Commissioned, Not Concluded | Allen & Stacy Jo

Eight seasons ago, God placed a framework on Allen and Stacy Jo's hearts. They didn't fully know where it would lead — but looking back now, they can see how every season built on the one before it, revealing what a fully surrendered life actually looks like.

In this finale, they walk through what each part of INVESTED taught them personally, why the comparison trap is one of the most dangerous seasons a believer can enter, how quiet spiritual drift happens without anyone noticing, and what it really means to release something you've built into someone else's care. It's honest, it's a little emotional, and it's meant to send you forward — not just wrap things up.

This is the end of a framework, not the end of the podcast. Season 9 begins a new multi-season framework: PURPOSE, starting with Pursuing God's Specific Call.

Key Scriptures: Philippians 1:6 · Matthew 11:28-30 · John 15:16 · John 10:10 · Revelation 22:20

Thank you for walking eight seasons with us. If God has used this podcast in your life, we'd love to hear about it — and a five-star review helps others find their way here too.

Stay faithfully invested, because when you do — God brings the increase.

Reviving Recovery: Unbound is now online! We worship, we learn, we break out into gender specific groups and we journal with each other and with the Holy Spirit. If your heart is stirring listening to this, pay attention Healing begins here. Click the link below to join us at Reviving Recovery:Unbound.

www.revivingrecovery.com

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Come check out the Association of Christian Business Women!  We'd love for you to join this growing community of Kingdom-minded women.  Visit our website at www.acbw.org

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Association of Christian Business Women
Empowering women in business through faith, community, and leadership.

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Holy Spirit-led recovery for lasting freedom, healing, and biblical transformation through Christ.

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Transcript

Allen 0:49

Are you ready to build a life, business, and legacy that truly lasts? Welcome to Faithfully Invested with Alan and Stacey Joe Thorne, where faith meets real talk, biblical wisdom meets everyday life, and leadership meets laughter.

Stacy Jo 1:03

Together we will uncover God's blueprint for leadership, marriage, and mission, helping faith-driven leaders invest in what matters most.

Allen 1:11

Each episode we explore biblical wisdom, have real conversations, and of course, have some fun along the way. Because let's be real, walking in faith is an adventure.

Stacy Jo 1:22

It sure is. So pull up a seat, grab your coffee or your sweet tea, and join us as we steward our callings with intention. Because when we invest in his kingdom, he brings the increase. Alan, eight seasons.

Allen 1:46

Yep. Eight seasons. Wrapping it up here.

Stacy Jo 1:49

We're wrapping it up. But when we actually say that out loud, it's kind of difficult to believe that we've reached this point in the journey because we began with a framework that God placed on our hearts, knowing there was something he wanted us to explore. But I don't think either of us fully understood how much he would teach us through the process.

SPEAKER_01 2:09

Yeah.

Stacy Jo 2:10

Over the course of these eight seasons, you know, we've talked about a plethora of things, including intimacy with God, nurturing a servant's heart, and many, many more. And as we look back, we can see that none of these episodes were ever meant to be isolated subjects. Each season built upon the one before it, revealing what it looks like to live with every part of our lives surrendered to God.

Allen 2:35

That's what it's about, being surrendered to the Lord. Yeah. It's not about us. We've said that all through the the um this framework, the the the invested framework. It's not about us. And but what really uh stands out uh to me is that, hey, it's not about us. Uh no, we we didn't sit down and uh create eight separate teaching series uh that happened to fit into an acronym. Right. Uh God gave us a picture of uh of a complete life that begins in a relationship with him. That's what it's all about. It's about a relationship with our Creator, a relationship with our Savior, and a relationship walking it out with the Holy Spirit that's been given to us. And uh as that extends outward, uh it shows us how to how to serve, how to live, how to lead, how to give, and how to build and invest in other people.

SPEAKER_01 3:41

Right.

Allen 3:41

Uh some people have walked with us or listened to this podcast since the beginning, and some of some others uh just joined us along the way, regardless of where you found uh faithfully invested. Uh, we are deeply uh grateful uh that you made room in your life for these conversations. Uh we know that tuning in and listening requires time and and that uh time is our most valuable commodity. Uh the fact that you you decided to spend some time with us is something that we don't take lightly. So thank you. Thank you for uh sticking with us.

Stacy Jo 4:21

Yeah. So today is the final episode of season eight and the conclusion of the invested framework, but we don't want this to feel like a simple review of everything that we've already said. We want to look back long enough to recognize what God has done and then turn our attention towards what he may be asking us to do with everything he has shown us. And the purpose of this podcast was never simply to give you more information about God. Our hope was that these conversations would help you know him more deeply and allow that relationship to influence the way you live. We wanted the lessons to move beyond the episode and actually become part of your decisions, part of your relationships, your leadership, your faith, and your everyday obedience.

Allen 5:06

Yeah. Looking back, you know, it was it was a great idea. And I and I'll I'll admit the this the podcast wasn't my favorite idea. But I was like, uh, but it was uh all that aside, uh faithfully invested was it was never just about having a podcast for the sake of having a podcast. You know, I uh I was pretty skeptical. Uh but I'm glad I'm glad uh it was we we believed that it was his part of his purpose for us, part of our calling, uh, to do that. And he just kept giving us giving us stuff. And uh it's uh but it's not like I said, it's not about just having a podcast for the sake of of having a podcast and having a voice out there. It's it's about uh it's always been about the people and and and helping the people to become rooted in Christ and and being willing to pour what he's given us in into them so that they can go pour it into others. And that's uh that's why today is it's more than a conclusion of of this this framework. It's not a conclusion of the podcast itself. We're gonna keep going, uh, but this the the invested framework is is closing out today. Um so it's more than more than a conclusion. It's a it's a commissioning. We want to honor the journey that you've decided to take with us, that we've all taken together. And we also want to challenge you to carry what you've learned here forward and share it with others.

