The Purpose-Built Woman See the hoodies

Journey 1 of 4 · About 10 minutes

Who do you think you are?

Some of us have heard that question as an insult our whole lives. Today you get to answer it with what God says.

Sit with it

Maybe someone said it out loud when you tried something new. Maybe nobody had to, because the voice in your head said it first. "Who do you think you are, starting a business? Going back to school? Dreaming that big at your age?"

That question has an answer. It just isn't the one fear has been giving you.

VQ

From Vera

For years, every time I felt God pulling me toward more, I heard it: "Who do you think you are?" I'm a nursing assistant. A mom of five. What business did I have praying over people, writing a book, building something of my own? That question kept me small for a long time. Then I started answering it with Scripture instead of fear.

What God says

"But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God's special possession."

1 Peter 2:9 (NIV)

Chosen. Royal. Holy. His. None of those words depend on your past, your bank account, or your age. They were settled before you ever asked.

Answer it for yourself

Your answers stay private on this device. Nobody else can see them, including me.

Your one step this week

Write "I know exactly who I am. I'm His." on a sticky note and put it on your bathroom mirror. Read it out loud every morning for 7 days.

Pray

God, I've let other voices tell me who I am for too long. Today I choose Yours. I am chosen. I am Yours. Give me the courage to live like I believe it. Amen.

Wear the reminder

The "Who Do You Think You Are?" hoodie puts this question on your front and God's answer on your back, so the next woman who reads it gets to answer it too.

Get first access

Journey 2 of 4 · About 10 minutes

Who built you?

You were not an accident or an afterthought. You were built on purpose, and the purpose came with you.

Sit with it

When life gets heavy, we start describing ourselves by our jobs and our bills: a nurse, a mom, tired, behind. Those are things you do and carry. They aren't who built you, and they aren't what you were built for.

Every builder makes something for a reason. So does God.

VQ

From Vera

People have always come to me. To pray with them, to talk about their marriage, to ask how to start a business or go back to school. For years I thought that was just my personality. Now I believe it's how I was built. What do people always come to you for? That might be a clue.

What God says

"For we are God's handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do."

Ephesians 2:10 (NIV)

Handiwork means made by hand, with care. "Prepared in advance" means the good works were planned before you arrived. You weren't built and then handed a purpose. The purpose was in the blueprint.

Answer it for yourself

Your answers stay private on this device. Nobody else can see them, including me.

Your one step this week

Ask two people who know you well: "What do you think I'm built for?" Write down exactly what they say, even if it surprises you.

Pray

God, You built me with Your own hands and You don't make mistakes. Show me what You made me for. Open my eyes to the good works You already prepared, and help me walk into them. Amen.

Wear the reminder

The "Who Built You?" hoodie asks the question on the front and answers it on the back: His workmanship, built on purpose, for a purpose.

Get first access

Journey 3 of 4 · About 10 minutes

Where was God at 2 a.m.?

The house is quiet, your mind isn't, and the hardest questions show up. This one is for those nights.

Sit with it

Two in the morning is when the bills feel bigger, the marriage feels further away, and the dream feels impossible. It's when you lie there asking: Does God even see this? Where is He?

You're not the first woman to ask. The Psalms are full of people asking God the same thing in the dark.

VQ

From Vera

One night around 2 a.m., I was at work when my baby was shivering with a high fever. I begged to go home, and I couldn't leave until morning. I stood in that hallway asking God where He was. I know now He was right there. That night became the reason I decided my life had to change.

What God says

"He who watches over you will not slumber; indeed, he who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep."

Psalm 121:3-4 (NIV)

You may have been the only one awake in your house. You were never the only one awake.

Answer it for yourself

Your answers stay private on this device. Nobody else can see them, including me.

Your one step this week

The next time you wake up at 2 a.m., don't reach for your phone. Pray one honest sentence to God, then write it down when you wake up. Look back at it in a month.

Pray

God, I'm awake and my mind won't rest. You know what I'm carrying, even what I can't say. Thank You that You never sleep on me. Hold me through tonight, and meet me in the morning. Amen.

If tonight is more than a sleepless night, read this page for women who are up right now.

Wear the reminder

The "Where Was God at 2 A.M.?" hoodie carries the answer on the back: right there, He never slept.

Get first access

Journey 4 of 4 · About 10 minutes

What did God promise you?

The dream you set down because it took too long? It may not be dead. It may just be on its way.

Sit with it

Most of us have a promise we stopped talking about. The business. The degree. The house. The healed marriage. We prayed, we waited, nothing seemed to move, and slowly we put it on a shelf so it would stop hurting.

This journey is about taking it back down.

VQ

From Vera

For the longest time, my family and I wanted a home, and it just wasn't working. Then God made a way, and we got our townhome. It didn't end the dream. It opened my eyes. Now I want even better for my family, and I believe I can have it, because I've seen God keep a promise up close.

What God says

"'For I know the plans I have for you,' declares the Lord, 'plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.'"

Jeremiah 29:11 (NIV)

God said this to people living in exile, far from home, with years of waiting still ahead. The promise didn't depend on how things looked. It depended on who was making it.

Answer it for yourself

Your answers stay private on this device. Nobody else can see them, including me.

Your one step this week

Take the smallest step you wrote down, within the next 7 days. Then tell one person you trust what you did and why.

Pray

God, I put this dream down because waiting hurt. Today I'm picking it back up and handing it to You. Show me the next step, and give me the faith to take it, even before I see results. Amen.

Go deeper

My book, Why You're Not Living the Life God Promised, walks you through this one step at a time. And the "What Did God Promise You?" hoodie keeps the question in front of you.

Tell me when they're ready