Today's Heartlift with Janell
Sometimes the story we tell ourselves is not really true. Sometimes the story others tell about us is not really true. On "Today's Heartlift with Janell," Author, Trauma-informed, board-certified marriage and family specialist, and Professional Heartlifter, Janell Rardon, opens conversations about how emotional health and mental fitness effects absolutely every area of our lives. When we possess and practice healthy, strong, resilient emotional health practices, life is so much better. Read Janell's newest book, "Stronger Every Day: 9 Tools for an Emotionally Healthy You."
Today's Heartlift with Janell
324. Wherever You Are, Whatever You Have: It Matters To God
"Often, motherhood is when we need God the most and yet have the least amount of time to spend with Him. But just as we desire to love and meet the needs of our children, so our Heavenly Father longs to do the same for us. Too often our time limitations and the guilt that comes with them, keep us from his arms and his transforming power. But the truth is, God knows the seasons of your life and sees your heart" (Emily Assell).
On today's episode, Emily Assell, author of the children's board book When It Hurts: Comforting Promises for Hard Times and the devotional book Wherever You Are: Devotions and Declarations for Moms, opens a beautiful conversation about the hard yet joyous work of mothering.
Emily's story contains so much strength. Her heart and passion for God shine through this conversation and enliven the need to know God's Word and follow His Truth.
Read more about Emily and her passions: Generation Claimed
Order your very own copy of Emily's newest book(s): When It Hurts and Wherever You Are
Read more about Emily's publishing journey: My Writing Journey
Begin Your Heartlifter's Journey:
- Visit and subscribe to Heartlift Central on Substack. This is our new online coaching center and meeting place for Heartlifters worldwide.
- Download the "Overcoming Hurtful Words" Study Guide PDF: BECOMING EMOTIONALLY HEALTHY
- Meet me on Instagram: @janellrardon
- Leave a review and rate the podcast: WRITE A REVIEW
- Learn more about my books and work: Janell Rardon
- Make a tax-deductible donation through Heartlift International
As I've listened to the stories of thousands of women of all ages in all kinds of stages through the years, I've kept their stories locked in the vault of my heart. I feel as if they've been walking around with me all through these years. They've bothered me, they've prodded me and sometimes kept me up at night. Ultimately, they've increased my passion to reframe and reimagine the powerful positions of mother and matriarch within the family system. I'm a problem solver, so I set out to find a way to perhaps change the trajectory of this silent and sad scenario about a dynamic yet untapped source of potential and purpose sitting in our homes and churches. It is time to come to the table, heartlifters, and unleash the power of maternal presence into the world. Welcome to Mothering for the Ages, our 2025 theme, here on today's Heart Lift. I'm Janelle. I am your guide here on this heartlifting journey. I invite you to grab a pen, a journal and a cup of something really delicious. May today's conversation give you clarity, courage and a revived sense of camaraderie. You see, you're not on this journey alone. We are unified as heartlifters and committed to bringing change into the world, one heart at a time. To help us in celebrating mothering and mental health in May month. We have with us today prolific and popular author Emily Ossol. She has written this beautiful book called Wherever you Are Devotions and Declarations for Moms. She has also written many board books and we'll be talking about both. In her new book, wherever you Are, emily writes wherever you are, whatever you have, it matters to God. Often, motherhood is when we need God the most and yet have the least amount of time to spend with Him. But just as we desire to love and meet the needs of our children, so our Heavenly Father longs to do the same for us. Too often, our time limitations and the guilt that comes with them keep us from His arms and His transforming power. But the truth is God knows the season of your life and sees your heart. Yes, he does. Our few minutes are precious to God and when we give them to Him, they become more than enough. You need to hear that again. They become more than enough. You need to hear that again. They become more than enough. In her devotional Wherever you Are, emily brings us on a journey of discovering the power of declaring God's truth, and you know how we love that here. We love our intentions, our affirmations and declaring God's truth over your mama heart, your family, your parenting I'm going to add grandparenting and the life you've been given. There are over 100 devotions in this really beautiful coffee table type book and four chapters on declaring God's truth. I'm so excited to bring Emily to you today. Her words of wisdom are life-giving and I just can't wait. So let's welcome Emily to our table.
