Sacred Story Podcast

Erica shares about marrying her "first love" and embracing her new life which she hoped would grow into the ideal Christian family. She describes to Laura the warning signs which came several years into marriage, signaling her marriage was unraveling. Despite efforts to remain true to each other, their relationship continued to be marked by betrayal, hurt, and confusion.  Erica shares how God gave her wisdom to navigate her relationship with a husband who wouldn't choose her over his addiction and how she found peace to move forward. She explains the wholeness she received as she healed. This conversation will encourage every woman who finds herself feeling helpless when someone she loves is in a destructive spiral, despairing when her dreams are dashed, and longing to be the woman God designed her to be. Do you have a story of hope to share? Gather friends for a Sacred Story Retreat. 

Wendy attended a Sacred Story Retreat with a group of college friends where she reflected on God's work in her story. She shares with Laura how her relationship with her mother-in-law began with so much promise and yet unfolded in misunderstanding, hurt, and estrangement. Wendy describes how the tension began, what traumatic events caused a severing of the relationship, and how she and her husband navigated difficult dynamics. She also offers hope for anyone who is experiencing distance from a loved one when she shares how her relationship with her mother-in-law has been restored. Wendy's story Be Reconciled is an amazing example of how God takes the messiness of relationships and makes something beautiful. You will be encouraged! And we  count it a gift when you share the Sacred Story podcast with others. 

Emily describes how she found herself unable to return to normal life due to a debilitating health struggle, and how she leaned into the Lord. When her healing did not manifest as expected, her heart moved from a posture of demanding from God to a greater surrender than ever. Emily describes how God delivered and healed her in more ways than imagined. Emily's story Not One Scar can be found in the Sacred Story library. Gather a group of friends to enjoy a Sacred Story Retreat as you deepen friendships and reflect on God's faithfulness in your stories. 

Stephanie and Aaron serve the refugee community in Greece. They are part of lending the heart and hands of Jesus to those who have fled their countries due to persecution, hardship, and war.  Many come from Muslim backgrounds and are receiving the message of the Gospel with curiosity and joy. Stephanie and Laura talk about her personal story including her struggles with loneliness and the unknowns of living abroad. She also shares the ways joining in God's harvest is an adventure, and encourages listeners to labor wherever they find themselves.  

Laura and Becky begin the conversation with Becky hiding in her early years which contributed to her feeling unseen. Becky shares about brokenness as our human experience. She witnessed deficits in her parent's lives and felt the effects in her life. She shares more about processing pain in a person's upbringing, and at the same time, she looks back on her parent's struggles with empathy and increasing love.  Becky vulnerably talks about messing up in parenting, struggles with jealousy, and her pursuit to be kinder to herself. Laura asks her about our need to risking and the benefits which come from doing so with the Lord. One of the risks Becky took is to enter the stories of men and women involved in sex trafficking.  In her work with ICAP Global, she "stepped on the neck of evil" by following God's calling to show His love. Becky describes what a story workshop is like at the Allender Center along with other resources for reflecting on  a person's story. Laura shares what joy and insight she received by re

Laura's conversation with Judy Douglass is full of rich insight from a Christ follower who has experienced God's faithfulness through many chapters. Judy shares about coming to faith and those who helped her grow. She talks candidly about her struggles to want her own way and how she responded to life events including a broken engagement and the adoption of her son Josh. Judy imparts life giving wisdom about giving thanks, surrendering dreams, investing in the lives of others, and hearing God. To hear more visit JudyDouglass.com where she shares with "realness" how God is meeting her. Judy and Laura also talk about how she comes alongside those who are waiting for a loved one to surrender to the Lord through the Worldwide Day of Prayer for Prodigals on June 2nd and Judy's devotional When You Love a Prodigal. Judy recommends Lori Joiner's Bible studies as a great resource for discipleship.  Having worked with Cru for over two decades, Laura talks about how connecting with Judy and being involved in the ministr

Courtney Garrett, the creator of the 101: Christianity Series, talks with Laura about how she came to faith in Christ and how her passion grew for investing in others through discipleship.  She explains her heart behind the resources she wrote on exploring the basics of the faith and discovering the character of God. Laura and Courtney talk about the Living Your Story study they co-authored relating to every chapter in a woman's story.  Each of these resources offers Christ followers a launching place for going deeper in the basics of the faith and helping others do the same.  Laura and Courtney talk about seeking out a discipleship relationship, ideas for launching a Bible study, and working through barriers of initiating. Laura asks Courtney about stories of changed lives and both celebrate the  joy of seeing the Great Commission carried out through the lives of believers who take steps even when "doing it scared." 

