🎙️ Blind but Unstoppable Teresa Blaes’s Entrepreneurial Comeback
Guest Teresa Blaes
Host Dwight Heck
Podcast Give a Heck
🔥 Episode Overview
What happens when your body breaks down but your spirit refuses to quit? In this powerful episode of Give a Heck, Dwight sits down with Teresa Blaes, a resilient entrepreneur who has survived multiple heart attacks, open heart surgery, and complete vision loss and still presses forward with fierce faith and purpose.
Teresa shares how her medical trauma and family adversity became the foundation for a Christ-centred business that helps others share their message. From selling websites to launching a podcast production company, her journey is a testament to grit, grace, and God’s guidance.
💡 What You’ll Learn in This Episode
• How Teresa overcame childhood heart attacks and open-heart surgery
• What losing her sight taught her about faith and resilience
• Why separating business and ministry can limit your impact
• How to identify your God given assignment and field of favour
• The power of sharing your story even when it’s messy
🔄 From Struggle to Purpose
Discover how Teresa
• Navigated a childhood filled with medical challenges and instability
• Transformed anger toward God into a deep personal relationship
• Built a successful business helping others share their God given messages
🎙️ Embracing Faith-Driven Entrepreneurship
Teresa breaks down her approach to faith-based business
• Why authenticity attracts the right clients and builds community
• How to integrate faith into your business without compromise
• Practical steps for launching a purpose-driven venture
📌 Summary
Teresa Blaes’s story is one of radical resilience and unwavering faith. As a child, she endured multiple heart attacks, underwent open heart surgery, and faced intense family trauma. Later in life, she lost her sight completely. Yet through every setback, Teresa refused to be defined by her circumstances.
Instead, she leaned into her relationship with God, transforming pain into purpose. Her journey led her to build a Christ-centred business that helps others share their message through podcasting and media. Teresa’s approach to entrepreneurship is deeply rooted in authenticity, spiritual alignment, and the belief that ministry and business can and should coexist.
In this episode, Teresa and Dwight explore how adversity can become a launching pad for impact. You’ll hear how she turned anger into intimacy with God, how she discovered her field of favor, and how she continues to serve others despite physical limitations.
Whether you’re navigating your own challenges or seeking to build a business that reflects your faith, Teresa’s story will inspire you to rise above fear, embrace your calling, and give a heck about living with purpose.
⏱️ Chapter Summary
• 00:00:02 – Introduction to Teresa Blaes, Faith-Driven Entrepreneur
Dwight welcomes Teresa and sets the stage for a powerful conversation about overcoming adversity and building a business rooted in faith. Teresa shares her background in website sales and podcast production, and how her mission evolved through personal trials.
- 00:02:16 – Teresa’s Powerful Origin Story Overcoming Adversity
Teresa opens up about her childhood health battles, including multiple heart attacks and open-heart surgery. She also shares the emotional toll of family trauma and how these experiences shaped her early view of God. - 00:15:40 – Losing Her Sight and Finding Her Purpose
Teresa recounts the life-altering moment she lost her vision completely. Rather than giving up, she leaned deeper into her faith and discovered a renewed calling to serve others through media and ministry. - 00:31:43 – Integrating Faith and Business A Holistic Approach
The conversation shifts to how Teresa blends ministry and entrepreneurship. She explains why authenticity is essential and how faith can be the foundation of a thriving business. - 00:49:29 – Practical Steps for Faith-Based Entrepreneurship
Teresa offers actionable advice for listeners who want to launch or grow a business aligned with their spiritual values. She introduces the concept of a field of favour and how to recognize your God given assignment. - 00:53:30 – Encouragement for Spiritual and Professional Growth
In the closing segment, Teresa shares heartfelt encouragement for those feeling stuck or overwhelmed. She emphasizes the importance of inviting God into every area of life and taking small, faithful steps toward growth and impact.
🔗 Connect with Teresa Blaes
🌐 Website https://teresablaes.com
📘 Facebook https://www.facebook.com/teresablaesshow
📸 Instagram https://www.instagram.com/teresablaes
💼 LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/teresa-blaes
🔗 Connect with Dwight Heck
🌐 Website https://giveaheck.com – Live Life On Purpose
📺 YouTube https://www.youtube.com/@giveaheck
📸 Instagram https://www.instagram.com/give.a.heck
🧵 Threads https://www.threads.net/@give.a.heck
🐦 X / Twitter https://twitter.com/give_a_heck
💼 LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/dwightheck
🎧 Podcast Platforms Available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Podchaser
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Full Unedited Transcript:
[00:00:03 – 00:01:35]
Welcome back to Give a Heck, the podcast that helps you live intentionally, financially, emotionally and spiritually. Today’s guest is someone who doesn’t just walk the talk. She walks by faith. Teresa Blaes is an author, blogger, podcaster, mother, wife and serial entrepreneur whose journey from selling websites and ebay products to founding a podcast production company is nothing short of inspiring. Alongside her husband Michael, she runs Kadash Media Productions, helping others bring their God given message to the mic. But Teresa’s story isn’t just about business. It’s about bold transformation. She just didn’t start out as an entrepreneur. Like many, she thought college was the only path to a good job. But over the past decade, she’s proven the purpose driven entrepreneurship can be powerful calling, especially when rooted in Christ. Her mission, to help others take the leap into business, elevate their existing ventures, and understand the three pillars she believes are essential for success. Financial education, online business and ministry, development, and effective marketing. If you’ve ever wondered how to build a business that honors your faith and serves others, this episode is for you. I’d like to welcome you to the show. Teresa, thanks so much for agreeing to come on and share with us some of your life journey.
[00:01:36 – 00:01:39]
Well, thank you very much. It’s an honor to be here.
[00:01:40 – 00:02:03]
Yeah, it’s an honor for me to have you on. I’ve been looking forward to this and our pre conversation before I hit record was fantastic. And we just proved that we don’t have to always agree to get along. Right? We can agree to disagree, have respect for one another and still move forward. You know, and being a good person, a good Christian or a good person that follows Christ to make a difference.
[00:02:03 – 00:02:21]
Amen. You know, and I think in this world we, that that’s something that’s severely lacking. You know, I may not agree with someone, but I still believe if you are a follower of Christ, let’s find unity there and then, and then we’ll work out the rest.
