Women of a Certain Age Series: "The New and Improved Seasoned Woman of God" pt.2

SPEAKER_09 0:11

Hi, welcome to Fit 101, Vocalizing Every Noted Topic with a Christian twist. I'm June Bryant, your host, and we welcome you to our podcast. Our vision is to win souls to Christ and to help those who know him by giving them a fresh new perspective on Christian living and reading God's Word. Our mission is to biblically educate people while growing in their Christian walk by answering questions that they are uncomfortable to ask in a church-like setting. You can find us wherever you get your podcast. Please like and subscribe. You can also visit us on YouTube, Instagram, or on our website vent-101.com, where you can leave any questions or comments that you may have. Thank you. I ain't got good saying that.

SPEAKER_05 1:49

Bible says last year is good medicine. It is, yeah. Oh, I don't even know what to say. Good morning. June, June, June. She's in the room. Yes. But I thank God for being here on Pat. And um, I'm just glad that you guys are tuning in and just hope you get a lot out of it today.

SPEAKER_09 2:12

Amen. Amen. Um, I'm sorry, I'm being so silly. I I'm gonna be educated soundings. I want you all to introduce yourselves.

SPEAKER_07 2:24

Okay. Thank you.

SPEAKER_04 2:27

Well, I'm Mary Cosby, and I'm so glad to be here with Vent uh 101, uh, with June in the room. Amen. And our sweet and loving sisters, amen, and Pat. We just it's just been a great time, and I really enjoy coming. I I I'm also a person that loves to watch Vent. Um Vent on YouTube.

SPEAKER_08 2:52

Amen. And also on Facebook.

SPEAKER_04 2:54

So I am one of those ones that gets on there and I see what you're doing. Amen. Thank you. And hear what you're doing.

SPEAKER_09 3:01

Thank you for the Mr. Boy. Yes.

SPEAKER_10 3:04

Well, Pastor Miriam McGill, Great Future Restoration Church. But I am just so gracious to be here. We we made it through part one. Yeah, we're done with part two. Thank you. To be among some loving sisters in the Lord. You know, to be able to share our hearts from uh a biblical perspective, but from a real perspective.

SPEAKER_05 3:25

Yeah. Somebody else.

SPEAKER_02 3:31

What's your name? What's your name is? Right.

SPEAKER_07 3:39

What's your name? I'm John Charles, and I'm just grateful to be here. I have enjoyed the first half, and I'm just looking forward to what God has to say and what these beautiful women have to say as we move forward.

SPEAKER_06 3:52

Amen. I'm Marsha Williams, and I'm gonna steal a line from Coming to America. I'm very happy to be here.

SPEAKER_08 4:14

I'm talking about God's word. That just brings me joy.

SPEAKER_09 4:18

So welcome back, ladies. Those that follow us know I ain't got good sense. So it is what it is. God made me for who I am. But uh during my research, I found that God loves us all the same, but He takes special joy and delight in the quiet strength, uh, spiritual maturity, grace, and inner beauty that comes to women as they grow older. I'm thankful for that. God looks at the heart, a person's inner character rather than anything else. Now, this reminds us that beautiful season women of God, uh, that our worth increases, not decreases. Our worth increases as we grow closer to God. Scripture consistently shows that God treasures qualities that tend to blossom with age. Now, 1 Peter 3 and 3 says, Don't be concerned about the outward beauty of fancy hairstyles, expensive jewelry, or beautiful clothes. You should clothe yourself instead with the beauty that comes from within, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is so precious to God. And Proverbs 31:30 says, a charm is deceptive and the beauty does not last. But a woman who fears the Lord will be greatly praised. Thank you, Jesus. But we have beautiful women here that are inside and outwards. Yes, we all look good for our age. You can't convince me. But I want to start it off with um, I've got a list of uh cliches that I gave the ladies. We're gonna go off uh go on to that, go into that next. But um what is something that you do for yourself now at the age that you are mentally and physically that you didn't have the time to do earlier in age? A lighthearted question.

SPEAKER_08 6:40

I get good rest. Yeah, it encourages us to rest and to sleep. If he himself would get away from the crowd, get away from the disciples, to go rest. When there was a storm on the boat, what was he doing? He was sleeping and he was vested good. So he advocates rest, it's restorative, yeah, and it just um you know gives us that that peace you know to settle in, even with all that's going on with me now. He lets me rest so thank you for that. And then with the hustle and bustle, you know, earlier in life. I love this time of my life. I just love it. That's great. You know, it's not the kids, it's not the lunches, it's not the you know, the parent-teacher meetings, right? You know, all those things that have you so tied up, it's not the job, I'm retired. Yeah, so now is the time that I'm just loving being able to rest more.

SPEAKER_09 7:39

Amen. That's good. That's it.

