God chased down and changed Steve and Amie. This changed the path their family was heading down simply by reminding them that He alone was enough.
Doug and Dyann Kierstead |
Ben and LK Ortiz |
Bobby and Shari Johns |
Monte and Marsha Dunn |
Julie and Mark Nicholson |
Jerry and Lori |
Steve and Amie Bradley |
Marcus and Carol Brown |
Nancy and Mark Rovenstine |
Kyle and Lucina Thompson |
David and Cait |
Mandy and Leonard Bagdanov |
Michelle and Nate Ball |
Nate and Megan Mickish |
Wes and Angie Talley |
Jen and Alex Lesko |
Alissa and Shane Mauldin |
Daniel and Cynthia Costa |
Sheri and Brett Johnston |
Robert and Linda Green |
John and Jeanie Cox |
Wade and Betsy Nowlin |
David and Tara Jensen |
Jim and Judy Wimberley |
Jimmy and Michelle Comeaux |
Kevin and Kelli Mainz |
David and Manuela Acosta |
Rob and Haley Thomas |
Robbie and Teri Vedrenne |
Rick and Michelle Howard |
Matt and Jenn Farlow |
David and Lauren Kinney |
Jared and Leigh Anne Sullivan |
Markus and Mary Kay Jabek |
Neil and Jody Curran |
Scot and Michelle Buchanan |
David and Cait |
Wes and Angie Talley |
Tobin and Christina Miller |
Michael and Melinda Parisi |
David and Denise Renken |
Bobby and Shari Johns |
John and Debbie Wingfield |
Mark and Nancy Rovenstine |
Todd and Julie Anders |
LaDale and Cynthia Buggs |
Chris and Katie Sherrod |
Kyle and Lucina Thompson |
Simon and Katrina Saugier |
Willie and Gigi Hornberger |
Mark and Julie Nicholson |
Nate and Michelle Ball |
Robbie and Teri Vedrenne |
Paul and Kelly Rutherford |
David and Tara Jensen |
John and Jeanie Cox |
Steve and Amie Bradley |
Chris and Michelle Dishman |
Kevin and Kelly Mainz |
Jim and Judy Wimberley |
Dean and Tawney Macfarlan |
Rob and Haley Thomas |
Shane and Alissa Mauldin |
David and Lauren Kinney |
Markus and Mary Kay Jabek |
Ryan and Callie Nixon |
Alex and Jen Lesko |
Jared and Leigh Anne Sullivan |
Selena and Michael Thompson |
Russ and Karen Fleig |
Phil and Beth Brinkmeyer |
Leonard and Mandy Bagdanov |
Glenn and Desiree Newblom |
Michael and Melinda Parisi |
Bobby and Shari Johns |
Brett and Jan Bruster |
Wes and Angie Talley |
Mac and Sophie Macfarlan |
John and Debbie Wingfield |
Brett and Chrisey Billman |
Nate and Michelle Ball |
Mark and Nancy Rovenstine |
Divorce Panel |
Trey and Shera O'Neal |
LaDale and Cynthia Buggs |
Shane and Alissa Mauldin |
David and Tara Jensen |
Jared and Leigh Anne Sullivan |
Jim and Judy Wimberley |
Steve and Amie Bradley |
Griffin and Kami Stroope |
David and Lauren Kinney |
Rick and Michelle Howard |
Glenn and Desiree Newblom |
Markus and Mary Kay Jabek |
David and Tara Jensen |
Brett and Jan Bruster |
Bobby and Shari Johns |
Ryan and Callie Nixon |
Steve and Amie Bradley |
Testimony- Brian and Morgan Buchek |
Testimony - David & Tara Jensen |
Blended Family Panel |
Testimony - Greg & Jennifer Sutherland |
Testimony - Jacob & April Neely |
Troy and Julia Bussmeir |
Nick and Rachel Klein |
Mike and Shelly Ahlemeier |
Matt and Andrea Walker |
Luis and Kaylee Caceres |
Graham and Stacey Robbins |
Andy and Jenny Marsh |
Jared and Leigh Anne Sullivan |
Griffin and Kami Stroope Testimony |
Testimony |
Divorce Panel |
Testimony |
Testimony |
Testimony- Glenn and Desiree Newblom |
Michael and Selena Thompson |
Testimony- Greg and Emily Goodin |
Re|Engage Large Group Testimony |
Re|Engage Large Group Testimony |
Brandon and Brittani Travelstead |
Re|Engage Large Group Testimony |
Re|Engage Large Group Testimony |
Re|Engage Large Group Testimony |
Martin and Lenore Gao |
Testimony - Shera and Trey O’Neal |
John and Debbie Wingfield |
Alex and Jen Lesko |
Tim and Kalyn Gereg |
Jimmy and Michelle Comeaux |
Jason and Mandy Castro |
David and Robin Howard |
Robert and Linda Green |
