Stop Waiting! Bloom Where You’re Planted
With all of the changes we’ve seen in life over the past several months and years, many people I know have stalled in their disciple-making and living life on mission. Everything is different, and many seem to have lost their way—feeling a bit stuck. Waiting…
In this episode of the Everyday Disciple Podcast, Caesar gives you 7 things to help get you unstuck, be encouraged, and start to bloom where God has planted you.
In This Episode You’ll Learn:
- Where you’re at now is preparation for what God has next.
- Why it’s time to stop making excuses.
- The power of choosing to be “all in” regardless of your circumstances.
- Small steps you can take, starting today!
From this episode:
“Every step in life God is preparing you for the next one. Do you believe that? How are you stewarding all that God has given you now? Not just your stuff, but your circumstances. Yep, we get to steward our circumstances too. Stewardship is not just about money and hard resources. Luke 16:10 ‘Faithful with a little…faithful with a lot.’ Our good Father in heaven is always preparing us for what’s next on our journey of becoming more and more like Jesus and showing others the way.”
Each week the Big 3 will give you immediate action steps to get you started.
Download today’s BIG 3 right now. Read and think over them again later. You might even want to share them with others…
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Links and Resources Mentioned in This Episode:
Coaching with Caesar and Tina in discipleship and missional living.
Free Discipleship and Missional Resources
Transcript
Have you ever seen a flower that's managed to somehow grow up through a crack in the sidewalk?
Caesar Kalinowski:I've often wondered if that delicate little flower caused the crack in the hard concrete, or did it somehow instinctively follow the light towards the opening?
Caesar Kalinowski:How did that little flower which started off as a small seed, get down into that crack, that dark little tight space.
Caesar Kalinowski:Did the seed float into there on accident?
Caesar Kalinowski:Or was it divinely placed there to bring beauty and hope in an unlikely place, in an unexpected way?
Caesar Kalinowski:Relate.
Caesar Kalinowski:I have felt like that little seed trying to find its, its way up and out and onward.
Caesar Kalinowski:Lost and sort of struggling in the dark.
Caesar Kalinowski:I felt that way at times, feeling a deep purpose within that's waiting to burst forth in beauty, but not sure if it'll ever see the light of day.
Caesar Kalinowski:Are you feeling that way.
Caesar Kalinowski:Given all that's been happening if so, I want to challenge you today.
Caesar Kalinowski:I want to challenge you to stop waiting and bloom where you're planted.
Heath Hollensbe:Welcome to the Everyday Disciple Podcast, where you'll learn how to live with greater intentionality and an integrated faith that naturally fits into every area of life.
Heath Hollensbe:In other words, discipleship as a lifestyle.
Heath Hollensbe:This is the stuff your parents, pastors, and seminary professors probably forgot to tell you.
Heath Hollensbe:And now, here's your host, Caesar Kalinowski.
Caesar Kalinowski:All right, here we go, rockin again.
Caesar Kalinowski:Do you love the intro music?
Caesar Kalinowski:I do.
Caesar Kalinowski:It is really close.
Caesar Kalinowski:I've never really shared this before.
Caesar Kalinowski:It's really close, as close as we could find to a song called Cantaloupe by us three.
Caesar Kalinowski:It's really old, but I always dug it, but I would have to pay like a trillion dollars a year to use the actual track.
Caesar Kalinowski:So we found something close.
Caesar Kalinowski:I hope you're digging that.
Caesar Kalinowski:Hope you're having a good week.
Caesar Kalinowski:This has been a really good week for me.
Caesar Kalinowski:I feel like I've gotten a lot done and yet had some really, really good time with family and community stuff going on and all.
Caesar Kalinowski:My daughter came over yesterday.
Caesar Kalinowski:Well, my daughter, our daughter, our youngest daughter, Justine came over yesterday cause she just wanted to make us lunch.
Caesar Kalinowski:Isn't that awesome?
Caesar Kalinowski:And she is probably the best cook in our family, which is saying a lot.
Caesar Kalinowski:Cause Tina's well, maybe Tina is, but I think Justine might have surpassed her.
Caesar Kalinowski:She came over and made us some banh mi's.
Caesar Kalinowski:I don't know that, it's like a Vietnamese style sandwich, but we have modified it based on some we've had elsewhere, where we replaced the meat with corned beef.
Caesar Kalinowski:Oh, so, so good.
Caesar Kalinowski:Anyway, then we started digging out, you know, boxes of pictures and stuff.
Caesar Kalinowski:It was one of those weird, kind of blessed days, where we started digging out boxes of pictures, old pictures, and um, I had taken out a book.
Caesar Kalinowski:a box of stuff from my band years when I was a musician for a living, and of course many hairstyles ago, and that's always crazy and funny to look at.
Caesar Kalinowski:Not just me, but everybody included.
Caesar Kalinowski:Lots of different hairstyles, and then Tina gets it in her head and she says, wait a minute.
Caesar Kalinowski:And she finds little baggies with hair in it, like my hair when I cut it, from really long to really short, and our son who when he was little had a little, kind of, one of those rat tail things, and then his son Caesar now.
Caesar Kalinowski:I Also had really, really long curly blonde hair and then when they cut it, uh, not too long ago, uh, she grabbed that.
Caesar Kalinowski:And so, yeah, that's kind of icky, kind of weird, but you know, really fun stuff and stuff.
Caesar Kalinowski:We, I don't know, are corny and enjoy.
Caesar Kalinowski:I think everybody does, right?
Caesar Kalinowski:Digging out your old pictures, looking back to look forward sometimes.
Caesar Kalinowski:Hey, before I forget, I want to ask you to join us over on Facebook in our Facebook group if you've not done that yet.
Caesar Kalinowski:There are thousands of y'all who have, but, uh, we get to talk about the episode, pick up links for resources, ask questions and life just in general connected to discipleship and mission.
Caesar Kalinowski:A lot of good advice in there, but, uh, you also, it's a good way to talk to, to me, to us, uh, Tina and I and others in the community.
Caesar Kalinowski:and really hang out with like minded people.
Caesar Kalinowski:If you've not done that yet, please do so.
Caesar Kalinowski:You can search that up, Everyday Disciple Podcast in Facebook, or I made it real easy for you, once you have your Facebook page open, just, uh, just type in everydaydisciple.
Caesar Kalinowski:com forward slash Facebook.
Caesar Kalinowski:Into your URL and it'll take you right to our page and then you just hit join and off you go All right.
Caesar Kalinowski:So with all the changes we've seen in life over the past several years and continuing to change It's like all that everybody's talking about Many people I know kind of noticed a little trend here They've sort of stalled in their disciple making and living life on mission Discipleship as a lifestyle kind of stalled a bit a little understandable There's been so much, like I said, so much change.
Caesar Kalinowski:A lot of churches are just sort of in neutral, waiting for things to return to the way they were, which will never happen, I believe.
Caesar Kalinowski:In fact, I think everybody probably believes that at this point.
Caesar Kalinowski:People are moving.
Caesar Kalinowski:and changing jobs at record levels, they're just looking for something different.
Caesar Kalinowski:Uh, the way their school and their kids is changed for almost everyone, if you have kids.
Caesar Kalinowski:Everything is different and many people seem to have lost their way.
Caesar Kalinowski:They're feeling a bit stuck.
Caesar Kalinowski:They've put disciple making and this lifestyle of living on mission and community on hold.
Caesar Kalinowski:They're just sort of waiting.
Caesar Kalinowski:I was thinking about this.
Caesar Kalinowski:Have you ever seen a flower that's managed to somehow grow up through a crack in the sidewalk?
Caesar Kalinowski:Probably you have, most people have.
Caesar Kalinowski:I've often wondered if that delicate little flower Caused the crack in the hard concrete or did it somehow instinctively Follow the light towards the opening?
Caesar Kalinowski:How did that little flower, which started off as a small seed, get down into that crack, that dark little tight space?
Caesar Kalinowski:Did the seed float into there on accident or was it Divinely placed there to bring beauty and hope in an unlikely place, in an unexpected way?
Caesar Kalinowski:I can relate.
Caesar Kalinowski:I have felt like that little seed trying to find it's, it's way up and out and onward.
Caesar Kalinowski:Lost and sort of struggling in the dark.
Caesar Kalinowski:I felt that way.
Caesar Kalinowski:At times feeling a deep purpose within that's waiting to burst forth in beauty, but not sure if it'll ever see the light of day.
Caesar Kalinowski:Are you feeling that way given all that's been happening?
Caesar Kalinowski:If so, I want to challenge you today.
Caesar Kalinowski:I want to challenge you to stop waiting and bloom where you're planted.
Caesar Kalinowski:Right where you're at.
Caesar Kalinowski:I'm going to give you seven things to consider when you're feeling stuck on mission or in ministry or just in life in general.
Caesar Kalinowski:Alright, I hope, I hope this will help get you going, encourage you, get you a little unstuck.
Caesar Kalinowski:And just, again, to, you know, to bloom where you're planted.
Caesar Kalinowski:Be that little flower busting out of the crack.
Caesar Kalinowski:Okay, here's the first one.
Caesar Kalinowski:Every step in life is preparing you for the next one.
Caesar Kalinowski:Do you believe that?
Caesar Kalinowski:How are you doing right now at stewarding all that God has given you?
Caesar Kalinowski:Not just your stuff, but your circumstances.
Caesar Kalinowski:Yep, we get to steward our circumstances too, because they're circumstances God has divinely placed us in and he's working on us and conforming us and training us for what's next.
Caesar Kalinowski:Stewardship is not just about money and hard work.
Caesar Kalinowski:You know, resources and stuff.
Caesar Kalinowski:It's also about our circumstances.
Caesar Kalinowski:Luke 16 10 says, faithful with a little, faithful with a lot.
Caesar Kalinowski:And our good father in heaven is always preparing us for what's next on our journey of becoming more and more like Jesus and, and helping show others the way and invite them to a place at the table, a place in his family.
Caesar Kalinowski:Right?
Caesar Kalinowski:So I want to just remind you of that, that wherever you're at, whatever you're feeling or experiencing, God's using this and preparing you for the next step.
Caesar Kalinowski:Faithful with a little, faithful with a lot.
Caesar Kalinowski:Second, stop complaining.
Caesar Kalinowski:Okay?
Caesar Kalinowski:If, if you're stuck and you just feel like, you know, this whole whatever social distancing, politics, whatever, is, that's, and you know, just stop complaining.
Caesar Kalinowski:Philippians 2, 14, 15, right?
Caesar Kalinowski:I love this from the message.
Caesar Kalinowski:It says, Do everything readily, readily and cheerfully.
Caesar Kalinowski:No, no bickering or complaining, no second guessing allowed.
Caesar Kalinowski:Go out into the world, uncorrupted, a breath of fresh air in this squalid and polluted society.
Caesar Kalinowski:Provide people with a glimpse of good living and of the living God.
Caesar Kalinowski:Ho, ho, ho!
Caesar Kalinowski:That is so good, right?
Caesar Kalinowski:That, that makes me want to stop complaining, and count my blessings.
Caesar Kalinowski:And here's something else too, get rid of your if only's.
Caesar Kalinowski:You know what I'm saying?
Caesar Kalinowski:If only this or that.
Caesar Kalinowski:And change them to, if this, then that.
Caesar Kalinowski:Meaning, if this is where God has me, or has us, then I'm going to trust Him and choose to love it and enjoy it.
Caesar Kalinowski:Without making, you know, excuses, complaining.
Caesar Kalinowski:And all of that.
Caesar Kalinowski:And that's number three.
Caesar Kalinowski:Stop making excuses.
Caesar Kalinowski:Stop blaming your lack of intentionality on your circumstances.
Caesar Kalinowski:On your house, oh it's not big enough, or our living room's not right, or you know, are my cookings no good, or my kids, that doesn't work out for them and their schedules, or you know, stop making excuses.
