Hi there. I'm Joe Allen. And this is find your fierce, the show designed for women to discover your fierce unlock, an unstoppable mindset, build unbreakable courage, and completely transform how you show up every single day. Each week. I will bring ideas, methods, and strategies that will inspire you to step into your greatness and live life on purpose. Let's be fit fierce and unstoppable.
(00:35): Hey there, gang. Welcome to find your fears so glad that you are here with me as we dive into a brand new episode, and I'm super excited about this one, because we have a special guest with us today, and I cannot wait for our chat, but before we go any further, I have to say that I love that you are here listening in and spending time with us. So honored that I get to be a part of your day. You're just so amazing. And I have to thank you for your love and support as always. I appreciate your feedback, your reviews, and I love that you share this podcast and a set free message with your friends and family. So if you could keep on doing that, that would be, uh, incredible because you are helping this movement as it helps reach more women and it impacts more lives.
(01:09): And that is certainly what life is all about. So thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Okay, so let's dive in. Are you ready? I know last fall. Uh, not sure if you remember or not, you can always go back and check out all the replays, uh, of find your fears. But we had a three part series called coffee chats and my friend and neighbor was a part of that series and excited to share with you that Liz is back with us today. Uh, she's married to Brad, she's a mom to, to four super sweet girls who she homeschool. And let me tell you, she does it all. They own and operate Phoenix, construction and renovations, uh, building remodeling, home projects, you name it. And she also creates and designs t-shirts so there's so much not to mention. She has so much vision and heart and she is with us today.
(01:55): How are you Liz? I'm doing great. Thank you. Thanks for having me. I'm excited. Me too. We have no problem talking. Uh, I know, uh, let me tell you gang, we have been neighbors for what? Three, three years. Almost three years. Okay. Three. Yeah. And so it's crazy. Talk about a blessing. Uh, at least for me, mm-hmm, for sure, but so many conversations and, and it's funny. I was telling Rob just seriously on the way over. Oh, when Liz I talk, we can go super shallow, like just fun laugh, and then to super neat within a second and then go back to shallow, like squirrel look and, uh, we just pick out and I love that I do too. I love it, but that's what makes it so good because we can have really heartfelt, real, authentic relation, uh, ships or conversations I should say that can hit home and speak to the heart, uh, and make such a impact.
(02:51): But at the same time we can laugh. And I know for me, I always pee my pants. Um, when I laugh. And so that's kind of what happens when we get together. And I'm so glad that you're here because your heart, your, your light's gonna shine, I think. And somebody's gonna grab a hold of whatever you're putting down here today. Uh, and I can't wait to dive in. We just got back from Alaska. Yay. We did. It was amazing. Alaska. You guys have not heard. We, uh, spent a week in Anchorage, uh, Alaska for a mission trip. And we kind of wanna share with you a little bit about that because if you have ever wanted to serve or step out, uh, in your faith and just kind, not focus on your problems and life that we actually can give back and go out to the nations, uh, if, if we wanna, uh, you know, go that route, it's just, that's what we did.
(03:44): And I remember last fall. Was it last fall? I don't know this. It was like whirlwind. This took off so fast with the mission itself. Uh, the planning of it. Is that what you mean? Planning? Yeah, my last fall. Yeah, it might have been last fall. Well, I remember you telling me that it started with the puppies. So whenever the puppies June you go, um, I don't know if that's when the, the vision initially planted. I know for myself last fall. Yeah. I, I was switching out of a journal that I had. I feel like the Lord's been stir in my heart anyway, of just what it means to love your neighbor. I remember several years back, he simplified, you know, what's the greatest commitment to love God with your heart, soul, mind, and strength. And the second is like, it love your neighbor as yourself.
