Latest / Your Hope-Filled Perspective with Dr. Michelle Bengtson podcast / How to Step Boldly into the Ministry God Created You For

Transcript

How to Step Boldly into the Ministry God Created You For · Your Hope-Filled Perspective with Dr. Michelle Bengtson podcast

• 0:02
  Speaker 1: Life Audio.
• 0:03
  Speaker 2: Have you ever felt a stirring in your heart that
• 0:08
  Speaker 2: God created you for something more? Yet maybe you weren't
• 0:11
  Speaker 2: sure how to take the next step. Many of us
• 0:14
  Speaker 2: wrestle with doubt, fear, or unbelief that our dreams are
• 0:18
  Speaker 2: too small or too big for God to use. My
• 0:21
  Speaker 2: guest today knows what it's like to start small but
• 0:25
  Speaker 2: dream big. In her new book, Start Little, Dream Big,
• 0:29
  Speaker 2: Grow the Ministry You Were Born to Build, my friend
• 0:33
  Speaker 2: Lynette shares how God takes ordinary obedience and multiplies it
• 0:38
  Speaker 2: into extraordinary kingdom impact. If you've ever longed to step
• 0:42
  Speaker 2: into your calling, this conversation will encourage you to move
• 0:45
  Speaker 2: forward with faith. Welcome back to your hope-filled perspective, where
• 0:49
  Speaker 2: it's always our goal to restore hope, renew minds, and
• 0:52
  Speaker 2: empower listeners to live in your God-given identity. I'm always
• 0:57
  Speaker 2: thrilled when you've chosen to spend a few minutes of
• 0:59
  Speaker 2: your week with us. Today, we're going to be talking
• 1:01
  Speaker 2: about how to step boldly into the ministry God created
• 1:05
  Speaker 2: you for. We'll dive into that right after this brief
• 1:08
  Speaker 2: word from our sponsor. Do you feel called to ministry
• 1:14
  Speaker 2: but struggle with where to begin? or how to grow
• 1:18
  Speaker 2: what God has already entrusted to you, you're not alone.
• 1:21
  Speaker 2: Many people sense a divine assignment, but then get stuck
• 1:25
  Speaker 2: somewhere between inspiration and action. My guest today, Lynette Rainville,
• 1:30
  Speaker 2: has walked this journey, and now she equips others to
• 1:34
  Speaker 2: do the same. Start little, dream big. Grow the ministry
• 1:37
  Speaker 2: you were born to build. practical and faith-filled guide for
• 1:41
  Speaker 2: anyone wanting to cultivate the ministry God's placed in their heart. Today,
• 1:45
  Speaker 2: we're going to unpack how to overcome obstacles, recognize God's voice,
• 1:49
  Speaker 2: and faithfully grow into the calling God has designed for you.
• 1:53
  Speaker 2: Matthew 13, 31 through 32 says, The kingdom of heaven
• 1:57
  Speaker 2: is like a mustard seed, which a man took and
• 2:00
  Speaker 2: planted in his field. Though it's the smallest of seeds,
• 2:03
  Speaker 2: yet when it grows, it's the largest of garden plants.
• 2:06
  Speaker 2: It becomes a tree so that the birds can come
• 2:09
  Speaker 2: and perch in its branches. I'm excited to hear about
• 2:13
  Speaker 2: the small mustard seeds that God has placed within you
• 2:17
  Speaker 2: and hope that today's episode encourages you that he can
• 2:20
  Speaker 2: grow something beyond your wildest imagination. I'm so honored to
• 2:24
  Speaker 2: welcome to you my friend Lynette Rainville. She's a warm-hearted,
• 2:28
  Speaker 2: down-to-earth speaker, mentor, and author best known for helping women
• 2:33
  Speaker 2: in her new book, Start Little and Dream Big. As
• 2:36
  Speaker 2: the founder of the ministry Daughters United, she equips women
• 2:40
  Speaker 2: to grow ministries, missions, and movements from the ground up
• 2:43
  Speaker 2: where they are. Through her books, training programs, and the
• 2:46
  Speaker 2: Daughters United community, Lynette mentors women across the globe. virtually
• 2:51
  Speaker 2: and in person. And each year she connects with thousands
• 2:54
  Speaker 2: through her online academy, interactive workshops, live virtual gatherings, and
• 2:59
  Speaker 2: in-person speaking events. I want to introduce you to my
• 3:03
  Speaker 2: dear friend, Lynette. Welcome to the program, Lynette.
• 3:06
  Speaker 1: Oh, Michelle, what a blessing. What an honor. And thank
• 3:10
  Speaker 1: you for having me and for helping me with this
• 3:13
  Speaker 1: mission to inspire, honestly, an army of Esther's because they
• 3:18
  Speaker 1: need a shot of encouragement. Hope what your podcast is
• 3:22
  Speaker 1: all about. And that's really what we're going to share today.
• 3:26
  Speaker 2: Frequently, our ministries, our books, our resources, frequently they're birthed
• 3:32
  Speaker 2: out of our own experiences or our own needs. So
• 3:35
  Speaker 2: what inspired you to write Start Little Dream Big?
• 3:39
  Speaker 1: Oh, my goodness. There's so, so much that I can
• 3:42
  Speaker 1: share on that. But basically, as God helped me to
• 3:46
  Speaker 1: take those steps of faith to grow this ministry, literally
• 3:49
  Speaker 1: from one bag of clothing to a multifaceted outreach that
• 3:53
  Speaker 1: reaches 50,000 needs a year. I was on the backside
• 3:58
  Speaker 1: of that desert, so to speak, for 20 years, standing
• 4:01
  Speaker 1: behind the counter, watching generation after generation come through that
• 4:06
  Speaker 1: was hopeless, that just had in their eyes, they just
• 4:10
  Speaker 1: needed something. And I knew that I could give them
• 4:13
  Speaker 1: what I had, but there was so much more that
• 4:15
  Speaker 1: they needed. And I said to myself one day, I
• 4:19
  Speaker 1: was really exhausted and exasperated by the mounting needs. And
• 4:24
  Speaker 1: I said, Lord, I can't meet all these needs. But
• 4:27
  Speaker 1: he says, I know, but give what you have and
• 4:31
  Speaker 1: you can multiply the movement. And I'm like, okay, Lord.
