Overcoming The Heartaches of Life (Part 1 of 2)

I earned my Masters degree in acting and my doctorate degree in denial. We women specially asked questions we've mastered acting I need a Savior.

Jerry Rose Sheppard is our guest today on focus on and she shares a story of overcoming major challenges in life how to admit when you need help from others and from God with Focus on the Family president Jim Daly I'm John John Sherry Rowe Sheppard is a former beauty queen and she won the Mrs. United States title in 1990, but by the time she achieve that honor. She had already learned that only Jesus Christ could give her the affirmation that she so desperately craved. So let's get rolling. I know the listeners will really be encouraged by her story, here's Sherry Rose Sheppard, author of the series of books called his princess on today's episode of Focus on the Family.

I am honored to be in the room was loyalty. With so many daughters of the King. So many of his princesses in one case I think we forget, we ardently we forget that we forget that God said you did not choose me shows you we forget patently why former Mrs. United States but my real title is misunderstood. I am a Jewish American Princess that goes around the country telling people. Jesus is my King.

That's misunderstood my Jewish family and don't know the difference between Miss America and Mrs. America.

It sailing the crown of Mrs. United States.

My son was in kindergarten and think the big deal I show and tell. Way to go to school and my mommy's the new queen of the country. Think about that day. No makeup on my hair in a bun and grace wear makeup. I don't think your little boy loves you so my city actually believes your Mrs. America.

I said I she said your was asked but the daughters of the King Princess incision you your Christian and they don't see who Christ is and to talk about being his princess and I like to pray for you because I have learned it is not the house we live in the accomplishments that we have. The way that we look the possessions that we have the job title that we wear that defines who we really are is the power of Christ in gives us purpose and gives us power and give hope to a dying world. And I would like to pray for you and Ephesians 319 and 20. I pray that you would know the love of Christ which passes knowledge that you may be filled with the fullness of God.

And now that he who is able to do exceedingly abundantly more than we would ever dare to ask how our dream for the I become a Christian till I was 24 two in the country. I have seen many Christians that love the Lord, but have never experienced exceedingly abundantly more many of us are just hanging onto our faith for dear life thing. God please get me through this very dysfunctional Hollywood home.

My father was a disc jockey in Hollywood. My mother was an actress in a beauty queen Mike married and divorced three times each. I've been a part of five blended families.

I know what it's like to have your foundation shaken and every time I settled into a situation that was another divorce, another affair another thing changed and I grew up very angry and I met a lot of poor choices when I was a young girl and those poor choices turned me into a person that I didn't want to be when I was 16 I was 60 pounds overweight. I was addicted to drive. I was angry and I was depressed and if you had walked up to me when I was in my high school field smoking pot, hating life and looked at me as a Christian. He is able to do exceedingly abundantly more than you would ever dare to dream helper ask for guess what someday when you give your life to the Lord God is going to use your pain for a purpose. I would've not believed to see the reason why we don't live exceedingly abundantly more than we ever hope to report as we don't really recognize who we are in Christ. We don't really understand that we really are his princess that we really are daughters of the most high King and that everything we do and say can affect future generations. My motivation to not allow history to repeat itself. My motivation to say I don't have to be my parent I have to come from the perfect panics I have the perfect heavenly father and I can look to older godly wise women I can study their lives. I can ask them questions and I can be the mom and wife that God called me to be this of my foundation. I don't have. To lose what I was 617 when I was a junior in high school, 16 and 17, I wanted to go to the prom and no one asked me and I paid my best friends brother to take me there the coming king came and asked me if I was going to the beach party after the prom. While I had a crush on him and thought he was most adorable thing that ever sound that excited me and I said yes I am. Why do you look like a whale and you look like you belong on the beach and I ran into the bathroom and I looked in the mirror. I made a promise to myself that I would never be fat or ugly or made fun of again and I went on a mission to put myself physically, but that particular night I was so broken by the things that this young man had said that when I was on the beach at the party trying to impress my friends and bury my pain. I almost no deed on a drug overdose.