Speaker 1:Heartlifters. Hello and welcome to today's Heart Lift with Janelle and Emily. Today, I have already given you all the beauty of Emily's life and work, and we are just really here to ignite a newfound passion for the Word of God, yes, and the power of authentic faith. I think somehow it might be getting lost today, and so we are here for a revival, emily. Welcome, welcome, welcome.
Speaker 2:Yes, thank you for having me. I'm excited to be here and talk with you and all the people who are listening.
Speaker 1:Yes, we have a beautiful community of heartlifters that are committed to becoming all the things healthy and more than that, being the person that stands in the center of their spheres of influence, as illuminators, I shall say as wisdom, wisdom givers. And so you have this is your fourth board book. You have these powerful board books. Well, as a new grandmother to five in the last two and a half years, I said it again Heartlifters, because I had an overwhelming blessing come in my life. It is overwhelming in good ways and overwhelming in a lot of other ways Travel, fatigue, all those things. But you now I'm ordering them for all of my new grants because we are book lovers. And so your fourth book in the series is when it Hurts, and you have one of my favorite little creatures, seahorses, on the front. So I'm so excited about that, seahorses on the front, so I'm so excited about that.
Speaker 1:And drum roll, you have a adult book now coming out for the moms of those littles that read those books wherever you are. Devotions and declarations for moms Really really so necessary. Okay, you started something called Generations Claimed. When I read that and looked at it, what a powerful name for this series Generation, generation, singular Claimed. Where did that come to you?
Speaker 2:Yeah, you know. So the name Generation Claimed actually when I sat down to write our first board book. So we actually self-published way before we were picked up by a publisher. Actually, I shouldn't say way before the Lord, probably. We self-published. It was about a year process and then maybe about three months afterwards we were picked up by Tindale.
Speaker 1:Well, emily, that you know it just doesn't happen. Oh well, it did for you, but I am so curious as to why you decided to write a children's board book.
Speaker 2:Yeah, well, and I will tell you, it was not something that I was wanting or seeking out to do again. So I had seen the power of God in my own life. My husband and I had been through, and my kids had been through, some hard times bankruptcy, food stamps, living in basements. We had been through a lot of marriage issues. We had been through a lot of things that were hard in my own life and through that the Lord began showing me the power of declaring his word, how it had the power to change not only my situation but also really, as the word says, transform my heart. So I had known the power of the word of God and I was actually getting ready to throw a baby shower for my youngest brother's first baby, and I remember thinking, lord, I don't want to just give this baby a baby blanket or a stroller or a high chair, like I want to give him everything that your word says he can have. Every promise that you said in your word are yes and amen through Jesus and um, I have a bracelet that says yes and amen, amen, yes and amen, okay, um, yes and and and and. So, and that's what I was praying to the Lord, and the Lord told me you know, god calls me, we're tight like that. He said I want to give that to all of my children, not just you know, your, your future nephew-in-law. And so that's kind of where the idea for this book was born. God kind of kept giving me the elbow and I kind of kept being like someday, lord, someday, my baby's not sleeping through the night, I'm homeschooling, there's a lot of stuff going on, someday, someday, well, praise the Lord, his Holy Spirit is persistent and he does not give up on us.
Speaker 2:So for about six months, you know, kind of wrestling back and forth, had this idea in my head, you know, went on Google, and Google was like you can't write a children's book, it's too hard, there's no way people publish it. Started believing, you know, the word of Google over the word of God. And then, um, that'll preach, that'll. I mean, right, that says something it doesn't have to match up with anybody else. Um, so every year at the beginning of the year, my husband and I, uh, with our church, do a Daniel sass, so 21 days basically of just fruit and vegetables, and we were praying for direction that year.
Speaker 2:Um, and my husband will tell you he can still remember the window that he was standing at, um at the time in our double wide trailer, and he looked at me and he did what I hadn't done yet. He spoke the word of God out loud. He said God is telling me you're supposed to write a book. Now he had no idea that's what the Lord had been telling me, but just that, um, speaking it out in faith, then set off. I finally was like, okay, god, I give, I finally give, let's, let's do this. Um and so, when I was sitting down, before I started writing the book the book before I ran into Tyndale, before all of that stuff I sat down and I wrote out the vision that the Lord gave me and one of the last sentences said and it's still- in the books today that we would speak out loud the word of God over our children and together we can claim this generation for the Lord and for his kingdom.
Speaker 1:What? Where is that? Tell me, where that is.
Speaker 2:Uh, so it's in the intro, the letter um from the author from every book. Psalms 20, uh, talks about how the Lord claims the world, everything in it and all of the people in it. Um, and my husband read over it and he said that's it Generation Claimed. That's the name of our self publishing company. That's the long story of how Generation Claimed came to be long before all of the publishing world and everything else.
Speaker 1:Emily, what I love most is the unity. All right, you went through hell and back. That's a conversation I'd love to hear another time. Very encouraging that you came back. You're still married. You have your children intact. Praise be to God. You, the unity, right. I think that's what is so beautiful in marriage.
Speaker 1:If I can say for a moment married 40 years, going on 41. Wow, yeah and yes, it is such a victory and there's so much, so much in the old school. I was in a seminar yesterday and you know they were asking for you, know you to buy a product at the end and I just put in the chat. I really need to consider this with my husband.
Speaker 1:Well, no, you just do it and then ask him to support you, and every little alarm went off inside, you know, and I just thought that's just not how we roll. You know I'm not going to do that and say, hey, come along. Maybe that's okay in some couples, but for me it's not. And so I love. I just want to take pause because, you know, maybe you don't have a husband heart lifter, but there are friends that are deeply, that deeply influence you. I love it because Amos 3.3 says how can two walk together unless they're agreed? So your husband affirmed what you are already feeling and so it magnified. To me. It magnifies yes and amen, Because how can you walk together if you're not agreed? It's okay. I just wanted to say that, you know, and it's beautiful. So therefore, this self-publishing company, Generation Claim, was formed from Psalm 20. Beautiful, Thank you for sharing that. So you decide to self-publish. How do you do that? How do you do that?
Speaker 2:We always laugh and we say it was one. Yes, god, at a time, again, we looked up Google. It was very incredibly overwhelming. But God, and really the Holy Spirit, led us one step at a time. I look back and we did things the way that the Holy Spirit led us, and sometimes it didn't make sense. And now, on the other side, I've had people come and say how did you know to do it that way? How did you know to do that way? I didn't know anything, but the Holy Spirit knows. God knows all things. So, even though I didn't know everything about self-publishing, I knew how to hear the Holy Spirit and I knew how to follow that voice. So, yeah, my husband he's like a paperwork guy.
Speaker 2:So that looks like writing the book at night after my kids had gone to sleep and my husband was working nights. So that's kind of the first step and then saying, okay, now what let's pray about how do I get an illustrator? A lot of people and I remember praying Lord, who should it be? Who should it be? At the time, my brother was dating a girl and she had a job Actually, she designed websites for a living and the Lord told me, go ask her and I was like are you sure? So I talked to her and she's like oh, I don't really do that, that's not what I do. And I'm like no, no, no, you're wrong. God told me it was you. I didn't tell her that, of course.
Speaker 2:But I'm like well let's get together and pray about it. And she did the illustration, she came on board and you'll see, she and actually I have never heard of anybody else who has- ever self-published and they have kept the illustrations from this book, but she has done them.
Speaker 2:She did a beautiful job. So it's saying okay, yes, lord. It's saying okay, where do we? How do we invest money? Even when we decided to do this again, we were living in a double ride trailer. We had just come out of a lot of things and we had saved up the down payment for our house and it was time to buy books. It was time to start a website, it was time to do all the things and I remember being like that's the down payment to get out of the trailer park and my husband looked at me and said Emily, people spend tens of thousands on cars, hundreds of thousand dollars on houses. What would, what would you pay? What's it worth for one kid to end up in the kingdom of God?
Speaker 1:Who is this man you're married to?
Speaker 2:Oh, he's amazing, I love him. He won't be the first to tell you he, uh, he is not perfect, but he is, um, he is God's perfect person for me, um. And so we, and so we did, we, we took the money from the down payment of our house, um, and we turned it into books. But that's the Lord speaking right, and sometimes the Lord speaks to us. I believe again, like you talked about, in marriage, um, ideally, and I know not every marriage is in the same spot, not that we've been through easy times, but two become one.
Speaker 2:So if I'm not hearing from my husband, then I'm not hearing the whole picture right, and the body of Christ works the same. If I'm just the finger, I'm missing what everything else has to say. So the Lord led us into that. So really it was step-by-step and sometimes it was Google how do I find? How do I make an ISBN number? How do I do these? It really was. It really was like I said. It was one. Yes, god, at a time.
Speaker 2:I love that and sometimes it was falling and sometimes it was getting back up, but it was yes God, yes God.
Speaker 1:One, yes, god at a time.
Speaker 2:Yep so.
Speaker 1:Just a little pause here. Oh, my goodness, there's so much strength inside Emily's story Bankruptcy, marital issues, getting out of a trailer park which was important to her and her husband living in a double wide so much strength inside Emily's story because you know what, heartlifter, there's so much strength inside your story, so I just had to take a pause. I had a few questions that I'm asking myself and I thought well, let me invite you and we'll talk about it. You know where, where, over on Substack at HeartLift Central, and on Instagram at Janelle Reardon. Am I believing the word of Google over the word of God? Wow, guilty, front of the line, maybe just ask yourself that question. Yeah, and we could add am I believing the things I see on Instagram the perfect families, the perfect bodies, the perfect homes, etc. Am I believing that over the Word of God? Am I believing that over the Word of God? This is what I love about Emily's story is that she is really in touch with her father, his son, jesus and the Holy Spirit. And here on today's Heart Lift, we are too. We are followers of Jesus and our faith is very important to us, and so I believe that you're here because you really do want to grow in your understanding and be a wisdom giver of what God has to say about how to live our lives here. The second thing I thought was Emily had a desire right, and that desire led her to pray and led her to seek the guidance and counsel of the Holy Spirit, the third part of our Trinity.
Speaker 1:John 16 speaks of the work of the Holy Spirit. Maybe this is new to you, so maybe just take the time to read John 16, verse 1 through 15. All this I have told you. This is Jesus speaking so that you will not fall away. They will put you out of the synagogue. In fact, the time is coming when anyone who kills you will think they are offering a service to God. These are the latter days of Jesus's time here on planet earth. Verse three they will do such things because they have not known the father or me. I've told you this so that when their time comes, you will remember that I warned you about them.
Speaker 1:I did not tell you this from the beginning because I was with you, but now I am going to him, his Father in heaven, who sent me. None of you asked me where are you going? Rather, you are filled with grief, because I have said these things, but very truly. I tell you that very truly is verily. Verily, and it means this is really true. It is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the advocate this is the Holy Spirit will not come to you, but if I go, I will send him to you. This is the Holy Spirit. I'm going to the Father, where you can see me no longer.
