192 | Having Faith to Trust God with the Outcome; Mental Illness Does Not Win

You can pray, plan, and do everything “right” and still have no idea how the story will turn out even though you have FAITH. That unknown can trigger anxiety, deepen depression, and make you feel stuck at the starting line. I talk through what it really looks like to move forward anyway, not with blind optimism, but with steady faith and one next step. You can overcome stress by building your FAITH and really choosing to manage your mental illness.

We lean on Scripture like Proverbs 3:5-6 and Psalm 37:4-5 to draw a clear line between simply following your heart and surrendering your heart to God so He can direct your path. When visibility is low, the goal is not to map the whole journey. The goal is to stay connected to God, release the need to control the outcome, and keep putting one foot in front of the other, even if the step is tiny.

I also share three practical takeaways for anyone navigating a stormy season or managing depression: do not make a permanent decision in a temporary storm, stay the course even when you cannot see progress, and remember that storms subside but what God builds in you remains. We talk about why feelings are not always facts, why rest is different from quitting, and how small wins build momentum when your strength feels limited.

If you need encouragement that meets you in the middle, press play, take notes, and choose your next step today. Subscribe for more faith based support, share this with a friend who needs it, and leave a quick Apple Podcasts review so more people can find the show.

Transcript

Starting Without Knowing The End

SPEAKER_00 0:00

On this episode of Win Over Depression, we'll be talking about how we may not know the end result, but how important it is to just get started. You know, sometimes the hardest part of life is moving forward when you don't know how the story is going to end. You don't know if the door is going to open. You don't know how the situation is going to work out. You don't know if the thing you've been praying for is going to happen the way that you hoped. And sometimes, God doesn't give us the entire plan. He simply asks us to trust Him with the next step. In this episode of Win Over Depression, we're talking about what it means to keep going when you cannot see the outcome. There are seasons when you have to stop trying to figure everything out, listen to what God has placed in your heart, and have enough faith to move forward even when the road ahead is unclear. We have to supersize our faith because the Bible tells us in Proverbs 3, verses 5 through 6, trust in the Lord with all thine heart and lean not unto thine own understanding. In always acknowledge him, and he shall direct the path. Your responsibility is not to have every answer. Your responsibility is to stay connected to God, follow the direction He gives you, and keep putting one foot in front of the other. Sometimes faith looks like saying, God, I don't know where this is going, but I trust you enough to keep going. So today we're talking about releasing the need to know the outcome, trusting what God has placed in your heart, and believing that no matter what happens along the journey, God will give you strength, wisdom, grace, and the courage to get through it. So

Give Your Heart To God

SPEAKER_00 2:26

let's talk about following our heart, following God, and trusting that He will help us get through the fire. The Bible actually gives us an important distinction. It does not simply tell us to follow your heart. Instead, it teaches us to give our heart to God, trust him, and let him direct us. Another powerful verse is Psalms 37, verse 4 and 5. Delight thyself also in the Lord, and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart. Commit thy way unto the Lord, trust also in him, and he shall bring it to pass. So rather than saying, follow your heart, follow what God has placed in your heart. So whatever He's placed in your heart, let me ask you, what are you doing? What steps are you taking to make sure that let's dive into today's episode? But before

Course Tools For Managing Depression

SPEAKER_00 3:33

we do, let me tell you about my course, The 14 Days to Manage Depress. If you're ready to pick you first and better understand your mental illness and how to decrease your episodes of sadness, guilt, or worry, the 14 Days to Manage Depression will equip you with the tools I use to move from being chronically depressed to now experiencing few symptoms of depression. Let me help you get to that place of mental health. Instead of trying to figure everything out on your own, this course walks you through daily steps that help you slow down your thoughts, process your emotions, and begin to regain control in a healthy, manageable way. When stress feels constant and worry won't quiet down, having a guided plan helps you move from confusion to clarity. What makes this course especially powerful is that it just doesn't talk about healing. It gives you practical tools to apply in real time. Through guided activities, affirmations, and intentional reflection, you'll learn how to interrupt your negative thought patterns, build healthier habits, and respond to stress in a way that supports your mental and emotional well-being. It helps you shift from reacting to stress and worry to actually managing them. Most importantly, this course is rooted in faith. It helps you strengthen your connection with God while learning how to release what you can. And we unpack anxiety, exploring what it feels like to battle internally while still showing up externally. I am overjoyed that you are here to gain insight and inspiration from someone who has lived with chronic depression for most of their adult life. By his grace, I became well enough to pour into others. God always told me that my greatest testimony would come from my deepest pain. So it's time to snuggle in your favorite chair, make that cup of tea, and get ready for today's episode. Grab a pen or paper if you'd like to. There's some good stuff coming your way.

