Ep 6: When Religion Fails, Relationship Heals: My Journey Back to God

Do you feel like you’ve been performing for God but never really met Him?

Whether you’re navigating grief, rebuilding your life after loss, or questioning your worth because of past mistakes—this episode is for you. In today’s episode of the Crafted for Glory Podcast, Jasmine C. Green vulnerably shares her powerful testimony of how she went from tragedy to triumph, from religion to relationship, and from survival to true purpose. This is more than a story—it’s a call to anyone seeking clarity, healing, and a deeper connection with God.

Welcome back to Crafted for Glory, the podcast where faith, inspiration, entrepreneurship, and creativity collide! In this episode, we dive into the power of community for faith-based entrepreneurs and Christian leaders. Whether you're starting a business, growing in leadership, or simply feeling isolated, this episode will encourage you to step out, build meaningful relationships, and embrace God’s design for community.

🌿 Key Takeaways:

✔️ The powerful difference between religion and relationship with God
 ✔️ How loss shaped Jasmine’s journey
 ✔️ Why your mistakes don’t disqualify you from God's calling
 ✔️ What it really means to live with a Kingdom mindset
 ✔️ The importance of obedience, vulnerability, and trusting God’s plan

🎙 Episode Highlights:

[00:09:30] – Losing both parents before age 12 and feeling abandoned by God
 [00:28:00] – Getting arrested at 16 and encountering God in the back of a police car
 [00:44:00] – Moving from religious performance to authentic relationship with Christ
 [01:03:00] – Rock bottom in 2018: food stamps, job loss, and divine redirection
 [01:18:00] – Finding purpose and launching her business with a Kingdom mindset

🙏 Closing Prayer:

Jasmine prays for every listener holding onto shame or pain from their past. She speaks life, truth, and identity over you—reminding you that you are crafted for glory.

🔗 Subscribe & Stay Connected:

 Connect with Jasmine C. Green: @theoriginaljcg

 [Website] (www.jasminecgreen.com)

 [Instagram] (@craftedforglorypodcast)

 [YouTube] (https://youtube.com/@theoriginaljcg?si=HKs89aZZW_371NnE) 

 [Email for Inquiries] (info@craftedforglory.com)

Socials:

 Connect with Jasmine Green: 

 [Website] (www.jasminecgreen.com)

 [Instagram] (@craftedforglorypodcast)

 [YouTube] (https://youtube.com/@theoriginaljcg?si=HKs89aZZW_371NnE) 

 [Email for Inquiries] (info@craftedforglory.com)

#FaithBasedEntrepreneur #KingdomMindset #ChristianLeadership #ChristianEntrepreneurship #KingdomNetworking #FaithOverFear #CraftedForGlory #ChristianBusiness #Entreprenurship #FaithandBusiness

Transcript

Episode 6 Transcript

00:00:00:00 - 00:00:25:07

How do I show up for me since God left me? How do I show up for me since my parents left

me? Or no one around me cares based on my own perspective and I come to find out that as

I'm coming into this realization, I started to still. So while I'm sleeping around with these men

who definitely were older than me, I find myself exchanging spirits of lying, cheating,

disappointment, anger, frustration, and I'm doing all these things.

00:00:25:07 - 00:00:35:04

Which leads me to getting arrested by the age of 16. Yup.

00:00:35:06 - 00:00:54:23

Well what's up? Crafted for glory family. It is such an honor to be with you again today. I don't

know about you. Maybe you're driving in your car. Maybe you're at home right now washing

the dishes or listening to this, while you're working out. I want you to kind of come with me on

this journey as I ask you this question of.

00:00:55:01 - 00:01:20:17

Tell me a little bit. In your mind, as you as you listen to this, tell me about how you've ever

looked back on your life and kind of seeing just moments over and over again on how God

took you from one thing and brought you to the next thing. As I was preparing for this podcast

and just what I wanted to share with you guys today.

00:01:20:19 - 00:01:56:15

I was coming up with this thought and this idea of trying to figure out where my purpose

actually came from. What it took for me to get here and how I went from religion to relationship.

So today when we jump into this, episode, we're going to be talking about just that. So

welcome to crafted for glory. If this is your first time tuning in, this is the perfect place where we

explore faith, creativity, leadership, and entrepreneurship all in one aspect.

00:01:56:15 - 00:02:20:10

Crafted for glory is here to remind you that you two were made in God's image and that you

are crafted for glory. So I'm really excited because I'm getting ready to share, some really cool

things today. And honestly, I'm sharing something that I have to say has been one of the the

hardest parts of becoming who I am today.

