Courtney Reissig: Is God Mad At Me?

Sirens wailed, the power went out, and four boys huddled under the stairs while their mom felt the helpless truth every parent dreads: I can’t cover all of them. The tornado missed their house but tore through their town, and later a small voice asked a big question. Courtney Reissig unpacks how one terrifying day grew into a life-giving conversation about God’s character, suffering, and hope.

Chapters

• 0:01 Meet Courtney: Mom, Teacher, Author
• 1:44 The Tornado That Changed Everything
• 3:06 Shelter, Fear, And Childlike Prayer
• 5:20 Is God Mad At Us
• 6:47 John 9 And Honest Parenting
• 9:01 Avoiding Crazy Parent Mode
• 11:15 Control Versus Trust In Crisis
• 13:28 Planting Truths Over Time
• 16:08 Someone To Believe In: Why John
• 18:24 Signs, Not Miracles: Seeing Jesus
• 21:15 Slow Growth And Deep Roots
• 24:01 Making All Things New: Kids’ Hope
• 27:05 Anxiety, Storms, And Language For Pain
• 30:02 When Answers Delay And God Stays
• 33:04 Practical Comfort For Families
• 34:50 Preorders, Bonuses, And Staying Connected

Transcript

SPEAKER_02: 0:01

Welcome to the Next Talk Podcast. We are a nonprofit passionate about keeping kids safe online. We're learning together how to navigate tech, culture, and faith with our kids. Today we have Courtney Rysick on the show, author, speaker, mom, teacher. The list goes on. Courtney, welcome. Tell us about yourself.

SPEAKER_01: 0:26

Well, thank you for having me. My name is Courtney, and I'm a mom of four boys. I have boys ranging from the age of uh about to turn 13 to have twins who are about to turn 13. I have a 10-year-old who will then turn 11 a couple months later. And then I have a, my youngest is eight. He'll be nine a little shortly after that. So we're at the stage where we're about to start turning over in ages. And I'm a high school English teacher. I teach English in yearbook at a local public high school here. I spent about 15 years in uh vocational ministry and so transitioned out of that in the last couple of years and have been teaching since then. So I um, but I'm an author. I spent most of my uh ministry career writing and teaching the Bible, and then now uh teach uh literature and English to high school students.

SPEAKER_02: 1:09

Wow, what a background! I love that you're here. I love that you're a mom, a teacher, you've got this biblical background. All of that comes together, exactly what we like to say: tech, culture, faith, all of it coming together on how to talk to our kids about all different sorts of subjects. And that is why we're here today. You have a new children's book that is releasing soon. Um, Seth and the Very Scary Store. What personal experience led you to write this children's book?