(04:25): So there's just this journey of like, oh, what does it look like to love your neighbor as yourself? And what does it look like to not just love in word, but in action and all that. So last fall I was transitioning to a new journal. I had one and I felt like the holy spirit said to me, I want you to start this one. It and it on, it was a picture of the globe. And it said the world is calling. And I felt like he said, there's a reason. It means something just, you know, walk with me and let me unfold it. So I've been using this journal every day, um, since last fall. And then at the end of the year, my husband and I usually sit down together and, um, or as the, like December, as years wrapping up, we sit down together and decide to do what we call profit vision board.
(05:04): So we get paper, um, poster, board, whatever, and then just together, you know, sit and ask the Lord, okay, Lord, what are you doing for next year? Like what, how can we partner with you and your plans for next year? And then we just write, like, if it's a picture, we'll sketch a picture that we see in our, in our mind. Or if it's, you know, we hear something in our heart, like he whispers, you know, an impression on our heart. Um, we just write it down and it's really cool. We do this together. So we're making one large board and it's for our family, for us, whatever. And one of the things on there, I had sketched this little picture of mountains and water and, and it said adventure with the holy spirit. And then even like some of the things he'd been saying to me, my prayer time was like, get ready.
(05:48): I'm sending you out all these things. So little seeds, little seeds here and there. Of course I had no idea that Jill had had this seed of emission trip planted in her heart, um, all this time until she does her big announcement. What December, I think was it towards the end of the year? Yeah. Think so. It says we're going on a mission trip. We're going to Alaska. Oh my gosh. And funny enough, I had just been talking about a mission trip literally two days before that was somebody else and our desire to do something like that. We hadn't done it before. So for me it was just so confirmational like, okay, this is it. We're gonna jump in. You know, my husband was like, it was so confirmed to him too. Like in his heart, he's like, yes, I felt like the Lord's ever supposed to do this.
(06:29): Let's do it. Um, so that's, we committed and started plan the planning and, you know, preparation process from there. So that's how we landed there. That's awesome. No, I love it. I Y you know what, you brought up, I one, I love vision boards and I'll be completely honest with you when I do vision boards and, and we've done, uh, you know, vision board gatherings and get togethers. And we did workshops and, and I, I love vision boards, like for people to really, you know, think about what is possible for their life and just get out of, uh, the every day. Well, and the funny thing is when I do vision boards years, it has been selfishly, right? Like it would, it's always, I want this and I want it. And, and this is what I see, but the more that, like, I love that you said that let's partner with God, and what is it that he is asking you to do?
(07:20): Because sometimes our vision boards aren't as big and grand. And I say that because we can only see yeah. What is in front of us. Yeah. And God's saying, well, no, I, I envision this for you. And these are the gifts that I've given you. These are the, the plans and the passions, you know, that I've placed on your heart. And so I love it that you do it, uh, with him. So that's really good. Well, that's, I mean, we've definitely done our version. I mean, our fair share of selfish too. Yeah. And I had a friend who mentioned it at one point in the middle of the year, a couple years ago. And I was like, yeah, that's really cool. So it was just, so at the last year we saw, we took the vision board from the year before and saw how everything that he had put on that vision board had been accomplished.
(08:05): And that was like, what was a game game changer. Yeah, yeah. Yeah. So we're hooked to say the least, but we've definitely done it, you know, for ourselves too. And it's just been awesome to see how God uses that. So when we partner with him, so, oh yeah, he has a much bigger plan, um, than we need to have for ourself and he can see everything. Uh, and so that's, I do wanna talk about a lot about vision and, uh, it's funny that you bring up vision boards. I, um, it's so good. Yeah. Thanks to grace Gracie, our dog right. Because we had this and we're like, we are not breeders. And we had, she had 10 puppies, we did lose a few. Um, and that was, that was pretty sad, but we had, uh, seven German shepherds, uh, Husky mix. And we're like, man, and here we are selling them.
(08:51): And something in my heart was like, man, we're not breeders. This is not what we did. All we did was rescue this dog and, and she end up being pregnant. So go figure . And so, yeah, we, uh, had this extra money and in my heart was like, okay, do you start, um, you know, a nonprofit that was something that was in our heart, or, you know, what can we do to give back to this because Gracie has blessed us, uh, yeah. Several times over and over. And, um, so yeah, we had this extra, um, money and we, uh, actually put it toward the ministry fund. Yeah. That ended up being, uh, to several churches there in Alaska. So that's kind of how that worked out. So let's talk a, a little bit about the process leading up to it. Because when I shared that we were going to Alaska, I'm gonna preface this, the fact that we had no idea what we were doing, you know, part of it was that we were going to use our gifts and skills for the mission or to plan that mission.
(09:48): And I love that concept of it. Um, let's, let's go, we picked a spot and we're gonna go, and we had 26 people that said, okay, I'm game. And what I loved about this, uh, from the get go was, okay, well, I don't know what we're doing. I have no idea, uh, where we're gonna stay, who we're gonna help, who we're gonna come in contact with. Um, but all I know is that we're going to Alaska and that's all I could say for that period of time was okay, I'm asking you to go. And people said, yes. Yeah. But there's so much power in that. Yeah, there really is. Yeah. But at the same time, as it was getting closer and closer and closer, their, uh, uncertainty started popping in, um, our heads as well. What are we doing? Why don't we know what we're doing for the week and who are we helping and where are we staying and what do we need to bring?
(10:40): And what's the packing list and all this stuff, um, leading up to it. We just didn't know like there, yeah. We were going in blind. Yep. Yeah. Did you feel that, or were you a complete piece? I'd like to say it's a little bit of boths. I get like the whole, I mean, my husband was even asking questions. What do I need to pack? Because he's like, I've got tools, so what, what tools do I need? So there was an element of needing to plan. I think it's just been the work I've God in my life. I've had, I've, we've had so many experiences in my life, but also in, you know, 10 years with my husband or 11 years with my husband that, um, have not been, they've not gone the way that we thought, or there really was no way to plan.
(11:19): Um, and so you essentially feel like you're going in blind. Um, but I've always seen God be faithful and show up. So while there was an element of like, you know, I guess, I don't know what we're gonna, you know, what do we need, what do we need was probably the biggest thing. I still had this kind of resounding piece that it was all gonna work out because God called us and he who called us faithful to complete it. And so that was kind of, at least for me, you know, personally, I, and, and you, I had to give props to you. You did an awesome job, really trying to be on top of it and connecting and, um, checking in with the organization that we went with to see if they had any updates. And that helped tremendously. Um, I know at our, I think it was our last meeting that we had had before we left.
(12:03): Um, you had just shared some, you know, something the Lord had dropped in your heart, I think from church that morning. And I, I think that was tremendously helpful in just kind of releasing a sense of peace too, over the group, because I think when it came time, everybody had just resolved. Okay. God's like, he's gonna show up, he's gonna do something, you know, like it's gonna work out. Even if we might be sleeping on the floor, we might not have showers. We might shower outside, you know, who knows, but we know that God is good and we know that God is staple and that's where we rested. So yes, there were moments of like, but at the same time, I felt like he always just spoke and, you know, and through different people through you, through other people in the group through just to his voice, to me of like, it's gonna be okay, I've got you got it.
(12:48): He, yeah, he's got us well. And you know, and this isn't just about the Alaska mission trip. Yes. We're using this as a, you know, examples or, you know, or a story, but, you know, for the, for you guys listening, I know, I know. Or you wanna probably be listening. Like we just did a, a series on control and how, you know, cause we all like some sort of me too plan or agenda and schedules. I mean, that's how the culture operates. I mean, we, we wake up and we want every single day of our, you know, day planned. Um, and we wanna be, feel like we have that control and, and what's next mentality is so, um, I mean, that's just how humans, how we operate. Yeah. Yeah. That's our default is, you know, what's next and, and what are we gonna do? Uh, and so there's so much, yeah, there's so much like lessons in this of nice.
