012: Laying a Fleece: Seeking God’s Confirmation in Decision-Making with Sasha Star Robertson

 
Podcast cover art: Episode 12 - Laying a Fleece: Seeking Confirmation from God in Decision-Making with Sasha Star Robertson, Christian life coach
 

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Show Notes

In this episode, we explore the concept of seeking divine confirmation when facing important decisions. Drawing from the biblical story of Gideon laying a fleece before God to confirm his calling, we dive into what "laying a fleece" could look like in our lives today. Does it signify a lack of trust, or is it simply a means to ensure we're accurately hearing from God? Life coach Sasha Star Robertson shares personal stories of how she has applied the concept, from buying a house to navigating business decisions. We talk about how God's word is a lamp to our feet, illuminating our path one step at a time. Additionally, we explore the significance of asking God to clearly signal whether to proceed or halt, ensuring alignment with His plan and direction.

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Transcript

Lauren

Hey friends. I am excited for today's episode. I'm chatting with Sasha Star Robertson, a Christian life coach on a topic that I was very intrigued by when I first heard her mention it. And this is the concept of laing a fleece in order to hear confirmation from God. Now if that sounds bizarre, it comes from the story of Gideon in the Bible where he literally put a fleece out in order for God to give him a sign as to whether God was actually speaking to him.

And now we're not talking about actually laying a fleece down for us, but we dive into that concept of what we can do to make sure something is from God, when we feel him speaking to us or when we are just facing a big decision and want to know his direction, want to make sure that we have his blessing and that we're on the right path.

And then we also share a little bit about Sasha's upcoming momference. So if you are a mom, you definitely need to listen in. It's an online free conference that will be a blessing to you in your faith journey and finding purpose and your path and taking action. So listen in, as we dive into today's episode.

Intro: Welcome to the Anchored Decision Show. I'm your host, Lauren Black, the world's biggest overthinker turned decision coach, all by the grace of God. Now I'm on a mission to help you make easier decisions, discover God's will, and live with purpose. Tune in weekly to hear real life decision stories, expert insights, and faith based strategies, to help you navigate your decisions with confidence. So ditch your pros and cons list and learn to make better decisions without asking your mom or losing another night of sleep. Let's go.

Lauren

Hi, everyone. Welcome back to the Anchored Decision Show. I am super excited for today's guest, Sasha Starr Robertson. Sasha is a life coach with a focus on intentional living and biblical mindset. She helps driven moms create a balanced life and schedule through biblical mindset.

And I forget exactly how I first met Sasha. It was either her podcast or her Facebook group, which led to the other. But, her intentional mom life with Jesus podcast is so great with filling you with just spiritual guidance and how to have that balance in motherhood with keeping Jesus at the center. And that's also what her Facebook group is about.

And that is mom life balance. And from there, once I was in her Facebook group, I won two free life coaching sessions with Sasha. So she helped me work through some of those issues I had of my schedule and trying to find time for fitness while keeping up with my daily time with God and just finding that balance while not neglecting my kids.

I was a speaker at her conference last year, her online momference called I AM MOM. And I'll be speaking at again this year, which is coming up soon. So we will provide all the details for that. And the link will be in the show notes. So excited to talk about that, but it's a summit to help you live out your role as moms, take intentional action with your gifts and your purposes while staying rooted in Christ. So, that was a long introduction, but Sasha, welcome.

Sasha

Thank you so much for having me and I want to apologize right off the bat. Cause I've got like a frog in my throat this morning. And I'm like, of course, of course, but yes, Lauren, it was so fun having you in the Facebook group. I mean, still is right. You're still there, but it was a couple of times that you came up as the most engaged person and we got to do those coaching calls. And I think, at least one of them was aired on my podcast. And, we talked a lot about, about meal planning, I think, and how to. How to tackle that.

And so it's just super fun. I love getting to know moms. I love connecting with moms. I love pouring into moms. I love the Lord. And so tying those things together, of course, and helping moms be more productive as a huge passion of mine. So, yeah, thank you for having me here. It's very exciting. It's very exciting to watch you have this journey of launching your podcast.

And, I love everything that you're doing.