SPEAKER_01: 1:41

Yeah, so my middle son's name is Seth. And so um, my other boys jokingly are like, when am I gonna get a book written about me? So um, but so set so we live in Little Rock, Arkansas. And if you're familiar with the southern part of the United States, we we frequently get tornadoes and spring and sometimes um summer storms. And on March 31st, 2023, we uh had a tornado that came through Little Rock. We live in um a suburban area, but uh Little Rock's an urban city. So if you're most urban cities don't have tons of tornadoes come through them. And so we, I remember the day the tornado hit, my boys were home early from school and we were they were nervous because they knew the weather was really bad. And I remember telling them, well, boys, uh, tornadoes don't hit Little Rock. They they don't, they hit, they hit out by w a town nearby, and then they hit the mountain and then they go away, which in my experience of living in Little Rock for uh 15 years, that's what had happened. And I grew up in Texas, and so um we were watching it on TV, uh, the radar, and we were watching the storm, and we watched it form not far from our house. And I was like, it's not gonna break up, it's gonna come here. And so we we took shelter in our um underneath our stairs. Thankfully it did not hit us, but we we had the TV on and I so I could hear the weather while we were in the in the underneath the stairs, and we lost power when I had heard where it was, and so it and it was eerily quiet because of where we were we were located to the storm. And I remember thinking, it's gonna hit us and and I don't know where it is. And our boys were crying and they were praying, and um, and thankfully, by God's grace, it did not hit our house. It hit the whole neighborhood by our church where I was on staff at the time. And so while it didn't hit us, it hit so many familiar businesses and areas that we were used to. It was a really large storm, it was on the ground for a long time. So most of a big chunk of our city was kind of just demolished. And we were a part of the disaster relief and the cleanup because of uh my role in the church. And uh it it dominated our life for a good two or three months. And so that first week, it was like a Friday after that first week guys putting Seth to bed. I've been at the church all day doing disaster relief. And he said, uh, was God mad at us? Is that why the storm hit us? Is that why the tornado hit us? And as a parent, that breaks your heart first because you think, like, oh, how heartbreaking that he would think that this is because God was mad at us. But then in God's kindness, I remembered the Gospel of John is a really um beloved book for me. I love the Gospel of John, and I had been spending a lot of time in it, both in teaching and in writing. And so the Lord brought to mind the story of the man born blind in John 9, and how um they had asked him, the people around him had said, Is it is it because of his sin that he was born blind or because of his parents' sin? And Jesus says, No, it's not because of any of that. And so that was a story I told Seth. And then over the last couple of years, I thought maybe I should turn into a children's book. Storms in our community, and I figure I imagine in most communities that have faced a storm, um, there are still kids who are in that age bracket or just really afraid of storms still. And it still comes up quite frequently when the weather changes. So I um that was the kind of the the heart behind the book. And so the the the book goes back and forth between the story and scripture and the story of me telling Seth and my boys um about how God um displays his works through um through people and shows how he's gonna make all things new.

SPEAKER_02: 5:21

I love your heart there that your son had a question. First of all, I loved that he could tell you his thoughts. Yes, me too. Yeah. Like that's a we always say at next talk that's such a win if your kid opens up to you, right? Because he knew you weren't gonna get mad at him for questioning God or whatever. And he felt safe with you. I think that's so important. Um, and then I loved that you that you took that moment first to speak into him, but then you were thinking, wow, like a lot of kids may struggle with whether it's a tornado or another storm of life. Another storm coming in into their life, and they're thinking, Did this happen to me because God has forgotten about me or God doesn't like it? Absolutely, absolutely. It's such a foundational faith component for our kids that we can't just ignore these questions when they have them.

SPEAKER_01: 6:08

Right, right. And I think that was a thing I've I've wanted and prayed for as a parent, and I'm not perfect at it, and I I do it, I don't do this right. But I want when they come to me with questions to not react, to not have my and and my my disposition as a human being is to react strongly. Um, and so I'm not my husband is better at like internally holding it in, and I'm I'm not as good at that. And so um I wish I could, and so I always pray that I would be able to to have the this the Holy Spirit's present in my life enough to be like, I'm not gonna react in that way. Um, but yeah, I want them to feel safe to come with their questions and because God is not afraid of our questions. I think that's the biggest thing is like we are the representative of of God in their life. Like we are the one who gets to um we get to tell them what God is like by the way we care for them. And so I think wanting to be okay with their questions is really important.

SPEAKER_02: 7:05

Well, Courtney, you and I are very similar. Um, one of our next talk 10 principles is avoid crazy parent mode if we want a healthy dialogue with our kids. And I I say the same thing. My husband is so much better at this, like he's calm and logical, he doesn't really lose his cool much, but I'm the hot head of the family. Right, right. So I've really had to filter that through the Holy Spirit to make sure because I shut down communication if I overreact when they ask me for any question. Right. Right. And so I love that. Um, take me back to the to you were under the stairs with your boys going through that. Like, what did you do and what did you say to them in the moment? Because I'm sure you were scared too in your mind. Yeah. I've lived here for all these years and it's fine. We're gonna be good. Yeah. And so take me back to that, like in the moment. Um, what did you say or do with your children?