• 4:35
  Speaker 1: So what does that look like? So then I had
• 4:37
  Speaker 1: to take another journey step by step. And the Lord
• 4:41
  Speaker 1: really showed me by reaching out and encouraging you, the listener,
• 4:46
  Speaker 1: encouraging you with the mustard seed, with that dream in
• 4:49
  Speaker 1: your heart, you have something the world needs.
• 4:52
  Speaker 2: Step back for just a minute and just briefly tell us,
• 4:56
  Speaker 2: when did you first sense God calling you into ministry
• 4:59
  Speaker 2: and what did that look like?
• 5:01
  Speaker 1: Well, it was that day, the day that the Lord,
• 5:04
  Speaker 1: I love that you open with the mustard seed because
• 5:06
  Speaker 1: that is what I call it, my mustard seed moment.
• 5:09
  Speaker 1: When I was a young mom, newly out of the military,
• 5:13
  Speaker 1: I had a back injury and I was in this
• 5:16
  Speaker 1: thrift store trying to trade clothing. My skinny jeans is
• 5:20
  Speaker 1: what I call it. And I was denied. They said, no,
• 5:22
  Speaker 1: I'm sorry, that's not our policy. You can take your
• 5:24
  Speaker 1: donation out back. Oh, that day, Michelle, that day was
• 5:29
  Speaker 1: the day I said in my heart, I looked up
• 5:31
  Speaker 1: to the Lord and I said, Lord, someday, somehow let
• 5:35
  Speaker 1: me be the one to help women in my same situation.
• 5:39
  Speaker 1: And that's what happened. That day changed everything for me.
• 5:43
  Speaker 1: Instead of having a pity party and getting in the doldrums,
• 5:46
  Speaker 1: I just looked ahead and I said, Lord, you can
• 5:49
  Speaker 1: take this mess and turn it into my message. And
• 5:53
  Speaker 1: that is what happened. But it took diligence on the
• 5:57
  Speaker 1: part of God showing me, me being open to that
• 6:01
  Speaker 1: next thing that God was showing me. And that's really
• 6:03
  Speaker 1: how it happened. And that was that pivotal moment for me.
• 6:07
  Speaker 2: What were some of the biggest challenges you faced when
• 6:10
  Speaker 2: you were starting out?
• 6:11
  Speaker 1: The biggest thing, it was right here, right? Am I
• 6:15
  Speaker 1: good enough? Do I have enough? Who am I anyway?
• 6:18
  Speaker 1: All those things, I really address that in the book.
• 6:21
  Speaker 1: I call it the border bullies. They try to keep
• 6:24
  Speaker 1: you contained. And God wants to release all the barriers.
• 6:29
  Speaker 1: He wants to get what he's put on the inside
• 6:32
  Speaker 1: of you outside of you, right? So yeah, that was
• 6:35
  Speaker 1: a big thing. And just walking through those steps of faith,
• 6:41
  Speaker 1: of saying, Lord, what's the next step? And me being
• 6:45
  Speaker 1: obedient with that next yes.
• 6:47
  Speaker 2: We were at a conference and you had a rack
• 6:50
  Speaker 2: of clothes and you were encouraging people to bring in
• 6:54
  Speaker 2: an item or two and exchange it for an item
• 6:56
  Speaker 2: or two. But that's just like a mustard seed version
• 7:00
  Speaker 2: of what you do on a grander scale. Tell our
• 7:03
  Speaker 2: audience a little bit about that.
• 7:05
  Speaker 1: Yeah. So one thing about I call it closet swaps now.
• 7:10
  Speaker 1: We have in the center that we built from the
• 7:13
  Speaker 1: ground up there, when I was operating it, we had a,
• 7:17
  Speaker 1: every day someone could bring in a bag of clothes
• 7:20
  Speaker 1: and exchange it for other things that they needed. We
• 7:23
  Speaker 1: had a whole process. That spurred on a whole bunch
• 7:26
  Speaker 1: of other missions locally here that did the same thing.
• 7:30
  Speaker 1: They took our plan and they made a blueprint and
• 7:32
  Speaker 1: they followed it. And then the years went on and
• 7:35
  Speaker 1: I handed that ministry off so that I could do
• 7:37
  Speaker 1: what I'm doing today. We are encouraging others, whether it's
• 7:41
  Speaker 1: asking five friends into your living room to do a
• 7:44
  Speaker 1: closet swap. There's so much that can happen there. Three
• 7:47
  Speaker 1: things happen. You create community, right? And there's something that
• 7:53
  Speaker 1: happens around a table, whether it's around food or clothes
• 7:56
  Speaker 1: or whatever it is, There's these hard things that are met.
• 7:59
  Speaker 1: The second thing is that people are getting tangible needs.
• 8:02
  Speaker 1: They're one cleaning their closet out. They're getting things that
• 8:05
  Speaker 1: they might use. They're not using all of these things,
• 8:08
  Speaker 1: but they're using something else. Right. And then the third thing,
• 8:11
  Speaker 1: all the leftovers you get to bless a ministry with.
• 8:14
  Speaker 1: So so that's that's just that piece. And then if
• 8:18
  Speaker 1: you're building, you have this idea, you have this call
• 8:22
  Speaker 1: and you're like, well, I don't know the first step.
• 8:24
  Speaker 1: That's what we address in our academy and our community online,
• 8:28
  Speaker 1: because we know people are busy. They don't have time
• 8:30
  Speaker 1: to run here, run there. But that's the beauty of
• 8:34
  Speaker 1: the online space is you can plug in whenever you're available.
• 8:37
  Speaker 3: Yeah.
