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When life as we know it is flipped upside down, we struggle to make sense of it all. Why would a good God allow this to happen? Hi, I’m Sherrie Pilkington, your host of Finding God In Our Pain. In 2018, when I unexpectedly lost my husband of 32 years, questions erupted out of my deepest despair. Since then, I’ve continued to search the heart of God for what He has to say about pain and suffering. In this podcast we’ll discover how God enters into our pain, shepherds us through our darkest valleys, and leads us to green pastures once again. I’ll bring you firsthand stories from women who allow us into their authentic struggles, along with professional advice from experts, counselors, and others who can help us navigate pain. Join me, as we discover God’s answers to the deepest cries of our shattered hearts.
Episodes
Wednesday Sep 13, 2023
Finding Freedom Through the Deliverance Ministry, with Karen King
Wednesday Sep 13, 2023
Wednesday Sep 13, 2023
My guest Karen King has developed a passion for the deliverance ministry specifically the deliverance from demonic attachment, influence, oppression, all the plans and schemes that Satan has set against us.
It’s no secret, God has a plan for your life and so does Satan but before we jump into finding freedom I do want to pause for one minute and acknowledge that some people do not believe that a Christian should or could have trouble with demonic attachments and influences or oppression, and if that's you, don’t check out.
Allow me to humbly submit to you Job. A man who was tested in every single capacity of life and never sinned against God. As a matter of fact, it was because of Job’s faithfulness that God offered him up to Satan. With restrictions of course, but none the less we see Job go from traumatic emotional pain, to physical illness pain to a place where the pain turned inward on himself as he cried out to the God he believed in.
We have this perspective about Job but we can also acknowledge that we’ve all been through portions of Job’s journey. Our own emotions can become weary unless we isolate ourselves from life and relationship. But isolation is Satan’s playground with regard to our mental thought life. So take the time to talk to Holy Spirit and ask Him to reveal the various ways that your enemy works against you to steal your mental health, kill your peace of mind and ultimately destroy you, even though you remain physically alive. Ask Holy Spirit to give you revelation and then whatever He reveals, take it captive to Christ.
Karen is here to let us know that we can find freedom from anguish, confusion, depression and anxiety, all the ways that we suffer when Satan goes undetected and therefore runs rampant in our thought life. Times when we allow negative thoughts and experiences to overwhelm us to the point that we live in fear and cannot find any peace. We’re in constant survival mode, never confident about which way to turn.
Mental health is simply one way Satan works against us and Karen feels that stored emotions in her body (from a 20 year abusive marriage) contributed to the 2 cancer diagnoses that she’s received. But it has only fueled her desire to stand on God’s word and experience what it means when we read in the Holy Bible that, "...by His stripes (His wounds) we are healed." (My emphasis inserted)
He paid the price for our healing (be it mental, physical or emotional) with every drop of His Son’s blood so I am confident that the blood He’s invested is a clear indication that healing is for everyone. In other words, God wants a return on His most precious investment.
Not only does Karen participate in the deliverance ministry by assisting people to be set free by the power of Christ but she herself has benefited greatly by also allowing others in the deliverance ministry to break off demonic influences that she has experienced.
Additionally, she’s taken the time to investigate in what ways she has allowed Satan to have access to her and when she finds points of access she exercises the power and authority of Christ’s work on the cross. She shuts down the strongman and his structured kingdom, forbidding any division and casting them all into the pit of hell where they came from.
Another way that Satan finds an access point and then we’ll get to the conversation with Karen, is when the uncertainty of life hits us it creates an environment that is rich with regard to questioning God’s goodness which in turn causes us to question God’s love for us and His intentions. Questioning God in the midst of pain is normal and expected but it’s an opportune time for Satan to attach himself to our pain and flood us with past pain that lines up with our current situation and therefore validating our emotions. All with the purpose of driving a wedge between our heart and God’s heart. Satan wants us to lose our footing on the truths that we already know about God.
Satan wants us to define God based on our pain and fear. Satan attacks us in our most vulnerable places. Our weakest moments are the perfect time for him to slay us and again, he doesn’t necessarily want to kill us physically but rather slay us emotionally and mentally. I can only imagine the daily celebration we afford him when we are alive yet dead inside. And really what kind of Christian testimony is that to the world especially when we’ve been given authority over our enemy and freedom in the presence of our enemies, despite the existence of evil in his life. Take that Satan!
Let’s get started so we can hear all that Karen has to share!
Live Loved and Thrive! @alifeofthrive.com
Connect with Karen:
https://finding-freedom-ministries.com
Resources:
Downloads
Books
Videos
Want more information/episodes about other types of deliverance ministry options? Here are some links to past episodes:
Emotion Code Therapy Part 1
Emotion Code Therapy Part 2
Bio:
Karen King is an ordained minister who has been involved in ministry in Hampton Roads for many years. She is trained in deliverance, inner healing, and counseling. She is also a mother of seven children and has four grandchildren. Karen spent many years raising her large family as a single mom. Because of her perseverance and years walking closely with the Holy Spirit, she experienced deep inner healing from fear and low esteem. In the midst of these trials, she was also diagnosed with multiple myeloma. She has an amazing testimony of walking out her physical and emotional healing that was activated by her amazing faith in the healing power of Christ. Karen’s faith and determination through these trials allowed her to flourish in her spiritual gifts as she sought deliverance and inner healing from the oppression.
