I’ve been deep in my plant mom bag lately, and somehow God decided to use soil, roots, and yellowing leaves to speak truths I’d been avoiding. You know how you see a leaf turning and say, “It’s fine, I’ll deal with it later,” hoping prayer and vibes will fix it? Yeah. Same.

Dead leaves don’t fall off on their own. They cling. They look harmless. But they quietly drain nutrients, block light, and stress the whole plant. And at some point, it became clear this wasn’t about plants at all.

This episode is about the things we keep because they were once alive, once useful, once blessed. The relationships, habits, and thought patterns we keep asking God to revive when He’s been asking us to release them. Pruning isn’t punishment. It’s protection. God doesn’t cut to hurt us. He cuts to preserve what’s meant to grow.

If you’ve been praying for growth while holding on to dead leaves, consider this your reminder. Dead leaves don’t belong on the throne.

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In this week’s episode of No Rival Thrones, I’m joined by my soul sisters as we unpack The Weight of Should. The expectations we carry—on ourselves, on others, and even on God—can feel crushing, but what happens when we lay them down? Together, we share honest stories of disappointment, freedom, and surrender, and talk about what it really means to release the throne of “should” and trust God’s perfect timing.

Episode 2: Defeat Is Not Your God

We’ve all faced moments where failure feels final—when the weight of disappointment sits heavy, and the voice of defeat is louder than hope. But what happens when those moments become more than just struggles? What if we start to build our identity around them? In this episode of No Rival Thrones, we tackle the subtle but dangerous idol of failure.

It’s easy to think of idols only as relationships, money, or fame, but Scripture reminds us that anything we elevate above God—even our past mistakes—can take a throne in our hearts. Many of us don’t realize it, but we’ve made defeat our god: rehearsing losses more than God’s promises, measuring our worth by what didn’t work out, or letting shame decide who we are.

Together, we’ll look at how the enemy uses defeat to keep us paralyzed, how God speaks truth into our darkest valleys, and how surrendering our failures to Him restores freedom. Anchored in Isaiah 41:8-10, this episode will remind you that God calls you chosen, not forsaken; strengthened, not abandoned.

If you’ve ever felt stuck in regret, defined by what went wrong, or convinced that your future is limited because of your past, this conversation is for you. You’ll leave with practical steps to shift your focus from the false throne of defeat to the true King who redeems, restores, and rebuilds.

Because in the Kingdom of God, failure doesn’t get the final word—Jesus does.