When Mischelle Saunders-Gottsch was just a young girl, her family was swept up in what seemed like nothing less than a friendly church group. But what looked so good on the outside, quickly turned to control and abuse.
This week, we’ll hear from Mischelle as she shares her story of overcoming hurt and betrayal and how she learned to trust again.
Mischelle is the founder and CEO of Altered Stories Ministry, a place where women learn the power of telling their stories of God’s redemption and healing. To learn more, go to https://alteredstories.org/
She also hosts a podcast by the same name, where women share their stories. You can find it wherever podcasts can be found, as well as on her website.
This Good Friday, I’ve collaborated with a handful of other podcasters to bring you messages of hope. Coming from all different walks of life, with shows that have a variety of themes, one thing is certain: hope is needed now, more than ever, and the One constant hope is Jesus Christ.
Special thanks to The Jingle Punks for the use of their song, “Dusty Road” for the outro music.
This episode was recorded in collaboration with Christian Podcasters Association. All works are individually owned by the creators. This episode was edited and produced by Brandy J. Goebel in Sandy, Oregon. 2020. All rights reserved.
In these uncertain times, it’s more important than ever to rest in God’s word. This week, we find ourselves in Psalm 33 and 34 with verses such as these:
“Our soul waits for the Lord; He is our help and our shield. For our heart rejoices in Him, because we trust in His holy name. Let Your lovingkindness, O Lord, be upon us, according as we have hoped in You.” (Ps. 33:20-22)
“The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.” (Ps. 34:18)
Friends, our God is bigger than any virus. This did not take him by surprise. We can be assured that God is still God and He is still good, even as we face these weird days of uncertainty. One thing remains: God is faithful to accomplish all that He’s established.
How often does it feel like the whole world is not only against you but reveling in your defeat? The psalmist, David, understood those feelings but also knew and declared the truth of who God is and who God says we are meant to be.
It’s easy to be thankful when everyone you love is gathered around a Pinterest perfect table, the turkey is golden and a light snow is accumulating outside. But what about when life isn’t so perfect?
How do we have a grateful heart when we get the diagnosis, or the emergency phone call, or the news that we’ve been betrayed and the bank account is empty? Where does a thankful heart come from?
Join us this week as we explore the difference between being grateful in our circumstances versus being grateful despite our circumstances.
There is hope in Jesus that goes far beyond what we see and experience here on Earth. We will all experience heartbreak and loss, there’s simply no getting around it. How will you get through the storms that life brings your way?
Special thanks to James Swanson and James Page for their contribution to our theme song, “The Long Road Home.” Written by Brandy J. Goebel. Copyright 2018.
This episode was recorded, edited and produced at 4G’s Studios in Sandy, Oregon. 2019. All rights reserved.
The most important road trip ever taken was over 2,000 years ago when Jesus walked the road to Calvary. It wasn’t a glamorous road trip. There were no fancy drinks along the way, no stops to take in the sights. There wasn’t even a grand destination to look forward to at the end.
But that one trip gave each of us the opportunity to have a face-to-face relationship with the one true God.
This is our final January Flashback episode. Next week we will be back in the studio with all new material. We look forward to seeing you then!
[Notice: This post is not in release order with the actual episode. Apparently, I dropped the ball and failed to post this portion. My apologies for any confusion. – BJG]
This week the Way Back Machine is taking us to one of our earliest episodes where we talked about depression and the toll it takes on us when life doesn’t work out quite like we’d planned.
We talk about generalized depression, anxiety and we also touch on grief.
In a world that consistently disappoints us or leaves us comparing ourselves to Pinterest and Instagram, this is a timely and relevant conversation and we trust it will bring you encouragement.
Let’s face it: as much as people love watching holiday Hallmark movies, they leave us longing for more in our own lives. More family. More laughter. More kisses under the mistletoe and more snow on the ground.
Meanwhile, our reality often looks quite a bit duller when compared to this idealized version we see on our screens. In real life, we have dirty dishes stacked up high, kids screaming in the background, someone passed out on the couch due to overindulgence of one sort or another. All we really want to do is lock ourselves in the bathroom and have a good cry.
Because the holidays are hard. Sometimes, they’re really hard.
Whatever we hope for during this season seldom comes to fruition. Instead, we end up stressed out and feeling empty and dissatisfied, or worse, completely hopeless.
Join us this week as Matt and I share some of our thoughts for self-care during the holidays that might bring you a new sense of peace and joy.
In this episode, we talk about being mindful of what we deserve vs. what we’ve been given, taking our desires and cares to God, and practical ideas for relieving stressful or awkward situations. We also talk about practicing kindness towards others as well as ourselves.
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Today, Matt takes a look at Jonah’s trip in a fish. More specifically, he talks about how Jonah ran away from God’s will for him and ended up in the fish to begin with.
Jonah has a whole book all his own in the Bible and you can read his story there. In my Bible, it starts on page 1421. That won’t really help you, though. Anyway, even if you’ve heard this story a bunch of times, it’s a quick little read and we highly encourage you to read it again. It will only take a few minutes, I promise!
Some points to consider and scripture to read:
* Like Jonah, we’ve been given a job to do and that’s to bring a message of hope and redemption to a lost and broken world. Even if we think the world isn’t worthy of the message (and we don’t really want them to get in on the best deal ever), we’ve been given a job and we must do it.
*Like the prophet Jeremiah, we must recognize that this life is not our own. We have been given this life for God’s purpose and pleasure. He is the navigator of our lives because he sees the map in its entirety. We just get to steer the car (be obedient).
A little thing to note: Not all of life’s storms are a result of our disobedience. Any number of things simply happen to or around us because we live in a fallen and sinful world. It is, however, always best to stay obedient to God so He doesn’t have to use painful means to get our attention, which He’ll do if necessary. Because He’s a good Dad and He wants the best for us. Email us you show ideas, guest requests, prayer requests or just to say hi! Join us on Facebook!
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The Road Home to You 