Retreat to Peace
Retreat to Peace
The Alchemy of Parental Tribulations: Jackie Dighans' Journey of Faith and Gratitude
When life throws curveballs, how does one hold their family together with grace and resilience? This is the very fabric of our latest conversation with Jackie Dighans, a mother to an incredible brood of ten and a guiding light as a covenant life coach. Together, we traverse her personal odyssey from the intimate space of homeschooling to the broader stages of public education, unearthing the indispensable role of spirituality in shaping a cohesive and loving family dynamic.
Navigating the intricacies of growth and identity, our dialogue delves into the art of intentional parenting, striking a balance between guidance and autonomy as our children wade through their formative years. We lay bare the poignant struggles and victories that come with fostering open communication, sharing life's wisdom, and making informed choices. It's a shared journey, both humbling and enriching, that underscores the evolution of self-awareness and the courage to admit that as parents, we too are students of life's unpredictable curriculum.
The episode culminates with a stirring reflection on the metamorphosis wrought by life's trials. We delve into personal stories of tribulation, discussing how these moments of despair can be alchemized into joyous triumphs of faith and gratitude. Join us as we chart a path through the complexities of modern life, embracing growth and a positive perspective that transforms every challenge into a stepping stone towards a more fulfilled existence. Jackie and I invite you to witness the everyday miracles that reaffirm our belief in a purpose-driven life, brimming with love and possibility.
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Thank you for being here with me and welcome back. My name is Catherine Daniels. I love to empower people with spiritual healing and wellness. The best thing about retreat to peace is the gift of inner peace, greater love and joy During these times of changes and uncertainty in the world. Nothing is permanent except our souls, and that's why we need to come together as we travel through one another's countries, creating a bridge, removing all the labels, and as we come together as one people finding our home in one world. This is why the signature talk today is so important. Today I am super excited to welcome my guest, jackie Diggins. Hi, jackie, hi, glad to be here. Thank you so much for being here today. I'm very excited to have this opportunity to share space with you and interview you, and my world audience has no idea who Jackie is, so I'm just going to have you take a moment and share a little bit about who you are.
Speaker 2:Okay, great Thanks for having me again, catherine, I appreciate it. Anyway, so I'm Jackie Diggins, I live in rural Montana, I've been married for 30 years, have 10 children and, yes, they're all mine and ours, and there's no twins. We had one at a time, for, yeah, for 20 years I was either pregnant or nursing, so, anyway, I also homeschooled my children for almost 20 years, and then the Lord told me to put the kids in school. So that's what I did. I followed his leading and at that same time I went to two years of Bible school and then became a covenant life coach. And so I'm a coach and an author. Covenant life coach just means I'm a faith based life coach, and then I'm a offer author working on my third book.
Speaker 1:So yeah, that is absolutely amazing and beautiful, and as you're telling the audience that you've had 10 children, I literally could just feel my body react.
Speaker 2:Because I can't.
Speaker 1:I can't even imagine my beautiful babies. I mean, I, my body just physically couldn't handle having more than three and you know I was very blessed to have three, but I have. As a woman, I've had to endure a lot, so I'm just like I honor you.
Speaker 2:Well, I'm amazed at what God did. I didn't start out wanting to have a large family. I was an overwhelmed mom of three kids when God called us to have a large family and I my husband and I said yes. We actually said we'd take one at a time, and that's exactly how God did it. And one thing that's amazing too, is they were all natural births and there was no big problems having any of them. You know, so I'm thankful I see God's hand and grace on that. Yeah, you know, in my life that way.
Speaker 1:So that is beautiful, and it sounds like they're all healthy and everything is very good for them, which is amazing.
Speaker 2:Yes, I'm very thankful.
Speaker 1:Yeah, you were definitely blessed. So what are the one of the reasons that I thought it'd be really important to have you on the show for my audience is as a mom, especially with the, you know, the group that you have. I mean, there's so many moms that are listening to the show and I feel like sometimes just having one child or just having, you know, a couple of children, with the environment that we're living in and the things that are happening in the uncertainty I mean, do you have any advice that can help some of these mothers with chaos and uncertainty and confusion and just how to be that strong role model for them?