Karen also has a passion for nutrition and is a certified health coach. This has played a large role in her physical healing. Karen spent many years in catering and loves to mentor others in nutrition and wellness. The Lord has given Karen a vision of one day opening a healing ranch where people can come for health coaching, physical healing, inner healing, and deliverance. She has a passion to help people from the inside out and shares the love of Christ through her relationships.
Karen now serves the Lord by ministering to others who are fighting through the same mental, spiritual, and physical trials that she conquered through the power of Christ. She has a special calling to mentor young people and woman who are struggling in their spiritual and physical walk. Karen also specializes in personality assessments using the Disc assessment system to discover a person’s personality type. These assessments help improve communication, productivity, and conflict management in one’s spiritual walk, job, and ministry. She also has taught Disc assessment to churches, ministries, and businesses.
Karen also actively serves as a deliverance minister and is on staff with Finding Freedom Ministries, helping break ungodly oppression through the power of Christ and counseling others through inner healing.
Wednesday Aug 30, 2023
Finding Peace and Comfort After the Death of Her Son, with Alicia Hodges
Wednesday Aug 30, 2023
Wednesday Aug 30, 2023
My precious friend, Alicia Hodges sat down with me to talk about the death of her son, Zane Hodges who was 30 at the time of his passing. We’ve had many of these conversations over the last 3 years. Our time together is full of exploring God in this context of loss and crying.
I want to back up just a little bit. Allow me to layout my day before I learned we had lost Zane. I had recently started a 7am Tuesday morning prayer time with a sweet mom of 10. We had to start early because of the demands on her day.
On the morning of June 16th 2020, we met and this young momma shared an amazing miracle that she and her family experienced that past weekend. True to the nature of a miracle something horrific presents itself and despite everything saying it should have a tragic ending it turns out completely different and their (then) 4 year old son is perfectly fine with no concerns left about his physical condition or motor skills etc. I can testify to the fact that he is indeed complete, whole, typical little boy. I left our short visit in awe of how God shows Himself faithful.
On that same day, twelve hours later I saw my phone ringing with a number I did not recognize so I ignored it. What immediately followed was a text and the caller shared her name saying she was a good friend of Alicia’s.
Alicia, my sweet friend and devoted mx (motocross) mom whose family we had grown close to through many years of traveling together cheering our sons on, praying for their safety and nursing them when they were injured. We shared in tragedy and triumph, good and bad, highs and lows.
I snatched up the phone and dialed the number back. I knew in my spirit I didn’t want to hear what she had to say. But of course when someone you love is in need you’re propelled to run toward them.
As the woman spoke on behalf of Alicia my heart shattered into a million pieces. It would seem that God did not show Himself faithful for her baby boy. Yes, Zane was 30 but do our children ever stop being our babies?
These two women, my young mom of 10 and Alicia wear many hats in order to fulfill all the roles they are responsible for and they both value that of wife and mother above all the titles they’re known by. They are passionate about God and they each serve Him with their whole heart.
Two moms serving the same God whom they profess to be good, kind, loving and protective. One with a beautiful story of restoration and protection and the other laid her son to rest.
Neither mom did anything wrong. Neither mom was more perfect than the other, more godly and more favored and loved by God.
How do we make sense of the good God who, at times seems cruel and at the very least does not treat us fair or equal. One minute He’s saving the day and the next it seems He’s disinterested, nowhere to be found.
I’m not going to pretend I have the answers to understand what is clearly beyond my ability to grasp or process. A deep wisdom beyond my limited understanding holds the answers to the deepest cry of a shattered heart.
What I can do though is share personal, first hand stories that give real life examples of how God cares for us in the darkest of dark valleys and that’s what Alicia does in this episode.
We discuss the sovereignty of God, His authority over life and death and why He is trustworthy with our pain. We touch on the stigma of drug abuse and whether or not it’s a choice. Especially when it’s introduced to a young person because of an injury. Maybe it’s a choice early on but at some point the chemical change in the brain takes over and that’s the reality of the fight, not a simple choice to use or not use.
She briefly talks about what she refers to as “growth edges” and how, not wanting to be stuck in her grief, caused her to step out in faith to new territory in her spiritual growth and personal life.
At one point I ask her a question that I like to ask my guests because I think it’s one of the major ways Satan attempts to separate us from God, His truth, healing, and redemption.
I asked her, in what ways did Satan try to drive a wedge between her and God. Her answer gave me a different perspective. One I hadn’t thought about. Satan was set on destroying relationship but since He couldn’t shake Alicia’s connection with God he came after her personal relationships.
Near the end of our conversation I asked her about Psalm 23, specifically how did God prepare a table for you in the presence of your enemy and what she shared gave revelation, making it clear that what God did in that situation can be applied to everyday life.
Where is the good God we profess when things become to much to bear? Listen in and hear Alicia’s testimony on how to find God in our pain.
