July 4, 2025 • 52 mins
Have you ever felt like you’re constantly showing up for everyone else—but no one shows up for you? You’re the strong one. The one who carries the weight. The one who prays, encourages, checks in, holds it together, and gives your all... but behind closed doors, you’re tired. You wonder, “When will it be my turn?”
In this vulnerable and spirit-led episode of Unrelated Sisters: Truth & Grace Conversation, Shannon and special guest Haley Lewis speak directly to the women who are always pouring, always holding, always pressing forward—even when it feels like no one notices.
This is your reminder: You are not invisible. You are not forgotten. Maybe you’re not being overlooked… maybe you were built to make an impact.
We dive deep into what it means to be the blessing in someone else’s storm, why your strength matters more than you think, and how God honors those who serve in silence. Through honest conversation, Scripture, prayer, and declarations, this episode is a spiritual exhale for every woman carrying more than she admits.
Speak out in Affirmation:
“Repeat after us, sis…”
- “I am the blessing.”
- “God is using me to make an impact.”
- “My strength is seen, and my sacrifice is sacred.”
- “I will not grow weary in doing good.”
- “God sees me, fills me, and rewards me.”
A prayer if your having a hard time with what to say:
“Father, thank You for the strong one listening today. The one who gives without applause, who carries others even when she’s tired. Remind her that You see her. You reward her. You refill her. Let her rest in Your strength, not her own. In Jesus’ name, amen.”
Discernment Your Best Yes, ask these question to help know it's Gods Yes:
Question 1: Is this something that God is truly asking of me? Lord, is this for me? If it's not for me, then let me know so that I don't take somebody else's blessing.
Question 2: Does this align with my calling, not just with my capabilities? We all have certain things that we're good at, but we also all have a calling. Is this part of my purpose, or am I just saying yes because it's something that I enjoy or that I'm good at.
Question 3: Am I saying yes out of fear or guilt or out of pride? Is it because of Fear of what others might think, or is it out of guilt, or is it I know I can do that, so let me just say yes. Out of Pride.
Finally question 4 ... What will this yes cost in time, energy, relationships, and rest? Will this yes honor my current season and boundaries? Especially when you're in ministry, you have to have good, healthy boundaries of what you can and can't do.
Key Verse: Galatians 6:9
“Let us not grow weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.”
Matthew 11:28 – “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.”
Listen now for truth, grace, and a Word just for the givers.
#ChristianPodcast #FaithAndMentalHealth #StrongWomenOfGod #UnrelatedSistersPodcast #GodSeesYou #YouAreTheBlessing
We want this to be truly interactive podcast. Please go in the fan mail at
https://unrelatedsisterspodcast.buzzsprout.com and tell us your stories and let us know if it’s okay to share (no names). Let us know if you need prayer or how we can support you in your journey. Thank you so much for taking the time to listen. Follow us on Facebook @Unrelated Sister's: Truth & Grace Conversation Podcast or Email us at unrelatedsisterspodcast@gmail.com
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 00 (00:03):
Hey family and welcome back to Unrelated
Sisters Truth and GraceConversation.
I'm Shannon and I'm Haley andtoday's episode is for the
strong one, the one who holds ittogether for everyone else.
It's called Maybe You're theBlessing and sis, we believe
that this is going to be yourreminder that you are seen even
when you feel invisible.
There's this quote I love.
(00:25):
Sometimes nothing good happensto you because you are the good
that happens to others.
That hits kind of deep for meand Haley today.
So, Haley, pray us in.
Dear Lord Jesus, we just thankyou for this podcast, Lord.
We thank you for theopportunity to just pour out,
Lord, your word.
(00:45):
I just pray, Lord, thatwhoever...
Amen.
The weight of being strong orbeing the strong one, growing
up, I was the oldest and Ishould have been the strong one,
(01:08):
right?
But I wasn't.
I wouldn't.
It was my baby sister.
Like my baby sister, she'salways been the one that's, she
had a good head on her shouldersand she always knew, she always
knew what she wanted out oflife.
And I'm not that way.
Right.
And we've discussed this.
I fly by the seat of my pantskind of person.
And, uh, and a lot of thethings that I do and, um, It has
(01:30):
to be exhausting to be thestrong one.
You remind me a lot of mysister when it comes to being
the strong one.
Now that I've gotten, now thatI've found my faith in God,
being the strong one, has becomemore and more and more, right?
Because I talk with Jesus and Ifeel like that I'm able to, you
(01:53):
know, to talk and minister topeople.
But sometimes it's hard to bethat strong for everybody when,
you know, cause nobody, it'slike, who's feeding into you and
stuff.
So, and I heard a quote theother day and it said, we talk
about, is your cup full or isyour cup running over?
But, But why would you want tohave just a cup?
(02:16):
If you hook up the water hoseand turn it on, it flows
constantly.
Right?
So it makes you kind of wonderabout those kind of things.
And in Matthew 11, 28, it says,Come to me, all you who are
weary and burdened, and I willgive you rest.
Well, that's good.
I think sometimes that LisaTurker, she has a book called
(02:41):
The Best Yes.
And I think sometimes that wefeel like we have to say yes out
of obligation, but reallythat's not.
It has to be out of obediencethat we say yes for it to truly
take root in our life.
The Best Yes is about learningto say yes to God's priorities
(03:02):
and for your life, not just forevery good opportunity that
comes your way.
So definitely that could leadto burnout if we're just saying
yes to everything that comes ourway.
But I love that verse inMatthew that you just quoted,
come to me, because ultimatelywhen we are burnout or we're
(03:23):
tired or weary, We can alwaysfind rest in him.
Right.
You know, and saying yes out ofguilt, saying yes out of
obligation or out of, you know,commitment.
Like you feel like you can't,you know, give in.
That's hard.
(03:43):
Like just to sit here and thinkabout it, it's kind of like,
oh, you know, because how manyof us do it?
And how often do we do it?
And doing it out of obedience,that's when he's tugging at you,
right?
That's when he's tapping you onthe shoulder saying, hello.
(04:03):
And how many of us say yes tohim right away?
Right.
But if my best friend calls,oh, yeah, even though I'm tired
and I want to lay down or I wantto sit in my chair or, okay.
Or if my mom calls or my sistercalls or my kid, you know, my
kid's 21.
And, you know, even when hecalls, I jump up and go, right?
But when God calls, what do Ido?
(04:26):
I want to talk about it.
Yes, me too.
Every time I get, I catchmyself constantly wrestling with
the Lord.
Like, are you sure?
Like, should I do that?
And nine times out of 10, he'slike, yes, you should go now or
do this now.
There's a quote somewhere thatsays that your yes should come
(04:51):
from a healthy soul.
A weary, burned-out heart saysyes out of fear or fatigue, but
a heart rooted in Christ can sayyes with clarity and
conviction.
So like you said, you can'tpour from an empty cup even in
ministry.
You have to be full all thetime.
You have to make sure thatyou're filling your cup so that
(05:13):
you can pour into other peopletoo.
So that's important.
Right.
It's okay to admit it's hard.
It is.
Right?
It's okay.
Unknown (05:23):
Yeah.
Speaker 00 (05:23):
Especially now that you're ministering with your
church and that you've dumbedinto that on top of your
nonprofit.
Is there a time when you sayno?
There is, yes.
I feel like that I have verygood discernment.
And so I do definitely prayabout that.
(05:46):
Ninety percent of the thingsthat I say yes to or that I, you
know, if I feel like the Lordis saying, no, that's not for
you.
Obviously, I don't want to everrob anybody from their
blessing.
So there are certain situationsand times where if I pray about
it and I feel like the Lord islike, no, that's not for you.
I will say, I'm sorry, but Ican't do this.
(06:08):
Or, you know, I don't feel likeI'm called to do that or, you
know, whatever.
So, yeah, I do say no.
What about you?
Do you say no?
I'm learning.
Yeah, I'm learning.
Right.
Because, you know, my faith, myfaith came out of has come out
of addiction, you know.
(06:28):
And so when you're inaddiction, you're trying to
please whoever is supplying thataddiction.
Right.
So so saying yes was a habitthat I had.
So it's it's hard to.
It's hard for me to tell thedifference sometimes, right?
And I think that's why when Godis just whispering in my ear,
(06:54):
I'm like, is it really God or isit?
I'm still trying to learn ortrying to figure out how to tell
the difference between the Godwhispering in my ear and the
devil whispering in the other.
So I do have some questionsthat you can ask yourself to
help discern your best yes.
(07:14):
Okay.
Question 1 (07:15):
Is this something that God is truly asking of me?
So that's something that I tryto ask.
Lord, is this for me?
If it's not for me, then let meknow so that I don't take
somebody else's blessing.
Number two is, does this alignwith my calling, not just with
my capabilities?
We all have certain things thatwe're good at, but we also all
(07:39):
have a calling.
Is this part of my purpose, oram I just saying yes because
it's something that I enjoy orthat I'm good at, but it will
ultimately...
lead to burnout if I'm toobusy.
Number three would be, am Isaying yes out of fear or guilt
or out of pride?
(07:59):
Because that's a good one andthat's one that I often have
found myself saying yes out of,well, I know I can do that, so
let me just say yes.
Don't we all?
Yeah, that's a good one.
Pride.
She's throwing out thegauntlet, y'all.
And then finally...
(08:21):
What will this yes cost intime, energy, relationships, and
rest?
Will this yes honor my currentseason and boundaries?
Especially when you're inministry, you have to have good,
healthy boundaries of what youcan and can't do.
Right.
Because, I mean, ultimately,like, it is so easy to get
(08:42):
burned out and just serve from aplace of I've got to do that
and not I get to do that.
That's one thing that we teachabout a lot at my church is
going from the got to to the getto.
So you don't got to get up andserve on Sunday morning.
You get to get up and serve onSunday morning.
It's truly a privilege to beable to serve.
But, you know, if you're notserving out of your purpose,
(09:08):
then...
There's really no power inthat.
You're just doing it becauseyou're capable.
Right, right.
And that's really good.
Am I serving?
Be excited to get up and go,right?
And I watched a movie a fewweeks ago.
Disciples in the Dark orsomething.
(09:29):
I haven't seen that one.
It's good.
It's so good.
And at the end of the day, thegovernment has taken away the
Bibles and they've burned all of
Speaker 01 (09:38):
them.
