The In Between

Season 2 Episode 5 Title: The In Between Guest: Briauna Hoyt Co-host: Ebie Hepworth Episode Description: In this episode we hear from Briauna Hoyt, a woman of many gifts. We unpack the process of picking up your life and moving it across the ocean to pursue a dream of grad school. Bri talks about the different challenges that come with obedience and shares about her current season of "The In Between." She talks about the adjustment from a wild season to a restful season and all that comes with it.  Episode Summary: Briauna has had an organization the past ten years called Two Cents Project, whose mission is to love the poor well, both the United States and Internationally. The last few years the Lord has asked her to lay it down and work in the marketplace.This last year she went to Grad School in London and got her Masters Degree recently. Bri lived in London for the last year completing her masters degree. She talks about how important it is to surround ourselves with vision that’s greater than our own. When she got accepted she realized that the Lord really does keep a jar of all of our dreams, all of our tears, all of our hopes, and they never expire.  She packed up her bags, quit her job, moved across the world, and left all she knew as familiar to start this program. For Bri, courage and bravery have always been two things the Lord has dealt with her. A lot of little moments have led up to that moment, this decision was very sacrificial and costly. She knew she was saying yes to so much more when she said yes. You have to know your why and what he’s saying and what he’s doing in this season. She knew if He was opening this door that she wanted to walk through it. God gave her the grace to do it, although tough, absolutely worth it.  How were you able to have influence in that sphere, being sold out on the gospel and the faithfulness of Jesus? In this quest for purpose and calling, so often we forget that our calling often starts with what were naturally gifted at, what’s on our hearts, what were interested in. Bri feels called to influence the influencers, in some seasons that’s been missionaries and some its been business leaders or entrepreneurs. It’s just being obedient to that season and this season was a season of influencing the influencers. For Bri, she had a mentor that told her to focus in this year on building relationships with people in the room, think about the magnitude at being at one of the top schools in the world -- imagine what God could do with that down the road with those relationships she built. She remembers the first day of school the Lord telling her she would be a listener this year. She learned so much through this, sitting back and hearing from people she learned how important it is to hear where people are coming from, even if we disagree. Long term she wants to influence these people for the Kingdom and to see Kingdom leaders raised up. In this season in London, with so much studying, Bri talks about intimacy with the Father. In the midst of a different culture, without her people,  prayer became her lifeline. She found Him to be this professor sitting next to her in every class, giving her answers, being an ever present help. In different seasons, the Holy Spirit reveals Himself in different ways.  When the Lord plucks you out of comfort, asks you to lay things down, and then takes you different places -- how do you transition with obedience and honor? For Bri, it's about yieldedness. What do you actually believe? Do you actually believe that God's plan for your life is better than your own or are you not willing to give up control? There has been a constant thread throughout her life of building things and laying them down, some things she picks up again and some not. You have to really trust Him, and it’s a process. She has always told the Lord that she wanted a unique story, a story that no one else has. In scripture we see that when he asks people to lay things down, its because He has something far beyond what we can see, so much better. At 18 years old Bri made a promise to the Lord that she didn’t want Him to go to the next person because she wouldn’t be obedient, her heart has always been to give Him her obedience. It’s broken her of control, her independence, her will and control and continues to. She wants to yield to His will because she knows He loves her, His plans are so much bigger and better. This is what builds a history of courage with the Lord.  How do I know that it’s God calling me to something? Bri looks for different things, different checks and balances that brings about counsel in decisions. One of those is ultimately peace, peace is something that she knows in her spirit man, in her stomach. It’s a burning spirit of peace, you might not feel peace in your mind. It’s also so important to have mentors, to run things by and share what we feel the Lord saying with them. Bri remained consistent in praying for mentors, the Lord taught her to not give up during that. God wants to give us mentors and sometimes we have too high of expectations- it’s so important to realize that mentors are busy, they have their own jobs and families. It’s really about being persistent and humbling yourself. Go where the mentor is, work with their schedule. Proverbs says if you really want wisdom you will search for it like a hidden treasure. Get grit, know that mentors are a valuable part of your life, they open doors that no man can open for you, and pursue them. You will find that the Lord will reward you. The tone that you are requesting something from a mentor is everything, when it’s covered in humility it makes all the difference. The posture we pursue a mentorship in is everything.  Bri shares about her current season right now, going from a hundred miles a minute to now a slow season of rest. It’s been a season of unwinding, it can be awkward moving so fast to going into a season of rest. Bri knew that the Lord was bringing her back to the secret place. We are made for connection with our Father, if that relationship is not maintained everything else is lacking. She’s in a season of spending significant time with the Lord and processing what’s going on in her heart and her life and those around her. He’s taking her from being a Martha to a Mary, and she’s in the inbetween. Bri is learning so much about rest, the reality of our country is that we do not stop, we are not balanced. She’s realized it’s time to pause, before she jumps into the next big move and opportunity. It’s important to have a time of winter, hibernating, and resting before the spring. We don’t realize that there are consequences to not resting. She’s in a personal season of asking the Lord to weed out imbalance in her life, learning how to prioritize things that are not as comfortable for her, like rest. You cannot pour out what you don’t have. Bri is learning how to not feel guilty for resting, but how to be a leader that has balance in her life and drawing a line in the sand around rest.