SPEAKER_01: 8:00

So my own mom response was thinking, I have four boys and I had them all in the under the stairs, and then I was trying, I was trying to lay on top of all of them. And I remember thinking there's not enough of me to cover all of them. And that was probably like the biggest thought that went through my mind is I I can't protect them fully. Like I can't. Like if something really, if it did hit our house, um, and miraculously, this is the Lord, like that tornado, there not a single person in Little Rock died, which was remarkable when you saw the devastation. Like there were people who who were home and it just it did they didn't die. There were the superintendent made the decision to not release students to go home, which ultimately saved, I think, a lot of lives because kids go home alone and they wouldn't have known what to do. And it hit like right around like 3 30. So there was a lot of I think of being able to say the Lord protected a lot of people and did not allow it to be worse than it could have. But I remember thinking, I I can't, I can't protect them fully. Um my boys honestly displayed far more reactive faith, probably than I did, because they were praying like non-stop. Like they were like, God please protect us, God please protect us. And I I think what I was doing in that moment was trying to text my husband who was driving outside, he was driving back, so he was watching the radar, but he was in like another part of the state. So it wasn't, it was like sunny where he was. And I, because I had no power and I didn't really have internet access, I couldn't see what was going on. And so I was trying to get a hold of people to tell me, where is it? And so in hindsight, I was probably displaying less faith in my own kids. Um, and more of this, like, I need to make sure I can control this moment so that we're okay. Um, which is my default response, unfortunately. Um, but when it all when it passed, and like I remember my husband had called and said, I think it's passed. Like, I don't think it's gonna hit where you're at. I just started crying. And my boys were like, Are those happy tears or sad tears? Like it was like one of those, they were like, Are you happy, sad, or sad or like so? Um, and then we just immediately got into like like shaped on people mode, like who's okay, who did it hit? My parents lived two miles from us. So like I had been texting my parents too to make sure they were okay. And so there was a lot of the of the the boys really did pray with more faith probably than I did, because my default was to try to fix it, which is not great. But I remember thinking, man, I wish I had had like internalized it and not done that in the moment. So that's like real parenting, I suppose.

SPEAKER_02: 10:52

I think every parent can relate to that, that we go into fix it mode and protect mode and and they had childlike faith that we need to do. Like we need to learn from them.

SPEAKER_01: 11:03

Yes, because like when they're sick, I just like Google all the symptoms and like you know what I mean. Like that's my my default is to like control, and the way I control is to make sure I'm not surprised. And so some people's default is to escape and things like that. So um, but yeah, they had childlike faith, they really did, and they and they really were a conviction to me that um stopping and praying in that moment was probably the best response because there was nothing else we could have done. We could not leave where we were at, we did not know where it was, but the Lord who controls the wind and the waves does. And so we can we can cry out to him.

SPEAKER_02: 11:40

What a good reminder for us all. You mentioned that when he when Seth asked the question, um, did God forget it? I think that's what he said. Did God forget us or does God mad at us? Is God mad at us? Yes, like is it punishment? Your brain immediately went to the blind man in John 9. So can we dive into that just a little bit more? Like, why do you think your mind went there in responding to that question that way?

SPEAKER_01: 12:07

I think um, like, I'm kind of like the Sunday school answer is obviously the Lord brought that to mind. Um, and I think it's true. I think the Lord gave me words in that moment to respond to the need that my kid had. But I also think I had been spending a lot of time in John. And so it was kind of a part of me in that, like, if I was gonna be talking about anything and John related to it, I was gonna talk about how the scriptures related to that situation. And I think it's a it's a real testimony to the power of immersing yourself in scripture and how the only way we're going to have a word in a moment is if we know the word first. We're the only way we're gonna be able to respond with the word is not if we just try to memorize more scripture or um listen to more sermon. Like we have to be immersed in the word and know the word, and then what is inside of us will come out when we need it to come out. And I think in that moment, the word was what was coming out of me because the word was what was already inside of me. And there's not a shortcut to that. I think there, I think sometimes we want a quick fix of like, if I just got some quick facts, then I can know what to say. And even in thinking through with the book of trying to think through like parent tips of like how to respond to your kids, I truly believe for a parent, the the best way to know how to respond to your kid in any type of crisis or moment is if you first are are are walking with the Lord through his word. And it will, you you could read it, you could read 10 steps to knowing how to respond to your kid, or you could just read the Bible, and then the Bible will come out of you. And I think that's the the takeaway for me is that it came, it came out of me because I it was already inside of me. And I think for parents, that's you don't need a new system, you just need more Bible. You see more of the word, more communion with God, more living in step with the spirit and um discerning what his word means and how it applies to our lives.