Connect with Alicia:
Email: skinsoreal@gmail.com
IG @aliciahodges7
FB Alicia Williams Hodges
Biz. Website aliciahodges.neora.com
Bio:
My name is Alicia Williams Hodges and I am originally from Roanoke, VA. I have been married 37 years and we live right outside Roanoke on Smith Mountain Lake. I have two beautiful children and a 2 year old granddaughter.
I am a Founding Member with Neora, a Holistic Anti-Aging Beauty and Wellness Company and celebrated my 11th year in May of 2023. Previously, I had been a stay at home mom for 20 years and my days were filled with ministry, non-profit work and raising my kids.
Life happened in “08 and Neora found me! I am a solution provider for your aging needs and concerns. I am very passionate about helping people look, feel and live their BEST life NOW, while building a legacy of faith, hope, love and wealth for families and future generations.
Although I have an international business, I love networking, connecting and helping people build their businesses.
Want more encouragement on this topic? Listen to this episode with guest Carole Sluski, a mom who lost her daughter: https://alifeofthrive.com/2023/03/15/surviving-grief-and-the-death-of-her-daughter-with-carol/
Wednesday Aug 16, 2023
The Uncertainty of Life - Choroidal Melanoma (Eye Cancer), with Suzanne Stines
Wednesday Aug 16, 2023
Wednesday Aug 16, 2023
My guest, Suzanne Stines has an absolute amazing story. A story that begins with complete and utter uncertainty. Suzanne and I talk about her diagnosis of Choroidal Melanoma, a cancer in the eye that is believed to never go away. Only 6 people in a million get this type of eye cancer.
Even though Suzanne was having trouble with her eyes she felt it had more to do with her new schedule and work environment than anything serious so she didn’t make a doctor’s visit a priority. What initiated this journey of uncertainty was a simple, but out of character request from her young daughter to see an eye doctor based on the fact that she was having trouble seeing the front of the classroom, the chalkboard.
In the process of diagnosing Suzanne accurately, they look at 3 markers that will tell a patient what their chances are of the cancer spreading to other parts of the body. Suzanne’s test revealed that of the 3 levels, she has the highest marker indicating she is at the highest risk for her cancer to spread. But that initial diagnosis, is just the beginning of her journey as she pressed into the God who has shown Himself faithful in so many other areas of her life.
As you listen to her story, maybe you’ll hear what I heard with regard to Suzanne’s faith. Yes, she struggled with God, yes it was frightening, yes she had questions for God as the heart stopping news continued to unfold. But God was already in motion, putting things in place. In His perfect timing, He moves Suzanne and her family from rural North Carolina to the hustle and bustle of Richmond, VA. This location would put her much closer to the doctors she would need before she even knows she’ll need them.
Here’s why I ponder how her faith has increased the miracles in her life. 1 Chronicles 5:20, the last part of verse 20 says, “…they cried out to him during the battle. He answered their prayers, because they trusted in Him.”
Suzanne’s story is going to encourage your heart in knowing that God is trustworthy and faithful through the dark valleys, especially because she shares two very important updates that I’m sure have the medical field scratching their heads or at the very least rereading previous data. But now they have some hope to share with their other patients.
You know, if someone told me I was one of 6 people, in one million who had received something, I’d be thanking God for the lottery win. It's embarrassing, but I do believe that is where my mind would go first. But listen to the end of this episode and hear Suzanne’s parting words. In her heart she did win. She is discovering the most precious, intimate things about God in the fight for her life.
Let’s jump in to this amazing testimony of finding the God of the Holy Bible in the midst of pain and suffering.
Live Loved and Thrive! @alifeofthrive.com
Connect with Suzanne:
Freebie - 6 verses for peace, trust, and healing: https://suzanne-stines.ck.page/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/homebasewithsuz
Bio:
When Suzanne was diagnosed with a rare eye cancer in 2018, her world came crashing down. She felt completely overwhelmed and struggled through every stage of grief. She learned how to chase Jesus with her whole heart and has since pursued a deeper and more intimate walk with Him. She will encourage you, make you laugh and bring you to tears with stories of how God has moved in her life before and after the diagnosis. Suzanne resides in Richmond, VA with her husband and daughter. Ladies are invited to join her Facebook group, Home B.A.S.E. with Suz, where she provides weekly Biblical and spiritual encouragement. You can find more info about Suzanne here where you can sign up for her newsletter and contact her for speaking events.
Wednesday Aug 02, 2023
Identify and Eliminate the Joy Stealers in Your Life, with Author, Doris Swift
Wednesday Aug 02, 2023
Wednesday Aug 02, 2023
Think about the new level of joy you can have if you'll take the time to identify the joy stealers in your life! So if you want more joy in your life then what my guest has to offer is going to be a great resource for you! Author Doris Swift is here to throw us a life line and what I mean, is the she’s here to help us identify the joy stealers in our life.
As many of us know joy is not something we have to cultivate in our own power and it isn’t defined by our circumstances. As believers it is a fruit of the spirit (love, joy, peace, patience, goodness, kindness, gentleness and self-control). And because it is a fruit of the spirit it is already present and available to us. We need only identify what we’re allowing to get in between us and the joy that is rightfully ours as God’s children’s.
Doris has written a 6 week bible study on joy and this conversation includes the topics covered in the book: Reveal, Respond, Receive, Renew, Rest and Reach. I believe her bible study provides a full investigation of joy, how we can find the fruit of joy in our life, how we can maintain it, and how we can increase the joy in our life.
At the beginning of this episode Doris shares about an exercise she challenged her audience to participate in with regard to laying down their joy stealers as well as agreeing not to take them back.
She said she’d love to know if my podcast listeners take her challenge too and engage in the exercise she talks about. If you do interact with her proposed exercise, I as well would love to hear how you did and especially what action you took afterward to acknowledge your desire to leave your joy stealer(s) with God allowing Him to work them out in your life as you go about your day in His joy. So leave us a comment associated with this episode.
Let’s listen in to discover the power found in the simplicity of the type of joy that God has provided for us.
Lived Loved and Thrive! @alifeofthrive.com
Author Bio:
Doris Swift is an author, speaker, founder of Fierce Calling Ministries, and host of the award-winning Fierce Calling podcast. She is passionate about equipping women to dig deeper into God's word, take action where their passion, compassion, and conviction intersect, and walk boldly in their fierce calling. Her new Bible study, Surrender the Joy Stealers: Rediscover the Jesus Joy in You, a six-week Bible study rooted in John 15, is available at dorisswift.com.
She currently resides in Central Florida with her husband Brian, is mom to an amazing son and daughter and their spouses, and Gammy to six awesome grandkids.
Connect With Doris:
Website: dorisswift.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DorisSSwift
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dorissusanswift/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/DorisSSwift
Transcription: https://www.happyscribe.com/transcriptions/621e62d78ba64b39ad5170405c44bc78/view?organization_id=868176
Tuesday Jul 18, 2023
Life and Hope After an Accidental Death, with Jennifer Eikenhorst
Tuesday Jul 18, 2023
Tuesday Jul 18, 2023
My guest, author Jennifer Eikenhorst knows a depth of sorrow, I pray I never know. She knows the reality of causing someone's accidental death. She's been on a healing journey ever since that fateful day in October of 2014. A journey that has spanned the full gamut of human suffering as she struggled and grappled with trying to make sense of what she used to know and who she used to be tangled with the reality of what she's forced to know in every area of her existence.
She's recently published a book about her journey titled, Left Turn: Life Unimagined. Unimagined indeed. The scope of all that this tragedy seeps into is nothing shy of every facet of her life and the lives of others. Her heart and the hearts of everyone affected have been shattered in countless ways.
Jennifer takes full responsibility for the accidental death of David, a motorcyclist that she did not see after stopping at the stop sign. She has an incredibly humble posture in the position of having taken the life of another human being. Additionally, she has great compassion for those who find themselves in the same exact position as her, having accidentally caused the death of another person.
I'm not quite sure why I find the topic of forgiveness so intriguing but when Jennifer and I were able to get our schedules together for this conversation I knew that she would provide us with an incredible glimpse into the heart of God and His forgiveness. And in her case, not only God's forgiveness but the hope for forgiveness from David's family, her children's forgiveness because they were in the car at the time of the accident, her husband's forgiveness whom she withdrew from him feeling unloveable and unworthy, forgiveness from her community, her church, her job not to mention having to forgive herself and that's just the tip of the iceberg. We ran out of time before we had a chance to talk about the legal process that Texas has in place and the way it added to the devastation.
As we talked, the layers that were affected by David's death, boggled my mind. From the moment of impact the repercussions would be felt in both her life as well as David's life. They didn't know each other prior to that moment in the intersection and despite the fact that David did not survive the tragic accident, Jennifer will never forget him or his family and nor does she want to.
I'm going to keep this intro short. I'm finding it difficult to put into words the beauty and wisdom that Jennifer has to offer because of what God has walked her through. You're going to have to hear it yourself so that you can absorb this life changing information about the heart of God.
As hard as it was for Jennifer to come to grips with what had happened, she knew that this situation had to pass through God's hands and receive approval. So she had to face the fact that God in His sovereignty had allowed it. In an effort to trust Him with His purpose behind allowing it, she asked God to show her how He had prepared her for this moment and she shares the various ways that He confirmed for her that He had prepared her and that He would see her through.
Part of God's redemption for Jennifer was to connect her with Jada Pinkett Smith as a guest on her show, Red Table Talk. The Red Table Talk website describes the show "where we tackle current social and cultural issues with an inter-generational perspective." (redtabletalk.com)
Jennifer's time on the show gave her the opportunity to share the tragedy she was experiencing and how the God of the Holy Bible made all the difference. Jennifer mentions that the Red Table Talk show has approximately 5 million viewers and I do see where they have 11 million followers on Facebook. I can't help but think about how amazing God is in the redemption process.
God has also put Jennifer in the path of people whom she randomly passes and she's able to give an encouraging word for healing as well as provide resources that can help. We talked about so many things and that's why this audio ran over my preferred 1 hour max but you will not be disappointed with the message that Jennifer has to share.
