Sometimes people don’t reject God.

They reject the version of God they were handed.

In this episode of People Finding God, Carolyn shares what it was like to walk away from the noise, expectations, and labels surrounding God...only to discover that maybe He was never the one she was leaving.

We talk about the difference between religion and relationship, why healing often begins within, and how reconnecting with ourselves can become a pathway back to the divine.

Whether you've always believed, questioned everything, or are somewhere in between, I hope this conversation reminds you that God isn't afraid of your questions.

Sometimes the journey back to Him begins the moment you're honest enough to ask them.

Sometimes the trials that shape us don’t come with answers.

For Ellie Anderson, what started as a few unusual symptoms during high school turned into years of uncertainty. Blisters in her mouth and throat were only the beginning. As the symptoms multiplied, doctors struggled to explain what was happening, and Ellie found herself facing not only physical challenges, but anxiety, isolation, and depression.

At an age when most teenagers are discovering who they are, enjoying life and being social….Ellie was learning how to navigate a body she could no longer fully trust.

Despite her health challenges, Ellie continued serving others through an HXP service opportunity. She learned discipline in ways most young people never have to. She learned to adapt, to persevere, and to trust God one day at a time. Through tennis, basketball, and eventually track, she discovered that while her body had limitations, her spirit was becoming stronger. 

Her hard work eventually earned her a spot competing at the collegiate level. But when the opportunity came, Ellie chose to put college track on hold to serve a full time LDS mission instead, a decision that reflected the deeper race she had been running all along.

Ellie shares how suffering became sacred ground, how God met her in the unknown, and why some of life’s greatest blessings can come wrapped in trials we would never choose for ourselves.

This is Ellie Anderson’s story of finding God.

 

Host: Sierra Isaac

Editor: Adrienne Quintana

From a young age, Matt learned how to survive. Growing up in difficult circumstances, fighting became his way of protecting himself and navigating life.

As a young adult, he moved to Hawaii, where he felt called to serve a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. While serving in Australia, Matt received devastating news: his father—his mentor and greatest influence—had been diagnosed with cancer and given six months to live. After praying, fasting, and seeking God's guidance, Matt made the difficult decision to remain on his mission.

When he returned home, he was given an unexpected gift—six additional months with his father. That miracle became the beginning of a lifelong pattern of recognizing God's hand in his life.

In this episode, Bishop Matt Dorough shares how God has guided him through loss, hardship, and even a life-threatening surgery. His story is a powerful reminder that faith doesn't remove our trials—it changes the way we walk through them.

If you've ever wondered whether God is aware of you in your hardest moments, this conversation will leave you feeling hopeful, strengthened, and reminded that miracles still happen.

 

Host: Sierra Isaac

Editor: Adrienne Quintana

Autumn Willinger grew up surrounded by faith, service, and religious community. Raised Baptist and immersed in spiritual life from a young age, she eventually faced a defining choice: stay within the life she had always known or step out on her own. After choosing independence, marriage, motherhood, and eventually divorce, Autumn found herself living life on her own terms—only to realize something was still missing. In this episode of People Finding God, Autumn shares her journey through spirituality, loss, freedom, community, and ultimately finding her way back to God through the love of women, belonging, and her baptism into The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.   Host: Sierra Isaac Editor: Adrienne Quintana

Tracy Lloyd’s story isn’t about a sudden, life-changing moment, it’s about something quieter, and maybe more relatable. Raised in a loving Lutheran community, Tracy always knew of God, but her life took a different shape than she expected. She was intentional about her path—dating her husband for years, wanting to take her time with marriage, and feeling certain she didn’t want children. When her husband returned to his LDS faith, Tracy didn’t rush to follow. Instead, she allowed herself space. Through small moments of service, community, and being welcomed again and again, something began to shift. There was no pressure. No overwhelming experience. Just subtle, consistent feelings that slowly guided her to a place where she could recognize God and trust the path she was on. This episode is a reminder that God doesn’t always rush us. Sometimes, He meets us quietly, patiently, and exactly where we are.