SPEAKER_02: 14:10

Well, and I I love your answer to this because it kind of takes me back, and I was gonna dive into this at the end of the podcast because I still have some more questions about Seth and the very scary storm, and we'll get back to that. But this relationship that we need to have with Jesus to respond in wisdom with our kids, like not only to respond, not crazy parent mode, you know, like not of the flesh, but of walking calmly in the spirit, not to overreact, but also like having the words to say because we know the one who has the answers, right? I'm so excited that you said that because you wrote another book that came out at the end of last year, right? And it it's not a children's book, it's a parent book, but it really can help a parent deepen their faith. So talk about that really quickly.

SPEAKER_01: 14:56

So it's on the Gospel of John, it's called uh Someone to Believe In. And it's um John's main point in the Gospel of John, he tells us at the end of the book in John 20, 31, that these things are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God, and by believing you may have life in his name. And so I titled it Someone to Believe in because John's whole point in writing is that we would see Jesus and believe in him. And so he he lays out a variety of stories from Jesus' life and conversations that Jesus has with people in order for us to see him as someone worth believing in. And so the book kind of tracks with him being the same for all time. So Jesus is the same for past, present, and future. He is someone for us to believe in both as as eternally existing as God, both in our present circumstances in our life and then in the life we're hoping for. And so I walk through a variety of different interactions that Jesus has. Some of the I am statements, some of his, his, his signs, um, that John calls them signs, not miracles. Uh, the point is because miracles are just for show and signs are pointing towards something. They're directing you towards something. And so John is directing us towards Jesus and belief. And I wrote the book, uh, it was a multi-year process of writing the book. I started writing it probably four or five years ago, um, and probably even before that, because I'd been teaching a Bible study on John, even before that. So it was just marinating in my heart. And then the Lord took us through a series of series of circumstances, which is uh why I wasn't on staff in a church anymore, where I really feel like the Lord had to burn those truths into my life to see him as someone to believe in. And so whether you're someone coming who feels maybe a little disillusioned with your faith and thinks, I just don't know if it's worth believing in anymore, uh, the book is for someone to see Jesus for who he is and to say, yes, other people might not be reflecting Christ right, but Jesus is someone worth believing in. Or maybe you think you're kind of great and you're and you have like all, you tick all the boxes and you feel like you're a great parent, and you feel like you're a great Christian and you do all the things you're supposed to do. Jesus also looks at you and says, He, he is the one to believe in, not your faith. Or you look at your own sinful life and you think that I have gone so far and I don't think I can come back because I've sinned so much. Jesus, John tells us, like with the woman at the well in John 4, uh, there's no one who's so far gone that Jesus can't save them. And so I think the beauty of the Gospel of John is it, it it touches everyone. Anyone who has a a boulder in their way to believe in Jesus, John says, Let me remove that for you and present you with Christ. And what I think is so striking about the Gospel of John also is that John was the last one, last disciple standing. So he writes the book at the very end of his life. So Peter's dead, James is dead, all the disciples are dead, and John is the only one left. And likely he's writing to believers who are persecuted because he himself is also persecuted, who are also wondering, is this worth believing in anymore? They've seen far too much. And John lays out this wise and mature take, not take as if it's like a different perspective, but his own view of who Jesus is and how he is someone worth believing in.

SPEAKER_02: 18:19

I love that so much because, you know, we scroll and we get, you know, when something starts happening with our kids, we Google it. We I mean, that's what I did with the screens, with technology. When my kid, when I realized not giving my kid a phone was not going to keep my kids safe, you know, I wanted worldly answers. Right. And the only one that has a solution was God. You know, in Deuteronomy 6, 6, and 7, talk to your kids. Right. Whenever you're giving your kid a phone, they're still going to be exposed to things in this horrible culture that we live in. Right. So, like, none of this takes God by surprise. He is yesterday, today, and forever. And I love this because I love how you connect the two, that you had this answer for your kid in the middle of his. I mean, he was questioning God as a little kid. Like, I don't know that I like God anymore, kind of thing, right? Because he felt like God forgot about him or he God was mad at him. And um, I love how you were so equipped to answer him because you had been studying the word for yourself. And I also loved how you said it took four or five years to even, as I was teaching it and then writing this book, it is not a quick process. This is about a relationship that you are building with the living creator. Right. And it's you're not gonna get that through a Bible verse on TikTok, right? Right, right.