I was brought home from the hospital and I went into my bathroom and I was laying on the floor and I was cleaning and my stepmother came in and she on the floor with me and she put her arms around me and she said she how long how long you can use your past as an excuse for the choices that you making today Sherry Rose you can't change your mom favors you can't change your dad, you can't change your friends. You can't change the things you've only done but you will make the right choices. From this day forward, you can change the rest of your life. In Deuteronomy 3019. God's word says today. I have given you a choice between life and death between blessing and cursing. I call on heaven and earth as a witness. All that you would choose life. I went to school for the first time knowing from the wonderful words of my stepmom that I had a choice that I could change.

I think many of our young people in this nation. The reason why they're involved in gangs and drugs and alcohol and premarital sex.

They're looking for love. They're looking for acceptance and they think they don't have a choice. They think that that their destiny in life because of the wrong parents with the wrong crowd of the wrong choices they have bought the lie there is no hope, and that they are stuck now. I went to school the next day after my stepmother encouraged me with these words. As I went into my English class. My teacher walked up to me. Hearing of my drug overdose and walked up to me. Frustrated in front of my friends and said Sherry Rose you going to be a loser you will never amount to anything in life in defense of my English teacher, I was a troublemaker in school and I don't blame her for being frustrated and if I had continued on my self-destruction Road choice after choice. She's right, I would have been born to lose. Ironically, 20 years from her comment. Later I was invited to address 4500 teachers in Sacramento in the state capital of California and of course teachers are my greatest fear and I asked the man that invited me on what basis are you asking me to be our keynote speaker because, by the way, I'm dyslexic. I didn't go to college and high school. He said well see your testimony on TV and heard you are quite the teachers nightmare you could come and give us some hope is what my bios going to say as I was sitting there on the state me Barbie with the Bible and nine educated men saying what am I doing here and I'm freaking out there all going to hate me there teachers might explain the teachers were is a good thing and I'm looking around the building I looks so familiar.

And the Lord said you were here 20 years ago, smoking pot, worshiping a rock band you're standing now in front of 4500 teachers to tell them the power of life and death is in their time and they may not get paid what they deserve. But there educating future. God filled my mouth with a 15 minute inspirational encouraging message that got me a standing ovation from my greatest fear is God's grammar lesson because God's grammar lesson is this.

Don't put it.

Where I have a, because I have a plan for every life I create Jeremiah 2911 for I know the plans I have for you declares the Lord is to prosper you not to harm you, plans to give you a whole future.

Don't put a period in your life.

For God has a, because he has plans for and don't let someone's hurtful words to find you. I ministered over 50,000 women a year and I am telling you what I and altars with women and praying with women they can go back to one moment in time where someone said something hurtful to them and they put it on as their identity and they live the rest of their life.

Under that word curse that they won't put on who they are in Christ, a new creation light to a dark world called for purpose. I pray if you been hindered by someone's word curse that tonight in Jesus name that that would be broken and that you would leave knowing that you're his princess, and that your life matters, and most of the time. You know, I have found hurting people hurt people and usually those people that hurt us. We don't even want to grow up and be like we don't respect them. We don't respect her life will take their word curses and put them on what is wrong with that picture when I was asked to write my first book I have to tell you it's quite surreal. Having a book table for someone like myself being that I am dyslexic.

Which means that you see things backward so if you buy any of my book tonight. Love to read them backwards, but there's still anointed.

However, there was a time when dyslexia was a great benefit. Once I tried to take my life and I jump behind the bus God showed me strong in my weakness and that he can take any one of us that he chooses and he chooses everyone of us. He has great things for everyone of us, but were busy with our list of all our insecurities telling everybody I can't even say thank you said about us. That was wonderful that you did that all no limit to all the horrible things about me. We can't just say thank you because we don't see ourselves the way God sees us here. There's a big difference between who we think we are and who we can become in the Bible says as a man thinks in his heart so is he. And there's a big difference in where I was a younger offer that comment about homecoming king. I'll be honest, I wanted to be thin and pretty. That's what I want. I didn't know the Lord. Growing up I didn't have a way telling about a relationship with God.

I was raised in a Jewish home, but I was raised in a Jewish home that wasn't even committed to the temple, but I was told if I ever accepted Jesus as my Savior I be disowned for my family.

So Jesus was the last place that I was looking for a makeover. But my stepmother told me I had some choices and she help me lose 60 pounds and she help me get off drugs and she help me change friends and proverb says that real pleasure comes from making good choices and it does when we have victory over temptation. We make that good choice that pleasure is far greater than any temptation I could come our way and all of us as Christians. At one time or another have made one of those good choices and experienced the fruits of that, even when we don't feel like it and she help me and I did have a complete makeover but I didn't have the makeover, the ultimate spiritual makeover that I needed from the Lord. But when we first made me over since my mother was a beauty queen and my father was a disc jockey from Hollywood that hosted beauty pageant want to experience being in one of those beauty pageants so I was 19 years old.

The beauty pageant for my very first time I went to all the rage right hand of the figure a way, a local real fake smile if you bake it with your neighbor.

Okay you get the picture. So I am all excited okay I'm 19 years old and I'm just there.

They tell me.

Just a walking wave and smile the judges and I was so excited to be there so intimate.

I walked off the in the runway. There on the floor.

This is what I was thinking, honest, I still want to win we all fall down the bottles as a righteous man will fall seven times, but he will get back up again. So we pushed us down or we fall down and blow it herself. We can be a righteous woman and we can get and we can win. Can't wait to have fallen down the gun back up again.

We fall down we stand and fallen short of the glory of God the perfect so I'm laying there and I still want to win so I back up on the runway and I look at the judges with my whipped up down to bruised up bodies and I just wanted you to story is it's not how we act, but how we react. That makes the difference. How we act is important because were represented key that is important, but how we react is what really gives us an opportunity to glorify God is when adversity hits us, and we react in a way that God would have us react. That's when people go. She's a Christian she's the daughter of the king.

I see Christ in her because we make a choice to react. Why didn't know the Lord and I one that pageant and those judges that we figured you could react to that situation, you can handle anything that pageant had to have had a light year and I learned some great lessons from jumping off a runway by I still feel good about my life. Even though I lost the way. Even though I finally had the attention of boys and even though I improve my grades. I got up drugs and those were all good choices, but I still didn't feel good about my life. It was that all the happy when syndrome but I didn't want to admit it because I should've been happy from the world's perspective, I should've been happy about my life all these wonderful makeover beauty tips and I did know how to tell someone. I wasn't happy and I desperately wanted to feel good about who I was in my place in this world. So I went and earned 2° I earned my Masters degree in acting and my doctorate degree in denial. See, we women, so she has questions we've mastered acting Heideman Savior never praise from your peers mean the church because I'm Proverbs 1412 there is that seems right to man, but in the end it leads to just fraction even do not burden God with your prayers because of emails has it worse than we do. It seems right to ignore your marriage problems and just think God will fix it instead of us doing something about it seems I do not burden anybody in your Bible study group that you have a prayer need.

It seems right, but in the end it leads to destruction.

That's exactly what the devil wants.

He doesn't want us to confess our sins to one another. He doesn't want us to carry each other's burdens, he doesn't want us to pray for each other.

He wants that her covering listed and why worry are busy being that's what he's getting victory behind closed doors.

Now I'm not saying that we need to be a bunch of whiners because Jesus turned water into wine decanter wine into a thing and I'm not saying we should dominate every single Bible study and make it our therapy session because you know in one sentence. You can get yourself covered in prayer. We don't even have to spend an hour doing that we can say you know what I need prayer covering in this area and one sentence government prayer and go on to the next person in the Bible study. It doesn't take a whole lot God knows what's going on but a prayer changes everything. A prayer changes everything. I found a Martha Stewart card. Now I have nothing against Martha Stewart, but this card does make fun of her and I thought it was kind of a little bit representative of us women pretending we can do everything.

Everything's perfect. Martha Stewart would be so proud of me.

I may discard myself I planted the tree down the paper I plant in the garden fresh flowers and I made the I engrave the envelope boiled preparing a chocolate soufflé party for I am now resting back made myself 5000 things on your plate.

Do not even gifted to do. We all have different gifts everybody say I have a different gifts you have and use it to bless others. Don't try to be something you're not. Don't overextend yourself better you would take you one gift and do it well. Then burn yourself out right so if we don't deal. Truthfully what's inside of us. I have found that it deals with us. I have found that every exhaustion, illness, food addiction, depression is rooted in something God seen you have something and I need you to give it to me. If you're the mother of a toddler.

Many of them have been the mothers of a toddler before and there holding a knife on the wrong end and sharp you like and rip it out their hands because you know that it's got hurt their hands.

