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How To Give God Your Full Attention In A Distracted World With Katie Westenberg · She Speaks Life - Christian Women, Strengthen Your Faith, Bible Study, Grow Spiritually In Christ

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Hey, welcome back to She Speaks Live News season and we are in
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OK, today I'm super excited to have with me Katie Westenberg.
2:00
She has a book called But then she remembered How to Give God
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your Full attention in a distracted world.
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This faith story is 1 we can all pretty much relate to as we have
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these distractions going on every day.
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Katie gives us some vital examples on how we can seize
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every moment and live out the mission that God has set before
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us. In this episode, Katie defines
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the distractions, teaches us how to prepare for the distractions
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and how to overcome the distractions so it doesn't have
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a hold on us. You guys, this is so good.
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So let's dive into my conversation right now with
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Katie Westenberg. Hey Katie, welcome to She Speaks
2:46
Life. I'm so glad you're here.
2:48
Thanks for having me, Jamie. Yeah, well, this message is all
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about distractions that we're going to be talking about.
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You wrote a book called, but then she remembered how to give
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God your full attention in a distracted world.
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And wow, I think many of us can relate to this and can't wait
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for us to dive into more. But before we begin all that, I
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love to begin with asking what's your favorite scripture verse
3:18
and why? I knew you were gonna ask me
3:20
this question. I've listened to previous
3:22
episodes and I feel like it's like picking which one of my
3:25
children is my favorite. It's the hardest thing to do.
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And my youngest son when he loves to play sports.
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And when we talk about like, what's your favorite sport?
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He always says the one I'm playing.
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And I think the same is true of me.
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And the word like, my favorite book is the one I'm in.
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So I don't necessarily have a favorite verse, but I have one
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that is just hitting home for me lately.
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And it's Galatians 5 verse 6. And it says, for in Christ
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Jesus, neither circumcision nor uncircumcision counts for
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anything but only faith. Working through love and those
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last few words have been the most challenging to me over this
3:59
summer as I've studied Galatians.
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What does it look like to have faith?
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That's working itself out through love because sometimes
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my faith wants to work itself out through control or it wants
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to work itself out through fear. I have three teenagers and and
4:12
another 11 year old in my home. And it's when you get to the age
4:16
of more independent parenting where they're starting to make
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decisions of their own and there's worldly ideologies that
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I find super concerning as they age.
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And. And So what does it look like to
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have that belief in God? That he is good, that he loves
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these kids more than I do, and to live that out, not in fear,
4:32
but to live that? That out in love.
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So that's been most challenging to me lately.
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So good. I love that.
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Yeah, I know. As soon as they start you know
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getting their wings a little bit and branching out especially,
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they start driving and and then it just continues on.
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They move out and you know we're making so you're just know that
4:54
you could trust in God that he holds them in the poem with his
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hand and you know praying that the foundation that we laid when
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they were here in the home, you know, carries on throughout.
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And and having that personal relationship is so crucial as
5:12
they they grow. And so I want to talk about
5:18
distractions. I think that's so relatable with
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our everyday life. We see it in other people, just
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simply maybe having conversations with other women
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and you may see them drifting off their eyes and you're just
5:34
like, wow, OK, distraction there.
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And so I would love for us to just dive in more with that.
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But I wanted to ask you, why this book, Why this message?
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Why is distractions? How is it so apparent in your
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life? Where have you seen?
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It's so? I don't know.
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A struggle, if you will. Yeah, it's the exact things
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you're saying, right? It's it's noticing when you're
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talking to someone and they're not fully there because their
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wrist is vibrating from their watch, It's getting a picture
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back. My youngest kid was at an event,
6:12
a church event, and I wasn't. I wasn't there and someone sent
6:15
me a picture back. And there were these six little
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1011 year olds lined up on a church Pew and in the background
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as I looked at their cute little smiling faces, there were
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probably eight or ten adults and every single one of them was had
6:27
bent down over a phone, right? Like unaware to what was.
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Going on and and you know that's not just to say that's
6:33
necessarily always a bad thing because phones are great tools
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that we get to use for all kinds of different things.
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Technology has benefited our life in so many ways.
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But when we start to look at those things that we don't
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really realize what we have given up.
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It starts to become a concern because those distractions are
6:48
closer than ever. And then at the same time, in my
6:50
own life, I told you, I'm parenting mostly teenagers right
6:54
now. And so not only do I have my own
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struggles with distractions, right, but now they are being
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observed in front of a bunch of other teens.
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So I'm trying to lead them as well.
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And and that was kind of the tension.
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If I'm going to lead these kids, well, if I'm going to teach them
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how to live in a world where distraction is rampant.