Stacy Jo 6:49

Yeah. And as we begin, we'd like you to think about where you were when you first encountered the podcast? What was happening in your life at that time? Were you walking closely with God or were you trying to find your way back into a consistent relationship with Him? Maybe you were leading well on the outside while privately feeling tired or discouraged or unsure about what God was doing.

Allen 7:13

Now compare that season where you were then with where you are today. The the the changes between then and now might not seumatic at first, but uh because spiritual growth uh it doesn't always announce itself with uh with a trumpet. And fanfare. And fanfare. Tick-a-tape. It's not usually like that. No. Uh sometimes the Lord transforms us through one powerful encounter, but oftentimes it's it's gradual.

Stacy Jo 7:51

Most often, I would say.

Allen 7:53

Most oftentimes it's gradual. The sanctification process and our and our faith maturity process is is gradual, you know, learning, uh, learning to slow down so we can go faster for the kingdom. Uh the Lord changes the way we respond to pressure, he the way we see people. It's a big deal, how we see people. And and I would say that's that's the largest change he's made with me over the uh over the last two years is that he can have all the knowledge in the world about the about the word, but if you don't have a love for his people, then you got nothing.

SPEAKER_01 8:35

Yeah.

Allen 8:36

You got nothing. And he's he has transformed my heart uh and how I see people. Uh he also changes how we make decisions. He will transform our minds and how we make decisions. Um this is something I I say often in uh uh our ministry, reviving recovery unbound. It's it's not, it's it's about a mind transformation. It's not about a behavioral shift. A trans a transformation from the inside will lead to a behavioral shift, but it's not about a modification on the outside, it's about a transformation from the inside. That's what we hope we transferred to you. Uh that's what we hope through this podcast and and through other avenues of communication that we we passed along to you. We hope that something inside you has shifted as it's shifted in us uh through our time together here.

Stacy Jo 9:34

So yeah, I think sometimes we miss what God has done because we are waiting for that moment that feels so much bigger.

SPEAKER_01 9:41

Yeah.

Stacy Jo 9:42

You know, we expect transformation to be accomplished by a dramatic story, and because we don't see that kind of change, we assume that we haven't grown.

SPEAKER_01 9:50

Right.

Stacy Jo 9:51

Yeah. Many of the most meaningful changes happen quietly. Maybe you pray differently than you did before. Maybe you've learned to pause before reacting or becoming more generous with your time and resources. Is that that one Jew?

Allen 10:05

No, yeah. And definitely pausing before reacting. Pausing so that I may respond instead of react. That's good. Not perfect there, but definitely better than I was two years ago.

Stacy Jo 10:15

Yeah. Now you may now be more willing to apologize or more aware of the Holy Spirit's direction and maybe less consumed by the need to control every outcome. You know, those changes really matter because they reveal that God has been at work in the ordinary places of our lives.

Allen 10:34

Right. And this, this is uh as we as we go through this and as we've created this content, uh it just comes back to we're we're preaching to ourselves. You know, we we we've shared our experience, we've shared some knowledge, but mostly experience. And but but it's uh but we keep learning. Yeah, we keep learning, and and we keep growing. And if we ever hit a point where we stop doing that, then then it really it's over. Right. Um, so hope hope you're getting something out of that. And that that's what we we've so desired to share with y'all. Um and growth's not always a straight line, is it, babe? No, no, it gets a bit zigzaggy. Yeah. And uh yeah, it's not always a straight line. There are there are seasons when we feel strong and confident in our faith, uh, and then they're followed directly uh by seasons that we've uh that when we have to choose obedience without the same emotional certainty. You know, we uh different seasons, different times, but always learning. Always learning. I I love, I I've probably said it I don't know how many times through the podcast, several times, through uh the uh iterations of the ministry is Jesus' words in in Matthew 11. Uh take my yoke upon you and learn from me. And that's that's what we're doing, and that's what we hope you're doing. There might be days where prayer comes easily, and and uh others when all we can do is say uh three the three most important words is Lord help me. That's it.

SPEAKER_01 12:27

Yeah.

Allen 12:27

Um both when the days are easy to pray, and when we just say, Lord, help me, uh both are part of the journey. It's uh it's about yes, both are part of the journey. God is just as present in our quiet perseverance as he is in the moments that we uh that we we're we got it all together.

Stacy Jo 12:50

Where we feel powerful.

Allen 12:51

Where we feel powerful. Um, and there's some times when he just might want to show us, hey, who's got it all together?

Stacy Jo 13:01

Right. So this has certainly been true for us throughout this podcast. We may have been the ones sitting behind the microphones, but God used every season to examine our own hearts. It's impossible to teach intimacy with God without asking whether you're truly making room for him. So when you talk about unity, you have to examine how you handle conflict and whether you value the relationship more than your need to be right. And a conversation about stewardship forces you to consider what you are doing with the time, the influence, the opportunities, and and all the resources that God has placed in your hands. So God has used this framework to teach us as much as we hoped it would teach anyone listening.

Allen 13:49

Yeah.

Stacy Jo 13:49

And you kind of alluded to to that.

Allen 13:53

I have alluded to that. Um but there's there's something humbling, and that's that's where we need to be. I mean, the word clearly says a very common verse, humble yourself before the Lord and He will exalt you, He will lift you up. It's not about lifting ourselves. We didn't start this podcast to lift ourselves up. We got it it's really been a humbling experience. And you know, we gotta if we want to grow in the Lord, if we want to stay connected to the vine and we want in in the pruning and the growing and that, we we gotta humble ourselves before him so that so that he will lift us up.

SPEAKER_01 14:33

Yeah.

Allen 14:34

And uh, and that's all in his timing. But uh there is all that to say that there's something humbling about hearing yourself teach a principle and then having the Lord give you an opportunity to uh to live that and uh in the next following days after the after you taught that. Or I see that, and uh I see that as uh I'm coming up to to teach an an unbound lesson, uh reviving recovery unbound as our is our other min is is a ministry we lead. And as I'm coming up to teaching about forgiveness or or teaching about vulnerability or or or gratitude, there is a before the the day, the week prior to that, there is an opportunity to exercise that. He's like, Here, maybe you might want to share this.

Stacy Jo 15:28

Yeah, and that's usually how it happens. I mean, we record a lesson or you do a lesson, and then God says, Okay, now let's see what you're going to do with that.

Allen 15:37

I think one of my most memorable ones is when I was I was teaching on the uh the pride, uh arrogant pride, and I was struck that week prior to that, I was we were at odds, and it was it was pride on my part, and it was maybe a little pride on your part, and pride, no bueno, you know.

SPEAKER_01 15:58

No.

Allen 15:58

There's a good, there's a good pride, bad pride. It's a conversation for another time, and you know, anyway. Moving on.

Stacy Jo 16:05

Yeah. Right um the goal has never been to master a subject well enough to talk about it.

Allen 16:10

Yeah.

Stacy Jo 16:10

The goal has always been to allow God to shape our lives through it.

SPEAKER_01 17:33

Right, right.

Stacy Jo 17:34

You know, so when we talk about living a faithfully invested life, we're talking about a person who continually gives God access to every part of who they are. That kind of life includes difficult seasons, imperfect decisions and moments when we don't even understand what God is doing, but we know he's at work. And the difference is that we keep returning to him and allowing him to lead us through those places. A faithfully invested person understands that life with God is not built upon one great moment of surrender. It's built through repeated decisions to trust him, especially when that obedience requires patience, humility, or courage.

Allen 18:18

Yeah. Yeah, all of which come uh from him. And then there's there's times when saying yes to God feels exciting because, you know, we see what he's building. And then there's other times the yes comes uh when the the road ahead's unclear. How's your yes then?

SPEAKER_01 18:39

Yeah.

Allen 18:40

Uh sometimes the yes comes when uh we have no guarantee that the outcome will be the way that we hoped. Uh is that what it's all about, though? No. Uh faithfulness is is continuing to walk with him in both situations when we can see, when we can't see. Faith is living, you know, by what we don't see, not what we see, right? So it's um it's learning that our our confidence cannot rely solely on what God's doing because there's going to be seasons when we can't see what he's doing. And and and I'll tell you, I'm in one right now uh concerning ministry, but I know full well that he's behind the scenes and he's he's building, and I I see what he's built in us over the last you know three some years, and he's preparing us uh to uh to go.

SPEAKER_01 19:40

Yeah.

Allen 19:40

Yeah. Uh and through that preparation, our um our confidence has come to rely solely on him and and in his presence. Because news flash, the John 1010 life, the abundant life, that Jesus says, I uh I have come to give you life more abundantly, that's it right there. He is the abundant life. Yeah. So when we get when we wrap our hearts around that, yeah, we can make a difference for the kingdom.

Stacy Jo 20:12

Yeah, I mean, that understanding really changes the way we view everything that he's placed in our lives. Instead of treating our gifts and resources and experiences as as possessions that belong to us, we begin to recognize them as things and trust it to our care. Not our possession, but things that he has given us to entrust in our care. And even the painful chapters of our story can become part of that stewardship. God can use everything that we've endured to create compassion, wisdom, and understanding that allows us to help someone else who is walking through that same season.

Allen 20:53

Absolutely. Good stewardship means that we don't bury what he's given us, what he, what he's entrusted to us, uh it means that we don't use it for our own benefit. Uh we we steward it well. We we receive it, we develop it, we care for it, and then we ask how we can serve others for his purposes with it. Uh that's what that's one of the most important things about discipleship. Everything we've received from God has a potential to strengthen someone else.

Stacy Jo 21:25

Right.

Allen 21:26

Do you believe it?

Stacy Jo 21:27

And that doesn't require a public platform. I mean, discipleship often takes place in the relationships that already surround us. It happens when a parent speaks truth over a child, or when a business owner intentionally develops someone on the team, or when a mature believer walks patiently with someone who's still learning how to trust God. Sometimes we're looking for that large assignment and we're overlooking the person that God has already placed directly in front of us.

Allen 21:57

Yeah. Paul writes in Philippians uh chapter one, verse six that he who began a good work in us will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. And that there's tremendous comfort in knowing that God does, he does not abandon when he begins, he does not become frustrated about the amount of time our growth requires, and it does. Right. Uh he also doesn't lose interest when we face plant. You know, it's and we will. And we do. And we have. And that's that's face plants.

SPEAKER_01 22:38

And we go again. Yeah. Sure.

Allen 22:40

Faceplants are how we learn great lessons.

SPEAKER_01 22:43

Yeah.

Allen 22:43

It's not about uh failure doesn't define us. It's how we get up and who we follow uh from that point forward that really defines us as followers and as leaders as well. Yeah. Uh God remains committed. He always remains committed to shaping us into the people that he created us to be. And and are we willing to follow and uh and to listen and to be the people that he created us to be.

Stacy Jo 23:15

Yeah, and that promise doesn't mean that we become passive while waiting for God to change us. His work invites our cooperation. We respond by remaining teachable, obeying him when he's leading us and repenting when he corrects us and staying close enough to recognize his voice. So sometimes cooperation means moving forward, while other times it means allowing him to slow us down. And I, for one, tend to be one who needs to be slowed down. And there are seasons in which God asks us to build, and others when he asks us to rest, to heal, or sometimes release something that we have been holding on to too tightly.

Allen 23:59

Right. Like control.

Stacy Jo 24:01

Control.

Allen 24:08

Anyway, uh control is an illusion.

SPEAKER_01 24:12

Right.

Allen 24:12

Control is an illusion. We gotta release it and receive all that he has. Once we release control, we can receive all that he has for us. And that's uh that all that comes with spiritual maturity. And that spiritual maturity, it cannot be reduced to completing a series of lessons. It's not about knowledge, it's about why it's about the experience. Knowledge has its place, but it's about the experience. Um we never reach a point where we where we no longer need the foundations of our faith. We never reach that point. We we don't arrive there. We always need the foundations of our faith, and and that in foundations grow more solid with intimacy with him. And that uh and that continues to deepen throughout our lives, our intimacy with our creator, uh, as we sit and just listen and uh listen so that so that what the word says would listen, incline your ear to me and listen so that you may live. Uh and and stewardship's a large part of that.

SPEAKER_01 25:26

Sure.

Allen 25:26

And stewardship expands uh as as he entrusts more to us. And and faith, we talked a lot about, I mean, faith's the the core. You know, faith becomes more mature when uh we learn to trust him through the experiences that we never expected to face. Uh when you're up against the wall, when you're between that rock and a hard place, you know, who do you trust? You know, is is prayer a a first decision or a last resort? How about generosity? Along the along our journey, generosity grows as we become increasingly willing to uh hold what we have, what he's given us, hold it with open hands.

Stacy Jo 26:17

Yeah. The fundamentals remain the same, but our understanding of them changes as we grow.

SPEAKER_01 26:24

Yeah.

Stacy Jo 26:25

So early in our walk with God, intimacy may mean learning how to pray consistently and spend time in scripture. But later on down the line, intimacy may involve remaining close to him during a season when he feels quiet and answers aren't coming quickly. You know, faith may begin with trusting God to meet a specific need, but eventually we learn to trust his character even when the outcome is different from what we were requesting. You know, we never move beyond these things. We just simply go deeper into them.

Allen 26:58

Absolutely.

Stacy Jo 26:59

And uh in John 15, 16, uh Jesus says, You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide. Yeah. And that phrase, fruit that remains or fruit that abides, abide and remains, is it means the same thing.

SPEAKER_01 27:21

Yeah.

Stacy Jo 27:22

It's been woven throughout this entire framework. I mean, God is not interested, not just interested in what appears successful for a moment. He wants our lives to produce something that continues beyond an immediate season.

Allen 27:37

He does. He does. These are life lessons. Lasting fruit often grows in ways we can't measure.

Stacy Jo 27:43

Right.

Allen 27:45

So we may invest in someone today uh without seeing the full effect of of what they're doing, of the the time and the effort that we've invested, we may, we may never see that decide of eternity. Uh the encouragement that we offer, the truth that we share, uh, the example that we set as an influence, we might not see what they do, where they go, who they influence, uh ever. It might be we might we may on down the line some some time from now, but we may never see that. And that's okay. It's it's part of the kingdom multiplication. Uh we spoke heavily on that in the last episode.

SPEAKER_01 28:27

Right.

Allen 28:28

Uh the they may pour the people that we pour into might pour the same wisdom into someone else. And that's what we're talking about. That's the multiplication that we we spoke on in last episode. And the impact continues through the people uh that we might never meet. Right. That's how king, that's God's uh, that's his design. That's kingdom multiplication, that's how it works here. And uh it begins with one act of obedience and grows far beyond the ability to trace that act of obedience.

Stacy Jo 29:07

Yeah.

Allen 29:08

What's the ripple effect of your obedience today?

Stacy Jo 29:11

Yeah, that can be difficult for those of us who like visible results. You know, we want to know whether what we're doing is working.

Allen 29:20

We, you know, we're some people need a bar graph, you know.

Stacy Jo 29:26

Yes, or a spreadsheet. Yeah, or KPIs, you know, we look for numbers, we look for responses or some kind of confirmation that our that our effort is making a difference. Yet seeds spend a great deal of time beneath the service before any of the growth appears. And during that period, it would be easy to assume that nothing is happening, right? Even though the most important development may already be taking place.

Allen 29:55

That's it. That's a comparison. Gotta watch out for that.

Stacy Jo 30:00

Yes.

Allen 30:01

Comparison is dangerous and it becomes especially dangerous in the hidden seasons. Uh when you I never deal with this. Comparison. Look at someone else's uh someone else's fruit is so visible, and you begin to believe that your own investment is just insignificant. Why am I here? You know, uh this just brought to mind it's something an old friend said this. Uh uh, he goes, I want to see this was so many years ago in the uh in the 90s. He goes, I saw Van Halen last night, and this guy, this guy's a very good guitar player. He goes, I want to see Van Halen last night, and uh I quit. I'm never touching a guitar again. So but uh but it's not about comparison. Right. Every everyone has a place, especially and that's a a worldly, that's a uh a secular because I just popped into my head, thought I'd share that with you all. But um it's comparison and it doesn't have a place in the kingdom. Uh one person might have a large audience, uh, but that's not your audience. Uh another, you know, so someone has a large audience, and while another is faithfully teaching three children around a dinner table. That's a big deal. Uh one leader may be speaking to thousands, while another one's developing two employees with integrity and patience. The scale uh most often is very different. Uh both, both the the the large and the small, uh they have eternal significance when when they're done in obedience with the plan that the Lord's placed in front of you. Uh my my dear uh dear, I consider Mike uh Sonavelt a dear friend. Uh, don't see him that much these days. He got a high five on the way past today. Uh, but he they uh he and uh my other uh buddy uh massey compost, they're like, whether it's five or five thousand, we're we're speaking God's truth. It does it doesn't matter. And it doesn't matter.

Stacy Jo 32:14

Yeah, I mean scripture repeatedly shows us that God is not limited by what appears small. I mean, he used a widow's offering, he used a boy's lunch of two fish and five loaves and a mustard seed. Tiny, tiny, tiny seed. And he used those examples to teach us that surrender matters more than size. Right. You know, what looks ordinary in our hands can be extraordinary when it's placed in his.

Allen 32:45

Yeah. Absolutely. So we gotta stop measuring. Right. It's uh we gotta start stop comparison. The comparison trap is exactly that. It's a trap. Uh so we gotta stop measuring our assignment against the assignment that he gave someone else.

SPEAKER_01 33:06

Right.

Allen 33:06

You know, why are you trying to compare something that's not yours? You know, we we cannot faithfully steward a calling that doesn't belong to us. And I'll say that again. We cannot faithfully steward a calling that's not ours. Um, and when we waste valuable time uh continually questioning why our life doesn't look like theirs, it's we're we're missing what we should be doing in the cause and the purpose that he's placed in front of us. God's placed something within you that someone else needs.

Stacy Jo 33:43

Yeah.

Allen 33:45

We all have a purpose. Stop. If you're if you're caught in the comparison trap, it's easy to say stop, but but hear me now, hear us now, yeah. Your responsibility is to offer what he's given you faithfully rather than waiting until you feel more impressive or you feel more qualified or or you feel more visible. Yeah. Uh if uh if Peter and John and and uh and the other disciples, Matthew, if they waited till they were felt qualified, we'd be reading a different Bible.

Stacy Jo 34:28

We sure would. Yeah. I mean, the lessons that are learned through failure may become the very wisdom that another person needs. The healing that you receive may give someone hope that their story can change.

SPEAKER_01 34:43

Yeah.

Stacy Jo 34:43

And compassion developed through your pain may help you recognize a person everyone else has overlooked. God doesn't waste what we surrender to him.

Allen 34:54

Yeah, he doesn't ever anything.

Stacy Jo 34:56

Ever.

Allen 35:01

So even in the valley, what are we learning in the valley? Because that's that's where we learn the most, is in in the uh in the in the valley. So one of the greatest threats of of everything uh we've discussed, it's it's not necessarily rebellion. More often it's the quiet drift. I remember and this and the quiet drift reminds me of the the old casting crown song, uh, Slow Fade. Slow fade. Yeah. So if you if you're not familiar with that, look it up. Uh uh, if you're listening to this, you're probably familiar with the casting crown slow fade. But that's what the quiet drift is. The uh the quiet drift occurs when life becomes crowded and and our our spiritual intentionality is pushed to the edges, it's it's marginalized. What what's what we know is important is is shoved out there by responsibility. We we may leave uh a conversation feeling convicted and ready to make changes, but when what when life happens, when responsibilities increase and and schedules fill up to to overflow and the the urgency of the day begins to consume our attention, what then? We don't consciously reject what he showed us. We don't consciously evade our purpose. We we simply stop making room for it. It's gotten and that's that's sometimes that's us, and sometimes that's a ploy of the enemy. Sure. So you gotta know, you gotta know, you gotta the mature with the the maturity that we gain through the journey with them will give us that discernment, and um and it should give us a discernment for prioritization.

Stacy Jo 36:53

Yeah, and that drift can be difficult to recognize because it doesn't happen suddenly, it happens gradually.

SPEAKER_01 37:00

Yeah.

Stacy Jo 37:01

You know, maybe a few rushed mornings become a pattern or the conversation we are prompted to have gets postponed.

unknown 37:10

Yeah.

Stacy Jo 37:11

And we tell ourselves that we'll reconnect with someone, spend time in prayer, or act upon what God said when things settle down.

Allen 37:18

Yeah.

Stacy Jo 37:19

And the problem is that life rarely settles down on its own.

Allen 37:22

Right.

Stacy Jo 37:24

So without intentional rhythm, we can become busy doing really good things while slowly disconnecting from the source of everything that we are doing.

unknown 37:33

Yeah.

Stacy Jo 37:34

And he is the source of everything. He should be the source of everything.

Allen 37:37

The source, the capital S source.

