30. Faith in the Process

You’ve made changes. You’ve done the work. And while some things are better, you’re not where you expected to be — and that gap can make it feel like something isn’t working.

In this episode, we walk through simple tools to help you stay grounded in the process — how to track real progress, shift your focus away from what’s still missing, and make decisions from truth instead of frustration.

By the end of this episode, you’ll have a clear way to measure progress, a way to quiet the “this isn’t working” narrative, and one small daily practice that helps you stay consistent without feeling overwhelmed.

Key Moments:
What’s actually happening during setbacks: 4:00
Reflection Questions: 12:53
Practice for The Week: 13:47
Key Takeaway: 16:41

The content shared on this podcast is for educational purposes only and is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. Always consult your healthcare provider before making changes to your health routine, supplements, or treatments.

Transcript

What’s actually happening during setbacks

Reflection Questions

Practice for The Week

Key Takeaway

SPEAKER_00 0:03

Welcome to the Wellness Well, the place where faith and biblical wisdom meet God's design for healing and where Jesus Himself is waiting to meet you exactly where you are. I'm Heidi, a certified integrative health practitioner. And like the woman at the well in John 4, I believe our healing journey is so much more than fixing symptoms. It's about being restored to the person God always created you to be. This is our sacred space for honest, no-fluff conversations about what our body is really trying to tell us. Root cause healing that goes deeper than quick fixes and breaking generational cycles that have kept us stuck for way too long. So take a deep breath, say a little prayer, and meet me at the well. It's been six months, a year, maybe longer. You've done the protocols, changed your diet, addressed the stress, processed the emotions, and you're better. Sort of. But not healed. Not whole. Not where you thought you'd be by now. The doubt creeps in at night. Maybe this is just how it's going to be. Friend, please hear me. What if the timeline isn't the failure? What if God is doing something in the slow that he couldn't do in the instant? Who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Jesus Christ. Philippians 1, verse 6. I want you to notice three things in that verse. He began it, not you. He will carry it on. Not you. He will bring it to completion. Not you. The work is his. Your job is to stay on the path. That's what today is about. How to stay on the path when the path is taking longer than you expected. If you were here with me back in episode nine, we went deep into the theology of waiting. We talked about what it means to wait well, to prepare your heart while you wait for healing. Today builds on that. Episode nine was the why of waiting. Today is the how. Because knowing that God has a purpose in the waiting is one thing. Actually, sustaining faith when you can't see the finish line. That's another thing entirely. And I know that tension. I lived in it for years. The slow healing, the protocols that took time, the stillness that felt like nothing was happening when everything was happening on your ground. I get it. The first thing I need to normalize is this healing is not a straight line up. It's two steps forward, one step back. Sometimes one step forward and three steps back. And when that happens, when you have a bad week after three good ones, when the symptom you thought was gone comes back, when the anxiety you processed returns with a vengeance, your brain immediately tells you, oh, it's not working. But that's a lie. A setback is not a starting over. There's a difference between going backward and going deeper. Your body does deep, complex work when it heals, detox symptoms, emotional releases, healing crisis, layers being uncovered that had to be reached before they could be addressed. That bad week, that might be your body finally feeling safe enough to deal with something that you've been storing for decades. Think about it this way. If you've been in survival mode for 20 years, your body had to prioritize. So it stored things, tucked them away. And now that you're doing the restored work, the mind renewal, the emotional processing, the surrender, your body is finally safe enough to bring those stored things to the surface. That's not failure, that's trust. Your body trusts the process enough to let go of what it's been holding. Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters. Whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance, let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. James 1, verse 2 through 4. Let perseverance finish its work. That means the work takes time. The maturity, the completeness, the not lacking anything. It's on the other side of perseverance, not on the other side of that 30-day protocol. Nonlinear progress is still progress. Now, can we talk about the voice? The one that comes when you're exhausted, when the labs still don't look right, when you wake up at 2 a.m. and your mind starts spiraling. Maybe this is just how it's going to be. Maybe I'm the exception. Maybe nothing actually works for me. I need you to hear this clearly. That is not the voice of your father. That is the voice of the enemy, and it is a lie. Your father says, I began this work. I will finish it. That's Philippians 1, verse 6. Your father says, Those who hope in me will renew their strength. That's Isaiah 40, verse 31. Your father says, I make all things new. That's Revelation 21, verse 5. The enemy wants you to quit at mile 22 of a marathon. He wants you to believe that the setback is the final answer. He wants you to look at the slow progress and call it no progress. Don't let him narrate your healing. But those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles. They will run and not grow weary. They will walk and not be faint. Isaiah 40, verse 31. Let's notice that progression. Soar, run, walk. It doesn't always feel like soaring. Sometimes it feels like walking. Sometimes it feels like barely not fainting. And Isaiah says, even that is the Lord renewing your strength. So let's get practical. Because I don't want to promise you platitudes today. I promised you tools. Here's the first one. And it's deceptively simple. You have to track your small wins. Your brain has a negativity bias. It always will. Always. Focus on what's still broken. That's not a character flaw. That's neuroscience. Your brain is wired for threat detection. It will scan for what's wrong and dismiss what's right. Which means if you don't intentionally track what's improving, you won't see it. You'll only see the gap between where you are and where you want to be. So here's what I want you to notice. Sleep that's slightly better. Not perfect, slightly better. Energy that lasts a little longer into the afternoon. A symptom that used to be constant that's now occasional. A trigger that used to level you that now just stings a bit. An emotional response that used to take you out for three days that now resolves in three hours. A moment where you choose rest instead of hustle and didn't feel guilty. Those are wins. They're small, they're quiet, and they are evidence that God is working even when you can't feel it. Write them down, date them, return to them when doubt floods in. It's not toxic positivity. This is stewardship of your mind. Remember that renewed mind work from the beginning of the series? This is that, but apply to your healing timeline. You're choosing to see what's true instead of what's yelling the loudest. The second tool is this. When the big picture feels overwhelming, shrink the horizon. I know you're looking at the whole mountain, the hormone panel, the gut issues, the adrenal depletion, the emotional work, the generational patterns. And it feels like too much. Like you'll never get there. So stop looking at the mountain. Just look at today. I love the analogy of the staircase. You aren't climbing to the top of that staircase in one step. It's the step by step, putting one foot in front of the other. What can you do today? What truth can you declare this morning? What small step is in front of you right now? Jesus said it himself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble. He wasn't being dismissive. He was giving you permission to stop borrowing tomorrow's anxiety. Your daily anchors might look like one truth you speak over yourself in the morning. He who began this work will complete it. It may look like one small step that you take for your body, a nourishing meal, a walk, five minutes of stillness. It may look like one moment where you choose trust over control. Where you say, I don't understand the timeline, but I trust the one who holds it. That's enough. One day at a time is enough. You didn't get sick in a day. You won't heal in one. But every morning you wake up and choose the path again. That's not failure. That's faithfulness. And God sees every single step. So let's talk about our reflection questions. Question number one. What small wins have you not been celebrating? What progress have you dismissed because it wasn't the whole healing? Question two. Where has the enemy been narrating your timeline? What lie have you been believing about the pace of your healing? And question three. What is one truth you can anchor to today? Not for the whole journey, but just for today. And here's our practice for this week. We're gonna start a small wins list. Every night before bed this week, write one thing that was better today, even slightly than it was a month ago. Just one thing. It can be tiny. And do it for seven days. That's it. By the end of the week, you'll have seven pieces of evidence that healing is happening. Seven reminders that you can hold in your hands when doubt comes. Seven witnesses that speak louder than the 2 a.m. voice. Let's close in prayer. Father, for the woman who is tired, not just physically, but tired of hoping, tired of trying, tired of the slow. Renew her strength. Not all at once. Just enough for today. Enough to take the next step. Enough to believe you one more day. Silence the voice that says she's the exception. The voice that says nothing works for her. The voice that's not yours. Replace it with your truth. That you began this work and you will finish it. Show her the small wins that she's been missing. Open her eyes to the progress she's dismissed. Let her eyes see. Really see how far she's come, even when the finish line is still out of sight. And remind her that sometimes the healing she can't see is the healing that matters the most. The rewiring of her nervous system, the softening of her heart, the quiet rebuilding of a foundation that will hold for the rest of her life. In Jesus' precious name we pray. Amen. So here's your one takeaway: the timeline is not the failure. Nonlinear progress is still progress. And he who began this work will complete it. Next week, we're talking about your testimony. Because here's what I want you to see. The journey you're on right now, the pain, the waiting, the slow breakthrough, is becoming a story that will set other women free. Your story is not just for you, hun. And you don't have to be finished to share it. If you're in the middle of the slow healing and you need someone to walk beside you through the days when you can't see the progress, that's what we're here for. That's what the wellness well mentorship is. It is not a quick fix, but someone beside you for the long haul. The link is in the show notes if you're interested. Send this to one woman who is about to quit. She needs to hear that this setback isn't, it is not the end of the story. Thanks for joining me today. True Wellness Begins at the Will. The information shared in this podcast is for educational purposes only and is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. Please consult your trusted healthcare provider before making any changes to your health routine, supplements, or treatments. And as you go, remember what we are building here is different. Not self improvement, not striving, but a biblically grounded, spirit led approach to wellness. Thanks for meeting me at the well today. May what you received here pour into your week, your home, and your healing.