Lauren

Oh, thank you so much. Well, it's exciting what you're doing with, and I'm excited for this year's conference as well, or the momference. So yeah, I wanted to talk to Sasha about a concept I had seen her bring up either on her podcast or in the Facebook group, and this is the concept of laying out a fleece, and if you don't know what story that's from, I do want Sasha to introduce the story.

But I just thought it was so intriguing of her taking this biblical concept and applying it to her life today. So, go ahead and share a little bit about this, the concept of that.

Sasha

Yeah, so it comes from Judges 6 and I can't really take credit for it. I had, it was actually a young girl that I was mentoring years and years ago say something about she was going to lay out a fleece. And I was like What are you talking about? You know? So then we talked about it and then I went and read the story in Judges about this and I was like, Oh, this is a really great idea just to test and ask God for more discernment over a decision that you're making. And so, Gideon was, I don't have his whole like backstory I'm so sorry. I didn't like do all kinds of study before doing this podcast episode, but I just want to talk about from Judges six, starting at verse 36, where the fleece actually takes place. Um, my Bible has this like uh, intro at the top that says the sign of the fleece.

And so my understanding of this is the Lord had already spoken something over Gideon. He said that Gideon will save Israel. And Gideon was like, are you sure, Lord? Like, are you sure? And so Gideon lays out a fleece on the floor and he's like having this prayer, this conversation with the Lord. And he says, if there is dew on the fleece, but the floor, the ground is dry, then I will know that you mean what you said.

And so he wakes up in the morning and that exact thing has happened. But he's like, but wait, I'm not for sure for sure. Right. And so then he asked God to do the opposite, essentially. And he says to the Lord, even don't let your anger burn against me, but please let me test you once more, just so I know. Right. And he says, if the fleece is dry and the ground is wet, so flips the script, right, then I will know. And God did that. And so Gideon He had already heard this from the Lord. He had already heard, okay, we're doing X, you know, or I will bless you with X, or I will walk you through X, right? And Gideon had this, like, I think, like many of us do, in these big, scary, like, stepping out moments, like, Saving Israel. Come on. That's like a huge thing. We're not doing, maybe not things as big and awesome as that, but we can go to God if we are in those moments of like, are you sure? I don't, I don't know. Like, did you really say this? Did you really mean this? Was this from you or was this my own thoughts? Was this the enemy?

We all have those moments where we're like, I don't know. Was this really God? And so the concept of laying out the fleece, I think has been a really amazing tool in my life, because I believe we have a God of confirmation, right? If it's something that God has put on our heart, something that God wants us to do, something that God has called us to do, he is going to confirm it.

He's not a God of confusion. He's a God of confirmation, and he's going to keep bringing it up. He's going to have it come through a song on the radio, through a friend you haven't talked to in a while, through a sermon, Through Facebook posts when you're just in the scroll right? Through the Bible study that you've picked up and haven't done in a while and your daily devotion that you've been consistent with, he'll just bring it in a lot of different directions.

But if you're maybe not seeing that, and you just want to have this like, back and forth dialogue with the Lord and have this opportunity, laying out a fleece is a fantastic way to do that. And so for me, it hasn't looked like exactly laying out a fleece, right? I'm not like putting out a blanket outside and saying, Lord do this, right?

But in my life, it's looked like a couple of different ways. And one of the number one ways that I can think of is when we bought our home. And this was, I want to say nine years ago now. And we came to this house to buy the house. And there were a couple instances for one, we had to sell our other home or we had to have a renter.

And we were like, okay, God, if this is supposed to happen, like if we're supposed to buy this house, then please let a renter come. And the renter came the very last day. Right. And it was like, okay, Lord, but if we're really supposed to buy this house, Then, there was some other thing that was supposed to happen. I'm trying to remember exactly what. I think it was something to do with the funding or something like that. We wanted a certain numbers, a rate to come under a certain amount or whatever. Oh, I think it was the mortgage. We wanted the mortgage to be comparable to what we were paying for rent in a place that was half the size.

So it wasn't the exact flip the script, right? Of like, we'll give us a renter, we'll don't give us a renter kind of a thing. But, we were able to use this concept of the fleece to say, "Okay, Lord, if this, then that." And we've used this many times throughout our life after that. It's like, okay, well, if we're meant to buy this RV, then when we get back from our vacation, let it still be available and let the people accept our offer. And if we're not meant to buy the RV, then let somebody else just buy it while we're on vacation and we don't even have to worry about it. Right. And just this, "if then" kind of back and forth with God and allowing him to help us make even small decisions and big decisions like buying a house or whatever else.