As we closed I asked her the final question, was there any ONE thing she'd want to share with our listeners today. Her response echoed her compassion and empathy that you'll hear throughout the entire conversation. She didn't plead her case, you'll never hear her side step or avoid taking responsibility for the accidental death of David. Instead, she takes the posture of a surrogate of sorts and offers an apology to anyone who needs to hear, "I'm sorry" from someone like her.
This conversation will give your heart courage to trust God especially when life makes no sense and ending it all sounds more appealing.
Let's listen in to find out what beautiful things God spoke to Jennifer in her very dark valley.
Live Loved and Thrive! @alifeofthrive.com
Connect with Jennifer:
You can connect with Jennifer at accidentalhope.com
Her Podcast: Accidental Hope Podcast
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AccidentalHope
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/accidentalhope/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/HopeAccidental
Resource: Accidental Impacts under the Hyacinth Fellowship - a support group for those who have unintentionally caused harm to another person: https://hyacinthfellowship.org/
Bio:
Jennifer Eikenhorst loves Jesus which she feels is essential in her healing and therefore she shares her beliefs freely. Her faith is the cornerstone of content for her blog and podcast. She’s the wife of a multi-sport coach, Chris (who stole her heart in her senior year of high school), mom to 4 amazing kids, math teacher, blogger, podcast host (Accidental Hope), grad student, hope-seeker, and notorious over-sharer! She’s also an advocate for CADIs (Causing Accidental Death or Injury). Besides Jesus and her family, she loves their golden-doodle Coda, dance fitness, making recipes her own, and Bible journaling.
Transcript: https://www.happyscribe.com/transcriptions/227d72c9f31e45efb44c8d4ba5126b08/edit
Thursday Jul 06, 2023
Navigating Her Children’s Mental Illness Journey, with Patty Sepety
Thursday Jul 06, 2023
Thursday Jul 06, 2023
Patty Sepety, a mother of two is my guest and she tells her story with the purpose of encouraging your heart to trust God's faithfulness when life is more than you can handle. She shares her journey of walking both of her children through mental illness and their tragic experiences that set that diagnosis into motion.
What lengths a mother will go to to get her children the help they need and Patty was no exception. She was blindsided by what happened to her daughter when she was only 10 years old and the fallout constantly challenged Patty's ability to get out ahead of the resulting trauma and mental illness issues that would unfold over time.
And I don't remember the time frame in relation to her daughter coming to her about what happened and then her son coming forward but in the midst of meeting her daughter's needs her son, 4 years younger than her daughter, requests to also have professional help like his sister. He receives the professional help and yet he follows through with his thoughts of self-harm and Patty finds herself sitting beside her son's hospital bed looking at the countless pieces of machinery not knowing if he'll live through the night.
Patty's journey into uncharted waters hit her from several sides. Along with her children's level of need, her husband would also be diagnosed with a hole in his heart and endure multiple procedures; each one having the potential of take his life. And her aging parents needed her help as well. Just when you think that would be enough, she, herself is diagnosed with PTSD.
As our conversation unfolded it became apparent to me that through every phase of her dark valley she never questioned God's faithfulness. One of the things that was thought provoking to me is that she shares how she'd read Job's story and it would comfort her that her life was not as bad as what Job had endured. Now that's one way to put perspective in your life.
Patty has the sweetest countenance, you can hear it in her voice. If you think she'd make the sweetest friend, you're right. She has a strong bond with the women that she does life with. I've met the group of women she is connected to. The whole group, not just a percentage of the women, love well. If you're ever on the Eastern Shore in the Cape Charles area of the Virginia side, and you need a kind person to talk to, stop in at Cheriton Church and ask for any one of the women who serve on the WinGS (Women in God's Service) team. I guarantee you, you'll leave feeling like you were loved on by Jesus Himself.
Let's listen in to Patty's humble, transparent story of how she navigated mental illness with her children and the uncertainty that life can challenge us with.
Connect with Patty: www.MyConciergeLLCVa.com
Bio:
Patty came from a Christian home where the family attended church wherever they lived. While she and her family were living in Bangkok, Thailand, Patty accepted Jesus and was baptized at age 15.
She has been married to David for 50 years and they have two children and two grandchildren. In 2018 Patty and David relocated to the Eastern Shore of Virginia where they love the quiet lifestyle. They currently reside in a 200-year-old, former parish house relocated from Hog Island to Nassawadox, VA.Patty and David are active members of Cheriton Baptist Church where she is on the WinGS committee. WinGS stands for Women in God’s Service.
Patty is also the business owner of My Concierge LLC, an office consulting and bookkeeping firm. She loves helping people manage their back office and has no plans to retire. You can learn more about her business on her website: www.MyConciergeLLCVa.com.
Transcript: https://www.happyscribe.com/transcriptions/7d62e6959e1141cfb1c65c4563cef0b7/edit
Thursday Jun 22, 2023
Emotion Code, with Eileen Love - Part 2
Thursday Jun 22, 2023
Thursday Jun 22, 2023
Welcome to Part 2 and the final episode for my discussion with Emotion Code Practitioner, Eileen Love. In this episode we’ll look at what a typical emotion code session looks like and I share a little bit about what I’ve experienced with my session with regard to feeling like I had no voice. I also share what I’ve experienced afterward, my results.
