When we think about our problems, it can sometimes look like things are only happening to us. Our struggles may appear one-sided or like God has left us to deal with it on our own. But when we draw near to God, He plants people in our lives to show us that our pain is not meant to be carried alone. And when He does that, we have a comforting reminder of a God who will never leave us nor forsake us. 

Pastors Jimmy and Irene Rollins have a passion to reach all people for God, no matter their background, ethnicity, or life circumstances. As they dreamed of building a diverse congregation, the stress of being leaders of a growing church began to negatively impact them both, and Irene took to coping with alcohol. They share how together, they faced her addiction and the problems that made it come to a head. Author of Confronting Christianity Rebecca McLaughlin shares why it’s important to encourage young people to dig into the Word of God. She believes that reading the Bible with her children and helping them work through their questions helps them make sense of their faith, and also teaches them a way to live that is steeped in compassion for others.  

 

Links, Products, and Resources Mentioned:

Jesus Calling Podcast

Jesus Calling

Jesus Always

Jesus Listens

Past interview: Deb Liu

Upcoming interview: Luke Weaver

 

Jimmy and Irene Rollins

Two Equals One

Great Commission

Alcoholism 

Romans 8:28 NIV

PTSD [Post-traumatic Stress Disorder] 

www.twoequalsone.com

Love Outside the Lines 

Reframe Your Shame

 

Rebecca McLaughlin 

Confronting Christianity: 12 Hard Questions for the World's Largest Religion 

10 Questions Every Teen Should Ask (and Answer) about Christianity

Cambridge University

Veritas Forum

Harvard University

Yale University 

University of Oxford

www.rebeccamclaughlin.org 

Exploring the Earliest Gospel: A Kids Bible Study on Jesus and His Good News

 

Interview Quotes:

“We felt like God put on our hearts that if we were going to reach a diverse city, we were going to have to have a diverse church.” - Jimmy Rollins

“We got accountability that helped us get to the space of needing to get healthy and to get help. And then as we began to get healthy, we stopped doing the dance of shaming one another and judging one another. And we started to embrace the fact that we both needed grace.” - Jimmy Rollins

“We began to look at addiction as not something that I was doing to Jimmy, but rather something I was doing to really medicate pain. And as we began to develop new ways of communication, new ways of embracing pain and grief. We began to approach healing and we did it together.” - Irene Rollins

“Connecting with God on a daily basis, a moment-by-moment basis, was a lifeline for me in the beginning of my recovery. And as a leader, as a mother, as a child of God, it is my lifeline still. It was a non-negotiable and still is in my recovery journey.” - Irene Rollins

“Divorce has no color. Alcoholism has no socioeconomic temperature. Grief is colorblind. And what we've discovered is that as we begin to stay transparent with our story, as we begin to steward the path of where we are to this greater purpose, pain has been the unifier.” - Jimmy Rollins

“It seemed like Jesus provided the most satisfying way of looking at the world, the most satisfying way of understanding my relationships, my intellectual life, my personal life. And I just never looked back from that point.” - Rebecca McLaughlin

“Every seeming roadblock to faith in Jesus, when you look more closely, becomes a signpost.” - Rebecca McLaughlin

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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 

Enneagram:     https://bit.ly/3hzRCCY 

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