And, this momference actually that we're going to talk about soon in a little bit more detail, is almost like a fleece for my business. It's like, okay, God, whatever's going to happen, like with this momference, we'll see. This is kind of going to be a fleece that I'm putting out because I've been working really hard and I have gone through a big seasonal change in my life. We have a new baby and business has been less of a priority, but as some of you might imagine running a virtual event with nearly 30 speakers, it's a huge task to take on. And it's very time consuming. And so it's making business a lot bigger than I really want it to be in my life right now. And so I'm like, okay, God, where does business fit in? Like, help me figure this out and navigate this in this next season. Um, and so, yeah, there's a lot of different ways that we've used this in our life, and still continue to, but that's kind of like a overview if you will.

Lauren

Yeah. Well, I used to think that Gideon was just not being trusting enough. Because God had sent this angel, I think it was an angel that he sent to him, to give him that message. And so it's like, how could you not believe that?

But at the same time, Gideon was from a very humble family. He said, like, my family is the least of all families, and I'm the least in my family. And when the angel approached him, he was treading wine, er, um, he was Doing the, what, what's it called? Um, trying to, like, do the wheat, where you throw the wheat up in the air and it, like, lets the husk of the wheat float away so that you get just the wheat grains, and you're supposed to the wheat from the chaff?

Right, yes, yes, and you're supposed to do that out where it's windy, but the Israelites were so oppressed that he had to hide in a wine press down in the ground in order to do that, which wouldn't be very productive. So here he is hiding and, the angel comes up and says, "mighty warrior." And he's like, wait, me, are you looking at me? Like, are you sure you have the right person? So I think I can see how he would be a little confused and not wanting to believe God just right off the bat, like, sure, let me go just jump out of this wine press and go save Israel. So instead of approaching it as, Oh, it's his lack of faith. It's no, that is a weird, big request. You want to make sure that that is from God and not something from the enemy, not something that was just a dream of his that he's like, did that really happen?

And so, yeah, I think God, as you said, is a God of confirmation and clarity. And the devil is a deceiver. He wants to trick us into thinking that some things are from God. So when we seek out God's confirmation, I don't think God takes that as, "Oh, you're not being a trusting individual." Unless he has like once Gideon put out all of his signs, if he still started questioning, then you might be like, okay, it's time to just take action. Like set aside your fears. Sometimes I think we are afraid to move forward out of the fear. And so we use the excuse of, "well, did God really say that? Like, was this really from God?" When it's like, you know, it's from God you're just scared because it might be something big or scary like buying a new house while still having another house that you, even if you're renting, what if that renter disappears? Like that's scary stuff.

Sasha

Yeah.

Lauren

So what do you think, as far as this concept of laying a fleece, how could that look like in other people's lives? Like, what could they do and what circumstances would they use this for?

Sasha

Yeah. So I think for me, like when I think about laying a fleece, one of the things that I think my heart is actually asking is for God's will to be done. And for me to have peace in like either circumstance that's in front of me, regardless of the result. Like, if we're buying the house, give us peace. If we're not buying the house and we're moving, you know, back into our condo, give us peace. And so, I think no matter what decision that you're facing in life: should we buy this used car? Should we buy this new car? Should we buy a house? Should I make this move in my business? I think a lot of decisions can be approached with this, and it could be multiple things. Like you could do kind of like the, the, I'm trying to find a way to really describe it, the double question that's the opposite, like Gideon did, and do something along the lines of, um, like, like the example that I had.

