Most of us are decent enough people in public. The real test of goodness is the small, unseen moment when no one would ever know.

In this episode, Nicole and Stephanie continue our Fruit That Lasts series with goodness, the fruit that grows in the hidden places. Our culture likes to say people are basically good, but Scripture gives us a more honest picture and a far better hope. Goodness is not about appearing good. It is about letting God transform who we are when no one is watching.

Galatians 5:22-23 calls these the fruit of the Spirit, not the fruit of our effort. Goodness is not willpower or reputation management. It is what the Holy Spirit produces in a life surrendered to Christ, and it shows up most clearly where no one is keeping score.

In This Episode

• Why goodness is about who you are in private, not how you look in public
• How social media can quietly turn goodness into performance
• The little compromises that trade our goodness away without us noticing
• What the Pharisees, Joseph in Egypt, and Joshua's stones of remembrance teach us
• Simple, everyday practices for growing goodness in the unseen moments

What Goodness in the Unseen Moments Actually Means

Goodness begins with understanding that God, not us, is the standard of what is good. We live in a culture that says just be a good person, as though goodness is sitting inside all of us. The gospel is more honest. We are created in God's image and also broken by sin, which means we do not need more confidence in our own goodness. We need Christ to change us from the inside out. Goodness is choosing what is right when there is no audience: honesty when a lie would be easier, integrity when cutting a corner would save time, kindness when no one will ever know.

Resources Mentioned

• You Are What You Love by James K.A. Smith
• Social Sanity in an Insta World by Sarah Eekhoff Zylstra
• Good to Great in God's Eyes by Chip Ingram
• The Attributes of God by A.W. Pink
• ROOTS Morning Journals. groundedgrowth.org/store

Final Encouragement

Goodness is not about being seen as good. It is about quietly becoming good in the moments only God will ever see. You do not have to overhaul everything at once. Pick one hidden place this week, one small unseen choice, and do the good and honest thing there. Remember that you are not the source of your own goodness. A.W. Pink describes God as the fountain of every good, the One from whom all goodness flows. Think of Joseph, alone in Egypt, who refused to compromise his integrity when no one from home would ever have known. His goodness in the unseen moment was really just his faithfulness to the God who was always watching. So on the days your goodness feels thin and no one is clapping, do not give up. Keep doing the small right thing in secret, and trust that the God who sees in secret is growing something lasting in you.

Stay grounded and keep growing.

www.groundedgrowth.org

Instagram: @GroundedGrowthMO

Most of us have settled for being nice. Nice is easy. Kindness is something else entirely.

In this episode, Nicole and Stephanie continue our Fruit That Lasts series with kindness, the fruit that almost always costs us something. Being nice is a pleasant surface. Kindness is a costly action, and the two are not the same, even though we treat them like they are.

Galatians 5:22-23 calls these the fruit of the Spirit, not the fruit of our effort. Kindness is not a personality trait a few lucky people are born with. It is what the Holy Spirit grows in a life that stays close to Christ. And it starts with remembering how kind God has already been to us.

In This Episode

• Why biblical kindness goes deeper than being pleasant, and where the "cost" actually shows up
• The difference between being nice and being kind, and why we confuse them
• Why our kindness runs thinnest with the people closest to us
• What Jonah, the Good Samaritan, and Boaz show us about kindness
• Simple, everyday practices for growing a kindness that looks like Jesus

What Kindness That Costs Something Actually Means

Kindness is an attribute of God before it is a behavior we try to produce. Romans 2:4 tells us it is God's kindness that leads us toward repentance. His kindness is never just Him being nice to us. It is purposeful. It draws us back and it changes us. Micah 6:8 does not only tell us to do kind things. It tells us to love kindness, which means something is happening in the heart, not just the behavior. And that is where the word cost matters. Kindness may cost us our time, our convenience, our comfort, or the satisfaction of getting the last word.

Why It Is So Hard

We live in a world that rewards speed and self-protection, not sacrifice. Being nice is free. Being kind asks for our time, our comfort, and our plans, and it rarely shows up at a convenient moment. Most of us are only naturally kind to the people who can be kind back. Faith Chang names this pull in Peace Over Perfection, how prone we are to lean on our own goodness instead of resting in God's. When we forget how freely He has been kind to us, our kindness toward others turns stingy and conditional.

Resources Mentioned

• Peace Over Perfection by Faith Chang
• Adamant by Lisa Bevere
• The Attributes of God by A.W. Pink
• ROOTS Morning Journals. groundedgrowth.org/store

Final Encouragement

Kindness that looks like Jesus is not about being nice. It is about letting His love spill out of you in ways that actually cost you something. You do not have to overhaul your whole life. Pick one person this week and do one kind thing that is a little inconvenient, and let that be enough. Every bit of kindness you give is really just an echo of the kindness God has already poured over you. He was kind to you first, while you could not pay Him back at all. So on the days your kindness runs thin, do not try to squeeze more out of yourself. Go back to the One who is endlessly kind and let Him fill you again.

Stay grounded and keep growing.

www.groundedgrowth.org

Instagram: @GroundedGrowthMO

"The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you." 2 Peter 3:9

We are continuing our Fruit That Lasts series with the fruit that probably gets tested more than any other, patience. Most of us think patience is about traffic, long lines, and not losing our tempers with our kids. But biblical patience goes so much deeper. It is trusting God's timing while He is doing His work in us.

In this episode, Nicole and Stephanie get honest about what patience looks like when you are stretched thin. They talk about the seasons that felt like interruptions but were really God's classroom, the impatience that shows up first with the people we love most, and the steadying truth that God's delays are never God's absence.

In this episode:

• What biblical patience actually is, trusting God while we wait instead of just gritting our teeth.
• Why patience is so hard when we crave control and immediate relief.
• What it looks like when our patience runs out.
• What Jesus shows us through His disciples, His delay before Lazarus, and His patience with us.
• Four simple ways to grow patience: pause before you react, pray through the wait, pursue Him in the interruption, and practice patience with yourself.

Scripture and references:

• 2 Peter 3:9
• Romans 8
• James 1:19,
• James 5:7-8
• Philippians 1:6
• Hebrews 6:10.

Books mentioned:

• When God Doesn't Fix It by Laura Story
• Identity Theft
• Habits of Grace by David Mathis.

Stay grounded and keep growing.

Follow along and stay connected:
Website: www.groundedgrowth.org
Instagram: @GroundedGrowthMO

"Peace I leave with you. My peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you." John 14:27

We are continuing our Fruit That Lasts series, and after love and joy, we are talking about the one thing so many women are quietly longing for. Peace. The world tells us peace will finally come when life calms down. But if you have lived very long, you already know that life rarely gets quiet. In this episode, Nicole and Stephanie get honest about why real peace is not the absence of noise, but the presence of a perfect Savior.

We talk about what biblical peace actually is, why it feels so hard to hold onto, and what Jesus showed us when He slept through the storm and then stood up and said, "Peace, be still." We open up about surrender, about the fifty small things that chip away at our calm before nine in the morning, and about the difference between being a peacekeeper and a peacemaker. Then we share four simple ways to grow peace in everyday life.

If your heart feels restless today, let this be your reminder. You do not have to have it all figured out. You just have to bring your restless heart to the One who calmed the sea.

In this episode:

• Why peace is not the absence of noise, but a place to stand within it.
• Why peace is so hard to hold onto.
• What it looks like when we lose our peace.
• What Jesus shows us about His peace in Mark 4 and John 14.
• Four simple practices for a more peaceful heart: pray it forward, pause before you react, ponder what is true, and practice surrender daily.

Scripture and references:

• John 14:27
• Philippians 4:6-7
• Psalm 119:165
• Hebrews 12:11
• Matthew 11:28-30
• Matthew 6:34
• Mark 4:35-41
• Luke 10:38-42
• Romans 12

Books mentioned:

• Now and Not Yet by Ruth Chou Simons,
• ospel Mom by Risen Motherhood
• Writings of Sally Clarkson.

Follow along and stay connected:
Website: www.groundedgrowth.org
Instagram: @GroundedGrowthMO

We use the words happy and joyful like they mean the same thing. Scripture never does.

In this episode, Nicole and Stephanie continue our Fruit That Lasts series with the second fruit of the Spirit, joy. It may be one of the most misunderstood. Happiness rises and falls with our circumstances. Joy is rooted in Someone who never changes.

Galatians 5:22-23 calls these the fruit of the Spirit, not the fruit of our effort. Joy is not something we manufacture on a good day. It is the Holy Spirit's work in a life that stays close to Christ. And it is available to us right in the middle of our mess, not only after we finally clean it up.