What you gonna say is a loving parent is your gonna say honey you're holding onto something that's going to hurt you and I need you to open your hand in hand it to me think God uses our emotions is warning sign and he saying honey you're holding onto something. Please open your hand and give it to me in our docket denial is not going to cover up our pain and decorating our pain is not going to help us deal with it. And if we are do not deal truthfully with God is the word of God says truth sets us free and he's only one that can deal with us. It will deal with us.

It does do with it dealt with me. I had the top of the world experience from the outside and I started out weight loss with wonderful, healthy eating habits and exercise got to experience the fruits of taking care of God's temple, but I didn't know the Lord at the time and all the sudden four years into this healthy lifestyle.

I became severely bulimic. I was throwing up my food. 6 to 8 times a day. But when I was bulimic.

No one had a word for it, so I didn't know how to go to someone ago throw up that normal and I was in bondage. I was what I called Barbie bondage, plastic perfectionism, something that doesn't exist with Paul and that will soon as this happens here then I'll do this five more pounds. The new house the new car, the new job that plastic perfectionism I can stop and I didn't want to tell anybody. I failed and I wanted people to approve of me. I wanted people to think I was an accomplished person in life. I'm not gonna lie, I wanted that I was a people pleasing approval addict. I wanted the approval of man. I was addicted to praise. I love the people notice my weight loss. I love winning pageants. I was addicted to it and I was severely bulimic and I begin to cry myself to sleep every night just like I did when I was a little girl and my parents were fighting in the other room Jerry Rose ship on today's episode of Focus on the Family in June. There is a lot of truth in what you sharing your both men and women you're right, John, and I believe the Lord has really given Shirley Rose a lot of wisdom in fact the Scripture that she referred to a minute ago was found in John chapter 8 Jesus was speaking to a group of Jewish believers and he said if you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples and you will know the truth and the truth will set you free.

And as we are today sure Rose carried so much hurt in her heart through her teen years and into adulthood and she learned the hard way that external appearances and success. Just don't satisfy the truth of Christ will set you free and will hear how that happened for sure Rose next time and you know Jim.

As I was listening I was thinking, especially what my three girls went through during their teen years.

There was so much pressure from the culture and for airbrush models, academic achievements of friends they had to go through a lot of different temptations and face down quite a bit and his Christian parents was pretty important for Dean and me to pass on her face to her kids so they could experience freedom in Christ, of the kind of freedom that sure is been talking about the surcharge on July saw those pressures return Troy in their teen years as well. And of course social media just magnifies all those voices from the world and let me tell you. That's why we recently revived her Brio magazine for teen girls and the response has been tremendous in each issue. Readers of Brio are encouraged to grow in their faith with daily Bible readings develop healthy relationships with friends and family and though learn how to embrace healthy Christ honoring choices in the areas of fashion and media so if you have a teen daughter or granddaughter.

I know you want to subscribe to Brio magazine so just get in touch with us and let me say this. If you believe that what we do is important.

Please support us, pray for us and pray about how you can help financially as we help your family thrive in Christ.

And when you make a donation of any amount I'd like to say thank you by sending you Sherry's beautiful book called this Princess love letters from your king is designed to counter the cultural examples of airbrush beauty. What you're talking about job with those affirmations of the value that God sees in the character every woman get a copy from us today and her number is 800 K in the word family 800-232-6459 or you can donate to and request your copy of his Princess by Sherry Rose Sheppard. We got the link in the show notes and if you enjoyed today's program. Please tell a friend to tune in next time. As Sherry offers encouragement for your life. If no one ever affirms you if you never get the things that you think you want to have it all. Christ you have been chosen by the God of the universe to represent him as his Princess on behalf of Jim Daly and the entire team. Thanks for listening to this Focus on the Family podcast take a moment if you will ensure this episode with a friend you might know a young woman who needs to hear this message of encouragement from Sherry and then please leave a rating in your podcast that will help others cover this great I'm John Fuller inviting you back once more help you and your family thrive you ever wonder what it was like to meet Jesus face-to-face the miracles the teachings the long-awaited beside flash all new novel by Focus on the Family called. I have called you by name. Based on the streaming series. Immerse yourself in first century Galilee experience the Savior to the eyes of his followers want to dive deeper into Scripture with everything Stern learn more about the chosen novel focusonthefamily.com last chosen focusonthefamily.com last chosen