How do you discern God’s will for your life and then surrender it back to Him? In this episode, Emily Karc offers practical advice for seeking God's guidance, waiting on His timing, and trusting in His plan. Through her story, she emphasizes the importance of prayer and obedience and how surrendering our dreams to God can lead to a shift in our dreams that far exceeds what we could or would envision on our own.
265 || How God Answered One Woman’s Prayer to Use Her Creative Gifts || Carol Willis
What if the decision you’ve been putting off could open up possibilities for your life and your dream that you haven’t even considered? In this episode, you’ll learn about how a simple (even unspoken) prayer in faith can transform your circumstances, why we can let go of the idea of ever arriving at the finish line, and how to hold tension between the demands of young children in one season of motherhood and the gift of time you’ll receive once you release them into the world.
257 || How to Thrive in the Refining Fire of Bringing Your Dream into the Public Eye || Ainsley Britain
Have you been keeping your dream to yourself? Making your work public is an act of vulnerability. Writers, artists, and dreamers know what it feels like to share something beyond a small, trusted circle and afterwards experience a vulnerability hangover. In this episode, Ainsley Britain shares one painful but a necessary part of making your dream more public, how to work from overflow rather than exhaustion, and practical tips on planning your days to reach writing milestones even with a baby at home.
256 || Two Examples of How an Intern Can Expand Your Capacity and Grow Your Vision || Katie Bulmer & Christa Hutchins
Have you ever wondered about bringing on extra help but didn’t think you could afford it? Your dream is so big that you can’t do it all on your own, but you don’t have the budget to hire someone else. That doesn’t change the fact that your hours are limited and you’re spending more time on tasks that drain you rather than light you up. Today’s guests are sharing what they’ve learned about how to get started with an intern as well as some unexpected benefits they discovered along the way.
255 || Could Building the Right Team Be the Secret Sauce for Your Dream? || Lindsay May
What if your dream is already in the hearts of others? Have you ever considered that just because God gave you a dream that it doesn’t mean you were intended to fulfill it alone? Could there be others out there who have gifts and talents and experiences that you lack and who could be fantastic assets to your team and the fulfillment of your dream? Lindsay May is back to share why it was so important to build a team from the beginning and how she started with people who were right in front of her.
254 || Why Your Dream Could Be Ready to Launch Sooner Than You Think || Junia Judson
It can be difficult to know when and how to launch a dream because of limitations that seem impossible to overcome. Domestic violence survivor Junia Judson was overwhelmed when she began researching what it would take to build a company that would not only create a path toward financial freedom for herself but also for other survivors. Then she met someone who believed it was not only feasible but also could become a reality sooner than Junia ever imagined.
252 || Do You Need to Add More Playfulness to Your Dream or Your Parenting? || Joy Wendling
How do you Live out God’s Dream for Your Life Even When You Have Imposter Syndrome? I often encounter and encourage women who face imposter syndrome. They feel unqualified and inadequate to share the message God has given them to share with others. That’s why I’m excited for this conversation with Joy Wendling to bring to life ways we can trust God with what he has given to us to share, even when we feel unqualified.
251 || Finding Beauty in the Messy Middle of Pursuing a God-Shaped Dream || Christine Marie Bailey
How do you adapt when your dream isn’t quite what you planned? Fear and perfectionism are two of the biggest enemies when it comes to pursuing a God-shaped dream. Maybe you’d prefer to have it all figured out before you begin. Or you’ve stepped out in the past but then retreated when things didn't work like you thought they would. My guest Christine Bailey knows all about stepping into a dream that is not fully figured out and the courage that comes from taking simple steps of obedience.
249 || How to Go All in with Your Dream Right from the Start || Simone Ispahani
As a college student, Simone Ispahani learned the devastating truth about the millions of victims worldwide who suffer from human trafficking. With newfound perspective, she began to learn as much as she could about the issue, and in 2021, she founded Social Brew, a global e-commerce coffee marketplace devoted to fighting human trafficking through profits shared with organizations committed to the cause.
248 || How to Pursue a Dream That You Might Never See Finished || Angie Weszely
In June 2022, the nationwide conversation about abortion rose to the top after the U.S. Supreme Court decided the Dobbs v. Jackson case and overturned Roe v. Wade after decades of legalized abortion in the U.S. It was long before that, though, when today’s guest Angie Weszely began to understand how the politicized nature of the abortion discussion in the United States was doing more harm than good to everyone involved.