Caesar Kalinowski:Your job's in the way of making disciples, or your health, or this social distancing.
Caesar Kalinowski:Like, just, just get past all that.
Caesar Kalinowski:Again, from number two, get rid of your if onlys and turn them into if this, then that.
Caesar Kalinowski:There's always a way to move forward.
Caesar Kalinowski:There really is.
Caesar Kalinowski:There really is.
Caesar Kalinowski:So stop making excuses.
Caesar Kalinowski:Okay?
Caesar Kalinowski:Between you and me.
Caesar Kalinowski:Let's just stop making excuses.
Caesar Kalinowski:Here's another one.
Caesar Kalinowski:Number four, remember you have been blessed to be a blessing.
Caesar Kalinowski:There's always something.
Caesar Kalinowski:that you can do to show others God's glory, the way He really is, His heart and His love.
Caesar Kalinowski:In our communities, we try and live in a rhythm of blessing people through, we say, either in words, gifts, or actions.
Caesar Kalinowski:Maybe you've heard me talk about this before.
Caesar Kalinowski:Yeah, bless people with either words, gifts, or actions.
Caesar Kalinowski:You can do that right now, every day, consistently.
Caesar Kalinowski:I know you can.
Caesar Kalinowski:So, you know, take a small treat to a friend.
Caesar Kalinowski:Perhaps bring dinner to a neighbor, babysit someone's kids, make their day better, help them out, start to build that relationship, write a note to someone, like a handwritten note to someone in need.
Caesar Kalinowski:There are all kinds of ways that we can look at what we've been blessed with.
Caesar Kalinowski:and use it to bless others with our stuff, a bit of our time, a word of encouragement, you get the picture.
Caesar Kalinowski:Number five, decide to be all in regardless of your present circumstances.
Caesar Kalinowski:Yeah, decide to be all in.
Caesar Kalinowski:Each of us gets to choose our responses to everything in life.
Caesar Kalinowski:Regardless of what we want or wish we had or what we wish was happening, we can choose to be all in.
Caesar Kalinowski:Best I can, I am all in.
Caesar Kalinowski:And we can live with great intentionality right where we're at, no matter the circumstances.
Caesar Kalinowski:Like I said, we all get to choose our response.
Caesar Kalinowski:And a friend of mine once said to me, we all choose to do exactly what we want each day.
Caesar Kalinowski:I want to encourage you, just decide now to be all in, regardless of whatever your present circumstances you're facing, or feeling, or experiencing.
Caesar Kalinowski:Number six, real practical here, identify one new person of peace in your life, and start to spend time with them.
Caesar Kalinowski:Person of Peace, you can go Google past episodes, I teach on that a lot, just like four or five weeks back, I did a whole episode, a special episode on finding your person of peace.
Caesar Kalinowski:Those are those people that are leaning in.
Caesar Kalinowski:to relationship with you.
Caesar Kalinowski:They like you.
Caesar Kalinowski:They want to hang out.
Caesar Kalinowski:They're easy to spend time with.
Caesar Kalinowski:When you invite them to do something, they say yeah.
Caesar Kalinowski:Then they look to serve you back.
Caesar Kalinowski:That's what a person of peace looks like.
Caesar Kalinowski:When you talk about your life, your faith, your understanding of who God is in that, it doesn't flip them out.
Caesar Kalinowski:They're kind of interested.
Caesar Kalinowski:I want you to, I want to encourage you just identify one new person of peace at least.
Caesar Kalinowski:And maybe encourage those in your community, if they're feeling a little stuck, a little off track, to do the same.
Caesar Kalinowski:And then, start spending time with them.
Caesar Kalinowski:Treat them like part of your family.
Caesar Kalinowski:Share your life and faith with them, consistently, with intentionality, and see what God does with that.
Caesar Kalinowski:Here's number seven.
Caesar Kalinowski:Stop waiting.
Caesar Kalinowski:Yeah, stop waiting.
