Walk Through Podcast
The Walk Through Podcast shares authentic stories of navigating life’s valleys & victories, highlighting how we find God in the midst of every season of life. Co-hosted by Gianina and Kiley, each episode offers hope and inspirations through real, raw & faith-filled conversations.
Walk Through Podcast
Trusting God in the Midst of Tragedy: A Journey of Redemption
Life’s journey can be unpredictable, often leading us down paths we never anticipated. In this episode, we explore a powerful and moving story that centers around overcoming adversity, facing heartbreak, and discovering hope through resilience. Our guest bravely shares her personal journey through addiction, loss, and the healing power of faith. She discusses the difficulties of her marriage to an addict and the challenges of being a mother navigating through such profound struggles.
The conversation delves into the realities of addiction and the emotional toll it takes not only on those who suffer from it but also on their loved ones. This story captures the complex dynamics of love, support, and the relentless fight for stability in the midst of turmoil. Our guest describes the hardest moments, including the shocking loss of her ex-husband and the challenges of explaining this tragedy to her child, Kingston. Her insights shine a light on the importance of community and finding support during difficult times in life.
Amidst the heart-wrenching narrative, themes of faith and spiritual resilience shine through. She recounts how her belief in God has helped her navigate the painful valleys of life. The struggle with understanding God's goodness in tough moments gives listeners a relatable perspective on grappling with faith. Through raw vulnerability and candid emotion, she communicates the necessity of leaning on community while embracing spiritual truths, echoing a message of hope that resonates deeply with everyone journeying through hardship.
Listeners are encouraged to engage in their healing processes, reach out for support, and recognize the importance of connection and love during times of struggle. This episode is an eloquent reminder that even in the face of loss and despair, hope can blossom, leading to redemption and a renewed sense of purpose. Don’t miss this empowering conversation—take a moment to reflect, share your story, and connect with others who are also walking through their journeys.
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Welcome back to another episode of Walkthrough. I am Kiley and today's conversation is one that is deeply personal, raw, but also full of hope. My guest today knows that journey all too well. She has walked through pain, loss and unimaginable heartbreak. Yet she stands today as a testament to the power of faith, resilience and the beauty of redemption. This isn't a story tied up with a bow. It's real, it's ongoing and it's a reminder that even in our darkest moments, we are never walking alone. I am honored to sit down with my dear, dear friend and co-host, Gianina, as she shares her story of overcoming. So grab a cup of coffee, take a deep breath and join us as we walk through this together. Hello, Gianina, hey.
Gianina:Okay, so I am definitely excited to be sharing my story tonight and definitely nervous just because it is a super raw story, but I think that if it can help somebody or connect with somebody, it's definitely not necessarily I'm not ready to be like oh, it was worth going through everything if it helps somebody.
Kiley:But, it's at least worth sharing if it can help somebody, so yeah, so take a deep breath, grab your cup of coffee, so tell us first, tell us a little bit about you, because you haven't, like, fully actually been introduced yet.
Gianina:So yeah, tell us a little bit about yourself, Remi and Dawson, and so definitely love all of my kiddos and I was actually in a small group last night and we were talking about just introducing ourselves and our families and everyone was like man, my kids are just wild, my kids are crazy, and you can probably relate to this. But it's so interesting when they get in their preteens and their teens where there's not necessarily that wild and crazy anymore and you get to just enjoy their personalities, which I enjoyed Kingston's personality before, of course, but he it's not just like this wild child boy anymore, I see him and he's so wise and he's so sweet and he's only 11.
Gianina:Like, this is crazy, but yeah, so I'm a mom and a business owner and I love to travel. So that's just a little bit about me, awesome.
Kiley:So tell us a little bit. I know that we have talked for a long time about doing this podcast and just really wanting to tell our stories with others and having others tell their stories as well, just so that we can all feel connected in different ways. And so what has been on your heart to share for this?
Gianina:podcast Gosh. Well, so much, so much has happened the last couple of years and basically kind of where my story starts is. I, similarly to you, grew up in church and my faith has always been a big part of my life and I truly can't remember a time before I was saved and before I knew Jesus and I kind of just always remember having the Lord on my side. And then after high school, I did a two year internship at my church and just grew in my relationship with God. And then after that I moved to Tennessee and became a little bit of a wild child, I think, just kind of getting out on my own and exploring the world and living by myself and, of course, being in the music industry. But I never lost my faith, even if, like, I wasn't walking step in step with the Lord. I always believed and I I just I knew he had more for me, but I just wasn't necessarily walking in that at that time. More for me, but I just wasn't necessarily walking in that at that time.
Gianina:And then in my mid 20s, I got married and had a kid very shortly after. In that process of having a child within the first year, I had realized that the person that I had married was addicted to drugs, which was obviously really hard especially being somebody who was like such a strong Christian all my life to suddenly be like how did I, how did I end up like here, how did I end up in a position where I just was so completely unaware of what was happening around me? And I think a lot of times people ask well, like you had to have known, you had to have like seen signs, but truthfully I didn't, and I just was really naive because I loved him and I wanted to make that marriage work, and so I was really naive. And I think that's one of the hardest things about addiction and anybody who has loved an addict, whether as a friend or spouse or family member I think the hardest part is you see them beyond the addiction, and I think that's a necessary part of it, because before they're an addict, they're a human and they are somebody. They're a child of God, they're somebody that the Lord loves.
Gianina:And so I saw just so much potential in him and I've known him since I was in fifth grade, and so I knew him before the addiction. I knew who he truly was, and so it's really easy to think what can I do? Like, what am I doing? That's not enough. Why am I not enough for them to want to change? And so it was definitely a huge battle on my confidence and also navigating being a new mom at the same time. That was obviously a huge journey. I mostly felt like I was just treading water and not actually aware of what was happening around me, because I was just trying to raise my son the best that I could and keep him safe, so that was my number one priority.
Gianina:And then my ex-husband, my husband. At the time he was just making decisions that he shouldn't be making. He had gone to jail and one of the things that was court ordered was rehab. So he did go to rehab and just throughout that time, like seeing the change in him and how God was working in him was really hopeful and thinking that this could change. And then it got worse after rehab and I just had to make a decision one day. Really like what got me there was seeing Kingston become aware because he was almost three at this point and he was becoming more and more aware of, like, what was happening. And the other thing was, you know, we were living in a house where people were coming by to buy drugs or get money or sell drugs, and I just never knew who was pulling up in the driveway. And so for me, my biggest thing was I need to get my child safe. That was number one as a mom. And so I had left that marriage and moved back to Tennessee because he was in a rehab in Michigan and so we had moved up there.
Gianina:And when I moved back, I just kind of went through a rough season where I thought that I was fine. I truly was like wow, I'm handling this so well and I'm just like relieved and I feel like a weight is off my shoulder. And I remember even going to a counselor at a church and he even looked at me and was like I just can't believe how amazing you're doing. I would think somebody that had just gone through what you went through would be in a much more difficult position. And I remember wearing that almost like a badge of honor of like, yeah, man, I'm good, I'm so strong, I got through this and it didn't affect me.
Gianina:And, looking back, it's really because I didn't deal with anything and I just swept everything under the rug and I I never dealt with what was actually happening and so, like I said, just that feeling of treading water, it just kind of continued. So fast forward a couple of years and I met my amazing now husband and we got married about two years after we started dating and he definitely Well, first of all was night and day because he was a police officer. So I kind of like went from one extreme to the other and we joke about that sometimes and I'm just like, well, I guess I just can't get away from the jail, but you know, there's a good part of it and a bad part of that.
Gianina:Yes, yes, visiting for totally different reasons, but it was just really inspiring to see how he was with Kingston. And I remember being so nervous when we started dating because I was like what if this doesn't work out? And you know Kingston's heart's going to be broken. It's like through all of this I was never really concerned with my own well-being or my own heart. It trust me with Kingston's heart and that is so important to me even now. You know, as we're going to get into my story, you'll know why that's something that I've held on to for so long. But even during times when my husband and I were dating and we'd like break up and get back together, I just remember the Lord saying like you can trust me with Kingston's heart, like I got this, I care, I love him and I care about him, and so that has definitely helped. And we ended up moving a couple hours away to be closer to my husband's children and we found a really amazing church that we started going to and serving in and building community, and it was like everything was kind of starting to just fall into place and putting that life behind me and just starting to really move forward. I feel like in what we had and in our lives.
Gianina:And then in 2023, so this was about two years into our marriage, almost exactly two years I get a phone call while Kingston is at school. I had just broken my foot and I'm sitting on the couch with my foot elevated and my friend had to drop Kingston off at school because I couldn't drive. And I get a phone call from my ex-husband's father and I remember just looking down at the phone and it was seven o'clock, which is five o'clock their time in Washington, and I was like wow, like this is early, you're calling me super early. And he's like well, I have some news to tell you. And he had told me that Corbett, who is my ex-husband, was shot and that they weren't expecting him to make it. And it was so hard, first because my ex father in law was always just a strong person who made everybody laugh and just always wanted to encourage everybody, and he was fine on the phone until he told me. And then, once he told me and I got quiet, I just he broke down and so it was real for him.
Gianina:Yeah, I think for sure.
Gianina:So that was obviously like a very shocking situation and it's one of those things where, to be honest, I always kind of prepared for it but nothing really prepares you for that.
Gianina:Like I, I always literally would hold my breath when I'd get a phone call from anybody in his family because it's like, okay, he's either in jail or he overdosed or something happened, you know, and so I always knew that it was a possibility. But when I got that phone call it was, like I, the shock and the emotion that came over me was a lot. And I remember, like I said, I had broken my foot and I was sitting on the couch and I don't even remember how I made it to the floor, but I just started bawling from school, like how am I going to process this with him? This is going to absolutely shatter him, because even though he hadn't seen his dad in a couple of years, I mean, kingston and his dad were like two peas in a pod and he thought that he hung the moon there His dad was like his superhero, and so yeah.
Gianina:I spent probably the next gosh four hours however long it was just crying out to God like how am I going to tell Kingston? You're going to have to help me with this and my husband came home because I called him and told him what happened. And he came home and I can't even imagine how uncomfortable this was for him, but I was just like falling in his arms, like I was just hysterical. Falling in his arms Like I was just hysterical. And I think partially where this came from was all of those emotions and feelings that I never dealt with when I ended my marriage, like everything that I never healed, like came crashing down all in one moment, like all of the trauma, all of the you know, especially going through a second marriage. I think one thing that I learned is I was not perfect, you know, and I think not to make any excuses or anything for my ex-husband or what he, what we went through but I think while I was going through that situation, I really felt like a victim a lot and I blamed him a lot for everything that happened. And then kind of getting remarried and seeing some of the same patterns of fighting and things that I was like you know what, maybe, like some of this, is me, and so just feeling that guilt that I never took ownership over my part and I never just I think I guess, if I can say it this way, like he, he died carrying the weight that everything was his fault and and that was something that I kind of had to navigate and heal from. And so Kingston came home later that day he got dropped off by my friend, and my friend I had told her what happened and she went and got him a chocolate bar and when he came home he was like so excited that he got this candy bar. I just I honestly I don't even I don't remember how I told him. I think I told him his dad had been in an accident or there was an accident, you know, because I didn't want to say like your dad was shot, and so I just I just said that there was an accident and something happened and your dad's in the hospital and I don't think that he's going to make it and we have to go to Washington so that you can say goodbye, basically, and I mean you can just imagine Kingston was like hysterical. It took hours to calm him down. It's so weird because once I calmed him down, he asked me he said did my dad get shot? And like gift of just, he just knows things. And I think that had to just be the Holy Spirit, like calming him and like telling him before he had to find out in a different way. So we ended up flying to Washington and Kingston was. You know, it was very hard in the hospital seeing his dad that way and they confirmed that he had no brain activity and so Kingston got to say goodbye, which I think was a really important thing.
Gianina:A lot of people were kind of like, are you sure you should take him? But I just knew that if Kingston didn't go, it was not going to be a good situation later on down the road. So definitely thankful that we went and honestly I don't remember much of that year. After that I feel like I truly I don't. I don't know if it's shock or grief or PTSD or some kind of trauma, but I remember very, very little little of 2023, which I guess is probably a good thing. But it's like all of a sudden I woke up and it was January 2024. I truly don't remember a lot of what happened and what's crazy is even going through my phone. Sometimes I'll scroll back from pictures and literally my phone goes from March 2023 to January 2024. It's like I lost like eight months of my life.
Gianina:Yeah, it's so weird. So, anyways, we get into 2024 and we're like, okay, we're going to put 2023 behind us, we're done, like no more. And actually like March was such a bad month for us because, you know, it's the month I broke my foot, it was the month Kingston broke his arm the year before that, and then, of course, it was the month that Corbett died, and so Kingston and I were like you know what? We're just going to do February twice. And so, yeah, we did his, celebrated his birthday twice, we celebrated Valentine's Day twice, and we just completely ignored March. And so we oh, I forgot to mention this part too, but a month after, see, this is me forgetting all of 2023.
Gianina:A month after Corbett died, his mom died, and so that was like another big loss that Kingston had to deal with was his grandmother passing away, and so it was really tough, because Kingston was like I just, I mean, he was nine. No, he was nine, okay, so he's 10, he turns 11. So, yeah, he was nine at the time, and that's very heavy, it's a lot for a nine-year-old to carry, and then, in October, one of his friends passed away in a car accident, and so it was just a super, super, super hard year for him. And then in 2024, you know, things kind of finally start to wind down and it seems like life is getting on the right path.
Gianina:And then in June we lost Kingston's grandpa, and that I mean obviously losing his dad was very, very hard, but his grandpa was like his best friend and so that was a huge loss and, honestly, his grandpa was like a second dad to me also. He always loved me as his own, even after the divorce. He cared about Kingston, he cared about our whole family, and so it was a really, really hard loss for everyone and, as you can imagine, also for Kingston's aunts and uncles, and you feel the heaviness that everybody's feeling at that time, because it was just the whole family just was having loss after loss after loss.
Gianina:And so yeah, june was very, very hard, but we ended up going to Washington for his memorial and it was just really good for him to spend time with his family and be with everyone.
Gianina:And I think if we have learned anything through this is just how short life is and part of me like I hate that Kingston has to know that at such a young age, but I truly believe that God is teaching him something that, like he's already so wise beyond his years and just this, like I truly hope that it helps him never take life for granted, because, yeah, so that obviously it's. It's been a rough couple years, but just learning how to trust God through it. And I remember, especially after my ex-husband passed away, I was really struggling because of the way that it happened and not having any answers. We still don't know who did it and just I don't want to say trusting God's goodness, but you know, in the Bible where Jacob is wrestling with an angel and it says that Jacob wrestled with God. And I felt like I was in one of those seasons where I wasn't necessarily questioning God, like I've always loved him and I've always been faithful as far as trusting in him and knowing that he's real. But I got to a season where I was like, okay, god, you're going to have to show me your character, because right now I'm confused. I just everything that I thought that I knew about you I don't know if I know that right now and so I just I'm gonna need you to, like, truly reveal yourself to me in ways that I haven't even experienced before. And so I wrestled with God a lot and just went back and forth. And I wrestled with God a lot and just went back and forth and prayed and asked for answers. And I just truly think that God is so patient with us and I don't think that when we go through things and we ask him to show us his heart, that he's disappointed in us. I think he wants to have those opportunities to share things and I think it's tempting to be like gosh just when I thought things were going good, my whole world falls apart. And I think for a while I did have that perspective. But now I kind of switched my thinking and I'm like you know how faithful is God that every he waited, you know, he made sure that I was solid in my foundation and my relationship with him. I was back in church, kingston was back in church. You know I had an amazing husband that was supportive and was there for Kingston through it, and we weren't just by ourselves, you know. And so, yeah, as hard as it was, just knowing that God was in it even in the hardest time is really helpful and then just seeing his heart with Kingston. I think and you probably know this as a mom too it's like when we see God work in our kids' lives or we see our kids learn something about Jesus, it's like we learn it with fresh eyes. We learn it for the first, learn it with fresh eyes. We learn it for the first time in so many ways. So, just kind of seeing his grace in Kingston's life and I mean Kingston, he definitely has questions and he struggles and even now he's like, you know, I don't understand why all of this had to happen to me, why, why did God? He said why did God choose me? Why is this happening to me? And I just I looked at him because he actually said that last night too, and I just said you just need to know God didn't do this. This is not God do this to you, but he this is full on the enemy did this to you, but God is going to use it for good. And so just remembering that and, truthfully, the song Firm Foundation has been such a like anthem I mean, I have so many songs that have been an anthem for my life over this time, you know like Firm Foundation, it's like how grateful am I that my foundation was in the Lord when this happened, because if not, I don't think that I would still be here At least not as strong.
Kiley:I think there's definitely something to be said about finding beauty in the ashes. And when you mentioned Kingston, asking like why is this happening to me? Why did God choose me? I know that you know our family suffered a lot of loss over a few years and Reese kind of had the same questions Like know that, you know our family suffered a lot of loss over a few years and Reese kind of had the same questions Like why does this keep happening to our family? Why is God doing this? And the only thing that I could tell her is that you know, this is not something that God wanted to happen. This happens because there's sin in the world and there is, you know happens because there's sin in the world and there is. You know there's. There's something that does not want us.
Kiley:It doesn't want good for us but, you can believe that God is going to show up, he's going to walk with us, he's gonna, he's gonna bring glory to his name through all of this. So I'm thinking, with your story, kingston being such a young age when all of this has happened to him, think of how ordained he already is.
Gianina:And as he grows up.
Kiley:Through his life, he's going to have such a testimony to tell other people, and so those stories that he's going to tell people, that testimony that he's going to give, is going to lead more people to God tell people.
Kiley:That testimony that he's going to give is going to lead more people to God. So this life is hard and it wasn't promised to be easy. Of course, it wasn't the way it was intended for us to be, because God wants us to be in relationship with him and relationship with other people. But I truly believe that he is. He's not sitting sitting there rejoicing when this stuff happens, like he cries with us. He feels that pain because it happened to his own son. You know he was separated from his son for three days. He, he, was not in relationship with his son for three days and every emotion that was felt with that he feels with us.
Kiley:And so, you know, the one of the things that I like to focus on is that and while it's sad to focus on this a little bit just because this is my earthly, you know humanly, self is like this life is temporary, but we are secure in our knowledge that there is life beyond this physical life. And you know this is and it's, it's hard and it's it's, it's sad, but it can also be so beautiful and it can be, so rewarding.
Kiley:And you know, you, you, I know that you're still going through it, you're still processing those emotions, but how have you felt God in this situation? Because I know there's been a lot of hurt and there's been a lot of heartbreak, but you know if somebody else is going through this as well. You know how have you found God in the midst of all of this?
Gianina:Well, I think that one thing that is really beautiful is just seeing how God redeems all things, and if you think about.
Gianina:Even death, in a way, is such a redemption story, because the purpose of life, you know, when God created the earth, is for us to be connected and for us to be in communion with each other and to be connected to one another.
Gianina:And because of sin we were separated and death is ultimately going back to the original plan where we are in connection with the father. And so even in this, just that redemption story, I have to remind myself of that. And then I would say I don't know if you remember this, but I had shared how Kingston has always been so fascinated with heaven, ever since he was a baby, like, really young. He would just ask so many deep questions and he would have dreams and visions of heaven and like things that I never thought of or ever experienced. And I remember having this fear of like. Why is he so obsessed with heaven? Like is God going to take him soon? Like is something going to happen? And so just thinking about that him soon, like is something going to happen, and so just thinking about that, like how God set up the stage for his life to where, when he faced so much loss, he knew where they were going.
Gianina:He knew what heaven was like and he well, I can't say any of us know what heaven's like, but he at least had an understanding of what heaven is and yeah, and things like that. And so just God's faithfulness has been shown time and time again through this situation and through just all of this tragedy. I think just seeing his faithfulness and everything and seeing his patience, his patience with me, has been a big thing. I feel like a lot of times when we go through things like this, we think we have to put on a mask with God, and I remember even growing up in a church where the belief was like I mean, essentially, if you're sad, you don't have faith that God is good, or you don't have faith that he's sovereign, and so a lot of times we put on this mask with God of like you're faithful and you're good, and all this stuff in my life is amazing, because if I don't think that it's amazing, then I don't trust you. And yes, he is faithful and he's always good, but he's so patient.
Gianina:I read the Psalms and just where David is weeping and he's like God, where are you? How long are you going to let my enemies have dominion over me. How long are you going to stay silent and so just giving myself permission to feel those things and feeling God like, not necessarily even giving me an answer, but just like being there and being like I understand, I connect with you, I'm here, even if I can't tell you why this is happening. I'm here and you know, through this whole season I was also leading worship at church and so singing songs like the goodness of God and all these things that I'm declaring time and time again. I wouldn't say I ever sang those words without truly believing them, but when I would lead worship and lead these songs, I really pushed myself like, okay, I'm not going to stand up on a Sunday and sing about the goodness of God unless I believe it. So, god, you're going to have to show me your goodness right now, because I'm just not here, I'm not feeling it right now.
Gianina:And so, truly, just like his patience with us as his children and that's the one thing I really want to encourage people with is, be real in the season that you're in, god isn't surprised. He's not surprised that you're here and in this situation. And the more you even read the stories of Jesus, jesus got mad, jesus got sad, he was hurt, he was confused. I mean even his last words on the cross, god, why have you forsaken me? You know we read those as this fluffy poetry, but Jesus was probably mad to an extent of like. Really, now you're turning your back. Don't forsake me. I need you. And so, just remembering his patience.
Kiley:Yeah, and I think the beauty of it is that God can handle our anger. He can handle all of that stuff that we throw at him because, like you said, he's patient and he's gracious and if you're upset he understands, and I think it's just making sure that you don't unpack and live there. Yes, that's a big big thing. Yeah, and when you were talking about leading worship, it reminded me of a song that I used to sing, and I used to sing for my college group, and the title of the song is called Because you Are, and it basically talks about how I can't feel you like others around me.
Kiley:I don't kneel or close my eyes when I'm singing, but I'll praise you because I know that you are good, I know that you are all of these things and even if I'm not feeling it this moment, I'm still going to do it because I know that that's who you are. Yeah, sometimes that's all it takes. You know, you don't always, you don't always have to have those profound moments of worship where you're just kneeling on your knees and weeping all the time. Sometimes you know there's things going on that are really hard and you don't feel like doing it. You don't feel like singing, you don't feel like praising him, but you do it anyway because you ultimately know that that's who he is and he is there for you. He's walking with you and he'll be there.
Gianina:Yeah, and. I think, just like standing on those truths.
Gianina:That was a big thing, for me and just saying God, I don't feel it right now, but I know this is who you are.
Gianina:Your word says this, so that this is who you are, because this is what your word says and really, if I can say this, because I know people who are listening are going to be on all different walks of life, but if you don't know your, if you don't spend time reading your Bible, you're not going to know the truth about who God is or who you are, and so when you start to go through valleys, you're going to have a distorted perception of who Jesus is and what he's doing, and that's why you get a lot of these people that you know. No shame for anyone who feels this, but just encourage you to dig a little deeper. If you feel this, it's like when people say, well, god put me through this to teach me this, or God made this happen so that I could achieve this, or God's not going to give me more than I can handle, and it's like that actually isn't biblical at all, or isn't God at all?
Gianina:Because he, I can tell you right now, God did not make Kingston go through this so that he would be a better evangelist one day, Like he didn't make Kingston go through this so that he would be a better evangelist one day, Like he didn't make Kingston go through this so that he could connect with people better. That I mean honestly.
Kiley:That would be such an evil God to take one life to benefit somebody else's ministry but if you turn it in a way that says, okay, God didn't necessarily make this happen, but how?
Gianina:can.
Kiley:I use it to glorify him. You know what can I learn? Not that he's teaching me a lesson, but okay, this has happened. So what do I take from this?
Gianina:Yes, or like where is he in this? What is he going to do with this? Or even, if we don't see it, saying okay, god, I know that this has happened and it sucks and I know you didn't cause this, but I trust that you're going to turn it around for my good because your word says that that's a promise, so I'm not. It's again going back to Jacob wrestling with the angel, like I'm not leaving until you bless me because you've promised blessing or you've promised that you're going to turn it around for good. Yeah, just standing on that word.
Gianina:I know we kind of talked about this last episode too, but like making sure that you open yourself up to community, because I know at least the first year I didn't do that and it it caused for a lot of hurt because I expected people to be there for me that weren't, and I mean people are going to let you down, people are going to fail you and people are going to walk away because it's uncomfortable for them when you're going through something. And it's not necessarily that they don't care about you, but like people really suck at handling grief Like they just do.
Kiley:I agree. You know, there's a lot of times when you, just you, just you, don't know what to say, you don't know what to offer you. You say, can I do anything? And they say I don't really know. And you say, can I do anything? And they say I don't really know. And you know, you always hear about, like, don't ask what you can do, just say I'm going to bring you this meal tomorrow or I'm going to do this for you tomorrow, instead of asking, you know, permission and one of the things to just kind of backtracking a little bit.
Kiley:Sometimes it takes time for God to reveal himself in certain situations, so it could be days, it could be months, it could be years, and so what I would like to encourage people to do is to not stop, you know, praying for him to reveal himself, and sometimes it may not even happen this side of heaven, and that's a hard concept to grasp, and I just you know there's a lot of things that have happened in our lives too where it's like I may not never know the reason why, and maybe it's not up to me to understand it, and maybe it's not up to me or it's not for me to know, but I just have to believe that one day and I'm so solid in this thinking is that one day. That one day and I'm so solid in this thinking is that one day, everything will be made right again.
Kiley:Yeah, oh for sure. You know it may not be immediate, but one day it will be. And I just I rest on that knowledge and it just kind of makes all of the pain and the suffering you know somewhat bearable knowing that this is not going to last forever. Yeah, definitely.
Gianina:And I think if I can just end on one note is, chances are, if we have people listening to this, there's somebody affected by addiction in some way.
Gianina:And I remember when Corbett was in rehab reading that it was like one in four people struggle with some type of addiction, and when he was going through rehab it truly was one of those things where there was doctors there, there were people who were homeless there, there were people who were therapists there, and it's just like realizing that addiction doesn't discriminate against people.
Gianina:And I think, if I can speak as somebody outside of addiction, just to say that you're cared about and you're not a disappointment, and there are people who love you and care about you and just want to see you get better. And so there's no shame if you're listening to this and you're like man, I've just hurt a lot of people and that could have been me in that situation or this could be the path that I'm on and I just I've hurt too many people to go back now. I just want to encourage you. It's never too late. As long as you have breath in your lungs, it's not too late. And then, on the flip side of that, if you're somebody who is faced with knowing people who are addicted to drugs or alcohol or other things, just remembering that they're a person first before their addiction.
Gianina:And.
Gianina:I just want to encourage people to pray. Let me see this person the way that you see them, lord, because God cares so much about them and they're just as much a child of God as we are. We're not any better just because we don't deal with a certain thing, and so just showing that mercy and that grace to other people, I think if I, if I can encourage anybody to just take a step back and like look at people as more than an addict and as more than what their sin is, and look at them for just like their people first, they're all a son or a daughter or a father or a mother or a cousin or a friend, and they have somebody who cares about them too. Yeah.
Kiley:And it's important to remember that everyone is created in God's image. So every person, like you said, every person that you see, has God in them. You know, like you said, he loves them, he created them. You know, like you said, he loves them, he created them, and so it sometimes it's hard to see that because they're doing things that you don't agree with, but it's it's true and it's a constant reminder for us in our family and for me myself. It's like, okay, I may be really upset right now or this, this may be hurting me a lot, but they are still created in god's image and god loves them just as much as he loves me yeah and yeah it's, we have a, we have a, we have a redeeming grace for sure.
Gianina:Yeah, definitely that's been like my, my word, all of this is just redeemed, like god can redeem all things, and so just just trusting, trusting yeah.
Kiley:Well, thank you so much for sharing your heart and sharing your story, and I hope that it encourages people who are listening. If you are somebody that is struggling with this or in any capacity, if you're struggling yourself with addiction, or if you're a friend or family member of somebody who's struggling, reach out to your community and just pray that God would reveal himself in that situation. We're so happy that you are walking alongside us in these stories and in this journey. We hope that you would continue to be encouraged by all of the amazing stories that are to come.
Gianina:Thank you for walking through this with me today. I know my story isn't easy to share, but I also know that God's goodness is found even in the hardest moments. If this episode spoke to you, I'd love for you to share it with someone who might need to hear it. And be sure to tune in next week. We have an incredible mama joining us who is sharing straight from the trenches. Her son just had open heart surgery and she's walking through this valley in real time, trusting God with every step. You won't want to miss it.