What if you’ve gotten really good at protecting your energy…but somewhere along the way, you also cut out some of what makes you feel alive?

A woman I had the privilege of coaching lives with chronic illness, which means overstimulation can have very real physical consequences. She had wisely learned to build in buffers, avoid overstacking her schedule, and pay attention to what depleted her.

And then she realized:

“I’ve crafted a low-stimulation life so I wouldn’t end up physically incapacitated. But it’s also cut out joy.”

Oof.

Because honoring your capacity matters. Sometimes the wise, faithful choice really is doing less.

But what if capacity isn’t only about asking, What can I remove?

In this conversation, we explore what changes when we also start noticing what gives something back.

We talk about:

• why something requiring energy doesn’t automatically mean it’s draining
• how your God-given wiring can shape what replenishes or energizes you
• the difference between struggling with something and being deficient
• why joy, creativity, curiosity, beauty, and connection aren’t automatically frivolous
• one delightfully simple “what lights me up?” experiment you can try without turning it into another obligation

You’ll also hear what happened when this beloved created her own “dopamine menu: daily flavors of joy”—and the tiny moment with her daughter and a soon-to-be-demolished floor that still makes me smile.

You don’t need to overhaul your life.

Maybe we can simply get more curious about the woman who’s actually living it.

💭 A question to think on this week:

What have you dismissed as unnecessary because it doesn’t look productive—even though it consistently gives something meaningful back to you?

🎁 Want another set of eyes on your own patterns? I open just 3 God-Given Gifts Chats each month. We’ll start with your actual life and look together for clues about your wiring, strengths, capacity, and one life-giving next move you can experiment with.

Book your God-Given Gifts Chat →

Wondering what your God-given gifts actually are and how to honor them in the middle of real life (not just the highlight reel)? Let’s talk. 💬

The best place to start is a free God-Given Gifts Chat — an audio + text convo inside Voxer (no Zoom required, promise). We’ll:

• Check in on your current season

• Name 1 gift

• Brainstorm 1 simple next step you can take

No pressure. No pretending. Just a grace-filled space to help you get unstuck and move forward with a little more clarity and confidence.

✨Book your God-Given Gifts Chat — or just reply to any email from me with "I'm curious" and I’ll send you the details.

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