Intersections Series: Community, Mentorship & Shared Journeys w/Heather Cruz & Chelsea Rowley

Speaker 1: 0:00

It reminds me of the deep purpose we all have to feed into the next generation and learn from them. I think they have so much to offer. I think the world wants to say that this generation is this or that, and boy, I get to know them. They're not. There is so much more to them than we even realize.

Speaker 2: 0:15

Helping you live brave, build community and pass on courageous faith to the girls around you. This is Be the Brave Ones podcast.

Speaker 3: 0:26

Hey everybody, it's Mandy here and I am here today with Lauren. Hey, we are so excited, you guys, because we have been on this journey of sharing with you these things that we have learned and we hope that you're learning too, because we're not just here to learn, but we want you to learn. We want you to go have meaningful conversations, but we've been learning about relationships, the relationships that we need in our life and how to grow in deeper community and have meaningful connections with the people whom our lives intersect with. And so, Lauren, I'm not sure have we ever shared on the podcast how you and I met? I don't think so. I don't think We've shared it in places. So I've shared it in quite a few places. I want like your perspective. I want you to, would you? I'm kind of putting you on the spot here. I didn't tell you that but would you?

Speaker 3: 1:11

tell our audience how we met, how our lives intersected.

Speaker 2: 1:15

Yeah, no for sure. So I moved to Tampa. It was about five years ago, maybe a little bit longer now, and we were still we were brand new to the city. I didn't know how to have a job yet my husband was working. We knew nobody. So we were looking for a church, kind of in that season of where's the good fit, and came across a Bible study that Mandy was leading and it was like weekday mornings.

Speaker 2: 1:39

So there were a couple of factors that I think that there weren't a lot of people that were showing up regularly. There were a lot of weeks where it was just you and I, mandy. And, reflecting on that, like it is so cool that we both chose to be intentional with that time and keep showing up. It would have been so easy for either of us to say I'm not going to meet people this way, I'm not going, or for you to say it's just one, we'll try again next semester. And neither of us did so. Just praise God that we didn't. And our lives have just continued to intersect Since then. I was attending a lot of studies that you were hosting and then, kind of throughout the years, have gotten to lead with you, lead alongside you, in different capacities. So it has been sweet and I'm so glad that God brought us to Tampa and God brought us to that church and that you and I kept showing up.

Speaker 3: 2:30

I'm like getting teary right now. I'm so glad I asked you to share the story. Yes, and that is just so cool, how God does it. You guys, you might be in a study, you're hosting a study, and there might not be a lot of people there, but that might be exactly what God wanted, because he wanted you to really get to know someone. And I'm so glad, lauren, that I really got to know you and that God has continued to allow us to be in one another's lives, one of those meaningful relationships that came out of a connection, and that's what we want you listeners to be aware of Keep your eyes open for what God might be wanting to do in and through your life.

Speaker 3: 3:02

So we've been taking a look at the life of Paul and he had four kind of monumental stop and go moments. We've been calling them stop and go, but I don't want that to come across as like stop and then go, stop and then go. But if we don't ever stop, then we can't ever connect and if we don't ever go, then we can't go and connect, and so we just want to kind of listeners, have you get that picture that throughout your life you're going, but there's sometimes when God is saying hey, stop, I really want you to pay attention here. He's saying that a lot. I really want you to connect here, because he made us as relational people who are meant to connect with others. So, on our first stop, who did Paul meet with? On our first stop, lauren, he met Jesus.

Speaker 2: 3:47

He met Jesus and why was that so important? Yeah, so he was persecuting believers and he was on his way to continue persecuting believers and got special permission to continue to imprison these men and women who were following Jesus. And Jesus himself stopped Paul where he was, intersected with him and changed his life. And now we know Paul for someone very different than that person.

Speaker 3: 4:05

That's right and that's what God wants to do with us. We can't do this without Jesus, and so we knew we had to make him the first stop on our journey and just emphasizing that we're always going back to Jesus throughout our life. When we're making these meaningful connections, we start with Jesus, we get more of Jesus, we go out and we give Jesus away and we connect with others through Jesus in us. And then, on his second stop, he met a man named Ananias and this was like his wise counsel. This was the man who was going to help him make sense of things. And, lauren, you had some wise counsel. You've had wise counsel throughout your life. But what came to mind when I thought of this was our conversation with your mentor, michelle. It was episode 74. And just real quick, tell our listeners about the impact of Michelle on your life.

Speaker 2: 4:48

Yeah, michelle met with me while I was in college and I was thinking about this today. I was a believer when I met Michelle, so she discipled me and helped me grow when I already knew Jesus, but like continued to walk with me Listeners. I don't want you to miss that. I don't want you to miss the girl who already knows Jesus. Like we can continue to minister to people who already know Jesus.

Speaker 2: 5:11

But when I met with her, I always left time with her wanting more of Jesus, not more of Michelle, and I think that that is just like the ultimate picture of discipleship, of like when I think of Moses and the tent and bringing Joshua into the tent and Joshua wanted to stay in the tent. Like we don't want to bring people along to want to be with us more. It's not about us, it's about Jesus. And so our lives should be attractive, our words, our acts, our love should be attractive. But it should be attractive to usher someone into the presence of God and have them want to stay there with God. And so Michelle was just, yeah, so important. She met with me while I was engaged and I just credit so much of like she shared with me about marriage and parenting, and we walked through those things in light of the gospel, in light of who Jesus is, and it was just such a sweet foundation for my life, so forever thankful for my time with her.

Speaker 3: 6:06

Yeah, and you know what? I know that you didn't want more time, you didn't. You wanted Jesus, you didn't want Michelle, but you wanted Jesus through Michelle. You know what I mean? Yeah, I love Michelle, yeah, yeah, yeah. So that that's the point is people get drawn to us through Jesus in us, but it makes them want to crave more time with us and us with them, because I'm sure and I know it did, because Michelle said so that that relationship gave her just as much joy as it gave you. And, just like Lauren, my relationship with you brings me joy, as I hope that it brings you joy too. I see the smile on your face right now.

Speaker 3: 6:37

So, number three, on our third episode, we talked about another relationship that we need in our life when Paul encountered the apostles, and these are kind of like his road buddies, right, like. These are the people who's going to go on mission with. These are the people you're arm in arm with. You're walking, for the sake of the gospel, with these people. We need those people in our lives. And finally, today we're reaching our last stop, where Paul is going to meet a young apprentice. It's a young man. He becomes an apprentice of Paul, named Timothy. And so, lauren, do you happen to have Acts 16, one through five? That's our key scripture for this section and part of our conversation.

Speaker 2: 7:09

Yes, it says. Paul went first to Derbe and then to Lystra, where there was a young disciple named Timothy. His mother was a Jewish believer, but his father was a Greek. Timothy was well thought of by the believers in Lystra and Iconium, so Paul wanted him to join them on their journey. In deference to the Jews of the area, he arranged for Timothy to be circumcised before they left, for everyone knew that his father was a Greek. Then they went from town to town, instructing the believers to follow the decisions made by the apostles and elders in Jerusalem. So the churches were strengthened in their faith and grew larger every day.

Speaker 3: 7:43

And so, Lauren, I'm curious to hear from you what stood out to you when you looked at these verses.

Speaker 2: 7:48

Yeah, I think that he was already a believer. He had this reputation they were bringing him along to be part of that.

Speaker 3: 7:55

Yeah, I noticed that as well, and it made me think about how Paul had to be someone worth following, like for Timothy to be like I'm out of here by mom, by grandma, like I'm going with this guy and I'm going to get circumcised. You know, like there must've been. It was Jesus. It was Jesus in Paul, but Paul was obviously living a faith that Timothy admired and that is where it's at. And I think that sometimes we might feel like, oh, I'm not living a life worth being admired.

Speaker 3: 8:21

If you're following Jesus, like there's people looking at you and they're going, she's got something and it's just that reminder that we go back to Jesus. We need Jesus. We don't have to pretend that we're someone that we're not. We just spend time with Jesus. He makes us like him and then others see him in us. And then also, I noticed that Timothy was spoken well of. So Paul knew like some people are talking about this guy and I think that when it comes to who are you going to apprentice, just look for something in them that you see, that you're like hey, I see this thing in this person.

Speaker 3: 8:48

I even think back to my time with you, lauren, where I was. Like she gets it, you know, if I could just term it one way, she gets it. And that made me want to not just do this Bible study and move on, but be like, hey, let's continue to connect, because I would like to invest in that you guys. Lauren is a good I don't know, like 15 years younger than me, but I'm really excited because we have a wonderful set of guests today. But, lauren, you are going to jump off so that I can introduce and have that conversation with them. But thank you for helping me launch and introduce this episode.

Speaker 2: 9:18

Yes, and can't wait to hear all they have to share today.

Speaker 3: 9:20

So, guys, we have Chelsea Rowley and Heather Cruz joining us today. They are a mentor-mentee pair. And Heather, I'll tell you about her first. She is an author, speaker, wife and mom of three fun kids. She is passionate about encouraging families to raise their children with the Lord at the center of their lives. She loves hot cocoa, hay rides and giving kids wild tube rides behind the boat, and she loves to mentor younger women that cross her path, and she brought one of those with her today.

Speaker 3: 9:53

She brought Chelsea Rowley with her today, who is in a passionate pursuit of the Lord and shares her faith with anyone who will listen. She's graduating from the University of Minnesota this year. She is in the process of Minnesota this year. She is in the process of starting a coffee truck ministry I want to hear more about that which will share the gospel wherever she goes, and she is praying and seeking God for his next steps in her calling as a child of God. Together, you guys, they've been walking through life sharing their faith with each other and learning what it means to live out God's call on their lives. Welcome, chelsea and Heather. I am so glad that you guys are here.

Speaker 1: 10:29

Thank you so much for having us. We're just thrilled to be here, so it's a great opportunity to minister to others, so we're just thankful for that.

Speaker 4: 10:36

Absolutely. Thank you so much. I'm really excited to see what God does in the conversation.

Speaker 3: 10:41

Me too, and Chelsea, I just got to ask you like, straight up, right out of the gate, what's up with the coffee truck ministry? Like, where did this vision?

Speaker 4: 10:48

come from. Yeah, so it's basically a. It's a mobile coffee trailer and it's called Tabernacle Coffee and it's very inspired by the biblical tabernacle and that's why it's mobile. And for anyone who doesn't maybe know what the tabernacle is, it's mentioned in Exodus, through Deuteronomy, a couple of times and it's just a tent-like structure that God instructed Moses and the Israelites to build as like a tangible dwelling place of God, and since Jesus, we now are all temples of Christ.

Speaker 4: 11:23

Right, but I really wanted to kind of have something that would represent a place where people could commune with God without like actually maybe knowing him, and doing it in like farmer's markets and places where people they don't know that they're at a church right now, but they actually are, and then they order a drink and now they have to wait for the drink. So you might as well stick around and talk, you know. So there'll be free Bibles and the whole back of the trailer is going to be bronze, because the altar in the tabernacle was bronze, so I'm going to have people write on the physical trailer like what they need to leave at the altar or reconcile in their lives. So there it will just be things like that, just powerful moments where non-Christians and Christians will be able to come and have a experience with Christ.

Speaker 3: 12:12

Amazing, Chelsea. That is so good. I mean, Jesus and coffee just go together. First of all, let's just go ahead and talk about that, so true. And then talking right, Like talking in coffee and like what an opportunity to talk over coffee and have Jesus be at the center and just you being there and realizing. I love what you said about it's a church and they don't even know it and I do feel like we are the church and so where we go we bring the church. I love it. I can't wait to see what God does with that. But I want to ask you guys a question, because we've been talking about relationships and we've been kicking off each episode with a question about friendship. So I'm just curious what's something fun that you have done, meaningful and or fun that you've done with a friend lately?

Speaker 1: 12:54

Well, thanks for asking. Actually, mine was a retreat with a bunch of girls. They're not really girls, they're women that I met at my kids' school. It's our Moms who Pray group and we just went and we shared devotionals that we each wrote and shared our testimonies, set a timer for when we need to get down to watch the sunset so we don't miss it, and everyone has to run down to the shore and capture the sunset, so I really enjoyed that time. It was special.

Speaker 3: 13:27

I love that. I love the moms praying and the moms who pray going on a retreat, you're inspiring me, yeah that's so cute, I think.

Speaker 4: 13:35

For me, the first thing that came to mind is I recently got to go to Italy. A couple of roommates from last semester ended up studying abroad in Florence, italy, this semester, and so a few of us went there and got to kind of reconnect and it was really sweet to kind of see like what they had been experiencing, especially like church looks a lot different in a different culture, especially like church looks a lot different in a different culture, and so them kind of like figuring that out there and then just like seeing them, like kind of know the language and like be able to navigate for us, I was like whoa, you guys are like oh well-rounded and such. It's so exciting, yeah, so I think that was really special. And also just getting to spend time with people who have been gone for a while, who you know I usually live with, it was really nice to see them.

Speaker 3: 14:24

That's really cool, and I think there's something about taking a trip with people where we really get to just get away from the stress and really get to know each other as people in a fun or just a way outside of the norms of life. It can be so beneficial in growing a relationship, and so I want you guys to share with our listeners. How did you guys meet, like, how did this intersection happen where, heather, you became someone who was mentoring Chelsea?

Speaker 1: 14:52

It was actually really hilarious. My oldest son invited a couple of friends up that were going to go camping and they were just going to stop for a home cooked meal. Son invited a couple of friends up that were going to go camping and they were just going to stop for a home-cooked meal and we didn't want to leave. It turned into 15 college students that decided to stay, most of which I've never met before, and it was a blast. It was so funny because the girls were like they have beds here and food, let's just stay here, can't we just camp here? And the guys were like, well, maybe we should, you know, go camping. And we're like, well, set up a tent in the backyard, we want to stay.

Speaker 1: 15:25

So they went boating and I kind of hurt some of them on accident behind the boat, but anyway we had a good time and they went kayaking and it was just. It was a blast getting to know them and I didn't see them for another year, so I literally didn't see them. And then they came back for the second annual and that's when Chelsea and I really became friends and really kind of started talking together about her calling in her life and I just saw something special in her that I knew that people were going to just consume the gospel when she talked. So I just wanted to kind of help her navigate that and just kind of be the mentor that I wished I had.

