197. Seeing Time as a Gift -- Jodi Rosser

Can you believe it has been two months since I have been on the podcast? It was a wonderful sabbatical as I spent the first two months of my marriage being intentional as my new role as wife as well as helping our family’s transition.

But I have to say that I have missed doing my ministry, so I am so happy to be back and I am excited for this first guest! It is a good friend of mine, Becky Beresford and we are going to talk about her new book, *She Believed He Could So She Did. I cannot wait for you to hear the story behind the title. Also, I know you are going to learn so much from her as we look at some of culture’s lies and combat them with Biblical truth.

Also, I am so excited for someone to win a copy of Becky’s new book: *She Believed He Could So She Did. All the details of the book giveaway are on my website at jodirosser.com or you can click this direct link: https://kingsumo.com/g/bh1lwx/she-believed-he-could-so-she-did-book-giveaway

It is fun to have Becky back on the Podcast! If you missed my first conversation with Becky,  please check out Episode 30 on the Depth podcast.  I love what she shares about our identity in Christ and her Brave women series.

Book Recommendation: *I Will Be Found By You by Francis Frangipane

BECKY BERESFORD lives in North Carolina and is happily outnumbered by her husband and three wonderful boys. She is an author, speaker and coach with a Master's Certificate in Spiritual Formation and Discipleship from Moody Theological Seminary. Becky loves encouraging God’s Daughters to embrace Christ-centered empowerment through the truth found in the gospel. Her work has been featured in large online communities including Crosswalk, (in)courage, iBelieve, HuffPost, DaySpring, and she recently became a writer for Proverbs 31 Ministries’ First 5 writing team. Becky’s book with Moody Publishers, She Believed He Could So She Did releases in March. Connect with Becky at BeckyBeresford.com or follow her on Instagram and Facebook.

*Note: If you are interested in purchasing this book or the books recommended, I would love for you to use the Amazon Affiliate link above to help support the podcast. Thank you!

Happy New Year! I am so excited you are joining me in 2024.

Have you ever stopped and evaluated the roles you have in your life? The ones that God has given you?

Today, I thought it would be fun to talk about the roles we have in life and how we can embrace these roles. I love that my mentor models this so well. She recently said to me, “Sometimes you need to step back in one role, so you can step up in another.” I love this quote, and so today, I want to encourage you to make a list of your roles, pray and ask God what roles He may be asking you to add to your list and what roles He may be encouraging you to let go.

I recently did this and I share on the podcast what I felt God was asking me to do!

You don’t want to miss my big announcement!

I also encourage you to do this too- the beginning of a New Year is an excellent time to ponder how you want to spend your 2024 and in what capacity!

ve you ever said the words, “I didn’t sign up for this” or “God, this isn’t what I planned or expected for my life”? If you have, then I am really excited for you to hear today from Sarah Frazer. Her new book is titled those very words, *I Didn’t Sign Up For This. I love the hope she brings from her book about finding God’s goodness even when your story shifts.

Also, I am so excited for someone to win a copy of Sarah’s book: *I Didn’t Sign Up For This. All the details of the book giveaway are on my website at jodirosser.com or you can click this direct link: https://kingsumo.com/g/ieifgw/i-didnt-sign-up-for-this-book-giveaway

Book Recommendations: 

• *Gentle and Lowly by Dane Ortlund
• *Surprised by Jesus by Dane Orlund  
• *Upon Waking by Jackie Hill Perry  

Sarah E. Frazer is a writer, Bible study mentor, wife of Jason, and mother of five. With a background in missionary work and Bible teaching, her passion is to encourage women to start today with a Bible reading and prayer habit. She shares tools and encouragement for Bible study and prayer study on her website and on Instagram at @sarah_e_frazer. 

*Note: If you are interested in purchasing this book or the books recommended, I would love for you to use the Amazon Affiliate link above to help support the podcast. Thank you!

Are you passing a legacy of faith on to your children? I know this is so important, so I am so excited to have Casey Hilty on the podcast this week as we talk about her new book, *Her Children Arise: Passing a Legacy of Faith to the Next Generation. I am so excited because we are going to look at some of the women in the Bible and their examples. We are going to dive deep and even put ourselves in the shoes of these women in the Bible. I just love it. Also, I know you are going to learn so much from Casey.