LaDale and Cynthia Buggs |
Markus and Mary Kay Jabek |
Brett and Jan Bruster |
Greg and Emily Goodin |
Charles and Karen Bundren |
Testimony |
Testimony - Jared and Leigh Anne Sullivan |
Bobby and Shari Johns |
Testimony - LaDale and Cynthia Buggs |
Re|Engage Spanish Night Testimony - Manuel & Elvia Lemus |
Testimony - Alex and Jen Lesko |
Simon and Katrina Saugier |
David and Denise Renken |
Testimony - Robert & Linda Green |
Testimony - Martin and Lenore Gao |
Shane and Alissa Mauldin |
Testimony - Markus and Mary Kay Jabek |
Testimony - Charles and Karen Bundren |
Testimony - Bobby & Shari Johns |
Testimony - Ivan & Martha |
Testimony - Tim & Kalyn Gereg |
Greg & Tonya Gilmer |
Testimony - Ryan & Callie Nixon |
Paul and Kelly Rutherford |
Nate and Michelle Ball |
Kevin and Kelli Mainz |
Testimony - Greg and Emily Goodin |
Testimony - John and Debbie Wingfield |
Testimony - Shane & Alissa Mauldin |
Brett and Chrisey Billman |
Todd and Alex Wagner |
Teaching - Community |
Teaching- Completion |
Testimony - Markus & Mary Kay Jabek |
Testimony - Dave & Denise Renken |
Robert and Liz White |
Testimony- John and Pam McGee |
Testimony- Charles and Karen Bundren |
Testimony - John & Debbie Wingfield |
Testimony - Greg & Tonya Gilmer |
Testimony - Ryan & Callie Nixon |
Kyle and Lucina Thompson |
Testimony - Jared & Leigh Anne Sullivan |
Testimony - Bobby & Shari Johns |
John Paul and Rena |
Testimony - Paul & Kelly Rutherford |
Trey and Shera O'Neal |
Testimony - Kevin & Kelli Mainz |
Erick and Gina Frank |
Martin & Lenore Gao Testimony |
Tyler and Jenny O'Neal |
Mark and Kathy Thomas |
Peter and Eleanor |
Testimony - Shane & Alissa Mauldin |
Eric and Catherine Couch |
Bill and Ann Daly |
Testimony - LaDale & Cynthia Buggs |
Testimony - Nate & Michelle Ball |
Michael and Stefanie Santiago |
Steve and Natalie Hamm |
Testimony - Brett & Chrisey Billman |
Chris and Charece Robbins |
Testimony - Charles & Karen Bundren |
Klein and Holly Swannie |
Dean and Tawney Macfarlan |
Mark and Nancy Rovenstine |
Testimony - Kevin and Kelli Mainz |
Testimony - Robert & Liz White |
Testimony - John & Debbie Wingfield |
Testimony - Mark & Kathy Thomas |
Testimony - Bobby and Shari Johns |
Testimony - Simon & Katrina Saugier |
Testimony - Shane & Alissa Mauldin |
Teaching - The Importance of Fun in Marriage |
Testimony |
Teaching - Sexual Intimacy |
Rick and Michele Howard |
Scott and Laura DeBow |
Zech and Kim Lumpkin |
Tyler and Jenny O'Neal Testimony |
Scott and Kristen Kedersha |
Bill and Ann Daly |
Bobby and Shari Johns |
Newly and Karen Spikes |
Jon and Kathy Flaming |
Brett and Jan Bruster |
Kyle and Lucina Thompson |
Chris and Charece Robbins |
Brett and Chrisey Billman |
Dee and Roddy Elliott |
Derek and Stacy Braziel |
Greg and Tonya Gilmer |
Adam and Brooke Fish |
Shane and Alissa Mauldin |
Everett and Emily Alexander |
Mark and Kathy Thomas |
Divorce Panel |
Matt and Amy Levy |
Robert and Liz White |
Bryce and Elizabeth Erickson |
Greg and Tonya Gilmer |
Chris and Charece Robbins |
Dru and Amanda Guillot |
Dee and Roddy Elliott |
Warren and Angie Wright |
Derek and Stacy Braziel |
Chris and Dana Adamson |
Jeremy and Mindi Patty |
Bobby and Shari Johns |
Jim and Judy Wimberley |
Kevin and Kelli Mainz |
Brett and Chrisey Billman |
Jason and Mandy Castro |
Kyle and Lucina Thompson |
Greg and Tonya Gilmer |
Dee and Roddy Elliott |
John and Meredith Hall |
Ryan and Callie Nixon |
Adam and Brooke Fish |
Shane and Alissa Mauldin |
Bobby and Shari Johns |
Bobby and Shari Johns |
Greg and Tonya Gilmer |
Robert and Liz White |
A.C. and Debi Ndindjock |
Mark and Nancy Rovenstine |
Bryce and Elizabeth Erickson |
Bill and Kathryn Buntyn |
Nate and Teresa Graybill |
