The Jesus Storybook Bible Podcast

*Episode produced by Four Eyes Media*

51. God Uses Broken Stories for His Healing Work: Holly Hayes Aug 25, 2022

Show notes

God can find you anywhere—even on the bathroom floor. That's what Holly Hayes discovered in her lowest moment. Holly's the founder of Sanctuary Project, a social enterprise where survivors of human trafficking earn meaningful employment by make beautiful jewelry. As a survivor herself, Holly uses her story to tell others that God isn't interested in "perfect." He uses the sick, the lonely, and the broken to do good work in the world.

Quotes

"What I see in scripture is a Jesus who empowered women." —Holly Hayes

"The religious men were the ones that Jesus was saying, 'Nope, you have it all wrong.' The widow, the poor, the lost, the broken, the lonely, those were the ones that God seemed to use the most. Not only am I loved by God, rescued by God, saved by God, but also, He wants to use me." —Holly Hayes

"Community is where we can reflect God's love and mercy to each other, to help each other to feel safe, to just say, 'Help' or 'I'm hurting' or 'I'm joyful.' We can honest about about how we are and where we are." —Holly Hayes

Holly Hayes' LinksHolly Hayes' website

Holly Hayes' Facebook

Holly Hayes' Twitter

Holly Hayes' Instagram

Resources Mentioned in This EpisodeSanctuary Project

Connect with Sally Lloyd-JonesJesus Storybook Bible Facebook

50. God's Kind of Funny (And He Can Take Your Messy Moments): Susan Isaacs Aug 18, 2022

Show notes

We don't give God enough credit, comedian Susan Isaacs says. He can take the moments when we're confused or upset—even at him—because he loves us even when we're "unlovable." Susan shares when she discovered that her "God with a posh British accent" wasn't out to get her. In fact, He was her soft place to land (and could even share a joke or two).

Quotes

"God made us fully human. I think of the ways that God surprises me, that kind of plays jokes on me, and surprises me and makes me laugh. If it's part of us, it's also part of God because we're made in His image." —Susan Isaacs

"I was done keeping my spiritual life from the rest of my life, I'm like, 'This is what's happening, and I'm done trying to please two sides of the fence. I'm just going to be honest.' And that's when things really started to move in my life personally, professionally, spiritually. And it's funny, I really felt like God's like, 'There she is. That's my girl.'" —Susan Isaacs

"I think we don't give God enough credit, and we don't trust Him enough to be completely honest, that 'If I go to the depths, You are there. There's no place that's too dark for You.'" —Susan Isaacs

Susan Isaacs' LinksSusan Isaacs' website

Susan Isaacs' Facebook

Susan Isaacs' Twitter

Susan Isaacs' Instagram

Resources Mentioned in This EpisodeStephen Colbert

Tony Hale

Jim Gaffigan

Todd Wilkerson

Connect with Sally Lloyd-JonesJesus Storybook Bible Facebook

Mattie Jackson Selecman's Facebook

*Episode produced by Four Eyes Media*

49. When You Lose Everything, God's Still There: Mattie Jackson Selecman Aug 11, 2022

Show notes

Married for eleven months, writer Mattie Jackson Selecman lost her 28-year-old husband Ben to a tragic accident in 2018. As she grieved her husband and their future together, Mattie began to feel God's presence far more than she ever had—in the moments of desperation and in the small, quiet moments too.

Quotes

"I've learned, now more than ever, we all experienced loss in every way, you know? And so to go through all of this and see it already impact people is pretty powerful." —Mattie Jackson Selecman

"Prayer became less about the words I said to God and more about taking time to sit in His presence and let Him make me feel safe." —Mattie Jackson Selecman

"When we grieve someone or something that is a special and intimate part of our life, I think at least for me, I wanted that process of grief to be as fast as possible because I wanted to feel better." —Mattie Jackson Selecman

"When I lost Ben and I was so broken and so desperate, I got to know Jesus as the "sit beside me" best friend—not just as the One who died for me, who's waiting for me in heaven, but the one who can enter into every moment of my pain and bring peace that transcends understanding." —Mattie Jackson Selecman

Mattie Jackson Selecman's LinksMattie Jackson Selecman's website

Mattie Jackson Selecman's Instagram

Resources Mentioned in This EpisodeUniversity of Tennessee

Connect with Sally Lloyd-JonesJesus Storybook Bible Facebook

A Gentle Answer by Scott Sauls

*Episode produced by Four Eyes Media*

48. To Diffuse Anger & Hate, Try Gentleness: Scott Sauls Aug 04, 2022

Show notes

To diffuse the anger simmering in our world, pastor Scott Sauls reminds us there's another solution: gentleness. Scott shares why giving a kind and gentle answer in the face of hurt and hostility, even when it's hard, leads to greater compassion.

