In the bleak aftermath of unspeakable tragedy, it is faith that dawns as our beacon of survival and healing. Faith, by its very nature, is about trust, hope, and a belief that God is in control. It allows us to seek solace and strength in something greater than ourselves, and it provides a comforting balm for our wounded hearts. Both of our guests this week faced heartbreaking circumstances that could have shaken their faith beyond repair, but each of them chose to wait and see what God would do in their lives as they healed from their scars and faced a new way of living through their pain.  

Nicole Avant is an author and film producer who grew up around the music business. Her father, Clarence Avant, was known as the Godfather of Black Music, and as an executive in the music business, he furthered the careers of jazz legends like Sarah Vaughn and Jimmy Smith, and was a sought after mentor for artists like Jamie Foxx, David Geffen, Whitney Houston, and others. Nicole’s family life was steeped in music and in faith. It was the faith she would cling to when tragedy struck twice—first, the devastating loss of her mother to the hands of a gunman who invaded their home, and then, the loss of her father shortly after. Author and speaker Gary Miracle unexpectedly found himself on his deathbed in the emergency room, with a 1.7% chance to survive the night. A series of small miracles lined up, and though he ultimately lost all four limbs, Gary’s life was spared, inspiring MercyMe’s hit song, “Say I Won’t.” 



Links, Products, and Resources Mentioned:

Jesus Calling Podcast

Jesus Calling

Jesus Always

Jesus Listens

Past interview:  The Beathard family

Upcoming interview: Rachael Lampa

 Operation Christmas Child



Nicole Avant

Clarence Avant

Sarah Vaughn

Jimmy Smith

Jamie Foxx

David Geffen

Whitney Houston

Bill Withers

“Lean On Me”

 Philippians 1:11 NIV

 Think You'll Be Happy: Moving Through Grief with Grit, Grace, and Gratitude



Gary Miracle

“Say I Won’t”

 septic shock

 ECMO machine

 Depression

www.garymiracle.com

No More Bad Days



Interview Quotes:

“If I need to understand myself, I always go to a song.” - Nicole Avant 

“I always go back to the music because you don't feel alone. You never feel alone.” - Nicole Avant 

“The first scripture that my mom made me memorize was Philippians 1:11, ‘May you always be doing those good, kind things which show that you are a child of God, for this will bring much praise and glory to the Lord.’ And that was kind of my mantra.” - Nicole Avant

“My faith was everything to me during the experience [of losing my mother]. It does not take the pain away, but it does help you move through the pain. I was taking it day by day, and then it became, ‘Oh, Lord, minute by minute, minute by minute, give me today.’” - Nicole Avant

“Something that took me years to learn, but I'm grateful that I learned it before this [tragedy], is forgiveness really has nothing to do with condonement.” - Nicole Avant 

“What a beautiful thing that you could change your thinking and you could use your imagination. And if you use it wisely and ask for help from the divine, you're going to be okay.” - Nicole Avant

“I want to spend my whole life telling people that God is good and begging people to believe that God is good and convincing people of that, and then when something traumatic happens to me, still living my life like He is really, really good.” - Gary Miracle 

“I want to fight for life. I want to learn what it means to live and not just be alive.” - Gary Miracle

“I'm still here and I'm still alive and I'm still present, and now I get to gladly say that I am in prosthetic legs and God's grace has been so sufficient and so good for me through this season.” - Gary Miracle 

“I get to say that there were only setbacks in my life because I thought they were setbacks in that moment, but looking back, they weren't setbacks at all. Christ was still working out my story and I just wanted it to be a lot faster and happen sooner than He wanted it to. So I had what I call setbacks, but Christ calls them next steps.“ - Gary Miracle

“Be vulnerable enough to tell just one person who you really are, because what I've learned right now in my life is through the sharing of my struggles, both visible and invisible, I've never been more loved in my entire life when I thought I would be judged for all of that.” - Gary Miracle

“I believe that there is going to be a day that I am going to be running down the streets of gold with my brand new legs, with my son Ellis, side by side, and I can't wait to meet him and I can't wait to be there. And I can't wait to meet all of you all there as well. So join me in chasing Jesus.” - Gary Miracle 

________________________

Enjoy watching these additional videos from Jesus Calling YouTube channel!

Audio Episodes:     https://bit.ly/3zvjbK7

Bonus Podcasts:     https://bit.ly/3vfLlGw

Jesus Listens: Stories of Prayer:  https://bit.ly/3Sd0a6C

Peace for Everyday Life:     https://bit.ly/3zzwFoj

Peace in Uncertain Times:     https://bit.ly/3cHfB6u

What’s Good?     https://bit.ly/3vc2cKj

Enneagram:     https://bit.ly/3hzRCCY

________________________ 

Connect with Jesus Calling

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 Pinterest

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In the bleak aftermath of unspeakable tragedy, it is faith that dawns as our beacon of survival and healing. Faith, by its very nature, is about trust, hope, and a belief that God is in control. It allows us to seek solace and strength in something greater than ourselves, and it provides a comforting balm for our wounded hearts. Both of our guests this week faced heartbreaking circumstances that could have shaken their faith beyond repair, but each of them chose to wait and see what God would do in their lives as they healed from their scars and faced a new way of living through their pain.   <a href="https://thinkyoullbehappy.com/">Nicole Avant</a> is an author and film producer who grew up around the music business. Her father, <a href="https://open.spotify.com/artist/7lffJlv0nRl0sIsHDmo0SB">Clarence Avant</a>, was known as the Godfather of Black Music, and as an executive in the music business, he furthered the careers of jazz legends like <a href="https://open.spotify.com/artist/1bgyxtWjZwA5PQlDsvs9b8">Sarah Vaughn</a> and <a href="https://open.spotify.com/artist/5GXruybcLmXPjR9rKKFyS6">Jimmy Smith</a>, and was a sought after mentor for artists like <a href="https://open.spotify.com/artist/7LnaAXbDVIL75IVPnndf7w">Jamie Foxx</a>, <a href="https://open.spotify.com/artist/4MHz2XUNNGuttl6Yj9OHeA">David Geffen</a>, <a href="https://open.spotify.com/artist/6XpaIBNiVzIetEPCWDvAFP">Whitney Houston</a>, and others. Nicole’s family life was steeped in music and in faith. It was the faith she would cling to when tragedy struck twice—first, the devastating loss of her mother to the hands of a gunman who invaded their home, and then, the loss of her father shortly after. <a href="https://garymiracle.com/">Author and speaker Gary Miracle</a> unexpectedly found himself on his deathbed in the emergency room, with a 1.7% chance to survive the night. A series of small miracles lined up, and though he ultimately lost all four limbs, Gary’s life was spared, inspiring MercyMe’s hit song, “<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UhTHgaCjTJs">Say I Won’t</a>.”    Links, Products, and Resources Mentioned: <a href="https://www.jesuscalling.com/podcast/">Jesus Calling Podcast</a> <a href="https://www.jesuscalling.com/books/">Jesus Calling</a> <a href="https://www.jesuscalling.com/books/jesus-always/">Jesus Always</a> <a href="https://www.jesuscalling.com/books/jesus-listens/">Jesus Listens</a> Past interview: <a href="https://www.jesuscalling.com/podcast/freedom-and-forgiveness-after-tragedy-casey-c-j-tucker-beathard/"> The Beathard family</a> Upcoming interview: <a href="https://rachaellampamusic.com/">Rachael Lampa</a> <a href="https://www.samaritanspurse.org/what-we-do/operation-christmas-child/?utm_source=Podcast-Jesus-Calling&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=Podcast-Link"> Operation Christmas Child</a>   <a href="https://thinkyoullbehappy.com/">Nicole Avant</a> <a href="https://open.spotify.com/artist/7lffJlv0nRl0sIsHDmo0SB">Clarence Avant</a> <a href="https://open.spotify.com/artist/1bgyxtWjZwA5PQlDsvs9b8">Sarah Vaughn</a>  <a href="https://open.spotify.com/artist/5GXruybcLmXPjR9rKKFyS6">Jimmy Smith</a> <a href="https://open.spotify.com/artist/7LnaAXbDVIL75IVPnndf7w">Jamie Foxx</a> <a href="https://open.spotify.com/artist/4MHz2XUNNGuttl6Yj9OHeA">David Geffen</a> <a href="https://open.spotify.com/artist/6XpaIBNiVzIetEPCWDvAFP">Whitney Houston</a> <a href="https://open.spotify.com/artist/1ThoqLcyIYvZn7iWbj8fsj">Bill Withers</a> <a href="https://open.spotify.com/playlist/37i9dQZF1E8MCos7CCEVQl">“Lean On Me”</a> <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Philippians+1%3A11&version=NIV"> Philippians 1:11 NIV</a> <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Think-Youll-Be-Happy-Gratitude/dp/0063304414"> Think You'll Be Happy: Moving Through Grief with Grit, Grace, and Gratitude</a>   <a href="https://garymiracle.com/">Gary Miracle</a>  <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UhTHgaCjTJs">“Say I Won’t”</a> <a href="https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/23255-septic-shock"> septic shock</a>  <a href="https://www.mayoclinic.org/tests-procedures/ecmo/about/pac-20484615"> ECMO machine</a> <a href="https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/depression#:~:text=Depression%20(also%20known%20as%20major,sleeping%2C%20eating%2C%20or%20working."