Dream Big About Living to Please God, Melanie Bedogne's Story

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Hey friends, welcome to the Her God Story podcast where you will always hear a good

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story to encourage and inspire you in your walk with the Lord.

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I'm your host, Jodie Chiricosta, ministry leader at Somebody Cares America International, author

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and traveler on this journey of faith.

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And I encourage you to like or follow this podcast on your favorite streaming platform

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so you won't miss any of my amazing guests.

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And just a heads up to our regular listeners, we'll be taking a production break in the

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month of August, but we have some amazing stories lined up to start again in September.

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And during the month of August, you might want to take that chance to listen to some

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of the episodes you've missed in the past.

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And have you heard about our Her God Story podcast clubs?

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It's an easy way to gather together a few friends, neighbors or colleagues to talk and

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encourage each other in your walk with the Lord.

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It's very simple.

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Listen to the same episode, download our prepared episode questions from hergodstory.org and

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then discuss over your favorite refreshments.

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It's a great way also to reach out to friends who might not know Christ yet, include them

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in the conversation and see what God will do.

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Listening to an episode takes much less time than reading a book.

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And we think you'll have a lot of takers.

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So gather some friends together and try it out.

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When you do email us at prayer at somebody cares.org so that we can be praying for you.

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How do you live a godly life?

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How do we please God?

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How do we be a Christian?

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There are a lot of answers to those questions and we've explored several in various episodes

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of this podcast.

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Some women we've heard from are serving the Lord as pastors or in full time ministry.

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Others are diligently raising their children to follow God.

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Some are teaching Bible studies or engaging in prayer.

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Each one is living to please God because they are doing what God has called them to do and

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what he's equipped them to do.

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But there's another aspect of living to please God that we haven't really talked a lot about.

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And honestly, we don't hear much about it at all.

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It seems everyone wants to get noticed.

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People, even Christians do or say outlandish things to up their star power, so to speak.

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But there's a better way to be a true influencer in God's sight and in a God pleasing way.

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The apostle Paul writes about it in his first letter to the Thessalonians.

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The Thessalonians 4, 9 through 12 in the New Living Translation says,

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But we don't need to write to you about the importance of loving one another, for God

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himself has taught you to love one another.

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Indeed, you already show your love for all the believers throughout Macedonia.

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Even so, dear brothers and sisters, we urge you to love them even more.

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Make it your goal to live a quiet life, minding your own business and working with your hands,

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just as we instructed you before.

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Men, people who are not believers will respect the way you live and you will not need to

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depend on others.

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My guest, Melanie Badone, has learned the beauty and power of the quiet, responsible

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life that Paul talks about.

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Melanie and I worked together a number of years ago and have recently reconnected.

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It's been inspiring and encouraging to hear her story and what God has been doing in and

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through her.

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She has an MBA as well as a master's degree in biblical studies and has spent the past

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16 years raising her and Jason's wonderful children, working on writing and consulting

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projects and serving in their church.

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Now serving on the employee experience team for a company in Arkansas, she has gained

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a deep appreciation for Christian community.

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I know you're going to appreciate the insights God's given her about reframing our life

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expectations, among other things.

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Welcome, Melanie.

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Thank you so much.

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It's really a joy to be here.

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Melanie, your family life growing up was a bit challenging, but in the midst of it, you

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encountered God in some very sweet and wonderful ways.

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Share about your background and how you came to know Jesus.

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My story, I think like a lot of people, has hard, it has trauma, it has brokenness, interwoven

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with some really beautiful things.

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My family of origin was broken.

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My parents divorced when I was an infant.

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My mom had a chronic illness from before I was born.

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She struggled with mental illness that was really undiagnosed until I was in college.

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There was just a lot of volatility.

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I grew up with a sense of really just trying to find my space.

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I couldn't really figure out where I belonged fully seeking approval.

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I was often just trying to bring some stability to my own circumstances in the midst of just

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a lot of uncertainty.

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I sought that through trying to win the approval of others, really just tried to create that

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environment around me by how I responded, how I acted.

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It created some unhealthy patterns that I had to break later on in life.

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In the midst of that, a number of different struggles that we had growing up, God met

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me in some beautiful ways.

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One just to say, I had parents who knew the Lord.

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My dad was just a rock in our lives.

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We didn't live with him more than a couple of weekends a month, but he was constant.

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He was there.

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He was present.

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He taught me to love Jesus.

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I had a faith community.

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The beautiful thing about my story, one of those ways that God met us that really you

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can't even begin to plan or put together.

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Later you look back and you're like, wow, how did God do that?

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My mom's mom, my grandma on my mom's side, she went to the same church all throughout

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my childhood that my dad went to.

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Even though my mom didn't go to church and I was going back and forth from parents every

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different weekend, I was at the same church every Sunday morning.

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It was a pretty powerful thing.

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I look back and I see the consistency that that provided me in the faith community and

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just the foundation of faith and the people that I encountered along that journey that

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impacted my life.

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It's huge.

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In fact, when I was eight years old, I was with my dad on the farm and he led me to a

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personal relationship with Jesus.

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That's really where my faith journey started in terms of really beginning to know and understand

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what it means to follow Jesus and to build that personal relationship with him.

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Yeah.

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After you made that decision to follow Christ, you said you were on the farm with your dad

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and God started changing you.

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Even as an eight-year-old, we can be changed by the Lord.

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We don't think of ourselves as a child as being all that bad, but the Lord changes us

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because he wants us to be in his image.

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Give us some examples of the changes that you recognized in your life and others recognized

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in your life after you accepted Christ.

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Yeah.

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There's a couple of things that come to mind.

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One, I remember even up into my 40s, just the last few years, my dad would reminisce

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with me about that season whenever I gave my heart to Jesus.

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He's always said, Mel, I remember how your attitude and just your perspective and the

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way that you approach things, it shifted at that time whenever I gave my heart to Jesus.

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Even though I knew of Christ and I learned of him, I was in Sunday school, that whenever

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I made that personal decision, there was a shift.

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There was something that changed in me.

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During that same season, I remember being in the car one day and we were driving.

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Maybe we were driving to church.

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I don't know, but we were on the dirt road and we were just making our way into town.

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I remember being a little frustrated with my dad.

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I was just in angst.

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I remember I couldn't get it all figured out.

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I was upset and I knew that I couldn't resolve it in that moment.

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I remember just praying a quiet prayer to the Lord in that moment.

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I just asked Jesus just to give me a heart change, to just let me release it, help me

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to let it go.

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It was just the sweetest memory, but in that moment, I just felt the peace of the Lord.

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He did empower me just to let that moment go and I was able just to move on.

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It's a small thing, but incredibly powerful if we look at it in the sense of just heart

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change and how God really does meet us in that way.

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What a sweet memory because that really seared in your heart and your life that God interacts

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with you on a personal level.

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I'm sure you drew on that many, many times over the years knowing that when you called

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out to God, He was going to answer.

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Absolutely.

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You know, when we put our faith in Jesus, work on the cross and His resurrection, we

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are immediately justified, made right in God's sight.

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And the Holy Spirit starts working in our lives to make us more like Jesus, but it's

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a process.

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It doesn't happen overnight.

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We are justified in God's sight, but the actual process, it takes a little while.

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In fact, all our lives.

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Melanie, when you were in college, you had a profound experience that helped further

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that process in your life.

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Tell us about that.

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Certainly.

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Well, I alluded to some of the unhealthy patterns that I'd created just to cope and to get through

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sometimes as a child.

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And those really did develop, you know, why, you know, those two strengths, those two threads

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going in my life at the same time.

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You know, I was growing in Christ, really leaning into the Lord and developing just

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a sweet relationship, sweet communion and intimacy with Him.

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You know, I also had this other, you know, aspect of my life where I was just broken.

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You know, just broken kid trying to find my way and just seeking the approval of others,

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insecure, really just not whole.

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So I was in college and ended up working with our summer missions program and ended up on

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an eight week trip to Cameroon and Chad, Africa after my freshman year of college during this

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time.

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You know, you can kind of picture I'm, you know, this this young girl trying to figure

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out life, you know, wanting to serve the Lord with everything yet broken.

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And you know, I ended up with some, as you can imagine, you know, being out in the bush

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of Africa, you're really away from all communications.

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Things just start coming out like, you know, the just the true the stuff in your heart,

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you know, it's just right there in the open and you have to kind of deal with it.

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And so there are some team dynamics that happen and just kind of got to this place where I

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realized I've got it.

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I've got to deal with whatever this is because I'm just not interacting in a healthy way.

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There was a older brother in the Lord on our team that really just in the gentlest and

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kindness of ways, he set me aside and he said, no, I just want to talk to you.

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And he he really guided me through just some encouragement.

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And I think even just from his own journey, encouraged me to really just begin to lay

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out all of the things in my life that had been painful, just journal out those spaces

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that I had really never just fully resolved.

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And it was during that time, I didn't have the option of, you know, going to counseling.

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You know, we were in the middle of the middle of the bush.

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But I began to in my own quiet time with the Lord, journal out prayers, journal out memories

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and begin asking the Lord to enter those places with me, began to walk through areas of forgiveness

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and just just inserting truth, the truth of God's word, the truth of who he says I am

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into those places, you know, using the word of God and worship and and just really just

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fellowship with with Jesus.

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And he met me as a mighty counselor.

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And the only way I can really describe it, Jody, is I went through just heart surgery

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that summer, spiritual heart surgery, and I came back changed, you know, and similar

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to any kind of healing process.

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You know, it's a process.

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It's definitely a process.

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But we we have to walk it out.

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We have to be gentle with ourselves.

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But something changed in me that my demeanor, the way I carried myself, the way I interacted,

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there was a shift.

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And it was because I had become whole.

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He had he had worked a healing work in me that only he could do.

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Yeah.

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And it was so important that you leaned into God.

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I mean, I'm not saying counselors are wrong.

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There are there are some godly, wonderful counselors that help us through.

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But the Lord, the Holy Spirit was your counselor during that time and really spoke truth to

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you through the word of God.

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You know, as we've talked, we've you shared with me how important and impactful Christian

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community has been in your life.

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And after you graduated from college, you went across the country to graduate school

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and God set you in community there that really shaped your life.

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Share a little about the process of your getting to Virginia in the first place and how God

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set you in community.

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Whenever I finished college, you know, I really wasn't tied down to anyone or anything and

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just the world before me and still this, you know, passionate young adult that wanted to

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make a huge impact on the world for Jesus.

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You know, I felt like the next step God was calling me to was grad school.

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So I was making plans over the summer to make my way to Virginia Beach.

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Didn't know anyone.

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I was living in Arkansas at home that summer after school.

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And, you know, I had met some people, you know, through the experience of beginning

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to start my journey at school.

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But it was just a new area for me.

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I didn't I didn't have any any other strong connections.

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And quick little story, you know, as I'm going through this process, you know, just the world

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before me, I had a couple of encounters where my doubts just started coming in, those fears

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of like, what am I doing?

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And, you know, I really began to question that next step and just had a lot of fear

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in that process.

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You know, really, again, another one of those just God encounters where I just really got

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before the Lord and began to ask him, what do you have for me?

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What is this?

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And I know this angst that's building in my heart, like, I've got to deal with this.

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I can't move forward without without knowing that you are, you know, that you are leading

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and guiding me in this next step because it's a big one.

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You know, not all of our decisions are that that big or that drastic.

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But in this season, I knew that this is one that I really needed his direction.

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You know, over a period of a few days, I was just struggling with this doubt and this insecurity

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and this fear.

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And in my time with the Lord, I really just asked him to to begin to confirm or to just

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give me to give me a new a new direction.

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I went to sleep one night a few days into this process.

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And I just said, Lord, if I don't wake up in the morning and have this sense that this

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is from you, this peace, you know, I'm just going to call the school and tell them I'm

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not coming and, you know, just take a pause and figure out what it is you do have for

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me.

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And that next morning, Jody, I can count on one hand the number of times I felt that much

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peace in my life.

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But I woke up with this just utter sense of God's peace and pleasure over this next decision

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in my life.

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And it was such a gift.

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And I remember asking the Lord just in just a casual conversation, you know, what did

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you have in that?

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What was going on?

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And, you know, and the response I got was, you know, there's going to be a time when

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you're going to need to know that this was what I had for you.

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I wanted you to know beyond a shadow of a doubt.

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This is where I have you.

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This is the next step for your life.

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And so, you know, off I went to Virginia.

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You know, this is early 2000, you know, 9 11 happened a year after I got there and began

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to develop community even before that.

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But on 9 11, there was a group of us that had just started seminary together.

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And that night in the midst of this massive, you know, trauma in our nation, you know,

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we gathered at my house and we prayed and we just had this really, really precious prayer

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time over our nation, over the situations that were occurring.

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What really formed from that was some of the sweetest friendships and community, you know,

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that authentic deep community of just doing life together.

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You know, we, it was a group that stayed together for several years and some of them actually

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ended up planning a church together.

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There's just a lot of beautiful things that came out of that.

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But it was just one of those first tastes I have of authentic deep Christian community

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in my adult life.

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And it was precious.

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And it wasn't the last, you know, shortly after the Lord led me through other, some

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other beautiful events to a small community church in Chesapeake, Virginia.

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And it was a church that didn't have a large like young adult ministry, but it was, I was

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drawn to the church because they had families and I was craving to be in a family.

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And so I thought, you know, just as I found a church, you know, what a beautiful thing

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if I want to be in a family to be in a church made of families.

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And really it was just a sweet space that the Lord gave me during that time.

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And really the relationships that I have today, including my marriage and the family that

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I have emerged from that season.

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Yeah.

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You just said, you know, your, your marriage and a lot of relationships emerged from that

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spiritual support that you had.

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And in that process, God was ministering to you that sense of belonging that you'd struggled

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with when you were a child that you mentioned struggling with.

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So how did God minister that sense of belonging to you and, and share the story of how you

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and Jason met and eventually married?

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You know, I had gotten involved at, at this church in, in Chesapeake and really began

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to develop some, some relationships.

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And during this time, I really saw a need to, you know, I mentioned there wasn't a

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large young adult ministry and I saw a need for, you know, for just to, to lead a group

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of young adults that could, you know, that were in college or outside, just outside of

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college that could really do life together and continue to build that community.

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So I went to this small group meeting, small group, I guess, leaders interest meeting,

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if you will.

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And, you know, I got it.

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I, everyone had to go around to share kind of what was it that they had on their mind

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or on their heart.

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And, you know, I shared, you know, just, just how I'd like to help start a small group for

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young adults so that we could just do life together in that season of life.

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And shortly after a young man came in the room, he had been at class and he was late

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to the meeting, but, you know, came around to his turn and he said, you know, basically

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the exact same thing I did.

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You know, he wanted to lead a, he wanted to start a small group for young adults so they

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could do life together.

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And so after the meeting, I went up to him and introduced myself and said, Hey, you said

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the same thing I did.

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Why don't we lead a small group together?

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And he said, okay, what's your number?

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That's how our friendship began.

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That's who eventually I married.

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This is my husband Jason that I'm talking about, but, you know, it started as a friendship,

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you know, he was a few years younger than me.

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I really didn't have an interest in him at first.

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We just began to meet as small group leaders, developed a friendship.

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And it wasn't until months later that something just shifted in our relationship and it happened

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quickly.

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During that time, I was just about to graduate from my grad studies and about to head out

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to Turkey for the summer to work with and serve some missionaries that were getting

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launched.

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Jason and I, you know, in our first early weeks of dating, early months of dating, we

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fell in love over AOL Instant Messenger.

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And at the end of my day, I'd go and jump on the, you know, dial into the internet and

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sit in a kind of a secluded office.

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And I'd just sit there and just, we would just have conversations over Instant Messenger.

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And I remember waking up one morning and I told my friend who I was staying with, like,

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I think I fell in love.

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And I'm looking out over the, you know, over the Mediterranean and just thinking, you know,

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how did this happen?

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And it's, you know, the Lord had just done a really beautiful work in my heart.

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I got home that summer and I had hired Jason to take care of my property.

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I owned a little townhouse in Virginia Beach and I had asked him to take care of my property

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while I was at a town.

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And so I had written a check for him, you know, just to pay him for that task that he

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took on for me.

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And I remember, this is one of the most profound things in the season, but very simple.

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But wrote him a check, handed it to him and he voided the check and then he handed it

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back to me.

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And he said, no, I did this because I want to take care of you.

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And something about that moment just struck a chord in me of this sense of just being

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fully loved, fully cared for and fully belonging.

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It was a very simple gesture, but it was a gift from the Lord.

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It really was just recognizing that even in this man that got up before me to take care

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of me, that the Lord was taking care of me and he had, he had always taken care of me.

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Melanie and I worked together for a bit, helping provide care for widows and orphans and others

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in crisis situations, which is very important to God.

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You know, friends, there are widows as well as orphans all over the world, even now, who

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need to experience the tangible expression of God's love.

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Many have special needs that we as a company of women can meet together.

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Would you consider joining us with a special gift to help?

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Just go to hergodstory.org and click on the widow and orphan tab at the top of the page.

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Now we've heard a little of how God used community, the body of Christ in Melanie's

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life, but there's more.

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Melanie, it was in the context of community that God helped you deal with your fear of

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rejection and also taught you how to develop deep, caring relationships with other believers.

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You know, it reminds me of 1 Peter 1 22 that says, now that you've purified yourself

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by obeying the truth so that you have sincere love for one another, love one another deeply

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from the heart.

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So there's more love to come.

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Tell how God used community to refine your character and also how you fostered that sense

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of loving community in a new place when God moved your family to Arkansas.

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Absolutely.

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That story just comes full circle, doesn't it?

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So you know, I mentioned how earlier in my story, you know, God had met me in a powerful

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way and brought a lot of healing.

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But as we all know that, you know, we never quite reached that full sense of wholeness

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and completion here on earth.

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Like we're never going to be fully whole and fully healed.

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But it's a journey.

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And so even though I was operating from this space of wholeness, there were still just

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broken spaces in me.

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You know, I think one of the things I struggled with throughout my life has been just that

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fear of fear of rejection, fear of being passed over.

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And it's something that I've just had to continually give back to the Lord.

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And it's certainly affected, you know, I think it could have greatly affected my ability

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to engage in community and really lean into community because it's a vulnerable space,

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right?

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But I remember there was a season in which God really dealt with this again in a powerful

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way.

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I was leading women's ministry as a young mom at the same church where the Lord planted

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me and Jason and we started our life together.

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And you know, we had an encounter, you know, it was just it was a simple, I think, one

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woman's breakfast that we had on a Saturday morning.

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And there's, you know, just an encounter that happened that kind of made me like it made

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me feel really like I had messed up or I had just missed the mark.

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And that little thing, that little tiny thing really, I can see how I think the enemy used

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that to just maybe get at that vulnerability that I had in my heart already, that fear

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I had of just being rejected or being passed over or not being enough.

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And so later that day, I just kept kind of looking back on that morning and what had

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happened and I was really struggling with it.

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And it just kind of grew throughout the day, all throughout until that evening.

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I went to bed and I got woken up in the middle of the night just really, I think it's probably

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okay to say I was tormented with just this this fear of having having missed the mark.

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And it and it was bigger than it should have been.

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But it really accentuated, I think, the the brokenness that I was operating from.

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And I remember waking up in the middle of the night and just getting out my journal,

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getting out my Bible and just spending time before the Lord and asking him to just meet

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me in that space because I knew that this wasn't from him.

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And this is this were lies that the enemy was was trying to just plant in my heart.

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And I knew I was fighting the battle.

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In the midst of that overnight experience, I picked up a book off my shelf and it happened

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to be a book I had not read yet, but I had on my shelf.

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It was Beth Moore's So Long in Security.

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And would you know that I opened the book and the page I landed on was that prayer of

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release, that prayer of freedom that she writes out in that book.

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So of all the places that was where I landed.

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And I spent an hour or more just praying through every single word and asking God to meet me

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through the truth of his word that was so evident in that prayer.

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And there was something that was broken over me that night.

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I just I went to bed at peace and I went to bed having laid that to rest.

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And it was just another step in that journey of healing.

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You know, there's just places where we just need the truth of God's word.

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We need to encounter him because there's places in us that we can't do it on our own and we

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were broken.

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But you know, it was you know, it really came to light through community.

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But it was through the truth of God's word that he met me and allowed me to really heal.

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You know, another part of that, you mentioned just my journey to Arkansas.

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So you know, we're doing life in this church with other families.

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You know, we're raising our girls.

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I just had my third daughter, Emmy, and Jason comes to me one day and he says, no, you know,

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we've got a job offer from Arkansas, you know, and I've got an opportunity to to move there,

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you know, to work with family.

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And you know, the first thing I said, I looked at him, I said, why would we move?

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We're so happy here.

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And I truly meant that from the space of, you know, our community and the faith, the

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faith community that we had around us and the the people and the relationships that

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made that season so sweet.

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Well, you know, turn of events, you know, the Lord was leading us to Arkansas.

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And, you know, very quickly, he shifted our hearts and really made it clear that was what

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he had for us.

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And so within a few months, we began that transition back to Arkansas.

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So here I am coming from a church, a sending church in Virginia.

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We were we felt very much at the core of that, that we were part of that core team that send

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sent people out.

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And then all of a sudden, here we are the sent.

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You know, we weren't the senders anymore, but here we are, the sent moving to Arkansas

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and starting to build community all over again.

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Remember that first Sunday at this large church where we were we joined up and connected.

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And I remember walking in that in the foyer of that of that building and feeling just

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absolutely overwhelmed.

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I cried.

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I cried because it was just it was just too much.

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And I remember just feeling that that that yearning for home, that yearning for belonging

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that we had.

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And yet, again, you know, knowing that this is what God had for us, you know, we began

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to walk that out and begin to engage in community and do the things that you do to build those

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relationships and show up with your full selves and your authentic selves.

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And you know, here we are, you know, over 10 years later, and we are doing life with

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one of the most beautiful faith communities we've ever walked with.

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And, you know, we we hold some some precious, precious relationships from our time in Virginia.

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But God has met us here and he's placed us here.

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We've been able to be just surrounded by friends who are family that we do life together and

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they challenge us and help us to be the best versions of ourselves for the for the kingdom

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that we can be.

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Again, is it perfect?

455
00:28:54,320 --> 00:28:58,320
No, you know, there's there's there's no never a perfect group.

456
00:28:58,320 --> 00:29:02,480
But man, we just we just get to do life with some some amazing people.

457
00:29:02,480 --> 00:29:08,120
You know, Melanie, stepping into or committing to a community like you're talking about can

458
00:29:08,120 --> 00:29:13,240
be really scary for people because you said, you know, you have to you have to be vulnerable.

459
00:29:13,240 --> 00:29:18,960
You have to open yourself up and and let people know you if you want to be known and you want

460
00:29:18,960 --> 00:29:20,480
to know them.

461
00:29:20,480 --> 00:29:27,400
So when you were in that process trying to, you know, establish or become a part of that

462
00:29:27,400 --> 00:29:32,000
kind of community again, what were some of the things that you had to determine in your

463
00:29:32,000 --> 00:29:35,160
heart and do to make that happen?

464
00:29:35,160 --> 00:29:40,360
Because it doesn't just happen by sitting at home alone and even just sitting at home

465
00:29:40,360 --> 00:29:41,880
and praying about it.

466
00:29:41,880 --> 00:29:44,360
It takes some action on our part, doesn't it?

467
00:29:44,360 --> 00:29:45,360
Absolutely, absolutely.

468
00:29:45,360 --> 00:29:49,040
You know, I don't know if there's a formula for sure.

469
00:29:49,040 --> 00:29:55,360
But what I've seen work and what I've seen consistently throughout my own experience

470
00:29:55,360 --> 00:30:00,600
and building that beautiful, authentic faith community is, you know, first of all, just

471
00:30:00,600 --> 00:30:01,600
showing up.

472
00:30:01,600 --> 00:30:05,160
You know, you have to show up, but not just once you show up again and you show up again

473
00:30:05,160 --> 00:30:08,320
and again and again and you show up when you don't feel like showing up.

474
00:30:08,320 --> 00:30:14,160
You know, I remember being a part of even a prayer group with some sweet women in my

475
00:30:14,160 --> 00:30:15,160
home.

476
00:30:15,160 --> 00:30:19,200
And, you know, there were days that we had that scheduled time of you creeping up.

477
00:30:19,200 --> 00:30:23,420
And Jodi, I would feel like that was the last thing I wanted to do.

478
00:30:23,420 --> 00:30:25,560
But I knew it was what got had for me.

479
00:30:25,560 --> 00:30:27,280
You know, I knew it was the right thing.

480
00:30:27,280 --> 00:30:29,720
And it was interesting because I wanted it.

481
00:30:29,720 --> 00:30:32,680
But in that moment, like there were times when I just didn't feel it.

482
00:30:32,680 --> 00:30:34,280
But you just show up.

483
00:30:34,280 --> 00:30:36,880
You do it even when you don't feel it.

484
00:30:36,880 --> 00:30:39,640
And then hopefully eventually you feel it and it's really good because it gets really

485
00:30:39,640 --> 00:30:40,640
sweet.

486
00:30:40,640 --> 00:30:43,600
So overcoming that at first is just that consistency.

487
00:30:43,600 --> 00:30:46,040
And then I think it's, you know, showing up with your true self.

488
00:30:46,040 --> 00:30:52,080
You know, I mentioned my own struggle with rejection and just that fear of being set

489
00:30:52,080 --> 00:30:54,840
aside or being passed over.

490
00:30:54,840 --> 00:30:56,560
And it's really easy, I think, for all of us.

491
00:30:56,560 --> 00:31:00,640
We want people to see the side of us we want them to see.

492
00:31:00,640 --> 00:31:06,440
But the truth is we really can't develop that deep, authentic community until we're willing

493
00:31:06,440 --> 00:31:12,680
to show some of those vulnerable spaces, those places that aren't really polished and put

494
00:31:12,680 --> 00:31:13,680
together.

495
00:31:13,680 --> 00:31:15,320
But, you know, because we all have areas of brokenness.

496
00:31:15,320 --> 00:31:16,560
We all have areas of pain.

497
00:31:16,560 --> 00:31:19,600
We all have areas that we're still working through.

498
00:31:19,600 --> 00:31:26,160
But when you begin to let people into those spaces, that's when it really forms.

499
00:31:26,160 --> 00:31:31,600
That's when that true community really forms, when you're able to lean in with people in

500
00:31:31,600 --> 00:31:38,920
their hard spaces and walk through those places, pray through those places, encourage people

501
00:31:38,920 --> 00:31:41,440
in those places and let them do the same.

502
00:31:41,440 --> 00:31:46,120
And then finally, you know, just that space of all of this is meaningful and it can happen

503
00:31:46,120 --> 00:31:48,640
really I think in any kind of context.

504
00:31:48,640 --> 00:31:53,360
But what makes our faith community so special is that we do this when we center it around

505
00:31:53,360 --> 00:31:55,880
the Word and we center it around prayer.

506
00:31:55,880 --> 00:32:01,440
And you know, whenever we add in that element of our faith and really taking the truth of

507
00:32:01,440 --> 00:32:06,040
God's Word and letting that be center and taking the power of prayer and letting that

508
00:32:06,040 --> 00:32:10,800
be what binds us together, that's when it gets really rich.

509
00:32:10,800 --> 00:32:13,600
And that's whenever it becomes powerful and transformative.

510
00:32:13,600 --> 00:32:16,000
That's good.

511
00:32:16,000 --> 00:32:21,360
You know, in addition to be surrounded by a wonderful, caring group of believers at various

512
00:32:21,360 --> 00:32:28,560
stages of your life, God has also made His presence known to you as He's held you through

513
00:32:28,560 --> 00:32:34,120
some difficult times like the death of your mom and years later, your dad.

514
00:32:34,120 --> 00:32:36,160
Can you share about those times?

515
00:32:36,160 --> 00:32:39,960
Those are some big moments for sure.

516
00:32:39,960 --> 00:32:47,240
You know, Jason and I got married in 2005, just a few months before that.

517
00:32:47,240 --> 00:32:52,720
You know, I mentioned that my mom had been chronically ill all throughout her life.

518
00:32:52,720 --> 00:32:56,440
And it really came to a head just a few months before my wedding.

519
00:32:56,440 --> 00:33:00,920
She ended up having a stroke and ended up in a nursing home and really just wasn't functioning

520
00:33:00,920 --> 00:33:03,720
well after that point.

521
00:33:03,720 --> 00:33:07,280
Nine months later, fast forward after our wedding.

522
00:33:07,280 --> 00:33:11,080
And you know, she's in hospice care.

523
00:33:11,080 --> 00:33:15,920
So I travel home to be with her and my sister.

524
00:33:15,920 --> 00:33:18,440
And you know, we are just by her side.

525
00:33:18,440 --> 00:33:22,680
And the Lord gave us some really precious moments in the midst of that.

526
00:33:22,680 --> 00:33:27,120
You know, she was probably coherent for some of the first times.

527
00:33:27,120 --> 00:33:32,240
And you know, in several months, I was able to really connect with her in a sweet way.

528
00:33:32,240 --> 00:33:36,360
I think she wanted to know, make sure that I was taken care of and that I had, you know,

529
00:33:36,360 --> 00:33:40,000
that I had a family to take care of me.

530
00:33:40,000 --> 00:33:47,040
But you know, if I, she passed away that week, just, you know, after a couple of days and

531
00:33:47,040 --> 00:33:48,040
just being able to be there.

532
00:33:48,040 --> 00:33:52,960
And I was grateful to be able to usher her into the presence of the Lord.

533
00:33:52,960 --> 00:33:55,560
And I can be confident of that.

534
00:33:55,560 --> 00:33:58,160
You know, she had a lot of struggles throughout her life.

535
00:33:58,160 --> 00:34:03,120
One of the most beautiful gifts God gave me in the midst of all of that is, you know,

536
00:34:03,120 --> 00:34:07,560
just about six months before my wedding, I'd gone home for a visit.

537
00:34:07,560 --> 00:34:14,440
And I remember sitting with my mom, you know, on her bed, you know, not the best of circumstances.

538
00:34:14,440 --> 00:34:19,520
She was struggling so much and she had struggled all her life, but just had had experienced

539
00:34:19,520 --> 00:34:24,840
so much, I think, just angst and bitterness and resentment and pain.

