February 26, 2026 • 30 mins
This week, we’re joined by author and speaker John O’Leary. John shares the story of a joyful Midwestern childhood that was forever changed at age nine by a devastating house fire that doctors said he would not survive. Through the unwavering love of his parents, the kindness of unexpected heroes, and a hard-fought choice to live, John’s life became a testimony to hope rising from unimaginable pain.
Later in the episode, we’ll hear from finance executive and advisor Athanase Kadita Tshibaka, known as A.T., who was born in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. A.T. shares a journey shaped by poverty, displacement, and profound loss, and the faith that sustained him through imprisonment, injustice, and life-threatening trials.
Links, Products, and Resources Mentioned:
Past interview: Alice Marie Johnson
Upcoming interview: Ed Newton
Interview Quotes:
“The heroes show up, and none of them wear tights. None of them wear capes. They just look like ordinary friends who faithfully live out the message of Jesus in life.” - John O’Leary
“I think when we get burned in life, whatever that looks like for all of us, we can become bitter about it and wonder where God is in our mess. Or you can recognize that God is all over this mess with you and that you can reveal that goodness and that grace and that mercy to others through your life.” - John O’Leary
“I think when you go through a [difficult] event, at any age, it’s easy to really quickly decide whether I will be a victim or a victor to this. Even if you feel like you have no talent, your life is a precious, priceless gift. You have one job, to say yes to being used for good.” - John O’Leary
“Your life, in spite of what you’ve been through or done, can be used in mighty ways.” - John O’Leary
“Even though we were essentially living in poverty… [my mother] had to struggle, she had to really work hard. But even with her very meager means, my mom showed me the value of hospitality and the value of generosity. There was never an instant where some strangers came and she let them just go hungry. Above it all, God’s grace.” - Athanase Kadita Tshibaka
“When I decided to accept Christ as Lord and Savior, I had nobody pushing me, I had nobody influencing me except that very still voice, very gentle, saying that was my day of decision.” - Athanse Kadita Tshibaka
“Like most people, I am a cracked pot, a leaking vessel, and I need to be refilled by His Holy Spirit daily. Reading the Bible and being attentive to the promptings of the Holy Spirit helps keep us growing.” - Athanase Kadita Tshibaka
________________________
Enjoy watching these additional videos from Jesus Calling YouTube channel!
Audio Episodes: https://bit.ly/3zvjbK7
Bonus Podcasts: https://bit.ly/3vfLlGw
Jesus Listens: Stories of Prayer: https://bit.ly/3Sd0a6C
Peace for Everyday Life: https://bit.ly/3zzwFoj
Peace in Uncertain Times: https://bit.ly/3cHfB6u
What’s Good? https://bit.ly/3vc2cKj
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:08):
Life Audio.
Speaker 2 (00:11):
Did you know that Jesus Calling has its own YouTube channel.
It's full of great content that will enhance your spiritual life.
You'll find beautiful videos with short devotional moments to help
you through your day, as well as stories on video
from celebrities, authors, pastors, and everyday people who share what
their faith journey has meant to them. You'll also find
that Jesus Listens Stories of Prayer series hosted by Susie
(00:33):
McIntyre Eaton, featuring new guests monthly. Subscribe today for new
videos each week.
Speaker 1 (00:43):
The heroes show up and none of them were tights,
and none of them were capes, and they just look
like ordinary friends who faithfully live out the message of
Jesus in life. If God can use those people, he
can use me. And that is a message I think
we need right now in this world.
Speaker 2 (01:00):
Welcome to the Jesus Calling Podcast. This week, we're joined
by author and speaker John O'Leary. John shares the story
of a joyful Midwestern childhood that was forever changed at
age nine by a devastating house fire that doctor said
he would not survive. Through the unwavering love of his parents,
the kindness of unexpected heroes and a hard fought choice
to live. John's life became a testimony to hope rising
(01:23):
from an unimaginable pain. Later in the episode, we'll hear
from finance executive and advisor atanaz Kadita Chabaka known as At,
who was born in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
At shares a journey shaped by poverty, displacement, and profound loss,
and the faith that sustained him through imprisonment and justice
(01:44):
and life threatening trials. Let's begin with John O'Leary's story.
Speaker 1 (01:58):
I'm John O'Leary. I am a son to Susan and Denny,
brother to Jim, Katy Amy, Susan and Laura, to Beth
for now twenty two years, and I'm a father of
four teenagers. I'm also a speaker. I'm an author of
a couple books, and there was a film that recently
came out about our life called Soul on Fire. I
(02:20):
grew up in Missouri, just outside of Saint Louis. I
grew up to two awesome parents. We had dinner together
every single night as a family. We sat around with
six kids, a couple dogs, two parents, no elbows on
the table and it was just an awesome upbringing church
on Sundays, pancakes afterwards fried chicken Sunday Nights. My dream
(02:41):
as a kid was to be involved with baseball, and
specifically I was pretty darned sure as a child I
would play short stuff for the Saint Louis Cardinals. Lack
of athleticism eventually would derail that, but also a childhood
event would certainly eradicate any chance of that happened in
the first place. The gifts that my mom and I
gave me and the character they instilled in me, the
(03:04):
faith that they inspired in their children, is how we
keep showing up with this because of what they gave us.
So I've always found that it's very easy to be
faithful when life is going smashingly well. And for the
Olier family it sure did go well for a long time.
And then for me and for my siblings, and certainly
(03:25):
for my mom and dad that changed dramatically when I
was nine. So, at age nine, I was involved in
a gasoline explosion, burned in a house fire on one
hundred percent of my body. Eighty seven percent of those
burns were third degree, And to put all this in perspective,
in twenty twenty five, if a patient presents in an
ICU with burns like this, they take the percentage of
(03:46):
the body burned, they add age, and they've got mortality.
So in twenty twenty five, the same child would have
one hundred and nine percent likelihood of passing away. But
back in nineteen eighty seven, there's no chance. There's just
no chance. And so I don't know the math, I
don't know the science, but I know I'm in trouble here.
And I remember my mom and dad came into the
(04:07):
room separately, but my father first. The first thing he
said to me was John, I love you, and there's
nothing you can do about it. He said, I've never
been so proud of anyone in my entire life, and
I'm just grateful to be your dad. He said, I
love you, I love you, I love you, And right
behind my dad's incredible moment of grace and mercy comes
(04:29):
to my mom's. You know, they were both out of
the house when I was burned. I was playing with
gasoline in the garage. I caused this. I didn't mean to,
but I inflicted this damage on myself, on our home,
on our lives. And yet they're showing up to me
to be so sweet to me, so kind, so christ like.
My mom came into the room. She takes my right
hand in hers, she pats my bald head and she says,
(04:53):
I love you. And I remember looking up and I said, Mom,
I don't want to die, I want to live. Her
response is good, baby. Look you take the hand of God.
You walk the journey with him, and you fight like
you never fought before your daddy. And I will be
with you every step along the way. But do your
part and fight. And so on. That morning, this kid
who had grown up in the church and growing up
(05:15):
believing that Jesus can walk on water, and if you
believe it, you can too, I had to make a
decision to get out of the boat. I knew I
wasn't by myself. I knew my parents would be with me.
I knew I wasn't alone. I knew Christ would walk
with me. But it was the most important and difficult
decision I've ever made in my entire life. The wind
(05:36):
and the waves show up in every single breath and
hospital with a burn patient, every ensued me literally is
in pain chronically. It's impossible to imagine simply living is agony,
and yet in the midst of the storm, there was
always hope. There was always hope. There was hope of
a vision, a hope of getting out of the hospital.
(05:58):
There was hope that love would show back up in
my life. There was a friend of mine eventually named
Jack Bucky, was the broadcaster for the Saint Louis car Cardinals.
He heard about the child the night I was burned,
and rather than just hearing that a child in our
community was dying of burns, mister Buck left the party. Literally.
He goes to a burn center in Saint Louis called Mercy,
(06:20):
takes the elevator right up to the fourth floor, gets out,
walks in and speaking in light into my darkness because
my eyes back then were swollen shut. Mister Buck said
to me, kid, wake up, you are going to live.
Keep fighting. John O'Leary day at the ballpark will make
it all worthwhile, kidd, are you listening? Keep fighting?
Speaker 3 (06:40):
Keep fighting?
Speaker 1 (06:42):
And then he walks out. He's told that the little
guy is going to die. He cries about it, just
like Jesus would, but rather than giving up on it,
he goes home. He cries and prays more, and then
he asks the question what more can I do? And
Jack Buck, the radio announcer for the Saint Louis Cardinals,
a very busy guy, comes back to my room a
second time the following day and encourages me again, and
(07:04):
then does it again the following day and the following
and this goes on for the five and a half
months I'm in hospital. One of the wild things about
Jack Buck is he grew up in modest home environment.
He went off to fight World War two, picked up
a purple heart, came home changed. And I think when
we get burned in life, whatever that looks like for
all of us, we can become bitter about it and
(07:27):
wonder where God is in our mess. And that's one
way to go, and it's common. Or you can recognize
that God is all over this mess with you, and
that you can reveal that goodness and that grace in
them mercy to others through your life.
Speaker 3 (07:39):
So Jack Buck.
Speaker 1 (07:40):
Came out of the depression and then into the war,
picks up this wound, came home and felt like he
was the most blessed guy alive. He could not believe
the gift of his life. Then he ends up being
the broadcaster for a legendary organization called the Saint Louis
Cardinals for fifty years, and every single day he recognized, Gosh,
I get paid to do what I wanted to do
(08:00):
when I was a kid. How can I make a
difference in the lives of others who might be struggling,
who might listen to my voice in the summertime, but
might benefit from hearing my voice in their winter time.
And so I learned how generous he was only years
after he visited me in hospital. I never knew how
good he was, and to how many people he was good.
(08:25):
He was blessed in his life to such a degree
that he wanted to spend his life emptying himself out
into the life of others. Why he took such an
interest in me, though, I'll never know this oiude of eternity.
He brought me down to the ballgame like he promised.
He learned that night I could hold nothing in my hands.
My fingers had been amputated. So he started sending me baseballs.
(08:46):
Each ball from a Cardinal player came with a note
below at that said, kid, if you want a second baseball,
write a thank you letter to the man who signed
the first and I could not write as a nine
year old or ten year old, but desperately one in
another baseball. I figured it out with the help of
two occupational therapists. They pushed my hands together, we wrote
(09:06):
the note, we mailed it off, and then Jack would
send another baseball, and then another, and then another, and
then another, And that summer of nineteen eighty seven, mister
Buck sent a child who no one will probably hear
from ever.
Speaker 3 (09:19):
Again.
Speaker 1 (09:21):
I'm not a celebrity, I'm not a speaker, I'm not
academically inclined. I have no confidence. But he sends the
least among us sixty baseballs, teaching this child not only
how to write, but how to live, and never told
anybody he was doing this. And the final story on
Jack when I graduated university, which is not only the
(09:42):
apex of my academic career, but it's proof that the
work he did years earlier mattered like it wasn't wasted well.
He showed up the graduation with a package and a
note and the note, where had a kid? This means
a lot to me, I hope it means a lot
to you too. I opened up the gift and inside
was a crystal baseball I read more closely, and it
(10:03):
said Jack buck Baseball Hall of Fame. And I said,
mister Bucket, this is your baseball. I can't take this
at His response is, you're not taking it. I'm giving
it to you. It's a gift. It means a lot
to me. I hope it means a lot to you too,
and then he goes, try not to drop it. So
this was a man who never lost a sense of humor,
(10:26):
a man who collected many trophies along the journey of life,
and a man who tried to give them all away
by the end of it. I think when you go
through an event like this at any age, it's easy
to really quickly decide either I will be a victim
or a victor to this. When I was twenty eight,
(10:47):
I was in a church service and the pastors said,
for those of you who feel like you've got no talent,
and that's most certainly how I felt. He said, listen
to me, your life is a precious, priceless gift. You
got one job, say yes to be in use for good.
