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In this episode of Fierce Calling, host Doris Swift welcomes Amy Senter, a Christian lifestyle blogger, artist, and educator, to discuss her innovative approach to Bible reading and journaling. Amy shares her personal faith journey of transformation from a severe health crisis with late-stage Lyme disease to a mission to make scripture accessible and engaging through simplified and creative study methods. Discover how Amy’s teaching techniques and personal experiences have shaped her ministry, inspiring others to deepen their connection with God.

Key Takeaways from the Show

• Introduction:
  • Doris Swift introduces Amy Senter, highlighting her background in teaching, art, and her creation of digital Bible study tools.
  • Amy’s transition from a traditional faith upbringing to a passionate, personal relationship with God.
• Bible Journaling Approach:
  • Amy’s simple, flexible method for Bible journaling aims to make scripture accessible to all, without requiring formal theological education.
  • Encourages personal expression and adaptation to diverse learning styles, including those with dyslexia.
• Personal Faith Journey:
  • Amy discusses her severe health issues and eventual diagnosis with late-stage Lyme disease, leading to a profound spiritual journey and transformation.
  • Transition from questioning God’s goodness to finding joy and peace through a deepened faith.
• Challenges and Solutions:
  • Overcoming barriers to Bible study by encouraging creative engagement and comfort with personal expression in the Bible.
  • Setting spiritual goals and incorporating faith into daily life.
• Spiritual Health and Empowerment:
  • Importance of mindset shift from victimhood to empowerment in healing and spiritual growth.
  • Maintaining trust and surrendering burdens to God for peace and rationality.
• Ministry and Resources:
  • Amy offers guidance through her website, providing lessons, Bible study printables, and personal interaction.
  • Encourages listeners to connect with her community on YouTube and Facebook for interactive Bible study sessions.

Connect with Amy!

• Amy’s Website: https://amysenter.com
• WEBSITE: amysenter.com
• SOCIAL LINKS: 
• youtube.com/@amysenter
• instagram.com/senteramy
• facebook.com/amy.senter.intentional.living
• pinterest.com/senter_amy

Amy Senter is a Christian Lifestyle Blogger focused on Intentional Living through Biblical Literacy and Spiritual Growth. She lives in Texas with her college sweetheart of 18 years and their 2 children. Using her background in Art and Education, her unique style of illustrated Bible study cheatsheets simplifies complex concepts while appealing to visual learners of all ages, including those with ADHD and dyslexia. Amy has outlined all 66 books of the Bible into a collection of digital printables, which have been sold in 45 countries around the world. When she’s not drawing with her Apple Pencil, you can find her in a bookstore or craft shop looking for inspiration for her next project. 

Call to Action:

• Subscribe to Amy’s website for resources, updates, and personal communication.

Connect with Doris!

• Connect with Doris at https://dorisswift.com/ For speaking engagements, visit her booking page at womenspeakers.com

Join us for this heartening episode of Fierce Calling and be inspired to deepen your biblical study and walk with God.

What Threatens to Steal Your Joy?

Check out Surrender the Joy Stealers: Rediscover the Jesus Joy in You 6-week Bible study rooted in John 15. You can find more info at https://dorisswift.com/book/

Let’s Stay Connected!

Find my free resources including Fear Fighting Bible Verses, Simple Tips for Sharing Your Faith, Surrender the Joy Stealers, Step Out of Your Doubt and Into Your Calling ebook, and more on my dorisswift.com homepage!

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Transcript

Surrender the Joy Stealers Bible Study …

Doris [00:01:45]:
What is threatening to steal your joy? What is it that feels so heavy right now that you could barely stand? God has a plan, and his plan is to surrender it. Surrender it to him. It might be a prodigal. It might be a relationship, a marriage, something with your job. So many things. We have so many amazing blessings, but there are so many things in our life that threaten to steal our joy. I’m Doris Swift, author of the award-winning 6-week Bible study, Surrender the Joy Stealers, Rediscover the Jesus Joy in You. And it helps women rediscover the overflowing, ever-present Jesus joy within that fills, empowers, and ripens the fruit that God produces in our lives.

Doris [00:02:36]:
Using personal and biblical stories, I share how you can identify your joy stealers, surrender them to God, reawaken the joy within, and share the joy with others. You can do it on your own or with a group. Check it out, friends. Surrender the joy stealers. Rediscover the Jesus joy in you. It’s available on all the online retailers. It’s time to take your joy back.