00:02:20:10 - 00:03:00:13

I mean, I think I look back at to when I was a little girl and how I transitioned into becoming a

woman, right. And how I learned more about myself as I journeyed. And I went on, this I want

to say, like a little bit of a roller coaster with God. And so I kind of want to break that down and,

and kind of share a little bit more, about how I went from, just not knowing how God actuallycared about me to knowing that he loved me so deeply, from going from tragedy to

breakthrough or tragedy to triumph, whatever you can, title that moment and so we're going to

00:03:00:13 - 00:03:19:15

dive into that. I'm going to walk you on that journey. So I'm excited to get us started. But just

to kind of kick us off, to kind of give you guys a perspective. So I am the baby of seven

children. Yes, I am the baby. I love being the baby, honestly. I mean, I used to get to wear my

sister's clothes when I was a little out.

00:03:19:16 - 00:03:36:06

Well, not by her giving them to me. I kind of used to, like, go in her closet and sneak them. But

I used to wear my my big sisters clothes, and I would find just so many moments where she

would come home from Christmas and she would bring me, fashion and all these things that I

was obsessed.

00:03:36:06 - 00:03:58:19

I mean, when I tell you, my mom, like, I didn't even know this, but at the time, like my mom at

one point was a model. I didn't know this until one of my aunts told me, like, later in life. And

my dad and my mom, when they met, they were at, I'd like to say a very pivotal moment in

their life when they had me, my mom and dad got married and we moved.

00:03:58:19 - 00:04:19:17

We lived in Washington, DC, and we moved around, but I really, really enjoyed, my relationship

with my dad. I mean, the way that he would treat me like I was literally, if my dad carried a

briefcase every day like I was the briefcase. Okay? Like he used to take me everywhere he

went. And I'm telling you, like, that briefcase he did have, though, it had a bunch of fireballs,

and she goes, sticks.

00:04:19:17 - 00:04:37:07

And if you know, you know, if you don't even look at our fireballs and she goes, they were my

favorite little moment where I would sneak in my dad's suitcase. But everywhere my dad went,

he literally would take me with him. And my mom. On the other hand, my mom, I like to call her

like she's like the spicy part of me.

00:04:37:07 - 00:04:57:17

So that little spicy attitude that I can have, like my mom was born and raised that way, like she

was the one that was going to clap back and clapping back before it was a thing. Okay, so I

had this really great time. Like my family, we used to go on all of these, like, trips to like, this

place, where it was like an island in this island that they had.

00:04:57:17 - 00:05:19:04

It was like a Maryland. And it was a really cool island where most military go and a couple of

family, family members were in the military. So we would go there, meet my cousins, we have

cookouts. We would just have a vibe, like, who else remembers those little childhood

memories? Like, you just can't forget? I remember, like, during the cookouts or like, fishing with

my dad when I was a, a little girl, and he would take me out on the boat.00:05:19:07 - 00:05:41:04

Unknown

We would be there y'all, until 3 a.m. not catching, but one fish. Okay? Like we're sitting up

there for hours just to catch one fish and then we would have crabs with our family. Music

would be playing, running around with my cousins. Believe it or not, as girly as I look now, like,

I literally was a tomboy. Like I was climbing trees, riding bikes, breaking ankles, doing all types

of crazy things.

00:05:41:06 - 00:06:00:11

And a lot of that. When I look back on that reflection, I'm like, wow, these are very core

memories in my life. And a lot of people don't know, but I actually come from, an incredible

background of ministry. My dad was a pastor, and a lot of my aunts and uncles or my dad's

side were pastors as well.

00:06:00:12 - 00:06:25:09

And so I grew up in ministry unknowingly. I grew up in ministry. I was surrounded by prayer

warriors and praying people. I mean, I hear stories of how my grandmother was a praying

woman. My grandmother married a pastor. And I didn't know that my dad's life prior to him

becoming a pastor was completely different than what I saw as a little girl.

00:06:25:11 - 00:06:51:02

A lot of my family, can attest to different experiences they've had with my my parents, but a lot

of people don't know, probably up until about six years ago, because I've never really shared

this story, really on a platform like this up until this, well, not this year, but up until last year. But

I lost both my parents before I was the age of 12, so I lost my dad when I was just seven years

old, and I lost my mom.

00:06:51:08 - 00:07:12:19

Sorry. Yeah, I lost my mom three years later, to be exact, when I was 11. And when I have to tell

you that the way that it shifted my idea of what God gave me in the beginning to who God was,

especially when we used to go to church every Sunday, like who I was, grew up, maybe like in

a past, pastoral family or a ministry family.

00:07:12:19 - 00:07:39:16

And when I tell you I was my man, I got pictures of me. I mean, when I was a kid, I was doing, I

was dressing up wearing all the white tights, sitting on the pulpit with my dad as he preached

even little pieces of candy and all of these fun things. But I have to say that I remember this

moment where after my parents had passed and I was going through this season of, just

realizing, like, I really don't know who God is.

00:07:39:22 - 00:07:57:10

Like, I knew of him. Like I kind of treated him in this space of like, oh, if I'm getting in trouble,

like, call on God, he's going to save you. But I didn't really know who he was at the depth that I

know him now, and it has me just thinking about how many of us out here have had those

same experiences.

00:07:57:10 - 00:08:18:01And I don't know who this is for, but a lot of times, I think that we've been introduced to religion

in a way that has, interrupted the actual destiny that God has called us on. And so what do I

mean by that? Interrupted it. You've introduced, the rules, the regulations, the show up and do

this. And to turn around and do that.

00:08:18:07 - 00:08:35:14

And if you don't, there will be discipline. And I realized that I lived a lot of my life growing up,

really focused on rules, regulations and how to show up. So after my mom had passed, I'm

wind up moving to a new state. I left Baltimore and moved to a new state, with one of my

aunts.

00:08:35:14 - 00:08:55:21

At the time, I didn't really know of my aunt because I was so young, but as I moved in, I

realized that there was something more that I needed from my parents that I thought that only

my parents could provide. I really thought that no one else could love me like my parents. And I

remember just having a conversation with God.

00:08:55:21 - 00:09:15:06

I was sitting in my room, really nice house, like I went from living in a poverty area to living in a

house that was magnificent and large. And I'm sitting in this space which all around me felt

elegant and great and beautiful, and I was grateful to be there. But I realized how mad I was at

God.

00:09:15:07 - 00:09:34:18

I remember every day I would be so angry and I didn't know at the time. I'm 11 years old. I

didn't know where that anger was coming from. I didn't know who or what or what was the

cause. And I remember thinking to myself, well, if God took my parents, then there's no way in

the world that he loves me.

00:09:34:19 - 00:10:02:00

So I went through my adolescence pretty much, really just being disobedient to everything and

everything that was walked up to me in some instance or scenario, and I went from having an

experience with God while I'm in, you know, my, my dad's church or spending time with my,

family members in a church space. And I went from those experiences to feeling isolated to

feeling alone.

00:10:02:00 - 00:10:28:00

And I don't know who this is for today, but I really want to tap into that. I want to talk about

those pivotal moments where God does something in our life that changes our mind about who

he is, and later we find ourselves in a moment where we're feeling isolated, where we're feeling

separated from him. And I can only think about the moments like that of just moments of like

having thoughts that I don't want to be, you know who I am.

00:10:28:00 - 00:10:50:12

I don't want to live the life that he laid out for me because it's just not fair. How many of us I

don't know where you are, but how many of us have said that at one point like this is just notfair? I remember I was playing sports, right? I actually was a sports girl, I played softball, and I

remember playing softball and I would go to the practices and I'm so pumped, so excited.

00:10:50:13 - 00:11:09:16

And I look around and I see that I'm the only one that doesn't have their parents there. Here we

go again. It felt like there was, another injury to the womb that was already happening in my

life. But how many of us know that God is so gracious that even in the darkest hour, even in

moments like that, he still shows up?

00:11:09:16 - 00:11:26:21

And so this woman that was also, at another sports event, where I was cheerleading, I felt the

same way. She comes up to me, she was like, hey, she was like, you know, you want to come

hang out with my daughter? You know, I'll like, give you snacks and like, you can come hang

out and do, like, play dates and whatnot.

00:11:26:21 - 00:11:45:23

And I'm in like sixth and seventh grade at this time, so I'm like, of course, like, this woman

cares enough about me. And mind you, I'm living with my aunt at this time. And so they

became really good friends because of cheerleading. But I find myself in this place where all of

a sudden now I'm yearning for other relationships in all the wrong places.

00:11:45:23 - 00:12:05:20

Right? So I had this woman that came in my life, which was a very special woman in my life

that made a really great impact. But then I found myself on the latter side, looking at boys for

love, looking at boys for finding out who I was and what God really had for me. I mean, I

actually, lost my virginity when I was just 12 years old.

00:12:05:22 - 00:12:21:14

And a lot of people that might be listening to this, they might be like, girl, like, that's crazy.

You're wild for that. Or there's some people that might be listening to this and be like, wow, me

too. Or maybe it wasn't my intention, and I want to speak to that girl, or that man or that

woman or whoever is listening to this.