• 8:38
  Speaker 2: Share a moment when you felt like giving up and
• 8:41
  Speaker 2: how did God meet you in that place? Because I
• 8:44
  Speaker 2: think it is a battle largely of the mind. But
• 8:49
  Speaker 2: for many, it's also a battle because, like you mentioned,
• 8:53
  Speaker 2: they don't know where to start. They have this dream,
• 8:55
  Speaker 2: but they don't have the business background or they don't
• 8:57
  Speaker 2: have the ministry background. But then there's also the battle
• 9:01
  Speaker 2: in the midst of probably each new step. When we
• 9:05
  Speaker 2: all feel like giving up, we all give up. shrink
• 9:08
  Speaker 2: back and think small. We all wonder if it's making
• 9:11
  Speaker 2: a difference. So when did that happen to you and
• 9:14
  Speaker 2: how did God meet you?
• 9:15
  Speaker 1: I have a great story for that. So it was
• 9:18
  Speaker 1: in the height of 2008 when, if you remember those days,
• 9:22
  Speaker 1: it was the recession and gas prices were through the roof.
• 9:27
  Speaker 1: It was then that our food pantry, we were serving
• 9:30
  Speaker 1: about four to 500 a month. It And at the
• 9:37
  Speaker 1: same time, our funding sources dried up. So I didn't
• 9:42
  Speaker 1: have the staff. I had to wear so many of
• 9:46
  Speaker 1: the hats. And I remember being, it was a late night.
• 9:49
  Speaker 1: I was burning the midnight oil. I was doing our
• 9:51
  Speaker 1: book work at the end of the night. And I
• 9:53
  Speaker 1: remember I fell asleep on my desk. It was literally
• 9:56
  Speaker 1: one of those moments. I woke up. he ruled on
• 10:01
  Speaker 1: my everything, you know, the whole picture. And I was
• 10:03
  Speaker 1: just like, like, Lord, I can't do this one more day.
• 10:07
  Speaker 1: Like I can't. And he reminded me to go listen.
• 10:11
  Speaker 1: It was back in the day when we still had
• 10:13
  Speaker 1: the cassettes The message is when someone left us a
• 10:16
  Speaker 1: message on our phone.
• 10:17
  Speaker 3: So we had that in our office. So he goes,
• 10:20
  Speaker 3: go replay the message.
• 10:22
  Speaker 1: So earlier that year, we had our back to school
• 10:26
  Speaker 1: giving tree. And there was a family of eight kids.
• 10:29
  Speaker 1: And the mom had left us a message. And on
• 10:32
  Speaker 1: the message, she said, started crying on the message. She goes,
• 10:36
  Speaker 1: you don't even know. Cause we, when we adopt a family,
• 10:39
  Speaker 1: we adopt them for a whole outfit, shoes, backpack, everything.
• 10:44
  Speaker 1: And she goes, you don't know. Our kids have never
• 10:46
  Speaker 1: gotten new sneakers for school. And they, she started crying
• 10:50
  Speaker 1: on the, on the message. And in that, in that moment,
• 10:54
  Speaker 1: the Lord reminded me my why that it was making
• 10:57
  Speaker 1: a difference. And the love of Jesus, like, like, cause
• 11:01
  Speaker 1: there's a lot of do good outreaches there. But our
• 11:05
  Speaker 1: ministry was to share not just tangible needs, but the
• 11:09
  Speaker 1: love of Christ with these people and to pray for
• 11:12
  Speaker 1: them and to hear them and to love on them.
• 11:16
  Speaker 1: And that was my big, big moment that the Lord
• 11:19
  Speaker 1: met me.
• 11:20
  Speaker 2: What a difference it makes when God encourages a heart
• 11:24
  Speaker 2: by reminding us not just our why, but how he
• 11:28
  Speaker 2: helps us meet the needs that we have to bless
• 11:32
  Speaker 2: the needs of other people. Friends, we're going to take
• 11:34
  Speaker 2: a real short break for a brief word from our sponsor,
• 11:36
  Speaker 2: but stick with us because when we come back, I'm
• 11:38
  Speaker 2: going to ask Lynette to share more about how to
• 11:41
  Speaker 2: step boldly into your ministry that God has created you for.
• 11:45
  Speaker 2: We'll be right back. Lynette, what are some of the
• 11:52
  Speaker 2: myths or lies that hold people back from pursuing their calling?
• 11:57
  Speaker 1: There's so, so many of those. It's insecurity, inferiority, the background,
• 12:03
  Speaker 1: the people that you, the recording in our mind from
• 12:08
  Speaker 1: people who have said things or maybe the words we
• 12:11
  Speaker 1: tell ourselves, right? And sometimes we have this amazing gift.
• 12:16
  Speaker 1: And those are the people that I talk to all
• 12:19
  Speaker 1: the time and I help encourage them. It's like this
• 12:22
  Speaker 1: gift that you're holding wasn't just meant for you. It
• 12:26
  Speaker 1: was meant for the world. Like the Lord, the word
• 12:29
  Speaker 1: says that our gifts are to build up and equip
• 12:33
  Speaker 1: and to encourage the body of Christ, right? To encourage others.
• 12:37
  Speaker 1: So when we hold back and we stay small, It
• 12:41
  Speaker 1: could be this opposite of humility, right? We're thinking, oh,
• 12:44
  Speaker 1: I'm being humble when really we're being afraid. And God
• 12:49
  Speaker 1: wants you to step out boldly because it's not about you.
• 12:54
  Speaker 1: And that's, I think, the biggest takeaway here, Michelle, was
• 12:57
  Speaker 1: that we have to get out of our own way
• 12:59
  Speaker 1: and say, it's not about me. It's about God's plan.
• 13:03
  Speaker 1: It's about the mission. So when you.
• 13:05
  Speaker 3: Talk about whether it's singing or writing or starting.
• 13:09
  Speaker 1: An outreach program You don't need to worry about playing
• 13:12
  Speaker 1: small because we want to make the biggest impact for
• 13:16
  Speaker 1: the kingdom, right? So I think that's one way to
• 13:19
  Speaker 1: step out of our own way and to battle those
• 13:23
  Speaker 1: border bullies that attack us.
• 13:25
  Speaker 2: Help my audience understand, what do you think are some
• 13:29
  Speaker 2: of the first ways or the first steps someone should
• 13:33
  Speaker 2: take if they have this inkling or they feel called
• 13:37
  Speaker 2: to start a ministry?
• 13:38
  Speaker 1: So with that is Habakkuk. It says to write the vision,
• 13:43
  Speaker 1: run with it, that even though the vision may tarry,
• 13:46
  Speaker 1: don't worry, it will surely come to pass. That's in
• 13:50
  Speaker 1: the New Living Translation, I believe. So write the vision.
• 13:53
  Speaker 1: So I start with, because I think a lot of people,
• 13:57
  Speaker 1: what happens is it's like this big random process. creative
• 14:00
  Speaker 1: cloud around them and they're getting all these porn ideas.
• 14:03
  Speaker 1: It's like, that is great. Put it on paper. It
• 14:06
  Speaker 1: could look like a mess on paper. So that's the
• 14:08
  Speaker 1: very first step is to just write down all those
• 14:11
  Speaker 1: popcorn ideas on scattered piece of paper. It doesn't matter.
• 14:16
  Speaker 1: We call it a mind map. Just dump it, do
• 14:19
  Speaker 1: the brain dump. And then from there, you take that paper.
• 14:22
  Speaker 1: Now you Try to make sense of it. You can do,
• 14:26
  Speaker 1: if you're like me, I love creative, get it the
• 14:28
  Speaker 1: same color and circle the things that are similar in
• 14:33
  Speaker 1: that same color. Then you could write those down in
• 14:36
  Speaker 1: an itemized list. And from there, then you can do
• 14:41
  Speaker 1: a plan. I actually have something called Write the Vision
• 14:43
  Speaker 1: and Run. It's a template to use so that you
• 14:46
  Speaker 1: could really organize your thoughts and what's the first step,
• 14:50
  Speaker 1: what's second step, what's third step. So that's the first thing, Michelle,
• 14:54
  Speaker 1: is just to get it on paper, write the vision
• 14:58
  Speaker 1: so that a herald could run with it. Because if
• 15:00
  Speaker 1: you don't write it down, that's when it really starts
• 15:03
  Speaker 1: to become real to you when you start writing it down.
• 15:06
  Speaker 2: I know that your book is called Start Little, Dream Big,
• 15:10
  Speaker 2: but how do you balance dreaming big with being faithful
• 15:15
  Speaker 2: in the small beginnings?
• 15:16
  Speaker 1: Mm-hmm. That's a really good question. So you have the destination.
• 15:20
  Speaker 1: I call it your LZ or your landing zone. I
• 15:24
  Speaker 1: was in the military, so I use some military terms.
• 15:26
  Speaker 1: That big dream that you have, that's your landing zone.
• 15:30
  Speaker 1: That's your goal, right? And there's a lot of steps
• 15:34
  Speaker 1: that you need to take along the way. And I
• 15:36
  Speaker 1: wouldn't say, honestly, don't wait till you get to your
• 15:41
  Speaker 1: destination to be fulfilled. Mm-hmm. You need to be fulfilled
• 15:46
  Speaker 1: in each step of the journey, each season, like when
• 15:49
  Speaker 1: we have kids, right? It's like, oh, I'll be happy
• 15:51
  Speaker 1: when they could walk or I could be happy when
• 15:53
  Speaker 1: they can talk or when they can go to kindergarten
• 15:56
  Speaker 1: or like, no, you want to embrace every season that
• 16:01
  Speaker 1: you have with your child. It's the same with a ministry.
• 16:04
  Speaker 1: you grow and it's just like a baby. Honestly, when
• 16:07
  Speaker 1: it's very new, you have to attend to it right.
• 16:10
  Speaker 1: Like all the time, 24 seven, you got to change
• 16:13
  Speaker 1: its messy diapers. You've got to feed it. You've got
• 16:15
  Speaker 1: to nurture it. And, and just knowing, you know, being
• 16:18
  Speaker 1: faithful on those steps and knowing yet there will be,
• 16:21
  Speaker 1: there will come a day when you're going to send
• 16:23
  Speaker 1: it off to college, but right now you're going to
• 16:26
  Speaker 1: celebrate those moments and those little wins on the way
• 16:30
  Speaker 1: to the bigger win.
• 16:31
  Speaker 2: I love that because it is a series of stages.
• 16:35
  Speaker 2: But I appreciate that you say it's not the destination
• 16:38
  Speaker 2: that we celebrate, but it's enjoying the process and appreciating
• 16:43
  Speaker 2: what God is doing in the midst of it while
• 16:46
  Speaker 2: he's growing and maturing it. Particularly, I don't know if
• 16:50
  Speaker 2: male leaders struggle with this. as much, but I feel
• 16:54
  Speaker 2: compelled to ask, how do you guard against comparison with
• 16:58
  Speaker 2: other ministry or other leaders? Because it's so easy to
• 17:03
  Speaker 2: look at others, their highlight reels, their social media presence,
• 17:08
  Speaker 2: and to think, God, why aren't you growing my ministry
• 17:11
  Speaker 2: the way you've grown them? Lord, how come you haven't
• 17:13
  Speaker 2: given me favor like you've given someone else favor? How
• 17:16
  Speaker 2: do you deal with that?
• 17:17
  Speaker 1: Mm-hmm. I love that question, Michelle. In our community, we
• 17:22
  Speaker 1: have several mentors and some of them are in different
• 17:27
  Speaker 1: lanes and some are in the same lane. Let's say
• 17:30
  Speaker 1: we have like three or four health coaches, but everyone
• 17:35
  Speaker 1: is different. There's no need to compare because God has
• 17:39
  Speaker 1: assigned someone to you because there's only one, even though
• 17:44
  Speaker 1: you have a similar message or a similar lane, you
• 17:48
  Speaker 1: show up on the stage, right? You show up in
• 17:52
  Speaker 1: that place, your unique self. And those are the people
• 17:56
  Speaker 1: who are going to connect to you. And also think
• 17:59
  Speaker 1: of it, I'm also a worship leader and I never
• 18:03
  Speaker 1: was comfortable on the big stage. I'm not a performer.