Speaker 2:Well, I know, for me it started with me knowing who I am, and and what I mean by that is, I know I'm a child of God. I know who I am in Christ. As far as I'm protected, I'm already loved, like I come from a place of being loved, because God, in the word, tells us that we're His beloved right, and so I start from that place. So then, as I, as I've learned over the years you know this has all been a journey for me but that I don't have my children don't have to act a certain way or be a certain way in order for me to be okay, right. So I I know, as even as a family, that we're loved, we're protected. And so, as I've sent my children out into the public school system after, you know, like I said, I was homeschooling for several years I know that they're where they need to be, like they're more safe there than at home now, because God said that's where they need to be, and I know His place for them is best. And so if we, as parents and as moms, can realize that we, we can actually live in, like the word tells us, in that safe place, in that refuge in Christ right In Psalm 91, it talks about it, it being our, him being our fortress.
Speaker 2:Well, when I look that up, a fortress is a heavily protected building or impenetrable building. So that's the place I live as a mom. No sharp edges, you know, can come to me. I believe it comes through His love and softens as it comes to me, and then I get to decide with God how I take care of the things that come into my life and even into my children's lives, like I don't have to react to everything. I can respond from a place of love, because that's so, because that's so yeah, it's so beautiful that you're able to articulate that in such a way.
Speaker 1:And I wonder, with raising all of your children, what was it that was like the foundational message for them, to give them that sense of strong self-esteem, of knowing who they are? So is it the same message, or did you give them a different message? Because you had said knowing who you were was really important? So how did that translate over to the children?
Speaker 2:Well, I think you know and I they're all still growing in that, you know, but I think when I can walk that out before them and and I speak to them from that place, and so we even had our 17 year old daughter, who's a senior this year, last spring she had to take a stress test in class, right, and she went through and it was numbers like 75 was high, stress zero was low. And after she was done she was asking her friends like what, what number were you? Or you know, they were just having a conversation, while some of the friends were like 65 and 52 or whatever. Well, they were like Alina, what were you? And she said I was six.
Speaker 2:And I think that just that, just that, that peace and that the way I walk in life, just like flows over to them in a sense. I know they have a choice whether they receive it, but that is how I deal with my kids and how I speak with them. Like I ask them you gotta remember who you are. And just sharing, because when I guess, when we as moms know it and live it, then that's what we teach, almost just with our life Does that make sense.
Speaker 1:It does, it does, and I feel that this world is just a very confusing place, even for adults right now.
Speaker 1:I mean we see a lot of suffering in the aspect of not really knowing where to turn or how to deal with different situations. And since I've started Retreat to Peace and the show, we have seen so many events unfold in front of us that perhaps we would have never witnessed during our lifetime before. But it has put people in a space of fear and then they're operating out of that fear response. So I'm just wondering what do you teach your children about the fear, like what to do with fear?
Speaker 2:Well, I think of the verse that talks about he has not given us a spirit of fear, but a spirit of power, love and a sound mind. And it also talks about do not be anxious about anything. And sometimes, like for me, I lived that or I knew that verse for a long time, but when I started applying it and going okay, the word says do not fear. That's actually a command, it's actually something that God's saying do this. And so that means that it's something we can stop being anxious. We can actually decide we're not going to be anxious, we're going to be anxious. And so that's what I walk my kids through.
Speaker 2:Some things like being curious, like, so what is causing this fear? What I ask them questions about what have they been thinking about? Because often what we're letting our minds set on can then create the fear that comes from that. And so I get curious with them. Like, what have you been thinking about? What's going on? And we have a conversation and me, being a coach, I will. At first, when I became one, they were like mom, don't talk to me, whatever. But I said you know what? You get me all of me. I'm a mom, I'm a coach, I'm all the things and so just letting them know like I'll talk to them about how I work through things, so just trying to relate to them from a real spot and sharing the word with them and getting curious.