Host: Sierra Isaac

Editor: Adrienne Quintana

In Part 2 of my conversation with Whitney, she shares how some of life’s hardest seasons became the place where faith grew deeper. Through personal health challenges, family trials, and watching loved ones suffer, Whittney reflects on what it means to keep going when life feels heavy. She opens up about her niece’s devastating accident that led to paralysis, and how her own experience navigating surgeries and complex medical care helped her guide and support her family during an overwhelming time. Later, after moving to California, she faced another unexpected battle when she was diagnosed with breast cancer. In the middle of fear and uncertainty, she was lifted by the love of her community and felt God’s presence in a deeper way than ever before. This episode is about resilience, faith in the dark, and discovering that even in suffering, love can carry us.   Host: Sierra Isaac Editor: Adrienne Quintana

Whitney shares a deeply moving story about finding God not after the hard moments, but right in the middle of them. She opens up about the terrifying day her young daughter fell from a second-story window and the fear that rushed in as everything changed in an instant. In the middle of the panic and uncertainty, Whitney felt God speak peace directly to her heart—assuring her that her daughter would be okay. She also shares what it was like carrying the emotional weight of that season while pregnant with her fourth child. The stress felt heavy, the unknowns felt overwhelming, and the burden at times seemed too much to carry. Yet through it all, Whitney experienced the steady presence of God who did not leave her in the scary parts. This is Part One of Whitney’s story. Join us next week for Part Two as she shares more of what God was doing through the healing, the aftermath, and the faith that continued to grow.

Host: Sierra Isaac

Editor: Adrienne Quintana

Gwen’s story begins at 13 years old with a simple but life-changing truth: she was already seen, known, and loved by God—exactly as she was.

But knowing that and believing it are two very different things.

For years, Gwen felt like she needed to earn that love—to be good enough, to prove herself, to do everything right. And just as she was preparing to serve a mission and step fully into who she thought she needed to be, everything changed.

She became critically ill and was hospitalized with sepsis, spending time in the ICU and facing a level of physical and emotional hardship she had never known. In the middle of that experience, her plans were put on hold. Her mission call was delayed, and the life she had carefully prepared for no longer looked the way she expected.

But through it all, Gwen held onto something deeper than her circumstances.

She chose trust.

And four months later, when her mission call finally came, it meant something entirely different than it would have before.

This is a conversation about surrendering and what it looks like to discover that God’s love isn’t something you earn—it’s something you uncover, especially when everything else falls away.

 

Host: Sierra Isaac

Editor: Adrienne Quintana

Ella was a typical teenager—full of life, movement, and dreams—until one moment changed everything.

After passing out in the shower, hitting her head and sustaining a serious brain injury, she began a long and uncertain journey through doctors, setbacks, and isolation. At one point, she had to leave school completely and found herself in a wheelchair, unsure of who she was becoming.

But in the middle of losing so much, something unexpected remained.

Through music, dance, and performance, Ella began to feel glimpses of herself again. What once felt like everything slipping away slowly became a space where God could meet her—teaching her patience, trust, and a deeper kind of strength.

This is a conversation about resilience, identity, and what it looks like to find God—not when life is easy—but right in the middle of everything falling apart.

Erin grew up in Southern California in a strong, loving family rooted in faith. Life was full of the kinds of memories many people dream about...camping trips, skiing, boating, and parents whose example made it easy to follow the path they taught. Her faith felt natural and steady, and when she later married the boy she had known in high school after reconnecting at BYU, life seemed to continue unfolding just the way she had always imagined. But Erin describes much of that time as “floating.” Life was good, but she hadn’t yet been pushed to truly lean on her Savior. That began to change when her husband’s work took their family to Miami, Florida. There, Erin was called as a Relief Society president in a largely Spanish-speaking stake, a calling that stretched her in ways she had never experienced before and required her to rely on the Lord more deeply than ever. Eventually their family returned to San Clemente, California, and life again felt comfortable and familiar. But after the birth of her third child, Erin began experiencing debilitating anxiety and panic attacks that lasted for years. The struggle left her questioning her place at church and wondering where she belonged spiritually. After months of being absent from church, she realized something painful—almost no one had noticed she was gone. Except one person. That moment became a turning point. It led Erin to discover a deeper, more personal understanding of the Savior and the Atonement, not just as a principle of repentance, but as a living experience of grace. Through every challenge, Erin has come to know one unshakable truth: she is loved by her Savior, no matter what.       Host: Sierra Isaac Editor: Adrienne Quintana