SPEAKER_06 7:41

I want to piggyback because even in creation after that sixth day, God rests. Did he rest because he was tired? No, absolutely not. That's right. It was an example and an instruction to us at times for us. That's right. Even God the Father encourages that. Okay, what I do for myself now is I have always loved to dance, and I'm still dancing. Amen. I go to Zumba classes several times a week, and uh my doctor, I'm I'm I'm type two diabetic, have been for 30 years, not on insulin. Yeah, my doctor keeps telling me, keep doing what you're doing. Because that exercise really does work. So I thank God that I'm physically able. That's a blessing to do.

SPEAKER_02 8:23

Good at it.

unknown 8:25

Thank you.

SPEAKER_04 8:25

Well, you know, self-care is very important for everybody, for all of us. Uh, it being that, you know, I'm partially retired, but I do plan, you know, to do some, a little something something, you know, probably this fall. However, I like to walk now. And I was saying, you know, when we was having them chill-ins, we couldn't, you know, like you saying, get the rest, you couldn't sleep, you know what I'm saying? So getting a good night rest, you know, and now God wakes me up sometime at three and four in the morning, and I know what that means, you know, for me to pray and seek Him when it's quiet and get before Him. And I do that, but just getting, like you say, getting that sleep, being able to sleep all night, you know, and not wake up, you know, and not be able to see. Because women at our age, sometime some of us, you know, pre-menopausal or menopausal, we get insomnia from time to time when we can't. And so when you can sleep all night, that is truly a blessing. So, young ladies, y'all gonna get to, you know, that point. It might be pre-minestral, whatever, pre menopause, whatever. Because I know some are hitting it at 40 now. And my daughters there, oh mama, I'm getting hot flashes. Okay, you were messing with me when I was doing this. But you know, now you you're feeling it now, right? So, yes, it's very important. Self-care.

SPEAKER_10 9:49

I would say for me, um, I love music. I love music, so I love playing my music, my worship and praise music, but I like my jazz. All right, girls. I love your jazz. That's that's very therapeutic. So that's that's where my peace lies at, and when things start getting on my nerves, like, okay, let me what are we gonna listen to right here? It's like Calgon, take it away. But no, my music. I love my music.

SPEAKER_07 10:22

Amen. Yes, yes.

SPEAKER_09 11:15

Me, I ain't gonna lie. I find that rest, like Janet said, rest and sleep. Is a requirement for me. Sleep is a requirement for me, but I love resting because I was so busy all of my life. If it wasn't turning corners or fast forward when I uh was did was doing things in ministries for other people, I was so busy, you know, busy doing. And uh I think you Marion talked about just being so busy last segment. Uh because I used to work in the church, you know. I really, especially when I was a pastor's assistant for my godbrother, uh, I was so busy to where I didn't know if I was running left or right. You know, but that's when the Lord, after I left, he sat me down. And when I had the stroke, that's when he ministered to me. The Holy Spirit said, You need to get your rest. You've been doing all this work for me, but what are you doing for me? Because only what you do for me for real will last. Yes, you know, not about church, quote unquote, work. A lot of us get caught up in church work, not Jesus ministry. That's right. Amen. And that's what counts. So now that's what I've found that just working for Jesus really is what I do. When I'm at home by myself, I'm on the computer doing research and praying. I do a lot of praying and meditating here lately, especially since in the last month, the Holy Spirit has been stretching me. You know, I mean when me and you had breakfast, I shared it with you. Um, the Holy Spirit is stretching me to do more, and I'm I'm I'm waiting to see. He's given me some insight on what I'm called to do, or one of my another purpose. That's another question I have for you all. Do you know your purpose or what is God called you to do? Are you working in your purpose? Because age don't have nothing to do with this. Right. Because there's a lot of uh, I'll say seasoned men and women who still don't know what their calling or their purpose is, and they're two different things. So that's the part B question. Do you know what your calling or your purpose is? Or are you work walking in it? Because some of us aren't walking in it, we know what it is, but we ain't walking in it.

SPEAKER_10 14:13

I want to say something else. I want to back up a little bit just so that the young people understand that sleeping and resting is two different things.

SPEAKER_02 14:20

Yes, it is.

SPEAKER_10 14:21

When you say you're resting, it does not always mean that you're sleeping. That's right. That's right. So we that's bringing clarity to you that's good. That's getting them some wisdom in the area just to let you know, it does not always mean, oh, I'm gonna get up in my pillow, get up under my cover, and I'm gonna curl up. No, uh oftentimes resting is that we're sitting at his feet, we're allowing him to speak to us, and we listen and know his voice. That's what resting is all about. Sleeping is just that. You're sleeping, you know, but you still you're sleeping in him because it's a peaceful sleep. You know, everybody doesn't get peaceful sleep.

SPEAKER_09 15:10

That's right. Because they're being I my personal opinion, I believe that a lot of people can't sleep in my case because I was still sinning, doing stuff that I and I'm I'm talking about now too, you know, spending too much money, and I'm tossing and turning. Girl, you don't need them shoes. The Holy Spirit told me you don't need you, ain't wore half of the uh 10 pair of shoes that you done bought. And and I want to make you young people understand that you don't have to be sin sick, like fornicating, adultery, stuff like that. You can sin, like I said, spending too much money when you ain't you you don't need to.