Eileen tells us why she has a passion to heal those who live with trauma. She talks about how God captivated her heart by redeeming her pain, using her journey of trauma which in turn, allowed her to receive the vision God laid before her in the very midst of grieving the loss of her husband whom she’d been with since she was 18 years old.
When God shared his desire for her to open her home to women with traumatic experiences for the purpose of bringing them into deeper levels of healing He told her that He would make a way. He would provide the means to renovate and sustain the home for His purposes and that He has done!
I’ve just returned from visiting Eileen’s home that she has converted to the Rest and Renewal Ranch. Leaving Virginia where my setting is a combination of rural country, the beach and ocean; where I’m 12’ above sea level and everything here is lush with various shades of green and copious amounts of water everywhere, I was struck by the Arizona beauty for a completely different reason.
I was in awe of the size of the Arizona landscape. Truly breathtaking! If you take the time to look around there are wild flowers growing everywhere. Vibrant colors against the rocky backdrop. It reminded me of the beauty, found in the details that all around us. Beauty that we can capture and appreciate when we slow down.
Eileen’s modest home sits in the rugged terrain and vegetation that are typical to Arizona. When you go inside Eileen’s humble home there is a peace that permeates the space. You’re embraced with comfort and her kindness. You feel like you’ve always known her.
It’s times like that when God speaks to my spirit and says, You tried to put me in a box Sherrie. I’m always in awe with how unassuming God’s presence can be. There have been many times when I'm standing in the presence of God, He’s still and quiet; set in such a way that I can miss His presence. Especially when I’m looking for it in a way that I had defined it should be. A definition based on my knowledge and understanding.
I love when He surprises me like that and He used Eileen as a beautiful example of His hands and feet. My experience reminded me of Isaiah 52:7, "How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news, who proclaim peace, who bring good tidings, who proclaim salvation, who say to Zion, “Your God reigns!”
I thought the contrast between the harsh landscape and her cozy home was similar to how the world can be unyielding and yet her cozy home felt like a respite, a warm embrace from Jesus in the middle of it all.
It just so happened that I visited Eileen on my birthday so she went out of her way to make me feel loved and special on that day. I agreed to try her fresh goats milk and I’m glad I did. What a delight, it was so creamy. As she mentioned in the previous episode, she’s a massage therapist so I got a massage and we also did an emotion code session which has left me with a deeper peace that no one but Jesus can provide.
We talked about spiritual gifts and she told me about the history of the ranch that she shared with her husband before his unexpected passing. At the end of the day we went to the top of the mountain to watch the sunset over the opposing mountains in the west. It was the perfect way to say good by to my 50’s and begin the first day of 60s.
If you decide to visit the Rest and Renewal Ranch you’ll need to reach out to Eileen on her email. Her email will be in the show notes but I can give it to you right now cuz it’s pretty easy to remember: Restandrenewal@pm.me
Before we jump into the episode, I wanted to point out something that lingered after our conversation. Allow me to share the discernment that the Lord provided me.
In my conversation with Eileen I was expressing my thoughts on how important it was that you find someone trustworthy when it comes to emotion code therapy. And by trustworthy I mean a solid Christian. Mainly because you’re allowing someone into your mental and emotional space; you’re giving them access to a core element of who you are.
To me, that is to be taken very seriously because you are entering into a spiritual realm. That is not something that I completely understand so I want to guard that. I know through Jesus I have power over the works of Satan but I never want to intentionally allow Satan to have access to me through the spiritual realm.
I’ve done yoga before because stretching is extremely important for your overall health. When you think about Physical Therapy or Chiropractors (with regard to regaining mobility in your body) it’s all about stretching the body. To protect myself in the yoga atmosphere, whenever I did poses I would have an internal dialog with God or say breath prayers to God and tell Him I worship Him alone.
When they’d do the palms together I’d clasp my fingers in more of a child like prayer. When they ask you to clear your head or relax into Shavasana, I’d recite scripture or I’d invite God to insulate and protect me. I was only there for the stretching practices not the worship poses nor the practices of another religion so I kept my focus on the God of the Holy Bible. I thanked Him for my body, the ability to use it and desire to keep it healthy.
I say all that to preface this, Eileen had a valid point of not knowing if our physicians are faith based or if they believe in our God yet we trust them with surgery on our bodies and we trust psychologist/psychiatrist with our emotional and mental well being. She had me thinking.
I’ll be the first one to say that we need to be selective about who we allow to have access to us, be that physically, mentally, emotionally, spiritually etc. so I pondered my process with physicians and other medical personnel.
My first acknowledgement was that I am prone to easily give them access because they’ve gone through strenuous requirements to be in those positions and yet it cannot be ignored that we all know they are considered to be practicing medicine, in short, they’re practicing on us.