Now On with the Show …

Doris [00:00:10]:
Hey, friends. Welcome to episode 191 of the Fierce Calling podcast. I’m Doris Swift, your host, and we are talking with guests who are taking action where their passion, compassion, and conviction intersect, which is their fierce calling. And we’re talking about digging deeper into the Bible. Today’s guest, you are going to love. Her name is Amy Center, and she is an artist. And she has, created all of these wonderful bible literacy tools for people to dig deeper into the word and to learn how to better study their bible in a very fun and effective way. And she’s going to share her testimony about a really difficult season in her life when she was diagnosed with Lyme disease.

Doris [00:01:03]:
But before she was diagnosed, she was going through so much suffering and they didn’t know what it was. And, you know, I don’t know if any of you have ever been there where you have symptoms and maybe you’re made to feel like you’re it’s all in your head or, you know, something’s wrong with you, but I think her story is gonna encourage, inspire, and challenge a lot of people. And I’ll introduce you formally when we start the show and give you a little bit more background about Amy, but I know you’re gonna love this episode. So stay tuned, friends. What is threatening to steal your joy? What is it that feels so heavy right now that you could barely stand? God has a plan, and his plan is to surrender it. Surrender it to him. It might be a prodigal. It might be a relationship, a marriage, something with your job.

Doris [00:02:04]:
So many things. We have so many amazing blessings, but there are so many things in our life that threaten to steal our joy. I’m Doris Swift, author of the award winning 6 week Bible study, Surrender the Joy Stealers Rediscover the Jesus Joy in You. And it helps women rediscover the overflowing, ever present Jesus joy within that fills, empowers, and ripens the fruit that God produces in our lives. Using personal and biblical stories, I share how you can identify your joy stealers, surrender them to God, reawaken the joy within, and share the joy with others. You can do it on your own or with a group. Check it out, friends. Surrender the Joy Stealers: Rediscover the Jesus joy in you. It’s available on all the online retailers. It’s time to take your joy back.

Doris

Welcome back to the show. Today, I’m excited to introduce to you my friend, Amy Center. She is a Christian lifestyle blogger, artist, and educator who is focused on bringing passion and joy back to your personal bible study in a way that is visual and simple to understand. I think this is gonna be amazing and and an awesome conversation. She outlined all 66 books of the bible into a collection of digital digital printables.

Doris [00:03:27]:
No. Digital printables. Say that fast and times. Which have been sold in 45 countries. And, yeah, I’ve just been checking out some of her things that she offers, and it’s been amazing. And you’re gonna love what she has to share. She lives in Texas with her college sweetheart and their 2 children. So thank you for being on the show.

Doris [00:03:47]:
Welcome, Amy.

Amy Center [00:03:49]:
Thank you so much for having me.

Amy Center [00:03:50]:
I’m really excited to do this.

Doris [00:03:52]:
Yeah. I just, love your ministry and your heart for wanting people to have, like, a deeper knowledge of the Bible or, you know, find ways that they can study it. Because sometimes it can be overwhelming and a little intimidating, and people don’t understand where to start or you know? And I’m not saying that Bible literacy means that people are illiterate. It just means that Bible literacy is to help people study well and to, yeah, to share your gift of teaching because you have a background in teaching. So, yeah, so I would love if you would share a little bit about your story and how you got into all of this and how you’re taking action where your passion, compassion, and conviction intersect.

Amy Center [00:04:37]:
They, I was just gonna give you a little background about me. I was born and raised in Virginia, a suburb outside of DC, which is very, you know, in the city. And then I moved to go to college in Texas at Abilene Christian University, where I met my, college sweetheart, and he’s from a very, very small town in Texas. So, I said, if we live in the city, I’ll stay in Texas. So we’re here in Texas. We’ve been there ever since. I love it, and it’s just really, really, different than how I grew up. But, it’s just been really great experience for our kids.

Amy Center [00:05:15]:
We’ve been married 19 years now. Yeah. And so I got a degree in education to teach elementary. I taught 2nd grade for 4 years, and I have a background in art as well. And then when I had my kids, I stayed home with them. And what I did when I taught was, I handled most of the dyslexic students as well as the kids with learning disabilities and behavior disabilities. And so I already had, like, a visual approach to my own way of

Doris [00:05:45]:
studying through, you know, college

Amy Center [00:05:47]:
and high school. But I really was able to hone my skill and everything I thought of. How do I explain this in a more simple way? How do I simplify this even more? Because of those kids that had those learning disabilities. And so I just really honed into those visual skills and simplifying things and ended up using this method with my own kids and teaching them, you know, how to work on behaviors and learning responsibilities and those kinds of things. And now I use that to teach people how to study the bible using those techniques of making it fun and simple and visual and taking the intimidation out of it and making it relatable so that, my goal is to help people bring passion back into their bible study rather than making it, like, oh, it’s your tradition or it’s, you know, a guilt trip or it just needs to be a habit that I start. I want people to be passionate about it. And so I use those simple techniques that I started with my 2nd graders

Doris [00:06:45]:
for Nice.

Amy Center [00:06:46]:
And it’s been resonating. I really created them for adults. And and, of course, it’s resonating with kids too because that’s kind of the basis of what happened. But I’ve got anywhere from people in retirement homes to people teaching preschoolers are using these visuals, the same exact stuff just because it’s so simplistic to understand. And so I’ve really, really I I don’t have plans to go back to teach because I’m loving what I’m doing right now.

Doris [00:07:15]:
Well, you are teaching, so that is that is amazing. And, yeah, I love the way you make it fun. You know, you have the color coding and all the different ways that you make the printables because you have that background in art. So it’s amazing how, you know, God has just equipped you and provided these skills and gifts that he’s gifted and given to you to use for his glory and to help others. And it just it just is amazing combination to have art and the teaching and then create these printables, to, you know, help others to learn and how it’s you have a a very diverse or, you know, a wide range of age groups that use these tools, these resources. So great. And so tell us about because you have also a YouTube channel. Right? And then you Yes.

Doris [00:08:09]:
You go through different things with people who watch how you actually don’t just say do this, you actually show them how. Right? So how did that start and what does that look like?

Amy Center [00:08:20]:
Well, I wanted to kind of, I’ve got an idea of how I do it, but other people are, you know, they’re more like, oh, I’ll just print your notes, and use them alongside what I’m studying, which I love, but I want to take it further and teach people how to do this on their own as well. So what my videos have become are, my Facebook group. I have the girls in there suggest a book and chapter. What are you studying? What do you want me to help you outline? And so every Friday, for the most part, I take one of those suggestions, and we, live time, I read the passage, and then I show you this is how I would take notes on it. And I have people take notes with me, and then I reupload those to YouTube so you can watch the replays over there. And it’s just been, like, opened up a whole new conversation and community, that I’m really, really enjoying. So it’s not so much when is your next set of notes coming out. It’s, it’s how this has transformed my bible study, and now I’m teaching this method to my Sunday school class, or I’m talking to my friends who just became Christians or whatever.

Amy Center [00:09:33]:
So it’s just really it’s one of those things where I’m still honing my technique to simplify how to teach it even now. So it’s something that I’m leaning into. There’s gonna be a lot of exciting things coming with that, the bible journaling lessons that I’m doing, because I think this is so practical for people, to apply, and it’s I don’t want people to feel a lot of times we’ll listen to a sermon or listen to bible study and be like, they know so much, and I and and if they’re like, we all know when Paul did this or Peter and if you’re the one sitting there, like, I I don’t know that. It’s really it really is disheartening. So I’m trying to let people know that you don’t have to have a PhD PhD in theology, or go to seminary, or things to understand your bible. Yes. That’s a whole another level, but God created these words for the everyday person. And so I’m trying to help people take that, feeling of empowerment and passion and, just get to know who God is through that.

Doris [00:10:42]:
Yeah. Wow. I love that so much, and it it really makes an impact. And I think the book you’re gonna write next is gonna be God’s word for everyday people. Yeah. That’s right. Because I love how you just said that. And and you’re right.

Doris [00:10:57]:
You know, it it you don’t need a PhD. You don’t need a degree in theology or something, you know, a seminary degree to be able to read and hone in on things in the bible, see different themes and patterns and, you know, different things like that that it just takes someone a step ahead maybe to help someone who is coming forward. But I also like how you brought out the fact that sometimes we might assume that people know things. Like, some of us, you know, being raised in the church or some of us who’ve taught Sunday school, we’re familiar with a lot of even the most well known Bible stories. There are people who are just now coming to Christ who maybe weren’t raised in the church and are not familiar with some of these things. So it’s great that you teach it. And I watched one of your videos that was great, and you did it on, song of songs, also known as song of Solomon. That’s not an easy one to do, but I love how you talked about it.

Doris [00:11:58]:
And you talked about the fact, you know, you were talking about, you know, how we’re the bride in, you know, Christ Christ is the bridegroom, and and how it’s kind of, talking about God’s design for sex and how the enemy really in the world just wants to twist something beautiful, a beautiful gift he gave to us. And I thought that was really great how you explained all of that and went through that process. So but, but yeah. So tell us more about, like, when you actually start into developing your teaching, do you outline what you’re going to do, or do you just dive right in, or how does that process work?

Amy Center [00:12:39]:
Because I’m constantly, I I am I don’t know that I’m technically ADHD, but I feel like it sometimes. I’m just very creative constantly coming up with a new idea. And so I feel like I I’ve been taking that approach right now to my bible journaling videos is just kind of seeing what I’m feeling like in the moment. And sometimes I will take the notes beforehand, and they do tons of study, and then I do my video and I say, I’ve taken the notes. Let me walk you through what we did. And then other times, I will take, just come on and tell me your suggestions, and let’s see if we can hash it out here. Or other times, I’ll be like, this is kind of my steps that I’m gonna do, and I’ll just follow out, follow those steps. So I I like to experiment with a lot of them.

Amy Center [00:13:29]:
And so what I’ve decided that I’m gonna do in the future is make my method, teach my method, like, as an acronym and help people memorize it and help people walk through it so it’s even more clear, and that’s the guide that I’m gonna be using. But because this bible journaling, lessons have been fairly new this year, this year has been a lot of, like, do I want to totally do it beforehand? Do I wanna do it while I’m doing it? Do I wanna, you know, just pray before we start and see what happens? Yes. And so I think through that, I’ve kind of got a combination of all of them. But going forward, I wanna make it very clear. Like, here’s a method you can memorize and apply to anything, and let’s walk through it. And that might be, give me your suggestion right now. Let’s do it. Or it might be, I prepared this ahead, and here’s how you can do it on your own.

Amy Center [00:14:22]:
But, yeah, there’s a lot of just creativity that goes into it. That’s another thing I teach is

Amy Center [00:14:28]:
Yeah.

Amy Center [00:14:29]:
Just talking about everybody’s learning style is different. Everyone’s approach to this is different. Even, like, getting people past the barriers of writing in your bible is okay as opposed to putting the journal next to it. Like, I’m I’m trying to hone to all of these people’s different learning styles and leaning into your gifts and talents. And, so I love to try out different things if that answers your question.

Doris [00:14:56]:
Yes. It really does. And I also love that you do it in a way because as you said, different people learn different ways differently. You know, there’s there’s sensory. There you know, all different types of learning. And also the fact that you help because some deal with dyslexia. And some people may not understand how difficult it is for someone that is dealing with that to try to study something or to even journal or write. So, you know, I love that you have that background because you know where that person is coming from and how you can best teach, and I think that’s important.

Doris [00:15:38]:
It’s kinda like the the 5 love languages. You know, it’s kinda similar when you get to know how people learn. You know, you you can teach them in the way that they can learn, and that’s how they can grasp it versus only, you know, using one particular method or something, you know, that may not be Mhmm. Good for everyone. You know, that may not be the best for everyone. So yeah. So I love that. And and you have had some difficulties in your own life with this.

Doris [00:16:11]:
I mean, this is a very fierce calling that you have. And there there was a time when you were really struggling with your health. Right? And then how did that look? What what was that, situation that you had gone through that difficult season?

Amy Center [00:16:29]:
Well, that’s kind of when my faith journey I grew up in the church, but my faith journey from, you know, my childhood to now is completely different. And that’s kind of what I’m calling challenging people to do is look at, how have you grown, or how are you planning on growing, or have you even thought about growing? Like, is it a are you is your faith a one and done, or is it something you want to pursue and deepen? And I hadn’t really thought in that way until I went through this hardship. My faith was never really questioned or gone, but I wasn’t it was just more like, my family does raise me like this. My husband’s family raised him like this, and so we’re just gonna live our lives like this. And, we weren’t very disciplined about what we did because it was more habitual or traditional. When we had kids, we kinda had to claim it as our own. Is this something that’s important to us? Mhmm. Do we wanna pass this on to our kids? And so we started going to church more and started modeling better behaviors for our kids and things like that.

Amy Center [00:17:35]:
And I think that’s true with a lot of people is your kids kinda call out your flaws and you start to work on yourself because you wanna be a better example for them. Yeah. But what I felt was that, like, just passion for it was still missing. I was never like, oh, I can’t wait to study the next thing in my bible or Sunday morning. Like, I never was like, oh, yes. It’s Sunday morning. And that’s something that I can it it sounds silly, but I really do love going to church, and I love reading my Bible. And I that was not really something I could say before.

Amy Center [00:18:11]:
It was more of a, I need to do this. I should be doing more. I’m not doing enough, type thing. But when I had my daughter, in 2014, I had a 3 year old son, and I had my daughter, and, I was a stay at home mom, and everything was, you know, hunky dory. And I started having get I I got this unexplained pain, and it just it was, like, after I had her, it was, like, isn’t my back pain supposed to go away? And all these little aches and things and just kept getting worse and worse and worse. And so I kept seeing all these specialists and doctors, and, it was years before I figured out what’s going on. And I was on a ridiculous amount of medications, and some of them were causing even more symptoms. I ended up being in a wheelchair.

Amy Center [00:18:58]:
I had to get a nanny to take care of my kids. I was having seizures and tremors and, like, excruciating pain that nothing no medication would touch. And so, when I couldn’t get help from family or doctors or friends, even though they’re right there going, what do you want? You know, we wanna help. What do we do? It got to the point where it’s like, nobody knows what to do. Nobody can help me with anything. It was like, all I had left was God to lean on. And so I was in such a dark place that, instead of being, like, I will turn to the Lord and trust him, it was I am not happy with God right now. And so I have been begging and praying and for this to end and get some answers, and I’m not.

Amy Center [00:19:48]:
And then when we did get answers, I found out I had late stage Lyme disease. The treatment was really complicated, and there weren’t very good answers, and they were like, oh, and the treatment’s gonna make you worse. And so it was like, and we don’t know if you’ll ever get rid of this. So it was just like any news or answers just felt worse. And so I just felt more and more hopeless. And, so so I really started to question my faith. And I realized, what do I believe without God? My entire life, I believed he’s real and he’s good. And so I had to decide, does this mean he’s not real? If he’s still good and he’s not being good right now? Or do I have to believe that he’s real and he’s not good? Or, you know, I just it was just what do I believe? And honestly, it was easier for me to believe God just doesn’t exist, than God is allowing this to happen because he doesn’t care, because it didn’t align with the God I grew up on.

Amy Center [00:20:48]:
I was like, God cares. He loves me. This doesn’t make sense, so maybe he doesn’t exist. And, of course, that didn’t set in my soul very long. It that didn’t line up either. And so I had to decide if I believe that God is real, and if I believe that God is good, that, maybe I didn’t understand who God really was. Because maybe there was something bigger than God is just here to make me happy and healthy. You know? And that’s really, really hard when you start to realize God isn’t here to keep us safe.

Amy Center [00:21:30]:
And a lot of times, that’s what, you know, our prayers are. Keep me safe. Keep me healthy. Keep my kids safe. And, it’s not that God doesn’t care or he doesn’t love us, but what I learned in that time was not necessarily that he was doing this to me, but he was allowing it and, not stopping it. It’s a good shift too when you’re going through hardship. It’s to not necessarily put the blame on him, but to understand he’s allowing this. And if he’s allowing it and he’s good, what is the purpose in it? And so I changed my focus on prioritizing my spiritual healing over my physical, because I realized there’s a lot of bitterness and anger and confusion and depression, towards God that I’m not dealing with because I’m like, well, just what pill will fix this, or what doctor will know what this is, or what tool will do this or, you know, or should I just sleep until this is over? And it just went on for years and I realized, am I just gonna push my life away until I get better or am I gonna start living? And so when I started learning these truths about God and digging into who God really was, I started seeing this is not a punishment or a death sentence or whatever.

