Faith, Healing, and Sharing God's Love, Renee Hall'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 and International,

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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 the Bible has inspired,

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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 of faith.

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Email me at hergodstory@somebodycares.org and tell me why.

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I just might read it in a future episode to encourage others who are listening.

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

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You know Ephesians 5:15-17 in the New Living Translation tells us,

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So be careful how you live.

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Don't live like fools, but like those who are wise.

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Make the most of every opportunity in these evil days.

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Don't act thoughtlessly, but understand what the Lord wants you to do.

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Colossians 4, 5, and 6 are similar.

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It says, Live wisely among those who are not believers and make the most of every opportunity.

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Let your conversation be gracious and attractive so that you will have the right response for

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everyone.

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My guest Renee Hall is all about making the most of every opportunity that the Lord brings

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her.

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She has combined extensive volunteer work with the full-time career, which included

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owning her own business, while raising two successful sons and managing an active family

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and community life.

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She considers herself a lifelong learner and disciple of Jesus who is always open to new

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experiences and relationships.

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But this is where she truly sees the face and truth of God.

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Whether working in the marketplace, serving the homeless, caring for family members, or

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circulating in society circles, Renee looks for open doors to share God's love in both

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word and deed.

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God has brought her healing and she overflows with gratitude for his goodness.

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I know you will love her as much as I do.

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Welcome Renee.

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Thank you Jody.

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Thank you.

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Renee, like many people, you experienced some challenges in your younger years, but you

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also knew God was with you in the midst of it.

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Share how you knew that and the experience you had when you put your faith in Christ.

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Jody, I am so excited to talk to you today about Jesus because it is my favorite thing

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to talk about.

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I experienced the divine at a very young age.

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My life has been full of so many blessings, difficulties as well, but I was aware of Jesus

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as a very young girl.

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I came to faith in Christ at about eight to nine years old.

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It was such a powerful moment for me.

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I think everyone in the church was a little bit afraid.

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The pastor, my mother, I was weeping uncontrollably.

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I just had such an overwhelming sense of God's love and my need.

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While not fully understanding this, it was so exciting to me and I had my mom there

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to help me and explain and my pastor there to help me to explain and they were just holding

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my hands and saying, this is God, this is okay.

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It was quite a powerful thing.

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You grew up in an era when people didn't really talk openly about their problems or their

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feelings.

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You just put on a happy face and carried on.

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Being able to have that facade of perfection really takes a toll on people.

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What was your experience growing up in that era?

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How did it affect you and even your relationship with the Lord?

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You know, Jodi, you're right.

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That time, my parents were very smart, hardworking, successful people in business and community.

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We worked very hard as a family just to be really good and look right.

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It was important to do the right thing at all times and I love that I was brought up

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that way.

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But we leaned into ourselves a lot and when troubles came, which they did, there were

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a lot of obstacles in our home that my parents dealt with.

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We didn't really speak openly about it.

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We just tried to cover things up and put on a good brave face always.

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That was hard for me.

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I kind of knew troubles and experienced some trauma even in our home a little bit that

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my parents had difficulties that they were trying to overcome themselves.

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We didn't really call upon Jesus.

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We went to church.

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We did the right things, but we didn't really have the spirit of the living God to know

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closely to lean on.

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One of some things took root in me.

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A spirit of fear began to take root in me because I think when you have one reality

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and then you go out and act as if you have another reality, that caused me trouble inside.

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A spirit of fear began to take root in me and I didn't quite know what that was or even

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what I was dealing with at the time and didn't know until later.

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That's kind of where some of those issues began.

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Again, we went to church.

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We served the community.

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We worked all hard.

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I was a great student.

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We did all those things and yet there was still lack.

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As a teenager and a young adult, you acknowledge God.

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You did the right things.

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You were living a good life like you said, but you were living life on your own terms.

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Give us a glimpse of what your life was like during that time.

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I was very active.

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Again, a great student, a cheerleader, a band member.

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We had a wonderful life.

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I grew up in a small community and had so many wonderful friends and school friends,

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church friends.

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I thought everything was great, to be honest, and it was in many, many ways.

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I think I always kind of was looking for something deep with God.

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I know that now.

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When I was in high school, I went on a wonderful beach trip with a friend, ended up coming

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back with a bacterial infection that landed me in the hospital, I mean, really near death.

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I had a divine experience then.

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I left my body.

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I guess my spirit now, I don't know, it's very hard to describe to people, but I was

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up high looking down on my body in the hospital with my mother who was crying.

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At the time I had no knowledge of the natural.

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It was like, why is my mom crying?

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This is crazy.

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There was that.

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Then I remember I did recover and I went on.

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I got well, went to cheerleading camp and I told mom about this and she was just like,

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I have no idea what you're talking about.

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This was crazy.

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Those are the kind of things that really stuck with me throughout my life.

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You don't forget that.

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No, you wouldn't.

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Trying to kind of understand what that kind of experience is just was always in me and

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never always knowing something in me, which I think was the Lord, knowing there was more.

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There was just more to experience with him.

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Again, I did it my way, Jodi.

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I did all the right things, but I did what I wanted and then I said, God, will you bless

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this?

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I think that's how a lot of people are in their relationship with the Lord.

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It's not how God wants us to be.

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He wants to lead us and direct us every step of the way, but so many of us, particularly

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when we first come to know the Lord, it's like, hey, now I've got you on my side rather

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than us realizing we're on God's side.

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Totally.

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I think it's been a long time to develop in me and praise God, we have a patient Lord.

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Amen.

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I then graduated high school and got the opportunity to go to Baylor University.

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So amazing.

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Oh my goodness, this was just a dream for me and had such a beautiful experience there.

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Friends that are lifelong friends that I'm still with, women in my sorority that I still

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pray with today.

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We may not have talked through life during seasons of motherhood and jobs, but so many

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of us have reconnected and we have a regular prayer group now, which is amazing.

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Just sisters, lifelong sisters who we knew each other then and we always say we're so

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grateful.

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So what was going to happen between them now?

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But I had an amazing time there.

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So wonderful.

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Again, living life on my terms, I just want to really acknowledge that.

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I mean, going to church, doing and saying the right things, but really, really not the,

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God was not the Lord of my life.

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I did my way.

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Really after graduating, I married young man from Baylor who was all the right things.

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Great, great family, started a family, had a beautiful son.

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I couldn't have been more blessed and life got extremely hard.

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Yes.

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So from the outside, you'd think that your life was really pretty sweet.

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You had some husband, healthy son, you moved to Dallas, involved in your church, but trouble

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was brewing that really rocked your world.

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Share about that and how looking back, you saw God really carrying you through it because

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it was a tumultuous time.

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It really was.

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The relationship was hard.

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Marriage was hard.

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I was not particularly well equipped with maturity and even some of the things I had

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experienced in my home.

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The truth of the matter is I was so broken inside.

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You can't be a broken person inside and be and give to a marriage and a family all that

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is needed.

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But I didn't know that then.

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So I was quick to blame outside.

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Instead of looking within, I didn't have that capability yet.

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So you began to say, the problem is this, the problem is you, the problem is this.

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That was very easy for me to do.

