Life doesn’t come with a script.  It’s full of unexpected detours, some can be catastrophic!  What do you do when the bottom falls out or life throws you a curve ball, or you get distracted and make poor choices that end up costing you everything you have!  The answer is “You can begin again.”  In today’s segment, “Prodigals Can Go Home”, our special guest, Randy Rial, a recovered drug addict and minister will share his remarkable story of second chances. Randy’s addiction spanned decades and left him wondering if he would ever find freedom and peace. He is genuine, transparent and humble. His love for Christ is evident. His message is clear and simple. It doesn’t matter how far you have wandered or how long you have journeyed, God sees you. He is reaching for you. He is still in the miracle working business. When you have finally come to the end of yourself, you can head for home. You will find your heavenly Father running toward you! Randy founded Road to Redemption Ministries, a non-profit organization that connects those coming out of addiction with the resources and tools they need to live a healthy, Christ-centered life.

Katie Phipps is a beautiful, courageous young woman whose moving story of victory in the face of extreme trauma and loss tugged on our hearts so much, that we decided that we had to bring Katie into the studio to sit down in our “makeup chair” and share her personal journey to healing and wholeness.  If you’re feeling overwhelmed in your life right now by challenges and what seem to be “insurmountable obstacles”…then stay tuned, because Katie’s story will give you just what the “doctor ordered”…an injection of “hope” and the “fight” that you need not to “give up…give in or give out!”  Her story is also a reminder that God can and will “redeem a life”, turn our ashes into beauty, transform our mourning into gladness and turn our despair into praise.

Judy Fox, a former NCAA Division 1 Volleyball Coach with 30 plus years of experience which includes induction into four halls of fame. Judy is also the President and Founder of “Ignite International” which she started back in 2003.  With more than 90% of the global population engaging in sports at some level, Judy and her team use this “common foundation” to share universal principles to empower and equip influencers of tomorrow’s leaders.  As a personal mentor of hundreds of athletes, coaches, and youth, Judy’s fingerprint extends across generations, cultures, beliefs and nationalities.  She has trained leaders of national teams and federations, Olympic committees, educators, and youth and community leaders to utilize sport as the tool through which to teach life principles.  With Judy at the helm, her team has left a mark of hope in more than a dozen nations through outreach trips to Nicaragua, Cuba, Liberia, the Holy Land, Jamaica, Moscow, St Petersburg, and the USA just to name a few.  Today’s segment is called “Ignite U1” which is also the name of the new initiative that her company launched in 2019.  Her goal is to inspire, empower, and equip teens and adults caught in cycles of trauma with the necessary practical tools they need to break the cycle so that they can experience the power of hope and pass it on to future generations.  Judy believes that whether it’s across the street or across the globe, you can ignite your world…but it starts with U1…You First!

Our special guest today is Texas Senator Angela Paxton.  She has represented District 8 in the Texas Senate since January 2019, and she is the wife of Texas Attorney General, Ken Paxton.  Senator Paxton is a former secondary math teacher and school guidance counselor for more than 20 years, thus, making her the first educator elected to the Texas Senate in over two decades.  The mother of four is a stalwart leader and an unwavering voice on pro-life issues, including adoption, foster care, and preventing human trafficking.  Her dedication to these issues stems from her own personal experiences growing up from humble beginnings as an adopted child herself.  In today’s segment called “The Gift of Life,” you will hear her inspiring story of how God’s love, graciousness and favor covered her from birth, through her adolescent years and continues to cover her today. Her journey has been filled with unique and meaningful personal experiences that equip her to make a difference today, and her story is a true testament to God’s power to restore those “precious things” that seem lost to us.

Debbie Buffone is originally from northeastern Brazil where she spent her formative years. As a young woman, she moved from Brazil to Connecticut where she attended college and became a US citizen residing in this country for about 19 years. From Connecticut, Debbie moved to Dallas, where she currently works as a Governess for a family in Plano, Texas. She is a writer and speaker and is active in her Messianic Synagogue. She is also a faithful volunteer for the ministry, known as ROARING LAMBS. In this segment today called, “Abandoned by Man but Chosen by God,” you will hear how Debbie was triumphant and maintained hope and courage in spite of being rejected by her family before and after birth and subjected to two very “dark” and “perverted” problems on the rise in the world today…Human & Sex Trafficking and Sexual Abuse. Her countenance reflects the inward radiance of a joy that can only be found in the arms of a loving Savior, who has never, and will never, let her go….EVER. Debbie’s story is in Vol. 3 of “Stories of Roaring Faith” found at https://www.roaringlambs.org/store