Amy Center [00:22:46]:
And that spiritual healing allowed me to let go of that control. Some I I don’t like the term when people say, God will never give you more than you could handle. Mhmm. Because I feel like he will give you more than you can handle so that you will lean on him. Because if we can handle everything, we don’t need him. And that was one of those things where I was like, I I focused on that shift of god wanted me to heal spiritually first before he would work that physical healing. And, I’m not saying that if you, pray hard enough, God will heal you. I’m not saying that’s how God works.

Amy Center [00:23:30]:
It’s not a black and white situation. But in my case, with me prioritizing my spiritual healing, every other aspect of my life was a domino effect of healing. My mental health, I started talk learning about self care and gratitude and stress reduction, and getting back into drawing and writing just for myself. My emotional, I started getting counseling. I started dealing with my past and dealing with my anxiety and depression, and my physical started healing as my spiritual started healing. I I got off medications. I stopped needing a nanny. I had less flare ups.

Amy Center [00:24:08]:
And so in that spirit, what that looked like was I was letting go control, and I was beginning to trust God. I was opening my bible again. I was prioritizing going to church. I was asking people for help. I was, worshiping and praying outside of church. I was doing it on my own, and these are not things that I was doing before. And then I began what happened to transition this hardship and all these lessons I was learning as a person. I began taking my notes in my bible, just like I had taught my 2nd graders, and just like I had taught myself in high school and college and classes, and taught my kids on how to learn these skills and, like, doing little illustrations.

Amy Center [00:24:53]:
These are your steps to get ready for school or whatever. And I started taking notes in my bible on who God was, what he was saying, and how it applied to me. And I’d had a blog that I was writing about kind of my spiritual and Lyme journey. And so I started adding a few notes. This is what I’m working on today. And people started going, what is this? Where where’d you get this? And I started explaining, oh, I I made this. It was just like in my notebook. And so people started asking, can I buy this? Can I get this? Can I print this? Make more? And it was just kind of, one of those things where I went into this not going, God, what is my calling? Or, God, how can I make money? Or God, how can I start business? It was one baby step at a time.

Amy Center [00:25:40]:
And even when people were like, can I get another paper? I wasn’t even thinking charge money for this or turn this into a business. It was yeah. Send me your email, like, cool. You liked my notes. It was just about, like, us opening that conversation for, me encouraging other people and their hardships and things like that. And so throughout this whole journey, it was like, I saw my teaching, my art, my organization, my right. I took a writing course when the kids were little just for fun, to be see if I wanted to be a children’s writer. It was like I had an Etsy shop where I sewed some things.

Amy Center [00:26:20]:
Things. You know, I was trying all these little, like, hobbies, like a lot of stay at home moms do. And just to see how, like, every single one of those skills and pieces, learning how to deal with conflict as a teacher and, you know, with parents and being a leader and all those things, volunteering at church. It’s like everything came together in a way I could never have imagined it. And now I I make a living teaching people the gospel in a way that is doodles and joy and humor and art and tears and realness, and, it’s just so it’s been, my fierce calling has been more than I could ever dream of because I have passion for doing this on my own, for teaching it to other people, and I want people to understand that this is what God calls us to be in relationship with him, is that joy no matter our circumstances, and that we’re because a lot of us are holding our breath for, like, when is this season gonna be over? And I want you to know that this is more than note taking. This is transformation. The more you understand the Bible, the more you’re literate in the Bible, meaning I can explain what I’m reading. I can, teach it to other people, and is even if it’s just my child.

Amy Center [00:27:46]:
The more you’re understanding who God is, and you have that joy and peace, you know, that joy and trials, like, what is that? You don’t understand that until you go through, these things. So I am just so fortunate and blessed to be able to, come out of such a terrible season with such a beautiful gift that I am in in no rush to end. I wanna do this forever.

Doris [00:28:16]:
That’s so beautiful. And this is why we need to tell our stories. We need to share our testimonies like this because when you were talking about how you were going through this dark season, and you were having these physical issues. But then once your perspective changed and you started working then on the spiritual side, it physically made a difference too. I mean, I know that different ways that we like, the gratitude and all of that can actually physically change the pathways in our brains and, you know, those things like that. So it’s all limited in our eyes, but unlimited in God’s amazing power in us. And how you looked at it and you said, okay. Either either this is true or this is true, or maybe I don’t really know God like I thought I did.