In This Episode

• The real difference between happiness and joy, and why joy is tied to who is holding you
• The quiet thieves of joy: comparison, busyness, and waiting for life to calm down
• What Habakkuk, Paul and Silas, and the prodigal son's older brother show us
• Why Jesus was never the joyless figure we sometimes picture
• Simple, everyday practices for growing a joy that lasts

Joy That Doesn't Depend on Circumstances

Biblical joy is not the absence of hardship. It is the presence of Christ in the middle of it. Habakkuk lost nearly everything, no fruit on the vines and no livestock in the fields, and still said, "Yet I will rejoice in the Lord." Paul and Silas sang hymns at midnight in a prison cell, a joy the jail could not touch. Joy is confidence that God is still writing the story, even when we cannot yet see the ending.

Why It Is So Hard

We anchor our emotions to changing circumstances instead of God's unchanging character. Comparison steals more joy than a hard day ever does, and busyness quietly steals our ability to notice God's goodness. Sally Clarkson describes our culture wearing busyness like a badge of honor, and warns of "sawdust souls," hearts so depleted they lose the ability to feel deep joy. We mistake comfort for joy, when Scripture promises something far better than a comfortable life. It promises Christ's presence.

Faith Layer

"The joy of the Lord is your strength." Nehemiah 8:10

Notice it does not say your joy is your strength. The Lord's joy becomes our strength because He is our source, and no circumstance can drain it dry.

Resources Mentioned

• When God Doesn't Fix It by Laura Story
• The writing of Sally Clarkson, on sawdust souls and seeing God's fingerprints each day
• ROOTS Morning Journals. groundedgrowth.org/store

Final Encouragement

Joy is not a personality trait you were born with or without. It is a gift you get to open again every single day, no matter what kind of day it has been. You do not have to pretend to be fine to have it. So if today feels heavy, do not wait for your circumstances to change before choosing joy. Run to the One who never changes. The deepest joy is not found in a perfect life. It is found in a faithful Savior.

Stay grounded and keep growing.

www.groundedgrowth.org
Instagram: @GroundedGrowthMO

Culture tells us love is a feeling. Scripture tells us love is the very character of God.

In this episode, Nicole and Stephanie open our new Fruit That Lasts series with the first fruit of the Spirit, love. Over the next nine episodes we are slowing down to study the fruit of the Spirit, not as a checklist of behaviors, but as the evidence of a life abiding in Christ.

Galatians 5:22-23 calls these the fruit of the Spirit, not the fruit of our effort. These are not traits we manufacture on a good day. They are the Holy Spirit's work in someone who belongs to Jesus. And love is where it begins, because every other fruit grows out of it.

In This Episode

• What biblical love means, and why it is more than being nice
• Why 1 Corinthians 13 is not really about marriage at all
• How cancel culture shows up in the way we love
• Why Peter on the beach and the woman in John 8 change how we see grace
• Stephanie's question for hard conversations: what do you need from me right now?

Love That Looks Like Jesus

Biblical love is choosing another person's good, even when it costs you. In John 15, Jesus says abiding in Him produces fruit, then commands us to love one another as He has loved us. Sally Lloyd-Jones calls God's love His never stopping, never giving up, unbreaking, always and forever love. Jesus did not love people because they had it all together. He loved them right in the middle of their mess.

Why It Is So Hard

Sin curves our hearts inward. We drift toward loving people when it is easy, or when they love us well in return. When someone stops serving us, culture tells us to cancel them, when Scripture calls us to turn toward them in prayer. Even Paul wrestled with this in Romans 7. And when we are running on empty, that is usually the sign we have been loving in our own strength.

Most of us have heard 1 Corinthians 13 at a wedding and assumed it was about marriage. But the passage is about God's love. Jesus is patient. Jesus is kind. Read that way, it stops being a standard we perform and becomes a mirror.

Faith Layer

1 John 4:19. We love because he first loved us.

Jesus loved first, sacrificially, consistently, and while we were still sinners. Psalm 136 repeats it over and over, for his steadfast love endures forever. Steadfastness does not describe us. It describes Christ. Randy Pope says it simply: religion says do, the Gospel says done. We do not love to earn God's approval. We love because we have already received it.

Resources Mentioned

• The Jesus Storybook Bible by Sally Lloyd-Jones
• Closer Than a Sister by Christina Fox
• Peace Over Perfection by Faith Chang
• The Answer by Randy Pope
• ROOTS Morning Journals. groundedgrowth.org/store

Final Encouragement

Loving like Jesus does not start with getting it right. It starts with staying close to Him and showing up again, even after yesterday's mess. Pick one person and one small moment this week, ask the Holy Spirit to love through you, and let that be enough. On the days you fall short, you do not start over by trying harder. You come back to Jesus, whose love never stops, never gives up, and never runs out.

