Trusting God When Prayer Feels Unanswered with Dr. Elsa John

David W Ebel: Welcome to another episode of God Says Yes. My name is David Ebel, and I'm your host. After fifty plus years of ministry, I still have a a heart, a passion to meet people where they're at, to love them where they're at, accept them as they are without judgment. And that includes the people who are struggling. Or they those that love someone who's struggling, and now they're struggling helping them. So we're here for all of you. This is a place without judgment but lots of love. Because that's what God calls us to do is to love. So we're grateful that you're here. And as always, we we bring the best guests we can find, those that we know are real and transparent and honest. And today I've got Elsa John with me, and Elsa's a neat lady. I'm really, really excited about her story, and I can't wait to share it with you. So Elsa, welcome.

 

Dr. Elsa John: Thank you so much for having me. I appreciate it.

 

David W Ebel: Well, I'm grateful to have you here. I literally pray before I pick anybody and invite them. And if I don't have a a good feeling, I just invite the next one. So I got a really good warm feeling from the Lord when when your name popped up. So

 

Dr. Elsa John: Awesome.

 

David W Ebel: I've been waiting for this opportunity. This is exciting.

 

Dr. Elsa John: that's amazing.

 

David W Ebel: So so tell us a little about yourself.

 

Dr. Elsa John: Well, I'll start in the very beginning. I was born in India, raised in New York. That's where I grew up. I sometimes when I get a little passionate about something, my New York accent comes out a little bit and I s talk a little bit fast. And so you'll have to bear with me if that happens. but I was raised in New York. I was raised in a South Indian family. I'm from Kerala, the s very, very south of India. A majority of People are Christians there. So I grew up in a Christian home. There's different denominations and sects of Christianity in the south of India. And but I grew up in a Pentecostal Christian home and went to church four or five times a week, if not more. And church was really all I knew. That was my extracurricular activity. Our community was there, our friends were there. So really there was no need to step outside of that for anything for the most part. And we our culture, if you're familiar with it, if you're listening and you're familiar with the South Indian culture, it's very shame and honor culture. So if you do something good and positive the family wants you to do, then you bring honor to the whole family, cousins, aunts, uncles, grandparents, and extending outward. And if you do something shameful, though, you also bring shame to the whole family. So the pressure that you feel. to perform is immense. So I grew

 

David W Ebel: Wow.

 

Dr. Elsa John: up in that. I didn't know any better. That was norm for me. Now looking back, I can see the intense pressure that I was under. And I hid all my struggles from my parents because I wasn't allowed to not be okay and ask for help. And so my journey with the Lord has a lot to do with healing in those spaces.

 

David W Ebel: So you married kids, anything else?

 

Dr. Elsa John: Yes, I am Mary, 21 years. I met my husband when we went to medical school in Hungary. So I lived in Hungary for a long time in Central Europe and traveled a lot, did medical missions with our local church there while we were in medical school and then moved to Dallas. And then now we live in Oklahoma. have two kids and I homeschool once in a while. Now they're in full time school, but we've done all the different things. we tried hybrid and homeschool and all these things, but now my kids are in school and different stage of life. So yes, busy

 

David W Ebel: yeah.

 

Dr. Elsa John: and still good.

 

David W Ebel: Understand we we have three kids and we homeschooled one of them and you know it's it's each kid is unique and how and how they learn is unique and sometimes homeschool is amazing and sometimes it's not a good choice. So have both kinds of kids. So we understand

 

Dr. Elsa John: Yes. Yes. Yes.

 

David W Ebel: the mine are all grown they're in the in their in their in their forties now. So it's been a while. Yeah.

 

Dr. Elsa John: wow. I'm still helping with bath time, so I'm

 

David W Ebel: No, that but I'm seventy-four, so there's a there's a there's a reason why that's the that way. So

 

Dr. Elsa John: Yeah.

 

David W Ebel: anyhow, what we normally do, with this is a casual thing, like three people on a couch, you and me talking,

 

Dr. Elsa John: Mm-hmm.

