I don’t know about you, but sometimes I have to work through a process to make peace with my past. I have to ask myself, “How can I make sure I don’t get stuck here? How can I move forward?”

Maybe you’ve even felt like parts of your past are looming over you and that heartbreak is a part of your story. Do you feel like you are stuck? Well, that’s what we are going to talk about today with my friend Pat Layton. 

In this episode, we are talking about how we can break free from our past, how to find and feel purpose in your life, how to find the right people to support us as we’re navigating the healing journey, Pat’s book Healing a Woman’s Heart, and much more. I always enjoy my conversations with Pat, and I believe you’ll find a lot of support and hope in today’s episode.

Resources mentioned in this episode:

• Pat Layton’s Website
• Pat’s Permission to Pause Podcast
• [Book] Healing a Woman’s Heart: 8 Steps From Your Past to Your Purpose by Pat Layton
• When Abortion is Part of Your Story | Episode 52
• Connect with Pat on Facebook and Instagram
• The Rest Quest
• As a thank you for listening, get your 3 free eBooks!

My Key Takeaways:

1) Don’t believe the lie that the mistakes of our past have stolen any hope for a future. The lie says that our story can’t move forward and that there is no redemption. If you have felt hopeless or stuck, you have probably thought this before. But it’s not true! Regretting a decision you made, experiencing something traumatic, or even making a mistake does not disqualify you from experiencing freedom. The first step towards freedom is to stop believing the lie that you can’t move forward and be healed.  (If you need more encouragement in this area, check out podcast episode #33 When You Don’t Like Your Story.) 

2) Find someone who will respond to your story with biblical truth. It is important to share your story, but it is especially important to share it with someone you trust and will be compassionate but offer sound, biblical counsel. The person you confide in should help you understand the truth about the situation and rid yourself of the lies you find yourself believing.

3) Understand the difference between grief and guilt. Too often we identify unresolved grief through the lens of guilt. We look back at an event and feel guilty about putting ourselves in a situation or guilty about how we did or didn’t respond. However, there are times that what we actually feel is unresolved grief, but the belief that it is your fault is not true. The truth is that through all the pain, grief, and processing, there is freedom on the other side.

(By the way, if you haven’t listened to my previous episode with Pat, titled “When Abortion is Part of Your Story,” I encourage you to also listen here.)

About Pat: