Challenges Won't Stop Me

Today's episode is based on one of Maya Angelou's quotes. She said, "We all should know that diversity makes for a rich tapestry, and we must understand that all the threads of the tapestry are equal in value no matter what the color."

I believe these wise words point us to an image we cannot deny. All the colors of ethnicities make for a rich tapestry - the tapestry of the human race. 

My guest is my friend, Christina Custodio. We discuss why it's important to see color. And why diversity is beautiful. We tackled what may seem a tough conversation. I agree. It can be a tough conversation.

But as we've seen time and time again, not communicating widens the divide. The bridge to unity among ethnicities can be built IF we communicate and truly seek to understand.

It's time for us to have the tough conversations. It's time to heal.

If you'd like to connect with Christina, you can find her on Facebook and Instagram. You can also visit her website at www.christinacustodio.com.

  If you'd like to get a copy of She Writes for Him: Black Voices of Wisdom, you can order it HERE. 

Send me a COMMENT or QUESTION!

THANK YOU FOR LISTENING!

Want to leave a comment about this episode? Click HERE!

As an author, avid reader, and fan of paper planners, I was excited to interview fellow author, avid reader, and fan of paper planners, Bethany Jett, who has an allergy to paper. Oh, the irony!
 
 Bethany Jett is an author, marketer, ghost writer, and co-owns Platinum Literary Services and Serious Writer, Inc. Learn more about Bethany at bethanyjett.com.
 
 While writing her book, Platinum Faith, with co-author, Michelle Medlock Adams, Bethany suffered with extreme dryness in her hands. Unbeknownst to her, her affinity for paper, reading books, paper planners, and stickers for her planner were causing her skin to break out. Finally, a doctor diagnosed her with colonophy, an allergy to rosin, which is found in paper products and most plastic products.

Before and after her diagnosis, her social media posts were hilarious as she took a light-hearted, humorous approach to the zigzags (struggles) she faced.

Bethany discussed her book, Platinum Faith, on this episode.

In the book, she and co-author, Michelle Medlock Adams, describe twelve properties of platinum, show how those properties are also characteristics of a strong faith, and point out Biblical characters who demonstrate those properties.
 
 The twelve properties of Platinum that describe a strong faith:
 1. All-In
 2. Useful
 3. Can Withstand the Heat
 4. Precious
 5. Rare
 6. Shines Brightly
 7. Created to Bond
 8. Malleable
 9. Resists Corrosion
 10.  Its Presence Is Weighty
 11. Has Worth
 12. Responds Instead of Reacts
 
 Platinum Faith is available at all retail and online book sellers. Order your copy today!

Send me a COMMENT or QUESTION!

THANK YOU FOR LISTENING!

Want to leave a comment about this episode? Click HERE!

Sometimes life is a series of trials that never seem to end. You make it through one and manage to take a deep breath just before the hints of another one come into view, right? Those consecutive hits can leave you feeling discouraged, frustrated, and worn out.

Trials test us. Trials often push us past what we think we can endure. AND trials are power packed with purpose IF we are willing to be transformed by them. 

Roman philospher, Seneca, reminds us of the purpose of those never-ending trials: "A gem cannot be polished without friction, nor a man perfected without trials."

If it's hard to see the purpose in the trials you're currently facing, perhaps hearing what Page discovered were the purposes of her trials will encourage you. 

In this episode, Page Geske, shares about the seemingly never ending trials she's faced: anorexia, recovering from a horrific car accident, divorce, colon cancer, and having her daughter decide to become a transgender man. Through each of these trials, she encountered God who took her through the refining fire yet showered her in His unfailing love and an indescribable peace.

Connect with her story and want to learn more? I encourage you to pick up a copy of her book, "Milepost 95: From Wreckage to Redemption."

Visit Page's website at milepost95.com. You can invite Page to your next book club, to speak at your next event, or chat with her about your struggles by emailing her at [email protected].

Send me a COMMENT or QUESTION!

THANK YOU FOR LISTENING!

Want to leave a comment about this episode? Click HERE!

Raise your hand if you like food.  Me, too! We know we need it to fuel our bodies, but food does so much more. It comforts and numbs us when we're struggling. What fun are celebratory occasions without food? We consume it when we're bored. Connecting with others often involves sharing food. 

To complicate matters, if you have a food addiction, it's not something you can completely eliminate like you can alcohol or drugs. 

The road to freedom for a food addiction has to be about a mindset change. It has to be about changing your lifestyle.

My guest on today's episode of the Zigzag & 1 podcast, Sara Fisher, shares her journey with food addiction. Get a glimpse of the daily struggles with something we MUST have to survive. Sara reached a point where she let others in and admitted she had a problem. Those actions were crucial in finding freedom from a food addiction. From there, she changed her mindset. And her lifestyle.

In our conversation, Sara shares the wisdom she's gained. She explains the benefits of the healthy living lifestyle she's now living.

Sara is a professional organizer. Need help organizing your space or your life? Reach out to Sara at asimplespace.net. Additionally, she is a Health & Well Being expert!

Send me a COMMENT or QUESTION!

THANK YOU FOR LISTENING!

Want to leave a comment about this episode? Click HERE!

Since March of 2020, the world's been "schooled." Our classes have been challenging. We're not just taking the on level version either.

We've been thrown into the most advanced classes of how to stay healthy so as not to get COVID (Health), how to stretch our money as far as possible when the income dwindles (Economics), how to set up an office or classroom in our home (Home Ec), and how to live during a catastrophic worldwide event that is history in the making (History). No course description is needed for our last class (Government), because, well, who could sum up that craziness in five words or less?

At this point, most of us are weary and just want to shout, "Enough already!" The tests we've faced have been like the extra credit word problems on a test. Who even knows how to solve them? 

My guest, Robin Luftig, faced the biggest test of her life. One which didn't allow for any time to study or prepare. Weird symptoms sent her to the Emergency Room. Tests revealed she would need a life-altering surgery in ten days to remove a brain tumor.

Imagine if you were given ten days to "get your affairs in order." You're smart. You can read between the lines and know that means those could be your last ten days. What do you do during those ten days?

What Robin did those ten days between her diagnosis and surgery is shared in her book, God's Best During Your Worst.  You'll learn how she can proclaim, "A faith that is tested by fire is a faith that can be trusted."

Visit Robin's websit at robinluftig.com.

Her books, Ladies of the Fire, God's Best at Your Worst, God's Best During Your Worst Guided Journal, and Learning to Bloom Again: Walking Through Forgiveness After Divorce can be found whever books are sold. 

Send me a COMMENT or QUESTION!

THANK YOU FOR LISTENING!

Want to leave a comment about this episode? Click HERE!

Wow! It feels as if JOY has been sucked out of our world this week. The danger is getting stuck here. If JOY seems to be absent, it's imperative we purposefully look for it as a continued absence of joy will defeat us.

Pause for a moment and think of five people/places/things that bring you joy. That wasn't hard was it? Focus on those when difficult circumstances seem to overshadow any good in this world.

My friend, Adria Wilkins, had reason to lose all hope of experiencing joy again after her three-year-old son, Blake, passed away. Could she be joyful when her pain and grief was so great? She will tell you she found joy all around her in the friends who prayed for Blake, the beauty of God's creation, and the love Blake lavished on his family during his short but meaningful life.

You may not have experienced the loss of a child, but learning how to LOOK OUT FOR JOY when your circumstances are challenging is what you'll hear throughout this episode! 

Listen to learn how to get your name in the drawing to receive a copy of Adria's book, The Joy Box Journal!

Adria Wilkins is the author of The Joy Box Journal and has a podcast called Joy Box Stories. You may contact her at joxboxstories.com if you'd like her to speak at your next event.

Send me a COMMENT or QUESTION!

THANK YOU FOR LISTENING!

Want to leave a comment about this episode? Click HERE!

I'm looking out my window, watching the neighbors walk by with their dogs. Two boys on their bikes rode by, laughing with their heads thrown back at who knows what. The trees swaying signals a breeze that caused me to grab a jacket on my way out. The flag on my mailbox is down, reminding me our postman, Todd, picked up our outgoing mail today and likely left a pleothera of campaign ads and bills behind.

Neighbors. Dogs. Boys on bikes. Laughing. Cool breeze. Jackets. Mailman.

All seemingly normal things. Hardly noticed prior to March 2020. But now? I find it's the little things that remind me of life before COVID especially meaningful. In fact, those things cause gratitude to fill my heart and leak out of my mouth.

Have we stopped to express our gratitude for these things lately?

I think of myself as a grateful person, but reading Janice Kaplan's book, The Gratitude Diaries, made me aware of many other ways I could show my gratitude. Her year-long "experiment" of being intentional about expressing gratitude transformed her life. It transformed her marriage. Her relationship with her sons. How she viewed her work. How nature was an antidote to stress. How stopping to be grateful for the food she ate helped her savor her food instead of just eating to curb the hunger. Those really are big transformations!

She also learned to appreciate the big and small things she already had instead of always seeking to have the next new shiny thing. She shared, "we must find the joy in what we have."

Visit janicekaplan.com to learn more about her. Listen to "The Gratitude Diaries" podcast on your favorite podcast app.

Her books:
The Genuis of Women, The Gratitude Diaries, How Luck Happens, A Job to Kill For, Looks to Die For, The Men I Didn't Marry, Mine Are Spectacular, The Botox Diaries, I'll See You Again, A Morning Affair, Wild Nights, Whole Truth, If You Believe in Me, First Ride, Women & Sports

Send me a COMMENT or QUESTION!

THANK YOU FOR LISTENING!

Want to leave a comment about this episode? Click HERE!

I interviewed my guest, Elise Tedeschi, several weeks ago. As I waved goodbye, my first thought was how much I wanted to publish her amazing story right away.

The positive mindset she relied on as she fought the beast known as pancreatic cancer is incredible, but learning how God rocked this Jewish girl to the core is a story you don't want to miss! 

Those diagnosed with pancreatic cancer are given a dismal prognosis, usually months to live and a 5% chance of surviving five years. This fighter ignored those statistics, and she is not just surviving eight years later, she's thriving!

"I didn't choose to get cancer and I didn't choose to go through this, but I do get to choose my attitude. I choose to be happy and live my life!" Elise shared. 

Elise appreciates and makes the most out of every day as she KNOWS every day is a gift! I wonder . . . do you see every day as a gift?

Send me a COMMENT or QUESTION!

THANK YOU FOR LISTENING!

Want to leave a comment about this episode? Click HERE!

2020 has been a challenging year for everyone I know, including me. Being overwhelmed with the incessant stream of information about COVID-19, struggling with the growing divide in our country concerning race relations and politics, and feeling disconnected from those we love is causing each of us to struggle with our mental health.

But for those, like my guest Diane McDaniel, who have a mental illness diagnosis, the last six months during the pandemic has only amplified their struggles. Diane shares her journey and the ongoing zigzags (struggles) she faces as she fights daily for her mental health. 

Maybe you know someone who is struggling with anxiety or depression or suicidal thoughts right now. Diane offers suggestions of ways we can reach out, encourage, and support them during this very challenging time. 

Each time Diane falls and then makes a comeback, she proclaims, "God isn't done writing my story." I couldn't agree more as she has gained much wisdom and compassion that will teach all of us about loving and caring for those who have mental illnesses. 

If you'd like to read her story, go to www.melonybrown.com. Type "No Casserole Illness" into the search bar to access her two part overcomer story. 

Send me a COMMENT or QUESTION!

THANK YOU FOR LISTENING!

Want to leave a comment about this episode? Click HERE!

Everyone I know is experiencing a hard time (in one way or another) thanks to this pandemic. It's easy to get caught up in our struggles and how they are impacting our lives. No stones being thrown here as I've often done this myself. But I wonder if we could love one another better during hard times. 

My friend, Susan Kent, joined me on this episode to share how she received love and support from friends and family during the hardest time of her life. Her husband, Nimish, was killed in a plane crash, leaving her a young widow and mother of a 4 1/2-month-old son. They sat with her, cried with her, and helped care for her son while she grieved her husband's tragic death. It was during those long and painful months that Susan realized how much she learned when she received the gift of her friends and family carrying her to the feet of Jesus. 

Since then, she's been determined to be a "mat carrier" for others who are hurting. When she sees friends or family hurting during their hard times, she gives the gift of carrying them to the feet of Jesus, so they can soak in Jesus' love, comfort, and healing.

Let's receive -----> then give. 

Contact Susan at [email protected] to purchase her Bible studies - Courageous Living, Living Hope, and Forged in Friendship - or to invite her to speak at your next event.

Send me a COMMENT or QUESTION!

THANK YOU FOR LISTENING!

Want to leave a comment about this episode? Click HERE!