00:12:21:16 - 00:12:50:06

God was not finished with me just because I made a mistake. So as I grew older, I found myself

in moments where I kept making mistakes over and over and over again up until I was like the

age of 16 and still kept making mistakes over and over and over again, but short term

afterwards, around the age of 16, and that one instance that I had where I had lost my virginity

so early, I found myself getting to a point where I'm like, well, whatever.

00:12:50:08 - 00:13:08:06

You know, if everybody's going to look at me as the bad girl who doesn't listen, who does

these things wrong, you know, I found myself finding the wrong friends. I ended up fighting all

throughout school, and I get to the age of 16 and, I'm like, I'm tired mentally because I'm like,

God, how could you leave me?

00:13:08:06 - 00:13:26:19And I don't have parents. I go to all of these events, I do all of these things, and I still feel like

you're not there. And so I'm thinking to myself at 16, what I gotta do, what I gotta do to make

sure that I am able to do something for me. How do I show up for me since God left me?

00:13:26:19 - 00:13:47:19

How do I show up for me since my parents left me? Or no one around me cares based on my

own perspective? And I come to find out that as I'm coming into this realization, I started to

still. So while I'm sleeping around with these men who definitely were older than me, I find

myself exchanging spirits of lying, cheating, disappointment, anger, frustration.

00:13:47:19 - 00:14:15:19

And I'm doing all these things. Which leads me to getting arrested by the age of 16. Yup, yup. I

know I don't look like what I've been through, but yeah, I was arrested at age 16 and, facing an

actual felony charge. And I remember, going into handcuffs and getting in the back of, the

police car very embarrassed because I'm, like, thinking to myself is like, no, this can't be the

end.

00:14:15:21 - 00:14:41:10

But I wanted to leave my reality. So bad that I was leaning into the perspective that my

circumstances. Wow. Thank you, Holy Spirit. This might be for somebody. I kept leaning into

the fact that my circumstances were an excuse for me to live the way that I was living because

I was born in poverty, or because I lost both my parents, or because I felt like no one loved me,

or whatever the case may be.

00:14:41:10 - 00:14:59:07

I thought that my circumstances were the thing that I should just hold on to. So oops, I just got

to be this. I got to be the rude girl. I got to be the lying girl that people say I am. Even if my

character is showing those things, I'm going to come into an agreement with the things that are

not right.

00:14:59:09 - 00:15:28:17

So I did that and I'm sitting in the back of that, that police car and I'm realizing like, wow, there

needs to be a shift. I don't want to live my life like this. I don't want to go to jail. Jail that gave

me jail. I can't go, no, they would tear me up. I couldn't do it. And so I remember sitting there

and I was I'm in the back and I have to write a statement and I'm sitting there handcuffed to

the table, write in a statement with one arm.

00:15:28:19 - 00:15:47:22

And I have this realization where I believe I had an encounter with God. I didn't realize that he

was talking to me. And I feel like there's moments where we have this realization that God is

talking to us, but we ignore it. So I'm sitting in that moment and I'm like, well, if he's real, he's

going to tell me what I need to do.

00:15:47:22 - 00:16:07:22

And so I'm in that moment and I'm being honest on the paper and I'm like, wow, this girl, right

here is broken. I actually am very mad. It's making me emotional now. But I was very mad atGod for taking my parents. So I'm sitting there and I'm like, Lord, you got to fix this because

this, this can't be me.

00:16:07:22 - 00:16:26:00

And at the time, I didn't know it was God. I mean, I was only 15, 16 years old, and I tell the

truth and I say, you know, on the paper I felt like I was right into God, but I really was writing a

statement. And I said, you know, I'm so angry. I'm so upset at who I am and that I don't have

my parents.

00:16:26:00 - 00:16:52:11

And so I started stealing because I wanted to do something for me. I wanted to use that as an

excuse to take care of me when the only person, and the only one in the entire world that could

take care of me was God. So I wind up by the grace of God. I wind up going through, this case

and my aunt at the time, she wound up taking care of it, and I was able to be set free and let

go.

00:16:52:11 - 00:17:10:14

And I didn't have to face the charges that could. It came to me, and I know a lot of people

might be saying, well, like, girl, how did you get here? Even at that time, I had an encounter

with God, but I still didn't know him. Hey, crafted for glory fam! I'm so excited. I have

something super special for you.