Pondering that thought with the Lord reminded me and I haven’t always done this, that I pray not only for the doctor I should go to but once I have a doctor I pray for him/her. If there is a medical procedure that I need I pray for the nurses, those who assist, I pray about the equipment and instruments/tools needed, I even pray that within the attending medical team there is no conflict both in personalities nor personal relationship during my medical procedure.
So any doctor that I use, whether I know if they serve my God or not, I’m confident God has lead me to them and that He will use them to meet the need I have.
So I’ve used that same process with Eileen. I didn’t necessarily go looking for Emotion Code therapy but when God had our paths cross and I began to talk to Him about what I was learning it lined up with my desire to have Godly influence when giving someone access to the intimacy of who I am created to be.
We live in a world that is so incredibly diverse, extremely diverse so it’s quite a challenge to live a strict Christian life when it comes to who we interact with, whom we trust with our safety, our health etc. So ultimately our goal is to pray for discernment in which doctors we would use and to invite God into the services we receive. Pray over our doctors as they administer any type of healing to us. We can’t go wrong when we invite God to provide discernment and protection and we’re responsible to respond to His leading.
So let’s get into the episode. Quick recap of Part 1. It was mainly about how the body is created by God to have its own internal language, how we are created (mind, body and spirit) and how these 3 parts mesh together in such an intricate way that our body parts hold our experiences good and bad. So much so, Eileen gave a couple of examples of times when people received transplants and were subject to the original persons life. She also talked about how the body communicates within as well as gives us indication, warning and alarms when it needs attention, expression, healing. Let’s get started!
Live Loved and Thrive!
Connect with Eileen via her email: restandrenewal@pm.me
Resources:
The Body Keeps the Score by Bessel van der Kolk M.D.
Restored for Life Now - Is the Emotion Code Safe for Christians: https://www.restoredforlifenow.com/post/is-the-emotion-code-safe-for-christians
American Psychological Association: https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2018-48202-001
Psychology Today: https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/between-you-and-me/201509/the-good-and-bad-emotion-regulation-strategies
Transcript: https://www.happyscribe.com/transcriptions/2b8a14315ff14b879c04aec47ee74356/edit?organization_id=868176
Wednesday Jun 07, 2023
Emotion Code, with Eileen Love - Part 1
Wednesday Jun 07, 2023
Wednesday Jun 07, 2023
I’m excited to bring you this topic on emotion code therapy because of the difference it has made in my mental and emotional health. My guest, Eileen Love is an Emotion Code Practitioner. This is a 2 part series with the fist covering all the different ways that the human body holds trauma and tries to convey the need for us to find healing.
This is going to be a lengthy intro and a I hate that for you but there’s so much to unpack that I want to sort it out a little bit before we jump into the bulk of episode. My conversation with Eileen is full of examples, scripture, and first hand experiences to the point that I realized I'd have to create 2 episodes from all that Eileen shares. Part 2 will cover more of what an emotion code session looks like.
The first thing I want to address is that this topic is going to be controversial in the Christian community. The reason is because it has been hijacked by new age healers.
Before I explain why, allow me to give you a quick glimpse of why I brought emotion code healing to God for His input and it's because of a very good experience that I had with something similar, Theophostic Prayer Ministry or as many people call it Inner Healing Prayer therapy.
In my theophostic prayer session I received breakthrough healing for what I believe (based on the peace in my mind/life/heart)to be the last layer of trauma for abandonment. However, I’ll be the first one to say that if I get triggered again around an abandonment issue it simply means that I still have some work to do for another layer of healing and I’m open to that because God heals me in layers. But in the meantime I live with deep peace because of Theophostic Prayer therapy.
A little history on this type of ministry is that a Baptist Minister, Ed Smith, developed the Theophostic Prayer Ministry model here in the United States back in the 90’s.
A simplified explanation for what happens during a theophostic therapy session is that you sit with someone who is trained in this type of therapy and they guide you with questions around a traumatic event in your life and you talk with Jesus about what you are experiencing.
In my theophostic prayer work I came to a place where I asked Jesus, "Where were you when my mother left me on the side of the road when I was 6 years old?"
As I verbally asked God this question, I was sitting still, eyes closed, nothing but darkness before me. Then The Holy Spirit gave me the most precious image of Jesus walking beside me, his hand in the middle of my shoulder blades, He’s looking down at me. Maybe I’m talking and He’s listening but He’s looking at me and we’re walking together. That visual gave me proof that Jesus fulfills His promise that He’d never leave me nor forsake me. That one image broke off years of unforgiveness towards my mother. The power of guided prayer through painful memories stored in the body has immense reward when God and the Holy Spirit are engaged.
The outcome that I experienced with theophostic prayer is why I wanted to know God's opinion about Emotion Code therapy.
Okay, so back to why the new age wants to make its claims on emotion code therapy.
As believers this is no secret to us, whatever God says is good, Satan wants to distort it at the very least and destroy at the very worst. So when we look at God’s intention behind the healing qualities of herbs and oils or natural and organic healing options (because, in my humble opinion before all of the genetic mutations and man-made virus and chemicals etc. the human body, made from a handful of dust, would naturally find the healing elements that it needed from the earth) But Satan is not going to let God get the credit for that so in a vague and unassuming way satan adds his half truth to something and twists the focus away from the Creator to the created such as crystals, potions using the herbs, as well as energy healings.
