(Transcribed by TurboScribe.ai. Go Unlimited to remove this message.)
(0:00 - 0:21)
Welcome back to the Joy Reset Series. This month, we're slowing down, breathing deeper, and remembering that joy isn't something we chase. It's something we cultivate gently, intentionally with God, with our family and friends, and even when we're all by ourselves.
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Today's episode is one of my favorites because it gets right to the heart of how joy is built in real life, not through big resolutions or overnight changes, but through the small, sacred rhythms that steady our souls. Have you ever felt like joy is just out of reach, especially when life feels overwhelming? If December, or honestly any month, has felt overwhelming, chaotic, or heavy, if you're longing for joy but aren't sure where to begin, if your heart is saying, I want peace, but I'm tired, I need something gentle, then this episode is for you. The Joy Reset Series is all about rediscovering joy in accessible, practical, spiritually grounded ways, and gentle rhythms are one of the most powerful ways to do it.
So take a breath, settle in, let's lean into the gentleness that God offers. Because if you have a hectic life and a hard time consistently experiencing joy, today we're going to take another step to fix that. Welcome to Goals in Grace, the podcast for accomplished women who are ready to align their ambition with faith and step into their highest potential.
I'm Reverend Juliet Spencer, a certified high performance coach and former pastor, and I'm here to help you break free from imposter syndrome, embrace gratitude, and lead with clarity, purpose, and peace. Each week I'll share faith-filled encouragement, personal stories, and proven strategies from books like High Performance Habit, as well as from my coaching program, The Purpose and Peace Pathway, to help you achieve success without apology. You'll walk away with tools to lead boldly, live intentionally, and honor the calling on your life.
Let's step into our calling together. Don't forget to follow the podcast and share it with a friend who's ready to grow. There was a season in my life when my children were young, when I kept trying to fix everything with big changes, big commitments, big promises, big plans.
If I could just overhaul my schedule, if I could just reorganize my whole life, if I could just get myself together. But every time I tried to make major changes, life would push back, something urgent would pop up, someone would need me, a deadline would shift, and suddenly those big changes felt impossible. One morning, after a night of restless sleep and a calendar that felt like it was breathing down my neck, I sat in my favorite chair with my Bible open, but no real energy to read.
I closed my eyes and whispered, God, I just need one small thing I can do today, one tiny step. And what came to me was gentle, almost so gentle that I nearly missed it. Breathe, sit with me for a moment, just a moment.
That day I didn't overhaul anything, I didn't fix anything, but I took one gentle step, three minutes of quiet with God before I did anything else, before I turned on the morning news show or got the kids out of bed or went outside with the dogs. This was the days before cell phones got the internet, so I wasn't tempted to pick up my phone. But distractions are distractions.
Anywho, those three quiet moments changed the tone of my entire day. Three minutes without praying or doing anything, I just sat in the stillness of God's presence. Sometimes joy doesn't flood in through the front door, it trickles in through the tiniest cracks, through the smallest practices done with sacred intention.
And it's in these moments that we find clarity and strength, allowing us to approach each day with renewed energy and purpose. Reflecting on this, it's clear that high performance isn't always about grand gestures or massive shifts. It's about those small, consistent actions that align with our values and intentions.
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By embracing gentle rhythms, we create momentum in our lives, allowing joy and clarity to emerge naturally. Gentle rhythms are the practice that brings us back to center. They're not dramatic or demanding.
They don't require you to get only four hours of sleep or to reinvent your entire life. Rather, they are small, soul-anchoring moments, like pausing to breathe before responding to a text, reading one verse in scripture instead of skipping spending time in God's Word altogether, stepping outside for 60 seconds of fresh air, or choosing gratitude before anxiety takes over, or perhaps ending your day by releasing one thing to God. In high-performance language, these are called micro-habits.
They are little shifts and tiny actions consistently repeated. And in faith language, they are called spiritual rhythms. They help you stay aligned with God, connect to your purpose, and grounded in peace.
Here's what I've learned. Consistency transforms you more deeply than intensity ever will. Anyone can sprint, but joy comes to those who learn to walk slowly, intentionally, day after day with God.
These gentle rhythms not only nurture your spiritual life, but they also enhance your ability to perform at your best. By integrating these micro-habits into your daily routine, you create a foundation of resilience and clarity that supports both your personal and your professional growth. But before we rush into application or strategy, I want us to linger in scripture for a few moments, because the life of Jesus gives us the clearest picture of what gentle, sustainable rhythms look like.
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And the more I've studied his life, the more I see that Jesus didn't just teach peace. He practiced it. He embodied it.
He moved through the world with a cadence that was both deeply intentional and deeply restful. So, let's step into that rhythm with him. Jesus withdrew to pray, sometimes alone, sometimes with a few.
If you pay attention to the four Gospels, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John in the New Testament, you'll notice something beautiful about Jesus. He did not live in a hurry. He was responsive, true.
He was compassionate, absolutely willing to stop everything for someone in need, usually. But he was never frantic, never reactive, never stretched so thin that he became disconnected from God or from his purpose. And that was not accidental.
Jesus built a pattern of pulling away from the noise so that he could stay grounded in the presence of God. The Gospel of Luke says in chapter 5, verse 16, But Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed. That word often is important.
It doesn't say withdrew once in a while, or he withdrew when he was burned out. It says often. But Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed.
He created space on purpose because he knew he needed it. Sometimes Jesus slipped away alone into the quiet, into the early morning air, into the stillness before anybody else stirred. At other times, he invited just a few of his closest companions to come with him, not the large crowds and not even all 12 disciples, but just a few trusted ones who could witness what intimacy with God looks like.
He didn't want to risk the time away turning into something else. The Gospel of Mark gives us this glimpse in chapter 9, verse 2. After six days, Jesus took Peter, James, and John with him and led them up a high mountain where they were all alone. There's something so profoundly human about this, isn't there? Jesus didn't teach the disciples about solitude.
He showed them. He let them see the unhurried way he prayed, the way he breathed, the way he returned to God again and again. These moments weren't necessarily dramatic spiritual moments.
They weren't big spiritual retreats, though I'm sure he doesn't object to such events. They weren't long sermons or even carefully planned devotions, though he definitely made space for weekly worship and the marvelous rhythm that that brings. Rather, these were simple, sacred pauses, little exhale moments woven into the fabric of his days, a recalibration, if you will.
And if Jesus needed these moments of stepping away, then how much more do we? Gentle rhythms are not a luxury. They are a divine invitation that were woven into the life of Jesus himself. And God extends that same invitation to us, to you, every single day.
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A number of years ago, I was leading a women's retreat on prayer when I noticed a woman in her early 40s sitting out of the way, clearly hoping no one would notice her. I just happened to stumble upon her and could see right away that tears were streaming down her cheeks. To my surprise, she quickly made space for me to sit next to her on the bench.
We sat in silence for I'm guessing a good five minutes before she finally whispered, I am too ashamed to talk to God. Maybe you know something of her pain. If so, then let me say to you what I told her.
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One of the most encouraging truths in all of scripture is this. We can take anything to God in prayer because Jesus is already interceding on our behalf. The apostle Paul wrote in Romans chapter 8 verse 34, Christ Jesus is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us.
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Think about that. Christ Jesus is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. Every time you whisper a prayer, whether it's eloquent or messy or whispered through tears, Jesus is carrying it to God with you.
He doesn't put conditions on that. He doesn't say I'll intercede only if you're good enough, pure enough, never have any bad thoughts or haven't done anything wrong. No, he doesn't say that.
He doesn't say I'll only intercede for those of you who are without sin because such a person doesn't exist. When you reach out, Jesus is ready. There's no prayer too small, too simple, or too half-formed.
Jesus and his love and his grace are sufficient for even the worst you've got. He's got you, period. And that leads to the next powerful truth.