• 18:06
  Speaker 1: I am an intimate Davidic worshiper. And that's kind of
• 18:11
  Speaker 1: like my, so again, even in something like a worship leader,
• 18:15
  Speaker 1: Some of us are called to go on tour for
• 18:18
  Speaker 1: 300 days of the year. That's not me. God bless
• 18:22
  Speaker 1: Carrie Jobe and all the other beautiful singers out there.
• 18:25
  Speaker 1: And I don't even think that was a season when
• 18:28
  Speaker 1: she was on stage a lot. But listen... We cannot
• 18:31
  Speaker 1: compare because God has an avenue, whether you're a big ministry,
• 18:35
  Speaker 1: small ministry, big mega church, small church, it all matters
• 18:39
  Speaker 1: in the kingdom. That's our assignment. And I think you
• 18:42
  Speaker 1: opened up with the tapestry today, Michelle, that we are
• 18:45
  Speaker 1: all threads in God's tapestry. And some of us are
• 18:49
  Speaker 1: big and bold, and some of us are more of
• 18:52
  Speaker 1: the background color tapestry. And it all is necessary to
• 18:56
  Speaker 1: do God's plan. So just know whether big or small,
• 19:01
  Speaker 1: the one, like I show up, I have so many
• 19:03
  Speaker 1: times I've had to show up with a handful of
• 19:05
  Speaker 1: people there, right? And I gave my best, whether there
• 19:11
  Speaker 1: was 100 or whether there was five people in the room,
• 19:14
  Speaker 1: because The message is still going to matter to that
• 19:17
  Speaker 1: one person. So never neglect the call on your life
• 19:22
  Speaker 1: and you never know the impact it's going to make.
• 19:24
  Speaker 1: And that will obliterate any comparison. I call it the
• 19:28
  Speaker 1: comparison trap.
• 19:29
  Speaker 2: And it shows up in so many different aspects of
• 19:32
  Speaker 2: our lives. And I have to remember as an author
• 19:35
  Speaker 2: and a speaker and a podcast host is that God's
• 19:38
  Speaker 2: going to use so many different people within himself. others' lives.
• 19:45
  Speaker 2: After they finish my book, they need another book to read.
• 19:48
  Speaker 2: I want to be able to encourage them to read
• 19:50
  Speaker 2: this author or a different author. Go listen to this
• 19:53
  Speaker 2: episode on someone else's podcast because when they're done with mine,
• 19:57
  Speaker 2: they've got other needs that need to be met and
• 19:59
  Speaker 2: God can fulfill those. If instead of looking at it
• 20:03
  Speaker 2: as comparison, we'll look at it as a compliment in
• 20:07
  Speaker 2: the body of Christ. You know, the Bible talks about
• 20:10
  Speaker 2: the body's made up of different parts. We need all
• 20:12
  Speaker 2: the different parts.
• 20:14
  Speaker 1: Yeah. And there's one thing with the word compete and complete.
• 20:18
  Speaker 1: It's one letter different. And that's the letter L. And
• 20:22
  Speaker 1: I just look at that as a love factor, right?
• 20:25
  Speaker 1: That we are all needed to fulfill the great commission,
• 20:30
  Speaker 1: that love, that sharing Christ's love with others. There's no
• 20:33
  Speaker 1: need for comparison in the body of Christ.
• 20:35
  Speaker 2: But so often what leads to comparison is when we
• 20:40
  Speaker 2: feel unqualified or ill-equipped. What advice do you have for
• 20:45
  Speaker 2: someone who's feeling unqualified or ill-equipped, even as they're taking
• 20:49
  Speaker 2: in our conversation today?
• 20:50
  Speaker 1: Well, one of my precious women that I met her
• 20:54
  Speaker 1: at a retreat and we had a lunch together and
• 20:58
  Speaker 1: I was the speaker and she said, you've really inspired
• 21:01
  Speaker 1: me with some things. And I have this vision in
• 21:04
  Speaker 1: my heart to help women who have had abortions to
• 21:09
  Speaker 1: get healed. And so she ended up, we started working together.
• 21:13
  Speaker 1: And our first session, I said, well, what are the
• 21:17
  Speaker 1: things that God has put inside of you? Like you
• 21:19
  Speaker 1: have it. She goes, I couldn't think of anything because
• 21:22
  Speaker 1: my first assignment is to write a list of 20 things.
• 21:26
  Speaker 1: What are your 20 things? She goes, I couldn't think.
• 21:29
  Speaker 1: So we had this conversation. Think of all the things
• 21:32
  Speaker 1: you've lived through. Think of all the strategies and how
• 21:36
  Speaker 1: God met you. Think of all the little ways that
• 21:40
  Speaker 1: you show up in the world that people say, oh, Michelle,
• 21:43
  Speaker 1: it's just so I love how you do this or
• 21:46
  Speaker 1: how you do that. So I think that's my first
• 21:49
  Speaker 1: thing is to give them the 20 whys. Give them,
• 21:52
  Speaker 1: make your list of all the things that God has
• 21:54
  Speaker 1: brought you through. God has shown you, you have learned.
• 21:58
  Speaker 1: All that's part of the package. And then that's just
• 22:01
  Speaker 1: the starting point. Then you need to know how to
• 22:05
  Speaker 1: mold and shape those experiences and to grow them into
• 22:10
  Speaker 1: a logical step-by-step process to grow this ministry. It's not
• 22:15
  Speaker 1: that you can't do it. It's just that you haven't
• 22:17
  Speaker 1: been shown the roadmap. And that's really what you need
• 22:20
  Speaker 1: to stay. And someone cheering you on, you really do
• 22:23
  Speaker 1: need that.
• 22:23
  Speaker 3: The best athletes in the world will not be where
• 22:26
  Speaker 3: they're at if they didn't.
• 22:27
  Speaker 1: Have a coach or someone cheering them and helping them. Right, Michelle?
• 22:31
  Speaker 2: For sure. And I think it's important to remember that
• 22:34
  Speaker 2: God's not going to show us necessarily the whole blueprint
• 22:37
  Speaker 2: from the beginning. He's wanting to know, will you take
• 22:40
  Speaker 2: that first step in obedience? And he blesses that. And
• 22:44
  Speaker 2: then you take the next step in faith and obedience.
• 22:47
  Speaker 2: But it goes back to those border bullies that you
• 22:50
  Speaker 2: were talking about, because the enemy is the one who
• 22:52
  Speaker 2: swoops in and says, who do you think you are?
• 22:54
  Speaker 2: Do you really think this can make a difference? Where
• 22:56
  Speaker 2: do you think you're going to get the money for this?
• 22:58
  Speaker 2: Who do you think is going to listen to you?
• 23:00
  Speaker 2: I mean, I could come up with a hundred different
• 23:01
  Speaker 2: things that he could throw in our ear to discourage us,
• 23:05
  Speaker 2: but it all comes back to, but if God's asked
• 23:07
  Speaker 2: us to do it, it's our responsibility to be obedient
• 23:11
  Speaker 2: and then he will bring the harvest.
• 23:14
  Speaker 1: Amen.
• 23:14
  Speaker 3: Amen.
• 23:15
  Speaker 1: And you bring up another point there. You need the
• 23:17
  Speaker 1: wisdom because I know that when you first get this idea,
• 23:21
  Speaker 1: you want to, I was there. You want to run
• 23:23
  Speaker 1: ahead of God and you want to, we're going to
• 23:25
  Speaker 1: do this. We're going to do that. And it's all
• 23:26
  Speaker 1: going to happen like next year. Take a breath. Don't, don't,
• 23:30
  Speaker 1: don't run ahead of God. That is when we can
• 23:33
  Speaker 1: fall and skin our knees, so to speak. We're only,
• 23:36
  Speaker 1: I love that you said that, Michelle. We only are
• 23:40
  Speaker 1: obliged to do the very next thing God's called us
• 23:42
  Speaker 1: to do. And did we do it? That's the thing.
• 23:46
  Speaker 1: We want all of this. But did we do maybe
• 23:49
  Speaker 1: the one simple thing that God asked us to do first?
• 23:53
  Speaker 2: Friends, we're going to take a real short break for
• 23:55
  Speaker 2: a brief word from our sponsor. But when we come back,
• 23:58
  Speaker 2: I'm going to ask Lynette to help us wrap up
• 24:00
  Speaker 2: this episode by sharing her hope-filled perspective about how to
• 24:04
  Speaker 2: step boldly into the ministry God created you for. We'll
• 24:08
  Speaker 2: be right back. Lynette, how do you define success in
• 24:16
  Speaker 2: ministry from a biblical perspective? Because I think that's another
• 24:20
  Speaker 2: area that gets us entrapped because the world's vision, view,
• 24:26
  Speaker 2: definition of success is different from God's.
• 24:30
  Speaker 1: Well, I think we've been talking about it all along, Michelle.
• 24:33
  Speaker 1: What did God call us to do? What is that assignment?
• 24:37
  Speaker 1: Or I love to say the Esther calling on our life.
• 24:40
  Speaker 1: And that is success. If I am working in, maybe
• 24:45
  Speaker 1: you're called to teenage girls and you're, well, how could
• 24:49
  Speaker 1: I do this? Well, have you even stepped out one
• 24:53
  Speaker 1: iota to maybe, you know, a few of them, invite
• 24:56
  Speaker 1: them over for a special month or for hot cocoa or, oh,
• 25:00
  Speaker 1: the big hit would be a chocolate fountain. Okay. Love
• 25:04
  Speaker 1: things like that. So Think of creative ideas. That's success.
• 25:09
  Speaker 3: It's like you're walking and you're living and breathing in.
• 25:13
  Speaker 1: That thing that God created you to do. That's success.
• 25:17
  Speaker 1: No matter what the outcome is, we just need to
• 25:21
  Speaker 1: know that we're walking in obedience and we got to
• 25:23
  Speaker 1: leave the outcome to God.
• 25:25
  Speaker 2: But that begs the question in your own ministry history.
• 25:30
  Speaker 2: How do you handle seasons of waiting when that growth
• 25:34
  Speaker 2: feels slower, maybe even invisible?
• 25:36
  Speaker 1: Wow. Well, those are the times where a lot of
• 25:41
  Speaker 1: those times when you're in the waiting, I call it
• 25:43
  Speaker 1: the waiting room, you're really growing and developing. And when
• 25:47
  Speaker 1: we're a lot of those times, we're not hearing from God.
• 25:50
  Speaker 1: Maybe you're like in the beginning, you're like getting all
• 25:52
  Speaker 1: these downloads from heaven. And then in those stretching time,
• 25:55
  Speaker 1: the wilderness times, it's like, where are you? God, why
• 25:58
  Speaker 1: can't I hear you? That's a really great place because
• 26:02
  Speaker 1: it doesn't feel great. But that's when the Lord is
• 26:06
  Speaker 1: when he draws back. He wants us to press in closer.
• 26:09
  Speaker 1: Those are those times where we're really diligently seeking. Those
• 26:13
  Speaker 1: are the times we're fasting. Those are the times we're
• 26:16
  Speaker 1: like on our knees. We're desperate to hear him. And
• 26:19
  Speaker 1: I was in one of those moments walking my mom
• 26:22
  Speaker 1: at the end of life. And I just needed a
• 26:24
  Speaker 1: word from him. And all the pressures and I wasn't
• 26:28
  Speaker 1: hearing anything. And all of a sudden, this is what
• 26:30
  Speaker 1: I heard. And it was after a profound time of
• 26:34
  Speaker 1: being on my face. And he goes, honey, you take
• 26:37
  Speaker 1: care of my business and I'll take care of yours.
• 26:41
  Speaker 1: And I knew in that moment, his business was me
• 26:43
  Speaker 1: taking care of my mom. And he did take care
• 26:46
  Speaker 1: of my business. He did expand somehow, some way he
• 26:50
  Speaker 1: did it. So those are the times we just need
• 26:52
  Speaker 1: to press in close to the father's heart and Get serious.
• 26:56
  Speaker 1: We need to get serious about it. And that will
• 26:59
  Speaker 1: get us through.
• 27:00
  Speaker 2: It's important to remember that when growth feels slow or
• 27:04
  Speaker 2: even invisible, God is often training us, preparing us, connecting
• 27:10
  Speaker 2: dots with other people, with other ministries that we won't
• 27:14
  Speaker 2: even be aware of possibly until down the road. And
• 27:17
  Speaker 2: it's then that we'll be able to look back and go, Oh,
• 27:20
  Speaker 2: that's why God seems silent because he was busy connecting
• 27:23
  Speaker 2: dots that I would need in the future, training me
• 27:26
  Speaker 2: in other areas, introducing me to new people, making openings
• 27:31
  Speaker 2: happen in other situations that he would guide me to
• 27:34
  Speaker 2: step through. So when it feels slow or the growth
• 27:38
  Speaker 2: feels invisible, friend, I just want you to remember God
• 27:41
  Speaker 2: is still working even when we don't see it. And
• 27:44
  Speaker 2: then as we get close to wrapping up this episode,
• 27:47
  Speaker 2: can you share a testimony of how God multiplied something
• 27:51
  Speaker 2: small that you offered him?
• 27:52
  Speaker 1: Yeah, I think that just piggybacking on what you had
• 27:59
  Speaker 1: just shared about, we never know the different directions God
• 28:05
  Speaker 1: is going to open up a new door, a new relationship.
• 28:08
  Speaker 1: And sometimes when we want to push through a closed door,
• 28:11
  Speaker 1: God's got that door closed for a reason, right? That
• 28:15
  Speaker 1: it's really not going to be fruitful. So a time
• 28:18
  Speaker 1: that God has really blessed me and multiplied was my yes. Honestly,
• 28:24
  Speaker 1: going to my first writer's retreat, it opened up a
• 28:26
  Speaker 1: whole new world for me that I didn't know existed.
• 28:30
  Speaker 1: And it led me to have relationships with these other
• 28:33
  Speaker 1: sister friends that led me to the well that led
• 28:36
  Speaker 1: me here. Like it just, whenever you show up and
• 28:40
  Speaker 1: this year, the Lord gave me this really cool phrase.
• 28:43
  Speaker 1: It's show up in the room. And on the days
• 28:46
  Speaker 1: of COVID and watching church virtual, every time I go
• 28:50
  Speaker 1: into a physical room now, I am earnestly seeking and saying, Lord,
• 28:55
  Speaker 1: where can I show up with my yes? And he
• 28:58
  Speaker 1: makes those divine connections. I'm praying for someone or having
• 29:01
  Speaker 1: a conversation. So I think Michelle, the multiplication factor, is
• 29:06
  Speaker 1: those relationships. Because you're right, you never know how God's
• 29:10
  Speaker 1: going to use one conversation, one yes, one time that
• 29:15
  Speaker 1: you're tired, but you're going to show up anyways. And
• 29:18
  Speaker 1: he multiplies our obedience. And it opens doors that we
• 29:23
  Speaker 1: may never have had the opportunity before that. So it's
• 29:28
  Speaker 1: what a blessing that is.
• 29:29
  Speaker 2: I love it when God encourages our heart that way
• 29:32
  Speaker 2: to show us we thought something was small, but his
• 29:36
  Speaker 2: plans are different and it may not be big in
• 29:39
  Speaker 2: the worlds definition of what's big or successful. But if
• 29:43
  Speaker 2: one life is changed and someone else ends up in heaven,
• 29:47
  Speaker 2: because we were at willing to take the time to
• 29:50
  Speaker 2: show up, to see them, to have a conversation, to
• 29:54
  Speaker 2: share how God has been good and faithful in our life.
• 29:58
  Speaker 2: All of heaven rejoices over that. And that's a small
• 30:02
  Speaker 2: that I can get super excited about because in the
• 30:05
  Speaker 2: grand scheme of things, it's lives being changed. to find God,
• 30:10
  Speaker 2: to know God, to have a personal relationship with him.
• 30:14
  Speaker 2: So if we can always keep that at the forefront
• 30:16
  Speaker 2: of our mind, big masses are wonderful. But sometimes when
• 30:20
  Speaker 2: you are sharing the example, sometimes you show up and
• 30:22
  Speaker 2: it's a crowd of a hundred and other times it's
• 30:24
  Speaker 2: a five. We might show up at a crowd of
• 30:26
  Speaker 2: a hundred or a thousand, but there are five there
• 30:30
  Speaker 2: who need our message. not necessarily the whole crowd. So
• 30:34
  Speaker 2: will we show up when that crowd is smaller? And
• 30:37
  Speaker 2: I think God creates even greater opportunity when it's more
• 30:42
  Speaker 2: intimate on that one-on-one.
• 30:44
  Speaker 3: Level.
• 30:44
  Speaker 2: Lynette, this has been a great conversation and I want
• 30:47
  Speaker 2: to encourage everybody to get your book, Start Little, Dream Big.
• 30:50
  Speaker 2: And we'll have all the information about Lynette, her ministries,
• 30:54
  Speaker 2: her book in the show notes that you can find
• 30:56
  Speaker 2: at drmichelleb.com. But as we wrap up, Lynette, if a
• 31:00
  Speaker 2: listener or viewer is resonating with our conversation today, maybe
• 31:04
  Speaker 2: they've got a dream in their heart and they haven't
• 31:06
  Speaker 2: known what to do, or maybe they're starting small, but...
• 31:09
  Speaker 2: They're not hearing God. They're not seeing that growth. What
• 31:13
  Speaker 2: hope-filled perspective do you want to leave them with today?
• 31:16
  Speaker 1: That God never wastes our pain. That the mess that
• 31:22
  Speaker 1: you live through, because that's the fire, that's the holy ache,
• 31:26
  Speaker 1: that's the passion that will see you through to the end.