Well, if this is still here, when we get back from, this vacation, or if it's still available after we sleep on it, or if it's still available after we're going to give it four days, then we'll take that as, okay, maybe this is something that God wants us to do in our life. And then also trying to find another, barrier, if you will, to entry of whatever that thing is. And just, allowing those things to be and allowing that to be okay. If that makes sense. My husband and I used to make a lot of knee jerk decisions in our life. It's like out of fear, right? Or like fear of missing out or like, scarcity mindset. And we've come to the point in our lives now where it's like, Nope, both of us are on the same page. Like we do not make a decision before sleeping on it. Obviously, what are we having for dinner? You know, not a decision like that, which for me can sometimes be the most difficult decisions to make, but like, if we're going to buy a truck, if we're going to buy a house, if we're going to go on a vacation, if we're gonna buy a new computer, anything that, that takes any kind of decent investment or is going to shift and transition our life in any kind of way that's going to impact each other or our family, we sleep on it.

And sometimes that sleep on it turns into many sleep on its. And we like to wait until we Get to a place of just abundant peace, that peace that surpasses understanding over that decision. And a lot of times we won't make that decision until we do, with the exception of sometimes you just sit in that, like waiting to make a decision space so long and you're like, I don't, I don't know the peace. So you have to make a decision one way or the other. And then you see where the peace comes, right? If you're like, okay, I'm just not going to do it because I don't have peace about it. And then you have all kinds of like anxiety. Double check. It's not fear of missing out or like anything else like that. Right. Where's that coming from? But, essentially what I'm saying is sometimes you have to take action before, you know, hearing that confirmation. But I think a lot of times for us, we're not going to make a knee jerk reaction without creating that time and creating some kind of barrier to create that space to hear from God, if that makes sense.

So I don't know. I think for each person, it's really dependent on what that looks like in your life and your marriage and your family and relationships and to what decision that you're looking at making.

Lauren

One thing, I heard a prayer that someone prays that's very similar to this in line with what you've shared, that they say, God, if I'm not meant to take this path, then do not let any human interactions, like, may there be no human way for this to actually go through. And if I am meant to take this path, then may you keep those doors wide open and may there be no obstacles and barriers that keep me from that. And I've prayed that over my husband was considering taking on a supervisor position at work which would include this really long intensive training program and you have to take a test to pass to even get qualified for it. So there are a lot of steps and barriers to entry and I prayed that God, if this is meant to be then let him pass those tests. Let him get into the training program. Let him, pass all the tests within the training program and so that there's no human blockage there. But, if he's not meant to, then put those barricades up that keeps him from either passing the test or getting accepted into the program or, the position opening up for him.

And so those are ways that we can, you know, make sure God is the one who's interjecting, leading the way and making sure it's his way, not just ours.

Sasha

Yeah, absolutely. And, you know, in our life lately, we've had to make a ton of big decisions, I feel like. And, and I think ultimately it comes down to, and this is kind of going off, getting it in the fleece, right? But it comes down to desiring God's will over ours is, is ultimately what I think and I believe is most important because he is a good father and he, he has good things for those who love him and are called according to his purposes. And I feel like I, you know, every believer really falls within that category.

And so, almost five months ago, our middle son, all of our kids are adopted, his mom had a baby girl and they called 10 hours after she was born and said, "Hey , please come and get her." And we're like, uh, what? Like knee jerk reaction. Make a decision, right? Like that's something we did not sleep on, which goes against everything my husband and I just said, but it was one of those things like we knew that this was from the Lord and the Lord was calling us to do this.

We also, he's been going back and forth, contemplating a career change. And so that's been like a several month long process of just spending more time in prayer and kind of asking, just like you were saying about, you know, if this is something that we're supposed to do, like, make it abundantly clear. And if it's something that we're not, then put up barriers, put up blockades. And, and God really, it went from the day that our daughter was born, both of us being like, yep, this career change is happening, like we are moving. You are going to back to school to get this doctorate, right? And now four and a half months later, we're both like, yeah, I don't think this is the direction that we're supposed to go. Like, our hearts have an unsettled peace about this transition.

And so it's really crazy the way that God works in those different ways. But it is, it's just like, God, if this is what you want for us to do, make the path clear. And if it's not, put that stuff in the way.

And the last example that I want to give is like, it's almost summer here in Alaska, right? We just started getting this warmer weather and we've been looking for a camper cause we really want to be outside and camping as much as possible. We have all these little kids and so it's really difficult to do the tent camping thing with all the littles in Alaska where there's tons of bears.