(13:43): If you're being called, if there's something in your gut, if there's something in your heart that it just won't go away, we need to kind of wake up and listen to this and it, it may not make sense. It, it doesn't, um, doesn't usually make any sense. Uh, really usually, uh, you know, and that's kind of goes back to that vision, but yet we're, we're again, we're blind sometimes, or we are looking through things through a foggy lens or it's cloudy. We have this cloudy vision. And it's funny because we hear we all, we go into Alaska and speaking of that, we go into Alaska and, uh, we're so excited we're we wanted to see some mountains. Right. And they say, we'll fly in. I mean, people were posting, you can see everything. Yeah. Surrounded. Yeah. Completely different perspective. Right. So we're looking down and we could see these mountaintops and clear skies, but for whatever reason, when we land, we had no idea that there were mountains around us.
(14:38): We were, uh, told to go up this highway. I forget the name of it. I don't know. It's a famous highway that you go and you could see. Okay. and we're like, well, we don't see any mountains. Yeah. I mean, there was so much smoke. There was so, um, it was so gray. Yeah. It was not what we were envisioning for Alaska. Like where are the snow covered mountains and the course and all this. No, we could not see guys, uh, through this. And so it kind of, it was funny because that's kind of how this whole entire week went. Yeah. Yeah. And God both like physically and figuratively, like, so we, obviously, they secured somewhere for us to sleep. We had that figured out we got there, but it, I, I, we really didn't get like our marching order until, you know, time to time to get there and show up.
(15:27): And, um, oddly enough, one of our very first surf projects had to do with clearing brush from a viewpoint that normally when there's not brush in the way you can see was Denali oh, Denali, um, beautiful views. I mean, Denali, yes, Tufts, but also like incredible sunsets. That's where the sunset in the evening. And it was like nothing I've seen before. Um, but there was all the brush in the way. So the vision was clouded and you couldn't see, uh, any of that beautiful perspective. Um, yeah, because it was all, you know, covered in debris. So, or in hedges, and it's hilarious to me because it's kind of like, okay, you know, it was just such a, a theme, right? Yeah. I mean, from the get go we had, we didn't have the vision cuz we couldn't see what we were gonna do or know what we were gonna do.
(16:20): I mean, we couldn't even imagine it. Yep. And then we get there and we couldn't even see the views and the mountains of the, everybody talks about, of Alaska that like we thought we were gonna see gorgeous views. And we didn't because there were so much actually there were like the whole entire area was peppered in, in uh, fires. And so the smoke was there and clouding our vision, walking that, and then our very first assignment or task was, we're gonna like lock these things away. And we're talking, I think my husband locked for like 26 hours at least . And then when we cleared that it was still a little bit hazy, but we could see the outline, like a glimpse. Yeah. Oh, that's so good. Yeah. Of the mountain. And then every single thing throughout the week was about clearing and yeah. Seeing clearing and yep.
(17:11): Yep. The debris clearing distractions. That was another thing. Like just the attack that, you know, maybe it would be a problem would arise and it's like, oh, how do we, what are we gonna do about this? Or, you know, whatever. And so that can distractions easily come, they can start clouding your vision. You know, you like kind of lose sight of the purpose, the heart, the, the vision, the, the reason we're here. And so, yeah, even that was like, what in the world? It was just all right there at the very beginning. Um, well, let's talk about some of these distractions. Um, because when I think about people, um, having a, uh, God's purpose planted on their heart and like they figure out like, oh, this is why I'm here. Or this is what God's calling me to do. Or, you know, clarity's supposed to come with this.
(17:57): We were at church just this past weekend. It's like, oh, go fig, go figure. Um, you know, he, he mentioned, and I never actually really paired it together in an intentional way. I mean, we understand that it happens, but he was saying with purpose comes clarity when we have that purpose. And it's like, everything becomes so clear of what becomes our next step. And because of that, and God's working and God's putting that in our heart and we're on like, we're a powerhouse. Yeah. Uh, you know, for the Lord and we're on a mission. Yes. Um, you don't even have to be on a mission trip guys. I mean, we're talking about what is being planted on your heart. Amen. There's distractions that pop up. Yeah. It's help you and take you down. Yes. The intention is always to derail you from the purpose, from the vision mm-hmm and over and over, I feel like God's like, just keep your eyes fixed on me.
