Latest / The Bible Gal / Getting out of a rut

Transcript

Getting out of a rut · The Bible Gal

• 0:02
  SPEAKER_00: Welcome to the Baba Gow podcast, and I'm Miguel Amber.
• 0:06
  SPEAKER_00: I'm just a Proverbs 31 woman, empowering women to step into their on-the-fire for the Lord mentality.
• 0:11
  SPEAKER_00: I encourage us to live out our faith, to grow, and to believe in the calling that God has for us.
• 0:16
  SPEAKER_00: My vision is to help women break the chains of their past of inner struggles and fears to create new chapters that only our Father can write for us.
• 0:24
  SPEAKER_00: I'm on a mission and passion to empower you and all the women out there.
• 0:28
  SPEAKER_00: This is going to be your new favorite podcast for daily devotionals and Bible study chats.
• 0:34
  SPEAKER_01: Hey, welcome to episode 36.
• 0:37
  SPEAKER_01: Um, today we are talking about getting out of the rut.
• 0:40
  SPEAKER_01: Um, and so we're gonna be diving into some steps um for us to be able to use when we're just really feel like we're in a season of um being disconnected in our faith.
• 0:53
  SPEAKER_01: But before we get started, I would like to start us off in prayer.
• 0:57
  SPEAKER_01: Dear Heavenly Father, I just am so thankful for trusting me with this podcast.
• 1:03
  SPEAKER_01: I'm so thankful for every single listener, Father, and I just ask that you open our hearts, you open our minds, you fill us up with your Holy Spirit.
• 1:12
  SPEAKER_01: Father, I just pray over every listener that they have open ears and that they're ready to hear the word, and that you speak to them anew today, Father, that they have something to take away, something um to remember, to walk out for the rest of their day.
• 1:26
  SPEAKER_01: Um, you know, this one is uh not so much of a actual Bible study with a bunch of, you know, like scripture message, but this is really just more so kind of from girl to girl, you know, really what it's like, you know, as we all have seasons where we feel disconnected in our faith or, you know, disconnected in our mood.
• 1:55
  SPEAKER_01: Um, you know, overall what's going on in our lives, like how often do we go through seasons where it's just like, you know, I'm going through the motions, um, but I just I don't feel right.
• 2:07
  SPEAKER_01: I feel off.
• 2:08
  SPEAKER_01: Um, you know, we just sometimes we don't feel quite right, or we don't even notice like how we got here.
• 2:14
  SPEAKER_01: We just are sitting in bed one day and we're like, I'm tired and I don't know how I got to this, you know, stage of burnout, or you know, this stage of a rut.
• 2:24
  SPEAKER_01: And you know, maybe you've noticed over the past few days or the past few weeks or maybe even months that you've just been feeling distant and disconnected in your faith and you're not really sure like how to fix it, you just know you've got there.
• 2:36
  SPEAKER_01: Um, and so, you know, maybe you do devotions every day or um, you know, maybe you're still going to church, but you know, like those things haven't changed, but somehow, some way you're not really sure how or why, but suddenly you just feel like you're going through the motions and you don't feel it.
• 2:55
  SPEAKER_01: And I just want to say that first of all, you're not alone.
• 2:58
  SPEAKER_01: I have those moments quite frequently.
• 3:02
  SPEAKER_01: Um, I go through seasons like that too, and honestly, we're all human and we're all girls, and it's just in girl nature to overload ourselves with so much, and we get so busy, and we often get burnout, and it's really easy so in certain seasons when there is, you know, 17 things to do on the honeydo list that we are spending time with God, but it just becomes like autopilot, and you know, so and then we just feel distant from him, and it's really uh common, and I just want to say that you're not alone and that we do all go through that, we do all have those seasons.
• 3:41
  SPEAKER_01: Um, but it's really important that when we have these moments, we have these ruts, we need to recognize that we're in a r and and not just be like, Oh yeah, like I fell off with the Lord, right?
• 3:53
  SPEAKER_01: Like, no, but j acknowledging that like hey, I've been feeling distant lately, and creating a game plan on how you can get out of it and how you can fix that, and how you can get that fire back for the Lord and you know, turn off autobiolet and get back in the driver's seat.
• 4:10
  SPEAKER_01: Um This is honestly normally when I will fast.
• 4:15
  SPEAKER_01: This is usually my go-to thing.
• 4:17
  SPEAKER_01: I always fast when I'm feeling in a rut.
• 4:20
  SPEAKER_01: Usually during these ruts, I will kind of choose a fast um, you know, of a kind whether like for example, unhealthy food, maybe it's chocolate, maybe it's Twinkies, those are my emotional support snack.
• 4:38
  SPEAKER_01: Twinkies and Rice Krispie treats are my emotional support snack.
• 4:42
  SPEAKER_01: So maybe it's that, and maybe, you know, it's caffeine, maybe whatever it is, right?
• 4:49
  SPEAKER_01: Um, whatever that thing is that's taking away your time or taking away your energy out of your faith.
• 4:56
  SPEAKER_01: It could be like social media, you know, doom scrolling, maybe it's online shopping, maybe you've been really reading smut books, maybe you've just been really into your Britney Spears music, or maybe you've been just really into, you know, hanging out with these new friends, whatever whatever it is, right?
• 5:17
  SPEAKER_01: Whatever is furthering your rut.
• 5:19
  SPEAKER_01: I just encourage you to fast that thing.
• 5:22
  SPEAKER_01: Um so we're gonna get into 12 different steps that um help us create a game plan for um really getting ourselves out of this rut.
• 5:35
  SPEAKER_01: And I wanna first start by saying we can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.
• 5:43
  SPEAKER_01: And that verse is so easily miscommunicated.
• 5:49
  SPEAKER_01: And through Christ, I just want us to remember that.
• 5:52
  SPEAKER_01: Through Christ, we do it through him.
• 5:54
  SPEAKER_01: We don't do it because of him, we don't do it with you know, yes, we do it with him, but it's through him.
• 6:01
  SPEAKER_01: We have to do it through him, through his holy spirit, through his love.
• 6:07
  SPEAKER_01: Uh are we able to get out of this rent?
• 6:10
  SPEAKER_01: Um, so the first thing is I was kind of already talking about is choosing a fast.
• 6:17
  SPEAKER_01: Um, what are you fasting and for how long?
• 6:20
  SPEAKER_01: This is super important for you to think about.
• 6:22
  SPEAKER_01: Um, you know, whether you do three days, seven days, fourteen days, twenty-one days, forty days, whatever it may be, a month, um, however long you think is needed, and the more you fast, the more you will find your sweet number um and your sweet spot.
• 6:41
  SPEAKER_01: Now, obviously, it also depends on like what you're fasting.
• 6:43
  SPEAKER_01: Like, if you're going to do some crazy gung-ho, like full-on fast where you're not gonna have like food at all, and you're just gonna be on a liquid diet, you know, and you're just drinking liquids, and I would definitely not recommend doing something super long.
• 6:57
  SPEAKER_01: Um, you know, it depends.
• 6:59
  SPEAKER_01: It really is up to you.
• 7:00
  SPEAKER_01: I definitely would um challenge you to do something pretty challenging.
• 7:05
  SPEAKER_01: Don't just, you know, whip out and be like, oh, well, this is kind of hard.
• 7:08
  SPEAKER_01: This is doable.
• 7:09
  SPEAKER_01: I'm gonna do that.
• 7:11
  SPEAKER_01: No, push yourself to that next m-bar.
• 7:13
  SPEAKER_01: If you know you're like, oh well, you know, I am gonna fast this for seven days, you're like, that's that's it'll be hard, but that's doable, right?
• 7:22
  SPEAKER_01: Then I encourage you to do it for 10 days or 14 days and to stretch that out a little bit where you're like, wow, that's gonna be pretty hard.
• 7:29
  SPEAKER_01: Um just because when you get that desperate when you're fasting that thing, you really rely on the Lord and you really are um tested to rely on the Lord in a whole different light.
• 7:42
  SPEAKER_01: So that's the first one is choosing your fast.
• 7:45
  SPEAKER_01: What are you fasting and for how long?
• 7:47
  SPEAKER_01: Think about those things.
• 7:49
  SPEAKER_01: And then I want to say, you know, during your fast or maybe right before you start your fast, pick a devotional theme that is related to your current season.
• 8:00
  SPEAKER_01: Um, whether it's on the Bible app in your phone, whether you buy a book on a devotional book on Amazon, um maybe you go back and find old sermon notes and you you know go back in your notebook and you highlight or tab the pages that you know the sermons that you want to kind of focus on that week or that that time during your fast.
• 8:24
  SPEAKER_01: Um, but I definitely recommend doing a devotional wrapped around your season.
• 8:31
  SPEAKER_01: So, like for example, if you've been depressed lately, anxious, stressed, angry, bitter, maybe you're having a hard time forgiving, maybe you are acting out of character, you know, do one on for at a fruit of the spirit, um, or forgiveness, or you know, Ephesians dealing with anger and bitterness, or Matthew when it's talking, or Philippians when it's talking about anxiety and depression, right?
• 8:55
  SPEAKER_01: Like kind of whatever you're struggling with.
• 8:57
  SPEAKER_01: I definitely recommend you to get in the word and pick a devotion wrapped around what the word has to say about that.
• 9:07
  SPEAKER_01: Um, and run with that.
• 9:10
  SPEAKER_01: And every day during your fast, that's your devotion for the day.
• 9:15
  SPEAKER_01: Um, and then the third step is to up your devotional time.
• 9:19
  SPEAKER_01: So if you normally take 15 minutes out of your day, you know, to do a devotional, then challenge yourself to do two 15-minute devotionals, or maybe you just up it and say, I'm gonna do a 30-minute devotional.
• 9:32
  SPEAKER_01: Whatever you it right, it's there's no right or wrong answer, but whatever you um see fit for yourself, but up your devotional time.
• 9:40
  SPEAKER_01: Um I definitely recommend that the most personally for me, because my day is so busy.
• 9:49
  SPEAKER_01: I literally Monday through Friday I wake up at five o'clock in the morning and I'm not done doing what I need to do for the day until like between 8 30 and 10 o'clock at night.
• 10:00
  SPEAKER_01: Like I don't go to sleep until 10.30.
• 10:03
  SPEAKER_01: And then I'm getting up again at 5 o'clock in the morning to do it all over again.
• 10:07
  SPEAKER_01: Like, literally, the only time I have to sit is honestly at work.
• 10:11
  SPEAKER_01: At when I have a chance to sit at my desk at work is probably the only time I really sit.
• 10:18
  SPEAKER_01: Um, or when I'm eating dinner.
• 10:20
  SPEAKER_01: So for me, you know, when I'm upping my devotional time, I really do my devotional time early in the morning.
