“Calling” can be such a huge, scary word.

What does that even mean?

What if I miss it?

How do I know what the Lord wants me to do?

This is exactly what Dawn helps people with.

When people aren’t clear on what their calling is…

They know what their calling is, but aren’t clear where to start or what to do next…

Or they’re walking in calling but starting to feel stuck or feel a roadblock or feel burnout…

She wants to help them figure out their next steps.

The goal?

Simple obedience to God.

In her own life, she has learned to have the attitude of, “Yes, Lord.”

To whatever He was asking.

Walking in simple obedience to Him.

One step at a time.

Listen in on our conversation to hear what this looks like.

Every time I’m around Rachel, I see her go out of her way to show people love.

As her business has grown…

As her reach has expanded…

As more people recognize her…

She still makes people feel loved.

It is such an encouragement to me to let the love of Christ dwell in me richly…

All. The. Time.

With every person.

In every interaction.

His love should be evident in the day-to-day.

Check out my conversation with Rachel.

We are all created with gifts and talents.

Whether we know the God or not.

Before meeting the Lord, 

Vibeke was using her gifts and talents to make a living.

She was passionate about it.

But without the Lord…

the joy was crushed.

There was loneliness…

There was jealousy…

There was competition…

But when she found God, the Lord called her back to her passion.

But this time it was different.

There was love…

There was peace…

And there was joy…

When she was doing it for a different purpose…

When she was doing it for the Lord…

She was freed from pressure and from performance.

It was no longer about her.

It was about the Lord.

And it was about others.

Listen in on Vibeke’s story of walking by faith with the Lord.

Walking along side of women who have undergone all sorts of abuse and violation, by all levels of society.

It’s a hard call.

It’s one you have to depend on the Lord Jesus Christ.

But it’s one where the Lord has allowed Joy to use what Satan meant for evil, to take her out from abuse and violation…

As a catalyst for His glory.

We don’t have to stay stuck in suffering.

Jesus on the cross has a solution for abuse and violation.

Healing is possible.

Restoration is possible.

The love of the Father changes everything.

Knowing His love…

Experiencing His love…

Changes everything.

Have you ever met someone,

And right away you know one of the ways God has gifted them…

Because immediately you see and feel the affects of His gifting through them?

That’s how it was with Kirbie.

I interviewed her for the conference, and we had a brief conversation after the interview was over…

And I felt SO encouraged by it.

Encouraged to love my kids well…

Encouraged to love and honor my husband…

Encouraged to pour into others…

Encouraged that the Lord has a plan for this season of my life…

Encouraged to seek Him and rest in His goodness.

It’s so fun to see His grace in action.

Working through others.

So I just want to remind you…

Each person you meet matters.

Each person you interact with is made in the image of God.

And YOU have the invitation to abide in God’s love…

To be so filled with the knowledge and reality of His love…

That it overflows to others.

What an incredible privilege.

I’m excited for you to be able to listen in on our conversation…

I know you will be encouraged by Kirbie’s story.

I met Tara at a conference last year, and I was struck by her love for other people.

She has 8 kids…

She homeschools…

She works to provide for her family…

She has helped her family navigate many trials…

And her focus is still on serving people.

Helping people who are in similar situations that she has been in.

Over and over, when a trial came her way,

Instead of shrinking back…

Instead of retreating with her family…

Instead of blaming circumstances…

She viewed it as a way to grow.

Even while being in the hospital for weeks…

With a son who almost died…

She was thinking of ways to help other parents with hospitalized kids.

She knew God had a plan for her trials.

And she knew she was being led to help others.

Listen in on Tara’s story.

“You need to share your story.”

God was speaking to McKenzie.

She felt the Lord leading to share her story, but she had no idea what that would look like.

No idea what He wanted.

But she still said yes.

“Okay Lord, I’ll do it.”

That week, she started sharing on social media…

She started writing a book…

Unsure of where it would lead, but know that she needed to obey the Lord.

A week later, she got a random message from a stranger…

“Would you be interested in sharing your story for an online conference I’m hosting?”

She said “yes” again.

And she was the first interview I did for the Created For Strength Conference.

Confirmation to her that she was moving forward in obedience to the Lord.

And confirmation to me that the Lord was the one in charge of who I should interview.

We scheduled the interview, and had a great hour-long conversation…

But it was full of issues…

Bad connections…

Bad audio…

Constant tech issues…

The interview couldn’t be used…

But that didn’t keep McKenzie from obeying.

She kept sharing her story.

Kept moving forward.

Kept walking in obedience.

Since my baby ended up being late, we were able to reschedule.

And I was blown away with the second interview.

Because of her continued obedience, she had WEEKS of practice sharing her story before our second interview.

And it was powerful.

A wonderful testimony not only of the Lord’s faithfulness in her life…

But of growth.

When the Lord calls you to something, 

You STILL need to grow into what He calls you to.

There will still be a journey…

A process…

Of BECOMING the person who can do the thing that God calls you to.

And I have loved being small part of McKenzie’s journey.

As she continues to walk by faith…

Taking steps of action when the Lord calls…

Even when the destination is unknown.

Nothing is wasted with God.

Regina and her husband started learning about counseling couples BEFORE they were married.

They used to sit together on a Friday night her parents’ house and go through packets on counseling, conflict, communication…

Little did they know that God would use that time of preparation.

Not just to strengthen their marriage.

But so that they could counsel other couples from a place of strength.

The little things you do.

The books you read…

The interests you have…

Your past experiences…

God wants to use all of it—

All of YOU—

In the community He’s placed you in.

I loved hearing Regina share about her 30-years of marriage, ministry, parenting…

And what it looked like for her to walk with the Lord through all of it.

And once again, the Lord is calling her to a shift for what that looks like in this season.

Don’t miss my conversation with Regina. 

Your gifts are not all about YOU.

Don’t downplay your gifts.

Don’t ignore them.

Don’t shrug them off as “nothing” or “no-big-deal.”

Your talents belong to God.

And He doesn’t want you to bury them.

You have a God-given responsibility to use your God-given gifts.

GOD has uniquely gifted you.

He wants you to grow your gift.

To develop it.

And to use it to impact others.

It’s not selfish to recognize how God has gifted you.

It’s not selfish to develop those gifts and become great at them.

God placed a gift inside of you, and He wants you to share it with others.

Don’t discount what God is able to do through you.

If you never know how to react when someone gives you a compliment…

If you feel like you have no idea what your gifts are…

You NEED to listen to my conversation with Emily.

God speaks to His people.

And sometimes, God speaks through another person’s words.

One of the turning points in Ashley’s life was when a pastor started speaking life into her.

In her words, “He saw things inside of me that were good, and he told me about them.”

And because of that, she started using her gifts…

Her words… 

Her life…

To impact others.

You matter.

You are seen.

Your life makes a difference.

And you can make a difference to other people.

The Lord can use you to build...

To encourage…

To strengthen...

To bring healing…

If you’ve ever felt unseen…

If you’ve ever like you didn’t know your purpose…

If you’ve ever felt like you are “side-lined” from serving because of your past…

You need to listen in on this conversation.