Speaker 00 (09:39):
And they've brought in a new version, their version
of the Bible.
And so they're trying toThey've collected a bunch of the
old Bibles up and they'retrying to take them to churches,
underground churches in Americanow.
And and at the end of the day,like.
That could be us, like one ofthese days that could be us,
(10:02):
and, you know, I don't getpolitical and we're not talking
politics on this on this call,but on this podcast, but.
You know.
Over in Asia and China andstuff like that, they don't have
that privilege.
Right.
And we should wake up and begrateful.
One, that we woke up and two,that we have the opportunity to
(10:26):
do, you know, Reagan said thatyou don't.
you don't realize what you'vegotten until you've lost it.
Those privileges that we havein life here in America, we
don't realize until they'retaken away.
And we have to be able to youknow, be grateful and just that,
(10:47):
that I'm gonna take that withme.
I get to do this.
I get to do, maybe I can dothat at work too.
I mean, it works.
It definitely works in allaspects of life.
I have pulled that out.
Um, a lot of times, like I get,I get to do this.
Like it's not a burden.
This is something that I get todo.
(11:07):
I like it.
I like it, you know?
And then sometimes, um, You'reso strong and you're so capable
and you're so this and you're sothat.
But maybe the reason peoplecome to you or maybe the reason
that people lean on you isbecause you are their blessing,
(11:29):
right?
Oh,
Speaker 01 (11:29):
that's good.
Speaker 00 (11:30):
Right?
Yeah.
My family, my mom inside thefamily, they know that I was in
addiction, but they don't knowthe story of my addiction until
I started this podcast, and Italk a lot about it and stuff
like that.
And my Aunt Mary, who I speak alot about because when you walk
(11:52):
in her presence, she you feelthe presence of God.
And she's one of those that youknow she has spent a lot of
nights on her knees.
And she's one of those thatwhen she prays for you, you know
she's praying for you.
And she's been listening to mypodcast, and she calls me up the
(12:14):
other day, and she says, Ididn't understand.
She goes, I didn't understandall those years that you didn't
come around or all those yearsthat you didn't do this.
And she said, you know, whenyour grandma passed away, my
grandma passed away last yearand her grandson was having a
really hard time with it.
And he was he was praying toGod and he was he was he was
(12:37):
feeling lost.
And and and.
she's like, somebody needs topray with him.
And I was like, okay, like Igot this, you know?
And I go up there and she'sthere and she's like, just to
listen to you after knowingwhere you come from.
She says, where did that comefrom?
I said, I don't even know whatI said.
Like, I don't even know what Isaid.
(12:59):
Yeah.
Yeah.
Like when he got the whole,like sometimes I think I'm
sitting outside the body lookingat it, but I was the blessing,
you know, at that time, eventhough in my grief of my
grandmother passing and stufflike that, that's what they
needed at the time.
But the unseen emotional andspiritual labors that strong
(13:20):
women give, like sometimes whenyou are the strong person in
your family, in your church,like, you know, I love my best
friend.
She's been my best friend for25 years, but sometimes her
chaos makes my life be like, andshe knows it.
(13:42):
She knows it, but she can callme anytime.
Yeah.
Right.
I'm going to listen.
And then I'm going to tell herwhat God told me to tell her.
Right.
Right.
And, and, and she'll call me upand she'll be like, and she
goes, that's why I call you.
Because you're the peace.
I'm the peace.
I'm the peace that gives herthat.
But sometimes I feeloverlooked.
(14:04):
I feel overlooked in mymarriage sometimes.
I feel overlooked with my kid,and my kid's older than yours,
so welcome to what's going tohappen.
Oh, gosh.
But I don't think I'moverlooked.
I don't think that God, youknow, I know God sees me.
(14:26):
He has to because he's beensitting there a long time.
So he definitely ain't goingnowhere.
That's right.
You know, and stuff like that.
But I don't know.
Maybe.
I think it's in those momentswhen we do feel so overlooked
that God will give.
He'll send somebody or acircumstance to just kind of.
(14:49):
bring you back to life and letyou know this is your purpose
and you're not overlooked ordowncast.
Right.
This is what you were made for.
And I think that that's when hereally works through us the
most.
I know in my life, when I'vebeen down at the lowest, ready
(15:11):
to just kind of give up andthrow in the towel in certain
situations, that's when...
God steps in and does the mostthat only he can do.
And then when you look back,you're like, okay, like that was
only God.
Yeah, I've seen it.
I've seen it for sure.
You know, in Galatians 6, 9, itsays, let us not grow weary in
(15:32):
doing good.
Let us not grow weary in doinggood.
You know, and you can read thathowever you want to.
But at the end of the day, itmakes me, I'm at the happiest.
When I'm doing for others.
Yeah.
Right?
I personally am at the happiestwhen I am doing for others.
(15:53):
My husband gets on to me allthe time because I'll see
somebody walking down the roadand it's 100 degrees.
And I'm like, you're hot.
I'm going here.
You know?
And he's like, well, these daysthey're going to kill you.
And I'm like.
You know, they say that themost happiest people in the
entire world are the ones whoare walking in their calling and
(16:14):
doing what they're called todo.
And I believe it.
I do, too.
Oh, yeah.
Oh, yeah.
I don't feel like I would behere right now if it wasn't for
(16:39):
God's grace.
Like the grace that he hasshowed me and that he has given
me and the grace, you know, it'snot like I woke up one day and
decided I wasn't going to dodrugs anymore and then found
God.
Right.
That was 10 years.
It was, it was eight yearslater, right.
Before God ever came into thepicture.
So there was eight years ofsobriety there where I wasn't
(16:59):
doing drugs, but God stillwasn't there.
I mean, he was there, but hewasn't, he was not forefront for
me, you know, and, um, But whenyou come out of that cloud and
you find true joy, it's nothappiness.
You know, me and my son wastalking about this the other
(17:21):
day, and he's like, I'm happy.
I was like, yeah, but you'velost your joy.
Yeah.
Right?
And if you look it up, there'sa difference.
Oh, yeah.
There absolutely is.
You know, you can be happy, butwhen you're living in your
joy...
There's nothing greater.
No, that's absolutely right.
There is a divine difference inhappiness and the joy that only
(17:47):
the Lord can give, especiallyin circumstances that should not
hold happiness or joy.
Right, right.
Yeah, I agree.
It's just, I don't know.
I wake up and I see the worlddifferently.
You know, I see thingsdifferently nowadays than I've
ever seen them.
And I can't explain it.
(18:13):
Like, I just want you all tofeel it.
Yeah.
Well, I definitely, we talkedabout this a little before, but
Galatians 6, 9, the verse thatyou just read, that has been
really heavy on my heart latelyas I'm walking in a different
season with a new life.
a new business and steppinginto ministry and just different
(18:35):
aspects of my life but in myquiet time several weeks ago I
broke down this verse and at theend of the verse you know it
says if we do not give up and SoI really want to speak over you
ladies who are on the verge ofgiving up and let you know that
(18:58):
the harvest depends on notquitting and the blessing comes
after the battle.
Because I feel like sometimeswe think we're at the lowest of
the lows.
How are we going to come backfrom this?
But like you said, that's whereHis grace comes in.
And I mean, it's just a divinegift.
a divine appointment that onlyHe can orchestrate that will
(19:18):
rescue you when you feel like,okay, this is it.
I can't come back from this.
Don't stop sowing into yourcalling or your ministry or your
family, whether you're burntout or tired or just feel like
you're getting nowhere.
I know I've prayed for certainfamily members of mine for a
long time, and I'll say, well,Lord, I don't know why you still
(19:41):
want me to pray for them.
They're You know, they're lost.
And he's like, but they'remine.
And like, and they're not toofar gone.
And so never feel like, youknow, you're too far gone to
where you can't come backbecause he will always leave the
99 to find the one.
And he does promise that if youdon't give up, he'll bring the
(20:02):
harvest.
But it's in his time.
It is so in his time.
So, you know, I talk a lotabout my dad.
and about his, his road torecovery.
And there was, there was a timeI hadn't seen or heard from him
in a hot minute.
And in, in 2021, when COVID wasat its highest, I get a phone
(20:24):
call from the hospital and, andI hadn't seen or heard from him
in, I don't know, two or threeyears.
I honestly thought, and I'dbeen praying and I'd had my
church praying.
I had my pastor praying, likewe'd been praying and, and, I
was to the point I was justwaiting on the phone call, that
he was found in the ditch, OD'd.
(20:45):
He was found in the housesomewhere, OD'd.
I'd just been waiting on thatcall.
And the nurse, and I had a lotof hard feelings towards him,
and I was very bitter towardshim.
And I just knew.
But I get a call from thehospital, and he's up there, and
he's pretty bad off.
And they're like, do you wantto talk to him?
I'm like, no.
(21:05):
I don't.
I don't want to talk to him.
Like, I can't.
Right?
Because I was still trying tofind my way.
And there's two things in thisworld that the devil knows he
can pull me back in from.
My daddy and my kid.
Right?
Like, he knows that if that canget me back into where I was
(21:26):
at.
And I don't want to be there.
But I told the nurse, you know,I was like, this is my phone
number.
If something happens, if itgets worse, then I want you to
call me.
And she's like, okay.
And she had to go ask himpermission to tell me his
information and stuff.
But she did.
But we continued to pray.
(21:47):
Well, then I didn't see or hearfrom him for a while.
And then one day I was workingat my job, and he come walking
up, and he said, you've beenpraying for me, haven't you?
And I said, yeah.
And he goes, I need you tostop.
And I said, why?
Why?
And he said, well, my truckbroke down, and my kitchen
caught on fire, and my dog died.
(22:08):
I mean, it was just a list.
It was like a country song,right?
And I just kind of laughed athim, and I said, well, you know
what you need to do.
And he just snarled and walkedaway because he was still
getting high.
And then I still didn't see himfor a while.
And then I was getting married,and...
I had my son walk me down theaisle.
(22:28):
I mean, I hadn't seen or talkedto my daddy in years, really.
But I sent him at the gasstation the day before I was
getting married.
And I told him, and he came tothe wedding, but he still didn't
walk me down the aisle.
And then we went on for a fewyears, and then he shows up at
my job.
And he's like, I'm clean.