00:17:10:20 - 00:17:31:18

It's going to kind of blow your mind a little bit and I'm excited to share with you. Have you ever

found yourself in this position where you're searching as an entrepreneur, as a leader, or even

as someone that's interested in getting into their creative journey? I'm telling you right now, it's

so important for you to know what your purpose is in order to step in places that God wants to

send you.

00:17:31:18 - 00:17:55:05

So I'm interrupting this episode because I came up with something super fun and cute. It's

going to be amazing. It's the perfect place for you to find out what your purpose driven,

entrepreneurial archetype is. I'm telling you, this is not your ordinary test. You're going to take

the test. It's going to have you thinking a little bit, and you're going to find yourself trying to

figure out, how do I actualize this purpose that I just found out about.

00:17:55:09 - 00:18:15:15

Now, if you are anything like me, you found yourself at many times trying to figure out, am I

really good at innovating or am I a dreamer? And something I've realized is that your

entrepreneurial style is different from everyone else. Don't copy. Don't compare, but start

finding out what that looks like today. It's not going to cost you anything.

00:18:15:20 - 00:18:44:22

Unknown

It's literally the perfect quiz that you can take in just three minutes to find out what's your

archetype is so let's get back to the episode. Can't wait to see you there. But so time goes on.

I'm living between homes. Because I'm having these experiences where I'm not living up to

God's best for my life, and I'm living between different homes up until the age of 17, where Iwas actually put out just three days before my 18th birthday and told I needed to find

somewhere else to go.

00:18:45:00 - 00:19:09:11

And so I was facing homelessness. I mean, I was living between a family member's house to a

mutual family member's house and going back and forth and I found myself just literally like

thinking, how am I going to get to where I want to be? And the only way that I thought about

that, thank God for my counselor and my principal at the time in high school.

00:19:09:13 - 00:19:30:03

Because they were the ones that were talking to me consistently about college. And so me

going and looking at that as like my way out, I found myself coming to the instance where I

wanted to prove that I was no longer that 16 year old girl, or that 12 year old girl, and I don't

know who this is for.

00:19:30:03 - 00:19:56:11

And I mean, maybe there's someone that's listening to this, but I want to really take a moment

to talk about how religion sometimes and the rules and the ideas of I gotta do this or that does

not equal happiness or joy or success, but I want us to take that mindset from religion and talk

about how to get into relationship.

00:19:56:13 - 00:20:15:00

So I've told you my story. I've told you how I've made a lot of mistakes. You might be

wondering, well, how did I get here? And I will have to say, it took time. It took consistency and

not consistency in the aspect of, oh, I gotta make sure that I do this, and if I don't do this thing,

God is going to be mad at me.

00:20:15:05 - 00:20:38:06

No, it had to take a pursuit, right? I mean, when we think about the Bible, when we think about

different ways in so many people's journey, there had to be a pursuit where you had to go out

and you had to trust God. I mean, think about Moses. Moses was called to free a nation. I

know for a fact if God said to me, Jasmine, free a nation at that time in my life, I'd be like, yeah,

no, no, don't ask me, right?

00:20:38:06 - 00:20:57:20

We have the moments where Noah is called to literally build an ark, right? And everybody's

like, there ain't been no rain in forever, ain't no rain coming right. Imagine those moments

where we look back on, on those spaces in our life that's relationship with God. Relationship

with God is coming to him with your honest truth. God, I don't know you.

00:20:57:20 - 00:21:14:21

I don't trust you. I don't trust what you got going on. I don't like the way religion looks and

letting him meet you where you are. That's the one thing about our guy. He's so faithful that

just like with me, he could have talked to me when I was 16. He was planning to see because

he already knew the future that he had for me.

00:21:15:00 - 00:21:30:03And I don't know who's listening to this, but I want you to know that you are not made up of

your mistakes, and God has a future for you. He loves you and he cares for you. And so time

goes on. I wind up going to college. I graduate with two degrees a psych degree in a mass

comm degree.

00:21:30:08 - 00:21:50:08

I launched my business at 21 years old. Right. And this business is now nine years old, so

praise God for that. But I launch a business at 21. I get my first apartment on my own, right?

I'm paying my own bills. I had the help of a blessing where I didn't even realize that this person

would have such an impact on my life.

00:21:50:13 - 00:22:17:08

She's now my adoptive mom, but in my life at that season, she was just a friend. She took me

in right after I was, about to go to college, and I found myself learning and growing what Grace

was like learning and growing to understand what grace was, what God's mercy looked like. I

felt like, at the time that literally this woman was an angel that had to be sent and plopped

down in the middle of my life.