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And I don't believe distraction is necessarily a new thing, but.
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I do think it's closer to us than ever before.
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And and so how? How do I help them manage that
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well if I can't figure out how to manage that well in my own
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life first? That's really where the crux of
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the study came from. Yeah, I love that.
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I mean, I was just thinking the other day as I was preparing for
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your interview today, and I was thinking about my own
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distractions. And I I went into comparison a
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little bit with some of these women who have these young
7:47
littles and they're just pumping out books left and right.
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You know, and I'm going, wow, if they could have three small kids
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and write a book almost every other year or every year.
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I mean, where am I filling up my time, where I've got to have
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these distractions? And not to say they don't have
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their distractions but I'm just going I'm asking myself giving
8:16
myself a heart check where are the distractions in my life as
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to you know I've got grown kids like I've got more time than
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these other moms and I am. I'm feeling like my time is so
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limited still and so I'm I'm kind of making a list with
8:37
myself as to where am I wasting time.
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Where are those unnecessary distractions?
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And so I would love to ask you what, what do you think is the
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real cost, cost of living a distracted life?
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And what are we losing when we just become comfortable with it?
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Because, I mean, obviously I became comfortable with it until
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I started wanting more time and then I started to discover these
9:10
are some areas where I'm obviously being distracted and I
9:14
need to change that. So, So what, what can you share
9:18
with that? Yeah, a lot of times we notice
9:21
the the surface effects of distraction.
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We notice when we just have this like brain fog.
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We sometimes we call it mommy brain when our kids are young
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and then we call it COVID brain. And I don't know what we call it
9:31
as we get older, but right we just can't recall things as
9:34
quickly or we let things like fall from our brain and we can't
9:37
remember them. But really, what the book gets.
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Through the heart of is what happens.
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Does a distraction distracted mind lead to a distracted heart?
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What happens when those things are given?
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We're giving away our heart and our eyes to so many different
9:50
things that we can't recall what it is that we're actually
9:54
supposed to be living for. So when we make those decisions,
9:57
we make those trade-offs when we have limited time.
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We all do, right? But are we spending it on the
10:02
things that really matter? Are we wittly going to wait to
10:04
little things? One thing that the book kind of
10:06
followed is some of the science behind that, some of that
10:08
worldly wisdom that was actually kind of helpful in this.
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There's an article in the book that's highlighted and it's by a
10:15
woman from Forbes School of Business, and she's talking
10:18
about, well, actually I have it just here.
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She's talking about the distractions in our life and her
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quote is, but more often our productivity levels are impacted
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less by the distractions themselves.
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And more by the fact that we have simply not been clear about
10:32
we what we really want to focus our attention on.
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And I believe as believers, it's so much more of a high calling
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than it is even for the rest of the world, right?
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Because we are living for something different eternally.
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So what am I going to spend my days doing?
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Is it really the distractions that are problem?
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Is it really the technology? Is it really the social media?
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Or is it in my heart? I haven't decided how I really
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want to live, how I really want to spend my days, or what I'm
10:55
really doing here. Wow, that is good.
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Oh, you're speaking right to me. All right.
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In your book, you talk about the difference between interruption
11:05
and distraction, which I think is necessary to determine what's
11:10
the difference. And you also wrote in your book
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there's this relation between distraction and perfectionism.
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Can you expand a little bit more on that?
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Yeah, yeah. 1st on. Distraction and interruption,
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that's that's kind of a fun one to process on around because I
11:31
realized when I'm distracted, OK, when I pick up my phone to
11:34
do something that is wholly good, I'm going to look up a
11:37
recipe that I'm making for dinner tonight.
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That's usually where we start with using it for a good
11:41
purpose. And then next thing I know
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there's some notification that I'm following down some rabbit
11:46
trail. And next thing I know I'm
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looking at the cutest handbag that's on sale here.
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And I think I need it and 15 minutes is gone.
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And how did I even get here? Like, I was just trying to look
11:54
at the recipe, right? Because yeah.
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That the rabbit trails are so easy to follow.
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It's just teeny tiny seconds and we're in a whole different
12:01
place. And when I'm interrupted from my
12:04
distractions, I'm often annoyed, right?
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Like I'm doing something here, My kids are coming up and in, or
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I'm sending a text, right? Like I'm doing this and I'm
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annoyed by people interrupting me.
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Or actually, I'm annoyed. I'm annoyed when I'm interrupted
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when I'm distracted. I'm happy to go down that rabbit
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trail, right? I'm happy to.
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All of a sudden I'm shopping. I'm not even paying attention.
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But when I'm doing something like texting that e-mail or
12:25
whatever I need to. Be doing and a kid comes up and
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interrupts me. Now I'm kind of annoyed because
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I have something to do here. I'm doing this and you're
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interrupting me. So I weigh those things
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differently. And when we look at the life of
12:36
Christ, I started to wonder. Was he interrupted?
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Like, what was it like for him? Was he distracted?
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What did that look like? And we see so often throughout
12:44
the Gospels that he was interrupted constantly, right?
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He's going one place, he's going to go to the other side of the
12:50
sea, and people are running to meet him on the other side.
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Before he can even get there, right?
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He's going to heal Gyrus's daughter.
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And there's the woman with the issue of the blood, and she's
13:00
reaching out to him, and it interrupts him on the way.
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It's constantly people putting themselves in front of him.
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So these interruptions are nothing new.
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And he met almost. Every single person that met him
13:10
and interrupted him with compassion over and over again,
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we see that he met them with mercy and compassion.
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And here I am getting annoyed at the people that interrupt my
13:18
life, right? And then as whatever he was
13:20
starting to do, he goes about on his way, he deals with the
13:23
people in front of them. He sees that as an eternal job
13:26
he's supposed to do, right? This is the work you created me
13:29
for. This is my father's work.
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And then he goes about on his way.
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And so that was a big learning lesson for me to think, how can
13:34
I deal with those interruptions and say this, this is actually
13:37
part of what I'm supposed to do here, This kid that needs this,
13:39
this friend who's all of a sudden hurting.
13:41
And this is not what I had on my schedule for my day, but maybe
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this is what God had on my schedule for the day.
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So I really do view interruptions differently.
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That's so good. I know I look.
13:52
I think back of interruptions. And the times where I've halted
13:57
my reaction and then responded in a healthy way is because, you
14:06
know, I paused. I didn't just blurt out, you
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know, what is it now? You know, Like I stopped and
14:13
paused and that always works. And then you start to think how
14:18
to respond. You know, oh, yes, this is your
14:22
child, you know, or this is your husband and he needs something.
14:25
What you're doing can just wait. It's OK.
14:28
It's not the end of the world. So.
14:30
And how does the, you said something about perfectionism
14:34
being tied into how it relates to distraction.
14:38
Yeah. What do you mean by that?
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We can get on this whole track of keeping score right and get
14:44
really frustrated and and put on a whole sense of shame with our
14:48
distractions, right? I I think it's somewhere around.
14:50
60 to 70% of Americans will say that they're addicted to their
14:53
phone. So we know this problem's there
14:55
and then we get frustrated by it and then we're trying to keep
14:58
score or we go on these big social media fast, right?
15:02
There's all kinds of research that shows that when we
15:05
typically go on those fast, how we spend our time, if we're not
15:09
really committed to doing something different, then it's
15:12
just a whole bunch of other unhealthy ways.
15:14
So we're looking for this like perfect recipe as if God's up in
15:18
heaven keeping score like. Nope, that those were enough
15:21
hours on her phone, and that was too few hours on her phone.
15:24
But all along he's just after our hearts, right?
15:27
So we can throw ourselves into some kind of formula, some kind
15:30
of form of perfectionism, instead of just processing with
15:34
the Lord like he really is a father and a friend.
15:37
And so if you could teach me to walk by the Spirit here and and
15:41
that's exactly what you're saying in your two second pause,
15:43
that pause is everything, right? Because it's not allowing my
15:46
flesh to react and respond. It's saying God help me here,
15:49
like give two second pause to help me reorient my thoughts and
15:53
my emotions in this moment and see what you might have for me
15:55
to do. Yeah, so true.
15:58
And it does not help when we have our little thing that pops
16:03
up on a Sunday to tell us how much screen time we've been on
16:07
our phone all week. And I don't know about you, but
16:11
mine comes up on Sunday. Oh man.
16:13
It's like, OK, like and then I'm trying to like justify.
16:18
Well, I do work on my phone, blah, blah, you know, and Oh my
16:23
goodness. So you kind of have that also
16:26
that kind of you know nabs at you, OK.
16:29
You mentioned in your book about Paul and how you know he talked
16:34
about distractions and how there was distractions back then.
16:38
What does Paul say about distractions?
16:42
Paul was actually the the original Forbes School of
16:45
Business, right when she's saying pay attention to what you
16:47
want to pay attention to, right? That's what he does throughout
16:50
the scriptures. The Bible in general is pretty
16:52
repetitive, right? And and throughout Scripture we
16:55
see God calling us to remembrance.
16:57
And we see what happens when God's people remember and what
17:00
happens when they forget. So that that's really where the
17:02
title of the book comes in. I want to remember what I'm
17:05
really doing here. I want to remember what who God
17:08
is and what he created me for. So Paul is excellent at calling
17:12
people to remember us. He opens Philippians 3, saying
17:15
It is no trouble for me to remind you of these things and
17:18
it's safe for you. Which was it was so interesting
17:21
for me to read it's safe for us to remember to be reminded of
17:25
because we're really good forgetters.
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And that's what distractions do really.
17:28
They just take our eyes off the ball and we forget oh wait, this
17:30
is really what I want to be spending my time on.
17:33
So when I look at those screen time minutes I think that's this
17:36
isn't again got up there keeping score like yeah she was she was
17:39
two hours over what she should have been or whatever.
17:42
But it's a reminder like wow. Maybe I am spending my my head
17:45
and my heart and in places that I don't really want them to be.
17:48
So they can be a good guy, but they're not a.
17:50
A good governor, right? So Paul was really good at that.
17:53
Throughout. Scripture, he tells us
17:55
repeatedly, leads us back to truth.
17:57
These are the things we need to be reminded of.
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This is the gospel. It's not some.
18:01
It's not workspace righteousness.
18:03
It's what God did. But because of that, we're going
18:05
to live differently. So good.
18:07
I know when you just read through the Bible and the
18:11
Israelites and I'm going, oh, how can they forget?
18:15
How can they forget the God they serves?
18:18
And they had, you know, God right there.
18:21
And I was, you know, you, you. And then you start thinking, oh,
18:25
that's me, I forget, you know, God is faithful to me too, and
18:30
he was faithful to the Israelites.
18:32
And they they forgot also, and they needed to be reminded.
18:37
And we're just forgetful people. But we can try our best to
18:44
remember. And that's why your book is so
18:47
great, because you share the steps on how we can constantly
18:52
remember, OK, you talk about how we will go with urgency as an
18:59
immediate rather than the eternal.
19:02
What? What do you mean by that?
19:05
That's really just the orientation of our world right
19:07
now, right? Because with any of these media
19:10
apps, whether it's social media or news media or anything, we
19:14
have accent gratification. Yeah, we have access to
19:17
information like never before, and I don't think we stopped to
19:21
realize. Is that really a helpful thing?
19:24
Right. Is it is it really helpful to
19:26
know all the news across all the countries all the time?
19:31
Is it really helpful to know what my high school roommate
19:34
from 25 years ago, whatever what color she's painting her house
19:38
today right there. There's so much access to
19:41
information and it it makes us live in a sense of urgency that
19:45
we need to keep up or we're going to be missing out.
19:48
And and that takes my eyes off of of the eternal.
19:50
So that sense of urgency. That constantly updated
19:54
information that that technology has created really does tend to
19:58
take our eyes off of what's important.
20:01
Yeah, that's so good. And whenever that's going on
20:04
with me, I just feel overwhelmed.
20:06
I just feel like my mind's just going beep, beep, beep, you
20:09
know, and it's just going on overload and for what?
20:12
For what reason? Because I'm, you know what
20:15
you're saying? Distracted in what other people
20:19
are doing and or even just things I I'm reading but
20:23
everything is just so right there in front of you and it can
20:28
just be overwhelming and not you could tell and feel that we
20:34
weren't completely we weren't designed for all of that
20:38
information because it's. Something that's gonna give
20:40
away. Right, mental health studies
20:42
will show that we're not thriving here, right?
20:45
Right. Access to information is not
20:46
making us more brilliant, more intelligent, healthier people.
20:50
So we kind of need to follow the statistics and think, what can
20:52
we do differently? And as believers, it should look
20:54
a lot different. So true, you mentioned picking
20:59
every thought captive. And some of those things like
21:02
when we start to get distracted, how can we turn not thought make
21:08
obedient to Christ. But what do you explain in your
21:12
book on taking every thought captive?
21:16
You just said it. It's really bringing it into
21:18
obedience. I feel like we so often stop at
21:21
the taking thought captive. People talk about that all the
21:23
time. We need to take thoughts
21:24
captive. But the verse doesn't stop
21:26
there. Then we bring them into
21:28
obedience. Can I align them with what is
21:30
true? So all this news of this world
21:32
makes me anxious. I get anxious when I read about
21:35
AI. I get anxious when I look at
21:37
foreign policy. In Foreign Relations or
21:39
presidential candidates or whatever, right.
21:40
That starts to make us anxious. So I'm going to take that
21:43
thought captive, and what am I going to do with it?
21:45
Right. It's the truth of God's word
21:47
that I'm going to align it with. OK, So what am I believing to be
21:51
true about God in this situation?
