Hey there, welcome to the Joy Led business podcast. I'm your host, Tina Joy Cochran. I am thrilled that you're here. Sometimes growing a business can ruin your work life balance and make you feel like you have to be someone you're not, but it doesn't have to be that way. Business should incorporate your faith and honor the creative rural lifestyle you cherish. That's why I created this podcast to be your personal business coach in your pocket. Here you'll find Practical tips, insightful interviews, and easy to follow training all crafted to fit seamlessly into your busy life. Whether you're driving, creating, or taking a walk, I'll be right there with you. Now let's dive into this episode and start turning your dreams into reality. I can't wait to share this journey with you. Hey, it's Tina Joy Cochran, and I am so excited to share with you this most amazing woman. Kris Castro is the owner of a company called Shift Inc. And today we are going to talk about journeys and transformation. Hey, Kris, I'm glad you're here. Thanks, Tina. It's great to be here. I love how we can trade interviews all the time. I had a chance to be on your lead upside down podcast a while back, and I will drop a link to that in the show notes as well. Today we're here to talk about you and your journey. So you and I met about 15 years ago now. Yeah, that's been a while. When we both were kind of at the beginning of this entrepreneurial journey, trying to figure it all out. And we immediately clicked because we both were interested in how do we help people change and how do we help people have a better life? So tell me, where did you start with all of this journey well, it's funny, because growing up, my natural personality has always been pretty joyful. Always. I've just always had an easygoing attitude, life didn't really bother me, I got through anything. And then I went through this really hard period in my life, and joy became something that wasn't even possible. It felt that way anyway, and it was a really dark season and I remember Going through that season and really struggling to find anything joyful anything good I was mad at god like it was just really a hard season And it wasn't until I went through, some healing and some understanding and lots of surrender and recognizing that Jesus really needed to be Lord of my life instead of just my best friend. That joy started trickling back in and my whole world started to shift and change and transform into alignment, which then opened up doors and opened up doors. All kinds of, favor and Blessings and, joy in a, in general, tell me more about the phrase, I learned how to make Jesus Lord versus just my best friend, but that's an interesting phrase. Tell us more about that, during that dark season, when I was struggling with what was going on that I had no control over that was completely affecting me, it was like I lost myself. And in the journey of healing through that, I started to recognize that That how I perceived God was really affecting how I was going through that hardness. I've been a Christian, like, for as long as I can remember, Jesus has been my best friend since childhood. So I never knew a moment without Jesus. But with that, there were expectations, like Jesus is always going to save me, Jesus is always going to get me to a place. Where everything is going okay in my expected timeframe, right? And because the situation didn't go away, I had to learn to be okay in that situation. And that started triggering all of those thoughts. Well, is God really who he says he is? Because if he's not helping me, if he's not making this better, what then? And I really had to come to a place of understanding that when I said yes to Jesus, I actually said, Jesus, you are Lord over my life, which means sovereign. And I think that's important. Which means that he gets to make things happen in the way that he thinks it needs to happen for the benefit and pruning and growth of everyone involved. And that doesn't always line up with what you want and what you think should happen. Is that what you're saying? Yes. And I knew that in my head, but I didn't understand that I had boundaries around that. Yes. And I had to really get God out of the boxes that I had put him in without even recognizing I had made boxes for him. And once I released God from those boxes into true sovereignty, true lordship, and true surrender, It was then I started walking out this journey of deeper trust and faith that I am so thankful for. I would never erase that situation of my life even though it was horrible going through it because I've gained too much from it. So tell us more about how that process worked for you. You and I have known each other Like I said for a long time and we'll go seasons where we haven't talked to each other I think one time we hadn't talked to each other for several years and then it's like our past just kind of cross You know, it just quote happens to work out that way. We all know that's not exactly How that works God's got a plan for all of this this shows up in your business and in your professional life as well, right? It's not just the personal life of it. Yeah, absolutely. What kind of ways did you have to shift and change to really go from that jesus is the best friend who is almost like Santa and he will take care of me and make sure my life is good and I just need to love him. La la la. Right. Right. Right, too. No, he's sovereign and I will allow him to have his plan in my life, even when I don't understand it, how did it show up in the, businesses that you were running and the work that you were doing? I always wanted, a career that I love. And that's what I was always looking for. And I ended up starting my own company because I didn't actually find it working for somebody else, which happens a lot to entrepreneurial people. Pretty much. If you're an entrepreneur, that's why. Exactly. And so when I started my own business, I became a certified coach. I was really helping people achieve their goals and shape their lives according to their goals. And then this dark period hit. And I was basically just kind of surviving life in general at this point, because it was really hard to go through. And I was just kind of grabbing anything I could do to pay the bills at that point. And then when I went through the healing and recovery piece, Everything that was happening inside of me in terms of transformation and healing and understanding and new faith and new ability to take meaningful, faith risks and being able to step into the unknown, we'll talk about my crazy adventure across the United States. I mean, that was another piece of it. Learning to trust Jesus on an literal minute by minute basis. Some days, all of that gave me the experience to help others walk through hard things, to walk through uncertainty. With peace and joy. And I can say that my entire journey has really made the verse in the Bible. About the peace that passes understanding a reality, because I don't understand most of the time anymore, how I can walk into hard things and uncertainty with peace when everyone around me is going, How come you're not falling apart and I'm like, Does I trust Jesus? And it doesn't mean I'm not feeling anxious or not, afraid of the outcomes because hi, I'm human. But it means that overriding all of that is a piece carries me through like a wave in that situation. Yeah. Yeah, I completely understand that when I talk about joy, I'm like, it's not feeling, it's a state of being, like you said, it's, the whole world is burning down around you per se, or things are, things are not good, and yet you have this core solidness is the only way I can think to describe it, not that, oh, everything's going to work out and it's going to be fine, but just that you won't be destroyed in the process. And that, changes everything for us. So you talk about faith risks and you talk about a journey across the U. S. Now we got to hear this story Tell us more about that. Sure. We only have time for like a snippet. If you guys want to hear the whole story, I did write a book. It's called Crazy Might Be a Blessing in Disguise. After that dark season and going through, healing and recovery, I was in a position as to where I was discerning for like, what do I do now? I don't know. And in the midst of all of that, the Lord had been training me to hear his voice and really training me to Not only here, but step into it, trusting and like anything, when you're learning, sometimes you get it right. Sometimes you don't, right, but you have to continue to do it so that you're getting it right increases and you're getting it wrong. Decreases. So I had been through a period of time as to where my getting it right was increasing to a pretty steady confidence. And then one day I was trying to pay bills and I had no money for rent and I was just having a Bad attitude day. And I basically looked at the ceiling when I looked at my checkbook and said, God, if you're not going to pay rent, I might as well just move in my car. Cause at least that's paid off. I was complaining and I put my checkbook down and let it go. And then I went to a meeting with a bunch of other kingdom friends of mine. And I was. Jokingly saying I was having a temper tantrum with Jesus because we've all been there and they were laughing at me and when I told Them what I said I think when I was talking to God, I added, and I could travel the country and at least see people I know and make a difference. Right. And so when I made that whole statement to my kingdom friends, one of them started laughing and said, Oh, Kris, you should do that. And I'm like, That's crazy. Right. Packs up their stuff, gets in their car and just goes. You do. Without a plan. And I meant it, it was crazy. And as soon as I said that word, in my spirit, the Lord basically Made me feel like, yup, that's what I want you to do. And I couldn't shake it. I ignored it. I was like, that's crazy. Like God doesn't do that, whatever. And I had to go through this whole process of clarifying, asking for Gideon fleeces and he would confirm, confirm this third confirmation. I really had to go, Jesus, I am not being disobedient, but this is far beyond my radical understanding of expectation. I am not Abraham. This doesn't make any sense to me, but I found out that he really meant what he asked me. I said yes. And that became the journey where I put everything in storage and Jesus literally day by day. Led me across the country. I never knew where I was sleeping or eating until he told me. And I stayed with friends, people that I had known for years that I had never met. I stayed with some of them, it was just this constant, okay, Lord, where am I going? And I would pull out a map and I'd be like, Where am I going? And he would tell me, and I would have to believe that that was the direction I was going in. And that was the whole trip. And that's what the book is about. Everything that happened and all the blogging that I did during that season. So cool. This is such a great example of how sometimes God stretches us to a place of complete Peace beyond understanding, in a way for us to grow into who we are supposed to be next. So What's been the latest faith risk and journey that the Lord has been taking you on? Well, ever since I got back from the crazy adventure, I was a different woman. I mean, you can't come back from that experience and be the same. And so I've been really doing life. in a faith risk mindset since then. Like there is all kinds of things that I don't think I would have considered before, but now I will because I'm much more willing to walk in that direction. Three years ago, I was watching, one of Randy Clark's conferences, and they had this ad. For the seminary that they started. And I thought, Oh, that would be interesting. That'd be a lot of fun, but who has the money for that? And I just let it go. And then about four months later, again, the Lord didn't let it go. Like he kept putting it on my heart. You should go, Kris, you should go, but it wasn't. Direct enough for me to do anything. It was more of a leading, like, this would be a good idea, Kris. And then one day when I was thinking about it, I'm like, Lord, I would really like to go. And I feel like you're leading me, but I have no money for this. So you're going to have to pay for it. Right. And then within like a day and a half, I was watching TV and there was an ad that came across the TV that said, did you know you could use your IRA for educational expenses? And I went, what, what really? So I was like, Oh my gosh, I had this IRA sitting. From my first marriage, and that would cover most of my education. And so all of a sudden I now had a path to pay for it. So I started seminary two and a half years ago, I invested in, Global Awakening Theological Seminary for a Master's in Pastoral Ministry, and that experience opened up all kinds of doors, because the students that go through that, they generally Are walking in kingdom lanes and so I got to go to school with passionate jesus lovers With professors who were anointed in teaching and the entire Environment took everything that I had grown up with and nailed down the fundamental foundational Understanding of it. So it wasn't conceptual Theology it was knowledgeable understanding wow