And we had some friends put up a camper for sale and we're like, "Oh, this is perfect. It's got the bunks in the back in a separate room. Like this is exactly what we're looking for." And then, we just felt like they were asking too much for it. And so we went to them and we talked to them and we're like, look, we're not trying to like talk you down on price. Like we believe it's worth what you're asking, but this is, you know, what we're able to come up with right now. And, and they're like, you know what I believe, like, you know, everything is from God and like, he's got control over this. And, and I was like, yeah, I hate to hear the answer, but you know what? I believe you in this, you know, and I believe that God is going to make it happen if it's supposed to. And two or three days later, they sold the camper to somebody else. And at first I was a little bit heartbroken because I'm like, they're friends, like this was going to be a great camper, but I'm like, you know what? God protected us from something that was not supposed to be the camper for us. Maybe we're not supposed to buy one this year. I still don't know exactly what that looks like. So I was actually thinking about this podcast episode last night, and I was thinking about this whole camper decision and I was like, I believe that if we are meant to have a camper this summer, that God is going to put the perfect camper at the perfect price right in front of us. And it was just going to be a clear path of like, this is meant to be. And so we're still waiting to see what that looks like. But, I just think, regardless of what decision that we're making, having that open heart and that open hand and saying, God, your will be done above my own. Just help me come to a place where I can see and understand and clearly walk the direction that you will have me go.

I love Psalm 119:105, because I feel like it's a perfect picture of, you know, the path that God will have us go sometimes. It says, your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path. And so I think it has us going back to seeking God in his presence, in his word, in prayer. And just, sitting there with an open journal, and even praying, and having that two way conversation with God. And saying, you know, every step of the way, just light that next step. Because historically, this lamp to my feet, is like a little lantern. It's not this big LED see into to the future lights like we have today. It's literally a little lantern powered by fuel. And it has maybe a four foot radius that it illuminates.

And so I think a lot of times we want to see this big future vision, the picture at the end, like the whole path, we want it lit up like the highway at night. But really, sometimes God is only going to give us that next step of obedience. And he just wants to see us take that next step before moving forward.

And so it's, it's that whole analogy, I guess, is a little bit different than making a decision with a camper, but I'm just like, to me, every next step is this next camper that pops up that a friend texts us or shows up on marketplace, like, is this the one? I don't know. Let's go through this process and just pray over this and say, is this the next step? Nope. Okay. Is this the next step? Nope. And just trusting that he's going to lead us where is ultimately the most promised land for us and our responsibility is just to trust and obey.

Lauren

Yeah, I love that so much. I've actually shared that exact passage on the podcast before with that same analogy of that.

I love it that yeah, your word is a lamp to my feet, not the spotlight down the road. And I'm going to add a shameless plug for my presentation and the I AM MOM conference coming up that, we are recording right after this. My talk is all about setting your decision foundation or to go along with the anchored branding, your decision compass, but basically having certain things that you predetermine that you're going to live by and stand by that helps shape those decisions so that certain things, that might not work for a camper, but getting a call that, Hey, your son has a sister that needs a home right now. That can be a yes instant decision because you know that family is an important feature for you and that's a non negotiable in your life. That is a priority. So you can say instantly yes to that because you've already set that as a foundational item in your life.

Sasha

Yeah. Absolutely.

Lauren

So I think this is a good segway into your momference.

So if you want to share a little bit more about that and, tell people where they can find it and get registered and what it's all about.

Sasha

Yeah. So this year is the third annual, so God really put it on my heart, back in, I guess it was 2022 to bring together a group of women, a group of moms in particular, to just pour into, encourage, inspire, give practical how to's to moms.

And so I created this event and we just did, a series of Facebook lives over a couple of days and I think I had maybe 14 speakers at that first one. So the next year it grew and it was even bigger. And I think I had 24 speakers last year. And just kind of same thing, but it was just, it was kind of all over the place. Like there was talks about parenting. There was talks about health. There was talks about, like Lauren came and spoke and, talks about your identity and just a whole plethora of things. And this year I just really felt God putting it on my heart to bring it more narrowed down in the area of helping moms really fully understand their identity in Him, their call and purposes in motherhood, but also beyond motherhood.

