God has given each of us as believers a story to share with the world. Today’s guest, Janet Whisnant Harllee, talk show host of “Faith In An Ever Changing World,” discusses the importance of sharing your faith story with others to bring about encouragement, Inspiration, and hope while sharing the love of Jesus. Please join us to hear examples of why YOUR story might make a difference in another’s life. *****
Welcome to Empowering Lives With Purpose. And I’m your host, Kimberly Hobbs. I am the founder of Women World Leaders. And we are so happy that you have joined us today. Today. Let’s welcome our guest, Janet Harllee. Welcome, Janet, we are so happy to have you.
Janet Harllee Thank you, Kimberly, thank you for giving me this opportunity.
Kimberly Hobbs Of course, of course and ladies today. This is really fun because Janet has a program where others are invited on to share their stories. And I’m going to introduce her in just a moment. But I just wanted to say a little bit about who we are women, world leaders, the name of our podcast today is empowering lives with purpose. And it is our desire ladies to inspire you encourage you in the Word of God, and also to walk out that beautiful purpose that God has just for you. God tells us in His word that we are a masterpiece Ephesians 210 says we are God’s masterpiece, we are created anew in Christ Jesus to do that very good things that he has planned for us long ago. And ladies, we know that you have a beautiful purpose. And whether you’re walking it out now, or you have those reservations of walking it out, we want to help you we want to propel you forward in your faith, to walk out that purpose and serve the Lord wholeheartedly. And so as we have some of our guests on that is our purpose that they can help inspire you through sharing their stories of how they came to walk with Jesus and share their purpose. And when they share with you. Hopefully that will just jog something inside of you to say, Okay, Lord, if they can do it, I can do it. Right. So, Janet, I just want to share a little bit about our guest, Janet Harley today. She is a storyteller, and she’s a speaker, a broadcaster and an author. And she has a passion to share God’s truth and deliver it to her audiences, where she encourages, inspires and entertains with messages of faith in an ever changing world. Her other experiences include theater, radio, television, and she’s currently the host of her broadcast, which is faith in an ever changing world, which gives encouragement and hope, as she interviews with others to share their faith story. And also pastors who share various faith topics with faith focus. She enjoys encouraging people through coffee breaks, and she loves making new friends. And Janet Harley is available on YouTube. So Janet, again, we welcome you. And thank you for being here. We, you’re so welcome. We each have a story to tell ladies. And the stories could be ranging from how we give birth and pains and trials that we’ve had, you know, we all have different stories that we share with people. But as Christ followers, ladies, those stories are of the utmost important, what has he done in your life? What are our Faith Journeys? What is your faith journey, and the goal of our faith journey is to deepen our relationship with God. Right. And by sharing our faith story, and telling our story, we encourage others to share their stories. And God says in Revelation 1211, And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb. And by the word of their testimony, we overcome the enemy, and all that he’s trying to do in our life. When we proclaim our testimony to the world. God says that in his word, and that is how important it is. Janet, you have a story. So how did you get started in encouraging others to share their story? Let’s hear a little bit about your story.
Janet Harllee Well, I retired a couple of years ago at the age of 70 and And I’ve never really thought about retiring, Kimberly, I enjoy what I was doing. And the Lord has blessed me with good health. And so, but at 70, I thought, well, it’s just time. But you know, you never retire because God’s work never stops. So I wondered what was going to be next? My next chapter, what, what, Lord, what do you have for me? Now, what can I do? And one of my speaker topics was faith in an ever changing world. And I added encouragement and hope. Because for the broadcast, he put on my heart to, to do a Facebook page. And it’s really his Facebook page, not mine. And he wanted me to help others or to get other people to share their stories, because in how faith, either how faith had gotten them through a certain situation in their life, or their testimony, that we each have a testimony a story. And when we tell our story, we tell HEDIS. Amen. So I started the PageRank. So just let it go around in my head for a while, you know, and in September last year, and this September will be a year that the broadcast has been going on Facebook. And so I’ve just pray every day that the Lord will use me will show me what he wants me to do. Because when you retire, when I retired, I repurposed. I retired to repurpose. And I just think that the Lord has says he has put this on my heart, that this is what he wants me to do at this particular time.