Speaker 4: 15:58

And to just even follow that, I will say that the tube riding is real and if you are behind Heather Cruz's boat you better have, like some epic, grip strength because otherwise you will fly. But you've made me stronger physically, you really have.

Speaker 3: 16:15

I don't know, Heather, what's going on here. I mean, that's right in your bio that you love giving wild tea breads.

Speaker 1: 16:21

She's kind of adapted over time.

Speaker 4: 16:23

Yeah, she's good, but no, I think when we met the first time it was interesting. I was a Christian but I hadn't really like fully developed my faith quite yet. I was really new and I had a lot of other idols, I think, going on at that time. But the second year I had been very pruned by this point and I had grown a lot in my faith. And I remember within the first like five minutes of stepping into her house for the second time, I think I honestly just started like ranting to you about something.

Speaker 4: 16:57

I don't know what it was, but I was like this lady is so nice to talk to, like I just kind of felt very connected and like I just kind of wanted all of the wisdom she could possibly give me. We just kept getting these moments where we could have conversation about not surface level things, like deep things, and I think that really connected us quickly. And after the three days I was kind of like you know, it's going to be a real bummer that I'm not going to see her for like another year, like it's probably just going to be us coming back. And then I remember the day and I remember where I was when I got a text all of a sudden. That's like I kind of feel like God wants me to mentor you and I don't know what exactly what that looks like. But we're starting in the fall and I was like, okay, cool, that sounds awesome. Actually, I'm so down. I also don't know what that looks like, but praise God. So that's kind of how our journey like started.

Speaker 3: 18:02

That's really cool and I think that's a really important thing that, heather, you made that. Like you define the relationship, like you didn't fully define it, you didn't know exactly what it looked like, but you put the ask out there, you know, and when I look at my relationship with my spiritual mama, she did that. She did that more than once. She was like now we at my relationship with my spiritual mama, she did that. She did that more than once. She was like no, we're going to go deeper. I'm like, okay, let's go. And then also it became a model for me, like when I see someone who is you know, I see something in them and I'm like, hey, I think like spending time with you would be a beneficial thing. So I would love to back up for a minute and ask you what's your story? Tell us your story. Like how did you come to follow Jesus before this relationship started? Each of you? I'd love to hear from you.

Speaker 4: 18:43

Yeah, I can start. My testimony was definitely kind of a story of a lot of restoration, a lot of redemption. I wasn't raised in a Christian household but I was raised in a loving household and my parents set me up to make good friends and by the time I got to high school I had kind of found myself in this community where I didn't really realize they were Christian going into it. But I got a job at a coffee shop and it happened to be managed by a woman who was also the director of our Young Life at our high school and I remember her like begging me for a lot of weeks to come to Young Life and she was not modest about this ask. She was like you need Jesus, I've been praying for you. Please come to Young Life. And I was like as like a non-Christian, I was like that is weird girl, like I don't get it, yeah, like like stop. But all of a sudden one night I was just kind of like what do I have to lose, you know? So I went and I remember feeling like everybody really likes each other and everybody had like these googly eyes at me because I was the non-Christian in the room and a non-Christian in a room full of Christians, like all the Christians start to go crazy a little and they're like, oh my gosh, it's about to happen. And I remember that night you know, we went through Young Life and then some of the girls took me out to Culver's after and they basically just assumed that I was all in, but they sent me this link to like an $85 Bible and all these pens that I needed also, apparently, and I was just kind of like you know what? Yeah, I do want it. And so I did. I did buy the very nice, it was a very pretty Bible and I remember it was COVID. So I ended up just reading and reading and reading this thing.

Speaker 4: 20:35

And nine months passed and all of a sudden I found myself having broken up with my boyfriend of like five years, I had switched up my entire friend group for myself and I had gotten baptized and it was like all of a sudden my whole life flipped on its axis. And I remember the fork in the road where I was like I could either live the life that I'm very comfortable with and I know how to live, or I could try the God thing, which would mean that I change who I date, the way I would raise my future children, the way I would look at school, the way all my hobbies. I'm like my whole life is going to change if I choose God.

Speaker 4: 21:13

But there was something and I did not know why, but I was like I'm going to follow Jesus right now and a lot of people in my life. It did not make a ton of sense to them but through college, especially the last year, I have really grown into just someone who is so unequivocally for God's kingdom and I've learned so much about intimacy with him and so much about what it means to commune with him and be a servant of Christ. And I know that that's like the main calling on my life and right now it's just kind of refining. Like God, what skills have you given me that are really going to be helpful for your kingdom? And I think that's where I'm at right now.

