Raising Godly Women

Wayside Wendy

• Sebra Ferrell • Season 1 • Episode 6

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S01 – E06: Wayside Wendy

Show Notes

Join Sebra in welcoming back the mother-daughter duo of Charnae and Alexandria as they discuss Wayside Wendy to close out the individual women representing each of the four soils in the Parable of the Sower and the Seed. 
 
In this episode:

  • Intro
  • Welcome to Alexandria and Charnae (01:21)
  • Takeaways from “Rocky Raquel” & Discussion
    • Charnae’s Takeaway (02:03)
    • Sebra’s Takeaways (04:52)
    • Alexandria’s Takeaway (05:59)
  • Recognizing when we’re Wayside Wendy 
    • Sebra (08:50)
    • Alexandria (09:25)
    • Charnae (11:48)
  • Consequences of not understanding (12:58)) 
  • Benefits of understanding (16:30)
  • Summary of pitfalls to not understanding (18:07)
  • Pearls of Wisdom
    • Alexandria (20:56)
    • Charnae (21:30)
    • Sebra (27:18)
  • Final Thoughts
    • Alexandria (27:41)
    • Charnae (28:19)
    • Sebra (29:46)
  • Thank you for listening (29:58)

Other Episodes in this Series:

NOTE:  For a full description of each woman, check out the “Bonus Episode:  Soils of Our Heart located at https://raisinggodlywomen.buzzsprout.com/1792483/9749293-bonus-episode-soils-of-our-heart.   

 Scripture references:

  •  The Parable of the Sower and the Seed:
    • Matthew 13:1-23
    • Mark 4:1-20
    • Luke 8:1-15
  • Additional Scriptures
    • Genesis Chapter 3
    • Psalm 37:25
    • Isaiah 55:8
    • 1 Corinthians 13:12
    • Psalm 37:23
    • Proverbs 3:5-6

Resources Mentioned:

Rose Noland, The Master's Garden: An Allegory of Abiding in the Vine, (He’s So Worth It Publishers, 2020). 

Website:  https://raisinggodlywomen.buzzsprout.com/    

Find us on Facebook and Instagram @raisinggodlywomen.rgw  

Subscribe on Apple or Google Podcasts to get notified of new releases.  Check out our website for other podcast locations. 


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S01 - E06 - Wayside Wendy

[00:00:00] Sebra: Hi, my name is Sebra Ferrell, and I would like to welcome you to the Raising Godly Women podcast. I know. Why another podcast? Well, Raising Godly Women is about empowering a generation of women to empower the generation behind them. But what exactly does empowerment look like? Our goal is to help you become stronger, to help you become more confident in your everyday life, especially as it relates to your relationship with the Lord.

[00:00:31] Sebra: As daughters of God, I'm sure you've heard about the Proverbs 31 woman and many of us, including me, we strive to be her. But what about the Titus 2 woman? She's that woman who shares what she's learned on her journey. She freely shares the tools God has given her with other women, especially those who are younger, maybe in age, or maybe even in faith to help them also become stronger and more confident.

[00:00:59] Sebra: The Titus 2 woman, she's what Raising Godly Women is all about. Our goal is to share some of our tools with you in the hopes that whatever God does for you here, that you will freely share it with someone else. So again, welcome to Raising Godly Women. We sure hope you enjoy your journey with us. 

[00:01:21] Sebra: On today's episode, I am tremendously blessed to have with me Alexandria and Charnae. They are the mother-daughter combination that was on earlier in the season. So, I'm grateful to welcome them back because Raising Godly Women really is about generations and generational impact. So welcome ladies.

[00:01:48] Sebra: So today we are actually wrapping up all of the women of the soils as we go into Wayside Wendy. But before we do that, I want to take a moment to share our takeaways from Rocky Raquel. 

[00:02:03] Charnae: This is Charnae. I'll go first. As I was listening to the podcast, the example that Khara gave of trying to start the computer. You just taking the computer out of the box and trying to start it and you gotta go through the directions for do this and hit next.