Stacy Jo 37:39

Yes.

Allen 37:40

Yes, the um, and that's why prayer, uh, time in scripture, that's why worship and a healthy community are all essential. Um, these are not religious obligations. We're not talking about religion here. I would actually say no to religion, but I would thoroughly embrace relationship because we serve a relational God. Jesus was a hundred percent relational. Our father is a he sent Jesus. The father sent Jesus because he's a he's a hundred percent relational. He sent him for us. He sent him to bind up the brokenhearted. Uh, he and he sent him with the commandments to give to us of love and forgiveness. Those are the key, not concepts, but those are the two keys to to great relationship. We serve we it's not about religion, it's all about relationship. And uh, so there's not a a religious obligation to uh that we need to perform to earn his approval. We don't if we if we think we have to earn his approval, then we're missing it.

SPEAKER_01 38:52

Right.

Allen 38:53

We got we gotta back up and and uh and ask him about that. They um help us remain, remain aware of his presence. It's so important to remain in his presence and remember what's true. Remember what he said. Remember what he's done already. That's that's key, right? To remember what he's already done when the pressure hits and and begins to distort our perspective. What has he already done? Uh, where has he led you from? Uh we all need places where we where we can be honest about what we're doing. We we need people who will encourage us. So if we don't have someone to encourage us, then we're not going to be able to encourage other people. We we need people who who care enough to challenge us when we're when we're making excuses. Do you have those people? Do you have those guys? We need people to to call us on the drift when we're making excuses or we're drifting away from God and and what he's asked us to do, the purpose that he's placed in front of us.

Stacy Jo 40:05

Yeah, there's a reason God designed us for community. You know, we were never intended to carry our faith in isolation. I say isolation is the enemy's playground. And sometimes another person recognizes that change in us before we do. And they hear the discouragement in our voice, or they notice that we pulled away, or they remind us of something God said when we're tempted to give up. So part of remaining faithfully invested is allowing other people to invest in us too.

Allen 40:34

Absolutely. Absolutely. We're all in it together, and with him, we're in it to win it.

Stacy Jo 40:39

Yeah. Beginnings often come with excitement, a new calling, a ministry, business relationship, or direction from God that fills us with energy and anticipation. And staying faithful after that initial excitement fades requires something deeper. And I will say I am one who can get pulled away when things start to get dull or when it's not full of energy. But finishing well is built through ordinary choices that are made over a long period of time. You know, we continue praying when the answer has not yet come. We serve when no one notices, we forgive when the wound still feels tender, and holding on to integrity when compromise would be more convenient.

Allen 41:35

Integrity.

Stacy Jo 41:36

Integrity. Integrity good.

Allen 41:38

Mm-hmm. Anyway, those That was a little funny. Okay. I'm giving I'm getting a kick out of me over here. Anyway, uh those decisions rarely feel dramatic in the moment, but together they form a life of faithfulness. Being faithfully invested in what he's placed in front of us. Finishing will also requires us to understand that some assignments are meant to be carried for a season and then released. There are times when God asks us to build something, and later he asks us to place it in the hands of someone that he's prepared, that he's placed in front of us. So it's important to listen. Uh that release, it can be one of the we we talked about this at length in the in the last episode. The release can be uh one of the most difficult parts of discipleship because it requires trust. You know, the person the person that we've invested in may lead differently than we did. And that and because they're different, you know, doesn't mean that they're wrong. And it doesn't mean that we've done something wrong. Have we done our best to raise them up so we can send them out? Uh they might receive opportunities. And as and that's the point, we got to send them out because God's got a purpose for them. You know, and and as we've done our part here to disciple them, to mentor them, and raise them up, we got to send them out because they're gonna have opportunities out there that we never had to take his work further than we could have taken it ourselves. That's what kingdom multiplication is all about.

Stacy Jo 43:29

Yeah. And when that happens, our response reveals the health of our investment. You know, kingdom discipleship does not create people who remain dependent on us, it helps people become increasingly dependent upon God. The goal is not to produce a copy of ourselves, the goal is to help another person recognize the voice of God, understand their own calling, and then have the courage to walk it out.

SPEAKER_01 43:55

Yeah.

Stacy Jo 43:56

When they go further, we should actually celebrate because multiplication was always the point.

Allen 44:03

Absolutely. We gotta celebrate. We gotta because as they go, it's an absolute success. And we gotta celebrate success with the team often.

Stacy Jo 44:12

Yeah.

Allen 44:12

Often. So as we bring the invested framework to a close, we want to encourage you to carry it forward uh as a complete way of living rather than just a collection of lessons uh from the past. And they're more than just past episodes. Intimacy with God gives direction for everything else. And from that relationship, we we learn to serve people with humility. We steward what he entrusts to us well, and we we choose unity even when relationships become difficult. That's there's a challenging. We might need the good Lord's guidance for that one. We choose unity even when relationships become difficult. Uh faith teaches us to trust him through the uncertainty. Uh, while generosity keeps our hands and our hearts open to his purposes. Legacy. Legacy helps us think beyond our lifetime. And discipleship ensures that what God has placed in us does not end with us. Right. That's that's what we're talking about there. Carry that forward. Every part of what we're talking about here, the each part strengthens the next part and and so on and so forth. And as they're woven together, they form a life that is rooted in Christ and poured out for his purposes, not our, not just our own. Right.

Stacy Jo 45:53

We also would want to encourage you to never become so familiar with the foundations that you stop valuing them.

SPEAKER_01 46:00

Yeah.

Stacy Jo 46:00

Because some of the most spiritually mature people we know are the ones who remain tender before God. Sure. They still listen. They still ask the Holy Spirit to reveal what needs to change. They still apologize when they're wrong and they honor their commitments when it would be easier to walk away.

SPEAKER_01 46:17

Yeah.

Stacy Jo 46:19

They continue serving without needing recognition. And they make room for people even when their schedules are full. So years of walking with God have not made them more distant from Him. Those years have made them more aware of how deeply they need Him.

Allen 46:36

Absolutely. And um finally, friends, we we uh It's important to live. Live with the awareness that our decisions matter. Right. Every decision matters. The the conversation that you have with someone uh who's discouraged may alter, may shift their direction. Might shift their of their entire life. It's important. Words matter. Um the integrity that we demonstrate in in private forms the kind of leader that that we become in public. And the prayer that we pray over our children or or whoever we're praying over may continue shaping their faith long after uh they move from you. We don't have to live anxiously. In fact, the word says, be anxious for nothing.

unknown 47:32

Right.

Allen 47:33

But with with prayer and supplication, give our request to the Lord. You know? So we shouldn't be anxious.

SPEAKER_01 47:42

No.

Allen 47:43

In this world we will have trouble, Jesus said, but take heart, he's overcome the world. Uh be anxious for nothing. Uh we don't have to live anxiously. We should not be living anxiously trying to prove uh that we've accomplished enough. Who who are we trying to prove it to? Uh what we can do is we can live attentively, uh recognizing that God often places eternal significance inside ordinary moments.

Stacy Jo 48:16

Yeah. Revelations 22 20 reminds us that Jesus is coming. And that truth should shouldn't create fear in the heart of a believer, but it should bring perspective. Our days are a gift, our influence is a responsibility, and the people that God has placed around us are not distractions from our purpose. Most often, they are our purpose.

Allen 48:41

Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Don't miss that one. Uh the challenging people, and I wouldn't say even the challenging people he's placed.

Stacy Jo 48:52

Especially the challenges.

Allen 48:53

I would say especially the challenging people that he places in front of us. Uh that's a part of our purpose.

SPEAKER_01 49:00

Right.

Allen 49:00

How, how will we respond or react to the challenging people? Will they see Christ in us?

SPEAKER_01 49:08

Yeah.

Allen 49:09

Uh so as we're winding down, we want to speak directly to the listener who feels that what you're doing's too small to matter. It's nonsense. What voice are you listening to? Uh you listen to the Savior, are you listening to the Holy Spirit? Are you listening to the Father of lies? That's all he ever does is lie, lie, lie. What voice are we listening to? If God said it, do it.

Stacy Jo 49:41

Yeah.

Allen 49:41

Yeah. Maybe we've listened in maybe you've listened to these seasons and you wonder whether you're truly making a difference. If you're making an impact because um because life doesn't le even though you can't see it, are you do you believe you're making an impact? Uh are you comparing what you can't see in what you're doing to what you see in what other people are doing? I talked, lose that comparison. It doesn't matter. That's not God's plan for you. Uh you might believe that you you need a larger platform. Uh you might need, I think you need more resources, or you need a more impressive story uh before God can use you. If he said do it, do it. I remember uh our dear friend Darlene, uh, she said the uh the uh two-thirds of it uh the of God is go, you know. So go, God, go.

Stacy Jo 50:42

Yeah, yeah, go, God, go.

Allen 50:44

The uh, so our assignment, it doesn't have to be large to be significant. It just needs to be obedient.

unknown 50:52

Yeah.

Allen 50:52

How obedient are you willing to be to fulfill your calling, to fulfill your assignment, what he's given you. Not about what he's given them or giving them, right? What he's given you. Stay focused on the center.

Stacy Jo 51:08

Yeah, because there may be one person, one there may be one person watching the way you live and learning what faithfulness looks like. One child may remember that you prayed and trusted God during a difficult season. One employee may encounter compassion and integrity through your leadership. Perhaps a friend will find the courage to keep going because you listened and reminded them that God had not forgotten them. Jesus never treated one person as insignificant, and neither should we, and that includes ourselves.

Allen 51:42

Absolutely.

Stacy Jo 51:43

We should never look at ourselves and think that what we're doing is insignificant if we're following what He's called us to do.

Allen 51:49

Right. And it's important to not mistake slow growth as an absence of growth. Yeah. That's good. Roots develop before the branches so that the branches can support the weight of the fruit. And I am preaching to myself here. We are we are sharing this uh with you uh and ourselves. Roots develop before branches so the branches can support the weight of the fruit. And um, some of the deepest work that God uh does in us, it takes place before anyone else can see the evidence. So we we encourage you to stay planted and uh continue to be obedient to what he's given you and allow God to determine the size and the timing of his harvest, his plan.

Stacy Jo 52:42

Yeah, you know, as you were saying that, I was just picturing, you know, shallow roots that with a tree and fruit that can't withstand the fruit, which what ha what's gonna happen to it? If the fruit's heavier than the roots are deep, that tree's gonna collapse.

Allen 53:05

It's gonna well, the branches are gonna bend.

Stacy Jo 53:07

Branches are gonna bend.

Allen 53:09

The fruit's gonna hit the ground, it's gonna rot.

Stacy Jo 53:12

Right.

Allen 53:12

And uh, and if if the roots aren't deep, then any any adversity when the storms come and that's gonna push that tree over. Any any bit of adversity, it we you gotta have deep roots to get through the adversity.

Stacy Jo 53:25

So exactly.

Allen 53:26

You know, yes.

Stacy Jo 53:28

Stay rooted, stay rooted, continue obeying, yeah.

Allen 53:33

Let the roots go deeper. What's he to you? And the roots come from experience and in teaching and learning from his word and experiencing him and sitting with him in his presence. And I keep doing this because the roots are going deeper.

Stacy Jo 53:46

Right, right.

Allen 53:47

Let your roots go deeper.

Stacy Jo 53:49

Yeah, we believe, we truly believe that you encountered this podcast for a reason. God has something in mind for your life that may extend far beyond what you can currently see. There, there are people who may be changed because you chose obedience. There are prayers that may continue producing fruit after you have forgot, even forgotten that you prayed them. And there are seeds that you may plant during this season that someone else will harvest years from now. And that is the beauty of a faithfully invested life. Any surrendered life can multiply.

Allen 54:23

Absolutely. So before we pray, I want to thank you all for listening and walking this journey with us. Uh, thank you for sharing episodes and and please continue. If you learned something here, if you loved what you what you've heard or watched, uh, depending on where you're streaming this at, please thank you for continuing sharing the episode, share the experience. Uh, thank you for sending messages and and praying for us and praying with us, and and thank you for allowing these conversations to become part of your week. We are so grateful for you as listeners. Uh it's been an honor uh to speak into your life, uh, and we remain absolutely humbled by the stories of how God has used something uh that we said in an episode uh in your lives at the at in the exact moment that He wanted to use it.

Stacy Jo 55:20

Yeah. I wish we could see everyone who's listening right now. Some of you may be driving or getting ready for work, cleaning your house, or maybe you're just sitting quietly with your Bible open. And although we may never meet you face to face, you've become a part of this community and a part of our story. And we are deeply grateful for the trust you have given us. This episode marks the end of the invested framework, but it does not involve the end of Faithfully Invested. So make sure you stay tuned because our next framework is the purpose framework. And I think you will be very interested in discovering purpose in God's plan for you.

Allen 56:01

That's it. His purpose in your life is uh, yeah, it's gonna be good.

unknown 56:06

Yeah.

Allen 56:07

Looking forward to it.

Stacy Jo 56:08

Excited about it.

Allen 56:09

All right. She's excited.

Stacy Jo 56:10

I am.

Allen 56:11

That means I'm excited. So God continues to give us conversations uh that we believe is gonna uh we're we're here to share experience, hope, and truth. Yeah. Uh and we believe that's gonna encourage and challenge and equip you. Uh there are there are we got more stuff to talk about, more subjects to explore, more stories to share, and more opportunities for all of us to grow together. Uh, like Stacy Joe said, this the ch this chapter of Faithfully Invested is wrapping up and nearing completion, but another one is already beginning with the purpose framework.

Stacy Jo 56:55

Yes. So stay with us. God's not finished with you, and he's not finished with us. And Philippians 1 6 assures us that the one who began a good work will remain faithful until it's complete. There'll be more lessons, all of that coming up. And so we just are excited to continue walking this journey with you.

Allen 57:12

Absolutely. And uh so let's pray out. Let's pray. All right. So, Father, we we come before you here this uh as it would be this evening. Uh, we come before you with grateful hearts. Uh, we thank you uh for every person who's uh walked through these last eight seasons with us. Uh, we thank you that uh that every scripture that that you brought to us has has provided clarity. Uh, every conversation that you uh gave us has uh has created conviction uh because there is no condemnation for those found in Christ Jesus, our Lord. Uh we thank you for every moment when when your Holy Spirit met someone exactly where they were. Uh we ask that the seeds planted through uh our journey together would take deep root, that roots would grow deep. And uh we ask for your protection. We thank you for your protection uh over our over our our listeners and over ourselves and and over all of our families, uh protection from discouragement, distraction, uh protection from comparison and complacency. We uh we ask you uh and we thank you for continuing to do a good work, the good work that you began to to full come full completion to everyone who's listening. And uh we ask, we thank you for providing courage to cooperate with everything that that you desire to do in their lives. We uh thank you for drawing them into a deeper relationship with you, and we thank you for teaching all of us to recognize your voice with a greater clarity. Thank you. Who are we that you would sit with us and speak with us and encourage us? We are your sons and daughters, and we we thank you for shaping our hearts so that we can serve others with humility and steward what you've given us uh with integrity. We thank you for your wisdom. We thank you for for giving us all the strength to choose unity and remain steadfast in faith and live with generosity. We thank you for open hands and open hearts. We thank you that we have an opportunity to take your yoke upon us, Lord Jesus, and learn from you. It's in your precious name that we pray. Amen.

Stacy Jo 1:00:00

Amen. Uh we love you, and we are grateful to have shared this journey with you, and we'll see you in season nine.

Allen 1:00:09

Absolutely. And until then, we continuously encourage you all to stay faithfully invested because when you do, God brings the increase. God bless you and your families. Let's make it a great day. Thanks for joining us on Faithfully Invested with Alan and Stacey Joe. If today's conversation encouraged you, challenged you, or helped you see your calling more clearly, don't keep it to yourself.

Stacy Jo 1:00:37

That's right. Share it with a friend, leave a five star review, and keep leaning into God's blueprint for your life, your leadership, and your legacy. So until next time, remember when you invest in his kingdom, he brings the increase.