Speaker 1: 21:51

He has given her so many skills. She is truly gifted and speaking and sharing and just being so bold she has it definitely.

Speaker 3: 21:59

Yeah, when she said nine months, like all this stuff had happened, I'm like it was a spiritual Chelsea baby.

Speaker 4: 22:06

She's born again. That's funny.

Speaker 1: 22:11

She has been launched, that's for sure. Well, my story is a bit of the opposite, but beautiful how they intersected and they worked together so well. My faith journey was bit of the opposite, but beautiful how they intersected and they worked together so well. My faith journey was more like a ladder, not one big giant leap, and so it's just fun to see how God can put us together. But when I was a young girl, my grandpa, I remember, would kneel by my bedside when I'd stay at his house and he had these folded, old, gnarly hands and he just prayed for my brother and I and he read Bible stories to us and he had something I just had to have and I had to figure it out. I didn't totally know what it was at first, but I figured it out over time.

Speaker 1: 22:50

My parents divorced when I was 10.

Speaker 1: 22:53

I thought we had this perfect family and in an instant it changed, and so I just couldn't understand how God, this loving God, would allow my family to fall apart. And, similar to Chelsea's Young Life, mentors came into my life at junior high and spent time with me and nurtured me and went to camps, did the whole Young Life thing, and it just saved me. I'm convinced that the time that they invested in me totally took me from a girl from a broken home to a girl who found her identity in Christ, and they taught me what that means, how that looks, how to make that happen, and without someone guiding me along the way, I don't know that I would have gotten there. And then, as a mom, my faith went from going to church every Sunday to just literally depending on God for every minute. My oldest son had a year-long brain injury and it was then when I realized I could not control my children and their health or anything, and I just went to God for every minute for strength. Yeah, kind of more of a ladder for me.

Speaker 3: 23:56

And that story that you mentioned there actually everything that you just said you put in a book, and more, and that book is called Grace for Every Mom and I noticed when reading the book I haven't made it to the end because I just recently got it, but you want moms to know and I'm sure you want women everywhere, you even want Chelsea to know about grace and you communicate about it like it's hard for us to get. It took me a while to get it like to truly get what grace meant. I would love for you to speak into that a little bit. Why is it so important for us to understand and grasp God's grace?

Speaker 1: 24:31

So in some ways, grace seems really simple. Then it's really difficult to live out and understand and there's just a lot of questions that we face. You know, when you watch Chelsea's story unfold, how does that look to change everything in your life because of one decision to follow Christ? Like, what does that look like? And does grace actually pertain to me? And so that's why I'm so passionate about helping young people, because it does impact their future generations. I think it's not a one and done thing. That's why I love mentorship, because, as Chelsea has more questions, like, what does that look like when I'm dating someone? What does it look like when I'm trying to set up my life? Like you need someone to help guide you through that, because it's not as simple as it seems.

Speaker 3: 25:15

Yeah, and the grace thing is so important. You know, as Lauren and I were talking about when we opened the conversation here, and even listening to you share your story, chelsea, and you're like I don't really know like what it was. It was grace. Like grace was carrying you. You were like riding a grace wave right, like this woman sounds all weird and she keeps asking you, but all of a sudden it's like God's grace just moves in your heart and you say, yes, I'm going to go to that thing. That's what I see here.

Speaker 3: 25:45

And then, through seeing Heather, you're seeing God's grace lived out in her and that makes it so much more compelling to want to learn from her, because she's not relying on her own strength in what she's doing, but God's grace is shining through her, and so it's required for parenting and it's required for mentoring. Tell us a little bit more about your book, heather. And it's required for mentoring. Tell us a little bit more about your book, heather. What would you say to our listeners is the core thing that you want a mom to get from reading the book?

Speaker 1: 26:05

We really want them to understand that children are not gonna be perfect. Going to church isn't perfecting your children so they show up and look perfect. Our job as moms is to show them that we need grace and that we have received it and they can receive it. And I think sometimes we can go too far on wanting them to follow all the rules, which God's commands are important and absolutely essential, but if we go too far on that, they can get a skewed picture of what faith looks like, and so to me, grace is really at the foundation of what we do as moms.

Speaker 3: 26:40

Yeah, and I think too again going back to that mentor, mentee and spiritual children like they're not going to be perfect. The people that we invest in are going to trip up, they're going to mess up, and if we could just stay the course with them and pray for them, if we're concerned and gradually allow the grace of God to work in their life and develop them and grow them, that's where it's at, and so we like to have a get real moment on the podcast each episode, something we started last season. It's where we take one of our conversation cards from our Brave Conversations. One of those questions is do you ever have moments where you experience loneliness, and when and where do you feel it most? Chelsea, you can start us off here.

