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Lauren Gaskill

Encouraging women to live in faith and joy

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FJ 06: Lisa Appelo: Finding Joy Amid Loss + Remembering God's Faithfulness

April 20, 2016 • 10 Comments

lisa appelo finding joy podcast2

Finding Joy is a podcast dedicated to bringing you encouragement and inspiration in all of life’s moments — the good, bad and everything in-between.

Lisa Appelo is our guest for the sixth episode of the Finding Joy podcast and I can’t wait for you to get to know her because she’s amazing! On her blog, Lisa writes “Four years ago, life as I knew it shattered in a thousand irretrievable pieces.  I never asked God why but I sure did ask — what now? Oh, how God has answered. In a thousand ways, God has been True and Faithful.” Today, Lisa is a widow and mother to seven children, but that doesn’t stop her from writing and proclaiming God’s faithfulness.

In this episode, Lisa and I talk about:

  • The power of prayer and learning to claim scripture.
  • How to bring glory to God in the hurt, in the waiting and in the healing.
  • Why we can trust God with all we have.
  • Finding joy amid heartbreaking loss.

Lisa encourages us to hold on to God’s promises in scripture. “God’s faithfulness is a promise to us,” she says. “He will and cannot lie. He will be faithful. We don’t always know how and we have to wait, which is scary and hard, but we can count on Him being faithful. The beautiful part is when we learn to bring Him glory in the wait.”

How to Listen to the Finding Joy Podcast

You can listen to the podcast here on this blog, or by subscribing to the podcast through iTunes.

Subscribe to the iTunes podcast HERE.

Review this Podcast

By rating this podcast or writing a short review, you can help others find the Finding Joy podcast more easily! Click here to head over to iTunes and rate Finding Joy.

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Comments

  1. Julie @ Running in a Skirt says

    April 20, 2016 at 7:09 am

    What a wonderful message! Just what I needed to hear this morning! thank you!!!

    Reply
    • Lisa Appelo says

      April 20, 2016 at 11:58 am

      So glad this blessed you, Julie. ♡

      Reply
    • Lauren Gaskill says

      April 20, 2016 at 12:15 pm

      Hi Julie! Thanks for listening! I hope you are having a joy-filled day. 🙂

      Reply
  2. Cheyanne @ No Spoon Necessary says

    April 20, 2016 at 9:10 am

    Today I will be in the kitchen so I need a little something inspirational to listen to and I can’t wait to listen to this, Lauren!! All of your podcasts have been motivational, beautiful and struck a cord within me, and I know this one especially will be no different. I think I told you I lost my father 2 1/2 years ago to Mesothelioma. I was 100% a daddy’s girl and when he was diagnosed he immediately moved in with my husband and myself. I quit my job to take care of him full time and when he passed away (about 5 months after diagnosis) my entire world was rocked. I fell down a very dark and self destructive path. Luckily, with the help of God and love from friends and family, I found my way back to a healthy life. Keep bringing on the podcasts, girl – I love them and can’t get enough! Cheers! xoxo

    Reply
    • Lisa Appelo says

      April 20, 2016 at 11:56 am

      Cheyanne, I’m so sorry for your loss. I’m walking my kids through the loss of their dad and it is hard. God has been faithful and so glad you’ve seen that and put in the hard work of grief. Blessings to you today!

      Reply
    • Lauren Gaskill says

      April 20, 2016 at 12:18 pm

      Dearest Cheyanne, Thank you for being vulnerable in sharing your story. I know that is not easy! <3 I am so very sorry for your loss. What a beautiful soul you have for taking care of your dad in those post-diagnosis days. I am so glad God has done a work in your heart to replace the grief with joy. Love you dear!! XOXO

      Reply
  3. Lois Flowers says

    April 20, 2016 at 12:04 pm

    Lauren, I don’t listen to many podcasts, but I love Lisa’s blog so this one drew me in today. Once I started listening, I hung on every word. What a testimony to God’s faithfulness. Wow. Gut-wrenching, yes, but so powerful and encouraging. Thanks to you both!

    Reply
    • Lauren Gaskill says

      April 20, 2016 at 12:14 pm

      Hi Lois! Thanks so much for tuning in. I am so glad this could touch your heart as much as it touched mine. Blessings to you!

      Reply
  4. Chrissie says

    April 22, 2016 at 10:41 pm

    Lauren!!! I love your podcast! I’m so glad we’ve connected through this blogging community I’ve actually started a second blog to document our family’s move overseas as missionaries and all the things God is doing in our lives along the way. I’d love it if you checked it out! http://www.thebusybakers.ca
    Can’t wait for your next episode!

    Reply

Trackbacks

  1. Finding Joy Podcast - True and Faithful says:
    April 20, 2016 at 10:52 am

    […] school sweetheart and an amazing self-taught chef and baker.  She writes about faith and food at Making Life Sweet — and you’ll definitely want to check out her recipes because they make me hungry every […]

    Reply

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Introducing our sweet baby boy, Graham Gregg Gaski Introducing our sweet baby boy, Graham Gregg Gaskill! 

Our precious son made his long awaited arrival into this world 4/8/21 at 12:27 pm weighing in at 9 lbs. 5 oz. 

His name means gift of God, symbol of healing, watchful and wide awake, and valorous.

Graham: gift of God in some cultures, but it also can mean “grain,” and is representative of the new grain we’ve all been given access to — Jesus’ body broken for our healing. Gregg is after Alex’s dad and means wide-awake, watchful and vigilant. Gaskill: valorous. 

All I can say are the first words I uttered when I had the beautiful opportunity to catch him and pull him to my chest: He’s perfect. 

We are blessed. 🌈
Waves. They come and they go; they push and they p Waves. They come and they go; they push and they pull. All the while, the tides rise and fall, drawn by forces unseen.

