2025 End Of The Year Recap: TRB #40 Kathy Chastain

Stories of return have a way of finding the person who needs them most. We close the year by opening our inbox and our hearts—sharing letters from listeners who pulled over in tears, confessed hidden battles with pornography, and asked for prayer in moments of deep despair. We also celebrate quiet miracles: three people who went back to church, two brand-new believers who found a home, and a former running partner who wept through our first episode and rededicated his life. None of this is about a show; it’s about what God does when testimony meets a willing ear.

I talk about how this mission started—as a clear nudge from God to give voice to backsliders who haven’t spoken yet—and why compassion matters when prodigals walk back into the room. We read encouragement from pastors and friends across denominations, because the work of restoration belongs to the whole body of Christ. One story stands out: a man who once served time at Soledad State Prison now drives past the yard on a delivery route, free in body and purpose. That’s the kind of grace we want the world to overhear.

If you are interested in joining Partners in Prayer, please visit their website at https://pipsministry.org

If you'd like to be part of The Redeemed Backslider ministry, please contact us at www.theredeemedbackslider.org

If you know a backslider, or have a testimony to share, please reach out to us!

Chapters

• 0:00 Welcome And Mission Of The Show
• 1:16 How The Podcast Was Born
• 3:25 Why Giving Voice To Backsliders Matters
• 5:45 Early Impact And Salvations Reported
• 8:20 Reading Listener Letters Of Hope
• 12:38 Testimonies From Guests And Their Reach
• 16:05 Crossing Denominations With One Aim
• 18:35 A Prison-To-Purpose Redemption Story
• 21:15 Emails From Backsliders Seeking Help
• 24:05 A Call To Prayer And Intercession

Transcript

SPEAKER_01: 0:00

Welcome to the Redeemed Backslider. With your host, Kathy Chastain, Christian-based psychotherapist and redeemed backslider. This podcast is dedicated to those who have wandered but are ready to return to the life-changing power of grace and the freedom found in Jesus.