 

David W Ebel: and our our viewer listener is the third chair. And so we're just sharing our love with g of God with with our viewers. And

 

Dr. Elsa John: Yeah. Mm-hmm.

 

David W Ebel: so we have some simple questions we always ask. So who were you before Jesus?

 

Dr. Elsa John: I didn't honestly I can't say there was a season before Jesus because I grew up in a home that loved Jesus and Jesus was a part of my upbringing and life. And like I said, extracurricular activities and community, Jesus and Christianity and church was always just a part of it. So I grew up in the church pretty much. but my struggles with the Lord was more in my adulthood because I went through childhood trauma that in included pastors. And so that really tainted the way I saw God, the way I saw religion. And I really didn't in in my teenage years I really didn't want to follow the Lord. And in my young adulthood I gave my life to the Lord, especially af after I met my husband and he was just once he got saved, he just like loved the Lord.

 

David W Ebel: Yes.

 

Dr. Elsa John: And he just made some boundaries for our relationship. And he basically was like, I can't see me marrying someone who is going to be partying and clubbing and smoking and all these things because I was into all of that and he wasn't. so once he drew those boundaries, I kind of had to make a decision, either I'm gonna follow the Lord or I'm not. But I struggled because I know the right thing to do. I know scripture. I know Bible. I can preach it and teach it. But I wasn't living it. I didn't have a relationship with the Lord because this God that I knew and was such a big part of my life had allowed such horrible hurts. And I couldn't resolve that for many, many decades.

 

David W Ebel: So then the next question i is unique in in your situation, but it's when you met Jesus, talking the life change met met Jesus,

 

Dr. Elsa John: Mm-hmm.

 

David W Ebel: how did it how did that happen? How did it change you?

 

Dr. Elsa John: I would say for me, it wasn't a one-time thing or one day thing. It has been a process. So I was saved when I was 13. I got baptized, but that was like the thing to do. All my friends were getting baptized. So the Bible says to get baptized, of course, you obey the Lord. But in my 20s, when I was in Hungary, the Lord really met me and showed that I didn't have actually have a relationship with him. And that challenged me to change that. And so in my relationship with my husband, I made Christian friends and did, different made different choices and that affected my life. I also, the church that we were attending in Calvary Chapel in Hungary was Calvary Chapel Deberson. And

 

David W Ebel: Mm-hmm.

 

Dr. Elsa John: it was the first time that God's word was taught verse by verse, chapter by chapter. I had never been taught scripture like that. I've been preached to and I knew how to repeat that, but I hadn't been taught scripture. So the really the first time that I saw life changing transformation was in my early twenties as I sat under scripture and learned what God's word meant and that you could actually like use it to live and you could make choices based on what scripture said. And that changed, that started my transformation in my early twenties.

 

David W Ebel: Now see that that I I always see in my picture in my mind, there's a beginning of a book, there's an end of the book, and then there's these chapters. And the there's you know, children's faith. God God loves children for their innocence and their faith. And then we get to a willful age where there's a choice to be made. And y you you rebuilt. I'm re

 

Dr. Elsa John: Mm-hmm.

 

David W Ebel: I'm repeating back to make sure I understand. you

 

Dr. Elsa John: Yes.

 

David W Ebel: you rebuilt and you did it very successfully. You

 

Dr. Elsa John: Mm-hmm.

 

David W Ebel: You rebelled all the way, which a lot of people do, I understand. And then and then when you met your husband and were really had to make a decision, am I gonna serve God or not? That's when you you and Jesus met and built a relationship. And it doesn't have to be a lightning strike,

 

Dr. Elsa John: Yes, we began to I began to have relationship.

 

David W Ebel: but it there is a point, a line in the sand where you say, Before

 

Dr. Elsa John: Mm-hmm.

 

David W Ebel: this I wasn't, and because of this I am.

 

Dr. Elsa John: Yes.

 

David W Ebel: And I think that's what we our our culture, our American culture, is into negotiations now.

 

Dr. Elsa John: Mm-hmm.

 

David W Ebel: a little bit of gray here, a little bit of fudging there, I can

 

Dr. Elsa John: Mm-hmm.

 

David W Ebel: do all this but not get it and get away with that. But real love doesn't allow for that. if you fudged on your husband and and did a little bit of this and a little bit of that, that would destroy your relationship.

 

Dr. Elsa John: Absolutely. And that's not true love. Love does not disrespect. Yeah.

 

David W Ebel: And and so when we develop true love with God, then we have that we should have that same ability to love and say, God, you get all of me or none of me, and I'm going to give you all. As of now, I draw a line in this end

 

Dr. Elsa John: Mm-hmm. Yeah.

 

David W Ebel: and say, As of today, I make a decision that I'm gonna serve you. And that's what happened when you went to church and they taught you God's word and you applied it.

 

Dr. Elsa John: Mm-hmm.

 

David W Ebel: You there was a line in this end, there was a change to you. And that's exciting.

 

Dr. Elsa John: Yeah. Yes.

 

David W Ebel: The Bible says the angels rejoice around God's throne when one person makes that choice.

 

Dr. Elsa John: Yes.

 

David W Ebel: So that's a that's a big day. Even though it was tr for in your case it wasn't in my case, because mine was last life's preserver drowning, someone throws it in, you don't say, I'm sorry, I want a blue one. You just grab the life preserver and pull me in. The

 

Dr. Elsa John: Yeah, right. Yeah, that's right.

 

David W Ebel: the greater miracle is the one that God says, I love you, I love you, I love you, I love you. And then you one day you go and I love you too.

 

Dr. Elsa John: Yeah.

 

David W Ebel: Beh and he but he protected you from a lot of stuff. And that's

 

Dr. Elsa John: Yeah, yes he did.

 

David W Ebel: a greater miracle to me than when you're desperate and then you cry out,

 

Dr. Elsa John: Mm-hmm.

 

David W Ebel: it's just as real and God is just as loves me just as much as you. And the people

 

Dr. Elsa John: Yes.

 

David W Ebel: who are watching today, no matter what you've done, whether it's good, bad, or otherwise, we have to come to a point where we say, Jesus, I really want your help. You

 

Dr. Elsa John: Yeah, that's right.

 

David W Ebel: know, when you did say, I really want your help, how did it change your life? Forward.

 

Dr. Elsa John: Well, I performed really well as a Christian. And like I said, I had made a decision in my twenties that I'm gonna follow Jesus and I was serious about it. It made life changes. but back in 20 17 I had a kind of like a crisis. We had gone through years and years of infertility. we had lost some pregnancies along the way. And when my daughter was born in 2011, she was born deaf. And I had these big hits. And in 2017, 2016 December, I had lost a pregnancy. So 2017, I started 2017. I was turning 40 that year. I started 2017 with a list of grievances against the Lord. And it began with why are things things were hard in childhood, right? But I've surrendered that to you. Why are things still hard? Now, now I I'm being obedient. Now I've been following you. I'm in ministry. I'm in leadership. I'm on the worship team. I had my resume list. I call it my my resume to the Lord. Like,

 

David W Ebel: Mm-hmm.

 

Dr. Elsa John: look at all the things I'm doing for you. And then I have my list of grievances against the Lord. Look at the things that you were not faithful in because I still prayed and you were not there for me and all these things. So 2017 was a pivotal year where I came face to face with a real decision to make. I was a Christian. I am a Christian, I followed Jesus, I believed Jesus, and I claim to love Jesus. But in 2017, I wanted to walk away from the Lord because life was hard. And these things that were presented in my life that God wasn't answering these questions or these, He wasn't solving these issues, and they were big and they were godly requests. Wanting to have babies is a godly request. Healing for my daughter was a these are godly requests, and he wasn't answering them the way I expected him to. So I wanted to walk away from the Lord. And as I was battling this, what the Lord asked me and reminded me of is the scripture when the disciples also, all of the disciples walked away. And Jesus looked at his 12 and says, Are you gonna leave me too? And Peter says, Where do we go? You have the words of eternal life. And it just arrested my my rebellion. I was rebelling in my heart and it kind of arrested that. And I had to pause and wait on that. Like, what are my options? Right? We are Worshipping beings. We want, we need to worship something. And we're going to worship either ourselves or what we have, possessions or material. we're going to end up worshiping something if we don't put the Lord where He's supposed to be. And I asked myself, like, what's your option? Are you going to leave the Lord? Because He doesn't answer and heal and give you the things that you're even if it's a godly request. So He

 

David W Ebel: Mm-hmm.