[00:02:19] Charnae: That really stood out to me, because I was thinking about that process. The seed of the Word is on that rocky ground. Sometimes, as you're putting the computer up, you may not trust that computer, you know, and maybe a brand you don't trust. And so, you're going through the process almost with the mindset of this better work or, if this don't work it's going back. Okay, well, step one took five minutes, why is step three, taking 15 minutes? Then you start clicking a button and hitting cancel, or maybe you're calling someone like, someone help me out. This is taking longer, or something is wrong. And I think that we can get in those places where it's like, well, this is taking too long. this wasn't gonna work anyway you know, all of those types of things that go through our mind. So, as she gave that example, it just resonated with me that yes, you know, sometimes you have to just go through the process and just because the first part took five minutes doesn't mean that this part is not supposed to take 30 minutes and stop clicking on the buttons. Stop trying to hit cancel and see it through. 

[00:03:13] Sebra: Oh, I'm over here. I'm so tickled because I get so impatient. And when it tells you two minutes left, but then it's 20 minutes later, it still says two minutes left. That is so, so true. 

[00:03:26] Alexandria: I'm in the type of person where I'm like, oh, we have one to five pages, click, click, click, click, click. Then I've gone through the end. And then I turn around and I go, why is this in Spanish?

[00:03:39] Alexandria: So now I have to go and go to Google and try to figure out, cause I set this up in the first time, or oh, I know what this says, so I'm going to read part of it and skim through the rest and go, okay. Yeah. Click, click, click. Because I'm trying to get to five. So, I'm just going to click, and then not read all of the instructions. 

[00:03:53] Sebra: You know, it's interesting that all of us took something away from that, because for me, one of my takeaways, she was talking about how Rocky Raquel is selective. So just because you select one and two, that's not going to get you to five. You still have to consciously choose to make a selection at three, to make a selection at four. And to once again, make a selection at five in order for the whole thing to be completed. And I think that's one of the things about when we're in that Rocky Raquel moment.

[00:04:24] Sebra: Sometimes it's hard to be obedient when things are harder than we think they should be, or when something is taking longer than we think it should. So those are definitely two things that I know can cause me to say, "But Lord, Ummmm, I don't know if I really want to do this because it's taken longer than I thought it would, or it's a lot harder than I thought it would. So do I really want to invest myself into this because it's too painful or it's too anything that I don't want to deal with?" 

[00:04:52] Sebra: So that was one of my takeaways and my other one was when she was talking about Raquel is a dreamer and the way she was describing Raquel, it really helped me understand even better how much our individual personality influences how we interact with each of these soils, with each of these women.

[00:05:12] Sebra: It's like we take our own personality and we super impose it on each of these soils as we create who this woman is, which really does make it that much more important for anyone listening to actually go and study this for yourself, because how your personality is, that's going to determine how you view that soil, and it's going to determine how you interact with that soil. Because some people, they may not struggle as Raquel as much as other people. And then some people may be like, "Yeah, Raquel is my best friend, cause I don't be trying to do none of this cause it's just too hard for me. "So, your own individual personality really does play a huge role in how you interact with each of these women with each of these soils.

[00:05:57] Sebra: Alexandria. What is your takeaway? 

[00:05:59] Alexandria: So, my takeaway, I believe it was Khara who said something about Rocky Raquel always thinking about having options and looking at the options and then she gets a thing and then she's not satisfied with it.

[00:06:09] Alexandria: And right now, with everything that I'm thinking and learning and growing in is always going okay, what type of perspective is she operating in? So, it just reminds me of something I've seen recently about, they call it the hedonistic treadmill. It's a mindset of always trying to achieve or gain pleasure or get to another level because you think that this is the thing that's going to make you happy.

[00:06:30] Alexandria: You think that this the thing that's going to give you joy, and then you get it and realize that it absolutely did not meet that expectation, so now you're striving for the next thing and you're striving for the next thing. So, I see that as one of the main perspectives that Rocky lives in, because she's looking at things. She's doing things. She's hearing the Word. She's not really doing it, but she's always trying to find the thing to fulfill and not actually letting God define what that is for her. So, she's going through something. Getting it. It's not satisfying. So, she's moving onto that next thing. She's just being selective in all the wrong things and just continuing to select and continuing to run on that hedonistic treadmill where she's not actually achieving anything. She's not actually growing. She's just bouncing from one thing to the next, to the next and the next and going well, I'll try God over here if that works. Okay. Well, I'll try this over here, if that works and I'll try that over there, and that works. Then we'll see where we end up. 

[00:07:20] Sebra: That's good! 

