Mom on Purpose
Mom on Purpose
Permission to Dream: Embracing Your God-Given Desires Without Guilt
I want to talk to you about something that's been on my mind a lot, and I don't think it's something that we've talked about enough, and that is talking about the dreams that are tucked away in your heart.
The ones that you're almost too afraid to say out loud.
So I really want to bring awareness to this, because it's something that's happening every single day with women all over the world.
Moms, I am here to tell you that those dreams that are tucked away in your heart are there for a reason.
They are not because you're feeling selfish and it's not because you want all these accolades. It's because God is calling you to something more, and that dream is part of your purpose here on the earth, and when you wake up to it, the entire world shifts for the better.
If you know what I'm talking about, you'll know exactly what this episode is for you.
What you'll learn in this episode:
- How to embrace and acknowledge hidden dreams as a mother
- Ways to overcome the guilt associated with pursuing your dreams
- The value of balancing personal aspirations with family responsibilities
- The process of dreaming and taking action
- Recognizing your dreams as significant and God-given rather than selfish desires
Featured on the Show:
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Welcome to the Mom on Purpose Podcast. I'm Lara Johnson, and I'm here to teach you how to get out of your funk, be in a better mood, claim more with your kids. Manage your home better, get your to-do list done and live your life on purpose with my proven method. This is possible for you, and I'll show you how. You're not alone anymore.
We're in this together.
Hello, hello, so happy to be here with you today. You'll have to excuse my voice. I do have a little bit of a cold, so I might be needing to take some breaks to take a drink of water or put a lozenge in. But I did want to talk to you about something that's been on my mind a lot, and I don't think it's something that we've talked about enough, and I want to bring more light to this topic, and that is talking about the dreams that are tucked away in your heart, the ones that you're almost too afraid to say out loud.
You know which ones I'm talking about, so hopefully, if that resonates with you, you'll know exactly what this episode is for you. So a long time ago, I had a client and she is one of the most amazing human beings on this planet but I remember her telling me that she shared a dream with me you know, of what she wanted to do, of going back to school and some other things, and I was the first person she had ever said that to. Even though it had been tucked away in her heart for many years, she was too afraid to even say it out loud. That is not uncommon.
She is not the only one that has said that exact same thing to me. So, I really want to bring awareness to this, because it's something that's happening every single day with women all over the world.
I am here to tell you that those dreams that are tucked away in your heart are there for a reason. They are not because you're feeling selfish and it's not because you want all these accolades. It's because God is calling you to something more, and that dream is part of your purpose here on the earth, and when you wake up to it, the entire world shifts for the better. So that's what we're going to talk about on this episode.
Now, I know right now you are juggling so much. You've got kids, a home to run, endless to-do lists and this whisper, this desire, keeps nudging you along and it feels impossible to figure out how it fits with everything. It might be going back to school, it might be starting a business, it might be writing a book or taking up a hobby. You know something that really lights you up. Whenever that whisper starts to get louder, it's very easy for it to be drowned out by guilt, and the most common thing that I hear is that guilt.
You know the way it's dressed up is you have a good life. Why do you want more? Or there's no time for that thing with everything else you have going on? Hey, I hear you If this is the concern every time. So, I'm going to say something to you, and I want you to really let it sink in. Okay, it's okay to want more. Let that sit in for just a second, because it's very easy for your body to reject this right off of the bat.
So, I'm going to say it again as I do. I want you to imagine it coming in through your head and slowly sinking down all the way into your heart, into your stomach, down into your legs and into your toes, and allow this to really settle in your body. It's okay to want more.
It doesn't mean that you're ungrateful for the blessings you already have. It doesn't mean you're a bad mom or that you're wanting to neglect the responsibilities of your life. Desires aren't wrong. They're clues. They're clues that something deeper that there's, that something has been placed inside of you, deep inside of you, and it is there for a reason.
Now I've been there, I understand what you're going through.
You feel pulled in a hundred different directions. You're always serving, you're always giving, you love your family, and you love helping other people. But if this service has slowly shifted into something that used to be joyful, into something that you resent, and suddenly you feel like it's this obligation that's wearing on you, I want you to be honest with yourself.
Be honest with the fact that there is that obligation, there is that resentment, even if it's something you love in the moment, but leading up to it feels like a noose around your neck. Know that there is something more going on. All of these things are clues and that A part of you is missing, this part of you that is here for a great reason and for a purpose.
Okay, so maybe that thing that you've been dreaming of feels really impossible and you feel guilty even thinking about it. That's okay. You're not alone in it, because so many of us were taught, directly or indirectly, that once we have our family, then our desires and our dreams are kind of put to the wayside, you know, for that time and season where we can pick it back up.