So I was just convicted by that message. Even if
you feel like you've got no ten your life is
a precious priceless gift, you got one job, say yes
(11:09):
to be in used for good. And the following day,
a little girl who read about the story and overwhelming odds,
makes a phone call to me. I'm working construction at
the time, and I answer the phone and she says,
mister John, can you speak at my school? And I
would have never answered that call. I would have never
said yes. But the day before our pastors said say yes.
(11:30):
So I did this awkward, introverted nobody said yes again
and again and over time, through God's hand, I've been
blessed to say yes twenty eight hundred times in fifty
different states, dozens of countries, because years and years earlier,
pastors said, hey, people, listen to me. Whether you think
you've got five, two or one talent, or some of
(11:52):
you somewhere in this church you think you've got none, listen.
Your life is a precious, priceless gift. You got one job.
Speaker 3 (12:00):
Say yes. Man.
Speaker 1 (12:01):
I just to me, that's so convicting. And I just
hope when you hearing the story that it convicts you too,
like your life, in spite of what you've been through
or done, can be used in mighty ways. If God
can't use those people he can use me, and that
is a message I think we need right now in
this world. I began reading Jesus Calling almost a decade ago,
(12:22):
and it was one of my first forays into intentional
reading outside of scripture.
Speaker 3 (12:28):
Each day.
Speaker 1 (12:29):
That was the type of thing I could get my hands,
heart and mind around and then take the next right
step leaving forward from that reading. So Jesus Calling and
had a mighty impact on my faith walk. Fire can
be so destructive. I am blessed because I survived, but
I know many children and many adults who get burned don't.
(12:50):
Fire can destroy homes, and it can destroy relationships and communities,
and it can be restorative. It can form character and
instill faithfulness, and it can draw us closer to Christ's
will for our lives. In my anyways, there was a
saint named Ignatius of Iola who used to sign off
his letters to his brothers and sisters, and he would
(13:12):
write off with the words that he would say this,
go forth and set the world on fire. It was
a way to bring light to those living in darkness,
to bring hope to those living in despair. Go forth
and set the world on fire. We are called to humbly,
faithfully go forth and set the world on fire for good.
(13:33):
To learn more about.
Speaker 2 (13:34):
John O'Leary, visit John O'Leary inspires dot com and be
sure to check out the film Soul on Fire, now
available on streaming services. Stay tuned to Autuna's Kadita Chewbacca's
story after this message. These uncertain times bring anxiety and fear,
(14:02):
but Jesus Listens Prayers for Every Season gives you daily
prayers of comfort with seasonally inspired illustrations. This beautiful book
includes prayers that speak to your situation, whether it's a
time of stress or strength. Look for Jesus Listens Prayers
for Every Season wherever you buy books. Our next guest
(14:28):
is finance executive Achi Naz Kadita Chebacca, known as At,
who was born in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
At reflects on growing up amid poverty and displacement, the
faith that carried him through seasons of danger and uncertainty,
and how God's grace shaped a life of purpose, service
and trust.
Speaker 4 (14:48):
I was born in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
This is the massive, a country right in the center
of Africa.
Speaker 3 (14:57):
The town I was.
Speaker 4 (14:59):
Born in was a diamond mining town called Chicapa. Growing up,
my first few years were spent in my Money. My
Money is a village about twenty miles outside of Chicapo.
(15:19):
And then my father passed away when I was three
years of the age. That was the beginning of what
I call my nomadic season because my mother struggling with
the five of us.
Speaker 3 (15:35):
After my father passed away.
Speaker 4 (15:38):
She would sometimes place me with my sister, or place
me with one of my older brothers or one of
her brothers. And then eventually in nineteen fifty nine. End
of nineteen fifty nine, Congo was then fighting for independence
and we had all kinds of problems and struggles. We
(15:59):
moved his refugees from one part of the Congo where
we were lazy, to the land of our ancestors. So
for quite a while we lived on United Nations for duration.
You know, growing up, if I told you that I
had dreams to become less, and the other thing I
would be lying to you. If I had dreams, it
(16:21):
was where is my next morsel of food going to
come from? I think about age five, I was staying
with my sister and she put me in a kindergarten
where I was supposed to be doing my schooling, but
I did not attend that school five days of the week.
(16:44):
I attend to only one day of the week. It
was Wednesdays, and you will ask who are you Wednesdays?
On Wednesdays, the school gave us milk and gave us
maybe one or two biscuits.
Speaker 3 (16:58):
That was my motivation for going to.
Speaker 4 (17:00):
School from a very very young age. A lot of
what shept me, other than God Almighty my mother. After
my father passed away, my mom had to work very
very hard to take care of us, and so therefore
(17:20):
the idea of you have to work very hard, even
though we were essentially living in poverty, so she had
to struggle.
Speaker 3 (17:31):
She had to really work hard.
Speaker 4 (17:33):
But even with her very bigger man, my mom also
showed me the value of hospitality and the value of generosity.
Speaker 3 (17:45):
You know, there was.
Speaker 4 (17:46):
Never an instant where some strangers came and she led
them just to go hungry or whatever.
Speaker 3 (17:54):
Above it all God's grace.
Speaker 4 (17:58):
As I came to accept passages that set my Lord
and Savior. A decision that I made in October nineteen
seventy five, reading the Bible daily and then having the
guidance of the Holy Spirit in many of the decisions
that I had to confront, whether in my career or
(18:19):
in my personal life. That became the difference maker in
form I really looked at myself as a solid Christian.
I was baptized, confirmed Catholic. I was baptized, confirmed Presbyterian.
I must be a sound, solid Christian. So for a
long time, even after my wife accepted the practice a
(18:42):
Lord and Savior and I saw changes in her life,
I pushed back every effort from her. But why don't
you come to death bybol study with view half at
this book. It's a good book. Now I am a Christian.
I just pushed back until nineteen seventy five. That's when
citing on a bench alone, reading a brochure back anthussed
(19:06):
for Christ. Every morning I would wake up nine am
with my Bible on my lap and I would read,
I would pray, then my day would start. And that's
when the Holy Spirit really came onto me and said
that was my day of decision. So when I decided
to accept Christ, there's Lord and tag. I had nobody
(19:29):
pushing me, I had nobody influencing me except that very
still voice, very gentle saying that was my day of decision,
and so I made my decision that day. For the
eight years that were were in the Congo, the challenges
(19:54):
and difficulties that my wife and I went through where
I was imprisoned. We were only married six months and
I ended up being put in prison.
Speaker 3 (20:07):
Being in prisoned your.
Speaker 4 (20:09):
Experience betrayal, Your experienced situations where people threaten to take
your life away because you would not make decisions that
they wanted, you know, you to make, and that sort
of thing, and very difficult years because the Congo was
run by a dictator and that dictator is the one
(20:31):
who put me in prison.
Speaker 3 (20:32):
The second very.
Speaker 4 (20:36):
You know, heavy, heavy experience was after we left Kenya
in nineteen eighty five, I was offered a position in
Brazil and going to Brazil and within one month of
being there being accused of malversation or something in the bank,
(20:59):
something that I did not do at all, somebody who
was jealous and did not want to see to be
happy with my success in the bank. And so having
to navigate that, realizing that everything that we had worked for,
everything was going to go out of the water, and
what do I do now with two children? We had
two little kids at the time, so that was also
(21:22):
very tough, very Unsteertay after they could atta in Liberia,
the government was taken over by what they call themselves
Revolutionary Council soldiers with high school degrees. They took over,
and then one of them coming to the bank wanting
me to compensate their cousin, saying that we had fired
(21:47):
a cousin wrongly. I did not fire somebody who was
there before me. And so you're fighting that. You're trying
to resist, and even though senior management of the bank
in New York says, go ahead, pay whatever they want,
your conscience is saying no, that's not the right decision.
So you try to do the right thing, but you
(22:08):
are running the risk of somebody coming doing damage to
you and to your family. So that was another very
difficult period time for us. But God saw us true
(22:28):
in terms of looking for a guidance, I can just
share an example. I did move from Kenya to Brazil,
but that decision was not a simple one of the
banks saying you've done whatever we wanted you to in
Kenya and I'll go to Brazil. The bank came and
said you can stay in Kenya or you can go
(22:49):
to the Philippines, you know, or you can go to
Brazil to oversee aspects of our business in South America.
And my wife and I did not want to go
to Brazil. So we said, let's pray. That's ask God
for guidance. And so we told God, We said, Lord,
(23:11):
it's between Kenya and the Philippines. Can you please tell us?
And we prayed and we prayed, and we had agreed
we would not tell each other whatever the Lord would
say that yeah, but we prayed two weeks nothing and
said maybe if we fast, God will hear our prayers.
(23:34):
And we fasted nothing. And then one day we realized
we are kind of restraining you know, the Lord. We're
telling him it's either Kenya or the Philippines. We're telling
him Brazil is out of the equation. So obviously God
wants us to put Brazil back on the table. So
(23:57):
it's okay, Lord, well that's all veryas word Kenya, Philippines
or Brazil. You know, you want to stay in Kenya,
and you know our second chance is Philip, can you
now guide us? And one day we had gone for
dinner at a friend's house. After dinner, my wife and
(24:17):
I get out We're walking in the friends garden holding
hands and we just turned to each other and we
almost instantaneously say it's Brazil, isn't it. And that was
how we ended up in Brazil, because you know, the
cad is so good. The Ambassador of Brazil dedicated one
(24:41):
of the staff members of the embassy told him make
sure that the transition of the Chibacca family from Kenya
to Brazil is small. He invited to his house to
give us some luncheon with Brazilian food and whatever and
put videos on to introduce us to Brazilan culture ambassador
(25:05):
all the country doing that.
Speaker 3 (25:07):
But why God's end or favor?
Speaker 4 (25:12):
My wife actually bought a number of the Jesus Calling books,
so we have one in our home that you know
she's been going through, and we have one in our
vacation home in ters Gecos Island for guests who stay there.
And she bought also twenty five books about a few
years ago that she distributed to her Bible study, the
(25:36):
Lady's Bible Study.
Speaker 3 (25:38):
So we are familiar with Jesus Calling just being in
his world.
Speaker 4 (25:44):
It's the daily devotions, it's Bible study, meetings with the
other followers of Christ, and sometimes there is a group
of friends that I have on my list. Sometimes we
kind of go through some devotionals together in the comments,
you know back, and so staying in the Bible and
(26:06):
staying attentive to whatever the Holy Spirit may be showing
me very important. And it doesn't say that I am
anywhere close to perfect or holly or anything like that,
because like most people, I am a cracked pot. I
(26:29):
am a leaking vessel, and I need to be refilled
by His Holy Spirit daily. And so reading the Bible
and being attentive to the promptings or the Holy Spirit,
and the meeting with others to study the Bible together
to pray, you know, in the various Bible study groups that.
Speaker 3 (26:50):
Helps, you know, keep us growing.
Speaker 4 (26:55):
I am going to be praying a prayer from Sarah
Young's prayer devotional Jesus listened, So let's pray, Dearest Jesus,
how wonderful it is to know that you are taking
care of me. When I am spending time with you,
(27:17):
enjoying the warmth and security of your loving presence, it's
easier to trust that every detail of my life is
under your control. The Bible affirms that everything fits into
a plan for good for those who love you and
(27:37):
are called according to your design and purpose.
Speaker 3 (27:42):
Because the world is in such an abnormal.
Speaker 4 (27:45):
Talent condition, it sometimes feels as if chances governing the
universe events seem to happen randomly with little or no
apparent meaning. But you've shown me that when I view
the world this way, I am overlooking a most import
(28:05):
with the fact the limitations of my understanding sub merge
beneath the surface of the visible world. There are mysteries
too profound for me to fathom. If I could actually
see how close you are to me and how constantly
(28:26):
you work on my behalf, I would never again doubt
your wonderful care for me. But your word instructs me
to live by faith, not by sight. Please help me
to trust in your mysterious, majestic presence, in your magnificent name.
(28:50):
Thank you, Jesus Amen.
Speaker 2 (28:54):
Be sure to check out Eight's new book, Son of
a Congo, A journey of tragedy, triumph and transformation, available
at your favorite retailer in February. If you'd like to
know more stories about how our darkest days can bring
hope to others, check out our interview with Alice Murrae Johnson.
(29:17):
Next time on the Jesus Calling podcast, we'll hear from
Ed Newton, pastor of Community Bible Church in San Antonio, Texas.
Ed shares how years of empathy and leadership eventually gave
way to a breaking point and how honesty, grace, and
listening to God's voice reshaped his understanding of strength.
Speaker 5 (29:34):
We're constantly hearing and listening and feeling, but when we
do not align our heart to what God says, who
is the ultimate voice, then it just conflicts really the directional,
navigational component of our life.
Speaker 2 (29:55):
Thanks for listening to the Jesus Calling Stories of Faith
podcast on the Live Audio Network. Every week we'll bring
you stories from people who share their journeys of faith
and how prayer and a relationship with God transformed their lives.
Be sure to follow us on Apple, Spotify, iHeart, or
wherever you listen to podcasts, and leave us a review
(30:16):
so others can be inspired weekly by these stories of faith. Finally,
you can find encouragement resources and more on the Jesus
Calling website at Jesus Calling dot com
Life Audio.
Speaker 2 (00:11):
Did you know that Jesus Calling has its own YouTube channel.
It's full of great content that will enhance your spiritual life.
You'll find beautiful videos with short devotional moments to help
you through your day, as well as stories on video
from celebrities, authors, pastors, and everyday people who share what
their faith journey has meant to them. You'll also find
that Jesus Listens Stories of Prayer series hosted by Susie
(00:33):
McIntyre Eaton, featuring new guests monthly. Subscribe today for new
videos each week.
Speaker 1 (00:43):
The heroes show up and none of them were tights,
and none of them were capes, and they just look
like ordinary friends who faithfully live out the message of
Jesus in life. If God can use those people, he
can use me. And that is a message I think
we need right now in this world.
Speaker 2 (01:00):
Welcome to the Jesus Calling Podcast. This week, we're joined
by author and speaker John O'Leary. John shares the story
of a joyful Midwestern childhood that was forever changed at
age nine by a devastating house fire that doctor said
he would not survive. Through the unwavering love of his parents,
the kindness of unexpected heroes and a hard fought choice
to live. John's life became a testimony to hope rising
(01:23):
from an unimaginable pain. Later in the episode, we'll hear
from finance executive and advisor atanaz Kadita Chabaka known as At,
who was born in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
At shares a journey shaped by poverty, displacement, and profound loss,
and the faith that sustained him through imprisonment and justice
(01:44):
and life threatening trials. Let's begin with John O'Leary's story.
Speaker 1 (01:58):
I'm John O'Leary. I am a son to Susan and Denny,
brother to Jim, Katy Amy, Susan and Laura, to Beth
for now twenty two years, and I'm a father of
four teenagers. I'm also a speaker. I'm an author of
a couple books, and there was a film that recently
came out about our life called Soul on Fire. I
(02:20):
grew up in Missouri, just outside of Saint Louis. I
grew up to two awesome parents. We had dinner together
every single night as a family. We sat around with
six kids, a couple dogs, two parents, no elbows on
the table and it was just an awesome upbringing church
on Sundays, pancakes afterwards fried chicken Sunday Nights. My dream
(02:41):
as a kid was to be involved with baseball, and
specifically I was pretty darned sure as a child I
would play short stuff for the Saint Louis Cardinals. Lack
of athleticism eventually would derail that, but also a childhood
event would certainly eradicate any chance of that happened in
the first place. The gifts that my mom and I
gave me and the character they instilled in me, the
(03:04):
faith that they inspired in their children, is how we
keep showing up with this because of what they gave us.
So I've always found that it's very easy to be
faithful when life is going smashingly well. And for the
Olier family it sure did go well for a long time.
And then for me and for my siblings, and certainly
(03:25):
for my mom and dad that changed dramatically when I
was nine. So, at age nine, I was involved in
a gasoline explosion, burned in a house fire on one
hundred percent of my body. Eighty seven percent of those
burns were third degree, And to put all this in perspective,
in twenty twenty five, if a patient presents in an
ICU with burns like this, they take the percentage of
(03:46):
the body burned, they add age, and they've got mortality.
So in twenty twenty five, the same child would have
one hundred and nine percent likelihood of passing away. But
back in nineteen eighty seven, there's no chance. There's just
no chance. And so I don't know the math, I
don't know the science, but I know I'm in trouble here.
And I remember my mom and dad came into the
(04:07):
room separately, but my father first. The first thing he
said to me was John, I love you, and there's
nothing you can do about it. He said, I've never
been so proud of anyone in my entire life, and
I'm just grateful to be your dad. He said, I
love you, I love you, I love you, And right
behind my dad's incredible moment of grace and mercy comes
(04:29):
to my mom's. You know, they were both out of
the house when I was burned. I was playing with
gasoline in the garage. I caused this. I didn't mean to,
but I inflicted this damage on myself, on our home,
on our lives. And yet they're showing up to me
to be so sweet to me, so kind, so christ like.
My mom came into the room. She takes my right
hand in hers, she pats my bald head and she says,
(04:53):
I love you. And I remember looking up and I said, Mom,
I don't want to die, I want to live. Her
response is good, baby. Look you take the hand of God.
You walk the journey with him, and you fight like
you never fought before your daddy. And I will be
with you every step along the way. But do your
part and fight. And so on. That morning, this kid
who had grown up in the church and growing up
(05:15):
believing that Jesus can walk on water, and if you
believe it, you can too, I had to make a
decision to get out of the boat. I knew I
wasn't by myself. I knew my parents would be with me.
I knew I wasn't alone. I knew Christ would walk
with me. But it was the most important and difficult
decision I've ever made in my entire life. The wind
(05:36):
and the waves show up in every single breath and
hospital with a burn patient, every ensued me literally is
in pain chronically. It's impossible to imagine simply living is agony,
and yet in the midst of the storm, there was
always hope. There was always hope. There was hope of
a vision, a hope of getting out of the hospital.
(05:58):
There was hope that love would show back up in
my life. There was a friend of mine eventually named
Jack Bucky, was the broadcaster for the Saint Louis car Cardinals.
He heard about the child the night I was burned,
and rather than just hearing that a child in our
community was dying of burns, mister Buck left the party. Literally.
He goes to a burn center in Saint Louis called Mercy,
(06:20):
takes the elevator right up to the fourth floor, gets out,
walks in and speaking in light into my darkness because
my eyes back then were swollen shut. Mister Buck said
to me, kid, wake up, you are going to live.
Keep fighting. John O'Leary day at the ballpark will make
it all worthwhile, kidd, are you listening? Keep fighting?
Speaker 3 (06:40):
Keep fighting?
Speaker 1 (06:42):
And then he walks out. He's told that the little
guy is going to die. He cries about it, just
like Jesus would, but rather than giving up on it,
he goes home. He cries and prays more, and then
he asks the question what more can I do? And
Jack Buck, the radio announcer for the Saint Louis Cardinals,
a very busy guy, comes back to my room a
second time the following day and encourages me again, and
(07:04):
then does it again the following day and the following
and this goes on for the five and a half
months I'm in hospital. One of the wild things about
Jack Buck is he grew up in modest home environment.
He went off to fight World War two, picked up
a purple heart, came home changed. And I think when
we get burned in life, whatever that looks like for
all of us, we can become bitter about it and
(07:27):
wonder where God is in our mess. And that's one
way to go, and it's common. Or you can recognize
that God is all over this mess with you, and
that you can reveal that goodness and that grace in
them mercy to others through your life.
Speaker 3 (07:39):
So Jack Buck.
Speaker 1 (07:40):
Came out of the depression and then into the war,
picks up this wound, came home and felt like he
was the most blessed guy alive. He could not believe
the gift of his life. Then he ends up being
the broadcaster for a legendary organization called the Saint Louis
Cardinals for fifty years, and every single day he recognized, Gosh,
I get paid to do what I wanted to do
(08:00):
when I was a kid. How can I make a
difference in the lives of others who might be struggling,
who might listen to my voice in the summertime, but
might benefit from hearing my voice in their winter time.
And so I learned how generous he was only years
after he visited me in hospital. I never knew how
good he was, and to how many people he was good.
(08:25):
He was blessed in his life to such a degree
that he wanted to spend his life emptying himself out
into the life of others. Why he took such an
interest in me, though, I'll never know this oiude of eternity.
He brought me down to the ballgame like he promised.
He learned that night I could hold nothing in my hands.
My fingers had been amputated. So he started sending me baseballs.
(08:46):
Each ball from a Cardinal player came with a note
below at that said, kid, if you want a second baseball,
write a thank you letter to the man who signed
the first and I could not write as a nine
year old or ten year old, but desperately one in
another baseball. I figured it out with the help of
two occupational therapists. They pushed my hands together, we wrote
(09:06):
the note, we mailed it off, and then Jack would
send another baseball, and then another, and then another, and
then another, And that summer of nineteen eighty seven, mister
Buck sent a child who no one will probably hear
from ever.
Speaker 3 (09:19):
Again.
Speaker 1 (09:21):
I'm not a celebrity, I'm not a speaker, I'm not
academically inclined. I have no confidence. But he sends the
least among us sixty baseballs, teaching this child not only
how to write, but how to live, and never told
anybody he was doing this. And the final story on
Jack when I graduated university, which is not only the
(09:42):
apex of my academic career, but it's proof that the
work he did years earlier mattered like it wasn't wasted well.
He showed up the graduation with a package and a
note and the note, where had a kid? This means
a lot to me, I hope it means a lot
to you too. I opened up the gift and inside
was a crystal baseball I read more closely, and it
(10:03):
said Jack buck Baseball Hall of Fame. And I said,
mister Bucket, this is your baseball. I can't take this
at His response is, you're not taking it. I'm giving
it to you. It's a gift. It means a lot
to me. I hope it means a lot to you too,
and then he goes, try not to drop it. So
this was a man who never lost a sense of humor,
(10:26):
a man who collected many trophies along the journey of life,
and a man who tried to give them all away
by the end of it. I think when you go
through an event like this at any age, it's easy
to really quickly decide either I will be a victim
or a victor to this. When I was twenty eight,
(10:47):
I was in a church service and the pastors said,
for those of you who feel like you've got no talent,
and that's most certainly how I felt. He said, listen
to me, your life is a precious, priceless gift. You
got one job, say yes to be in use for good.
So I was just convicted by that message. Even if
you feel like you've got no ten your life is
a precious priceless gift, you got one job, say yes
(11:09):
to be in used for good. And the following day,
a little girl who read about the story and overwhelming odds,
makes a phone call to me. I'm working construction at
the time, and I answer the phone and she says,
mister John, can you speak at my school? And I
would have never answered that call. I would have never
said yes. But the day before our pastors said say yes.
(11:30):
So I did this awkward, introverted nobody said yes again
and again and over time, through God's hand, I've been
blessed to say yes twenty eight hundred times in fifty
different states, dozens of countries, because years and years earlier,
pastors said, hey, people, listen to me. Whether you think
you've got five, two or one talent, or some of
(11:52):
you somewhere in this church you think you've got none, listen.
Your life is a precious, priceless gift. You got one job.
Speaker 3 (12:00):
Say yes. Man.
Speaker 1 (12:01):
I just to me, that's so convicting. And I just
hope when you hearing the story that it convicts you too,
like your life, in spite of what you've been through
or done, can be used in mighty ways. If God
can't use those people he can use me, and that
is a message I think we need right now in
this world. I began reading Jesus Calling almost a decade ago,
(12:22):
and it was one of my first forays into intentional
reading outside of scripture.
Speaker 3 (12:28):
Each day.