Like, what does that look like to use your strengths, your gifts? What does it look like to find them first? And then what does it look like to use them, in your community, in the world to impact the kingdom? And then also just a whole plethora of practical how tos. And so I'm so thankful that Lauren's coming to talk about decision making because of course, when you're in the role of motherhood, you're in the throes of it, especially with littles or no matter what stage, right?

I think motherhood has its challenges, whether you have babies in diapers or toddlers or school age kids or high school kids or kids leaving the nest, right? The whole gamut has its own challenges, but how do we come to making those decisions? Which like, is now the time for me to, to step out and use my gifts?

And so just a lot of encouragement, inspiration, practical how to's on how to create the time, how to manage your home so that you can create the time? And so it's just really, this three days essentially. It's about your identity in God and firmly living from that in the season of motherhood.

Really understanding your purpose and call and motherhood and beyond and then practical how tos in nailing mom life, but also stepping out and whatever that looks like for you. The talks have just been phenomenal I've got I think about half of them recorded at the time that we're recording this and I'm really excited to just see this impact women.

God has already been showing up in massive ways. So is the enemy trying to stop this. And so it's going to be phenomenal. We have almost 30 speakers and it's a totally free event. So you can come, you sign up. The free access is limited to a certain couple of days, but you can snag VIP for a very small price. Lauren has a direct link for that. And you get access not only to all the speakers this year, but over $1,200 worth of bonuses that a lot of our speakers are providing. And access to 2023 and 2022's I AM MOM. And so, just a phenomenal thing. If you want to be encouraged poured into, if you want to hear from really powerful women, mothers who love the Lord and are speaking from a place of biblical authority, then this, I AM MOM, life giving momference is certainly for you.

Lauren

Yes, we will have all of those links posted for everyone to find in the show notes, which you can find at anchoreddecisions.com/12 or wherever you're listening to this podcast. So definitely looking forward to that. And I love the theme for this year and how it kind of flows like step one, step two, step three. So that'll be really awesome. Now, I do end all of my interviews with some rapid fire questions, so you'll have to answer, make quick decisions on what you would choose.

  • So, rainy day or snowy day? Snow.

  • Swimming or hiking? Hiking. Wait. Swimming. Sorry. I love them both!

  • Books or movies? Books.

  • Instagram or Facebook? Facebook.

  • Board games or card games? Board.

  • And night person or morning person? Mmm. That's so hard. My mouth was originally going to say night. Yeah, I'm naturally a night person. I've worked really hard to become more of a morning person. Cause that time is, I think, even more sweet, but. Naturally a night.

Yeah, though I've had times when I'm, I am a morning person. I'm like, okay, I'm going to get up an hour before the kids to do my devotional. And then my kids start working up an hour and 15 minutes early. I'm like, what? No!

Sasha

Exactly. It's always happens. What are you doing here? You're supposed to be sleeping.

Lauren

Yeah. All right. Well, Sasha, I don't know if you had mentioned any of your links, so go ahead and mention where people can find you online.

Sasha

Yeah. So, Intentional Mom Life with Jesus is my podcast. You can find it anywhere you're listening to podcasts.

And you can find that also at momlifewithjesus.com. Very simple and straightforward. I also have a podcast that I do with my husband called Faithful Family Fortress. Again, you can find that anywhere you listen to podcasts or faithfulfamilyfortress.com. And then the next place that I probably hang out the most is going to be, on Facebook at Sasha Star Robertson is my business page. You can find links to the community, my personal page, and all of that stuff right on there.

Yep. So, and then go ahead and sign up for the momference as well. And we will hopefully see you all there. Yes. All right. Bye Sasha.

Sasha

Thank you. Bye.

Lauren

Hey, just wanted to pop in and share that link for the I AM MOM, momference, so that you don't have to go to the show notes if you don't want to. You can find the link at anchoreddecisions.com/Iammom. So you can register for free, or you can upgrade to the VIP pass so that you have forever access plus access to all of the freebies in there that so many of the speakers have given as well as access to the 2022 and 2023 I AM MOMs who have a ton of content to spur you on and your faith journey and as parenting from a faith-based perspective.

Outro: Thanks for listening all the way through. For more content on decision making and discovering God's will, hit subscribe so you don't miss an episode, or head over to anchoreddecisions.com for show notes and more content related to this episode. See you soon for another episode of the Anchored Decision Show.