Holy Pause Button: How a Year Off Changed Everything

After a year-long break from podcasting, Alexis returns with updates on family life and spiritual growth. She shares how God's timing guided her decision to step back temporarily and return when the moment was right.

• Raising a child with dyslexia and ADHD while supporting a three-year-old with speech delays required full maternal focus
• The podcast hiatus allowed for more organic, pressure-free Bible study and prayer time
• Learning to listen to God in silence proved more challenging than studying scripture
• God opened doors for Alexis to pursue teaching through fully-funded education at Liberty University
• Future podcast episodes will feature testimony sharing, biblical deep dives, and parenting experiences
• Even during the break, podcast listenership continued to grow, showing God's ongoing work

Email alexis@proverbs31wannabe.com or connect on Instagram and Facebook to share topic suggestions and questions for future episodes.

Chapters

• 0:00 Welcome Back After a Break
• 5:30 Adjusting to Elementary School Challenges
• 9:00 Growth in Faith During Time Away
• 11:00 God Opening Doors for Teaching
• 17:00 Future Plans and Podcast Direction
• 21:30 The Power of Sharing Testimonies

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:05

Hi there and welcome to Proverbs 31 Wannabe. My name is Alexis Heaslip and I am a wife, a mom, learned with you to be a Proverbs 31 woman of faith. Guys, it has been such a long time. I know it's been a little over break, but I've missed it so much. I have so missed being able to come on here and talk to you and grow in our faith together and learn new things together. But life happens and so I'm back now. But I want to give you some updates as to what's been going on and why I took a break. So let's talk. For those of you who are new here, hi, welcome.

Speaker 1: 1:17

I am Alexis. I am a 28-year-old wife and mom of two 28 year old wife and mom of two, and I share what my life is like as someone who loves Jesus and wants to raise their children and be a wife that honors the Lord. So just some background information to start and, as you've seen, I have in the past done a lot of different series that really dive into different topics about what it means to be a woman who not only loves the Lord but wants to share that love and that joy and that redemption power that we can only get through Jesus with others and I went over all sorts of things like women in the Bible. I had a series on hot topics, maybe like some hot take issues. I have had a series on how to pray with your children and how to do different things with your children and how to teach your children how to walk with God, and my last series that I did was a 16-week in-depth study on Messianic prophecy, all throughout scripture, and although it was so much fun and it was really in depth and I enjoyed it so much, it was exhausting. Y'all like. I'll tell you what it was just so much information and after that 16 week deep dive and I feel like, even though it was a deep dive, we could have gone even deeper Um, I needed to take a break because, at the end of the day, I have two young children and they deserve my utmost attention.

Speaker 1: 3:16

First, and my daughter, who's now three, is just having a three-year-old child, um, and she has a little bit of a speech delay and a learning delay. So we're catching up. God has given her her own time frame, but I needed to take a pause from my podcast to really just be able to focus on my kids and focus on the trenches of having young children. But I feel like I've come to a spot where I am able to bring this back, because I've missed it. I've really, really missed it.

Speaker 1: 4:04

And what's really funny is that I have, for the past year, have been going back and forth and back and forth as to what I want to do when coming back to the podcast and what do I want to do next, and every time I've tried to jump back into this podcast for the past year, I'll come up with an idea, I'll come up with a schedule in my mind, I'll write it out, wanting to record myself and share with you guys. It just I've been getting this instinctive feeling from the Holy Spirit and I really do feel like it's one of those Holy Spirit gut check moments and he kept telling me not yet, not yet, now is not the time. So yet, now is not the time. So, although I don't understand even now why he kept telling me not yet, not yet, not yet, when I kept wanting to come back, not yet, not yet, not yet, I uh listened and I put my trust that God's timing is perfect and we don't always understand the why behind that timing. I still don't understand the why behind that, but it's raining, yes, baby, it is raining. But having this time to not have to feel like I have to post and having this feeling where, especially with my son being in elementary school now and that's big boy work with school, with learning how to read and write and he's going to be in second grade, so doing math and really growing in his education and really growing in his education. Looking back now I can say I needed this time to adjust, because it is an adjustment when your child goes into elementary school.

Speaker 1: 6:13

Kindergarten was a big year for him, and first grade was an even bigger year where we learned and discovered how his way of learning is impacted by how God made his brain and figuring out what we can do best for him to succeed. It was a challenging year and my sweet child is dyslexic, left-handed, dual ADHD and a boy, so it was definitely a year of growth. It was a year of many challenges, but it was also a year where we helped him realize that God gives us seasons for everything, and so there was just no way I was going to be able to consistently do this podcast in this season. And that is okay because, at the end of the day, my top priority as a mom is to disciple my children through life and to plant the seeds of what it means to live in a way that honors God and pray that one day they come to realize that we are all sinners, that we all make mistakes and that we can't fix ourselves by ourselves. That's just not how that works and that we need our God, our creator, to be the center of our life and turn our lives over to him. Admit that we are sinners, believe that Jesus is the only way to heaven he is the only way to eternal life and confess those sins and turn our lives to him. That is my ultimate job and goals as a parent is to disciple my children to the Lord, and if that means I have to put a pause on the things that I want to do, that's what I got. To put a pause on the things that I want to do, that's what I got to do. But I do feel like we've gotten over this hurdle and I feel in a really good spot in our home and also.

Speaker 1: 8:34

This year off of podcasting helped me to reflect and grow even more in my faith and really have this opportunity to spend time in the word without feeling a time constraint as to, oh, if I don't get my Bible study in now and then I'll be able to transfer it over to the podcasts. So this past year has felt a lot more organic in my Bible study time, where it feels more like a conversation with God. Now, I'm still a Bible nerd. I still deep dive and I will gladly share all sorts of things with you. This summer I decided to challenge myself and I am going through the book of Isaiah this summer and it might probably go into the fall as well as my personal study time. And one thing that I've learned this past year is that for me, it's not getting into the Bible and nerding out that I struggle with, but what I truly struggle with is sitting in the silence of my prayer time, and the past couple of months especially has been a real eye-opener into what it means listen for the voice of God and finding tools to help me examine my conscience in a way and to just sit and listen and turn to God, so that it's not just me talking at him but it's me having a true, more in-depth conversation with him, to where I'm also listening and looking for what he has to say to me, not just me talking to him, and so that's definitely something I want to talk about more with you guys as I enter into Proverbs 31, wannabe chapter two.

Speaker 1: 10:50

This past year has also been a year of me praying about what my husband and I want our future to be for our family, especially because at this moment, we are on a single person income and God has been so gracious. God has been providing everything that we need and it's been wonderful. But this past year we have been praying about, well, what would it look like for me, since the children are old enough now, what would that look like for me to find a job where I would be able to work but still be the present mom that my children need? And so that is something we've been praying about, and God has just been opening so many doors, because I love working with children and I volunteer and I teach Sunday school and we just finished vacation Bible school at our church and it's so much fun and I have my associate's degree in early childhood development and we were thinking about it and praying about it, and what better job that will make it so that I can go to work but then still have the time to be with my children in the afternoon, but then still have the time to be with my children in the afternoon, still be able to put a nice meal on the table for dinner and be present with them during the summer, and that job would be teaching.

Speaker 1: 12:37

And the biggest thing is was how are we going to pay for two and a half years of college? And so we've been praying, and praying, and praying, and I applied to Liberty University and to another university to see where God would lead us. And God is so good, god is so faithful. I prayed to God for months. God, if this is where you want me, make it abundantly clear and if not, shut the door. Let your will be done has been my prayer throughout this process, and God was so wonderful and clear and opened the door in a way that it was obvious that this was what he wanted for my life.

Speaker 1: 13:36

Liberty University Online took my transfer credits and has been putting us in a position where I have been awarded enough grant money that it completely covered tuition by grant money. So God has made it just abundantly clear that this is the path he wants me to be on. And there were other universities I applied to, but God closed the doors and I am trusting him that this is the path he wants me on, and it's exciting. I am so excited just at the thought of having the opportunity to be in a career where I get to work with younger children in an elementary school setting, and so this is a journey I'll be starting on in the fall with school. My son will be in second grade, my daughter is going into preschool in the fall, so there's a lot of exciting changes that are taking place that make me feel like I am in a comfortable position to allow myself to come back to this podcast that I enjoy making so much and also coming to a realization that this is something that should not be a burden.

Speaker 1: 15:04

This is something that I want to do because I love sharing the gospel. I love sharing things that have worked with me when it comes to parenting, things that have flopped, because, trust me, there are things that I've done in my parenting journey where I thought it's going to be amazing, but it was a total disaster, and I want to share that with you guys, because we are a community of women who love our kiddos. We are a community of women on this podcast. I pray that love the Lord and if you're new here and you don't know who Jesus is, my prayer is that you can hear the things that the struggles and the ups and downs that I've gone through, and it inspires you to open up your Bible and to see and be curious about who our God is. That's my whole goal here for this podcast is to be a voice for the Lord for other women who just want to give glory and honor to God or are searching to seek who God is, and it's something that should be done joyfully, and I feel like the Lord has put it on my heart to. I'm back in that spot now and it's exciting and motivating motivating and it makes me realize that this past year was a year that God gave to me for growth.

Speaker 1: 16:54

Now, what is our podcast going to look like going forward? What is the show going to look like going forward? I'm not quite sure yet if I'm being real, but we're just going to flow with it, because I feel like that just shows how genuine I am in this position at the moment. Um, I do have an email and I would love if you have any thoughts, if you have any questions? Um, if you have any questions, if you have seen something online and you're like well, what does that mean? Are you wanting me to do a series about something in the Bible? Are you wanting me to do a thematic study, like we did before? I can even talk about things that are happening in the world with current events, and talk about how we can talk to our children about these things and how we don't have to fear, and so I can talk about biblical topics. I can talk about politics, I can talk about current events, but I want to hear from you, my audience, as to direction you would like me to go, because I have some ideas, but I love, I would love to hear your thoughts, because I am here for you, and in the show notes I will have my email, alexis, at Proverbs 31. Wannabecom and you guys can email me With any thoughts or questions, and you can also find me on instagram and facebook.

Speaker 1: 18:29

One idea that I had was, since I am going through isaiah, the idea of shol, like that word, has come up a couple of times and, if I'm being honest with you, I don't know a lot about what Sheol is. I've had some confusion on that topic because, growing up Catholic, I was taught that Sheol is like basically purgatory, but biblically, now that I've grown and I'm not Catholic anymore, my views and ideas based on scripture have changed, but I still have a lot of questions on what Sheol is versus like the lake of fire or Gehenna. Are they the same? Are they different? What was Sheol like before the resurrection versus after? These are all these questions that I've had on my mind recently. So that's one thing that we could talk about and how to talk to our kids about it, because some of these topics in the Bible can sound intimidating and scary to our kids. But we have the hope of Jesus, if we are a believer in him, that we will not perish but have eternal life, and so that is something that's been on my heart. But let me know, send me an email, send me a message on Instagram, find me on Facebook. I would love to hear from you guys any burning questions or topics that you have been thinking of lately.

Speaker 1: 20:18

I also want to say thank you guys so much for listening to my podcast as much as you guys have been while I haven't been posting. It has been so amazing how many views I have had on my podcast this past year, even though I have not been posting oh, sorry for the thunder guys, it's pouring down buckets here right now but God is so faithful and I just want to say thank you. This past week alone, I have had over 60 views on my podcast and I just can't believe it, just can't believe it. I just can't believe it. God is at work. Even when we take breaks, even when we hit pause on something, god is still on the move and God is still bringing me viewers and God is still connecting me to you all and I am just so so thankful, so thankful. I am just so excited to be back. This is just bringing me so much joy, if anything. Just know that I love you guys and I do have a goal of posting once a week, starting this week, and the spirit will be leading our conversation over the next couple of weeks and I also hope to have a couple of friends on to interview and talk about their faith journeys, because I feel like something that is missing in the church community, like universal church Today, is testimony sharing.

Speaker 1: 22:07

I feel like, especially in my evangelical Christian world, in many churches today it just doesn't happen and I feel like that's a disservice. I feel like that's an extreme disservice because testimonies are powerful. Testimonies are God given. Testimonies are proof that God can work and change even the most stubborn and strong-willed hearts and that testimony that you can share, even yourself, can give someone hope and you might not even know that it could intrigue someone into opening their Bible to learn more about who God is. So that is something that I'm feeling called to have on this platform is having people that I know, people that I love, come on here and share their testimonies with you all and share their faith journey, and I feel like that's how we grow as a community Having these conversations, and I hope that's something you guys want to hear as well. But that's all I have for today.

Speaker 1: 23:27

Again, I am so excited to be back. I am so excited to get back on this journey Of sharing with you what it means to be a Proverbs 31 woman of faith, and whether that means it's something I'm rocking or something I'm failing that's why I'm called Proverbs 31 wannabe, because I mess up all the time the time but it's knowing that I have a redeemer who will love me through all of my good days and my bad days and that he will never let go of me. That is the beauty of the message of the gospel that Jesus came and he died for our sins. So that way, even when we make mistakes, we can ask for forgiveness and we will be wiped clean, and it's a new day to start over, and that is what I'm here to share with you. It is so exciting to be back. I can't wait for next week. Talk to y'all later. Bye, guys.