Speaker 1:I think right now, with so many children in schools that are being bombarded with these outside forces, it's difficult for parents to really know what to do. I know of several families that struggle with this and one of the things that they talk about is their child is going to school and they're being asked what do they identify? As we're hearing a lot of this non-gender agenda out in the world right now, and when I think of that, it does break my heart for these young kids that are being exposed to this at such a young age, because it's creating a lot of confusion, and I think there's people that have more exposure to this than other people. Depending on your circumstances of where you live and the lifestyle you know. A lot of different things are at play here, but in a time such as this, where all of this confusion is happening, what would be a piece of advice that you could give to parents that could help them, help their children, when they're being exposed to these really heavy topics?
Speaker 2:I guess yeah, well, what we do in our home is we just have real conversations. It might be in the kitchen before school and all seven kids are there you know, or it will be.
Speaker 2:I remember one time where we were getting ready to go on a trip and something was brought up and we just talked about it right there. We didn't think we had to wait for the right time or you know, because otherwise sometimes we don't get to the conversations if we wait right. So it's almost like doing the thing that God's bringing up right then. I've also had several times and this is a shout out to if you don't know the Lord, it's huge in working with our kids too, because I've woken up several different times. Mostly, we have our kids put their phones out on the counter at night and plug them in and that's they stay there.
Speaker 2:Well, there were a couple of times where the Holy Spirit woke me up in the night and I walked into a son's room and they had their phone and you know, and it was funny because it was like how did you know?
Speaker 2:And I'm like the Holy Spirit tells spirits, you know about things that we need to know, and so I think it's just living out and not being afraid to talk about the things right when it's spread up, if it's in the car after school and the kid brings up something, or don't be afraid to just talk about it right there, even if they're like, no, I don't need you know, even if it seems like they're not listening, because at certain ages I can kind of be like but they're still hearing, you know, they're still hearing it, even if they're acting like they're not. And we try to have at least once a week, but we're starting to do it more. It's just time with our kids around the word. I actually we're walking them through a book that I wrote and because there's perspective and mindsets in that book, book and verses that have helped me live in a peaceful spot and have growth in my life spiritually, and so we're just trying to be very intentional about training and teaching and talking about things.
Speaker 1:I love that word intentional, because that describes in essence what we need to do as far as listening to what is being messaged to us, and often people think that something is just a coincidence or maybe they're getting a message, but they just disregard it because they're not seeing it as a true message for them or for them to use and they just dismiss it. But getting back to what you were just saying about your children and just being intentional and having space with them and being present with them, acknowledging them and talking through these things, even if they feel like it's insignificant Sometimes, it's not so insignificant because right now I've heard recently I don't know exactly where the survey was taken, but I've heard recently that there's a lot of young adults who went, especially overseas, where they had the opportunity to switch genders without having any kind of parental consent and just went down this road and as young adults, they are now very angry and upset that they went through that, because it's a lot of permanent changes to the body and now they're trying to reverse those changes. So these are some very real things and I know when I was growing up and going through school, this was never part of my journey or my equation and I can't even imagine. But one of the things that I always thought about was how important it was to message to my own children do not make any permanent decisions until that frontal lobe in your brain has closed, because your brain isn't fully developed until you're 25 years old and often you're not in full awareness, even if you think you are, you're not in full awareness of who you are or who you're becoming. And how many times can you take a trip down memory lane?
Speaker 1:And right now, if the audience thought about where they were when they were 10 years old, or 13 years old, 19 years old, 25 years old, 25 years old, you're all in different spaces and time. But when you were 10 years old you were pretty confident that you had everything, you knew everything, and when you were 13 even more so. But by the time you were 19 you recognized I didn't really know a whole lot at 10 years old. I get a lot of growing to do. And then at 25, you recognize at 19 there was a lot of self-awareness that you hadn't gone through yet and and discovery that you hadn't gone through yet. So I think, as you were saying intentional, that that word is just really profound and Parents really have to be intentional right now.
