Kerstin Lindquist: The beauty of so many pivots in your life—that beauty of going back and forth and doing so many different things in your life—is that the Lord’s plan is always better. And as long as you let Him stay in front of you, every single move you make in transition is blessed as long as you’re following Him.

Healing Stress From The Inside Out: Kerstin Lindquist & Kara Stout – Episode #469

Narrator: Welcome to the Jesus Calling Podcast. This week, we’ll hear from author, certified health coach, and former QVC host Kerstin Lindquist. With a background in journalism and more than a decade in broadcast sales, Kerstin has reached millions through her work in health, wellness, and personal growth. Her journey—marked by infertility, loss, caregiving, and career pivots—inspired her to study the roots of stress and its impact on the body.

Later in the episode, we’ll hear from writer, wife, and mother Kara Stout. Having faced significant personal challenges, including the loss of both her parents and a difficult journey through infertility before adopting her daughter, Kara has learned the importance of simplifying life, setting boundaries, and finding peace amid a fast-paced, often overwhelming, culture.

Let’s begin with Kerstin.

Kerstin Lindquist: Hi everybody, I’m Kerstin Lindquist. I am first and foremost a child of God, but I am a growth strategist. I help people and companies make their faith come alive, whether that be through faith or spirituality.

Fear Keeps Us From Living in the Now

For thirteen years, I was a program host at QVC. As I got deeper into connecting with mainly women—because the QVC audience is mainly a mature woman—I started really, really honing in on the fact that I needed to help women make faith come alive. 

The Lord was such a big part of my life and that can mean so many different things. That can mean faith in yourself, it can mean faith in others, it can be faith to be able to get over this medical hurdle that you have, and obviously it can be faith in Jesus. As my career started to grow and I really leaned on the Lord, He took me through so many turns—from being an anchor on ABC News and NBC News and an investigative reporter in Guantanamo Bay, I mean, I was everywhere, to QVC… As long as I had Him in front of me leading the path, I was able to make the next step. But I will tell you that fear, every step of the way, has been a constant companion. 

“As long as I had Him in front of me leading the path, I was able to make the next step. But I will tell you that fear, every step of the way, has been a constant companion.” – Kerstin Lindquist 

Before I became a mom, my mom got sick, and we ended up going to the University of California Irvine. I remember walking into this very clinical looking area. The doctor came in and put up a brain scan of my mom. She had gone through a whole bunch of cognitive testing, and he said, “Do you see those spots right there?” And there were dark spots in her brain. He said, “A lot of those are attributed to stress.” My mom was crying, and I remember looking down—I had two babies, infant baby girls, on my chest—and I remember thinking, Stress? This can’t happen. My mom was fifty-nine years old and she had already missed, because of what was going on in her brain, becoming a grandmother. And after twelve years, she would battle dementia, Alzheimer’s, and she would die. 

When we decided to have kids, it was very, very, very difficult. We went through a long struggle with infertility and ultimately adoption. We have two adopted children, and then we have one from the womb—miraculous after all the rounds of IVF [In Vitro Fertilization].  So lots of miscarriage, lots of loss. When I did finally become a mom—at the same time that I was losing my mom—it was a tremendously difficult period. I needed her more than ever. Even when I was going through miscarriages and failed adoptions, she was already losing her executive decision-making focus at that point, so she really couldn’t help me through it. And there was a lot of sorrow and a lot of grief. 

So I wrestled with God a lot. In some instances, my mom was a major stress case, and I was going down that road at the same time—always worried about things, always catastrophizing, always living and hurrying and rushing, and [thinking] I’ll sleep when I’m dead. 

So that’s when I went back to school for health, and I studied nutrition and sleep and wellness and all of the components and functional medicine. I became a certified health coach. That’s what really got me into doing supplements and doing fitness because I understood that nutrition and movement and sleep could really help us combat stress.  

The Origins of Stress: Fear

Part of what causes so much stress in our life is fear and it’s us being future-focused. If you remain in the present and you remain next to your Lord, you can calm the fear. But as long as you’re remaining future-focused—what’s gonna be next, how am I gonna provide for my family, how am I gonna get over this health hurdle—then there will be fear. 

“If you remain in the present and you remain next to your Lord, you can calm the fear. But as long as you’re remaining future-focused—what’s gonna be next, how am I gonna provide for my family, how am I gonna get over this health hurdle—then there will be fear.” – Kerstin Lindquist 

I stand on stages and talk to thousands of people at a time about how to reduce stress and get closer to the Lord, hear the Lord, and combat fear. But it is a practice. I have to practice every single day. Quitting a huge corporate job in which I was at the top of my game making $250,000,000 for this corporation every single year—we were scared. We were missionaries for four months with small children during the middle of my career. That was scary as could be, but it’s a practice of staying present.  

