Better Together

How Family Fuels Your Faith! - Episode 1079

July 17, 2025 | S7 E1079 | 52:34

Sheila Walsh, Naomi Raine, Nicole Binion, Kirsten Watson, and Elyse Mahan reveal how faith grows stronger when families pray, support one another, and step boldly into God’s calling together.

#Family #Faith #Prayer #Calling #Healing #Unity #Journey #Generations #SpiritualGrowth #Legacy #Adoption #Ministry #PersonalStory #Encouragement #BodyofChrist

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Show Timecode

Better Together | How Family Fuels Your Faith! - Episode 1079 | July 17, 2025

- we all need people in our lives who fuel our faith.
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And today we're talking about the power of family
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To help us thrive.
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Come on, join us.
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(bright music) (singer vocalizing)
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- i've been thinking about how family fuels our faith
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And i can...
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Okay, i think the way that god works
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Is that he takes portions or aspects of our lives
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That we think are mistakes.
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Even just like meaningless,
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Like small things that don't matter.
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- yeah. - and he can like work
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Those things together,
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Right, that's been our theme this week,
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So that he gets glory.
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And so i remember when i was 18, i got pregnant
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With my daughter, april,
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And at that point i was not married.
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It was the worst news, right,
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That could have ever happened to me.
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I was, honestly, and i wish i could say that it was only
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For like moral reasons, i was afraid to end
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Or terminate a pregnancy.
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I was just afraid all around.
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And i said, we are gonna go through with this.
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And the lord had done so much in me,
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Was telling me who he is
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And all the things, making so many promises to me
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While she was in my belly about my life,
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About her life and that it wasn't over.
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But then how many know like as you just live life,
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It can start to just feel like mundane.
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You know, day to day is different than like,
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Oh, i'm seeing something afar off,
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Or these high mountaintop moments.
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And so i just continued to be faithful.
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I remember when i was pregnant,
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I got sat down from ministry, i couldn't sing anymore,
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Couldn't do, you know, all the things
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So that i could learn my lesson.
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And, but it wasn't really for that.
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I think the moments that maybe
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Would've been looked at as punishment,
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The lord was actually using to process me
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And bring me into a healthy place with him
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And really learn how to pursue his presence
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Rather than a platform or rather than anybody hearing me.
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These were those closet moments.
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These were those like, "me and jesus," like,
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"the altar is in my heart."
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And it doesn't matter who sees, who hears, who knows,
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Who can hear a song or read a lyric,
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It's just about me and him.
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And as time went on,
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I just developed my relationship with the lord
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And also with my daughter.
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And i was thinking,
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When i was thinking about this topic,
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When she was 16, i got to sing in new york city
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At the barclays center in brooklyn, new york
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Where the nets play, right?
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And it's like, it is the arena in new york.
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- wow, yeah. - and i get to sing-
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- right. - at the arena, right?
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- right. - in my hometown.
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- wow. - and
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One of the things i wanna do,
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'cause when we sing in our hometown,
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They ask like, "is there anything special you wanna do?"
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And i'm like, "i want my daughter to come up
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And sing with me."
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- wow. - i love that.
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- and so we sang a song called "god will work it out."
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And i remember this was her first time she...
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She can sing, that a girl could sing,
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But she has always been shy.
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She has always been very introverted.
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She's the girl in the book, she's a bookworm,
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And it was hard, if i ever asked her to sing, she'd be like,
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"no, mommy, i don't want to."
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You know, it was giving all of that.
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And so i said, "baby girl, do you wanna sing
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With me at the barclays center?"
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She's like, "yes." i'm like, "what?"
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I couldn't even believe it. - yeah.
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- i'm like, "you really wanna sing?"
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She said, yes.
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She came up, she used in-ears for the first time.
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Those are like monitors that go in your ears
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Because it's hard to hear in an arena.
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She sang beautifully.
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And in this moment, i, at one point look at her...
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And i can walk through moments and think...
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This is what sometimes you have to do as a worship leader.
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Like there are moments that you're
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In the glory with the lord, but you recognize too
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You're also leading people
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So you can be experiencing something
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So super duper heavenly, but you know
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If you go into the (indistinct)
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You won't be able to sing for the rest of the night.
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And i needed to accomplish the assignment,
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You know what i mean? - absolutely.
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- so i've learned how to maybe even compartmentalize
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And after moments have my full weep or weep the right way.
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Anyway, this is what's going on my mind.
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- yeah. - i've learned
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How to compartmentalize.
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I look over at my daughter and see the grace of god.
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- wow. - on my life.
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I remember the moment sitting in the car
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Talking with her dad
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When we realized we had to go inside the house
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And tell my parents that i was pregnant.
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And i thought that my life was over.
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I thought my parents were going to kill me, literally.
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I was like, "this is done."
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I couldn't even foresee going forward.
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And now i'm sitting here looking at the very image
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And picture of the grace of god in my life
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Where i thought my dreams were dead,
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But i didn't know what would happen.
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- totally. - with her.
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There was, i mean, and i'm like,
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And you're singing and you're doing the thing
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That like i do, and i... - yeah.
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- it just was so much for me.
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And i- - gosh.
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- i think at that moment it did something,
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It boosted my faith.
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I don't know if y'all are ever like watch video games-
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- yes. - like the mario cart?
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- yes. - there's this like,
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When you're driving and then there are these little like
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Accelerator paths that you go through.
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- come on. - and i feel like,
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Whoa, nicole, we said no crying today.
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- i know, you got me.
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- i feel like that moment was like an accelerator path
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For my faith because i was actually able to see
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That god had worked everything together for good.
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Did i still do the wrong thing? yes.
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Was it hard? yes.
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Did i think she was gonna sing? no.
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Like there was just a whole bunch...
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Was it perfect? no.
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I was nervous. i would think i was more nervous than her.
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But i'm seeing, and is her life over? is it complete?
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Is the story finished? no, but this was a moment.
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- yes, yes, yes. - of, oh, god is faithful.
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- yes. - yes.
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- god is faithful, and it happened.
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A lot of those moments in my life have happened outside
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Of my family, outside of what happens at home.
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And this one was like-
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- wow. - "god, you are so good."
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And so i wanted to ask y'all,
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How has your family, 'cause these are tears of joy.
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- yeah. - how has your family
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Fueled your faith?
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Where do you,
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Where have you found the faithfulness of god
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As it pertains to family? - oof, i love that.
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I love that story, wow.
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I think of my very first night in a psychiatric hospital.
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And i think, you know,
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That night as i'm laying on the floor,
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Jesus could have come in holding the hand of a little boy,
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'cause i'd always wanted to be a mom
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And didn't look like it was ever gonna happen,
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And said, "look what's ahead of you."
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And he didn't, but what he did is he came in
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And sat with me.
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And when i look back now,
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You know, when he called me last night about something
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And it's like, i said to him,
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"do you know how grateful i am that i get to be your mom?"
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I mean, when i get home
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After thanking the lord for a million years,
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My second thing is gonna be thank you
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For letting me be christian's mom.
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Because we were told he would not survive.
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We were told to abort him,
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That it was not a viable pregnancy.
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And i look at him now and he's this beautiful,
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Kind, brilliant man who loves god
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And who loves his family.
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And i think, you know, god's timing is so different
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Than our timing. - yeah.
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- because we can only see what's immediately around us.
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- right. - but for god,
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It's like, no.
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I feel like one of the messages of this show for people is,
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Hold on, hold on,
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God is not finished yet. - yes.
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- when i look back on the lives
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Of my grandparents and my parents,
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And i see how they fought the good fight of faith,
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The challenges that they came through,
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That the lord brought them through,
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They didn't quit, they kept going.
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And that speaks to me in my life right now,
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To not give up, to keep fighting the good fight of faith
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And to keep walking,
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Keep walking this life of faith out.
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And i'm telling you,
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There's so many good things ahead for us
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As people of faith, don't stop, keep going.
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- i think about pre-marriage kirsten versus who she is now.
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Pre-marriage kirsten was a piece of work.
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(laurie laughing)
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But i had these dreams and i was a risk taker.
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I was willing to do things that were not normal.
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I just feel like i was in some way more obedient to the...
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- through it and like god said, "do something hard."
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Like, "yeah, of course do it."
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And so then when we got married, it was like,
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It wasn't that it was got shut off,
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But because of the situation and me not being able to work,
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I feel like some of that, faith was there,
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But it was faith for something else other than myself,
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Other than my calling,
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Or other than what god had told me to do.
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And so it shifted over these years,
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These 16 years when benjamin was playing
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To where i almost lost faith in something other
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Than being a mom, other than being a wife,
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Other than those things, which are really important.
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And i feel like i have been positioned specifically
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For this man and these people, right?
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I love it. - yeah.
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- but i married someone who knew me before
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And was like, "kirsten, i think god has more for you."
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- wow. - so when i think about
00:09:17.680 --> 00:09:19.215
The question of how has your family fueled your faith,
00:09:19.215 --> 00:09:21.784
I've had a cheerleader from the beginning.
00:09:21.784 --> 00:09:23.886
- that's amazing, yeah. - has always been like,
00:09:23.886 --> 00:09:25.855
Don't forget that, like, you know, that's your gift.
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Like, oh yeah, that's, and he's positioned me
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Even throughout there to do things that i'm like,
00:09:30.793 --> 00:09:33.262
"why would i do that?"
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He's like, "yeah, come on, you're gonna do that."
00:09:34.664 --> 00:09:36.032
And even now, more so that he's no longer playing,
00:09:36.032 --> 00:09:39.669
He has like shifted everything.
00:09:39.669 --> 00:09:42.338
My kids don't think i can do anything.
00:09:42.338 --> 00:09:43.939
They don't think, they're like,
00:09:43.939 --> 00:09:45.241
"don't do a cartwheel or you'll hurt yourself."
00:09:45.241 --> 00:09:46.308
Or like. (people laughing)
00:09:46.308 --> 00:09:48.277
They think like, you know, they think
00:09:48.277 --> 00:09:49.645
I was just like spawned out as a person like this,
00:09:49.645 --> 00:09:52.181
Like, "you were a kid who played soccer?"
00:09:52.181 --> 00:09:54.050
I'm like, "i was good."
00:09:54.050 --> 00:09:56.218
I'm like convincing them that like i had a life
00:09:56.218 --> 00:09:58.120
And i did things well. - yeah.
00:09:58.120 --> 00:10:00.056
- and you know, so lately it's been, it's been benjamin
00:10:00.056 --> 00:10:03.426
Of the last three or four years who has been like,
00:10:03.426 --> 00:10:05.428
"kirsten like go to god."
00:10:05.428 --> 00:10:07.163
Like, "i know i see something in you,
00:10:07.163 --> 00:10:08.664
But hear from him and walk in that."
00:10:08.664 --> 00:10:10.299
And there's been things that i have stepped out in.
00:10:10.299 --> 00:10:12.134
- that's beautiful. - yeah.
00:10:12.134 --> 00:10:13.669
- because he's pushed me to find that and to find and,
00:10:13.669 --> 00:10:16.739
And to rekindle the fire that says yes.
00:10:16.739 --> 00:10:21.410
Yes to wife. yes to mom.
00:10:21.410 --> 00:10:23.212
But i think there's something, is there something else?
00:10:23.212 --> 00:10:25.748
And it's been cool because it's like i get the high five
00:10:25.748 --> 00:10:28.017
From the lord, like, "yes, yes girl."
00:10:28.017 --> 00:10:30.853
And then benjamin's like, "oh, i knew it."
00:10:30.853 --> 00:10:33.022
But then my kids were like, "what? so that's crazy!"
00:10:33.022 --> 00:10:36.592
You know, and so it's just been this sweet time
00:10:36.592 --> 00:10:39.328
That felt like it might've, it could have died honestly,
00:10:39.328 --> 00:10:43.265
Or could have just been overlooked
00:10:43.265 --> 00:10:44.533
Or it's not that important, i'm gonna shift.
00:10:44.533 --> 00:10:45.601
- yeah.
00:10:45.601 --> 00:10:47.136
- but i think it's just a sweet time for me to see that,
00:10:47.136 --> 00:10:50.005
And grateful time for me to say i'm,
00:10:50.005 --> 00:10:51.974
I'm grateful for the man that you sent to me
00:10:51.974 --> 00:10:54.143
To be my shepherd and my leader
00:10:54.143 --> 00:10:56.412
Because he is now, said, "you gave me all these years."
00:10:56.412 --> 00:10:59.682
Like, "now what do you wanna do? i'm here."
00:10:59.682 --> 00:11:02.118
I got the people, go do the thing, you know?
00:11:02.118 --> 00:11:03.519
- that's amazing. - so it's been kind of sweet.
00:11:03.519 --> 00:11:04.587
- i love that. (gentle music)
00:11:04.587 --> 00:11:06.789
- sometimes when we're filming
00:11:06.789 --> 00:11:08.124
Our "better together" programs and you know,
00:11:08.124 --> 00:11:09.592
It will be like five of us sisters gathered together,
00:11:09.592 --> 00:11:11.927
Sharing our stories, and i always think about,
00:11:11.927 --> 00:11:14.196
What about if there's somebody out there
00:11:14.196 --> 00:11:16.165
Who's like, "you know what?
00:11:16.165 --> 00:11:17.566
I'm so glad for you that you have four other women
00:11:17.566 --> 00:11:19.835
Around you, cheering you on and praying for you.
00:11:19.835 --> 00:11:22.271
I don't have a cheerleader."
00:11:22.271 --> 00:11:24.240
Well, i would like to officially sign myself up
00:11:24.240 --> 00:11:27.610
As your cheerleader.
00:11:27.610 --> 00:11:29.078
I want you to know you're not alone.
00:11:29.078 --> 00:11:30.980
It not only is jesus with you,
00:11:30.980 --> 00:11:32.581
Not only is the holy spirit praying for you
00:11:32.581 --> 00:11:35.017
When you can't even find the words and know what to say.
00:11:35.017 --> 00:11:37.753
You have a fam, that's why we love
00:11:37.753 --> 00:11:39.221
The "better together" community.
00:11:39.221 --> 00:11:40.790
We are a family praying for one another around the world.
00:11:40.790 --> 00:11:44.026
You might not be in the room, but you are in our hearts.
00:11:44.026 --> 00:11:47.763
- i have this memory of my dad every night when i was a kid
00:11:48.931 --> 00:11:52.034
Would come say goodnight,
00:11:52.034 --> 00:11:53.669
And then he would go down to the river to pray.
00:11:53.669 --> 00:11:55.404
We lived on a river and it was like across the street.
00:11:55.404 --> 00:11:58.307
And i don't think i ever really understood
00:11:58.307 --> 00:12:01.210
How much that had become the foundation for my faith.
00:12:01.210 --> 00:12:04.446
That my dad's prayers every night.
00:12:04.446 --> 00:12:06.415
I knew my mom was a prayer.
00:12:06.415 --> 00:12:08.651
I would come down every morning
00:12:09.285 --> 00:12:10.586
And she'd be journaling every single morning.
00:12:10.586 --> 00:12:12.288
And again, i don't, i didn't think about
00:12:12.288 --> 00:12:13.522
How those little things that i would walk
00:12:13.522 --> 00:12:14.824
Down to the kitchen every morning,
00:12:14.824 --> 00:12:16.292
See my mom spending time with jesus,
00:12:16.292 --> 00:12:18.494
Or how much knowing that after my dad comes
00:12:18.494 --> 00:12:20.229
And kisses me asleep, he's gonna go down and pray
00:12:20.229 --> 00:12:22.765
For our church, for our family, for a dog.
00:12:22.765 --> 00:12:25.301
I don't know, like. - yeah.
00:12:25.301 --> 00:12:26.735
- and how much it laid a foundation for me and my faith,
00:12:26.735 --> 00:12:29.438
And my dad similar, like i remember,
00:12:29.438 --> 00:12:31.707
The reason i ever wrote a book was because we were sitting
00:12:31.707 --> 00:12:35.477
In a boardroom on a trip in america.
00:12:35.477 --> 00:12:37.780
I still lived in australia.
00:12:37.780 --> 00:12:39.281
And he started pitching a book that i had not written.
00:12:39.281 --> 00:12:41.951
- wow. - i had not even thought
00:12:41.951 --> 00:12:43.552
About, i had written half a sermon about.
00:12:43.552 --> 00:12:45.988
- yeah. - that i wrote.
00:12:45.988 --> 00:12:47.857
That i was almost finished with apparently.
00:12:47.857 --> 00:12:49.992
And they signed me on a publishing deal.
00:12:49.992 --> 00:12:52.761
- wow. - and i was like,
00:12:52.761 --> 00:12:54.330
"how dare you?" and he would just give me dad's cheeky grin
00:12:54.330 --> 00:12:56.665
And just be like, "you got it babe."
00:12:56.665 --> 00:12:57.967
- yeah. - "let's go home and write."
00:12:57.967 --> 00:12:59.468
And i went home and wrote a book in two weeks.
00:12:59.468 --> 00:13:01.103
Like, but if my dad, like, so my dad in so many areas,
00:13:01.103 --> 00:13:04.640
I remember as a kid, my dad has always been big on,
00:13:04.640 --> 00:13:08.644
We still have a family group chat called mmmt,
00:13:08.644 --> 00:13:10.980
Murphy's marvelous mystery tour.
00:13:10.980 --> 00:13:12.715
Dad would just decide, he's taken our family on
00:13:12.715 --> 00:13:16.285
Mystery tours and they would always be to the beach.
00:13:16.285 --> 00:13:18.654
So it was never a mystery, like ever.
00:13:18.654 --> 00:13:20.289
(people laughing)
00:13:20.289 --> 00:13:21.423
Every time it was the beach.
00:13:21.423 --> 00:13:22.691
But every time we'd just be so excited.
00:13:22.691 --> 00:13:24.093
He was just such a memory maker.
00:13:24.093 --> 00:13:26.528
And so for me, yes, i've had pain in ministry,
00:13:26.528 --> 00:13:29.498
But my dad always made sure that growing up
00:13:29.498 --> 00:13:32.868
As a pastor's kid that the pain never outweighed the fun.
00:13:32.868 --> 00:13:36.839
- yeah, that's good. - and so i had that memory,
00:13:36.839 --> 00:13:38.874
Which i think again, i'm so aware of how blessed i am-
00:13:38.874 --> 00:13:42.411
- yeah. - to have that.
00:13:42.411 --> 00:13:43.345
And then as i grew up and moved
00:13:43.345 --> 00:13:45.547
On the other side of the world,
00:13:45.547 --> 00:13:47.449
He would just still always be there.
00:13:47.449 --> 00:13:48.984
Like my dad from pastoring the church.
00:13:48.984 --> 00:13:51.387
I think the kindness of god
00:13:51.387 --> 00:13:52.922
Is that right after that my dad started a coaching ministry
00:13:52.922 --> 00:13:56.091
For senior pastors and leaders and movements.
00:13:56.091 --> 00:13:57.860
And so he's in america like six times a year.
00:13:57.860 --> 00:13:59.895
- wow. - i see my dad all the time.
00:13:59.895 --> 00:14:01.830
To this day, i'm like, "are you here again, dude?
00:14:01.830 --> 00:14:03.599
Like where are you?
00:14:03.599 --> 00:14:04.700
What do you even live in australia?
00:14:04.700 --> 00:14:06.201
This is crazy." and my mom will come on a lot of the trips
00:14:06.201 --> 00:14:08.437
As well and so i just like,
00:14:08.437 --> 00:14:10.539
I think about the girl in la who was going through it,
00:14:10.539 --> 00:14:13.575
But still always wanted to make her dad proud.
00:14:13.575 --> 00:14:15.911
And i was looking back last night on some memories of blogs
00:14:15.911 --> 00:14:18.347
That i had written on, even just the awareness
00:14:18.347 --> 00:14:21.717
As a 24-year-old that i didn't have my dad
00:14:21.717 --> 00:14:23.686
By my side every day. - yeah.
00:14:23.686 --> 00:14:25.888
- but this one moment reuniting with him again.
00:14:25.888 --> 00:14:29.191
We were on our way to go to a conference.
00:14:29.191 --> 00:14:30.526
I hadn't seen him in like six months i think
00:14:30.526 --> 00:14:32.294
Since i'd moved to la, but just seeing him
00:14:32.294 --> 00:14:34.229
Walk back into the hotel room and just being like,
00:14:34.229 --> 00:14:35.898
There he is, like as a little girl,
00:14:35.898 --> 00:14:38.200
Wasn't just my faith that was fueled.
00:14:38.200 --> 00:14:40.536
But as a daughter, i am so aware of
00:14:40.536 --> 00:14:45.507
How blessed i was by god to be given a human picture
00:14:45.507 --> 00:14:50.846
Of an imperfect but incredible father that loved me.
00:14:51.914 --> 00:14:54.183
And that was always there.
00:14:54.183 --> 00:14:55.751
(gentle music)
00:14:55.751 --> 00:14:57.486
- so as far as spiritual legacy goes in my family, my,
00:14:57.486 --> 00:15:01.056
On my mom's side, right?
00:15:01.056 --> 00:15:02.558
That's what i know, my great-grandmother was saved.
00:15:02.558 --> 00:15:05.728
They went to church and my grandmother didn't.
00:15:05.728 --> 00:15:09.131
She stopped going to church once she moved
00:15:09.131 --> 00:15:11.200
To new york from mississippi.
00:15:11.200 --> 00:15:13.002
And there was like almost no faith activity
00:15:13.002 --> 00:15:18.273
In the household, but my auntie, kim, got saved.
00:15:19.208 --> 00:15:22.978
And this was in the seventies and during the, you know,
00:15:22.978 --> 00:15:25.981
The jesus people movement and she got saved in the seventies
00:15:25.981 --> 00:15:29.485
And ended up leading my mother, my grandmother to the lord.
00:15:29.485 --> 00:15:33.756
And so i like to say that my auntie was the one
00:15:33.756 --> 00:15:36.692
That really started the things,
00:15:36.692 --> 00:15:38.260
Or started with the women in my family.
00:15:38.260 --> 00:15:40.562
And it's something that's been passed down.
00:15:40.562 --> 00:15:43.065
My dad and my mom, the lord,
00:15:43.065 --> 00:15:44.633
The holy spirit brought them together and got them married.
00:15:44.633 --> 00:15:46.869
And i can tell that story another time,
00:15:46.869 --> 00:15:49.304
But they started a ministry together
00:15:49.304 --> 00:15:51.774
And did ministry in new york.
00:15:51.774 --> 00:15:53.142
And that was like the legacy that had been set
00:15:53.142 --> 00:15:55.310
For both my brother and i, and for my children.
00:15:55.310 --> 00:15:59.615
- god created us to be in community
00:16:00.349 --> 00:16:02.151
And we want you to join ours,
00:16:02.151 --> 00:16:04.253
- follow us on social media and join our conversation.
00:16:04.253 --> 00:16:08.023
- [narrator] let's keep the conversation going.
00:16:08.957 --> 00:16:11.160
You can find the "better together" podcast
00:16:11.160 --> 00:16:13.195
On your favorite listening platform.
00:16:13.195 --> 00:16:15.264
Subscribe today.
00:16:15.264 --> 00:16:16.665
(gentle music)
00:16:16.665 --> 00:16:20.001
(gentle music)
00:16:20.136 --> 00:16:23.273
- i told this story once before on the show,
00:16:23.273 --> 00:16:25.575
But as i think about family fueling our faith,
00:16:25.575 --> 00:16:29.279
I think about the darkest moment
00:16:29.279 --> 00:16:31.047
Of right after my husband had left.
00:16:31.047 --> 00:16:33.650
As a battered wife i didn't know how to be a daughter,
00:16:33.650 --> 00:16:36.419
Didn't know how to be a ministry leader.
00:16:36.419 --> 00:16:38.555
I was just taken on this identity
00:16:38.555 --> 00:16:41.324
Of i just wasn't good enough.
00:16:41.324 --> 00:16:42.559
I was easy to leave that lie.
00:16:42.559 --> 00:16:44.894
And my dad, towards the end,
00:16:44.894 --> 00:16:46.596
I think parents just know when your kids,
00:16:46.596 --> 00:16:50.033
When they just, when they need you.
00:16:50.033 --> 00:16:51.868
And he flew from australia to la,
00:16:51.868 --> 00:16:54.771
And came there to take me home to australia
00:16:54.771 --> 00:16:57.407
For a little while, and i remember i was packing up
00:16:57.407 --> 00:16:59.776
All my stuff in the apartment and my husband had left.
00:16:59.776 --> 00:17:03.179
And so i was packing up the apartment by myself.
00:17:03.179 --> 00:17:05.548
And i remember packing everything up and being like,
00:17:05.548 --> 00:17:08.551
"what do i do with this stuff?"
00:17:08.551 --> 00:17:09.919
Like this is, this has a bit of death.
00:17:09.919 --> 00:17:12.555
And i was like, "i don't know what to do."
00:17:12.555 --> 00:17:14.190
I was mad at god, i was confused.
00:17:14.190 --> 00:17:16.259
- yeah. - and my dad was like,
00:17:16.259 --> 00:17:18.161
"hey babe, do you want me to help you
00:17:18.161 --> 00:17:19.195
Pack up your apartment?"
00:17:19.195 --> 00:17:20.797
And i was like, "no, dad, like i'm fine. i'll do it myself."
00:17:20.797 --> 00:17:22.765
I just did not want him to see me in such a broken state.
00:17:22.765 --> 00:17:26.936
- yeah. - and he was like,
00:17:26.936 --> 00:17:29.139
"okay, i'll be at the hotel.
00:17:29.139 --> 00:17:30.540
You just call me if you need me."
00:17:30.540 --> 00:17:31.975
And i was like, "i got you."
00:17:31.975 --> 00:17:33.343
A few hours later i'm just staring at a year,
00:17:33.343 --> 00:17:38.014
And an apartment, and a failure full of things.
00:17:38.014 --> 00:17:41.651
- yeah. - and i was so aware
00:17:41.651 --> 00:17:42.986
I couldn't carry them out of the apartment.
00:17:42.986 --> 00:17:44.621
And it wasn't that i couldn't physically carry them,
00:17:44.621 --> 00:17:47.457
It was this overall sense that
00:17:47.457 --> 00:17:50.059
I don't have enough strength to leave.
00:17:50.059 --> 00:17:52.462
- wow. - because once i leave,
00:17:52.462 --> 00:17:55.198
I'm divorced, like it's real.
00:17:55.832 --> 00:17:59.569
And i called my dad and my dad came to the apartment,
00:17:59.569 --> 00:18:03.773
He took my hand and prayed over me.
00:18:03.773 --> 00:18:06.342
And almost like took this fatherhood sense
00:18:06.342 --> 00:18:09.579
Back for his daughter. - yeah.
00:18:09.579 --> 00:18:11.748
- and then he just looked at me and was like,
00:18:11.748 --> 00:18:12.782
"come on babe, let's go home."
00:18:12.782 --> 00:18:14.651
And so my dad picks up all of my things,
00:18:14.651 --> 00:18:18.188
Gives me my handbag and walks out.
00:18:18.188 --> 00:18:21.558
And i remember following him down the hallway
00:18:21.558 --> 00:18:24.460
Of our apartment and just the holy spirit
00:18:24.460 --> 00:18:26.496
So clearly was like, "elyse, take a photo."
00:18:26.496 --> 00:18:29.465
- well, this you're gonna want to remember
00:18:30.366 --> 00:18:31.501
This moment. - i've seen that photo.
00:18:31.501 --> 00:18:32.669
It's beautiful. - and i had this photo
00:18:32.669 --> 00:18:33.970
That has gone all around the world with me now
00:18:33.970 --> 00:18:35.338
Of my dad coming into my messiest,
00:18:35.338 --> 00:18:38.575
Darkest, faithless moment,
00:18:38.575 --> 00:18:41.811
Not accusing me,
00:18:42.178 --> 00:18:43.479
Not shaking his finger at me,
00:18:43.479 --> 00:18:45.114
Not doing what so many of us think the father would do-
00:18:45.114 --> 00:18:48.351
- yeah. - in the middle of our mess.
00:18:48.351 --> 00:18:50.520
But taking my weight, taking my baggage, taking my things
00:18:50.520 --> 00:18:54.757
And saying, "let's go home," and leading the way.
00:18:54.757 --> 00:18:57.093
And so when i think about family that fuels my faith,
00:18:57.093 --> 00:19:01.564
I cannot
00:19:01.564 --> 00:19:03.066
Thank god enough, 'cause i know it's not everyone's story.
00:19:04.200 --> 00:19:07.136
And so i feel this responsibility
00:19:07.136 --> 00:19:09.005
Because of the upbringing that i had,
00:19:09.005 --> 00:19:11.741
To share these beautiful moments of a father,
00:19:11.741 --> 00:19:16.212
Because it's not about my dad.
00:19:16.212 --> 00:19:18.715
And i mean, i have friends in my life
00:19:18.715 --> 00:19:20.216
That literally call my dad, "dad," like-
00:19:20.216 --> 00:19:21.884
- yeah. - that he's just, like,
00:19:21.884 --> 00:19:23.152
Adopted all of my friends and my mom too.
00:19:23.152 --> 00:19:25.922
But there is this special bond that my dad and i have
00:19:25.922 --> 00:19:29.459
That i think has made it easier
00:19:29.459 --> 00:19:32.895
For me to relate to the father,
00:19:33.529 --> 00:19:34.964
For me to hopefully communicate to people.
00:19:34.964 --> 00:19:37.533
- yeah. - that god,
00:19:37.533 --> 00:19:38.968
In the most faithless, scary, shaky, messy moments
00:19:38.968 --> 00:19:42.805
Is like, "what would i do with this?"
00:19:42.805 --> 00:19:44.440
- yeah. - and even before
00:19:44.440 --> 00:19:45.742
You can see it, "let me take that weight,"
00:19:45.742 --> 00:19:47.110
'cause you were never meant to carry it.
00:19:47.110 --> 00:19:48.745
And i know you don't know where to go, but just follow me."
00:19:48.745 --> 00:19:50.813
_ yeah. - yeah.
00:19:50.813 --> 00:19:52.148
- and so i think about some of those moments,
00:19:52.148 --> 00:19:53.283
And i wouldn't be here
00:19:53.283 --> 00:19:55.451
Without family that represented who god was, you know?
00:19:56.519 --> 00:19:59.289
So-
00:19:59.289 --> 00:20:00.423
- powerful. - if i could just...
00:20:00.423 --> 00:20:01.658
I wanna piggyback a little bit 'cause,
00:20:01.658 --> 00:20:03.626
You know, i shared early in the week
00:20:03.626 --> 00:20:05.061
That my dad was super angry when i was growing up
00:20:05.061 --> 00:20:07.363
And i didn't understand it.
00:20:07.363 --> 00:20:09.132
And when i was...
00:20:09.132 --> 00:20:10.833
I just said too, we were in the car
00:20:10.833 --> 00:20:12.468
Before we told my parents that i was pregnant,
00:20:12.468 --> 00:20:15.038
And i remember crying.
00:20:15.038 --> 00:20:17.173
I've never cried before from a place,
00:20:17.173 --> 00:20:18.975
Because i'm like, "this is it."
00:20:18.975 --> 00:20:20.877
It changes everything.
00:20:20.877 --> 00:20:22.178
The way they look at you changes from now on.
00:20:22.178 --> 00:20:26.382
We went in there and i expected my mom to be the one
00:20:27.450 --> 00:20:31.120
That was like, "okay, baby girl, da da da da."
00:20:31.120 --> 00:20:34.590
And my dad to be like, "pshhh, pshhh," right?
00:20:34.590 --> 00:20:37.193
Like, "girl, get outta here."
00:20:37.193 --> 00:20:40.196
But what i found was the exact opposite.
00:20:40.196 --> 00:20:45.168
Not that my mom was
00:20:45.635 --> 00:20:47.236
Beating me up. - yeah, she's like, "pshhh."
00:20:47.236 --> 00:20:48.237
- no, she didn't pshhh, pshhh me.
00:20:48.237 --> 00:20:49.672
I think she was more like shocked, like, "oh no."
00:20:49.672 --> 00:20:52.241
Like, you know, she's always kind of been more, like, quiet.
00:20:52.241 --> 00:20:55.345
But my dad said, "do you have any clothes?
00:20:55.345 --> 00:20:59.215
How are your clothes fitting?
00:20:59.215 --> 00:21:01.317
First thing tomorrow we're going to the mall
00:21:01.317 --> 00:21:03.586
And we're gonna buy you clothes
00:21:03.586 --> 00:21:04.887
And make sure you have everything you need
00:21:04.887 --> 00:21:06.189
So you're comfortable."
00:21:06.189 --> 00:21:08.991
- ooh. - like what?
00:21:09.492 --> 00:21:11.327
Because as you were talking, i'm like,
00:21:12.161 --> 00:21:13.262
"oh no, what it is?"
00:21:13.262 --> 00:21:14.464
And, like, what a faith moment does
00:21:14.464 --> 00:21:17.633
Is it reintroduces you to the father.
00:21:17.633 --> 00:21:20.036
It reintroduces you to the truth of who god
00:21:20.036 --> 00:21:22.672
Actually is. - yes. yes.
00:21:22.672 --> 00:21:23.973
- and all of these ideas and thoughts that i had
00:21:23.973 --> 00:21:26.309
About my natural father, right,
00:21:26.309 --> 00:21:28.444
Is that "he's not gonna understand. he's gonna yell.
00:21:28.444 --> 00:21:29.645
He's gonna blah blah blah blah."
00:21:29.645 --> 00:21:30.713
And mind you,
00:21:30.713 --> 00:21:32.115
I'm sure that when he and my mom went upstairs,
00:21:32.115 --> 00:21:33.649
They were like (panting). - yeah, yeah, yeah.
00:21:33.649 --> 00:21:35.017
- you know?
00:21:35.017 --> 00:21:35.918
And i realized right now,
00:21:35.918 --> 00:21:37.120
You know, when things happen to you,
00:21:37.120 --> 00:21:38.521
They don't just happen to you,
00:21:38.521 --> 00:21:39.589
They happen to family as well.
00:21:39.589 --> 00:21:40.890
- yeah. - right?
00:21:40.890 --> 00:21:41.758
Everybody is affected.
00:21:41.758 --> 00:21:44.260
But i got to see a different side of my father that day.
00:21:44.260 --> 00:21:47.830
And the man who used to
00:21:47.830 --> 00:21:49.198
Sit around the table- - wow.
00:21:49.198 --> 00:21:50.566
- and teach us the scriptures and, you know...
00:21:50.566 --> 00:21:51.868
And this is why i say i'm not crazy today.
00:21:51.868 --> 00:21:53.269
My parents were not perfect, but i'm not crazy.
00:21:53.269 --> 00:21:55.037
Because i know that they've always loved me.
00:21:55.037 --> 00:21:58.040
And when it came time to represent the
00:21:58.040 --> 00:22:01.043
Father's love, right,
00:22:01.043 --> 00:22:02.311
Our heavenly father's love,
00:22:02.311 --> 00:22:04.580
They showed up and i saw it every single time.
00:22:04.580 --> 00:22:07.984
So- - it's beautiful.
00:22:07.984 --> 00:22:09.719
- thank you for sharing that.
00:22:09.719 --> 00:22:11.854
So i've had so many examples in my life
00:22:11.854 --> 00:22:14.056
Of mentors, and spiritual parents,
00:22:14.056 --> 00:22:17.160
And my natural parents, (chuckles)
00:22:17.160 --> 00:22:20.563
And people in my life that have lived by faith, right,
00:22:20.563 --> 00:22:24.801
And they have told their stories
00:22:24.801 --> 00:22:27.203
That has blessed me and allowed me to move in faith.
00:22:27.203 --> 00:22:31.441
One thing i love about christianity
00:22:31.441 --> 00:22:33.209
Is that we are an oral tradition, right?
00:22:33.209 --> 00:22:35.244
And so i know as much as we value our physical bibles,
00:22:35.244 --> 00:22:38.781
That's not how it started.
00:22:38.781 --> 00:22:40.316
It started from words being passed down one to another.
00:22:40.316 --> 00:22:43.820
It started, right, by the gospel being preached
00:22:43.820 --> 00:22:46.823
And someone hearing, right, and believing.
00:22:46.823 --> 00:22:49.091
And so, that has always been the basis, and the foundation,
00:22:49.091 --> 00:22:52.428
And the bedrock of our faith that people would speak.
00:22:52.428 --> 00:22:55.331
And from their testimony things would shift,
00:22:55.331 --> 00:22:57.567
And people's lives would be changed
00:22:57.567 --> 00:22:58.968
And people would come into belief.
00:22:58.968 --> 00:23:00.603
And so, to me, it's the stories that get passed down.
00:23:00.603 --> 00:23:04.373
It's the moments that people have lived through,
00:23:04.373 --> 00:23:06.542
And the challenges that they have faced
00:23:06.542 --> 00:23:08.478
When they share it with me.
00:23:08.478 --> 00:23:10.780
It's been life-giving to me.
00:23:10.780 --> 00:23:12.048
I feel like i can start to see...
00:23:12.048 --> 00:23:14.116
I'm a visual person in that way that i can start to...
00:23:14.116 --> 00:23:16.385
As you tell me a story,
00:23:16.385 --> 00:23:17.353
I can envision it and see it.
00:23:17.353 --> 00:23:19.589
It's like i was there, right, with a bag of popcorn,
00:23:19.589 --> 00:23:22.758
Just enjoying that story.
00:23:22.758 --> 00:23:24.093
And it is literally building
00:23:24.093 --> 00:23:26.295
A foundation of faith in my life.
00:23:26.295 --> 00:23:28.164
It is adding to what the lord is doing,
00:23:28.164 --> 00:23:30.833
And layering, right, brick by brick
00:23:30.833 --> 00:23:32.869
And putting mortar on that thing
00:23:32.869 --> 00:23:34.103
And making things stick together.
00:23:34.103 --> 00:23:36.205
For me, hearing the stories from those people
00:23:36.205 --> 00:23:38.441
That have come before me
00:23:38.441 --> 00:23:40.176
Has really set a foundation for my faith.
00:23:40.176 --> 00:23:43.646
- but i think about first my grandparents,
00:23:43.646 --> 00:23:46.749
My mom's parents, so on my mom's side.
00:23:46.749 --> 00:23:48.584
I had great grandparents on both sides but...
00:23:48.584 --> 00:23:51.621
They were the legacy of faith in our family.
00:23:51.621 --> 00:23:53.656
And they really introduced me to jesus, you know?
00:23:53.656 --> 00:23:56.559
But the prayers you talked about,
00:23:56.559 --> 00:23:58.661
Someone was saying,
00:23:58.661 --> 00:24:00.062
The prayers of our parents and our grandparents.
00:24:00.062 --> 00:24:02.765
And the beautiful thing about prayers
00:24:02.765 --> 00:24:04.800
Is that they live on.
00:24:04.800 --> 00:24:07.036
- yeah. - they're eternal. yes, wow.
00:24:07.036 --> 00:24:09.238
- the bowls of heaven are filled
00:24:09.238 --> 00:24:10.506
With the prayers of the saints.
00:24:10.506 --> 00:24:11.674
And so, when i think of the prayers
00:24:11.674 --> 00:24:14.610
That my grandparents prayed for their grandchildren,
00:24:14.610 --> 00:24:18.781
I 100% know that i'm, you know,
00:24:18.781 --> 00:24:21.584
I walk in what i do today because of their prayers.
00:24:21.584 --> 00:24:25.488
When i think of how my family
00:24:25.488 --> 00:24:27.423
Has fanned the flame of my faith, i think of them.
00:24:27.423 --> 00:24:33.129
I think of my mother who always...
00:24:33.896 --> 00:24:37.667
Like, i remember i had this bible that she gave me.
00:24:38.701 --> 00:24:42.271
And in it,
00:24:42.271 --> 00:24:43.673
She wrote something that she would always say to me.
00:24:43.673 --> 00:24:46.309
And it was,
00:24:46.309 --> 00:24:47.944
"oh, pray for the will of god to be done in your life.
00:24:47.944 --> 00:24:52.682
Always pray for god's will for your life."
00:24:52.682 --> 00:24:56.519
It was not like, "pray for your dreams to come true."
00:24:57.587 --> 00:25:00.022
Or that god's, you know...
00:25:00.022 --> 00:25:02.024
And, you know, my gifts were celebrated as a kid.
00:25:02.024 --> 00:25:04.860
I mean, you know, i'm a worship leader.
00:25:04.860 --> 00:25:06.696
I've been singing from the time i was 2 years old.
00:25:06.696 --> 00:25:08.965
And so, my parents were always very proud of that, right?
00:25:08.965 --> 00:25:13.069
But it was never,
00:25:13.069 --> 00:25:14.737
"let's see what god's gonna do with this gift that you have.
00:25:14.737 --> 00:25:18.040
What platforms is he gonna put you on?"
00:25:18.040 --> 00:25:20.109
You know, it was always,
00:25:20.109 --> 00:25:22.511
"pray for god's will for your life."
00:25:22.511 --> 00:25:25.181
And like, i think that discipled me.
00:25:25.181 --> 00:25:28.951
That formed me to say like,
00:25:28.951 --> 00:25:31.187
"i wanna be surrendered fully to the lord.
00:25:31.187 --> 00:25:33.990
And i wanna live a life laid down,
00:25:33.990 --> 00:25:35.958
Like that's my reasonable sacrifice."
00:25:35.958 --> 00:25:38.060
You know, according to romans 12:1,
00:25:38.060 --> 00:25:39.996
"my life laid down in full surrender, god's will...
00:25:39.996 --> 00:25:42.798
Your will be done in my life,"
00:25:42.798 --> 00:25:45.434
It's been such a foundation for me.
00:25:45.434 --> 00:25:47.269
And so, along the way,
00:25:47.269 --> 00:25:48.337
As, you know, my husband and i
00:25:48.337 --> 00:25:50.272
Have taken bold steps of faith,
00:25:50.272 --> 00:25:52.174
Big steps of faith together.
00:25:52.174 --> 00:25:54.877
I'm so grateful that it's always been encouragement.
00:25:55.945 --> 00:25:58.748
And like, "yes, if the lord has spoken to you to do it,
00:25:58.748 --> 00:26:02.385
He's gonna meet you."
00:26:02.385 --> 00:26:03.419
He's, you know...
00:26:03.419 --> 00:26:04.387
And then it was so beautiful.
00:26:04.387 --> 00:26:05.621
Like, i just turned 50
00:26:05.621 --> 00:26:07.556
And my husband had this party for me,
00:26:07.556 --> 00:26:10.893
And, you know, our kids were there.
00:26:10.893 --> 00:26:12.361
So many beautiful friends and family,
00:26:12.361 --> 00:26:15.231
And our daughter flew in
00:26:15.231 --> 00:26:16.866
'cause she's, you know, living in a different state now.
00:26:16.866 --> 00:26:19.935
And, like, each of my kids
00:26:19.935 --> 00:26:23.205
Got up to say something, right?
00:26:23.839 --> 00:26:25.441
- wow. wow. - because he had
00:26:25.441 --> 00:26:26.275
Different one to share.
00:26:26.275 --> 00:26:27.576
Whew. i'm telling you.
00:26:27.576 --> 00:26:29.011
- [kirsten] yeah.
00:26:29.011 --> 00:26:30.413
- when you get to that moment in season of life-
00:26:30.413 --> 00:26:32.415
- [kirsten] yeah.
