The journey of the “Seasons of Love” starts off with the hot topic of waiting. Whether eagerly anticipating the arrival of a partner, awaiting the coveted ring, or reveling in the bliss of marriage, the act of waiting can unfold in so many different ways. It can either be a delightful game filled with joy, patience, and excitement, or it can become a daunting challenge. Each of us can find a connection with at least one of SJR’s besties in this episode. ___________________________________ Watch the “Seasons of Love w/ Kourtney Mason, Mary Searight and Briana Nickerson” series unfold on the Woman Evolve TV App. REGISTER for WE24: womanevolveconference.com Stay plugged into the Woman Evolve community: Download the APP: Woman Evolve www.womanevolve.com www.womanevolve.tv download the app from any mobile device’s app store, first 7 days are FREE! Want to support this ministry? Text WEGIVE to (833) 611-9066 FOLLOW US ON THE SOCIALS: Instagram: Woman Evolve and Sarah Jakes Roberts Twitter: Woman Evolve and SJakesRoberts Facebook: Woman Evolve and Sarah Jakes Roberts Music: Interview L#: 42W5Z9C6GR
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hey you how are you I hope this finds
you well I am so excited about 2024 and
all that it has in store for woman
evolve if you have not heard the news
yet when I was praying to God about what
the theme would be for 2024 God just
gave me the word surrender much like we
had with hope last year we’re going to
go on a journey of really unpacking what
it means to surrender what are we laying
down why are we laying it down and who
do we become on the other side of it for
the month of February we could not think
of any better way to talk about
surrender than to talk about it in the
context of becoming love we know that
God is love and that perfect love cast
out fear and so when we talk about
surrender in the context of love we
often have to consider what fears what
lifestyle what changes do we need to
make in order to surrender to becoming
love now I’m going to transparently tell
you that this is probably going to be
one of your favorite series but also let
you know that we are giving it to you in
a way that is less than how we
anticipated it so the day that I was
scheduled to be a part of this
incredible conversation I got a phone
call that my daughter Mckenzie was being
rushed to the emergency room via
ambulance because she had a concussion
she fell during volleyball practice
smacked her head blacked out had a
concussion we got M eyes we got x-ray
she’s doing much better now she was in a
neck brace for some time extremely
painful headaches but she’s on the other
side of it thank God for healing but we
had already flown in booked the crew
booked the space in order to facilitate
this conversation so I didn’t get to be
a part of it so this is my way of
minding their business even though I
wasn’t there I’m going to set up theep
episode tell you about why I think this
conversation is important and then you
get to hear from some people who I love
so much let me introduce them to you
first so we have Courtney Courtney is my
bestie for the resty we have been
friends since I was 10 years old she is
37 years old she has been um an
incredible Auntie to my children an
amazing friend she is a boss climbing
the corporate ladder I see her um like
what do they call I’m not a corporate
girly so don’t judge me but I see her
evaluations from her supervisor and I’m
constantly Blown Away about how she’s
showing up with empathy love kindness
and pushing her team and their goals
forward I asked her to be a part of this
conversation though is because my girl
wants to be outside well she doesn’t
want to be outside but she’s ready to
start perhaps entertaining what it means
to be in a relationship and that is no
small feat for her because in order to
come to that space she’s had to do a lot
of healing work and in the the process
of doing that healing work now her heart
is open to what it means to become love
first for yourself through yourself
regardless of the trauma you have
experienced in your childhood or in
other relationships so that you can
become love for someone else you’re
going to love her she’s my girl then my
little sister Briana Briana is a part of
this conversation she is a woman whose
resiliency I admire she is a single
mother of my two God babies they call me
God Mommy and it lights up my life
and she is figuring out what it means to
become love while mothering while
setting a new precedent for her children
and on the other side of a long-term
relationship coming to an end navigating
co-parenting and her identity as a
single mother who is absolutely gorgeous
brilliant and ready for what the next
stage of her life is going to look like
Dr Nita Phillips is going to be a part
of this conversation she wasn’t able to
join us because we had so much change
that happened the week that we filmed
this but we share in our history this
incredible woman Pastor Mary seite
Pastor Mary seite hails from New Jersey
she has been a friend of my family since
before I was born and she comes around
so much she’s been so supportive so
loving every time I see her that about
three years ago I was like let’s just
make this official and be my godmother I
gave myself my own godmother for those
of you who don’t know my parents had me
on accident it’s all right God’s healed
me they playing my sister about what 3
to six weeks later no I think it’s a
little bit longer maybe about two months
later my mom got pregnant with me and so
boom here I am they didn’t have a God
parent lined up but I got to choose my
god parent Pastor Mary seite is a
spiritual Warrior she is love the
embodiment of love she is warmth she is
Joy she is kindness she is a force of
Nature and together these women are
going to facilitate a conversation I
send in questions I send in topics I
thought about you I thought about my own
questions and they’re going to
facilitate a conversation that centers
around surrendering to becoming love
let’s get into it okay um I’m Bri I am
32 single two kids um 2 and A2 years out
of a very long relationship 12 years so
finding love with myself again that’s it
that sounds pretty awesome I love it
here so um Mary C W and I’m just excited
to be here with you both and um I found
love about maybe 48 years ago my my boo
okay love and we’re um we have two
children and we have four grandchildren
and and we do ministry together in New
Jersey so I’m I’m just glad to be here
to talk about love because this is near
and dear to my heart awesome I’m
Courtney Mason I am 37 years old I am
single with no children and I’m with Bri
I’m in the season of just love on myself
and I really want to experience what the
fullness of love is for me awesome I
like that yeah so what are we gonna do
we want to just start talk girl talk yes
girl talk
yes this is so good I’m glad that we are
together and we’re going to share some
things that’s going to really help
others when they when they get a chance
to see it but most importantly it’s
going to help us so I’m here to glean
from you and we have some questions that
we want to answer you ready
so sjr wants to know has this waiting
season brought you any unexpected growth
or
surprises yeah a lot of growth um a lot
of surprises um I think the biggest
surprise would be actually falling back
in love with myself because I was out of
love with myself uh for so long and that
has been the biggest surprise for me and
now I know what to expect out of someone
else loving me um I’m still learning
searching finding new things out about
myself every single day so that’s been
very surprising and unexpected for me
learning how to love my children better
um loving my mother my friends loving
every and loving God yes better cuz he
was not the center um before I found
love with myself and I can’t love myself
without loving him
that is so important I love that too I
love that and and when you said loving
yourself that is in order for us to love
others we have to has to begin here
within us absolutely you know he says
love your neighbor as yourself and so
I’m glad to hear that this is good
awesome I’m excited for you too I’m
excited for
you okay we have some more questions you
want to do sure okay you ready I’m ready
all right Get Ready Get Ready Get
ready okay
okay Miss Mary oh okay sjr wants to know
about a time when life took a turn and
you had to wait and see how it would
unfold wow there have been a lot of
turns ups and downs but I would say one
turn was when our children became adults
and our lives were turning my life was
turning because as a mother as a
nurturer you know I’m just always there
for everyone else so I had to really
begin to say what is it that you really
want to do I stepped into a
self-discovery place for me and um at
first I was
scared but as I was turning I said this
is not so bad and so it it was it was
challenging but I’m glad I think every
turn of your life you know you have to
look at it as if it’s it’s something
that’s going to produce something good
that’s going to come out of it and you
know so that was one out of the I’m 66
so there are many more you look good so
I I would say that was one and even for
us as a husband and a wife you know just
really spending that quality time
together we realized that it was not you
know nobody house was quiet and so we
you know learned how to turn things
around and our lives as well and you
know and even again me as an individual
as a person just just really spending
time with myself and really stepping
into who I was evolving and becoming and
so I think that is one of the turns for
me it was challenging but I’m glad it
happened for me oh that’s awesome all
right you ready my turn okay it’s your