[00:02:22 – 00:03:43]
That is so true. That is so true. And, and you know, I look at some of the most talked about people right now in the world and we won’t mention names and they were many of them followers of Christ, or so they say. But at the end of the day, I think, you know, even before we get into your origin, the biggest weakness we have is that people look at others and they say they are Christian, they have the facade, but yet what they don’t have is the actions to prove that they’re Christian, that they follow the path of Jesus, that they believe in the Commandments that they believe in, that there’s always good in others, and that, you know, if you stick with somebody, maybe they do have evil in them, maybe it’s taken a hold of them, but they still have some faith and they give out some vibes or some energy or they bring up some words or conversation, or you read something and maybe God’s telling you that person needs you. Maybe you need to put out that action or, pardon me, put that action forward, or reach out to them and say, hey, would you like a conversation? You don’t have to start with God, but you can act like Jesus. You can be caring, you can be compassionate, and see where the conversation goes from there. But my point is, is we need to take action. Quit saying we’re a Christian. Prove it through action by helping and changing people’s lives.
[00:03:44 – 00:03:49]
I absolutely agree with you. You know, among other things, I write music.
[00:03:50 – 00:03:51]
Oh, wow.
[00:03:51 – 00:06:17]
Yeah. I’m actually working on releasing an album, and one of the songs that I wrote, I’m not sure if it’s gonna go on the album is called Shoe Leather Faith. You know, wow. And, you know, and it talks about, you know, we sit in the church, we sing, we even might even, you know, say a prayer, listen to the teacher. But at the end of the day, have we put shoe leather to our faith? And I love that, you know. You know, it’s like, let’s, you know, here’s the problem that we have is. And, and, and again, I’m not going political, but the most biggest problem that I see is twofold. One, as a Christian, we are in war. We are in a war. And most people, oh, I follow Christ. I, I, he just wants me to have a good life. As soon as you say yes to the cross, you’re in a battlefield. And most Christians, they walk out on this battlefield buck naked and they got arrows sticking out their back, and they wonder why their life is jacked up. Why? Because the enemy is taking shots at them. Because they follow Christ and he hates us. He hates God’s creation. Why? Because he hates God. And so he. He wants to destroy the very thing that God loves. And because we are in this war, most Christians are blind as a bat to this very fact. Or if they don’t, or if they acknowledge it, it’s like, okay, yeah, we’re in war. Okay, thank you. Let’s move on. No, how about we actually walk in the armor of God that we were given? How about we actually start taking our thoughts captive? How about actually start doing things that Christ said we are commanded to do. Putting on the armor of God wasn’t a suggestion, it’s a command. But most Christians, they don’t even think about that. It’s like, well, you know, I just have this thing going on. No. Do you know that Christ said, you know the truth and the truth will set you free? That wasn’t just a phrase he threw out. It wasn’t. It wasn’t just a phrase he threw out. He actually meant, you will know the truth. And the truth can mean who? Well, I’m struggling in this area. Okay, what’s the truth here? What lies are you believing and what’s God’s truth? You will know the truth and the truth will set you free.
[00:06:18 – 00:06:21]
But how many Christians don’t use that filter?
[00:06:22 – 00:06:22]
Too many.
[00:06:22 – 00:08:13]
They don’t. They don’t use the filter of their faith. See, I believe we’ll get into this later because I want to get into the origin story. But without core values centered around faith, family, and then work at the end, my life wouldn’t have gotten where it’s gotten. I wouldn’t have made it through raising five kids and having four of them full time as a single dad. Full time. You heard that correctly. I have four daughters and a son. They’re all adults now. But I used to, oh my gosh, the amount of praying I did to, to help relieve my stress, to help focus me to make that proper decision to go with love as opposed with anger. When I was dealing with my children and going through court stuff and dealing with my clients and all the outside noise that said I couldn’t do it without a woman and all that stuff. It wasn’t based on God though. It wasn’t based on Jesus. It wasn’t based on just giving me those kind words or how can we support what could. What do we need from you? Instead, it was a bunch of unsolicited opinions that weren’t based on Christianity or God. Does that mean you can’t be my friend? Of course you can. But if you’re going to support me in a very sensitive situation, don’t point out the obvious. Don’t say things that are going to make me feel worse. Support me now. Once I’ve got to a mental place where I’ve got clarity and God’s, I’m listening to God again. He will send me the people that can listen and give me the proper advice. I’ve found it time and time again. The people sending me, the people that are being negative, that isn’t God sending them. That ain’t happening. God’s not sending them to challenge me. God’s sending people to comfort me. Right. Not the opposite way.
[00:08:14 – 00:08:32]
Well, and what is the biggest tactic of the enemy? To destroy the nuclear family and destroy fatherhood. Why? Because God is our heavenly father. And I can tell you right now, you know, you know, when we get into the origin story, you know, I’m.
[00:08:32 – 00:08:34]
Excited, to be honest.
[00:08:34 – 00:08:50]
Yeah. Oh, God. My growing up was. It was. I have a friend, very dear friend, she’s an intercessor, prayer warrior type, and she told. Has told me time and again, you’ve lived about 10 lifetimes of experiences in 20 years. And I’m like, yeah, I’m aware.
[00:08:51 – 00:10:01]
Well, God sent me. God sent you to me. And that’s. I’ve told this to podcast guests on the show or even prior to it or after the fact when we’re decompressing after I stop recording that every guest that touches me, that I get that feeling of my heart that warm and fuzzies. And I, and I feel my energy and I just feel so glad, so hopeful for life is because God put them in my inbox for me to see, and I can go through. 20 or 30 people have applied and you’re stood out. I hadn’t gone. I only go on usually once a month because I’m so busy, and I’ll book, buy six shows. And honestly, God’s my witness, I was reading yours, and something told me, you know, there’s not a lot of information in here in this bio, but I’m gonna put in the effort. So I started googling you and I started and I wanted to know, and God was telling me, you need this person on your show. Oh, you’re not just for the listeners, for you. It’s okay to be selfish as a podcast host.
[00:10:01 – 00:10:03]
Yes, it is absolutely right.
[00:10:03 – 00:10:17]
It’s okay to, to pick people that are gonna enlighten you, to raise you up right. It’s okay. And then after the fact, it’s about the listeners. But if we don’t support ourselves, to make ourselves healthy between our 6 inches and in our. To our heart.
[00:10:17 – 00:10:18]
Yep.
[00:10:18 – 00:10:24]
How. How can we support and help others? So you came to me was a direct connection from God in my.
[00:10:24 – 00:10:57]
Amen. Well, I am honored to know that. And you’re absolutely right. When I first started the Unresolved Life podcast, which I, I, I started that out of my own need because I had questions, I had some real hard questions, and I wasn’t settled settling for the churchianity answers. And so I thought, well, if I have questions, then maybe others do too. And so I, I decided to bring those questions to the mic. So you are absolutely right. When you are a podcast host, you are the answer to your own need.
[00:10:57 – 00:11:10]
I agree. 100. It’s like a, I, I said this to somebody recently, Teresa. I don’t know if you’re gonna agree with this, but I said it’s like I have my own university, my own college, and I get to pick courses I want, right?
[00:11:10 – 00:11:10]
Yes.