> Depression</a> <a href="http://www.garymiracle.com">www.garymiracle.com</a> <a href="https://www.amazon.com/No-More-Bad-Days-Perfection/dp/1684514193">No More Bad Days</a>   Interview Quotes: “If I need to understand myself, I always go to a song.” - Nicole Avant  “I always go back to the music because you don't feel alone. You never feel alone.” - Nicole Avant  “The first scripture that my mom made me memorize was Philippians 1:11, ‘May you always be doing those good, kind things which show that you are a child of God, for this will bring much praise and glory to the Lord.’ And that was kind of my mantra.” - Nicole Avant “My faith was everything to me during the experience [of losing my mother]. It does not take the pain away, but it does help you move through the pain. I was taking it day by day, and then it became, ‘Oh, Lord, minute by minute, minute by minute, give me today.’” - Nicole Avant “Something that took me years to learn, but I'm grateful that I learned it before this [tragedy], is forgiveness really has nothing to do with condonement.” - Nicole Avant  “What a beautiful thing that you could change your thinking and you could use your imagination. And if you use it wisely and ask for help from the divine, you're going to be okay.” - Nicole Avant “I want to spend my whole life telling people that God is good and begging people to believe that God is good and convincing people of that, and then when something traumatic happens to me, still living my life like He is really, really good.” - Gary Miracle  “I want to fight for life. I want to learn what it means to live and not just be alive.” - Gary Miracle “I'm still here and I'm still alive and I'm still present, and now I get to gladly say that I am in prosthetic legs and God's grace has been so sufficient and so good for me through this season.” - Gary Miracle  “I get to say that there were only setbacks in my life because I thought they were setbacks in that moment, but looking back, they weren't setbacks at all. Christ was still working out my story and I just wanted it to be a lot faster and happen sooner than He wanted it to. So I had what I call setbacks, but Christ calls them next steps.“ - Gary Miracle “Be vulnerable enough to tell just one person who you really are, because what I've learned right now in my life is through the sharing of my struggles, both visible and invisible, I've never been more loved in my entire life when I thought I would be judged for all of that.” - Gary Miracle “I believe that there is going to be a day that I am going to be running down the streets of gold with my brand new legs, with my son Ellis, side by side, and I can't wait to meet him and I can't wait to be there. And I can't wait to meet all of you all there as well. So join me in chasing Jesus.” - Gary Miracle  ________________________ Enjoy watching these additional videos from Jesus Calling YouTube channel! Audio Episodes:     <a href="https://bit.ly/3zvjbK7">https://bit.ly/3zvjbK7</a>  Bonus Podcasts:     <a href="https://bit.ly/3vfLlGw">https://bit.ly/3vfLlGw</a>  Jesus Listens: Stories of Prayer:  <a href="https://bit.ly/3Sd0a6C">https://bit.ly/3Sd0a6C</a>  Peace for Everyday Life:     <a href="https://bit.ly/3zzwFoj">https://bit.ly/3zzwFoj</a>  Peace in Uncertain Times:     <a href="https://bit.ly/3cHfB6u">https://bit.ly/3cHfB6u</a>  What’s Good?     <a href="https://bit.ly/3vc2cKj">https://bit.ly/3vc2cKj</a>  Enneagram:     <a href="https://bit.ly/3hzRCCY">https://bit.ly/3hzRCCY</a>  ________________________  Connect with Jesus Calling <a href="https://www.instagram.com/jesuscalling/">Instagram</a> <a href="https://www.facebook.com/JesusCalling/">Facebook</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/Jesus_Calling">Twitter</a> <a href="https://www.pinterest.com/Jesus_Calling/?eq=jesus%20calling&etslf=5858"> Pinterest</a> <a href="https://www.youtube.com/c/Jesuscallingbook?sub_confirmation=1">YouTube</a> <a href="https://www.jesuscalling.com/">Website</a>

Millions have been encouraged and inspired by the words of the #1 best-selling 365-day devotional "Jesus Calling." Listen to real-life stories of faith as told by those who have experienced the power of living in His presence.

Jesus Calling: Stories of Faith

Millions have been encouraged and inspired by the words of the #1 best-selling 365-day devotional "Jesus Calling." Listen to real-life stories of faith as told by those who have experienced the power of living in His presence.

Jesus Calling

In the bleak aftermath of unspeakable tragedy, it is faith that dawns as our beacon of survival and healing. Faith, by its very nature, is about trust, hope, and a belief that God is in control. It allows us to seek solace and strength in something...

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