Embracing Joy in the Journey, Debi Tengler's God Story

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Hey friends, welcome to the Her God Story podcast where you will always hear a good story to encourage and inspire you in your walk with the Lord.

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I'm your host, Jodie Chiricota, ministry leader at Somebody Cares America International, author and traveler on this journey of faith.

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You probably know by now that I always ask my guests what woman of God has inspired, encouraged, or taught her something.

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But what about you?

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I'd love to hear what woman of the Bible has helped you in your walk with the Lord.

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So email me at hergodstorya@somebodycares.org and tell me why.

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I just might read it on a future podcast to encourage others who are listening.

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So remember, email me at hergodstory@somebodycares.org.

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Jeremiah 29:11 has been an extremely encouraging verse for me most of my life.

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The NIV said it like this, for I know the plans I have for you to clear the Lord plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future.

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When my guest Debbie Tingler and I talked recently, she told me how the Lord has reminded her of that truth over and over again in her life and quite a life she's lived.

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Filled with the joy of the Lord and a love for people, Debbie has entrepreneur businesses with her husband and also served various ministries throughout her career, including Alpha Houston,

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and Arrow Family Services, and she's now the executive director for adoption is an option.

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Debbie has walked through the fire and seen God bring her through without a whiff of smoke.

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A wife who adores her husband, children, and grandchildren, I know you are going to receive so much from this beautiful woman of God.

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Welcome, Debbie.

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Thanks so much, Jodie, and it's really fabulous to be with everyone today.

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Debbie, you committed your life to Christ at a young age.

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So what brought you to that decision and how did God relate to you even then?

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Living through some tumultuous things, even at a very early age, my mother demonstrated to me pouring into the word of God, turning to the Lord and leaning into him for help.

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And it was that model that actually helped me build my faith and understand that trusting the Lord was exactly what I wanted to do.

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So you mentioned to me that your early years were rough because of some abuse you experienced, but in your preteen and teenage years, you had some memorable encounters with the Lord that brought healing in you.

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Share how your faith was anchored so deeply in God and what he did and said that brought healing to you.

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I have felt for most of my life that his hand has been on my head, and you can look back and see various examples, including at one congregation that we attended as a young child.

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Our pastor is actually Pastor Pearsall.

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He wanted us to have demonstrations of faith.

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He wanted us to see people who had walked out different aspects of their testimony and who could tell their story to build us up and encourage us.

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One time he had Coryton Boom come in and I want to tell you that when she was standing on that stage, she was a little bitty woman.

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I had the opportunity to stand up there with her and hold her hand because she didn't like standing alone.

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And when I did, I will tell you, I never felt anything softer.

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I can go back there right now.

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I never felt anything softer in all my life.

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I stood there and thought, her hands, they feel like whipped cream.

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She was amazing and she talked about forgiveness and faith and it went deep inside of me almost as if she transferred it right through her hands to me.

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We also got the opportunity to work alongside the hunters, Charles and Francis Hunter.

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And I had the blessing of being right by Francis's Hunter side many, many times.

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I saw miracles, signs, wonders.

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At the age of 15, Jody, one of the things that was so profound for me was, I had said to the Lord, Lord, I'm going to go do my own thing for a little bit and I'll be back.

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You know, the wonderful mind of a 15 year old.

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And as I did, I heard the Lord say, I have a question for you.

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What do you want in a husband?

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And I have to be very honest, Jody.

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My response was, you missed the memo.

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I don't want one.

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Not when they do what has happened to me.

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To everybody else.

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And God said, okay, so what do you not want in a husband?

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I said, well, that's easy and I made out my list.

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And I felt a quickening in my heart.

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And as I wrote that out, you know, the Bible tells us that confession is good for the soul.

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That's what I was doing before God himself.

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And then he took and he said, now that we know what you don't want.

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What do you want?

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And I can remember few tears and actually dreaming that maybe it was even possible to have a husband that had character that had a bounding love that was faithful.

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That didn't hurt you.

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And you know, considering that I'm all of five foot four and the tallest in my family, I said someone over six feet tall would actually be ideal.

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Because you see God doesn't miss any details.

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He's the one that gives you the desires of your heart.

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If you'll sit and talk with him about them.

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And I want you to know that five years later, I met him.

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You made this list, you met your husband. Tell us how that happened.

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The Lord had had to have done a deep work in your heart to even be open to that at that point.

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I had no idea, Jody, no idea what all he was doing.

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He allowed me to process through some very painful time and even to be able to display and release some of the anger to him and share with him the pain that I had been through.

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We went through more of that.

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But I will tell you, when the man that fit that list walked into the cafeteria of the college that we were at, I knew immediately who he was.

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Wow.

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He fit him to AT.

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And shortly after that, we were marrying five years from when I wrote that list out.

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Debbie God, you said, has used Jeremiah 29 and 11 in your life over and over again.

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In fact, you call it one of your book inverses.

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Share more about that.

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And you have another book inverse.

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What's that?

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One of the things in my book inverses, Jeremiah 29 and 11, where it talks about, I know the plans that I have for you.

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Right after that book inverse is your life laid out.

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The plans that he has for you, not to harm, but to give you a hope in a future.

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And as things roll out, they may not look like the way that you thought they would.

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But you can be assured of that next book inverse.

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The second book inverse holding all of that life together is Romans 828.

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I will cause it all, says the Lord, to work together for good because you love me and you're called according to my purposes.

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Debbie, you were told that you'd never have children, but God had other plans, his good plans.

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Take us on that journey.

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This wonderful man that fulfilled this list when we got married.

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It wasn't a matter any longer because I had been told for so many years, you cannot have children.

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And so when we were discussing marriage, I said, I need you to know that children are not an option.

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We even told, you know, his parents, please don't ask for grandchildren.

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That is not what the plans are for us.

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Or so we thought a few years into our marriage.

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Chris said, I just believe God has something else in store for us.

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We began to talk to doctors and pursue options.

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We never did in vitro fertilization, but we did many surgeries.

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None of them could find out what the problem was.

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Not one.

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And then we ended up going to a doctor that was established and wise.

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He was a man of Jewish faith and lineage.

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And he looked at me and within three minutes diagnosed what the problem was.

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Now, I didn't fully know it that day when I visited his office because he said, let me put you on a little bit of medicine.

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Let's see if this doesn't correct the problem.

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If you start to feel bad, just let me know because it could be the medication.

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Sure enough, three months later, I was making a phone call to his office and found myself sitting in his office and he walked in and he said, well, you were right.

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And I said, excuse me.

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I said, I knew it was the medicine.

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He said, what are you talking about?

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He said, you are pregnant.

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I said, for three days, I called back and said, I think you need to recheck that test.

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I don't think you have the right person.

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I think you've made a mistake.

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That was how deep and embedded the lie was.

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So much so that when God delivered the answer, I didn't even know what it looked like.

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And I will share with you too one of the other amazing things that this phenomenal doctor taught me is everything has to be exactly perfect for a child to be conceived.

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The right temperature, the right hair follicle length, the right density of follicles, not only all of them, but each one of them.

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Everything has to be teed up and ordained by a God who knows and understands the plans that he has for you.

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So you and your husband, you've been married 38 years now and together you determined to obey the Lord quickly.

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That's something we learn over our life, but sugar is better when we do it.

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So share some stories of how you've done that and how you've seen God work.

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Sadly, it's not always, I've not always done it immediately.

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And one of the stories I love to share is as I was leading the Alpha Houston office, which is an evangelistic outreach course that's fabulous.

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We help birth it here in the United States.

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And a few years after I'd been in leadership over that, I was laying prostrate on the floor of my little office.

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And I said, Lord, I need vision.

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I don't know where to go with this ministry.

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And I very distinctly heard the word resign.

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Being the wise woman of God that I am, I was like, oh, sure, that's the wrong message. Let me try again.

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And even ignored it to the point where a year later, I was on the same floor asking the same question, expecting a different result.

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And I very distinctly this time heard the Lord ask me, do you know what the definition of disobedience is?

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I said, I'm not going to argue. Obviously, I don't.

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I knew I had to get up and write my resignation letter and give them 30 days notice.

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You know, I expected, hey, next job will be right around the corner. Eight, nine months later, I am asking myself, what Lord do you want to do?

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I had read a story about a friend and she had just quit her job to go help with the commercial sex trafficking rehabilitative treatment center.

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I said, maybe that's what'll happen, Lord.

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The founder of that organization will ask me a question.

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Little did I know two hours, 12 minutes later, I was getting an email from the founder of that organization whom I'd never met.

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Wow.

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And he wanted to ask me for wisdom and advice and he ended up giving me a job.

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And that was with Arrow Child and Family Ministries, where I spent the next nine and a half years. It was amazing.

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God has told me, sell your house.

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Well, this was a house we had just moved into.

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We had just renovated it. We were just now getting settled in.

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He said, sell your house, sell it for cash, full price, no inspections for sale by owner.

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I said, what?

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It wasn't a matter of, oh yes, let me jump up and be obedient.

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Quite honestly, Jody, it was a matter of, okay, Lord, are you sure?

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Am I hearing this correctly?

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When I told Chris, my husband, he's like, do you know the house two doors down from us is 500 square feet bigger and less than that amount?

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I said, Chris, all I'm telling you is what God said.

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I will have you know.

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Quite a few months later, a couple of offers I tried to accept that didn't meet that criteria.

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Again, not necessarily obeying quickly.

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And a woman on Columbus Day who had just bought the house two doors down from us was standing outside our mailbox.

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And she was in her bathrobe, hair in the wind.

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And she, I walked out to meet her and she said, I'm going to buy your house.

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And I said, excuse me?

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You haven't seen my house.

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She said, no, I'm going to buy your house.

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And I said, well, I'm getting ready to go turn in a contract that I've just taken.

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And I'm going to turn it back into the realtor now that we've signed it.

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She goes, you can't do that.

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I want to do it cash sale, no inspections.

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And she said, I don't need to see your house.

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I'm like, are you kidding?

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She said, no, well, $10,000 hold it.

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And I was like, oh, my land.

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And I walked back to the realtor and I said to her, I said, that had put in the count, you know, the contract that we're going to turn in.

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I said, I have a cash offer on this.

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And she said, oh, cash doesn't matter to me.

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And she said, if you give me that contract, she said, you cannot accept another contract on the house.

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I said, excuse me?

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I said, cash matters here.

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She said, so are you telling me you're not going to give me the contract?

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And I said, no, this one fulfills what God has said.

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And this is the one we're going with.

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I can go on and tell you multiple stories.

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Shortly after that, I say shortly, it was quite a journey of also finding myself prostrate on the floor, asking the Lord, when are we going to get another house Lord?

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And it had now been a couple of years.

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And he said, you haven't made a list.

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And I was like, oh, my heavens, what do you mean we haven't made a list?

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Is that what this is about?

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I sat down immediately, made a list, and within two hours, I heard the voice of the Lord say, now go look at this one.

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And when I did, it was really remarkable.

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I said, Crystal never loved that house.

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And he said, that's okay.

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Have him come and take a look anyway.

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When I made the U turn to have him meet me, he said, now turn right.

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Well, the house we wanted to look at was left.

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So I turned right.

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It was a little bitty T street, too cold of sacks on it.

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I looked to the left, no for sale signs.

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I looked to the right, there was one.

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I want you to know, Jody, that the house was for sale and we were looking, I thought, for one to rent or lease.

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We went down there and to make a long story short.

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There were many hurdles that had to be jumped over, but someone ended up walking up and giving us that house.

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Wow.

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The Lord has a way where no one else does.

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Obedience renders joy and gladness from him.

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It may be a healing.

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It may be an answered prayer.

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It may be a house.

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Whatever it is, the Lord knows and you can trust him and you can obey him.

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Well, Debbie, you have really seen the faithfulness of God at work in so many ways.

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And actually you've seen some amazing faithfulness of God through some severe health crises, too.

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Tell us about those and share what God showed you through each one.

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I will tell you that the enemy, he comes to steal, to kill and destroy.

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And he tries to do that in any way possible.

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I'll never forget our daughter being a sophomore, getting ready to start her sophomore year in high school.

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It was the summer in between her freshman and sophomore year.

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And she was in excruciating pain and had a massive headache.

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It was now going on over 100 days.

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We took her finally to get an MRI.

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And I'll never forget, whenever we were standing there after she had done the MRI, we were getting the results in the doctor's office.

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She was sitting up on the table and I walked over before the doctor came in and there were two X-rays on the light.

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And I looked at him and I said, oh my goodness, someone's in trouble.

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I looked down and saw her name on the side of those X-rays and I passed out.

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There was a mass so big in my daughter's brain that if you looked at one side, it was white.

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And if you looked at the other side, it was black.

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The doctor came running in and he said, I've already called Texas Children's.

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He said, we're going to get you down there.

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She had a massive brain mass.

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Nobody could quite figure out what to do with it.

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We did not feel like there were certain surgeries that we were supposed to have.

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And we called together pit crews and asked people to start praying.

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Eventually, we found a gentleman and M.D. Anderson, new to the pediatric unit.

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And he said, we're going to treat it symptomatically.

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And he began tests and began to see and understand what was going on.

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I want you to know that she is now the mother of our granddaughter.

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Had a very successful pregnancy.

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She dances. She's beautifully balanced and graceful.

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She writes eloquently. She is an amazing woman of God.

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And when the radiologist had seen her X-rays, he said, this should be an invalid.

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She should be curled up, not be able to walk, not be able to talk,

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not be able to have any balance whatsoever.

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Quite the opposite was true. She walked early, talked early.

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She was an incredible dancer, but she's an amazing, amazing woman with a fabulous heart

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and a work ethic like nothing you've ever seen.

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God is faithful.

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I will tell you that was not the only adventure we had medically.

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I'll never forget my husband found a mass under his arm and we went to a surgeon.

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And it was determined that yes, in fact, that was cancer, non-Hodgkin's follicular lymphoma.

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And he not only had a type that needed to be treated and treated aggressively,

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he actually had a component of it that came back every single year.

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For several different years.

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And it was almost one year to the date every time when that cancer would reappear.

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And I want you to know that it even got to the point after regular treatments, clinical trials, experimental drugs,

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intravenous, oral, all of those things.

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My husband and the prayer partners that we had with him, he did not miss a day of work.

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He had very few symptoms, but God also then when MD Anderson basically said there's not much more we can do,

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we found someone that could help us through a natural pathway.

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But in the meantime, we were told that we need to go check out what a stem cell transplant looked like.

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And Jodi, the plans were really coming forth at that time.

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Because you see, as we went into that stem cell transplant unit, the nurse set us down and she began sharing with us what was going to take place with a stem cell transplant.

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And here's what she said.

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She said, first of all, we're going to need to get your immune system down to almost nothing.

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You're going to have to be wiped out.

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She said, then we're going to have to look for the most perfect match, the perfect donor.

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That donor will have to have the perfect blood type.

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And then what we'll do is we will take that donor's blood after we have gotten you to your weakest point and will infuse that donor's blood into you.

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And then you'll go through a period of time where you will need to be well taken care of, like a baby would be.

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Because here's what goes on.

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That blood will reproduce in you and your former DNA will no longer be visible.

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And as she was sitting there telling me these things, Jody, all of a sudden the spirit of the Lord came over me and I heard, that's the plan of salvation.

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I had asked in depth for so many years, how do I get Jesus's blood?

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And here it was being told to me.

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We as human beings are hit down to almost nothing.

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The enemy wants to destroy us.