• 10:28
  SPEAKER_01: First thing when I do is when I wake up, I do my devotional time while I'm pumping and feeding the baby.
• 10:34
  SPEAKER_01: Um, and usually while she's feeding herself and I'm pumping, that's when I'll do my devotional time.
• 10:38
  SPEAKER_01: And this is just for me, this range is about 15-20 minutes.
• 10:42
  SPEAKER_01: Um, so when I am in this rut and I'm choosing my fast and I'm upping my time, then usually what I will do is I will break it up.
• 10:51
  SPEAKER_01: And so I'll up my overall time for the day, but I'll break it up into two sessions so that way I'm not stressing, rescheduling my entire day to allot that extra time that I didn't have.
• 11:03
  SPEAKER_01: So I'm like, okay, well, I'm gonna do my normal 15-20-minute devotional in the morning, and that's gonna be my picked devotional that's wrapped around my fast, and then I'm gonna do a separate devotional at night when I'm laying in bed at the end of the night or on my lunch break, or whenever I, you know, look at a time where it I can do it, and then I'll do another 15-minute, um, you know, 15 to 20 minute devotional, um, and then go from there.
• 11:34
  SPEAKER_01: So, yeah, whether you break it up or whether you just stretch out your one doesn't matter.
• 11:40
  SPEAKER_01: I just encourage you to up that time that you're spending with the Lord.
• 11:45
  SPEAKER_01: The fourth step is choosing prayer before your phone.
• 11:48
  SPEAKER_01: If I'm honest, this is super convicting me because I don't even do this every day.
• 11:53
  SPEAKER_01: I try to do it most days, but I'm not gonna hold you and say that I don't fail on this one sometimes.
• 12:00
  SPEAKER_01: But choosing prayer before your phone when you wake up in the morning before you even grab your phone to check social media, to text whoever in the morning, to look at your emails, whatever, sit up and pray and say good morning to the Lord before saying good morning to anyone else, even your husband or your kids or your mom or you know, whatever, immediately the Lord.
• 12:23
  SPEAKER_01: You sit up and you say good morning, even half a week, you good morning to the Lord, thank you for this breath.
• 12:28
  SPEAKER_01: You know, thank you for this day, thank you for these breath in my lungs.
• 12:31
  SPEAKER_01: And, you know, just it doesn't have to be a long prayer, but a gratitude prayer of saying, you know what, Lord, thank you so much for today, and just immediately choosing the Lord and in prayer over your phone, um, or over the bathroom.
• 12:44
  SPEAKER_01: Um, obviously don't pee yourself, but you know, when you wake up, you gotta go to the bathroom, sit up, you can take thirty seconds to say good morning to the Lord and to pray to him before you s get your day started.
• 12:56
  SPEAKER_01: Um, this really just helps you truthfully get the Lord in your mind and in your heart before the devil can, before the world can, before your your own brain can, before your woman brain starts getting that ball rolling of a thousand and one things that you've got to do today, you get the Lord in your brain, and you start with gratitude and you start with him before you even think about anything else.
• 13:20
  SPEAKER_01: And to me, that's a really, really big one.
• 13:23
  SPEAKER_01: Okay, so number five, um exercising having gratitude time.
• 13:30
  SPEAKER_01: So whether you add your gratitude in um you can do this in so many ways, so it's really completely up to you.
• 13:39
  SPEAKER_01: You could add in praying what you're thankful for.
• 13:44
  SPEAKER_01: You could set aside time to create a gratitude journal where you're writing down what you're thankful for.
• 13:50
  SPEAKER_01: Maybe it's an ongoing note in your phone that you're going back to every day and you know, re-looking at and re-declaring and re-adding to it.
• 13:59
  SPEAKER_01: Maybe you're just declaring the gratitude and declaring what you're thankful for with the Lord in your car on your way to work, and you're just speaking out loud and you're declaring it to the Lord, right?
• 14:08
  SPEAKER_01: There's so many different ways that you can do this, but and it doesn't have to be the same every day.
• 14:14
  SPEAKER_01: But I encourage you every day to start having a gratitude time, especially when you're in a rut.
• 14:19
  SPEAKER_01: This is really another another one that's that's really big, especially when you're having an off day.
• 14:25
  SPEAKER_01: I will say so many times when I'm grumpy or mad at something, the Lord will redirect me and be like, pray with me, give me some gratitude time, and that really changes everything.
• 14:41
  SPEAKER_01: Like, I'm gonna be f so real today.
• 14:44
  SPEAKER_01: When I picked my kid up from daycare, I was pretty mad at her daycare teacher for multiple reasons.
• 14:50
  SPEAKER_01: Truthfully, I need to have a conversation with that teacher, and that's neither here nor there.
• 14:54
  SPEAKER_01: And honestly, I'm just like trying to forgive her, and truthfully, if I'm being real honest and throwing myself under the bus right now, I am trying to forgive her, but there's still some unforgiveness flowing in my heart there.
• 15:06
  SPEAKER_01: Um, and I need to have a conversation and really forgive her.
• 15:10
  SPEAKER_01: Um, it's nothing major, uh, but it's just some minor things that are adding up.
• 15:15
  SPEAKER_01: And anyway, so I I get home and I'm like really just flustered and irritated, and I see that my husband beat me home.
• 15:23
  SPEAKER_01: And I didn't want to bring that attitude and energy and vibe into the the home.
• 15:30
  SPEAKER_01: He doesn't deserve that.
