fabulous first episode podcast. I was ready. So I sat down and I was like, Alright God. Alright, let's do this. And immediately I was filled with stress and anxiety. I sat there and I was so frustrated. I was I was like, "What is going on? Like, why God, why do I feel like this?" I'm just, I'm trying. I'm trying to get words on the page to figure out what to do. I'm overwhelmed. I just had no inspiration. And God was like, yeah, no, we're not going to do this right now. It's so frustrating like God, why? You know how precious time is as a mom when you have a golden opportunity like that. It's like you've got to seize the moment.
23:11
But later on, I took a walk on the beach and he revealed to me a little truth that was tucked away in Joshua, after the Israelites had consecrated themselves to God. So remember, they crossed the Jordan. They followed in obedience, they circumcised themselves that was how they consecrated themselves at that time. And the Bible says they rested until they were healed. Sometimes God's plan for you is actually to rest. Again, this is where you just got to ask him. You have got to ask Him and know His heart for you and walk in what success is defined by Him in your life in that season, not by what the world says not by what your head says not by what other people are doing but, but really define your success and get rooted in what God says about you and what He's calling you to. But I had to trust in His timing and to receive the fullness of His rest before I could move forward.
24:06
And sometimes we really just need to understand the lesson that he's trying to teach us before we're released to go. I feel like so many times it's like you're stuck and then once you get it, it's like okay, now I can immediately move forward. So don't be stubborn. let God work, trust His timing and know that he is consecrating you if you surrender your heart every step of the way.
24:30
And the last thing I want to mention today, I'll have to do a part two of this clearly because I'm not going to get to all of these points. But the last thing I want to mention is that we have to trust God's timing. When I was determined to write my first podcast, I was reminded that I cannot rush the Holy Spirit. I hope you guys know I come here sharing with so much humility. It is not easy to show up because it's not me just like oh, what am I going to talk about? Okay, this sounds good. Oh, this sounds fun. I'm just gonna make this sound fluffy. Like, like I can do that I can. I can perform like I can. I can do well trust me, but I don't want to come out of that place like I want to show up here. Authentic and vulnerable and obedient to God like I just want to be a vessel I want to be used by him. So I put a lot of thought and really prayer and surrender into these episodes. And because it's not about me, it's not about me, it's about me, God using me and using my voice for a purpose and I sure hope that in your life something that I speak something that he speaks through me will encourage you and uplift you and lift you up in your journey and ultimately just cause you to seek Him more and point you to him. But when we look at the journey of the Israelites crossing over to the promised land, they weren't in a rush. They were on God's schedule. They were in his timing you would think right, you would think that after how long it took them to get there. I mean, 40 years of wandering in the wilderness and all that happened in Egypt and getting free and crossing the Red Sea and I mean, just all that they went through crazy, crazy stories craziness. They would just get there. All ready. How many times are we like little children on a road trip? Like God?
26:09
Are we there yet? Are we there yet? Are we there yet? A God wants us to be patient and to trust His timing. So the Israelites, they even stopped, right so they crossed the Jordan. They're in the Promised Land. They're so close. They circumcised themselves and they even stopped to celebrate Passover. This time. It was cool because they were partaking of the grain of the land. This was the first time they didn't have manna to use for Passover but they were already experiencing the fruit of the land without ever even taking the land. I just thought that was so cool. And there's a lot of a God spoke to my heart a lot in that one little idea they're so close, but so far sometimes but his people were always remaining faithful and walking in obedience to the command of their general.
26:59
Everything is a process. And it doesn't mean that it always has to take long, but it does mean that we have to be prepared to be patient, whatever it takes. So as warriors in the Lord's army, let's seek to follow in the faith in the footsteps of the Israelites. We are God's chosen people to after all, let's commit to walk in obedience, no matter what, no matter how long it takes to get from here to there, or what comes in between. God wants us to cross over. He wants to do a new thing, continually. He wants us to move from glory to glory. Again and again. It won't be for our blessing but for His glory. And more than anything, we just have to know if we take eyes off of ourselves and put our eyes on Him. Our victory comes from the place of his presence. So fight for more of him more than you fight for your own game. More than you fight for your own goals or for your own progress, and you will have all that you need true success. Our purpose is not a thing. It is a person and his man is Jesus.
28:16
So Father God, I thank you that You are our success. You are our greatest goal, our greatest gain in this life and more than anything, more than the mom that's listening seeks to be a better wife or be a better mom or pursue that thing to make more money to accomplish those goals Lord, I pray that above all, that her greatest success in her life would be from seeking and knowing you God. That you would be first and that she would have confidence that everything else will flow out of that relationship. Every victory will come out of your presence and you're leading God. Lord, I pray that you would just equip her for battle that you would just rise up her faith and give her a vision to see her as you see her. Daughter of the Most High King, Princess warrior, strong and mighty, bold and confident, worthy because you are worthy God. Lord, I pray that you would just bless her today as she moves into new things and a new season as she presses on in faithfulness and obedience God that you would just cross her over into your promises that she would hold closely the dreams and desires that you've put in her heart Lord, and that she would just cross over in faith and confidence, Lord, that she would trust your timing and be patient and the process God that you would just consecrate her heart along the way that whatever growth needs to happen or needs to take place that we just trust you to do what only you can do. Lord, I pray that while she sleeps, you would work in her heart, Lord, that You would just give her the permission to rest, to rest in you and let you work. And just to take those moments to rest until she's healed Lord. I thank that you're always working and I pray that she would just recognize and embrace those raw places in her heart, the places that feel sore and tender and vulnerable. That she would just see them as opportunities to grow, opportunities to get closer to you Lord, opportunies for deeper healing and breakthough. And that she would just find joy in every situation, God. I pray that the oil of gladness would be upon her today God and that she would just march forward in confidence and rise up as the women, and the entrepreneur, and the mom You have called her to be, God. This is our time, this is our seaon, we are a generation that are called and chosen God and we ask you in humility to use us God, use us Jesus. We're here for it, God. Even if it hurts, even if it's hard, even if it doesn't make sense, God we are here for it. We love you and we are here for all of you God. We ask for more of you God. Fill us today. And I just pray a blessing over every mom listening today, in the name of Jesus. Amen.
Hey Mama real quick, before you run off and do all the things, if you found value in today's conversation it would mean the world to me if you left a review on my podcast. I know you know how precious time is. The biggest thing that you can give me for taking the time to share on this podcast is to leave a written review. This helps me on my mission to encourage and empower others who are pursuing their greatest potential from home.
Head over to iTunes and scroll down to the bottom of The Nourishing Mompreneur Podcast to rate and leave a super quick review to let me know what spoke to your heart. AND if you're feeling a little extra today, take a screenshot of today's episode and tag me on social. I value your time so much and appreciate you connecting with me. Find me at NourishingMichelle.com/connect
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