[00:11:10 – 00:11:34]
I get to pick the courses I want. And, and, and the tribe of people that God has directed to listen to my show, whether it’s one or ten or a hundred or whoever. Right. Those people are selected to come and listen to that message that I’ve chosen to make my life better. God says, I’m going to bring a tribe to you that has similar similarities.
[00:11:34 – 00:11:35]
Yep.
[00:11:35 – 00:12:06]
Has a, has a hole in their heart. And that course that’s going to help you fill your heart a little bit more is going to spill over. Your, your, your care and compassion for that guest is going to spill over. And, and you’re, you’re creating a ministry. Right. It is a monastery for those that are listening, that are, that aren’t Christian. I am not here to pick on you because I have a lot of non Christian listeners, and I re, I respect you and your ability to live life the way you want. All I ask for is the same.
[00:12:07 – 00:12:08]
Yep, that’s it.
[00:12:08 – 00:12:17]
And my listeners know that I’m not here to, to, you know, hold them down, force their mouth open and pour that poor God into them. They have to be the willing.
[00:12:17 – 00:12:38]
Yeah. No, because why? Because he’s a gentleman. He won’t violate free will. Like, exactly. You know, I mean, but, but, you know, and one of the biggest arguments that I hear is, why would a loving God send someone to help? First of all, he doesn’t. People choose to go there. Well, why do you say that? Because he offered a way out and they said no.
[00:12:40 – 00:12:45]
That’s exactly it. We all make choices to live the path we’re on, Right?
[00:12:45 – 00:13:43]
Yeah. Yeah. And, and, and so, I mean, you know, when you’re talking about, like, I mean, when you’re talking about, like, you know, being sent to listeners, you know, I was, I was deathly afraid to start the Undersolved Life podcast. You know, like, I was just afraid, like, is this even a good idea? I don’t know. I just know I have these questions. I’m, I’m hurting, I’m angry. I, I, I, I have these questions. Yes. I’m, I’m following, but I have these questions. And then. And then a week later, I posted an interview of someone who lost their mom to suicide. And a week later I got an email back and it said, hey, I was sent your. Your show by a friend. And then she proceeded to share with me her story. And it was bloody and it was dark and it was evil, and she’d gone through hell in a handbasket. And then she said something I’ll never forget. She said, because of your show, I’m not going to kill myself.
[00:13:45 – 00:13:46]
Wow.
[00:13:46 – 00:14:42]
Yeah, that’s, that’s, that pretty much did it. That did it. I was, I knew that my job is to reach the people that got the broken. You know, I, I am fully persuaded that every single person, if you will follow Christ or even if you don’t, you have skeletons in your past. And some are really dark and really ugly. And God is going, let me end that story. Please let me in that story. And that’s what I do. Life coaching. That’s what my thing is like. I believe God wants to be invited into your story. I believe that to the core of my being because I’ve been there. That’s the first thing I had to do. You know, my, my, my story very much resolves around protection.
[00:14:43 – 00:15:11]
Well, why don’t we get into your origin story then? We digressed and, and had such, we’ve had been having such a great conversation. But let’s get on to the rest of the show and you, you mentioned a little bit, you know, that there’s so much that went on within your structure of growing up from your earliest recollections. So please share as much as you feel comfortable, however long you want to, and. Well, let’s have a conversation around your origin, if you wouldn’t mind.
[00:15:12 – 00:16:06]
Absolutely. My story begins when I was a baby. You see, I was born six weeks premature. I had a lot of medical issues, and they were thinking I was not going to live. And so my mom went to a chapel to pray. You know, she was desperate for hope and she prayed and she started praying and she. There was an old gentleman, he had one of those clergical collars on. He knelt down next to her and he began to pray with her. She said that she felt an almost indescribable sense of peace when she went to the nurse’s station to find this gentleman. After she was done, she described to them what he looked like. And they said, no one by that description works at this hospital.
[00:16:06 – 00:16:07]
Wow.
[00:16:08 – 00:28:31]
I believe that that was an angel. And the Bible says that we Are we. We should take note that. Because we might be entertaining angels unaware now, does that mean that my life was like a bit of roses and I didn’t have any issues? Oh, no way. No way. Growing up, just dealing with the medical alone, I had a rate. I had eight heart attacks before the age of six. In my. In my childhood, I had over 200 eye operations, plus brain surgery, heart surgery, cleft palate surgery, and many others. I grew up in and out of hospitals many times not sure, because I would stop breathing under anesthesia. So every time I had to go under the knife, I took my life in my hands. I did not have a context for God growing up, and I began to hate him, and I began to hate the medical system. I began to grow very angry because I was like, you know what. What is wrong with me? Why do I. You know, I. Why. Why do I have to go through this? On top of that, on top of the medical issues that I dealt with, my mom had a propensity for finding very abusive men. And so that meant that we had one guy who was a stalker. She found the courage to leave him after he broke every bone in her face. And we ended up having to run from state to state to state to state. And that didn’t end until she met him with a shotgun and said, if you ever find us again, I’ll kill you. And my mom was 82nd Airborne. She was in the army. She was the only woman to go to Granada, and she was trained as an army nurse. So when she said something like that, she meant it. She wasn’t fooling around. Unfortunately, this individual was not the only one to leave an impact in my life. At the age of six, while recovering from open heart surgery, I had a sister, and she was 10 months old. My mom had had a boyfriend named Kevin. My mom was out doing some shopping, and I think she was out getting some medicine for Mandy because Mandy was sick. Well, she was crying. She was in her crib for whatever reason. Kevin got up, went over to the crib, pulled her out of the crib and threw her. He ended up cracking her skull all the way around. And she was life flighted to Salt Lake City, Utah, where she was pronounced dead on October 20, 1989. And I was a witness. This set off a cascade of things. I was taken from my mom and placed in foster care. But now we get into God’s protection. You see, I was placed with a family friend who immediately called my mom and said, I’ve got Teresa. I could have been placed Anywhere else. But God made sure that I was safe. I didn’t know it at the time. The other thing is that Kevin could have killed me and he did not. You see, God’s hand of protection was on my life many, many times. I have had multiple instances of near death due to freak things or violence or you name it. I believe that the enemy has tried to take my life multiple times because of the calling. But I didn’t know it at the time because I was so angry. Fast forward a little bit. I’m. I grow up. I’m dealing with a lot of issues. I dealt with physical abuse, a lot of it, you know, and that has also meant that I had to heal. You know, one of the biggest things you have to do is, is go, you know what? This was wrong. This was wrong. And this is something I think a lot of when I talk about skeletons in the past, this is what I’m talking about. You have to acknowledge that some things happened to you that were wrong. I had an uncle who was very, very hot tempered. It was my mom’s brother. And his idea of fun was to hit me with a drumstick every time I’d walk in the room. And he would laugh when I tried to get someone to stop it. It was, no, you should laugh. It’s funny. It wasn’t funny. It was abuse. If he had stopped when I asked him the first time, okay, but he didn’t. And that was wrong. You know, I told you that the enemy has tried to kill me multiple times. I had an incident where we lived out in the woods. We lived in a ugly Pepto Bismol pink house. And we were coming home and my dog was freaking out. And we were kind of looking at him like, what is wrong with you? And then we heard a scream from behind us. And we turn around and there is a mountain lion. Yes, I said a mountain lion. 10ft away from us and ready to charge. My mom grabbed the dog, got me in the house, got our door shut. We had a solid oak door. The cat hit that door and cracked it from top to bottom. We found out that she had kittens in our barn or cubs. Why she didn’t kill our goat or attack mom when she was milking said goat, I don’t know, but those are just a few instances where things happen to me. But God’s hand of protection was on my life. As I move forward into my teen years. I’m going to school, I’m doing the things. But I had grown resistant to God, to, you know, what I, I, I honestly felt like this, you know, what? If God is real, he probably doesn’t give a damn about me, and I don’t care about him. So as long as we understand each other, we’re good. That was my mindset. I ended up going to a school for the blind in Tucson, Arizona. And the thing about that school is it was built on Indian burial ground. So of course you have ghost stories. But I didn’t buy it. I was like, yeah, okay, whatever. You know what? I, I don’t know. You know, whatever. One night I was out with my friends, and we had looked over. We were kind of out on one of the public playgrounds, and we looked over, and the thing with the school is that you stay in a dorm during the week and then you go home on the weekends if you, if, you know, because they would, they would take you down, down to wherever you lived. Well, we look over, and one of the dorms was supposed to be uninhabited, but there was a light on, and we were kind of going, okay, why is this? This is weird. So we walk over and we’re standing on the porch and look in the foyer, and there’s nothing there, but the light is on. We’re standing on the porch, and I heard a female ethereal voice, and it said, children, now, a couple things here. This thing was intelligent because it knew we were out there. I asked my friends, do you guys hear that? They’re like, yeah, we heard that. And I knew whatever this thing was, it was evil. And I’m like, I’m gone. Why? Why was this important? Because God had to show me that the supernatural was real. What was I going to do with it? I had to encounter a demon. A demon. Before I would even give God any kind of time of day, through a set of circumstances, he began to work with me, brought someone into my life who shared with me the gospel. But I didn’t listen at the time because I was like, don’t talk to me about your God until you can prove he exists. And they didn’t back down. They met me where I was. Did I really believe he didn’t exist? No. Because the Bible says the fool has said in his heart there is no God. So I was being a fool. I was being the fool. The fact is, I was angry at him. I was hurting, and I had no context that he might be a good father. Are you kidding me? Every father figure I had growing up either died because my dad died when I was 2. He was, he, he was riding a motorcycle, and he got T boned by a. By a semi truck. Every single father figure I had either died was an absolute filth bag or just walked away. Every single one. So I had no context for a father. None. And God definitely didn’t fit that role. So I was angry and I was hurting, and it took me a long time to come to the place where I heard the gospel and I received it. Did that suddenly mean that things got better? Oh, no, they got a lot worse. Because now I’m the only Christian in my family and I’m trying to figure out how to walk out this thing called faith. But I didn’t even have a Bible. In fact, my only connection to God or, or any kind of discipleship was through Christian radio. I didn’t get a Bible of my own until a year later. But I’m telling you, God is faithful. He has walked with me. I would rather go through this minefield we call life with my hand in his than ever live a day without Him. So that’s my origin. That’s, that’s, that’s kind of how things began with me.
[00:28:32 – 00:30:54]
Wow, you have quite the origin. Anybody that’s listening to this show or watching it on YouTube, think about everything that, you know, Teresa went through, from, you know, being premature to heart attacks to open heart surgery to eye surgery. The list goes on. If God didn’t want another soldier or somebody to fight for what is right and wrong or to educate and teach others in the future, you could have easily been somebody that was a statistic gone, right. Evil would have overtaken. But God seen the bigger picture already when you were premature and somebody with a collar, as you mentioned, some, some religions that’s a minister, some it’s a priest, knelt down and made a difference to your, to your mother. So, you know, you can see all the threads, right? People say there isn’t small threads in life. Life is like a spider web. It goes absolutely everywhere. The spider is the catalyst. This, the web is reaching out, right? To survive, right? We, we bring Jesus into our life. He’s a focal point. God and his web goes everywhere, right? To connect, to create, to support whatever the case may be. Direct, direct support. I don’t believe that happens. I still believe it’s more of an indirect support that God applies to our lives by bringing circumstances of good people into our lives to change us and maybe deflect away from all that evil that you talked about that came into your life and was there and to a fact where you didn’t even, you know, you stay, you have your, your Belief God or what you stand for, I have mine. As long as we understand each other, I’m going to, you know, I’ll live my life. You stay away from me. You know, God had a bigger picture for you and, and that is so obvious, listening to your story and knowing where you’ve continued to grow. And we’re going to continue to go through that in a podcast, obviously. But thank you for sharing that. I could tell it’s still an emotionally raw thing for you to share.
[00:30:55 – 00:32:00]
It is. You know, I’m still, There’s still areas of healing that I’m working through. In fact, you know, it’s. It’s funny. It’s like God revealed some stuff last night to me that, you know, that. Okay, I gotta work on that because. Ah, yeah, you know, I mean, but. But that’s the thing, you know, it’s God when he, when he brings us to where, where we are able to hear him, you know, he’s a gentleman. He isn’t going to force his way in. But he tells you, he says, I, I just, I want all of your story. I want the good, I want the bad, and I want the raw and the ugly. I want all of it. You know, and that doesn’t mean, you know, a lot of people think, you know, well, I can’t get angry at God. You know what? He’s got big shoulders. He can handle it. He would rather you be honest and real than to pretend.
[00:32:02 – 00:32:08]
Well, yeah, because living a facade is, Is terrible. That’s not a way to live. You’re on the hamster wheel.
[00:32:09 – 00:32:48]
Right? Exactly. Exactly. You know, I, I am one of those people who, you know, I know who God is. I hear him. He talks to me. Does that sound weird? Maybe, Maybe. And I can respect that. But when God tells me to go on this podcast and share, I do it. Why? Because if one person hears this and comes to Christ through my story, then everything I’ve gone through is worth it.