• 15:31
  SPEAKER_01: And so the Lord, like immediately was like, Amber, remember Proverbs 31.
• 15:37
  SPEAKER_01: I forget what verse it's like one of the first ones, where he's like, um, and he and he and he read that verse to me.
• 15:44
  SPEAKER_01: It came in my head.
• 15:46
  SPEAKER_01: She gives him good all the days of her life, not harm.
• 15:49
  SPEAKER_01: And I was like, you know what?
• 15:50
  SPEAKER_01: Yes.
• 15:52
  SPEAKER_01: She or no, she gives him good, not evil, all the days of her life, is actually what it says, depending on the translation.
• 15:57
  SPEAKER_01: Anyway.
• 15:58
  SPEAKER_01: Um, and he read that to me in my writing, and I was like, you know what?
• 16:01
  SPEAKER_01: You're right.
• 16:02
  SPEAKER_01: And so I stopped and I was like, I'm gonna pray for a minute, and as I started praying, the Lord was like, uh, re-center and remember what you're thankful for.
• 16:11
  SPEAKER_01: So I did.
• 16:12
  SPEAKER_01: I sat there for a few minutes and I just started thanking the Lord in prayer for all the things that I'm thankful for, and literally like the irritation just left my body.
• 16:22
  SPEAKER_01: So this is a super big one as well.
• 16:26
  SPEAKER_01: Number six, surround yourself in a faith-filled community.
• 16:29
  SPEAKER_01: This is so big for me personally when I'm in a rut, you know, because usually, let's be real here, when you're in a rut, you probably fell off with going to Bible study like you used to every week, or you know, chatting with your friends after church every Sunday, or right, like you fell off in that faith-filled community because you've just gotten busy and so you've kind of backslidden in um in that.
• 16:59
  SPEAKER_01: And so I say surround yourself in a faith-filled community.
• 17:03
  SPEAKER_01: Start going your to your Bible study at with you know every week, you know, what whenever whatever day that is.
• 17:08
  SPEAKER_01: If you don't have one, I encourage you to get in one.
• 17:11
  SPEAKER_01: Um, if you don't have one, I would mention, I would love to mention mine.
• 17:15
  SPEAKER_01: I have a Bible study every Wednesday night um at 7 15 p.m.
• 17:19
  SPEAKER_01: It is available, obviously.
• 17:21
  SPEAKER_01: And if you don't live around here, that is totally fine if you don't live in Delaware near me.
• 17:26
  SPEAKER_01: Um, but I have a Google Meet link, which is basically Zoom, but Google Meet is free.
• 17:32
  SPEAKER_01: Um it's a Google Meet link and it's in my link tree, which is also in my show notes below.
• 17:39
  SPEAKER_01: So if you are ever interested in hopping on, you want you're looking for you know a Bible study, but you don't really know where to go, you can always join mine um and see a familiar face in there.
• 17:50
  SPEAKER_01: Um, and you can always hop on.
• 17:52
  SPEAKER_01: I promise you, you won't be the only one.
• 17:53
  SPEAKER_01: Um other girls get on Google Meet too.
• 17:56
  SPEAKER_01: Um, so that's always an option for you there.
• 18:00
  SPEAKER_01: Um, getting together with a friend from church, you know, for a fun Bible study and doing like a coffee and Jesus date, and you know, maybe you guys go shopping afterwards, you know, asking your church where you can serve on Sundays, whether it's the welcome team, the tithing team, you know, sitting people down, kids church, wherever.
• 18:17
  SPEAKER_01: Um, just really surround yourself with a faith-filled community and look around at your friends and say, you know, do I have any friends of faith?
• 18:25
  SPEAKER_01: And if not, then what can I do to, you know, like let's pray about that and and start finding a community of people in faith.
• 18:32
  SPEAKER_01: That's a really big one to help you when you're in a rut because you're, you know, sometimes you do feel alone and you're not alone, but sometimes having somebody that you know that is by your side with you as a friend or family member to say, Hey, I'm here for you is a big difference.
• 18:50
  SPEAKER_01: Number seven is submerging in the word.
• 18:54
  SPEAKER_01: So while folding your laundry, play a sermon.
• 18:58
  SPEAKER_01: On your ride to work, listen to a podcast.
• 19:00
  SPEAKER_01: When wake up early before anyone else in the house, and just open your Bible with no time limit on how long you're gonna read or what you'll read, and just really let God lead your time together.
• 19:13
  SPEAKER_01: Um, this is probably one of my favorites, if I really had to be honest with you right now, like fasting, um, choosing prayer over my phone, having gratitude time, and submerging myself in the word so far have been like my major ones that are super big for me when I'm in a rut.
• 19:36
  SPEAKER_01: This is just super awesome.
• 19:37
  SPEAKER_01: Like I said earlier, so you know, when you up your devotional time and you break it up, often I will do this.
• 19:43
  SPEAKER_01: Um, if I can't figure out where to squeeze that second devotional time in that I was talking about earlier, then I will do this part.
• 19:50
  SPEAKER_01: I'll submerge in the word and I'll be like, okay, well, you know, I'm not gonna be able to fit in time to sit and read my Bible or sit and do another devotional.
• 20:01
  SPEAKER_01: So I will listen to a sermon while I'm doing the dishes, or listen to a sermon while I'm doing the laundry, or listen to a sermon um while I'm in the car on my way to work.
• 20:12
  SPEAKER_01: That is a big one um to just submerge myself in his word.
