36: You Are Already Loved: Claiming Your Seat at the Table (with Andrea Wenburg)

Andrea Joy Wenburg spent many years early in her marriage believing her worth was a direct reflection of how much her husband respected or admired her. After the difficult birth of her second child, Andrea hit a deep low point in her life and struggled for months believing her husband didn’t respect her anymore. Listen as Andrea shares her story of coming to the realization that she was already loved by God and that she no longer had to be a victim of what other people thought of her. This story of empowerment and marital healing will help you develop greater self love, and learn how to love others way more than you fear them.

Andrea is an author, speaker and personal brand strategist who shares a message encouraging others toward a love-filled, authentic self expression in relationships and thought leadership. Her book UNFROZEN: Stop Holding Back and Release the Real You tells the story of her struggle to find effective expression of her own deep thoughts and intense feelings. Making their home in Nebraska, Andrea is totally in love with her husband and two creative kids.

Nuggets of Wisdom from Andrea:

“Healing is not the absence of pain. It is when you choose to love despite the pain. – Dr. Larry Crabb”

“Even my own self-love seems to go up and down. For me that fixed point is God's love. So that is how I thought and that is how I have been able to rest in that ever since then – so my self esteem is not going up and down and up and down based on how other people perceive me, and I am not chasing after their respect. I am not chasing after those two things that I wanted: that seat at the table. I am not chasing after acceptance, and I am not chasing after that chance to have an impact because I know I have them both.”

“Taking risks is like loving other people.”

“I believe that every single person has a reputation of some kind, and we can be intentional with how we go about our lives. And if we are intentional and we have a purpose, we feel like we have a purpose, then we are going to move with more power as we move through and make decisions about what we are going to do with our lives and that we each have a message that might be born out of struggle. And when we get really in touch with where we we have been, how far we have come, and where we are moving then we can take that and turn it into a really powerful force.”

“You do not have to worry about what this other person's thinking about you.”

“I’m not a victim of what other people think of me.” I can love them even if they hurt me.”

“I decided I was going to love them more than I fear them.”

Some of Andrea‘s Favorite Things:

Personal habit: “I'm not good at habits.”

Easy meal: “My favorite easy meal is the one that I pull right out of the freezer and throw in the oven and that is chicken strips and sweet potato fries. We bake them, we do not fry them.”

Possession: “Wooden cutting board from my father-in-law.”

Andrea's Favorite Book: Connecting: Healing Ourselves and Our Relationships by Larry Crabb

Best advice received: “To offer what I am good at.”

Andrea's Happiness Formula:

“I am happiest when I am at rest in God's love internally. So that I can work externally towards that loving self-expression. ”

A Challenge from Andrea:

“Name your fears. [I take a good look at my fears and ask, ‘What is threatened in me? What’s more true than this fear?'] Then remember God loves you. You can be free.”

Resources

AndreaJoyWenburg.com

UNFROZEN: Stop Holding Back and Release the Real You

Connecting: Healing Ourselves and Our Relationships by Larry Crabb

Frozen (2013 Movie)

Subscribe to the Vibrant Happy Women Podcast:

Apple Podcasts · Android · Overcast · Castbox · Radio Public

How to Leave a Review:

Give us a Rating & Review · How to Leave a Review

Ask Jen a Question:

Have a comment or question for me? Email me at support@jenriday.com. I'd love to hear from you!

OTHER WAYS TO ENJOY THIS POST: