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173: Jarrett Stephens

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Welcome back everyone! Today on the Thriving Beyond Belief podcast is our guest, Jarrett Stephens!

A message of hope for an anxious day: God never changes. He is still here and ready to transform our lives. What we must ask is if we are ready to respond to him.

In these turbulent times, many wonder where God is…and why he doesn’t seem to be intervening. Sure, he performed miracles in the Bible, but what about now? What about us? In The Always God: He Hasn’t Changed and You Are Not Forgotten (Jun 1, 2021, Multnomah), Pastor Jarrett Stephens reveals how God is always present, always working, and always faithful.

In The Always God, Jarrett, pastor of Champion Forest Baptist Church in Houston, Texas, gives hope to those who think God has given up on us. It invites us to quiet ourselves and listen to the God who does not change or forget us. Not ever. And that changes everything.

Jarrett asks readers: Do you wonder if God has forgotten you?

He responds,
“I wrote this book for you because I’ve been where you are. As a pastor, I walk with people who are where you are: in the midst of a trial, needing to be reminded that our God is always God and needing to be invited to journey with him to a place of greater assurance and intimacy. Regardless of how things may seem, he is always the same and can always be trusted.”

Jarrett shares moments of his wild and sometimes painful journey, including:

  • As a boy, when he was a victim of sex abuse from a little league coach for four years
  • When he and his wife lost a child to miscarriage
  • The years he prayed for a prodigal brother
  • The suffering of a dear friend with cancer

Bringing sound biblical teaching along with comforting guidance, he can help your audience answer such questions as: Is God listening and does he see me? Can I have an unwavering confidence that God is always here and always working? Can I get to a place where, no mat­ter what happens, doubt won’t overtake me?  

Jarrett’s prayer is that every reader will discover in a very personal and powerful way just how faithful the always God really is.

Jarrett Stephens is the senior pastor of Champion Forest Baptist Church, in Houston, Texas, one of the largest and most diverse churches in America, and he is the author of The Mountains Are Calling.Previously, he served as a teaching pastor at Prestonwood Baptist Church alongside Dr. Jack Graham. He has a bachelor of arts in biblical studies and psychology from Ouachita Baptist University, a master of divinity from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, and a doctorate of ministry from Liberty Theological Seminary. Jarrett has been featured on The 700 Club, I Am Second and dozens of radio and podcast shows.

“In these pages, you’ll find empathy, wisdom, encouragement, and a thoroughly biblical perspective for times when God seems distant or disinterested. Jarrett Stephens doesn’t flinch as he courageously confronts some of the most nettlesome issues that vex so many followers of Jesus. Whatever you do, don’t miss this journey toward wholeness. Let Jarrett lead you to a place of genuine hope and faith!”

—Lee Strobel, bestselling author of The Case for Christ and The Case for Miracles

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172: Todd & Brooke Tilghman

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Welcome back everyone! Today on the Thriving Beyond Belief podcast is our guest, Todd & Brooke Tilghman!

So often we hear “Just keep your eye on the prize!” and “focus on the ‘big picture!’” Todd and Brooke Tilghman offer this counter-cultural advice: look for the small things, not the big things––relish each and every small step/moment.

When Todd Tilghman, pastor of two decades and father of eight from Meridian, Mississippi, auditioned for NBC’s The Voice, he counted it as a win simply to sing in front of an audience other than family and church members. Despite no music or vocal training, he not only made it through the blind audition––with all four celebrity judges vying to coach him––he also won the show’s entire eighteenth season.

In their forthcoming book, Every Little Win: How Celebrating Small Victories can Lead to Big Joy (Thoman Nelson, June 22, 2021), Todd and his wife, Brooke, share how decades of unrelenting challenges have taught them a joyful mindset of embracing not only winning NBC’s The Voice, but also “every little win” along the way. This is the first book ever written by a winner of The Voice.

Fans were drawn to Todd’s tremendous joy on stage, giving them much-needed inspiration during the hard challenges of a global pandemic. In Every Little Win, Todd and Brooke discuss how their focus on joy and celebrating every little win has helped them to overcome numerous challenges over their twenty-plus-year marriage. Todd and Brooke share the lessons they’ve learned and the strategies that have moved them from fear to faith to ever-present joy.

They share in the book, “We win as we discover that in God’s economy, brokenness leads to beauty, and scarcity to abundance.”

  • Relationships––from being a young dating couple breaking up (for the sake of Christ), to getting married, to being at the brink of divorce, to reconciling, to facing the negative aspects of social media on relationships.
  • Parenting––from adopting two girls on a pastor’s salary (which is practically impossible without an act of God), to parenting a critically ill child (and wondering why God doesn’t answer all our prayers for our children), to having to check one of their sons into a facility to get treatment for depression following bullying at school, to helping that same son later navigate “going viral” for his artwork.
  • Handling adversity and cultural stressors––pastoring a church during times of adversity.
  • Mental Health––from Brooke’s own battle with anxiety/depression, to how Todd learned to support and care for her in her darkest hours, to both Brooke and Todd parenting one of their children through depression.

