God’s Power Stories | Finding God’s Lead, How God Shows Up, Bible and Everyday Life Stories, Approaching God with Boldness

What happens when you walk into a Greek Orthodox service uninvited, bow before a two-thousand-year-old relic, and later realize you'd been eating peanut butter and jelly sandwiches while a feast sat waiting the entire time?

In this rich final touring episode of their Turkey and Greece journey, Anna and John arrive in Crete on a Sunday morning that happened to align with a national day of prayer back in the US—except they were seven hours ahead, already standing in ancient sacred ground while most of America was still asleep. They wander into the Cathedral of Saint Ti...

What does it feel like to stand in the actual cave where the Apostle John received the entire book of Revelation—complete with a rock crack tradition says was caused by the very voice of God?

In Part 2 of this journey to Patmos, Anna and John climb to the Monastery of St. John the Theologian, a fortress-like structure built in 1088 that still houses some of the oldest Christian manuscripts in existence, including a 900-year-old imperial decree still preserved in the very building it was written for. From there, they descend into the Cave of the Revelation—the Sacr...

What does it take to reach the island where the last book of the Bible was written—and what happens when a ship's captain decides to sail through contested waters rather than turn back?

In Part 1 of this two-part journey to Patmos, Anna and John begin with an unforgettable night overlooking the Aegean Sea before boarding a cruise ship that would make history: the first vessel to pass through the tension-filled Strait of Hormuz amid US-Iran conflict warnings, opening the passage for five or six ships that followed behind it.

From there, the episode turns to...

What does it feel like to take communion in the ruins of a first-century synagogue—standing where Paul once stood, under the same open sky?

In Part 2 of this powerful two-part Ephesus series, Anna and John move from the city's ancient streets into its most sacred spaces. They witness two careless teenagers treating ancient grave boxes as a photo opportunity—then walk into the ruins believed to be Ephesus's early synagogue, where their tour group gathered for communion in a place drenched in apostolic history.

Explore the extraordinary tradition surrounding the Basilica Church of St. John...

How does a city of 250,000 people—one of the greatest metropolises in the ancient world—end up three miles from the sea it once depended on?

In Part 1 of this two-part deep dive into Ephesus, hosts Anna and John walk the marble streets of one of Christianity's most significant cities. Discover how Ephesus grew from a settlement around a temple to the Anatolian Great Mother into the greatest center of trade, industry, and finance in the western Roman world—and how centuries of neglected harbor maintenance let the sea silt in and slip away, leaving the once-coastal city s...

What happens when you skip 2.5 hours out of your way and miss three of the seven churches of Revelation... only to realize God had already prepared your heart for them weeks before you even left?

In this reflective episode of In the Margins, hosts Anna and John process the three cities their Revelation Tour through Turkey never reached—Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodicea. Just weeks before departing, Anna sat in a conference session where teachers Bruce Martin and Cindy Bultema unpacked these same three letters, planting seeds that bloomed once she began researching what they'd missed on the ro...

What if every temple ever built—every oracle, every sacred spring, every desperate question hurled toward heaven—was humanity reaching for something it couldn't name until the answer finally arrived?

In this GPS episode, we start with breakfast. If you've never stayed in a Turkish hotel, you are missing something. We are talking a full spread every morning. Endless variety. Total abundance. (John went back more than once!) The trip's rhythm exuded care.

Full and rested, we arrived at Didyma. It was unlike anything else we had seen.

This isn't one of the seve...

What if a visit to the place Jesus called where Satan's throne is ended with a rainbow?

In this GPS episode, in our In the Margins series, we almost didn't make it to Pergamum at all. You may remember that the reason we pivoted our day was because storms had rolled into Pergamum that morning. By the time we arrived, the storms had passed. And at the end of that day, a rainbow showed over the acropolis.

Before we get to the rainbow, let's talk about marble. Many of these ancient cities are paved with...

What if the plan you didn't choose—the one you got pushed into by a thunderstorm, a rerouted bus, and a restaurant nobody had heard of—turned out to be exactly the plan God had in mind all along?

In this episode of God's Power Stories and our series In the Margins, we were supposed to go straight to Thyatira, then Pergamum, then stop for lunch. But thunderstorms rolled into Pergamum and drenched everything in sight. We pivoted. John's first reaction: Great. Now we're winging it. But what unfolded was so layered and so clearly orchestrated that the...

What would you say if, after 86 years of walking faithfully with God through poverty, suffering, and the constant threat of death, someone finally offered you a way out? But there's a catch: it will cost you was everything.   What would it take for you to say those words — He has never done me wrong — after eight and a half decades of following Jesus through pain and pressure and the kind of quiet, grinding faithfulness that history rarely remembers?  