Speaker 1:And about judgment, because the prince of this world now stands condemned Verse 12. I have much more to say to you. I love that More than you can now bear. But when he, the spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own, he will only speak. He will speak only what he hears and he will tell you what is yet to come. He will tell you what is yet to come. Do you hear that? Wow? 14. He will glorify me because it is from me that he will receive what he will make known to you. It's a chain of command. I love it. The download, oh my goodness. He will glorify me because it is from me that he will receive what he will make known to you. All Circle that, all in verse 15,. All that belongs to the Father is mine. That is why I said the Spirit will receive from me what he will make known to you.
Speaker 1:I don't know about you, heartlifter, but man, when I do take the time, like right now, to read those words out loud, like right now to read those words out loud, they do something inside of my brain, inside of my neural pathways. I felt courage rising, I felt strength, I felt hope and, most of all, I felt courage. I felt a dare to believe and a dare to really look into my desires and seek the Holy Spirit on behalf of them. My third question to myself, which I'm proffering to you, is find someone who will Amos 3.3 with you. Can two walk together unless they be agreed? Maybe, like Emily said, you don't have a husband, a partner, someone in your life that will be your cheerleader in that way? Well, pray, seek, knock, right, ask, seek, knock for someone to come alongside.
Speaker 1:And finally, as Emily said, her journey was one yes, god, at a time. What are we saying? Yes, god to? Today? Just one thing One movement forward, one acceptance. Today, I let go of something that's been deeply troubling me and, with the help of a guide. I let it go. One yes at a time. That's all our father asked, ask, okay, meet me over Heart Lift Central on Substack Instagram at Janelle Reardon or on our Facebook group Today's Heart Lift with Janelle. Let's get back to this amazing conversation.
Speaker 2:Even when I ran into Tyndale, god was like go get the book and that's not how it works. But it was. I know it is not how it works.
Speaker 1:It's not how it works.
Speaker 2:No, your story.
Speaker 1:When you read the story. Yeah, you've got to read the stories. Heartlifter, yeah, it's uh. Um, I think what you are igniting the word and we prayed beforehand was ignite, and I guess maybe it's just for me igniting your passion for God, for really living a life of collaboration with the Trinity, like you are. Just, there's no other way for you.
Speaker 2:Like.
Speaker 1:I love seeing this passion that you have. It truly is you. You know god calls me m right, you know, we're that close. It was a. It's so adorable. It's like well, what do you call me, god like? I don't want a nickname, you know. It's like, yeah, it's so intimate and accessible and inextricable from your life and marriage and I, I would suspect it is because you went through the dark valley you know of. That's near death, the dark night of the soul, as we've been talking about here. So you go to Tyndall. That story happens. Your self publishing now becomes publishing. Okay, we're on book four.
Speaker 2:I want to know why, when it hurts, that's the title I want to know why when it hurts that's the title why when it hurts and why now? Yeah, um, you know, we, I had come up a lot of hurt in my own life, right, um, I, because of COVID, I had gone through my grandma passing and dealing with um. My grandpa and her were getting ready to celebrate their 70th anniversary and he was in the hospital. He wasn't there when she passed the day before her funeral. He had a stroke and I argued with the hospital administrators. They didn't even want to let me into the hospital so I could sit with him and we could zoom into her funeral. That's pain.
Speaker 2:I volunteer with an organization called Love Moves Us, which they do work with children who've been fostered and adopted, and hearing some of those stories it's, it's heart wrenching what they've been through. And and this sounds so silly, but it's the truth is that and then we went through a season where my daughter's turtle died and that's painful for her as a five year old. So it's hurt, big hurts, little hurts, hurts for kids, hurts for me. And I came into this place of how do I deal with pain? Biblically right, what does God really say about pain? How does he really deal with it and then saying if this is how God treats pain right, how do I use that then to treat others who are in pain? How do I then relate to other people, and especially with kids? It's easy to brush things off.
Speaker 2:It's easy to say it's not a big deal, it's a turtle, or it's hard to sit with kids who have been fostered and adopted and there's not an easy quick fix or an easy quick answer, and I feel uncomfortable sitting in that, so to say, especially in children. What does that really look like? What is the really biblical way that God meets with us?
Speaker 1:And then how do we use that to meet with others the same yeah, so true, I do not have a physical copy, but I wonder if you might just read us the introduction, like read the beginning of when it hurts. It's a picture children's book, so maybe you can read the whole thing. I don't know, not the whole thing, but yeah let me, let me read.
Speaker 2:I'm going to read the letter from the author and then I'll read like a page.
Speaker 1:Yes, perfect, I love it here's the letter from the author.
Speaker 2:Here's my part.
Speaker 1:behind, I hear the brokenness in your voice, emily, and I almost called you M because we're that tight now, but I just love that's so authentic the agony in your voice and your heart. You know the care. Thank you for being such a beautiful caregiver.
Speaker 2:Okay, amen. So it says Jesus knows our hurts. He is described as a man of sorrows who is acquainted with deepest grief Isaiah 53.3. When he was made flesh, living as we do, he cried out in pain to the Father with startling rawness. And during one of his most memorable sermons, jesus taught that those who grieve are blessed because they will be comforted by God himself Matthew 5, 4. My prayer is that this little book will journey with you in your pain and that through it you will be able to be comforted by God himself. And then again it ends with speak out loud the word of God over your children. Together we can claim this generation for the Lord.
Speaker 2:So I'm going to read two of the pages in here. Every page of our book has a declaration, but then it has a Bible verse that goes along with it. So you're reading scripture right over kids. So it says precious child, when it hurts so bad, it's okay to be sad. Ecclesiastes 1, excuse me, ecclesiastes 3, 1 and 4 says there is a right time for everything. There is a time to cry and there is a time to be sad. The next one says courageous one. When it hurts so bad, you can tell me everything. Psalm 62, 8 says pour out your heart before him. That is a safe place for us.
Speaker 2:And then I put three verses in here about Jesus and some of the things that he said. Luke 19, 41 through 42 says Jesus wept and he said if only. Mark 14, 36,. Jesus cried out please take this cup of suffering away from me. Matthew 27, 46 says Jesus cried out with a loud and agonized voice my God, my God, why, why? You go ahead? No, you go ahead. I think some of the things that Jesus says we maybe might not even be comfortable saying or be comfortable letting other people say. And so again, those are just the first two pages of the book, but I'm believing it's a journey to be able to say it's okay, god will meet you there, god will love you there and there is still hope. God will meet you there, God will love you there and there is still hope. I'm hoping that not only our children, goodness gracious, feeling the heart of God, but it also is instructing us, as parents and caregivers, how to have those conversations and have our words mirror God's words to those kids that we love.
Speaker 1:Yes, because I think this might ruffle some feathers, but you know it's the father heart and the mother heart of God. You know he's both and he is a nurturing presence, as mothers are. You know he created us with this incredible capacity for nurture and so we have to nurture ourselves first, which is why I know that you wrote the devotional and declarations for moms. But what I felt while you were reading that? Because I am a passionate post-first grade teacher, I have taught children of all ages and stages and there is nothing more powerful than a children's book. In my humble opinion.
Speaker 1:Would I love to write them. Oh yes, you know, it's like they're just as nothing, that board book. I just encourage every one of my heart lifters to get that and use it as your own, your own little devotional for a week or a month, because just reading the introduction that you read, well, that is something to soak in Read Psalm 20, soak in that you know and then open it up to page one.
Speaker 1:I couldn't go beyond page one when you were reading it because I do have a lot of sadness and grief inside of my heart and I just feel like, yes, it's for children, it's for toddlers, preschoolers, yes. And I just feel like, yes, it's for children, it's for toddlers, preschoolers, yes. But every time I read a children's book you know now to my little grands, you know I am getting way more affected than they are, and so I just encourage everyone to purchase these. I just was in the elevator coming out of the doctor yesterday with an 88-year-old woman and then probably a woman my age, in her 60s, and we had a moment. I thought the woman was with the 88-year-old and helping her. But then the 88-year-old woman said I just lost my husband, and then the 60-some woman said I just lost mine. She starts to weep and we walk out and it was like I wish I had had that book for both of them.