[00:07:21] Charnae: That is because as she was talking, she gave me the visual. She said bouncing. As the seed of the Word comes forth. Right. All of those rocks are in the way. So, they hit, and they just bounce, bounce, bounce, bounce, bounce. Well, I like this Scripture, but I don't like that one, or I agree with this one, but I don't agree with that. That doesn't apply to me, kind of that bounciness. So, yeah. I understand that. 

[00:07:41] Sebra: That's good the visual that it gave me, I confess, back in the day when I would bounce from this conference to that conference, to this thing, to that thing, always trying to look for that perfect answer that was going to put me in that place that I wanted to be when in essence, I wasn't really taking what I was learning and doing anything with it. Even when I understood what they were saying and even if I could visualize what it looked like, if it wasn't that thing that was satisfying me at the moment, then I would, I would go, you know, I I'm gonna go listen to this or I'm gonna, go to this different event or whatever, just trying to get that thing that I felt like was going to be the thing, but never staying any one place long enough to get rooted and grounded in what I'm learning from any one place. And Rocky, she's the one that needs to get rooted and grounded. 

[00:08:32] Charnae: Right. 

[00:08:32] Sebra: Okay. Y'all messing with me today, but that's okay. So now that we have talked about Rocky, and I do encourage people to go back and listen to that if they have not heard Khara's analogy, because it was really good, so I don't want to mess it up, because the way she explained it was a lot better job than I could do any day of the week. 

[00:08:50] Sebra: Now moving on to Wendy, as we've heard in previous episodes, she's the one that doesn't understand when she hears the Word, so the enemy, the devil, can come and just snatch it right out of her heart. And I know for me, in my Wendy moments, I could sit and I could take notes, but then my big question was always, "But how?" So, anytime I'm in a "but how" moment, and I don't know how to apply what I'm hearing, that lets me know I'm in a Wendy moment or a Wendy season.

[00:09:18] Sebra: So, what about you ladies? Is there a specific way that you know when you're having a Wendy moment or you're in a Wendy season?

[00:09:25] Alexandria: I guess, back to like my analysis of Rocky Raquel, when I think of Wendy, I'm going back to perspectives. Like what is the thought process that I'm in and that she deals with. And I think when it comes to me identifying when I'm like Wendy is when I'm operating in a fixed mindset versus a growth mindset. What I mean by a fixed mindset is the idea that how I am is how it is. This is just the way things are. This is just the way God made me. And if I don't have the attributes, if I don't have it, this is just where it is. And a growth mindset is thinking, where I am is just my starting point and I can always grow.

[00:09:59] Alexandria: I'm always learning and getting to the next level, which would be a GiGi. So, when I'm operating like a Wendy, that's when I'm stuck into this mindset of God can't change this, or this is how it's always been. The words aren't even getting down into my heart because I'm already operating from this mind point and perspective of it is what it is.

[00:10:17] Alexandria: Everything's being snatched out; enemy was just snatching and in so many different ways. And it's not actually getting down into my heart to put me into a growth mindset, like GiGi, which is let's progress. Let's grow. Let's see what God is doing. 

[00:10:28] Sebra: Wow. Okay. I need a second to process that because when you're in a Wendy moment, you don't see the opportunity for growth. That makes a lot of sense in so many different ways when you don't understand something, you can't find a benefit in it.

[00:10:42] Alexandria: So, then you hear, and you read these Scriptures about God calls you this, or this is the promises and they're not actually falling into anything deep because you don't actually believe that those things is about you or about your circumstance can change.

[00:10:53] Alexandria: We can operate as all of these women in different factors of your life. So sometimes I realize I'm never Wendy. And then I stop and go, oh no, but these are parts and they're parts and things of me that I think, oh, well, "This is how it is, and this is just how God made me".

[00:11:08] Alexandria: And He's like, "Yeah, well, but we can change that. We can grow from that. None of these seeds are falling anywhere. None of these seeds are being retained because your mindset, your heart is so hard that where you are, it's where you're supposed to be or where you can't go from anywhere from there."

[00:11:24] Sebra: Not understanding that the Word can transform you. I think my favorite one when I was dealing with anger was, well, don't make me mad and we won't have a problem because for me, I had to live with the anger because that's just how I was. Not understanding that the Word could transform me. It could change my mind. It could renew my thinking and literally take that anger away. 

[00:11:47] Sebra: All right, Charnae, 

[00:11:48] Charnae: I think for me, and Allie kind of alluded to this with her answer. The way that I know that I'm walking in Wendy and having that lack of understanding is when I look like Eve. When I look like, "Did God really say?" Eve was in the Garden, and she was walking, and she saw the tree. She already had her instructions about that tree.

[00:12:09] Charnae: Right? But here comes Satan and saying, "Hey, you can eat from this tree. God is holding out something on you. There's something about His character that you don't know. And for me, that's how I know when I'm walking in that Wendy mindset. When I don't understand that lack of understanding makes me say, "Well, did God really say that?" Like what Allie was saying, "Did God really say, that's who I am?" You know, "Did God, really say that I should go this way or I should be doing this thing?" And so, I think that sometimes when you're in that Wendy place, you don't realize it, but it is so close to that original sin of questioning the character of God. 

[00:12:47] Sebra: Wow. 

[00:12:47] Charnae: And you question the character of God because you don't understand His instruction. maybe not understand His character, or you just not understanding you or Him. 

[00:12:58] Charnae: I'll give you an example since we're talking, mothers and daughters. With Alexandria, when she was younger, for some reason, I don't know why the child just liked to go to the light, like she just liked this light, but not just like it to look, like it to touch, and I'm her mother. She's young. So, I have a greater knowledge what will happen to her skin if she touch it, the pain that it will cause. I have deeper and a wider range of knowledge than she did.

[00:13:27] Charnae: And so, I'm telling her, "Don't touch the light bulb." She's processing that different. Maybe she's processing, " Why can't I touch? I can touch everything else." Lo and behold, she reaches out she touches the light bulb, and it burns her. She screams, and now she has pain.

[00:13:44] Charnae: She didn't understand that the level and the place that she was, she could not understand what I was saying. She heard it, but she didn't have full understanding of the why and what, and all of that. But I did. And so, I'm issuing the warning. I'm issuing the direction, but because she had the lack of understanding, she still felt the follow through. 

[00:14:03] Charnae: Sometimes when we're that way with walking in our Wendy moments, because we don't see the bigger picture, because we don't understand, sometimes we touch the light bulb and sometimes it burns and it hurts. And so, therefore, we draw away. Now, I don't want to touch, I don't want to be around any light bulb. 

[00:14:21] Charnae: My little niece was bouncing on a balloon, and I kept saying to her, "Baby, don't do that. It's going to burst." She's three, and she kept asking me, "Why?" And I said, "Because it's going to burst." I began to realize she doesn't even understand what burst means. She continued and continued, and it burst she just landed boom, on her bum. And so, she starts to cry and she's all upset and she's bringing me the pieces like "Can, you put it back together," and I'm like, "Sorry, Baby. It's gone like, it's gone." And so, for me, I can see that when I'm in that place, where I am questioning the character of God, like I may not necessarily trust Him in this particular area, you know. Is God really going to come through on the finances? I know what the Word says, that I've never seen the righteous forsaken or their seed begging for bread, but this is late, or that is late, or it's not coming. So, then for me, it's when I'm having those moments, when I'm listening to the "Did God really say?" And, I'm truly living reflective of Eve in a given area.

[00:15:19] Alexandria: Let's, just call it what my mother would have called me back then: hardheaded.

[00:15:23] Charnae: Eve was given some instruction, she was hardheaded right. Because she didn't understand. And then she did something, and all of us are paying for that soft behind. Like we're getting those taps now, right, dealing with sin being in our lives, but thank God for Jesus.

[00:15:37] Sebra: I think, as you were talking the thing that I saw kind of just flashed before my mind was there's two different levels of understanding. It's one, do you understand what you heard? It's not just not understanding how to put something into practice, but it's also understanding what does it look like? You know, what is this saying for me to do? Because going back to Alexandria and the light bulb, or any kid and the hot stove, if that child isn't in a place to be able to understand the instruction that's being given to them, then they don't know that this thing has a consequence.

[00:16:14] Charnae: Right. 

[00:16:15] Sebra: And that's different from understanding how do I put it into practice. So hopefully that makes as much sense to somebody else as it does to me. Because it's very clear in my mind at this moment, so, "All right. Holy Spirit, go do Your thing and help everybody else understand it."

[00:16:30] Charnae: And because of that, now, I can have a conversation with Alexandria, who through the years and walking with me, has learned some things about my character. She has learned some things about me so that if I'm talking to her and I'm explaining to her something, now, that she can receive it better or that she can maybe, say, "Well, you know, Mom has the best intent for me, so maybe I shouldn't go that way or shouldn't make that decision. And so now even she will come to me and say, "Well, what do you think about this?" I think that it's that growing in that maturity and it still happens.

[00:17:06] Charnae: Right? I walk in the same thing myself. With my mom, there are certain things that I still inquire about, but I trust her. So therefore, because I know my mother's character, I'm like, you know what, I'm going to walk that way and try that route, because I trust that she's had some experiences and she knows. And so that's how we have to trust in God's faithfulness 

[00:17:25] Alexandria: Cause you said, now, I'm more likely to listen because I have burned my hand on things before. I have gone through the experience of not listening. And if my mom was to fully tell this story, she didn't tell me don't touch the light. I didn't touch the light that first time, and then I never touched the light again. This is a reoccurring situation. 

[00:17:43] Alexandria: So after I burned myself a few times and had a moment of, as I would call now, self-awareness to actually look back at my mistakes, look back at the times when I have been Wendy and go, okay, now I have to actually make the decision. Do I want to continue being Wendy on the Wayside on the side of this, or do I want to get up and actually begin to do something and actually begin to mature and actually make the choice to listen? 

[00:18:07] Sebra: So I was going to ask, are there some pitfalls that we've encountered when we're in a Wendy season, but it seems like we've kind of covered that because we've talked about how there are consequences to not understanding, you know, not just the fact that the enemy can come steal the Word out of our heart, but the actual consequences that will manifest in our heart or in our lives. In the light bulb example, not understanding to not touch the light bulb, the consequence is you burn yourself. 

[00:18:32] Sebra: In Eve's example, not understanding exactly what God said could and couldn't be done and then she ended up being deceived by the devil and all of mankind got wrapped up in that. When she gave it to Adam, whatever that fruit was, and then Adam chose to go ahead and eat as well. Now all of us are dealing with the eternal consequences of their choices. And sometimes even from a generational standpoint, things that we may not understand spiritually or, you know, Scripture, things that God is trying to teach us, when we don't understand it, and we've talked about that a little bit in one of the other episodes, we pass that on to our children. We pass on that lack of understanding to them because we can't impart to them what we ourselves do not know. 

[00:19:16] Charnae: Right.

[00:19:17] Sebra: So, can you guys think of any other pitfalls of being in a Wendy season or a Wendy moment? 

[00:19:22] Alexandria: Not moving and not seeing any growth, because I think the biggest thing is how can I identify when I'm in these different places. What areas of my life am I not seeing any movement or any growth? The term wayside means literally on the side of the road. So, what times in my life am I just sitting on the side of the road instead of being on the road, walking with Jesus? Walking with Jesus is a progression and is a slow step-by-step progression, but it's a progression. So, in what part of my life am I sitting on the sideline, having these fixed mindsets that this can't change, or this is just the circumstances or this is just the way that it is and realizing that the biggest pitfall or trap that you have as Wendy is just being stagnant and being stuck. And that's exactly where the devil wants you to be, not moving, not growing, not gaining anything. If he could keep you in the "Oh, woe is me" and looking up at everyone else, walking on the road and going, well, I can't be that cause I'm not GiGi because you just see GiGi as a place that you arrive and not in a place that you walk into.

[00:20:22] Sebra: OOh! Girl, say that again. 

[00:20:24] Alexandria: We think GiGi is a place that we arrive and not a place that we walk into, so when we're sitting on the side of the road and we're Wendy it is what it is stick out your cup. Maybe the people who pass and drop you a few dimes as they go of their knowledge and their things. 

[00:20:37] Sebra: Mmm hmm You got anything you want to add Charnae? 

[00:20:40] Charnae: I think she said it perfectly. 

[00:20:41] Sebra: She did! That was a very good example thank you, Young One. 

[00:20:45] Alexandria: I'm on fire today. 

[00:20:46] Sebra: I see! So, we're going to let you expand on that fire. And what is the one pearl of wisdom that you would like to share with those listening today? 

[00:20:56] Alexandria: One pearl of wisdom. Stop touching light bulbs. Get up. Even if you don't know how, even if you don't know where, even if you don't know what to do, or you don't really know if what God's saying is going to work, you're not going to find out sitting there. Get up. Just move. 