00:22:17:10 - 00:22:37:06

Lo and behold, before I knew and the way that she would speak life into me, even when I

would do things wrong, the way that she would show me examples of what grace looked like,

that allowed me to build a relationship with God in a deeper way. And she wasn't a woman that

was super religious. She wasn't a woman that was like, read your Bible every day.

00:22:37:12 - 00:22:55:05

It was more about the relationship. And I believe that God gave her in my life at that time to

teach me what relationship with him could look like. And so, as I say that to say, as as I moved

into my first apartment, I bought my first car. As a matter of fact, I actually crashed my first car.

00:22:55:07 - 00:23:17:13

And then I wind up buying my own, my own car later. I don't recommend driving at 21, but, I

wound up buy my own car later and and literally. Oh, quick little story time, little side pivot. So I

crashed the car because, you know, I was driving a Ford and this sport was like 1998 or

something like that.

00:23:17:13 - 00:23:40:23

I was gifted it after graduation. Shout out to my, for gifting me that. But I literally I got in the car.

I was being hard it I was rushing to work. I worked at Nordstrom at the time and I'm rushing

and I literally find myself going through a yellow light. And the woman that was coming towards

me, she cut me off, but I didn't know how to stop my car because I'm panicking.

00:23:40:23 - 00:23:57:10

I'm driving for the first time. So I literally just hit the brakes. But the brakes. I turn the wheel and

the wheel goes right into the back of that woman's car. And I was like, oh my gosh. And then

she was an older woman. So I'm panicking. I'm like, oh my gosh, are you okay? Oh my

goodness. She's like, I'm fine, are you okay?00:23:57:10 - 00:24:17:10

And I was like, no, I don't think so. So she's like, look, I'm a I'm we're going to talk to your

insurance, we're going to move on and blah, blah, blah. But y'all, my little four car whole door

was no longer open in. Okay. The the side of the car was just like not working anymore. And I

felt bad because I didn't dent nothing on the lady's car.

00:24:17:10 - 00:24:40:20

It was my car that was destroyed. And I don't know, y'all know I got a breach everything. But I

feel like sometimes that happens to us. We hit a roadblock, we hit a situation, and we don't.

Actually, the other person doesn't actually get affected, but we do. So y'all know I got to

preach that into a moment because there might be somebody listening that actually hit a

roadblock and you're the one affected and you got to deal with the problems, lean into it

because you want to know what happened.

00:24:40:23 - 00:25:07:09

That taught me how to value my own property. See, I was I get I got the gift of the car, but I

actually had to buy my own car next. So I'm more cautious the way I'm driving. I'm more

looking at the situation like, Jasmine, don't put yourself in this situation again. But that's my

little side note. I hope that, I hope you all you guys are laughing at me because I definitely

didn't know where the brake was when I was driving my car.

00:25:07:11 - 00:25:37:02

So, kind of leaning back into it. So I get into this season where I'm still not really knowing who

God is. I'm still trying to play the part of, of a little bit of, focus on just showing up. Okay? Like I

wasn't going to church through college. I get I want to say it probably wasn't until about 2018

where I felt like I hit rock bottom, where I realized that as I'm hitting rock bottom, I literally I lost

my job.

00:25:37:08 - 00:25:58:12

I was hard headed. Okay, so how many of us are hardheaded? You know, God tells us

something and we just do the total opposite. So, I shared this before, but I basically in 2018, I

went to, apply for a whole new job, and I was being disobedient cause I wanted more money. I

wanted to live in this aspect of keep proving people wrong.

00:25:58:12 - 00:26:14:04

Like, no, I'm not going to be that 16 and pregnant girl y'all talking about. I'm not going to be

the one that's always lying. I had this these, these enemy like talks in my head that excuse me

over and over again. I found myself believing over time. And so I was like, no, I'm gonna get a

new job.

00:26:14:06 - 00:26:33:14

You know, I'm a I'm gonna apply to new job, y'all. I get this new job and they let me go seven

days later. Come on and talk about God getting your attention. Okay, so I find myself at this

rock bottom. Mind you, I'm living in my own apartment. I got my own car. I got to pay bills.

Like, how crazy is this that I got let go from this job?00:26:33:14 - 00:26:50:15

Am at the time. I mean, I thank God because of my my now husband, which was my boyfriend

at the time, wasn't in my life. I and my friends and my aunts, I don't know how I would have got

through that season because that was a rough season like that year of 2018. I lost my job. I

started losing friends.

00:26:50:15 - 00:27:10:06

I was so lost I felt like I was going crazy. I think I was around the age of like 24 leading up to 24,

25. And then I was going crazy. Okay, fast forward, I go through that season. I'm literally

jobless. I'm on food stamps. Okay? Like I'm at the place where I'm on food stamps. I'm literally

like, I'm countin every.

