310 | Feeling Successful But Empty? What God Says About the Work You Do, with Dr. Joy Dahl

Speaker A: A warm welcome to Renewal Conversations, part of the Thriving in christ show on YouTube and podcast. I'm Dr. Ioana Popa and today we're going to have some conversation about the theology of work. What does it mean to work for God and how do we embed that in our day to day experiences no matter what our work is. And Today's guest is Dr. Joy Dahl who works bivocationally as a fractional CFO providing business strategy and financial leadership to startup and and high growth organizations. She also serves as a teacher and speaker, empowering faith and work integration by equipping believers at all levels to embrace their calling as Christ Ambassadors. Consistently recognized for excellence in performance, innovation and high impact leadership, Dr. Joy promotes collaboration as a critical component of integrated success. She earned two Master's degree and her doctorate from Dallas theological seminary. The Dr. Joy and her husband live near Philadelphia, Pennsylvania with their beloved rescue pups and her favorite things include International Adventure horses, Big dogs and dark chocolate. And her new book God's Will for your Work Discovering Divine Purpose in Everyday Life is launching soon. Dr. Joy also co hosts the Divine Design Podcast and you can find her@ah joydoll.com and if you're a regular, I want to welcome you back. And if you're new, welcome to Thriving in Christ show for Christian women, professional and servant. And this is for you. If you feel at times stressed, depleted on a busy treadmill with Sunday night blues in spite of loving what you do, if you sense blocks in reaching your highest potential for the kingdom as you're carrying significant responsibility and impact. If you wrestle to stay, fully replenish and access that peace that surpasses all understanding no matter how many programs you've tried and might worry that self care and deep renewal would only add to your long to do list. If this is you, then welcome. You're not lacking discipline, you're not lacking faith. More often what's missing is sustainable and skillful renewal. See, many of the solutions available today act like band aids placed on already burdened foundations, shaped by chronic stress, past events, cultural conditionings and misconceptions without taking in consideration the needed alignment and wholeness that is needed to have a sustainable life in Christ. See, I burn out twice not because of lack of knowledge as I'm in the mental health field and or because of lack of faith. And in this show we take a different approach through the integration of science, psychology and Christian faith and spiritual care. This show helps you to return to a place of inner renewal, accessing the living waters of Christ from Within. Align your body, mind, heart and soul to reduce inner fragmentation and restore your grounded inner life. Simplify your daily habits from inside out to build sustainable rhythms that support your life and leadership without adding pressure and access, clarity, peace, joy and ground and presence so that you can keep on leading and serving in Christ. This is not about doing more. It is about learning how to return skillfully again and again to God within when your strength is renewed and your life is restored and your leadership flows from your soul. And as mentioned, I'm Dr. Ioana Popa, co founder and CEO of Team for the Soul Institute. I'm a physician, psychiatrist, educator, spiritual care and executive coach, speaker and trainer. And you can find us on the web Team for the Soul and on, um, LinkedIn. And make sure you download the app Team for the Soul with free resources to help you stay grounded and renewed. And you can sign up to be on our mailing list so you can get our updates, um, and news right in your inbox. And when you're ready to learn how you can support you specifically through one to one spiritual care, life coaching or executive coaching, you can set up a free consultation. And the links are in the show. Notes.

Speaker B: Notes.

Speaker A: All right. Are you ready to grow towards your highest potential from a grounded, renewed foundation with Christ at the helm? And let's dive in. Hey. Warm welcome, Dr. Joy. So exciting to have you here. We met a while ago and I, uh, we stayed in touch and I'm really so delighted to share about your expertise and your live vocation. I know you have a book coming up with our audience for Christian women and servant leaders, so welcome.

Speaker B: Thank you. It's such an honor to be here. I have just felt a kindred spirit with you since the day, uh, we first met. And so I'm really honored and excited to be here with you and your guests.