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And God says, I've loved you so much that I have found the perfect donor for you.

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And what I'm going to do is I'm going to give you a transfusion of his blood and his love.

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And that blood is going to pour through your veins so much so that you're no longer going to be recognizable, but he is.

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And you will have to have, you know, all the things to build you back up as a human being.

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But with Jesus, he fortifies you with his blood and you have everything that you need.

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Wow, that is so good.

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So verse 20 verse 17 in the NIV says, the righteous lead blameless lives.

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Blessed are their children after them.

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I mean, you just shared a story of how your daughter was healed of this massive brain tumor.

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And is living a godly life now, you know, pleasing to the Lord.

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Of course, our children, they each have to make a personal decision to follow the Lord.

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When we follow the Lord, his blessing overflows to our children, gosh, in many ways.

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And you've seen that to be true.

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Give us another example.

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Both of my kids are pretty entrepreneurial and have been most of their lives.

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When my son was about five years of age, we were driving back from the North Party of Houston to our home.

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And he said, Mom, Mom, pull over.

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There was a shearathon going on at KSBJ.

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And he said, I want to give my life to Jesus.

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So we pulled over and I got to lead him in the salvation prayer and walk with him at that young age of making a very profound commitment for Christ.

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A little bit later, he and his sister were selling pet rocks and scrap wrapping paper to neighbors.

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They have that entrepreneurial spirit.

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And so I'm just going to say that, just to be clear, he says, I want to give my life to Jesus.

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And I'm going to give my life to Jesus.

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This is a historical, his portion, believe it or not, was $180.

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Wow.

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And that was a long time ago.

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And so for a young little tyke, that was pretty big.

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Fast forward now.

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He is coming along.

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give $180 and the lady on the other end said, I'm sorry, I

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have to talk to your mom about this. And he, you know, mom.

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And I got on and I said, that's amazing. I said, I don't have a

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problem with that at all. And if he wants to give $180 to the

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Lord, it's his to give. I will have you know, Jody, that when

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he was a senior in high school, he was given $180,000

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scholarship to college. Wow. God did not miss a beat. And even

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though it took a few years for that to all come fruition, God

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did exactly what only God could do.

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That is an amazing story and so encouraging. I know in my life,

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I, I saw, I mean, I got saved at a young age too. And I started

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tithing, you know, when I was six, seven years old, 10 cents,

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15 cents on my allowance. And, and I saw God's faithfulness to

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me too, in college. I mean, I graduated with four degrees and

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no debt. God can do it. He doesn't do it the same with

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everybody. You know, I had to work some scholarships, some this

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some that some but God brought me through it all and God is

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faithful. Like you said, he's so faithful. Proverbs 20 verse

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seven as well. Jody. And he does, he does, he does lead our

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children and he cares for them and they're ordained by him.

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Yes. Amen. Well, Debbie, besides being a mom, you're, you know,

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you've had a full career and the Lord's giving you some pretty

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clear direction when it comes to what you're to do as well. Share

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a bit of how he's led you along the way in your career.

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It's kind of a fun journey. I don't know if everyone's

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realized it yet, but all of I had my own event planning

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business for a while. Other than that, I have had a role with

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arrow, a role with alpha, and a role now with adoption as an

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option. I don't know if I can't get past the A's or where we are

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on that. You're on the A team there. Exactly. There you go. I

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love that. But what was so amazing was in 2003, the Lord

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gave me a dream that I didn't fully understand. It was a very

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simple dream. And it had two parts to it. And it was about a

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speaking engagement. And then it was about, you know, not quite

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fitting in the chair, and that I was sitting in. And then it was

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about the transition from not fitting in the chair to actually

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it being an honored chair. It's something I don't talk about a

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lot, because it's been so personal. But I believe it's

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part of a testimony of what God does as he prepares us and

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shows us different things in our lives to confirm things. I

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shared with a friend of mine just briefly, oh, a little while

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after I had this dream, and didn't think a whole lot about it.

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She responded to me and she said, I think there's one more

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component to the dream. And it's a crown that was hanging on the

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back of the chair, you know, like a crown a queen would wear.

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And I thought, well, that's interesting. Didn't think much

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more about it, except as we were, I was moving through life. And

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this dream would pop up in color every now and then just in my

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mind's eye. And I was, again, going back to the where I had

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resigned my position with Alpha Houston. And I was waiting for

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the next role. And as I was talking with the founder of the

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of the era or era, the organization I was with, he

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said, I think you're supposed to come take this role with me. And

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I'm like, look, I got a t shirt for doing ministry. I really am

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not interested again. I was very burnout. He said, No, I

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really think I'm serious about this. This is a burning bush

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moment. And he said, and I said, Look, I have a theory about

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donor development. And it's all relationship. And it's all

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about showing people more who Jesus is. And he said, Okay,

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and I said, you can read a book about it. Here's a book and you

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can read it. He goes, You know what? I'll read your book if you

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read mine. And in the middle of Starbucks, he handed me a book.

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It's called third conversion. And in that book, it talks about

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donor development as being a matter of the heart. But the

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cover on that book, when I saw that standing in the middle of

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Starbucks, I let out the loudest screen, the entire Starbucks

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turned and looked at me. And he's like, What is wrong with you?