And then, if we want to pick it up when we think it's not the right time or season, then we start to feel like we're selfish, or our culture or society makes us feel like it's wrong or bad for doing something like that, that it's not realistic, you know, to pursue something outside of motherhood. But I'm here to tell you that that is not factual, that if God has placed this desire in your heart, there is a reason for it, and he will make all the pieces fit together.
And I'm here to tell you that you will be able to create a life that you can't even imagine at this point, because you are going to be creating it hand in hand with God. Like that, co-creation is one of the most beautiful gifts that you can give your children being able to have them watch that process. So here I am, giving you permission to dream again, to acknowledge the things that you're scared to bring up to the surface, that you've tucked away for so long.
And I want you to see that those dreams are not burdens, they're not selfish. They are your guides, they are the reason that you are here on the earth, and God has placed them in you.
So, let's dive into the million-dollar question, right? Like how do you even start to think about these dreams when you feel like you're barely keeping your head above water? Does that sound familiar? I know it does for me. And this is not like you solve it once and it goes away forever. Now, to an extent, I will say that the understanding I have now is very different than when I first was acknowledging this feeling almost a decade ago.
Now it's honing it over and over and over again. But even now, when I have these desires or dreams that are put in my heart, I have to go back to the drawing board with God and recreate some things. So, it's important to think like what you're solving for now, you could solve for again in the future, and that's the process that is God refining us over and over. So, let's go back to that million-dollar question how do you even start thinking about these things when you're barely keeping your head above water?
Now, the first thing is I want you to think about it. It's okay to start small If you're feeling overwhelmed. You don't have to figure it all out today. Take one small step. It might be going to.
I tell my clients it's like going to the adult playground in your mind of like being able to dream about things that you've locked away, where there's like no real-life consequence, where you just get to have fun. You don't have to think about the implementation, you just get to think about the enjoyment of it, being able to spark that joy.
It might be researching a class that you'd love to take. It might be having a very open conversation with a loved one about this dream in your mind. You don't have to have it in real life yet. Whatever, those small steps are to help you acknowledge this desire without pushing it away.
Again, going back to journaling, it might be being able to create what this life would look like and how all the pieces would fit together.
There are so many possibilities. It might be writing a letter to someone that you really admire in your life and everything. If you met them in person, you'd want to tell them you know, funny story, when I, you know, take these small moments and I go to that place of playground where there are people that I do admire, and they've made an impact in my life.
I will tell you this is kind of embarrassing to actually say out loud, but this is a place where we're being honest and vulnerable, right? Sometimes I will find them on social media. Now, some of these people are very well known. They are not checking the chat messages that they get on social on Instagram, not checking the chat messages that they get on social on Instagram.
I guarantee that they receive too many in a day, but sometimes I feel like there's something that I want to say to them, so I will send them a direct message on Instagram and share all of those things Again.
I've yet to ever hear back from them and I'm not expecting them to respond back to me, but the experience of writing down something so heartfelt and thanking someone for the impact they've made in my life is so wonderful and beautiful. Sometimes that's the playground, right? What I'm doing is acknowledging joy and gratitude in such a small way that helps me dream again. So, whatever that thing is, find a very small step that you can take so that you can enjoy that place of dreaming again.
The next thing that I want to talk about is you know that next step to take is being able to talk about the guilt that starts to creep in. When you do start to dream again. Now, that voice and I mentioned it before, will start to tell you that you're being selfish, that there's no room for this, because your family needs you. That guilt is very real, and it can be very paralyzing to every single one of us. But here's the truth. Listen very closely to this. Pursuing something that you feel called to do doesn't take away from your family. It adds to it.
When you really start to fill yourself up, when you really are aligned with your purpose, you show up as a better version for yourself and for everyone around you. Your kids benefit, your marriage benefits. Most importantly, you benefit from it. God's kingdom benefits from it. God will be able to use you as an instrument, because this dream is something that he has placed inside of you.
This dream is something that he has placed inside of you, and when that guilt starts to creep in, that's where we want to stop and acknowledge that that guilt is not coming from God. God wants you to move forward on these things that he's placed inside.
Now I know what you're thinking like. How do you know if it's like God warning you versus like the guilt, and it's being placed in you from the adversary. And honestly, it's such a fine line and I wish I could tell you like here's the exact formula, but that formula doesn't exist. But what I will say is that, more often than not, when I am pursuing my dreams, when I am trusting God and the process, anytime that guilt starts to show up, when I feel it like deep in my stomach, it feels very much like the adversary.