Kimberly Hobbs Oh, my goodness, Janet, you are so delightful. And I love that when you retired, you said you repurposed? Yeah. How awesome. Is that? Right? That? I said, I want to be like you when I. When I’m at that age to retire, I’m gonna say no, Lord, let me repurpose it, because serving Him is amazing, right?
Janet Harllee That’s right. That’s right. And we are, we are to do that. That certainly is our purpose is to encourage and empower each other, especially as women,
Kimberly Hobbs especially right as older women. And so ladies, your job on earth here is never done. Don’t you think about retiring? Because God says no, he’s gonna use you. You’re here for a purpose. Remember that? If anything in this podcast today, you’re here for a purpose, ladies. And by sharing your faith story, it touches it touches other people’s hearts and helps them see their story through your story. Okay, so as they’re seeing and listening to you, they identify with what you’re saying. That’s the importance of sharing the story. They can have compassion, they can be inspired. But they can also say, Wow, if she did it, I can do it. Right. Right. So it’s through sharing these stories that also brings us closer to God, ladies, and I think God for Janet hardly that she saw a purpose in this. And she decided, You know what, she’s going to go and gather those stories that God brings across her path to share with the world. So thank you, Janet, so much for doing that. So much. So I have another question for you. So tell us how you would encourage someone else to share their God’s story.
Janet Harllee Well, stories connect us on so many levels, Kimberly, they are inspirational to to us. They encourage, they are empowering. And it’s important for us to share those stories because we can certainly apply as you have said help other women. Women because we go through a lot of the same kinds of trials. And I’m a member of a group testimony Tuesdays on Facebook. And so we Every Tuesday we share testimony. Well, I shared a testimony Yesterday, it was a testimony of obedience because my sister and I became caregivers for my parents. And you know, when when the roles switch and you become the parent, it’s, it’s difficult, it’s emotional. It’s tiring, but it’s also the most rewarding of anything I ever do. And my parents were such godly parents. And so it was just so in sharing that through the other comments you see, of other people, they can relate. Maybe they’ve been a caregiver too, and they knew what I was talking about. And so, in our stories in our storytelling, we certainly want to share this. And a lot of times, women think that they don’t have a story. And they, but you do, yes. Um, now my story about how I came to know the Lord. I don’t have a heart wrenching story to share as Sunday because I was blessed to grow up in a Christian home. But I do, it’s my story. And I enjoy telling you, and as I’ve gotten older, and in this stage of life, where I am right now, in my last quarter of life, I am more closer to God than I ever have been. And each day, I just seem to be even closer to him.
Kimberly Hobbs So is that saying true that your later days are your glory days?
Janet Harllee Oh, yes, I tell you, he has just been another can look back and see how faithful and how he has worked in my life. From the pit pitfalls and consequences that could have happened. And
Kimberly Hobbs he prepared you for such a time as this, he prepared you, that you you know, you may have not had like you said that heart wrenching story. But yet he knew that you were going to be compassionate. And you are going to encourage others that we have those crazy, you know, stories of what they’ve been through those heart wrenching moments, you know, that are and you encourage them, to talk about it, to share it to express it to others, in hopes that it will draw them closer to our Lord and Savior. And that is one of the best ways to share your story as you are you’re drawing others closer to God by letting them listen into your life being vulnerable being open, right? Be a friend. Yes, it’d be kind of godly examples. That’s what we’re called to do. And you talked about obedience to, you know, you were obedient to take care of your parents, like, you know, you can be doing a lot of other things in your retirement years. Right.
Janet Harllee Absolutely. Still working. This was while I was still working. Wow. So yeah, we had to move. And, of course, I needed a job and a place to live. Me and my husband. So Robert found an apartment that was brand new, nobody had lived in it. So we we got to got a place to live. I called a lifelong friend. And she was taking a new position and needed someone. So I had a job. I mean, it’s just things like that how things fall together. When we obey.