SPEAKER_01: 19:46

This is a deep dive that you are asking parents to do. I love how you brought up that it's a relationship. I heard someone say this recently that uh we often look at Christianity and and think it's a set of rules that we're supposed to follow or or a way of. Life that we're supposed to adhere to. And scripture doesn't present it that way. It's a relationship. He is our father. Jesus is our brother. And in relationship, the only way you're going to grow in that relationship is by time spent, quality time. And there's not a like I've been married for almost 17 years. I know my husband better now than I did when we got married. But that's because I've spent time with him and I have a relationship with him. And the only, and there was no quick fix to that. There was there was no shortcut to the relationship and the depth of our relationship that we have now. There's just no way to get there besides living life with him. And I think that the same is true for our relationship with the Lord, is we want a quick fix to growth. And the Bible presents a path to growth that's like a tree. And so trees take time. They don't grow quickly. They have have winter seasons. Like it's winter where I live and where everybody lives right now. And if you live in a sea place that's not warm year-round, you have no leaves on your trees. That doesn't mean the tree's not growing. It doesn't mean the tree is dead. It just means it's a winter season. And so we have to look at the Christian life as both a relationship and also in agricultural terms that growth takes time and relationships take time.

SPEAKER_02: 21:19

As we grow in our relationship with God, all of our other relationships are going to be impacted and how we interact with our spouse and our kids. And so you're caught up in this moment where you answered Seth and went to scripture because it was in your heart. How do you think your kids' faith has been shaped because of this discussion that you had after the storm?

SPEAKER_01: 21:44

I think kids are so hard. You know, like sometimes you think, oh, we had such a meaningful relation a conversation. And then they ask when they can play PlayStation next. You know, I mean, that's kind of like it's like a it's like great talk. I'm so glad we had that. Um, so I again like a tree, I I hope that in these conversations with them, this conversation wasn't a one-off, like a one-time, and then he got the truth, and then he just kind of lives that the rest of his life. I I view these conversations as like continued building blocks and stepping stones to something greater. So we laid this foundation here, then we add to the foundation, then we add the foundation, then we add to the foundation. And Lord willing, by the time they're adults, then they will have this treasure trove of truths that they've learned over a lifetime. But it's not a I think in in parenting, I thought when they were really little, I believed the lie that when they got to be the ages of my kids now, that it would just somehow be easy. And I don't know where I got that from. But I think people kept saying if you could get through this season, it would be easier. And for me, I've never gotten to a season that feels easy. I don't, I maybe I have different kids. I don't know. Parenting is incredibly hard at every stage. And sometimes it's like four steps forward and like a million steps back, of like I we talked about this and you grasped it at that moment, and yet now you're back to square one. And I but I also think that's the Christian life. And if we look at the scriptures and you and we read the Old Testament, that the dis the Israelites are the epitome of wayward children. I mean, how many times does the Lord have to tell them to obey and yet they just fall and they continue to disobey? And so I think it's every conversation we have as parents is a building block to Lord willing something else that will lay a foundation. We're just like dipping like depositing truths into their life in the hope that one day they will continue to draw on those truths and not be overdrawn. And I think that's kind of the takeaway I have is, and I do, I do think that we've we've repeated some of these truths enough that there is a default to pray. Uh, there is a default to try to believe true things about God. There is a default to um remembering what we know. And Lord willing, that will, that will guide them.