Doris [00:29:12]:
And you explored more into his character, and what does this actually mean. You know? So I think that is so so powerful. And how you started, Like you said, you kind of, like, you weren’t praying about God, what is my calling. He just, like, guided you right into it. It’s almost like you fell right into it, you know, naturally in the path that he was leading you on. You know, when we say we make our plans and he directs our steps, that’s what the word says. Yes. So he directed your steps in that.

Doris [00:29:42]:
Wow. That is really powerful. What what a testimony. And and the thing about Lyme disease, people can just get that from a tick or something. Right? I mean, it really wasn’t even connected to your the birth of your daughter.

Amy Center [00:29:55]:
No. That’s kind of a controversial disease, which I didn’t realize.

Doris [00:30:01]:
Mhmm.

Amy Center [00:30:01]:
Doctors very much are, like, divided on how they feel about it. So that was part of my frustration too was Yeah. I had a lot of doctors questioning my sanity as well. Yeah. And that was really, really scary because I didn’t I fell out of control. And so, also, the other thing was it was just about the taking it one step at a time of trusting God. And that was across the board with my health and all those things, my calling, my health, my, where’s this business going, you know, all that kind of thing. Everything had to do with putting my trust in God and doing not having that plan and just saying, well, today I’m gonna take that step.

Amy Center [00:30:51]:
And, even the physical stuff, I feel like was affected because my mindset shift was totally different in how I approached how am I gonna heal. It wasn’t, I’m so scared. Let’s try this. I’m so scared. Let’s try this. You’re an idiot. That didn’t work. Like, I wasn’t just angry at everybody all the time.

Amy Center [00:31:12]:
Yeah. Doctor Stanley, my sweet husband. I mean, you just you want help, and you can’t get it. And so I was just acting out all the time just in anger and fear. And when I decided to trust God one step at a time, I got to put all that aside, and so I could finally hear what people were saying. I could actually make rational decisions instead of just, you know, whatever emotion, just ride that wave. And so I feel like a lot of that physical healing came from that mindset shift of, I can’t even, you know, give me wisdom, Lord. Like, that wasn’t happening until I let go and let him do his thing.

Amy Center [00:31:54]:
I think there’s so much to be said about the way our minds work that Yeah. We’re kind of in a world where we think everything’s been discovered almost. You kinda get in that mindset. And to just get those little insights into, you know, practicing gratitude or how to, like, stress reduction, doctors were like, reduce your stress. I’m like, is how? You know, not have children that need me all the time? Like, what does that mean? Like, just to learn how to know, that means you take care of yourself, you eat healthy, you rest when you need to. You do things you love. You get hobbies. You go date your husband.

Amy Center [00:32:35]:
All those kinds of things. It was like it hadn’t even occurred to me, that you can, you know, take back your stress. You can claim you can have some control over it. And I feel like we’re in such a chaotic world that it’s just like we’re at the mercy of, here’s another thing that’s happening to me. And so I had such a mindset shift of, I guess, being that victim and being, you know, more empowered of, no. I’ve got this. It’ll be okay no matter what that, you know, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego even if Yeah. He doesn’t rest

Doris [00:33:08]:
Even if.

Amy Center [00:33:09]:
It was that mindset, that just brought so much peace and freedom back to it is that trusting in one step at a time. And, yeah.

Doris [00:33:22]:
So good. So good. Surrender and trust, and it makes such a difference. And, and I love that you do encourage people too. It’s it’s okay to write in your bible. And, you know, so the the things that are coming out of all of this, I just wanted to mention that too because you were talking about leaving a legacy. And when you think about it too, how many times, like, when a grandma passes away or something and her and her bible is left, her notes in the bible are so precious. You know? And so let’s think of it that way.

Doris [00:33:53]:
And I know some people have mixed feelings about writing the bible, but I think that’s an encouragement. But what you were what were you like, you were talking about surrender and trust as so key, and then this fell into your calling and became a business, things that you hadn’t even it was beyond what you could have asked or imagined. It was like that, you know, he does exceedingly, abundantly above what we could ask or think. I think that’s what in Ephesians. Right? And so, yes. So this is just so powerful, and you sharing your your testimony here, but also the encouragement that you continue to do. It’s like, it’s not just this is my story and you just tell your story. It’s like, it’s continuing in what you’re teaching others that becomes part of their stories.

