Justin Greenfield is joining Melinda Patrick on The Bridge Between Us Podcast.

In Part One, Justin shares a portion of his testimony.

If you would like to understand the root issues of homosexuality, hear a few testimonies of those who now live a life beyond homosexuality through Christ and wisdom, or connect with healthy resources that address homosexuality check out godloveshomosexuals.com If you're seeking spiritual direction, ministry consultation, would like to discuss a speaking engagement with Justin Greenfield, or would like to hear more about and support his ministry work go to greenfieldministries.com Also, here are a couple to the study led by Vanderbilt University researchers on the adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) of homosexual individuals which Justin mentioned on the podcast: Synopsis from Vanderbilt https://www.vumc.org/health-policy/LGBTQ-mental-health-adverse-childhood-experiences-research Full Article: https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamapsychiatry/fullarticle/2789482 (Note that the synopsis does not include the ACE that I mentioned on the show - incarcerated household member. It is only in the full article.)

June can feel especially heavy for Christian parents navigating the complexities of loving a child who identifies as LGBTQ while also holding to biblical convictions.

In this episode, Melinda Patrick offers compassionate encouragement for parents who feel caught between truth and relationship, conviction and compassion, grief and hope.

This conversation is not about fear, outrage, or culture wars. It is about staying anchored in Jesus — emotionally, spiritually, and relationally — while walking a difficult parenting journey with humility, wisdom, and faithfulness.

Melinda reminds parents that culture should never disciple our emotions more than Christ disciples our hearts.

You will learn 7 ways to stay anchored:

1. Don't panic.
2. Stay in prayer instead of control.
3. Keep relationship where possible.
4. Stay rooted in Scripture.
5. Watch your tone.
6. Allow yourself to grieve honestly.
7. Remember God loves your child more than you can imagine.

Mentioned in This Episode

• Piercing the Night by Lindsey Kiser
• Charles Spurgeon
• Dutch Sheets
• Still Faithful mini-series
• Episode 117 of The Bridge Between Us

Encouragement for Parents

As Pride Month unfolds:

• stay close to Jesus
• stay rooted in Scripture
• stay humble
• stay faithful

The Gospel is still powerful. The Holy Spirit still moves. And Jesus is still drawing people to Himself.

You are not alone in this journey.

Keep abiding. Keep trusting. Keep re-presenting Jesus.

Resources & Next Steps

• Listen to previous testimonies on The Bridge Between Us
• Begin the Still Faithful mini-series starting with Episode 117
• Subscribe to Melinda's newsletter for ongoing encouragement and equipping
• Stay tuned for the upcoming mini-series: Walking Wisely, beginning July 1
• Restored Hope Network annual HOPE conference - June 12-13 - Colorado Springs, CO

After months of walking through grief, surrender, shame, boundaries, courage, renewal, and unresolved pain, we come to one final question in the Still Faithful series:

Can new life still come from this?

In this closing episode, we talk about hope — not the kind that demands immediate answers or guaranteed outcomes, but the kind that trusts God is still present and still capable of bringing life, even in difficult and unfinished stories.

This conversation is for the parent who feels weary, uncertain, or afraid to hope again. It is a reminder that redemption does not erase pain, and that God often brings restoration in quieter and deeper ways than we expect.

As this series comes to a close, we also begin looking ahead toward what it means to walk wisely through ongoing relationships, emotions, and decisions with greater steadiness and discernment.

In this episode, we explore:

• Why painful parenting seasons can make hope feel fragile • God's pattern of bringing life from places that feel barren • Why redemption does not minimize or erase grief • What "new life" may actually look like in unresolved stories • Learning to entrust both wounds and hope to God • How healing often begins in the parent, not just the circumstances • Transitioning from survival into wisdom and grounded living

Reflection Questions

• Where do I long to believe that new life is possible? • What might resurrection look like in my story — even in small ways? • What am I willing to entrust to God again?

A Gentle Reminder

Healing is not only about what happens around us.

Sometimes healing begins in how we stand:

Steadier. Softer. Wiser. More grounded in God.

Looking Ahead

In the upcoming Walking Wisely series, we'll begin exploring:

• How to discern God's voice when emotions are loud • How fear and guilt shape parenting decisions • Emotional steadiness in difficult relationships • Grounded, faith-filled decision-making • Learning to move forward wisely in unresolved situations

Because faithfulness is not only about surviving hard seasons.

It is also about learning how to live wisely inside them.

Support

If you're realizing you want help living this out in real life — not just listening to it — coaching is available to support you as you discern your next faithful steps with greater clarity, steadiness, and wisdom.

You can learn more at www.melindapatrick.org

For more information on Restored Hope Network's HOPE 2026 Conference: HOPE

Mother's Day can be beautiful — but for many mothers walking difficult parenting journeys, it can also feel deeply tender.