540
00:34:24,840 --> 00:34:29,520
And all of it was really exacerbated from her mental illness.

541
00:34:29,520 --> 00:34:31,400
She just had a hard time dealing.

542
00:34:31,400 --> 00:34:36,800
But I sat there with her and was talking through just circumstances of her life.

543
00:34:36,800 --> 00:34:41,480
And she was able to share with me, and there was a demeanor that had just shifted in her,

544
00:34:41,480 --> 00:34:45,320
but she was able to share with me how she had just really been able to come to peace

545
00:34:45,320 --> 00:34:50,400
with the Lord, peace with others and really had walked in some forgiveness.

546
00:34:50,400 --> 00:34:57,200
And you know, it wasn't a, you know, a significant amount of like just spiritual wisdom and maturity,

547
00:34:57,200 --> 00:35:01,200
but there was a space of just healing and peace.

548
00:35:01,200 --> 00:35:04,380
And I really believe that was a gift that the Lord gave me to be able to see and be

549
00:35:04,380 --> 00:35:07,420
confident that she was good with the Lord.

550
00:35:07,420 --> 00:35:11,320
She was in a space where she was ready to meet her maker.

551
00:35:11,320 --> 00:35:12,920
And that was really precious.

552
00:35:12,920 --> 00:35:20,120
Looking back on that season, when I think about it and I kind of retraced the circumstances

553
00:35:20,120 --> 00:35:23,280
that were taking place, I think, man, I should have been a mess.

554
00:35:23,280 --> 00:35:29,800
I should have been just really unable to deal because my mom was dying and I was trying

555
00:35:29,800 --> 00:35:31,800
to get married.

556
00:35:31,800 --> 00:35:34,360
And I wonder there.

557
00:35:34,360 --> 00:35:40,600
But I look back and I just remember being carried by the grace of the Lord in just a

558
00:35:40,600 --> 00:35:42,720
really precious way.

559
00:35:42,720 --> 00:35:45,920
I knew it was hard, but I was okay.

560
00:35:45,920 --> 00:35:47,760
I was just in Him.

561
00:35:47,760 --> 00:35:49,800
I was just hidden in Him.

562
00:35:49,800 --> 00:35:57,440
And I was able to experience the joy of those, of my wedding and of those early, those early

563
00:35:57,440 --> 00:36:03,240
months of marriage and God just met us throughout that whole process, through the grief.

564
00:36:03,240 --> 00:36:07,920
And it wasn't even just maybe a few months after my mom passed away that I looked at

565
00:36:07,920 --> 00:36:13,960
Jason and I said, you know, we always wanted to start a family, but I told him, I think

566
00:36:13,960 --> 00:36:16,200
I'm ready to start a family.

567
00:36:16,200 --> 00:36:21,800
And it was almost like this just sweetness of like, okay, let's keep living well.

568
00:36:21,800 --> 00:36:27,240
And would you believe that we soon conceived, brought home my daughter, my first daughter

569
00:36:27,240 --> 00:36:32,200
Sherrilyn on the one year anniversary of my mom's passing.

570
00:36:32,200 --> 00:36:38,560
And you know, not that she in any way replaced that loss, but it was just such a beautiful

571
00:36:38,560 --> 00:36:42,760
reminder to me that God brings life in the midst, even in the midst of pain, even in

572
00:36:42,760 --> 00:36:46,000
the midst of loss, even in the midst of things we don't understand.

573
00:36:46,000 --> 00:36:47,560
Like He continues to bless.

574
00:36:47,560 --> 00:36:51,520
He continues to care and to bring good.

575
00:36:51,520 --> 00:36:56,560
So yeah, certainly through the loss of my mom, I saw God show up in so many beautiful

576
00:36:56,560 --> 00:36:57,560
ways.

577
00:36:57,560 --> 00:37:01,120
You know, my dad, you know, since from the time I was a little girl, I shared stories

578
00:37:01,120 --> 00:37:05,880
about my dad already, but he was such a rock in our family.

579
00:37:05,880 --> 00:37:10,280
I have three sisters, you know, and for all of us, you know, he has just showed up so

580
00:37:10,280 --> 00:37:14,840
beautifully, so intentional, so faithful, not perfect, but so precious.

581
00:37:14,840 --> 00:37:18,760
And you know, we've heard from so many people throughout our lives, just what a, what a

582
00:37:18,760 --> 00:37:22,320
precious man of God and what a blessing He's been to so many.

583
00:37:22,320 --> 00:37:30,320
Well, there was a Thursday morning in December of 2021, I was on my way to work and I got

584
00:37:30,320 --> 00:37:31,880
a call from my dad.

585
00:37:31,880 --> 00:37:36,600
And I remember just having the most, the sweetest conversation with him on the way to my office

586
00:37:36,600 --> 00:37:40,840
that morning and just hearing about what's going on with him.

587
00:37:40,840 --> 00:37:46,280
He was having a little bit of health issues that week and I just got to connect with him

588
00:37:46,280 --> 00:37:49,840
and we were making plans to talk the next day.

589
00:37:49,840 --> 00:37:57,600
And that Thursday night, I got a call late into the evening that my dad had passed unexpectedly

590
00:37:57,600 --> 00:38:00,800
from a massive heart episode.

591
00:38:00,800 --> 00:38:06,440
And you know, this changed my life.

592
00:38:06,440 --> 00:38:13,760
In a moment, my life, my sister's lives, my sweet stepmom's life, they changed forever.

593
00:38:13,760 --> 00:38:18,120
You know, the rug just really got swept out from underneath us.

594
00:38:18,120 --> 00:38:20,200
We didn't know how to do life without my dad.

595
00:38:20,200 --> 00:38:21,960
He was just always there.

596
00:38:21,960 --> 00:38:23,600
He was so big in our lives.

597
00:38:23,600 --> 00:38:30,280
And you know, when you lose someone so big in your lives, it creates a big hole.

598
00:38:30,280 --> 00:38:36,320
And yet, he was simply a reflection of the love of my Heavenly Father.

599
00:38:36,320 --> 00:38:42,800
And my, he wasn't, he wasn't able to be what my Heavenly Father was to me.

600
00:38:42,800 --> 00:38:48,520
And so in that grief, in that loss, you know, where else would I turn but to the Lord?

601
00:38:48,520 --> 00:38:50,280
And you know, he really did carry me.

602
00:38:50,280 --> 00:38:54,880
He carried me and my sisters and my stepmom through that season.

603
00:38:54,880 --> 00:38:57,760
You know, it's still fresh, it's still new.

604
00:38:57,760 --> 00:39:01,800
One of the gifts that God has given us through this is that God has just drawn us, all five

605
00:39:01,800 --> 00:39:05,320
of us together in just a really precious way.

606
00:39:05,320 --> 00:39:12,020
We've been able to, I think, build even a stronger relationship than we ever have and

607
00:39:12,020 --> 00:39:16,200
just cling to one another and continue to minister to one another in the midst of this

608
00:39:16,200 --> 00:39:20,600
pain and just to walk through this season together.

609
00:39:20,600 --> 00:39:22,840
He's been amazing just to bring us through.

610
00:39:22,840 --> 00:39:26,200
There was a day early in the grief process, I didn't know how I'd ever be able to feel

611
00:39:26,200 --> 00:39:30,560
joy again, how I'd ever be able to see straight again.

612
00:39:30,560 --> 00:39:31,560
And yet here we are today.

613
00:39:31,560 --> 00:39:36,720
And I think you see the smile on my face, Jody, but he's been so good.

614
00:39:36,720 --> 00:39:40,480
He's been so good just to meet me in this pain, in this space.

615
00:39:40,480 --> 00:39:44,760
There's still days that I can't see straight, that it hits me from the side.