SPEAKER_06 15:57

Yeah, the Bible says a good steward is found faithful.

SPEAKER_09 16:00

Boom. So, but um did we cover that? I'm just cuckoo for cocoa.

SPEAKER_08 16:09

I want to say too, I have really learned that doing nothing is sometimes the something you're supposed to be doing. That's it. Yeah, yeah. Why are we so busy? That's right. Why do we always have to be doing something? I have learned now that I can just sit, I can relax. God has given me a space where I can just sit there and watch the birds or you know, just sit in his glory and uh then he'll speak and that's get quiet so yeah, so you can hear from the city. That's right. That's right.

SPEAKER_06 16:46

Well, look, y'all pray for me. I know you're serious, but I am, I am, because I prefer to be busy. And I know it's not a good thing all the time. I've been retired for 16 years. I'm 76, with my son and my husband gone. I don't like being by myself. And I don't like doing nothing. And I think they're all connected. My family tells me all the time, you're doing too much. But I don't feel like I am. Even when I've had a day where I was out and I was active with my daughters or or with my sisters or whatever, even if it's four or five o'clock in the evening and it's time to start winding down, I go home and I'm like, okay, I'm by myself again. But the Lord is teaching me, you must learn to spend time with just me. Amen.

SPEAKER_02 17:45

Amen.

SPEAKER_06 17:46

I had six siblings, yeah, grew up with them, met my husband when I was 16. We got married when I was 18. Yeah. So I left my mom's house and I was with my husband. We were together 57 years.

SPEAKER_04 17:59

Oh, that's beautiful.

SPEAKER_06 17:59

So when the Lord, it is, uh I thank the Lord so much. And then when the Lord took him in 23, for the first time in my entire life, I'm by myself. Yeah, I don't do that well. I got friends that say I go to the movies by myself, I go out to eat and get myself a nice peaceful dinner. This one can do it. She's in the car listening to the jazz. You know, just yeah. That is not me. And I don't know what to do about it except to ask for prayer because that's why I love Zumba. That's why I like I'm a stage playwriter, so that's why I'm glad our theater company uh plug Gift of Productions is returning to the stage. So we're coming to the theater near you. Amen. But that's why I I like working with people and stage and and that I want to be busy because I just feel like I get sad when I slow down. And I do know that the Lord has to be enough for me. So pray for me with that. Because I don't quite know how to ascertain that. I really don't.

SPEAKER_08 19:04

So I But you still spend time with the Lord though. Absolutely. I do. I mean, I say it's not a problem. Maybe that's how He made you and He'll let you know if it's a problem or if you need to settle down or if you need to, you know.

SPEAKER_09 19:25

Is it something? This is a question. Is it something that you feel is missing in your spirit? You know what I mean?

SPEAKER_06 19:32

I'm missing my honey.

SPEAKER_04 19:34

Well, hey, and guess what? That's so sweet.

SPEAKER_09 19:38

That's a blessing that you are missing him because guess what? No, hear me out. Yeah, I didn't have one to love me the way that you have shown love. I've never experienced the love that you have from missing your honey. I've never been loved in that way. That's that's one thing that I want any woman to understand. Even though your honey, my brother, is gone with the Lord, you experience true love from a man. I've never experienced it. I've never had a man to say, I love you, but yeah, they love me, but not the way Nokie looked at you, not the way Reggie looked at you, not the way that uh Tony looks at you. I've never experienced that.

SPEAKER_04 20:29

That's beautiful.

SPEAKER_09 20:30

So just be thankful that you had the opportunity to have your man for 47 years. And I'm just being, gee, please receive it because I couldn't be. I do I'm speaking from the heart.

SPEAKER_07 20:46

Yes, amen. Yes, ma'am.

SPEAKER_09 20:47

That's something that I won't ever experience. They say, well, don't never say never, but I haven't been no man ever loved me that long.

SPEAKER_06 20:58

Well, sometimes they love you so hard, it takes up for that long.

SPEAKER_09 21:02

Well, okay. I'm good. I'm married to Jesus now. I'm 66 years old in a couple of weeks. I'm happy with Jesus. What's that song? I'm happy with Jesus alone.

SPEAKER_02 21:15

Yeah, I'm happy with Jesus.

SPEAKER_09 21:17

I really am, but if it's for me. But you understand what I'm getting at. Yeah, please receive it.

SPEAKER_06 21:23

I receive it. Yes, I do.