Kimberly Hobbs Oh, that is so true. That did you hear that? Ladies? When you walk in obedience with the Lord, He’s going to guide your steps, things are going to come together for you. If you think everything’s in array right now, check your obedience to the Word of God. Put it up against the scriptures. Are you walking in obedience to Him? Are you doing your own thing? Yeah. So Janet, you said it right. Obedience is key to unlocking the blessings that God has in our lives. And he blesses. That’s right. That’s right. He sure does. So God gives us examples, ladies all over his word about how we should share our testimonies and why we should share our testimonies. And one of those is John 439, where it talks about the Samaritan woman, and she had an encounter with Jesus. And then she went out and she shared that encounter. She shared that story of how it transformed her life. She was an AHA of this wonderful Savior that forgave her for what she was doing knew everything about her. And so she ran out and told all of her fellow neighbors her story. And in that the town believed in Jesus. And it’s all because of this woman testifying lives were transformed. So that’s what we’re called to do
Janet Harllee I love that story. Amen. It’s just and that’s what we should do. And with joy,
Kimberly Hobbs with joy. So one more verse I want to share is First Chronicles 16, eight, where it says, Oh, give thanks to the Lord call upon his name, make known his deeds among the people. Does he say, keep quiet about everything God did in his word? No, it says, Make known his deeds among the peoples. So ladies, we have a job to do. Janet, I know that through interviewing all of these women and men that you interviewed, because you do both you do men and women, you’ve heard some amazing stories. Yeah. So can you encourage the women by sharing maybe some of those that have had an impact on not only you, but others that have really made a difference and why they made a difference?
Janet Harllee Absolutely. There are many, but there are a couple of women that come to my mind right away. One woman had three boys, and they of course, her husband. And one night they were awakened with fire in their home. And so they were trying to get out and get the children out. And I she was badly burned. And still have scars today, but of the burn. But she passed out during a while she was in the ambulance, and didn’t wake up for six weeks. And but God healed her it took a long time. But the the very, very another sad part of it was she did lose, they could not get her youngest son out. So he did perish in the fire. So she speaks to women today about losing those who have lost a child, and all you know the emotions, and she has a podcast and called Purple thoughts. And if any women listening wants to know about it, and to know more about it, please, we’ll give you the information to get in touch with me a little while. But she is just such a wonderful, inspirational woman and speaks a testimony all the time, into the halls of how God has been so faithful and good and how he still is being faithful and good. The other day, I noticed she showed a picture of her getting in there taking her into the ambulance, and then a picture of her today. How alive she is and how beautiful she is. And
Kimberly Hobbs She had to take a step forward to faith right? Yeah, absolutely. And not be in that place. I mean, because we all know if we’ve gone through sickness, you know, we can wallow in our pity of woe is me for a long time. Yeah. And it took a lot to overcome what she did, but she stepped down and shared her faith story and what she’s doing now and I know you have more, share some more of that story.
Janet Harllee Oh, one more, one more real quick, about a lady who was kidnapped at the age of five, and found at the age of 10. And during those five years, she was abused every day, by her kidnapper. She now has has turned her life around. Of course there’s so much that can be said about her because of his She was so young. And to have this happen to her. At such a young age, that’s all she knew was the behavior and the the language that she heard from this man. And so that’s all she knew. And when she was found at the age of 10. She was so relieved she was Happy to be away from that environment. But social services took over and so forth. And at some point they they did it to her into school. And in the fifth in the fifth grade, she had never been to school at all. And so she didn’t know how to act didn’t know how to react, to interact with other children, and the teachers, but she, she got through. And then later a lady came in her life that introduced her to the Lord. And so her life, of course changed. And her faith every day now is spent helping other women who have been in similar situations, and how they can come to know the Lord and how she forgave her kidnapper, and how she brought him to the Lord. And didn’t get to meet her mother. And I didn’t say this, but she was abandoned at the hospital by her mother. So she was abandoned, kidnapped. It’s just amazing how God got her through this situation. And now, how her how he’s using her life to help other women. Wow, wow, is just amazing. So these are encouraging stories, amazing stories. And I can’t imagine being in this situation, because it nothing like that has ever happened to me. But it just, it just inspires me to, to be more grateful, and more thankful to God about house so faithful and good in my life. And how I can help other women and men to share their stories to encourage and bring hope to others.
