From Entrepreneurial Drive to Spiritual Awakening
Hi there! I'm Kristin Gallatin, and I'm excited to share my personal journey to Christ with you. Before I dive into that, let me tell you a little about myself.
Who Am I?
I'm currently a real estate broker and owner of Savvy Properties, helping clients buy, sell, and invest in real estate across Minnesota. I'm also a co-founder of Lead Network Professionals, where we empower small business owners and entrepreneurs with the skills, tools, and resources they need to thrive. Prior to this, I spent many years in business management, leading teams, implementing new processes, and developing training materials in dynamic environments.
But beyond my professional life, and perhaps most importantly, I am a mom, a wife, and a Christian. This is where my story truly begins.
I didn't always know God, and I didn't always know Christ. For a long time, I didn't even understand the difference — that Christ is my love and God is my mentor. I missed out on the profound joy and beauty that comes from fully embracing a relationship with God.
My journey to faith truly kicked off when my husband and I decided to become self-employed. It was a huge leap, and he firmly believed I needed to "get right by God." His exact words. I remember thinking, "What does hard work, perseverance, education, and all the things an entrepreneur needs have to do with God?"
Well, I'm going to tell you how I found God, and why it's all so important.
Three Pillars of My Faith Journey
Three key insights really resonated with me and helped me grasp the bigger picture of God.
1. The Heart of the Matter
This first point is all about your heart. We often face difficult decisions and undesirable situations, and we try our best to do what we believe is right. But honestly, are we always trying to do the right thing? Maybe not all the time.
The truth is, we are all broken. Some of our brokenness is more obvious, some is more inward. You might see someone who appears to have it all together – perfect family, career, finances – the picture of perfection. But I think we all have a sense that if we scratch beneath that perfect facade, we might find some messiness, some past mistakes, or unjust decisions. Does that make them a bad person? No. Does it mean they didn't try to do the right thing? Probably not.
So how do you "get right" when your heart knows something is wrong, but you do it anyway? How do you live with that?
Let me tell you: you can't fool God. God sees your heart before He sees your outward appearance. He sees the struggles, the difficulties, and the weaknesses within you. He sees when we choose the easy path over the right path.
Do you think making "better decisions" will somehow prove you're a better person to God? Probably not, because what's in your heart is like a billboard to Him. He already knows, and deep down, so do you. This doesn't mean you'll make the right decision every time. But when you make the wrong one, you need to feel remorse. You should genuinely want to do what's right. And when you couldn't, you should introspect and think about how you could have chosen a different, righteous path.
Knowing your actions might not be the best doesn't mean you're a bad person, or that you should beat yourself up for the rest of your life. It means you need to work on it. You can't fool God.
Recognize what drives you, what behaviors, environments, or even "tribes" encourage those wrong choices. Address those areas of your life and find ways to improve. This might mean taking solitary time for reflection, diving into scripture, seeking advice from a Christian counselor, your pastor, or a trusted follower of Christ. Start evaluating how your heart feels in different situations.
I promise you, you'll start to see a change. As you get closer to walking the path Jesus walked, you'll feel better, even if it means confronting past mistakes. That's how you know you're headed in the right direction. The heart of the matter is where it all begins.
2. Our Undeniable Significance
The second pivotal discovery for me was realizing something profound about our existence. Forget what elementary school taught you about Earth being billions of years old – a concept called "young Earth" suggests that from the time of Adam and Eve, there have only been about six or seven thousand years.
When I learned that people haven't been around for billions of years, I actually felt more significant. It was a "wow" moment.
I was chosen. I was selected to walk this earth with these people, at this time.
This felt so much more significant than imagining a giant, billions-of-years concept. I'm not here to debate science, but I do recall a science report that indicated all human DNA stems from one man and one woman. To me, that's incredibly compelling, suggesting a single origin, a single intention, a single purpose.
We are all chosen, hand-picked by God. We are created imperfectly perfect – exactly what was needed to fulfill our purpose. While we can delve into fulfilling our purpose another time, for now, it's crucial to grasp that you are far more significant than you realize. Being on this Earth, at this time, as the unique person you are, is incredibly significant and should be treated as such. Be grateful for life, and for the people around you. Life won't always be easy, but it is yours to make of it what you will. So, I encourage you to put on those rose-colored glasses and start walking with purpose.
3. The Beautiful Design of Marriage
The third insight brings me full circle back to my husband. He has always been a devoted follower of Christ and a lover of God, possessing incredible integrity and a wonderful moral compass. While we all struggle, being in a marriage and having a family were paramount to him — part of his life's purpose.
As an independent woman who has always persevered, blazed my own trails, and climbed corporate ladders, the biblical depiction of marriage was a little harder for me to accept initially. The idea of the man being the dominant figure in the home was challenging.
However, as I continued my journey and learned more about God and Christ, I recognized that when we're not on the path we were designed for, things tend to be bumpy. We "bump up against the sides" of the road. Finding that center road becomes much harder. For me, that's how marriage felt.
I am a strong woman. I can take care of myself. I don't "need" a man to dominate or control me, or tell me what to do. At the same time, I am a woman, and I deserve to be lovingly cared for and treated like the beautiful woman I am. This doesn't mean domination or control; it means I will be lovingly cared for, emotionally supported, and able to lean on the strength a man was built with when times are tough, finding rest when I need it.
I listened to a sermon series called "A Beautiful Design," which was all about marriage and how men and women interact according to God's design. It described that the man's strength should be in the leadership role of the family, while still being caring, loving, and upholding his wife in ways she might not uphold herself, because we weren't built for that. Women were built to nurture, love, and guide. While some of us thrive in outward leadership, business, or artistic endeavors, and others love being at home raising families, all these attributes work with a husband being the "man of the house."
As Christ said, a man should love his wife like he loves the church, and she needs to be first and foremost in his life, even before himself. The common trouble we see in families is when the husband is dominating and solely motivated by his own needs. When a man truly seeks a biblical relationship, he'll serve the needs of his family first, and therefore, his wife's desires will be at the forefront, not squashed or hidden. Her voice will be heard through him.
As I went through this series, I started implementing these simple ideas and behaviors. I began being more outwardly supportive in ways that were more traditional and unlike my previous self, all without my husband's knowledge. We already have an extraordinary relationship – we are blessed, though not perfect, and we certainly have our disagreements. But when I started stepping back and allowing him to "be the man," I found he was more apt to support me. He was more willing to share my ideas when I wasn't pushing them so hard, and we became closer. He responded exactly as expected and depicted in the Bible.
This was huge for me because I am independent and strong, and I vowed never to feel like I had to be taken care of. That's not my style. But what is my style is partnership, respect, and loving God. He is my mentor, my father. When I felt I didn't have one on Earth, He was there, looking out for me, patiently waiting for me to find my path and allow the man in my life who loved me so much to lead and guide me.
What Now?
Now that these three insights have exploded in my mind, filling me with love for God and Christ and the beauty of this spirituality I've embraced, what do I do?
I created this blog post (and the video it came from!) for you. I want to share my story. I want to help other strong women realize that you can be strong, independent, and in control of your life, while also being biblical and fulfilled. You can let God lead you there.
I'll continue in my search, talking with God every day. I'll keep finding ways and resources to mission. I want to be closer, immersed in the world God created and in the way it was meant to be. I find so much more peace and rest in it, and I look forward to it.
Thank you for your time today. I feel blessed to share this with you. I hope some of what I've said helps you on your journey in spirituality and understanding our Creator's purpose for our lives.
I'd love to hear your thoughts or if you have any questions! Feel free to reach out to me at kristingallatin@gmail.com, or leave your comments below. I look at them all the time and would love to connect.
God bless you!
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