Theresa Hartley

Theresa shares about how a conversation with a friend regarding a church visit transformed her life and pursuit of Jesus. Listen to this incredible story of life change.

Chapters

• 0:00 - 3:00 Chapter 1: Finding a New Spiritual Home
  A journey from Catholic upbringing to finding a welcoming church community.
• 3:00 - 6:00 Chapter 2: Healing Through Community and Scripture
  The transformative power of community engagement and Bible study in healing and personal growth.
• 6:00 - 9:00 Chapter 3: Embracing God's Love and Perseverance
  Overcoming anger and doubt to embrace God's unwavering love and the importance of perseverance in faith.
• 9:00-16:34 Chapter 4: Living in Community and Serving Others
  The importance of living out faith through community involvement and service to others.

Transcript

Well hello friends, welcome to the ML Podcast.

We're so glad to have you on today.

And so my name is R.W. Moody, the Family Pastor here at Maiden Lane, and you've been listening to the ML Podcast for a while.

Listening to different stories of what God's been doing in the lives of people here at our church.

So welcome to another episode.

The purpose of the ML Podcast is to highlight how people discover, connect, grow, and share through the story of their journey with Jesus.

And so we hope that these stories will provide some encouragement for you and then also inspiration to live a Christ-centered life.

So friends, welcome.

We're so glad that you could join us today.

In the podcast booth this morning is with us, Theresa Hartley.

Say hello, Theresa.

Good morning.

 We're so glad that you're here.

You don't know this, but Theresa is very excited about today.

She is very excited.

I'm glad to be here.

Maybe a little nervous, but more excited, right?

More excited, yes.

Good, good.

Well, Theresa, we're glad to be able to have this opportunity to hear your story.

So first and foremost, tell us how you came to become involved here at Maiden Lane Church.

Well, it sounds simple when I say it, that I came through a mutual friend, a woman I had known for 30 years.

We had a connection through the losses of our husbands.

And I don't know.

I was looking to fill a hole in my heart, I guess.

Yeah.

And I knew she came here.

And I said, can I just come and sit with you one Sunday?

And she's like, sure.

So I come in and I sit down.

And I was raised Catholic, by the way.

Okay.

Graduated Catholic Central.

 And I sat down, and I saw Jeanette, the female pastor.

And I was like, okay, so I'm used to males, but that's okay.

A little shocker, huh?

A little bit, because I wasn't used to it, because women don't serve in the Catholic Church.

Only men do.

And the very first sermon was just like she was talking directly to me.

And I knew I was going to be back.

I knew I was going to be home.

 Gotcha.

It's amazing to me in ministry, how many times people will say, um, man, were you like spying on my life?

Because everything you said was right where I was at.

Yes, exactly.

At that time it was, I was, I was really in search of, um, something more for my heart.

Yeah.

This was in, I think 2021, I first came here and, um, my husband passed away in 2019.

So, um,

 There was a lot of anger for a long period of time, and I just felt this hole just growing, and I needed something to fill it.

I needed something to make it better, to give me something to be more centered on, to be more happy about, I guess.

I don't know if that's the right word or not, but I just needed more fulfillment.

I needed something else in my life.

Yeah.

And come to find out that God was always there.

Yeah.

So, so tell us a little bit, Theresa, as you came here to Maiden Lane, um, and you kind of started to experience some of that, that whole feeling, tell us a little bit about like what Jesus was doing in your life at that time and how you recognized his work being done in you.

Jesus connected me with the people here.

And I say this over and over and over again.

This is a family who immediately accepts you.

I'm one who likes to be involved in things.

I like to be doing stuff.

My coping mechanism when my husband passed was just to keep myself super, super, super busy.

And that just kind of helped to get through the days.

Here at Maiden Lane, everyone I encountered introduced themselves, said hello.

I had an opportunity to be a pie lady, and that's been like one of the best things ever.

I've just really loved it.

Do you keep them in order down in the kitchen?

I make the dough.

But it was Jesus, and God was just guiding me.

Like, these are the people that you need to be around right now.

These are the people that are going to help you through these next few months and years.

And they certainly have.

It's been amazing.

So I was really nervous at first because going to a Catholic church, you go in, you sit down, have your mass, get up and leave.

Yeah.

There's not much interaction there.

At all.

And I did try to go back.

I was married for 33 years.