“I stand on stages and talk to thousands of people at a time about how to reduce stress and get closer to the Lord, hear the Lord, and combat fear. But it is a practice.” – Kerstin Lindquist 

Fast forward, now that I speak about how to reduce stress, one of the big, huge ingredients to people having stress is not living out their purpose. One of the major reasons that people don’t live out their purpose is because they’re afraid. Our purpose, if you’re a Christian, is always connected to the Lord and serving others. But oftentimes, we’re too afraid that we’re not gonna make the money, that the Lord isn’t going to provide, that we’re gonna make the wrong decision, that we don’t follow the purpose the Lord has for us. And you know, without a doubt, that you’re in your purpose if you feel the Lord’s presence, participation, and peace. And if you don’t, you have to make a change or you will continue to feel fear. And that fear causes stress on the body and that stress causes disease. 

“One of the big, huge ingredients to people having stress is not living out their purpose. One of the major reasons that people don’t live out their purpose is because they’re afraid. Our purpose, if you’re a Christian, is always connected to the Lord and serving others. And you know, without a doubt, that you’re in your purpose if you feel the Lord’s presence, participation, and peace.” – Kerstin Lindquist 

Stress has a negative impact and actually impacts nearly every major mechanism within the body. It causes GI problems and dementia and depression and heart disease and high blood pressure. It causes you to make bad decisions when it comes to things like how you eat and how you drink, which can lead to addiction, and it can lead to weight gain. It’s responsible for cardiovascular problems. It can be responsible for cancer, obesity, and type two diabetes. It really does play a role in almost every single major mechanism within your body.

I mean, when you think about it, when somebody asks, “How are you doing?” your usual answer is, “Fine. But I’m so busy—I’ve got the kids everywhere, and then I’ve gotta do this, and if I could just get through the fourth quarter at work. If I could just get to this point…” We never say, “You know, I’m really relaxed today.” We never say that. And the reason why is because we hold our stress as a badge of honor. We think it’s what we need to prove our worth—to be able to get the corner office, get the bigger paycheck, make our way up, to get everything that we think that we want and that’s gonna make us happy, until we actually get there and realize it’s just made us sick. 

Let’s go back to Jesus. He rested at the top of a mountain in a solitary place, and how we often feel our lives are at the bottom of the boat in the storm—and Jesus rested there. That’s how important it is. He wasn’t producing, He wasn’t striving, He wasn’t proving His worth—He was resting. And we need to take a page out of that book. 

There really isn’t any way for us to completely rid stress from our life, whether it be the good stress or the bad stress. But the beauty of our bodies—even if we go back and look biblically—it really does give us kind of the rule book on how to deal with things, which is why we talk about God resting. Even in the midst of stress—like at the bottom of a boat in a storm—He was still resting. Our bodies are made to handle and metabolize brief, hard times of stress. We also know how to metabolize a hard season at work, but we have to make the decision to not make that every single month, and that’s where we have some ownership over it. We’re like, No, I have to produce more. I have to do better. I have to do more. We’re doing it to ourselves. We have to let ourselves off the hook. 

“There really isn’t any way for us to completely rid stress from our life. But the beauty of our bodies—even if we go back and look biblically—it really does give us kind of the rule book on how to deal with things, which is why we talk about God resting. Even in the midst of stress—like at the bottom of a boat in a storm—He was still resting.” – Kerstin Lindquist

I do love Jesus Calling. I’ve been using those for forever. Not only reading through, but then going into the passages. I love to read a passage in my devotion and then look it up in like three or four other versions to kind of get some context. 

I ask myself the same questions. How are you feeling? Write that down in one word. How do I need to humble myself before the Lord? What am I grateful for? What am I praying for? What am I excited about today? What am I stressed out about today? How am I going to react to that stress? What do I have to hand over to the Lord? I call those broken idols. Who am I gonna serve today? And then I sit for three minutes and I ask the Lord. So I’ve done all this pouring out to Him, and I’ve filled up on the Word, then I sit in silence—which is often the hardest part—and I let Him fill me up.

“I ask myself the same questions [during my devotional time]: How are you feeling? How do I need to humble myself before the Lord? What am I grateful for? What am I praying for? What am I excited about today? What am I stressed out about today? How am I going to react to that stress? What do I have to hand over to the Lord? Who am I gonna serve today?” – Kerstin Lindquist

This is from Jesus Listens by Sarah Young on October 24th. I’m gonna skip down to the middle where it says:

I’ve found that much of the stress in my life results from trying to make things happen before their time has come. You assert Your sovereignty in various ways—including the timing of events. Even though I sometimes get impatient, I really do want to stay close to You on my life-path and do things Your way.  