SPEAKER_05 21:25

Yes, I do. And I want to say, uh, I agree with you, Jen, because God created us individually. We have different temperaments when we're born in this world. And people still tell me, sit down somewhere, sit down somewhere. It's not because I want to keep moving, because I'm learning too to rest. I I really am. I can't sleep well at night. You know that I have a problem with that. But I don't I I uh examine myself and say, Am I worried about something? Did I the dishes still in there or something going on? You know, stuff like that. And I just want to encourage you just. Make sure you have that balance. God don't want nothing to be placed put before him. Absolutely. So just just bring that balance to it. You know, I don't see nothing wrong with it. Matter of fact, you encourage me. You 76. I ain't can't say I'm 68. I want to do that too when I'm 76 at the Lord's will. Beautiful. You know what I mean? So I encourage you. Just keep moving. When your body says sit down, your body's gonna tell you it's time to sit down somewhere. So uh but God have uniquely made us different. We're not gonna be the same. None of us sitting at the same time. Yes, Lord. That's the truth. I can still go embrace embrace my granddaughter. I can run down the street with her. But I'm choosing. So you know, just bring a balance in that. I think it's okay. And make sure you invite us. What'd you say for me? Zoom. Okay. No, not that Zoom. I'm talking about gifted production. Oh, definitely let you know. Yeah. Thank you. That's beautiful. We've been to a couple of our players. Just keep moving. Yeah, when you oh, yeah. Amen. That's beautiful. So thank you.

SPEAKER_09 23:07

I have printed out something for the ladies to overlook. And these these are certain cliches that uh old Christians, I say the old Christians, uh, but some of us use them to this day. They're told younger people. Uh, this is we Vit 101 is strictly aimed toward Christians, period. But our followers, our listening audience is mainly young people, and praise God for that. I love y'all. Y'all keep me young. Y'all know Miss June and Miss Pat is crazy as road lizards. But uh, but we have some cliches that I printed out uh that you all can go over and which ones uh jump out at you that really shouldn't be paid any attention to because they're non-biblical. God won't give you more than you can handle.

SPEAKER_04 24:06

Uh uh, just follow your heart.

SPEAKER_09 24:12

Just follow your heart. Because the heart is wicked.

SPEAKER_08 24:17

And King James said deceitful and desperately wicked.

SPEAKER_04 24:21

You can't trust that heart now. Okay.

SPEAKER_06 24:23

Yeah. I think the one that jumps out at me is if you had more faith, this wouldn't be happening. And I like quote, I like the notation here. You say Jesus never tied suffering to a lack of faith. That's right. He tied faith to endurance. That's right. That's right. That's good.

SPEAKER_05 24:42

And God, God helped those who help themselves.

SPEAKER_09 24:46

Yeah. That don't even make sense. That don't make sense.

SPEAKER_02 24:50

When you say that don't even make sense.

SPEAKER_05 24:55

Wait a minute. If you're helping yourself, yeah. And I was a teenager, you know. Once again, I you know, I didn't grow up in a church setting or nothing like that or whatever. But I used to just look at people like saying things like that. You know, uh, well, God help, oh, help themselves. Well, I'm in need. Uh I can't even help myself right now, so I don't know how it didn't make sense to me. So yeah, I think that's a terrible cliche.

SPEAKER_06 25:24

Anything that's not based on the word of God doesn't make sense. And you can't make sense out of it.

SPEAKER_05 25:32

And some of uh Sister Marsha, some of the things that come from the word of God would make sense to a corner-minded person. Anyway, because yeah, they can't they can't uh conceive what the spirit has to say anyway. So yeah. But that just didn't make sense to me. If it's God's will, it would be easy. Uh-huh. Yeah. Who said that?

SPEAKER_09 25:59

They did. They said it. Good Christians don't struggle. Now that's normal.

SPEAKER_05 26:08

Oh, wow. Oh, yeah.

SPEAKER_09 26:10

We struggle down to have trials.

SPEAKER_05 26:13

He said it surely will. Yeah, that's right. What's a good Christian? No, that's the first question asked. That's right.

SPEAKER_06 26:25

I can't answer that for you. This one here, this is how we've always done it. Yeah. Oh, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 26:32

Yeah.

SPEAKER_06 26:32

And you know, even God made new covenants with his people. Yeah. So where would we be if he said, This is how I've always done it? And not allow for us.

SPEAKER_05 26:44

Oh, I like how June, I like how you put it right behind there. It says tradition is not equal.

SPEAKER_04 26:51

That's right.

SPEAKER_05 26:52

That's right.

SPEAKER_08 26:53

No, name it and claim it. Oh, and and that's the danger in these things.

SPEAKER_07 26:58

I remember that era. Name it and claiming.

SPEAKER_04 27:04

And some people would go on to say the Bible, they'll sometimes say the Bible says. And they're saying that's the way it's not.

SPEAKER_09 27:09

They will, they will say the Bible says.

SPEAKER_04 27:14

It's totally different. It's not even in there.

SPEAKER_06 27:16

It's not even in there. But you know what that comes back to is what it tells us in 1 Timothy. Study. Study. Show yourself approved. Fit working. So you won't have to be ashamed. Rightly divide it. If I can rightly divide it, I can wrongly divide it. So if I study it, rightly divide it. It may be divided. You know it's true. You know, I really love this principle. Someone um, I was taking this study called Experiencing God by Henry Blackaby. There was a portion there where they were trying to help people understand how they can identify the truth, you know, from error. And they said what the government does when they're training their agents to be able to identify counterfeit money, they study the real thing long enough to know that when something false turns up, they know it right away. We study God's word and get the truth in us, we will know a cliche or an untruth as soon as we hear it.

unknown 28:16

Amen.

SPEAKER_08 28:16

And that's what I was gonna say. The danger in this is this can't give you anything for your spirit. That's right. You know, it sounds good, you know, sounds cute, whatever. But unless you are in the word, unless you know what the word says, and that can you can apply that to your life, and you can't wait until something happens. I told somebody, if I wasn't already in the word and walking in my faith when this tragedy happened with Jalen, I couldn't be flipping, okay. What's the Lord say about comfort? That's right. I know he's a comforter. That's right. Amen. That's good. I know what his word says about that. You can't wait, you gotta get it in the spirit. Wait till the thing happens and then try to figure out what God says about it. I mean, if if that's all you have, fine. It's good to go to it, but you gotta have it at the ready, yes, ma'am. So it would be, you know, so it can feed you.

SPEAKER_09 29:17

Let me ask you, do you think in uh uh in general, do you think it would have been harder? It's harder for somebody to go to the scriptures, like with you saying, the comfort you receive knowing. But somebody that's not in the word that goes off of these cliches or takes something that somebody says that is not biblical, how hard would it be for them to be able to accept that this was God's will? You see what I'm saying?

SPEAKER_07 29:52

It doesn't matter.

SPEAKER_09 29:53

They could search the scriptures, but wouldn't it be in the word?

SPEAKER_08 29:55

And it's it's hard for me. Would it resonate with them? That's the question. It probably wouldn't resonate with them immediately because if you aren't in the word, then when something happens, how do you know to go to the word? If you're not in it, then you don't have that relationship, right? It's about relationship. That's it. That's right. And how are you gonna know what he's saying if you don't go to his word? Amen. You know, and have relationships. If you're in relationship with someone, you want to talk to them, you want to see them, you want to know what they think, you want to share what you think. Yeah, you know, that's relationship. It's relationship over religion. Yes, you know, people think Christianity is a whole bunch of do's and don'ts. Yeah, his word is a guideline for a light to do us good and not to harm us. Amen. That's right. So if you're staying away from it because you think, oh, I gotta quit this, I gotta do that. That's not even about relationship. You know, come to him, start that relationship, yeah, and he'll guide you in what you don't. He'll take that taste out of your mouth for things, or he'll say, you know, there's some things in my life. Yeah, there's some things in my life. I'm like, well, when he speaks to me about it, you know, it's all about relationships. Yes, amen.

SPEAKER_09 31:27

Because the reason why I asked that question was because uh I go back to when my mom died. I was 29 years old and I did not have a relationship. I knew a form of God. But when the Lord took my mother home from that car accident, it it did the direct opposite. I got mad at God because I didn't have a relationship. You see what I'm saying? When the Lord took your daughter, you gravitated to God. But if you don't have that relationship, I reverted to the streets because I was mad that God took my mama because I prayed and I asked you to keep her, and I told you, God, that I'm going to bring mama home and I'm going to do better. And I'm gonna take care of mama and I'm gonna follow you. But since you have taken her home, I'm done with you.

SPEAKER_08 32:25

And even more than home. It's the truth. It opens us up to come to him in our in our roof bones. Yeah, I've had some conversation with him. Oh, yeah, you know, because of our relationship. I'm like, why would you do that? That's right. Yeah, you know, I said it, why would you do that? Yeah, yeah, yeah. And what nothing wrong with that? And he understands that. That's right. And it was kind of like he said, Well, if I really could tell you, would you say, oh, okay, well, then I understand, you know. So it's not a question really to get an answer, but it's to get out of my spirit. Yeah. I'm trying to understand. I know there's a greater good for it. I know there was a plan, her work was done. Yes, but my heart would be like, Why would you move her up? Why would you, you know, and then take her. Why would you do that? You know, and he's okay with that. And that's because of relationships. You know, he understands.

SPEAKER_10 33:24

And he wants us to do that. Yeah. You know, to try and push it up under the rug. You hurt him yourself. He wants us. I'm mad at you right now. That's right. I'm like really mad at you. You know, because I remember when my mom passed, I said, Really, Lord, are we doing this? Yeah. I said, No, we just celebrated her birthday the day before. Is she gone the next day? Jesus. Yeah. Not sick, nothing wrong with her. I'm like, wait a minute. I go there, I find her, unconscious. And I'm like, mom, she looks up at me and I start praying and hit 9-1-1 at the same time. I'm like, Lord, really, are we doing this? You know, what's the deal? You know, and at the hospital, I'm asking the Nero, I'm like, okay, what happened? She had a big brain bleed. It wasn't anything you could do about it. Those come at any given time. Really? Yeah, yeah, yeah. You know what I'm saying? And the one thing that comforted me most was when my husband said, Okay, look at it like this. Her last breath here was our first breath with Jesus. Oh, that's good. And that's the one thing that comforts me to this day. Yeah, and I know even in regards to Jalen, my niece, because that's just the way I look at it. I said, Lord, you gotta give me understanding here. He said, I'm gonna give it to you. And I shared it with Jenny. He said, Deuteronomy 29, 29, the secret things belong to me. He said, This is one of my secret things. And I'm like, okay, Lord, so that's the way we gotta receive this thing. You know, at the end of the day, God is still in control. Yes. But if I did not have a relationship with my heavenly father, I would not have made it through when he took my mom in 24 hours after a celebrate. You know, I wouldn't have been able to handle that. But because of my relationship with him, I had to look up and I said, Lord, you know what? I can't do this without you.

SPEAKER_04 35:38

Yes, Lord. Amen.

SPEAKER_10 35:40

You're gonna have to walk me through this.

SPEAKER_04 35:42

Yes, ma'am.

SPEAKER_10 35:43

Because right now, I'm mad. We were celebrating. And then I looked at my mama's picture. I said, Really? You had that much fun yesterday that you had to go and take it. Really?

SPEAKER_06 35:55

Yes, yeah. Is that what we're doing then? I got you. I'm so glad he loves and understands you.

SPEAKER_10 36:01

He knows all those different emotions at that time, but we got to not just hold back and hold it within because that caused greater hug. We gotta believe we need to be.

SPEAKER_06 36:13

We forget the fact that he's our friend. Yes, he's just not our Lord and our Savior, he's our friend. And we know how we talk to our friends, he's our best friend from his side of it, even if we don't act like best friends. And the thing that comforted me when my husband left, because it was like 15 minutes, you know, it felt like two days before the paramedics actually got to our apartment. But I think it was about 15 minutes. All that time, I was trying to do what I could do and what 911 was telling me to do. But when I found out that he had gone to heaven, my mind started saying, Maybe you should have done this or that. Or maybe you shouldn't. But let me tell you what the word of God will do, and that's why that study is so critical. What he brought back to me that night was what it says, it's in Psalms, but I can't tell you where this verse lives, but I can tell you that it lives in me because he said, before a man is born, the number of his days are recorded. That's right. Every one of them. Yes. So George, there's nothing I could have done that would have changed God calling George home that night. And so, and then you know, we had just celebrated Jalen's 30th birthday. What week, two weeks?

SPEAKER_08 37:32

Yeah, 10 days before.

SPEAKER_06 37:35

And it's like, my goodness, no health history, you know, anything negative. But before she was born, God knew the day was gonna call her to be with him. And so it it doesn't make that situation hurt you less, but understanding really brings peace. That's how God works it out. You know, no, there's nothing you could have done. Well, maybe we should have gone here or done this. When it is that day, it is that day. And I'm listening to myself because I don't like flying. I'm like, okay, you're gonna stay off the plane because you think you're gonna crash before you were born. Your day is already recorded, so to get on that plane, you laying in your bed, which is what I love to do, you know. So we have to take the word to heart. We we recite the verses, we know the principles of it, we understand the precepts, but it's different walking in that thing. Yeah, because that's when your life is altered. That's when people see something different in you, and that's when the power of God shows up, when his children are actually walking in what he tells us. Yes, thank you.

SPEAKER_08 38:47

Yes, ma'am. But until something comes to testing, you know, and it will come. Let's just talk.

SPEAKER_04 38:55

It's two cliches on her that I'm I'm I'm hewn in on right now as we're speaking on this particular topic. One is says, You just said if you have more faith, this wouldn't have wouldn't be happening. And then the next one, if if it's God's will, it will be easy. And I'm just hearing in here, you know, from you you ladies who are saying how, you know, yes, it was God's will, but it's was it easy? You see what I'm saying? I'm just hearing that. That's the vibe I'm picking up now. You know, so the these cliches are really, they're just that cliches.

SPEAKER_09 39:34

They're detrimental to young believers volunteer. Nothing. You know what I'm saying? Just on paper. They can turn you the opposite direction like it did me. Yes. That's why I know that's why the Holy Spirit had me pull this up. Because we as believers, we don't want anybody to be uh turned in the opposite direction like our is. Because you don't, you're just like you just said, that God has already recorded how many days we're gonna be here. And Jalen is the exact example of you don't have to live. God can call you anytime. And a lot of us that uh are living frivolously, is that a word frivolously? Yes, ma'am. Living out there like there's no tomorrow. You know, don't do, don't play yourself.

SPEAKER_01 40:35

Okay.

SPEAKER_09 40:37

Because there's so many people that that Christians that think that, oh, I'll do it tomorrow. Yeah, I'll get it next week.

SPEAKER_04 40:44

Yeah, yeah, I get it.

SPEAKER_09 40:45

We say that all the time. Just like the women's conference. Oh, it's this next year, it's gonna be here before you know it. But who's to say? God can call any one of us home. That's why we have to have a personal relationship. That's the key. Make your life pleasing to God in every facet of it. I know that young folks have been there, done that. We think that we can turn corners and do whatever we do, but God is coming back. Yes, is he?

SPEAKER_10 41:21

He prepares us for the things that he already knows. He's going to allow a lot, I should say, allow to come into our path. He prepares us ahead of time. So he will already have us studying certain things or to have us to minister to someone else or whatever, to prepare us for that with the head. I gave you a prime example. I'll never forget uh my pastors. They asked me to be a great chair a year before my mom passed. And so I had my mom, I said, Mom, what do you think about me? I want you to check out these videos and just kind of go through some things with me. And so at the end, I asked my mom, I said, Mom, I said, Why do you think Pastor N asked me to be older? She said, Who's to say that the Lord's not preparing you for me?

SPEAKER_06 42:07

Oh, wow. He said, For her.

SPEAKER_10 42:10

And a year later, is when my mom passed. But if I hadn't been going through all the different things and preparing and studying for Greece year and meeting with the people and all that kind of stuff like that, and then mom gave me some of her insight and stuff while we was watching the videos. I said, and that hit me afterwards after she passed, and I was like, wow. And she said it just so quick. She said, Who's the same? I said, Mom, you ain't going nowhere.

SPEAKER_07 42:46

Right. Okay.

SPEAKER_06 42:49

You know what? Nine days before our son, he actually passed away due to an overdose of fentanyl. Nine days before he left here, my husband and I watched him overdose on fentanyl. We saw exactly what it looked like. The difference was we called the ambulance and they were able to get there and give him the Narcan to bring him back. But we watched the movement of his body and how he at one point just stretched out on the floor and I looked at him, and his eyes were partially open and was breathing real evenly. But I knew something was wrong, and and you know, when the by the time, I won't belabor this, but by the time the paramedics got there, they had to give him two shots of Narcan. Okay. And then he sat up after that second one, and he's looking at us like, what's going on? I brought this up because nine days later, when we actually found him in his room, the Lord knew I would wonder, what did he go through? In this overdose process, was he trying to reach us? Was he crying out? Was he choking? Was he suffering? What was his body doing? You know, God let us see what his body was doing, going through an overdose, and none of it was a suffering kind of thing. Yeah, yeah, yeah. He just slid onto the floor. Jesus. So when you talk about preparing you, that's what he did for us.

SPEAKER_05 44:26

Thank you, Father.

SPEAKER_10 44:27

And you may not realize too late on because I didn't realize it at that time. I didn't realize it until maybe seven months later. And I was like, my mom spoke it out, was letting me know the Lord's speaking through her at that time.

SPEAKER_09 44:42

And she probably didn't even know. She wouldn't know. Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 44:45

She was just probably saying something. You know, just you know, that's how good our God is.

SPEAKER_10 44:51

He loves us that much. And we had one of our ministers at our church, his daughter, 18 years old, and he came into Green Share at one of our sessions, and uh he was talking, and I said, And he said, Yeah, he said, You know what? He said, I want to say this to the rest of us here. He said, He said, And all we can do is say that he's saying, Wow, I said, Listen to this daughter. That was a beautiful thing right now.

SPEAKER_06 45:40

When you think about that, I mean you know, and I want to say to the young people out there too, as they hear us talk about these actual experiences, your mother, her daughter, my son, and my husband.

SPEAKER_09 46:01

Yeah.

SPEAKER_06 46:03

Don't fool yourself. June, you alluded to this. Don't fool yourself that you've got all the time in the world to do what you need to do.

SPEAKER_07 46:11

That's right. That's right.

SPEAKER_06 46:12

God could call you home in death, but let us not forget that one day the Lord is gonna come in the clouds. Yes, that's right. 1 Thessalonians 4.16. For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, voice of the archangel, trump of God. The dead in Christ are gonna ride first. And then we who are left behind will be caught up together to meet them in the air. And so shall we ever be with the Lord. Young people, you may not go through physical death, but the rapture could come at any moment. And we need to live our lives like we know this. That's right. You know, so you need to call June in the room or somebody if you are not sure that you have an anchored position in Christ Jesus because we don't know when that Eastern sky is gonna open up and he's gonna come and get his children, and you wanna be one of them.

SPEAKER_04 47:05

That's right. And you know, she mentioned Marion, Pastor Marion mentioned about the love that was left with the young man's daughter. This year we had our our uh family reunion, and it was my first out of so many years. And I I I I was transparent, I let them know. Because my dad has some issues with his family, he's just keeping it real. But it was legacy, the the theme was legacy and love. And as you were saying that to the young people, what legacy are you gonna leave? Are you gonna leave love? Are you gonna leave a multitude of hate? What legacy are you gonna leave behind? That's good. See, that's things that we need to be asking ourselves. If if in event it happens, God forbid, but if in event it does happen, what legacy are you gonna leave behind? Amen. So are you gonna leave love or what? That's right. You know, that's I think that was beautiful.