Speaker A: Thank you. Thank you for that. And let's start with your vocation and journey in Christ. I know you're a fractional cfo and you also do amazing work with biblical teachings. So I'm just so curious how your vocation unfolded to do what you do in Christ.

Speaker B: Yeah, well, I'll try to keep it brief. It actually starts back when I was age 13. So my father died when I was 13, and my final promise to him was, daddy, one day I'm going to make you proud. And to me, at age 13, that meant becoming successful. And so, um, for the next 20 years, I pursued all I could of success in the world. At age 33, became CFO of a broadcasting company in upstate New York by the world standards, I had it all. Prestigious career, big house party lifestyle. Uh, but behind my mask I was broken and alone and in the bottom of a very dark pit. And I just kept thinking there has to be more to life than this. And then a co worker actually gave me a book which prompted me to go back to church. And at that church there was a pastor who was preaching all the crazy things of Jesus right out of the Bible and they started to make sense. The Holy Spirit was definitely working on my heart. Sunday after Sunday, I went back to hear these life giving words. Finally one day, uh, one Sunday after church, I pulled off my old life like a wetsuit. I pushed it down and I walked forward to my Savior and said I'm never going back. And obviously there is time of transition of now in the C suite, navigating the pre Christ to the with Christ really without any Christian mentors. Ultimately I moved back to D.C. to repair my broken relationship with my mother. And uh, fast forward, uh, started my own CFO consulting practice, had that for 10 years, moved to Dallas and then really felt like God was calling me. So when I met Jesus at age 35, I put my career on the altar. I said I'll give it all up today if you ask me to, just tell me what you want me to do. Thinking that meant I had to go work somewhere around the world and missions for the church, whatever that might be. But for 10 years when I had my CFO practice, he didn't ask me to leave that. And I started to see that through my consulting practice I m was interacting with people who did not know the Lord, people of other faith, people of no faith. And yet I had the opportunity to live out my faith every single day through integrity, through excellent work, by talking about mission trips that I was going on around the world and inviting them to pray for me. And so I didn't know then about these words, theology of work, but that's really what I was living out.

Speaker A: Mhm.

Speaker B: And so fast forward 10 years, I felt like the Lord was calling me out of my consulting practice and to seminary. I heard very clearly, if you want to be a teacher of my word, you've got to be better equipped to handle it with care. But now my consulting practice was doing really well and I was like, lord, are you sure is now the right time? But he confirmed. And so I transitioned out of consulting, went into master's program at Dallas, uh, Theological Seminary. Not knowing the end game, which for a, uh, Type A like me is very Difficult. I want to know what the plan is. And otherwise I'm developing my own plan. But it was about halfway through my master's program that I first heard about theology of work. This integration of faith and work and what God says, what he teaches in his word about work, who we are as workers made in the image of God who works. And so that prompted me to go on to do my doctoral studies in theology of work, integration of faith and work. And since then I've worked with various organizations, some international, really focusing on, again, what does that look like to be living out our faith through the whole of our lives? And how can work be our platform? How has God strategically placed us in this season for such a time as this? And so now I'm truly honored. I'm back to CFO consulting again. I'm also teaching, uh, and speaking about theology work. I feel like the Lord has really gifted me with this understanding of something that I wish I had known 20, 30 years ago. Um, and so it's a real honor to be able to share the message that he's entrusted to me.

Speaker A: That's so beautiful. Thank you so much for sharing. And maybe the listener is wonder knows already what a CFO is and maybe she doesn't.

Speaker B: So CFO is chief Financial Officer.

Speaker A: Yeah. What do you do?

Speaker B: Yeah. So before, in my first go round, my 10 years of consulting, I worked primarily with for profit companies, startup and high growth companies, organizations who are trying to go to the next level, turnarounds, people, processes, systems, really building an infrastructure and a foundation for growth. Where is the organization trying to go the next three years, the next five years, and what do we need to do to get there? So now I work with both nonprofits and for profits, but it's really the same focus of where is the organization trying to go? What infrastructure and foundation do we need to be building today? People process these systems so that we can really launch into the future and have a sustainable organization, a scalable organization. And it's just really exciting to work with, um, the visionaries and the other leaders who really want to see their organizations go to the next level.