Laura's conversation with Erika begins with a crossroads in Erika's story. Erika and her husband found  themselves in a deficit in their finances and yet Erika felt led to talk more about hope in Jesus to her clients at her hair salon. Laura and Erika discuss what it means for her to risk bringing the hope of Christ into her conversations when she didn't know how her clients would respond and whether her boldness would cause her to lose business. Erika shares stories of lives she's seen changed by the power of the Holy Spirit and the wild adventure of being on mission.  Erika's also explains the deep pain she's experienced through the loss of children and how sharing her pain while living life alongside people brings Jesus into focus. Laura and Erika talk about the enemy's tactics to keep believers from speaking up and practical ways to help people know Christ personally. 

Laura's conversation with Teresa Snow begins with Teresa sharing how she came to faith in Jesus Christ while in high school.  Teresa's experience as a teenage girl who  grew in her faith from those who discipled her gave her a deep conviction to do the same for others. Teresa and Laura talk about being alongside others in life, and how to enter into their stories with love and a word of hope. This powerful conversation also includes making the most of opportunities to plant seeds and how to bridge to the Gospel when the opportunity arises. Laura asks Teresa about barriers to reaching others and yet there's great encouragement through this conversation to take the next step even when feeling inadequate and fearful. Teresa talks about her personal experiences in broaching discipleship with women and stories of how she's seen God move in the lives of those around her. As resources, Teresa recommends 99 Questions to Create Space to Talk with People, EveryPerson.com for those who have questions about faith,  Every

Betrayal by someone you love leaves a deep wound. Lisa shares her story of finding God's restoration in a devastating place where she thought she'd never overcome her past. She shares her struggle to forgive, not only the people who hurt her but also herself.

Laura and Taeler talk about the source of the attacks Taeler faced through social media. Taeler describes how the affects of her battle on her mentally, physically, and spiritually and the sources of intervention she sought. When she came to the end of her resources, she pours out her heart to the Lord and begins the continuing journey of working through bitterness and anger. She talks about helpful ways people responded and the tendency of people to skip over lamenting with those who suffer. Laura and Taeler talk about recovering intimacy with the Lord as well as what it means to forgive someone when there's ongoing hurt and consequences.  

Laura and Sarah talk about damaging messages she received growing up  which made her feel like she didn't measure up or needed to project a certain image in order to be accepted. Sarah shares examples of the words spoken by her mother which emphasized the priority of her appearance and weight. Over time, Sarah's began to believe lies about herself, God, and others and shares the lies including how believing them affected her social, spiritual, and emotional life. Sarah's path to healing included turning to the Lord to receive His view of her, taking her hurt to Him, pursuing counseling, and being in community with friends and family who could encourage her. Sarah's prayer to see her mother as God does brought further restoration as her mother confided in her about painful things in her past which were not dealt with. The beauty of ongoing restoration of what the enemy intended for evil and the rebuilding of their relationship within healthy boundaries round out the conversation. Sarah shares the healing she r

Laura talks with Autumn Crew about her journey of coming to faith in Jesus as a young woman who  found safe people to process her doubts and questions. She shares her story of being called into the battle against sex trafficking in Cambodia and the Middle East. Working in Iraq during the height of the refugee crisis, Autumn talks about facing personal safety, addressing the needs of the vulnerable, and learning how to protect against and prevent trafficking. Through this conversation, the complexity of trafficking and the fight against the forces of darkness are brought to life. Autumn and Laura celebrate the joy of God's deliverance and healing in individual lives who are transformed.  

Laura talks with Ashlee whose story of turning to Jesus while in college and discovering God leading her to reach out to Muslim women in the Middle East is highlighted in Episode #7. In this conversation, Ashlee shares an exciting personal update as well as a ministry update about how God is growing His church Iran. Even though believers face hardship and persecution, the Spirit of God is moving in amazing ways. Highlighting God's greater story around the world  reminds us that we live in the midst of a grand epic. Reviews are our friend so we'd love for you to leave a review for the Sacred Story podcast so others can know their story matters and God's greater story is unfolding around the world. 

Laura's conversation with Melanie begins with Melanie sharing her story of a growing friendship which caused her heart break when her friend pulls away. She describes how the friend let her into her life and seemed to embrace shared beliefs about God and the walk of faith. When the friend decides to take a path that was in contrast to her former stance, the result is hurt and wounds from the interaction. Melanie reflects on managing expectations in friendship and examining motives for giving to others.  When there's shared Biblical conviction among sisters in Christ that a friend chooses to ignore, the disparity can cause hurt and misunderstanding.  Melanie and Laura talk about the powerful temptation to compromise in the area of sexual purity and how women can live this out in a world which promotes the opposite.  The conversation wraps up with Melanie describing how she moved through hurt and found a place of peace including wisdom in how to respond when someone wounds you and doesn't realize it. Visit the

Laura asks Suzan about her struggle to conceive. After giving birth to a beautiful and healthy girl, Suzan describes her emotional and physical  roller coaster including feeling disconnected to her newborn and being unable to sleep and cope with regular life. She discovers she is battling postpartum depression and seeks God's wisdom through medical intervention. Suzan describes some unhelpful responses from people even though unintentional. She also offers insight about how to support someone who is battling depression and how to think about God when depression is debilitating. Laura and Suzan's conversation includes planting seeds about the chapters of women's stories when interacting with others. Visit the Sacred Story website to read Suzan's story called Post Partum Panic and make a donation to receive a care package. A care package includes a printed copy of Suzan's story, a guided journal, Scripture cards, a bookmark, and a pen. Give a care package as a gift to yourself as you process your story or give

Laura talks with Paige about her beautiful story of her world turning upside down when she loses her husband  to cancer as a mother of two young daughters and a third on the way. Paige describes how God met her in her grief and in the unknown of what the future will look like. She talks about her crisis of belief to stand on the promises in the Word of God when there's temptation to shut down and blame God. Paige and Laura talk about walking through loss and coming alongside those who are grieving. Another unexpected turn in Paige's story brings about a new chapter of beauty which she could never have imagined. Visit the Sacred Story website to read Paige's story called Just A Regular Mama. Make a donation of any amount to receive a care package for yourself or a friend. A care package includes a guided journal, Scripture memory cards, a pen, bookmark, and a printed copy of Paige's story. Purchase the Bible study Living Your Story: 10 Biblical Principles That Matter on Amazon. Reviews are our friend and we'd

Laura's conversation with Michelle begins with her story of coming to faith as a college student. Michelle describes her life change and being introduced to God's greater story around the world. Her course took an unexpected turn when facing a time of transition in her career and realizing God is leading her to move overseas. Michelle shares about the barriers to making such a big leap such a finances, language barrier, peoples' perceptions, and learning to get along with the "handful of Americans" she worked alongside. Michelle and Laura discuss the reality of fear and feelings of inadequacy when sharing faith in Jesus with others including being equipped and how to think about serving God when there are not a lot of "results." This turning point in Michelle's story becomes a launching pad for a new dreams and direction from the Lord. Visit the Sacred Story website to read more stories of life change and how the Greatest Story Ever Told is changing lives each day. Keep in touch with Sacre

Laura talks with Amber about her disillusionment after meeting and marrying her husband while they both attended seminary. She shares her struggle to relate as they faced tension on even small things - like where to put the bread! Amber describes her emotional connection to another man which became something she felt like she couldn't be without. Her story continues with how the Lord met her when her marriage was dead and how she pursued wholeness. The conversation between Laura and Amber includes the difficulty of a spouse who doesn't want to look at himself/herself and the fear of being stuck. Amber's story is a beautiful example of God's grace and power when life feels impossible. Visit the Sacred Story website to make a donation and receive a care package with Amber's story contained in it. Place the words "Amber's story" in donor notes. A care package includes a guided Sacred story journal, book mark, pen, and Scripture cards ($30 value with shipping and handling). Stay in touch with Sacred Sto

Helpless, frightened, confused, and frustrated. Addiction threatened to claim Laura's daughter while she and her husband struggled to know how to support her. Laura shares how their efforts to help became futile as their entire family experienced pain and fear; then the battle of making the decision to enlist the help of a treatment center. Laura describes how her faith and trust in God grew as she found a new place of surrender in the unknown. The conversation includes the reality of offering to God those we love, speaking hope in the middle of chaotic circumstances, and responding when the loved one doesn't seem to want help. Visit the Sacred Story website to make a donation and receive a care package with Laura's story contained in it. Place the words "Laura's story" in donor notes. A care package includes a guided Sacred story journal, book mark, pen, and Scripture cards ($30 value with shipping and handling). Stay in touch with Sacred Story on Instagram, @sacredstoryministries.