 

Dr. Elsa John: started a work in my life in 2017 that had never happened before. where I for the first time went and got counseling. I was really like spiraling out of control and I had dropped my daughter and my husband off to church and I told them I'll be right in and I didn't go in. I actually went home and tried to drown myself with like a bottle of you know red wine and and I'm I'm just like like what are you doing? This is not how you've lived for 15 years, what are you doing? And in a moment of clarity, I look back and know it was the Lord. The Lord was just like, He told me three words, impress it on my mind. you need help. And I believe you 100% when you were sharing about you got sober in like an instant, because that's the sobriety that I felt for a moment where he said those words in my mind was you need help. And I agreed it even in that moment, I agreed with him. Yes, Lord, I need help. And so I reached out to a Christian counselor and started counseling. And in that year, it was the first time in my life. Like I said, our South Indian culture, we don't ask for help. We don't go to counseling. We don't, we don't get mental health help, anything like that. And so it was the first time that I went to counseling and we started to dig into my childhood and and there were so many unresolved things because I had never gotten help for those things. And My biggest struggle that I found, as a Pentecostal, I know about Jesus. I know that Jesus died for me, no problem. I even get the Holy Spirit. Yes, he's he's God, he empowers, I get it. But when it came to God the Father, I had a big problem with God the Father. I just felt so angry, like I felt anger coming in my in from my gut out, you know. And so that's when my counselor was like, We, you need to. We need to address this. We need to address what why you're so angry at God the Father. And so that started the dive into what happened when you were a child. Like I wasn't protected. I wasn't, you know, God promises to protect and he's your shield and he's this and that. And he didn't shield me from things, he didn't shield me from abuse and things like that. That involved pastors who were, I would watch the next day preaching. And so that really I didn't know what to do with all of these memories and thoughts and things like that. And so I have been in counseling since then, but the Lord has done a work that is unlike anything else in my life. And that's when I began to question myself. Like, if you are a true, true Christian, if you claim to be a Christian, you claim to be a Jesus follower, are you believing what the the things that he says, or are you believing the lies of the enemy? Like, how are you living your life? What are you claiming? What are you believing? And

 

David W Ebel: Mm-hmm.

 

Dr. Elsa John: the Lord began to correct those things. in my life starting then. So that was a pivotal, pivotal point in my walk with the Lord.

 

David W Ebel: And because of that you now have a fruitful life.

 

Dr. Elsa John: Yes. Yes. I mean, because of that, that all of this, I mean, my writing, my podcast, my ministry, this is my ministry. It comes from a place of wanting to have believers walk in true freedom, what that feels like. like what is true freedom? Jesus said he came to set you free and free indeed. I feel like we understand freedom, but what does free indeed feel like? What is living in the free indeed? portion of that scripture feel like. And that is when you believe God's word for what it is. And you you actually act on that freedom like we turn on the car or push the button or turn the key, believing that it's going to respond in a way that we expect. And so we have our actions that that we do, it represents what we believe. If we turn on a

 

David W Ebel: Mm-hmm.

 

Dr. Elsa John: light switch, we believe that something's going to happen. So The actions of my life were not showing that I was believing God. And that began to like it bothered me because then I was like, I'm just being fake now. I'm just being a Christian. But I also don't want to be like just condemning myself, right? Because there's no condemnation if you're in Christ Jesus. So I wanted to make sure that I aligned my belief system and my life to the word to God's word. And

 

David W Ebel: Mm-hmm.