Trusting God When Visibility Is Low

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So, my friends, we may not know where the journey will end, but when your heart is surrendered to God, you can trust him enough to follow where he is leading you. You don't have to know the outcome. Keep your heart connected to God, follow his direction, trust him through what you cannot see. And I know that that's the hardest part. Trust him when we can't see. But it's important to believe that God is running interference and he is in the background working things out for our good, even when we can't see it. There are going to be times in your life when we simply don't know how things are going to turn out. We can pray, we can prepare. You will do everything that you know how to do. You can make the best decisions, you can make them with information you have in front of you and still not know the outcome. And that's where faith comes in. Faith is not always knowing what is going to happen next. Faith is trusting God enough to keep moving when you don't know what's going to happen next. And I want somebody listening today to hear me clearly. Just because you're going through a difficult season does not mean you are going to stay there. Storms come, trials and tribulations come, disappointments, unexpected situations. There are times when life will hit you with something you never saw coming. And sometimes, before you have recovered from one thing, something else happens. But here's what you have to remember: storms move, they don't remain in the same place forever. The rain eventually slows down, the wind eventually stops blowing, the clouds separate, and eventually the sun will shine again. That doesn't mean the storm wasn't real. It doesn't mean it didn't hurt. It doesn't mean you didn't lose something. It doesn't mean you weren't afraid. It simply means the storm did not have the authority to stay forever. And somebody needs to know today that what you're going through does not get to determine the rest of your life. Because Jesus told us in John 16, verse 33, In the world ye shall have tribulation, but be of good cheer. I have overcome the world. Notice what Jesus said. He didn't say you might have tribulation. He said you shall have tribulation. In other words, being a person of faith does not exempt you from difficult seasons. Serving God does not mean that every day is going to be easy. Praying doesn't mean that nothing painful will ever happen. And faith doesn't prevent every storm. Faith gives you something to hold on to while you are in the storm.

Do Not Decide Permanently In Pain

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And I have three takeaways for you today, and I'd like for you to write them down. Takeaway number one, do not make a permanent decision in a temporary storm. I'll say it again. Takeaway number one, do not make a permanent decision in a temporary storm. This is so important when we're talking about depression, because depression has a way of making temporary circumstances feel permanent. Because when you're hurting, your mind can tell you this is never going to change. When you're exhausted, your mind can tell you, I can't do this anymore. When you're disappointed repeatedly, you can begin believing nothing is ever going to work out for me. But feelings are not always facts. What you are feeling right now may be intense, but intensity does not mean permanence. You may be in a dark season, but darkness has a beginning and an ending. Psalm 30 verse 5 says, Weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning. I love that scripture because it addresses both realities. There is night, there is weeping, there is pain. There are seasons when you're going to cry. There are going to be seasons when you don't understand what God is doing. But the verse doesn't stop with the night. It says, Joy cometh in the morning. Morning is coming. And sometimes you have to remind yourself of that over and over again. I've talked about how sometimes depression wins. And when depression wins, we need to lay down and go to sleep because we know that morning is coming. So don't abandon the journey because today's chapter is difficult. You haven't read the whole story yet. Sometimes we try to judge the entire book by the chapter we're currently in, but God isn't finished writing. And when you don't know the ending, you've got to trust the author. There have been many things in your life that while you were going through them, you couldn't imagine ever getting beyond them. But look at you, you survived days you thought would break you. You made it through situations you thought you would never recover from. You got through moments when you didn't even know where your strength was coming from, and you are still here. And that is a reason to celebrate. We must celebrate the small wins and remember that the small wins is the way that we build momentum. That same God who carried you then is still carrying you now.

Stay The Course Without Proof

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Takeaway number two, write it down. Stay the course even when you can't see the progress. Stay the course even when you can't see the progress. One of the hardest things about faith is continuing when you can't see anything changing. Because most of us want some evidence. God, show me something. Give me a sign that things are going to get better. Give me something that lets me know I'm headed in the right direction. But sometimes the evidence doesn't come immediately. Sometimes God is working in places we cannot see, and that is when you stay the course. Galatians 6 and 9. And let us not be weary in well doing, for in due season we shall reap if we faint not. In other words, don't give up because giving up is never an option. There are two words I want you to hold on to. There is another season coming because Scripture says, if we faint not. In other words, don't quit before your season changes. Don't give up because you're tired. Rest if you need to rest. Take a moment if you need a moment. Ask if you need help. Cry if you need to cry. You can pray, journal, talk, breathe, get quiet. But don't make the mistake that needing rest means you need to quit. Those are two completely different things. Sometimes staying the course means you run. Sometimes staying the course means you walk. And sometimes staying the course means all you can do is take one tiny step. But one tiny step is still movement. It's progress. It's what we're looking for. If today all you can do is get out of bed and take care of yourself, that is one step. If today all you can make is one phone call, that is a step. If today all you can do is pray and say, Lord, help me, that's a step. You don't have to solve your entire life today. You just have to keep moving in the direction that God is leading you in. Proverbs 3, verse 5 through 6. Again, trust in the Lord with all thine heart and lean not unto thy own understanding. In all thy ways, acknowledge Him, and He shall direct thy path. Sometimes the reason we become overwhelmed is because we're trying to figure out the entire path. God is saying, Let me direct the path. Your job is the next step. God's job is the whole journey. Think about what happens when you're driving in a storm. You don't have to see 50 miles down the freeway. Sometimes you can only see what's in front of you. And what do you do? You slow down, you pay closer attention, you keep your hands on the wheel, you keep moving. Life is like that. There are seasons when visibility is low, you can't see what's ahead. That's when you slow down, hold tighter to God and keep moving. And eventually you come out of the storm.

What The Storm Builds In You

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Takeaway number three, remember that storms subside, but what God builds in you remains. Once again, remember that storms subside, but what God builds in you remains. Sometimes we spend so much time praying for God to take us out of the storm that we miss what God is developing in us while we are going through it. Trials build endurance, they build wisdom, and they strengthen our faith. Trials help us realize that we are much stronger than we think. Trials can teach us who's really in our corner. Trials teach us what matters and what doesn't. And trials teach you how strong you are to overcome the circumstances of life. And sometimes what feels like it is breaking you is actually building something inside of you that you're gonna need for the next season. James 1, 2 through 4. My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into diverse temptations, knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience, but let patience have perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire wanting nothing. Now nobody is gonna say you're gonna enjoy suffering. That's not what it means. It means that you could recognize that even in difficulty, God can produce something valuable. You come out wiser, stronger, you come out with boundaries and clarity, you come out knowing God in a way you never knew Him before. You come out with the testimony that somebody else is going to need. Maybe it reveals your strength, your resilience. Maybe it reveals that you were depending too heavily on people. Maybe it reveals that you've been trying to control things that you simply cannot control. Maybe it reveals that God is calling you to do something different. You may not have the answer yet, but you don't know the ending, but you have to trust God in the middle. And that's really what this episode is all about trusting God in the middle. Not just praying to Him when you come out, but can you trust Him when you're still in? Can you say, God, I don't understand, but I trust you. Can you say, I don't know how this is going to work, but I'm going to keep following you. Can you say, God, everything in me feels tired, but I refuse to give up? Sometimes faith sounds like a victorious shout, and sometimes faith sounds like a quiet whisper. Lord, I'm still here. I'm believing, praying, trying, trusting, standing, and moving. And if that's all you've got today, then that's enough to take the next step. Think about some of the worst storms you've already experienced in your life. At what point you probably wondered whether you would make it. But if you're listening to today's episode, that means you made it to this moment. You made it wounded, tired, maybe with some scars, but you made it nonetheless. So when the storm comes and the next one comes, and they're going to come, remind yourself, I've been through storms, God has brought me through, and He can bring me through it again. Isaiah 43, 2 says, When thou passest the waters, I will be with thee. I will be with thee to take you through, and it will pass because I am there. So we must keep walking, believing, trusting, and staying the course. So don't quit in the middle, stay the course, and you will get through it, and someone will be ready to hear your testimony about how you made it over to the other side.

Community Invite And Final Requests

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Before I end today's episode, I want to invite you to join my Facebook community called the Win Over Depression Community. If you join and you drop your email, you will also receive the newsletter for Win Over Depression that comes out every single month. Remember, join the Facebook community Win Over Depression today. See you there. I just want to remind you about the 14 days to mental health wellness. Your healing journey awaits. Go to the show notes and click on the link, and you'll be well on your way to the 14 days to manage depression. It will be the best thing that you could ever do for your mental health. If this episode touched you in a special way and inspired you, would you share this with a friend? Would you also do me another favor? Could you take 60 seconds and leave a review on Apple Podcasts? I would greatly appreciate it.