Please lead me each moment along the way You want me to go. Instead of dashing headlong toward my goal, I invite You to set the pace. As I slow down, I can enjoy the journey in Your Presence.

In Your splendid Name, Jesus, 

Amen

Narrator: To learn more about Kerstin and her work, please visit www.kerstin-lindquist.com. 

Stay tuned to Kara Stout’s story after a brief message.

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 JESUS CALLING: STORIES OF FAITH Returns for Season 4!

Hey everyone, this is Faith Broussard Cade, your host for the fourth season of Jesus Calling: Stories of Faith on UPTV. We’re so excited to bring you inspiring stories of people from all walks of life, who have turned to their faith in times of struggle, and in times of joy. We’re going to hear from some extraordinary guests this season, including Julie Chen Moonves, who you might know as the host of Big Brother. We’ll also be joined by NFL Hall of Famer Terry Bradshaw and Light Heavyweight Champion boxer Andre Ward, GRAMMY award winning gospel singer BeBe Winans, the world renowned Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli, and actress Taraji P. Henson, in addition to many others. And of course, you’ll get to hear more about me and my story, too. I can’t wait to see you there. Stay tuned for the new season coming soon on UPTV! 

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Our next guest is writer, wife and mother Kara Stout. After walking through the grief of losing both parents and the challenges of infertility, she and her husband welcomed their daughter through adoption. In this conversation, Kara shares gentle, practical ways to find peace by slowing down, simplifying, and creating space for what matters most.

Kara Stout: Hi, I’m Kara Stout. I am a wife and a mother to our twenty-one month old daughter, and we live in Los Angeles, California. I’m a writer and have now written my first book. 

I’m from Arizona originally, and I grew up there with my mother and father. I also have an older sister who is fifteen years older than I am. Before I was born, my parents lost two sons in a car accident, so I grew up knowing about my brothers. I still had this joyful, happy home that I grew up in despite that deep grief and loss. But it is interesting what it taught me in my adult life. 

A Gift in the Grief

I was in my mid-twenties when my dad passed away from cancer. And then, twelve years after my dad passed away, my mom was diagnosed. My husband and I had been walking through infertility for several years, and this was especially hard, honestly, because I desperately wanted to become pregnant before my mom passed away. That just wasn’t in God’s plan. 

She was in Dallas, Texas, so I was flying back and forth all the time. I was able to stay there five to six weeks at a time, then come home for like a week break to rest, and then I’d fly back. God gave me a lot of peace that although He didn’t answer the prayer that I really wanted—to be able to have my mom meet our daughter—He really gifted me with this precious time with my mom in that season. It was extremely difficult to have to endure the loss of both parents, but at the same time, I saw how real God was in that suffering, in that grief, and it was a gift to be able to draw near to God in that deep suffering. 

“It was extremely difficult to have to endure the loss of both parents, but at the same time, I saw how real God was in that suffering, in that grief, and it was a gift to be able to draw near to God in that deep suffering.” – Kara Stout 

Learning New Ways to Simplify Life

About two years after my mom passed away, we were blessed with our daughter, Nora, through adoption. So now, I’m in this new season of motherhood where sometimes I struggle with not being able to do it all or really the pressure to keep up. But really, I’m still learning to give myself grace when I’m not able to do it all. Something that I felt God encouraged me to do in the early days of becoming a mother, that I continue to remind myself of today, is to recognize when I’m striving and then to simplify. When I begin to feel overwhelmed and exhausted, I really try to pause and ask God, “Show me how to simplify.” Or I’ll ask Him, “What is it that you would have me take off my plate?” I’m really leaning in and asking Him, “Show me what I should focus on and help me to prioritize what I need to dedicate my time to.” That has helped me so much. He gives me peace with that and also courage to let go of the rest of the should-do’s and follow His leading and guidance, which really helps me to exhale and release worry and stress. 

“Something that I felt God encouraged me to do in the early days of becoming a mother, that I continue to remind myself of today, is to recognize when I’m striving and then to simplify.” – Kara Stout

Especially in the culture today, the world is so fast-paced. There’s so much that can make people feel anxious—things on the news, things in the country, things in the world, things in our loved ones’ lives, our friends’ lives, our personal lives. It can be hard. We’re in a broken world, but I’m so thankful that Jesus gives us His peace.

Reframing Our Anxieties as a Call to Prayer

Sometimes people can become accustomed to anxiety or worry, but God gives us a different way to live—a life lived safe in His peace, despite trials and circumstances. He gives us Himself, which I think is so beautiful to lean on and depend on. And we have emotional signals that alert us to go to God, but sometimes, we ignore or miss those signals and then we miss out on a great amount of peace and the healing God wants to do in our hearts and minds. So I look at anxiety as one of our soul’s signals for God’s help.

“Sometimes people can become accustomed to anxiety or worry, but God gives us a different way to live—a life lived safe in His peace, despite trials and circumstances.” – Kara Stout

Let’s consider a car, for example. It’s built with warning lights that alert us when things need attention. It alerts us that something’s off, needs to be fixed, and looked at. We rely on the mechanic for help to fix the issue, and if we didn’t have a signal, we wouldn’t realize we needed help. I find that it’s the same way for anxiety and worry. Instead of feeling captive to anxiety, what if we recognized anxiety as a signal alerting us to go to God? And what if we saw it as a reminder to quickly go to Him for help? 

This continual, persistent pattern of going to God with, Lord, I need your help. I need Your help again. I’m feeling worried, I’m feeling anxious. Please calm me, calm my heart. It’s just that beautiful rhythm of continually going to God, surrendering your worries to Him, to His sovereignty and to not allow that signal to linger and become too familiar. When it becomes too familiar, we don’t quickly attend to it, right? But God does not leave us on our own to deal with life’s worries and hardships. He’s a God of compassion, and He’s there for us, always, to help us. It’s just His love that really gives us so much peace in those moments. 

“God does not leave us on our own to deal with life’s worries and hardships. He’s a God of compassion, and He’s there for us, always, to help us. It’s just His love that really gives us so much peace in those moments.” – Kara Stout

Finding Rest in a Restless Culture

Though there are multiple ways our hearts can feel troubled at times, God is our ever-present, always available remedy for the troubles of our hearts. And the truth is we sometimes forget to go to God, or we know that we should go to Him but sometimes we don’t. We’re too busy, we’re too distracted, or moving in self-reliance. We may be trying to power through in our strength or in our capacity, which ultimately leads to feeling overwhelmed and weary. 

“Though there are multiple ways our hearts can feel troubled at times, God is our ever-present, always available remedy for the troubles of our hearts.” – Kara Stout 

In a culture that glorifies hustle and productivity, I personally have found how crucial it is for me to invest in time spent with God and to slow down—to intentionally seek Him. True peace is only found in Jesus, and daily He invites us with His words: “Come to me all who are weary and I will give you rest. [Matthew 11:28-30]” So, it’s continually going to Him that is key. Several practices that helped me hold on to Jesus and His peace daily are praying. Praying without ceasing, which is really a continual conversation with God throughout our day. Sharing our requests, yes, but also thanking Him and praising Him and noticing His goodness. For me, noticing His beauty in creation really brings me a lot of joy. Also, there is a treasure of peace found in reading God’s Word and studying it, prioritizing it, not neglecting it. I put together monthly Bible reading plans that I also share on social media if others want to join me, but it really helps hold me accountable to daily be in God’s Word. And lastly, something that’s brought me a tremendous amount of peace is a phone Sabbath. I put my phone away in a drawer every Friday night, and I don’t pull it out until Sunday morning. It just gives me that break from the phone. It quiets all kinds of different noises or alerts, and I have done that now for several years. These daily and weekly practices that we implement to draw near to Jesus help cultivate more and more deeply the most important relationship of our lives.

This is from Jesus Listens, August 21st: 

Immanuel,

Stillness is increasingly hard to come by in this restless, agitated world. I really have to fight to carve out time for You. Distractions come at me from all sides when I try to sit quietly with You. But having an intimate connection with You is worth fighting for, so I won’t give up!

Please help me in my quest to set aside uninterrupted time to spend with You—focusing on You and Your Word. I’m so grateful that You are Immanuel—God with us. As I relax in Your peaceful Presence, letting my concerns slip away, I can hear You whispering to me: “Be still, and know that I am God.”

In Your conquering Name, Jesus,

Amen

Narrator: To learn more about Kara Stout, you may visit www.karastout.com, and be sure to check out her new book, An Untroubled Heart: Calming Anxiety and Finding God’s Peace, at your favorite retailer. 

If you’d like to hear more stories about learning to heal from stress, check out our interview with Roma Downey. 

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Next week: Niki Hardy

Next time on the Jesus Calling Podcast, we’ll hear from author, speaker, and coach Niki Hardy, who shares how losing her mom and sister to cancer—then facing cancer herself—led to a long series of questions and doubts about her faith. 

Niki Hardy: Many people have shame and fear around their questions, and I take time to debunk the myths around our doubts and questions. And fill the reader with hope and excitement that when they take their questions to God, they find intimacy that we’re all craving all along.