 

Dr. Elsa John: so it changed the way I lived. It changed. It changed my life. It changed my career path. It changed what I enjoyed doing. and so I began to write and publish to share the hope and the freedom that we have in Christ. Even if you have a horrible past, even if you have something that is so shameful, and you know, some things are done to us that we can't control, that's not our fault, but then some things are done by us that we are responsible for and our consequences. And I carried both. I carried things that were done to me that was not my fault. But because of that brokenness, I made choices choices in my life in my late

 

David W Ebel: Mm-hmm.

 

Dr. Elsa John: teens and early 20s that I still carry to this day. And so I had to lay both of those down to the Lord. And so if you're listening, you have the foot of the cross to lay down both kinds of trauma and pain and shame, the ones that have been done to you and the one that ones that have been done by you. God can take both of them.

 

David W Ebel: Amen. That's very true. And that's the reason why this there's a podcast like this. Because

 

Dr. Elsa John: Yeah.

 

David W Ebel: not only was I someone who lived through all that in childhood abuse and and all the other problems, but then I gave my heart to Jesus at 20, and I looked around and saw how many people had not heard about Jesus also. And

 

Dr. Elsa John: Mm-hmm.

 

David W Ebel: they were living in misery, and they didn't even know there was hope. And then you then you run into people who say, I've been raised in church, I'm in church all day, every day. And they're just

 

Dr. Elsa John: Yeah, yeah.

 

David W Ebel: as miserable as as I was, because they had an inherited faith. They didn't have a personal faith. They had grandma's faith. They had mama's faith. They didn't have their own faith. And

 

Dr. Elsa John: Yeah. And that's right, yeah. Yeah. Mm hmm. Mm-hmm.

 

David W Ebel: and that leaves us mad at God because God doesn't answer when you s when you do it by By Pony Express, he wants to talk directly to you. He wants your personal relationship.

 

Dr. Elsa John: That's right. Right.

 

David W Ebel: And and that's that's what changes lives, and that's

 

Dr. Elsa John: Mm-hmm.

 

David W Ebel: that's what you're telling, and that's excit that's exciting. I'm grateful you're here. Anything else you want to

 

Dr. Elsa John: Yeah. Yeah, me too.

 

David W Ebel: add to that before we do go to the golden nugget?

 

Dr. Elsa John: I used to believe, and this is for Christians, I used to believe that, you know, God is good. Cause to say God is not good is like blasphemous. So you as a Christian, you're not gonna say that. But here's the thing. I used to believe that God is good, but he's not good to me. And that to me part, that's the part that needed healing. Like God is good, but is he good to you? Do you believe that he is actually good to you? And do you believe that he is for you and not against you? because he is. That's scripture. So you have to choose to believe scripture and say he is for you and not against you.

 

David W Ebel: Well, one of the things that I I discovered along the way is that God has three answers. Yes, no, and wait.

 

Dr. Elsa John: Mm-hmm. That's right.

 

David W Ebel: And and our culture doesn't like to wait at all. We want we we live in a microwave world. We we want 30 seconds and bing. You know,

 

Dr. Elsa John: Yeah.

 

David W Ebel: we we we we don't even want to tell wait a minute to heat up our coffee. We want to get it now. And yeah, and the

 

Dr. Elsa John: Yeah. Yep. I call it drive through Christianity. Yeah.

 

David W Ebel: problem with that is that you get what you paid for.

 

Dr. Elsa John: Yeah. Mm-hmm.

 

David W Ebel: You know, you're you're satisfied for the moment, but you don't have the long haul.

 

Dr. Elsa John: Yeah.

 

David W Ebel: And when when you struggle, when you're going through things, keep in in one of my I was born with birth defects, so I I live in pain. And

 

Dr. Elsa John: Mm-hmm.

 

David W Ebel: I've had people say, You wouldn't be in that pain if we laid hands on and prayed for you.

 

Dr. Elsa John: Mm.

 

David W Ebel: Well, all right. So I have been prayed for and anointed with every kind of praying oil you can think of.