Speaker A: That's so beautiful. And I love how God brought it all circle back.

Speaker B: Right.

Speaker A: I so relate to that from what you're saying, because I started working as a psychiatrist, helping and healing and then I moved away. I have my period when I just did teaching and stopped that and then came back and then the evolution and someone said to me, God never wastes any season and I so appreciate the way your life unfolded. It Seems like he's using all your gifts. And I particularly love what you said, how it just happened that, oh, there is a theology at work, that somehow you felt in your heart or, uh, your mind and your soul that God is saying, stay put, you are ministering no matter where you are. We don't. I think we have this mindset for many, many of us Christians that we have to go on the mission field and we want to do this. You know, in my tradition, might go to a monastery or in desert to just do that as opposed to, we're missionaries, we're preaching God's word and only when needed. As Santa Costan said, use words.

Speaker B: Right.

Speaker A: We're doing it through our values, through the way we're interacting. I love that so much. And I did have a question for you. When you said that I didn't know what God was intended for you, and then you mentioned also God confirmed this for you. What was your experience like? It's so different for all of us. And I think it's also so inspirational because sometimes we may miss some signpost from God or a, ah, different way of relating with God, and it could be so beneficial for all of us, including our listeners. Yes.

Speaker B: So I think it is very different for everyone. Um, for me, it is just a continual pressing into the Lord through prayer. There have been seasons where I've done journaling. I don't journal all the time, but there have been real seasons where I have journaled to, to have a record of my interaction when I'm in prayer, even centering, trying to, to really focus internally in the spirit. Um, I've used certain practices, like imaginative prayer of going with Jesus into certain situation and hearing what he has to say. And so for me, it's been different at different times. I will say something that has been very helpful for me is putting down what I call permanent markers, where when I feel like I have heard something from the Lord, I put a marker down just like they used to build altars and they would name it so that it could be a reminder. Because when I'm now in the future and not knowing what to do next or, uh, did I get off course or what am I supposed to do? I can go back to that permanent marker. The last time that I know for sure that I heard from God, I had direction from God and really then asking him, lord, having an open conversation, you know, so much of at least my prayer life in the past, it was just me praying and me speaking, but really not taking the time to listen. And this Was something that, in my time of growing in knowledge of theology work and a big part of that, spiritual practices, really trying to understand how can I receive, how can I listen, how can I give him, um, the opportunity to speak? You know, I still, uh, can picture this one, uh, example of it, you know, if you were to pick up the phone, call someone, and you're just talking, talking, talking, having an entire conversation and then hang up, the person on the other side is, okay, why did you call? Like you, you didn't allow them to speak, you didn't allow them to speak in. And so, so much of my hearing from the Lord, it has been times of bringing specific requests. And I'll be honest, there have been times where I'm saying, lord, I'm not hearing from you. And so this is my plan. If I don't hear otherwise, this is what I'm planning to do. And I will say that there comes, uh, moments of peace, of uh, real peace and strength that is outside of what I can manufacture myself, where I feel assured that this is the right direction. But I do feel like kind of, you know, Jeremiah 29 in the verses we know 29:11, most people have heard this where I know the plans I have for you declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not harm you, plan to give you hope in a future. And we cling to that. But if you go on from there, God says you will seek Me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.

Speaker A: Mhm.