turn all
right she’s all excited she going ask
somebody the questions
right Courtney yeah is J wants to know
in your experience in Waiting for a
partner how have you navigated being
patient yet still putting yourself out
there currently working on
it um kind of like what you said earlier
Bri um in the past I haven’t made the
best decisions in partners with men um
I’ve learned a lot through therapy about
why that took place so I’ve spent a a
fair season of my life really getting to
know myself and loving myself and like
you said Bri when you really start to
love yourself you won’t accept anything
less from someone else so right now I do
feel like I’m ready and in in other
times I would say that I’m ready and I
don’t think that I really was I wasn’t
whole I wasn’t healed I would have been
jumping into a relationship just to not
be lonely um but now I love being to
myself but I also am accepting and open
of a relationship so it’s been hard to
navigate I think the biggest thing that
I’ve had to do is forgive myself for
what I put up with in the past and
promise to love on myself and I’m going
to exude that energy to someone else and
hopefully receive what I’m giving out so
I’ve been very patient cuz I’ve been
single for a while okay um but I will
say that I’m open to it and I won’t
accept anything less than what I’m
giving myself and I’m still learning how
to fully love myself so it’s going to be
a continuous Journey but I’m not going
to accept anything less than where I’m
at right now I know that’s yes I like
that that’s good and when he comes you
will know you will know and you won’t be
afraid because you know what you’re
looking for and you know what to receive
now and so this is this is a good place
you’re in I receive that okay I receive
it
okay I told you that you would fall
absolutely in love with these women it’s
my prayer that you take this
conversation perhaps your journal and
get out and open your heart before God
that you would take a moment and see how
are you prohibiting yourself from
becoming love what past experiences have
changed your perspective on becoming
love and not necessarily in the hopes of
having a relationship with someone else
but rather how can I Foster a better
relationship with myself can I give you
a few questions to think on as you have
this moment of Discovery one of the
things that we asked in the episode was
how has this waiting season brought you
any unexpected growth or surprises
sometimes we’re so committed to being in
the waiting season that we don’t even
see how the waiting season has shaped us
changed us and transformed us I want you
to take some time and think about one
boo are you in a waiting SE are you in a
waiting season have you even tapped into
that yet are you in a waiting season
because you are becoming love or are you
in a waiting season because you are
resisting hurt there is a difference
because when we are in a waiting season
because we are becoming L we are
intentionally taking the time that we
are waiting and turning that Focus
inwardly towards building a better
relationship with God to building a
better relationship with ourselves and
others we are healing but when we are in
a waiting season from a place of hurt
all we think about is how can we protect
how can we isolate how can we make sure
that we never experience a certain hurt
again and so I want you to Define what
type of waiting season am I in and if
you are in that waiting season to take
it another step and go what unexpected
surprises changes or growth have I
experienced as a result of this waiting
season if I was just going from
relationship to relationship or
distraction to distraction I would not
have discovered that I can be by myself
I would not have discovered that this
waiting season has really turned into
distraction season because I’m not
sitting with myself no matter where you
are on your journey I hope you remember
that this is a judgment free zone if you
can’t be honest with yourself then you
cannot in you cannot expect that you’ll
be able to be honest with God honest
with others and so the more that you are
able to say God here’s my heart I’m
opening it up how do you want to change
me how do you want to transform me how
do I grow from here so that I can
partner with you in the earth what a
privilege it is to partner with God Even
in our waiting Seasons he’s not just the
god of doing he’s not just the god of
going and Performing he is the god that
doesn’t mind sitting with you while you
wait so take a deep breath breathe in
breathe out you’re not stuck you’re in a
season of development but it is on you
to be intentional about how you allow
the Holy Spirit to challenge you into
who you are developing into I hope this
helps you we’re going to be back next
week with more episodes with some of my
favorite people you don’t want to miss
it