In this episode of God's Power Stories—in our series In the Margins—we're in Smyrna, which is modern-day Izmir, Turkey. This is one...

What if God didn't wait for the sacred sites to start showing up — what if He was already at work somewhere over the Atlantic?

We're going on the trip. After everything it took to get here — the broken bones, the months of recovery, the doubt, the pain that wouldn't quit — John and I are finally in the car, heading to Chicago, and wheels are up.

And God doesn't wait.

What do you do when God clearly calls you to something — and then everything in your path seems determined to keep you from it? Welcome to In the Margins — a brand-new series here on God's Power Stories, and one of the most personal things I've ever shared with you.   My husband John and I have just returned from a trip to Turkey and Greece — a journey following in the footsteps of the Apostle Paul and the early church alongside Jonathan Cahn and believers from around the world. It was, in every sense of the word, a trip of a lifetime. But the stor...

What do you pray when everything falls apart in three minutes?

Discover the power of three simple prayers—help, thanks, and wow—in this moving interview with Lisa Bosse, who lost her husband John suddenly on Mother's Day 2023. This encouraging Christian podcast episode reveals how God meets us in our deepest grief and transforms waiting into active faith. Based on Anne Lamott's book "Help, Thanks, Wow: The Three Essential Prayers," topics include:

What happens when you obey God…and things get harder instead of easier?

When you say yes to something that clearly has His hand on it…and then find yourself in pain, confusion, and a season that doesn’t make sense?

In this powerful episode, Rachel Van Pelt shares the story of a decision rooted in faith—to donate bone marrow and help save a life—and the unexpected journey that followed.

“We had to decide… do we make a life, or do we save one?”

After prayer and surrender, Rachel chose obedience...

What if prayer doesn’t have to be complicated?

What if connecting with God starts with something as simple as…“God, help me.”

In this powerful and deeply relatable episode, Rachel Britton shares how one honest, desperate prayer became the turning point in her relationship with God.

Raised in a Christian home, Rachel always believed in God—but she didn’t feel connected to Him. Faith felt like rules. Expectations. A list of things to do—and not do.

“I felt like God didn’t really like me,” she admits.

As life moved on...

What do you do when staying feels faithful… but is slowly breaking you?

And what happens when God doesn’t tell you to fight—but to be still?

In this deeply moving episode, Angela Chambers shares her powerful story of walking away from a 28-year abusive marriage—and discovering that God’s restoration doesn’t begin with answers… but with surrender.

“I picked myself up off the floor one too many times,” she says. “And I knew… I couldn’t do it anymore.”

Raised in a Christian home, committed to her faith, and determined not...

What if the things you've learned to live with… aren't just affecting you?

What if the "giants" you've tolerated—fear, anxiety, bitterness, unforgiveness—are quietly shaping the lives of the people you love most?

In this powerful and deeply honest conversation, pastor and author Angi Jeffcoat shares her personal journey of confronting the giants that had taken up residence in her life—and the freedom she found on the other side.

"We think we're okay," she says. "But those giants are taking up space in our lives… and they're going to impact the people aro...

What if love isn’t measured by what you hold onto… but by what you remain faithful to—even when you have to let it go?

In this quietly powerful Faith Through Fiction interview, Paltiel—a man mentioned only briefly in Scripture—reveals one of the most overlooked portraits of love in the Bible: a love that protects, honors, and releases without claiming ownership.

“She was never mine to keep,” he says. “Only mine to care for.”

From a life marked by steadiness and attentiveness to God, to being given Michal—Saul’s daughter and David’s f...

What happens when your life is shaped more by other people's decisions than your own? When you're loved, but not chosen… placed, but not seen… given, taken, and given again?

In this deeply moving Faith Through Fiction interview, Michal—daughter of King Saul, first wife of David, a woman whose story has long been told in fragments—finally speaks in her own voice. “I was given and taken and given again,” she says. “And somewhere in between, I stopped knowing if I was ever truly chosen.”

From growing up in a palace where safety depended on reading the r...

What does it mean to be after God's heart... while missing the heart of the person standing right in front of you?

In this deeply personal and unexpectedly vulnerable Faith Through Fiction interview, King David—shepherd, warrior, giant-slayer, psalmist—sits down to discuss the relationship he's rarely asked about: his first wife, Michal.

"I fought lions. I faced giants. But loving well? That was the battle I didn't always win."

From the moment Michal saved his life by deceiving her father Saul, to the years of separation when she was given to another man...

