The Living Story: Healing from Heartbreak, Finding Purpose, and Learning to Live Again

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How do you trust God when you cannot see how your story will end?

In this episode of The Living Story, Tennille shares encouragement for Christian women facing heartbreak, unanswered prayers, grief, uncertainty, and unexpected endings. A quiet moment in her church helped her realize that a painful chapter had ended, but God had continued writing.

Through the biblical stories of Naomi in the Book of Ruth and Joseph in Genesis, this episode explores how to hold on to hope, heal after disappointment, release control, and trust God in an unfinished chapter.

If fear, rejection, or an old wound is shaping how you see your future, this conversation will remind you that healing does not require perfection. Your current chapter may be painful and unfinished, but it is not your whole story. God is still writing.

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For a long time, I believed healing would begin the day I finally understood why.

Why the relationship ended.

Why the prayer wasn't answered.

Why life unfolded the way it did.

That day never came.

Instead, God gave me something I didn't know I needed. He transformed my heart, reminded me who I was, and taught me to trust Him even when the answers never arrived.

In the final part of the I Never Got My Why series, we're looking back at the journey we've taken together—from heartbreak and disappointment to healing, surrender, and hope. If you've ever wrestled with unanswered prayers, wondered where God was, or questioned whether your story still has purpose, this conversation is for you.

In this conversation:

• Why healing doesn't depend on getting every answer.
• How old wounds shape the stories we believe.
• What changed after I stopped searching for explanations.
• Why I still ask "why" sometimes—and what I do now.
• How God brings purpose through seasons that don't make sense.
• The invitation waiting for all of us in the middle of the story.

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If this episode stirred something in you, grab the free guide: I Thought I Would Be Further By Now: 5 Signs You Are Trying to Finish a Story God Is Still Writing. It is a gentle mirror for the woman who is still in the middle. My gift to you!

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Have you ever thought you were healed, only to find yourself asking the same questions all over again?

Maybe a conversation caught you off guard.

Maybe you heard news you weren't expecting.

Maybe a memory resurfaced, and suddenly it felt like you were back where you started.

If you've ever wondered whether that means you've failed, this conversation is for you.

In Part 9 of the I Never Got My Why series, we're talking about something we don't often hear in conversations about healing: what happens when old wounds are touched again.

Because healing isn't about pretending the pain never existed.

It's about learning that the pain no longer gets to tell your story.

We'll explore why revisiting an old wound doesn't erase the progress you've made, how God meets us even when familiar questions return, and why choosing to trust Him again is not starting over—it's continuing the journey.

If you're discouraged because you thought you should be "further along" by now, I hope this conversation reminds you that growth isn't measured by whether you ever struggle again.

It's measured by where you turn when you do.

In this conversation:

• Why healing isn't linear.
• What to do when old wounds resurface.
• The difference between visiting the pain and living there.
• How God gently meets us when familiar questions return.
• Why trusting God again isn't going backward—it's growing deeper.

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Enjoyed this episode? There's more waiting for you on Substack. Longer thoughts, quieter moments, and a community of women who get it. Come find us.

If this episode stirred something in you, grab the free guide: I Thought I Would Be Further By Now: 5 Signs You Are Trying to Finish a Story God Is Still Writing. It is a gentle mirror for the woman who is still in the middle. My gift to you!

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What if God was building something while you were still asking why?

In Part 8 of the I Never Got My Why series, Tennille shares how healing often happens quietly—and how purpose can begin emerging long before we recognize it.

Through Isaiah 43:18-19 and her own story of heartbreak, healing, and unexpected community, she explores what it looks like to move from searching for answers to discovering what God may have been growing in the middle of the pain.

In this episode:
• How to recognize signs of healing
• Why purpose often emerges from difficult seasons
• What Isaiah 43 teaches about God's "new thing"
• How God uses heartbreak, loss, and disappointment to shape us

Download the free I Never Got My Why Reflection Guide through the link in the show notes and continue your journey from "Why?" to "For What?"

The Living Story Podcast | Story. Scripture. Seen. Set Free.

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Enjoyed this episode? There's more waiting for you on Substack. Longer thoughts, quieter moments, and a community of women who get it. Come find us.

If this episode stirred something in you, grab the free guide: I Thought I Would Be Further By Now: 5 Signs You Are Trying to Finish a Story God Is Still Writing. It is a gentle mirror for the woman who is still in the middle. My gift to you!

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Why does rejection hurt so deeply?

In Part 7 of the I Never Got My Why series, Tennille shares a powerful realization from her healing journey: she was asking another person questions only God could answer.

Through the story of the woman in Mark 5, this episode explores healing after heartbreak, the pain of rejection, and the identity wounds that often leave us wondering if we are enough, lovable, or worthy of being chosen.

In this episode:
• Why heartbreak is often about more than the relationship
• The connection between rejection and self-worth
• What the woman in Mark 5 teaches about healing and identity
• How to find your worth in God instead of other people's choices

If you've ever struggled with rejection, disappointment, feeling overlooked, or questioning your value after heartbreak, this conversation will help you uncover the story beneath the story.

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Enjoyed this episode? There's more waiting for you on Substack. Longer thoughts, quieter moments, and a community of women who get it. Come find us.

If this episode stirred something in you, grab the free guide: I Thought I Would Be Further By Now: 5 Signs You Are Trying to Finish a Story God Is Still Writing. It is a gentle mirror for the woman who is still in the middle. My gift to you!

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What if the breakthrough wasn't pretending you're fine?