Quotes

"When we're able to see people rightly, when we're able to discern that there is hurt beneath sinful behavior or there is hurt beneath suffering, that tends to lead toward a greater compassion. And with greater compassion comes greater gentleness." —Scott Sauls

"I am drawn toward gentleness in people, in communities, and in society, wherever it can be found." —Scott Sauls

"[God's] love can't change. It can't change because it's been fixed and it's been secured by what Christ has done in His death and His burial and His resurrection." —Scott Sauls

Scott Sauls' LinksScott Sauls' website

Scott Sauls' Facebook

Scott Sauls' Twitter

Scott Sauls' Instagram

Resources Mentioned in This EpisodeChrist Presbyterian Church

Proverbs 15:1 NIV

Connect with Sally Lloyd-JonesJesus Storybook Bible Facebook

47. Jesus Made Pain a Portal Back to Him: KJ Ramsey Jul 28, 2022

Show notes

Does God hear us when we hurt? As she's walked through pain from an autoimmune disease and an abusive church experience, author and trauma therapist KJ Ramsey has discovered she meets Jesus in her story not in spite of her suffering, but because of it.

Quotes

"The suffering in our stories becomes a place where we get to encounter God—God Himself. Jesus made pain into a portal, and when I can sit down trying to find the purpose in my pain, I get to step through that portal again and again." —KJ Ramsey

"My faith has ebbed and flowed and grown and changed so much over the years and will continue to." —KJ Ramsey

"I've actually experienced Jesus come near to me and show me His own broken heart and broken body and it's been a process of getting to see Jesus again and again. It's not that my faith was small and then grew seeing Jesus once, but that every time that my heart is broken again, Jesus shows me His again, too." —KJ Ramsey

KJ Ramsey's LinksKJ Ramsey's website

KJ Ramsey's Facebook

KJ Ramsey's Twitter

KJ Ramsey's Instagram

Resources Mentioned in This EpisodeThe Lord is My Courage: Stepping Through the Shadows of Fear Toward the Voice of Love by KJ Ramsey

Connect with Sally Lloyd-JonesJesus Storybook Bible Facebook

Morgan Harper Nichols' Facebook

46. Practicing Peace Right Where You Are: Morgan Harper Nichols Jul 21, 2022

Show notes

We all want more peace, but is it possible to find peace right where we are? Digital artist and bestselling author Morgan Harper Nichols thinks so. Morgan shares how, in the midst of a world filled with overwhelm, peace is available to us no matter where the day leads us—all we have to do is take the time to practice it.

Quotes

"Community and connection was always something I was craving and desiring and praying for. And at the same time, it often felt far away. One of the few things I have truly felt like God gave me as a gift was art and creativity, because throughout my life, there has been an opportunity to [use it to] connect with other people." —Morgan Harper Nichols

"It's possible to encounter peace right here where we are, amid everything that's going on. And it's something that we can practice." —Morgan Harper Nichols

"A peaceful place doesn't have to be a perfect place out in our most ideal location, our ideal scenario. It's that peaceful presence in grace that is available to us everywhere." —Morgan Harper Nichols

Morgan Harper Nichols' LinksMorgan Harper Nichols' Website

Morgan Harper Nichols' Twitter

Morgan Harper Nichols' Instagram

Resources Mentioned in This EpisodePeace is a Practice by Morgan Harper Nichols

Connect with Sally Lloyd-JonesJesus Storybook Bible Facebook

Katie Haseltine's Facebook

*Episode produced by Four Eyes Media*

45. Bring God into Focus with a New Lens: Katie Haseltine Jul 14, 2022

Show notes

Sometimes our relationship with God feels like looking through a foggy window. We can just make out a figure in the distance, but it feels just that: distant. Sometimes it takes a different lens to see a bit more clearly. As a spiritual director, Katie Haseltine offers that new lens to her clients. She shares how her own perspective of God was transformed when she began to notice her feelings and how they affected her view of God—and how much more connected to Him she felt when she realized He could hold all of those feelings for her.

Quotes

"It's so interesting for me to unpack with people their different interpretations of Jesus and religion, and what I've found is Jesus is so much more inviting and welcoming to them than they ever knew." —Katie Haseltine

"A relationship with God is made up of your thoughts and feelings. And so if you're not exploring those, if you're not offering those to God, if you're not giving those to God, then you might not really be knowing God or having a relationship in that way." —Katie Haseltine

"I really had nowhere to go because my theology at the time didn't allow for mess or mistake or gray or uncertainty or not knowing what was coming. And so for me, there really was this desperation to experience something more than words on a page and ideas and thoughts." —Katie Haseltine

"As I grew in self-awareness, what I realized is how I have to know who I am in order to know God. . . . That self-awareness is so important to be able to go to Jesus with your anger, with your fear, with your shame, with your guilt, with your joy, with your hope, with your desires, and be with Him." —Katie Haseltine

Katie Haseltine's LinksKatie Haseltine's Website

Katie Haseltine's Instagram

Resources Mentioned in This EpisodeSt. Ignatius

Prayer of Examen

Connect with Sally Lloyd-JonesJesus Storybook Bible Facebook

Steve Pemberton's Facebook

*Episode produced by Four Eyes Media*

44. Be a Lighthouse Who Shows Others the Way: Steve Pemberton Jul 07, 2022

Show notes

When author Steve Pemberton was growing up, he suddenly found himself in the foster care system after his mother, who struggled with alcoholism, was unable to care for him. When all seemed dark, different adults shone a light for Steve along his journey to adulthood, and today he endeavors to be that same "lighthouse" by helping others with what he has to give.

Quotes

"I often get asked, 'Well, who was the person who helped transform your life?' And it's hard for me to point to that individual and say that there was that one person because it really wasn't. It was more the love of language and words and all that accompanied it." —Steve Pemberton

"I think there's something instructive for all of us in recognizing that each day any of us can be a lighthouse to someone and we can also find one for ourselves." —Steve Pemberton

"We can almost certainly touch and impact somebody else's life. I'm a really good example of what happens when you do." —Steve Pemberton

Steve Pemberton's LinksSteve Pemberton's Website

Steve Pemberton's Twitter

Steve Pemberton's Instagram

Resources Mentioned in This EpisodeA Chance in the World by Steve Pemberton

The Lighthouse Effect by Steve Pemberton

Work Human

Encyclopedia Brown

Alfred Hitchcock

Connect with Sally Lloyd-JonesJesus Storybook Bible Facebook

Westminster Theological Seminary

*Episode produced by Four Eyes Media*

43. Removing the Sting of Shame from Our Brokenness: Dr. Judy Cha Jun 30, 2022

Show notes

Therapist Dr. Judy Cha knows that God's love can transform lives. As the director of Redeemer Counseling Services in New York City, she's seen that when people can be present with their pain without judgment for what they're feeling, they can put aside the shackles of shame to become a vessel for God's goodness in ways they could've never imagined.

Quotes

"My relationship with God has definitely changed how I see people. No, they're not just objects of my curiosity. People are His most prized possession, His lost treasure He came to reclaim. So people are precious, highly regarded across all races, gender, socioeconomic status." —Dr. Judy Cha

"Sin didn't just affect the human heart. It affected everything in creation. So we live in a broken world with broken people." —Dr. Judy Cha

"By being attentive, by being present without judgment over and over again, this becomes a corrective experience for our clients. And it shifts the way that they see themselves, that they are valued, accepted, and loved, and they see us as loving, kind, and accepting people." —Dr. Judy Cha"How we experience other people is highly correlated to how we experience God. So in order to change the way that they relate to God, people need these relational experiences that are different from their history that reflect and represent who God is." —Dr. Judy Cha

"We can find rest because we know that He is with us and He loves us and we can reach a place of peace." —Dr. Judy Cha

Resources Mentioned in This EpisodeRedeemer Counseling Services

1 Corinthians 13:1–2 NIV

Connect with Sally Lloyd-JonesJesus Storybook Bible Facebook