The Devoted Dreamers Podcast

Send us Fan Mail Find show notes here. How’s your confidence? When I asked this question on Instagram Stories earlier this week, 100% of those who responded answered, “I’m working on it.” But what does it look like to “work on your confidence? Maybe it’s a little bit like saying, “I’m trying.” But “trying what?” is the next question. How do we work on our confidence? If you resonate with this, don...

Send us Fan Mail Ep 224 Show Notes are here: https://www.merrittonsa.com/podcast/224 Which of these confidence myths are keeping you from stepping into your God-shaped dream? “I have to know what I’m doing before I start pursuing a dream.” “I need to FEEL confident before I start pursuing a dream.” “I need to BE really good at {fill in the blank} before I can even think about starting to pursue my...

Send us Fan Mail People tell me my solo episodes are among their favorites! That’s why I’m kicking off Season 10 with a series of episodes focused on providing you with additional support for getting off the sidelines instead of waiting around for the right timing to pursue your dream. The time is now! It’s not a mistake. If there’s a dream on your heart, God means for you to pursue it! Welcome ba...

Send us Fan Mail Find the Show Notes here. Which do you struggle with most: starting on a dream or staying faithful through the messy middle? My guest this week is Rachel Baker an author, a pastor’s wife and director of women’s ministries in her local church. Along her journey she has questioned her lack of training, doubted her calling, and has been tempted to give up before reaching the finish l...

Send us Fan Mail Find the Show Notes here .  Do you ever want to quit when it feels too hard to keep running after a dream? First, you are not alone. You also need to know that feeling resistance about some aspect of your God-shaped dream is not a reason to give up. Resistance may, in fact, be a nudge to keep going and keep trusting that God is with you, and He will carry you through it.   Like a...

Send us Fan Mail Find the Show Notes here .  The world of work has changed in the last decade. Yet the question remains: Is it possible to align work with a sense of calling while also navigating equally demanding personal roles and responsibilities? Michaela O’Donnell is no stranger to questions like these. Through starting her own company and listening to others, she has come to believe that we...

Send us Fan Mail Find the Show Notes here .    Monica Kelsey has a powerful personal testimony and a new book Blessed to Have Been Abandoned , released in May of 2021. It’s a story that reaffirms the value of every single life, regardless of the circumstances of their conception If your dream was birthed out of pain like Monica’s was, this interview is for you. In it we talk about: How to reframe...

Send us Fan Mail My family is managing a health emergency this week so the full show notes will be delayed, but I have posted the handout for this episode here: http://www.merrittonsa.com/podcast/219 Although I wrote this talk for moms of young children, this episode is a reminder that God’s plans and timing have purpose no matter your life stage. If you feel disconnected from your dream, you’re n...

Send us Fan Mail Find the Show Notes here. Do you ever wonder if your God-shaped dream might be something He hasn’t yet revealed to you, or questioned why you feel blocked from God’s purpose for your life? Cindy DeBoer and her husband were 12 years into marriage when God put it on their hearts to examine if they were living out the faith they professed. What followed was a season of confession, qu...

Send us Fan Mail Grab the free Ready to Dream Checklist HERE. God has given you a purpose that is uniquely yours, but the temptation to control the results can disrupt any meaningful progress because the dream belongs to God first and the outcomes rest on Him alone. If you are anxious, stressed out, or worried about the future, this episode is filled with the truth of Scripture and Carla’s calming...

Send us Fan Mail If you’re feeling anxious, impatient or disappointed about the progression of your dream, this episode is for you. You can’t help yourself; the dream feels big and important and all-consuming sometimes. But as you start to take steps, your progress towards a certain outcome can feel like it’s moving at a snail’s pace. There are obstacles you didn’t anticipate. Some things take lon...

Send us Fan Mail Is your dream financially viable? What difference would it make if you weren’t worried about the expense involved? In preparing for this interview, I realized what a shame it is that I have neglected to speak about this topic on the podcast. I’m so grateful my guest today, Katie Jones, approached me about this conversation. Katie is a money coach with a passion to teach biblical f...