Speaker 2:Yes, yeah, more than they ever have, maybe before just having those conversations, saying the words that God puts on your heart for your kids even you know Telling them what you're seeing in the world. You know Telling them your thoughts about what's going on or you know it's, it's been new for all of us. You know, in a lot of ways, and I tell my kids that I haven't walked through this before. You know the different things that our family has walked through with the last couple years and and how Profound is that statement?
Speaker 1:I haven't done this before, I haven't walked through this before. This is new for me too. I Mean that that carries a lot of weight and and that's one of the things that has really shown itself as far as the recent years that it's it's kids, it's adults, it's everybody. And when we look at what's happened to the world and how everything you know was shut down and then Things start to open back up but it was with contingencies. I mean, there's been a lot of economic hardship, with people losing jobs and the changes and a lot of changes with people losing family members. There's so many things that have happened and there's not a human on the face of the planet that hasn't been affected by it.
Speaker 1:Right which is very jarring when you think about it. It's very jarring, but I think, getting back to what you said in the very beginning, just knowing who you are, where you belong, is so Powerful because it takes you out of that space of fear and you know it really is going to be okay in the end. And when you counsel people, I'm sure you have people come to you that question a lot of, a lot of things because maybe they didn't have a strong Support system and guiding them on a pathway to know that this lifetime right now is Fractional and there's a big, bigger Thing out there, right, mm-hmm. So how, how do you have those conversations with people that question that mm-hmm?
Speaker 2:Yeah, well, my thought is, has it been working the way you've been trying to do it? You know, sometimes we walk through life and just Do it the same way, but it it just isn't really working. And so what if, changing something, you know what is making a shift in your perspective or what you're thinking about that what? What if that changes everything you know and starts you on a new path? And you know, I could, you know, just share a story about that with, when my husband and I were in a struggle at one season in our Life and I was asking the Lord you know, sometimes you can ask but not really listen for the answer. So I think for a short time I was just what do I do? You know, I'm kind of not really stopping them to listen and finally I was like what do I do here? And the answer I heard was pack your bags. And I was like, and I had 10 children at the time they the youngest one was new baby or I might have been just pregnant with her still bit and I thought, really.
Speaker 2:But I looked back to some of the Old Testament People and, like Abraham, god asked him to sacrifice his son. Well, I, religiously or natural mind. We would be like what? God would not ask you to do that. But what if it's just the step like for me I couldn't create the drama around it just the step of packing my bag. I wasn't wanting to leave my husband, as you know, or leave my kids or whatever.
Speaker 2:I was wanting to shift something in our family and actually that that shifted it. Because when my husband got home that day he said what are you doing? I said I can't live this way anymore and I thought maybe I'd go to a hotel for a couple nights. You know, sometimes you just need to create a little space just to get clear clarity. But he said, no, I'll go. So he left for a few days instead of me and it created a shift enough to change what was happening in our relationship. It didn't fix it right off the bat, but it got us on a road for change. So what if we'll be willing to do that, that uncomfortable thing or that new thing that might create the shift you know, when the other things really aren't working that might create that shift to get the change that we're actually desiring.
Speaker 1:That is powerful, very powerful, because a lot of people they're just on a train and they're just doing the same thing over and over and over. So powerful because, if you think about it, it's like what if you stopped it? Just stopped it and maybe got off the train and looked around and then decided what you're gonna do and get back on and try, you know, going a different direction or what have you. And I think there's so much truth in that, just taking pause and just getting clear and knowing what works and what doesn't work. And often people ask me you know, do you believe there's a God? And with every cell in my body yes, there, there is. I know that, with every cell in my body, and even for me, during childbirth I actually had a crossing over experience and have come back and with every cell in my body. I know, I know and you know, I, I know the immense amount of love that is on the other side for us and you know, I know that. So I always, I'm always, you know, in my day-to-day, always talking about that with people every chance I have. I talk about it with people because you just never know, you just never know, and I always find it fascinating that people that are very strong and vibrant people feel that energy and they want that, but they don't know how to get it. And it's available for every human. They just have to. They just have to surrender. And when you, when you surrender, you have your palms up and your hands are open and you're literally saying I'm ready to receive and take that in, and it's available. You just have to surrender to it, but it's, but it's there.