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My marriage ended in a divorce, which was just not what I expected for my life at all.

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Shortly after that, my parents ended up divorcing, which again, I felt that my whole world was

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crumbling around me.

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And this couldn't happen to me, Jodi.

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That's kind of my thinking.

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This just was not supposed to be.

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I'm the success story.

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I'm not the failure.

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I know I can fix this, this attitude of what do I do?

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How do I manage?

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How do I overcome?

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I couldn't.

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I mean, it was, again, I would say then, the spirit of fear that I spoke about earlier

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that began to take a deeper root in me, anxiety.

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I experienced anxiety.

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I experienced some panic attacks.

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And I think it was my need for control.

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It was just spinning out of control in my life.

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And I wanted to control everything.

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And I did the best I could.

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And then I was unable to.

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Yeah.

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So no long after that, you met and you married the wonderful man who's your husband now.

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But things still didn't seem quite right.

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I mean, you might have thought, I've finally gotten control of it, but they weren't quite

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right still.

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Explain, explain that.

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Because so many of us can think just the right husband, just having kids, just getting

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the right house, just getting the right job.

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That'll solve everything.

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But it didn't.

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That's exactly how I thought.

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If I could look good enough, if I could have the perfect home, if I could have the perfect

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family, if I could go to the right church, if I could have the right friends, if I had

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the right social circle, all of those things, those lies that we tell ourselves.

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Yes, I got a chance for a new marriage, another beautiful son.

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So my family, I had that, that was growing.

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But I will tell you, trouble began to come.

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And I couldn't believe it.

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I'm like, surely not again.

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I mean, it had to be the other person, not me.

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But then I had to look at myself and realize that the troubles in life I was having, that

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I was the common denominator.

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And what was I believing about myself?

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What was I believing about others?

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What was my belief system?

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What did I believe about God?

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And that was really challenging.

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Again, took my kids were in Christian school.

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I just, if I could be good enough, it was getting worse and worse inside me.

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How were you coping with all that?

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Big glass of wine at night.

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I was putting on a good face during the day and then coping with, trying to keep the dark

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side of me from everyone else.

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God bless my children.

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They saw the dark side of me.

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My husband saw the dark side of me.

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But no, again, we just press on.

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So there we were.

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Just, again, a lot of good, but just not the best.

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Not happy, not fulfilled, not feeling like you should be on the top of the world.

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So what happened to change all that?

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Well, I became very ill.

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I started out a little sick.

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And then before I knew it, I was just full blown in to some kind of illness.

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I really had a hard time getting a diagnosis for, you know, one thing I did went to the

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doctor here and there and they would say, well, you're stressed out.

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You're, you know, I was losing weight like crazy, not eating.

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You're just stressed.

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You know, I was a working mom.

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I mean, life as we all can relate to, you know, life is stressful.

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But there was something far greater going on in my life.

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And I just became more and more ill, got a diagnosis at one point of Crohn's disease.

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It got much worse.

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Organs failing in and out of the hospital.

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Just, you know, one point, we thought I had a rare form of cancer.

244
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So I was really suffering then, not in my body.

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I mean, just suffering in my mind and spirit, but before, but in my body, my body was just,

246
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I really think I was dying.

247
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I mean, I do.

248
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I really, really do believe that I was very close to, and again, just, I don't know.

249
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It's easy for me to say now, but I began to experience the divine again.

250
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I ended up in a week or two in the hospital, and I had this, another divine experience

251
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where I woke up, my precious mom was sitting in the room with me as she was most of the

252
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time praying.

253
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I said, mom, where's the man that was in here?

254
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Of course, I can barely speak, but she said, honey, what are you talking about?

255
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I said, well, there was a man at the foot of my bed and I saw him and he was so real

256
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and I just could see him and I knew he was for me and there to help me, I assume maybe

257
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he was a doctor and I said, mom, he's not left me and standing at the foot of the bed

258
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and she said, well, honey, there's no one here.

259
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Shortly after that, a man came to take me into a surgery room and this man had a surgical

260
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cap on with the fish sign on it.

261
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The old, the ancient Christian symbol, he began to wheel me into the surgical room and

262
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my mom again was with me and he had the most beautiful kind eyes and kind of darker skin,

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I would say Hispanic or Middle Eastern and I just looked at him and I was so weak at

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the time and I said, I'm so afraid and he leaned down beside me and he said, fear not,

265
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you will be well.

266
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I told my mom, he said this and she was there, she saw the man.

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So I went through the process, got back to my room and I guess it was like late, later

268
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of that day and I said, mom, I would love to see this man again and my mom asked and

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I asked the care, the nurses and doctors and they said, well, we have no one here by that

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description.

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And so we still don't know who this man was, but these kinds of things were letting me

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know that God was with me.

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Wow.

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Hope was with me and I, again, I couldn't make sense of this nor do I today.

275
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I just share it because it was my experience and my mom was there, we still say who was

276
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the man.

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I mean, it said, fear not, you will be well.

278
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Well he was right.

279
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I was healed.

280
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But shortly after that I was at home and I'm just amazed at the boldness of Christian

281
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friends, I had a friend who reached out, called me, I was not seeing anyone socially, my friends

282
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hadn't seen me in a year and she called one day and she said, Renee, I'd like to come

283
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and pray with you, bring my husband and we would like to bring a couple who believes

284
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in healing prayer.

285
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Well, I didn't know anything about this.

286
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It was not my tradition of faith that practiced this and I mean, I knew from the Bible, but

287
00:18:52,240 --> 00:18:58,320
really Jodi, I guess I still looked at these things as that was the Bible then.

288
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I'm in a different time now.

289
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I know differently now, but I said yes, I began to call the people that I knew in my

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family, I said, should I do this?

291
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I'm scared.

292
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I don't know if someone should like hands on me and my husband said, Renee, we're desperate.

293
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We're desperate.

294
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We'll, anything.

295
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So they came again, these faithful people of God came to my home, prayed over me, laid

296
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hands on me, we put the Bible out.

297
00:19:30,960 --> 00:19:37,480
I said, don't do anything that's not in this Bible and they showed me and it was so beautiful.

298
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After that, it was my turning point for healing and I didn't get up miraculously well, but

299
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I was different.

300
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I knew it.

301
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The people in the room knew it.

302
00:19:51,560 --> 00:19:56,680
Several said my eyes had a darkness about them and a sickness.

303
00:19:56,680 --> 00:20:03,320
I actually had death in my eyes and after the prayer, they said my eyes had a light

304
00:20:03,320 --> 00:20:13,560
and thought and that was the turning point and I really believe that I had a divine touch.

305
00:20:13,560 --> 00:20:20,320
And again, I just, the part that really stuck with me over the years was just the boldness

306
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of my Christian sister who said, will you let me come and do this and my hesitancy about

307
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it.

308
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So that really has stuck with me.

309
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In that time also, because of those encounters with the Lord, you started realizing that

310
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you weren't as afraid about your future either.

311
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I think when I began to heal, I had such a hunger for God.

312
00:20:46,960 --> 00:20:55,480
Once you've had a touch from the Lord and then his presence makes you different, makes

313
00:20:55,480 --> 00:20:58,960
you new and I wanted to know about this Jesus.

314
00:20:58,960 --> 00:21:05,200
I wanted to know what these people who had prayed for me, what they read in the scriptures,

315
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what they knew that I didn't know.

316
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And I sat up one night.

317
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I was still ill.

318
00:21:13,880 --> 00:21:19,640
It took me a while to heal, but I woke up one night.

319
00:21:19,640 --> 00:21:21,720
In the middle of the night, I sat in a chair.

320
00:21:21,720 --> 00:21:22,920
I flipped on the TV.

321
00:21:22,920 --> 00:21:27,760
I still was fairly ill and Joel Osteen said, don't give up, don't give up.

322
00:21:27,760 --> 00:21:30,200
And that just began to take root in me.

323
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I just started to yearn for Jesus and yearn for the Spirit.

324
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I believe I met the Holy Spirit then.

325
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And he became my healer, my guide, my teacher, my friend, my companion.

326
00:21:48,640 --> 00:21:54,000
At some time in this time, well, I guess it's once I had a little bit more strength, I did

327
00:21:54,000 --> 00:21:57,880
a Beth Moore Bible study called Breaking Free.

328
00:21:57,880 --> 00:22:00,280
And I had no idea that I was a captive.

329
00:22:00,280 --> 00:22:03,720
I mean, I remember reading this stuff and just going, I'm a captive.

330
00:22:03,720 --> 00:22:05,680
Why didn't somebody tell me this?

331
00:22:05,680 --> 00:22:11,200
It was just so, I mean, it was a light bulb for me.

332
00:22:11,200 --> 00:22:16,840
And I want to say this had always been there.

333
00:22:16,840 --> 00:22:20,240
You know, Jesus, he is, he was, he will be.

334
00:22:20,240 --> 00:22:23,960
This had always been there in front of me.

335
00:22:23,960 --> 00:22:28,920
I think the point I want to make is that I had to receive it.

336
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I had to open myself up.

337
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I had to get out of my way, Jody.

338
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And I had to receive Jesus.

339
00:22:36,960 --> 00:22:45,000
I had to say a yes to him, everything about him.

340
00:22:45,000 --> 00:22:52,120
And that's what happened as a result of that terrible suffering.

341
00:22:52,120 --> 00:23:01,560
But I began to just love the scriptures, love worship, just feed myself on all of that.

342
00:23:01,560 --> 00:23:04,400
And yeah, so it really was making you into a new person.

343
00:23:04,400 --> 00:23:05,400
I feel, yeah, yes.

344
00:23:05,400 --> 00:23:06,400
Yeah, go ahead.

345
00:23:06,400 --> 00:23:07,400
Share.

346
00:23:07,400 --> 00:23:08,400
Just a new person.

347
00:23:08,400 --> 00:23:13,440
I think of it this way.

348
00:23:13,440 --> 00:23:22,400
I think God showed me my will and his will and showed me I couldn't have both.

349
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And he just, he replaced my will with his will.

350
00:23:25,520 --> 00:23:27,680
Yeah, that is so good.

351
00:23:27,680 --> 00:23:32,440
So you went through the Bible study and you really met the Holy Spirit.

352
00:23:32,440 --> 00:23:38,000
And then several years later, you had a few years to recover and grow and grow in the Lord.

353
00:23:38,000 --> 00:23:42,800
But then several years later, your husband was transferred from Dallas up to Toronto.

354
00:23:42,800 --> 00:23:46,000
And you just embraced it as a great adventure.

355
00:23:46,000 --> 00:23:47,480
You're excited.

356
00:23:47,480 --> 00:23:52,040
And God had some amazing lessons there for you and great opportunities.

357
00:23:52,040 --> 00:23:58,120
Share about those because they're, you know, you come from a very hard struggle in your

358
00:23:58,120 --> 00:24:02,120
life to opportunities to really share about Jesus.

359
00:24:02,120 --> 00:24:08,960
Yes, I think that's the point is that he made me new and he restored me and healed me.

360
00:24:08,960 --> 00:24:12,400
And then he basically said, get up and go, let's do this.

361
00:24:12,400 --> 00:24:20,800
And I, yes, I did begin to lose my spirit of fear, although I will say, I jokingly tell

362
00:24:20,800 --> 00:24:24,160
my friends all the time, basically everything I've done in my life, I've done a little bit

363
00:24:24,160 --> 00:24:26,280
afraid, but I've done it anyway.

364
00:24:26,280 --> 00:24:27,800
So Toronto was amazing.

365
00:24:27,800 --> 00:24:34,800
I had, you know, never lived anywhere but Texas and then go to Toronto.

366
00:24:34,800 --> 00:24:37,080
Wonderful opportunity for my husband.

367
00:24:37,080 --> 00:24:39,880
He had great business opportunity there.

368
00:24:39,880 --> 00:24:40,880
We lived downtown.

369
00:24:40,880 --> 00:24:46,840
I found a church that I adored and they were doing some really beautiful hands on ministry

370
00:24:46,840 --> 00:24:52,040
with homeless people, a ministry called Out of the Cold.

371
00:24:52,040 --> 00:24:55,320
And of course the Toronto winters are brutal.

372
00:24:55,320 --> 00:24:58,800
And there's so much need for so many people.

373
00:24:58,800 --> 00:25:02,280
And so I would serve there.

374
00:25:02,280 --> 00:25:09,960
And it was just something I had never experienced before, feeding, clothing, washing feet, just

375
00:25:09,960 --> 00:25:12,600
a true ministry of Jesus.

376
00:25:12,600 --> 00:25:15,600
And it just excited me.

377
00:25:15,600 --> 00:25:18,160
I kind of thought, this is what I was meant to do.

378
00:25:18,160 --> 00:25:20,560
Like this is it.

379
00:25:20,560 --> 00:25:27,080
So I met amazing women who had lived all over the world, who were there.

380
00:25:27,080 --> 00:25:34,480
Their husbands were doing work, business there as well, or even ambassadors wives.

381
00:25:34,480 --> 00:25:38,680
And it was called our International Women's Club.

382
00:25:38,680 --> 00:25:44,800
We met to foster friendships, to learn.

383
00:25:44,800 --> 00:25:46,520
You know, there was academic learning.

384
00:25:46,520 --> 00:25:48,000
There was cultural learning.

385
00:25:48,000 --> 00:25:55,760
There was, we looked all over, went all over the city of Toronto and learned about the city.

386
00:25:55,760 --> 00:26:00,840
These women were so different and special in their own ways.

387
00:26:00,840 --> 00:26:08,480
And I got to hear these stories of their lives living in all kinds of countries and experiences.

388
00:26:08,480 --> 00:26:11,000
So that was just a huge education for me.

389
00:26:11,000 --> 00:26:20,680
I did at one time think I was better with the ministry out of the cold.

390
00:26:20,680 --> 00:26:27,800
But then one evening, as I sat in my house watching the snow, the Lord showed me that

391
00:26:27,800 --> 00:26:32,520
there was great need for him on both sides.

392
00:26:32,520 --> 00:26:35,840
Maybe the one need was so evident to me.

393
00:26:35,840 --> 00:26:41,400
That just like the women who were just like me had such a need for him.

394
00:26:41,400 --> 00:26:46,440
And they might have had a brokenness inside as I had experienced that you couldn't see

395
00:26:46,440 --> 00:26:48,280
from the external.

396
00:26:48,280 --> 00:26:55,680
I began to just have so many special friendships there.

397
00:26:55,680 --> 00:27:02,960
And just at times it was hard because I would see great success and people living in that

398
00:27:02,960 --> 00:27:12,520
way and then such dire need and brokenness and interesting to be in both of those worlds.

399
00:27:12,520 --> 00:27:15,840
Yeah, it's a real dichotomy and you struggle with it.

400
00:27:15,840 --> 00:27:18,280
How did the Lord speak to you about that?

401
00:27:18,280 --> 00:27:25,360
I mean, you shared a little bit, but you're dealing with the homeless and then people who

402
00:27:25,360 --> 00:27:27,880
have much more than they may need.

403
00:27:27,880 --> 00:27:29,160
I did struggle with it.

404
00:27:29,160 --> 00:27:34,680
I got a bit judgmental again, which I've always had.

405
00:27:34,680 --> 00:27:41,960
I always wondered why I go into this judgment, but I learned I did that with myself always.

406
00:27:41,960 --> 00:27:46,960
It's one of the reasons I suffered so much in my life because I was a very harsh judge

407
00:27:46,960 --> 00:27:51,320
on myself, which then made me a harsh judge on others.

408
00:27:51,320 --> 00:27:58,160
So I was quick to judge and in my mind, with my limited knowledge, kind of parse out, well,

409
00:27:58,160 --> 00:28:00,600
you're deserving, you're not that sort of thing.

410
00:28:00,600 --> 00:28:04,680
Well, we know that's not how our Lord works.

411
00:28:04,680 --> 00:28:13,080
He's the Lord of all and so longs to be in life with all of us, be our provision, be

412
00:28:13,080 --> 00:28:15,640
our all that we need.

413
00:28:15,640 --> 00:28:19,200
I think I identify with both groups greatly.

414
00:28:19,200 --> 00:28:24,400
I can remember one time coming out of a store and just like seeing someone on the street

415
00:28:24,400 --> 00:28:34,400
with like a bottle and a wrapper and kind of feeling a little irritated about it and

416
00:28:34,400 --> 00:28:42,320
God placing on my heart that I was really, even my expensive wine in a glass in a nice

417
00:28:42,320 --> 00:28:47,240
place was kind of the same thing, just coping without God.

418
00:28:47,240 --> 00:28:48,800
I don't know.

419
00:28:48,800 --> 00:28:53,520
These things are very, they're still very challenging for me.

420
00:28:53,520 --> 00:29:01,040
We're in cities a lot and you get a real view of the difference.

421
00:29:01,040 --> 00:29:07,040
Now to God, he sees us all, he sees the heart, he sees us all the same.

422
00:29:07,040 --> 00:29:11,240
Oh, if we could do that, that's the goal.

423
00:29:11,240 --> 00:29:17,720
We want to see, we want to not see by the outer package, but see one another as God sees

424
00:29:17,720 --> 00:29:18,720
us.

425
00:29:18,720 --> 00:29:26,160
You know, your experiences and your background gave you really a unique opportunity to share

426
00:29:26,160 --> 00:29:33,360
Jesus and the difference he makes with a lot of these women who on the outside didn't also

427
00:29:33,360 --> 00:29:39,160
look like they had any need, but you were able to see past that because you knew you

428
00:29:39,160 --> 00:29:40,520
were once them.

429
00:29:40,520 --> 00:29:41,520
I was.

430
00:29:41,520 --> 00:29:46,440
It's a little bit harder in my opinion because for me, as long as I could have my own, myself

431
00:29:46,440 --> 00:29:49,000
reliance, that was enough.

432
00:29:49,000 --> 00:29:51,480
I liked that.

433
00:29:51,480 --> 00:29:58,080
So I feel like I'm one of the most blessed ones because I couldn't do it any other way

434
00:29:58,080 --> 00:29:59,080
but with Jesus.

435
00:29:59,080 --> 00:30:09,080
You know, I think my broken spirit, my broken body, I could not do it my way any longer.

436
00:30:09,080 --> 00:30:11,000
That was the gift he gave me.

437
00:30:11,000 --> 00:30:20,040
My way was over and I picked him up in his way and that was then my path to freedom.

438
00:30:20,040 --> 00:30:28,120
And I know that I think it is obvious to me now, more obvious because of my own struggles

439
00:30:28,120 --> 00:30:35,400
when I am with women, you know, and I still, one of the pursuits of my life is just being

440
00:30:35,400 --> 00:30:41,120
with women and sharing and talking honestly about Jesus and praying together and laying

441
00:30:41,120 --> 00:30:46,800
our, you know, humbling ourselves and let's just be able to take up that freedom in Christ

442
00:30:46,800 --> 00:30:54,080
and lay down everything that, you know, in hindrance.

443
00:30:54,080 --> 00:31:00,160
That passion to share Christ in every setting really has only grown in you.

444
00:31:00,160 --> 00:31:06,040
Well, just a story or two of some unlikely doors God has opened for you to share your

445
00:31:06,040 --> 00:31:07,040
faith.

446
00:31:07,040 --> 00:31:10,840
Oh, it's just, it's so wonderful.

447
00:31:10,840 --> 00:31:14,440
It's the joy of my life because that's what I want to talk about, I want to talk about

448
00:31:14,440 --> 00:31:15,440
the good news.

449
00:31:15,440 --> 00:31:22,120
So unfortunately for many people on the street, they may try to get away sometimes, but God

450
00:31:22,120 --> 00:31:26,440
has opened amazing doors in that respect.

451
00:31:26,440 --> 00:31:33,720
One thing I believe God has helped me know how to listen better to people.

452
00:31:33,720 --> 00:31:41,160
I think that listening to people's stories just teaches me so much and shows me their

453
00:31:41,160 --> 00:31:45,000
heart and if you can be a good listener.

454
00:31:45,000 --> 00:31:53,360
But I have had some encounters, one in particular, a woman in Toronto, we were in a museum outing

455
00:31:53,360 --> 00:31:59,920
and it happened to be the Dead Sea Scrolls and I was, I guess, showing exuberance over

456
00:31:59,920 --> 00:32:06,080
these dead scrolls and she came up to me and said she had not ever lived in Toronto or

457
00:32:06,080 --> 00:32:10,200
North America and she said, are you a Christian?

458
00:32:10,200 --> 00:32:12,160
And I said, yes.

459
00:32:12,160 --> 00:32:16,120
And she said, I have really been wanting to talk with you.

460
00:32:16,120 --> 00:32:22,800
She was an acquaintance of a friend in the group, but I was just overjoyed.

461
00:32:22,800 --> 00:32:26,320
And we began to talk and I said, do you want to come to my house for coffee?

462
00:32:26,320 --> 00:32:28,040
And she did.

463
00:32:28,040 --> 00:32:35,480
And we got to have the conversations about God and faith and the good news and the gospel.

