Grow Where You Are Planted - When Staying Small is the Next Big Thing

In a world that pushes us to do more, Julie reminds us of the beauty and power in going deeper where we are. This episode encourages embracing the quiet, rooted growth that happens in everyday life—nurturing relationships, traditions, and faith—and shows why sometimes staying small is exactly the next level we need.

Transcript

Episode 186 – Grow Where You’re Planted - When Staying Small is the Next Big Thing

Welcome back to Living a Simple Life with a Back Porch View. I’m so glad you’ve joined me today. Pull up a chair, grab your favorite cup, and let’s just sit and visit a while.

We’ve been talking this month about what it means to take your simple life to the next level. About how that gentle life you’ve been building can stretch just a little - how it can grow into something even more meaningful, more purposeful, and yes, sometimes even a little braver.

In our last episode, we talked about how a hobby can become heart work—how something you do with love and intention can start to touch other people’s lives. Whether it’s baking bread or stitching quilts, there’s a way to take what you already enjoy and let it serve a greater purpose.

But today, I want to talk about something that might feel like the opposite—and yet, it’s just as important. It’s the idea that sometimes, the next level of your simple life doesn’t mean going bigger—it means going deeper.

We live in a world that constantly pushes us to scale up. More followers. More income. More impact. We’re taught to look for growth in upward ways—higher numbers, bigger reach, louder voices. But the truth is, some of the most beautiful things in life happen quietly, in small corners, where the soil is rich and the roots grow deep.

So today, let’s talk about what it means to grow where you’re planted. And how, sometimes, staying small is exactly what God is calling us to do.

I don’t know about you, but I’ve had times in my life where I felt this pressure—this tug to “do more” or “be more.” Sometimes it came from others. Sometimes it came from within. I’d see someone starting a big project or launching a new business or getting a book deal, and I’d start to wonder if I was falling behind. If maybe I wasn’t dreaming big enough or working hard enough.

But then I’d step outside. I’d look around at the garden, the cows, the familiar trees standing in their same old places. I’d watch the chickens scratch and peck, just doing what chickens do. I’d hear the soft creak of the rocking chair as I settled in with a notebook and a quiet heart.

And I’d remember.

The simple life was never meant to be a race. It’s not about the numbers. It’s not about proving anything. It’s about living with intention, with gratitude, and with the wisdom to know what’s enough.

Sometimes, enough is a big idea. A platform. A stage. And sometimes, enough is a small life, lived deeply.

Maybe you’re someone who has a little garden out back—not acres, just a few raised beds and a row or two of beans and tomatoes. You don’t sell at the farmers market or post pretty pictures online. You just grow what you eat, maybe share a few extras with a neighbor.

Whether you realize it or not, that’s enough.

Maybe you make beautiful things with your hands—a quilt here, a few cards there. You don’t have a storefront or a website. You just tuck your creations into care packages or give them as gifts to someone who needs a little comfort.

That’s enough, too.

And maybe you’re someone who teaches—not in a school, not in a formal way, but quietly. You pass down recipes to your children, show a friend how to knit, help a young mom figure out how to can green beans for the first time. You’re not looking for recognition. You just show up, gently, when someone needs a little guidance.

That might be the most beautiful kind of enough there is.

See, growing where you’re planted means looking around at the life you already have—the one you’ve worked so hard to build—and asking, “How can I sink my roots even deeper?”

It’s about slowing down, listening to what matters, and finding ways to be fully present right where you are.

I think sometimes we forget how much value there is in small things. A quiet conversation on the porch. A handwritten letter sent in the mail. A pot of soup brought to someone who’s grieving. These aren’t the kinds of things that go viral or make headlines, but they’re the things that hold a community together.

They’re the things that make a simple life rich.

There’s a passage in the Bible I come back to often—the parable of the mustard seed. It’s in Matthew 13. Jesus tells us that the kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. Though it’s the smallest of all seeds, when it grows, it becomes a tree so that the birds come and perch in its branches.

Now, that tree didn’t start big. It started tiny. But it had the potential to grow into something strong and sheltering—not because it was flashy or fast-growing, but because it was faithful to what it was created to do.

You and I are like that mustard seed. Our simple lives may look small to the world, but when we nurture them with faith, intention, and love, they grow into something that provides rest, peace, and strength for others.

And that kind of growth doesn’t require a spotlight. It just requires commitment.

So maybe the next level of your simple life isn’t out there. Maybe it’s already here. Right under your feet. In the relationships you tend, the routines you honor, the quiet ways you serve and give and love.

Growing deeper might look like setting aside more time for rest. Saying no to things that pull you away from your values. Praying more. Listening better. Planting a little more hope in the soil of your everyday life.

It might mean looking for ways to pour into your local community—not in grand gestures, but in small acts of care. Maybe it’s volunteering at the library once a month. Or delivering soup to someone who lives alone. Or mentoring a teen who’s eager to learn an old-fashioned skill.

It might even mean investing more in your family—intentionally making space to talk, to teach, to share stories, to pass down the traditions that mean so much to you.

This kind of growth doesn’t always have a product at the end. It doesn’t come with awards or applause. But it creates a strong foundation - a life that’s rooted in peace, and a faith that’s steady through every season.

I think sometimes we overlook that kind of steady. We think if something isn’t changing or moving or expanding, then it’s standing still. But the truth is, roots grow downward before anything is seen above the soil. And that downward growth is the very thing that keeps the plant from toppling over when the winds come.

Your simple life is the same way.

The world may not see the quiet ways you’re growing, but they matter. And over time, they’ll bear fruit.

So, if you’ve been feeling a little discouraged lately—wondering if your life is too quiet, too small, too ordinary—I want you to hear this:

You are right where you need to be.

And if you’re being called to grow, that growth may not look like stepping into something brand new. It might just look like going deeper into what you’re already doing—with more heart, more faith, more connection.

Sometimes the most radical thing you can do in this world is to choose to live a simple, intentional, rooted life—and stay faithful to it.

I know it’s tempting to chase after the next big thing. I feel that tug sometimes, too. But I’ve learned over the years that the best thing I can do is to stay close to what I love. To honor the life I’ve been given. To care for the people around me. To keep showing up, day by day, in the places where I’ve been planted.

That’s where real beauty grows.

So this week, I’d encourage you to take a little time to reflect. Not on what you should be doing, or what others are doing—but on where you are right now.

Ask yourself:

What’s growing in my life right now?
 Where can I plant deeper roots?
 Who around me could use a little shelter from the storms?
 How can I serve, quietly and faithfully, with the gifts I’ve been given?

You might be surprised at the answers.

And whatever they are—know that they are enough.

Your life doesn’t have to be loud to be meaningful. It doesn’t have to be public to be powerful. It just needs to be lived with intention. With love. And with faith that even the smallest seed, when planted and nurtured, can grow into something strong and sheltering.

Thank you for sitting with me today and sharing this moment of reflection. I hope it’s encouraged you to breathe a little deeper and rest in the beauty of the life you’ve built.

You don’t need to chase more. Sometimes, the greatest joy is found in going deeper, not farther. In staying small—and growing strong.

Until next time, keep tending your life, keep loving your people, and keep choosing the simple, rooted, beautiful path you’re on.

I’ll see you next week on Living a Simple Life with a Back Porch View. Until then, be blessed, stay grounded, and never underestimate the power of small things done with great love.

SHOW NOTES: 

In a world that pushes us to do more, Julie reminds us of the beauty and power in going deeper where we are. This episode encourages embracing the quiet, rooted growth that happens in everyday life—nurturing relationships, traditions, and faith—and shows why sometimes staying small is exactly the next level we need.