• 20:17
  SPEAKER_01: Number eight is worshiping.
• 20:18
  SPEAKER_01: I know we all worship, and I know, you know, that's an obvious one, but being extra with it, you know, playing worship music and praising the Lord.
• 20:29
  SPEAKER_01: This is super big for me, and I don't even do this when I'm in a right, I just do this when I'm in a bad mood or a stressful mood, or sometimes just all the time, honestly.
• 20:37
  SPEAKER_01: Um, my childhood pastor's wife, um, she's literally uh so amazing, and I love her so much, and she really got me to do this.
• 20:46
  SPEAKER_01: I can't went over her house one day, and she just had like worship music playing on in the kitchen, and I was like, I love this so much.
• 20:54
  SPEAKER_01: Um, so yeah, but while you're doing house chores, while you're doing the dishes, while you're feeding the baby, while you're doing the laundry, while you're giving your kid a bath, play worship music.
• 21:05
  SPEAKER_01: While you're driving to work, play worship music.
• 21:07
  SPEAKER_01: While you're giving while you're in your own shower, play worship music.
• 21:11
  SPEAKER_01: While you're working from home, play worship music.
• 21:15
  SPEAKER_01: While you're trying to focus on a quieter task.
• 21:18
  SPEAKER_01: Maybe you're, I don't know, like me, and you're on Canva and you're making a flyer for something you have coming up, or maybe you're answering emails, whatever it is.
• 21:30
  SPEAKER_01: You can also play instrumental worship music, must I add, or Christian lo-fi, must I add.
• 21:35
  SPEAKER_01: This is a super big thing, and it's pretty great.
• 21:38
  SPEAKER_01: Um, and it just really allows the Holy Spirit's presence to be with you, and you really invite him to just be with you in the moment in your everyday life, you know, and it's beautiful.
• 21:50
  SPEAKER_01: Another big one for me.
• 21:51
  SPEAKER_01: I feel like I say that to everyone.
• 21:53
  SPEAKER_01: Number nine, spreading the gospel, dude.
• 21:56
  SPEAKER_01: Even when you don't feel like it, okay, like you'll be so surprised how.
• 22:00
  SPEAKER_01: How often you choose to talk about Jesus to others when you don't feel like it and pouring into somebody that you've been praying for, even though you feel off, you do it anyway because I promise you, it is like instant out of your rut.
• 22:14
  SPEAKER_01: Like, no joke.
• 22:15
  SPEAKER_01: You're instantly, you know, out of that rut.
• 22:18
  SPEAKER_01: Like the Holy Spirit floods your insides, and I like to call this Jesus energy.
• 22:23
  SPEAKER_01: You immediately just feel like you've got done working out and you've had a large cup of coffee, like you just feel so wired, so excited, like you're just on this like Jesus high of energy, and immediately you go from being in a rut, being, you know, tired, you know, feeling like you're going through the motions, and then all of a sudden you, you know, you really spreading the gospel too.
• 22:44
  SPEAKER_01: Like, I you know, I love you guys so much, and and spreading and planting seeds is so important.
• 22:51
  SPEAKER_01: Yes, but when I mean spreading the gospel, like praying over somebody over the phone or really speaking the word, giving somebody like you know a message, or like you know, really speaking the gospel.
• 23:03
  SPEAKER_01: This will give you like serious, serious Jesus energy, and like I said, um, not like that's like a quick fix or anything, because it's totally not, and you know, you can do it, and then in a couple hours you'll feel like you're in a rut again.
• 23:18
  SPEAKER_01: But it is like such an instant, amazing opportunity.
• 23:22
  SPEAKER_01: Um, I will say, um, last week I was feeling in kind of a little mini rut where I was just feeling kind of blah for a few days, and I was like, I don't know why I feel so far away from the Lord.
• 23:33
  SPEAKER_01: It was just, you know, I'm a teacher, kids went back to school last week, there was a lot going on, and I was just going through the motions for a few days in survival mode, and I was on the phone with my dad, and the Lord definitely planned this whole thing out.
• 23:47
  SPEAKER_01: But long story short, my dad really needed that phone call, and um the Lord was really guiding that whole conversation, and so I prayed over him at the end and was really like kind of you know, being, you know, just helping him in his faith and and really giving him some faith advice and just kind of speaking the the gospel to him.
• 24:09
  SPEAKER_01: And when I was done, I was working out mind you.
• 24:11
  SPEAKER_01: I was at the gym in the morning.
• 24:12
  SPEAKER_01: When I was done, I went from like being so beat up on this treadmill, like I didn't think I could make it another minute, to where I was like running on the treadmill and I was like, oh my gosh, like I feel so great.
• 24:22
  SPEAKER_01: And honestly, I immediately like came out of my rut for like the rest of the day.
• 24:26
  SPEAKER_01: I was on fire for Jesus, and so that's super awesome.
• 24:30
  SPEAKER_01: Even when you don't feel like it and you feel like you're just going through the motions, be the light, love others, and continue to spread the gospel because it Yeah, Jesus is all I have for you.
• 24:47
  SPEAKER_01: Number 10, memorizing scripture.
• 24:50
  SPEAKER_01: Find a verse or two or three that relates to the problem that you're having or the rut that you're in.
• 24:57
  SPEAKER_01: Probably the same theme as your fasting devotional that you picked.
• 25:01
  SPEAKER_01: Pray it over yourself, declare it on your way to work, write it down, stick it to your laptop, stick it to your bathroom mirror, stick it to your oven vent, write it on your dry erase calendar.
• 25:14
  SPEAKER_01: Um, wherever, put it on a post-it note and put it on the cover of your Bible if that's what you gotta put it.
• 25:20
  SPEAKER_01: Put on your nightstand wherever you're going to see it and memorize it, put it there.
• 25:26
  SPEAKER_01: Memorize that word, instill it, engrave it into your canagon.
• 25:31
  SPEAKER_01: Okay.
• 25:33
  SPEAKER_01: Um, because this will help you when you're fighting the rut and you're doing all the things and you're fasting, and you're doing your fasting devotional, and you're upping your um devotional time, and you're listening to sermons, and you're spreading the gospel, and you've been listening to worship music, and you're trying, and sometimes you're like, I feel like I'm trying too hard.
• 25:57
  SPEAKER_01: Lord, I still don't feel it.
• 25:59
  SPEAKER_01: In those moments, you've gotta kind of like basically like rebuke the devil and be like, you've gotta fight that thought and be like, you know what?
• 26:07
  SPEAKER_01: No, the Lord says this, the Lord says that, and fight it with that scripture that you memorize in your brain and just get in there with the word.
• 26:17
  SPEAKER_01: Um, number 11 is upping your prayer life.
• 26:21
  SPEAKER_01: Um, this is a big one for me and for all of us.
• 26:27
  SPEAKER_01: If your prayers normally last about five minutes, and I don't mean every prayer, right?
• 26:32
  SPEAKER_01: But your your big prayer.
• 26:34
  SPEAKER_01: I feel like everybody has like a big prayer of the day.
• 26:36
  SPEAKER_01: Um, or if you don't, you should.
• 26:38
  SPEAKER_01: Um maybe it's five minutes.
• 26:41
  SPEAKER_01: Challenge yourself to up to ten.
• 26:42
  SPEAKER_01: Maybe if you pray for ten, up it to fifteen.
• 26:47
  SPEAKER_01: If you're asking how in the world do you pray for that long, Amber, think about your family, your friends, your coworkers, enemies, strangers, neighbors.
• 27:01
  SPEAKER_01: It's called a Francis list.
• 27:03
  SPEAKER_01: Fun fact.
• 27:04
  SPEAKER_01: Every day of the week, you'd pick a different category.
• 27:07
  SPEAKER_01: So F stands for friends, R stands for relatives, A, acquaintances, and neighbors, C, coworkers, E, enemies, s strangers.
• 27:16
  SPEAKER_01: And this you pick one day of the week, their seventh, and you pick a different category every week, or every day of the week, and you pray over them.
• 27:26
  SPEAKER_01: Heck, you could pray over all of them in one day.
• 27:28
  SPEAKER_01: Um think about how many people in your family don't know the Lord, or how many people in your family could use prayer because they do know the Lord, but they're going through a season.
• 27:39
  SPEAKER_01: How many friends do you have that don't know the Lord?
• 27:41
  SPEAKER_01: How many friends do you have that know the Lord that really could use some prayer?
• 27:46
  SPEAKER_01: Okay, go go through each category.
• 27:47
  SPEAKER_01: I guarantee you there should there's at least five people in each category that you can be praying for.
• 27:54
  SPEAKER_01: Um, you can be praying for your pastors, the people in your workplace.
• 27:58
  SPEAKER_01: You know, maybe for me, it's my students and my my co-teachers as teachers.
• 28:06
  SPEAKER_01: Um people maybe ask you for a prayer request.
• 28:09
  SPEAKER_01: Maybe there's somebody you know who's pregnant or has a sick kid or has health issues or their husband is in hospice.
• 28:17
  SPEAKER_01: There's so many situations that you can pray for.
• 28:22
  SPEAKER_01: Um, and so praying scripture over the people in your life, in your family.
• 28:28
  SPEAKER_01: I encourage you to listen to the last episode for details on how to effectively pray scripture.
• 28:34
  SPEAKER_01: I'm not gonna go back into that today, but pray scripture over yourself, pray scripture over your husband, over your family, over your friends.
• 28:42
  SPEAKER_01: There's so much that you could pray for.
• 28:46
  SPEAKER_01: Also, I just not thought of this.
• 28:48
  SPEAKER_01: It's not even in my notes.
• 28:49
  SPEAKER_01: I just see it, so I have to say it.
• 28:52
  SPEAKER_01: I have a prayer board, it's like a little, I don't know, looks looks like a little whiteboard, okay?
• 28:59
  SPEAKER_01: And it's on my wall, and I write down all the things that I want to pray for every day.
• 29:03
  SPEAKER_01: So that way, early in the morning, you know, I don't want to forget anything.
• 29:07
  SPEAKER_01: Sometimes I feel like I'm on a time crunch, and so sometimes it's just really helpful to be like, you know what, Amber?
• 29:13
  SPEAKER_01: No.
• 29:14
  SPEAKER_01: This is the list of things that you need to pray for every day, regardless.
• 29:17
  SPEAKER_01: Um, and so for me, I have my prayer of three, which is the top three people that I'm always praying for and trying to reach to the Lord right now.
• 29:26
  SPEAKER_01: Um, I have, you know, prayer requests.
• 29:30
  SPEAKER_01: I have all of the girls in my Bible study.
• 29:32
  SPEAKER_01: I have all of my all of you podcast listeners, I have all my pastors, I have people who are pregnant, I have all my church friends, I have the country, um, I have a uh Bible study that I like sit in.