[00:21:16] Sebra: Now I can tell you; I know me. I would be sitting there saying, "How do I get up?"

[00:21:21] Alexandria: How do you get up? Everything happens is a mindset. You have to decide your mind that you can. 

[00:21:25] Sebra: There you go. 

[00:21:25] Alexandria: Whether you can, or you can't, you are right. 

[00:21:28] Sebra: What about your pearl of wisdom, Charnae. 

[00:21:30] Charnae: My pearl of wisdom is that Wendy doesn't have to remain there, but also understanding that you can have Wendy moments as Rocky as Theresa and as Gigi. That having a lack of understanding can happen in any area of your life. 

[00:21:49] Charnae: Right now, for me personally, I am dealing with some situations that I do not understand. Maybe not necessarily my situations, but there are certain things with pain, with hurting, with children being ill, certain things that I just don't have the answers to. And it brings me to that Wendy place. You're reading the Word and you're studying the Word and you're walking with God, but there are times, just to be very honest, that you don't get this. Like I just don't get it. And you can be in that place and still be maturing and growing in other areas of your life. 

[00:22:25] Charnae: I literally had a dream that I was sitting at a table, and it was a male and a female. The female never said anything. but I was sitting there at this table with them after hearing about the passing of someone that I love. And at the same time also having to speak the next day at a joyous occasion. So, I was really, really just troubled in mourning and everything. And I asked the question. "I don't understand how to deal with joy and pain at the same time?"

[00:22:55] Charnae: I can't do this, and the male said to me, "you have to understand, this is life. Then you will understand that you will go through times of joy and pain at the same time." And it was just bringing me to tears because I was just like, I don't get it.

[00:23:11] Charnae: Like I hear you, but I'm not getting it. The interesting thing was trying to get understanding. The Word was coming forth to me and I was still not getting it, and I woke up from the dream. I prayed and my husband prayed, and I was able to speak and go through that joyous time. There were moments where I felt the pain of the loss rising up, but Holy Spirit just empowered me to get through. Then after that time was over and when it was time, I went back into feeling that pain and mourning, just bringing that to God. 

[00:23:39] Charnae: As I look back and I thought about it, I was thinking who was the lady that was sitting there that never spoke, and I feel like I got the revelation that it was me, but it was me as GiGi sitting, just supporting and just being there for my Wendy moment. She was just there. She was in total agreement. And so, what I got from that was wow, that the GiGi part of me that has grown and matured and taken in the Word oftentimes speaks to the Wendy in me.

[00:24:11] Sebra: Ummmm! 

[00:24:12] Charnae: And says, "Sweetie, you know, God is good. Sweetie, you know God is faithful. You know God is a healer. You know God is the Creator of this universe, and He holds all things within His power in His hand, and that He has a better plan." So, the Wendy in me sometimes is like, " I don't get it," but the GiGi stands up because I have been in the Word, and I have been walking, and she says, "Baby Girl, we going to get through this. I'm right here. I'm sitting right here with you. You know God better. You may not have the answer, because He says, ' My thoughts are not your thoughts and My ways are not your ways. They are higher and above, and you can rest in that even though you don't understand.'" So, for my pearl of wisdom is to understand that just because you may be recognizing that you are in a Wendy place does not discount that you have growth, and that you have maturity, and that you have the Word of God in you because they can reside at the same time, just depending on the situation that you're going through.

[00:25:11] Charnae: Wow. Wooh. Okay. I'm having a moment, y'all. 

[00:25:14] Alexandria: As you said that, the illustration that popped into my head was Wendy's on the wayside, and then she's looking up and seeing what she perceives as the GiGi's. Everyone else walking by. It's kind of easy to think about all of these people by themselves. Even when you're Wendy sitting on the side of the road with your cup and your stick and drawing in the dirt. You're not sitting there by yourself. Next to you is Jesus. And He might be sitting there just listening. He might be sitting there and being like, "Come here, Baby Girl, give me a hug." Or He also is sitting there going, "Are you ready to get up yet? Are you ready to give it up?" Because none of these ladies are walking through their paths in their different types of waves by themselves.

[00:25:50] Sebra: Wow. All right, ladies, I am in awe and literally about to cry, because ya'll know I have tried multiple times to record this episode. And I did not know what God was going to do today, but I am grateful. I am very grateful because He has painted a picture of a journey by everything that you ladies have shared.