In this episode of The Living Story Podcast, Tennille explores the story of Hannah and the moment she stopped hiding her grief. For women carrying heartbreak, disappointment, unanswered prayers, or seasons that feel impossibly heavy, Hannah offers a different picture of faith than many of us were taught.

She didn't show up strong.
She didn't show up with the right words.
She didn't show up pretending everything was okay.

She showed up broken.

And God met her there.

In this episode, you'll discover:

• Why honest prayer often begins where performance ends
• What Hannah's story teaches us about grief, longing, and faith
• The difference between trusting God and pretending you're not hurting
• Why God is not waiting for you to clean up your emotions before coming to Him
• How lament can become a doorway to healing

If you've been carrying pain while trying to look okay for everyone else, this conversation is an invitation to bring your real story into God's presence.

About the Series

I Never Got My Why is a 10-part podcast series for the woman carrying unanswered questions, heartbreak, disappointment, or seasons that never made sense. Together, we're exploring what happens when God doesn't give us the explanation we wanted and how He gently leads us toward healing anyway.

Support the show

Enjoyed this episode? There's more waiting for you on Substack. Longer thoughts, quieter moments, and a community of women who get it. Come find us.

If this episode stirred something in you, grab the free guide: I Thought I Would Be Further By Now: 5 Signs You Are Trying to Finish a Story God Is Still Writing. It is a gentle mirror for the woman who is still in the middle. My gift to you!

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What happens when your mind knows the truth, but your heart is still grieving?

In this episode of The Living Story Podcast, Tennille shares the lesson she learned in the aftermath of heartbreak: understanding something intellectually is not the same as accepting it emotionally.

If you've ever known what God was saying but still felt stuck in sadness, disappointment, or unanswered questions, you're not alone. 

Healing is not measured by how quickly your emotions obey your theology.

In this episode, you'll discover:

• Why the heart and mind often move at different speeds
• The shame many faithful women carry during grief
• What Proverbs 3:5-6 teaches about trust and surrender
• How the question of "Why?" begins to become "What is God doing here?"

About the Series

I Never Got My Why is a 10-part podcast series for the woman carrying unanswered questions, heartbreak, disappointment, or seasons that never made sense. Together, we're exploring what happens when God doesn't give us the explanation we wanted—and how He gently leads us toward healing anyway.

Download the free I Never Got My Why Reflection Guide below to walk through the series with us.

Support the show

Enjoyed this episode? There's more waiting for you on Substack. Longer thoughts, quieter moments, and a community of women who get it. Come find us.

If this episode stirred something in you, grab the free guide: I Thought I Would Be Further By Now: 5 Signs You Are Trying to Finish a Story God Is Still Writing. It is a gentle mirror for the woman who is still in the middle. My gift to you!

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In Part 4 of the I Never Got My Why series, Tennille explores the true context behind Jeremiah 29:11 and why God's promise of hope and a future was first spoken to people living in exile.

What happens when God doesn't change the season?

Through the story of Israel in Babylon, this episode explores how to stop putting your life on hold while waiting for the next chapter and how to build, grow, and flourish in a place you never planned to stay.

Inside this episode:

• The real context of Jeremiah 29:11
• Why God's promise did not remove the exile
• How to stop living emotionally packed for departure
• The difference between surviving a season and growing inside it
• What God may be building in your waiting season

If you've ever felt stuck, delayed, disappointed, or tempted to believe your real life starts later, this episode is for you.

Support the show

Enjoyed this episode? There's more waiting for you on Substack. Longer thoughts, quieter moments, and a community of women who get it. Come find us.

If this episode stirred something in you, grab the free guide: I Thought I Would Be Further By Now: 5 Signs You Are Trying to Finish a Story God Is Still Writing. It is a gentle mirror for the woman who is still in the middle. My gift to you!

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In Episode 3 of I Never Got My Why, Tennille explores the wilderness story of Hagar and the powerful name she gives God in the middle of unanswered questions: El Roi, the God who sees me.

This episode is about isolation, edited pain, emotional honesty, and the deep human need to be seen fully in suffering.

Inside this episode:

• Hagar in Genesis 16
• El Roi, the God who sees
• emotional isolation
• the edited version of pain
• why women hide the full truth of their grief
• being seen versus being explained

Support the show

Enjoyed this episode? There's more waiting for you on Substack. Longer thoughts, quieter moments, and a community of women who get it. Come find us.

If this episode stirred something in you, grab the free guide: I Thought I Would Be Further By Now: 5 Signs You Are Trying to Finish a Story God Is Still Writing. It is a gentle mirror for the woman who is still in the middle. My gift to you!

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Why do some questions stay with us long after the moment that created them?

In Episode 2 of I Never Got My Why series, Tennille explores what happens when heartbreak, disappointment, and unanswered prayers stop being something we experience and start becoming the emotional place we live.

Through the story of Naomi in Ruth 1, personal reflections, and an honest conversation about the gap between knowing truth and trusting it, this episode is for the woman who feels stuck in grief, waiting, or the unanswered question she cannot seem to move past.

Inside this episode:

• Why grief can become an emotional home

• The story of Naomi and what Scripture teaches about bitterness

• The difference between visiting pain and living there

• Functioning publicly while grieving privately

• The gap between the mind and the heart

• Why slow healing is not spiritual failure

• Hope for women who still have unanswered questions

Support the show

Enjoyed this episode? There's more waiting for you on Substack. Longer thoughts, quieter moments, and a community of women who get it. Come find us.

If this episode stirred something in you, grab the free guide: I Thought I Would Be Further By Now: 5 Signs You Are Trying to Finish a Story God Is Still Writing. It is a gentle mirror for the woman who is still in the middle. My gift to you!

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