464
00:32:35,480 --> 00:32:38,560
And that is just incredible to me.

465
00:32:38,560 --> 00:32:45,400
And even just in the last few weeks, I was in New York and just in a store and a man

466
00:32:45,400 --> 00:32:48,840
asked me if I was a pastor.

467
00:32:48,840 --> 00:32:49,840
Yes.

468
00:32:49,840 --> 00:32:50,840
No, sorry.

469
00:32:50,840 --> 00:33:00,400
But just got to listen to his story and then share the gospel message.

470
00:33:00,400 --> 00:33:02,840
And I think that's the thing.

471
00:33:02,840 --> 00:33:08,800
The Lord wants us to be ready to give an account for our hope, the hope in us.

472
00:33:08,800 --> 00:33:15,000
And I think that all of us have that in our world if we just listen.

473
00:33:15,000 --> 00:33:20,800
And then I have prayed for boldness because I've probably had many more opportunities

474
00:33:20,800 --> 00:33:26,000
where I didn't say a word because I had a lack of courage or boldness.

475
00:33:26,000 --> 00:33:28,560
So that's something I have to pray for.

476
00:33:28,560 --> 00:33:29,560
Yeah.

477
00:33:29,560 --> 00:33:31,280
And that's what the disciples, they prayed for boldness.

478
00:33:31,280 --> 00:33:37,240
I mean, in Acts, they were all in the upper room and they were praying or even after the

479
00:33:37,240 --> 00:33:40,160
Holy Spirit came, they were praying for boldness to share the Lord.

480
00:33:40,160 --> 00:33:41,960
So even they were fearful.

481
00:33:41,960 --> 00:33:42,960
Yes.

482
00:33:42,960 --> 00:33:47,360
So if they need to pray for boldness, how much more do we need to pray for boldness?

483
00:33:47,360 --> 00:33:48,360
Yes.

484
00:33:48,360 --> 00:33:50,400
Exactly.

485
00:33:50,400 --> 00:33:54,920
Just in our walk with Jesus, I love that He shows us what we need.

486
00:33:54,920 --> 00:33:59,680
And then He says, ask, ask, ask and you will receive it.

487
00:33:59,680 --> 00:34:02,080
And I truly do believe this.

488
00:34:02,080 --> 00:34:08,800
I think every day He shows us what we're going to need for the opportunities of the day.

489
00:34:08,800 --> 00:34:11,880
You know, really His mercies are so new every day.

490
00:34:11,880 --> 00:34:19,520
And just waking up for me or anyone who has suffered in their bodies, or let me say, emotional

491
00:34:19,520 --> 00:34:22,320
suffering, it's wretched.

492
00:34:22,320 --> 00:34:30,000
I panic attacks, depression, anxiety, these things are so brutal.

493
00:34:30,000 --> 00:34:36,480
And when you have been delivered, then you know what a normal healthy day feels like

494
00:34:36,480 --> 00:34:37,960
again.

495
00:34:37,960 --> 00:34:41,440
I can't really take a breath without Jesus.

496
00:34:41,440 --> 00:34:45,080
Every day is His day for me.

497
00:34:45,080 --> 00:34:48,520
And I don't mean to sound like, I mean, no, I go my own way plenty.

498
00:34:48,520 --> 00:34:51,680
But I do start my days.

499
00:34:51,680 --> 00:34:55,080
God just renew my mind in you.

500
00:34:55,080 --> 00:34:57,240
Remind me who I am.

501
00:34:57,240 --> 00:34:58,920
I want to know my worth.

502
00:34:58,920 --> 00:35:00,160
That is one of my passions.

503
00:35:00,160 --> 00:35:04,960
My worth, I can help other women know their worth if I can know my worth.

504
00:35:04,960 --> 00:35:10,560
I think that was a struggle of my life, really knowing where my worth came from.

505
00:35:10,560 --> 00:35:14,560
Them being ready to share with others.

506
00:35:14,560 --> 00:35:15,800
We love God.

507
00:35:15,800 --> 00:35:17,640
We love others.

508
00:35:17,640 --> 00:35:20,760
And serve others.

509
00:35:20,760 --> 00:35:23,360
And that is our great joy.

510
00:35:23,360 --> 00:35:24,920
I love that.

511
00:35:24,920 --> 00:35:28,600
Just your excitement over the dead sea scrolls.

512
00:35:28,600 --> 00:35:29,600
Open the door.

513
00:35:29,600 --> 00:35:32,120
You know, she's like, oh, this is my opportunity.

514
00:35:32,120 --> 00:35:38,200
You know, I think people do if they're looking for opportunity to ask someone who really

515
00:35:38,200 --> 00:35:39,200
does believe.

516
00:35:39,200 --> 00:35:40,600
I think so.

517
00:35:40,600 --> 00:35:42,760
I think, I know.

518
00:35:42,760 --> 00:35:44,360
And just her boldness.

519
00:35:44,360 --> 00:35:50,160
You know, how easy it would have been for her to just, in fact, she, as we got to know

520
00:35:50,160 --> 00:35:53,880
each other, she said, I've not, I've only met a few Christians.

521
00:35:53,880 --> 00:35:54,880
Wow.

522
00:35:54,880 --> 00:35:55,880
Yeah.

523
00:35:55,880 --> 00:35:57,760
I thought I needed to hear that.

524
00:35:57,760 --> 00:36:01,160
You know, I came from a place where everyone was a Christian.

525
00:36:01,160 --> 00:36:07,840
And then the Lord came out into the world to show me this world is very big and very

526
00:36:07,840 --> 00:36:09,280
diverse.

527
00:36:09,280 --> 00:36:15,360
And you know, Jodie, one thing he did put in me as well as I began to heal, I just had

528
00:36:15,360 --> 00:36:18,800
such a hunger for the body of Christ.

529
00:36:18,800 --> 00:36:25,400
I began to go to the Korean church, to all the charismatic church, to churches where

530
00:36:25,400 --> 00:36:27,280
I was the minority.

531
00:36:27,280 --> 00:36:37,240
I just loved watching the body of Christ worship and, you know, and learning and seeing that

532
00:36:37,240 --> 00:36:41,200
expression of faith that can look a lot of different ways.

533
00:36:41,200 --> 00:36:42,200
Yeah.

534
00:36:42,200 --> 00:36:45,280
The body has all different parts and they all express differently.

535
00:36:45,280 --> 00:36:48,240
And so, yeah, it's valuable.

536
00:36:48,240 --> 00:36:49,760
It's valuable to see.

537
00:36:49,760 --> 00:36:54,760
Turning to something a little more recent, the COVID pandemic, the Lord did another

538
00:36:54,760 --> 00:36:56,560
work in you during the COVID pandemic.

539
00:36:56,560 --> 00:37:00,200
I mean, the Lord did another work in a lot of us during the COVID pandemic because life

540
00:37:00,200 --> 00:37:02,480
changed dramatically.

541
00:37:02,480 --> 00:37:04,440
Tell us about your experience.

542
00:37:04,440 --> 00:37:05,440
Yes.

543
00:37:05,440 --> 00:37:10,080
I, you know, COVID for me, it was kind of terrifying at first.

544
00:37:10,080 --> 00:37:16,240
I was getting on a plane to London to go see one of my sons and my husband was in California.

545
00:37:16,240 --> 00:37:21,440
And he called me and said, I don't know if you should go and I'll probably come back

546
00:37:21,440 --> 00:37:24,280
to Dallas, our home in Dallas.

547
00:37:24,280 --> 00:37:28,600
And we'll probably just kind of hunker down there together for a couple of weeks and let

548
00:37:28,600 --> 00:37:29,600
this thing go.

549
00:37:29,600 --> 00:37:33,320
Well, that's not what happened.

550
00:37:33,320 --> 00:37:39,640
So there was so much happening in me and I'm such a rule follower and I'm such a, I love

551
00:37:39,640 --> 00:37:40,640
information.

552
00:37:40,640 --> 00:37:47,040
And so I really tried to follow and do everything right like many of us did.

553
00:37:47,040 --> 00:37:56,680
And it was a scary time at times for me because health issues kind of can scare me always.

554
00:37:56,680 --> 00:37:58,040
You had had some hard ones.

555
00:37:58,040 --> 00:37:59,040
Yes.

556
00:37:59,040 --> 00:38:04,320
And then there, what I have to watch is that I'll start to feel that again, like, oh no,

557
00:38:04,320 --> 00:38:06,040
you know that.

558
00:38:06,040 --> 00:38:07,160
And that's not God.

559
00:38:07,160 --> 00:38:11,080
So I was doing all the right things and being super careful.

560
00:38:11,080 --> 00:38:16,040
And I had a mom who was older and it was some health issues.

561
00:38:16,040 --> 00:38:17,880
My husband did as well.

562
00:38:17,880 --> 00:38:20,680
We did what we could.

563
00:38:20,680 --> 00:38:25,760
And then we ended up taking a trip to see my husband's mom.

564
00:38:25,760 --> 00:38:30,440
This was kind of into it so we were feeling a little better about things.

565
00:38:30,440 --> 00:38:34,400
But my husband had traveled to a conference in Florida, met me in Dallas.

566
00:38:34,400 --> 00:38:40,080
We got on a plane to go see his mom in Ohio and I show up, have a dinner with everyone

567
00:38:40,080 --> 00:38:42,800
and the next morning fall ill with COVID.

568
00:38:42,800 --> 00:38:47,200
So I'm in a little upper room in my mother-in-law's house and you know, I really don't want to

569
00:38:47,200 --> 00:38:51,840
be the daughter-in-law that brings COVID to my mother-in-law.

570
00:38:51,840 --> 00:38:57,800
So I, although the family was all very gracious to me, but she wasn't as worried about it

571
00:38:57,800 --> 00:38:58,800
as I was.

572
00:38:58,800 --> 00:39:02,600
But I just hunkered down in my little room and I was pretty ill.

573
00:39:02,600 --> 00:39:09,760
I felt pretty sick and then dealt with some fear again, Jody, because what I noticed is

574
00:39:09,760 --> 00:39:16,960
once I couldn't control things anymore, there were some of those feelings that, oh no, you

575
00:39:16,960 --> 00:39:18,360
know, is God with me?

576
00:39:18,360 --> 00:39:21,680
I don't understand this.

577
00:39:21,680 --> 00:39:28,040
You know, there's kind of a root of a lie that I got somewhere in my life.

578
00:39:28,040 --> 00:39:33,640
Like if I do the right things and follow God, my life will go well.

579
00:39:33,640 --> 00:39:39,080
And I've had to really, that's not what happened.

580
00:39:39,080 --> 00:39:43,880
My life has been amazing and blessed, but it's had tribulation as well.

581
00:39:43,880 --> 00:39:46,800
The journey with Jesus is full of both.

582
00:39:46,800 --> 00:39:53,200
As I sat in my little upstairs room, I just had another epiphany with the Holy Spirit,

583
00:39:53,200 --> 00:39:58,120
what I call another divine moment where I just kind of fell to the floor weeping.

584
00:39:58,120 --> 00:40:00,560
I could just feel the presence of God.

585
00:40:00,560 --> 00:40:07,320
And he began to show me that I had sort of built an altar to COVID.

586
00:40:07,320 --> 00:40:10,880
And that was actually the word that came to me.

587
00:40:10,880 --> 00:40:13,480
And that was totally true.

588
00:40:13,480 --> 00:40:17,440
And I just needed to dismantle that right away.

589
00:40:17,440 --> 00:40:19,600
And explain, explain what you mean by that.

590
00:40:19,600 --> 00:40:23,160
I mean, how did you build an altar to COVID?

591
00:40:23,160 --> 00:40:24,560
What was going on in you?

592
00:40:24,560 --> 00:40:31,320
Funny, not a physical altar, obviously, but in my thinking, I think everything that I

593
00:40:31,320 --> 00:40:35,240
do like that, I build things up in my mind.

594
00:40:35,240 --> 00:40:41,600
In my thinking, it will be kind of top of my mind, whereas I want to renew my mind daily

595
00:40:41,600 --> 00:40:44,600
and have the mind of Christ.

596
00:40:44,600 --> 00:40:52,800
And so for me, I catch myself now because I can tell when the things of the world, of

597
00:40:52,800 --> 00:40:57,920
the culture, the problems that I'm dealing with start to take over.

598
00:40:57,920 --> 00:41:01,520
They kind of dominate my thoughts and my actions.

599
00:41:01,520 --> 00:41:07,600
So your worry about COVID was really dominating how you were living more than maybe what God

600
00:41:07,600 --> 00:41:08,600
was saying.

601
00:41:08,600 --> 00:41:10,000
Probably so.

602
00:41:10,000 --> 00:41:14,480
But obviously, having wisdom is important.

603
00:41:14,480 --> 00:41:16,640
And taking care is important.

604
00:41:16,640 --> 00:41:20,800
And keeping ourselves healthy and well is important.

605
00:41:20,800 --> 00:41:22,760
So some of the things were fine.

606
00:41:22,760 --> 00:41:25,360
But I was going a bit overboard.

607
00:41:25,360 --> 00:41:27,440
And that's kind of how I did.

608
00:41:27,440 --> 00:41:31,440
It's kind of my personality.

609
00:41:31,440 --> 00:41:37,520
If a little is OK, then let's do a lot.

610
00:41:37,520 --> 00:41:39,360
But yeah, I didn't know that.

611
00:41:39,360 --> 00:41:40,800
That was an epiphany from God.

612
00:41:40,800 --> 00:41:45,520
I didn't see that in myself until he had said.

613
00:41:45,520 --> 00:41:48,200
And then it became a confessional, Jodi.

614
00:41:48,200 --> 00:41:49,600
I just began to humble.

615
00:41:49,600 --> 00:41:53,880
I think that's what COVID did for me all that time alone.

616
00:41:53,880 --> 00:41:57,520
It, you know, time in the word, time in worship.

617
00:41:57,520 --> 00:41:58,640
Thank God for technology.

618
00:41:58,640 --> 00:42:03,240
I'm not a technology person, but thank God for technology because we could connect with

619
00:42:03,240 --> 00:42:04,240
family.

620
00:42:04,240 --> 00:42:05,800
We could connect with church.

621
00:42:05,800 --> 00:42:08,680
We could, oh my goodness.

622
00:42:08,680 --> 00:42:10,280
See, at that time was a lifeline.

623
00:42:10,280 --> 00:42:11,280
It really was.

624
00:42:11,280 --> 00:42:12,280
Yeah.

625
00:42:12,280 --> 00:42:19,920
And just for me, yeah, just seeing that I needed to find my freedom.

626
00:42:19,920 --> 00:42:23,320
COVID couldn't take my freedom.

627
00:42:23,320 --> 00:42:27,520
You know, he sets us free and we're free.

628
00:42:27,520 --> 00:42:30,200
And again, we use the wisdom.

629
00:42:30,200 --> 00:42:31,200
We use the knowledge.

630
00:42:31,200 --> 00:42:32,840
I love information.

631
00:42:32,840 --> 00:42:35,360
I love to learn.

632
00:42:35,360 --> 00:42:41,400
But sometimes you just have to say, I'm free in Jesus and I'm putting all my trust in

633
00:42:41,400 --> 00:42:42,400
him.

634
00:42:42,400 --> 00:42:44,560
I'm going to do what I can, but he is the one.

635
00:42:44,560 --> 00:42:46,680
He is the one I'm going to think on.

636
00:42:46,680 --> 00:42:47,680
Yeah, I know.

637
00:42:47,680 --> 00:42:55,360
Sometimes I just have to shut off all the secular inputs that are coming in.

638
00:42:55,360 --> 00:42:59,080
And we have to know, of course, we have to know what's going on in the world around us,

639
00:42:59,080 --> 00:43:04,160
but we don't have to take in all the opinions of everybody else about what's going on in

640
00:43:04,160 --> 00:43:05,640
the world around us.

641
00:43:05,640 --> 00:43:09,640
Instead we need to know what the Lord's opinion is about it, what the Lord has says about

642
00:43:09,640 --> 00:43:10,640
the situation.

643
00:43:10,640 --> 00:43:11,640
Amen.

644
00:43:11,640 --> 00:43:15,160
Otherwise, we can be tossed like it says.

645
00:43:15,160 --> 00:43:20,520
We can be tossed to and fro by the waves and not know what to do.

646
00:43:20,520 --> 00:43:23,600
And we have to know the word.

647
00:43:23,600 --> 00:43:25,480
We have to meditate on the word.

648
00:43:25,480 --> 00:43:27,200
We have to pray.

649
00:43:27,200 --> 00:43:36,040
I think prayer groups really came alive during COVID.

650
00:43:36,040 --> 00:43:37,320
How powerful is that?

651
00:43:37,320 --> 00:43:42,080
I think repentance for me was so powerful, humbling myself.

652
00:43:42,080 --> 00:43:48,880
Again, that time where we're still with God, probably I had not had that kind of time since

653
00:43:48,880 --> 00:43:52,120
my illness.

654
00:43:52,120 --> 00:43:56,320
And that's where I met the Holy Spirit.

655
00:43:56,320 --> 00:44:05,240
So COVID kind of did that again for me to be able to repent.

656
00:44:05,240 --> 00:44:10,520
And I mean it like, not like, oh, I used to think, oh, well, repentance, that's for people

657
00:44:10,520 --> 00:44:11,520
who are horrible.

658
00:44:11,520 --> 00:44:14,840
You know, no, it's for me.

659
00:44:14,840 --> 00:44:21,680
Meaning thinking my own thoughts, living my own way, doing it without God.

660
00:44:21,680 --> 00:44:24,560
And that is my nature.

661
00:44:24,560 --> 00:44:31,600
And even though I have Christ, I still am in this flesh body.

662
00:44:31,600 --> 00:44:35,240
My nature is to go my way a lot of days.

663
00:44:35,240 --> 00:44:42,680
And I think just to see this collective prayer and repentance and humbling in the body of

664
00:44:42,680 --> 00:44:45,480
Christ has been so powerful.

665
00:44:45,480 --> 00:44:53,000
And I think it took us back to our first love and to say, oh, Lord, oh, King Jesus, we just

666
00:44:53,000 --> 00:44:55,840
want it your way.

667
00:44:55,840 --> 00:45:01,840
And it kind of showed us like maybe some of the things that are good things may not be

668
00:45:01,840 --> 00:45:03,800
the thing.

669
00:45:03,800 --> 00:45:07,280
And yeah, I know it was good for me.

670
00:45:07,280 --> 00:45:08,280
Powerful.

671
00:45:08,280 --> 00:45:11,160
I love busyness.

672
00:45:11,160 --> 00:45:12,160
I love people.

673
00:45:12,160 --> 00:45:13,160
I love travel.

674
00:45:13,160 --> 00:45:14,160
I love doing all some things.

675
00:45:14,160 --> 00:45:16,040
I love gathering.

676
00:45:16,040 --> 00:45:18,040
I love hostessing.

677
00:45:18,040 --> 00:45:21,240
But sometimes we need stillness with the Lord.

678
00:45:21,240 --> 00:45:26,240
So over the years of walking with the Lord, he's changed your desires and your dreams as

679
00:45:26,240 --> 00:45:27,240
you've talked about.

680
00:45:27,240 --> 00:45:31,240
When you're looking forward now, what do you yearn for?

681
00:45:31,240 --> 00:45:35,720
Oh, so much more of him, so much less of me.

682
00:45:35,720 --> 00:45:40,880
I have experienced the miracle working power of the Holy Spirit and I long to continue to

683
00:45:40,880 --> 00:45:41,880
see that.

684
00:45:41,880 --> 00:45:43,320
I believe we will see that.

685
00:45:43,320 --> 00:45:44,320
I look for it.

686
00:45:44,320 --> 00:45:51,840
And I know that many people experience darkness in this world.

687
00:45:51,840 --> 00:45:58,400
There's so many hurting right now in so many different ways.

688
00:45:58,400 --> 00:46:05,560
And the light of Christ is what will alleviate that.

689
00:46:05,560 --> 00:46:08,200
I hope to be that for others.

690
00:46:08,200 --> 00:46:13,400
I can't even say thank you to the Lord enough for all the people that have poured into my

691
00:46:13,400 --> 00:46:14,400
life.

692
00:46:14,400 --> 00:46:22,120
It's amazing, the friendships, the pastors, the strangers that he has put in my life just

693
00:46:22,120 --> 00:46:25,120
to love me and to encourage me.

694
00:46:25,120 --> 00:46:26,600
So that's my hope.

695
00:46:26,600 --> 00:46:31,320
I hope for many wonderful days with my husband, Chris.

696
00:46:31,320 --> 00:46:33,400
I hope for more travel.

697
00:46:33,400 --> 00:46:34,400
I love travel.

698
00:46:34,400 --> 00:46:41,840
I hope for more family time, friends, my new old friends, but new friends.

699
00:46:41,840 --> 00:46:48,600
My husband and I move around a lot, so new friends are so exciting.

700
00:46:48,600 --> 00:46:56,760
Just time, time with family and loved ones and just more experiences of the grace of

701
00:46:56,760 --> 00:46:59,040
God and the beauty of this world.

702
00:46:59,040 --> 00:47:04,800
So as we close, Renee, would you share about a woman in the Bible who's inspired or encouraged

703
00:47:04,800 --> 00:47:06,120
or taught you something?

704
00:47:06,120 --> 00:47:08,880
I have to say Mary Magdalene.

705
00:47:08,880 --> 00:47:17,560
And the reason is because she traveled with Jesus and she supported his ministry and it

706
00:47:17,560 --> 00:47:20,400
just, there's nothing more exciting to me.

707
00:47:20,400 --> 00:47:25,680
And of course she was a witness, but I just would love to think that I would be sitting

708
00:47:25,680 --> 00:47:27,880
by the tomb.

709
00:47:27,880 --> 00:47:31,760
After what I have experienced, I'm looking for him.

710
00:47:31,760 --> 00:47:36,880
So I would definitely say Mary Magdalene.

711
00:47:36,880 --> 00:47:39,000
I love Jesus.

712
00:47:39,000 --> 00:47:40,760
I love the ministry of Jesus.

713
00:47:40,760 --> 00:47:43,560
I love ministers.

714
00:47:43,560 --> 00:47:49,160
We support a lot of young ministers and it just is so exciting to me.

715
00:47:49,160 --> 00:47:51,240
So I think I have to say Mary Magdalene.

716
00:47:51,240 --> 00:47:52,400
Yeah, I love that.

717
00:47:52,400 --> 00:47:54,880
I always looking for Jesus.

718
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That is good.

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That is very, very good.

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You know, in Philippians 4, 3, 10 through 14 in the NIV, the apostle Paul writes, I want

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to know Christ.

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00:48:08,160 --> 00:48:13,760
Yes, to know the power of his resurrection and participate in his sufferings, becoming

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like him in his death.

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And so somehow attaining to the resurrection of the dead.

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Not that I've already obtained all this or have already arrived at my goal, but I press

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00:48:24,560 --> 00:48:29,400
on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me.

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00:48:29,400 --> 00:48:33,760
Sisters and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it, but one thing

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00:48:33,760 --> 00:48:40,000
I do, forgetting what is behind, straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the

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00:48:40,000 --> 00:48:45,760
goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.

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00:48:45,760 --> 00:48:50,340
You probably heard that same yearning for some, for more of Christ in Renee.

731
00:48:50,340 --> 00:48:54,920
She has been released from a lot of her past struggles and pains and she's pressing on

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00:48:54,920 --> 00:48:57,480
to know Christ more and more.

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00:48:57,480 --> 00:49:01,400
Being advantage of every opportunity she has to share Christ's love.

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May we all do the same.

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00:49:03,720 --> 00:49:06,640
Renee, would you take a moment and pray for our listeners?

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Yes, thank you.

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00:49:08,560 --> 00:49:12,520
Father, we come in the name of Jesus.

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We thank you that you bless us and you teach us and you fill us.

739
00:49:16,400 --> 00:49:20,360
And thank you for my sister Jody and our conversation today.

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00:49:20,360 --> 00:49:26,800
We pray it has glorified your name and we pray for any listener that you would touch

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00:49:26,800 --> 00:49:33,080
them now, exactly where they are, that you would be the balm for their life as you have

742
00:49:33,080 --> 00:49:34,760
been for mine.

743
00:49:34,760 --> 00:49:43,760
I pray that you would meet them with healing, with power, with presence, the presence of

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00:49:43,760 --> 00:49:48,080
the Holy Spirit and that they would humble themselves.

745
00:49:48,080 --> 00:49:51,520
Now they would repent of their way.

746
00:49:51,520 --> 00:49:58,920
Lord, they would take you, all of you, take you up Jesus because you are life.

747
00:49:58,920 --> 00:50:01,000
You are our life, Lord.

748
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The new life, the salvation.

749
00:50:03,760 --> 00:50:07,720
Thank you, Lord, that you are that for every person listening today.

750
00:50:07,720 --> 00:50:09,800
In Jesus' mighty, mighty name.

751
00:50:09,800 --> 00:50:10,800
Amen.

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00:50:10,800 --> 00:50:16,480
You know, friends, there are orphans as well as widows all over the world who need an expression

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00:50:16,480 --> 00:50:19,320
of a tangible love of Christ right now.

754
00:50:19,320 --> 00:50:23,440
Many have special needs that we as a company of women can meet together.

755
00:50:23,440 --> 00:50:26,240
Would you consider joining us with a special gift to help?

756
00:50:26,240 --> 00:50:31,200
Just go to hergodstory.org and click on the widow and orphan tab at the top of the page.

757
00:50:31,200 --> 00:50:32,640
Thank you for tuning in.

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00:50:32,640 --> 00:50:37,120
In our show notes at hergodstory.org, you'll find scriptures and other information we talked

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00:50:37,120 --> 00:50:38,120
about.

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00:50:38,120 --> 00:50:43,160
You can also get a six-week devotional book on Women of the Bible to download for free

761
00:50:43,160 --> 00:50:48,160
or purchase a 12-week devotional that will send you for just $12 knowing that all the

762
00:50:48,160 --> 00:50:51,000
proceeds go to our widow and orphan fund.

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00:50:51,000 --> 00:50:55,680
We'd also love to pray with you on our 24-7 prayer and text line.

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00:50:55,680 --> 00:51:04,680
Give us a call anytime at 855-459-CARE or email us at prayer@somebodycares.org.

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00:51:04,680 --> 00:51:11,400
And now, dear friends, I bless you from Ephesians 1: 17-22 and 1 Peter 3:15.

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00:51:11,400 --> 00:51:16,200
May God give you spiritual wisdom and insight so that you will grow in your knowledge of

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00:51:16,200 --> 00:51:17,400
the Lord.

768
00:51:17,400 --> 00:51:21,680
May your hearts be flooded with light so that you can understand the confident hope He has

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00:51:21,680 --> 00:51:30,160
given to those He called, His holy people, who you are, His rich and glorious inheritance.

770
00:51:30,160 --> 00:51:34,720
May you understand the incredible greatness of God's power for us who believe.

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00:51:34,720 --> 00:51:38,920
This is the same power that raised Christ from the dead and seated Him in the place of

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00:51:38,920 --> 00:51:42,320
honor at God's right hand in the heavenly realms.

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00:51:42,320 --> 00:51:48,680
Now He is far above any ruler or authority or power or leader or anything else, not only

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in this world but also in the world to come.

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00:51:51,480 --> 00:51:56,680
God has put all things under the authority of Christ and has made Him head over all things

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00:51:56,680 --> 00:51:59,680
for the benefit of the Church.

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00:51:59,680 --> 00:52:05,880
May you understand that you are a part of the Church, being made full and complete by

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00:52:05,880 --> 00:52:11,920
Christ so that you will always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you

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00:52:11,920 --> 00:52:16,000
to give the reason for the hope that you have.

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00:52:16,000 --> 00:52:20,040
Her God Story is a ministry of Somebody Cares America and International.

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To find out more about or support the ministry, go to somebodycares.org.