 

Dr. Elsa John: Mm.

 

David W Ebel: But whale oil and ten W forty.

 

Dr. Elsa John: Yeah.

 

David W Ebel: I've been whispered to and slapped, everything in between.

 

Dr. Elsa John: Mm, mm.

 

David W Ebel: I've been prayed for every which way you could think of, in more languages than I'll ever understand. You know what? God didn't say yes. Does that mean God's bad mad at me? No. Paul was bow-legged and had medical issues.

 

Dr. Elsa John: Right.

 

David W Ebel: And and God used him just plenty. I had to come to a place of realization that we can use by faith all those things that. But he's our he knows the end from the beginning.

 

Dr. Elsa John: Right.

 

David W Ebel: And I would, I can say this now at 74. I would not be as good a servant in telling how good God is had he went boom and I was perfect, physically perfect.

 

Dr. Elsa John: Yeah, I agree. Yeah.

 

David W Ebel: By my suffering, and I wasn't fun suffering, but by my suffering and my commitment to him, God says it, I believe it, that settles it. I I get my answers from the Word of God, not from any other source. not even when I was down in South Georgia and they'd say, Honey, if you got a problem like that and say you're gonna need to forgive somebody, you take some salt and salt go over your shoulder, I forgive, I forgive, I forgive, and that's it. That's not it. That's that's folks tales. We don't

 

Dr. Elsa John: Mm-hmm.

 

David W Ebel: need folk tales. We don't need folk anything. We need Jesus. And that's our truth.

 

Dr. Elsa John: That's right. That's right. Yeah.

 

David W Ebel: And that's why your story is so valid, is because you've lived it. And now you can tell people

 

Dr. Elsa John: Mm-hmm.

 

David W Ebel: it's not about getting it getting yes to everything you want. It's about a God who says yes to you regardless of what you want. Yes, I love

 

Dr. Elsa John: Yes, that's right.

 

David W Ebel: you. Yes, I did took care of you. Yes, I provided for you. And yes,

 

Dr. Elsa John: Mm-hmm.

 

David W Ebel: you got children, just not at the timetable you wanted.

 

Dr. Elsa John: Right. Yeah.

 

David W Ebel: So we all all the things there there. Yes is there. That doesn't make God a yes man, not by any means. He's

 

Dr. Elsa John: Mm-hmm.

 

David W Ebel: not Santa Claus, thankfully. He doesn't just go gimme, gimme, gimme. He gives us what we need and when we need it. That's huge. That's a huge thing. And in

 

Dr. Elsa John: Mm hmm. Mm hmm. That's right. Mm-hmm. Yeah. Yeah.

 

David W Ebel: our culture, that's really a shocking thing. I I have

 

Dr. Elsa John: Mm-hmm. That's right.

 

David W Ebel: led people to the Lord and said, now what do I do with all that time that I've been worrying?

 

Dr. Elsa John: Mm-hmm.

 

David W Ebel: The easy answer is learn how to pray. Open up your Bible and get to use it. Go find a church that teaches and preaches the word of God and

 

Dr. Elsa John: Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.

 

David W Ebel: apply it and hang around people who are already doing it.

 

Dr. Elsa John: Yeah.

 

David W Ebel: If you can do those big four, you're great. And if someone doesn't know where to start, I always tell people to go to the New Testament and read the big four, the love letter of God. Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. But

 

Dr. Elsa John: Mm-hmm. Yeah.

 

David W Ebel: start with John. That's the love book, the book of love. Read it and then go back to Matthew. Read Matthew, Mark, Luke, and then John again with the understanding of what you just read. It will change your perspective of who God is and how

 

Dr. Elsa John: Yeah.

 

David W Ebel: much He loves you and how how willing He is to do anything for you.

 

Dr. Elsa John: Mm-hmm.

 

David W Ebel: That's just powerful. And that

 

Dr. Elsa John: Yeah.

 

David W Ebel: we could do that wherever we're at. Wouldn't you

 

Dr. Elsa John: Mm-hmm.

 

David W Ebel: agree?