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I said, Just make me an offer. Because the picture on that

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dream was the exact picture of that book was the exact picture

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that was in my dream. And I had not seen that picture ever

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before. The really amusing thing about this to Jody is when

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this founder talked with a strategist and consultant that

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he was using, he had helped with that book a little bit and

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called immediately the author and said, I think I know why we

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have that picture on this book. That book confirmed me going

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to work with Arrow. Wow. Then fast forward, I get an offer

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just very few months ago. And before that offer came, I had

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been asked to attend a conference and learn more and

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understand more about possible foster care and adoption in

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that world. When I got to the first hotel, I was supposed to

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be in the host hotel, but they didn't have a room that night

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that first night. I had to make a transition move to the host

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hotel, because we were able to get a room the next night, and

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it could not be canceled. It had already been booked. The hotel

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I'd been staying in could be canceled. So I made my way

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around to the host hotel. And as I stood there in front of the

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woman checking me in, she was wearing a crown on her lapel.

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And it was a service award crown. I thought, Oh my gosh,

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that's beautiful. The next morning I woke up, I'm standing

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in the shower getting ready for the day. And the Lord said, the

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crown was significant. Don't miss it. It was at that time

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then that the founder of adoption is an option. Later that day,

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was able to say to me, You know what? I think you need to come

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work for this organization. And in the midst of watching God

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play out all of the amazing things he did, he even used a

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crown to be able to confirm the direction that he wants you to

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take to walk godly with him, to be able to hear his voice and to

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obey and to walk in courage. It's not easy. But it is actually

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what God calls us to do.

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You're now at adoption with an option. You've just been there

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00:33:55,020 --> 00:33:58,220
probably less than a month, but share just a little bit about

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what the organization is about.

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This is an organization birthed out of the heart of a man who

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was adopted in the 1950s. And as he went on a journey after

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building two companies and selling those companies, he

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00:34:13,860 --> 00:34:16,740
asked the Lord, I want to be emptied out. And as he was being

401
00:34:16,740 --> 00:34:20,140
emptied out, God was filling him up with this idea of adoption

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00:34:20,140 --> 00:34:25,100
as an option. In the midst of that, he met some pro athletes

403
00:34:25,100 --> 00:34:29,700
and celebrities. And a portion of that adoption is an option.

404
00:34:29,700 --> 00:34:34,380
Organization came forth as I am that kid telling these stories

405
00:34:34,380 --> 00:34:39,260
of successful adoptions and how these athletes, celebrities,

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00:34:39,820 --> 00:34:43,020
people of influence have actually been adopted. And because of

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that adoption, it led to even greater likelihood of their

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success. Additionally, he started another component of this

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00:34:51,900 --> 00:34:55,060
organization called Opt Institute. It's a research and

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00:34:55,060 --> 00:34:59,660
funding arm. To be able to understand what do birth

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mothers need? What do we need to do better for them? And how

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can we help them understand this gift of love of finding and

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choosing a family? And therefore becoming part of that story,

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the open adoption story, or a story that involves them where

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they are, and what their level of interest is, and the best

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00:35:22,420 --> 00:35:26,700
interest for their child, they get an active voice and choice.

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And adoption is an option is just that it is an organization

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that works to be able to help birth mothers understand that you

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00:35:36,460 --> 00:35:43,340
can have support, you can have a voice, you can help select the

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00:35:43,340 --> 00:35:48,980
family and make the choices that are needed for your child. You

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can be involved some not involved at all, or involved a

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lot, and be part of again, the conversation about their future.

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This is something that many don't understand today. There are

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several options out there. But adoption is an option for women

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that want the very best for their child. It's amazing to

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do that. Jodi, this is the story of our salvation. God doesn't

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have any grandchildren. We actually are adopted into the

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family of God. I like to say it's a baby blanket, a blue ribbon

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and a letter jacket. Icons the Lord gave me a long time ago to

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display his baby blanket is a representation of his unconditional

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love. And the blue ribbon means that we are the valued ones. He

432
00:36:45,540 --> 00:36:51,380
loves us so much that he gave us his only begotten son. And that

433
00:36:51,380 --> 00:36:56,900
blue ribbon represents that when we have Jesus, we have value.

434
00:36:57,740 --> 00:37:03,260
And he gives us that value freely. The scriptures go on to say

435
00:37:03,260 --> 00:37:08,140
that if we accept that gift, that free loving gift, we are

436
00:37:08,140 --> 00:37:13,820
adopted, we belong to the family of God. And I will tell you, if

437
00:37:13,820 --> 00:37:17,740
you don't think a letter jacket represents belonging, watch a

438
00:37:17,740 --> 00:37:22,660
young girl in a high school who doesn't have one. She may not

439
00:37:22,660 --> 00:37:25,180
have the confidence to walk down the halls or to face

440
00:37:25,180 --> 00:37:30,540
challenges or difficulties in life. But with a letter jacket on,

441
00:37:30,740 --> 00:37:34,180
representing somebody that's bigger than her, bolder than her,

442
00:37:34,180 --> 00:37:38,180
that will defend her and protect her, that will love her and care

443
00:37:38,180 --> 00:37:43,980
for her, she will stand taller, she will walk more proud, she'll

444
00:37:43,980 --> 00:37:48,700
be more courageous, because she knows she's not alone. She

445
00:37:48,700 --> 00:37:52,740
belongs. And that's what the Lord wants to do through our

446
00:37:52,740 --> 00:37:58,060
adoption. When we accept Jesus, we are adopted into that family

447
00:37:58,060 --> 00:38:02,020
of God. And so I like to say what what's going on in the

448
00:38:02,020 --> 00:38:05,140
physical world is a representation of what's

449
00:38:05,140 --> 00:38:09,180
going on in the spiritual world. Adoption is a plan of God.

450
00:38:09,380 --> 00:38:13,820
Amen. Boy, what a powerful message and you know, such a

451
00:38:14,900 --> 00:38:20,020
important message for today when, boy, the world has such

452
00:38:20,020 --> 00:38:23,980
different messages, we really need God's message of adoption

453
00:38:24,220 --> 00:38:28,180
physically and spiritually to be out there. You know, Debbie, I

454
00:38:28,180 --> 00:38:30,500
heard you say that your relationship with God is like

455
00:38:30,500 --> 00:38:33,380
riding a roller coaster in the front seat, and you just have

456
00:38:33,380 --> 00:38:37,220
to throw up your arms in the air and enjoy it. From all the

457
00:38:37,220 --> 00:38:40,020
adventurous God's taking you through, what encouragement do

458
00:38:40,020 --> 00:38:43,260
you have for our listeners? If you don't like roller coasters,

459
00:38:43,260 --> 00:38:48,060
you ought to go give them a try. And find the best ones, because

460
00:38:48,060 --> 00:38:53,540
that's what God wants to put you on. I have made a commitment

461
00:38:53,540 --> 00:38:58,260
with my children when they were younger, to my husband. I

462
00:38:58,260 --> 00:39:00,980
remember we even took his grandparents and put them on a

463
00:39:00,980 --> 00:39:06,540
roller coaster, because I want you to know that it represents

464
00:39:06,580 --> 00:39:11,620
trusting, it represents fun, it represents courage and

465
00:39:11,620 --> 00:39:16,620
challenge. God will put us in the front seat of a roller coaster,

466
00:39:16,660 --> 00:39:20,740
he will strap you in to the best equipment there could

467
00:39:20,740 --> 00:39:28,220
possibly be. Do you trust him? Are you willing to throw your

468
00:39:28,220 --> 00:39:32,420
hands in the air and praise him? And to squeal like a little

469
00:39:32,420 --> 00:39:38,620
girl and to have so much fun. You know, society today believes

470
00:39:38,620 --> 00:39:43,100
in having experiences given as gifts. They may not

471
00:39:43,100 --> 00:39:46,700
necessarily be interested in things, but they want to have

472
00:39:46,700 --> 00:39:50,140
an experience. They want to know the fun, the memory, the

473
00:39:50,140 --> 00:39:57,500
thrill, the joy that comes from being together, from being an

474
00:39:57,500 --> 00:40:03,020
in a beautiful location, from having the best that they can

475
00:40:03,100 --> 00:40:08,540
for a really exciting time. That's how I describe the journey

476
00:40:08,540 --> 00:40:13,660
with God. You are not going to be in safer hands. You are not

477
00:40:13,660 --> 00:40:18,140
going to have a more beautiful journey ironed out. You are not

478
00:40:18,140 --> 00:40:23,300
going to have anything that God hasn't already ordained and

479
00:40:23,300 --> 00:40:27,860
will sustain because he loves you and he wants you to have a

480
00:40:27,860 --> 00:40:34,340
good time with him. I will tell you that God has the ability to

481
00:40:34,340 --> 00:40:38,900
knock your socks off and getting in that roller coaster and

482
00:40:38,900 --> 00:40:43,740
having fun doing it will just absolutely be a thrill you will

483
00:40:43,740 --> 00:40:47,980
never forget. Amen. I know he's taken me on some fun journeys.

484
00:40:48,020 --> 00:40:51,780
I look back at him and I think how on earth did I get there and

485
00:40:51,780 --> 00:40:55,300
it could have only been God. So Debbie, as we close, would you

486
00:40:55,300 --> 00:40:58,340
share about a woman in the Bible who's inspired, encouraged,

487
00:40:58,340 --> 00:41:01,460
or taught you something? You might be a little bit surprised,

488
00:41:01,460 --> 00:41:05,660
maybe not. Her name is very familiar to me. She's actually

489
00:41:05,660 --> 00:41:12,780
called Dabora in the Bible. Deborah, she is really quite

490
00:41:13,380 --> 00:41:19,180
fabulous. She's not mentioned many times in the Bible, but she

491
00:41:19,180 --> 00:41:22,900
was known as a prophet because she could hear God's voice and

492
00:41:22,900 --> 00:41:29,060
share God's words with others. She didn't offer sacrifices, but

493
00:41:29,060 --> 00:41:35,060
she worshipped and she's saying she also preached. And that is

494
00:41:35,060 --> 00:41:39,460
something that I have seen the pattern of my life develop in.

495
00:41:40,180 --> 00:41:46,620
And the beautiful thing is she was a woman who I've had the

496
00:41:46,620 --> 00:41:50,660
nickname given to me before that you're a goat. A goat is an

497
00:41:50,660 --> 00:41:54,060
agricultural instrument designed to get the beast back in

498
00:41:54,060 --> 00:41:59,460
line with the master. Deborah was much that same way. And even

499
00:41:59,460 --> 00:42:04,300
as you look at her in Judges 4 and Judges 5, she had an

500
00:42:04,300 --> 00:42:09,620
impressive resume. They called her a judge, a warrior, a poet,

501
00:42:10,100 --> 00:42:14,340
a prophet. I don't necessarily fit the singer and the songwriter,

502
00:42:14,340 --> 00:42:19,180
but I'll go for those other ones. And then the amazing thing

503
00:42:19,180 --> 00:42:27,180
was that she was able to say to a time when they would come to

504
00:42:27,180 --> 00:42:33,580
her for her to rule and dispute, she would say to them, this is

505
00:42:33,580 --> 00:42:37,300
what you need to do, or this is how the matter will be settled.

506
00:42:37,300 --> 00:42:44,820
And as the story goes on, she was told or she had a Barak, an

507
00:42:44,820 --> 00:42:50,380
Israelite warrior come to her and he said, you need to go with

508
00:42:50,380 --> 00:42:55,740
me so we can win this war. And she said, I will go. And he

509
00:42:55,740 --> 00:42:59,020
said, if you'll go with me, I will go. If not, I will not go.

510
00:42:59,260 --> 00:43:04,660
And then she says, I will go. However, there will be no

511
00:43:04,660 --> 00:43:08,620
glory for you in the course you are taking, for then the Lord

512
00:43:08,620 --> 00:43:13,580
will deliver Cecyra into the hands of a woman. Interestingly

513
00:43:13,580 --> 00:43:16,900
enough, it wasn't her that he delivered it into, but she

514
00:43:16,900 --> 00:43:23,380
delivered the truthful message. And she was like a goat. She had

515
00:43:23,380 --> 00:43:28,900
to get this leader to go do what they needed to do. She didn't

516
00:43:28,900 --> 00:43:34,900
get the credit for conquering. She got the credit for

517
00:43:34,900 --> 00:43:39,300
administering the information and acting the goat that got him

518
00:43:39,300 --> 00:43:44,620
back in line with the master. It's a really phenomenal story.

519
00:43:44,940 --> 00:43:48,660
And we sing and hear of the things that she did. I want to

520
00:43:48,660 --> 00:43:52,940
share with you that there's a commentator who actually, in my

521
00:43:52,940 --> 00:44:00,740
opinion, summarizes the reasons I look so much to Deborah. Her

522
00:44:00,740 --> 00:44:06,260
story teaches us to be obedient. If God tells you to do

523
00:44:06,260 --> 00:44:12,060
something, do it. I've learned my lesson. Be courageous. Get in

524
00:44:12,060 --> 00:44:16,060
that front seat of that roller coaster and throw your hands up.

525
00:44:16,060 --> 00:44:22,860
Stand true. Don't waver. Know that the Lord has the plans that

526
00:44:22,860 --> 00:44:28,740
he has for you. Plans to prosper you and not to harm you. God

527
00:44:28,740 --> 00:44:31,580
is good. And if there are things coming against you that are

528
00:44:31,580 --> 00:44:35,780
not, it's because the enemy is trying to stop you. Look him in

529
00:44:35,780 --> 00:44:40,300
the eye and say, get out of the way. My God is for me. And then

530
00:44:40,300 --> 00:44:46,540
know beyond a shadow of a doubt that Romans 8 28 is going to

531
00:44:46,540 --> 00:44:51,980
hold true. I know the plans that I have for you, child. Plans to

532
00:44:51,980 --> 00:44:56,380
prosper you and not to harm you. And I am going to cause all of

533
00:44:56,380 --> 00:45:01,020
this to work together for good because you love me and you're

534
00:45:01,020 --> 00:45:05,260
called according to my purposes. Amen. Debbie has walked

535
00:45:05,260 --> 00:45:08,940
through some tough times, but she's trusted God and walked with

536
00:45:08,940 --> 00:45:13,500
him through those times and God has worked in her and for her.

537
00:45:13,500 --> 00:45:16,380
You probably heard the quote that says, if it isn't good yet,

538
00:45:16,380 --> 00:45:18,940
God isn't done yet. And as long as you're trusting and

539
00:45:18,940 --> 00:45:23,980
following God, that is true. Remember Jeremiah 29 11. God's

540
00:45:23,980 --> 00:45:27,420
knows the plans he has for you and their good plans. Verse 12

541
00:45:27,420 --> 00:45:31,020
goes on to remind us that when we seek him, we will find him

542
00:45:31,020 --> 00:45:34,700
when we search for him with all of our hearts. Debbie, would

543
00:45:34,700 --> 00:45:37,900
you take a moment and pray for our listeners? Oh, Holy Spirit,

544
00:45:37,900 --> 00:45:42,540
thank you. Father, I thank you that you have equipped us with

545
00:45:42,540 --> 00:45:47,340
all things. I thank you for Jesus and I thank you Lord Jesus

546
00:45:47,340 --> 00:45:53,020
for any woman who is out there searching for anybody who is

547
00:45:53,020 --> 00:45:58,060
trying to find the way to hold on or find their identity or

548
00:45:58,060 --> 00:46:02,620
their purpose or their plan. Father, will you whisper to them