Kimberly Hobbs Right. Wow, Janet, and thank you, thank you for encouraging this woman to come forward and share that story. And even you sharing it today, how many lives are being touched, just listening to this. And knowing that when she came to know Jesus, she took her whole life story, and she put it into purpose in serving Him. And how powerful is it because others listening may have just come out of something tragic, just like that. They can identify with the pain and the hurt and the suffering. And then you get their ear because they’ll listen to you because they relate to you. And you can share with them, you know, the overcoming that when we know Jesus, and we’re following Him in His steps. So we have a story to tell of turn to Jesus and give him all your hurts and pains. They’ll listen to you at that moment because they’re identifying with you. Yes. So don’t you doubt ladies for a moment that your story isn’t important. Just like Janet said. She didn’t grow up with a unbelievable story. She grew up and God was preparing her life for such a time as this to help others share their stories. Do you see this? Like, it just goes on and on and on. And we don’t know what time in our lives God is going to use us or when he wants to use us every day of our life, by the way. So honestly, we are so appreciative of what you do Janet and encouraging others to share their story. Yes. And so tell me how I you know we have to close again wrapping up. It’s just like our time with alive. It does it goes so fast. But I would like for you to share a couple of closing words to encourage the woman to share her story. And also tell us how ladies can get a hold of you Janet.
Janet Harllee Okay. First of all, I’d like to share my life scripture is found in Proverbs 356. Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct your paths. No matter what age you are women, no matter what age we are, that he shall direct our paths and one other one. Which is it At this particular time in my life, it’s how he is going to be with us, even when our hairs turn gray. And my now is turning gray. And I love it
Kimberly Hobbs With age comes wisdom, Janet.
Janet Harllee That’s right. That’s exactly right. Kimberly is wisdom. And but I just pray every day for his wisdom, and discernment. And just stay true to God, trust God, in all things.
Kimberly Hobbs Amen, that that Scripture is so special to me too, because that’s my mom’s verse. And you know, I always hear or, you know, I can hear her with her little finger up in the year, Trust the Lord with all your heart. You know, like that’s always saying that, so it’s a great one. So how can ladies get in touch with you, Janet?
Janet Harllee All right. Of course, I have a YouTube and you just type in my name, Janet Harley. And the email that I have is Janet storyteller@gmail.com.
Kimberly Hobbs Hey, man, I love that. Okay. And Janet is also a woman world leader, we are so grateful that she has come on board to serving and just being a part of just a unity of women that are going out into the world with their special purposes, doing what God has called them to do. And I thank you for that. Janet again, to serve with you is a pleasure.
Janet Harllee Oh, it’s been a pleasure with us. Well, thank you so much.
Kimberly Hobbs Oh, you’re so welcome. Ladies, I just in closing, want to share Luke 839, which says return to your home and declare how much God has done for you. Proclaiming throughout the whole city how much Jesus has done. Oh, my goodness, right. He tells us go out into the city ladies proclaim it. It doesn’t mean just be quiet and just tell somebody here on the corner, you know, in secret? No, it says proclaim it that means be loud about it. Proclaim what he has done with for you ladies share your story. It’s so important that is the purpose of empowering lives with purpose is to get women on here to share their stories. So others can be inspired. And we hope that we’re doing that for you. And another way that women world leaders loves to inspire is we do some books each year. And one of the books that we put out is tears to triumph. And it is releasing pain to receive God’s restoration. So by some of the women that have shared in this amazing book, their stories of pain of suffering, it has inspired others to find Jesus. And we are so this book went to number one best seller. And number one international best seller, tears to triumph. It’s available on our website, women world leaders.com. It’s also available on Amazon, but we’d prefer you get it through women, world leaders. Ladies, this is a book that you will just you will cry through this book, but you will be inspired. And also we have another amazing tool for you ladies. And this is voice of truth women were leaders puts out a publication by monthly magazine. I see Janet is holding up hers. For those watching on YouTube. Yes, yay. Well, voice of truth is your tool ladies to inspire you encourage you strengthen you in the Lord filled with the gospel message of Jesus and every addition. Also, we have many ways that you can get involved with women were a leader as you can find us through voice of truth, of course, and be inspired to share your story somehow, someway, maybe, right? Maybe do a podcast with us. Whatever it it is that God’s putting on your heart. We give opportunities here in this ministry, for you to get involved and share your beautiful purpose with the world just as God has asked you to do as to all of us to do some ladies and close. Again, I want to say thank you to our guests, Janet. I love you Janet, you are just beautiful treasure. Thank you so much. God bless you ladies each and every one of you and again I just pray that something today touched your heart and that you will go out into the world and proclaim what God has done share your story flames there is a world out there that is hurting and needs to be inspired through Jesus Christ live The good side. So ladies, from our heart, from his heart to yours, we are women, world leaders and all content is copyrighted and cannot be used without expressed written. I bless you all and have a wonderful day.