And through all of that, I left with a master's and I had never even considered teaching. As a profession and then the lord laid it on my heart to create a college course i'm in the faith at work world I've got a couple of contract ministry clients where I do work for them, right? And so that's been a big part of my life the last couple of years too is really helping leaders intersect their faith and work More seamlessly and if we can get the younger generation to do it boy, would the world be different? Yeah You And so that was kind of the emphasis of the college course. And the Lord opened up a door for me to do it locally, and now I'm currently teaching a class at a local Christian college, and I've got several students, and they are loving the class, I'm loving teaching it, and I'm having such a good time. And all of that would not have happened if I had not gone to school. To get my master's fascinating. over the years, as we talked about on your podcast, my journey has all kinds of twists and turns as well, and looking back at it, you, you realize that never waste anything and that you get set up. And I liked when you talked about, one of the things going through hard times does is allows you to be in a place where you can help other people go through the same hard times. Because you get it are you seeing that showing up with your students as well now and what you're doing when you're teaching? Oh, yeah, it's been really great because We have real conversations and the Lord set this classroom up with all of my students are older students, so they all have jobs. They're just doing this for whatever the Lord is positioning them for. They're getting their degrees and. We are actually really talking about how they are in the workplace as marketplace missionaries. And through my experiences, I get to help them grow into deeper levels of faith. They're all really. Wonderfully passionate about Jesus. But the, the neat thing is I get to pour into them and through our discussions, they're actually pouring into me, which is a kingdom. And I always tell my students, I'm learning just as much from you as you are from me. Because your experiences grow me, it's so interesting how the skills that we use sometimes in business completely transfer to an educational setting, a religious setting, a personal setting. And it's really about just being kingdom. we've been using the phrase kingdom, since you have the theological degree, would you speak to what, what we mean when we say this is kingdom, what do you mean? Sure. Well, you could have a thousand definitions for that. My perspective is that kingdom is basically adopting the way Jesus lived while he was on earth. I mean, it's that simple. Jesus was in the marketplace. Jesus did very few sermons in a church synagogue setting, like most of his sermons were in public settings, most of his conversations were with people in the marketplace, or just life situations, and he loved them. He shared his life with them. He didn't force them into anything. He gave them choices to believe or not believe. But more importantly, he set the environment to draw them into a curiosity and they got to decide if they wanted more. And that's what a marketplace missionary should be. And that's what my course is all about is really going back and being the early church. If you read Acts 2, it's all there. You love your neighbors. You help your neighbors. You serve your neighbors. You listen for what Jesus wants to do. You do it. And Jesus provides and everybody helps each other. And there's lots of peace and joy and community. Like that's kingdom. Sounds fabulous. Sounds like we need more of that. Last question, what would you tell someone who is listening and going, yeah, that's really interesting. And then there's a little nudge in the back of their head that says, I've been trying to tell you, I want you to do something. What would you tell somebody who is. experiencing that right now? Well, first of all, if you're feeling it's a nudge, just get it confirmed. Like if you know that, you know, that, you know, just say that, you know, okay. Be scared, but say that, you know, it's true that's the first thing you have to admit it to yourself. The second thing is. Find people that that you can trust to be able to talk through it And thirdly give me a call because I would love to journey with you through it Like that's what I love to do. I love to help people journey through things like that. It's awesome but most importantly just take the first step Whatever it is Just move in that direction a lot of times Jesus isn't going to do anything until you show commitment to obey him You And so your first step is actually going to open the door to your next step, which is going to open your door to the third step and on and on and on. So admit it to yourself, talk to somebody, take the first step. I love that. I love be scared, but admit it to yourself that you really do know what you're going to do. Cause I think that we get ourselves so tangled and I would do it if I knew all the steps that were going to happen. that never happens. Everybody never, never, never happens. And I don't know about you, but I'm not sure looking backwards, I would have wanted to know, right? If he had, right. When I was, in high school thinking I wanted to be a veterinary technician, if he had told me, no, here's, what's going to happen, you're going to move. Halfway across the country, live in a place that you never even thought you would visit. And, oh, by the way, run a community for Christian women that helps them grow business and specializing in marketing and sales. I would have been like, I'm out. Right. So maybe we don't want to know the whole steps, but we want to know him better. I am so grateful that I get to share this world with you. And Be in the kingdom with you as well. So thank you for being here. Begin to shift. com is your website. I'll drop a link to the book in the show notes as well. Thanks again, Kris. And I will see y'all next time bye everybody. You've been listening to the joy led business podcast. I'm your host, Tina Joy Cochran. Thanks for sharing part of your day with me. You don't have to walk this business journey alone. Discover others just like you at goldenheartland. com. Business coaching community for creative rural women. Faith. Go there to learn more and get free gifts I designed just for you. Be sure to hit subscribe so you never miss an episode and share this episode with someone who could use a bit more joy today. Remember, your business success matters to me and to God. Being joy led will get you there. Can't wait to meet you at Golden Heartland.