Reframing Ministries

Anxiety . . . it’s an invisible plague in the mind, a pervasive problem that permeates thought, an unsettling earthquake that rattles internal peace. Anxiety, as most know, is an obviously large problem in our world. Often we find ourselves entangled in webs of fear-laden thoughts, and instead of bringing our anxieties to the feet of the Lord, we habitually ruminate over what we cannot control—which only makes things worse. Amy Simpson knows this cycle all too well. Amy was raised in an unstable environment, which caused tremendous confusion and anxiety. As an adult, Amy has faced her anxiety head-on and offers us all a freeing hope found in Christ. Do you try to shut out anxiety by staying busy or attempting to fix what is uncomfortable or difficult? Without Christ, we will never find full rest and peace on this side of heaven. John 16:33 says: “Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.” (NLT) For those who struggle with anxiety, we must run to the truth which promises rest for the weary and peace for the anxious. If you have not already trusted Christ as your Savior, I ask you to lay down the fight, give your life and all its challenges to Christ, and trust Him as your Lord. Listen to this revisited dialogue between Colleen and Amy in order to learn more about a peace of mind that transcends all understanding. SHOW NOTES: You can find all of Amy’s information, resources, and ways to connect by going to her website.

Listen in as we revisit this incredible conversation between Colleen and Jan Silvious! We’re tackling topics today revolving around fear, resiliency, aging, and living biblically in the trials of fear. We hope this podcast provides helpful direction on how to lean on the Lord in your fears, grief, and uncertainty while encouraging you to take on tomorrow renewed and encouraged! SHOW NOTES: Connect with Jan Silvious on her website, request her for speaking or coaching, or purchase her books!

The last place we expect or desire our child to live out their days is in prison. Jason Kent, son of Gene and Carol Kent, was a parent’s dream to raise. Everything Jason did, he did with excellence. From graduating from the U.S. Naval Academy at the top of his class to marrying a beautiful woman, life for the Kent family was ideal. Until . . . something snapped and Jason was arrested for a crime Gene and Carol would never have expected. Their lives as they had known them were irreversibly changed. In this revisited interview between Colleen and Carol, Carol openly shares how they have not only rebuilt their lives but have reframed what it means to live fully amid unchanging, hard circumstances. Like Paul did, Jason Kent has a “captive” audience. Jason teaches hundreds of inmates God’s Word and classes on life skills, communication, and personal development. There is no valley too deep for God’s light to shine bright. Are you willing to open your hands, release what you value most, and allow God to replace your wants with His will? The story for Jason is not over; neither is yours. I hope to hear from you today. Finally, I pray you will take a moment to send Jason a note for all he is doing in spite of the darkness surrounding his life. SHOW NOTES: To connect with Carol or request her for speaking, visit her website. You can also see upcoming conferences where she will be speaking. Ministry to inmates through churches and organizations: Speak Up for Hope PO Box 6262 Lakeland, FL 33807www.SpeakUpforHope.org Greeting cards your church or community can send: American Rehabilitative Ministries has developed a line of name-brand greeting cards to send to inmates around the world. They offer a variety of categories (anniversary, birthday (adult and child), friendship, get well, sympathy, thank you, wedding, Christmas, Easter, Father’s Day, graduation, Mother’s Day, Thanksgiving, and Valentine’s Day). There is a $4.00 charge for each 100 cards, covering the cost of packaging and postage. Boxes of Hope: A branch of Carol’s ministry provides Boxes of Hope for Inmates. Find more information on this excellent program you and/or your church can partake in.

The last place we expect or desire our child to live out their days is in prison. Jason Kent, son of Gene and Carol Kent, was a parent’s dream to raise. Everything Jason did, he did with excellence. From graduating from the U.S. Naval Academy at the top of his class to marrying a beautiful woman, life for the Kent family was ideal. Until . . . something snapped and Jason was arrested for a crime Gene and Carol would never have expected. Their lives as they had known them were irreversibly changed. In this revisited interview between Colleen and Carol, Carol openly shares how they have not only rebuilt their lives but have reframed what it means to live fully amid unchanging, hard circumstances. Like Paul did, Jason Kent has a “captive” audience. Jason teaches hundreds of inmates God’s Word and classes on life skills, communication, and personal development. There is no valley too deep for God’s light to shine bright. Are you willing to open your hands, release what you value most, and allow God to replace your wants with His will? The story for Jason is not over; neither is yours. I hope to hear from you today. Finally, I pray you will take a moment to send Jason a note for all he is doing in spite of the darkness surrounding his life. SHOW NOTES: To connect with Carol or request her for speaking, visit her website. You can also see upcoming conferences where she will be speaking. Ministry to inmates through churches and organizations: Speak Up for Hope PO Box 6262 Lakeland, FL 33807www.SpeakUpforHope.org Greeting cards your church or community can send: American Rehabilitative Ministries has developed a line of name-brand greeting cards to send to inmates around the world. They offer a variety of categories (anniversary, birthday (adult and child), friendship, get well, sympathy, thank you, wedding, Christmas, Easter, Father’s Day, graduation, Mother’s Day, Thanksgiving, and Valentine’s Day). There is a $4.00 charge for each 100 cards, covering the cost of packaging and postage. Boxes of Hope: A branch of Carol’s ministry provides Boxes of Hope for Inmates. Find more information on this excellent program you and/or your church can partake in.

Welcome to a unique addition of the Reframing Ministries podcast! For this discussion, Colleen is the interviewee, discussing mental health topics with Pastor Brad Hoefs, founder of Fresh Hope for Mental Health. Listen in to this revisited interview between Brad and Colleen as they dissect and discuss mental health issues, the church, and family mental health details. In our world, we need hope . . . FRESH HOPE . . . not hope for a moment but for a lifetime. Regardless your struggles, please connect with Brad Hoefs and Reframing Ministries. We long for all who hurt to find hope and encouragement in this interview. SHOW NOTES: Check out the Fresh Hope website for information about the ministry and visit Brad’s blog. We also invite you to subscribe to Fresh Hope’s podcast.

We’ve all been there a time or two . . . or THREE . . . when life doesn’t let up. More specifically, trials are agonizing and exhausting, where we long for a flicker of light or a ray of hope. After surviving oral cancer twice, and in the midst of launching her book Undone: A Story of Making Peace with an Unexpected Life, the cancer came back with an unrelenting vengeance. Astonished and terrified, Michele’s prognosis was extremely bleak. She endured a year of excruciating surgeries and an unbearable recovery. In those dark hours of suffering, questions surfaced about life and faith. Like us all, when God allows severe suffering, life’s hardest questions abound. In this revisited interview with Michele, she shares extraordinary wisdom and significant truths essential to surviving life’s greatest adversities. Without a doubt, Scripture promises suffering. However, when hit with suffering, the struggle to make sense of it all is enormous. If you have ever wrestled with doubt, God’s goodness, God’s sovereignty, God’s presence . . . you are in good company here. I promise, you will never be judged, rejected, or turned away for what you are questioning or enduring today. Reach out to us! We long to connect and provide deep and enduring comfort in your time of need. In what way can we help you today? SHOW NOTES: You can connect with Michele on her website, where you’ll find her latest posts, books, podcasts, and additional resources!

Not many of us would put together the words love and suffering. Suffering feels like anything but love. One of life’s greatest struggles is to resolve that our all-loving God allows us to suffer; in fact, Scripture repeatedly reminds us that God is love and we will suffer. Kathleen Bolduc understands suffering, as she raised a son with disabilities. She has experienced bitter-cold sorrow and has been warmed by God’s loving embrace for more than 30 years. Her book The Spiritual Art of Raising Children with Disabilities helps us understand that God’s love breaks through most often when we are broken open. Robert Mulholland writes in his work Invitation to a Journey: “The journey of faith, the path to spiritual wholeness, lies in our increasingly faithful response to the One whose purpose shapes our path, whose grace redeems our detours, whose power liberates us from the crippling bondages of our previous journey, and whose transforming presence meets us at each turn in our road.” How can we help you in your own journey of detours and trials? Reach out to us after listening to this revisited interview between Colleen and Kathleen! Show NotesContact Kathleen, read excerpts from her books, check out her spiritual direction tab, and check out all her additional resources on her website. Let Me Hear from You You can leave a comment by clicking here. Want more? Subscribe to automatically receive our latest podcast full of help, hope, healing, and humor from and for people walking through pain.

Listen in as we revisit this conversation with Michele Cushatt, whose testimony points to God’s faithfulness prior to her having major surgery. Cancer. The “C” word . . . it’s supposed to happen to other people. But what happens when a terminal diagnosis invades our lives? Few understand this better than Michele Cushatt. Michele, a two-time survivor of tongue cancer, tells her story in her book: Undone: A Story of Making Peace with an Unexpected Life. This interview was recorded one day before her daunting nine-hour surgery. In the midst of this major life event, Michele speaks with calmness and clarity about her past, her [then] new book, and what she is learning as she moves forward. Michele said that once she released worry and control to God, she received an anticipation of what God was going to do with her life. You can know that God will take care of all things, visible and invisible. Connect with either Reframing Ministries or Michele. We hope this re-aired podcast helps you pass off your current fears to the God who can handle all our worries and fears. SHOW NOTES: Connect with Michele via her website, Facebook, or Twitter—as well as find information about her speaking engagements and her newest book, Relentless: The Unshakeable Presence of a God Who Never Leaves.

It’s a parent’s fear, an educational nightmare, a massive political agenda, the subject of heated church conflicts, an American epidemic, and more. Autism. Since 2000, multidisciplinary research has helped us treat vast variations of autism, but research can’t fix autism. In many ways, “fixing” autism shifts our focus away from an essential human need . . . an eternal perspective. We seek treatments and therapies with heroic motivation and blame God when nothing changes. Has anyone ever considered autism may be allowed by God because of the way it can revolutionize our “typical” lives? Reframing autism begins with an eternal perspective, calling us to seek Him and learn His ways as we care for those with differences. In this interview, Emily Colson speaks about caring for her adult son, Max, who has autism. She also talks about how God continues to reveal her need for Christ and how to reframe her life by embracing autism. Autism may not be a challenge in your life . . . but I’m confident something in your life is challenging you right now. The best news is that Christ promises peace to those who turn to Him. What may appear to be a tarnished, old silver cup carries immeasurable value because of who owned the cup; the same is true with our Savior. It’s time—TODAY—to reframe your perspective on how we view and value human life. Here are some verses to provide hope: “I am leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid” (John 14:27). “I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world” (John 16:33). No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us (Romans 8:37). Listen in as we revisit this conversation between Colleen and Emily. SHOW NOTES: Check out Emily Colson’s website to get information on speaking, resources, and additional information related to Emily Colson.

We read in the Bible that God is good, loving, and faithful; yet we live in a world where horrible suffering exists, and God seems anything but good, loving, and faithful. It’s one of life’s greatest conflicts. Author and speaker Philip Yancey shares his time shedding incredible wisdom and insight on this conflict with us in today’s episode. If you have ever wondered, “Why has God allowed *insert personal suffering here* in my life?” now is a great time to learn why. You are in good company, my friend—Jesus Christ experienced the greatest mistreatment and painful suffering, and He offers us a way through life’s struggles. Let’s move from a place of simply reflecting on what’s happened to letting God redeem what has happened for our betterment in Him. We at Reframing Ministries are here for you! Reach out to us as the Lord moves your heart in this revisited interview between Colleen and Philip. PERSONAL RECOMMENDATIONS FOR READING, BY PHILIP YANCEY Most Influential Books: Augustine: ConfessionsFrederick Buechner: Telling the Truth Superior Books in Style and Christian Content: Frederick Buechner: Telling the Truth; The Hungering Dark; The Magnificent Defeat; The Alphabet of Grace; Now and Then; The Sacred Journey; Peculiar Treasures; Wishful Thinking; The Book of Bebb; The Final Beast; Godric Christian Essayists with Style: G.K. Chesterton: Orthodoxy; St. Francis of Assisi; St. Thomas Aquinas; The Man Who Was Thursday; The Everlasting ManC.S. Lewis: A Grief Observed; The Weight of Glory; The Four LovesDorothy Sayers: The Mind of the Maker; Christian Letters to a Post-Christian WorldGeorge MacDonald: Life Essential SHOW NOTES: Connect with Philip, purchase his books, and see his upcoming events here! Purchase Philip’s books Where Is God When It Hurts? and The Question That Never Goes Away on Amazon!