Rescue Story

On today’s episode, we are going to hear from Jessika Birchfield. Jessika and I met in college and became what you might call “instant besties.” I wanted to bring her on the show today to share her own rescue story of how God took something really tragic and made it beautiful.  Jessika experienced a miscarriage last summer that left her and her husband devastated and somewhat angry at God. But through faith and trusting in the Lord’s will, Jessika became a vessel to share the story of how God is still good even in the midst of unexpected loss.

Hi y’all, I’m Kelsey and I want to welcome you to the Rescue Story podcast. This is the storytelling podcast. What kind of stories you may ask? Stories of rescue. Stories of redemption. Stories of restoration. Stories of hope in a dark time.  All stories from people who have gone through trying and heartbreaking circumstances. Stories from people who trusted in God’s faithfulness and allowed Him to rescue them from their pain. Stories from people who realized that God could write a much better story for them if they would surrender their hurts and their hearts to Him.  You may be wondering how I came up with the name of Rescue Story. During the summer of 2019, I was thick in the throes of grief. That time allowed me to latch onto worship music in a way that I never had before.  I felt that God was being silent in what I was asking Him to do for me and I turned to music as my way of hearing God. Little did I know that praise and worship music would become my solace when I just couldn’t bear to open my Bible anymore or to even pray. Several songs became near and dear to my heart during those lonely summer months, but once I started back to work in the fall I began to really hear the lyrics of “Rescue Story” by Zach Williams. You may already know the lyrics,  but the song points to the idea that the Lord rescues us, picks us up from our ashes, fights our battles, hears us, and ultimately never gives up on us. These lyrics hit me like a ton of bricks one day and I just clung to them like a healing balm for my soul. That song became my anthem. I mean it says that God was writing our pages before we were ever born! Doesn’t that offer us some encouragement when we are tempted to write our own stories and fill our own pages with the things that we want? Around the same time, I took a tear filled drive with my sweet friend and mentor, Holly. We were in her car and I was just sobbing and having a major breakdown. She was giving me gentle advice about my situation and she said some words that became etched into my brain forever. She told me in a gentle, tough love, Big Sis kind of way the following: “Kels, you keep waiting for God to deliver you from this situation and fix it, but God has RESCUED you from this.” At the time, those weren’t the words I wanted to hear and if I’m being totally honest, a big part of me still doesn’t want to hear them. However, the word that stood out to me was rescue. God rescued me. God heard my cries. He brought me from death to life. He rescued me in the pits of my despair. We all have a rescue story to share. A time when things seemed hopeless and all joy was gone. Some stories hurt more than others, but all of our stories are written by the author of the universe.  How cool is that? Here on the Rescue Story podcast, my goal is to share powerful stories of the work God is doing in the lives of believers. God is a god of rescue, redemption, and restoration and He is faithful in ALL things. I have been a firsthand recipient of His faithfulness and His goodness and I want to be able to give others a voice to share their own experiences. No matter what season of life you are currently in, I pray that you will find peace and encouragement through the rescue stories shared each week .He is faithful in all of His ways and He is ready to rescue us from any situation and redeem it for His good and His glory. It’s a painful process and a road filled with brokenness and heartache, but God wants us to let Him rescue us.  Each week, you’ll hear from people with their own rescue story to share. Stories of tragedy, miscarriage, depression, abuse, death, sickness, divorce, job loss, and pain. Not only will you hear their own personal stories, but you will hear the glorious story of how God rescued from their situations and healed their hurting hearts. Whatever your situation, God is a god of peace, a god of love, and a god of grace. He’s here to rescue you. What will your rescue story be?