My Chains are Gone Podcast: Recent Episodes
Jill Schilb
Jana Rae speaks about the power and grace of God protecting her and carrying her through her younger years of running from God. She started following God as a single mom and later married a man that cared deeply for her and her daughter but was not a follower of Jesus. Fast forward.. and this past December, Jana Rae got to see 32 years of prayer answered seeing her husband step into a relationship with God.
Daniel grew up in the church knowing the teachings of the Bible but feared truly giving his life to Jesus because of his relationship with his abusive father. Although his classmates and teammates would have thought Daniel’s was successful and happy, depression, anxiety, and addiction to pornography plagued him. In college, God used several new friends to show Daniel grace, love, and compassion. God chipped away at Daniel’s fearful heart and has replaced it with a joy filled Gospel loving heart.
Today, Fred shares his story which includes a season of homelessness. He shares about the rays of light and hope that he and his wife experienced living on the street through the kindness of strangers in Anaheim, California. He attributes God’s grace for sustaining and bringing them to a new place in life with a home and Christian community.
Listen as he gives a face to the homeless and reminds us of the people that our living on the streets in our country.
My Chains are Gone is back! I've had a long break, but I am back and planning to produce an episode a month. Stay tuned!
Today, Rachel shares her story. Rachel is one of my favorite ladies to talk with about theology. She backs up what she believes with scripture and does not shy away from difficult topics. Rachel bravely shares about her experience with same sex attraction, homosexuality, faith, the church, and the faithfulness of God. I hope you are encouraged by the work of God in Rachel’s life.
Today Jake shares his story of how God has sustained him through the significant health issues. He was on the track to teach and be involved in church planting when his life got turned upside down. He shares of his fight for survival through a severe heart condition and failure. He woke up from a coma with a brain injury which radically changed his ability to communicate, move, and perform daily functions. Jake shares of how his life as a follower of Jesus has changed and how his trust in God has deepened.
Kelly watched many of their friends rejoice with positive pregnancy tests while hers remained negative. She shares how God met her in that season of disappointment. A few years later, they were met with a different trial. The daughter they prayed and waited for took a turn for the worse with a diagnosis of Leukemia. Allie is joyfully on the other side of fighting cancer, and Kelly shares of the gentleness of God as she now processes her experience.
Today we hear from Wil, the husband of Rachelle from episode 24. Wil described himself as a lazy agnostic. He was just trying to survive everyday in the midst of an abusive relationship.
Wil had abandoned God. However, just like the prodigal son, Wil experienced the open arms of a loving Father when he called out to him in a place of brokenness.
Listen for the huge turn around that God brought about in his life and how the Lord sustains him now in his daily trials.
Melissa experienced a lot of trauma and brokenness as a young child, including sexual abuse from her great grandfather, an elder in the church. She bravely shares of the deep impact of the abuse. Even in her hardest moments, God never left Melissa's side. As a teenager, she was taken in by a friend’s family which set her on a new track and gave her a vision for foster care and adoption. God is healing and redeeming Melissa and her family for generations to come.
Today Billy shares his journey of faith and how God has shaped him and given him a purpose and drive to pursue preaching and church planting in North Carolina. In some very tender parts of his story, he shares of two crushing experiences in which God faithfully carried him through – a heart-shattering with a fiancé and more recently and raw, a miscarriage with his wife, Hannah.
Kurt loves to share about God’s work in his life. God has been with him his whole life even when he was not paying attention.
Kurt experienced a lot of hurt from his father growing up and remained angry and bitter for a long time. God used a fire, the shattering of his marriage, and his daughter’s invitation to church to start opening Kurt’s eyes to the power of the Gospel in his own life. Kurt is now filled with an inexplicable joy and peace as he trusts in God’s work.
I hope you enjoy Kurt’s story!
Darren shares his story with us today! He shares of his high school experience when the Holy Spirit opened his eyes to the Gospel message uniquely through a History Channel series on the Bible! God continued to pull on his heart through a high school Christian club and then his heart and desires in life completely changed. He had a new lens on life! Darren also takes us through his current struggles with health and the tough lessons he is learning about living in suffering.
Annie met Jesus in the Catholic church as a child. After a short season of running from God in college, God drew her back in through the love of a roommate and some older women as well as a trip to Greece. In a vulnerable part of Annie's story, she shared of being shaken when she was faced with a life or death decision regarding their unborn baby, Luke. She shares of the community and prayers during that tough season. Life was not an easy choice, but it was the right choice.
Sarah grew up in a Christian household, regularly attending church, and hearing the truths from the Bible from an early age. She enjoyed some of the richness of following Jesus but also had conflicting experiences of shame and guilt. She learned to live a double life in which she hid her sin, keeping friends at an arm’s length. It was really interesting to hear what (or who) God used as a catalyst to show her the value of transparency and the freedom of confession in Christ.
David shares his story with us today and tells of two experiences that radically shaped his faith in Jesus. As a 13 year old, David physically was at the rock bottom and he cried out to God for help. Jesus met him and brought him to a full recovery. In his early twenties, David felt a different type of rock bottom. He wrestled with his faith, purpose and value in life. Jesus met him in a different way. David calls Jesus life giving as he recognizes his daily existence is the result of the grace of Jesus.
Named after Mother Teresa, Teresa shares how she felt the weight of living above the line her whole life. She shares of her many spiritual influences as a kid that held her together when her family broke apart and her dad jumped ship to live a homosexual lifestyle. We hear how she was trying so hard to be on God’s good side and how she came to understand grace. Towards the end, Teresa bravely shares about sexual abuse she endured and the slow healing process that God has been orchestrating for her.
Gbenga was taught a lot about the Bible by his family and church in Nigeria. When he came to America and heard arguments against the existence of God, he rejected the idea of God. Fortunately, God did not reject Gbenga. Listen and hear the people and circumstances God used to help Gbenga see that he was real and loved him. Talk about the chills! My arms were covered with goosebumps! Then hear Gbenga share how God is working in his heart now as he looks towards the future.
Rachelle grew up non-religious home yet poking her head in all sorts of religious books. She converted to Mormonism in her early adulthood and shares her experience of diving deep into the religion. Someone close to her eventually shared with her the message of the Gospel and after months of wrestling, Rachelle started on her journey following Jesus. Rachelle also shares about what her experience has been mothering a daughter with special needs. https://www.facebook.com/katherinesfureverfriend/
Tim learned that money and worldly success wouldn't make him free. Knowledge wouldn't make him free. Working harder wouldn't make him free. Only Jesus can set him free. As Tim said, there are many twists and turns to his story but the one theme remains – grace.
Sometimes as adults, we can forget how real and active a teen's faith can be. Charvel’s experience as a believing teen and making difficult choices in light of her faith in Jesus is beautiful. We hear her side of the story with Ethan turning from Atheism to Jesus. Then Charvel takes us on her journey through adulthood – complete with shifting identities, heartaches with being uprooted from places of comfort, disappointment, friendship as an adult, and wrestling with present day doubts in her faith.
Ethan grew up in a loving home but one in which there was no God and no Savior. For his family, religion was a crutch. How did a person growing up thinking that God was a myth come to believe that the Bible is true and Jesus is the Savior of the world?
There is so much brokenness in the world, and unfortunately as a child, Brittany was exposed to abuse that left her feeling insecure and powerless. Brittany shares how a relationship with her heavenly Father has brought her security and value which were lacking in her childhood. A theme in her Brittany’s story is how church community has become family to her and the power of God has been seen through their genuine love, support, but also helping her fight sin and grow in maturity.
In this interview, Kristen shares her experiences of walking with Jesus through struggles of worth and identity. She has wrestled with the messages that people have intentionally and unintentionally pushed on her related to her experiences of being a larger- bodied woman. She happily calls herself "fat" and shares how Christ has helped her to have love for her body. People are made different in color, height, bone width, shape, and metabolism. Let's celebrate the beauty of all of these diversities.
Today I introduce you to my spunky friend Anna, a palliative doctor. Anna tells of her experience growing up in a cult church that made up their own rules apart from the Bible. In her story, she shares how new experiences in college freed her up to discover what God really thought about her. Hear also about how she ended up in Japan for a year as a brand new believer.
Matt is an art professor at Mizzou, a husband, and a father of 4 young kids. We get to hear from a man that has been trusting Jesus and pursing God since he was a child. I was amazed at the deep thoughts that Matt experienced in early adolescents regarding who God was and what his purpose was in life. Matt shares how God has walked with him in his desire for purity in his marriage as well as how God has called him to not just have good theology but live a life of action in this broken world.
Anna, a senior in college, shares how entangled her life was in unhealthy relationships and how she had no direction for life. Eighteen months ago she met some new friends who had a different way of living. Though she was tempted to hide her past, Anna learned (and still is learning) that Jesus takes her as she is and makes her new – leading her down a path that is good and safe. Anna was so brave to share her story and I hope you are blessed by listening.
This interview with Derek was a full circle moment as he was greatly influenced by his friend Bobby, whom I interviewed in episode 9. Derek and Bobby were party buddies until Bobby met Jesus. Derek shares his initial perspective on Bobby’s conversion to Christianity. Then you’ll get to hear of how Derek finally ended up trusting in Jesus too and how it changed his life! I hope you are encouraged by the impact that friends can make on one another and the value of a loving community.
Small town Mississippi girl, Charlee, grew up in a southern society where going to church and calling yourself a Christian is expected even if your life looks nothing like Jesus’ call to live. In that environment, Charlee started having sex at age 13 and spent the majority of her freshman year of highschool drunk. She shares how she fought through unhealthy sexual behaviors and a time of depression after getting married. Christ met her in both of those places and showed her the way to true freedom.
Ryan had everything going against him and many in the early part of his life would be shocked that he now loves Jesus, is married to a lovely believing woman, is fathering 3 children, and serving the God that he once hated. Listen to the story of how God pursued Ryan and ultimately broke the chains of blindness to the truth and feelings of unworthiness. Also, Ryan shares the contrast of his experience of depression and suicidal thoughts as a Christian through the love of a church community.
I’ve known Steve for quite some time and when I married my husband, Steve became my uncle. Steve has won teacher of the year awards in Sedalia and is very well loved by his community. He has more friends on facebook then I could ever dream of!! Today Steve shares his story of his experience running hard and fast away from God. As Steve said, he needed God to hit him over the head with a frying pan to get his attention. Listen and be encouraged of the power and grace of God in Steve’s life.
In last week’s episode, I interviewed Maureen and she shared about some of the tough seasons their family has been through. This week, I interview her husband, Aaron. He shares his internal struggles with pride and confusion during his season of unemployment. He gives a great insight into some of the ways that the man of the house can struggle with leading his family while also depending on Christ.
Life is full of ups and downs. In today's episode we get to hear how faith in Jesus helped Maureen in the ups and downs of her life. She shares how Jesus helped her fight through heartache, panic attacks, anxiety, and anger during several periods of unraveling. It is so important to remember that as Christians, Jesus does not always take the tough seasons away.. most of the time he uses those tough circumstances to draw us close to him and show us his greatness.
Bobby is a talented musician, bold truth teller, a loving husband and a new daddy. In his story, Bobby shares how he was very content living in a lifestyle of selling and consuming marijuana when God’s love for him suddenly broke through. Faith opened his eyes to his reality and need for grace. In the second half of the interview, Bobby shares a very relatable testimony of God’s continued grace amidst his struggles with returning to sin and the resulting shame. I hope you are encouraged by Bobby’s st
Stephanie grew up in an atheist home with a neglectful drug addicted family then got trapped in a horrible abusive marriage. A surprising concussion shook her out of believing the lie that her husband was her only hope. She shares how she woke up to the beautiful gospel message that she could be free and loved always forever. From all appearances, you would never know that Stephanie carried such a past with her, and I am so grateful that she courageously shares her painful story on this podcast.
In her early twenties, Brooke was a skeptic with no direction. She ended up working at a restaurant with 6 crazy Bible believers. Find out what happened next! In the second half of the interview, we dig into the chains that have shackled Brooke: comparison and fight for acceptance. Brooke shares how her history of growing up as a biracial girl in a predominately white community impacted her. Find out how knowing Jesus has made a difference.
Amy is a church planter’s wife, mom of 3 teens, and ICU nurse. She tells us her story which includes battles with drugs, alcohol, and relationships after the tragic loss of her mom early in life. Listen to what caused her to finally see God's love for her. Since then she has spent the next 21 years growing in faith. Through her current health trials, she is very aware that God is in control and good and has been able to see many blessings come out of sorrow and pain.
Lori didn't grow up in church so we hear how she learned about God’s love for her in youth group. Then she got side tracked by an unhealthy high school relationship, and God used a car accident to pull her back to a deeper relationship with him. We hear how a big NO from God lead to a new open door that set her on an adventurous track which continues with her pregnancy of twins! Lori wraps her story up sharing of her current battles with the chains of discontentment and distraction.
Today Barry shares his story about how God got a hold of his life from an early age and the struggles he experienced as a young college student trying to follow Jesus. We get to see how God used the power of community and grace to break the chains of pornography in his life. It is quite moving to hear of the painful damaging effects on their marriage but also the power of forgiveness.
In this interview we get to hear Kim's story of how God set her free from the bondage of sin. She grew up going to Unitarian Universalist churches exposed to all religions but with the understanding that Christianity is the one religion that definitely is not true. In college she found herself depressed, confused, and entangled in cutting and self-harm when Christ intervened, pointed her to truth, and set her free.
Today Jeremy Grove shares his story. Jeremy grew up in a loving home but through a series of events found himself running from God and towards drugs and girls. It wasn’t until he had a run in with the cops and a prodigal son moment with his father that he truly understood God’s grace. We get to hear his continued battle with drug use and how God broke the chains. Then Jeremy beautifully describes the vision that God has given him in moving his family across the globe to Japan. www.grovefam.com
Leanna’s story is one of a little girl growing up going to church and hearing and knowing about God’s love for her, but entering a season of rebellion and depression. She turned to love in all the wrong places, attempting to fill her life with unhealthy relationships, alcohol, and drugs. Finally, she hit rock bottom on a stranger’s bathroom floor, unable to hear or move.. and at that point, she finally called out to the one who could save her.