Send us Fan Mail Is fear of failure standing in the way of your freedom to pursue a dream? Does it feel like everyone else has a bigger following and is further along than you? If you’ve struggled with doubt, fear, comparison, or imposter syndrome and those bullies are keeping you from your God-shaped dream, I want you to hear in this episode that it IS possible to find freedom. In fact, your stru...

Send us Fan Mail Do your dreams feel bigger than you? Has God revealed something that wasn’t what you expected? My guest this week is Jamie Kirschner, founder and creator of UncommonTEEN. Her God-shaped dream is something she never expected. Missions work was what she had planned for her future; but God had a different plan a little closer to home: serving teen girls as they navigate their faith a...

Send us Fan Mail How is imposter syndrome killing your dream (and your confidence)?   If you’re stuck, stalled out, or struggling to say yes to your dream, maybe imposter syndrome is the thing holding you back.   Are you confused about what imposter syndrome is, whether you have it, or more importantly, how to get over it? If that’s you, this episode is full of hope that you can overcome imposter...

Send us Fan Mail Are you weary of constantly striving? Have you tried everything to move your dream forward but find that no matter how hard you work it’s never enough? Erica Wiggenhorn has been where you are. She has walked through the fire and been tempted in her journey to run after self-reliance, people pleasing and self-doubt. It’s the reason she is so passionate about seeing revival in God’s...

Send us Fan Mail Do you ever feel like no one understands your passions? Like they just don’t get why you would pour so much of yourself into this dream? Megan Sjuts returns to the podcast this week to share what she’s learned about building community around your creative work and allowing God to push you out of your comfort zone to build and hone new skills within you. If you’re ready to stop dre...

Send us Fan Mail Have you ever wondered where God is when your life feels out of control, or your plan isn’t working out the way you thought it would? Jamie Dodero was on a successful career track in the hotel industry when Covid-19 hit and she was furloughed. This is the story of how God used a significant professional setback (alongside major health issues in her newborn baby girl) to grow Jamie...

Send us Fan Mail Have you ever looked at someone else living her dream and thought, “Wow! She’s so much further along than me” or questioned why dreaming a God-shaped dream is so difficult at times? We see only a tiny glimpse of their journey on social media or IRL but still we think other people have had an easier road or at least haven’t faced the challenges we have in our dreams. This solo epis...

Send us Fan Mail I’ve got something special and a little different for you this week. Back in May I was a guest on Connecting in the Chaos podcast, hosted by one of my podcasting students, Heather Oncken. You might recognize the name. Heather was a guest on Devoted Dreamers for episode 197. We talked about How to Know When God is Speaking to Your Heart . G o check that out if you missed it. Heathe...

Send us Fan Mail Have you struggled to fully commit to an aspect of your dream (or maybe even the whole dream)? Is making important decisions so difficult that you put it off or change your mind repeatedly? This mini episode is about how Jane Springer battled her fear of failure and finally made a commitment she’d been wavering on for years. Listen to learn about what changed her mindset from fear...

Send us Fan Mail Are you ever tempted to seek validation or affirmation from others? Julie Holmquist thought that she had rooted her identity deeply in Christ, but as soon as she started taking scary steps of faith toward a dream, she realized that she was looking to other people to give her what only He could. And that turned out to be a distraction from the true purpose He had put in her heart....

Send us Fan Mail Despite the popularity of podcasts (there are 16 million “avid podcast fans” in the U.S., according to a 2018 Nielsen Q1 study), most people don’t realize what it takes to create content on a consistent basis in order to get those episodes into your podcast app. If you’ve ever considered starting a podcast, the second most important decision to make is how to set yourself up for s...

Send us Fan Mail Are you guilty of overthinking? You’re trying to figure out every little detail of a project and you’re so bogged down that you can’t even get started. In this mini-interview I bring Lauren Stengele back to the show to share an experience that gives hope to the overthinker and three easy steps for ditching those thoughts in exchange for momentum and direction for your dream. If yo...

Send us Fan Mail What does rest look like for you? Is it collapsing into bed after a long day? Or vegging out on the couch with Netflix? This episode will help you think about restorative rest and why you need it to pursue your dream. I’ve been asking myself the above questions for the last several weeks in the midst of our multi-household transition to a new home, wrapping up homeschool, and tryi...