• 31:30
  Speaker 1: If you're in something and you're like, well, maybe I'm
• 31:34
  Speaker 1: doing it because she did it or they did it.
• 31:37
  Speaker 1: but it's really not your holy ache, go back and
• 31:40
  Speaker 1: find that holy ache because God wants to use your
• 31:42
  Speaker 1: specific story, your mess, your test, and turn it into
• 31:47
  Speaker 1: a message and a testimony because that's going to have
• 31:50
  Speaker 1: the real impact. He knew you from the beginning, your
• 31:55
  Speaker 1: first breath to your last breath, right? And he knows
• 31:57
  Speaker 1: everything in between. So I want to encourage you to
• 32:00
  Speaker 1: find your passion and that that starts with finding that
• 32:03
  Speaker 1: holy egg. And God has worked with you through something
• 32:07
  Speaker 1: that is, you have all the raw material you need
• 32:10
  Speaker 1: to step forth boldly with courage and confidence, it's like
• 32:14
  Speaker 1: I like to say, to do the thing that God's
• 32:16
  Speaker 1: called you to do.
• 32:18
  Speaker 2: That's beautiful. Friends, I hope that you heard the encouragement
• 32:21
  Speaker 2: that's coming straight out of Lynette's heart. She's been there.
• 32:24
  Speaker 2: She's started small and now her ministry is having a
• 32:27
  Speaker 2: great impact and God wants to do that with your
• 32:30
  Speaker 2: yes as well. In fact, I want to close out
• 32:32
  Speaker 2: this episode reminding you of Philippians 2 verse 13 that says,
• 32:36
  Speaker 2: For it is God who works in you to will
• 32:39
  Speaker 2: and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose.
• 32:44
  Speaker 2: He has purpose and plan for you. He's just wondering.
• 32:47
  Speaker 2: Will you give him your yes? Will you be willing
• 32:50
  Speaker 2: to start small and see what God wants to do
• 32:53
  Speaker 2: with that? Lynette, thank you for sharing out of your
• 32:56
  Speaker 2: own pain and the purpose that God has birthed in
• 32:59
  Speaker 2: your heart. Friends, if there was something in today's episode
• 33:02
  Speaker 2: that has encouraged you, that has inspired you, that has
• 33:06
  Speaker 2: motivated you, would you consider sharing this episode with someone
• 33:09
  Speaker 2: else who needs a biblically-based, hope-filled perspective? It's always a
• 33:13
  Speaker 2: joy when we get to spend a few minutes with
• 33:15
  Speaker 2: you and I look forward to being with you again
• 33:17
  Speaker 2: next week on your hope-filled perspective. Until then, you know,
• 33:21
  Speaker 2: it's my prayer for you that you have a hope-filled week.
• 33:26
  Speaker 4: Are you or your group looking for a speaker for
• 33:29
  Speaker 4: your next event or gathering? Nothing delights Dr. Michelle Bankson
• 33:33
  Speaker 4: more than connecting with her audiences and sharing from her
• 33:36
  Speaker 4: professional expertise and personal experience to champion others in their journey.
• 33:41
  Speaker 4: She has spoken on a wide variety of topics, including
• 33:44
  Speaker 4: Hope Prevails, Living the Abundant Life Christ Came to Give,
• 33:48
  Speaker 4: The Hem of His Garment, Reaching Out to God When
• 33:51
  Speaker 4: Pain Overwhelms, Victor, Not a Victim, Rid Yourself of the
• 33:55
  Speaker 4: Poisonous Shame and Self-Defeat in Your Life, Walking in the
• 33:58
  Speaker 4: Truth of Our Identity, Hope for the Silent Epidemic, Understanding
• 34:02
  Speaker 4: Depression in Children and Teens, and Breaking Anxiety's Grip. How
• 34:05
  Speaker 4: to Reclaim the Peace God Promises. Dr. Bankson is willing
• 34:09
  Speaker 4: to tailor a message specifically to your group or event.
• 34:12
  Speaker 4: Past audiences have included 100 Huntley Street, Life Today, the
• 34:16
  Speaker 4: American Association of Christian Counselors, Gateway Church, Roaring Lambs, and
• 34:21
  Speaker 4: Fellowship of Professional Women, to name a few.
• 34:24
  Speaker 1: Dr.
• 34:25
  Speaker 4: Bankson is now accepting invitations for speaking engagements. For more
• 34:28
  Speaker 4: information or to contact Dr. Bankson to speak at your event,
• 34:32
  Speaker 4: reach out to our staff at info at drmichelleb.com.
• 34:40
  Speaker 5: Thank you for joining Dr. Bankson for your hope-built perspective.
• 34:44
  Speaker 5: We hope you were encouraged by her authenticity, vulnerability, and
• 34:49
  Speaker 5: biblical truths. If you enjoyed today's conversation, why don't you
• 34:52
  Speaker 5: take a moment right now open up your podcast app
• 34:56
  Speaker 5: and look for the subscribe button right next to our
• 34:58
  Speaker 5: podcast profile image. We think this podcast is best enjoyed
• 35:02
  Speaker 5: with friends, so tell a friend and click share in
• 35:04
  Speaker 5: your podcast app and send a friend our link to
• 35:07
  Speaker 5: share hope with them. If you have a comment, question,
• 35:11
  Speaker 5: or suggest a topic for a future show, reach out
• 35:13
  Speaker 5: to our staff at info at hopeprevails.org. For additional resources,
• 35:19
  Speaker 5: information about Dr. Bankson's books or free downloads, or to
• 35:22
  Speaker 5: To contact her to speak at your next event, please
• 35:25
  Speaker 5: visit drmichelleb.com. Until next time, may you have a hope-filled week.
• 35:35
  Speaker 2: I'd like to take just a second to thank the
• 35:37
  Speaker 2: team at Life Audio for their partnership with us on
• 35:40
  Speaker 2: this podcast. If you go to lifeaudio.com, you'll find dozens
• 35:44
  Speaker 2: of other faith-centered podcasts in their network. They've got shows
• 35:48
  Speaker 2: about prayer, Bible study, parenting, and more.