616
00:39:44,760 --> 00:39:49,160
And you just think, how on earth are we here?

617
00:39:49,160 --> 00:39:53,240
But I also see his goodness all around me.

618
00:39:53,240 --> 00:39:58,400
My community was a huge part of that, just the sustaining support, showing up.

619
00:39:58,400 --> 00:40:03,620
I mean, literally that day, showing up, bringing food, being present, just sitting with me

620
00:40:03,620 --> 00:40:07,880
in my deep, deep pain.

621
00:40:07,880 --> 00:40:12,600
One of the most precious gifts, I could cry just thinking about how they just showed up

622
00:40:12,600 --> 00:40:16,920
and they just were there and they just loved me.

623
00:40:16,920 --> 00:40:22,520
And to have that gift in the midst of such loss is one of the most beautiful things,

624
00:40:22,520 --> 00:40:27,800
I think on this planet, is to walk through hard, hard spaces and have the people around

625
00:40:27,800 --> 00:40:32,080
you that just want to do life with you and just want to be there, good or bad, in the

626
00:40:32,080 --> 00:40:34,480
heart and in the wonderful.

627
00:40:34,480 --> 00:40:40,920
It's really created in me, Jodi, I think these losses, but specifically this last one, just

628
00:40:40,920 --> 00:40:45,080
I think cultivated this eye towards eternity.

629
00:40:45,080 --> 00:40:47,880
I'm fully ready to live.

630
00:40:47,880 --> 00:40:54,800
I'm hoping 50 more years and just live fully for the Lord.

631
00:40:54,800 --> 00:40:59,040
I'm not in a rush to get home, but at the same time, I'm living for eternity.

632
00:40:59,040 --> 00:41:01,120
I'm living for what's to come.

633
00:41:01,120 --> 00:41:06,880
I'm living for home, that true place, that place of true belonging where we're going

634
00:41:06,880 --> 00:41:12,120
to be together forever with our Lord.

635
00:41:12,120 --> 00:41:18,800
There's truly, I think when you begin to walk through seasons of loss like this, you have

636
00:41:18,800 --> 00:41:27,440
the ability, I think, to see things a little bit differently and shape your days with eternity

637
00:41:27,440 --> 00:41:28,440
in mind.

638
00:41:28,440 --> 00:41:32,800
I think that's how God wants us to live, but man, the losses really, I think, give us a

639
00:41:32,800 --> 00:41:33,800
perspective.

640
00:41:33,800 --> 00:41:37,200
Melanie, I mentioned how we worked together for a while.

641
00:41:37,200 --> 00:41:41,640
So I know how competent and how knowledgeable you are.

642
00:41:41,640 --> 00:41:47,760
You have multiple degrees and you even have a sense, a call to full-time ministry.

643
00:41:47,760 --> 00:41:53,760
But when you became a mom, you knew God was calling you to make that a priority.

644
00:41:53,760 --> 00:42:00,760
Along the way, God has reframed your understanding of your calling and everyone's calling.

645
00:42:00,760 --> 00:42:04,520
Explain that a bit in light of the process that He's taken you through.

646
00:42:04,520 --> 00:42:11,840
Yeah, this is a big one, Jodi, I think probably one that's taken me decades to reconcile.

647
00:42:11,840 --> 00:42:13,400
I'm still walking that out.

648
00:42:13,400 --> 00:42:21,600
When I was growing up, Jodi, in my teens, I began to really just continue to lean into

649
00:42:21,600 --> 00:42:26,720
wanting to serve the Lord with my whole life, with my whole heart.

650
00:42:26,720 --> 00:42:32,600
I truly did have a sense of calling to full-time ministry.

651
00:42:32,600 --> 00:42:39,040
I don't know if some of that was shaped by the culture around me, which really, there's

652
00:42:39,040 --> 00:42:46,320
often these encouragements to, is God calling you to full-time ministry?

653
00:42:46,320 --> 00:42:50,000
If you're really sold out for the Lord, perhaps that's the direction that He has for you to

654
00:42:50,000 --> 00:42:51,000
go.

655
00:42:51,000 --> 00:42:56,560
I'm sure there was some of that mixed with just, I think, a sense of like, God, I'm yours.

656
00:42:56,560 --> 00:43:00,760
I want to just serve you with my whole life.

657
00:43:00,760 --> 00:43:05,480
From the time I went to college, my focus was ministry.

658
00:43:05,480 --> 00:43:11,560
I got an undergraduate in biblical literature, went on to seminary and business school.

659
00:43:11,560 --> 00:43:17,320
There's a sense of, even at college, dream big, do big things for God, all wonderful

660
00:43:17,320 --> 00:43:18,320
things.

661
00:43:18,320 --> 00:43:25,280
I think that the way it was shaped and the way that I interpreted it really created for

662
00:43:25,280 --> 00:43:28,120
me this expectation that that's success.

663
00:43:28,120 --> 00:43:34,160
That's really how you make an impact on this world, is you get into ministry and you just

664
00:43:34,160 --> 00:43:37,320
make a splash, you make a big splash.

665
00:43:37,320 --> 00:43:44,640
Not all of it was necessarily misplaced in the sense of, I do feel like there's, for

666
00:43:44,640 --> 00:43:49,400
many, a very strong vocational calling, which I love.

667
00:43:49,400 --> 00:43:55,440
I do hope to continue to be in ministry capacities in different areas of my life throughout the

668
00:43:55,440 --> 00:43:56,440
future.

669
00:43:56,440 --> 00:44:01,600
But at the same time, I think it can look different for so many people.

670
00:44:01,600 --> 00:44:04,160
It certainly has looked different for me.

671
00:44:04,160 --> 00:44:09,240
I've probably spent the last several decades reframing, what does it look like to really

672
00:44:09,240 --> 00:44:19,080
succeed as a Christ follower, to really, to say I made an impact or to say that it mattered.

673
00:44:19,080 --> 00:44:22,760
I think that's where it kind of lands for me, Jodie, is all I've wanted ever is just

674
00:44:22,760 --> 00:44:28,240
for it all to matter, for my life to have a strong impact and to feel like at the end

675
00:44:28,240 --> 00:44:35,200
of the day that he didn't pass me over.

676
00:44:35,200 --> 00:44:44,000
When Jason and I began raising our family, we did feel very strongly that this was the

677
00:44:44,000 --> 00:44:48,080
space that I wanted to enter, that we knew God had for me.

678
00:44:48,080 --> 00:44:53,560
I laid aside my career and focused primarily on being a mom.

679
00:44:53,560 --> 00:44:57,640
I'm grateful that that was a choice I was able to make and that we were able to make

680
00:44:57,640 --> 00:44:58,640
it work.

681
00:44:58,640 --> 00:45:01,560
It was hard, but it was really beautiful.

682
00:45:01,560 --> 00:45:12,480
I was able to do some freelance work and be involved and continue to use some of my skills.

683
00:45:12,480 --> 00:45:18,280
I was able to put my primary focus on my girls and really saw that as a calling.

684
00:45:18,280 --> 00:45:20,600
I'm really grateful for those years.

685
00:45:20,600 --> 00:45:25,160
It's just in the last couple of years that I've reentered full-time work in a full-time

686
00:45:25,160 --> 00:45:29,920
capacity and I just look back and have zero regrets about that season.

687
00:45:29,920 --> 00:45:36,400
Yeah, I remember when we were talking about this initially, you mentioned that idea of

688
00:45:36,400 --> 00:45:43,440
living a quiet life and how that really impacted you, that concept in First Thessalonians that

689
00:45:43,440 --> 00:45:47,520
I read about early on.

690
00:45:47,520 --> 00:45:53,240
Just how you had to lean into that a little bit more than maybe you had ever thought about

691
00:45:53,240 --> 00:45:54,240
before.