While others are celebrating, many moms are quietly carrying grief, estrangement, worry, disappointment, exhaustion, or unanswered prayers connected to their children.

In this special Mother's Day episode of the Still Faithful series, we talk honestly about the emotional weight many mothers carry and the hope God offers in the middle of unfinished stories.

This conversation is a gentle reminder that painful seasons do not make you a failure — and that your motherhood is not defined only by what is hard.

If this day feels complicated for you, you are not alone.

In this episode, we explore:

• Why Mother's Day can stir grief and emotional pain • The invisible weight many mothers quietly carry • A different kind of hope for unresolved stories • Gentle reminders for mothers who feel weary or discouraged • Why your child's choices are not the full measure of your motherhood • God's care for the mother who has been carrying so much

Reflection Questions

• Where have I been carrying more than I was meant to carry alone? • What would compassion toward myself look like today? • What has God sustained me through that I haven't stopped to acknowledge? • Where might God be inviting me to receive His care again?

A Gentle Reminder

You are allowed to grieve what is hard. You are allowed to rest. You are allowed to experience joy.

And your child's story is not the full measure of your motherhood.

Connect with Melinda: [email protected]

Related previous episodes:

Gretchen Stockman: Help For The Parent Who Is Estranged

Episode 27: Hope and Encouragement For All Moms

For more information on the HOPE 2026 Restored Hope Network Conference: HOPE 2026

After walking through pain, courage, renewal, and joy, many parents find themselves asking a new question:

What does faith look like now?

Not before the hardship. Not once everything is resolved. But here — in the middle of an unfinished story.

In this episode of the Still Faithful series, we explore what it means to live out your faith in real, daily ways when life still feels uncertain. This conversation reframes faith as something active and present — not something we pause until circumstances improve.

If you've been waiting for clarity before moving forward, this episode will gently remind you that faith is not about waiting for resolution, but about how you live and walk with God in the in-between.

In this episode, we explore:

• Why faith is not just waiting, but a way of living • What it means to walk with God in the middle of uncertainty • How faith matures in the in-between, not after resolution • The difference between faith that deepens and faith that hardens • What everyday, lived-out faith can look like in this season

Reflection Questions:

• How has my faith changed through this season? • What practices help me stay anchored now? • What kind of believer am I becoming?

A gentle reminder:

Faith is not something you pause until life improves. It is something you live inside the uncertainty.

Support:

For many parents, this is the point where something begins to shift. You may find yourself wanting to move from simply understanding these truths to actually living them out with clarity and consistency.

Coaching offers a space to process what God is doing in your life, discern your next faithful steps, and stay grounded as you continue forward.

You can learn more at www.melindapatrick.org

Connect with Melinda: [email protected]

For more information on Hope 2026 at Focus on the Family in Colorado Springs: www.restoredhopenetwork.org

After a long season of grief, uncertainty, and emotional weight, joy can feel complicated.

Many parents find that when moments of lightness or happiness begin to return, they are quickly followed by guilt. It can feel wrong to experience joy when your child's story is still unresolved.

In this episode of the Still Faithful series, we talk about what it means to rebuild joy without betraying the pain. This conversation offers permission to experience joy again — not as a replacement for grief, but alongside it.

If you've been hesitant to receive joy, or unsure how to hold both sorrow and hope at the same time, this episode will gently remind you that both can exist together.

In this episode, we explore:

• Why joy can feel uncomfortable or even inappropriate in hard parenting seasons • How grief and joy can coexist without canceling each other out • Releasing guilt around happiness • Understanding that joy can actually strengthen your faith • God's delight in His children experiencing life, even in difficult seasons

Reflection Questions:

• Where do I feel guilty enjoying life right now? • What brings me joy in this season — not before, not someday, but right now? • How might allowing joy actually strengthen my faith?

A gentle reminder:

Joy does not mean the pain didn't matter. It means God is still present.

Closing Encouragement:

You are allowed to experience moments of joy, even while your child's story is still unfolding.

Joy is not a betrayal of love. It is often what sustains it.

Connect with Melinda: [email protected]

For more information on coaching sessions with Melinda: Coaching

For information regarding the Hope 2026 Conference hosted by Restored Hope Network.

When a parenting story remains unresolved, courage can feel difficult to define. Many parents believe courage means having answers, confidence, or certainty about the future. But faith often asks something different.

In this episode, we explore what courage looks like when the outcome is still unknown. Rather than dramatic strength, courage in these seasons is often quiet — choosing to stay open, continuing to trust God one step at a time, and showing up in love without guarantees.

If you are navigating uncertainty in your relationship with your child, this conversation offers reassurance that courage does not require certainty. Sometimes courage simply means continuing to walk with God in the middle of the story.

In this episode we explore:

• The difference between courage and certainty • Why trusting God daily is more sustainable than trying to trust Him with the whole future • What it means to show up with love even when outcomes are unclear • How courage in painful parenting seasons often looks quiet rather than dramatic

Reflection Questions

• What am I afraid to hope for right now? • Where might God be inviting me to trust Him one step at a time? • What might courage look like in this season of my life?

A gentle reminder

Courage may not look like being strong.

Sometimes courage looks like staying open before the Lord.

Connect with Melinda: [email protected]

www.melindapatrick.org

Thank you for sharing this episode and Still Faithful Series with other families.

After long seasons of grief, uncertainty, and emotional exhaustion, many parents find themselves in a kind of spiritual winter. Life has been focused on carrying, praying, waiting, and holding tension.

But sometimes, quietly, something begins to change.

In this episode of the Still Faithful series, we talk about what it looks like when God begins inviting you back into life again. Not with pressure or urgency, but with gentle renewal.

This conversation explores spiritual winter seasons, the slow timing of renewal, and how to notice the small stirrings of life that God may be awakening in you. If you've felt emotionally dormant or unsure how to move forward after a long season of carrying so much, this episode offers reassurance that renewal does not require rushing or forgetting the past.

God often restores life slowly — and slow restoration is still real restoration.

In this episode, we explore:

• Why spiritual "winter" seasons are a natural part of faith • How God often brings renewal quietly and gradually • The difference between rising again and rushing forward • Noticing the gentle stirrings of life after a season of dormancy • Why renewal does not erase love, concern, or the past

Reflection questions:

Take these slowly. There is no pressure to resolve anything quickly.

• Where have I been emotionally dormant? • What feels like it may be beginning to stir in me? • What would it look like to say "yes" to life again — slowly?

An important reminder:

Renewal does not require forgetting the past. It simply means allowing God to grow something new alongside it.

You are allowed to experience life again even while your child's story is still unfolding.

Support:

For many parents, renewal can feel unfamiliar after long seasons of carrying pain and uncertainty. If you're sensing new stirrings but feel unsure how to move forward with wisdom and steadiness, coaching can be a space to discern those invitations.

You can learn more at www.melindapatrick.org

In difficult parenting seasons, it's easy to focus entirely on your child's needs while quietly neglecting your own. Over time, the emotional weight can become heavy — even if you appear steady on the outside.

In this episode of the Still Faithful series, we turn the focus gently toward the parent who has been carrying so much. This conversation explores what it means to care for yourself without guilt, to rest without abandoning hope, and to remember that you are not only a steward in this story — you are also deeply loved by God.

If you've felt depleted, spiritually tired, or unsure how to replenish your own heart while still loving your child faithfully, this episode offers steady reassurance and practical next steps.

In this episode, we explore:

• The invisible emotional load many parents carry

• Why strength does not eliminate your need for care

• The difference between self-care and soul-care

• Signs you may be emotionally or spiritually depleted

• Practical ways to begin restoring your capacity

• The theological truth that you are not only the steward — you are also the beloved

Reflection questions:

• Where am I most depleted right now?

• What would true rest look like for me in this season?

• What am I allowed to receive?

• If I believed God cared about my well-being too, what might I change?

An important reassurance:

You are allowed to experience peace even if your child's story is unfinished. Your rest is not abandonment. Your joy is not betrayal. Your steadiness is not indifference.

Caring for yourself does not mean you love your child less. It often means you love better.

Support:

If you're unsure what healthy rhythms of restoration look like for you — or if guilt makes it difficult to prioritize your own well-being — coaching is available as a space to discern next faithful steps with clarity and support.

You can learn more at www.melindapatrick.org.

When parenting feels uncertain or painful, the desire to control outcomes can quietly take over. Not because we are manipulative — but because we care deeply.

In this episode of the Still Faithful series, we explore what it truly means to let go of control without letting go of love. This conversation gently separates responsibility from outcome, and invites parents into a posture of surrender that is steady rather than anxious.

If you've found yourself rehearsing conversations, managing reactions, or carrying the weight of your child's choices, this episode offers reassurance: control is not the same as care — and releasing outcomes does not mean releasing love.

In this episode, we explore:

• Why control often feels like responsibility for parents

• The emotional exhaustion that comes from managing outcomes

• The difference between surrender and withdrawal

• How love changes when control loosens

• Trusting that God is at work beyond what you can see

Reflection questions: Take these slowly — there's no pressure to resolve anything today.

• Where am I trying to manage outcomes?

• What fears sit underneath my need for control?

• What would it look like to entrust this area fully to God?

• How might my posture shift if I believed God loves my child even more than I do?

A practice for this week: "God, I release what I cannot control. Help me love without grasping. Help me trust without managing."

Surrender is not a one-time decision. It is a posture we return to again and again.

An important reminder: Letting go of control does not mean letting go of love. It means allowing love to be steady instead of anxious.

Connect with Melinda: [email protected]

https://melindapatrick.org/