This episode has been a while in the making! We were told in February that we would need to find another space to host the Hoping Forward day program and the Hangouts. We searched and had several potential spaces fall through right up until 2 weeks before we needed to vacate the one we were in. This is the story of the amazing way God provided.

I hope you are enjoying this podcast! If you are, please follow, rate and review wherever you listen to podcasts and share it with your friend and on social media so that it can reach more people. The purpose of this podcast is to glorify God and help others to see what He is doing in their lives.

Want to tell me your God story? I'd love to hear it and share it on the podcast (either you can tell it yourself, or I can relay it). Send me an email at [email protected] or reach out on the⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Hoping Forward Podcast Facebook page⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ 

Keep looking for God in your story!

Hope Heals Camp is the place I have felt closest to God for the past 7 years. It is the place that God softly whispered to me to start this podcast, start a gathering place (the Hangouts) for adults with disabilities, start Hoping Forward day program as a way for people to find purpose and serve, … God has also used camp as a place of healing and encouragement for me. It is the place that I learned to draw close to God and just how much He loves me.

This year, we did not win the lottery and get into camp. Others will have the opportunities I have cherished to be in that sacred space, and I’m OK. I’m thankful for the opportunities I have had in the past and others I will have in the future. This year I am trusting that God has a different blessing planned, and I’m surprisingly OK with that. I’ll be praying for all the families and volunteers that are there this summer, and I’m sure there will be a twinge of jealousy when I start seeing all the pictures, but Sarah and I are OK. I will look forward to future camp weeks. And I will thank God for bringing me to the place of being OK and having peace.

I hope you are enjoying this podcast! If you are, please follow, rate and review wherever you listen to podcasts and share it with your friend and on social media so that it can reach more people. The purpose of this podcast is to glorify God and help others to see what He is doing in their lives.

Want to tell me your God story? I'd love to hear it and share it on the podcast (either you can tell it yourself, or I can relay it). Send me an email at [email protected] or reach out on the⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Hoping Forward Podcast Facebook page⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ 

Keep looking for God in your story!

Christmas Eve 2024 my van's transmission died and I bought a "new to me" vehicle all while we were visiting family in Florida (we live in Georgia). Though it was a very stressful time, I am able to look back now and see God's clear hand of protection on myself and my daughter. He provided what we needed and took care of us very well!

I hope you are enjoying this podcast! If you are, please follow, rate and review wherever you listen to podcasts and share it with your friend and on social media so that it can reach more people. The purpose of this podcast is to glorify God and help others to see what He is doing in their lives.

Want to tell me your God story? I'd love to hear it and share it on the podcast (either you can tell it yourself, or I can relay it). Send me an email at [email protected] or reach out on the⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Hoping Forward Podcast Facebook page⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Keep looking for God in your story!

This is a very vulnerable episode for me. In it I discuss past struggles and how God has shown up in them and changed my life without me even asking Him. He is so good to take care of us in that way! He has a plan for your life too and it doesn’t include any addiction, obsession or sin that consumes us. He can heal you and restore your life if you let Him and want Him to. 

The Bible verse mentioned in this episode was Jeremiah 29:11 (my personal favorite). “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”

I hope you are enjoying this podcast! If you are, please follow, rate and review wherever you listen to podcasts and share it with your friend and on social media so that it can reach more people. The purpose of this podcast is to glorify God and help others to see what He is doing in their lives.

Want to tell me your God story? I'd love to hear it and share it on the podcast (either you can tell it yourself, or I can relay it). Send me an email at [email protected] or reach out on the ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Hoping Forward Podcast Facebook page⁠⁠⁠⁠ Keep looking for God in your story!

This is the second of two episodes I recorded at Hope Heals Camp 2024 in Nauvoo, Alabama. Hope Heals is an amazing place full of hope, acceptance, inclusion, and God's love. It is where the lines blur between serving and being served, ability and disability. It is like a week of heaven-practice! If you are interested in learning more about Hope Heals Camp or their other ministries, check out the Hope Heals website or reach out to me; I love to talk about it!

This is the first of two episodes I recorded at Hope Heals Camp in Nauvoo, Alabama. Hope Heals is an amazing place full of hope, acceptance, inclusion, and God's love. It is where the lines blur between serving and being served, ability and disability. It is like a week of heaven practice! If you are interested in learning more about Hope Heals Camp or their other ministries, check out their ⁠website⁠ or reach out to me. I love to talk about it!

Jordan Gollnick is a precious young woman who was at camp all four weeks this summer. I met her at week 4, after she had been a volunteer for the first three weeks. Jordan graduated last May with her Master's from Liberty University in Lynchburg, VA. She loves hugs and loves to pray for people. If you would like to contact Jordan, she is on social media at https://www.facebook.com/jordan.gollnick.

I hope Jordan's story helps you see some things that God has done in your life. He cares for each of us and works in amazing ways throughout our lives. We should all keep looking for Him in our stories!

If you would like to tell me your God story, you can reach me at the ⁠Hoping Forward Podcast⁠ Facebook page or at [email protected]. I'd love to hear it and share it with others!

In this episode I share another way that God has taken care of me recently. I call these "God hugs" and they are so precious to me as they are constant reminders of how much God cares for me (and all of His children) and takes care of even the small details of our lives. Enjoy!

In this episode, I get to chat with my pastor, Dr. Tim Riordan. Dr. Tim is the lead pastor at Sonrise Baptist Church in Newnan, GA. He is also a father, grandfather and an author. Pastor Tim has written several books, both non-fiction and fiction. I think my favorite is Songs from the Heart: Meeting with God in the Psalms. You can learn about him, his ministry, his books and connect with Pastor Tim at his website. I hope you enjoy this episode and I look forward to having Pastor Tim on the podcast again in the future!

I recorded this episode while my daughter, Sarah, was away at a respite house and it reminded me of respites/breaks I used to get when my roommate, Natasha would watch Sarah while I went and stayed in a hotel for a weekend. During one of those stays, I wrote Sarah a letter detailing her early life and all the amazing, miraculous things God had done to make us a family.

After listening to the recording, I realized that I had gotten some of the earliest dates wrong in the letter, but decided against correcting them for the podcast because none of them change the Glory of God on display in Sarah's early life. I have gotten permission from Sarah to share her story on the podcast and even to share the typed copy of the letter. If you would like a copy of the letter, send me an email at [email protected]. I am happy to do it and Sarah and I both hope her story helps you to see God a little more clearly in your story!

Have you ever found yourself in a deep darkness? A time when you felt defeated, lost, hopeless? This episode discusses the value of the darkness in the way it helps us notice and appreciate the goodness of God when we see it. I hope you will listen and think about what God has been doing in your life.