00:26:32.415 --> 00:26:33.916
- when you're like 20 somethings,
00:26:33.916 --> 00:26:36.786
Your kids are standing up there and they're like,
00:26:36.786 --> 00:26:39.755
They're telling you how you have blessed their life
00:26:39.755 --> 00:26:41.924
And how you have pointed them to jesus,
00:26:41.924 --> 00:26:44.527
And they, like, declare blessing over you,
00:26:44.527 --> 00:26:47.229
I'm telling you...
00:26:47.229 --> 00:26:48.464
Whew, i was sitting there, i'm going-
00:26:48.464 --> 00:26:49.465
- wow, wow, wow. - "this is
00:26:49.465 --> 00:26:51.267
The greatest thing in life."
00:26:51.267 --> 00:26:54.937
It doesn't matter, like, what our accomplishments are,
00:26:56.005 --> 00:26:59.709
It doesn't matter, like, all these things.
00:26:59.709 --> 00:27:02.645
Even in raising our kids,
00:27:02.645 --> 00:27:03.946
Like, we all make a million mistakes.
00:27:03.946 --> 00:27:06.749
I mean, you know- (chuckles)
00:27:06.749 --> 00:27:08.117
- thank god. - we don't do it all right.
00:27:08.117 --> 00:27:11.487
But man, i know that we have pointed them to jesus.
00:27:11.487 --> 00:27:15.591
- yes. - wow.
00:27:15.591 --> 00:27:17.326
- and so that is the greatest reward.
00:27:17.326 --> 00:27:19.528
And so, it's wild to think,
00:27:19.528 --> 00:27:21.931
You know, the generations past
00:27:21.931 --> 00:27:24.233
That have been a foundation of my faith,
00:27:24.233 --> 00:27:26.669
And now looking to the generation that's
00:27:26.669 --> 00:27:28.671
Coming up behind,
00:27:28.671 --> 00:27:30.773
You know, that is going,
00:27:30.773 --> 00:27:33.042
"i wanna follow after jesus 'cause i've seen you and dad
00:27:33.042 --> 00:27:35.544
Follow after jesus," you know?
00:27:35.544 --> 00:27:37.613
- anyway- - there's nothing
00:27:37.613 --> 00:27:38.514
Greater in life than that.
00:27:38.514 --> 00:27:39.548
Absolutely nothing. - yeah.
00:27:39.548 --> 00:27:41.984
- if somebody wants to point their kids to jesus,
00:27:41.984 --> 00:27:43.753
I would say depending on their age,
00:27:43.753 --> 00:27:47.123
It's always the reminder of like, "let's pray to jesus now."
00:27:47.123 --> 00:27:50.626
Like, for my littles it's,
00:27:50.626 --> 00:27:52.495
You know, they're like, "hey, so and so won't give me this,"
00:27:52.495 --> 00:27:55.264
Or whatever the situation is, it's always saying,
00:27:55.264 --> 00:27:56.799
"okay, well, mommy can handle it, but let's pray."
00:27:56.799 --> 00:27:58.634
Like, "what do you think god's telling you
00:27:58.634 --> 00:28:00.402
In this situation?"
00:28:00.402 --> 00:28:01.804
And so it's always bringing the conversation to god.
00:28:01.804 --> 00:28:05.574
And a lot of times they're like, "i don't know,
00:28:05.574 --> 00:28:06.809
He didn't tell me anything."
00:28:06.809 --> 00:28:07.910
And i'm like, "okay, well,
00:28:07.910 --> 00:28:09.311
We gotta learn to hear his voice.
00:28:09.311 --> 00:28:10.613
So what do you think
00:28:10.613 --> 00:28:12.148
Based on the things that we've talked about or whatever,
00:28:12.148 --> 00:28:15.184
How we should handle this situation?
00:28:15.184 --> 00:28:16.752
How you should handle this situation?"
00:28:16.752 --> 00:28:18.254
So, it's an ongoing conversation
00:28:18.254 --> 00:28:20.256
I feel like we have in our home
00:28:20.256 --> 00:28:23.325
Just around, you know, bible stories and scripture,
00:28:23.325 --> 00:28:26.028
To where we're...
00:28:26.028 --> 00:28:26.962
It's not just a one time thing,
00:28:26.962 --> 00:28:27.897
We're always trying to pull in.
00:28:27.897 --> 00:28:29.265
- and through just regular everyday stuff,
00:28:30.132 --> 00:28:32.168
The stuff that we talk about, you know, at church
00:28:32.168 --> 00:28:34.069
Or in our family devotion.
00:28:34.069 --> 00:28:36.105
So i think it's always trying to bring the conversation
00:28:36.105 --> 00:28:38.374
Back to what god would want us to do
00:28:38.374 --> 00:28:40.109
Or how he would like us to look at it.
00:28:40.109 --> 00:28:41.710
And for my older kids,
00:28:41.710 --> 00:28:43.779
They'll say, "i have a question about something."
00:28:43.779 --> 00:28:45.181
Like, "oh yeah, have you talked to god about it?"
00:28:45.181 --> 00:28:46.882
You know, like, "what did god say you should do?"
00:28:46.882 --> 00:28:48.984
And they're like, "i haven't prayed about it yet."
00:28:48.984 --> 00:28:51.053
I'm like, "well i think that's a great place to start."
00:28:51.053 --> 00:28:52.755
And then once you get that, i'm here.
00:28:52.755 --> 00:28:55.257
Let's, you know, flesh it out and whatever.
00:28:55.257 --> 00:28:57.660
But i just want you to just reminding them
00:28:57.660 --> 00:29:00.496
That it's easier to go to a person,
00:29:00.496 --> 00:29:02.631
But like we have a living god who is wanting to talk to you.
00:29:02.631 --> 00:29:06.168
And so just reminding them like,
00:29:06.168 --> 00:29:07.136
"go there and then let's talk."
00:29:07.136 --> 00:29:09.071
- when i think of my own mom,
00:29:09.705 --> 00:29:11.140
She was 33 when she was widowed and she never remarried.
00:29:11.140 --> 00:29:14.343
She felt like we had gone through enough as a family
00:29:14.343 --> 00:29:17.479
And she didn't want to bring some new person into our lives.
00:29:17.479 --> 00:29:20.649
But the thing that was so amazing was
00:29:20.649 --> 00:29:23.185
We all coped in different ways
00:29:23.185 --> 00:29:24.887
To what had happened with my father.
00:29:24.887 --> 00:29:26.922
I had nightmares almost every night
00:29:26.922 --> 00:29:29.058
Till i was like 18 years old.
00:29:29.058 --> 00:29:30.559
I would walk in my sleep.
00:29:30.559 --> 00:29:32.094
Had somebody put a gate at the top of the stairs
00:29:33.028 --> 00:29:34.830
So i wouldn't fall down in the middle of the night.
00:29:34.830 --> 00:29:36.765
And so what my mom would do was
00:29:36.765 --> 00:29:38.667
When i was really asleep during the night,
00:29:38.667 --> 00:29:41.403
She told me this not so long ago before she died,
00:29:41.403 --> 00:29:44.173
That she would come in and she said,
00:29:44.173 --> 00:29:45.507
"i would lay my hands on you and i would say,
00:29:45.507 --> 00:29:47.843
'lord, for this one, this least likely to succeed.'"
00:29:47.843 --> 00:29:52.481
I mean, i wouldn't even go on school trips.
00:29:53.382 --> 00:29:54.783
I wouldn't go on anything.
00:29:54.783 --> 00:29:55.751
If anybody came to our house,
00:29:55.751 --> 00:29:57.353
If it was a guy, even a sweet man from our church,
00:29:57.353 --> 00:29:59.989
I would go upstairs and wait in the dark till they'd gone.
00:29:59.989 --> 00:30:02.691
I would just filled with fear.
00:30:02.691 --> 00:30:04.727
And so she would lay her hands and say, "lord, for this one,
00:30:04.727 --> 00:30:08.497
This least likely, i give her to you."
00:30:08.497 --> 00:30:11.600
And i don't dunno how many situations in my life
00:30:11.600 --> 00:30:16.939
Have been because of a praying mother
00:30:17.773 --> 00:30:19.308
And i'm thinking of those who are watching and who are
00:30:19.308 --> 00:30:21.243
Maybe raising kids by themself.
00:30:21.243 --> 00:30:23.212
And you feel like, "oh, i can't be everything
00:30:23.212 --> 00:30:25.147
And they're not getting everything they want."
00:30:25.147 --> 00:30:27.182
But let me tell you, when you have a woman or a man
00:30:27.182 --> 00:30:31.186
On their knees before the throne of grace
00:30:31.186 --> 00:30:34.056
Lifting up their children and it makes an eternal impact.
00:30:34.056 --> 00:30:39.395
An absolutely eternal impact and i am so grateful.
00:30:40.429 --> 00:30:43.165
That's why when i heard that my mom had passed
00:30:43.165 --> 00:30:45.534
And i flew home to scotland and in scotland we don't have...
00:30:45.534 --> 00:30:48.737
Like, when barry's mom died and barry's dad died, we had
00:30:48.737 --> 00:30:51.640
Like a viewing and, you know, and there was an open casket
00:30:51.640 --> 00:30:54.576
And it was just all very strange for me.
00:30:54.576 --> 00:30:56.512
But i called a funeral home and i said,
00:30:56.512 --> 00:30:58.113
"listen, i know this is not normal in scotland,
00:30:58.113 --> 00:31:00.582
But is there any way i could see my mom?"
00:31:00.582 --> 00:31:03.319
And they said, "sure, if you can come today
00:31:03.319 --> 00:31:06.121
And we will open the casket and put it in a little room."
00:31:06.121 --> 00:31:09.458
And i remember going in
00:31:09.458 --> 00:31:11.226
And i mean, i knew my mom wasn't there.
00:31:11.226 --> 00:31:13.028
I knew my mom was home but all i wanted to do was
00:31:13.028 --> 00:31:17.232
I just knelt down and i just said, "well done, mom."
00:31:17.232 --> 00:31:21.103
Well done, you made it all the way home.
00:31:21.103 --> 00:31:23.806
You went through so much.
00:31:23.806 --> 00:31:26.342
So much heartache, so much pain but she stayed faithful.
00:31:26.342 --> 00:31:30.679
And that's why the thing i took home
00:31:30.679 --> 00:31:32.681
From my mom's when we cleaned out her place
00:31:32.681 --> 00:31:35.250
Was this little picture and all it says is "yes, lord."
00:31:35.250 --> 00:31:40.589
Because that's how she lived her life.
00:31:41.423 --> 00:31:43.025
Every morning she would get up under that declaration.
00:31:43.025 --> 00:31:46.962
I dunno what today holds lord, "but yes."
00:31:46.962 --> 00:31:49.498
And every night, she would lay her head on the pillow
00:31:49.498 --> 00:31:51.767
With this "yes, lord."
00:31:51.767 --> 00:31:53.702
And so i will be eternally grateful for the influence
00:31:53.702 --> 00:31:57.706
Of a woman who loved jesus.
00:31:57.706 --> 00:31:59.908
- my mother empowered me to say yes to my dream
00:32:00.809 --> 00:32:05.314
And to also fulfill it,
00:32:05.314 --> 00:32:07.750
And i think those are two different things.
00:32:07.750 --> 00:32:09.385
I think it's one thing to say,
00:32:09.385 --> 00:32:10.352
"yes, i'm going to go after it."
00:32:10.352 --> 00:32:11.920
It's another thing to live in a way that you maintain it
00:32:11.920 --> 00:32:15.324
And keep the dream alive.
00:32:15.324 --> 00:32:17.292
And i've watched my mom shift through different stages
00:32:17.292 --> 00:32:21.296
And phases of her life from being a private school teacher
00:32:21.296 --> 00:32:25.000
To being a high school parent coordinator,
00:32:25.000 --> 00:32:28.370
To being a licensed therapist,
00:32:28.370 --> 00:32:30.272
And watch her go to school and do all the things.
00:32:30.272 --> 00:32:32.641
And watching her see her dreams come into reality
00:32:32.641 --> 00:32:35.644
And go after them with fervency, no matter how old she was,
00:32:35.644 --> 00:32:39.314
Was exactly the fuel that i needed to say yes
00:32:39.314 --> 00:32:41.850
And to do what i was called to do.
00:32:41.850 --> 00:32:44.353
- got me thinking about my mom.
00:32:44.987 --> 00:32:46.155
Even just the legacy of healing
00:32:46.155 --> 00:32:48.991
'cause i wonder if there are people watching this
00:32:48.991 --> 00:32:51.160
And they're watching their kids go through
00:32:51.160 --> 00:32:53.562
What they hoped they would never have to go through.
00:32:53.562 --> 00:32:57.032
Both my parents have broken pasts
00:32:57.766 --> 00:32:59.468
Before they met each other.
00:32:59.468 --> 00:33:00.803
And my dad had a daughter that he never met
00:33:00.803 --> 00:33:03.639
That was born on his birthday,
00:33:03.639 --> 00:33:05.641
That showed up at our church many years later.
00:33:05.641 --> 00:33:09.445
She came to like expose him in front of everyone.
00:33:09.445 --> 00:33:12.581
She didn't know the full story
00:33:12.581 --> 00:33:13.949
And instead she ended up getting saved, wild story.
00:33:13.949 --> 00:33:16.485
And we were reconciled with her for a while
00:33:16.485 --> 00:33:18.654
And that story's not resolved
00:33:18.654 --> 00:33:19.822
'cause there was a back and forth.
00:33:19.822 --> 00:33:21.223
It's speaking of family conflict and just all that.
00:33:21.223 --> 00:33:23.959
My mom, before she met my dad, was divorced
00:33:23.959 --> 00:33:26.028
And her ex-husband had left her.
00:33:26.028 --> 00:33:27.496
And she didn't really talk about it a lot
00:33:27.496 --> 00:33:31.066
And then when i went through my divorce, it was interesting
00:33:31.066 --> 00:33:34.503
To watch her watch me walk through it,
00:33:34.503 --> 00:33:39.007
And i didn't really understand it until years later
00:33:39.007 --> 00:33:42.611
And we were in australia.
00:33:42.611 --> 00:33:44.546
And me and my dad and my mom
00:33:44.546 --> 00:33:45.714
Were just in queensland driving around
00:33:45.714 --> 00:33:47.549
And dad said, "i wonder if your old house
00:33:47.549 --> 00:33:50.752
Where you used to live with your ex-husband is still there?"
00:33:50.752 --> 00:33:52.454
Standard michael murphy. standard let's
00:33:52.454 --> 00:33:54.690
Go on an adventure.
00:33:54.690 --> 00:33:55.791
My mom's like, "that's trauma. let's not do that."
00:33:55.791 --> 00:33:57.626
He's like, "it'll be fun, let's go."
00:33:57.626 --> 00:33:59.661
And i'm like, "let's do it."
00:33:59.661 --> 00:34:01.163
And so my mom, we pull up to the house and she's like,
00:34:01.163 --> 00:34:04.099
"i don't think it's here anymore."
00:34:04.099 --> 00:34:06.502
You're looking around and she suddenly realizes,
00:34:06.502 --> 00:34:10.372
"oh my goodness, it is there."
00:34:10.372 --> 00:34:13.675
But there is this massive poinciana tree
00:34:13.675 --> 00:34:16.945
That was covering the house.
00:34:16.945 --> 00:34:19.081
And she has this moment and she tells us this story
00:34:20.115 --> 00:34:23.218
Of when her ex-husband had left her.
00:34:23.218 --> 00:34:25.754
She would give herself 10 minutes a day to cry.
00:34:25.754 --> 00:34:29.391
She was a flight attendant at the time and back then,
00:34:29.391 --> 00:34:32.895
Even more flight attendants were like, "everything's great."
00:34:32.895 --> 00:34:35.230
So she would give herself 10 minutes a day
00:34:35.230 --> 00:34:36.798
While she watered this plant in her backyard,
00:34:36.798 --> 00:34:39.668
Which was at the time,
00:34:39.668 --> 00:34:41.036
A tiny little poinciana plant, tree, mini thing.
00:34:41.036 --> 00:34:45.674
And she would pray, she would cry,
00:34:45.674 --> 00:34:48.944
She would have it out with the lord.
00:34:48.944 --> 00:34:51.246
She would just have this time.
00:34:51.246 --> 00:34:53.615
And so she comes back, what, it would've been 20 years later
00:34:53.615 --> 00:34:57.519
With her daughter and her husband,
00:34:57.519 --> 00:35:00.622
And a life that is unrecognizable
00:35:00.622 --> 00:35:02.991
From the one of the broken heart decades before.
00:35:02.991 --> 00:35:06.895
And she sees what's in the place of her tears
00:35:06.895 --> 00:35:10.032
Is this tree that has grown from her tears.
00:35:10.032 --> 00:35:13.368
And i just think it's important for us to remember
00:35:13.368 --> 00:35:19.141
That in one generation what is watered with our tears
00:35:20.242 --> 00:35:24.479
Becomes the tree that provides the shading in the next.
00:35:24.479 --> 00:35:28.250
And one of the most healing pieces of my divorce
00:35:28.250 --> 00:35:30.986
Was the conversations i was able to have with my mom.
00:35:30.986 --> 00:35:34.056
And suddenly, she's not the mom that makes our meals,
00:35:34.056 --> 00:35:37.326
She's the woman that a man also left.
00:35:37.326 --> 00:35:39.661
She's a woman that also experienced abandonment.
00:35:39.661 --> 00:35:42.197
And i was like, "how? can you tell me the story?"
00:35:42.197 --> 00:35:44.967
And it was hugely bonding for us,
00:35:44.967 --> 00:35:48.804
And i don't think she saw that season coming either
00:35:48.804 --> 00:35:51.640
'cause she hadn't really talked about it.
00:35:51.640 --> 00:35:53.008
But knowing that story, i could not help
00:35:53.008 --> 00:35:57.613
But think of that place that says,
00:35:57.613 --> 00:35:59.715
"tears may last for the night, joy comes in the morning."
00:35:59.715 --> 00:36:03.452
What you sow in tears, you'll reap with joy
00:36:03.452 --> 00:36:05.988
And i think from one generation's lips to the next,
00:36:05.988 --> 00:36:08.690
The faithfulness of god.
00:36:08.690 --> 00:36:10.392
My prayer for my family is that they would know jesus,
00:36:11.493 --> 00:36:16.865
Follow jesus and that our legacy
00:36:17.499 --> 00:36:22.271
Would be that they would be able to stand
00:36:23.138 --> 00:36:26.508
On spiritual shoulders just like we have,
00:36:26.508 --> 00:36:29.611
Would be that we don't drop the baton.
00:36:30.412 --> 00:36:33.415
My biggest prayer is that we finish well
00:36:34.283 --> 00:36:41.189
And that we give them a head start in their faith
00:36:42.157 --> 00:36:47.562
And that it would continue in the generations to come.
00:36:48.664 --> 00:36:52.100
- [announcer] join the conversation on our
00:36:53.001 --> 00:36:54.503
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00:37:01.003 --> 00:37:01.110
- ecclesiastes 4:12, it says this,
00:37:01.878 --> 00:37:05.014
Says, "a person standing alone can be attacked and defeated,
00:37:05.014 --> 00:37:08.651
But two can stand back to back and conquer.
00:37:08.651 --> 00:37:12.655
Three are even better, for a triple braided cord
00:37:12.655 --> 00:37:15.825
Is not easily broken."
00:37:15.825 --> 00:37:18.795
I love this verse so much. it's so often read at weddings.
00:37:18.795 --> 00:37:22.198
I think one of the biggest in our society
00:37:22.198 --> 00:37:24.901
Is that vulnerability is weakness
00:37:24.901 --> 00:37:27.970
And yet i think about a three-stranded cord,
00:37:27.970 --> 00:37:32.408
Each strand would be vulnerable on its own.
00:37:32.408 --> 00:37:34.711
It's that decision for the vulnerabilities to come together
00:37:34.711 --> 00:37:37.814
And have each other's back that creates
00:37:37.814 --> 00:37:40.616
The strength in that.
00:37:40.616 --> 00:37:42.618
I think this verse isn't talking about
00:37:42.618 --> 00:37:44.220
Just having more friends.
00:37:44.220 --> 00:37:46.422
It's not saying that isolation in itself is bad,
00:37:46.422 --> 00:37:50.393
It's showing that when we're connected, it's unbreakable.
00:37:50.393 --> 00:37:54.030
So if you feel like you're in a season where
00:37:54.030 --> 00:37:55.932
You feel weak or you feel vulnerable,
00:37:55.932 --> 00:37:58.368
Don't isolate yourself but don't just go around
00:37:58.368 --> 00:38:00.770
Finding every kind of strand you can find.
00:38:00.770 --> 00:38:03.606
My invitation to you is find somebody, a friend,
00:38:03.606 --> 00:38:08.945
Someone you trust, that you can have each other's back
00:38:10.046 --> 00:38:13.750
And be centered in a friendship, in a relationship
00:38:13.750 --> 00:38:17.487
With the holy spirit.
00:38:17.487 --> 00:38:19.555
And then that three-stranded cord, that's unbreakable.
00:38:19.555 --> 00:38:25.328
(bright music)
00:38:25.695 --> 00:38:29.031
- i think sometimes it's easy to hear a story like that
00:38:29.031 --> 00:38:33.669
And just be like, "look at the faithfulness of god."
00:38:33.669 --> 00:38:36.706
Like, "he's so good. he's so good."
00:38:36.706 --> 00:38:38.808
It's harder to live that thing out.
00:38:38.808 --> 00:38:41.244
- day to day when you're in it crying, watering the garden.
00:38:41.244 --> 00:38:43.780
- watering yes, and i just felt like there's like,
00:38:43.780 --> 00:38:46.883
You know, just an encouragement for people
00:38:46.883 --> 00:38:48.985
Who are watching right now and they're like,
00:38:48.985 --> 00:38:51.421
You know, "y'all are very cute.
00:38:52.054 --> 00:38:53.623
You have like a lot of encouragement
00:38:53.623 --> 00:38:55.858
Or examples of faithful parents
00:38:55.858 --> 00:38:57.627
But maybe i don't have that example of a faithful parent.
00:38:57.627 --> 00:39:00.329
Maybe all i have is, y'all, this is my bible."
00:39:00.329 --> 00:39:04.167
But maybe all they have is the stories in our bible
00:39:04.167 --> 00:39:09.472
To go on and i just wanna encourage.
00:39:10.239 --> 00:39:11.841
And i mean, i'm sure there's a bunch of encouragement here
00:39:11.841 --> 00:39:14.577
For you that even if it's not in your natural family,
00:39:14.577 --> 00:39:19.315
That there is a family of god that we are a part of,
00:39:19.315 --> 00:39:22.785
That there is a great cloud of witnesses, right?
00:39:22.785 --> 00:39:25.188
That are witnessing and looking over in the hall of.
00:39:25.188 --> 00:39:28.357
- yes. - right?-
00:39:28.825 --> 00:39:30.426
- those people that have been watering plants
00:39:30.426 --> 00:39:33.429
From generation to generation of the faithfulness of god,
00:39:33.429 --> 00:39:36.699
And how he comes through, and shows up,
00:39:36.699 --> 00:39:39.435
And has woven together an amazing, impeccable story,
00:39:39.435 --> 00:39:43.406
That no matter what we do,
00:39:43.406 --> 00:39:44.807
Whether we're good, bad, up, down, wrong, left,
00:39:44.807 --> 00:39:47.977
Or right, that there's been an answer in jesus christ.
00:39:47.977 --> 00:39:52.215
And there's something that we can lean on
00:39:52.215 --> 00:39:53.616
And have an anchor for our faith.
00:39:53.616 --> 00:39:55.117
- yes. - you know?
00:39:55.117 --> 00:39:56.185
- yes. - it's great.
00:39:56.185 --> 00:39:58.221
- ooh, i just get overwhelmed
00:39:58.221 --> 00:40:00.456
Because i'm really like, you can't mess it up.
00:40:00.456 --> 00:40:03.559
Like you can't mess up.
00:40:03.559 --> 00:40:05.428
- i think that's so important, right?
00:40:05.428 --> 00:40:07.463
- like, it is always gonna work out
00:40:07.463 --> 00:40:10.533
That the atonement was enough
00:40:10.533 --> 00:40:12.869
And the payment was enough
00:40:12.869 --> 00:40:14.136
And the price that he paid was enough.
00:40:14.136 --> 00:40:16.272
And it's not leaving anybody out.
00:40:16.272 --> 00:40:17.940
Anybody can come and get at the foot of the cross
00:40:17.940 --> 00:40:20.943
And get what they need.
00:40:20.943 --> 00:40:22.378
And so it's like we're a part of this greater family.
00:40:22.378 --> 00:40:25.181
- yeah, i love in ephesians chapter two, it's like,
00:40:26.215 --> 00:40:30.553
No matter where we come from, great families, nothing.
00:40:30.553 --> 00:40:36.225
We were all dead in our sin.
00:40:36.826 --> 00:40:40.029
Ephesians chapter two where it says,
00:40:40.830 --> 00:40:42.698
This is where we all were.
00:40:42.698 --> 00:40:45.034
And then it says, but god in his
00:40:45.034 --> 00:40:47.904
Who is rich in mercy has made us alive in christ.
00:40:47.904 --> 00:40:52.375
That is, it's always good news.
00:40:52.375 --> 00:40:54.877
And it's always available to anyone at any time.
00:40:55.878 --> 00:40:59.048
When faith and family come together,
00:40:59.849 --> 00:41:03.119
It is so great.
00:41:03.519 --> 00:41:07.089
And it's such, it's an atmosphere where we can thrive.
00:41:07.089 --> 00:41:11.994
And so even if in our natural families, you know,
00:41:11.994 --> 00:41:16.198
We don't have a family of faith.
00:41:16.198 --> 00:41:17.733
We have, i feel like i've said it over
00:41:17.733 --> 00:41:20.136
And over again this week,
00:41:20.136 --> 00:41:21.470
But the family of god, the church is the place.
00:41:21.470 --> 00:41:25.141
I mean, we see this all throughout the new testament
00:41:25.141 --> 00:41:27.109
Where we are now brothers and sisters in christ.
00:41:27.109 --> 00:41:31.881
And so it's so imperative.
00:41:31.881 --> 00:41:34.083
You know, there's a scripture that says like, don't forsake
00:41:34.083 --> 00:41:37.353
Or don't stop assembling together.
00:41:37.353 --> 00:41:40.189
That's what we do when we come together as the church
00:41:40.189 --> 00:41:43.392
On sundays when we worship together.
00:41:44.193 --> 00:41:46.596
We are encouraged.
00:41:46.596 --> 00:41:48.197
Our faith is built up by being together to worship the lord,
00:41:48.197 --> 00:41:52.835
To receive his word.
00:41:53.302 --> 00:41:55.905
It strengthens our faith.
00:41:55.905 --> 00:41:58.741
And we can grow in the lord.
00:41:58.741 --> 00:42:01.911
You know, we don't have to do life alone.
00:42:01.911 --> 00:42:04.046
We can do life together in the family of god
00:42:04.046 --> 00:42:07.350
And in our natural families of faith.
00:42:07.350 --> 00:42:09.752
- and it's not too late. - right.
00:42:10.419 --> 00:42:11.988
- you know, i think of people watching in,
00:42:11.988 --> 00:42:13.923
I think that was great that you've said that naomi,
00:42:13.923 --> 00:42:15.791
That think, well, i'm happy.
00:42:15.791 --> 00:42:17.293
That you all had that, but i didn't.
00:42:17.293 --> 00:42:19.695
But you could be the beginning.
00:42:19.695 --> 00:42:21.197
- yes.
00:42:21.197 --> 00:42:22.565
- you could be the one the first one to say,
00:42:22.565 --> 00:42:24.300
Okay, as for me in my house, we will serve the lord.
00:42:24.300 --> 00:42:27.837
And you don't have to go to theological seminary.
00:42:27.837 --> 00:42:30.573
You don't have to know everything.
00:42:30.573 --> 00:42:32.274
You just simply start.
00:42:32.274 --> 00:42:33.676
- yes. - i think that's
00:42:33.676 --> 00:42:35.311
One of the most beautiful things about our faith that,
00:42:35.311 --> 00:42:38.981
You know, at times it's passed on
00:42:38.981 --> 00:42:40.416
From generation to generation,
00:42:40.416 --> 00:42:41.917
Which is beautiful, but at times you get to be the one
00:42:41.917 --> 00:42:45.354
Outta the rubble who stands up and says yes lord.
00:42:45.354 --> 00:42:48.457
- yes lord. yeah.
00:42:48.457 --> 00:42:49.859
- and i mean, you think about our first conversation
00:42:49.859 --> 00:42:51.694
When we defined what is god's family.
00:42:51.694 --> 00:42:53.696
Yes, it's the people that you don't get to choose,
00:42:53.696 --> 00:42:56.065
But it's also the people that god has put in our path.
00:42:56.065 --> 00:42:59.035
So oftentimes there are these people,
00:42:59.035 --> 00:43:01.637
But it's just the step of like, do i tell them all my stuff?
00:43:01.637 --> 00:43:06.008
Are they a person i can cry with?
00:43:06.008 --> 00:43:07.710
And i think that's just even a reminder
00:43:07.710 --> 00:43:09.545
To the body of christ.
00:43:09.545 --> 00:43:11.147
That we should be the soft space, like it says,
00:43:11.147 --> 00:43:13.849
Rejoice with those and mourn with those.
00:43:13.849 --> 00:43:16.018
So we have to be that for each other.
00:43:16.018 --> 00:43:18.421
'cause if we can't get it here
00:43:18.421 --> 00:43:19.655
Within the body of christ, oh goodness.
00:43:19.655 --> 00:43:22.491
What are we left with?
00:43:22.491 --> 00:43:23.959
Going to the world and asking for them to validate
00:43:23.959 --> 00:43:26.595
Or to give us faith in doing,
00:43:26.595 --> 00:43:27.963
I mean, the world will tell us to have faith
00:43:27.963 --> 00:43:29.031
In a lot of other things,
00:43:29.031 --> 00:43:30.533
- right.
00:43:30.533 --> 00:43:31.667
- but not in the sovereignty of the lord.
00:43:31.667 --> 00:43:32.802
Not in the righteousness of jesus christ.
00:43:32.802 --> 00:43:34.270
Not that everything he did pays for all of it.
00:43:34.270 --> 00:43:36.906
So we come to the church, to the body,
00:43:36.906 --> 00:43:39.709
To the women and the men around us to say, i need a space.
00:43:39.709 --> 00:43:43.946
To be honest, to know that it will,
00:43:43.946 --> 00:43:45.848
To remind me that it will be okay.
00:43:45.848 --> 00:43:47.483
'cause maybe i don't have those people in my life,
00:43:47.483 --> 00:43:49.819
But i think that's what we do as brothers and sisters.
00:43:49.819 --> 00:43:52.221
May not have a mom or a dad,
00:43:52.221 --> 00:43:53.756
But i have a brother or sister in christ that can lead me
00:43:53.756 --> 00:43:56.592
And remind me of his faithfulness.
00:43:56.592 --> 00:43:58.294
So i think it's such a good reminder that our family,
00:43:58.294 --> 00:44:01.263
Yes, is our family, but our family is way bigger
00:44:01.263 --> 00:44:04.033
Than we ever could imagine.
00:44:04.033 --> 00:44:05.167
- it's so good. - it's a big family.
00:44:05.167 --> 00:44:07.737
- and i love, you know, talking about it starts with,
00:44:07.737 --> 00:44:10.940
It has to start somewhere and with someone.
00:44:10.940 --> 00:44:13.042
I remember hearing my grandparents,
00:44:13.042 --> 00:44:14.610
Who again, i already spoke with them,
00:44:14.610 --> 00:44:17.179
But they were, man, they were in the ministry.
00:44:17.179 --> 00:44:19.281
They planted churches,
00:44:19.281 --> 00:44:20.583
But i remember hearing them tell the story
00:44:20.583 --> 00:44:22.251
Of their parents getting saved.
00:44:22.251 --> 00:44:24.153
So my great grandparents were the first ones in our,
00:44:24.153 --> 00:44:27.456
My family line to come to faith, right?
00:44:27.456 --> 00:44:29.358
So it's like it started there.
00:44:29.358 --> 00:44:30.826
There are generations now who know the lord.
00:44:30.826 --> 00:44:33.896
So yeah, it just takes one.
00:44:34.497 --> 00:44:38.100
- and how cool that you could be that one.
00:44:38.100 --> 00:44:40.770
You could be the point in your family
00:44:40.770 --> 00:44:44.106
Where everything changed.
00:44:44.106 --> 00:44:45.975
As for me, in my house.
00:44:46.475 --> 00:44:48.043
Before you in your lineage, it was horror family stories.
00:44:48.043 --> 00:44:53.849
And you get to be the one.
00:44:54.416 --> 00:44:56.685
- you get to be that turning point.
00:44:56.685 --> 00:44:59.421
The linchpin in a spiritual family lineage.
00:44:59.421 --> 00:45:03.859
- i've had a couple of letters recently from women
00:45:04.894 --> 00:45:06.729
Who have said to me, i came to faith after i got married,
00:45:06.729 --> 00:45:10.599
And so my husband is not a believer
00:45:10.599 --> 00:45:12.968
And my kids don't go to church.
00:45:12.968 --> 00:45:14.537
We have never done that as a family. so what do i do?
00:45:14.537 --> 00:45:17.673
How do i move forward without driving them absolutely nuts.
00:45:17.673 --> 00:45:21.210
And one of the things i've said
00:45:21.210 --> 00:45:22.978
To both of these girls is, you know, be patient.
00:45:22.978 --> 00:45:26.382
Just be patient.
00:45:26.382 --> 00:45:27.383
Don't feel like it's your responsibility
00:45:27.383 --> 00:45:29.552
To get your husband
00:45:29.552 --> 00:45:30.252
And your children lined up
00:45:30.252 --> 00:45:31.754
And saved, you know, by next tuesday.
00:45:31.754 --> 00:45:34.523
Trust that the same god who pursued you,
00:45:34.523 --> 00:45:38.460
Loves your family, loves your family members,
00:45:38.460 --> 00:45:41.230
Those who don't know him yet.
00:45:41.230 --> 00:45:42.932
And i think there's something,
00:45:42.932 --> 00:45:44.333
To me there's something compelling about someone
00:45:44.333 --> 00:45:46.569
Who is in love.
00:45:46.569 --> 00:45:48.237
When someone's in love, it kind of,
00:45:48.237 --> 00:45:50.039
You don't even have to ask them
00:45:50.039 --> 00:45:51.540
If they're having a good day.
00:45:51.540 --> 00:45:52.441
It kind of spills over.
00:45:52.441 --> 00:45:53.943
And i think one of the things i would say is get more
00:45:53.943 --> 00:45:56.812
And more in love with jesus.
00:45:56.812 --> 00:45:58.247
The more time you spend in his presence
00:45:58.247 --> 00:46:00.149
And the more in love with him you are,
00:46:00.149 --> 00:46:02.084
That kind of becomes a little bit infectious.
00:46:02.084 --> 00:46:04.920
- i think about that verse in hebrews
00:46:05.688 --> 00:46:07.690
About the great cloud of witnesses.
00:46:07.690 --> 00:46:10.726
And i think i have people in my family
00:46:10.726 --> 00:46:13.262
I don't even know about that would've known the lord.
00:46:13.262 --> 00:46:16.632
Like i know i would have, right?
00:46:16.632 --> 00:46:18.500
This great cloud of witnesses cheering us on.
00:46:18.500 --> 00:46:20.769
That actually does now, i had this image of it
00:46:20.769 --> 00:46:23.906
And it does fuel my faith.
00:46:23.906 --> 00:46:25.274
'cause i'm like, all right, even if i am done,
00:46:25.274 --> 00:46:27.243
Even if the baton exchange was horrible
00:46:27.243 --> 00:46:29.245
And i let it go hand eye coordination is horrible
00:46:29.245 --> 00:46:32.815
The stands are cheering.
00:46:33.315 --> 00:46:35.885
- that's right. - get back up.
00:46:35.885 --> 00:46:38.053
We are finish this race. me, that by itself.
00:46:38.954 --> 00:46:43.325
I'm like, people are cheering for me
00:46:43.325 --> 00:46:46.095
Even if i kind of hear them right now.
00:46:46.095 --> 00:46:47.529
- so good. so good.
00:46:47.529 --> 00:46:49.098
- it's so good.
00:46:49.098 --> 00:46:51.000
It makes me remember the story that my dad told me about
00:46:51.000 --> 00:46:54.436
How they used to filter wine back in the day
00:46:54.436 --> 00:46:57.473
When they were making wine, they didn't have like strainers.
00:46:57.473 --> 00:47:00.676
And so what they would do is they would line up
00:47:00.676 --> 00:47:03.078
Different vessels
00:47:03.078 --> 00:47:04.380
And the first one would have wine
00:47:04.380 --> 00:47:05.915
And so they would pour until there was just some left
00:47:05.915 --> 00:47:08.584
And they would pour into another one,
00:47:08.584 --> 00:47:11.153
Then leave some at the bottom and pour.
00:47:11.153 --> 00:47:13.022
And what was happening was that in the vessel
00:47:13.022 --> 00:47:15.624
Before there was the sediment was left in the vessel before
00:47:15.624 --> 00:47:19.628
And you wouldn't pour that sediment into the next one
00:47:19.628 --> 00:47:21.864
And it would keep pouring and pouring and pouring.
00:47:21.864 --> 00:47:24.066
And my dad was telling me, he was like, naomi,
00:47:24.066 --> 00:47:26.535
This is what god does through generations
00:47:26.535 --> 00:47:29.672
That he pours and pours.
00:47:29.672 --> 00:47:32.741
And yes, there are people that make him say,
00:47:32.741 --> 00:47:34.176
Of course, there's some sediment that still comes in,
00:47:34.176 --> 00:47:35.978
But there's some that's left behind
00:47:35.978 --> 00:47:38.547
And so there's a work that's being done
00:47:38.547 --> 00:47:40.616
From generation to generation, from person to person,
00:47:40.616 --> 00:47:43.752
And you might be the first person in your family
00:47:43.752 --> 00:47:46.622
To begin that poor and to leave some behind, right?
00:47:46.622 --> 00:47:50.059
But god is doing a work
00:47:50.059 --> 00:47:51.460
And with each and every generation,
00:47:51.460 --> 00:47:53.429
Hopefully there's, there's a more filtered product,
00:47:53.429 --> 00:47:57.266
A more filtered wine
00:47:57.266 --> 00:47:58.801
And a more filtered process, you know?
00:47:58.801 --> 00:48:01.403
And we always talk about, you know, crushing the grapes
00:48:01.403 --> 00:48:03.238
And getting them done and letting it ferment.
00:48:03.238 --> 00:48:05.808
But i love the idea of getting that sediment out
00:48:05.808 --> 00:48:08.944
And getting that wine that's actually free
00:48:08.944 --> 00:48:11.580
And clear of impurities.
00:48:11.580 --> 00:48:13.048
And so to me, if you are watching now,
00:48:13.048 --> 00:48:17.252
We just wanna pray
00:48:17.252 --> 00:48:18.487
But i'm gonna ask you to pray as well
00:48:18.487 --> 00:48:20.522
And to ask the holy spirit, really, lord, how have you,
00:48:20.522 --> 00:48:23.826
What have you been filtering out
00:48:23.826 --> 00:48:25.260
In my family through these years?
00:48:25.260 --> 00:48:26.695
What has been the, the foundation of our faith?
00:48:26.695 --> 00:48:29.131
And how can i feel faith for others?
00:48:29.131 --> 00:48:31.867
And so, father, i thank you for the opportunity to remember,
00:48:31.867 --> 00:48:36.338
To reminisce, to reflect on your faithfulness
00:48:36.338 --> 00:48:39.675
Through the faithfulness of our family members.
00:48:39.675 --> 00:48:41.844
Lord, what a beautiful thing
00:48:41.844 --> 00:48:43.145
To be blessed by the stories of our sisters
00:48:43.145 --> 00:48:45.781
And their faithful family members.
00:48:45.781 --> 00:48:47.616
Lord, i ask that we would always
00:48:47.616 --> 00:48:50.452
Have an opportunity to do this.
00:48:50.452 --> 00:48:52.221
That we would always have an opportunity to remember
00:48:52.221 --> 00:48:54.423
That it might continue to fuel our faith,
00:48:54.423 --> 00:48:56.792
That it might continue to push us forward,
00:48:56.792 --> 00:48:58.594
That it might propel us in times of weakness and pain
00:48:58.594 --> 00:49:01.730
And in the moments that we wanna give up.
00:49:01.730 --> 00:49:03.332
Lord, i pray that endurance would hit your people
00:49:03.332 --> 00:49:06.068
That long suffering would be the fruit
00:49:06.068 --> 00:49:08.170
That is born in your people.
00:49:08.170 --> 00:49:09.905
Lord, bear that fruit in us. lord, bear patience in us.
00:49:09.905 --> 00:49:12.775
Lord, i pray that we would see the fullness of the work
00:49:12.775 --> 00:49:15.844
That only you can do as we remain faithful in you.
00:49:15.844 --> 00:49:19.448
In jesus name, amen.
00:49:19.448 --> 00:49:21.316
- [all] amen.
00:49:21.316 --> 00:49:23.385
- [narrator] connect with us on social media
00:49:23.385 --> 00:49:24.953
And let us know how our team can pray for you.
00:49:24.953 --> 00:49:28.257
(light music)
00:49:28.624 --> 00:49:32.694
- i think the best way to pass on
00:49:33.429 --> 00:49:37.533
Radical faith to our children
00:49:37.533 --> 00:49:39.668
And building that legacy
00:49:39.668 --> 00:49:40.869
That will last is being the example.
00:49:40.869 --> 00:49:44.406
You know, a friend of mine once told me when i was raising
00:49:44.406 --> 00:49:46.775
My kids, she said, nicole, your kids will love
00:49:46.775 --> 00:49:49.745
What you love.
00:49:49.745 --> 00:49:51.046
And i have found that as i have loved the lord
00:49:51.046 --> 00:49:55.517
With all my heart
00:49:55.517 --> 00:49:57.019
And loved his church, being involved in the church,
00:49:57.019 --> 00:50:00.689
That has been an example to my kids.
00:50:00.689 --> 00:50:04.159
And they see, you know, an example
00:50:04.893 --> 00:50:06.829
Before them of how to carry on that legacy of faith.
00:50:06.829 --> 00:50:10.699
- so obedience matters so much.
00:50:10.699 --> 00:50:13.735
The yes that we say today definitely has a legacy.
00:50:13.735 --> 00:50:18.207
I think every yes has a legacy.
00:50:18.207 --> 00:50:20.142
The yes that you make today really informs
00:50:20.142 --> 00:50:22.411
The next generation on how to walk, where to go.
00:50:22.411 --> 00:50:26.281
It it gives us opportunity
00:50:26.281 --> 00:50:27.983
And the ability to continue to say yes.
00:50:27.983 --> 00:50:31.019
And so i'm standing on the yes's of my parents.
00:50:31.019 --> 00:50:33.856
My parents are standing on the yes's of my grandparents
00:50:33.856 --> 00:50:36.458
And my children are standing on my yes today.
00:50:36.458 --> 00:50:39.495
- [narrator] join our conversations anytime, anywhere.
00:50:40.562 --> 00:50:43.065
Download tbn plus to stream your favorite episodes.
00:50:43.065 --> 00:50:47.536
(upbeat music)
00:50:47.903 --> 00:50:47.903

How Family Fuels Your Faith! - Episode 1079

July 17, 2025 | S7 E1079 | 52:34

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