What if the joy you’ve been searching for has been there all along—but you’ve been too busy to receive it?

For much of this year, my word receive felt vague and almost fake because I honestly didn’t understand how to receive God’s love, peace, joy, or everyday gifts. I was accustomed to doing, planning, creating, fixing, and trying to control the outcome—especially in my business. I was always working to arrive somewhere, and anxious hurry kept carrying me past the life God was already giving me.

In this episode, I share what I’m beginning to understand about the difference between faithful work and anxious hurry, why a clenched hand cannot receive, and how slowing down to notice and describe God’s ordinary gifts is creating room for both joy and peace.

I haven’t mastered open-handed living. But today, my hand is a little more open than it was yesterday. Walk with me a bit as we walk with Him—learning to slow down, notice His gifts, faithfully take the next step, and trust God with what comes next.

Trusting God in the Waiting: When You Don’t Know What Will Grow

I planted three tiny lavender plants in the field this week.

And honestly? I have no idea if they're going to live.

After years of trying unsuccessfully to propagate lavender, I decided this spring to try growing it from seed. I started with about 80 seeds, and twelve little plants made it through the summer. This week, I took three of those survivors from their protected spot beside the house and planted them in the field—in holes where other young lavender plants have already died.

As I was debating whether I should even plant them, I had this thought:

If they live, there will be a lesson in the lavender. And if they die, there will be a lesson in the lavender.

But if I'm honest, there was a little bit of a "whatever" attitude underneath that too. I've learned plenty of lessons through things not growing the way I hoped they would.

And I'm weary.

I'd really love to see what God might teach me through something that lives.

Those three little plants made me realize I've planted a lot of other things in this season too—new ideas, writing, creative work, and things I genuinely hope will grow. And now I'm in the part I really don't like:

Waiting.

I love planning. I love creating. I love figuring things out. But eventually I have to release what I've created and face the part I can't control—the outcome.

And when things don't grow the way I thought they would, that's when I start asking hard questions:

Did I hear God correctly? Am I where He wants me? What if this doesn't work either?

In this episode of Rooted & Rested, I'm sitting with Ecclesiastes 11:4–6 and its uncomfortable reminder that we don't always know which seed will succeed.

This isn't a success story told from the other side.

The plants are still in the field.

I'm still waiting.

I still don't know what will grow.

And maybe that's exactly why I wanted to share this part of the story now—before I know the ending.

If you're somewhere between planting and knowing too, walk with me a bit as we walk with Him.

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Do you ever feel like you should be better at trusting God by now?

After years of knowing and loving the Lord, Lisa still finds herself learning how to receive His love, recognize His nearness, and return to His peace. In this episode of Rooted & Rested, she shares an honest reflection that began in Romans 9—with the reminder that it does not depend on human desire or effort, but on God’s mercy.

What does it really mean to walk with God when you aren’t always sure you hear Him correctly? What if the redirections, wilderness seasons, and struggles to trust have not disqualified you—but have been part of the way He has been forming you?

Through the beautiful image of an open door, Lisa reflects on Christ’s continued welcome: His hand extended, inviting us to return again and again. We don’t return because He has left us, but because we have lost our awareness of the nearness that has been ours all along.

Lisa has not mastered peace. She is still learning to come back to the One who has perfect peace—and to leave the door open behind her for other women who need help finding their way back too.

If you love the Lord but sometimes struggle to feel His love, presence, or peace, you are not alone. Walk with Lisa a bit as you walk with Him. Free Resource - The Brain Dump