Speaker 1 (12:29):
That was the type of thing I could get my hands,
heart and mind around and then take the next right
step leaving forward from that reading. So Jesus Calling and
had a mighty impact on my faith walk. Fire can
be so destructive. I am blessed because I survived, but
I know many children and many adults who get burned don't.
(12:50):
Fire can destroy homes, and it can destroy relationships and communities,
and it can be restorative. It can form character and
instill faithfulness, and it can draw us closer to Christ's
will for our lives. In my anyways, there was a
saint named Ignatius of Iola who used to sign off
his letters to his brothers and sisters, and he would
(13:12):
write off with the words that he would say this,
go forth and set the world on fire. It was
a way to bring light to those living in darkness,
to bring hope to those living in despair. Go forth
and set the world on fire. We are called to humbly,
faithfully go forth and set the world on fire for good.
(13:33):
To learn more about.
Speaker 2 (13:34):
John O'Leary, visit John O'Leary inspires dot com and be
sure to check out the film Soul on Fire, now
available on streaming services. Stay tuned to Autuna's Kadita Chewbacca's
story after this message. These uncertain times bring anxiety and fear,
(14:02):
but Jesus Listens Prayers for Every Season gives you daily
prayers of comfort with seasonally inspired illustrations. This beautiful book
includes prayers that speak to your situation, whether it's a
time of stress or strength. Look for Jesus Listens Prayers
for Every Season wherever you buy books. Our next guest
(14:28):
is finance executive Achi Naz Kadita Chebacca, known as At,
who was born in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
At reflects on growing up amid poverty and displacement, the
faith that carried him through seasons of danger and uncertainty,
and how God's grace shaped a life of purpose, service
and trust.
Speaker 4 (14:48):
I was born in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
This is the massive, a country right in the center
of Africa.
Speaker 3 (14:57):
The town I was.
Speaker 4 (14:59):
Born in was a diamond mining town called Chicapa. Growing up,
my first few years were spent in my Money. My
Money is a village about twenty miles outside of Chicapo.
(15:19):
And then my father passed away when I was three
years of the age. That was the beginning of what
I call my nomadic season because my mother struggling with
the five of us.
Speaker 3 (15:35):
After my father passed away.
Speaker 4 (15:38):
She would sometimes place me with my sister, or place
me with one of my older brothers or one of
her brothers. And then eventually in nineteen fifty nine. End
of nineteen fifty nine, Congo was then fighting for independence
and we had all kinds of problems and struggles. We
(15:59):
moved his refugees from one part of the Congo where
we were lazy, to the land of our ancestors. So
for quite a while we lived on United Nations for duration.
You know, growing up, if I told you that I
had dreams to become less, and the other thing I
would be lying to you. If I had dreams, it
(16:21):
was where is my next morsel of food going to
come from? I think about age five, I was staying
with my sister and she put me in a kindergarten
where I was supposed to be doing my schooling, but
I did not attend that school five days of the week.
(16:44):
I attend to only one day of the week. It
was Wednesdays, and you will ask who are you Wednesdays?
On Wednesdays, the school gave us milk and gave us
maybe one or two biscuits.
Speaker 3 (16:58):
That was my motivation for going to.
Speaker 4 (17:00):
School from a very very young age. A lot of
what shept me, other than God Almighty my mother. After
my father passed away, my mom had to work very
very hard to take care of us, and so therefore
(17:20):
the idea of you have to work very hard, even
though we were essentially living in poverty, so she had
to struggle.
Speaker 3 (17:31):
She had to really work hard.
Speaker 4 (17:33):
But even with her very bigger man, my mom also
showed me the value of hospitality and the value of generosity.
Speaker 3 (17:45):
You know, there was.
Speaker 4 (17:46):
Never an instant where some strangers came and she led
them just to go hungry or whatever.
Speaker 3 (17:54):
Above it all God's grace.
Speaker 4 (17:58):
As I came to accept passages that set my Lord
and Savior. A decision that I made in October nineteen
seventy five, reading the Bible daily and then having the
guidance of the Holy Spirit in many of the decisions
that I had to confront, whether in my career or
(18:19):
in my personal life. That became the difference maker in
form I really looked at myself as a solid Christian.
I was baptized, confirmed Catholic. I was baptized, confirmed Presbyterian.
I must be a sound, solid Christian. So for a
long time, even after my wife accepted the practice a
(18:42):
Lord and Savior and I saw changes in her life,
I pushed back every effort from her. But why don't
you come to death bybol study with view half at
this book. It's a good book. Now I am a Christian.
I just pushed back until nineteen seventy five. That's when
citing on a bench alone, reading a brochure back anthussed
(19:06):
for Christ. Every morning I would wake up nine am
with my Bible on my lap and I would read,
I would pray, then my day would start. And that's
when the Holy Spirit really came onto me and said
that was my day of decision. So when I decided
to accept Christ, there's Lord and tag. I had nobody
(19:29):
pushing me, I had nobody influencing me except that very
still voice, very gentle saying that was my day of decision,
and so I made my decision that day. For the
eight years that were were in the Congo, the challenges
(19:54):
and difficulties that my wife and I went through where
I was imprisoned. We were only married six months and
I ended up being put in prison.
Speaker 3 (20:07):
Being in prisoned your.
Speaker 4 (20:09):
Experience betrayal, Your experienced situations where people threaten to take
your life away because you would not make decisions that
they wanted, you know, you to make, and that sort
of thing, and very difficult years because the Congo was
run by a dictator and that dictator is the one
(20:31):
who put me in prison.
Speaker 3 (20:32):
The second very.
Speaker 4 (20:36):
You know, heavy, heavy experience was after we left Kenya
in nineteen eighty five, I was offered a position in
Brazil and going to Brazil and within one month of
being there being accused of malversation or something in the bank,
(20:59):
something that I did not do at all, somebody who
was jealous and did not want to see to be
happy with my success in the bank. And so having
to navigate that, realizing that everything that we had worked for,
everything was going to go out of the water, and
what do I do now with two children? We had
two little kids at the time, so that was also
(21:22):
very tough, very Unsteertay after they could atta in Liberia,
the government was taken over by what they call themselves
Revolutionary Council soldiers with high school degrees. They took over,
and then one of them coming to the bank wanting
me to compensate their cousin, saying that we had fired
(21:47):
a cousin wrongly. I did not fire somebody who was
there before me. And so you're fighting that. You're trying
to resist, and even though senior management of the bank
in New York says, go ahead, pay whatever they want,
your conscience is saying no, that's not the right decision.
So you try to do the right thing, but you
(22:08):
are running the risk of somebody coming doing damage to
you and to your family. So that was another very
difficult period time for us. But God saw us true
(22:28):
in terms of looking for a guidance, I can just
share an example. I did move from Kenya to Brazil,
but that decision was not a simple one of the
banks saying you've done whatever we wanted you to in
Kenya and I'll go to Brazil. The bank came and
said you can stay in Kenya or you can go
(22:49):
to the Philippines, you know, or you can go to
Brazil to oversee aspects of our business in South America.
And my wife and I did not want to go
to Brazil. So we said, let's pray. That's ask God
for guidance. And so we told God, We said, Lord,
(23:11):
it's between Kenya and the Philippines. Can you please tell us?
And we prayed and we prayed, and we had agreed
we would not tell each other whatever the Lord would
say that yeah, but we prayed two weeks nothing and
said maybe if we fast, God will hear our prayers.
(23:34):
And we fasted nothing. And then one day we realized
we are kind of restraining you know, the Lord. We're
telling him it's either Kenya or the Philippines. We're telling
him Brazil is out of the equation. So obviously God
wants us to put Brazil back on the table. So
(23:57):
it's okay, Lord, well that's all veryas word Kenya, Philippines
or Brazil. You know, you want to stay in Kenya,
and you know our second chance is Philip, can you
now guide us? And one day we had gone for
dinner at a friend's house. After dinner, my wife and
(24:17):
I get out We're walking in the friends garden holding
hands and we just turned to each other and we
almost instantaneously say it's Brazil, isn't it. And that was
how we ended up in Brazil, because you know, the
cad is so good. The Ambassador of Brazil dedicated one
(24:41):
of the staff members of the embassy told him make
sure that the transition of the Chibacca family from Kenya
to Brazil is small. He invited to his house to
give us some luncheon with Brazilian food and whatever and
put videos on to introduce us to Brazilan culture ambassador
(25:05):
all the country doing that.
Speaker 3 (25:07):
But why God's end or favor?
Speaker 4 (25:12):
My wife actually bought a number of the Jesus Calling books,
so we have one in our home that you know
she's been going through, and we have one in our
vacation home in ters Gecos Island for guests who stay there.
And she bought also twenty five books about a few
years ago that she distributed to her Bible study, the
(25:36):
Lady's Bible Study.
Speaker 3 (25:38):
So we are familiar with Jesus Calling just being in
his world.
Speaker 4 (25:44):
It's the daily devotions, it's Bible study, meetings with the
other followers of Christ, and sometimes there is a group
of friends that I have on my list. Sometimes we
kind of go through some devotionals together in the comments,
you know back, and so staying in the Bible and
(26:06):
staying attentive to whatever the Holy Spirit may be showing
me very important. And it doesn't say that I am
anywhere close to perfect or holly or anything like that,
because like most people, I am a cracked pot. I
(26:29):
am a leaking vessel, and I need to be refilled
by His Holy Spirit daily. And so reading the Bible
and being attentive to the promptings or the Holy Spirit,
and the meeting with others to study the Bible together
to pray, you know, in the various Bible study groups that.
Speaker 3 (26:50):
Helps, you know, keep us growing.
Speaker 4 (26:55):
I am going to be praying a prayer from Sarah
Young's prayer devotional Jesus listened, So let's pray, Dearest Jesus,
how wonderful it is to know that you are taking
care of me. When I am spending time with you,
(27:17):
enjoying the warmth and security of your loving presence, it's
easier to trust that every detail of my life is
under your control. The Bible affirms that everything fits into
a plan for good for those who love you and
(27:37):
are called according to your design and purpose.
Speaker 3 (27:42):
Because the world is in such an abnormal.
Speaker 4 (27:45):
Talent condition, it sometimes feels as if chances governing the
universe events seem to happen randomly with little or no
apparent meaning. But you've shown me that when I view
the world this way, I am overlooking a most import
(28:05):
with the fact the limitations of my understanding sub merge
beneath the surface of the visible world. There are mysteries
too profound for me to fathom. If I could actually
see how close you are to me and how constantly
(28:26):
you work on my behalf, I would never again doubt
your wonderful care for me. But your word instructs me
to live by faith, not by sight. Please help me
to trust in your mysterious, majestic presence, in your magnificent name.
(28:50):
Thank you, Jesus Amen.
Speaker 2 (28:54):
Be sure to check out Eight's new book, Son of
a Congo, A journey of tragedy, triumph and transformation, available
at your favorite retailer in February. If you'd like to
know more stories about how our darkest days can bring
hope to others, check out our interview with Alice Murrae Johnson.
(29:17):
Next time on the Jesus Calling podcast, we'll hear from
Ed Newton, pastor of Community Bible Church in San Antonio, Texas.
Ed shares how years of empathy and leadership eventually gave
way to a breaking point and how honesty, grace, and
listening to God's voice reshaped his understanding of strength.
Speaker 5 (29:34):
We're constantly hearing and listening and feeling, but when we
do not align our heart to what God says, who
is the ultimate voice, then it just conflicts really the directional,
navigational component of our life.
Speaker 2 (29:55):
Thanks for listening to the Jesus Calling Stories of Faith
podcast on the Live Audio Network. Every week we'll bring
you stories from people who share their journeys of faith
and how prayer and a relationship with God transformed their lives.
Be sure to follow us on Apple, Spotify, iHeart, or
wherever you listen to podcasts, and leave us a review
(30:16):
so others can be inspired weekly by these stories of faith. Finally,
you can find encouragement resources and more on the Jesus
Calling website at Jesus Calling dot com
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