And my husband, he wasn't a church goer, I guess.

But I had a desire to return to the Catholic church.

Yeah.

You know, the couple of times I went back was like, they, they were, what are you doing here?

It was like, you know, having a, um, a seat that they thought you were taken from them or something.

They just made me feel like I didn't belong there.

So I said, well, okay, that's enough of that.

Yeah.

And then when I wanted to pursue more of a Christian life, I guess I had that desire in me the whole time.

Um,

I knew my friend went to a Church of God, and I'd never been to one, so it was really different.

My mother was like, you're doing what?

But when I came in, it's so different.

It's so welcoming, and it's just, I don't know.

It was just a really, it's been just, I don't know.

It's a wonderful experience.

Yeah.

I love being part of this family.

Theresa, you said something a minute ago that like when you said this word, I, number one, it resonates with me because I think a lot of times people do this.

You said the word church goer.

And so there's a huge difference between being a church goer and a pursuer of Jesus.

You use that term too.

So in your experience, how did you go from being a church goer to now a pursuer of Jesus?

Honestly, it was through reading the Bible.

I went to Catholic high school.

I graduated from Catholic Central.

I went to Sunday school.

I went to church every Sunday.

And until I joined a Grow Group, I'd never read the Bible.

You read the Bible and you figure out he's there the whole time.

The Bible is full of, it's a story of gratefulness and love.

Every story that Paul writes is amazing.

Romans is one of my favorites.

I'm going to share that with you here in a minute.

But I want to pursue the life that Jesus gave us.

Yeah.

I want to be the one that He is proud of.

I'm always one that I want people to be proud of me.

But I want to live the life that he has allowed us to live.

Yeah.

And to pursue the way that he did it through humbleness and kindness is my main motivation right now.

Gotcha.

I'm so glad that you doubled back to that pursuit because, can I just be honest with you and as well as everybody who's listening?

There's lots of people who sit in the pews every week who do nothing more than come to church, and they are just a church goer.

That's true.

There's a whole different side of following Jesus than just sitting on your tushy on a Sunday morning in service.

And I'm so glad that you said, hey, it was when I started engaging in Scripture that it made all the difference.

Following Jesus is about taking the sermons that you hear every week and there's a lot of effort and a lot of work put into those sermons.

You take that sermon out of here, and you go and live what you've just heard.

You go and give.

You go serve, however you might be.

The purpose of going to church, I think, not only the fellowship, but also to take those sermons to heart and go and live what God's telling you to do.

Yeah.

You were talking about Romans and how Romans has been kind of interacting with your life and kind of

 changing you.

So what are some things that Paul, as you've been searching that scripture, what has it been challenging you?

Romans 5, it talks about perseverance and perseverance leads to endurance.

It leads to caring.

It leads mostly to love and loyalty to God.

But the perseverance is what resonates with me, is always persevere and always do what you are meant to do.

And if you open up your heart, I told someone who was church shopping, she was

I don't know if she was doing it to, well, I don't know why.

But I said, just go into a pew, sit down, open up your heart, and listen to the Holy Spirit.

It's all you have to do.

If you don't like it, don't go back.

Yeah.

But you know what?

You might.

If you open up your heart and you listen to what he's telling you, listen to what he's putting on your heart, then it makes you persevere and want to be more like him.

Yeah.

So in 2021, you came to Maiden Lane for the first time.

Yes, I believe it was.

And in those four years, those relationships that you've cultivated with people here have changed you.

Absolutely.

And so how, how have those relationships even today, like been such an influence in your daily life with Christ?

I see through the Grow Group mainly.

I've been in the same Grow Group for four years.

And God put me with the three most spiritual women I've ever experienced in my entire life.

And those three women, I sat down for the very first grow group and said, okay, I'm a novice at this.

I don't know what I'm doing.

I don't know how to journal.

I'm not sure what you want me to do.

And they were like, it's okay.

Yeah.

It's okay.

So through the things, and we read the Torah.

Perfect.

That's an interesting place to start.

Oh, boy, He was mad.

Wow.

And I think I entertain them more.

But I have learned so much through those four women, and they are the most special women in my life right now.

That's good.

I couldn't imagine life without them.

I'm sure your Catholic perspective from the Torah, too, made for some interesting conversations.

Yes, it did. It really did.

So for those who are listening who maybe are like, what is this Grow Group stuff that Theresa's talking about?

And hopefully you've heard about it here, but just in case, it's a small group of people who basically study scripture together.

And so you guys meet once a week?

We meet once a week.

Missy, when we first met with Missy, she said, keep it at an hour.

Ours are closer to about two.

Yeah.

Just because there's so much to talk about.

You know, not only are you catching up on life, but you're catching up on how your growth has been or how your week has been and then go in and talk about the scripture.

And it depends on the scripture that you're reading.

It can be, you know, simple weeks.

Most of them aren't because the Bible is not a simple book, but, um, it's one of the best hours I spend during the week.

Yeah.

I look forward to it.

It's like my hair appointment.

I don't negotiate my Grow Group.

Oh, which by the way, I mean, you can't see Theresa, but her hair does look really good today.

So Theresa, in that Grow Group and in those experiences you've had here, how has Jesus helped you to understand his love for you as a result of all that.

I know that he's always there.

I know that he's never wavering.

He's always faithful.

And if I can be an inch or a tenth of what the love he's got for me that I know he's got now.

I know he's got it there for me.

I doubted it for a while.

I mean, I went through years of being very, very angry at God for um..

Sorry.

It's okay, friend.

For taking my husband away.

It wasn't fair.

But, um, knowing that he was there to get me through it.

Yeah.

And I didn't realize it, and I felt bad about that because I knew he was there, but I didn't want to hear it.

I didn't want anything to do it for a while.

And now I know that was not the right approach.

And he's still here.

He's still here.

He's still like, it's okay.

It's okay.

And, um, it is, it's, it's been transforming.

You see my shirt?

Yeah. 

But it has this church and this family and God has just transformed my life in the last four years.

It's been amazing.

Do you feel like God has taken that anger and created it into something fresh and new? 

More useful and more productive.

Yeah.

I'm a, I'm a productive person.

I have a servant's heart.

I like to serve.

I like to do things.

And, um, um, people say that I'm a, I'm a changed person from the last few years and it's because of what he's done with me.

Yeah.

You know, he just, he, you know, it's like, he just waited.

He's like, it's okay.

Yeah.

I'm just going to wait until you're ready.

Okay.

Now you're ready.

So we're going to start working on you.

And I'm listening.

I'm letting him do it.

Yeah.

And I didn't before.

And now I am.

And I'm so grateful.

Yeah.

I have a heart of, full of gratefulness.

Theresa, what word of wisdom would you share to those who are pursuing Jesus?

As you've pursued him and you've gotten to know him more, what word of wisdom would you give to them as they continue to pursue or start to pursue?

Listen, listen, and be perseverant in seeking him.

And even if he doesn't answer you, a lot of people want to pray once and get their answer, and it doesn't happen, so they give up.

Don't ever give up.

That's good.

And always, always open your heart and listen to what he's telling you.

Always.

That's good.

Theresa, thank you for being transparent.

Thank you for being open.

Thank you for being nervous.

And I say that because, you know, there's... 

Sorry if my voice is a little wavery, but I do get, you know.

No.

I can be a little emotional about stuff, but, you know, when you're living the life that you're, I feel like I'm meant to lead now.

Yeah.

Sure, I'm by myself, but that's what it is.

Yeah.

And it's okay.

It's okay.

Because I have so many people around me that support me and love me.

And most of all, God's there for me.

Yeah.

He's there.

Yeah.

You know?

Yeah.

Friends, maybe you have experienced something in your journey with Christ that's very similar to what you've heard Theresa share about today.

I don't want to say this on her behalf too much, but I'm sure she would be willing to come alongside and help you to know a little bit more about her experience that can help you.

So she's always in the sanctuary.

You can find her, and if not, people know where she is.

But certainly, find her, listen to her a little bit more, embrace her, help her to you know, just come alongside of you as well as your, as your journey.

So thank you so much for sharing with us today.

Thanks for saying that R.W. because I am, I'm here for anybody who wants to, who wants to talk, you know, if you need an ear, I consciously listen to people and want them to know that they're heard.

Yeah.

I really do.

Well, and that's what it means to live in community, right?

We share each other.

Absolutely.

So, yeah.

Well, friends, until the next time we drop another episode of the ML podcast, we look forward to seeing you in worship.

But certainly, find her, listen to her a little bit more, embrace her, help her to just come alongside of you as well as your journey.