 

Dr. Elsa John: Yeah, absolutely. A hundred percent. God's word is quick and powerful and sharper than any two edged sword. So if you want transformation in your life, you have to be in the word. You have to. Like there's no going around that. Like you can't say, I want to drive my car, but gas is too expensive. So I'm not going to put gas in it. I'll put water. No, no, it's not going to work. You still there are still things you have to do. and I'm not saying that as a legalistic, this doesn't change and alter God's love for you, He's gonna love you more or something like that. But for yourself, you

 

David W Ebel: Yes.

 

Dr. Elsa John: have to find out what God is saying to you and to how to live, how to love, how to forgive. And that is gonna cause transformation in your life. And you'll find yourself making different choices, little choices at a time, but cumulatively they add up to big changes in your life.

 

David W Ebel: Absolutely. So now that we've we we've covered all this and and we know that God has done a a remarkable work in your life, we always ask for a golden nugget, something you could leave behind, that

 

Dr. Elsa John: Hmm.

 

David W Ebel: that our viewers and listeners could can mull over, pray about, however they process over the next week or so. What would you would would you like to leave with us to think about?

 

Dr. Elsa John: as a Christian, I have spent many, many years, if not decades, trying to earn respect and honor because of my own personal history of losing respect and losing honor as a child. And I tried every which way to gain that, but the only place that that was is actually restored is at the presence of the Lord. And so what I would leave for listeners as your takeaway for you to think about is where are you finding your honor or worth from? Where are you finding your identity from? is even as a Christian, is it because of how many ministries you lead or how you serve the Lord? where is your identity? Your true joy and fulfillment will only be Complete if you are walking in the things that God has called you to do. Because then it will feel it's not that it's going to be easy. This is not about it being easy or things come easy. Even if it's hard, you will feel the best fulfillment when you're doing the things God has called you to do. And in that, the thing that you were chasing after, that respect, that honor, whatever it is that you're I was chasing after those things. Whatever you're chasing after, you will find that it also gets fulfilled. Like that's how cool following Jesus is. He doesn't leave you empty with the things that the heart things. He doesn't leave you empty. He fills those things up and he allows you to partake in in this in this Christian walk. He you get to walk with the Lord. You get to help other people walk with the Lord. And it is a really beautiful thing. And so There's a fulfillment in that. So that's a challenge I would leave you with. Ask the Lord to show you. He is your wonderful counselor. He will show you in your life where you've been searching for other things or what you've been looking for. And ask him, are you currently doing the thing that he's wanting you to do? Not the things you've been doing for 10 years, but right now, Lord, am I doing or did you call me into this? Is this still what you have for me? Is this the ministry I'm supposed to be in? And if not. Talk to the Lord about stepping aside, stepping down, moving things around, and walk in the thing that He's called you to do. It is really fulfilling.

 

David W Ebel: It is. Amen. Amen. My normally at this point we we'll we'll we'll start with a prayer and then a challenge. But I want to mention one thing. If you take your hand and put it right in front of you, put your finger right in the middle of that hand. This is God this is where God wants you, in the palm of his hand. This is you choosing to be in the palm of his hand. When? When it's easy and when it's hard. When things grip you, When th when you're sick and you can't do it on your own, he never leaves you or forsakes you. He's with you always.

 

Dr. Elsa John: Mm, that's right. Mm-hmm.

 

David W Ebel: He's just waiting on you like a good parent. Don't have a good parent? Well, there's your here's your first chance at what? He

 

Dr. Elsa John: That's right.

 

David W Ebel: goes, He's not gonna goof up like people do, he's not gonna fail. So trust him, place your ch here and say, But I did this before and it didn't work. Well, let's try it again with the understanding of what we're trying to accomplish here. Build a relationship with God through Jesus Christ.

 

Dr. Elsa John: That's right.

 

David W Ebel: Not a building, not what grandma said, but just Jesus said, I am the way, the truth, and the life.

 

Dr. Elsa John: Mm-hmm.