Speaker 1:So I offer that to anyone who's listening that may not know what that feels like. Give it a try, might be surprised. I don't feel that any of my experiences are coincidental. I do feel that everything has happened for a purpose and a reason and it always impresses me on a day-to-day basis, the miracles that happen, that unfold in front of us on a daily basis, and people miss those miracles because they dismiss them or they make excuses for them or they don't recognize them because they have blinders on, and I just anyone listening that just isn't really sure. I, I offer the gift to you to open yourself and allow that to flow and know that you're here for a reason, your life is purposeful and it's beautiful and there's so much available to you far greater than you ever knew, but you agree what you're thought and the verse that's coming up to me is taste and see that I am good that's from the Psalms and just take a step toward God.
Speaker 2:You know, just just try it. He's kind of saying try me out, you'll taste and see. My goodness, if we look for it, if we're desiring it, if we'll just take a step toward he's right there, you know, and he's. He's with open arms of love.
Speaker 1:Like you said earlier, there's so much love for us so much love, so much love, and I feel like it's on my heart right now to share that. When I was young, I had so many experiences where I questioned a lot of what love was, because I didn't have an upbringing that demonstrated a lot of love, because there was a lot of abuse and there was a lot that happened to me as a little girl that made me question things. But the thing that I did know intuitively and to my core is when I was five years old and I had this guardian angel present herself to me, I knew that that was love, that felt so loving and it was just so beautiful. And as I started to go down into young adulthood, the thing that really came crashing down on me like a ton of bricks was that I was looking for love in the wrong places, like love was the essence of God. You know it, but it was always there. For me, it was always there.
Speaker 1:But I think when we're, you know we're in a place where we don't understand it fully we do, we look in different places and we're trying to figure it out, we really don't understand it. But when you do understand it that way, it's like this huge weight comes off of you because you're no longer feeling like you're not loved or you're not feeling like you need to seek love from another person. You know, I think a lot of women do that. They they seek love out in another person and that, I think, is just part of the primal DNA of women and how we're wired. Because we need community, we need to be together so we survive, because the man, they can go rogue and go solo and, you know, go out and hunt the beast down and bring it back to the women to prepare for the family. We don't have that in us. We're just we're not wired like that. So I think for us it's something that we have to be mindful of and also be careful of at the same time.
Speaker 2:I mean, I'm sure you could attest to that yeah, yeah, and just I think remembering, concerning love too, is just that nothing separates us from love, from his love. And so when we're walking through things, what if we remember that, that verse, that thought, just that this is not separating me from his love? Whatever is happening, you know, whatever circumstances going on, it doesn't matter the severity of it. The word tells us nothing separates no famine, no distress, no nakedness, no, nothing. So if we would believe that and just stay in that place of being loved, right, and the father is love, even when hard things are going on, you know? Because he also tells us that he's working all things, all things again out for good, you know? So what if we just believe the word that way and and rested in that when things come up, no, this does not take me out of his life, you know he's working this out, whatever it is.
Speaker 1:It's beautiful because a lot of times I will journal and I've said this to my audience over and over through the years to actually journal and just take five minutes or 10 minutes, 15 minutes, whatever it is that's on your heart, that feels right for you, and just write everything out and you don't have to sit in it, it's just allow it to flow and allow it to come through. And because I have so many people that are in my walk, I have a lot of people reaching out to me asking me for prayer requests and to pray over people, and I actually have a prayer journal where I write all of these prayers out for people. Because it's just too much for me to keep it all to myself, I have to write it out. And it's always astounding to me that when I look through my prayer journal and I see how these prayers are answered, it's always amazing to me because it's so beautifully orchestrated and not in the way that we would ever think it would manifest.
Speaker 1:And a lot of times when people are going through difficult things, one of the first things they'll do is they'll drop to their knees and the first thing out of their mouth why me, god, why you know the why, the why comes out of their mouth and often I think why not you? Why not you Like, why not you? Jackie, when was there a time that you I know you talked about, you know your husband a moment ago but when was there a time that you were like why, you know, was there something in adolescence that brought you to God and your faith and the way that it is, or what brought you to this deep understanding in this relationship you have?
Speaker 2:Yeah, well, I've had a few things, you know, early on parents divorced, then dad was killed in a car accident, sister passed away when I was like 28 and leaving a few kids of her own, and then her husband passed for years after that. So I've walked through a lot of things and you know just, I guess, walking through all those things, I realize I get to live, you know, and there's a purpose for me here and I want to do my best job. And what, if you know one verse that has really come up for me and it's, it's what my book is, that's the main verse of it. There's lots of verses in it and stuff, but the main verse is from James one and it talks about consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials. So God really brought that book, that verse, up to me going okay, help, you're telling me to face trials. I was in a walk of obeying the word and doing it, you know, believing it. So he's saying we're supposed to consider it. Why, why, why could we Like my dad being killed? I'm supposed to consider that joy. I'm supposed to consider when my husband and I were having a struggle, joy. And I realize it's only because we know this is part of the rest of the verse knowing that the testing of our faith will produce something in us. It says patience there.
Speaker 2:But what if we let it? We get to decide, I guess, what we let it produce. We can either go growth right, patience, all the fruits of the spirit, love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, or self control, or we can let it spiral, let these trials spiral us down into resentment, bitterness, depression. You know all the negative things that can come. And but if we, what? If we choose growth in the trials? And the word says it'll make us mature and complete, lacking nothing if we choose growth.
Speaker 2:So my motto has been I don't know, several years ago, I don't know 10 years ago, maybe more. I don't want to go through the same thing, the same way again, meaning I know the trials will come. We're not exempt, none of us are exempt from them. But what if I'm stronger the next time? What if it's not as painful? Because I've grown, you know, because I've chosen to get closer to God, to understand the word more and what he's doing, and I've seen that the trials have worked, been for me, you know, for my growth, for our family, to move us to the next place, you know and so. So what if we, when we're asking the why it's for us, what if we can just shift and go? Okay, this is happening for me. I'm supposed to choose joy here, and it doesn't mean you like it, it doesn't mean it's fun, you know, it's nothing like that. But what if our focus is more like how can I grow through this? That'll change everything the way we walk through it.
Speaker 1:I so agree with that. And change is constant. I mean, we all know this. It's a constant thing that we experience throughout life. And when I look at my my own life and other people's lives that have been through extenuating circumstances, when you have the ability to look at it as a gift and understand this wouldn't have happened without that and this has produced a positive thing for me because of that, even though that may have been really bad. I mean, you know, I've had so many really bad quote unquote situations, but with all of them, a lot of those were when I was a little girl. I had no control over them and people would say you know, I feel so bad that you went through those experiences. And I would say, honestly, I'm glad I had that opportunity to have that, that experience, because had I not, I would not have the ability to have compassion or empathy or understanding of how to help other people navigate through those spaces.
Speaker 1:And recently I was listening to a woman who is in Scotland and she was talking about how her and her husband they had a baby and the baby had cancer and died at 18 months, and how devastated she was from that experience and in the deep grief of losing a child and any mother who's experienced this knows that pain and the depth of that pain that they feel. That experience she said it didn't change for her until her and her husband adopted a baby. When they adopted the baby, they never thought that they could have the ability to love a child the way that they did that baby and they were in gratitude because the experience of losing their child, it deepened the level of appreciation for this baby that they adopted. And it's just. It's just so profound when you can take something and turn it inside out and have the ability to see the gift in it, because life is always happening for us. He's always operating ahead of us, downstream, and knows our journey and if we can be mindful that we are safe within his journey and if we are mindful of his steps and what we're supposed to do, like it's just profound.
Speaker 1:And the fact that you can articulate that in a book is amazing as well, because I think a lot of people don't have the ability to see that fully and they get stuck. There's somebody in the audience right now who's stuck. They're stuck in 2020 and they're angry, they're in depression, they're grieving. They are asking why me, why not you? Because there's an amazing opportunity ahead that's unfolding. You just have to get out of your own way right. Look for the light, Look for the silver lining, Look for the good, because there's something good. Even if it feels so heavy, there's something good.
Speaker 2:Yeah, there is, and I think of when you said the word heavy is we get to decide what we carry through life. And I know I knew the things that happened to me. I didn't want those things to define me. I knew that they would create a space where I could help other people, right. And so, like the word talks about, after I became a coach, I found these verses going through my mind and I had to stop and go.
Speaker 2:What are you saying to me here with this? You know like, and it was that I was going to help people throw off the weights and the sin that are entangling them so that they can run their race and forget the past, so they can reach the high call of God. So sometimes we have to set the baggage down. You know, set that past down, put it aside, babel. I always try to have my clients like we get them to a spot where they can smile and wave at the past like it's settled, it happened, it's there, but it's not something they have to keep reaching back to in a negative way, because that holds us back. But if we can, just slowly, what am I holding on to here? And has it been 20 years? Has it been two years, has it? You know? Is it time now to put that down and look ahead? You know, reach toward the high call of God. Run your race. You know, go toward the purpose that God has for you.
Speaker 1:I think a lot of times people can't see what is ahead, so they just feel like I have to stay in the same place. You know, they lose the ability to know who they are and the inner strength that they have, that they're wired with organically and naturally and that space of self-awareness and just being within that space is so strong. But unless you've been avoiding it, like a lot of people have, they've been avoiding it with vices, television technology, whatever it may be. Maybe they're just running from themselves, you know, with work or whatever it may be. I think for those people it's hard for them to get back centered within themselves and be authentic and be in a space of clarity of where am I right now, who am I right now? And often just pulling up.
Speaker 1:There have been other points in time in your life where you have stumbled and fallen, but you've gotten back up. And the best way I can explain this to anybody listening is when you were a child learning to walk, how many times did you fall down? And, without any fear or reservation, you got back up and you tried again, and you tried again and then, before you knew it, you were walking and then, before you knew it, you started to go faster and now you're running. So you've done hard things before. Even if you don't fully remember what that felt like, it still was something you accomplished and something that you did. So I'm reminding all of everyone listening, this isn't your first rodeo. It's just showing up differently, that's all.
Speaker 2:Yeah, totally. And my thought is to get curious with yourself why am I here? What am I holding onto? What's bothering me? Just get quiet and just start writing some things down, asking God, asking yourself what's going on, why am I stuck? And there are people that can help too. But another thing is that when you come into Christ, when a person comes into Christ, he says all things are new in Christ, that the old is passed away, all things are new. And so what if you haven't accepted Christ before, or if you already have and you haven't been walking in that newness? What if you start that now? Just start from a new place. And from that new place, look at, okay, what needs to go here, Like what am I holding onto? What's keeping me stuck? What's the area of struggle that I just need to change my perspective of? Or roll it over to God, Like he says cast all your cares on me, for I care for you. You know just. Those were just some thoughts that came for me and they're beautiful thoughts.
Speaker 1:They're so authentic and right in the moment, spot on as far as what we could have heard in this moment. So I thank you for that and many people for myself. I had a upbringing that if you had any kind of relationship with God or a higher power or whatever it looks like for you, that you were actually a weak person. That was the message that I was given as a little girl and when I look back I think, well, of course, my guardian angel showing up when I'm five years old, because I had to feel and see and know that that messaging was not correct. Right, that was not correct messaging. But there's a lot of people that are in a space where they were messaged a similar message. You know that you're weak if you have this relationship.
Speaker 1:And it's profound to me because there's a lot of labels and a lot of philosophy around different things. When we think about God, relationship with God and how it should be or shouldn't be, and there's a lot of conversation about it, and when I think on that in today's environment, it's very profound to me that we are in a spiritual warfare and our soul is the commodity. That's what is being fought after, the discernment that we need to have in this moment in time of understanding if it's of God or if it's of man, if it's good, if it's evil, all of these things. I think now we're being tested more than ever, more than ever, as far as where we stand, and are we in a space where we're in the light or in the darkness? What are your thoughts around some of that?
Speaker 2:Yeah, well, I was even saying in our home the other night it's time for us to decide who we serve. And, as for me and my house, we serve the Lord, and I just spoke that out. But it's true, it's like there's no longer a middle ground there, there's no longer a gray area. It's either we're gods and we know we are, and we're rising up as people of God, in strength and authority, in power and wisdom from Him, or we're on the other side. Either we're in the kingdom of light or darkness. There's not an in between. And so, yeah, it's time to decide.
Speaker 2:And look at what sometimes we think, like you were saying about, it's weak to have God or whatever. But what? Look at what? The world is doing. The easy thing they're reacting to things. They're wallowing down in depression, they're being discouraged. Well, the opposite of that is being like trusting the word, being positive in times of turmoil or struggle. We have a choice how we react and how we respond to what's happening. So what if, instead of responding negatively, assuming everything's going wrong or it's not gonna work out, what if we believe it's going to work out and look at the positive, like we were talking before, rather than assuming the negative. Either way, it's faith. It's faith in one or the other right.
Speaker 1:So true, so true, and it's profound to me that in this moment in time there really is no fence sitting. You do have to be on one side or the other, and what's coming to me right now is that we do have to be very mindful of what it is that we're allowing as far as our thoughts, what we're feeding our minds and the information we're putting into our bodies, the information of what we're also speaking to other people as well. But what are we feeding our bodies? Is this good, healthy food, or is it things that are going to create disease and illness for us? I mean, we only get one shot to live this beautiful life and we do have a responsibility to make sure we're in discernment of doing the right thing for ourselves. But honoring ourselves and part of that is honoring that we're protecting our soul self, because our soul is energy and that doesn't die, that always will be, and it's just really really important more than ever that we're taking care of ourselves in a positive, reinforcing way.
Speaker 2:Yeah, what we're listening to, what we're putting in physically, like you were saying, yeah, it matters. And with all the social media and all of the devices that are right in our hands, it's so important to check ourselves. And we have days when we don't have them set up just randomly, as we feel that all the phones are down today. You know just and occasionally I check my kids' phones Now I'm one that I don't have the parental control on them, and I was actually talking to the family about this recently. I was just saying I don't do that because I believe the Lord will show me if I need to look on any phones or whatever. And I want you to learn now to I'm not gonna always be there checking. I don't wanna check six or seven phones, you know that's not. I want to teach and train you and work through any bugs. Now you know as far as temptations, and so that's kind of where we're at with that type of thing too. But yeah, it's just so important to watch what we're putting in our minds.
Speaker 1:Definitely so, Jackie. I do have one last question to ask you. And if I were to come across your earth, angel feather on the ground what would your message to the world be?
Speaker 2:My message would be that we have a choice how we respond to the things that come into our lives. It doesn't matter what it is. I think of it as storms. The trials are like storms they're all different severities, they're all different lengths of time, some shorts along, some really hard, and do more damage or feel like they could, and others less. But we have a choice how we walk through the things that come into our lives. And so why not choose growth, like we were talking earlier? Why not choose growth? Why not choose the positive road, even the road less traveled right now? You know, a lot of times we right away go to oh, this is not working out already. But just choose growth and choose the positive road.
Speaker 1:That's very beautiful and I couldn't agree more. So thank you so so much for being with us today. And you're just a beautiful body of energy, love and light and you can just feel it as you're talking and it's just really beautiful. So I know my audience is going to appreciate that, but I'm filled with gratitude that you're here today and I just appreciate it so much. So thank you.
Speaker 2:Yeah, well, thank you for having me on. It's been amazing talking with you. I feel the same. We just had a great connection there and it was a good chat.
Speaker 1:So thank you, you're very welcome and for my audience again, this is Catherine Daniels, with Retreat to Peace, reminding you to live your authentic life with peace and have a great week. We'll see you next time.