Speaker 1:It's kind of like a Corrie Ten Boom keep the books on you, because she would keep them on her and give them out. So that's just a little aside there. When it hurts because we all meet people that are hurting every day and I think the board book would be such a clever idea I wish I could rewind yesterday and give them both that book, you know because, how amazing would that be for someone to have that in such a time of grief.
Speaker 1:And a children's book just gets down on our level and as simple you have to be succinct when you write children's books. Right, you have to choose those words.
Speaker 2:Yes, yes, so so you only have nine pages. Yes, nine pages, and however many words per page it's. And again the Holy Spirit has been so good to lead me and say we can cut that out, make sure you put this in, and you know, again, it's his heart. And then we're always so shocked, like well, somebody was like did you know that this lines up with research and psychology and I'm, like we're always always so surprised, Like, oh my goodness, the Bible lines up Like of course God created us, of course he understands us, Of course he knows better than we do.
Speaker 2:So we shouldn't be surprised and shocked when the research that we're seeing lines up with the word of God. But it is amazing because he knows us. He made us.
Speaker 1:He did and he gave us a mind, he gave us emotions, and you are, I would say, an ambassador, an evangelist, in all the right ways, for speaking the word of God over your children. I certainly did it because back in my day, I, you know, we spiritually bypassed everything, went to prayer, we really didn't talk, we didn't know about how to handle emotions and mental health, and all that just wasn't in the conversation. It's better today, so I can do it with the grands, but I'm guessing, where and how did you make this transition into the big girl book, big book, you know, like, wherever you are, devotions and declarations for mom, because the word of God is important to you, and so speak it. You've been through hell and back, so you spoke it. You've seen God be faithful, you know the Holy Spirit is real, and so now, why did you decide? I think this is time for the big mom, you know the mamas. Okay, heartlifters, we are going to just take a pause. Okay, heartlifters, we are going to just take a pause. I'm going to break this into two parts because I want to give us some time to consider the questions that I put out to us earlier and talk about them over on Heart Lift Central and on my Instagram at Janelle Reardon, and on Facebook Today's Heart Lift with Janelle. I really want to hear your thoughts. Please meet me there. If you have trouble and don't know how to get to Substack, you know where to find me. Send me an email, janelle, at JanelleRaredencom, and I will help you navigate the sub stack puzzle.
Speaker 1:I'm going to close with Psalm 20. Emily and I referenced it a couple times May the Lord answer you when you are in distress. May the name of the God of Jacob protect you. May he send you help from the sanctuary and grant you support from Zion. May he remember all your sacrifices and accept your burnt offerings. May he give you the desire of your heart and make all your plans succeed. May we shout for joy over your victory and lift up our banners in the name of our God. May the Lord grant all your requests.
Speaker 1:Verse five is why I named my son Grant. Now this I know the Lord gives victory to his anointed. He answers him or her from his heavenly sanctuary with the victorious power of his right hand. Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord, our God. We trust in the name of the Lord, our God. They are brought to their knees and fall, but we rise up and stand firm. Lord, give victory to the King. Answer us when we call.
Speaker 1:It is my deepest desire that you know how much God loves you. He is real, he is listening, he sees you, he knows you, he is watching your every move and, most importantly, hears you when you call out to him. Our greatest offense and defense in the whole world of emotional, mental, relational health is knowing and hiding the word of God deep into our hearts, because then it will permeate into every nerve cell and ending in our body. I have lived it for well. Over four decades. I have spoken God's word over each of my children's lives and now I'm speaking it over my beautiful five grandchildren and those yet to come. I hope today is an invitation to revival, personal revival of your own passion for getting out your Bible, opening the pages and at least reading today the verses in John 16 and Psalm 20. Stay tuned for part two. It's coming your way this Friday.