549
00:46:02,620 --> 00:46:10,140
today, even today? I've got you. Now let's go. Father, take them

550
00:46:10,140 --> 00:46:15,100
by the hand. Let them hold on to the hem of your garment and

551
00:46:15,100 --> 00:46:20,140
let them trust you beyond measure. Father, I give you all

552
00:46:20,140 --> 00:46:24,700
praise and glory that you will order our steps and you will

553
00:46:24,700 --> 00:46:31,020
show us. This is the way now walk in it. Father, I thank you

554
00:46:31,020 --> 00:46:34,860
also that you whisper a breath of encouragement across the

555
00:46:34,860 --> 00:46:39,180
airways today. Remind people that you are for them and not

556
00:46:39,180 --> 00:46:44,300
against them. Plans to prosper and not to harm and that you are

557
00:46:44,300 --> 00:46:49,020
going to cause all of this to work together for good. And

558
00:46:49,020 --> 00:46:52,940
Father, if anybody does not know you, will you allow the

559
00:46:52,940 --> 00:46:57,420
Hound of Heaven to come after them? To whisper to them, come

560
00:46:57,420 --> 00:47:01,420
on, take my hand. Trust in Jesus and what he did on that

561
00:47:01,420 --> 00:47:06,860
cross, the death, the burial and the resurrection. Be filled

562
00:47:06,860 --> 00:47:10,940
with the Holy Spirit to walk out this journey called life, to

563
00:47:10,940 --> 00:47:14,540
sit in that front row, Lord of that roller coaster and to

564
00:47:14,540 --> 00:47:19,180
strap in and say, Jesus, I am praising you with my hands

565
00:47:19,180 --> 00:47:22,940
lifted high and I cannot wait for the journey you're going to

566
00:47:22,940 --> 00:47:27,340
take me on because this roller coaster pathway leads me

567
00:47:27,340 --> 00:47:34,060
straight to you. Jesus, thank you for being so much fun.

568
00:47:34,060 --> 00:47:38,140
Thank you for taking and meeting us right where we are.

569
00:47:38,140 --> 00:47:43,980
Magnify your name and glorify yourself and it's in Jesus' name I

570
00:47:43,980 --> 00:47:51,420
pray. Amen. Amen. Hey listen, if you just prayed to receive

571
00:47:51,420 --> 00:47:55,020
Jesus right now with Debbie, make sure that you email me at

572
00:47:55,020 --> 00:47:59,660
hergodstoryasombodycares.org. We'd love to follow up with you

573
00:47:59,660 --> 00:48:03,340
and make sure you have the resources you need to walk with

574
00:48:03,340 --> 00:48:06,540
the Lord. You know friends, there are orphans as well as

575
00:48:06,540 --> 00:48:09,900
widows all over the world who need to experience the tangible

576
00:48:09,900 --> 00:48:13,100
expression of God's love right now. Many have special meets

577
00:48:13,100 --> 00:48:16,140
that we as a company of women can meet together. Would you

578
00:48:16,140 --> 00:48:18,860
consider joining us with a special gift to help? Just go to

579
00:48:18,860 --> 00:48:22,140
hergodstory.org and click on the widow and orphan tab at the

580
00:48:22,140 --> 00:48:25,820
top of the page. Thank you for tuning in. In our show notes

581
00:48:25,820 --> 00:48:29,500
at hergodstory.org, you'll find scriptures and other

582
00:48:29,500 --> 00:48:32,540
information we talked about. You can also get a six-week

583
00:48:32,540 --> 00:48:36,140
devotional book. You can download for free or purchase a

584
00:48:36,140 --> 00:48:39,900
12-week devotional that will send to you for just $12 knowing

585
00:48:39,900 --> 00:48:43,580
that all the proceeds go to our widow and orphan fund. We'd

586
00:48:43,580 --> 00:48:47,100
love to pray with you at our 24-7 prayer and text line so give

587
00:48:47,100 --> 00:48:54,140
us a call anytime at 855-459-CARE or email us at

588
00:48:54,140 --> 00:48:58,540
prayer at somebodycares.org. And now dear friends, I bless you

589
00:48:58,540 --> 00:49:03,020
from Psalm 20 verses 1 through 5. In times of trouble, may the

590
00:49:03,020 --> 00:49:06,940
Lord answer your cry. May the name of the God of Jacob keep

591
00:49:06,940 --> 00:49:10,140
you safe from all harm. May he send you help from his

592
00:49:10,140 --> 00:49:14,060
sanctuary and strengthen you from Jerusalem. May he remember

593
00:49:14,060 --> 00:49:17,260
all your gifts and look favorably on your burnt offerings.

594
00:49:17,260 --> 00:49:20,620
May he grant your heart's desires and make all your plans

595
00:49:20,620 --> 00:49:25,820
succeed. May we shout for joy when we hear of your victory and

596
00:49:25,820 --> 00:49:29,820
raise a victory banner in the name of our God. May the Lord

597
00:49:29,820 --> 00:49:33,980
answer all your prayers. Her God Story is a ministry of

598
00:49:33,980 --> 00:49:37,180
Somebody Cares America and International. To find out more

599
00:49:37,180 --> 00:49:44,460
about or support the ministry, go to somebodycares.org.