Caesar Kalinowski:A mentor in my life said that years ago he was told, You don't have to get it perfect, you just have to get it going.
Caesar Kalinowski:That's good advice.
Caesar Kalinowski:Stop waiting for perfection, either in your circumstance or in your own life, and just get going.
Caesar Kalinowski:I encourage you right now to take the very next small step God shows you, and ask Him, you know, just ask Him, What's next, Lord?
Caesar Kalinowski:Like, and take that step, right?
Caesar Kalinowski:We actually, that's like a vernacular in our world, and in our coaching, and in our disciple making, this phrase, What's next, Lord?
Caesar Kalinowski:Show us and then be faithful and obedient to do that with a person of peace or with someone in your family Maybe you've been putting off some relational strife or something that there's a little distance or ickiness or whatever What's next Lord and do that Or maybe it's something as a church or as a missional community.
Caesar Kalinowski:Maybe you've put everything on hold.
Caesar Kalinowski:Because, well, everybody dah, dah, dah, dah, whatever.
Caesar Kalinowski:Like, what's next, Lord?
Caesar Kalinowski:What's the very next thing you'd have us do?
Caesar Kalinowski:When we remember who's really in charge and that our master has the perfect plan, the master plan, everything will feel better, a little brighter.
Caesar Kalinowski:Everything's filled with more hope and expectancy.
Caesar Kalinowski:Mm hmm.
Caesar Kalinowski:That's how it goes.
Caesar Kalinowski:I hope those seven things, uh, are helping to.
Caesar Kalinowski:Maybe give it the nudge you needed.
Caesar Kalinowski:In my experience, there is always something next that can derail us or keep us from the life that Jesus died to give us.
Caesar Kalinowski:There's always something else, one more reason, one more thing, those people, that issue, my health, my work, something, right?
Caesar Kalinowski:And we're not...
Caesar Kalinowski:Really getting the job done that we get to.
Caesar Kalinowski:We're not seeing a movement of disciple making springing out of normal everyday life in the ways that I really believe we can and that Jesus showed us and modeled for us.
Caesar Kalinowski:But we can, we can, and it does start with one small step, one little bit of faith connected to some intentionality.
Caesar Kalinowski:For our churches, for our families, for our neighborhood, God wants to do that, I hope we'll let him.
Caesar Kalinowski:There's this poet named David Ignatow, and he wrote, If flowers want to grow right out of concrete sidewalk cracks, I'm going to bend down and smell them.
Caesar Kalinowski:Maybe you're that flower.
Caesar Kalinowski:If it seems dark where you're at right now, with God's help, you can bloom, even through a small crack in the sidewalk.
Caesar Kalinowski:I hope you believe that.
Caesar Kalinowski:I know this is a little more maybe esoteric than I normally talk, but I know some of us are really feeling this.
Caesar Kalinowski:Maybe you're that small flower, and God just wants you to...
Caesar Kalinowski:Trust Him and push through and others are waiting to come and bend down and smell you a little.
Caesar Kalinowski:Now, sometimes the way God helps us is by bringing others into our lives, that are able to encourage us and show us the way, and I'd love, I'd love to help you start to bloom and make disciples right where you're at, right now, and show you how to help others in your life and in your community do the same.
Caesar Kalinowski:That's why we do coaching.
Caesar Kalinowski:And we've got some coaching cohorts that are starting up right now.
Caesar Kalinowski:If you've ever been thinking about this, or wondering about how much time it takes, or what's the investment, all that, I'd love to tell you more about our coaching and mentorship.
Caesar Kalinowski:I do it with my wife Tina.
Caesar Kalinowski:We coach couples as couples, and give you full framework for making disciples, and living this as a family first, and then letting the rings of relationship move outward, and then how to train others.
Caesar Kalinowski:We've got new...
Caesar Kalinowski:cohorts starting right now.
Caesar Kalinowski:And we'd love to tell you about that and get started.
Caesar Kalinowski:If you want to learn more, go ahead and check out everydaydisciple.
Caesar Kalinowski:com forward slash coaching.
Caesar Kalinowski:Yep.
Caesar Kalinowski:Just go to that in your browser, everydaydisciple.
Caesar Kalinowski:com forward slash coaching.
Caesar Kalinowski:There's a bunch of information there, a little form you can fill out and we can hop on a discovery call and I can tell you more about it.
Caesar Kalinowski:Okay, a bit shorter episode than normal.
Caesar Kalinowski:Maybe you like that.
Caesar Kalinowski:Maybe you got it all in before you got out of the car, before you finished your workout today.
Caesar Kalinowski:But I want to leave you with the big three takeaways from today's topic.
Caesar Kalinowski:If nothing else, you don't want to miss these, this sort of summary here.
Caesar Kalinowski:As always, you can get a printable PDF of this week's big three as a free download by going to everydaydisciple.
Caesar Kalinowski:com forward slash big three.
Caesar Kalinowski:Pretty easy.
Caesar Kalinowski:Here's the big three for this week.
Caesar Kalinowski:First, God knows the plans He has for you.
Caesar Kalinowski:He does.
Caesar Kalinowski:And those are plans of blessing and righteousness.
Caesar Kalinowski:Remember that verse in Jeremiah 29, 11?
Caesar Kalinowski:For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord.
Caesar Kalinowski:Plans to prosper you and not to harm you.
Caesar Kalinowski:Plans to give you hope.
Caesar Kalinowski:In the future?
Caesar Kalinowski:Uh huh.
Caesar Kalinowski:Wherever God has you today is preparation for where He'll take you next.
Caesar Kalinowski:In His timing, His perfect timing, and for His good purposes.
Caesar Kalinowski:And you can trust Him and live as a blessing and make disciples right where you're planted now.
Caesar Kalinowski:Second, number two, decide to be all in, regardless of your circumstances.
Caesar Kalinowski:Faith combined with intentionality is always what drives us forward on mission.
Caesar Kalinowski:Let me say that again.
Caesar Kalinowski:Faith combined with intentionality is always what drives us forward on mission.
Caesar Kalinowski:As Christians, just as a little reminder here, we have God's own spirit dwelling inside of us.
Caesar Kalinowski:Leading us in all the ways of truth and the truth is we really lack nothing for the mission our waiting Complaining and excuses are coming from fear or self love and false beliefs.
Caesar Kalinowski:So Number three stop waiting and do something now when we remember that we don't have to have the master plan Because our master has the plan we can relax and trust God to lead us one step at a time based on his sovereignty So any perceived lack or waiting for a different situation so we can really get going on mission is putting our own sovereignty above God's, right?
Caesar Kalinowski:Your master has the plan so ask what's next Lord and get started with him and take that first small step today.
Caesar Kalinowski:Yeah, and, and again, maybe, maybe that first small step is to check out what our coaching's about and, and getting some help if you're feeling this way or consistently feeling stuck and it's now it's another year and, oh, well, there was a, I had some good excuses for last year, but now what about this year?
Caesar Kalinowski:And so, yeah, I just maybe check it out at least.
Caesar Kalinowski:I'd love to hop on a call with you, explain more, see if it's a good fit.
Caesar Kalinowski:Check it out.
Caesar Kalinowski:Go to everydaydisciple.
Caesar Kalinowski:com forward slash coaching.
Caesar Kalinowski:Easy, easy, easy.
Caesar Kalinowski:Okay, that's it for today.
Caesar Kalinowski:I hope you'll join me next week.
Caesar Kalinowski:All right?
Caesar Kalinowski:Talk to you soon.
Heath Hollensbe:Thanks for joining us today.
Heath Hollensbe:For more information on this show, and to get loads of free discipleship resources, visit EverydayDisciple.
Heath Hollensbe:com.
Heath Hollensbe:And remember, you really can live with the spiritual freedom and relational peace that Jesus promised, every day.
Heath Hollensbe:Stop Waiting!
Heath Hollensbe:Bloom Where You're Planted | https://EverydayDisciple.com/462