And I'm like, yeah, okay.
(22:50):
Do you know how many timesyou've come to me and told me
that?
Yeah.
And so it has been a struggle.
Well, he didn't come backaround for a while, but he had
been in drug court.
He's been clean for five yearsnow.
So you can't stop praying.
And I'm talking about mydaddy's been getting high since
I was 10 years old.
It started out with justmarijuana, and then it
(23:13):
progressed to meth andeverything else.
So God...
One, he works in his own time,but sometimes it's a little
harder than others.
Like my daddy's stubborn.
My daddy was a preacher when Iwas a kid.
He was a preacher until hesinned and fell from grace and
(23:37):
died.
I know.
Right.
I mean...
He's good.
(24:03):
He's good.
And you just have to be willingto open up and be like, hey,
look, this is this.
But sometimes it's weird, Iguess, because I had a hard time
going back to church.
I had church hurt, and I had ahard time going back.
And it takes some deep root.
Church hurt, it goes deep.
(24:25):
Oh, it does.
It does, for sure.
And I offended my daddysometimes.
about six months ago, we weretalking.
He goes, your sister told meyou thought we went to church
was a cult.
I was like, it was a cult.
It was a cult.
And he's like, Shannon.
I was like, I know I gotta gohome and pray.
(24:46):
I find myself in thosesituations a lot.
Okay, Lord, I feel that I needto pray about that.
I'm sorry.
It comes out.
It comes to the brain.
It comes out the mouthsometimes, you know, have you
ever seen that meeting whereit's like the Holy Spirit has
like his hand over your mouth orwhatever I live in that state I
do too like the Holy Spirit isnot going to allow me to say
(25:07):
that I live in that I do too Ido too I have definitely had to
since I got promoted I've had tolearn to think before I speak
great at it, but I'm gettingbetter, but it's helped me in my
personal life.
Am I, am I faithful off tolearning to think before I
(25:29):
speak?
Um, cause usually if it comesto the brain, it comes out the
mouth and that gets me introuble.
So, you know, uh, impact overapplause, uh, internal reward
versus earthly recognition.
Speaker 01 (25:41):
That's
Speaker 00 (25:43):
so good.
Oh my gosh.
So here's the thing.
And, um, We did an event withyou that first year.
We did Joyman's event with you.
And you were like, I know youdon't like this, but we're going
to thank you anyway.
And you're right.
I don't.
Right.
Like I do the things I do, thevolunteer and the good, you
(26:04):
know, the things out of thegoodness of my heart.
I really don't want therecognition.
Right.
But I've been thinking aboutthat lately, right?
Is it that I don't want therecognition of the things that I
do?
Or is it because I haven'tdealt with the guilt of all the
bad things I've done?
So I feel like I do all thegood things to make up for the
(26:29):
bad things?
I don't know.
That's deep.
That's deep.
And so...
You know, you talk about beingin a season of, you know, of all
this going on.
Speaker 01 (26:45):
Busyness.
Speaker 00 (26:46):
All this busyness.
And I feel like I have justbeen sitting in my chair.
Yeah.
Like, I feel like I have justbeen sitting in my chair.
Like, it's all I do is sit inmy chair.
All the time.
And I know that.
You know what I mean?
But that's how I feel.
That's how I've been feelinglately.
I feel like, okay, I've donewhat you want.
(27:08):
Now what do you want?
What's next?
You're in that waiting season.
Unknown (27:13):
I know.
Speaker 00 (27:14):
I was in that for a long time, and it's not fun.
It is not.
It is not.
Especially when you're like,okay, Lord, this is my time,
right?
And he's going to sit down.
I know.
And when he told me to sitdown, I was like, oh.
But really, I know.
Well, because he does all thesegreat things, right?
Like we've done, I've done allthese, all these great things
(27:35):
have happened over the last fewyears.
And don't get me wrong, thispodcast is amazing.
And it was definitely, youknow, from him.
And, and, and, but then it, Imean, I didn't expect it to, you
know, go viral.
I'm not, that's not, that wasnever the intention for it was
to go viral.
(27:56):
And that was never theintention.
The intention of this was forhealing, whether it's healing
for me or healing for the peoplethat are listening or, you
know, the five friends that Igot that listened to it every
week.
You know, I think that thoseseasons, I like to call it a
season of preparation becausethat's what it should be.
(28:17):
It is.
Yeah.
I mean, you're, you're sittingin that season and you're like,
I don't, you're, it's kind oflike you're at a fork in the
road and you're like, okay,Lord, like what direction am I
going to go?
You know, um, that season isoften a quiet but holy time.
And so God is really working inbehind the scenes.
(28:37):
you know, in that preparationseason.
He's working in you before heworks through you.
Oh, yeah.
Yeah.
Oh, wow.
That was pretty deep there.
Yeah.
I've had to sit in that seasonbefore, especially, you know,
right after we lost Hudson, Ifelt like all of my friends
(28:57):
left, and I didn't really– knowwhat I was going to do next.
And it was a really quietseason for me.
And I am the type of person wholikes to be around a lot of
people, and I like to do allthings.
So sitting in that quiet seasonwas almost like a punishment.
Yeah, it was.
(29:17):
It was almost like apunishment.
That's how I feel right now.
And I kind of felt hidden orlike I was stuck.
But then, I mean, you know,because you were there, part of
that women's conference that Idid, that was when I was
actually being rooted andplanted.
And so, you know, you thinkabout a tree roots and, like,
(29:40):
what's going on under theground, like, people can't see.
But then when the tree or theflower or whatever starts to...
come up out of the ground,that's when you're seen.
And so in those seasons ofpreparation, that's when God
really does all of His refiningand grows our fates the most.
And I feel like without thoseseasons, how would we really get
(30:05):
to the next level if we didn'tlet Him do that work in those
quiet seasons?
Right.
This is so funny.
So I've been working on a newepisode.
And in this new episode, I'vebeen studying the 400 years of
silence in the Bible, where theIsraelites are wandering around
(30:28):
in the desert.
And I've been digging intothat, but not just that.
Because I don't want to digjust into the Bible.
I want to dig into what wasgoing on during the time of the
Bible, like the history.
I love the history behind it.
This is probably going to bethe next episode, too, by the
(30:51):
way.
But during those 400 years thatthey were wandering around,
what else was going on inhistory?
You know what I mean?
So the Romans came.
They made a central language,the Greek language.
They built roads.
They built cities.
They built infrastructure.
So when Jesus came and foundhis 12 disciples, they didn't
(31:14):
have to go through the desert.
They just followed the roads tothe next cities.
So during that 400 years, whatwas going on in the background?
That's what I've been learningfrom my season of silence is
that what's going on around meright what's going on in the
(31:35):
background what's being built inthe way um there's a verse that
comes out of james it's jamesone and four let perseverance
finish its work so that you maybe mature and complete not
lacking anything so i thinkabout these silent seasons and
how if we don't if we don't havethese seasons of preparation um
(31:58):
We're not being overlooked inthese seasons, but we're being
overprepared.
And so, you know, if you're notbeing really built, then how
are you going to be ready forwhat he has in store for you
next, you know?
Right.
And so I do think that it takesthose seasons where you have to
kind of sit in silence for aminute and let him kind of do
(32:21):
the work that he needs to do andthen...
whatever is for your nextseason is going to be so good
that you can't even imagine it.
Right.
But you've been prepared forit, and you're going to be
equipped to tackle it.
So your season of waiting ledyou into a season of busyness?
It did.
It sure did.
(32:42):
Yes, it most certainly did.
But, you know, it's like, hadthe Lord given me all that He
has given me recently, During orbefore that season when I was
so desperately wanting it, Iwouldn't have been ready for it.
And so when the door opens,you'll be ready.
(33:05):
Right.
You will.
Yeah.
You'll be ready.
And you won't be willing.
You won't just be willing.
You'll be ready.
Right.
That's where your jumping thefire feet first faith comes
from, ain't it?
That Galatians 6.9.
That's too good.
So faithfulness is often quietand impact is often invisible,
(33:30):
but God sees it all.
He does.
And I feel like that he seesall and he rewards all.
So even if you are quiet andyou're, you know, I, it's
really, it's really hard for mebecause for all that we do for
HUD's heart, um, and like ourother ministries and our
business too, um, I have areally hard time posting on
(33:55):
social media.
Look what we did.
Because I don't want therecognition of men or of women
who...
Right.
Right.
Right.
I mean, I do post, but notoften.
(34:36):
Not as often as I probablyshould.
I get it.
I get it.
It's been hard, right?
I'm not a social media queenfor sure.
I've had a Facebook page for, Idon't know, me and my husband's
had one together since we gotmarried.
And if you go and look on it,there's not...
(34:56):
there's like two posts a yearabout us.
The rest of it's just the stuffthat we, you know, that we
follow or whatever.
We're not really good at it.
And then like I started a ticktock page for this podcast
because I had some people say,well, you know, that's how I
find my podcast.
You'll get more people thatway.
And I thought, well, okay.
(35:16):
But then I've only posted likefive things on it.
And, and so it's one of thosethat I understand a hundred
percent.
Like it's, I don't, I don'tneed for somebody to recognize
me for what I do.
Right.
I don't, I just need him torecognize me.
Right.
I just need.
(35:37):
And sometimes it's like yousaid earlier, it's one of those
things where he sends somebody.
Right.
Yeah.
You know, like, and he will,uh, just, just when you think
like, all right, what am I goingto do?
Uh, I mean, it's kind of like,you know, when we met, you were
just sitting in your office thatday and the Lord's like, Here's
(35:57):
this divine appointment that,you know, I didn't know that
just by talking to you for a fewminutes that we would have a
friendship or, you know, the waythat we do.
And so I do think that, yeah,those divine appointments,
they're important.
That's kind of going back tothat eternal recognition.
(36:19):
I love that.
I love that so much because howoften...
That's such a powerful andhumbling thing to think, like
the Lord would use me to do Hiswork.
Oh, I know.
Yeah.
I've talked about this in a fewof the others, but I've been
(36:46):
clean for 23 years, or 22 years,this July.
July 19th, actually.
Yeah.
It's coming up.
I'll be 23 years clean.
And so, so I don't fit in withthe drug addicts, right?
The people that are justgetting clean or just starting
their journey, you know, becauseif you got to make it five
(37:08):
years, once you've made it fiveyears, you're done.
Yeah.
Right.
But I don't fit in with thosepeople.
And then I don't fit in withpeople who's been raised in
church and who grows, who'sgrown up in church and, and all
of that, because I do have, youknow, I'm not, I'm a project.
Well, we all have scars.
I'm Jesus's project.
(37:30):
Aren't we all?
My faith is strong, but there'sstill days I'm figuring it out.
But sometimes it's like I don'tknow where I fit in.
But to read that and to knowthat eternally I am rewarded.
(37:53):
Yeah.
Right.
From him.
For sure.
Is just, I agree.
Like, it's just amazing.
Yeah, because ultimately, youknow, you're working for, you're
working for a reward that can'tbe seen now.
But, you know.
Right.
It'll be recognized when youget to heaven.
Right.
And I think, you know, we'reall working towards that.
(38:13):
Good, you know, good job, mywell and faithful servant.
That I just can't imagine, youknow, getting into heaven and
just.
not just, you know, him sayinglike, good job, but like, you
know, you didn't strive for theapproval of man, but you did
what I asked you to do out ofobedience.
(38:34):
And so, and you stewarded well,you know, so like, that's all,
that's all I could ask for.
That's the greatest compliment,right?
Like, you know, I don't handlecompliments.
Well, I don't handle, I don'thandle recognition.
Well, um, we were, uh, We weretalking about this.
My boss, he visited today, andhe was talking about it.
(38:55):
He goes, you know, I've beengiving your brothers a hard
time, and that's the othermanagers of other stores in our
area.
He goes, I told them.
He goes, I don't know why theykeep letting you beat them.
I said, I told them when Istarted that I was silent.
I was just going to sneak up onthem one day, and once I got
it, I got it, right?
(39:16):
I love that.
Yeah.
I know this is kind of crazy,but I went to a funeral recently
where the lady who had passedaway, her son was actually doing
her funeral.
He was the minister at herfuneral.
Wow.
That's hard.
It was bold.
(39:36):
But he kind of gave a littlebit of a testimony, and he's
like, you know, I was a hellion.
And he's like, my mom, shekicked me out.
And she said, go three timesover.
And she dropped me out with allmy stuff.
And she said, I don't want tosee you again until, you know,
you're doing better.
And he said, but she prayed forme every day.
(39:59):
You know, she would be sittingat the table and she would just
be praying for me and prayingfor me.
And, you know, now he leadslike a mega church.
Oh, yeah.
And, like, he just does so muchfor the kingdom of God.
And...
you know, it's just one ofthose things where he was, he
was really speaking over her andhe was saying, you know, had
she not prayed for me and hadshe not given me that tough love
(40:22):
that I so desperately needed inthat moment, like she will, she
will know, you know, whatreward she got in heaven for
that.
Right.
But like she, she would neverhave seen the impact that she
made on this earth, you know,because like his church is huge
and like, people all the timeare just so thankful for him and
(40:43):
for the way that he leads andeverything and it's really all
because of her and because theway that she lived it out and so
I just think about that youknow you're not doing you're not
just doing the work for God butyou're doing work that will
echo in eternity and so I thinkabout that and I think about you
know the way she lived her lifebecause of her and because of
(41:04):
her faith and because of hertough love you know like
thousands of people have beenimpacted and so Sometimes when
we do all these things, we maynever see what we're sowing.
We may never see the harvestthat we've sown on this side of
(41:26):
eternity.
But of course, when we get toheaven, I feel like the Lord
will say, this is what you didby doing X, Y, Z.
And so I thought that wasreally special during that
funeral.
He's just...
Talking so highly of her andhow she impacted the kingdom
through him.
Well, you know, there's a songout called Flowers.
(41:46):
Oh, yes.
And she talks about asking Godwhy.
And he tells her to be prettymuch to be patient that he's
planting the seeds in thevalley.
Because right now, you know.
You can't see them, but theywill grow, right?
And I think of that songsometimes, and I'm thinking, the
(42:09):
first few times I heard it, Iwas like, what?
I thought we wanted to be onthe mountaintop, right?
Like, you know, growing up atchurch, you wanted to be on the
mountaintop, but we're not onthe mountaintop.
We're in the valleys 90% of thetime.
We won't be on the mountaintop,truly on the mountaintop until
we go to heaven, right?
And so...
You have to plant the seeds.
(42:31):
You have to find the seeds, youknow, and find where we're
headed.
I don't know.
This has been deep today.
I know.
Yeah, this is definitely onethat it pulled straight from my
heart.
Unknown (42:50):
Yeah.
Speaker 00 (42:50):
Because I have lived in seasons of, you know,
feeling like I can conquer all.
And then seasons where I'mrunning empty and I need a
refueling of that holy fire.
Oh, yeah.
Yeah.
And I think that it's harderwhen you have to work out of
those seasons, but you have tokeep going.
(43:12):
Oh, you do.
You do.
And, you know, like inGalatians 6, 9, you know...
It's a promise if you do notgive up.
It's really a command.
Don't give up.
You're almost there.
Yeah.
Well, and that's how thispodcast started.
I was dry.
I was dry.
I was so just done.
(43:33):
I was just done.
I was tired.
I was just done.
And even though I was praying,I felt like I was praying.
praying to nothing or nobodyyou know i pray every day i talk
to him every day but i feltlike i just couldn't i couldn't
hear him or i just was done andwe went to that women's
conference and it's like boomthere he was just jabbering in
(43:57):
my ear and he wouldn't shut upyou know and that's how this
come to be but you know i wantto uh i want uh to read the
affirmations for this um We haveseveral affirmations that will
be in the description below sothat y'all can say them to
yourself.
You know, I'm a sticky notekind of person.
So if this season is whereyou're at and you need these
(44:19):
affirmations, write them on asticky note, stick them on your
mirror, say them to yourselfevery day.
Bring yourself, right?
Bring yourself to Him and thenread His promises, right?
I am the blessing.
God is using me to make animpact.
My strength is seen and mysacrifice is sacred.
(44:42):
I will not grow weary in doinggood.
God sees me, fills me, andrewards me.
Those are so good.
So deep.
I think my favorite one is thatmy strength is seen and my
sacrifice is sacred.
I know, right?
(45:02):
Yes, yeah.
They're all good, but that onereally stuck out to me.
I like God is using me to makean impact.
I'm writing that in my mirror.
And He is.
So but those are, you know,those will be for you to be able
to read.
There'll be a prayer if you'rehaving trouble praying that you
can read until you find yourcomfort to speak to him in the
(45:25):
way that you want to.
Those are that will all be inthe descriptions.
Some of the songs that wementioned will be in the
description today.
You know, we want you to knowthat you're not alone.
And more importantly, that Godsees you.
If this message spoke to youtoday, send it to another strong
one, the woman holding ittogether for your family, for
(45:48):
everyone else.
You never know how much sheneeds this.
They were talking on K-Love.
That's the radio station Ilisten to when I'm here in
Rockmar.
And they were like, you know,sometimes you think about
somebody that you hadn't seen ortalked to in a minute.
(46:09):
Right?
Think of a lady.
Send her a text.
Tell her God loves you.
It doesn't have to be anything.
I have 300 contacts on myphone, and I talk to five of
them.
But sometimes people hit myheart, and when they do, they
may need that.
I think that is so important tobe intentional in those times
(46:31):
because you truly never knowwhat somebody else is going
through.
And just that simple, hey, I'mthinking about you.
Can I be praying for you?
You know, God loves you.
You never know what that impactwill have on them or their
situation.
Yeah, I think that is soimportant.
(46:52):
And I know that God uses thoselittle nudges.
That's what I like to callthem.
Oh, yeah.
Those little nudges is like,hey, I need you to be my vessel.
I need you to do this.
Yeah.
Um, especially, and it, andsometimes it's hard, especially
if you hadn't talked to somebodyin a while, you know, or you
hadn't, it can be hard.
It can be awkward.
Yeah.
(47:13):
Yeah.
It's always inconvenient.
Yeah.
It always comes, you know, andI'm one of those, I'm like, I
ain't got time today, God, youknow?
And then he's like, okay, thenall day long, I can't stop.
Right.
Thinking about them.
Or my favorite thing is whenI'm like at a store or something
and, you know, God will speakto me, you know, Say something
to this person.
(47:33):
And I'm like, really, Lord?
They look like they're doingjust fine over there.
I don't know them.
Right, yeah.
I mean, I'm pretty good attalking to people, but at the
same time, it's weird sometimes.
It's weird.
It's weird.
It is.
But you know, my pastor alwayssays, You know, you have to do
(47:55):
what the Holy Spirit tells youto do.
You do.
You have to take those nudgesand you just have to run with
them.
And sometimes...
You never know.
You just never know what thatis going to do for the kingdom.
That's right.
I've seen a YouTube video.
A kid was doing his graduationspeech.
(48:17):
He was the valedictorian of thegraduation speech or whatever.
And in his graduation speech,he talked about his first year
and how...
Oh, my God.
And then the next day, he didit again.
(49:04):
And then the next day, he didit again.
Well, that four years, theybecame best of friends.
That guy was the quarterback.
And that guy was Mr.
Popular.
And the guy that...
come to be valedictorian, youknow, he was valedictorian.
So we all know, we all know howsmart he was.
Right.
But he's telling the story andhe goes, you know, he didn't
(49:25):
know that that day was the day Iwas going to end it all.
And he helped me.
And then that next day, becauseI thought it was a fluke, I was
just going to do it again.
And he helps me again.
And, you know, and this is howwe came to be.
And he goes, so you never know.
You never know what your impactis going to be, you know, and
that stuck with me for a longtime.
And I think, you know, it'shard when we're trying to.
(49:50):
When we're feeling overlookedand feeling sucked dry, if I'm
dry, how do I pour into others?
I read a book or a podcast orsomething several years ago, and
it's like the Lord will alwaysgive you what you need.
Even if it's just a drop, Hewill always give you what you
(50:12):
need.
never feel inadequate or likeyou can't do something because
that's when he'll use you themost.
And I know for me, it's beensome of the most uncomfortable
situations that I feel like,okay, Lord, like I know that you
use me for that in that moment.
And it was weird and it wasuncomfortable, but you know,
(50:35):
that's just, that's just how heworks.
And, and I love that it's sopersonal.
Um, And you think He caresenough for me that He would send
somebody to do that for me.
And so it's just good.
It is.
So prayer requests andtestimonies, please email us at
(50:55):
unrelatedsisterspodcasts atgmail.com or follow us on TikTok
at unrelatedsisters.podcasts.
You can tag us through You Arethe Blessing or Unrelated
Sisters Podcasts.
Miss Haley, take us out inprayer.
Okay.
Dear Lord, I just thank youtoday, Lord.
I thank you for this podcastand for the word that you gave
(51:17):
to Shannon and I to share tothese ladies, Lord.
I just pray, Lord, that anyonewho's listening who feels like
they're in a dry season or awaiting season, I just pray,
Lord, that you just encouragethem, Lord.
I pray, Lord, that you sendyour well, Lord, to just
encourage them.
Just lift them up in dueseason, Lord.
I just pray that they will reapa harvest.
I just thank you for using us.
(51:38):
as your vessels today, Lord.
And I just pray, Lord, that youjust bless this podcast.
I pray that you bless Shannonfor everything that she's doing
and for the way that she bringsyour word to light, Lord.
And I just thank you in Jesusname.
Amen.
Amen.
Ladies, always remember rootedin truth, covered in grace and
carried in faith.
Hey family and welcome back to Unrelated
Sisters Truth and GraceConversation.
I'm Shannon and I'm Haley andtoday's episode is for the
strong one, the one who holds ittogether for everyone else.
It's called Maybe You're theBlessing and sis, we believe
that this is going to be yourreminder that you are seen even
when you feel invisible.
There's this quote I love.
(00:25):
Sometimes nothing good happensto you because you are the good
that happens to others.
That hits kind of deep for meand Haley today.
So, Haley, pray us in.
Dear Lord Jesus, we just thankyou for this podcast, Lord.
We thank you for theopportunity to just pour out,
Lord, your word.
(00:45):
I just pray, Lord, thatwhoever...
Amen.
The weight of being strong orbeing the strong one, growing
up, I was the oldest and Ishould have been the strong one,
(01:08):
right?
But I wasn't.
I wouldn't.
It was my baby sister.
Like my baby sister, she'salways been the one that's, she
had a good head on her shouldersand she always knew, she always
knew what she wanted out oflife.
And I'm not that way.
Right.
And we've discussed this.
I fly by the seat of my pantskind of person.
And, uh, and a lot of thethings that I do and, um, It has
(01:30):
to be exhausting to be thestrong one.
You remind me a lot of mysister when it comes to being
the strong one.
Now that I've gotten, now thatI've found my faith in God,
being the strong one, has becomemore and more and more, right?
Because I talk with Jesus and Ifeel like that I'm able to, you
(01:53):
know, to talk and minister topeople.
But sometimes it's hard to bethat strong for everybody when,
you know, cause nobody, it'slike, who's feeding into you and
stuff.
So, and I heard a quote theother day and it said, we talk
about, is your cup full or isyour cup running over?
But, But why would you want tohave just a cup?
(02:16):
If you hook up the water hoseand turn it on, it flows
constantly.
Right?
So it makes you kind of wonderabout those kind of things.
And in Matthew 11, 28, it says,Come to me, all you who are
weary and burdened, and I willgive you rest.
Well, that's good.
I think sometimes that LisaTurker, she has a book called
(02:41):
The Best Yes.
And I think sometimes that wefeel like we have to say yes out
of obligation, but reallythat's not.
It has to be out of obediencethat we say yes for it to truly
take root in our life.
The Best Yes is about learningto say yes to God's priorities
(03:02):
and for your life, not just forevery good opportunity that
comes your way.
So definitely that could leadto burnout if we're just saying
yes to everything that comes ourway.
But I love that verse inMatthew that you just quoted,
come to me, because ultimatelywhen we are burnout or we're
(03:23):
tired or weary, We can alwaysfind rest in him.
Right.
You know, and saying yes out ofguilt, saying yes out of
obligation or out of, you know,commitment.
Like you feel like you can't,you know, give in.
That's hard.
(03:43):
Like just to sit here and thinkabout it, it's kind of like,
oh, you know, because how manyof us do it?
And how often do we do it?
And doing it out of obedience,that's when he's tugging at you,
right?
That's when he's tapping you onthe shoulder saying, hello.
(04:03):
And how many of us say yes tohim right away?
Right.
But if my best friend calls,oh, yeah, even though I'm tired
and I want to lay down or I wantto sit in my chair or, okay.
Or if my mom calls or my sistercalls or my kid, you know, my
kid's 21.
And, you know, even when hecalls, I jump up and go, right?
But when God calls, what do Ido?
(04:26):
I want to talk about it.
Yes, me too.
Every time I get, I catchmyself constantly wrestling with
the Lord.
Like, are you sure?
Like, should I do that?
And nine times out of 10, he'slike, yes, you should go now or
do this now.
There's a quote somewhere thatsays that your yes should come
(04:51):
from a healthy soul.
A weary, burned-out heart saysyes out of fear or fatigue, but
a heart rooted in Christ can sayyes with clarity and
conviction.
So like you said, you can'tpour from an empty cup even in
ministry.
You have to be full all thetime.
You have to make sure thatyou're filling your cup so that
(05:13):
you can pour into other peopletoo.
So that's important.
Right.
It's okay to admit it's hard.
It is.
Right?
It's okay.
Unknown (05:23):
Yeah.
Speaker 00 (05:23):
Especially now that you're ministering with your
church and that you've dumbedinto that on top of your
nonprofit.
Is there a time when you sayno?
There is, yes.
I feel like that I have verygood discernment.
And so I do definitely prayabout that.
(05:46):
Ninety percent of the thingsthat I say yes to or that I, you
know, if I feel like the Lordis saying, no, that's not for
you.
Obviously, I don't want to everrob anybody from their
blessing.
So there are certain situationsand times where if I pray about
it and I feel like the Lord islike, no, that's not for you.
I will say, I'm sorry, but Ican't do this.
(06:08):
Or, you know, I don't feel likeI'm called to do that or, you
know, whatever.
So, yeah, I do say no.
What about you?
Do you say no?
I'm learning.
Yeah, I'm learning.
Right.
Because, you know, my faith, myfaith came out of has come out
of addiction, you know.
(06:28):
And so when you're inaddiction, you're trying to
please whoever is supplying thataddiction.
Right.
So so saying yes was a habitthat I had.
So it's it's hard to.
It's hard for me to tell thedifference sometimes, right?
And I think that's why when Godis just whispering in my ear,
(06:54):
I'm like, is it really God or isit?
I'm still trying to learn ortrying to figure out how to tell
the difference between the Godwhispering in my ear and the
devil whispering in the other.
So I do have some questionsthat you can ask yourself to
help discern your best yes.
(07:14):
Okay.
Question 1 (07:15):
Is this something that God is truly asking of me?
So that's something that I tryto ask.
Lord, is this for me?
If it's not for me, then let meknow so that I don't take
somebody else's blessing.
Number two is, does this alignwith my calling, not just with
my capabilities?
We all have certain things thatwe're good at, but we also all
(07:39):
have a calling.
Is this part of my purpose, oram I just saying yes because
it's something that I enjoy orthat I'm good at, but it will
ultimately...
lead to burnout if I'm toobusy.
Number three would be, am Isaying yes out of fear or guilt
or out of pride?
(07:59):
Because that's a good one andthat's one that I often have
found myself saying yes out of,well, I know I can do that, so
let me just say yes.
Don't we all?
Yeah, that's a good one.
Pride.
She's throwing out thegauntlet, y'all.
And then finally...
(08:21):
What will this yes cost intime, energy, relationships, and
rest?
Will this yes honor my currentseason and boundaries?
Especially when you're inministry, you have to have good,
healthy boundaries of what youcan and can't do.
Right.
Because, I mean, ultimately,like, it is so easy to get
(08:42):
burned out and just serve from aplace of I've got to do that
and not I get to do that.
That's one thing that we teachabout a lot at my church is
going from the got to to the getto.
So you don't got to get up andserve on Sunday morning.
You get to get up and serve onSunday morning.
It's truly a privilege to beable to serve.
But, you know, if you're notserving out of your purpose,
(09:08):
then...
There's really no power inthat.
You're just doing it becauseyou're capable.
Right, right.
And that's really good.
Am I serving?
Be excited to get up and go,right?
And I watched a movie a fewweeks ago.
Disciples in the Dark orsomething.
(09:29):
I haven't seen that one.
It's good.
It's so good.
And at the end of the day, thegovernment has taken away the
Bibles and they've burned all of
Speaker 01 (09:38):
them.
Speaker 00 (09:39):
And they've brought in a new version, their version
of the Bible.
And so they're trying toThey've collected a bunch of the
old Bibles up and they'retrying to take them to churches,
underground churches in Americanow.
And and at the end of the day,like.
That could be us, like one ofthese days that could be us,
(10:02):
and, you know, I don't getpolitical and we're not talking
politics on this on this call,but on this podcast, but.
You know.
Over in Asia and China andstuff like that, they don't have
that privilege.
Right.
And we should wake up and begrateful.
One, that we woke up and two,that we have the opportunity to
(10:26):
do, you know, Reagan said thatyou don't.
you don't realize what you'vegotten until you've lost it.
Those privileges that we havein life here in America, we
don't realize until they'retaken away.
And we have to be able to youknow, be grateful and just that,
(10:47):
that I'm gonna take that withme.
I get to do this.
I get to do, maybe I can dothat at work too.
I mean, it works.
It definitely works in allaspects of life.
I have pulled that out.
Um, a lot of times, like I get,I get to do this.
Like it's not a burden.
This is something that I get todo.
(11:07):
I like it.
I like it, you know?
And then sometimes, um, You'reso strong and you're so capable
and you're so this and you're sothat.
But maybe the reason peoplecome to you or maybe the reason
that people lean on you isbecause you are their blessing,
(11:29):
right?
Oh,
Speaker 01 (11:29):
that's good.
Speaker 00 (11:30):
Right?
Yeah.
My family, my mom inside thefamily, they know that I was in
addiction, but they don't knowthe story of my addiction until
I started this podcast, and Italk a lot about it and stuff
like that.
And my Aunt Mary, who I speak alot about because when you walk
(11:52):
in her presence, she you feelthe presence of God.
And she's one of those that youknow she has spent a lot of
nights on her knees.
And she's one of those thatwhen she prays for you, you know
she's praying for you.
And she's been listening to mypodcast, and she calls me up the
(12:14):
other day, and she says, Ididn't understand.
She goes, I didn't understandall those years that you didn't
come around or all those yearsthat you didn't do this.
And she said, you know, whenyour grandma passed away, my
grandma passed away last yearand her grandson was having a
really hard time with it.
And he was he was praying toGod and he was he was he was
(12:37):
feeling lost.
And and and.
she's like, somebody needs topray with him.
And I was like, okay, like Igot this, you know?
And I go up there and she'sthere and she's like, just to
listen to you after knowingwhere you come from.
She says, where did that comefrom?
I said, I don't even know whatI said.
Like, I don't even know what Isaid.
(12:59):
Yeah.
Yeah.
Like when he got the whole,like sometimes I think I'm
sitting outside the body lookingat it, but I was the blessing,
you know, at that time, eventhough in my grief of my
grandmother passing and stufflike that, that's what they
needed at the time.
But the unseen emotional andspiritual labors that strong
(13:20):
women give, like sometimes whenyou are the strong person in
your family, in your church,like, you know, I love my best
friend.
She's been my best friend for25 years, but sometimes her
chaos makes my life be like, andshe knows it.
(13:42):
She knows it, but she can callme anytime.
Yeah.
Right.
I'm going to listen.
And then I'm going to tell herwhat God told me to tell her.
Right.
Right.
And, and, and she'll call me upand she'll be like, and she
goes, that's why I call you.
Because you're the peace.
I'm the peace.
I'm the peace that gives herthat.
But sometimes I feeloverlooked.
(14:04):
I feel overlooked in mymarriage sometimes.
I feel overlooked with my kid,and my kid's older than yours,
so welcome to what's going tohappen.
Oh, gosh.
But I don't think I'moverlooked.
I don't think that God, youknow, I know God sees me.
(14:26):
He has to because he's beensitting there a long time.
So he definitely ain't goingnowhere.
That's right.
You know, and stuff like that.
But I don't know.
Maybe.
I think it's in those momentswhen we do feel so overlooked
that God will give.
He'll send somebody or acircumstance to just kind of.
(14:49):
bring you back to life and letyou know this is your purpose
and you're not overlooked ordowncast.
Right.
This is what you were made for.
And I think that that's when hereally works through us the
most.
I know in my life, when I'vebeen down at the lowest, ready
(15:11):
to just kind of give up andthrow in the towel in certain
situations, that's when...
God steps in and does the mostthat only he can do.
And then when you look back,you're like, okay, like that was
only God.
Yeah, I've seen it.
I've seen it for sure.
You know, in Galatians 6, 9, itsays, let us not grow weary in
(15:32):
doing good.
Let us not grow weary in doinggood.
You know, and you can read thathowever you want to.
But at the end of the day, itmakes me, I'm at the happiest.
When I'm doing for others.
Yeah.
Right?
I personally am at the happiestwhen I am doing for others.
(15:53):
My husband gets on to me allthe time because I'll see
somebody walking down the roadand it's 100 degrees.
And I'm like, you're hot.
I'm going here.
You know?
And he's like, well, these daysthey're going to kill you.
And I'm like.
You know, they say that themost happiest people in the
entire world are the ones whoare walking in their calling and
(16:14):
doing what they're called todo.
And I believe it.
I do, too.
Oh, yeah.
Oh, yeah.
I don't feel like I would behere right now if it wasn't for
(16:39):
God's grace.
Like the grace that he hasshowed me and that he has given
me and the grace, you know, it'snot like I woke up one day and
decided I wasn't going to dodrugs anymore and then found
God.
Right.
That was 10 years.
It was, it was eight yearslater, right.
Before God ever came into thepicture.
So there was eight years ofsobriety there where I wasn't
(16:59):
doing drugs, but God stillwasn't there.
I mean, he was there, but hewasn't, he was not forefront for
me, you know, and, um, But whenyou come out of that cloud and
you find true joy, it's nothappiness.
You know, me and my son wastalking about this the other
(17:21):
day, and he's like, I'm happy.
I was like, yeah, but you'velost your joy.
Yeah.
Right?
And if you look it up, there'sa difference.
Oh, yeah.
There absolutely is.
You know, you can be happy, butwhen you're living in your
joy...
There's nothing greater.
No, that's absolutely right.
There is a divine difference inhappiness and the joy that only
(17:47):
the Lord can give, especiallyin circumstances that should not
hold happiness or joy.
Right, right.
Yeah, I agree.
It's just, I don't know.
I wake up and I see the worlddifferently.
You know, I see thingsdifferently nowadays than I've
ever seen them.
And I can't explain it.
(18:13):
Like, I just want you all tofeel it.
Yeah.
Well, I definitely, we talkedabout this a little before, but
Galatians 6, 9, the verse thatyou just read, that has been
really heavy on my heart latelyas I'm walking in a different
season with a new life.
a new business and steppinginto ministry and just different
(18:35):
aspects of my life but in myquiet time several weeks ago I
broke down this verse and at theend of the verse you know it
says if we do not give up and SoI really want to speak over you
ladies who are on the verge ofgiving up and let you know that
(18:58):
the harvest depends on notquitting and the blessing comes
after the battle.
Because I feel like sometimeswe think we're at the lowest of
the lows.
How are we going to come backfrom this?
But like you said, that's whereHis grace comes in.
And I mean, it's just a divinegift.
a divine appointment that onlyHe can orchestrate that will
(19:18):
rescue you when you feel like,okay, this is it.
I can't come back from this.
Don't stop sowing into yourcalling or your ministry or your
family, whether you're burntout or tired or just feel like
you're getting nowhere.
I know I've prayed for certainfamily members of mine for a
long time, and I'll say, well,Lord, I don't know why you still
(19:41):
want me to pray for them.
They're You know, they're lost.
And he's like, but they'remine.
And like, and they're not toofar gone.
And so never feel like, youknow, you're too far gone to
where you can't come backbecause he will always leave the
99 to find the one.
And he does promise that if youdon't give up, he'll bring the
(20:02):
harvest.
But it's in his time.
It is so in his time.
So, you know, I talk a lotabout my dad.
and about his, his road torecovery.
And there was, there was a timeI hadn't seen or heard from him
in a hot minute.
And in, in 2021, when COVID wasat its highest, I get a phone
(20:24):
call from the hospital and, andI hadn't seen or heard from him
in, I don't know, two or threeyears.
I honestly thought, and I'dbeen praying and I'd had my
church praying.
I had my pastor praying, likewe'd been praying and, and, I
was to the point I was justwaiting on the phone call, that
he was found in the ditch, OD'd.
(20:45):
He was found in the housesomewhere, OD'd.
I'd just been waiting on thatcall.
And the nurse, and I had a lotof hard feelings towards him,
and I was very bitter towardshim.
And I just knew.
But I get a call from thehospital, and he's up there, and
he's pretty bad off.
And they're like, do you wantto talk to him?
I'm like, no.
(21:05):
I don't.
I don't want to talk to him.
Like, I can't.
Right?
Because I was still trying tofind my way.
And there's two things in thisworld that the devil knows he
can pull me back in from.
My daddy and my kid.
Right?
Like, he knows that if that canget me back into where I was
(21:26):
at.
And I don't want to be there.
But I told the nurse, you know,I was like, this is my phone
number.
If something happens, if itgets worse, then I want you to
call me.
And she's like, okay.
And she had to go ask himpermission to tell me his
information and stuff.
But she did.
But we continued to pray.
(21:47):
Well, then I didn't see or hearfrom him for a while.
And then one day I was workingat my job, and he come walking
up, and he said, you've beenpraying for me, haven't you?
And I said, yeah.
And he goes, I need you tostop.
And I said, why?
Why?
And he said, well, my truckbroke down, and my kitchen
caught on fire, and my dog died.
(22:08):
I mean, it was just a list.
It was like a country song,right?
And I just kind of laughed athim, and I said, well, you know
what you need to do.
And he just snarled and walkedaway because he was still
getting high.
And then I still didn't see himfor a while.
And then I was getting married,and...
I had my son walk me down theaisle.
(22:28):
I mean, I hadn't seen or talkedto my daddy in years, really.
But I sent him at the gasstation the day before I was
getting married.
And I told him, and he came tothe wedding, but he still didn't
walk me down the aisle.
And then we went on for a fewyears, and then he shows up at
my job.
And he's like, I'm clean.
And I'm like, yeah, okay.
(22:50):
Do you know how many timesyou've come to me and told me
that?
Yeah.
And so it has been a struggle.
Well, he didn't come backaround for a while, but he had
been in drug court.
He's been clean for five yearsnow.
So you can't stop praying.
And I'm talking about mydaddy's been getting high since
I was 10 years old.
It started out with justmarijuana, and then it
(23:13):
progressed to meth andeverything else.
So God...
One, he works in his own time,but sometimes it's a little
harder than others.
Like my daddy's stubborn.
My daddy was a preacher when Iwas a kid.
He was a preacher until hesinned and fell from grace and
(23:37):
died.
I know.
Right.
I mean...
He's good.
(24:03):
He's good.
And you just have to be willingto open up and be like, hey,
look, this is this.
But sometimes it's weird, Iguess, because I had a hard time
going back to church.
I had church hurt, and I had ahard time going back.
And it takes some deep root.
Church hurt, it goes deep.
(24:25):
Oh, it does.
It does, for sure.
And I offended my daddysometimes.
about six months ago, we weretalking.
He goes, your sister told meyou thought we went to church
was a cult.
I was like, it was a cult.
It was a cult.
And he's like, Shannon.
I was like, I know I gotta gohome and pray.
(24:46):
I find myself in thosesituations a lot.
Okay, Lord, I feel that I needto pray about that.
I'm sorry.
It comes out.
It comes to the brain.
It comes out the mouthsometimes, you know, have you
ever seen that meeting whereit's like the Holy Spirit has
like his hand over your mouth orwhatever I live in that state I
do too like the Holy Spirit isnot going to allow me to say
(25:07):
that I live in that I do too Ido too I have definitely had to
since I got promoted I've had tolearn to think before I speak
great at it, but I'm gettingbetter, but it's helped me in my
personal life.
Am I, am I faithful off tolearning to think before I
(25:29):
speak?
Um, cause usually if it comesto the brain, it comes out the
mouth and that gets me introuble.
So, you know, uh, impact overapplause, uh, internal reward
versus earthly recognition.
Speaker 01 (25:41):
That's
Speaker 00 (25:43):
so good.
Oh my gosh.
So here's the thing.
And, um, We did an event withyou that first year.
We did Joyman's event with you.
And you were like, I know youdon't like this, but we're going
to thank you anyway.
And you're right.
I don't.
Right.
Like I do the things I do, thevolunteer and the good, you
(26:04):
know, the things out of thegoodness of my heart.
I really don't want therecognition.
Right.
But I've been thinking aboutthat lately, right?
Is it that I don't want therecognition of the things that I
do?
Or is it because I haven'tdealt with the guilt of all the
bad things I've done?
So I feel like I do all thegood things to make up for the
(26:29):
bad things?
I don't know.
That's deep.
That's deep.
And so...
You know, you talk about beingin a season of, you know, of all
this going on.
Speaker 01 (26:45):
Busyness.
Speaker 00 (26:46):
All this busyness.
And I feel like I have justbeen sitting in my chair.
Yeah.
Like, I feel like I have justbeen sitting in my chair.
Like, it's all I do is sit inmy chair.
All the time.
And I know that.
You know what I mean?
But that's how I feel.
That's how I've been feelinglately.
I feel like, okay, I've donewhat you want.
(27:08):
Now what do you want?
What's next?
You're in that waiting season.
Unknown (27:13):
I know.
Speaker 00 (27:14):
I was in that for a long time, and it's not fun.
It is not.
It is not.
Especially when you're like,okay, Lord, this is my time,
right?
And he's going to sit down.
I know.
And when he told me to sitdown, I was like, oh.
But really, I know.
Well, because he does all thesegreat things, right?
Like we've done, I've done allthese, all these great things
(27:35):
have happened over the last fewyears.
And don't get me wrong, thispodcast is amazing.
And it was definitely, youknow, from him.
And, and, and, but then it, Imean, I didn't expect it to, you
know, go viral.
I'm not, that's not, that wasnever the intention for it was
to go viral.
(27:56):
And that was never theintention.
The intention of this was forhealing, whether it's healing
for me or healing for the peoplethat are listening or, you
know, the five friends that Igot that listened to it every
week.
You know, I think that thoseseasons, I like to call it a
season of preparation becausethat's what it should be.
(28:17):
It is.
Yeah.
I mean, you're, you're sittingin that season and you're like,
I don't, you're, it's kind oflike you're at a fork in the
road and you're like, okay,Lord, like what direction am I
going to go?
You know, um, that season isoften a quiet but holy time.
And so God is really working inbehind the scenes.
(28:37):
you know, in that preparationseason.
He's working in you before heworks through you.
Oh, yeah.
Yeah.
Oh, wow.
That was pretty deep there.
Yeah.
I've had to sit in that seasonbefore, especially, you know,
right after we lost Hudson, Ifelt like all of my friends
(28:57):
left, and I didn't really– knowwhat I was going to do next.
And it was a really quietseason for me.
And I am the type of person wholikes to be around a lot of
people, and I like to do allthings.
So sitting in that quiet seasonwas almost like a punishment.
Yeah, it was.
(29:17):
It was almost like apunishment.
That's how I feel right now.
And I kind of felt hidden orlike I was stuck.
But then, I mean, you know,because you were there, part of
that women's conference that Idid, that was when I was
actually being rooted andplanted.
And so, you know, you thinkabout a tree roots and, like,
(29:40):
what's going on under theground, like, people can't see.
But then when the tree or theflower or whatever starts to...
come up out of the ground,that's when you're seen.
And so in those seasons ofpreparation, that's when God
really does all of His refiningand grows our fates the most.
And I feel like without thoseseasons, how would we really get
(30:05):
to the next level if we didn'tlet Him do that work in those
quiet seasons?
Right.
This is so funny.
So I've been working on a newepisode.
And in this new episode, I'vebeen studying the 400 years of
silence in the Bible, where theIsraelites are wandering around
(30:28):
in the desert.
And I've been digging intothat, but not just that.
Because I don't want to digjust into the Bible.
I want to dig into what wasgoing on during the time of the
Bible, like the history.
I love the history behind it.
This is probably going to bethe next episode, too, by the
(30:51):
way.
But during those 400 years thatthey were wandering around,
what else was going on inhistory?
You know what I mean?
So the Romans came.
They made a central language,the Greek language.
They built roads.
They built cities.
They built infrastructure.
So when Jesus came and foundhis 12 disciples, they didn't
(31:14):
have to go through the desert.
They just followed the roads tothe next cities.
So during that 400 years, whatwas going on in the background?
That's what I've been learningfrom my season of silence is
that what's going on around meright what's going on in the
(31:35):
background what's being built inthe way um there's a verse that
comes out of james it's jamesone and four let perseverance
finish its work so that you maybe mature and complete not
lacking anything so i thinkabout these silent seasons and
how if we don't if we don't havethese seasons of preparation um
(31:58):
We're not being overlooked inthese seasons, but we're being
overprepared.
And so, you know, if you're notbeing really built, then how
are you going to be ready forwhat he has in store for you
next, you know?
Right.
And so I do think that it takesthose seasons where you have to
kind of sit in silence for aminute and let him kind of do
(32:21):
the work that he needs to do andthen...
whatever is for your nextseason is going to be so good
that you can't even imagine it.
Right.
But you've been prepared forit, and you're going to be
equipped to tackle it.
So your season of waiting ledyou into a season of busyness?
It did.
It sure did.
(32:42):
Yes, it most certainly did.
But, you know, it's like, hadthe Lord given me all that He
has given me recently, During orbefore that season when I was
so desperately wanting it, Iwouldn't have been ready for it.
And so when the door opens,you'll be ready.
(33:05):
Right.
You will.
Yeah.
You'll be ready.
And you won't be willing.
You won't just be willing.
You'll be ready.
Right.
That's where your jumping thefire feet first faith comes
from, ain't it?
That Galatians 6.9.
That's too good.
So faithfulness is often quietand impact is often invisible,
(33:30):
but God sees it all.
He does.
And I feel like that he seesall and he rewards all.
So even if you are quiet andyou're, you know, I, it's
really, it's really hard for mebecause for all that we do for
HUD's heart, um, and like ourother ministries and our
business too, um, I have areally hard time posting on
(33:55):
social media.
Look what we did.
Because I don't want therecognition of men or of women
who...
Right.
Right.
Right.
I mean, I do post, but notoften.
(34:36):
Not as often as I probablyshould.
I get it.
I get it.
It's been hard, right?
I'm not a social media queenfor sure.
I've had a Facebook page for, Idon't know, me and my husband's
had one together since we gotmarried.
And if you go and look on it,there's not...
(34:56):
there's like two posts a yearabout us.
The rest of it's just the stuffthat we, you know, that we
follow or whatever.
We're not really good at it.
And then like I started a ticktock page for this podcast
because I had some people say,well, you know, that's how I
find my podcast.
You'll get more people thatway.
And I thought, well, okay.
(35:16):
But then I've only posted likefive things on it.
And, and so it's one of thosethat I understand a hundred
percent.
Like it's, I don't, I don'tneed for somebody to recognize
me for what I do.
Right.
I don't, I just need him torecognize me.
Right.
I just need.
(35:37):
And sometimes it's like yousaid earlier, it's one of those
things where he sends somebody.
Right.
Yeah.
You know, like, and he will,uh, just, just when you think
like, all right, what am I goingto do?
Uh, I mean, it's kind of like,you know, when we met, you were
just sitting in your office thatday and the Lord's like, Here's
(35:57):
this divine appointment that,you know, I didn't know that
just by talking to you for a fewminutes that we would have a
friendship or, you know, the waythat we do.
And so I do think that, yeah,those divine appointments,
they're important.
That's kind of going back tothat eternal recognition.
(36:19):
I love that.
I love that so much because howoften...
That's such a powerful andhumbling thing to think, like
the Lord would use me to do Hiswork.
Oh, I know.
Yeah.
I've talked about this in a fewof the others, but I've been
(36:46):
clean for 23 years, or 22 years,this July.
July 19th, actually.
Yeah.
It's coming up.
I'll be 23 years clean.
And so, so I don't fit in withthe drug addicts, right?
The people that are justgetting clean or just starting
their journey, you know, becauseif you got to make it five
(37:08):
years, once you've made it fiveyears, you're done.
Yeah.
Right.
But I don't fit in with thosepeople.
And then I don't fit in withpeople who's been raised in
church and who grows, who'sgrown up in church and, and all
of that, because I do have, youknow, I'm not, I'm a project.
Well, we all have scars.
I'm Jesus's project.
(37:30):
Aren't we all?
My faith is strong, but there'sstill days I'm figuring it out.
But sometimes it's like I don'tknow where I fit in.
But to read that and to knowthat eternally I am rewarded.
(37:53):
Yeah.
Right.
From him.
For sure.
Is just, I agree.
Like, it's just amazing.
Yeah, because ultimately, youknow, you're working for, you're
working for a reward that can'tbe seen now.
But, you know.
Right.
It'll be recognized when youget to heaven.
Right.
And I think, you know, we'reall working towards that.
(38:13):
Good, you know, good job, mywell and faithful servant.
That I just can't imagine, youknow, getting into heaven and
just.
not just, you know, him sayinglike, good job, but like, you
know, you didn't strive for theapproval of man, but you did
what I asked you to do out ofobedience.
(38:34):
And so, and you stewarded well,you know, so like, that's all,
that's all I could ask for.
That's the greatest compliment,right?
Like, you know, I don't handlecompliments.
Well, I don't handle, I don'thandle recognition.
Well, um, we were, uh, We weretalking about this.
My boss, he visited today, andhe was talking about it.
(38:55):
He goes, you know, I've beengiving your brothers a hard
time, and that's the othermanagers of other stores in our
area.
He goes, I told them.
He goes, I don't know why theykeep letting you beat them.
I said, I told them when Istarted that I was silent.
I was just going to sneak up onthem one day, and once I got
it, I got it, right?
(39:16):
I love that.
Yeah.
I know this is kind of crazy,but I went to a funeral recently
where the lady who had passedaway, her son was actually doing
her funeral.
He was the minister at herfuneral.
Wow.
That's hard.
It was bold.
(39:36):
But he kind of gave a littlebit of a testimony, and he's
like, you know, I was a hellion.
And he's like, my mom, shekicked me out.
And she said, go three timesover.
And she dropped me out with allmy stuff.
And she said, I don't want tosee you again until, you know,
you're doing better.
And he said, but she prayed forme every day.
(39:59):
You know, she would be sittingat the table and she would just
be praying for me and prayingfor me.
And, you know, now he leadslike a mega church.
Oh, yeah.
And, like, he just does so muchfor the kingdom of God.
And...
you know, it's just one ofthose things where he was, he
was really speaking over her andhe was saying, you know, had
she not prayed for me and hadshe not given me that tough love
(40:22):
that I so desperately needed inthat moment, like she will, she
will know, you know, whatreward she got in heaven for
that.
Right.
But like she, she would neverhave seen the impact that she
made on this earth, you know,because like his church is huge
and like, people all the timeare just so thankful for him and
(40:43):
for the way that he leads andeverything and it's really all
because of her and because theway that she lived it out and so
I just think about that youknow you're not doing you're not
just doing the work for God butyou're doing work that will
echo in eternity and so I thinkabout that and I think about you
know the way she lived her lifebecause of her and because of
(41:04):
her faith and because of hertough love you know like
thousands of people have beenimpacted and so Sometimes when
we do all these things, we maynever see what we're sowing.
We may never see the harvestthat we've sown on this side of
(41:26):
eternity.
But of course, when we get toheaven, I feel like the Lord
will say, this is what you didby doing X, Y, Z.
And so I thought that wasreally special during that
funeral.
He's just...
Talking so highly of her andhow she impacted the kingdom
through him.
Well, you know, there's a songout called Flowers.
(41:46):
Oh, yes.
And she talks about asking Godwhy.
And he tells her to be prettymuch to be patient that he's
planting the seeds in thevalley.
Because right now, you know.
You can't see them, but theywill grow, right?
And I think of that songsometimes, and I'm thinking, the
(42:09):
first few times I heard it, Iwas like, what?
I thought we wanted to be onthe mountaintop, right?
Like, you know, growing up atchurch, you wanted to be on the
mountaintop, but we're not onthe mountaintop.
We're in the valleys 90% of thetime.
We won't be on the mountaintop,truly on the mountaintop until
we go to heaven, right?
And so...
You have to plant the seeds.
(42:31):
You have to find the seeds, youknow, and find where we're
headed.
I don't know.
This has been deep today.
I know.
Yeah, this is definitely onethat it pulled straight from my
heart.
Unknown (42:50):
Yeah.
Speaker 00 (42:50):
Because I have lived in seasons of, you know,
feeling like I can conquer all.
And then seasons where I'mrunning empty and I need a
refueling of that holy fire.
Oh, yeah.
Yeah.
And I think that it's harderwhen you have to work out of
those seasons, but you have tokeep going.
(43:12):
Oh, you do.
You do.
And, you know, like inGalatians 6, 9, you know...
It's a promise if you do notgive up.
It's really a command.
Don't give up.
You're almost there.
Yeah.
Well, and that's how thispodcast started.
I was dry.
I was dry.
I was so just done.
(43:33):
I was just done.
I was tired.
I was just done.
And even though I was praying,I felt like I was praying.
praying to nothing or nobodyyou know i pray every day i talk
to him every day but i feltlike i just couldn't i couldn't
hear him or i just was done andwe went to that women's
conference and it's like boomthere he was just jabbering in
(43:57):
my ear and he wouldn't shut upyou know and that's how this
come to be but you know i wantto uh i want uh to read the
affirmations for this um We haveseveral affirmations that will
be in the description below sothat y'all can say them to
yourself.
You know, I'm a sticky notekind of person.
So if this season is whereyou're at and you need these
(44:19):
affirmations, write them on asticky note, stick them on your
mirror, say them to yourselfevery day.
Bring yourself, right?
Bring yourself to Him and thenread His promises, right?
I am the blessing.
God is using me to make animpact.
My strength is seen and mysacrifice is sacred.
(44:42):
I will not grow weary in doinggood.
God sees me, fills me, andrewards me.
Those are so good.
So deep.
I think my favorite one is thatmy strength is seen and my
sacrifice is sacred.
I know, right?
(45:02):
Yes, yeah.
They're all good, but that onereally stuck out to me.
I like God is using me to makean impact.
I'm writing that in my mirror.
And He is.
So but those are, you know,those will be for you to be able
to read.
There'll be a prayer if you'rehaving trouble praying that you
can read until you find yourcomfort to speak to him in the
(45:25):
way that you want to.
Those are that will all be inthe descriptions.
Some of the songs that wementioned will be in the
description today.
You know, we want you to knowthat you're not alone.
And more importantly, that Godsees you.
If this message spoke to youtoday, send it to another strong
one, the woman holding ittogether for your family, for
(45:48):
everyone else.
You never know how much sheneeds this.
They were talking on K-Love.
That's the radio station Ilisten to when I'm here in
Rockmar.
And they were like, you know,sometimes you think about
somebody that you hadn't seen ortalked to in a minute.
(46:09):
Right?
Think of a lady.
Send her a text.
Tell her God loves you.
It doesn't have to be anything.
I have 300 contacts on myphone, and I talk to five of
them.
But sometimes people hit myheart, and when they do, they
may need that.
I think that is so important tobe intentional in those times
(46:31):
because you truly never knowwhat somebody else is going
through.
And just that simple, hey, I'mthinking about you.
Can I be praying for you?
You know, God loves you.
You never know what that impactwill have on them or their
situation.
Yeah, I think that is soimportant.
(46:52):
And I know that God uses thoselittle nudges.
That's what I like to callthem.
Oh, yeah.
Those little nudges is like,hey, I need you to be my vessel.
I need you to do this.
Yeah.
Um, especially, and it, andsometimes it's hard, especially
if you hadn't talked to somebodyin a while, you know, or you
hadn't, it can be hard.
It can be awkward.
Yeah.
(47:13):
Yeah.
It's always inconvenient.
Yeah.
It always comes, you know, andI'm one of those, I'm like, I
ain't got time today, God, youknow?
And then he's like, okay, thenall day long, I can't stop.
Right.
Thinking about them.
Or my favorite thing is whenI'm like at a store or something
and, you know, God will speakto me, you know, Say something
to this person.
(47:33):
And I'm like, really, Lord?
They look like they're doingjust fine over there.
I don't know them.
Right, yeah.
I mean, I'm pretty good attalking to people, but at the
same time, it's weird sometimes.
It's weird.
It's weird.
It is.
But you know, my pastor alwayssays, You know, you have to do
(47:55):
what the Holy Spirit tells youto do.
You do.
You have to take those nudgesand you just have to run with
them.
And sometimes...
You never know.
You just never know what thatis going to do for the kingdom.
That's right.
I've seen a YouTube video.
A kid was doing his graduationspeech.
(48:17):
He was the valedictorian of thegraduation speech or whatever.
And in his graduation speech,he talked about his first year
and how...
Oh, my God.
And then the next day, he didit again.
(49:04):
And then the next day, he didit again.
Well, that four years, theybecame best of friends.
That guy was the quarterback.
And that guy was Mr.
Popular.
And the guy that...
come to be valedictorian, youknow, he was valedictorian.
So we all know, we all know howsmart he was.
Right.
But he's telling the story andhe goes, you know, he didn't
(49:25):
know that that day was the day Iwas going to end it all.
And he helped me.
And then that next day, becauseI thought it was a fluke, I was
just going to do it again.
And he helps me again.
And, you know, and this is howwe came to be.
And he goes, so you never know.
You never know what your impactis going to be, you know, and
that stuck with me for a longtime.
And I think, you know, it'shard when we're trying to.
(49:50):
When we're feeling overlookedand feeling sucked dry, if I'm
dry, how do I pour into others?
I read a book or a podcast orsomething several years ago, and
it's like the Lord will alwaysgive you what you need.
Even if it's just a drop, Hewill always give you what you
(50:12):
need.
never feel inadequate or likeyou can't do something because
that's when he'll use you themost.
And I know for me, it's beensome of the most uncomfortable
situations that I feel like,okay, Lord, like I know that you
use me for that in that moment.
And it was weird and it wasuncomfortable, but you know,
(50:35):
that's just, that's just how heworks.
And, and I love that it's sopersonal.
Um, And you think He caresenough for me that He would send
somebody to do that for me.
And so it's just good.
It is.
So prayer requests andtestimonies, please email us at
(50:55):
unrelatedsisterspodcasts atgmail.com or follow us on TikTok
at unrelatedsisters.podcasts.
You can tag us through You Arethe Blessing or Unrelated
Sisters Podcasts.
Miss Haley, take us out inprayer.
Okay.
Dear Lord, I just thank youtoday, Lord.
I thank you for this podcastand for the word that you gave
(51:17):
to Shannon and I to share tothese ladies, Lord.
I just pray, Lord, that anyonewho's listening who feels like
they're in a dry season or awaiting season, I just pray,
Lord, that you just encouragethem, Lord.
I pray, Lord, that you sendyour well, Lord, to just
encourage them.
Just lift them up in dueseason, Lord.
I just pray that they will reapa harvest.
I just thank you for using us.
(51:38):
as your vessels today, Lord.
And I just pray, Lord, that youjust bless this podcast.
I pray that you bless Shannonfor everything that she's doing
and for the way that she bringsyour word to light, Lord.
And I just thank you in Jesusname.
Amen.
Amen.
Ladies, always remember rootedin truth, covered in grace and
carried in faith.
Popular Podcasts
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
NFL Daily with Gregg Rosenthal
Gregg Rosenthal and a rotating crew of elite NFL Media co-hosts, including Patrick Claybon, Colleen Wolfe, Steve Wyche, Nick Shook and Jourdan Rodrigue of The Athletic get you caught up daily on all the NFL news and analysis you need to be smarter and funnier than your friends.