Also, I am so excited for someone to win a copy of Casey's book, *Her Children Arise: Passing a Legacy of Faith to the Next Generation as well as her Nativity Garland. All the details of this giveaway are on my website at jodirosser.com or you can click this direct link: https://kingsumo.com/g/seqmsq/her-children-arise-and-nativity-garland-giveaway

Link to Depth Podcast Episode 128: Lessons from Biblical Mothers -- Rachael Adams

Book Recommendations:

• *Lineage of Grace by Francine Rivers
• *Hinds Feet on High Places by Hannah Hurnard
• *Psalms of Ascent by Beth Moore
• *Pearl in the Sand by Tessa Afshar

Casey Hilty is a Christian speaker, artist, worship leader, and author of *Her Children Arise: Passing a Legacy of Faith to the Next Generation. Using both storytelling and visual art, she is passionate about taking mothers on a journey from apathy to awe to fall in love—or back in love—with God and His Word. Casey recently jumped back into the world of teaching after being a stay-at-home mom for 14 years. She and her husband, Bo, have three school-aged kids, a gaggle of pets, and call South Louisiana home. You can find her on Instagram @caseyhilty and Facebook @caseyhilty1 and at www.caseyhilty.com.

*Note: If you are interested in purchasing this book or the books recommended, I would love for you to use the Amazon Affiliate link above to help support the podcast. Thank you!

So I have a really special guest today!!  I think you are going to be really excited to hear from him because I have some news to share—I am engaged! Yes, I am getting remarried!!! It is very exciting! Just recently I met this amazing man of God and I have been praying for a man who loves Jesus just as much as me for a long time. I am really excited that God answered this prayer in His perfect timing!  I have been praying for a while, but He knew when the right time was to bring David into my life. So, I am very excited for you to hear David and I talk about God’s faithfulness in our relationship!

Are you preoccupied? Do you find yourself physical present but your mind is everywhere else? Maybe emotionally and mentally—you are distracted! I think this is a struggle for many women. I know it is for me.

So, I am excited to have Julie Lefebure on the podcast. She has a new book called *Right Now Matters: Empowering “Right Now” Women in a Culture of Distraction. She has some great practical tools on how to live undistracted.  And I cannot wait for you to hear how she talks about replacing busy for full. It is my favorite part of the episode.

Also, I am so excited for someone to win a copy of Julie’s book: *Right Now Matters: Empowering “Right Now” Women in a Culture of Distraction. All the details of the book giveaway are on my website at jodirosser.com or you can click this direct link: https://kingsumo.com/g/wqjxyt/right-now-matters-book-giveaway

Recommended Podcast Episodes:

• Link to Julie’s first episode on the Depth Podcast Episode 93
• Link to my guest appearance on the Encouragement for Real Life Podcast: Heartbreak is Not the End of Your Story

Are you familiar with the verse Romans 8:28? Sometimes this verse can be misconstrued so let me read it to you: The NIV version 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.” I am excited today that we are going to talk more about this verse on the podcast.

Also, I cannot wait for you to meet Karen Hacker. We met through Saddleback Church, and she runs the Empty Arms Ministry — that is the ministry I attended after the loss of my baby. She is going to share a little bit about her story. October 15^th is Pregnancy and Infant Loss Remembrance Day. For so many of us, this is part of our story, so I like to do an episode each year and highlight God’s faithfulness in the middle of this unexpected storm. I am excited for this episode. You are going to learn so much from Karen about grief, what to say, what not to say, and we are going to dive deeper into that verse Romans 8:28.

Depth Podcast Episode Recommendations:

• Episode 5: Episode with Yvonne Buck where I share about my miscarriage.
• Episode 6: Episode with Dr Shari Bridgman who wrote the Empty Arms Curriculum
• Episode 196:  Episode with Clarissa and how I shared my story with her and helped her through her miscarriage.

Book Recommendations:

• *When Bad Things Happen to Good People by Harold S. Kushner
• *Grace Disguised by Jerry Sitzer
• *Don’t Give the Enemy a Seat At Your Table by Lou Giglio

Karen Badal Hacker’s story is one of love, loss, faith, healing and hope. Karen has been married to her husband, Rick, for 38 years and their bond has been both tested and strengthened by profound personal losses. Karen is a native Californian, a wife and mother of four—two babies in heaven and two adult children here on earth.

For 28 years, Karen and Rick Hacker have led "Empty Arms," a grief support group through Saddleback Church in Southern California. This ministry helps couples who have lost babies to miscarriage, stillbirth, and infant death.

Karen is the author of 8:28 Hope in the Darkness, which is set to be published and released by the end of 2023.  In her book, Karen seamlessly blends her personal journey with the timeless truths from Romans 8:28, offering readers a lifeline of hope and resilience during the most trying times. You can connect more with Karen on her website.

Karen and Rick are in the process of establishing a non-profit 501C3, 8:28 Hope in the Darkness. An educational and charitable organization dedicated to providing care, counsel, support and encouragement to grieving people who have suffered loss. Karen is passionate about helping the hurting navigate the difficult times of life by using life experiences, practical applications, understanding and acknowledgment of emotions, a firm foundation of faith, and trusting in God's promise of Romans 8:28. "And we know that all that happens to us is working for our good if we love God and are fitting into His plans."

*Note: If you are interested in purchasing this book or the books recommended, I would love for you to use the Amazon Affiliate link above to help support the podcast. Thank you!

Do you see time as a gift? Do you see it as the valuable resource that it is? I would have to say that I did not see time as a gift until my divorce. Let me explain- I always thought time was important, but I never saw it as priceless. Like something that needed to be guarded, it was a gift.

So I am excited to read with you a chapter from my book, *Depth: Growing Through Heartbreak to Strength. Chapter 13 is called the Bless in the Mess. I share a little bit about my friend, Jeannie’s story, and how she also saw time as a gift. And I also have an announcement that I want to share with you at the end of the episode, and it is all about time.  

Check out my Depth Podcast Episode 150: Last year, I shared My Best Yes and it is similar to this week's episode.

*Note: If you are interested in purchasing this book, I would love for you to use the Amazon Affiliate link above to help support the podcast. Thank you!

Has someone else’s story ever encouraged you? Maybe the hard thing you walked through is similar to what you have walked through, and their story of God’s faithfulness has ignited hope in you. Hope that God can do the same thing in your story. This is such an important part of the grief journey.

And the last letter of my STRENGTH acrostic from my book, *Depth: Growing Through Heartbreak to Strength is the letter H: Honestly share your story and help another hurting heart. I love that God never wastes any of our pain. He doesn’t waste one tear or one hurt and instead He uses it. And this is how I think He uses it as we come alongside and help another hurting heart. I really believe it makes our healing come full circle as well. This is what my life verse is all about: 2 Cor 1:3-4. “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God.”

I am so excited to have Clarissa Paz on the podcast this week. This is so exciting because Clarissa is in my book. I am actually sharing a story where I honestly shared my personal story and helped another hurting heart and that was Clarissa. This is in the “Me Too” Chapter and the last part of the book and we are going to talk about our story. I walked through a miscarriage and a year or two later, she walked through a miscarriage and how I can alongside and helped her. We are going to show you practically how it looks, and we both get a little choked up at times because it is amazing how it brought us together. It connected us in such a beautiful way, and it did bring my healing full circle as well as help her in the middle of her unexpected storm. We are also going to talk about how she has gone on since then and helped others. It is a really heartfelt episode!

Recommended Depth Podcast Episodes:

• Episode 53 with Kathe Wunnenberg- Grieving the Child I Never Knew & Hopelifter
• Episode 5 with Yvonne Buck- Loss of Pregnancy
• Episode 6 with Dr. Shari Bridgman- In Heavenly Arms
• Episode 145 with Kathe Wunnenberg- God's Connections are Powerful, His Timing Perfect

Book Recommendations:

• *Purpose Drive Life by Pastor Rick Warren
• *Grieving the Child I Never Knew by Kathe Wunnenberg
• *Depth by Jodi Rosser

*Note: If you are interested in purchasing the books recommended, I would love for you to use the Amazon Affiliate link above to help support the podcast. Thank you!

Do you find it hard to trust God when you don’t fully understand what he is doing in your life? Like it is easy to trust Him when life is going well. But when things are hard and you are walking through grief or heartbreak or when the rug is pulled out from under you, it is always a little harder to trust that God has a plan. Oh friend, that is why I am so excited for the second T in my STRENGTH acrostic from my book, Depth: Growing through Heartbreak to Strength.

The second T stands for Trust God is good when your mind is doubting, and you don’t understand. This one is hard. So I am really excited to have Sonia Abraham on the podcast this week. She is a fellow friend of mine and she also walked through a divorce and today we are going to dive deep on how that looks to trust God when you have doubts and don’t understand why the circumstances of your life did not go as you hoped or planned. We are going to talk about some different Bible characters too. There is lots of truth and wisdom on this episode!

Book Recommendations:

• *Living Unbroken by Tracie Miles
• *It's Not Supposed To Be This Way by Lysa TerKeurst
• *Dark Clouds, Deep Mercy by Mark Vroegop

Sonia Abraham writes about faith and loss on her website. She’s passionate about leading Restored & Renewed, a local ministry at her church in Texas that encourages and supports women walking through separation and divorce. She works as an editor and has three teenaged children. You can also connect with her on Instagram or Facebook. 

*Note: If you are interested in purchasing this book or the books recommended, I would love for you to use the Amazon Affiliate link above to help support the podcast. Thank you!