21:54
What am I believing to be true about his character and his
21:57
nature and how he loves that? That's the work that we do it
22:00
from what we've put in previously, because we can't
22:02
remember, but we don't first know, right?
22:05
So we have to know the truth about God and his nature.
22:07
And his character throughout all of history to be able to take
22:10
those thoughts and actually do something productive with him.
22:13
So I feel this, but the truth is this is who God is.
22:16
This is who he was for the Israelites.
22:18
This is who he was last year. This is who he was through
22:21
COVID. Or we can even borrow faith
22:23
through the lives of others, right?
22:24
This is who he was for Cory 10 boom.
22:26
Or missionaries who endured horrific things.
22:29
That's why I love reading those stories because I need to know
22:32
who God is not. Not for today as much As for the
22:34
future. When I get in that rocky low
22:36
spot where like nothing. Thinking in and it feels like
22:39
I'm Job or what have you and it's all falling apart and feels
22:42
desperate. I need to remember the truth of
22:44
who God is, and that's how we bring those thoughts into
22:46
obedience. So good.
22:48
And that's just being committed to your daily quiet time of
22:53
reading God's word. That's how we feed ourselves.
22:56
What are some of the ways that we could commit to living in the
23:00
moment? Because I know that is super
23:03
important to live in the moment. I I have people that I know that
23:10
are constantly looking forward to the future a little too much.
23:15
And I think with the future there's uncertainty, right?
23:20
And I think that just causes this you know what ifs and
23:23
anxieties and it's OK to dream and and be excited about
23:29
something you are pursuing and wanting for your future.
23:34
But sometimes I think you get in this unhealthy place in life
23:39
when that's your focus and you're not focusing on what's in
23:46
front of you today. And the same thing can be in the
23:49
past. I I know several people who are
23:52
just constantly reflecting on the past of this.
23:55
Used to be like this and you know I would love to have that
23:59
back or I made a mistake and that they are dwelling on the
24:03
past too much and so that's making them stuck.
24:07
And they can't just live in the moment either.
24:10
So this is a really good topic to talk about.
24:15
It's a difficult one, too, right?
24:16
Because there's like a Cliff. We can fall off on either side
24:20
of this. And I I remember thinking about
24:21
that a lot when I was writing the book and really encouraging
24:24
women to be remembers. But that's a lot harder to do
24:28
when your past is incredibly difficult, right?
24:31
And all kinds of things have happened, maybe that you haven't
24:33
chosen. You know, your childhood was
24:35
traumatic. So to think I I don't really
24:37
want to remember. So in the book we talk about.
24:41
Asking God even to redeem those memories, because sometimes the
24:44
way we remember is taint that there's all kinds of research
24:48
that our memories are formed. In the recall, right.
24:52
So, so we we might have experienced something some way
24:55
and then we remember when we remember it, we are reforming
24:59
that memory at the same time. So sometimes that this is how
25:02
our memories kind of get off track from what actually happens
25:04
sometimes because it's actually the recall of the memory that
25:08
we're using, right. So, so actually going back with
25:10
help, sometimes it's a really talented Christian counselor
25:13
that we need to help us redeem those memories and see where was
25:17
God there? Where was he in that?
25:18
In that act of my childhood, but in.
25:21
All of those things, whether we're falling off the Cliff of
25:24
living fully into the future, which creates a lot of fear, or
25:27
into a horrible past which has its own fear and end problems,
25:31
right? We can ask the Holy Spirit to
25:34
help Orient us to this present moment.
25:36
And that's what I love in John 14.
25:37
This is when Jesus is talking to his disciples, he prepared, He's
25:40
preparing for his departure, right?
25:41
And he says it is better that I leave you and go and I'm giving
25:46
you the Holy Spirit, this Helper who's going to teach you all
25:50
things. And help you remember the things
25:53
I have taught to you. And so that remembering, I think
25:55
not only are you going to be my teacher here, you're going to be
25:58
the one who helps me remember. It's not that I have such an
26:00
amazing memory, right, That I'm so good at this.
26:03
That's not why I wrote the book, right?
26:04
Because I'm not. I still fail at remembering all
26:06
kinds of simple things all the time.
26:08
But in the big things, in the things that matter, in the
26:11
day-to-day, where I need, like God, I need you to Orient my
26:13
heart toward this moment. And that's where he's given us
26:17
this Holy Spirit Helper, where he says it's better that I gave
26:19
him to you because he's going to help you remember.
26:21
So it's never in our own might or our own power, but it's just
26:24
that willingness to invite the Holy Spirit.
26:26
And can I walk by the spirit and not by the flesh here?