• 29:46
  SPEAKER_01: So I have one that I actually like give, and then I have one that I sit in with people from church as well.
• 29:51
  SPEAKER_01: And so I pray for them.
• 29:54
  SPEAKER_01: I pray for I'm doing uh also fun fact, I'm I'm in a church class.
• 29:58
  SPEAKER_01: My church offers classes just for you basically to further your knowledge in the Lord and how to become a leader and a pastor and all that fun stuff.
• 30:06
  SPEAKER_01: And so I pray over the people who are in class with me.
• 30:10
  SPEAKER_01: Um I pray over my friends, my family, um, I pick, you know, out of my Francis list, my co-workers, enemies, strangers, neighbors, all of those things.
• 30:22
  SPEAKER_01: Um, and I pray over them every single day.
• 30:26
  SPEAKER_01: And I open my prayer journal and I pray scripture over my husband every day, over my kid, every day, over my prayer of three, every day.
• 30:34
  SPEAKER_01: Promise you, that adds up, okay?
• 30:36
  SPEAKER_01: I will say that in the morning, on average, my morning long prayer probably lasts about 10 minutes.
• 30:43
  SPEAKER_01: Um, but when you're feeling in a rut, up at 15, up it, you know, five, ten minutes.
• 30:49
  SPEAKER_01: Um and the last one here is real simple, guys.
• 30:54
  SPEAKER_01: Okay, this really should have been the first step here, but I figured I'd save the best for last.
• 31:00
  SPEAKER_01: Ask the Lord where there's a block.
• 31:03
  SPEAKER_01: So many times I'm talking to my sister, she's also in faith, and she is super great because I feel like we're pretty similar in where we are in our faith, and so we're like iron sharpens iron, and really that's exactly what me and my sister order each other.
• 31:21
  SPEAKER_01: And there's so many times that I've been like, you know, like I just don't know why I'm feeling like this, but I'm just really struggling with this, and I just really feel like I'm in a rut.
• 31:31
  SPEAKER_01: I don't know why.
• 31:32
  SPEAKER_01: I've been feeling distant and just going through the motions, and my sister so many times has like smacked me in the face, not literally, but she smacks me in the face and she's like, Amber, have you asked the Lord to reveal what's going on?
• 31:46
  SPEAKER_01: And I'm like, No.
• 31:47
  SPEAKER_01: She's like, Well, you should pray, and you should ask the Lord to remove your eye to open your eyes.
• 31:52
  SPEAKER_01: And I'm like, You're so right, Hannah.
• 31:54
  SPEAKER_01: So yeah, that's this is the most simple one of them all, and it's so one that we often overlook.
• 32:01
  SPEAKER_01: Ask the Lord where there's a block.
• 32:04
  SPEAKER_01: Sometimes we just have to straight up ask God.
• 32:07
  SPEAKER_01: Say, hey, what it what is it that is blocking me and keeping me from moving on and and moving closer to you in my faith.
• 32:18
  SPEAKER_01: Ask him to reveal what's in your heart.
• 32:20
  SPEAKER_01: You know, in Psalms 139, verses 23 and 24, it's a super famous verse.
• 32:25
  SPEAKER_01: I had to go find it because I couldn't remember exactly where it was.
• 32:28
  SPEAKER_01: I just knew it was in Psalms roughly I was I actually thought it was 129, and then I was uh corrected it's 139.
• 32:36
  SPEAKER_01: Um anyway, search me, oh God, and know my heart.
• 32:39
  SPEAKER_01: Test me, know my anxious thoughts, point out anything in me that offends you, and lead me along to the path of an everlasting life.
• 32:49
  SPEAKER_01: And pray that.
• 32:50
  SPEAKER_01: Ask the Lord.
• 32:52
  SPEAKER_01: Be patient, because he might not answer right away.
• 32:55
  SPEAKER_01: Um, but yeah, so I really want to wrap this up and you know, I want to say that you might be in a habit of doing a lot of these things or some of these things, half of these things, whatever.
• 33:07
  SPEAKER_01: But let's look at the areas that you can say, okay, you know what?
• 33:10
  SPEAKER_01: Out of these 12 things, I do five of them really good.
• 33:14
  SPEAKER_01: I do maybe eight of them really good.
• 33:17
  SPEAKER_01: But when I'm in a rut, let's say on a normal, good, like a normal day, okay, in your faith, you might do eight out of twelve things.
• 33:29
  SPEAKER_01: But when you're in a rut and you backslide a little bit, and maybe you do six out of the twelve things.
• 33:35
  SPEAKER_01: Okay, well, where are the other six things that you could say that you can have room for improvement or that you've never even thought of before?
• 33:42
  SPEAKER_01: That's a great idea.
• 33:44
  SPEAKER_01: Um, maybe the next time you're in a rut, you can say, you know what?
• 33:47
  SPEAKER_01: I'm gonna come back to the 12 steps and I'm gonna say, Am I doing all of them?
• 33:52
  SPEAKER_01: Am I fasting?
• 33:55
  SPEAKER_01: Am I picking a devotional wrapped around my rut?
• 33:59
  SPEAKER_01: Am I upping the time I spend with the Lord?
• 34:02
  SPEAKER_01: Am I choosing prayer over my phone?
• 34:04
  SPEAKER_01: Am I taking time to be thankful to the Lord?
• 34:06
  SPEAKER_01: Am I filling myself with a community of faith-filled people?
• 34:10
  SPEAKER_01: Am I submerging myself in hearing the word all day?
• 34:13
  SPEAKER_01: Am I pr am I worshiping the Lord extra?
• 34:16
  SPEAKER_01: Am I spreading the gospel?
• 34:17
  SPEAKER_01: Am I memorizing my scripture?
• 34:19
  SPEAKER_01: Am I praying over my family and my friends?
• 34:22
  SPEAKER_01: Did I ask the Lord what's going on?
• 34:26
  SPEAKER_01: I think you ask yourself those things.
• 34:29
  SPEAKER_01: Um because you don't have to stay in your breath.
• 34:36
  SPEAKER_01: You can get back to being on fire for the Lord.
• 34:39
  SPEAKER_01: You have to have patience and you have to keep praying and asking the Lord to remove that block and keep going, keep fighting that fight, keep wearing your armor in Christ.
• 34:51
  SPEAKER_01: And always, always remember, I know I already said this, but I really feel like I haven't stressed it enough.
• 34:58
  SPEAKER_01: Have patience with yourself.
• 35:01
  SPEAKER_01: The Lord is patient with us.
• 35:03
  SPEAKER_01: We need to be patient with ourselves.
• 35:06
  SPEAKER_01: We're human and we sin and we have to give ourselves grace sometimes because it's life and it's okay.
• 35:18
  SPEAKER_01: No, you know, to be in a rut.
• 35:20
  SPEAKER_01: We don't want to say it's okay and we don't want to get comfortable and sit there.
• 35:23
  SPEAKER_01: But you know what?
• 35:24
  SPEAKER_01: It happens.
• 35:24
  SPEAKER_01: And what's important is that we have roots deep in our faith, and that they don't waver, but that we continue to fight the fight, we continue to stay in God's word, we can continue to want to get closer to Him, continue to be on fire for Him, to continue to live for Him, to continue to die in our flesh to become more like Jesus.
• 35:49
  SPEAKER_01: That's what we can do.
• 35:52
  SPEAKER_01: So I want to close us out officially in prayer.
• 35:56
  SPEAKER_01: Um before I do, I just want to touch on one more thing.
• 36:00
  SPEAKER_01: Um, if you guys have any prayer requests, I really do encourage you to please in the link below.
• 36:06
  SPEAKER_01: You can click on the link to fill out a prayer request form.
• 36:10
  SPEAKER_01: You can shoot me an email, you can s in the show notes the link.
• 36:14
  SPEAKER_01: There's all the links.
• 36:15
  SPEAKER_01: You can sh send me a prayer request in an email through the form.
• 36:19
  SPEAKER_01: If you click on my social media, you can DM me and send me one there, literally however.
• 36:24
  SPEAKER_01: Um, I would love to pray for you.
• 36:26
  SPEAKER_01: And also, if you ever have any topic requests, if you ever I can't talk, if there's ever anything you want me to talk about, shoot me a message, send me an email.
• 36:38
  SPEAKER_01: Um, let me know what you would like to hear more of.
• 36:42
  SPEAKER_01: Alright, guys, I'm gonna pray us out.
• 36:44
  SPEAKER_01: Dear Heavenly Father, thank you so much for this word today.
• 36:47
  SPEAKER_01: Thank you so much just for being here with us in your presence.
• 36:50
  SPEAKER_01: And I just pray over every single listener, Father, whether they're in a rut or whether they're doing good in their faith, Father.
• 36:55
  SPEAKER_01: I just pray protection over them, and I just intercede on their behalf, and I rebuke the devil in the name of Jesus, Father, and I just lift them up to you, Father, and I just pray that you continue to walk with them.
• 37:06
  SPEAKER_01: I pray that there will be a light shine upon them.
• 37:08
  SPEAKER_01: I pray that you will be gracious to them, Father.
• 37:10
  SPEAKER_01: I pray that they will take refuge in the shadow of your wings, and I just pray that they will be protected wherever they go.
• 37:16
  SPEAKER_01: Um, and no matter where they are, Father, I just pray that they are on fire for you, Lord, and that you just continue to love them and to um give them grace and to love them.
• 37:25
  SPEAKER_01: I already said that.
• 37:27
  SPEAKER_01: Amen.
• 37:28
  SPEAKER_01: Okay.
• 37:29
  SPEAKER_01: Um, thank you so guys.
• 37:31
  SPEAKER_01: Oh my gosh, like what is happening?
• 37:33
  SPEAKER_01: Like, it's like somebody put marbles in my mouth and shook them up.
• 37:36
  SPEAKER_01: Anyway, I'm gonna try that one more time.
• 37:38
  SPEAKER_01: Thank you guys for listening.
• 37:39
  SPEAKER_01: See y'all next time.
• 37:41
  SPEAKER_01: Bye.
• 37:43
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you so much for listening to today's episode.
• 37:46
  SPEAKER_00: If you'd like to hear more, there are new episodes that drop every Monday and Thursday.
• 37:50
  SPEAKER_00: If you liked what you heard, please help your gal out by leaving a review.
• 37:54
  SPEAKER_00: You can also give using the link below.
• 37:56
  SPEAKER_00: I'd love to pray for you.
• 37:58
  SPEAKER_00: If you have any prayer requests, please send me an email to your BibleGal at gmail.com, which is also in the links below, along with all my other social media so you know where to find me.
• 38:09
  SPEAKER_00: And remember, sisters, walk only in faith this week.
• 38:12
  SPEAKER_00: God is with you every step of the way.