692
00:45:54,240 --> 00:45:55,240
Absolutely.

693
00:45:55,240 --> 00:46:00,240
What you know, Jodi, is this.

694
00:46:00,240 --> 00:46:06,440
Success and a life that's poured out for Christ and the world, it can take many forms.

695
00:46:06,440 --> 00:46:11,160
For me and my season with my girls, it was showing up daily for them.

696
00:46:11,160 --> 00:46:20,920
It was laying down my preferences and my conveniences to be there for them.

697
00:46:20,920 --> 00:46:27,680
Great impact doesn't often or even usually mean that large platform, that ministry title,

698
00:46:27,680 --> 00:46:30,960
or even just the renown or the praise of others.

699
00:46:30,960 --> 00:46:35,360
I think we sometimes look at that and it's easy to cling to those things because they're

700
00:46:35,360 --> 00:46:42,800
tangible and they give us that tangible sense of satisfaction and even approval like, okay,

701
00:46:42,800 --> 00:46:43,800
I'm doing it.

702
00:46:43,800 --> 00:46:44,800
I've got this.

703
00:46:44,800 --> 00:46:46,960
But what is success?

704
00:46:46,960 --> 00:46:49,240
What is success in the kingdom?

705
00:46:49,240 --> 00:46:54,680
I think what the Lord has shaped and taught me slowly over time, it's not something that's

706
00:46:54,680 --> 00:47:02,400
come even overnight, but that true success, that true mark of a life that's well lived

707
00:47:02,400 --> 00:47:03,640
is about obedience.

708
00:47:03,640 --> 00:47:05,180
It's about surrender.

709
00:47:05,180 --> 00:47:07,560
It's about that day in, that day out faithfulness.

710
00:47:07,560 --> 00:47:13,960
There's a million little moments of showing up in the lives of your children, in the lives

711
00:47:13,960 --> 00:47:14,960
of your community.

712
00:47:14,960 --> 00:47:21,480
I remember there was my pastor's wife at my wonderful church in Virginia.

713
00:47:21,480 --> 00:47:27,960
She was just a significant impact on my life and on my perspective.

714
00:47:27,960 --> 00:47:33,960
She's the one, Jodi, that first just really made that scripture just ring so true for

715
00:47:33,960 --> 00:47:34,960
me.

716
00:47:34,960 --> 00:47:40,080
But as you mentioned, that may get your ambition to lead a quiet life and to work with your

717
00:47:40,080 --> 00:47:47,520
hands and just the power of recognizing that that can be your ambition.

718
00:47:47,520 --> 00:47:53,640
That's not just the side note that in the kingdom, in the upside down kingdom that we

719
00:47:53,640 --> 00:47:59,640
serve, the one where you're great when you're small, when you're mighty, when you're humble,

720
00:47:59,640 --> 00:48:00,640
that can be your ambition.

721
00:48:00,640 --> 00:48:10,000
And that can be enough to just focus in on being faithful, on being obedient and stewarding

722
00:48:10,000 --> 00:48:11,920
what God puts in your path on a daily basis.

723
00:48:11,920 --> 00:48:13,320
What does He put in front of you?

724
00:48:13,320 --> 00:48:19,120
How are you stewarding those moments and those opportunities to make an impact for Him?

725
00:48:19,120 --> 00:48:22,200
And again, they add up over time.

726
00:48:22,200 --> 00:48:29,400
In that reframing, it's always a temptation to look out and wonder, okay, does it matter?

727
00:48:29,400 --> 00:48:32,880
But truly we've already been told what matters in the Word of God.

728
00:48:32,880 --> 00:48:36,520
And to really to lean into that is one of the most powerful things.

729
00:48:36,520 --> 00:48:41,440
Melanie, you've talked about our goal should always be to live a life that pleases God.

730
00:48:41,440 --> 00:48:45,400
And in this season of your life, what does that mean?

731
00:48:45,400 --> 00:48:51,000
So I alluded back to back in college when we heard just from everywhere in the faith

732
00:48:51,000 --> 00:48:53,880
community, dream big, do big things for God.

733
00:48:53,880 --> 00:49:00,480
But what if I could dream big about showing up for my girls every day?

734
00:49:00,480 --> 00:49:06,680
What if I could dream big about raising them to be faithful Christ followers and love Jesus

735
00:49:06,680 --> 00:49:07,800
with all their hearts?

736
00:49:07,800 --> 00:49:13,760
What if I could dream big about being faithful to my husband and building a healthy marriage

737
00:49:13,760 --> 00:49:19,560
and being a rock for our family and showing up for my community?

738
00:49:19,560 --> 00:49:27,960
What if I dream big about being in a faith community that makes an impact on the world

739
00:49:27,960 --> 00:49:33,360
around us simply just by living faithful lives and showing up in the way that God allows

740
00:49:33,360 --> 00:49:34,760
us to?

741
00:49:34,760 --> 00:49:39,640
What if I dream big about just being faithful and obedient to the Lord and allowing Him

742
00:49:39,640 --> 00:49:48,600
to truly be Lord of my life and laying down my will, surrendering to His plan?

743
00:49:48,600 --> 00:49:51,960
That's something I think the Lord has been teaching me a lot about lately.

744
00:49:51,960 --> 00:50:02,880
It's just that greatness that comes through serving, that laying down of my will to truly

745
00:50:02,880 --> 00:50:09,080
tap into the fullness of His purpose.

746
00:50:09,080 --> 00:50:14,760
And sometimes that looks different than what I think I want, yet really just that space

747
00:50:14,760 --> 00:50:18,800
of surrender, that surrender that we can have with the Lord.

748
00:50:18,800 --> 00:50:24,560
There's nothing greater than letting go of what we think we want to yield to what He

749
00:50:24,560 --> 00:50:25,560
has for us.

750
00:50:25,560 --> 00:50:26,560
It's hard.

751
00:50:26,560 --> 00:50:27,560
It is hard.

752
00:50:27,560 --> 00:50:31,840
It is hard and it's antithetical to the world for sure, but it is the path of life.

753
00:50:31,840 --> 00:50:36,280
Well, Melanie, as we close, would you share about a woman in the Bible who's inspired

754
00:50:36,280 --> 00:50:38,400
or encouraged or taught you something?

755
00:50:38,400 --> 00:50:41,280
One that really has impacted me lately.

756
00:50:41,280 --> 00:50:50,120
I actually got to go see a Sight and Sound production about Esther recently.

757
00:50:50,120 --> 00:50:58,040
And man, her story has just really been significant and specifically in this season of life where

758
00:50:58,040 --> 00:51:00,760
I do have a few things that are just uncertain.

759
00:51:00,760 --> 00:51:05,600
I just don't understand fully why the circumstances are what they are.

760
00:51:05,600 --> 00:51:12,520
But I looked at Esther's life and I saw her walking into circumstances beyond her control.

761
00:51:12,520 --> 00:51:16,760
I don't even know for sure how surrendered she was to the Lord, but I do know that she

762
00:51:16,760 --> 00:51:21,120
was seen by God and she was in circumstances beyond her control.

763
00:51:21,120 --> 00:51:27,760
She certainly wasn't walking in a space that she envisioned probably for her life or for

764
00:51:27,760 --> 00:51:30,000
what her life would look like.

765
00:51:30,000 --> 00:51:37,480
But in the midst of that, we learn that God truly is involved in the intimate details

766
00:51:37,480 --> 00:51:42,800
of our lives, that no matter where we're placed, what can God do with a willing vessel who

767
00:51:42,800 --> 00:51:50,320
just simply obeys, who simply chooses to say yes to the Lord, chooses maybe the harder

768
00:51:50,320 --> 00:51:56,440
path that we can trust that He is in the middle of it.