What's the difference between a king who falls and a king after God's own heart? According to the prophet Samuel—the man who anointed them both—it comes down to a single response: one yielded, one defended.

In this steady, authoritative Faith Through Fiction interview, Samuel—judge of Israel, voice of God to a nation, mentor to kings—reveals why obedience isn't complicated, just costly, and why Saul's kingdom crumbled while David's endured.

"Partial obedience is not obedience. It is preference disguised as submission."

From the sacrifice at Gilgal where Saul feared the people m...

What do you do when the crown that should be yours becomes the test of whether you truly trust God? In this moving Faith Through Fiction interview, Prince Jonathan—son of King Saul and best friend to David—reveals the journey from palace privilege to surrendered purpose. This isn't just the story of a prince who gave up his throne; it's about a warrior who discovered that "faith is obedience without ownership," that "warfare is decided in the heart long before the battlefield," and that true strength means being willing to be soft. Jonathan confesses how he wrestled between loya...

Hey, friend!

What do you do when the crown that should be yours becomes the test of whether you truly trust God? In this moving Faith Through Fiction interview, Prince Jonathan—son of King Saul and best friend to David—reveals the journey from palace privilege to surrendered purpose. This isn't just the story of a prince who gave up his throne; it's about a warrior who discovered that "faith is obedience without ownership," that "warfare is decided in the heart long before the battlefield," and that true strength means being willing to be soft. Jonathan confesses how...

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What happens when the person everyone expects to lead gets passed over—and the person no one took seriously gets chosen instead? In this raw and transformative Faith Through Fiction interview, Eliab of Bethlehem—Jesse's firstborn, King Saul's scribe, and David's antagonist—confesses the moment that shattered his world: when the prophet Samuel looked him in the eye and said, "The Lord has rejected him." This isn't just a story about sibling rivalry or wounded pride. It's about a man who measured his worth by titles, who urged his father to stone his stepmother Nitzevet, who di...

What would you do if saving your marriage meant risking everything—your reputation, your safety, even being misunderstood by the very person you were trying to protect? In this breathtaking Faith Through Fiction interview, Nitzevet of Bethlehem—wife of Jesse and mother of King David—reveals the night she disguised herself as her servant Rhea, the pregnancy that resulted in public shame, and the years of silence that followed. But this isn't just a story of deception; it's a story of intercession. Nitzevet stood between her husband and the lie that said God's grace had limits. She carried shame that w...

What would you do if God chose the child you refused to acknowledge as your own? In this stunning Faith Through Fiction interview, I sit down with Jesse of Bethlehem—father of King David and grandson of Ruth—for a raw conversation about reputation, spiritual warfare, and the devastating moment when the prophet Samuel asked, "Are these all the boys?" Jesse's answer reveals a painful truth: he didn't consider David his son. From growing up under the weight of his Moabite grandmother's legacy to letting fear of others' judgment cloud his decisions, Jesse confesses how he valued reputation over rela...

Hey, friend!

It’s Anna with God’s Power Stories. Welcome to Heart Check, a supplemental reflection series where we pause, dig deeper, and apply the truths from our latest GPS episode to your own life.

If you’ve ever found yourself trying to hold everything together, striving to control outcomes, or wrestling with releasing what you can’t fix, this one’s for you.

In Episode 078: “Loosed: Finding Freedom When You Can’t Control the Outcome,” we shared how peace begins the moment surrender replaces control. In this Heart Check, my co-host Lisa Bosse and I invit...

What if the very thing you’re gripping so tightly is what’s keeping you from peace? In this heartfelt episode of the Faith Through Fiction miniseries, I open up about how writing Loosed—book three in The Lambswool Chronicles—became a mirror for my own struggle with control and surrender. Like Michal, the daughter of King Saul and wife of King David, I discovered that faith isn’t about forcing doors open but waiting to see which ones God unlocks.

Through the writing process, I realized that “letting go” isn’t spiritual passivity. It’s active trust. It’s believing that...

What if the storm that nearly broke you became the very thing that birthed your ministry?

In this deeply moving conversation, I sit down with Amy Joob—author, speaker, coach, and founder of Prayer Force Ministries—to talk about what it means to truly arise from grief. Amy’s story is one of profound loss:

All in just two years.

Yet amid wave after wave of sorrow, she discovered something extraordinary: God’s presence never left. T...

Hey, friend!

It’s Lisa and Anna with God’s Power Stories. Welcome to Heart Check, a supplemental reflection series where we pause, dig deeper, and apply the truths from our latest GPS episode to your own life.