In satan’s half truths he uses a connecting link such as the fact that there is an energy to the body. God has given us a beating heart that is independent of anything outside itself. It has a rythm, a beat you can feel when you touch your pulse, an electrical current that registers on medical equipment.
But For us, Christians know that God sustains us and that by His hand we have breath, have life and healing in our body….So of course Satan is going to introduce something that sounds legit like energy healings. If you agree that there is an energy to the body then an energy healing sounds appropriate, right?
So why does emotion code therapy fall under that type of category of Satan wanting to distort and/or destroy it…emotion code healing, in a very simplistic explanation, is a therapy that locates and dislodges trauma trapped in the body. We all know that the body holds trauma and sometimes it gets so many layers buried on top of it that we loose sight of what the problem could be.
Using the powerful name of Jesus and inviting Holy Spirit to discern trauma hidden in the body, people are finding healing and breakthrough for physical ailments that have no medical explanation, mental health is restored, anxiety is gone people are being set free from trauma. My favorite is set free from past trauma that the body has held onto.
One of the unique things about emotion code healing is that It addresses the unique way that God has created us as mind/body/spirit/soul. The intricacies with which God has created us can only be fully appreciated and accessed by the One who knows His creation. Calling on God’s name for the restoration of our mind or our body is the only true source of healing.
Please know that I’m not trying to twist anybodies arm on this. Do like I did, check it out. Bring your concerns to God. Talk with Him about you fears. Give Him space to speak His truth to you.
Here are 3 scriptures that you can start to engage God’s heart about mental and emotional healing and ask Him to show you what it means to have a crushed spirit (something that is mental and/or emotional) and how it can dry up your bones (a physical manifestation):
Proverbs 18:14 “A man's spirit will endure sickness, but a crushed spirit who can bear?”
Proverbs 15:13 “A glad heart makes a cheerful face, but by sorrow of heart the spirit is crushed”
Proverbs 17:22 “A joyful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.”
As solid Christians we know to stay away from anyone who calls on any other name, other than that of Jesus Christ for healing. We steer clear from those who would try to lead us to believe that crystals have some sort of magical powers. So when it comes to emotion code therapy we’re not looking for anything other than someone who calls on the name of Jesus, talks to Holy Spirit. In my research I even found professed Christian sites that used crystals as part of their healing process. That's a big fat no. Anything that deviates from God's name as the healing power is a strong no.
Back to my guest, Eileen. She is a solid Christian sold out on the love of Jesus. She and her husband came to the knowledge of Christ during the Jesus Revolution era. That in itself is an interesting aspect of her story and if you’d like to hear more about that then check out the episode she did with me on March 28th 2023 titled When a Husband disengages, God’s love is enough”
But back to the current topic at hand.
When it comes to Eileen’s daily pursuit of God’s heart, there’s no better day for her than inviting the Holy Spirit to give her discernment that allows her to lead God’s children into breakthrough and healing.
In this episode she talks about the journey God has taken her on over the past 30 years working with the human body. She goes into detail telling you what she’s learned and how it impacted her so I’ll simply give a quick overview.
From being the first woman reserve firefighter with the city of Kirkland Washington, an EMT who worked in the ER, massage therapist and then emotion code practitioner. At every phase she’s learned how miraculous the body is and the intimacy of God’s care for His beloved children.
After listening to Eileen, it’s very intriguing to me to understand how the body has the ability to heal on a physical level, say bruises, cuts, breaks, surgery, and yet there can be additional damage on a mental or emotional level.
It is becoming very apparent that to fully heal from various traumas against/to/in the body, it will also entail addressing the mental and emotional impact as well.
Further fascinating to me is the way the body communicates with the other parts of the body, specifically the brain. The body can have a whole conversation going on within itself and we can totally miss it. And yet it cries out to us, indicating where we need to take a closer look, calling us, demanding us to find a source of healing. All using the natural alarm system given to us by God himself which is our emotions.
Listen in to these amazing examples that Eileen gives us of how the body conveys its need internally as well as externally. For me, it’s another beautiful display of God’s Sovereign design and the intimacy with which He created us.
Live Loved and Thrive!
Connect with Eileen via her email: Restandrenewal@pm.me
Resources:
Restored for Life Now - Is the Emotion Code Safe for Christians: https://www.restoredforlifenow.com/post/is-the-emotion-code-safe-for-christians
American Psychological Association: https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2018-48202-001
Psychology Today: https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/between-you-and-me/201509/the-good-and-bad-emotion-regulation-strategies
Book by Dr. Bessel van der Kolk - The Body Keeps the Score
There are also workbooks for The Body Keeps the Score by several authors but I did not find one by Dr Kolk.
Want more information/episodes about other types of deliverance ministry options? Here are some links to past episodes:
Emotion Code Part 2
Finding Freedom Through the Deliverance Ministry
Transcription: https://www.happyscribe.com/transcriptions/bf0b7a426be54071953826e78bb874c0/view?organization_id=868176
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