The Truth About Navigating Changes in Life with Andi Andrew. Episode 306

The Truth About Navigating Changes in Life

Hey friends, we are starting a new series called “Living Well,” where we are focus on our emotional health and living well no matter what craziness the world throws at us. 

We are going to have a great time this week with my friend, Andi Andrew.  She is going to help us learn how to face change bravely. No matter where we are in life and what’s going on, the one given is change. Andi is going to help us see it the right way; she is going to help us navigate it properly and come through stronger on the other side.  

Andi Andrew is the host of the Coffee with Andi podcast and the author of four books, including She Is Free, Fake or Follower, and Friendship–It’s Complicated. She is a heartfelt preacher who loves to see the reality of the gospel worked out in our everyday lives.

In this post, Andi shares insights from her new book, Braving Change: Release the Past, Welcome Growth, and Trust Where God is Leading You, and teaches us how to Change is a powerful teacher, shaping and molding us more into the likeness of Christ as we let it do its work.

Let’s get started. 

Grief With Navigating Change

Andi has a chapter in her book about grief when it comes to change, and very rarely does change come without grief. Andi shares that it felt like the Lord was ministering to her while she was writing it. After leaving the church in New York, she felt the transition was so good that she didn’t grieve until she started writing the chapter. 

She remembered scripture telling us that God comforts those who mourn. Matthew 5:4 – Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. (NIV) But she remembers seasons of her life where she ended up in the ER because she didn’t grieve properly, and it stayed stored in her body. 

Andi reminds us we have to grieve, even if it’s shutting our door and listening to a song and crying it out. We need to flush it out of our system. 

I remember reading that when we cry when we’re sad or grieving, all these different chemicals leave our bodies. And I thought it’s kind of amazing that God created us that way.

Navigating Change in a Healthy Way

The best way to navigate change in a healthy way is to deal with the process and the grief that comes with it. Don’t stuff it down because it will eventually come back. Process the change, grieve properly, get help if needed, and develop a game plan! 

Developing a Game Plan for Recovery After Change

Andi was going through something and talked to her friend about it. Her friend responded, “Okay, I just need you to know, you’re gonna be okay, but you need a game plan.” She realized that her friend was right because we either stay in the grieving cycle or the “woe is me” cycle. Whatever change you’re in, regardless, change is a lot, whether that’s change to your body, change with a child, change with a marriage. Whatever kind of change, a change you choose that you’re excited about, you still need a game plan to move through it.

An example of the game plan Andi created for herself during the challenging season was: 

• Counseling 
• This helped her process the changes and her mind. 
• Celebrate Recovery Pasters Group
• This helped her continue to have weekly discipleship, so spiritual. 
• Exercise 
• This helped her physically. 

This game plan helped her body, mind, and spirit. But she mentions paying attention to the red flags in each of those, too. 

I hope this helps you navigate change.

Listen or Watch now:

Listen on iTunes, Spotify and Google Play.

Watch on YouTube.

Favorite quotes: 

“There is a reason why the mourning process in the Bible was so wild and why they would put sackcloth and ashes and wail and mourn. They knew they needed to move it out of their bodies so that they could move forward in life.”  

(17:47 Audio) 

“Even taking those little moments that seem impractical like, I don’t have time for this right now. Just let yourself cry for a few minutes and then move on.”

(20:05 Audio)

“For any of us that are navigating anything, any new strategy for your future, your life, or your job, you need a game plan to recover from loss and to recover from the shifts and changes you just walked through.”

(23:08 Audio)

“Just slow yourself down, stop grasping, and ask the Lord what do I need and God what do you want to give me? I know that if you ask the Lord to give you that he will actually tell you, show you, and remind you in Scripture. But then don’t just hear him, do it!”

(35:53 Audio)

Coaching this week: 

How to Increase Your Odds for Success in Life (37:49) 

Some things are a given when we are talking about increasing our odds of success in life. For example, we want to follow Jesus, we want to love Him, we want to stay close to Him, and we know this. Other things that are a given like, don’t self-sabotage, and don’t blow up your life due to your bad decisions, addictions, affairs, and things like that. 

But what else can we do to increase our odds for success in life – when you have two choices in life with anything, I want you to opt for the path that broadens your luck surface area. I want you to think, “How do I broaden the surface area that I have in life for good things to happen to me?” When you do that, it will create more opportunities for serendipity and success. So when you increase your luck surface area, it means you’re learning new things, meeting new people, and experiencing new things. 

So my challenge to you is when you have two options, take the one that will increase the likelihood of amazing things happening to you. You will be so happy you did. 

Links to great things we discussed: 

• Andi Andrew Website
• Andi Andrew  Instagram
• Braving Change Release the Past, Welcome Growth, and Trust Where God is Leading You
• Mumford and Sons
• Chris Stapleton
• Coat of Many Colors – Brandon Lake
• Slow Horses
• Reacher
• Prose Curl
• Big Sexy Hair Root Pump Plus Humidity Resistant Volumizing Spray Mousse
• Aveda be curly Curl Enhancer
• DevaCurl
• Sylvania Wifi LED Smart Light Bulb
• Called Creatives
• Remaining You While Raising Them

Hope you loved this episode!  Make sure to hit that subscribe button on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Don’t forget to check us out on YouTube and slap some stars on a review! 🙂

xo,

Alli