769
00:51:56,440 --> 00:52:02,160
And He hasn't just left us on our own, but He's there and He's holding us.

770
00:52:02,160 --> 00:52:06,560
You know, as I think about community and living a life that pleases God, I'm drawn to Ephesians

771
00:52:06,560 --> 00:52:11,880
chapter four, which talks about both of those things and how they relate to one another.

772
00:52:11,880 --> 00:52:15,320
So I'm going to read a little bit more than I normally do at the close of one of these

773
00:52:15,320 --> 00:52:21,400
podcasts from Ephesians four, from the NIV version.

774
00:52:21,400 --> 00:52:25,760
Paul writes, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you've received.

775
00:52:25,760 --> 00:52:30,760
Be completely humble and gentle, be patient, bearing with one another in love.

776
00:52:30,760 --> 00:52:35,200
Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.

777
00:52:35,200 --> 00:52:40,000
There's one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called

778
00:52:40,000 --> 00:52:45,640
one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and father of it all, who are overall and

779
00:52:45,640 --> 00:52:46,840
through all and in all.

780
00:52:46,840 --> 00:52:50,040
Of course, that's talking about community, right?

781
00:52:50,040 --> 00:52:53,200
Honoring that community, that God-given community.

782
00:52:53,200 --> 00:52:55,800
But now I'm skipping down to verse 21.

783
00:52:55,800 --> 00:53:01,260
When you heard about Christ, you were taught to put off your old self, which is being corrupted

784
00:53:01,260 --> 00:53:06,000
by its deceitful desires, to be made new in the attitude of your minds and to put on a

785
00:53:06,000 --> 00:53:10,640
new self created to be like God and true righteousness and holiness.

786
00:53:10,640 --> 00:53:15,240
Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to your neighbor, for

787
00:53:15,240 --> 00:53:16,760
we're all members of one body.

788
00:53:16,760 --> 00:53:18,480
In your anger, do not sin.

789
00:53:18,480 --> 00:53:23,120
Do not let the sun go down on while you're angry and do not give the devil a foothold.

790
00:53:23,120 --> 00:53:27,600
Anyone who's been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing something useful

791
00:53:27,600 --> 00:53:31,440
with their own hands, for they may have something to share with those in need.

792
00:53:31,440 --> 00:53:35,760
Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for

793
00:53:35,760 --> 00:53:40,580
building up others according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.

794
00:53:40,580 --> 00:53:44,400
And do not grieve the Holy Spirit with whom you are sealed for the day of redemption.

795
00:53:44,400 --> 00:53:48,600
Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form

796
00:53:48,600 --> 00:53:49,600
of malice.

797
00:53:49,600 --> 00:53:55,520
Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other just as Christ forgave

798
00:53:55,520 --> 00:53:56,520
you.

799
00:53:56,520 --> 00:54:01,560
Now, notice, Paul did not admonish believers to make a name for themselves by climbing

800
00:54:01,560 --> 00:54:07,160
the corporate ladder or breaking glass ceilings or by stimulating oratory or any number of

801
00:54:07,160 --> 00:54:13,720
other things that many view as great in our earthly life.

802
00:54:13,720 --> 00:54:17,720
Of course, those aren't necessarily bad if they're done in the context of following

803
00:54:17,720 --> 00:54:23,280
Christ to bring him glory, but Paul talks about living life in a way that is antithetical

804
00:54:23,280 --> 00:54:24,800
to the world's way.

805
00:54:24,800 --> 00:54:30,160
And that will cause people to take notice so we can share about Christ.

806
00:54:30,160 --> 00:54:35,360
Let's let the Holy Spirit reframe our thinking of how Christ has called us to live.

807
00:54:35,360 --> 00:54:38,600
Melanie, would you take a moment and pray for our listeners?

808
00:54:38,600 --> 00:54:45,840
Jesus, I'm just so grateful for your goodness and that you truly are intimately involved

809
00:54:45,840 --> 00:54:48,080
in the details of our lives.

810
00:54:48,080 --> 00:54:51,040
But I pray for these precious listeners.

811
00:54:51,040 --> 00:54:54,440
First Lord, would you meet them in the middle of their story?

812
00:54:54,440 --> 00:55:01,440
Lord, would they see and be convinced of your loving hand, your healing hand, your constant

813
00:55:01,440 --> 00:55:06,560
presence, your faithful care in the midst of whatever it is that they are facing in

814
00:55:06,560 --> 00:55:07,920
this season of their lives?

815
00:55:07,920 --> 00:55:14,820
Lord and second, I just ask that you help each of us frame our lives in the context

816
00:55:14,820 --> 00:55:18,640
of the eternal kingdom that we are a part of, this upside down kingdom, Lord, that we

817
00:55:18,640 --> 00:55:26,360
could find success in the simple acts of obedience, that we would learn to value that space of

818
00:55:26,360 --> 00:55:32,120
simply just being faithful to you and being good stewards of what you place in front of

819
00:55:32,120 --> 00:55:33,120
us.

820
00:55:33,120 --> 00:55:38,840
That would be what we aim for, is to just be obedient followers.

821
00:55:38,840 --> 00:55:44,080
And then lastly, Lord, I just pray you surround each of us, each of them with the joy of loving

822
00:55:44,080 --> 00:55:45,080
authentic community.

823
00:55:45,080 --> 00:55:46,960
Lord, what a priceless gift.

824
00:55:46,960 --> 00:55:52,360
Lord, would you cultivate this in their lives through authenticity, Lord, through showing

825
00:55:52,360 --> 00:55:55,920
up and just through the power of your word and through prayer, Lord.

826
00:55:55,920 --> 00:56:00,160
It is honor and honor, Lord, just to be yours.

827
00:56:00,160 --> 00:56:04,320
Give us a deep, deep love for those around us, for one another.

828
00:56:04,320 --> 00:56:08,000
Lord, use our life today for your glory and your name.

829
00:56:08,000 --> 00:56:09,000
Amen.

830
00:56:09,000 --> 00:56:10,000
Well, thank you for tuning in.

831
00:56:10,000 --> 00:56:14,360
You can find our show notes at hergodstory.org, you'll find scriptures and other information

832
00:56:14,360 --> 00:56:15,600
we talked about.

833
00:56:15,600 --> 00:56:19,120
And don't forget to sign up for our emails and get a free six week devotional book on

834
00:56:19,120 --> 00:56:21,680
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835
00:56:21,680 --> 00:56:26,720
Or you may want to purchase the 12 week devotional on Women of the Bible for just $12, knowing

836
00:56:26,720 --> 00:56:30,120
all proceeds go to our widow and orphan fund.

837
00:56:30,120 --> 00:56:34,720
And if you enjoyed this podcast, consider starting a Her God Story podcast club.

838
00:56:34,720 --> 00:56:37,920
You can find more information at hergodstory.org.

839
00:56:37,920 --> 00:56:42,200
We'd also love to pray with you on our 24 seven prayer and text line.

840
00:56:42,200 --> 00:56:50,380
So give us a call anytime at 855-459-CARE or email us at prayer@somebodycares.org.

841
00:56:50,380 --> 00:56:54,560
And now dear friends, I bless you from Colossians 1:9-10.

842
00:56:54,560 --> 00:57:00,560
May God give you complete knowledge of his will, as well as the spiritual wisdom and

843
00:57:00,560 --> 00:57:07,080
understanding so you will live in a way that always honors and pleases the Lord and produces

844
00:57:07,080 --> 00:57:09,360
every kind of good fruit.

845
00:57:09,360 --> 00:57:13,400
Her God Story is a ministry of Somebody Cares America and international.

846
00:57:13,400 --> 00:57:40,440
To find out more about or support the ministry, go to somebodycares.org.