26:30
I love that. OK, How can we prepare for
26:34
distractions? Because I know you talk about
26:37
that a little bit in your book, that there's ways we can prepare
26:41
for when they come, and they will come.
26:44
So how can we be on the defense there?
26:47
So like you talked about daily reading the word and and how
26:50
that often helps you reorient your mind in the day.
26:53
And. And there's a two-part benefit
26:55
to that because it's not only in that day but the next day or 10
26:59
days later when maybe tragedy hits your home or a diagnosis
27:03
just really sends you spinning, right?
27:05
Those are the times I find it the hardest to be in the world.
27:08
Because my mind is just spinning.
27:09
I could sit and read the same sentence like 10 times and
27:11
nothing is sinking in. So what I have in that moment is
27:15
the investment that I made previously.
27:17
That's what we see in the lives of, like, missionaries like Cory
27:20
10. Boom, right.
27:21
She was recalling scripture that she'd already hidden there.
27:23
So when you make that daily commitment, you're making an
27:26
investment for the future when it is harder.
27:30
So good. Yeah, I think back on things
27:33
that were traumatic. And yeah, you're right.
27:36
You remember those quiet times that when those scripture verses
27:41
took root and sunk in and they get reminded in your in your
27:46
mind, in your heart when you have those troubled times that's
27:50
so good. So let's talk about overcoming
27:53
distractions. And we talked about distraction
27:55
distractions. How can we overcome?
27:57
And you talked about how remembering and overcoming
28:02
destructions becomes the spiritual formation and how we
28:07
can see our time in God's perspective.
28:12
I think that's all so good. I know that's a big mouthful of
28:15
a question, but. It's a big challenge, right?
28:19
And I don't think the distractions are necessarily
28:23
going away, right? So it is orienting our heart and
28:27
our mind differently toward them.
28:28
At the same time, I don't think they're going away.
28:30
I think they were there in the past, too.
28:32
I like to think about, you know, in the 19, maybe 70s or 80s, we
28:36
could easily throw up that big newspaper, you know, to block
28:38
off the world around us and and sit and read all kinds of
28:41
crazies, all the obituaries that everyone loved to read back in
28:43
the day or the comics. Or the sports page or whatever
28:46
to block the world out and and give our minds a break and and
28:49
go all down all kinds of crazy lanes.
28:51
I think there's always been things.
28:53
I think the Israelites in the desert got distracted right and
28:56
tried to make something else when Moses wasn't coming down.
28:59
Like what else could we turn our hearts to and all of a sudden
29:01
they're worshipping a golden calf.
29:02
Right. So distractions aren't new.
29:05
But that battle to take control of our heart and mind and think
29:08
about what am I going to pay attention to?
29:11
How am I going to live for this and and that's where I think the
29:13
science of. Our design is so incredible
29:16
because we have these bodies down to a cellular level that
29:19
have memory like they they are designed to remember.
29:22
They're designed for our success.
29:23
And when we see that scripture is calling us to remembrance and
29:26
we see that our bodies are actually designed to do this,
29:29
he's created us for obedience here, right.
29:31
So I can be in the Word and stay in the Word.
29:34
I can I can memorize scripture and have that for later food.
29:38
And then we find through there's there's some interesting
29:40
research on how our memories are formed.
29:43
So there's the encode. When the information goes out
29:46
and then there is the recall when we take that information
29:49
and process and we usually think of that as just like testing our
29:52
knowledge but that is actually helping us form the memory.
29:54
So when I tell you what what verses I just read in John 14,
29:59
not only am I passing that information on, not only am I
30:02
like the redeemed of the Lord who is saying so, but I'm
30:05
further creating those memories in my own mind.
30:07
So, so just telling someone sharing the truth when you're in
30:10
the word for 10 minutes that day tells someone what you read
30:13
because not only are you passing on.
30:14
Truth, But you're solidifying it in your own heart and mind.
30:17
So it's a simple tip to thinking, hey, how can I get
30:19
this to stick? This is what I want to live.
30:21
This is what I'm investing the time to know.
30:24
Now can I put my brain to work to actually remember it so good.
30:28
And when we all know when we're trying to memorize scripture
30:31
verse, saying it out loud helps us memorize it, you know, 3-4,
30:36
seven times, whatever. But speaking it out helps us to
30:40
remember. And I love writing things down
30:42
too. So it's like the writing, the
30:45
saying, the reading, all three of those things really help me
30:51
remember. Why do you think our minds and
30:54
hearts can be so resistant to training new habits?
30:59
I think this is such a good question here that you have in
31:04
your book of, you know, how can we start new habits?
31:08
Why is there such this resistance?
31:11
And, you know, I'm trying to get back into working out and eating
31:16
better. And so that's creating a new
31:18
habit from getting out of it. And you know, the that doesn't.
31:23
If it was easy, I think we'd all be doing it.
31:25
But there's a little bit of that resistance, right?
31:28
Yeah. Yeah.
31:29
That resistance is real, right? Yeah.
31:32
And and that's part of the communal struggle because we all
31:35
have that and and I think that resistance causes us to employ
31:39
God's good gifts to get to work on it, right.
31:42
So if you have an accountability partner.
31:44
In your workouts, whether that's someone working out with you or
31:47
just someone you're going to tell, you know what, I need to
31:50
lose £10, right? That's not something we like to
31:52
say out loud. But if I'm vulnerable and admit
31:55
it, like God has given us community to work on stewardship
31:58
with and that's what working it out is, right?
31:59
I'm going to steward the body God gave me.
32:01
Not because it's easy. But because it's good, right,
32:04
Because this is good for my body and good for my family when I
32:07
can serve them well. So when we employ the good gifts
32:10
he's given us, that that's a great checkpoint to keep us
32:13
going. And it's the same thing when you
32:14
talk about memorizing scripture, whether you say it 20 times, I
32:17
mean it's probably whether you say it 420 times because it's
32:20
not easy. It is hard.
32:21
You know what? And I work hard at it and I find
32:23
sometimes why doesn't this get any easier?
32:26
But, you know, I was reading in Psalms where David says he, he's
32:29
meditates on the scripture day and night.
32:31
And I thought, you know, I don't know.
32:33
And I'm memorizing as much scripture as I would like to
32:35
because it takes a long time to get it in there.
32:38
But in the process am I meditating on His word day and
32:41
night? Right.
32:42
Am I saying it over and over? So like it's good work even in
32:46
the growing, even in the formation of the habit, even in
32:48
trusting the Lord Man. My spirit doesn't want to.
32:51
My flesh does not want to do this.
32:52
My flesh does not want to work out.
32:54
Can can you I commune you with you in this?
32:56
Can I trust your spirit to lead me to help give me self-control?
33:00
Right. That's the fruit of his spirit.
33:02
So, so often we kind of just missed it.
33:04
Looking at the goal, this is what I'm after.
33:06
But that process is really, really important.
33:09
So good, and I found recently memorizing scripture verse.
33:14
Sometimes pictures. Like if you're a visual learner
33:18
writing pictures of, you know what something you know reminds
33:24
you, you know, like Jesus being the sun, drawing an actual sun,
33:29
SUN, you know, there's typical ones, you know, cross drawing
33:33
across. But there's, you know, also
33:37
harder words where you're just like, OK, I'm just gonna come up
33:40
with some picture to go with this word, but it actually does
33:45
help. And I was teaching that to my
33:48
kids when they were a little bit younger.
33:51
And you know, of course they're just laughing at me because not
33:54
everybody learns that way. Like, OK, well it's working for
33:59
me, so I like it. What a great memory to create
34:03
with them, right? Like, they're learning that my
34:04
mom's going to be creative with this is she didn't do this
34:07
because it was easy. She did it because it was good.
34:10
So, I mean, there's 900 ways to go to do it the right way,
34:13
right? You can do that first letter of
34:15
every sense, whatever you can. Write it out you can.
34:18
I've seen people put, like, like, page protectors on and put
34:21
put it in their shower. Hey, if that's what what you
34:23
want to do in your shower. Absolutely.
34:25
There's 900 ways. To do it right, just just be
34:27
faithful about it. So good.
34:29
Yes. All right.
34:30
So we can go about having that social media fast or eliminate,
34:37
you know, one thing and it's temporary and it's short lived,
34:41
but how can we confront all distractions so that we will
34:46
have less of a hold on us? I think this was so good in your
34:52
book that you wrote. Yeah, we're going to start with
34:54
the ones that matter most, right?
34:56
So I can I can think of all the the topical ways my brain
34:59
frustrates me. It frustrates me when I mess up
35:01
my kids names. I hate that, right?
35:03
Like I have 4 kids, so I say the wrong name and all these little
35:06
surface things that frustrate me.
35:08
Right? Or you go through the line.
35:10
Yeah, I've gone through it like each kid or even my husband.
35:14
And I'm like, Oh my gosh, the last name was the right one.
35:20
I don't understand why that happens.
35:22
Right. Yeah, so, so.
35:23
But those are surface issues, right?
35:25
And and what I really want is a heart.
35:28
That is steadfast after God. So those are the things that are
35:31
that I'm going to start with when I talk about distractions
35:33
like those things I I can go to my deathbed missing out my kids
35:36
names you know, and and but if I was a woman who feared the Lord
35:40
and that's what makes all the difference so I'm going to start
35:42
there I'm going to start with the heart issues and and that is
35:46
a prayer that I believe God loves to answer like God can
35:49
you. Help my heart be steadfast after
35:52
you can you make me aware of the areas where I am prone to
35:56
distraction. And I think sometimes it's like
35:59
my kids are really little when I had like 3 year olds and they
36:01
can destroy a room like no other, right?
36:03
They can just take out every toy and every doll and the whole
36:07
floor is covered and you cannot tell a child to clean it up.
36:10
It's just like they're like I I don't even know, right?
36:13
I don't either. But I can say can you pick up
36:16
the Legos? But let's let's get this bin.
36:18
And we're just going to pick up the Legos, right?
36:20
And I think it's the same thing in our own lives.
36:21
There are 900 ways that we give way to distraction in our life.
36:25
It's not just the social media, it's all the other things online
36:28
and it's all the texting from all the sports things our kids
36:30
are in or what have you, right? But Lord, can you help me focus
36:33
on the ones that matter? And that is a prayer and a heart
36:36
that he loves to tend to. So good.
36:39
I love this message. I and I love ending with a take
36:43
away, so I'm sure you've got a great one for our listener to
36:47
ponder on or take action in and. This is just a question I love
36:53
to ask because I I know that when when things get intense,
36:57
when things get hard, that that I do lose sight of what really
37:01
matters. So not too many years ago when I
37:04
was writing my first book and that was about to come out and
37:06
that was new for me because mostly I I stay at home and I
37:09
educate my kids and that's been most of my work.
37:11
Work. And then this whole book world
37:13
was different. And there's this whole publicity
37:15
schedule and podcasts are supposed to do.
37:17
And it made me kind of anxious. And I'm not an anxious person
37:21
normally, but I just had this, like, ball of nerves in my
37:24
stomach. And I remember asking my friend,
37:26
is this, is this just what this is going to be like until this
37:28
book launches? Because there's all these things
37:30
on my schedule, but there's nothing I can do about them now,
37:32
right? So here we are.
37:33
And how am I going to be able to feed my family and get all this
37:35
stuff done or whatever? And.
37:38
And she said to me, Katie, I'm going to ask you one question.
37:41
What are you believing to be true about God right now?
37:44
And and that question leveled me because I'm.
37:47
I'm believing that he's not enough.
37:49
I'm believing like my lived out practical theology right now is
37:52
that he got me here and he's going to hang me out to dry.
37:54
But but he's not. And that's not what I believe at
37:56
all. But my emotions and my thoughts
37:58
are swirling there. So that really has become a
38:00
question that's an anchor. What am I believing to be true
38:03
about God right now. So I would just encourage your
38:05
listeners, but as they they feel the fear, they feel the
38:08
nervousness, they feel the anxiety, whatever about the
38:10
future or cour. And needs.
38:12
Or the upcoming school year, any of that.
38:14
Like what am I believing to be true about God right now?
38:17
And that is a call to remember. A call to remember how he has
38:20
loved him and faithful in the past, what we know to be true of
38:22
him throughout Scripture. And it's a trigger that helps
38:25
reorient our heart back to what is true.
38:29
Amen. That's beautiful.
38:30
So true. Okay, Where can everybody
38:33
connect with you and get your amazing book?
38:36
But then she remembered. Yeah, that book is available on
38:40
Amazon and Christian book all the book places.
38:43
And I have a website, katiewestenberg.com.
38:46
And then occasionally you'll find me on social media,
38:48
Instagram at Katiewestenberg. I love it.
38:51
Well, thank you, Katie for coming on here and sharing this
38:54
truth and wisdom. And I think we're all refreshed
38:59
on where we can get started on living a not as distraction of a
39:05
of a life that we have been previously living.
39:08
And so I just want to thank you so much for coming on here.
39:12
Yeah. Thank you for having me, Jamie.
39:13
You're doing really good work here.
39:15
Thank you. Thank you so much for listening
39:19
today. And I trust that God has
39:21
encouraged you through this story.
39:24
Did you know this podcast is on YouTube?
39:26
Hop on there and subscribe and you can see a live recording of
39:31
each episode. And For more information on this
39:34
ministry and to access free downloads, please visit my
39:38
website at jamieelizabeth.com. That's JAYME elizabeth.com.
39:45
And let's connect beyond this podcast by going to my Instagram
39:48
handle. Jamie Elizabeth.
39:50
She speaks live or Facebook. Until next time, my friend.
39:54
I hope God reveals himself through your own life story.