In this Heart Check, we’re unpacking Episode 075: “When Redemption Finds You.” Anna explored the power of grace that doesn’t erase the past — it redefines it. Redemption isn’t about pretending your failures never happened; it’s about letting God rewrite what shame once owned.

Through Eliab’s story from Lunacy in The Lamb’s Wool Chronicles, we see that eve...

What if the thing you keep replaying in your mind—that mistake, that failure, that moment you wish you could undo—is exactly what God wants to redeem? In this emotionally raw episode of the Faith Through Fiction mini-series, I reveal the heart behind Lunacy, book two of The Lambswool Chronicles. This isn't just a story about David and his brother Eliab—it's about the devastating cost of hatred, the sacred weight of confession, and the miraculous truth that God's grace extends even to what feels unforgivable. I share how writing about David's poor choices and Eliab's murderous rage forced...

Sometimes it's the smallest acts of obedience that open the biggest doors.

In this inspiring conversation with Amy Hartman Rainey, medical researcher and faithful follower of Christ, we dive deep into what it looks like to walk in obedience, both in the lab and in life. With 25 years in clinical research experience and a heart for God’s truth, Amy has seen firsthand how faith and science don’t collide—they converge to reveal the Creator’s fingerprints.

From the breakthrough approval of a rare‑disease drug that saved the lives of children worldwide to her courage in standing for...

Hey, friend!

It’s Anna with God’s Power Stories. Welcome to Heart Check, a supplemental reflection series where we pause, dig deeper, and apply the truths from our latest GPS episode to your own life.

You’ve heard God whisper ‘Go’ in your own life. In this Heart Check, I want to ask you a question: What’s stopping you from taking that step? We’re going to knock out some Scripture together and talk about what obedience actually looks like in real life. This HC Supplement coincides with episode 072. Join my co-host Lisa and me for thi...

What happens when the stories God gives you won't leave you alone—but fear convinces you you're not qualified to tell them? In this vulnerable and inspiring episode, I launch a new mini-series called Faith Through Fiction, pulling back the curtain on my biblical fiction novels and the faith journey that almost never happened. After years of writing, revising, getting an agent, and being on the verge of traditional publication, I walked away from it all—paralyzed by questions like, "What makes you think you have the talent?" and "What if you offend the church?" But God wasn't done. When...

What happens when darkness tries to claim your life but grace refuses to let go?

For this GPS episode, I sat down with Jim Chapin—a nurse, chaplain, and faculty member at The Well Conference for Creatives—to hear his extraordinary story of redemption. From growing up in church without mentorship to descending into addiction and fear, Jim’s journey reminds us how relentlessly God pursues His children.

At the age of nineteen, a night of compromise led to a confrontation with darkness that nearly killed him. Dragged under a car, left unconscious, and haunted by a demon...

Hey, friend:

What if your anxiety isn't really about what you think it's about?

Welcome to Heart Check - a supplemental reflection series where we pause, dig deeper, and apply the truths from our latest God's Power Stories episode to your own life.

In this Heart Check, we're exploring God's supernatural peace versus the anxiety of trying to control what we were never meant to control from Episode 69. Join Anna and me (Lisa) as we have an honest conversation about recognizing whose voice is stealing your peace and how to experience the peace...

Hi, friend:

It's 2 a.m. and you're lying in bed, heart racing, running through tomorrow's to-do list for the hundredth time. School supplies. New clothes. Making sure everything looks perfect. But it's not really about the supplies, is it? It's about that voice in your head—your ex's voice (in my case)—judging every decision, questioning every choice, finding you lacking. Even though he's miles away, he's right there stealing your peace. You've become an invisible puppet, and you didn't even realize someone else was pulling the strings.

In this deeply personal episode, I share my j...

What if the way you approach your goals is setting you up for disappointment?

Discover the life-changing difference between expectations and expectancy in this New Year episode featuring my co-host Lisa Bosse and me. This encouraging Christian podcast reveals why expectancy brings freedom while expectations create stress, using the inspiring example of the prophetess Anna who waited for decades to see the Messiah. Topics include:

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What does it take to recognize Jesus when He finally shows up?

Discover the powerful story of two overlooked witnesses at Jesus' presentation in the temple—Simeon and Anna, elderly saints who waited their entire lives for one moment. This inspiring Christian podcast episode reveals profound truths about waiting, worship, and recognizing God's presence in unexpected ways. Topics include:

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What if almost everything you've been taught about Jesus' birth is wrong?

Discover the shocking truth about the nativity story that changes everything we thought we knew about that holy night in Bethlehem. This research-rich Christian podcast episode reveals how cultural misunderstandings have hidden the real story of Christmas for centuries. Topics include: