Posts tagged gospel
Rick and Aviana Valadez on Coming Forth As Gold in Marriage, Blended Families and in Ministry

Aviana and Rick Valadez go into their marriage story and how Jesus saved and redeemed their lives. From head knowledge to a loving relationship with their Savior, from redemption from a gambling and drinking past and a compromised relationship, Rick and Aviana share the similarities in their stories is that they prayed to receive Christ into their lives yet it didn’t fully change their life until God took them to the end of themselves.

They also share how they allow Him to steer their blended family and how He led their family to street evangelism through their two boys and the journey from sharing Christ with total strangers on Friday nights to God preparing them for full-time missions.

They have a beautiful testimony and are sold out for the cause of Christ and honor Him with their whole lives.

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Marriage and Redefining Our Identity with Zack and Daniella Peck

Episode 15 was recorded in Brooklyn, New York. I sat down with Zack and Daniella Peck who drove all the way from New Jersey to record for the podcast.

Zack works with the youth at their church. Zack says he was working for the church for about a year before he was actually saved. It’s not about how well we do the “church” things, we can pretend all day long to be one person but God is not fooled. God wants our heart and through their testimony, we see just how patient, how loving and how kind our Father is with us. He patiently pursues our hearts and helps us work through our emotions and helps us process through them to get to the root of our heart hang-ups.

Daniella shares she grew up Catholic. She knew of God, believed in Him but it was always more about the rituals and had never opened up God’s Word for herself. Becoming a Christian was an easier transition as being raised Catholic meant believing in the same God but it became a more intimate, personal relationship with Him, knowing Jesus as God.

This episode would be great to share with a middle school or high school-aged person in your life as Daniella and Zack go into a lot of what the Lord spoke to them in their early relationship and how He called them to process through a lot of the hurt that stemmed from an immature, young “romance” and how He redefined and redeemed a lot of the idols, including each other, they had made.

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Melissa and Bart and Keeping Your Eyes on Christ in All Seasons

Melissa and Bart Hamada have been married 13 years. Diving right in, we are talking about one of the most trying things they’ve walked through together in marriage, infertility. Have we idolized certain milestones in our life and in the church? How often do we not even think as we are asking certain questions? Never really fully knowing what someone may be walking through.

“I’ve found I’ve personally struggled with where you feel ‘What about me is broken?’ Or why is it that I’m not good enough to be a mom? There’ve been those seasons that I allow myself to question those things, and in light of truth found in Scripture, I know that God is sovereign and I know He’s in control. He’s redeemed me and my body, my marriage. I know He’s not withholding anything good.”

In the midst of this holiday/Christmas season, when the pain of loss may be felt more strongly or another year has passed and the promise you felt God would be sure to answer this year hasn’t happened, it’s a comfort to know we can still find joy and peace in a relationship with Jesus. Melissa and Bart share their joy and peace come from Jesus Christ in the midst of walking through the varying seasons that have come with infertility and that they trust in His good plan.

All this and more on episode 12!

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