Join the Love Movement with Casey McDonald

Join me as I talk with Casey, a woman who just moved to Jacksonville, about what God's love looks like to her💚✨

In this episode, we talk about:
💚 experiencing peace, even in near-death experiences
💚 patience when we are waiting for answers
💚 trusting when we are going thru our hardest seasons
💚 how small acts of kindness make a difference
💚 and so much more 🫶🏼

Casey's story is a gift — one that might just shift how you see God's love in your own life 💚✨

✅ Join the love movement and ask yourself "WWLD?" 😉💜 

🔔 And don't forget to subscribe, turn on notifications, and rate us for more inspiring conversations on love and personal growth 💜✨ 

00:00 Meet Casey McDonald
00:33 How We Met (right now!)
01:27 Cheers from Grey Matter Distillery
01:49 Feeling God's Peace
03:09 Close Calls and Protection
06:17 Feeling Love in Nature
08:32 Hardest Season Yet
09:59 Waiting With Faith
10:21 Trusting God’s Timing
12:05 When Life Feels Hard
13:20 Feeling Alone And Misunderstood
16:08 Being God’s Love to Others
18:11 How To Help Casey
19:34 Closing

#LoveIsTheUniversalAnswer
#LoveMovement
#HealingJourneys
#RealConversations
#GlobalLoveMovement
#InspirationalInterviews
#SpiritualJourney
#PersonalTransformation
#LovePodcast

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:00

My name is Casey McDonald, also affectionately known as Ariel, with an L E at the end. And I'm originally from California. I'm a Cali girl. So Cal, the best part. I just moved here to Jacksonville from San Antonio, Texas. So this feels like home's very nice. And I'm an adventurer. I'm a lover of people and places and food. So I love to go out and explore and just see what God has created. This one will be interesting, but I always ask people, how did we meet? How did we meet? So honestly, I saw an interview with you and Shuey on Instagram. And I was like, oh, she looks pretty cool. Let me go see what's going on. And I loved the title of your podcast. And I was like, okay, I'm gonna dig a little deeper. And I was like, oh, I watched a couple more videos, and you're just talking about the love of God. And I was like, okay, I got we've got to meet. We got to do a podcast together. We're gonna do that. Yes.

SPEAKER_02 1:07

And we literally just met, literally. So this is 45 minutes ago or less. This is our first meeting. So I am going to find out about Casey as you all do. It's gonna be exciting. Or I'll have a lot of editing to do, but we're gonna be good. Big one and we are also at Grey Matter Distillery. We want to shout them out. We're very excited. Oh we have our I have one way over there. Yes, we have fun purple, purple drinks from Grey Matter. So check them out if you are in the area. Oh, thank you. Thank you very much. Thanks, Mom. Yes, cheers. Cheers.

SPEAKER_00 1:49

What is the most beautiful way that you have experienced the love of God? I have experienced it a lot more these days with everything going on in my life. I have felt just this overwhelming peace, just to the depths of me, to the depths of my being, my soul, my spirit, whatever you want to call it, just where it doesn't matter what's going on in life. I just feel just this calm, overwhelming. Someone's there for me. All right. And I just I I think when I feel that, I'm like, no matter what, whether I feel alone or I'm going through just such horrible things that I know there's something on the other side that God is with me, that He will get me through whatever it is.

SPEAKER_02 2:42

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 2:42

And it's just like someone holding me, someone carrying me, someone saying it's gonna be okay. So that's how I experience the love of God.

SPEAKER_01 2:52

I'm very I'm glad that you have the emergency.

SPEAKER_02 3:01

I'm glad that you just are experiencing that peace. What does that look like tangibly?

SPEAKER_00 3:09

So there's been a few instances, some of them may have been quite crazy. Once I was almost in this very deadly car crash, I had just gotten out from behind this car on the freeway, and immediately I saw headlights coming our way on that side of the freeway. And as soon as I saw them, I looked at my reviewer, and that car had just got out from behind, got hit, and both drivers died, and everything. But the one thing that I remember, and I haven't heard it since, I have no idea what it was, but I heard the words on the radio, God watching over you. And then I almost got in a car wreck again where it was green light, and you know, sometimes you just kind of space out. Yeah. And I was in a place I didn't know, and there was a red light, and I thought at the very last minute, and I stopped in the middle of the intersection where two cars were like this, and I was going this way, and I came within feet of hitting them. Just everybody moved. I pulled over and I just started bawling. And this guy on the side of the street, he's like, you know, roll down your window. And I did, and he's like, Are you okay? My name is Brother Angel. So I was like, and then just recently I found out some really sad information. Both my cats are dying, and obviously, thank you. The first thing I thought after just bawling my head off was, thank you so much for the time I've had with them. Because these are my babies. But just to know that he has given them to me for the past 10 plus years to get me through a lot of hard things. I just wanted to be thankful. And that's the piece that I know he's been there. I know there's it's everything happens for a reason.

SPEAKER_02 5:10

First off, I'm I'm so sorry to hear about your babies. I'm so glad for the time that you've had with them and how they have been there with you. Almost that that tangible presence of love through the past decade. And thank God for the protection on your life during those incidents where you were driving. That those that's wild. I I can't even imagine walking away from a situation where others did not. Yeah, it's very scary. Yeah, that's it gives you a literally, it gives you I think a new look on life. So I'm grateful for your life. And uh you're still with us. You you still have work to do, ma'am. Exactly.

SPEAKER_00 6:06

I I figure if you're still breathing, God's still working.

SPEAKER_02 6:10

Yeah, there's you still have more. You still have more. So one day I'll memorize the what does God's love look or feel like to you?

SPEAKER_00 6:20

I love to drive, right? Especially in Jacksonville. I think everything's so beautiful, but I can't believe you like to drive after those stories. Not necessarily drive and drive, but when I'm driving, I like to look and just look at what's around me. And God's love, I think, is in our surroundings for sure. Yeah, looking at the sky and seeing how what a beautiful painting, such beautiful artistry, looking at the trees as you drive by and being from California and coming from Texas, coming here has been a green awakening, which has been very nice. What's funny is I think it was Remy or something, some philosopher or something said we look at all these beautiful things around us, we climb a mountain and we see all the beauty God has created, but then we also never look in the mirror and see the best creation.

SPEAKER_02 7:25

It's interesting. Just being here in Florida, being out in nature a lot more and seeing that, and I can absolutely empathize with that. I think that's one of the beauties of being in a place where you can be outside so much more. There's something about, like you were talking to earlier, the peace that you feel in that moment, the clarity, the presence that you feel when you're just in nature, in creation. Water does it for me. Like I love to go to all the different rivers and oceans, and I love to go to water and pray. And I just feel like I always feel God's presence when I'm at water, and so I love that you're able to get that, just being out in nature here. So I'm glad that uh you're experiencing that here. Let's see.

SPEAKER_00 8:23

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 8:25

Oh man, it was always the fun one. What is the hardest challenge that you've been through, and how did God's love help you get through it?

SPEAKER_00 8:40

I would say from the end of last year to now has been my hardest challenge in life. There have been things piling on in my life where it's just okay, God, when am I gonna have a break? I've walked into so many things going, this is gonna be it, this is gonna work. And it just doesn't. And I have had so many personal things. My love life is just crapped out this year. My cat sping terminal, my business will turn around any day now. But everything has been up in the air, and I've just been going, God, when is it my time? And I know it's all of his time, but I'm like, this thing broken. Come on, is this thing broken? I've been asking for years, and you see those pictures online where your plan is this one flower and God's hiding this huge bouquet. Like, yes, I'm ready. I'm okay. This flower I may not have gotten, but I'm ready for that bouquet. Yeah, I'm ready.

SPEAKER_02 9:41

That that's really interesting. And I am sorry to hear that you've gone through so many different struggles for so long. I I definitely I think it is something that so many of us, if not all of us, can relate to. So, what helps you get through that? At what point when you're asking yourself, God, is this thing broken? When are you gonna come through? What keeps you trusting in those moments when you're like, okay, it's been forever. I feel like I'm still waiting. How do you remain patient?

SPEAKER_00 10:22

Honestly, I feel like that's all there is to do because if you don't, then it's just like throwing your faith away and trying to rely on yourself. And I feel that I've been led down the road that I've been led down. Maybe I haven't hit the point of where everything will start being abundant in my life yet. But I still feel like there's so much alignment that I gotta keep going down that road. Have faith that one of these days, and hopefully soon, I will hit that spot where he's like, surprise, we're here. Congratulations. You're the millionth person, right? Kind of thing.

SPEAKER_02 11:05

I can't wait to see what that looks like for you. I'm very excited for this moment. Oh, the millionth. Yeah, I I definitely I think that is so much of it is just a trusting and believing, and also sometimes the history, knowing that you've seen it happen before, and you're like, I know that this is going to work out. I don't know when, I don't know how. It may not look like how I think it will look, but I know that it'll work out, and sometimes it's the history, a lot of times it's just faith and just believing that God is gonna show up. So I'm excited to see how things turn around for you.

SPEAKER_00 11:54

As am I. Thank you. Oh let me join you.

SPEAKER_02 12:09

Where are you currently struggling to feel God's love in your life?

SPEAKER_00 12:16

I don't think I'm struggling to feel his love. I'm just struggling. I feel that life is hard right now in basically every aspect, but I'm that kind of person that tries to find the silver linings and everything. Try to know that everything is working for a purpose. He works everything for a good and he will bring me through whatever storms and trials and tribulations I may be facing. But I it is hard to just be patient. And sometimes I'm not, sometimes I will yell and scream and cry. So might as well be honest about it and voice it.

SPEAKER_02 13:09

I think it's so admirable, and I'm so glad to hear that with everything that you have going on that you're not struggling to feel God's love, say from God directly. I feel like a lot of times God shows us his love through others. Is there any way that you're struggling to feel God's love through others?

SPEAKER_00 13:37

That's a great question. I kind of feel alone, and I know people have their own stuff that they're going through, but most of my life I've felt misunderstood. And so that's where I feel like a struggle with people. I just want to love people and be loved. So I think that's my biggest thing. And I recently had someone, I and I knew they were going through other things, but they said some pretty dark, demeaning, cruel things to me. And I'm like, I know that's because you're going through that, yeah, but that's not who I am. That's complete fallacy, and you know this. Yeah, and I feel like that's my struggle. I'm I tracked that for some reason.

SPEAKER_02 14:29

I can definitely empathize with you on that as someone who is an empath and who loves people, and sometimes we're very big on loving others, and it's so easy for people to take advantage of that, especially when we're going through struggles, it's for whatever reason. I've unfortunately noticed in my own life through some similar experiences that people like to take advantage of that. So I'm grateful for just the relationship that you have with God because in those times when others are not showing up for you, and I hope you start seeing more and more of that of good people in your life who care for you, who have your best interests, who are cheering you on and giving you the love that you're giving others. And in that gap. And until you get to that point where it's like you're surrounded by such a good community, I'm so grateful that you have that you are feeling God's love the way that you are, that you're not struggling to feel love directly from God. So I definitely will be hoping that you will quickly be surrounded by others who love.

SPEAKER_00 15:58

I'm already feeling it right here. Um to someone today. A smile is definitely good. Sometimes you drive down the street and you'll see homeless people, and sometimes you don't have anything to give, no money, no food, nothing. But most people just ignore them. Maybe they haven't seen a smile all day. And there's a lot of people that are going through a lot of rough things. And sometimes you might see someone you notice they're not quite themselves, and maybe they're going through something hard. You're like, just want to hug. Maybe they need a hug. Maybe they're not even someone who really enjoys hugs, but maybe at that moment they need hugs. We all need a hug sometime. I have a friend who she and I aren't huge huggers, but when we get together, we give each other huge bear hugs. You're like, just needed that. That's like a five-minute hug. Thank you. Thank you so much. And sometimes people just need that.

SPEAKER_02 17:02

Yeah, that's it's so fair because you never know. As you were saying, when was the last time that someone got a good hug? Someone smiled at them, someone just kind to them. And that might be the best version of God of kindness of love that someone sees. And yeah, might be the only one. Yes, 100%. And it might have been a very long time since someone's experienced that. I'm a huge fan of hugs, so I'm glad that you touched on hugs.

SPEAKER_00 17:38

It really on a person. Some people are like, thanks. I like having everyone, and I have to remember.

SPEAKER_02 17:48

I was good with that for sure. I'm okay. But I always have to ask. I'm learning to ask because not everyone loves, but I like to hug and hold. I'm a big hug and hold hold person. But those big hair big bear hugs.

SPEAKER_00 18:05

Big hair.

SPEAKER_02 18:09

So unscripted question for you. Okay. Given everything that you've said, a very vulnerable question. So you can sit with this if you need to. Okay. If somebody sees this, whether or not it's a friend of yours, friend of mine, Rando. So Amirandah, if someone could help you in some way and they have the capacity, how could they help you? How could someone be God's love to you?

SPEAKER_00 18:43

I'm always looking for great people to network with, podcast with, connect, collaborate, just any which way that we can just find that time together, whether it's for work or share God's love. Always look for people to go to church with too. But yeah, collaborate, friendship, God's love. Just write the love people.

SPEAKER_02 19:12

I love it. If you would love to collaborate with, work with, commune with, podcasts with Casey. Please reach out to her. She would love it. I would love that. You would love that. Lots of love all around for Casey. So thank you so much. Thank you for sharing very vulnerably with a stranger and a lot of strangers. And you are going through a lot right now alone. And I'm really proud of you. For it's so cliche. So cliche. I'm proud of you for being strong. I'm proud of you for continuing on, for putting one foot in front of the other every day, for showing, for sharing, and for trusting and having faith in God ultimately. So thank you. I can't wait to see what the end of your story looks like.

SPEAKER_00 20:20

Not the end, just the next. I'm hoping to be around for all. But again, never know if tomorrow we'll be here, right? Maybe not the end. Next chapter.

SPEAKER_02 20:31

Not the end. Yeah. Thank you. Thank you. Here's a one. Thank you.

unknown 20:44

Thank you.