Doris [00:34:39]:
I think that is fantastic, and I thank you so much. This has been amazing, and I would love if you could share, you know, how the listener can connect with you. How can they find these principles and things that you talked about?

Amy Center [00:34:53]:
Yeah. I, well, I want people to get real about their spiritual health. Mhmm. And, write down where you are and where you wanna be. And I think a lot of people, setting these goals and working on your self care sounds great, but you don’t really know what to do next. And so that’s where I’ve been stepping in, and I wanna guide you because in addition to, like, showing you my notes and how to take notes in the bible step in my bible, I talk about, like, Jesus practice self care. Let’s talk about what that looked like in his life. I talk about spiritual goal settings.

Amy Center [00:35:26]:
What are spiritual disciplines? We always set these new year’s goals. And so I have so much that I wanna help you in connecting that biblical literacy to your own personal spiritual growth. And so I’d love to help you if this sounds like something you’re interested in. And the easiest way to connect with me is just visit my site and subscribe, and that will connect you to my social channels, my freebies, my lessons. You have shop discounts, as well as once you’re on my email list, you can email me directly. So, that is just my name, amie center with a s, s e nter, amiecenter.com, and then you can go to the subscribe button, forward slash subscribe or just it’s pretty much on every page to subscribe. But that’s the easiest way to connect with me, and I’d love to hear from you. Even just say email just really gets me excited to meet people and not just be, you know, the person behind the screen, but a real person.

Amy Center [00:36:22]:
And so, anyway I can help you and encourage you, I’d love to do that.

Doris [00:36:26]:
That’s that’s awesome. And and the fact that you love building community, and that’s exactly what, you know, we’re inviting whoever’s listening right now, you’re being invited into community, and we were made for community. Community with God and then community with others. So I think this is wonderful, and I don’t know who would not want to check that out, who’s listening. I’ll have the links in the show notes so people can connect with you. And I just yeah. This has been so great, and I and I’m so glad we talked about, you know, the part of the health challenge and how the physical and the spiritual all connect. You know, God created us.

Doris [00:37:04]:
He knitted us together in our mother’s wombs. I mean, he knows in and out everything about our bodies. And so just trusting him and surrendering to him, and he will take care of the rest. And like you said, it doesn’t always mean things will be perfect. It doesn’t always mean that we won’t have any trauma in our lives. But as you had said and shared, you know, when you look at the bigger picture story of what is the purpose of this, you know, instead of saying why me, what is the purpose that this is happening and trusting God in it? So thank you so much, Amy. This has been amazing, and I hope to have you back on sometime.

Amy Center [00:37:46]:
Thank you so much. I appreciate it.

Doris [00:37:49]:
Alright, Fran. Well, God bless you and and your family and what you’re doing in this ministry to help people learn to study the bible and walk deeper in God’s word because it is so precious, and it is definitely a fierce calling. And we’ll we’ll be talking soon. Okay, Fran? Take care and I love ya.

Amy Center [00:38:06]:
Sounds good. Thank you.

Doris [00:38:11]:
Thank you for listening today. Wasn’t that an amazing conversation with Amy? And it was very encouraging, and I hope that it really inspired and challenged you to check out her site and learn ways that you can dig deeper into the bible and study the word and to get a newfound love for the word. Sometimes we really have to pray if we find it hard to dig into our bible to pray. God, give me that hunger to seek you out and seek your word. And I love how she talks so much about trusting God because that is such a key thing for us. And when we go through difficult seasons, that could be hard, but we know, oh, he’s a God who loves us. He’s he’s a God who sees us, and we can trust him and surrender all the things to him that really, really bring us down. So turn to him, friends.

Doris [00:39:12]:
If you are struggling right now, turn to him and he hears you. He answer you. So, yeah. And this has been so amazing. And, friend, I also want to remind you if you’re looking for a speaker for your next women’s event, I’m currently booking for 2025. So check it out. Book me on women’s speakers.com so we can have a conversation about that. And I hope you join me next time when I talk with another woman who’s taking action where her passion, compassion, and conviction intersect.

Doris [00:39:45]:
Until then, friend. Have a blessed week and I’ll talk to you soon.