SPEAKER_00: 0:22

Hi, welcome to the Redeemed Backslider. I'm your host, Kathy Chastain. I'm a Redeemed Backslider and a Christian-based psychotherapist. Today it's just me in the studio. I wanted to give a quick little rundown of the year that we've had and tell all of you out there thank you so much for making this podcast possible. For all the guests that we've had on the show who have shared their testimony and really been vulnerable with us. Most of my life I've been an entrepreneur. And I get a download. I always think it's a download from God. He gives me the blueprints, and I just take the steps and march forward. And uh this this podcast came about the same exact way. And I think he was pulling together some things in my life to kind of culminate all into one main message. And um one day he just dropped the name of this podcast into my spirit, and I I began kind of shot from the hip and started, and um not really knowing where it was gonna go, but what I did really have a passion for was to give a voice to the backslider who was still out there and had not come home yet. And truthfully, that is still so much of my heartbeat is to maybe give voice to the people who haven't shared their voice yet. And um and to hopefully help those of us who attend church regularly and have you know made our way back to the Lord, that we could keep them in mind and keep them in memory and try to understand when God does return them to the sheepfold and bring them home, um, that we will have compassion for them because we have heard other backslider testimonies. And so um I just wanted to say thank you to everybody who listens. And um, you know, I'm not in any way, shape, or form where I want to be. God is very much still working on me. But I could tell you I am so very grateful for what he has done in my life and what he continues to do. And uh I will tell you all I will remain on the potter's will and allow him to do with me whatever he so desires. Um, so I wanted to kind of give a little um overview of what we have heard back from people throughout this year. Um we have had three people that I'm aware of, and I imagine there's many more, but three that I am aware of that have uh gone back to church. Two brand new baby Christians um have started coming to my local church um since this podcast began, and they have specifically said the episodes that made their decision possible. And um another backslider, uh a backslider who we are very familiar with, uh some of you guys heard his testimony, uh heard our very first episode um with Keith Battle, and he said he wept through the whole thing because they used to be running partners and um did all kinds of crazy stuff, you know, living a life of sin. And he went back to church and totally rededicated his life. He is now in Texas, and God's doing mighty things in his life, and that is um a testimony of the podcast. And, you know, as I go through this episode, I am very aware that it is not about the podcast, it is just a tool that the Lord is using to reach people that we might not reach in the four walls of the church. And that's really what I care about is just to be a vessel for the Lord. And so um those kinds of testimonies are so encouraging to us and so encouraging to those that have come in and shared their story. Um I wanted to read a couple of the emails I received from those who shared their testimony and the feedback that they've got. Um so with that, I'll read a couple. Um Hey, I wanted to say thank you for sharing your story. Watching you on the podcast yesterday hit me extremely hard, and I had to pull over several times. As a man, I think at some point, even with our faith, that we still feel inadequate, beaten, depressed, like a failure, depressed like a failure, and suicidal thoughts do cross our minds. Maybe not at a deep level, as some, but I have even had them. I've had very close friends in their life. I had a grandfather that tried to end his and survived and lived a great life after, but it happens and it's been taboo to talk about. I'm sorry if this is so random, but the vulnerability that you have and the stories and the feelings that you share on your personal page has not only saved lives of those contemplating suicide, but have changed a trajectory of the lives of those individuals impact. You never really know who is listening and who needs to hear that message, but I know without a doubt you've made an impact, and please don't ever stop. I think when people are at their lowest, they feel like no one cares. But speaking from personal experience, there is always someone watching, and there will always be someone that cares. And I truly believe the world will always be a better place with you in it. Um, I thought that was amazing. Um, the the guy who shared his testimony here had not talked to this man in quite some time, and he reached out on Facebook uh completely unexpected. And I think it just goes to show you the reach that we have, even on social media, not we as the podcast, but you as people have on social media to affect a life. We just never really know who's paying attention. Um, here's another one from one of our females who shared about her addiction to pornography. Hey, thank you for sharing your story. It's definitely inspiring, eye-opening, and God has used it to pierce between soul and spirit, or flesh and spirit in this case. Thank you for your advice to stay in the word. I've dealt with a lifetime of struggle and self-gratification and never had the guts to admit it to myself, though it's been harder to deny as I've grown closer to the Lord. It's easy to ignore until it's not. A compulsion that creeps its ugly head up randomly. Any prayers would be appreciated. And I'm praying for you and thanking God for you and your sharing how He has set you free. Um, again, it's you know, these both of those two stories, um, the feedback that these people got were from people that have a relationship with God. And, you know, we are all human and we all struggle, and I think every time someone shares a testimony, it is so empowering to those listening. Um, I also wanted to share um some other notes of thanks that we received from you out there, and I want to say how grateful I am when you do take the time to write in and tell me your thoughts. It's very meaningful. Um we go out into the world and and we just never know how people receive it and what matters and what doesn't. And you guys absolutely have a lot of content to choose from. So when you take the time to send us an email, it really means a lot. Um, this one says, Um, hey Kathy, I just wanted to say thank you so much for starting this podcast. As a redeemed backslider myself, I love watching these and seeing how the grace of Jesus has just been poured out in others. I've shared your podcast and page with our local Celebrate Recovery Group because each testimony is relatable and true examples of what is on the other side when you let Jesus lead you. Just wanted to say thank you and to all of those who've shared for being transparent vessels of hope. Your stories are truly blessings. Um, here's another one. Just wanted to drop a line of encouragement to you. You're doing a great job with your podcast. I really appreciate the one with your cousinslash pastor Jeremy and Dana's. Um, it seems like Dana's situation was hitting a lot of churches in a similar time period. I was an executive pastor at um a local large assemblies of God church at the time, and I would sit in with other church meetings as they held hearings that made my skin crawl on what churches would put their people through that were actually suffering. As tough as I might seem to this day, it breaks my heart to think of some of the actions that some churches wanted to take. Anyways, keep up the fantastic work. I can see God's grace on it. And um that came from uh that came from a friend that uh I don't know very well, but has been um a longtime Christian and as he said, um an executive pastor at a local um Assemblies of God church. And, you know, this podcast and us as Christians, I think, should reach into any church group um because we're all trying to make it to heaven. We're all we're all reading the same Bible, you know, on the road for truth. And the Bible says that Jesus is the spirit of truth, the Holy Ghost is the spirit of truth, and he will lead all men who's seeking after him into truth. And so I'm grateful that it this is crossing denominational lines. I think