Parenting is one of the most difficult jobs in the world! So what do you do as a parent, when you are faced with one of your worst nightmares: finding out that your precious son or daughter has a drinking problem? In our segment called “Trusting God…One Step At A Time”. Our special guest is our dear friend, Mary Dawson. She is the mother of four adult children and has nine grandchildren. She will share with us how she walked through the nightmare of her son’s addiction to alcohol which started as a teenager and lasted for 25 years. In an astonishing turn of events, this story culminated in a miracle. As a professional songwriter and music publisher, her songs have been recorded by artists such as LeAnn Rimes, Babbie Mason, Cynthia Clawson and Perry Hayes. She is the founder and president of Songsmith, a Texas-based non-profit organization whose mission is to discover and encourage the vast pool of talented musicians and songwriters in the state. Please visit www.songsmithonline.com, or the Facebook page at Songsmith Texas. Mary is also a 33-year member of a 12-Step Program for families and friends of alcoholics and addicts. Her recording, The Serenity Songs Project: Twelve Steps to Freedom, has received national and international acclaim from many of the over 200 programs which use the 12 Steps of Alcoholics Anonymous to address various obsessive-compulsive disorders. The songs on the recording are based on the principles of the 12-Step Program and have been called “a meeting in music” by many who work the Steps for their own recovery. Mary’s landmark book, How to Get Somewhere in the Music Business: From Nowhere with Nothing, is also the subject of one of the courses she teaches at the university level. Over her 30 years in the Music Industry, she has developed many resources for songwriters who are seeking to advance to the next step in their careers. For a list of these resources, please visit her website.

We hope that your new year is getting off to a positive start. We continue to pray Psalm 91 over you and we trust that God’s protection and His peace will cover you and your family every day. It’s hard to believe but Peggy and I have now completed 52 new segments for the Makeup Lessons for Life Podcast…that’s a year’s worth of new shows…and we feel blessed to have had the opportunity to share so many great stories of faith, healing and transformation with you. We’ve also been blessed and learned so many lessons from all the different people who have sat down in our makeup chair to openly share their stories. We have featured people from all walks of life…pastors, authors, a senator, attorneys, former drug addicts, a former member of the mob, people who’ve suffered sexual abuse, former prison inmates, businessmen and women, actors, actresses, musicians & singers, parents, single mothers and even a retired Colonel in the United States Air Force who was a Prisoner of War in Vietnam. Their stories and challenges may have been very different, but the power of God to work all things together for their good was the same! In celebration of our first year of shows, Peggy and I decided to select 7 of our guests and recap their testimonies while sharing the lessons we learned from the people who sat down in our makeup chair.

Happy New Year from all of us to all of you! We pray that you had a blessed Christmas with your family and that you’re enjoying some special time with your loved ones during this holiday season. The year 2020 was very challenging and difficult for so many of us. The effects of COVID-19 wreaked havoc on our nation and the world…causing death, illness, job losses, business closings, school closings, lock downs, isolation, and an overall drain on our mental and emotional health…so much so, that many people were ready to put 2020 behind them with hopes for a better 2021. But in spite of the struggles we faced last year, God is faithful and He has remained a constant source of hope and strength even during our darkest hours. In 1 Thessalonians 5:18 Paul writes: “in every situation, no matter what the circumstances, be thankful and continually give thanks to God; for this is the will of God for you in Christ Jesus.” This scripture is the foundation of today’s segment called “In All Things Give Thanks”…and I’m so excited to bring together our entire team…my co-host Peggy, Thomas & Pastor Scott to reflect on the lessons we learned from 2020 and the things we’re thankful for as well as discuss our mindset and approach for this new year. As an added bonus, we’re going to feature the music from our favorite hymns that have anchored us throughout our lives and we pray that they will bless you also.

Our segment today is called “Pickle Packin’ Grandma” . Our special guest is Betty Rae Worley.  This homemaker, mother, grandmother and businesswoman is 80 years old and still going strong. She is vibran, beautiful as ever, and affectionately known by her husband as “the Pickle Babe”.  Betty Rae has earned that title because for 30 years now, she has been the owner, creator, and face of the company “Betty Rae’s Bread and Butter Pickles”. When it comes to pickles, Betty Rae rules the roost.  Since 1987, Betty Rae has been sharing her family recipe with the world, selling over 18,000 jars. She’s also been featured in Dallas’s own “D Magazine.”  Life, however, has not always been for Betty Rae as “sweet as her pickles.”  Over the years, she has faced family challenges, financial setbacks, and health issues that have put her faith in God’s power to heal and restore to the test.  With each test, Betty Rae’s faith and passion for the Lord grew, and today her relationship with the Lord is more “intimate” than ever.  Her greatest desire is that God’s light shine through her and her company far and wide.

For many people in the U.S. and around the world, the year 2020 has been very challenging and difficult at times. But in spite of the obstacles we’ve had to overcome, Christmas time is here and you can just feel its magic in the air! We all know the holiday song “It’s The Most Wonderful Time of the Year made famous by the pop singer, Andy Williams. Well, this is definitely my favorite time of the year. I love decorating the Christmas tree, looking at the beautiful ornaments and lights, drinking hot cider and cocoa, baking tasty treats, exchanging gifts with family and friends, and caroling in the neighborhood. But most of all, I love reading the Christmas story and celebrating the birth of Christ…who is the savior and “light of the world.” I also enjoy the music of Christmas…especially the “carols” that transport me to the first Christmas back in Bethlehem…the day that changed the world forever. Well, today we’re going to share with you the stories behind the writing of some of your favorite carols and play some beautiful arrangements of these songs performed by our very own jazz musician, Tom Braxton, and featured on his Christmas CD, “Comfort & Joy.”