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~ Have you ever felt like you were in a holding pattern with your dream?

If you’re wondering what to do with a season of waiting, this episode is for you. I'm so glad you're here.

This is Part 2 of my conversation with Heather Holleman, author, speaker, and Penn State instructor who has spent decades helping women fall in love with God's Word.

This half of the conversation might be the most practically encouraging thing I've shared in a long time.

We pick up right where we left off in the previous episode (#363), and Heather gets honest about what to do when you're in a slow season, when your dream feels buried, and when you're not sure what the next step even is.

Here's some of what we cover:

• The five file folder strategy Heather used during a season of preparation and how it became the foundation for everything God has built in her life
• What changes when you put worship before the dream
• The question Heather says every dreamer needs to ask

What I love about Heather is that she never lets the dream become bigger than the dream maker.

She reminds us that we are chosen by God for His purposes and that the work He has prepared for us will come as we abide in Him, not as we hustle our way toward it.

If you are a midlife Christian woman who wants to pursue a dream God has placed on your heart but you're tired of striving, this conversation is going to feel like a deep breath.

Heather also pointed us to Ephesians, especially chapters 1 and 2, as a foundation for understanding who we are in Christ before we go chasing any dream. I'd love for you to read it alongside this episode.

If you missed part 1, go back and listen to Episode 363. Then come back here and let Heather finish what she started.

And if you're looking for a community of women who take both faith and dreams seriously, come find us at Dream Believers. It is one of my favorite places on the internet, and I'd love to have you there.

👉 merrittonsa.com/dreambelievers

🔗 Connect with Heather Holleman

Website: https://heatherholleman.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/writer.heatherholleman/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/heatherholleman/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/heather-holleman-6b101941/

Devoted Dreamers is hosted by Merritt Onsa — Christian life coach, mentor, speaker, and founder of the Dream Believers community. New episodes drop every week for the woman who believes her best chapter isn't behind her.

Sign up for Dream Believers. Just $49/month or $490 for the year (get 2 months free!)

NEXT STEPS:
Connect with Merritt: Website || Instagram || Book a Call
Leave a Review: Apple Podcasts/iTunes
Subscribe: on Apple Podcasts * on Android
Join the Dream Believers community

MORE ABOUT THE DEVOTED DREAMERS PODCAST:
Produced by Jonathan R. Clauson.
Theme music by Reaktor Productions.
Ad music by Komiku.

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~ This week marks 10 years of the Devoted Dreamers podcast, and I am celebrating by sharing one of my favorite conversations from the archives.

Author, speaker, and college instructor, Heather Holleman, PhD, loves helping women fall in love with the Bible and with Jesus. She believes God's Word is so powerful that it creates life where there is none, and she has built her entire calling around helping women take God at His Word.

If you are a midlife Christian woman trying to figure out where God is calling you, Heather is the kind of woman you want to sit with.

In Part 1 of this two-part conversation, Heather and I talk about:

• What it feels like to sense God's anointing on your work and why following that feeling matters more than having a plan
• How Heather discovered her true calling by paying attention to where God was already moving, not by forcing a direction
• How Scripture became her daily anchor and the specific verses that carry her through fear, pride, and uncertainty

This episode originally aired in 2018, and eight years later, this conversation still stops me in my tracks.

One of the things I keep coming back to is this: sometimes we get so focused on whether the dream will happen that we stop focusing on the person of Christ. She returns to that truth again and again, and every time she does, she brings a specific verse with her. It’s so rich and full of gospel truth.

So, if you find yourself in a season of wondering whether God is even doing anything with what he placed on your heart, this episode is for you.

I also want to say, if you are already pursuing a God-shaped dream and you want to build community around that, I would love for you to join us in Dream Believers, my online community for women who are taking faithful steps toward what God has put on their hearts. You can find us at merrittonsa.com/dreambelievers.

Part 2 with Heather drops next week. Do not miss it.

Sign up for Dream Believers. Just $49/month or $490 for the year (get 2 months free!)

NEXT STEPS:
Connect with Merritt: Website || Instagram || Book a Call
Leave a Review: Apple Podcasts/iTunes
Subscribe: on Apple Podcasts * on Android
Join the Dream Believers community

MORE ABOUT THE DEVOTED DREAMERS PODCAST:
Produced by Jonathan R. Clauson.
Theme music by Reaktor Productions.
Ad music by Komiku.

Send us Fan Mail

Does the fear of getting it wrong keep you from moving forward on your dream project?

This is one of the most common concerns I hear from Christian women who are looking for the courage to trust God with something that matters deeply. This episode is for you if you’ve ever wondered whether you’re hearing Him right, whether the timing is off, or whether a mistake means it was never supposed to happen at all.

In this final episode of a four-part series, I’m wrapping up my conversations with co-host Kari Eliza, the voice behind the Instagram account @Held.Right.Here. She is a passionate leader at the intersection of attachment science, nervous system, and Christian faith, and in this conversation, she gets honest about her own seven-year journey of resisting her calling before finally saying yes.

Here’s what we talk about in this episode:

• Why God’s timing is often more creative than the plan you had in mind
• How going public with your dream will stretch your nervous system and why that’s not a reason to stop
• What to do when someone disagrees with or pushes back on what you feel called to share

Kari Eliza shares something I think you’ll hold onto: following your calling is a gift, not a performance.

When you’re not trying to get it right for an audience, you can relax into it. God covers the mistakes. He uses the whole messy journey, including the detours, the slow seasons, and the criticism.

If you missed the first three parts of this series, go back and listen to episodes 359 through 361. Then, come back, and let this one settle in.

If you are done waiting for the perfect plan before you move forward on your dream, I want you to know you don’t have to figure it out alone. Dream Believers is my virtual community for Christian women who are ready to make real progress on what God has placed on their hearts. Come find us at merrittonsa.com/dreambelievers.

You were never meant to pursue your dream alone.

🔗 Connect with Kari Eliza

• Instagram: Held.Right.Here

Devoted Dreamers is hosted by Merritt Onsa — a Christian life coach, mentor, speaker, and founder of the Dream Believers community. New episodes drop every week for the woman who believes her best chapter isn’t behind her.

Sign up for Dream Believers. Just $49/month or $490 for the year (get 2 months free!)

NEXT STEPS:
Connect with Merritt: Website || Instagram || Book a Call
Leave a Review: Apple Podcasts/iTunes
Subscribe: on Apple Podcasts * on Android
Join the Dream Believers community

MORE ABOUT THE DEVOTED DREAMERS PODCAST:
Produced by Jonathan R. Clauson.
Theme music by Reaktor Productions.
Ad music by Komiku.