SPEAKER_02: 24:08

That answer is so real. That's a real answer. I think sometimes as Christian women, I've been guilty of this is, you know, train up a way in the child in the way the child should go. You know, that Proverbs verse that we love to land on, and we're like, okay, check the boxes, take to church, pray, like do all the quote unquote churchy things, right? And God is calling us to something so much deeper than that. It's building the relationship, just like you said with with with our savior, building the relationship. And it takes time and it takes effort, and you're gonna go forward and then you're gonna go back, and you're gonna have to it's gonna get messy because that's what relationships are. And I I just I really love your answer to that. So relationships are messy. We get it, and we have to just dive in there and keep asking and seeking and um having the conversation. As you helped in your community and went to check on people and served in your community, how do you think that helped in your child's faith journey?

SPEAKER_01: 25:11

Yeah, I remember um, I mean, they got to see some really hard things and really sad things. And I think it helps them have perspective on the brokenness of the world. But I remember one Sunday, we had to drive past it every Sunday to get to church. And I mean, we're almost three years out from it, and they're still homes that are not rebuilt. Um, largely because it was in it was in a part of the town, the homes, the part of town that had wealthier homes and maybe a little bit more like privileged, people could rebuild a little more quickly. But in some of the areas, people just left and didn't go back. And um, we were driving through, and I mean, there were homes, like I remember there was this home, we always talked about it. It was the whole front of the house got ripped off. And you literally could see the whole house on the inside. And it was like you saw a closet of clothes, like just a whole closet for weeks, like which meant these people didn't go back for their clothes, like they just left it there. And someone I remember someone saying they felt like it was almost an invasion of privacy that we could look into someone's house and see all their clothes in their closet. And um there was like a whole, a whole neighbor, a whole house where like the slab is left. That was it. And I think the house had been lifted and moved somewhere else back behind, but we we didn't know where it had been moved. But we're Seth and I were driving through and in the backseat, he I mean, he's if he's 10 now, he was seven at the time. And he he was in the backseat and he said, Someday, someday Jesus is gonna make all this new. Like he just said it like to himself. And I was like, I mean, trying not to cry, like choking up of like what a profound statement. Like it was he, I mean, I looked at it, I looked in the rearview mirror because we weren't talking. Like he just was looking around him and was like, someday he's gonna make all this new. And I've I've kind of clung to that, that truth because there's been other things we've walked through as a family that are not as public and not as big and um brokenness that we want to see restored, and brokenness that we have in our own family that will not be restored this side of heaven. And I've c I've clung to that. What a what a tremendous truth for a child to hold on to. Someday he's gonna make this new. And that helped him in that moment. But we have another child who has a has um some some learning disabilities, and those aren't gonna get better. This side of, I mean, it's gonna always be with him. And they have, as brothers, talked about it and said someday that it'll be made new. Someday we won't have that any, he won't have that anymore. And then he's also prayed of like what he looks forward to when he gets to heaven of this won't be hard anymore. And that's a tremendous thing for a child to hold on to, a belief that this is not how it's always gonna be. Because the world is crushing uh for everybody. And so, and if it's not crushing for you right now, it will be at some point. And so to be able to have that in the back of your mind, in the front of your mind, that one day this is not the end of the story, it won't it'll be made new, is really hopeful.

SPEAKER_02: 28:26

Well, that's a testament of your walk with Jesus and you having those conversations with your kids. And you know how you said sometimes you don't know if they're actually listening. Like what a moment that they to remind you that they are. You know, my kids are 18 and 21 now, and so many times when I did not think they were listening, they'll they'll bring it up now. Do you remember when you told them?

SPEAKER_03: 28:47

Oh my gosh, I know.

SPEAKER_02: 28:49

So, so they really are like keep speaking truth into your kids, even if their next question is when can I go play the can I go play? No play patient. Yeah. Um, default to that. And I I want to ask you this too. It just you're a teacher, and so you see kids today, you know, they have anxiety, they have fears. Yes. How do you think the book will play into that? You know, just helping families dig into this seems like such a simple conversation, but it's actually a very profound one when your kid is asking about God's character like this and why would he allow something like this to happen? So, you know, as a teacher and a parent, how do you think this will help overall in homes everywhere for kids to help with their fear and anxiety?