Forces unseen ... It’s amazing to me that the same world that so easily acknowledges the unseen, powerful forces behind the ocean’s activity is often skeptical or unreceptive to the unseen, powerful forces behind the supernatural realm. 

And yet, if there is one thing I’ve learned in my journey of learning the things of the unseen Kingdom of God, it’s that what Paul communicated in 2 Corinthians 4:18 is true: What is unseen is eternal — greater and more real than what is seen. And the circumstances, emotions, and things we experience here? Well, they are temporary.

Your situation might not look like it’s changing, but I promise you as you focus on the things unseen God has showed you and promised you about your life, like the falling and rising of the tides, the power of the Holy Spirit is bringing the substance of those things unseen to pass right in front of your eyes. 

Seek, ask, believe, receive, and keep your eyes on Jesus, sweet friend. He’s not going to let you down. 

📷 @kate.mclaws
“I look up to the mountains and hills, longing f “I look up to the mountains and hills, longing for God’s help. But then I realize that our true help and protection is only from the Lord, our Creator who made the heavens and the earth. He will guard and guide me, never letting me stumble or fall. God is my keeper; he will never forget nor ignore me. He will never slumber nor sleep; he is the Guardian-God for his people, Israel. Yahweh himself will watch over you; he’s always at your side to shelter you safely in his presence. He’s protecting you from all danger both day and night. He will keep you from every form of evil or calamity as he continuously watches over you. You will be guarded by God himself. You will be safe when you leave your home, and safely you will return. He will protect you now, and he’ll protect you forevermore!” {Psalm 121 TPT} 

This is just one of so many sections of Scripture I’ve been declaring over our family in this season. What about you?
Isaiah 59 struck me in a new and powerful way this Isaiah 59 struck me in a new and powerful way this week. In verses 15,-16, the prophet writes, “Then the Lord saw it, and it displeased Him That there was no justice. He saw that there was no man, And wondered that there was no intercessor; Therefore His own arm brought salvation for Him; And His own righteousness, it sustained Him.“

The passage goes on to say that when the enemy comes in like a flood, the Lord lifts up a standard against Him. Yes, He always breaks through for us. And because He sent us salvation through Jesus when He saw the depth of our need for a Savior, we now carry that same spirit and person of breakthrough inside of us. 

More than ever, I am convinced that the breakthroughs we find ourselves needing in this journey called life are not somewhere “out there” waiting for us. Instead, Jesus is waiting for us to turn to Him, acknowledge every good thing He’s already placed in us, and rest in knowing that as we stand on His Word, He is bringing every promise to complete fulfillment in our lives. 

Drop a 🙌🏼 in the comments if you’re thankful the God of breakthrough lives inside of you today!
Sleepy boop 🐶 @boopmynose Sleepy boop 🐶 @boopmynose
Everything is starting to come back to life here i Everything is starting to come back to life here in Raleigh. The birds are singing. The trees, flowers, and bushes are budding — some even flowering. It’s amid this flurry of new life that I find my heart longing to awaken to an even deeper revelation of the truth of the new life that is living on the inside of me every day. I have tasted and seen bits and pieces of the goodness of this new life, but it’s not enough to simply know it exists. I want the new life that Jesus has given me to radiate from every part of my being. Not just my spirit, but my soul and body too. 

My hope is found in remembering that it is GOD who causes seeds to grow and bloom, both in the landscape of our world and in the garden of my heart. I yield my heart to Him and the truth of His Word, and He brings the increase by His grace. I cannot make the seed of His Word and new life grow. I can water it through communion with Jesus, but I can’t make it produce life in my own strength or by my own power of will.

This is what I hold onto in faith: That I don’t have to understand how He turns the winter into spring. But just the promise that He does. Even when spring seems like it has been delayed. It always comes. 🌿
I call this my “I love the Word of God speaking I call this my “I love the Word of God speaking face.” 😂😂 Hard to believe it’s officially been a little more than a year since I stepped onto a stage to minister the word of God. I’m so grateful for the many other opportunities God has given me to share the Word in this season of life, whether that be through a conversation at the gym, an interview, or a @shefoundjoy podcast episode, but goodness, am I looking forward to the day when I can share the love, goodness, truth, and power of Jesus to a room full of precious, smiling people. 

If your church is opened/opening up, please know I’m open to speaking opportunities, even after sweet Baby G is born! Message or email me for inquiries or booking info. (Thanks again to @rochelle.merrell for allowing me to speak at @catchthefireraleigh’s women’s event last year! We had such a blast!! And @_j_knee, that was when we became friends!!) 💜
If there is one thing pregnancy and preparing for If there is one thing pregnancy and preparing for birth have taught me, it’s that Jesus really does have to be my source for everything, and I wasn’t meant to carry burdens. (I’m sure motherhood teaches this on an even deeper level.) But really, we all need Jesus. And we weren’t meant to carry burdens. We were meant to carry LIFE. 

Whether or not you ever carry a child, your inheritance is to be a carrier of the light and life of Jesus for all of your days. That means saying no to holding on to negative emotions, memories, thoughts, or anything else the enemy of our souls wants to try and make us carry. 

With Baby G making his arrival any day now, I’ll be honest: The last few weeks have been brutal. Holy Spirit has been bringing a lot of things to the surface, and some days, all I can do is just cry, surrender, and choose to trust all over again that God will settle what still needs to be settled and be faithful to what He’s spoken over our family. But through this grueling process, I have learned in a greater way why it is so important to cast every burden and care on Jesus. Because if we don’t, the very weight of them will eventually crush us. 

What cares or burdens do you need to cast upon Him today? He is more than willing and able to carry the weight, and in exchange, fill you with His light and life.
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