Giving Up Control & Asking for Help

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Into the journey of your podcast today, I'm gonna be talking with Martha Ellis, and I cannot wait for you all to meet her and get to learn more about her. Good morning, Martha. How are you today? Good morning. I'm doing well. Thank you. Thank you for inviting me to be here. I'm kind of humbled and and a little anxious, I have to admit.

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It's totally OK, totally OK. We're just gonna have a conversation. Tell us a little bit about you.

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Well, I was born and raised in a little town located in the very southeastern corner of Wyoming, just north of where Interstate 80 crosses into Nebraska on a ranch. And so I came from a ranching family. I actually live in the home that my grandparents homesteaded back under the Homestead Act. So I'm Swedish immigrants. Came out here and settled some brothers and sisters.

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So there was a lot of extended family, but under that Homestead act, and so I actually live in my grandparent's home that they build and it was they built on as they had money and finances. So it started as kind of a log cabin and the logs are still in some of the walls, but it was very tedious work because the lumber was quite a ways away and it was all done by wagon and horse teams and everything. So that's and I'm a divorced.

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ces, but I moved back here in: 1990

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I love that, and that's such rich history, especially when you talk about the log cabin and using wagons to bring everything in. I don't think anybody today would even think about those things. But just I'm sure that it means a lot more to you, just knowing all of the hands-on love and hard work and dedication that your family put into even putting your home together. I'm sure it brings a lot more value to you. Well, there's deep roots for the community and their faith was an integral part otherwise. I don't think they when you hear.

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and they founded a church in: 1905

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And as the community developed around the railroad when the railroad came and so it and there was some brothers that married sisters. And so there was a a very large extended family. And I think that was part of the reason that they were able to endure was their faith and they were surrounded by others that held them up in a in a strong community.

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I love that. I love that. Let's talk a little bit about perseverance and faith. You know, as you think about your journey, what has that been like for you? Like just knowing who you are today? Have you always known or what was that journey for you? I I I didn't always know, but I was. I'm so blessed and so thankful to have grown up in a really solid Christian home. I came to know Jesus as my Lord and say well as my savior at an early age because we had strong biblical.

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But biblically based children's program. So I grew up hearing the word, hearing the stories um and such faithful people who served to make sure that it was passed down to generations. And so I came to know Jesus and then I remember there being such a strong youth program and I got involved in we had were part of a Rocky Mountain conference of churches.

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And they had youth rallies then for the entire conference. So there was just this very solid time of emphasis on the word, emphasis on sharing your faith. And I begin to take leadership roles and I don't really know. I'm, I'm a type A driven personality first born with perfectionist tendencies, I always say. But I just, I don't know, it wasn't something that I felt like my parents.

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No, I think I I really like those because, but it's the writing of the word and and and then it's kind of in your mind during the day. If you do it in the morning, if you add. The other thing was I'm a morning person. So yeah, I like to do it that way, but I also like to end it that way. But to say oh, you have to have it in the morning or your day's going to be shot is I just we can't do that. God is a personal God and he lays in personal, individual ways and we need to give him the space.

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To do that.

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Exactly. And I think that's the most important key, is giving him that space and the intentionality. And so if people are like, Oh my gosh, I love listening to Martha, I want to connect with her. Where can they connect with you even after the show?

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Mail it, study with martha@gmail.com all one. That's what I use for my interactive Bible studies to communicate with people. I'll be starting a new one.

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January it's they're usually limited in size, but you can people can sign up for them when by just contacting me through that. And they're advertised, are not advertised, they're publicized on beloved truth.

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Um, you can look up the beloved truth community. I believe is the best way to see those right now. And they usually post studies all the time. But they're they also have these interactive studies and people leading studies. But my e-mail, they're welcome to connect with me on via e-mail study with martha@gmail.com.

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I love it. I love it. Martha, I really appreciate your time and these wisdom Nuggets that you've given us today. I'm encouraged to be like ohh, my goodness, I can do more. It's OK. I don't have to fix it all because that's always been for me, being a fixer and being in control. So I could relate to so much of that. So I just appreciate you coming on and sharing your story with us and giving us these Nuggets that you've learned along the way. I believe it's going to help a lot of people. And so we just want to thank you for your time and I would love for you to pray us out if that would be OK. Absolutely, because I just.

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I was amazed at how God orchestrated even this opportunity. And because he's been laying on my heart, Martha, there's a there's some stories you need to be telling, but it's very hard for me to open up and and that way. So this has been a tremendous blessing and a growth opportunity for me. And we have no idea what God has in store when when we just step out. And that's the blessing because he always does above and beyond what we could imagine. So Heavenly Father, thank you.

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Thank you. Thank you for your presence and your presence in each one of us through the Holy Spirit. When we know Jesus Christ as savior and I thank you that you've given us your word, you haven't left us to try and figure out who you are. And yet even as much as we seek after you, we can never fully understand an infinite God. But thank you that you've said if we seek you, we will find you. It doesn't mean we're going to ever find all of God.

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But you give us what we need to take the next step. And you're always so faithful. And over and over in scripture we see that pattern of take the step, step out in faith and God will meet you there, and then he will have you step out in faith again. It's never a process that ends until we get to heaven. But we thank you that it's all dependent upon you. What you did for us through Jesus Christ on the cross, paying the penalty that I could never pay, and how we thank you and.

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Raise you that as a result of that you've sent your Holy Spirit to dwell in believers and give us the power we need to do what you call us to do. Continue to bless this ministry and to speak to those who have deep needs. Because all around us are hurting people and we want to be your hands, your feet, your way of reaching them, but only to connect them with the true source. And that will always be you. Thank you. And we praise you in Jesus name.

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Hey, man.

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Amen.

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