00:27:10:06 - 00:27:25:07

I used to come to the store, y'all with a calculator. I'm not lying. I would come to a store at

calculator and coupons because I could not afford food, so I would literally have my calculator

out and I would be in the line. And as soon as it hit the threshold of my food stamps, I'd be like,

put that back.

00:27:25:09 - 00:27:39:23

Yeah, yeah, yeah. No, that one to holding up the whole line. But I didn't care because I was

like, you know what, God, one day I'm going to have more than enough. So I'm going to

steward these little food stamps that you gave me because I'm not trying to be in a bad place

again. And I know that I messed this up, so I want to do that.

00:27:39:23 - 00:28:12:08

Mind you, I still don't have a full relationship with God. And so anyway, that year goes and I'm

struggling. I'm going back and forth. I find myself in the year of 2018, leading up into New

Years. I had found, this church that was actually local to my neighborhood. So I was in

Baltimore at this time, and I remember the year prior that I had this little, you know, how you

get things in the mail, those little, like, cards that are like, hey, come to this event or whatever.

00:28:12:08 - 00:28:31:17

So I found this little flier that y'all, I let you not. When I had lost my job in 2018, it was around

September. I saw this flier that I had on my fridge for a whole year that said, come to church.

Like literally, it's a come to church. That's literally what the words were. Come to church. I lied

to you guys.

00:28:31:17 - 00:28:56:20

Not when I looked at that flier, y'all. Why was it a church that relocated to my area in

Baltimore? That was the actual first church I went to right after my parents passed. How crazy

is that? They relocated five minutes from my house, and I didn't even look at that flier until a

year later. So I found myself looking at the flier and I'm like, oh my goodness.

00:28:56:20 - 00:29:13:17

So the, the church was spirit of faith. What pastor Deedee and Mike, and I literally I'm looking

at the flier. I'm like, I'm going to go, I'm gonna go, I'm gonna go to church. I don't know why,but we here now. I go for a couple of Sundays over and over again, and I'm like, okay, Lord,

why?

00:29:13:17 - 00:29:33:02

The first day the pastor talking about my business, he talking straight to me. I'm like, okay,

Lord, I hear you. So I find myself going back and New Year's comes and I'm like, okay,

Jasmine, you're going to church on New Year's. Mind you, my New Year's prior to that was in

the clubs, out with my friends, drinking, not going to church.

00:29:33:02 - 00:29:50:11

I was living whatever best life I thought I had. And so this was new for me to go to church. I'm

like, okay, God, you want me to go to church on a New Year's Day? This seems very wild. So I

wound up going, I'm talking to my girlfriends. I'm like, y'all, like, I'm on this new journey. I want

y'all to go to church with me.

00:29:50:11 - 00:30:15:15

They like, girl, what can we go to in a club? After that? I was like, sure, if that'll take you guys

enough to go to church with me on this night. So I go and, I'm like, okay, we're going to go to

the church that's around the corner from, you know, my house. Y'all. I literally lie to you not I

say I'm sitting there and I'm like, okay, I don't see them post a flier to say like, hey, Jasmine,

you know, join us on this day or whatever.

00:30:15:15 - 00:30:31:08

They don't even send out a text message. And I'm like, what happened? Come to find out, I

believe the pastor's dad got sick around this time, so they cancel New Year's service. So I'm

like, what in the world? Where am I going to go? So I'm sitting there and I'm like, telling my

friends, like, look, I don't know where I'm going to go.

00:30:31:08 - 00:30:49:06

And my best friend Kierra, she says, hey, one of my friends invited us to this church. And I was

like, I don't know if I want to go to a new church. Like, I'm just getting back in the church. This

seems crazy. And so at the time, this church was called Destiny. And I went to the church on

the, New Year service.

00:30:49:11 - 00:31:07:19

When I tell y'all I pulled up and the church literally looked like a club outside, I'm talking about

cars galore. Like I was like, Lord, what kind of church is this? Why so many people here? Like, I

ain't never seen this. Many people know New Year's service. This is a club line. Like we was in

line waiting to get in a church.

00:31:07:21 - 00:31:27:00

And so I get in there and I remember in that service the pastor was praying, Pastor Steven

Chandler, he's praying. And he says to, just the audience in the congregation, like some of you

are here. I remember this like it was yesterday. Some of you are here because God wants to

redeem you. He wants to restart, you know, whatever you had going on.