Stay grounded and keep growing.

www.groundedgrowth.org
Instagram: @GroundedGrowthMO

She did everything right. She checked every box her faith required, and then her cousin’s sudden death cracked the foundation she had built her whole identity on.

In this episode, Nicole and Stephanie sit down with their friend Brianna Preece for an honest conversation about leaving the Mormon church, the hard truths that made her walk away for good, and how God rebuilt her identity around grace instead of performance.

This is a reminder that questioning what you were taught is not a loss of faith. It can be the very thing God uses to lead you into the truth.

In This Episode

• The turning point: her cousin’s sudden death and the questions it raised
• The hard truths about the Mormon church that made her walk away for good
• What it cost her: family tension and lost friendships
• The moment she gave her life to Christ
• How she unlearned what was false and relearned what is true
• What her identity looks like now, rooted in Galatians 2:20
• Simple rhythms that keep her grounded as a homeschooling mom of three

Key Takeaways

• A crisis often exposes what your identity is really built on. Brianna’s cousin’s death revealed her faith was rooted in a system, not in Christ.
• Learning hard truths about a belief system does not have to end in walking away from God. It can redirect you to Scripture as your only source of truth.
• Salvation is not a checklist. Resting in the finished work of Christ replaces the exhausting cycle of wondering if you have done enough.
• Leaving a high control system can cost real relationships, but God often provides unexpected community to fill that gap.
• Small daily rhythms, prayer, Scripture, a journal, a weekly plan, sustain long term spiritual grounding more than any single decision.

Faith Layer

Galatians 2:20. I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.

This is the verse Brianna carries with her, tattooed on her shoulder. Her salvation, her identity, her whole life is because of Christ, not because of anything she has done.

Resources Mentioned

• ROOTS Morning Journal, groundedgrowth.org/store
• Wise Words for Moms parenting chart by Ginger Hubbard, gingerhubbard.com (confirm exact URL)

Final Encouragement

• If you have ever been afraid to question what you were taught, Brianna’s story is proof that God is not afraid of your questions. He welcomes them.
• Take your questions to Scripture and to a trusted, local church, not Google, YouTube, or AI. And if following God costs you something, count it all joy anyway. It may cost you for a season, but God can open doors years later that once looked permanently closed.

We often treat our faith and our work like two separate worlds. One for Sunday and one for Monday.

In this episode, Nicole and Stephanie talk about why it feels hard to bring faith into work, what happens when we keep the two separate, and what living your faith at work actually looks like in a normal, demanding week.

Most women are not looking to preach at the office. They are longing to feel whole, like who they are on the inside matches how they show up at work. So maybe the question is not how to talk about our faith at work. It is how to actually live it there.

In This Episode

• Why we are taught to separate faith from professional life
• How fear of judgment keeps us quiet at work
• What happens when work becomes only about results
• Why faith at work is more about character than conversation
• How to start your workday grounded instead of striving
• What it means to work as a steward rather than an owner
• Why Colossians 3:23-24 changes how we see our daily work

Why It Feels Hard

Many women quietly believe faith belongs in personal spaces but not professional ones. Work environments often reward hustle, independence, and self promotion, while our faith teaches surrender, humility, and dependence on God. Those two value systems create tension. We also confuse living our faith with preaching it, when the strongest witness is usually steady, godly character.

What Faith at Work Actually Looks Like

Faith at work is integrity when no one is watching. It is excellence offered as worship rather than a way to prove our worth. It is the way we treat people, because they remember how we made them feel long after they forget what we accomplished. And it is leading from peace instead of pressure, because when our identity is anchored in God, we can lead steadily through stressful moments.

Faith Layer

Colossians 3:23-24. Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ.

Faithfulness matters more to God than visible success. The world measures results, but God looks at obedience. Work becomes far less exhausting when we stop trying to prove our worth through performance and remember that our worth was already secured through Christ.

Resources Mentioned

• The E-Myth by Michael Gerber
• Atomic Habits by James Clear
• ROOTS Morning Journal. groundedgrowth.org/store

Final Encouragement

Your work matters far more than you think. Not because of what you accomplish, but because God cares deeply about how you steward what He has placed in your hands. You do not need a ministry title or a platform for God to use your work for Kingdom purposes. Sometimes faithfulness in ordinary places is where His glory shines most clearly.

Stay grounded and keep growing.

Follow along and stay connected:
Website: www.groundedgrowth.org
Instagram: @GroundedGrowthMO