Speaker B: And I feel like that's what he want. It's not about the plan, it's not about where we're going sometime. Even though I'm a big proponent of what's one next step? Let's just take one next step with Jesus. But more than anything, it's that piece of with Jesus, how are we seeking Him? How are we sitting at his feet, having open arms, laying down what we're carrying, having open arms to receive only what he wants us to carry. How are we having hearts and minds and, and really our spirit and physical practices that are in tune with him? You know, when Jesus says, love the Lord God with all your heart, mind, soul and strength, you think of heart. Well, that's your affections, your mind, your attention, your spirit. What are, what are those ways that you're trying to connect with him deeply? And then your strength, your physical body, the physical practices, what you're doing with the temple that you are entrusted with. And so if we just change our perspective of what that means in a practical day to Day world. Um, it really can be transformative. So I don't know if that answers your question. When I hear from the Lord, it's in different ways. It's in really different postures that I have in my interaction with Him. But I have a confidence in knowing that this is direction from Him. And so my permanent Marco goes down. I go to my one next step and continue on the path.

Speaker A: Oh, that is so beautiful. Thank you so much for sharing. And if you're listening to this, if you're multitasking, let's come back. There are so many beautiful nuggets of wisdom along the way. So What I'm hearing, Dr. Joy, is on. On one hand, creating the space for God to actually speak in our lives. How many times we just pray, pray, pray. And it's so true. I found that especially in my denomination, we love prayers that be transmitted for centuries. So we love to say our prayers. And many Christians, you know, they have our prayer that is throughout the day or repetitive. We love our same kind of prayers. But what I'm also stressing so much this idea of creating a silence where we can speak into it. So thank you for sharing that. And if you're listening right, how can we create space to be in silence? And this is why I love so much contemplative practices and helping our mind to unhook from thoughts or our emotions and body. Because I don't know about you, but what I've encountered with many people in was my experience way back is when we're trying to sit in silence, all of a sudden, thoughts, thoughts, thoughts, thoughts. And it's so easy. We can get so distracted. But then also, I'm also hearing when we really know that we know that we know. Occasionally we get these glimpses from God. I love the words you used. Permanent markers. Do you have, like a notebook where you keep them or how do you collect them? My brain was like, I need to get a small notebook. And I'm going to write down because sometimes I journal and I get this permanent markers, as you call them, but they're kind of scattered, and I think it'll be really nice to have in one place. What's your system?

Speaker B: Yes. So having. I will admit I just moved. And so my system is kind of out the window. But what I was doing before was having just that. A very simple journal. And it may be one entry a year, it could be one entry a week. So there's no. It's not that I have to do this every week or, you know, every day. But just keeping a list. What is the date? What is the permanent marker? If you want to put one or two sentences down, but because it's a permanent marker, it's an impact moment. You have engaged with the living God, you have interacted with Jesus. And so it is something that you are not going to forget anytime soon. So even just putting the date and what that marker is.

Speaker A: Yes.

Speaker B: It will then trigger those memories and then to be able to just see a pathway of what? Yeah. And looking back then over, you know, 20 years, two years, two months, whatever that might look like, it's just remarkable. It really showed. God is an interactive God. He is a loving God. He cares about the details. He knows us intimately, and he desires to be a part of our everyday.

Speaker A: He does. Amen, uh, to that. So as a listener, okay, let's make a commitment. We'll get a small journal. And when we know, and sometimes it is through a word that we may hear. Or it could be a body experience, or it could be a vision, an image, could be someone. Or we hear the same message three times in a short period of time. Like, okay, I hear you, God, loud and clear. And the other piece that I want to name here, and I can see how much we're resonating because I have the same approach when I don't hear from God, when I don't sense where God is going. God, here is my plan. And I love this because we are meant to co create with God. We're not meant to be passive and just constantly wait, okay, God, give me direction now. Okay, five minutes later, what should I do now? Because that's not really. God wants us to grow psychologically and spiritually and be really take responsibility and ownership of our lives. So when I don't hear, I've done this exactly the way you said it. Uh, like, God, I don't hear anything from you right now, but this is my plan. A, B, C, D. That's what I'm going to do. If, if this is not your plan, please stop me. Like, yes, cold in my tracks. And I got into a small car accident one time. I'm like, okay, God, I hear it. And sometimes things happen. Like next day, there's like confirming this. I'm like, okay, I hear you. So as a listener, I want you to be encouraged. There is this process and I hope if you take anything out of renewal conversations and the, uh, episodes in thriving in crisis, this idea of constant connection with God. And I think, Dr. Joy, you're just such a beauty. Brings so many Beautiful layers to this, including that work and faith ministry, the theology of work. I love that. And I know you have a book coming, so do you want to share a bit about your book?

Speaker B: Sure, I would love to. So my book is God's will for your work, Discovering divine purpose in everyday life. And you know, a lot of us, we, we want meaning and purpose. We're seeking higher purpose. We're seeking, you know, what, where am I supposed to go? What am I supposed to do? Even what I was feeling 20 plus years ago, those still there are periods of time where it cycles back of I'm in a new season, what am I supposed to do, Lord? What, what would you have for me to do? And again, I even think that's, uh, those conversations with the Lord, we're not threatening, saying, hey, I'm going to go this direction. We're just saying, lord, I am seeking you. And this is what I think your will is, you know, as if we're praying in his name according to his will as the King of Kings. And so with that, if I'm not sure what to do next, this is what I'm going to do. So with that in my book, it's really setting four pillars in a biblical theology of work. When I started learning about theology of work and when I teach it, we go back to the first verse of the Bible. In the beginning, God created, or in other words, in the beginning, God went to work. So in the very first verse of the Bible, we're learning about God, who he is as a worker, a creator, a provider, a sustainer of life. And then he creates us, uh, as his imago dei, the image of God, men and women together, created in his image. And we, I talk about in the book, uh, what that means. What does imaging God mean? And again, the value, the value that we have as Christ ambassadors. So for Genesis, all the way through to Revelation, talking about what the Lord teaches us about our work today, about our work in the future, about our work in heaven, about our identity as workers in his image, about our role as ambassadors of Christ, uh, one of the aspects of being an ambassador as well is that we're witnesses, not evangelists. When we start talking about theology of work, or faith and work integration, or bringing our faith into work, many people get very nervous. And I'll be honest, there have been times I've been nervous about that because what I have heard in some churches is that means going and evangelizing in the workplace, which is often not what God is calling us to do. It's not what the purpose is. I mean, the purpose of excellent work is excellent work, no matter what type of work it is. And so when we go into a workplace, we are there to image God, to work with excellence, to the best of our ability, for the glory of God. And through our excellent work, to build credibility and trust with those we work with, with, we're bringing the power of prayer into our workplace, whether other people know it or not. Hopefully we're connecting with other believers, if we have other believers in our workplace where we can be banding together as brothers and sisters in Christ, praying for a common mission. And it's again, being a witness. So an evangelist speaks. It, uh, proclaims a specific message, the message of Jesus Christ. And there is a time and a place for that. Absolutely. Many of us in a workplace, we're called to be witnesses. Acts 1:8, where Jesus says, you will be my witnesses. And a witness testifies to what he has seen or experienced firsthand. And so that's what Jesus is asking us to do. And I have friends, missionaries around the world who work is their platform. They are not able in other parts of the world to speak freely about their faith. And yet they can work with excellence. They can build, build genuine relationships, not with agenda, but truly loving and caring for other people, wanting to get to know them, and through hearing other people's stories, having the opportunity to share our story. So that's just a little taste of what is in God's will for your work. I think, uh, there's so much that I have learned about God's purpose for us and God's call to the workplace. And it's a call that we can accept or not accept. Each one of us has an invitation from the Lord to join him in the work he's already doing in and through us. And one last thought I'll say before I pause, because I know I'm talking a lot, is just to say that we all work. No matter, uh, if we're paid or unpaid, if we work in the home or in an office building or on a construction site or in a salon, we all work, no matter the type of work. And so when we think about living out our faith through work, it pertains to everyone in every stage of life, every age of life, every type of workplace, not just certain executives or business owners or leaders. It's for all of us.