Speaker 4: 27:23

What first kind of came to mind was, honestly, when I was sort of becoming a Christian this was like three, four years ago and I had claimed my faith totally was like sold out for Christ. But I wasn't fully ready to let go of some things from my old life like drinking or, you know, doing things with people that I shouldn't have been doing. And I think one of the most lonely times that we can experience is living a double life, when you feel like you can't bring Jesus into this group of people that are doing terrible things because they're just going to judge you and you definitely can't bring all these terrible things into your Jesus community because they're just going to judge you and everybody's telling you that God has grace for you. But I'm like, what do I do? And I think something that I hope anybody hears is that your choices and your past or the things that you're doing right now that you maybe don't love or you think Jesus doesn't love, what you can't do is act like those are your identity and you can't start to make those the things that you're working against or working for, because when we start to work at all to impress God or to make ourselves a better Christian. That's when things get really hairy, I think, and you feel more lonely as that process goes along.

Speaker 4: 28:53

I also think that, especially for young girls like my age, like especially Christians, like you're 18 to 25, like everyone is getting married and everyone is getting engaged, and I think it can feel really lonely when you're experiencing singleness or maybe you break up with someone.

Speaker 4: 29:13

And I would really like to speak to that season of life and just say that if you choose right now to fret and worry that you're not going to find someone or you're not like the girls who are getting engaged right now, I would really like to say that that is a lie and that you cannot jip your future self, who might experience those things, by rushing right now and searching for just about anything right now.

Speaker 4: 29:42

I think right now is a time where you can sit and relax and know that God has a blueprint that's much better than one that you could think of and if you are experiencing loneliness because you don't have a date on Friday night, commune with Jesus, commune with the other people who are around you and your church. You know like these are the people who God has in your life right now, so that you wouldn't feel lonely. And if you do think that you're actually alone, that's the biggest lie of all, because God is actually dwelling inside of you and he's closer than the air that you breathe. So if you ever think like I just need a relationship or I just need something to kind of fill some sort of void, I'm like you don't, because your void has been filled, because Christ has saved you and he's within you right now.

Speaker 3: 30:31

So good, Chelsea. What about you, Heather?

Speaker 1: 30:34

I felt like I conquered loneliness when I had my firstborn baby and I was talking to myself all day. But I felt it again as my kids are leaving my nest. It was really a difficult time a lot more difficult than I thought to launch my two oldest to go to college and I literally felt like there was a part of me missing. And so trying to navigate that and leaning on God through this season that kind of caught me off guard, really is bringing me to another level of trust and surrender. I've written on surrender and yet it still continues to surprise me at new levels. So that has been interesting.

Speaker 1: 31:08

But God is so good because not only has he filled the gap, but he brought Chelsea into my life and it kind of felt like a spiritual daughter as I was launching my birth daughter and it just was so fun to be able to pour into her in a new way and it reminded me that I still have a lot to offer and I think it's short-sighted to think that we can only feed into the people that are in our home. I think we go outside of our home and we find our spiritual sisters and daughters and spiritual mothers that are out there. It's funny. I thought I was going to mentor her and help her, and she has given me way more than I have given her. I'm convinced of that. It reminds me of the deep purpose we all have to feed into the next generation and learn from them. I think they have so much to offer. I think the world wants to say that this generation is this or that, and boy, I get to know them. They're not. There is so much more to them than we even realize.

Speaker 3: 32:07

Hearing you share that. I'm reminded of how I met you guys. I met you at a conference and, chelsea, you had went up to the microphone and ask a question and the panelists who were hearing you ask the question kind of, in a way, dismissed you a little bit and it really bothered me. I was sitting, I was like no, like don't do that, like encourage that, like that's fire, encourage that, speak into that, and it just was such an example of what I feel like our culture does in dividing us, and not only the way that older sees younger, but also the way that younger sees older, and we don't recognize that we need each other.

Speaker 3: 32:40

And these relationships like Paul and Timothy, which we're going to talk about a little bit more in a minute here, these are incredible relationships that God designed for us to live out our purpose, and so wouldn't the enemy want to distort our view of one another? Yeah, he absolutely would, and so that's something that we have to be aware of is, where is this view I have of generations that are not my own coming from, and how does God want me to see the older women in my life and the younger women in my life? So, chelsea, I would love to hear Heather shared about your relationship and how that relationship is benefiting her. I would love to hear and have you share with our listeners how this relationship benefits you.

Speaker 4: 33:19

Yeah, I think it's benefited me in ways that I didn't fully see coming. I think that I went into it thinking like, oh, we're just going to do like some Bible studies, sometimes chat, but I think Heather really stewarded this. She was like no, I'm serious, I think you have something and we need to figure out what it is. Becauseather has been doing kind of a season of like a little bit of reorienting, like what she should be doing for god right now and what her skills look like as they're being honed for the kingdom, and I think that I didn't really realize that I had potential in like the area of speaking. But I think this year has been a big year of being like this is something that you really need to use for the kingdom because it's very powerful. And I think I learned a little bit about, you know, not discrediting a gift or disqualifying myself, because you know, when you're yourself, you're kind of like yeah, but like I'm not going to do that.

