J.K.O.L.: Just Keep on Living

The Power of Faith: A Personal Journey

• Candace G • Season 1 • Episode 3

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Ever wrestled with finding your spiritual home and grappled with maintaining your faith in the face of life's adversities? Join me, Candace G, as we traverse my faith journey, right from growing up as a Preacher's Kid to circling back to my roots. I unpack my search for a church home that echoed my values, and the hurdles the enemy put in my way to deter me from my faith walk. It's a deep dive into the importance of being intentional with your faith and not letting naysayers sway your relationship with God.

But the journey wasn't all smooth sailing - I had to weather an intense storm when my daughter fell critically ill. It was a moment that tested my faith to its core, led me to lean on God, and find solace in prayers and the support of loved ones. Hear how I navigated this trying phase, found comfort in knowing God was in control, and emerged stronger. If you're walking a similar path, I extend a hand of hope and advice to you. Tune in; be stirred to lean into God, ask for what you need, and keep moving, even when the storm rages on.

Candace G:

Hey, hey, it's Candace G from BMT, land of the Trill, and if you know, you know what's next. Tell me how you feel. And I decided to get on the mic and talk a little bit. Is that all right? All right, welcome to J. K. O. L. Just Keep On Living, where the purpose of this show is to talk about life, to encourage, and inspire one another. Today I'm going to discuss a critical item that has helped me keep myself grounded in this thing called life, which is Faith. I'm going to share some of my thoughts and realizations along my journey that I've made thus far.

Candace G:

Overall, I grew up as a PK. For those who do not know, that means Preacher's Kid, which is its own, completely different can of worms. Now, those who know, know. Anywho, my siblings and I stayed in church Sunday school, sunday service, afternoon service, when there was a visiting church, bible study, choir rehearsal, all of the above.

Candace G:

Now, as an adult, I went on what I call a faith expedition. I initially used the word quest, but a quest means a long search for something. An expedition is a journey undertaken by a group of people with a particular purpose. For me, I do not need to go on a long search for God or to find Him. I see Him move in my everyday life. Now I find the word expedition more appropriate because my adult self, my younger adult self, my teenage self, my child self, with all of our thoughts and experiences, went on a quest for truth, for Christianity and religion. I did shift from Christianity to spiritual, but always acknowledging God but open to the universe and crystals and sage, and my main thought was hey, I have a little Indian in my roots and they saged, and crystals are of the earth, et cetera. Not attacking or condemning anyone, I'm just sharing what went through my mind within my walk during that season. I ultimately readjusted my lane and everything, with all of my experiences, led me back to my childhood roots Jesus, the Trinity, Christianity. It has been many, many years since then, but I am grateful for that journey, which has allowed me to have a deeper understanding and appreciation of my faith, and for my faith which ultimately deepened my relationship with God.

Candace G:

Now, throughout that journey, I have been looking for a church, home which I feel played into the, ". I can't even find a church. However, god ultimately directed me exactly where I needed to be, but I digress the areas where I lived left a lot to be desired for me, as I was born and raised in the South but was living on the West Coast, so finding a church home was a challenge for me. I was hoping for something similar to what I was accustomed to. I resonated with one church, but it took me an hour and a half to get there. I found a church that was closer. I enjoyed participating in the young adult activities. However, something was missing during the regular service. For me, I only found a church that fit for the majority when I returned back to the South. It allowed me to extend my relationship with God to serving in a physical building, experiencing service, live again with other people and establishing a healthy routine that allowed my children to continue to build their faith.

Candace G:

Since then, I have been fortunate to find a church home that embodies everything that I had been searching for four years, in a church home that has qualities that I didn't even know existed within the church that I needed, which has positively changed the trajectory and direction of my life and my children's life. As I have previously mentioned, I have always acknowledged God throughout my life. I would go to Him for advice and or guidance on major decisions and really all items that presented itself day to day. What caused me to go on my faith expedition was that I was torn from the things that I saw take place in church with various people and within life in general that severely veered from what was being taught in church. I do not directly feel it stemmed from church hurt, but maybe more so church disappointment. Either way, I learned that my faith walk is just that. It's mine. It's between myself and God and I should not allow other people or experiences have a negative impact on the most consistent, loving and faithful being in my life.

Candace G:

As difficult as life is, pulling away from God is the last thing that I need to do, but often times it was the easiest thing to do and is unfortunately very common in this day and age. I know I can't be alone in this thought. Pulling away from God is exactly what the enemy wanted to keep me wound up, and I have played right into his hands more times than I care to admit. Jesus told us that there will be trials in life, but aside from that, the only other source of power the enemy has is if we give it to him. With that, I've been more intentional and conscientious of walking with God, keeping my authority and or taking back something stolen from or giving to the enemy. I have also learned that right when I'm on the cusp of something major, whether a physical or spiritual life shift, growth and or blessing the enemy comes in my ear with foolishness Don't leave me hanging. I can't be alone in this either. I'll give an example.

Candace G:

Back home, I visited my home church before it became my church home. What took so long? I was focused on some of the pastor's actions that didn't make sense to me at that time but made perfect sense to me later. The enemy had me focused on something that had absolutely nothing at all to do with me or had any impact on me. Had I joined when I initially visited, as God led me to, it would have kept me out of a whole e-entire, self-inflicted, tumultuous season like what felt like a never-ending storm that I had no idea was brewing While I was unaware, guess who wasn't, the enemy? And I know he was over there Stevie J, hand rubbing because I was not under the spiritual covering. That would have helped me avoid that storm.

Candace G:

On the next two episodes, I will talk with others who will share their thoughts and experiences regarding faith and the impact it has had on their lives. I will go through the list of questions and provide my answers. And the first question is what does faith mean to me? For me, there is no life without faith. When I think of life without faith, it feels abysmal and bleak. For instance, hypothetically, say God were to pull a list of items of the times where I didn't listen and the punishment was cutting me completely off. Of the things that I've experienced, that would be the point at which I would lose it. Faith, grace, mercy those components there are so many components that are so intertwined that you feel when something is amiss. Just as our physical body needs water for optimal operation, spiritually I view God as living water, just as our bodies need food to nourish and sustain our bodies. Not only is God's word our daily bread, but faith gives us hope to continue moving forward in life. To me, I feel comfortable discussing a time where my faith was tested the most.

Candace G:

One of my earliest adult memories was when I realized I was holding my daughter as she was dying. Now, it didn't start off that way. The week before we had spent the whole week in the hospital, she had bronchitis, but that bronchitis had turned into pneumonia after we were released. So we're taking a nap. My daughter coughs, but afterwards I noticed her breathing was ragged, like she coughed and she was staring blankly and just breathing like it was really strained breath. So I ran over and picked her up and when I picked her up her body was limp. I definitely started panicking. Then I opened the door, shined the sunlight in her eyes. She didn't blink, she didn't move. But I also noticed that the color in her body was fading to blue. Thankfully I had people who were closed, who rushed over. I was the ambulance. I zoomed over to the hospital and she was able to get the help she needed.

Candace G:

However, if I arrived in the manner that things had to transpire, if I arrived in, was told, given other news, that she didn't make it or anything like that, it probably would have been a completely different story. I would have wanted to clear the whole table off, but that was, I guess, my first adult moment that my faith was tested the most. When, at the fork in the road, what were my options? The only option I had was really to lean and depend on God. That situation is still one of the most scary, faith-filled moments that I have experienced in my life. Those were really the only options that were available. The only option was to lean and depend on God in that moment, because there wasn't anything that I could do but be there. What helped me through this situation was I prayed, and I prayed a lot. I prayed often. I also had family and friends who stopped by and visited me and my daughter while we were in the hospital, so that was also a huge help as well.

Candace G:

The advice that I would have given to myself in hindsight was God's will, will always be done. Instead of looking or hoping for people to show up with what I feel I need or may really need, God is always there with exactly what I do need, if I pay attention to and focus on Him instead of trying to make what I think I need happen. What I learned generally in this situation is life comes at you fast, but God is faster. He was there with things that I knew I needed, that I didn't know that I needed. He truly sustained me during that whole ordeal and experience. From that experience, I learned that I was much stronger than I felt or thought at that moment. I also learned that it's okay to step back and breathe once the crisis has been averted. I don't have to stay in that panic mode now. Be watchful, yes, but not in such a heightened jumpy sense.

Candace G:

My advice for anyone dealing with the situation beyond their control is to lean into God first. Then lean into family, friends, community, those who you know have your back. Also, do not be afraid to ask for what you need. If people that you expect aren't giving you what you need, give them the benefit of the doubt first. They may not even be capable of doing so. Then let them know what you'd like from them. However, simultaneously, go to God, talk with him about it, how you feel what you need and request, whatever it is, from God.

Candace G:

As Maya Angelou once said, every storm runs out of rain, and I don't know about you, but for me, after each storm, the blessings that were on the other side were unfathomable. God allowed things to happen in such a way that I knew was only him, and if he did it for me, my brothers and sisters. He can do it for you. If you're listening, please share my show with someone who you feel it may help. Go find and like my show on Facebook at J. K. O. L. Go find me on IG at Candace G underscore underscore and subscribe to my YouTube channel. You can continue to listen to my podcast on Apple and Spotify. Thank you and until next time. Take good care.