I remember being a young girl, often caught in moments of deep overwhelm and anxiety. At the root were limiting beliefs about rejection, which showed up as either control or perfectionism. My dad didn’t know the language of “limiting beliefs” or why I behaved the way I did, but he did his best in those moments. I can still picture myself stressing over unfinished homework or panicking about a looming project when he would gently step in and ask, “How do you eat an elephant?”
After a long pause, he’d smile and answer, “One bite at a time.”
I guess that's a lot like faith and paints the picture of what it feels like to walk with the Lord, chasing after the BOLD dreams He's given us. Scripture says:
Faith without deeds is dead. James 2:26
Faith shows up in action.
It is demonstrated in how we live our lives. This is the concept of THE NEXT BOLD STEP at its core—taking proactive steps forward despite what’s happening around you, despite how you feel, and despite the unknowns in front of you. Hebrews 11:6 reminds us: Without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him. When we anchor our faith in the character of God, it releases something within us that compels obedience.
I learned this deeply in one defining season of my life: When I realized I couldn’t pursue the dream God had given me without first getting sober. If you’ve ever walked through sobriety, you know it’s a one-foot-in-front-of-the-other kind of lifestyle. The overwhelm feels massive. The gap between where you are and where you want to be feels impossibly wide. And the hard feels—well, really hard.
Truthfully, this concept of THE NEXT BOLD STEP is what carried me through my sobriety. I can still remember staring down the endless road of “never drinking again,” and it felt paralyzing. I didn’t drink excessively, but I drank often. It was woven into my daily routine. And when I started to think about “forever,” it was too much. My mind flooded with anxious thoughts: What about when Malachi gets married? No champagne toast? What about Christmas Eve traditions with the family? What about Friday nights with the girlfriends? What about tonight?
The anxiety was real. But eventually, I had to shift my focus. Instead of obsessing over the next fifteen years, I learned to anchor myself in the present moment. I remember telling myself, kindly but firmly, “I don’t know about fifteen years from now or a year from now or even tonight. All I know is that in this moment, right here, I’m not drinking.”
And moment by moment, day by day, I began taking THE NEXT BOLD STEP, stacking small wins. I learned to feast on the manna God gave for that day, just like Israel in the wilderness. I realized I didn’t have what I needed to conquer my addiction for the next twenty years, but I had enough grace for today. I had enough faith for this moment.
Some of you need to hear this: you don’t need enough faith for the next twenty years. You don’t need all the answers for the next decade. You just need enough grace for today. The same God who provided manna daily for Israel will give you what you need for this day—and tomorrow, He’ll do it again.
When the Israelites were delivered from Egypt and began their journey through the wilderness, they entered what we often call a season of testing—but it was really a season of training.
Seasons of Training
God had just broken them free from 400 years of slavery, but while they were physically out of Egypt, Egypt was still in them. They had learned to depend on Pharaoh for provision, structure, and direction. And now, in the wilderness—stripped of certainty and comfort—God had to rewire their dependencies. Not to punish them, but to prepare them.
So what does God do? He sends manna from heaven. Scriptures says, “Then the Lord said to Moses, ‘I will rain down bread from heaven for you. The people are to go out each day and gather enough for that day... In this way I will test them and see whether they will follow my instructions’” (Exodus 16:4 NIV).
The manna wasn’t just food. It was a divine training plan.
God provided just enough for each day—no more, no less. If they tried to store it up (out of fear or striving), it would rot. Why? Because God was teaching them daily dependence, not weekly stockpiling. He wanted them to learn to trust Him in the hardest of times so they would worship Him in the best of times.
If they could trust Him for bread in the wilderness, they could trust Him with vineyards in the Promised Land. He used the desert season to detox their hearts from every other source of security. No idols. No backup plans. No Pharaoh. Just Him.
And He does the same with us.
God uses wilderness seasons—not to destroy us—but to discipline our dependencies. He trains us to look to Him first, not last. He lets us feel the ache of lack so we’ll discover the abundance of His presence. Manna may look like there’s barely enough, but it teaches us that He is more than enough. So, whether you're in a season of overflow or in a dry place—remember: He’s still providing, still preparing you, and still worthy of your worship.
What's Old Testament history got to do with us today? Look at what Jesus tells His disciples in the book of Matthew as they brought Him their concerns, both spoken and unspoken. They were worried about the same things we worry about today: provision, protection, purpose. What would they eat? What would they wear? How would they live?
Jesus replies, Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own (Matthew 6:34 NIV).
Listen, that doesn’t mean God won’t show up for you tomorrow—and the next day and the next day and every day after that. It simply means He’s so good that He’s giving us permission not to bear the false responsibility of needing to play God the way we so often do. He’s saying: Let’s just focus on today. Let’s be here. Let’s handle this one step, one breath, one act of obedience at a time.
That means, don’t worry about next Friday. Don’t worry about Christmas Eve. Don’t stress over your 15-year plan. He’s got that covered. What He’s asking is: Will you trust Me with today?
Now, I hear you… You might be thinking, “Okay, JG, I get it, but you don’t understand. I’ve got bills to pay. A business to run. A past that haunts me. Habits that won’t quit. Addictions I can’t break.”
And I say—me too. I’ve been there. I have walked that road. I still walk that road. But the Bible speaks to that, too.
Right before verse 34, Jesus reminds us in Matthew 6:28–32 not to worry about even the basics. He says, Why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. And then in verse 30, If that is how God clothes the grass of the field… will He not much more clothe you—you of little faith?
All roads lead back to faith! Jesus isn’t saying your needs don’t matter. He’s saying, “I already know.”
That word—knows—it gets me. Because it’s not just head knowledge. It’s heart knowledge. He’s not distant from your need; He’s already working on it. God isn’t asking you to ignore the bills, the struggles, or the desires. He’s just asking that those things don’t own you. Your Heavenly Father knows what you need.
Because here’s what happens: we start looking to our needs for identity. We start looking to the dream, the breakthrough, the outcome, the bank account, the job—to be our source. And suddenly, we’re asking those things to give us something only God can.
That means, first, look to Him. Because the best gift is just… Him. Then, take that God-size dream and begin breaking it down into bite-size chunks. Or how my dad used to say, “How would you eat an elephant?”
“One bite at a time dad.”
He wasn’t wrong.
So today, just take THE NEXT BOLD STEP. Even when it’s unclear, trust God’s plan and believe that God is always with you. Watch my video on how to hear God’s plan clearly, explore my NEW book , or get yourself a free devotional resource to anchor your heart in His presence.
