Scripture: Luke 8:47

Summary: The only way to begin writing a new chapter is to own the one you're in. In this episode, we explore the powerful moment in Luke 8:47 when a bleeding woman does something radical: she declares her story publicly, even though she could have slipped away quietly after being healed.

When we don't own our stories, we replay them endlessly, placing blame on ourselves and others for events that happened long ago. We can't make meaning of our stories as long as we continue to be oppressed by them. But when we claim authorship of our stories, we transform from victim to author.

I share my journey of recovering after two difficult vocational traumas - experiences that were somewhat public and that people suggested would make it hard for me to get another job. I talk about the constant remembering, the replaying of hard stories, and the moment I realized this wasn't pushing me forward. I had to own my story, so I could focus on what was in front of me, not what was behind me.

Drawing from Susan L. Taylor's wisdom that "our stories are our gifts to the world," we explore how owning your story is critical to accessing your personal power.

Exercise: The episode concludes with the Story Audit exercise - a powerful practice for writing one challenging experience from three perspectives (victim, survivor, and author) to help you move from being defined by what happened to you to being empowered by how you grew through it.

Connect With Me

Want to go deeper? Visit www.revneichelle.com to explore my work, my ministry, and how we can grow together.

Let’s stay connected! Follow me on Instagram and Substack for more inspiration and continued conversation.

Ready to transform? Apply for coaching - I work with ambitious Black women who are ready to partner with God to create lives they love.

Questions? Feedback? Just want to say hello? Drop me a line - I’d love to hear how this podcast is landing in your life!

Scripture: John 5:6

Summary: Before you can partner with God to create the life you desire, you have to get radically honest about what you actually want. In this episode, we explore Jesus's surprising question to the man at the pool of Bethesda in John 5:6: "Do you want to be healed?"

After years of waiting, why would Jesus ask such an obvious question? Because naming our desires isn't for God's information - it's for our transformation.

Drawing from Susan L. Taylor's wisdom about being co-creators with God, I share one of the most vulnerable parts of my story - the moment I had to admit what I really wanted, even when it meant leaving what looked good on paper to make space for what was actually good for my soul.

We'll explore how to distinguish between what you think you should want and what you actually want, why your deepest desires might actually be God speaking through you, and how to move beyond spiritual bypassing into authentic partnership with the Divine.

Your desires matter to God because you matter to God. Let's begin the sacred work of naming them.

Exercise: The Desire Inventory - Complete this practice of naming your actual desires and asking God how you can partner together to create them. Because you can't manifest what you won't admit you want.

Connect With Me

Want to go deeper? Visit www.revneichelle.com to explore my work, my ministry, and how we can grow together.

Let’s stay connected! Follow me on Instagram and Substack for more inspiration and continued conversation.

Ready to transform? Apply for coaching - I work with ambitious Black women who are ready to partner with God to create lives they love.

Questions? Feedback? Just want to say hello? Drop me a line - I’d love to hear how this podcast is landing in your life!

Scripture: Psalm 18:19

Summary: Welcome to A Wide Open Space! In this inaugural episode, I invite you into a new season of my life and ministry - and into a sacred space I'm creating for Black women who are committed to their faith and their flourishing.

I share my journey over the past five years, from the loss of my grandmother and the exhaustion of pandemic pivoting, to the profound transformation that came through intentional life-making. I talk about discovering what I really wanted through stillness and solitude, and doing the deep work of healing, mindset shifts, and heart clearing that made space for those desires to become reality.

Drawing from Psalm 18:19, which reads, "God has brought me out into a wide open space. God delivered me because I am the Lord's beloved," I explore what it means to be called out of the confined and constricted into expansion and flourishing.

You'll learn what to expect from this podcast: a decidedly Womanist, progressive space at the intersection of faith and personal development. Each episode will include a devotional, conversation, storytelling or reflection, and an exercise or practice to help you make your way into your own wide open space -- and stay there. This is for aligned Black women who want to grow, connect, and remember that the work, works - and God is good.

If you're ready to create community in this intersection of faith and personal growth, this show is for you. Welcome home, sister.

Exercise: Name your narrow space. Whether it’s a mindset, a belief or value system, a habits a relationship, be honest about those areas of your life where you need some focused healing, growth and expansion.

Connect With Me

Want to go deeper? Visit www.revneichelle.com to explore my work, my ministry, and how we can grow together.

Let’s stay connected! Follow me on Instagram and Substack for more inspiration and continued conversation.

Ready to transform? Apply for coaching - I work with ambitious Black women who are ready to partner with God to create lives they love.

Questions? Feedback? Just want to say hello? Drop me a line - I’d love to hear how this podcast is landing in your life!