[00:32:50 – 00:34:09]
I completely agree. One of the things, though, like, you’ve. You’ve developed so much stuff after the fact, and I always ask people, you know, like for yourself, author, blogger, podcaster, marketer, co founder of a podcast production company, etc. Etc. Of all the things that you have been accomplishing and continuing to strive to climb and increase your, Your outreach, you know, and people will say, well, this person was a mentor and this person was a mentor. But if you really look at it, if anybody mentored you throughout that process, where, whether it’s your husband or somebody that was close to you, and family or friend, God sent him. I honestly believe that God sent that person to you. So when people. I have to be a little bit sensitive on some podcasts, I’ll say, oh, this gym and this and this and that. We haven’t really. God hasn’t come up. I’ll bring up God all the time in my podcast, but the host has or the guest part. Part of me hasn’t really. There’s nothing that tells me that they’re really God fearing. And I’ll just, oh, that’s great. That person supported and helped. Yeah. But in my mindset, I’m thinking, God send that person to you, right? You were asking, you were doing this, you were doing that. Now, if it’s something evil, ain’t God sending that, right?
[00:34:10 – 00:34:10]
No, no.
[00:34:11 – 00:35:01]
His fallen angels being a jerk again. Right? But at the end of the day, what do we do? We just keep on listening, like you said. I love that when you talked about listening. And I tell this to people, Teresa. I know. I’ll pray. I do a lot of praying. It got me through so many hard times in my life. And I’ll be praying at night about something and asking God, not necessarily for a shiny, bright, materialistic thing. I’m asking for support, comfort, strength, in whatever form he wants to bring it to me. And then the next day I get an answer, and sometimes I’m like, no, that’s not right. And I’ll pray again about it. I get the same answer when the first answer was always usually right. Because we second guess our mental mindset and the outside influences of media and people affect how we think.
[00:35:02 – 00:35:02]
Absolutely.
[00:35:02 – 00:35:04]
Our truth gets skewed.
[00:35:06 – 00:37:52]
It’s so funny. I ended up. I ended up back in 2009. I lost my mom and the rest of my eyesight. Like, I lost my mom to opiates. Whether she died of suicide or she just overdosed, I don’t know. And I also lost the rest of my eyesight. So I’m, you know, totally blind. And I’m laying on this table and the doctor, you know, I’m awake and the doctor is trying to fix my eye because it’s. The retina had detached. And I’m laying there and I heard him say, there’s too much scarring. I can’t do anything. I. At that moment, I had been a believer since I was like, 16, 15, 16 somewhere around there. And I remember telling God, I’m done. I’m done. I’m. I. This is the final straw for me. I’m done. And I walked away from him for five years when I came back, you know, because he used. He used a set of circumstances to draw me back. He wanted me to write a book. And I was like, yeah, I don’t think so. Because I knew he wanted me to share the story. And I was like, yeah, no, we’re not doing that. No way. And he’s like, if you’re not ready to write a book, would you at least start a podcast? That’s when I. I was like. I was like, yeah, I guess I could do that. But the book never went away. I spent five years trying to. This book has been a five year project. I spent the first four telling him no. And then this past year, he said, I want you to create a music album telling the protected story. And I kind of went, hold up. Say that again a little more slowly. I’m not sure I heard you right. But you know what? God has reaffirmed it and reaffirmed it. So absolutely he speaks. And absolutely we are to test all things. When you hear something and you think it’s God, test it. The Bible says we are to test the spirits to make sure they are of God. Because guess what? Our enemy prowls around like a roaring lion seeking who we can devour. One of my dear friends says, we don’t need to become cat food. You know, we don’t need to be good now.
[00:37:52 – 00:37:53]
I.
[00:37:53 – 00:38:19]
Now do I love cats. Yes. I have three of them. Do I love. I have three of them. In fact, it’s so funny. It’s like I had one of them sitting at my door meowing, because how dare I podcast and not let her in? You know, I’m like, seriously? Seriously, monkey. But there’s one cat I don’t want anything to do with, and that’s that lion named the devil.
[00:38:19 – 00:38:20]
Agreed.
[00:38:20 – 00:38:21]
You know, 100.
[00:38:22 – 00:38:24]
That’s why we need to rebuke him every single day.
[00:38:25 – 00:41:36]
Absolutely we do. But the problem we’ve got is most Christians are buying into the bubblegum gospel. Oh, Jesus loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life. He does. However, let’s deal with the issue of sin. Well, I don’t want to offend people. Jesus offended people all the time. And the Bible says that every single person, every single one, has fallen short of the glory of God. There is none righteous, not even one. Every single one of us has sinned. And the Bible says that the wages of sin is death. We deserve death. We deserve to be completely separated from God. Why? Because if you send one in one area, you violated all of his Commandments. You know those 10 commandments, they weren’t known as the 10 suggestions exactly. Okay? And if you violate one, you broken them all. And because of that, we deserve death in hell. But Jesus came and died and took that on himself. The Bible says the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. It’s not about you trying to earn your way to God. You can’t. None of us can. It’s about, okay, I’m a wreck, I’m a complete screw up and I have sinned. God, I am asking you to forgive me. I accept Jesus death on the cross. That’s the good news. That’s the gospel. The Bible says if you, if you confess with your mouth, Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. That’s not a maybe, that’s a. That’s what God says happens when you believe in your heart, okay, because, well, how do you know you believe it in your heart? You start to change. The Bible says the Holy Spirit comes to live in you. And then you start to conform. You start to do things God’s way. You start to say, you know what? I don’t think I want to do that anymore. You start to realize that the way you were doing things isn’t how God wants them done anymore. Now, are you going to be perfect? No, you’re not. You’re going to mess up. But that’s where the blood of Christ comes in. But the problem is once you become a Christian, I said this before, once you become a Christian, you’re now on a battlefield and you’ve got an enemy that absolutely hates you because he hates the God in you. That’s why we are called, we are commanded to armor up. I always, in a lot of my articles, you know, when I was writing a news blog, I would always end in the article with armor, Pray up, armor up and war strong.
[00:41:39 – 00:42:45]
That’s good. That is so good. So one of the things though, like I loved everything you shared and we can continue to break that down, but we’re not going to get through. There’s so many other things I want to ask you, so I want to talk about, you know, you built an entrepreneurship, a business and a platform around helping others share their messages, right? So podcast starting production as well as your ministry as well, helping people through their, their character building moments and coaching them and getting, getting past the six inches between their ears and the lies that they’ve believed or been subjected to through learned Behavior. So you have. You built a platform to help people do this and. And figure out themselves and then share. Share their message. Why do you believe it’s so important for people to share their story, especially when it’s messy and unconventional, just like you did? Like what? Why is that so important? I know why, but I want to hear your take on why is their story so important?
