Set Free

Have you ever felt like something was missing either within yourself or in your life? Like you just can’t seem to put your finger on it, but you know there’s a void … somewhere. You wake up every day just to go through the motions, yet deep inside you crave more, and you know this is no way to truly live.

Maybe you’ve felt like you’re living in the middle of a powerful, raging storm. Wherever you go, there’s a dark cloud of rain following your every step. Perhaps your thoughts have drifted off, and you’ve found yourself questioning the meaning of life, and maybe you’ve thought, There has to be more to life than this.

You’ve been trying to find your purpose, and sometimes you even question whether you have one. You’re left with this undeniable, unsettling pit in your stomach, and ultimately you just feel lost and alone.

You’ve asked yourself questions and whispered to heaven,

“What am I here to do, God?”

“Who am I supposed to be?”

“Do I have what it takes?”

“Where do I start?”

So far, this journey has led you to feelings of loneliness, sadness, anger, resentment, frustration, bitterness, fearfulness, and anxiety.

You name it—I have felt it all, too.

I get it, girlfriend.

Here’s the truth. You are not showing up as the woman you desire to be, let alone who God designed and created you to be.

The world has shaped our vision of how life should be. It has painted the picture that experiencing crazy chaos, striving for more, and maintaining a busy life are somehow the perfect depiction of fulfillment and success. Somewhere along the way, we find ourselves chasing things that in the end ultimately don’t matter.

We often try to convince ourselves that “this is how life works.” In the process, we subconsciously enter the rat race, but all the while, we’re suffering in silence, feeling empty, stressed to the brim. And before we realize it, life just passes us by. We forget we have a calling on our lives, and the world’s vision is so polar opposite from the calling God has placed on us. “‘For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future’” (Jeremiah 29:11 NIV).

Let me tell you—if life didn’t have us on a speeding, twisting roller-coaster ride, taking us through difficult challenges and up and down the steep mountains, we would never discover who God intended us to be. I can honestly say that every heartache, setback, trial, and challenge I have had helped make me the strong, fierce woman I am today. Everything—the good, the bad, and the ugly—has helped mold me for a divine purpose and put me on a path that continually allows me to step into my greatness and my God-given purpose.

This is all part of a bigger, more intrinsic plan I so wish I could see (thanks to my type A personality), but the gift hidden within not knowing is learning to trust. The journey God has me on is one in which I am learning to fully trust.

I was in my closet, hiding from my five incredible, wild, yet crazy children, when I turned on some worship music to spiritually recharge. Now, if you had asked me just one year ago whether I would be going to God first with everything, I probably would have just nodded and smiled politely.

Maybe you can relate, but I have always been one to take control and do it all by myself. Looking back, I can say I even thrived on that plan. So taking the time to be still and to listen to what God was telling me might have been a slight challenge. However, when I slow down just enough to truly listen for my next steps, I have learned that this method is good for my soul and all those around me. I encourage you to try it.

He says, “Be still, and know that I am God;

I will be exalted among the nations,

I will be exalted in the earth.”

(Psalm 46:10 NIV)

As I was taking it all in, I could hear, “Your God-given story is your message.”

The words were spoken to me loud and clear; like a mantra (or a broken record), they kept repeating and wouldn’t go away.

It was like the music softened, and they were coming out of the speaker on repeat, playing over and over again in my heart and mind.

Now here we are, just a few short weeks later, and I’m typing away as if I were born to do this—even though I was the one who failed my twelfth-grade state writing proficiency test. Here I am, sharing my story with you.

This book is my gift to you. I hope it helps to restore your faith with encouragement so you can turn your struggles into fuel, which inspires you to shine your light ever so brightly and transforms you into the woman you have always been called to be.

There will be a time when you recall that precious moment when you took a deep dive into your heart and were willing to say “Yes!” to all the blessings and gifts God has given you. And with that “Yes!” will also be the first step on your journey, which is aligned with your purpose.

Let’s begin.