[00:26:12] Sebra: Alexandria, you shared about being on the side of the road. You know, that's a picture of a journey. You're trying to go somewhere, but you get stuck on the side of the road in those Wendy seasons. And then Charnae, you talked about how in that Wendy moment, the Gigi in you is there encouraging her. And so, your Wendy and your GiGi are walking together because as a whole person, one of the examples that God gave me, a couple of years back, was of our heart has four chambers and each one of those chambers represents each one of those soils, each one of those women. 

[00:26:46] Sebra: So, we all have a little bit of Wendy. We all have a little bit of Raquel. We all have a little bit of Teresa. And if we've said yes to God, at least we understood that Word. So, we've got a little bit of GiGi in us as well. And when I think about a journey, and I think about this book that I read recently called "The Master Gardner" that Charnae, you sent me the link to, and I'll put the information in the Show Notes. It was about this one woman's journey, and as I was reading the book, I could tell every time she was in a Wendy moment. 

[00:27:18] Sebra: So, the thing I want to share as my pearl of wisdom today is Wendy is always the beginning of something new. She is that point that says a new season, a new journey has begun.

[00:27:31] Sebra: And while I normally end on my something to ponder, we're going to do something a little different today. We are going to end with final thoughts from you ladies. 

[00:27:41] Alexandria: I would say my final thought is give yourself grace on this journey throughout all of the different women. Sometimes when we find ourselves in different places when we're GiGi, we feel like we're on the top of the world. And when we're Wendy we can easily not give ourselves grace and want to sit in that feeling bad or confusion to not want to get to the next level or stay there because you're feeling sorry for yourself. So, give yourself grace know that just because you were having a Wendy moment doesn't necessarily mean that you are Wendy. She's not your identity. And embrace the growth mindset that even though I might be here now, I can grow to be anywhere that God's called me to grow to. 

[00:28:19] Charnae: For me, just to bring it across to everyone, is that you don't have to have everything figured out. 

[00:28:25] Sebra: Yes. 

[00:28:25] Charnae: Because Wendy needs understanding. If you are a planner or a person who likes organizations and you've got your one- year plan, your three-year plan, your five-year plan, your 20-year plan, that's good. I'm not knocking that. But understand that on this journey, as we walk with God, He doesn't map every single aspect of our lives out. There are twists and turns and hills and valleys and seasons that you just will not get it. You will not understand. It may feel like you aren't moving and you aren't doing anything, and that things are stagnate. But just trust God. Just trust God. Like Sebra said, if you have said yes to the journey of walking with God, you've had your GiGi moment. Right? Continue in that. 

[00:29:08] Charnae: We're not going to have the answers to every question. Right now, we see through a glass very dimly, what Scripture says, then we will see face-to-face. We will see it clearer and so understand, it's okay to not have the answers. It's okay that even if you have made the plans and it's not panning out the way that you thought, that's okay. And you may feel like, "Well, I don't understand why." That's okay. Just trust in the character of God, that He does have the best for you, that He is with you and you are not alone. And just take one foot, lift it up in the air and put it down, and He will order your steps according to his Word. 

[00:29:46] Sebra: Yes, He will. And on that note, I will be back next time to close out the series. But in the meantime, we've given you ladies a lot to ponder. Be blessed!

[00:29:58] Khara: Thank you for listening to the Raising Godly Women podcast and taking this journey with us to be the Titus 2 women. We pray that the seeds of God's Word shared today fell on great soil, and that soil is in your heart. Now, we hope that through these pearls of wisdom, that you have gained the tools to help you become stronger to help you become more confident in your everyday life, most especially as it relates to your walk with the Lord. We also hope that you will share your tools with those who are younger in age, or even maybe younger in faith to help them become stronger and confident as well, so that they can help share with other women passing the baton to the generation behind them.

[00:30:39] Khara: Just imagine the ripple effect, our sharing can have not only in our generation, but also the generations to come to build and strengthen the body of Christ as we all come together to empower each other. So, until we meet again, feel free to join the Raising Godly Women community. Let's talk about your connection with this episode on social media in the comment section. You can also find us on Facebook and Instagram at Raising Godly Women. Be sure to tag us because we love to have you connect and be a part of the family. And on that note, may the Lord hear from you and keep you, may He make His face shine upon you and be gracious onto you. May the Lord shine His face towards you and give you peace. Shalom daughters of God. Shalom.