(18:47): You know, just, just remain focused on me. The goal, the heart, the heart really is the big, you know, part of it, what is the hearts to love and to serve and just stay focused. And then as you do, it's like, it just begins to, it's like lopping away at the, you know, the, the things that are making it foggy are the debris. And then it begins to fade away. Then boom. It was like clear view and gosh, the amount of God moments, the amount of like, it was just powerful. You know, I think, I think it was powerful. I, I, I can speak for myself. I say it's powerful in my own life and my own heart, my own walk with the Lord. And, and just hearing everybody else's testimonies, it sounds like it was very powerful in their life. But then also the amount of the, like how, the ways that we were able to serve, like we were able to help accomplish things at these, you know, local churches so that they can then go and, and continue to love their community.
(19:42): Um, we got to have, you know, connections made with people in the community and with, um, I don't, it was just powerful sort of words, isn't it? Yeah. Just, yeah, it's very hard to even explain. And I remember even thinking when we were hiking up the mountain on that last night, hot, that night hike and they call it night, hike, guys never got dark. It literally never got dark. Um, even with the, the smoke and all of that. But as we were hiking up that mountain, that midnight, the, we saw blue sky. Yeah. Like we talk about how, when we, the very first day, everything was gray and smokey and we couldn't see, and we couldn't even see what the week was gonna hold or how could we even help, like who me kind of concept of what is it that you want me to do?
(20:28): We're here are our gifts and skills being used. Um, and we questioned a lot. We questioned, we had uncertainty. Um, we had doubt as in, are we even gonna make a difference? And as the week progressed, blue skies. And I remember being at the top of that mountain, um, for the sunset that was supposed to set like at midnight, but it was just, all it did was go behind Denali um, I remember feeling or thinking like, oh my gosh, I want everyone to experience this. Yeah. Like how can we go through life with this crowded view and the fog so thick. I, I don't want anybody to be living in a fog. Right? Yep. Yep. I want everybody to have so much purpose and clarity and vision, right? Yeah, yeah. On the, of their life. Ugh. So, and it feels like, so the trip, it was like, okay, so it started with the seed, you know, it started with the seed and, and that's really all you had, you didn't have vision really.
(21:25): Um, but you took a step. So how, like I think about, it's just funny to me how this trip played out. Seems so parallel to how life goes. We have this scene in our heart, but sometimes we don't step because we don't see, you know, like we don't have the vision, we don't have a theory yet, but you took a step and then more came more vision began to come, but it was a step. It was a yes. And a step of, of trust, essentially. It was just obedience and faith, knowing that he's gonna, he's gonna do it. So I, and then, you know, there's the fear and the uncertainty that comes, but you just stay fixed on him and then you get there and then maybe the distractions or the, you know, attempts to derail come, but Nope, you stay fixed on him and what he's doing and then those fall away and then boom, you see how it all breaks, unfolds.
(22:10): Yeah. It's breakthrough. It all unfolds. And, and, and you see miracles, you know, it's like, you literally see God move. Um, one of my favorite terms I've been saying is like, it felt like heaven met birth, you know, like it really did. It felt like it was a collision of both. Um, and we got to be part of it. So because of our yes. Do it guys yeah. Oh, that's the perfect way to kind of like, kind of put this all together because I know that there are so many seeds that are planted yes. Every day in someone's heart. Yeah. That never gets to that full bloom because we just kind of, we choose to continue to stay and not do the crazy things that God's asking us to do. And so, uh, gosh, I mean, what, what do you have to say? I mean, at the end, I mean, like I guys, here's the thing once God does that and we say yes, and we begin to water and, and, and do all that, you know, all the cliches that I could kind of list right now, what we need to do.
(23:08): Um, you know, all I know is that God's not done. Yeah. Yeah. I mean, there's more, there's more, and there's always more around the corner. I think about hiking, you know? Yeah. And there's like, Ooh, do we stop here and turn around? Like, I don't know. We go around the Ben like, and then boom. Yeah. There's this waterfall. And there's just something more yeah. That he has for you. Uh, if we just continue to press on and, and continue to move forward, what else? I mean, do you have to add, like, to that besides the fact that 20, 23 is coming up? Yeah, yeah. Be watching . Um, the thing that keeps coming to my heart in this moment is as we're talking about vision and stuff like that is let this be like our way of championing. You know, that you have people behind you championing you saying what seed is planted in your heart.
(23:52): And this is a action piece. What is that thing that's been in your heart? Um, maybe consistently it's like the thing you can't shake, you know, you can't seem to like, get rid of that. Nudge, let this act as you're Chan we're championing every saying, do it take, take, hold of it, say, okay, I'm gonna take this seed and I'm gonna just step out in faith. Mm-hmm , um, take the next step, you know, whenever that may be. Um, and then just keep like walk with God as he unfolds it. Like each action step, you know, cuz the one will lead to another will lead to another will lead to another. Um, we, and, and, and let this be an encouragement that he'll bring, you know, the tribe, you know, you talked, um, recently about those who surround you and, and we shared on this trip, particularly how you put it out there.
(24:38): And then people were like, yes, I feel called yes. I feel called. And, and it built this incredible community, um, that all knew that we were there for a purpose. So, um, let this be the champion, the championing of you, like we are championing you to say yes to grab, hold, um, to release the vision and uh, let God build your community and just keep going after it and, and know that, um, if you start to get afraid or uncertain, you're in good company, you know, we all did. We all had that. And then if distractions begin to come up, just remember to stay focused, keep your eyes on him and what he's saying and what he's doing. Um, and to, and to love and, and see what he does, because that's exactly what played out. And I feel like it's so relevant for the faith walk.
(25:26): Like that's our walk with Jesus. We, we say, yes, I, I, it, it feels like that trust fall game, you know, where you're like close your eyes and you're just believing that somebody's gonna catch you. Yeah. Well, we're doing that with God. Who's the creative of the universe and he always catches, so he's gotta trust yeah. Oh, that's so good. And that's something that guys we can start today, like talk about an action step. That is your action step and your call. Yeah. Um, here in this moment, I tell you what this is. Uh, guys be sure to go to, uh, Joel Allen, coaching.com, uh, to get on the email list, to be the first to know for what's coming up in 2023, we cannot share, or we cannot wait to share all that's. God is unfolding in our lives, uh, for that. And so if you, uh, also are wanting more fire in your day, there's so much for you to do so you can go to Instagram, stack a copy of my book, set free on Amazon, join us in the fit and fierce, or the flip, the script one-on-one nutrition coaching, or the next retreat.
(26:22): We just spent a, uh, an amazing few days in glacier. Again, Alaska, the Dolly sod's wilderness, uh, is coming up St. Thomas' call. We've been all over the place on epic adventures that allow us to step outside our comfort zone. So be sure to go to Joe Allen, coaching.com for all updates and join the just brief Facebook group, we would love to connect with you. There heads up on the next episode, we are kicking off a new series that will kick start your faith and will add fuel to your fire. So be sure to pop back in next week, Liz, I cannot thank you for being here today. Uh, thank you. Thank, thank you so much for having me. I love it. It's been, it's been so fun. I love it. I know that we pray that we have filled your heart with joy. And so if you could let us know before hopping off here today, that would be incredible. Subscribe, share this episode, link on your social media. If you felt encouraged or inspired, as we all know someone that can benefit. And I would love it. If you would give some feedback in a review as well, talk with you next time, be fit, be fierce, be unstoppable. See ya.
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