 

David W Ebel: Let him be the truth in your life. And with that, let's

 

Dr. Elsa John: Yes. Amen.

 

David W Ebel: let's pray. Heavenly Father, we praise you and thank you for the privilege we have to to serve you and to share your love with with one another. We're grateful that you love us before we're born. You c you created us and placed faith and hope in us even before we were a twinkle in our parents' eyes. You gave us the tools we'd need for later in our life when we are ready to receive you. We ask, Lord, that you'll touch each of our viewers and listeners no matter what they've gone through, no matter whether it's pain or pleasure, whatever they've gone through, that you've you've always been there loving them. You can't fire you, you can't run from you, you're always there. So Lord, be be real to those that are listening. Reveal yourself through your love and through your Holy Spirit. Help us come to a place where Where we get it and we want to know you for ourselves. This is the one time it's appropriate to be selfish. I want all of God I can get. And Lord, that's what I pray that each of our listeners and viewers would have. A desire, no matter how long you've been trying or how long you've been faithful. I want more of God. Lord Jesus, show me how to get deeper, build a relationship, and to live for you in a way that brings you glory. Brings me peace and hope and changes the world around me so I can impact those the way you've impacted me. So Lord Jesus, we pray that you'll bless them, meet their need, and do whatever you can t to change their lives, to bring you glory, but to change their lives for the good. And Now the follow challenge is always this. You want to know God, seek after him. You want to really know him, seek Jesus. He said he was the way to God. If you really want to know, you pursue. He's already pursued you your whole life. Now you pursue and say, All right, I'm ready. And you don't have to be a robot. God didn't say turn off your brain and give you me here your heart. He wants you to choose with all of you to trust him. And watch what a remarkable thing he'll do in your life. Trust God. Watch the difference, and God will bless you beyond belief. I want to mention that we do have a website that we want to invite you to visit. It's Godsays YesPodcast.com. And that's important. And we'd love you to be there and to see it. And before I forgot and didn't want to didn't want to do that. Also, your book.

 

Dr. Elsa John: Yes.

 

David W Ebel: I well I'm not gonna turn that off till we talk about it 'cause

 

Dr. Elsa John: Ha ha.

 

David W Ebel: it's that important to me. Would you tell us about your book and and your books, and particularly the one that we we can focus on today?

 

Dr. Elsa John: Yes, so I have a devotional, a revised hope devotional. Can I show that? I can show that here. And the Lord as He was bringing me through my own journey of healing, just put it reminded me that I used to write as a teenager. I used to write poetry and short stories, and I had forgotten. and so for decades I didn't write. I didn't even journal. And so recently, with as I was in counseling and the Lord is bringing me through healing and journaling, he reminded me that I used to write and Put it in my heart to write a 28-day devotional. I have a few other things on my website, but this devotional won an award this year, the International Christian Book Award. So that was such a huge, sweet little gift from the Lord. and it's my lessons that I have been taught by the Lord. the difficult things that you go through and then the lessons out of it. So it's not a memoir of all my hard things. We all have our hard things, so I don't need to share my hard things. You can fill in your own, but we all like can use the lessons from it of, you know, who am I in the hard thing? Who am I? Whose am I? Who do I belong to? Am I worth God's time if he's allowing hard things? Am I worthy of his love? you know, who what's my identity? All those hard, hard heart issues. and it's through scripture, the scripture answers all of those questions for us. So that's a devotional that that is available.

 

David W Ebel: All right. Amen. Now we I want you to say the name of your of your website nice and slow so that if people need to jot it down they have time to write it.

 

Dr. Elsa John: Yes, it's called Hopeinink.com.

 

David W Ebel: HopeInink.com. I'm going to look it up right after the podcast. And I hope all of you will. And I invite

 

Dr. Elsa John: Yes. Awesome. Yes.

 

David W Ebel: you to check out God Says Yes podcast as well. Well, this has been a wonderful example of love and action. We're grateful you're here. And we'll have another episode

 

Dr. Elsa John: Thank you.

 

David W Ebel: out soon. So we'll be looking to see you then. God bless you.