SPEAKER_06 48:08

Everybody's gonna leave something.

SPEAKER_08 48:10

Yeah, yeah, yeah. And I'm so thankful because I know I know where Jalen went, I know where she is. Yes, she had told so many people close to her. She said, I feel closer to the Lord now than ever. She was in her word, she was in her study, singing his praises, singing his praises. Oh my goodness. She was just I mean, she left out of church and died. Yes, my God. You know, right there on the church parking lot. They declared her dead on the 18th, but she really left us on the 12th. She moved out of that house. She moved out of that house. She was gone, and we were praying for a miracle, you know, to bring her back. But we didn't get that miracle, but I knew another miracle. A lot of miracles happening because of that. She left with so much joy and love and life. And those are the words that just keep coming up when people talk about her. You know, her mission was done. She was, yeah. You know, praise God. And I'm I'm thankful that he was gracious even in taking her. Amen. Because she was leaving to go somewhere and got in her car, and he didn't let her get off that parking lot. It was uh it was an unknown heart condition. When they said she had a cardiac episode, I'm like, what are you talking about? Cardiac episode, my god. Um, no symptoms, no nothing. He just took her just like that here and gone. Our life is a vapor. So she walked out of church. That's the blessing she said to me. Here, Mama. Put this in the offering. And she left early uh from church, right after the sermon was over, and went out to her car. And the next thing I know, they're coming to get me saying, Come, it's Jalen. I'm like, what do you mean? Did she fall down? What and they're out there giving her CPR. I'm like, what is going on? But he took her just like that. Those five days that she was still here, that her body was still here, that was for us. That was for us to love on each other, to love, you know. It was almost like she was raptured. Yeah, I mean, he just just like that. Um, and it could happen just that fast. And I'm like, I would have bet money that I was gonna see Jalen get married, have a family, you know, she had moved back home. I'm like, this is a good time for us to be together. We can kind of talk about those things, you know, moving into your new life. She had a wonderful um man that they loved each other, and I'm sure they would have been getting married, but that wasn't his plan for her. That was what I'd wanted. And I'm like, I don't understand why I didn't get to see that, you know, but it's God's business. And I have to, I don't understand it. Yes, understanding doesn't always come, but I accept it and and yet I trust him. And he's gonna reveal. I think there are things already being revealed because of her life. Yes, so now I try to shift that grief into Thanksgiving. I'm so thankful. I'm so thankful for me to be your mom and ready to be your dad. You know, I'm just thankful for those things.

SPEAKER_04 51:55

If you can say what legacy do you feel she left from your perspective?

SPEAKER_08 52:01

Just love, light, and joy, and to live life. I always told her, I just love your zest for life. Jalen was like, that's how she lived her life and she touched so many people. Amen. Just so many. And I'm reading these cards that people wrote for her, these memory cards. Just you know, how she changed my life and her faith walk, encouraged me, and those kind of things. That's what matters. That's what matters. Yes, I feel chills when you say that.

SPEAKER_09 52:39

Well, ladies, I hate to interrupt. It's because it's time. Oh my goodness, I already girl. We're gonna have y'all back for the end of it until the end of the year, but we're gonna have y'all, these ladies, this group of ladies, because I've got so many questions. I didn't get, I knew we wasn't gonna get through half of them. We didn't get through a third of them. But I really truly thank you all for taking out your time. My pleasure. Because you could have been at home asleep watching cartoons or something on a Saturday morning. But um, we thank you. Me and Pat, thank you on behalf of Vent 101. We thank you. And I know Antoine and Rich are happy that you all were joined us too. But uh, you think you could pray us out with that beautiful voice of yours? Thank you, Jesus. Thank you for your testimony, Father God. Thank you, Janet. We thank you, Jesus, we thank you, Heavenly Father.

SPEAKER_08 53:55

We just thank you for who you are. Yes, we thank you for the privilege to come to you, that you are our friend, yes, and that you know us, that you know all the intricacies and things in our life. Yes, and you are in control, and all things you do are with purpose, yes, and whatever you allow is good. Yes, Lord. Yes, Lord, good and with purpose, yes, Lord, and just strengthen us to continue to love and trust you, Lord. Yes, Jesus. We know you don't care if we question you. You know we have those questions in our heart anyway, Lord. Yes, but just increase our love for you and help us understand your love for us, your infinite love for us. Thank you, Lord. You are so good. Thank you, Lord. Yes, Lord, thank you. And we just ask that you be in every life around this table. You know the prayer requests of these ladies. Some of them have been stated. You just work with us, Lord, in the way you see fit, yes, Lord, and we will continue to trust you, Lord. We ask that someone has heard something that will draw them closer to you. That's what it's about. Drawing people closer to you, Lord, and just trust you. And we ask this in the mighty match of Jesus. Thank you.