Speaker 4: 34:26

And I think Heather really stepped in and was empowering me to be like no, no, you could do it, you could speak and you could share and you could tell people about God, and I think I've never really heard that before in a way that's actually super attainable.

Speaker 4: 34:42

I mean Heather even bringing me to the Florida trip, like she fully paid for a hotel and my ticket, and I didn't know that was going to happen. It was like kind of a spur of the moment thing and all of a sudden all this opportunity comes and like you get to learn about this entrepreneurship and stuff like that. And then there's other opportunities that she's put on my plate too, stuff like that, and then there's other opportunities that she's put on my plate too, and like I think it's just been really fruitful to kind of be told by someone who is a woman of God hey, you can do something too. It doesn't have to just be other people that you think are more qualified. And I think she has done a really amazing job of being underqualified but being so successful in a lot of areas, for God.

Speaker 3: 35:27

Yeah, I think that's really important to recognize the giftings and the talents in the young women around us and call that out in them. And I see three beautiful things. Number one with you, chelsea. I see you not just saying, oh well, I could be a speaker and I could go speak, and so I'm just going to focus on speaking, but you're actually out there sharing Jesus right now, where you are, which is what we are called to do. Like that is the number one, right, and I know that that's something that you do. And then, number two, your relationship with Heather isn't just about her developing this speaking gift with you, but it's actually about you guys sharing your faith together, which you guys have shared is what your relationship is. And then, number three, heather's getting to call out these gifts and talents in you and help you to develop them. And I believe, like that is the holistic type of mentorship that God calls us into. And sometimes it's like, oh well, if I'm gonna mentor someone, it's just about getting together these you know six to ten times and we're going to go over these pieces of information and that could be what it is. But at the same time, even if that is what it is. It's also about the relationship that you have with that person and the wild intersection of you being at that conference with Heather.

Speaker 3: 36:38

Listeners, I just got to let you know this too, chelsea. You and I like communicated through text, I think, after the conference. We're like let's jump on a zoom call. I just got to let you know this, too, chelsea. You and I communicated through text, I think. After the conference. We're like let's jump on a Zoom call. I just had to meet Heather. I'm like who does this today? Brings their mentor across the country to a conference. I want to talk to them and it shouldn't be that way. We should hear more stories like this, right, where an older woman is saying, hey, I see this in you and let's go do this thing. But I knew that's why I had to talk to you, because this is why our ministry exists, because we want to see more Heathers and Chelsea's.

Speaker 3: 37:03

But then I found out that Heather was coming back to Florida on vacation and she was here last week and we got to go on a walk together on the beach. So I'm sharing this with you, listeners, because there are people in front of you right now like there's a Chelsea going up to a microphone and you feel this little nudge inside like you're going to go chase her down and get her number. Go do it. Go get the number, like when you feel that little nudge inside. You might be, I don't know, like at a church event and like you're talking to this person it's a great conversation and you feel this nudge. Maybe I should get their number. Get their number. Be weird, be the weird lady at the coffee shop who keeps inviting the young girl. I feel, like Chelsea, that your generation, like we, got to keep asking and if we get offended it's not going to happen. We have to keep asking. Would you agree with that? Do you see that in your peers? I do.

Speaker 4: 37:50

I think that there is a little persistence needed and I think that if people are going to be sensitive about it, then, yeah, it's going to make it a lot harder, because girls right now, like with social media and all these things, like there's a lot of other avenues that could be exercised for a young girl and there's a lot of access to those other avenues and they're never fruitful, because if Jesus isn't actually being glorified, then it's going to fall flat for those girls and they're going to get hurt. And I think that I was in a position where I was pretty close to choosing a different avenue and God was like nope, like we're not going to do that, and this weird. I mean, she's weird like very kumbaya. She's like 32 now and long hair. Everybody loves her.

Speaker 4: 38:42

It didn't make a ton of sense. Why are you talking to me? I'm like you just hired me. We don't work together that much and you're just sitting here and you're begging me to come to your basement and read the Bible with other people. I'm like it's so weird. I'm like I don't want to. But she was like you need to, like it's not about, like, oh, do you want to come? It's like you need this and I think that was what really took me back was that boldness of like Christians see non-Christians lives and they're like, oh, that's cool.

Speaker 4: 39:14

And you're just thinking in the back of your head like, oh, I should really like tell them about Jesus. This lady at this coffee shop was like I'm not going to tell her, that's cool, it's not cool. I'm going to tell her that she needs Christ. And I think that boldness is really going to be the name of the game for the next couple of years, especially for all these girls who have phones and social media and makeup and boyfriends and they think that they are good, they don't need more. They don't think that there's more for them.

Speaker 3: 39:44

Yeah, I love that. You need Jesus listeners. Those are the words that we need to share with the girls around us. So we're going to roundtable some scripture to close this thing out, and it's Philippians 2, 19 through 24. I sent it to Chelsea and Heather in advance, and that says this is Paul writing, by the way, he's closing out his letter to the Philippians, and he says I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you soon, so that I too may be cheered by news of you, for I have no one like him who will be genuinely concerned for your welfare, for they all seek their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ. But you know Timothy's proven worth, how, as a son with a father, he has served me within the gospel. I hope, therefore, to send him just as soon as I see how it will go with me, and I trust in the Lord that shortly I myself will come also. And so, heather and Chelsea, I'm curious when you looked at this scripture, what stood out to you?

Speaker 1: 40:36

I think the one thing that really shocked me was he said I have no one else like him who will show genuine concern, and I thought only one person that he knows he travels all over on these missionary journeys and one person that shows genuine concern. But then I started thinking about that and I was like you know what, though, you are one. And so if you're thinking, oh, I don't have very many friends, I'm not feeling accepted, I'm not in a group, I don't know, but you just need one genuine person. And if you don't have that right now, pray for that and just recognize that one person can strengthen you. And if you can't find them, go out and seek one that you can feed into to be that authentic, genuine person.

Speaker 4: 41:18

Yeah, I think something that really stood out to me was actually the first verse, the I hope, in the Lord Jesus, to send Timothy to you soon so that I too may be cheered by news of you. I think it was kind of funny how high of expectations Paul has for Timothy. He was like, yeah, I'm going to send Timothy so I can get some good news, like it's like, oh, like, he's just definitely, it's just definitely going to work. If he sends Timothy kind of thing and like, and then he finishes it with I'm going to come too and that he knows that.

Speaker 4: 41:49

And I think it's just sweet when, you know, a relationship comes along that has been stewarded for a while and there's like I, like I feel like if I was Timothy, I would be like, oh my gosh, this is my time to shine. Like he's he believes in me, you know, and like he thinks that I can do it when I go, like it's going to work. And I think that confidence in each other as the body is also really important, because if Christians just held Christian's hands the whole time and like it was just the people with the microphone the whole time, it would be like burnout would be a much worse problem, like if we weren't sending each other burnout, for the pastors and leaders of the churches would be crazy, and I think that people should feel empowered to be Timothy's, like the people who maybe aren't like the star of the show but know the Pauls. Should it be like yeah, I could do it too, because I know God just as much as this guy knows God, and so I can do it.

Speaker 3: 42:52

Yeah, I love that you point out the sending part. Our method of ministry is gather, grow, go. We're not going to sit and stay and just grow together, but we're going to go and we believe that if you have Jesus, you can go. And if we go back to the beginning of Acts, chapter 9, when we first introduced this, paul runs into Jesus, his life is transformed and then it says he's up preaching the gospel. And also those words that I have no one like him when Paul said those words. It makes me think about when he first met Timothy.

Speaker 3: 43:20

And going back to are we paying attention? Did Paul get the nudge from the Holy Spirit? I'm sure that he did of you got to know this guy, you got to bring this guy with you. What if he'd ignored it? And I think that we discount how well we hear from the Holy Spirit. I think there are times when the Holy Spirit is speaking to us, but we invite the girl and the girl says no, so we don't ask again. And sometimes a girl might say yes, or sometimes a younger woman might say yes, and then other times it might be like, well, walk with me a little bit longer, like show me who you are and then I'll say, yes, well, this has been amazing. You guys, I am so grateful that we had the opportunity to have you on for this conversation and help us close out this series. Thank you, guys, so much.

Speaker 1: 44:00

Thank you, it was such a privilege.

Speaker 3: 44:01

Thank you, guys so much, thank you. It was such a privilege. Thank you, guys so much for joining us. We want you to know that we have a free tool for you that pairs with the conversations that you've heard in this podcast series. You can grab yours at bethebraveonesgiftcom. That's bethebraveonesgiftcom.

Speaker 3: 44:15

Although we're wrapping up the intersection series on the podcast, we hope that you will use our tools and resources to have meaningful conversations of your own with the girls in your life, and summer is coming up quickly. It's going to be here before we know it. So we are releasing a Summer of Joy Toolkit. It is meant to inspire you to create joy-filled experiences for the girls in your life this summer. So make sure you're following us on Instagram or you've joined our Brave Girls Gather Connect Facebook group so that you can stay informed about our latest tools and resources. If this ministry has blessed you, we invite you to help us keep growing and going by giving a donation at the link in our show notes, and if you haven't yet subscribed to the podcast yet, go ahead and do that now. We don't want you to miss out on our next series.