[00:42:46 – 00:44:12]
The Bible says that we overcome by the blood of the lamb and the word of our testimony, we. Because I could share my story, and I do. I do. In one form or another. I do. I get. I get. I share my story on YouTube. I. I’m building, you know, I’m building a YouTube channel. I’m doing a lot of stuff. Right, okay. But I believe you have to sort out the inner game first. You’ve got to. Okay. That means, you know, do you know whose you are? Do you know what your assignment is? But more importantly, you know, do you know what your calling is? Do you know what your assignment is? Do you know what your purpose is? Well, I’ve had all this happen to me. I get that. I get that, and I’m not denying that. I am not going to invalidate all the crap you’ve gone through, but what if one person hears your story and it gives them a little bit of hope? You know, I actually have a. A book that’s probably going to come out next year, and it’s called A Ragged Thread of Hope, how to turn your tragedy into a tapestry fit for the king.
[00:44:13 – 00:44:15]
Wow. Sounds good.
[00:44:16 – 00:45:27]
You know, and so the thing is, like, we are called to share the gospel, but many times when we share the gospel, we do it through our story. We do it through our story. And that’s why I do what I do. That’s why. Because I believe so strongly, you know? You know, we don’t just do podcast production. We do book publishing. We do a lot of stuff because I believe that, you know, Gary Vaynerchuk always says, you’re a media company first and a business second. Okay. So when you have a story, a message, a. A thing that kind of beats inside of you, in Jeremiah, he talks about the word of God’s word is like a fire in my bones. I’m tired of holding it in. If that was true for Jeremiah, how much more true is it for you?
[00:45:33 – 00:45:34]
Yeah.
[00:45:34 – 00:45:34]
Wow.
[00:45:35 – 00:47:26]
The messages and things that our share our story shares is if we share our story and which is our origin, depending on the circumstance, there could be stories about anything. I know when I’ve had discussions with people, the trials and tribulations. And it’s a pattern of me resisting the having the armor of God on me and Jesus to protect, you know, who I am by guiding me through other people or through, you know, going to church and listening to the gospel and embracing him. My story is what God led me through. My health challenges, my bullying. You don’t know my origin story and I won’t get into it here. But nothing, nothing is, you know, that’s similar to yours in regards to your, your origin story is unique to you and the challenges. But each person’s origin story is a challenge for them, for them themselves, especially when there’s, you know, trials and tribulations. Where was God within my story? Well, God surrounded all throughout my story. How I got through so many things as a young kid, how I got through abuse, how I got through my marriage and divorce, how I got through raising my children. God is always coming up in that story. Right? God is always the thread that kept me together, kept me to be who he put me on the planet to be in regards to one of my, my many, you know, titles, roles as parent to his children. Yes, they’re my children, but they’re his children first and foremost.
[00:47:26 – 00:47:26]
Amen.
[00:47:26 – 00:47:55]
He put me on the planet to raise them, to teach them the right things. So my origin, what I’ve gone through, people I wish it would impact the most is my children. But it doesn’t always work that way. They don’t necessarily. We go through life that we’re, they’re heroes when they’re younger. When they get older, we’re, we’re dumb. And when they get really older, like adults with a little bit maturity into their 30s, they realize how smart we were. Right.
[00:47:56 – 00:47:57]
That’s so true. Yep.
[00:47:58 – 00:48:11]
And not saying that for all parents, some parents, the kids reach their 30s and they just find out, realize that you’re even non supportive and non committal and, and on a hamster wheel and they decide to either follow that or they go the other way.
[00:48:11 – 00:48:11]
Right.
[00:48:11 – 00:51:11]
Hopefully it’s the other way. But my origin story didn’t affect my kids in the sense of them being followers of Christ, which is sad. It’s sad. It breaks my heart. But I had somebody, I’m very active in my church and I had a, I went to the Middle east years ago, 10 years ago this year actually in April, and I went on, you know, we went on a pilgrimage and our church and we went to all the different sites and I was talking to the, to the, to the priest and we’re still friends today. Many, many years later. And there’s some deacons, there’s some nuns, there was tons of people there. And I had conversations and I walked with him and we were looking down at where they used to hold at Cesare Caesareum, where they used to hold the Romans used to hold, you know, their chariot races and their biting and all that stuff. And we were just standing out looking over the sea and I looked at him and I was asking him questions about life and my kids not going to church and how much it bothered me. And he looked at me and he says, Dwight, your kids have all been blessed. Jesus is in their life, in our faith. They’ve been baptized, they’ve gone through their sacraments, they used to all be belonged in youth group. They used to all participate in the math or put me in the mass and life has changed for them. But guess what? Don’t worry about their direction and focus on their life and what’s going to happen. You give them everything they needed and now they, their decision and choices have to be their own. Worry about your faith, worry about your connection to God. Quit focusing that energy on the family. Yes, please don’t ever stop talking about God around them. Please don’t. Like when my kids come over and break bread with me and I make a meal and we just did it on Friday to celebrate one of my daughters birthdays and you know we gotta pray. They can have, I can have non Christian friends this bow your head. You don’t have to do nothing, you don’t have to pray. Just listen to us. But a requirement is sitting at my table, at God’s table which he provided. You must pray. We must bless this food, this bounty, right? And go and my. And the priest just told me just worry about you and continue to be who you are. Don’t shirk your responsibility to God. Being vocal, polite, kind when you’re vocal and don’t stop being who you are just because your kids are falling off to the wayside. That’s their choice and that’s how I’ve lived my life. I focus on mine and those around me like yourself, that we can have great conversations and we can, you know, we can, we can celebrate and commiserate at the same time.
[00:51:12 – 00:52:57]
Well and what does the Bible says? It says train a child and the way they should go and when they are old they will not depart. It doesn’t mean that in the training of the child and the in between the training of the child and the way when they’re old that they may not, you know, walk away and do get stuck on stupid and do things and whatever. Yeah, but it says when they’re old, when they won’t depart, you know. Now are they responsible to God for their relationship with Him? Absolutely. Is he going to hold them to account? Yes, he is. But you’ve done your part. You’re not responsible then for how they respond. They are. All you can do is walk your faith out and pray for them. That’s, that’s literally all you can do. I mean, I, when I became a Christian, I was the only Christian in my family. Right. So what was my responsibility? One, I had to learn about my own faith and figure out what it was I actually believed. And number two, I had to start praying for my family, praying for my mom and my stepdad and my Aunt Marge and all the people that I lived with, you know, and I didn’t know how to walk this thing out. I didn’t know what I was doing. But my responsibility before God was to be a witness to who he is, even if they didn’t want to see it and they didn’t want to hear it at the time.
[00:52:59 – 00:53:27]
Yeah, it’s, it’s so true though. Right? Speak our truth. And those around us that don’t like hearing our truth, we don’t have to be so bold and blazing about it to be offensive. But we shouldn’t have to change our conversation style or our pattern or, or speaking about Jesus, speaking about Christianity. Those that are offended by it aren’t in your tribe.
[00:53:28 – 00:53:29]
Absolutely right.
[00:53:29 – 00:54:52]
You’ll, you’ll get to know that some of those people you’re still going to run into, you’re still going to be around, you’re still going to have to communicate. And it doesn’t mean I change who I am. I just tone down the intensity of who I am because I’d rather not get engaged and create stress and anxiety for that person or for the people we’re in a group with and wait till I’m around those same people that are like minded and have those deep open conversations because when you have a small flame burning of anger with somebody and you’re talking about your faith or you’re talking about Christianity and then you, you get confrontational and pour fuel on that fire. That’s not, God doesn’t want that either. How are you protecting yourself? You’re not. Right. Sometimes it’s just, it’s, it’s, it’s better to just walk away. Right. Walk away and, and, and wrap yourself in, like you said, the armor of God, which is sometimes the People that are around you, that are like minded your family, right. And keep that armor around you, keep your, your circle tight in the sense that doesn’t mean you can’t take risks and talk to people and try to lead them toward Christianity. We all, I want that, everybody wants that. But first and foremost, protect yourself.
[00:54:52 – 00:59:41]
Absolutely. Well, and the, I mean, it starts with. And how do you protect yourself? Guys, go to, go to Ephesians, chapter six. Read through it. He lays out the armor right there. If you’re a follower of Christ, this is not negotiable. This is not a. Well, maybe. No, no, no. He commands us. Put on the armor of God. And having done all to stand. You know, I am of a firm belief that we are called to share the gospel. We’re, we’re called. You know, when I go on other podcasts and sometimes I go on some interesting shows, but if I always say, especially if I know they’re not a Christian show, oh, I’m just going on Mars Hill now. What’s that reference to? Well, in the book of Acts, the Apostle Paul is walking around and he sees all these altars built to other gods, right? Okay. Then he notices there’s an altar to the unknown God and he’s on Mars Hill. And then, and there’s these guys that like, stooped in wisdom and, and, and, and, and knowledge and, and this is kind of what they’re about. And he goes, hey, I would like to share with you that altar to the unknown God. I’d like to make him known to you and who he is. Guys, that’s our calling. That’s what we are called to do. Yes, let’s build up a body of Christ. Yes, let’s encourage one another as we are called to do. But more importantly, the Bible says that we are to work while there’s still daylight, because there’s coming a day when no one can work. Those are the words of our Lord. He says in, in Matthew 24. He says, do not be deceived, because the disciples are asking him, hey, when’s everything gonna go down, right? He says, above all, don’t be deceived. Why would he say that? He says, because if it were possible, even the elect would be deceived. We are entering into a time where we could focus on all the crazy and all the stuff that’s happening. And yes, we should be aware, but above all, we are commanded to share his word. I could focus on all the news and all the crazy and, you know, but what does Jesus say? Go, he didn’t say sit. He didn’t say sit in your pew and, and just do your thing. No, no, no, no. He said, go and share the gospel to every creature. And that is what drives me. That’s why I do what I do. That’s why I work with the people that I work with. Because I want to work with those who are on fire for God, who understand the times that we are living in and have a message. That’s why I write the books. That’s that. That’s that. It fuels everything I do because I want to hear, well done, good and faithful servant. Enter into the joy of your Lord. Do you realize that every single thing that we have done in this life, we are going to stand before Him? And it will be done not for salvation. Salvation comes through Christ alone. But our works for him will be judged. And anything built on selfish ambition, anything built on idle words, he says that we will be held accountable for every idle word. Okay? Anything built on anything that like, does not glorify him will burn like, like. Like wood and stubble and hay. Only the stuff that is built for him, that is done in his name and that is done with a pure motive will last. I know for me, I want to serve Him. I want to make him happy. I want to know that I poured out everything I have. Because if one person comes to Christ, one person that I’ve done my job, now Obviously I want 30, 60, I really want a hundred fold, right?
[00:59:42 – 00:59:43]
Yeah.
[00:59:43 – 00:59:57]
But I’ll take the one person. I’ll take that one soul. A friend of mine always asks, how much is a soul worth? And in my thinking, there’s no comparison because they are eternal.
[01:00:00 – 01:00:11]
Agreed. That, you know, priceless really, when you think about it. How can you put a cost on soul when it’s gonna continue on, Right?
[01:00:12 – 01:00:13]
Absolutely.
[01:00:14 – 01:00:17]
Where it continues on takes some work.
[01:00:18 – 01:00:21]
Well, I mean, there’s only two places you can continue on, right?
[01:00:21 – 01:00:22]
You could either continue.
[01:00:22 – 01:00:54]
You can either continue in heaven with Christ or in hell without Him. And does he want you to go there? No, he doesn’t. He doesn’t. The Bible says he. He would rather that no one perish, but that all, all would come to repentance. But there’s some that won’t. There’s some that are so given over to their evil that. And they won’t repent of it, you know, and so there has to be a consequence for that. There has to be.
[01:00:56 – 01:01:22]
Agreed. So let’s, let’s move on. We’re gonna, we’re gonna get to the end of the show here. I’m gonna skip forward a couple things that I. That I really want to get to. So you run multiple business, right? Obviously the media company with your husband. If someone wants to start a business. Right, Because I’ve had this question before. How. I want to see what your take is. How do they do that while staying true to their f.
[01:01:24 – 01:02:54]
Well, first of all, what’s your assignment? Because every single person has a field of favor. I believe this to the core of my being. You have a field of favor and so do I. They may not be the same. What do you mean? Well, do you remember the woman who had the. She was talking to Elijah. I think it was Elijah or Elijah or one of the prophets. And she’s like, you know, I’m gonna. I’m gonna. I only have like one. He. Eddie, asked her, what’s in your hand? She’s like, nothing. No, what’s in your hand? Well, I only got like one jar of oil. Okay, One jar. And he goes, well, go ask your neighbors for jars and pour the oil in. Okay, well, once you do that, then sell the oil and you’ll be able to pay off your debt. So you do that, right? Why is that important? Why? Because you have a field of favor. You have a sphere of influence around you. What is the thing that you. That God has for you to do? For me, I am called to help people find God in their story and then to share it. What is it that God has for you? Who is your God given assignment? Do you know what your assignment is? Figure that out and then start your enterprise from there.
[01:02:55 – 01:03:04]
Yeah, it’s exactly it. But there’s no, you know, people say, I’ve had. You need to keep business and ministry separate, right?
[01:03:04 – 01:03:05]
I don’t believe that.
[01:03:05 – 01:04:18]
I don’t believe that either. So, you know, integrating both into and being your true self is so important, right? So those listening, you’re watching. If you’re hiding your faith, you’re hiding your belief system in God and your core values, keep it at the top, like mine do. And you’re not communicating about it because you’re afraid of offending and not getting business and keeping money in front of God. It’s the wrong way to look at it, right? You need to. You need to be your true self and those that are destined to be part of your circle and you part of theirs, part of their ministry, and then part of yours because it’s a. It’s community, whether it’s a client and you create that client community, or you have, if it’s based on faith. That longevity of that person staying for you as a client forever might not be there because maybe you have a service they don’t need anymore, but your friendship you create, you still have that connection. I always have connection with majority of my clients. 261 podcast guests that I’ve had on myself. And I have a connection with a majority of them because I’m a unique self.
[01:04:19 – 01:04:21]
Absolutely. Absolutely.
[01:04:21 – 01:05:29]
And so you should blend your ministry, your faith, your core values into your work. It should be who you are. Don’t live a facade. Don’t let that people think that you believe, that you don’t believe or that you have a different or that you. Or give them the hint or indication that you are similar to their thought process. Be your unique self. Right, Just like your fingerprint. And if that person doesn’t want to deal with you because of who you stand, what your core values and who you are, it’s just better to. You’re at the fork in the road. Let them go their path. Let them either climb the mountain, climb a mountain their way or walk off a cliff their way. It’s their way. Whereas I’m choosing to climb and I’m taking the fork in the road that always is climbing. Once in a while I get camped because of circumstances, character building moments. But I still continue to thrive and move forward and realize that the only way that I’m going to continue to climb and be happy and healthy in my life is to put him first and foremost in my life.
[01:05:30 – 01:06:44]
Well, what does he say? He says, seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and all, all that includes your business endeavors. All of these other things will be added to you, you know. And then he says, hey, you know, you cannot serve both God and mammon. Now I’m not talking about money, I’m talking about mammon. It’s the love of money. Mammon is like the love of money. Okay? The Bible says the love of money is the root of all evil. And so when you’re talking about that, well, I don’t want, I don’t know about sharing my faith because I, you know. Well, Jesus actually talks about that. If you’re not willing to speak about me before men, then I won’t before my Father in heaven. That’s not good. You don’t want to be in that place. If you want to acknowledge me before men, then I will not acknowledge you before my Father in heaven. What else does he say? He says, I would rather that you be hot or cold, but because you’re lukewarm. I’m gonna spit you out of my mouth. Yeah, I don’t think I want to risk that. No, thank you.
[01:06:44 – 01:07:15]
Exactly. So, you know, we’re getting to the end of the show here. What a fantastic conversation we’ve had. Thank you so much for sharing so much. One of the things I wanted to ask you about in your, you know, small. Small steps, big impact, right? People don’t realize baby steps can move your life forward and have big impact. So for someone listening who feels stuck spiritually, professionally, or emotionally, what’s one small step they can take today to start moving forward?
[01:07:20 – 01:09:32]
I would say this. Start by bringing everything you need to the throne. Start by inviting him into your story. If you’re stuck spiritually, if you have some real issues with him, if you have some gripes with him, or emotionally, you know, God doesn’t mind your emotion. I’m. I. I’m learning that. That’s definitely something I’m working on. It’s something, you know, there’s some areas where God is going, hey, I want you to share with me what you’re feeling. He doesn’t mind your emotion. And the other thing to keep in mind, if you’re wrestling through a situation where you’ve got a tape running in your head because maybe you’re feeling this, that, or the other, you know, and you’ve got some issues, it’s okay to ask for help. Ask him for help, and then reach out and find someone who can help you walk through that stuff spiritually. He’s got your back. Come to the cross. If you don’t know him, now’s the day to get. Do that. Make that happen. Now’s the time. He says that today is the day of salvation. And then if you want some help figuring out the business side of things, now is a good time to reach out and say, hey, I want to launch this, but I don’t know how to do it. It’s okay to ask for help. You don’t have to be the answer to everything. You know, I have people that are better at editing stuff than I am. I just make the content. Okay. I just. I just go out and get on the mic and I talk. I’m working on building a music album. I just get on the mic and I rap and I sing and. Yeah. And then I have. And then I have others that. That edit. So, yeah, do.
[01:09:32 – 01:09:36]
Use your strengths. Give away your weaknesses. Right. That’s nothing.
[01:09:36 – 01:09:36]
That’s it.
[01:09:36 – 01:09:55]
Nothing wrong with that. So that. What a great response. Because usually I ask One last question I ask, you know, if you could tell our listeners one last piece of encouragement, something from your own life that proves it’s always worthwhile to give a hack and never giving up. Would you have anything to add besides what you just said?
[01:10:00 – 01:10:43]
You could give up. And there have been times I have because I didn’t know how to move forward. But the thing is, God is right there. Like you could ask, hey, God, where were you when? And his answer is right there. I was right there in the story with you. So you could give up and you could, you could get stay where you’re at, or you could move forward with your hand in his and walk through the minefield that we call life. Doesn’t mean it’ll be easy. But at the end of the day, it’s worth it because he makes it worth it.
[01:10:48 – 01:11:13]
Yeah, he does make it worth it. It’s at the end of the day for those listening or, or watching. You can feel confused, you can feel conflicted, but you’ll never know unless you take that baby step toward discovery. So thank you so much for that last message. What’s the best way that people can reach you, Teresa.
[01:11:15 – 01:11:31]
If you’re interested in the book that I’m currently working on finishing up, you can find me@protectedbook.com you can also reach me at teresa teresablaze.com and you can find me on the socials.
[01:11:32 – 01:12:16]
I will make sure for those new to the Give a Heck podcast go to giveaheck.com click on the podcast at the top. You will see picture first off. You’ll see all the connections to the different platforms to listen or go to YouTube to watch. And I’ll have all of the detailed show notes along with the full unedited transcript. The show notes will have all of Teresa’s links, including her website and how you can reach out to her, as well as summaries of the of the podcast. If you want to remember a certain section but again, they’re full on transcript is there as well. So check out Give a heck dot com. Any last final words or comments before I wrap up the show?
[01:12:16 – 01:12:57]
Teresa I would just say again, no matter who you are, no matter where you’re at, invite God in. Because trust me, he’s got you. You know he loves you. And if you’re looking to start a business, man, there’s no better day than today. The Navy seals have a saying and I love it and it’s kind of definitely resonates with, you know, how I’m doing what I do and where God has me. And it says that the only easy day was yesterday. So walk in that.
[01:12:59 – 01:13:45]
That’s great. I appreciate that. So thanks again for being on the show. So my final message right Giving you a give a hex spiritual moment. Your story is a gift, your business can be a ministry, and your faith is the foundation that fuels both. Whether you’re just starting out or rebuilding from ground up, the world needs your courage, your creativity, and your commitment to serve with purpose. You were made to impact lives not just through what you do, but through who you are in Christ. So step boldly into your calling. Build with intention and lead with love. And remember, it’s never too late to give a heck.