SPEAKER_01: 29:38

I hope for a kid it gives them language for processing the brokenness of this world. I hope it gives them um kind of touch points of who God is and stories in scripture that help them understand they're not the only person who's ever asked that question. Um, and then for parents, I hope it gives them tools to be able to respond to their kids with uh with truth and then also with empathy of understanding uh where they're at. One of the things that um that kind of helped me with my own kids is is understanding that I had access to so many more tools to know what the weather was like that they did not have. They don't have phones, they don't have any of that kind of stuff. So they're super dependent on me being able to tell them after the event, whenever storms would come, we're gonna be okay. But I hope that it gives parents empathy for the fears that kids face and then also gives them tools for talking to their kids about it. But I do think it's a really profound conversation beyond just storms of why why do why does suffering continue when we keep when we ask God for relief and it's not there? Because the the profound thing about the man born blind is that he was a grown man when he was healed. And and he was he was cast out of the temple. He was not allowed to worship with everybody else his entire life because he was considered broken. And I don't know why God delays in answering those prayers, because surely they asked for healing at some point. I don't know why he delays, but I do know that in his delay, it was not a sign that he had forgotten. It was, as Jesus says, so the works of God might be displayed. And it was uh so that when Jesus was born and came on the scene, he was able to heal the man born blind so that all could see. And so I think the giving families language for I don't know why God did not answer when we asked him to, but his works will be displayed, whether in this life or in the one to come.

SPEAKER_02: 31:40

Well, and I love that scripture, I mean, it scripture is very clear that life is going to be hard. We are going to have trouble, you know. Take heart. I have overcome the world, is what Jesus says. So we are going to have hardship. We're we're going to have hardship in this life here on earth. Um, but I love that scripture tells us that God will never leave us in that. Like, right? And we see him weeping with those who weep and crying with those who cry. Like he won't ever leave our side no matter what, no matter how long the delay of the answer to prayer is. Um, I just think what you're doing is so important. These conversations, we we cannot overlook little questions that our kids are asking us about anything, whether it be tech, culture, faith, whatever. Right. Um, we have to have the wisdom to dig into them. And I think you you just hit the nail on the head when we're walking with Jesus and growing in our own relationship, we're gonna be more prepared and have wisdom in our heart to pour out into our kids. Right. Yes, it's true, it's true. Is there anything else you would like to pass on to our parents about your book that came out last September or um your your upcoming children's book, Seth and the Very Scary Storm, that comes out February 3rd, correct? Correct, yeah. Yeah, is there anything else you want to say to our parents?

SPEAKER_01: 32:58

No, I just you're doing good work. Your labor is not in vain. Um, and continue to pour in the scriptures. I mean, my book, Someone to Believe in, if you want to spend in this new year time in the scriptures in the Gospel of John, um, so that you can can marinate in those scriptures. That's a great book to start with. Um, and then to read this book with your kids, especially as you move into storm season um, or any season that's scary.

SPEAKER_02: 33:23

Thank you so much for being here, Courtney. Thank you for answering the call, for being obedient. I know you got a lot going on, um, and you're still saying yes to the Lord when he is saying, hey, write this book or go speak here. So thank you for your obedience. Thank you. One last thing, Courtney. Where can people find you if they want to get in touch with you?

SPEAKER_01: 33:43

So I am, I'm on Instagram. It's I make everything easy. It's just my name, Courtney Rysick. You can follow me on Instagram. I post any new things that are going on with any of my books there. Um, and I write up, I I I say I write on Substack. I try to keep up with it when I'm teaching, and I don't as well. But I try to write occasionally on Substack. So if you want to find my writing, you can go to Substack, um, which is Courtney Risick.substack.com. Or if you just type in Courtney Risick Substack, you'll find it.

SPEAKER_02: 34:12

Thank you so much for being here. And people can go pre-order the book now. I know it comes out February 3rd, but they can pre-order it on Amazon, correct? Correct.

SPEAKER_01: 34:20

And if you pre-order it, you can get access to pre-order bonuses, uh, scripture cards and different things to pray for with your kids if you're if your kids are nervous or afraid. So if they order it before February 3rd and pre-order it, then they can get the pre-order bonuses on bnh.com. Awesome. Thank you so much, Courtney. Thank you.

SPEAKER_00: 34:42

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