But when there's a warning where I need to take a step back, it feels much more in my heart and in my mind and in my soul on like God bringing something to my awareness. So that in my body is where it starts to feel very different. So, when I'm moving forward, almost always when I'm following a desire or dream in my heart, I very rarely get a warning to stop.
It almost always comes in that guilt and mentally thinking that I'm failing in some way. Now again, this is a very fine line. I have never been in a situation where God has told me that I am a failure and there are always times where I might need to make a tweak or a warning on like yeah, oh, I went a little too far in this area. Let's scale back.
But never once has he straight out and come and told me that I am a failure. That is not the way that God works. So, when that guilt starts to creep in, I think that's the most important thing to recognize is where do you feel it and what is it telling you is where do you feel it and what is it telling you?
Now, for me, it was very helpful to think about how my dreams were not an either-or situation. I never had to stop and choose between being a good mom and pursuing something that makes me feel alive and uses my gifts. You can have both. It is very possible, and that's where I really want to give your, give you permission to explore what that possibility looks like first in your mind, before you ever bring it out into the world.
So that's where it takes some time, you know, to really look at when that guilt starts to come up, when things just say like things are too full, like nothing is too full for God to work miracles in your life. So that brings me to my next point is you don't have to do it all at once.
There are times where you may feel called to overhaul your life. Okay, there, I'm not going to discredit that. But for the most part, what I have seen in my clients and in my own life is that when you start taking these small and consistent steps, your dreams start fitting into the life that you already have and the aspects of your life they start to like expand.
I call it like God's time, where there's like 24 hours on the clock and it doesn't seem to want to fit, but as you start growing it, those small and consistent steps it starts to like integrate so beautifully into your life and fits and things that used to take you a lot of time don't take you as much time anymore. And I mean it's just, it's wild to see and until you're actually living it doesn't seem to make sense. But I promise you it does. I promise you know.
I was talking to a client the other day. She was providing a testimonial for me, and we were talking about how it feels kind of like magic and it doesn't make sense and we know it's not actually magic, it's actually God working in our lives. But miracles start to happen where these things fit so beautifully into your day.
So, remember you. You don't have to take it all and do it all at once. Allow God to work those miracles in your day, in your time, in your responsibilities, and just take those small pieces and really ask God like, how does this all fit together? And he'll show you.
The last thing that I want to mention is that you are worthy of your dreams. I think this is something that you need to hear, so I'm going to say it again you are worthy of your dreams. You deserve to have a beautiful life, one where you are doing something that lights you up on a daily basis, where you feel like you're making an incredible contribution to your community, to your world.
That is not to just to discredit the contribution you are making to the world by raising your amazing family. I think sometimes, when we say we are worthy of our dreams, sometimes we think that discredits the contribution that we're having within our own home.
Those things are not competing with each other, they're complimentary to each other, and you being able to move forward on your dreams and you being able to have that contribution as a mom, those are incredible and, however you feel called, that might be something outside of motherhood, that might be something inside of motherhood.
I am not here to dictate what that is and what that looks like for you. I am here to invite you to look inside and speak those things out loud and even to just yourself, write it down on a piece of paper. Be able to acknowledge what's actually in your heart, because having that desire and allowing it to grow like you're worthy of that.
You have gifts and talents that you've been blessed with to help build God's kingdom here on the earth, and only you can do that. Only you can. And when you really step into that power and you really trust God in the process, something magical starts to happen.
I promise you, if you feel this and you know this starts to grow and expand and you start stepping into your full potential, God will continue nudging you to that something greater. All of these things are here to shape you, to help you become the person that you're meant to be, and you are incredible.
My hope always is that when you come to this podcast, that you can turn and look at yourself in the mirror afterwards and see your incredible potential and how amazing you are. And if you don't see that and feel that for yourself right now, that's okay, borrow my belief about you.
I know your brain's probably thinking well, you don't know me, you don't know my situation, but I do know you. I know that you are a loving mom, you are a daughter of God. You are someone that shows up every single day to your life.
No matter how hard it is, you show up and even if you only have 40% to give to yourself that day, you're giving that. So that's your 100% that day. Like you, are someone that deserves to be seen and heard and God has a miraculous work for you to do that only you can do.
And when you really acknowledge that in your heart and you start honoring that feeling, nothing will hold you back and you and God together are going to create amazing things to bless the entire earth. And I'm grateful for you and your courage that you have to step forward and step into that light.
Have a wonderful week, friend. I'll talk to you soon.
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