Sometimes it can be difficult to know what to say to God. Maybe you're going through gut-wrenching grief or feel so overwhelmed that you wouldn't even know where to begin. Or, like the amazing woman I met at the retreat, you just feel so embarrassed nothing will come to your mind.
Or, for that matter, maybe you just draw a blank. Believe me, I've been there. Thankfully, God already thought of that.
Scripture gives us enormous comfort here as well. The Apostle Paul wrote earlier in Romans, chapter 8, verse 26, Likewise, the Spirit helps us in our weakness, for we don't know how to pray as we ought, but that very Spirit intercedes with sighs too deep for words. When your words fail or when your thoughts are tangled and your heart feels heavy, the Holy Spirit prays on your behalf.
Isn't that beautiful? This means that gentle rhythms don't depend on perfection or polished words, and they don't require exceptional emotional strength. They just require presence, a willingness to come as you are, imperfections and all. It just requires being in God's presence to sit with God and just to breathe.
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I believe that, while joy can come in great big moments or profound moments like the birth of a child, joy, for me, and I think for most people, usually comes in ordinary, quiet places where we consistently show up with God and where we consistently find God. Where we recognize where God is present and then give thanks for that. So, here are three simple, doable practices that you can adopt today, this very day.
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One, the one-minute morning pause. Before touching your phone, before putting your foot on the floor, sit still for 60 seconds and just breathe. Say, God, lead my day.
Please lead my day. And then let that be enough. Two, the five-breath reset.
Whenever you feel overwhelmed, just stop. Inhale for four counts, hold it for four counts, and then exhale for four counts. And do this five times.
Invite God into that moment. And if you don't even feel like you can do that, that's okay. Just breathe.
And then at night, say a release prayer. So, before bed, just say one sentence, God, I release blank to you. Just name one thing, one burden, one worry, or one expectation.
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And over time, this rhythm will free your heart. God, I release blank to you. I've shared before that when I'm feeling particularly anxious, I pause from whatever I'm doing and I do that breathing exercise.
Only I repeat, God is with me in this moment. So, in this moment, I am fine. God is with me in this moment.
So, in this moment, I am fine. And to hear more about that, where I learned it and how I use it, you can find that in episode 11. Husband taught me the power of releasing to God.
I had a really bad habit of releasing things to God one minute and then taking them back the next. But I've watched him do this again and again, this beautiful practice of releasing. A great example came recently when he had major back surgery.
I asked him right before they took him to the OR if he was nervous. And he said, nope, I gave it to God last night. And he meant it.
These daily practices truly will give you peace and joy and those little moments of connection with the love and power of God, who after all is the one who created you. They might not take much time, but they can have life-changing impact. As we continue the Joy Reset Series, I hope that you'll remember that you don't need a dramatic transformation to experience joy.
You probably don't need to overhaul your entire life. You simply choose one rhythm at a time, a small consistent step toward presence and peace by stepping toward God. I suspect you'll quickly find that adopting a gentle daily rhythm in your life will lead to the joy that your heart truly longs for.
I know doing so helps me not only deal with stress and anxiety, but gives me another tool that cultivates genuine joy. Whether it's dealing with my grief of my mom's death in April, or moving in and caring for my dad who has dementia, or any other of life's challenges, my daily rhythm with God has helped me hold and make space for the joy that I can find every single day. So this week, may you find delight in the simple things.
May your breathing slow and your spirit soften, and may joy begin to rise again in you, not with force, but with the gentleness of a whisper and the realization that you are in the presence of the divine. I'll see you next episode of the Joy Reset Series as we continue creating space for joy to return, for your heart to renew, and to refresh your weary places. You might know someone who would be encouraged by this episode, someone who has those weary places and a heaviness of heart.
If so, I hope you'll share this with them. Don't forget to follow me on social media and subscribe to Goals in Grace. It helps others to know that it's there, and it would mean a lot to me.
Until next time, my friend, God bless.
(Transcribed by TurboScribe.ai. Go Unlimited to remove this message.)