247 || How a Healthy Lifestyle Can Give You Capacity to Get Your Dream Moving || Robin Rhine McDonald
What can you do when you lack the energy and vitality to pursue your God-shaped dream? Oftentimes we find ourselves with to-do lists that far outweigh the hours we have in a day to complete those tasks. And somewhere in the mix, you realize you’ve lost sight of your health and how that impacts everything you do, including running after a God-shaped dream. But where do you start and how do you make healthy living sustainable?
244 || How to Invest in Your Spiritual Growth as the Foundation for Your Dream || Jen Evangelista
How do you discern God’s will for your life? I regularly speak to Christian women seeking to discern what God wants for their lives. They worry about hearing Him incorrectly, making a wrong decision about a direction to pursue, or lacking clarity in a vision for their purpose on earth. None of them wants to miss God’s plan for her life. That’s why I’m excited for this conversation with Bible teacher Jen Evangelista to shed light on what God has to say about His will for your life.
243 || How to Thrive Even While Feeling like a Foreigner in a Strange Land || Mabel Ninan
Mabel Ninan shares about realizing her identity as a spiritual immigrant and her dream to inspire believers to embrace their pilgrim journey and boldly pursue their heavenly calling. We talk about finding stability, permanence, and security when you’re feeling adrift in the world, knowing what you were made to do but having no idea where to begin, and how God meets you when you walk right out of your comfort zone.
241 || What Is Soul Care and How to Know If You Need It || Mindy Caliguire
In this episode Mindy shares about a dream that’s been on her heart for decades, the shape it’s taken over the years, and where she finds herself in it right now. We also talk about how soul care differs from self-care and why both are important, how to step into a dream in small ways rather than waiting for clarity on the whole thing before you begin, and specific soul care practices you can take with you and implement once this episode is through.
240 || Releasing Your Grip on What You Want Because God Has Something Better || Lindsay May
If you’ve wondered whether you’re on the right path, or how to hear God’s gentle whispers, or maybe you’re even sensing that he has something different for you, you will enjoy today’s guest, Lindsay May. Lindsay is a professional photographer turned print magazine founder as well as a fellow dream chaser who is learning to embrace the journey instead of trying to control her circumstances. She’s also bringing her best tips on how to get your writing published.
239 || [Solo] Dream Taking Too Long? Another Way to Think About Your Timeline || Merritt Onsa
If you feel discouraged about the pace of your dream and wonder if everyone else is years ahead of where you are, I’m going to shatter your idea of the perfect timeline today. We’ll talk about a clear example from Scripture of waiting faithfully for a dream and how to avoid the biggest mistake that keeps you from making progress. I’ll share examples of small steps of faithfulness you can take today and how to courageously face the scariest part of pursuing a dream.
238 || Practical Ways to Build Intimacy with God into Your Day || Angie Gibbons
You likely already know the Bible’s instruction about not living an anxious life, but if that’s your current reality, how do you change? My guest Angie Gibbons is all too familiar with the struggles of anxiety and depression. It took a painful loss to help her wake up to see the reality of her life and the impact it was having on her family, particularly her children. She’s here to share how the Lord took her from finding momentary breakthroughs from anxiety to making them a lifestyle.
237 || Do You Know About the Hidden Gift in Your God-Shaped Dream? || Gail Root
Has God called you to be bold and courageous in your dream? If you have a God-shaped dream, you may be experiencing opposition, fear, comparison, and imposter syndrome. But instead of seeing your dream as a mountain too high to climb, what if it became an invitation from the Lord to trust Him more? In this episode, we’re talking about your invitation to intimacy with God, the boldness He wants to bring into your business or industry, and what we miss when we don’t submit our plans to Him.
236 || How a Loving God Redeems Hurt and Brings Hope to His Daughters || Nicole Clark
Have you seen the thread of God’s hand on your life, even in your most difficult trials? Nicole Clark will tell you that she was so caught up in herself when the reality of her motherhood didn’t look the way she always dreamed it would. She will tell you that it became an obsession to fix the ache caused by her unmet desires. And she will tell you what God did instead of allowing her to stay there.
234 || 10 Simple but Creative Ideas for Launching a Dream on a Little Budget || Jenn Jett Barrett
Are you in need of creative ideas for launching your dream without spending a lot of money? My guest Jenn Jett Barrett is full of ideas about how to vet your dream to make the most of your efforts, how to start with a minimal budget, and why it’s important to understand what phase of the dream you’re in so that you aren’t over-reaching financially. She also offers an encouraging and biblical affirmation that God uses financially successful women to advance kingdom purposes.