Speaker A: Yes, it is. Amen to that. And I love this, uh, I love how you use the word witnessing, because in a certain sense, that's what we are Witnessing in Christ to what we've seen, what we've experienced. So thank you so much for sharing. And Dr. Joy's book is going to be available soon. As soon as it is, we will put the links in the caption notes so you have it. But we will have also Dr. Joy's website available now, so you can connect with her if you wish. So, and with that, I'm so curious, for all your experience, right, you've, you've been through lots of seasons and also interacting with people with completely different mindsets and even work interests, right from corporate world to missionaries and ministry leaders and ministry in general family, what has been in your seasons? Have you experienced stress? And how did you deal with this in a way that has been successful so you can keep on giving? I mean, if you're listening to me, you probably heard this many times I burn out twice. And it's not because of lack of knowledge. Obviously did not escape me. I'm in the mental health field or a, uh, lack of faith. I would say the more we love Christ, the more we want to pour out. And many times it's kind of hard. Our culture doesn't help us much to integrate all this. But you probably through your life experience some ways that you can keep your body, your mind, your heart, meaning, emotions and your soul all align and on the vine. So what are some of your two or three practices as you might share? They might resonate with the listener, Might say, oh, I could do this, or oh, this is so cool the way you bridge it together.

Speaker B: Yeah, it's a great question. First I'll say, absolutely. I've hit the walls of burnout myself. Um, I'm a very hard charger. I go all in to everything I do. And that means everything I do, whether it was time in school, whether it's time in a ministry time and work time, doing multiple projects at, uh, once. And so it is hard for a lot of us that, that we live no margin lives. And I think that's one of the greatest challenges when we have back to back no margin days or back to back no margin weeks going into back to back no margin months. I mean it is not sustainable. And so I think creating margin is one of the most important things that we need to do. Whether it's as leaders, as teammates, as, as just someone who is managing our own household or our own projects, the way that we schedule our lives, ripple effects to those who are interacting with us, those who are under our leadership, those who are working with us. And so how can we prioritize. I am coaching, um, a leader. Fabulous. She's new to the C suite, she works in a ministry and, and she's been going through a time of no margin. And she said something very profound. She said, I understand that I have to be less available to be more present. And that has really stuck with me that by creating those gaps of margin before and after meetings, she is centering her mind, she's preparing for the conversation, she is fully present in that conversation. But then by having 15 minutes after that meeting before going on, she can now reflect, she can now get her to do's on a list or whatever she needs to do as next steps and then prepare for what's next. When we go from meeting to meeting or call to call or here and now we need to run out to do this errand and whatever it might be, we're never able to catch up. And so it, it starts to feel kind of like we're in quicksand. And so we're suffering because we can't keep up, we can't keep track of everything. The people we're interacting with are not getting the best of us nor getting our full attention. And that includes God as well. And so I think creating, how can we create pockets of margins? There will be seasons that it is very little margin, but they need to be periods of time and not a way of life, not a lifestyle. And so how can we create those pockets of time? How can we create healthy rhythms on a weekly basis, Daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly, annually? What are some things that we can put in place, some practices, some time away with Jesus? Ways for us to try to get our mind, uh, settled and, and calm down so that we really can give our full affection and attention, whether it's to God, whether it's to someone that's in a really critical time and we're trying to come alongside them, whether it's a team planning meeting, whatever that might look like. So first thing for me is absolutely healthy rhythms. It's hard. I'm struggling with it in this season. Uh, now with a move and all of the big projects based on our new property, it's really, really difficult. But I think that idea of to be more fully present, we have to be less available. It's so key. Uh, so that would definitely be one. I would say that seeking out a band of sisters, brothers who just have like minded people, they may not understand the exact work that we do, but they have an understanding of the type of pressure, the type of schedule, the type of challenges, uh, the type of obstacles that we may, or headwinds that we may face, that they can be a sounding board and an encouragement, that they're again, not necessarily an agenda, that we're trying to accomplish something together, but we can be that safe place to come, to lay things down, to gain perspective. Those wise counselors, even if they're younger than us, I mean, they, you know, this is what I love about the Lord, is that multi generational people can speak in when we get to know each other, when we're authentic. And again, when it's a trusted circle, I'm not saying it needs to be, you know, even eight or ten people, it may be two or three. It, uh, may be one person to start with. But there has to be an outlet, a trusted source, someone that can be a sounding board for us and who can be praying with and for us along the way. I would say just the last one truly would be prayer.

