In Grateful for COVID, Evelyn Sherwood shares how her COVID diagnosis led to the discovery of lung embolisms and ultimately cancer—an unexpected sequence that reshaped her understanding of grace. What began in fear became a testimony of gratitude, not because illness is good, but because it revealed something that needed to be treated. Her story invites us to reconsider what it means to be Grateful for COVID in light of God’s redemptive work.

We explore how grace meets us in suffering and how lament can lead to deeper trust and peace.

In this conversation, we discuss:

• Evelyn's "Job season" and what it taught her about surrender
• The distinction between grief and lament—and how both lead us to grace
• Practical, everyday practices that nurture gratitude and peace
• How gratitude can coexist with suffering
• Why worship can grow in the middle of hard seasons

If you’re navigating illness, diagnosis, or an unexpected storm, this episode will equip and encourage you to experience grace in the messy middle.

"Hard is hard but God is good."

"I [God] can do more in your surrender that you can do with all your striving.”

"Gather gratitude like a bouquet and give it to Jesus."

Hebrews 4:16 – Approach God with boldness to receive grace

🌿 Evelyn's The Pocket Full of Hope Series 🌿 Shop Evelyn's watercolors and other resources 🌿 Soakstream on YouTube 🌿 Dark Clouds, Deep Mercies by Mark Vroegop

🎶 Evelyn's go-to grace song Goodness of God by Cece Winans + Always on Time by Elevation Worship

Website: evelynsherwood.com Instagram: @evelynshwerwoodauthor Facebook: @evelyn.sherwood

Ep. 25 Divine Detour and Deepened Faith with Lori Ann Wood Ep. 59 Chased by Grace, Marked by Love with Crystal Mayo Ep. 18 Sometimes I Forget with Julie Sunne

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👉🏼Living the Grace Life is the place where real grace meets real life. Host Jennifer Sakata helps bridge the gap between grace as a theological idea and lived practice in everyday moments of faith, encouraging listeners to experience forgiveness, freedom, and trust that they then extend to others.

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“Lord, who are we drawing today?” It’s the question Jessica Claire Bond asked after her artwork went viral—and became the heartbeat behind her illustrated Bible study, A King Washes Feet. What started as a single image quickly grew into a powerful visual series capturing the tension we feel when a King stoops low to wash everyone’s feet.

In A King Washes Feet, Jessica Claire Bond invites us into the radical humility of Jesus—a humility that challenges our comfort and confronts our assumptions. It’s one thing to serve those we love or agree with. But what does it look like to follow Christ’s example when it means loving our enemies, extending grace to those we resist, or embracing people we don’t understand?

Through her thought-provoking illustrations, A King Washes Feet brings the Gospel to life in unexpected ways—pairing individuals like police officers and inmates, victims and offenders, political opposites, and unlikely neighbors. The message is both unsettling and deeply beautiful: Jesus doesn’t withhold His love based on our categories.

In our conversation, we explore the deeper meaning behind A King Washes Feet and how it calls us into a transformed way of living:

• The viral moment that launched the Footwashing Series
• Why we resist God's love for certain people
• The cost—and freedom—of living out the radical gospel
• Letting go of the expectations we place on Jesus
• The tension between familiarity and true surrender
• Who might be missing from our churches—and why

When we picture everyone sitting at the same table—enemies, strangers, and those who have hurt us—it can feel uncomfortable, even impossible. But A King Washes Feet reminds us of this truth, as Jessica puts it: "It's not about who's on the seat, but who's washing the feet."

"The world is hungry for footwashing.”

"Our God knows a different kind of love. Our Jesus has firsthand experience extending love and giving grace to people who betray him in less than 12 hours."

“It's not about who's on the seat, but about Who's washing the feet."

John 13:1-17 – Jesus washes the disciples' feet and commands them to do likewise.

🌿 Jessica's book A King Washes Feet

🎶 Jessica's go-to grace song Center by Abbie Gamboa

Website: saltandgold.com.au Instagram: @saltandgoldcollection Facebook: @saltandgoldcollection

Ep. 36 Don't Hoard Your Healing with Nancy Manassero Ep. 35 Where Grace Intersects Sexual Trauma with Nancy Manassero Ep. 71 How to Live Deeply Loved with Bill and Kristi Gaultiere

🎁 My FREE gift to you: Prayers That Change Us 📩 Subscribe to our newsletter for exclusive content & episode updates ⭐ If this episode resonated with you, leave a review and share it with a friend!

👉🏼Living the Grace Life is the place where real grace meets real life. Host Jennifer Sakata explores how God’s grace moves from theological idea to lived practice in everyday moments of faith, encouraging listeners to experience forgiveness, freedom, and trust that they then extend to others.

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One in four women will have an abortion at some point in their lifetime. Yet so many silently wonder if healing after abortion is truly possible. If you’ve ever carried the weight of shame, regret, or unanswered questions, this conversation offers hope.

April is Abortion Recovery Awareness Month, and in this powerful episode, we answer with a resounding yes—healing is possible. Tonya Bailey Jones, retired Naval Officer and author of Pearls in the Pews, shares her deeply personal journey through multiple abortions, hidden shame, and her eventual path to freedom through God’s mercy and grace.

Together, we explore what it means to step out of hiding, get honest with God, and begin the process of true healing. Tonya offers a compassionate and honest look at the realities many women face, along with the grace that meets them there.

In this episode, you'll learn:

• Why healing after abortion often begins with honesty
• The impact of past wounds on present choices and identity
• Tonya's journey of "unmasking" and finding freedom
• Common misconceptions about grace in abortion conversations
• The importance of grieving in post-abortion healing
• Normalizing grace in the church for women seeking restoration

If you've ever stood at the corner of a hard decision—or carried one quietly ever since—you are not alone. There is grace for your story and hope for your healing.

"Your soul needs the grace of God, but you can't receive it while you keep condemning yourself.”

"The heart of an abortion-wounded woman is grieving and they often don't know it."

“If you can love the abortion-wounded woman to life, you'll love her to keeping the life of her baby."

Romans 8:1 – Living free from condemnation Revelation 12:11 – Defeated by the Blood of the Lamb

🌿 Tonya's book Pearls in the Pews 🌿 Rachel's Vineyard Abortion Recovery and Retreat Center 🌿 Alternatives to abortion and recovery support: Care Net

🎶 Tonya's go-to grace song Thank You for the Blood by Charity Gayle

Website: tonyabjones.com Instagram: @blessed1_t2w Facebook: @thetonyabjones

Ep. 61 Walking in Grace & Other People's Shoes with Neil Matthews Ep. 60 Healing from Life's Deepest Hurts with Kimberly Haar Ep. 54 Grace Cleans the Messy Past with James Early

🎁 My FREE gift to you: Prayers That Change Us 📩 Subscribe to our newsletter for exclusive content & episode updates ⭐ If this episode resonated with you, leave a review and share it with a friend!

👉🏼Living the Grace Life is the place where real grace meets real life. Host Jennifer Sakata explores how God’s grace moves from theological idea to lived practice in everyday moments of faith, encouraging listeners to experience forgiveness, freedom, and trust.

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Do you ever feel invisible—unseen behind the pile of laundry or overlooked in the boardroom? In this episode of Living the Grace Life, we’re asking a deeply personal question: what changes when you truly believe He knows your name? If you’ve ever wondered whether you’ve been forgotten, this conversation is a powerful reminder that you are fully seen, known, and loved by God.

Author and speaker Paige Allen joins us to talk about her book He Knows Your Name and what it means to live from a place of belonging instead of striving. With honesty, humor, and depth, Paige invites us to step out of hiding—from behind performance, expectations, or accomplishments—and into the freedom of being God’s beloved.

Together, we explore how identity rooted in grace reshapes the way we live, rest, and relate to others.

In our conversation, we explore:

• Why names matter and what they reveal about identity
• Paige's experience growing up as a pastor's kid and navigating expectations
• What it means to live like God's daughter (or son) first
• How rest and celebration help us remember who we are
• Why chasing approval leads to isolation and disconnection
• The story of the Bleeding Woman and how her healing speaks to our longing to be seen

Paige Allen is a pastor, speaker, and writer whose hilarious yet deeply vulnerable storytelling disarms listeners and creates space for truth to take root in the heart.

If you’ve ever struggled to find your place or questioned your worth, this conversation will gently remind you of what’s always been true: He knows your name.

"There's something profound about the Lord coming to us and saying, 'Hey, who are you?'”

"We still have to do things. But everything comes across differently when it's flowing from a place of security—that I'm his daughter or son."

“God just loves his kids so much that he comes after us, again and again."

Luke 8:43-48 – The Bleeding Woman receives healing 2 Corinthians 4:7-8 – The treasure of Jesus in earthen vessels

🌿 Chapter One of Paige's book He Knows Your Name

🎶 Paige's go-to grace song Love Note by Abbie Gamboa

Website: paigeallen.net Instagram: @paigeallentexas Facebook: @itspaigeallen

Ep. 30 Growing Secure Attachment with God with Summer Joy Gross Ep. 71 How to Live Deeply Loved with Bill & Kristi Gaultiere Ep. 70 Grace in the Story of Ruth with Mariel Davenport

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👉🏼Living the Grace Life is the place where real grace meets real life. Host Jennifer Sakata explores how God’s grace moves from theological idea to lived practice in everyday moments of faith, encouraging listeners to experience forgiveness, freedom, and trust.

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Where is God in infertility? It’s a question many couples quietly carry as they walk through one of life’s most painful and isolating experiences. With one in six couples facing infertility, the ache is widespread—but often hidden, especially in faith communities. In today’s episode of Living the Grace Life, we gently step into that question: Where is God in infertility, and how do we hold onto faith when answers don’t come?

Author of Difficult to Conceive, Angela Mackey knows this journey intimately. After enduring two tubal pregnancies, one of which nearly cost her life, along with the heartbreak of pregnancy loss and the emotional rollercoaster of IVF, Angela found herself wrestling deeply with God’s goodness. In her most honest moments, she asked the same question so many are afraid to say out loud: Where is God in infertility?

In this grace-filled conversation, Angela shares how God met her not with easy answers, but with His Presence in the middle of grief, confusion, and longing. Together, we talk about how to navigate the tension between hope and heartache, and how faith can remain steady even when circumstances don’t change.

In this episode, we explore:

• The struggle between control and surrender
• The tension between hope and heartache in infertility
• What to do when God's promises don't match your reality
• The healing power of lament and honest prayer
• Practical tools for grieving infertility and pregnancy loss
• How the church can better support those walking through infertility

If you’ve ever wondered where is God in infertility, this conversation will remind you that even in the silence, He is near. And even when the outcome isn’t what you prayed for, His grace is still at work—bringing hope, healing, and deeper intimacy with Him.

"Grace is like manna—enough for the day.”

"I'm bringing you low so that I can bless you, not to harm you. So you can walk out of this changed and closer to me. - God"

“The only way to overcome the darkness is to go to the Lord with our lament and receive His grace."

Genesis 32:22-32 – Jacob wrestles with God 1 Samuel 1:9-28 – Hannah prays for a son Hebrews 12:2 – Jesus endured the shame and suffering of the cross

🌿 Angela's book Difficult to Conceive

🎶 Angela's go-to grace song Abide by Aaron Williams

Website: angelamackey.com Instagram: @rethinkingmythinking Facebook: @angelamackey/ChristianSpeaker

Ep. 57 Finding Grace in Miscarriage and Grief with Ashley Opliger Ep. 13 I Didn't Sign Up for This: Resting in God's Goodness with Sarah Frazer Ep. 42 God, Can We Chat? with Niki Hardy

🎁 My FREE gift to you: Prayers That Change Us 📩 Subscribe to our newsletter for exclusive content & episode updates ⭐ If this episode resonated with you, leave a review and share it with a friend!

👉🏼Living the Grace Life is the place where real grace meets real life. Host Jennifer Sakata explores how God’s grace moves from theological idea to lived practice in everyday moments of faith, encouraging listeners to experience forgiveness, freedom, and trust.

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Fear swept through Washington D.C. during the Beltway Sniper attacks—but inside one elementary school hallway, something unexpected happened.

Today on Living the Grace Life, I’m joined by Cara Shine, author of The Hallway Miracle, to talk about the moment when fear and faith collided. And how even the smallest step of faith can change a life.

Raised in the Jewish faith and bullied by peers, Cara carried deep wounds that made her wary of Jesus. During the 2002 Washington D.C. Beltway Sniper Attacks, she was paralyzed by fear. But inside her school, the teachers seemed unafraid.

A desk calendar. A package of peanut M & M's. A principal's pocket cross.

These small, ordinary items became the unexpected pathway that helped Cara lay down her fear and begin picking up faith.

In this episode, we explore:

• Real-life barriers like racism, bullying, and cultural heritage
• Trauma of living through a public crisis
• Surprising power of small acts of faith
• The Holy Ripple Effect of living out our faith
• The Prayer that changed everything

Cara’s journey included forgiving those who bullied her and leaving behind thirty-year-old scars and the belief that she wanted nothing to do with Jesus—and that Jesus wanted nothing to do with her.

If you’ve ever felt outside the bounds of God’s love, let Cara’s story guide you to your own Heneni, the Hebrew word meaning “God, here I am.”

Cara Shine’s story in The Hallway Miracle shows how even small acts of courage and faith can ripple outward, changing lives in ways we may never see.

"Because I wasn't seeking God, I was vulnerable and anxiety found me.”

"Rob and Sharon had this peace in the middle of chaos that didn't make any sense to me. I wanted it too."

“Because of their genuine friendship, I was influenced by their faith until it became mine."

Matthew 22:36-40 – The Shema Prayer and the Greatest Commandment

🌿 Cara's book The Hallway Miracle

🎶 Cara's go-to grace song Shout to the Lord by Darlene Zschech

Website: carashine.com Instagram: @cshine3 | @carashineauthor

Ep. 61 Walking in Grace & Other People's Shoes with Neil Matthews Ep. 10 Scars of Grace: Embracing Our Woundedness for Wholeness with Russell Joyce Ep. 6 Real Conversations About Anxiety and Grace with Caris Snider

🎁 My FREE gift to you: Prayers That Change Us 📩 Subscribe to our newsletter for exclusive content & episode updates ⭐ If this episode resonated with you, leave a review and share it with a friend!

Living the Grace Life is the place where real grace meets real life. Host Jennifer Sakata explores how God’s grace moves from theological idea to lived practice in everyday moments of faith, encouraging listeners to experience forgiveness, freedom, and trust.

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