Together, Todd and Brooke explain how to find special moments in the middle of ordinary days––from their childhoods to winning NBC’s The Voice and “every little win” in between. Through it all, Todd and Brooke count their blessings. This book isn’t sugar coated. It’s real. It’s honest. It’s intimate. And it’s hopeful.

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145: Kelly Balarie

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Welcome Kelly Balarie to the Thriving Beyond Belief podcast!

Now more than ever, we need rest –a deep, trust-centered knowing of God’s goodness and peace.

Yet, these days, we are experiencing the opposite: Three out of five people admit to doing more than they can manage. Many are more fearful than ever because of  Covid-19. Great amounts of people are under the weight of massive financial burdens. Not only this, but family life, virtual schooling, safety discussions and workplaces are overtaking over sacred home spaces.

Here, we are doing and worrying, more than being with and loving God.  The pressure — is real.

Whereas, we once figured rest was at home, now we realize that quietly tucking ourselves away from projects, people, and the pressures of today, isn’t the whole answer…  We are still left feeling worried, exhausted, tired, and weary. Distance, days at home and constant solitude don’t fill the hole or the desires of our heart.

What is rest? Real rest is soul rest. Soul rest not found from exterior things, but through heartfelt focus, soul-full simplicity and wise communication – all with the goal of fostering love. In this, we can grab hold of what matters most. We become present to God. We find peace. We lay hold of God’s goodness. This is rest.

Bestselling author Kelly Balarie believes a more soul-full way of life is available for us all. In her latest book Rest Now: 7 Ways to Say No, Set Boundaries, and Seize Joy, Kelly offers practical “hows” to help rest become a living reality.

In our interview, you’ll learn to:

  • create boundaries that allow you to overflow with love
  • say no so you don’t hate yourself later
  • ditch passive-aggressive behaviors in favor of healthy conversations that lead to peace
  • embrace permission-giving thoughts to create mental space for God

Rest Now shows us that we no longer have to strive for rest, but we can love from it, like Jesus did. This not only brings rest, but joy – even in the most tumultuous season.

Balarie says,

“Rest and joy are fully available to us even in this season thanks to Jesus.”

 

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Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/purposefulfaith

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kellybalarie/?hl=en

Twitter: https://twitter.com/kellybalarie

Website:  https://purposefulfaith.com/

 

089: Eryn Eddy

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There are fewer things that bring me more joy than seeing people share their story with authenticity and vulnerability. That is why this week’s episode of Thriving Beyond Belief has brought me so much joy- and I hope it does the same for you. I am so excited for you to hear Eryn Eddy’s story. It is one of overcoming, being true to what God has called you to be, and finding passions in unexpected places.

Eryn shares with us her story of how she has come to where she is. Eryn talks with us about being raised in a Christian home, finding herself working for a ministry, deciding not to go to college, and marrying young. She walks us through this relationship she had with her husband and what ultimately led to their divorce. Eryn is so vulnerable in her story-telling, sharing with us such wise words on truly coming to terms with the fact that nothing can fill the void in our lives other than Jesus. She talks about what voids she was trying to fill through her marriage and how her husband was trying to do the same in different capacities. Trying to fill the void of the Lord in your life with a person, a hobby, a career, children will only leave those voids being manifested in unhealthy ways in your relationships with others and with Jesus.

Eryn shares some life-giving wisdom on her journey and how the Lord taught her to only be satisfied with Him. What came from this broken relationship actually led her to the ministry she runs today- So Worth Loving. It is an apparel brand that prints life-giving and encouraging messages on apparel. She emphasizes that nothing will fulfill like Jesus and no one will champion who you were created to be like Jesus.

Eryn closes with some amazing and practical steps to healing. She shares some amazing ways you can begin to climb out of the pit that you are in and how to lean into the Lord in real ways during that time of heartache, loss, or emptiness.

I want to close with So Worth Loving’s manifesto, in that I hope it beings encouragement to your story and that the Lord wastes nothing. He uses each of our stories to glorify Him and help others in healing.

No matter my history, past mistakes, relationship status, or career choice, I am worthy of love. I am not defined by my past. I am prepared because of it. While my own voice and others may tell me different, I will lean into the safe people that affirm this way of thinking. When I encourage others to love themselves I am encouraging them to treat themselves with kindness, patience, respect, and all that embodies love. We live our life knowing we have worth.  So Worth Loving. It’s a lifestyle.”

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Highlights:

  • Coming soon…

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