Robert and Lou Ann McMillen |
Dee and Roddy Elliott |
Kirk and Cathy McJunkin |
Adam and Jackie Tarnow - Re|Engage Testimony |
Kyle and Lucina Thompson - Re|Engage Testimony |
Joey and Christian Rider - re|engage Testimony |
Jason and Mandy Castro - re|engage Testimony |
Jeff and Martha Sharrock - re|engage Testimony |
Scott and Kristen Kedersha - re|engage Testimony |
Zech and Kim Lumpkin - re|engage Testimony |
Chris and Charece Robbins - re|engage Testimony |
Robert and Linda Green |
Everett and Emily Alexander - re|engage Testimony |
Bobby and Shari Johns - re|engage Testimony |
Neal and Ann Holford - re|engage Testimony |
Les and Desi Brown - re|engage Testimony |
Simon and Katrina Saugier - re|engage Testimony |
Mark and Nancy Rovenstine - re|engage Testimony |
Chris and Dana Adamson - re|engage Testimony |
Rick and Michele Howard - re|engage Testimony |
Divorce Panel - re|engage Testimony |
Bryce and Elizabeth Erickson - re|engage Testimony |
Dee and Roddy Elliott - re|engage Testimony |
Mike and Laura Labunski |
Robert and Liz White - Re|Engage Testimony |
Eddy and Rachel Badrina - Re|Engage Testimony |
Shane and Alissa Mauldin - Re|Engage Testimony |
David and Denise Renken - Re|Engage Testimony |
A.C. and Debi Ndindjock - Re|Engage Testimony |
Joey and Christian Rider - Re|Engage Testimony |
Scott and Kristen Kedersha |
Jeff and Martha Sharrock |
Neal and Ann Holford - Re|Engage Testimony |
Wes and Brandy Butler - Re|Engage Testimony |
Andy and Jennifer Bailey - Re|Engage Testimony |
Lance and Mandy Sisco - Re|Engage Testimony |
Leonard and Mandy Bagdanov - Re|Engage Testimony |
Blake and Rebecca Holmes - Re|Engage Testimony |
Chris and Dana - Re|Engage Testimony |
Catherine and Tom - Re|Engage Testimony |
Angie and Warren Wright - Re|Engage Testimony |
Teri and Robbie Vedrenne - Re|Engage Testimony |
Tawney and Dean Macfarlan - Re|Engage Testimony |
Brooke and Adam Fish - Re|Engage Testimony |
Judy and Jim Wimberly - Re|Engage Testiomony |
Kim and Zech Lumpkin - Re|Engage Testimony |
Mary and Ted Randall - Re|Engage Testimony |
Katie and Brandon Lokey - Re|Engage Testimony |
Mindi and Jeremy - Re|Engage Testimony |
Lisbeth and Hil Bowman - Re|Engage Testimony |
Meredith and John Hall - Re|Engage Testimony |
Tanna and Rick - Re|Engage Testimony |
Cathy and Kirk McJunkin - Re|Engage Testimony |
Crystal and Anthony Obey - Re|Engage Testimony |
Rachel and Eddy |
Lucina and Kyle Thompson - Re|Engage Testimony |
Adam and Aleks Stewart - Re|Engage Testimony |
Linda and John Berry - Re|Engage Testimony |
Lora and Jeff Strese - Re|Engage Testimony |
Julie and Todd Anders - Re|Engage Testimony |
Cheryl and Jeff Scruggs - Re|Engage Testimony |
Jackie and Adam Tarnow - Re|Engage Testimony |
Ann and Matt Piper - Re|Engage Testimony |
Cindy and Mike Homsher - Re|Engage Testimony |
Julie and Scott Sedberry - Re|Engage Testimony |
Rebecca and Chip Dickens - Re|Engage Testimony |
Missy and David Leventhal - Re|Engage Testimony |
Carrie and Troy Patterson - Re|Engage Testimony |
Sheri and Brett Johnston - Re|Engage Testimony |
Tanna and Rick Wisner - Re|Engage Testimony |
Anna and Kavon Moradi - Re|Engage Testimony |
Many times, in the on again off again two-year separation from my husband, I would tell my friends, “I’m done.” My complaints escalated especially as wounds kept reopening for what seemed like the hundredth time. “I’m done,” became my go-to phrase when the emotions of bitterness and anger overwhelmed me like an avalanche. The hopelessness I felt in our marriage clouded my lens in every area of my life. I was done trying to act like I was okay. I was done wearing my wedding ring. I was done worrying about what others would think. I was done fighting.
I knew we had five kids that wanted and needed stable, married parents, but that was not enough motivation for me to fight another day for my marriage during that time. The slippery slope to divorce felt inevitable. Isolation and anger seemed easier than living in community and having hard conversations.
As I walked through the lonely path of despair toward divorce, “I’m done” became my theme most days. I thought, “I’m done pursuing healthy habits for myself. I can eat or drink whatever I want, who cares. I’m done pursuing healthy relationships, anyone who didn’t think divorce was a forgone conclusion for us would be pushed away from me. I’m done praying for healing for my marriage.” If I prayed at all, I prayed that my kids would survive the consequences of a divorce. I thought pursuing a better future wasn’t worth it. Feeling my emotions was too hard. I would show up each day and grind through my tasks, not wanting to feel anything.
During this time a good friend said to me, “I’m going to pray that you feel God chasing after you. I’m going to pray that you feel like you are the one he leaves the 99 to find.”
Her simple prayer at the time made me very angry. I was exhausted from being “the one.” I didn’t want to be the one that could not have a happy marriage, the one that walked through the world with a lens of bitterness, the one that struggled to sleep every night, the one who cried behind sunglasses driving through carpool. I desperately wanted with everything in me to not be “the one.”
What I did not want was what healed me. Being the one that God chased after became my saving grace. He slowly broke through the bitterness in my heart. As I ran, He pursued my heart. As God chased after me with truth and love, my heart started to soften, and hope started to seep in slowly. Eventually the meaning of my phrase, “I’m done,” changed.
The definition of my daily theme changed in my heart. My thoughts and actions started to change. “I’m done trying to do things on my own. I’m done trying to figure out how to save my marriage. I’m done trying to control how much hurt I would allow in my life. I’m done worrying about the choices my husband makes. I’m done with keeping the doors to divorce open in my marriage. I’m done chasing anything over daily dependence on the Lord.”
As the definition of my theme and phrase changed, my circumstances did not change. My heart changed in the midst of hard circumstances. I was done with circumstances controlling my next steps. This new resolve to relinquish the struggle to be in control gave me the rest, peace, and joy that I needed to finish the battle.
My heart change created a new lens of hope that allowed me to see my circumstances differently. Seeing the fight for my marriage as a battle worth fighting changed me. Asking my husband to forgive me for breaking our marriage covenant changed me. My heart change saved our marriage.
God chased me and found me. He changed us. He changed the path our family was heading down simply by reminding me that He alone was enough. I can now say, “I’m done with pursuing anything but oneness in my marriage. I’m done trying to do all the work in my life on my own. I’m done and I'm so thankful!”
This series contains teachings and testimonies of God's transforming power in marriages at re|engage. re|engage is designed specifically to address needs in marriage by helping couples move towards oneness in their marriage through stories of grace, teaching and small groups. Whether your marriage needs to be reignited, or is in need of a complete resurrection, re|engage is a safe place for couples to reconnect. It is a 16-week experience which includes a time of praise and worship, a teaching or a testimony by a couple who has experienced victory in the midst of hard times, and small group time which follows a specified curriculum. We meet every Wednesday night, 6:30-8:15 p.m. in The Loft (7540 LBJ Freeway @ Park Central, Dallas). Kids Ministry is available with advance registration.