Speaker A: Of.

Speaker B: I, um, think prayer is so important and not just, not just speaking words, but really trying to engage the living God. How can we invite him into our moment by moment as he is inviting us into his day by day? And so, um, I think prayer is a critical, A critical aspect, whether we hear an immediate response or not. Kind of like you were saying before, but prayer is so important.

Speaker A: Yeah. Thank you so much for sharing. And if you're listening, I'm going to summarize this. Right. Creative margins. And I love about the healthy rhythms. I think you're so right. We're so aligned and we, as the more we talk, we understand also how similar the principles that we're using. Because having that healthy rhythm, um, matters so much and doing things for your body, for your mind, for your heart and for your soul. And I love the idea of leaving margins in between the different events. And that means that we might need to say no. And I think it's so hard for us many times as Christian women to say no. Many times just feeling of guilt or regret and what am I missing? And we're so conditioned to, to say, uh, yes to everything. So if you're listening to this, and that is one of the issues, we have to keep reminding ourselves that even Jesus said no and then he left and went to really spend time with God and regenerate. And I love what you said about, uh, the second thing, seeking out counsel, seeking out people doesn't have to be a big circle. But you're right, someone that's trusted and love. The third one as well, to really pray, right, to really spend time With God as we've talked and unpack, like, yes, we pray, we bring our petitions to God, we have gratitude and there's books and volumes written about the different ways of praying. But the kernel of this being also have that reciprocity. So thank you so much for sharing all this and I know we could, we could talk so much more longer. But I am curious, as we're wrapping up, is there a Bible verse? And I know this is such a difficult question to ask. What is your favorite Bible verse? When there's so many, they're so beautiful. But think more in terms of uh, reflecting your vocation, reflecting the path that you're on. Do you have one Bible verse like this?

Speaker B: Well, I'm going to share two. That, that must be me, the Type A. So if I were to say overall it would be Ephesians 2:10, where we are God's workmanship or his masterpiece created in Christ Jesus. Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. This is, ah, one of the pillars of theology of work, our calling to the workplace. He's created us, he's gifted us, um, it just as a woman who has grown up in the finance world, a man's world, where I had to be significantly better than others, if you will, to be able to succeed. I just love hearing that God has created me the way that I am, that I'm not a mistake, that all of my experience from the past, my passions, my desires, uh, the things I don't like, all of that has worked into him creating me the way that I am as part of his masterpiece, the Body of Christ. M for this season, because I've just moved from Dallas to the Philadelphia area to um, really because the Lord has called us here. I've actually been spending time in Genesis, the study of Abraham, someone who was called out of one land to go to another based on a promise, not knowing what that promise would be. And so within that story, uh, just this week I was in um, chapter 16, which is the story of Hagar who, uh, again she worked for Sarah. And I'll let everybody read this story. But what I love about this is she is the only woman in the Bible who gives God a name. So she is a runaway slave, a runaway servant, a, ah, foreigner, basically a young woman who is pregnant. And she gave this name to the Lord and said, you are the God who sees me, for I have now seen the one who sees me. And so, you know, God did see her. She was running away. She was thinking, I can't Go on. And God saw her. He called her by name. He knew where she was coming from. And yet he said, says, where are you coming from? Where are you going? When clearly he knows because he called her by name. And then she says, you know, Elroy, the God who sees me. And so I m just love that, that God does call us into hard things. He sends us to places where it doesn't make sense. And every aspect of our life, no matter who we are or who we feel we are at a certain time, God sees us us, he knows us intimately. He has a plan. He may send us into areas that are completely unknown. He may send us back to places that we didn't necessarily want to go. And yet he is the God who sees us. And so as long as we're in step with Jesus, we're right where he wants us to be.

Speaker A: So beautiful, full of hope.

Speaker B: Right?

Speaker A: Let's be encouraged and full of hope and stay close to Jesus, constantly reorienting ourselves towards God. Well, thank you so much for sharing the Bible verses and for all your wisdom and everything that you've shared today. And how about if we wrap up with a prayer and we'll make sure, as I mentioned earlier, we'll put your links in the, in the caption. So if you want to contact Dr. Jo, you can do that. But how about we pray and, uh, you'll start us off?

Speaker B: I would love to love that. Lord Jesus, thank you so much for this time. I thank you for everyone who is listening, Lord, I thank you for the way that you draw us to you. I thank you for this forum that we have to come together as sisters in Christ to learn, to encourage, to get equipped, and Lord, to go back out as your ambassadors, as your beloved daughters. We are daughters of God most high, the king of kings things. And Lord, I just pray that for anyone who is feeling like they are far from you or even too far from you, that there would just be a spark of, uh, hope. And Lord, even in this very moment, that they would feel your comforting presence. That you are the God who sees us, that you want to interact with us. Uh, Lord, you are reaching out your hand and saying, come, follow me. And you are saying, come, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. So, Lord, help us to come to you. Help us to come with boldness and courage. Help us to come even if we feel like we are crawling on our knees. And thank you, Lord, you are a loving and doting father and that you want us to find strength and peace and that hope that's found only in you, you want us to find that with you and with one another. Other. So I thank you for this time and just thank you for your, um, your love and your grace and your faithfulness.

Speaker A: M. Amen. Thank you, God. Thank you for today. Thank you for Dr. Joy. We lift her up and her ministry, her work, everything that she's doing, the way she's touching others and to bring your light into the world. And we lift up also the listener. May you bless her abundantly. Give her that joy and that hope and that peace and purpose that surpasses all understanding. And give her that confidence that day in and day out, uh, moment by moment, you're right there next to her, guiding her, supporting her and remind her that sometimes you just trust her and having her taking the steps that she needs to grow in her strength and confidence and moving to the next season. And may we collectively continue to grow and pray together for the entire your humanity, for our earth, for our cosmos and creation so that all together we can be of service to you God and bring your light into the world and your kingdom. In Jesus name. Amen. Um.

Speaker B: Amen. Thank you so much.

Speaker A: Well, thank you so much, Dr. Joyce. We wanted to say such a joy to have you here. Say it and we'll connect next time. Thank you.

Speaker B: It was a pleasure. Thank you so much.

Speaker A: Much thank you. Thank you so much, Dr. Joy, for all your sharing, for your wisdom and your life experiencing and witnessing in Christ. And thank you as a listener. You know me, I don't take your attention for granted. You could do so many other things. So the fact that you're here listening, I so appreciate you. And if you want to get in touch with Dr. Joy Doll, we'll put the links in the caption. You can find them there. And if you want to find out more, more about how I can support you at Team for the Soul Institute. Set up a consultation call so we can spend some time and we can decide together if this is a good match and this can progress you really to the next step. I do amazing work when it's great alignment between what you want and what the gifts that I have to provide. And I've seen so many miracles. So reach out if you interested and make sure you download. Our Team for the Soul app is on iPhone and Google based phones as well with centering reset lessons every week and some other free resources. And if you are part of the Team for the Soul family, all your programs are in that app as well. And with that I'm sending you many blessings, many prayers, and do me a favor. If this is really, really supporting you in your regeneration, your renewal, your time with God, share this episode with your family, with your neighbors, with your friends, so they, too, can be encouraged and continue to bring God's light into the world. And with that, thank you for all you do. And I say goodbye for now.