as Christians, we should all cross those denominational lines to reach the heart of people because we're in this together. We're we're the body of Christ. And um, so, anyways, I wanted to share that. And I wanted to share with you also a testimony that one of my um guests sent to me, and um I I just thought it was so remarkable the grace of God and what he's doing um in these backsliders that have come home and in just a short amount of time. So, this is what he says. I'm driving past Soledad State Prison where I did three years, eight months on that yard. You can see the one um, you can see the one from Highway One. And I remember I used to wonder if I would ever see freedom again. And today I'm driving a$75,000 truck with a$65,000 piece of equipment in the back, delivering it to a fish company next to the prison. These are those times when I know that God is real and working in my life. Isn't that beautiful? God can rewrite our story in ways that we could never imagine. Um, so I'm just so grateful. As you could tell, I hope that you could tell. Um, and the most important um, the most important thing, and the reason why we do this ministry is to reach the backslider. And I have two emails that I did receive from backsliders. Uh, I am not sure how they found this channel, but they did. And um, I want to share the emails that they wrote. I have just come across your YouTube channel and found your podcast to be so eye-opening with the testimonies being shared. I have been a backslider many times throughout my life, growing up with an addict father and an abusive and mentally ill mother. It was very hard to have faith in God because I could not understand why my upbringing and life was treated so meaningless. I spent years battling my own demons, mental health, illness, excuse me, mental illness, addiction, and self-sabotage. In 2016, I found my father passed away in his apartment after years of drug use. It put me on a journey of discovering who I was with and without God. Today I continue to struggle as I have become homeless and looking for a job, but I am happier than I've ever been because I do have faith. God never left me and he never will. Please continue to pray for me as I walk out this journey. And uh this one I received two weeks ago. Um I'll tell you the story about it after I read it. It's the subject line was please pray for me. And it says, I am a hopeless, it says, I am hopeless and backslidden. Jesus gave me many chances to repent and I didn't listen. I am full of darkness and suicidal. Please pray for me. I need a miracle. When I received that, I immediately screenshotted it and sent it to my pastor. And then I called Sister Billie Jean Bishop with partners in prayer, and her and I prayed over the phone for several minutes for this young person. Um I did reach out to them and uh let them know that I was praying for them and uh stayed in touch with them for a couple of days, and it sounded like at the end of it they were a little bit more hopeful, and they were praying and reaching out to the Lord. But you guys, this is just two of many souls that are out there who need the Lord and who need to believe that God has not ever left them. And um, you know, we're we're all just doing our part to try and fulfill the Great Commission. But if you watch this channel and if you happen to see this particular episode, I wonder if you would come alongside and pray with us for the backslider. Um, there's lots of ways that you can do that. Uh Sister Billie Jean Bishop has a ministry called Partners in Prayer. I will attach the link to this um to this podcast episode. And she uh prays weekly, they have prayer calls that anybody can call in. Um, they're always looking for people to be on their prayer team and intercessors that will really catch a burden for the backslider. But if you could pray with us also for this ministry that that God would somehow let our channel reach the backslider, that someone that needs to see the testimonies and hear the message would find us somehow, some way. God knows how to lead them, God knows how to do everything that they need. But, you know, prayer, I think, is the most powerful tool that we have and the most wonderful thing that God gives us. And I also believe it's underused quite a bit. But I would really covet your prayers. Um as we continue into 2026, uh, there is a world that is dying without Jesus, and we have to reach them by any means possible. And this is my means because it's the only thing I know how to do to reach the lost. And so if you could share it, um, that would be great. Anything that you could do to pray with us to share the message would be so appreciated. Um the last thing I wanted to share with you guys before we close out the year is to tell you about an upcoming conference that we are holding at my local church here in Biselia, California, the Pentecostal Lighthouse, the Redeemed Backslider, along with the Pentecostal Lighthouse Church, is hosting our first annual um prodigal conference. It is put on by Prodigals. Uh, you're gonna have a lot of testimonies of prodigals, but we are bringing in um brother Nick Mahaney. And if you do not know about Brother Nick Mahaney, You will not want to miss this. He has an incredible, incredible uh story of redemption himself. He was a backslider who grew up under a father who was a prophet and a missionary and powerfully used, um, powerfully used by God. And he backslid. And he didn't only backslide, but he became a devil worshiper and um and a meth addict. And you know, not only is his redemption story miraculous that God would uh save him and pull him out of all of that um deception and addiction, but God is using him now to reach the backslider and to reach the lost, actually. Um, but his story doesn't end there. He he's he has suffered a lot, he's gone through great tragedy, and um, and he's gonna be here, you know, to pour his heart out and to pour his life out, you know, in ministry to reach those that come. And so the date is going to be March 6th, 7th, and 8th. That's Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. Um, it's gonna be a three-day conference. And I will also have details of this. It's on our church website, pentecostallighthouse.org. Uh, it's on the Redeem Backslider website, the Redeembackslider.org. Um, there will also be a flyer attached to this podcast today, and you're welcome to message us. It'll be on all of our social link, uh, social media links. Um, but I just want for you guys to have enough time to plan. Um, hopefully, if you live in California, it's not too far of a drive for you. We have hotel accommodations set up for everybody. Um, but anyways, it's the first one of its kind. We're gonna be doing a lot of outreach to the local recovery groups, to the local shelters, to the um, to the um inpatient treatment centers for addiction, and also to all the churches in California. So, again, if you guys would pray for us, pray for this event, pray that the Lord would bring in the lost, whether they've never met Jesus or they're just a backslider, please pray that God would bring them to this event. It is 100% focused on redemption. And so um I just want to say thank you to everybody. I stumble a lot in this podcast. I uh stumble over my words sometimes, and I don't always, you know, say things correctly. Um, but maybe next year I'll do better. Uh, we're looking forward to a great year in 2026. We have some wonderful episodes scheduled that I'm really excited about. Um, but most of all, I'm excited about what God's gonna do in the earth while we're still here. We are to occupy until he comes, and that is what I plan to do. So thank you so much. I hope you all have a very Merry Christmas and a happy new year. And I am looking forward to greater things in 2026. And uh I hope that you guys will continue to watch these episodes and please stay in touch. Please like these episodes, share them, comment them on, comment on them because it allows the algorithm to spread even further. Um and again, thank you. I am very grateful that God redeemed me. So I wish you all well, Merry Christmas, and happy new year. Thank you.

SPEAKER_01: 24:01

We are so glad you joined us. If you have a story of redemption or have worn the label of a backslider, we would love to hear from you. If you'd like to support our ministry, your donation will be tax deductible. Visit our website at theredeemedbackslider.org. We hope you will tune in for our next episode.