00:31:27:00 - 00:31:52:17And he kept saying, like, God forgives you for your mistakes. He forgave you. He kept saying it

over and over again. When I tell y'all I was breaking down, I was crying. You didn't got every

tear out of my eye at that point. I probably lost water, fluid, all type of stuff. Like I was crying so

much. And I tell you guys that story and all of this story because it makes me realize how

comforting it is to be in a place of God's presence.

00:31:52:21 - 00:32:23:17

When I look back on that moment, that moment was a catalyst to where I get to be now, and it

was a catalyst for my pursuit after God. And so I say all of that to say that was only six years

ago. So the redemption, the time, the effort and all of those different things, it took time to be

able to get to the place that I am now and all I want to say, I share this story, and I want to kind

of leave a couple of notes with you guys.

00:32:23:18 - 00:32:45:15

And one of the the scriptures that came to my mind first was Romans 828, and it says, and we

know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called

according to his purpose. So when I reflect on all the moments of tragedy and chaos in my life,

it reminds me about.

00:32:45:18 - 00:33:09:12

While I did go through all of these different things and nuances, some things I caused myself, I

caused some of my own wilderness seasons, but other things that were just a part of life and

teaching me to get close to God. I reflect and I realize that God was there the whole time. I get

to sit in front of you today because he redeemed me.

00:33:09:14 - 00:33:30:22

He saw that broken little girl inside of me, and he was able to say, you know what, Jazmin? You

are chosen. You are enough. You are worthy. And I feel like that's the message for someone

today. So don't even pay attention to all the ounces of my story. Instead, I want you to pay

attention to the weight of God's glory that is also on your life.

00:33:31:00 - 00:33:49:04

I think a lot of times we lean into our mistakes and we don't think that we're worthy enough to

be loved, but I want to tell you right now that God loves you so, so much. He cares for you.

Your deepest, darkest worries are so small to him, but they're big in his heart. He wants to

know you.

00:33:49:04 - 00:34:09:08

He wants to learn who you are. And I want you guys to know that all things work together for

our good. And that you too, are crafted for glory. And just the kind of challenge you really. I

want to challenge you with a couple of, questions that I want you to leave and maybe take a

note.

00:34:09:08 - 00:34:30:01

Maybe you pull out your journal when you get a chance to pull out and save this. But I want to

ask you, what has been your experience with religion versus relationship with God, and howwould you define religion versus relationship for you? Then I want to ask you to dig a little bit

deeper and really ask God. God, what is my connection to you?

00:34:30:02 - 00:34:49:01

How am I called to purpose? And then really invite God in and in your own quiet times?

Because while I did go to church multiple times and I still do go to church, and I went to church

even when I wasn't close to God, it wasn't the building that changed my relationship. It was an

encounter with him.

00:34:49:03 - 00:35:05:17

I had multiple encounters when I kept saying, yes, you know what, Lord? I want to restart. I

want to do this with you and not without you. And it took some time to get there. I want you to

go back to those moments and say, God, when have you been speaking to me? And I've

ignored you whenever you talk to me.

00:35:05:17 - 00:35:29:00

And I miss those moments. And I want to kind of close this out in some prayer. And then we

will be wrapping up this episode. So, Heavenly Father, I thank you, Lord. I thank you for who

you are. I thank you that you led me to this very moment to share this testimony, even if I don't

feel qualified.

00:35:29:00 - 00:35:50:05

God, your word says that you qualify the called. I pray that anyone listening to this episode that

they take a moment to reflect on their journey, moments that maybe they made some mistakes

in the past, or maybe they needed to see who you were and be reminded of who you were. I

pray that you meet with them wherever they are.

00:35:50:07 - 00:36:12:00

I pray that they send and share this with loved one so that they too can make an impact and

remind them, Lord, how they are crafted for glory. In Jesus mighty name we give you all the

honor, the glory and the praise. Amen, Amen, Amen. Well, thank you so, so much for joining me

on this episode. We made it.

00:36:12:03 - 00:36:27:15

If you've been on this journey this long, or maybe this is your first time tuning in, just remember

that this is the perfect place where you don't have to be a perfect Christian, but you can be a

progressing one. Maybe you don't know. Got it all. And you're just here for the wisdom and the

leadership. A man, a woman, whatever.

00:36:27:16 - 00:36:46:10

God loves you, he cares for you. And I want you to know that you too are crafted for glory.

Make sure you subscribe again. I am your host, Jasmine Cee Green, and it's an honor and a

pleasure to be with you. So subscribe. Join us, follow us on Instagram, leave a comment and

leave a review. Can't wait to talk to you soon.

00:36:46:10 - 00:37:01:03Bye bye.