9 to 5 Faith Podcast: Episode 21

Paige C. Clark 00:41
Hello, hello, everyone. I am here with one of my new friends Gina Anderson. And I am so excited to have her on the podcast and talk about her life and her work and how that points us closer to God. How are you doing today? Gina?

Gena Anderson 00:59
I’m fantastic. It’s Friday, as we’re recording this. So Friday afternoon, so I think I’m doing pretty well. Yeah.

Paige C. Clark 01:06
And you like to work a regular work week where it’s like five days on and two days off?

Gena Anderson 01:13
Yes, for the most part, I actually work four days four.

Paige C. Clark 01:17
days. Okay. Oh, I wish I could do 410s. Is that amazing?

Gena Anderson 01:23
It is the days are long when you’re working. But having the extra day off during the week. I’m sure you’re going to. You’re gonna ask me questions about this is awesome.

Paige C. Clark 01:32
Yeah, yeah. So tell us a little bit about yourself. What do you do? How can I get to work for 10s?

Gena Anderson 01:43
Well, as far as working for 10s, that was just something that I wasn’t doing until a year ago; I was working five days a week. And then that was something that they just offered and said my company said, Hey, you could work for TINs if you want to. And I said I absolutely want to thank you very much. So that’s how that happened. But I would say absolutely or see. Yeah. But I live in Central Texas outside of Austin. And in a small town called Hutto, that’s not so small anymore growing. And so I am married, and I have two kids. One is 15. And the other is 11. We have two dogs. And right now it is very hot here. And it tends to stay that way all summer long. And so I professionally what I do; I’m a family nurse practitioner, and I specialize in weight management. And so I do that full time. And additionally, I’m a Christian author and writer. And so I do a lot of that kind of thing. And then, as a mom, doing all of the shuttling the children around in this phase of life that we’re in. And personally, the things that I really like to do besides writing and reading and hanging out with my family, and working because I do love what I do. I think it’s one of the greatest privileges of my life to be a nurse and now a nurse practitioner for the last five years or so. But additionally, I love to be active and exercise and go for hikes and work in my yard and be outside in nature. I love traveling with my family, and I do that as often as we can. And I love cheesecake and red wine. I love that. That’s kind of me.

Paige C. Clark 03:25
I love that I actually have. I think on my website, I have. I love iced tea and dark chocolate.

Gena Anderson 03:30
I would take both of those also.

Paige C. Clark 03:35
She’s kicking red wine. I just feel like it’s people who are like, Oh, what’s your favorite food and like, you can just like go to it. But it’s like when it’s part of you. It’s part of you, and you totally understand it.

Gena Anderson 03:46
Yeah, but yeah, coffee. Also, I don’t know how I would live without coffee.

Paige C. Clark 03:51
That’s, that’s amazing. Thank you for sharing that. So how long have you been doing nursing?

Gena Anderson 03:59
So for 19 years, I think this year in December would be 20 years. That’s my 20-year nurse adversary. So a little bit

Paige C. Clark 04:09
a little while. Well, just a short bit. And how long have you been with the current company that you’re currently with?

Gena Anderson 04:18
For years a little over?

Paige C. Clark 04:19
Wow, that’s awesome to that. I feel like we’re we live in a generation where people just kind of the turnover rate is so high. So even like for years. I mean, it’s not, you know, the 20, 30, 40 years that you used to hear like of grandpa, but for years is still significant in in in the market that we currently have.

Gena Anderson 04:43
Yeah, you You’re right about that. I think in my profession, though, I am actually in the process of transitioning here in a few weeks to a different job. So it’s funny that you say that it’s a different company. Yeah. And it wasn’t necessarily my plan. It’s God’s plan. When was that I? This was a complete surprise. To me, but that’s a discussion probably for another day. But yes, I think, especially in other in my profession, it’s important to have a relationship with your patients. And that just takes time. So I don’t think leaving quickly bodes well for anybody, but in a lot of other professions there, people move around a lot these days.

Paige C. Clark 05:19
Yeah, that’s for sure. And don’t tell me a little bit about like how you found yourself in nursing. Obviously, you went to school for it, but like, why did you choose it? Why did you go down that route? And then also, like, I love to hear where did your faith journey align with your career journey? Were you already a Christian when you decided to become a nurse? How did all of that look?

Gena Anderson 05:46
Yes, that’s a good topic to discuss what a good question is. So I became a nurse. Well, what pointed me in that direction really was the suggestion of my mother; I shadowed a nurse in middle school. And it was a project that we had to do, we’re supposed to shadow someone in their career, and I really kind of was enamored with how it was at a clinic, and small-town clinic. And I really kind of just loved how these people, the patients, would connect with the nurses there. And just how there was, you could see this relationship, and this is carrying this with the nurses, and some of the patients would bring in cookies, or a little goodie or something. And it just seemed, it just seemed so life-giving to everyone. I love the relationship part of it. And so I knew that after that point, I knew that I wanted to do something where I could work with people. And I knew that I was interested in the human body and always had been interested in health and wellness. And so that’s kind of where it led to me writing about that. And then I also Ironically, one of the things I didn’t want to do at the time was having a job where I was sitting at a computer, which is funny because now we just use computers all day, every day. But at the time, I didn’t know that was where the world was heading. Yeah. And so, for those reasons, that’s what led me into nursing. I was a Christian I was I grew up going to church, Southern Baptist Church, and I had a profession of faith and was saved as a young child. But what I would say is, I didn’t really; it was kind of my Get Out of Jail Free card for a long time. And I mean, I went to church when I wanted to, and I didn’t really live out that day; I didn’t live a life of discipleship and those kinds of things. And so I kept my work in my faith pretty separate. For many years, and then, as, as I, probably in my early 30s or late 20s, started to really develop a relationship with the Lord, I started to learn that, oh, discipleship happens in the workplace and out in the world. You know, it’s not being a Christian isn’t about going to church, there’s nothing wrong, you should go to church, but right, that actually in the workplace is where we have the opportunity to live out our faith. So now, especially in my role as a nurse practitioner, I would say I, I live that out regularly, more often, more authentically, because I have an opportunity to sit down one on one with people and discuss what’s going on in their lives and often does lead to a discussion about faith. Yeah. And, so it’s been an evolution as far as my faith and my work, a giant being and what that looks like.

Paige C. Clark 08:41
Yeah, that’s, that’s a great story. And I mean, the answer to this could totally be No, but have you had any experiences as a nurse that have caused you to knock like it could question your faith or just like, be a sticking point for your faith in your career journey?

Gena Anderson 09:05
That is a good question. You know,

Paige C. Clark 09:09
I think it also depends on what area of nursing Yeah, you kind of stick? Yes,

Gena Anderson 09:14
I have done many areas of nursing. But if anything, actually, I would say that it has reinforced my faith and reinforced what God’s Word teaches us because there are a lot of things that you run across. I mean, I have seen some really devastating things happen, you know, holding people’s hands as they die. Young people who you know you would think shouldn’t die. It’s too young. You know, I’ve seen a lot of hard things happen. But often, if people know the Lord, they are so resilient in those moments and their keys, and you can really have a front-row seat to see how God really works. So I can’t say I’ve had I had a time where it’s made me an experience or something going on with a patient has made me question my life; it’s actually been the opposite. It solidified and encouraged me in my fate.

Paige C. Clark 10:12
Hmm, that’s beautiful. I think one thing that I heard recently is, you know, that like, there’s always the poignant question of, like, Why does God let you know bad things happen to good people and that whole kind of rigmarole. But it’s it was around the idea of suffering. Of like, when you’re a Christian, you’ll still suffer. And like, you know, the Bible shows us that. But as Christians, we get a unique hope through suffering that makes the suffering a lot easier. And I feel like that’s a little bit of what you were saying is what you would see and, you know, patients going through hardships.

Gena Anderson 10:55
Exactly, exactly. Like, I can tell you that one story that is just a quick story that, again, a guy shared with me; he was actually doing quite well physically at this point. But a number of years before, he had heart surgery, open heart surgery, and he actually died as his heart stopped. And during some, I think, during the recovery process or something, and they coded him and brought him back. But he said in that experience, he actually met Jesus and saw him. And when he came back, he woke up, and he was still in this role. He was mad. I mean, he was, he was like, and he makes it a point. This has been years. But he makes a point to make all anyone who takes care of him. No, like, do not ever resuscitate me; if I’m going again, I’m staying there like that. So just things like that, that you hear that, that just reinforce how, even in death, which is so hard for us that are left behind that, that it’s such a good thing to move on to the next life and be with Jesus. And even in suffering. A lot of times, people, even though it’s hard, it’s hard to watch. It’s hard to experience. A lot of times, people have such intimacy with the Lord as the Lord draws near to us when we suffer. So I just get to see that a lot.

Paige C. Clark 12:19
Yeah, that’s beautiful. One thing that I’m actually one of the writing projects that I’m working on is how to be close to God, in not suffering in the mundane. Because, yeah, you’re 100% Right. It’s, it’s hard, but it’s easy to cling to some good and some hope, and usually that that cling is to God.

Gena Anderson 12:45
Yeah, yeah. And I do think, for me, personally, I can definitely relate to that. Like, it is a challenge to cling to the Lord so tightly when everything’s kind of okay.

Paige C. Clark 12:55
Yeah. So let’s talk a little bit about I like to kind of make it from a macro. Yes, I like to practice my faith at work. But, like, let’s take it micro. And let’s talk about, like, what does that actually look like on a day-to-day basis? How do you show up as a Christ follower? In your work and with your patients, and were with your colleagues, and so on and so forth?

Gena Anderson 13:26
Yeah, so I try to, in anything I do in my life, live with bearing that identity showing that identity in Christ. And so I try to bring that into my workplace. And I wouldn’t say that I talk about Jesus all the time or, you know, mention his name all the time. I look for moments to do that. But I would say I try to live it out and in trying to live out my faith in what I do. Yeah. And so how I interact with people, one of the things that I really prioritize is just listening to people, and really listening to, to what’s behind what they’re saying, what’s going on in their life, and making them feel heard. I think that’s one of the biggest gifts that you can give people, and they’re not going to trust you or give you the time of day to give them medical advice or, you know, tips on encouraging them to know the Lord. Either way, if they don’t feel like you care about them. And so, with my coworkers, with my patients, I think I just really work on listening, being present with them, and taking the time to make them feel heard and cared about. And that, to me, is as important or more important than medically making the right decision and doing the right thing for them because I just think it matters more. Yeah. And so that’s really how I live that out. And, you know, I’ve done little, little practical things, sometimes, like I said, I help people lose weight. And so if I see they’re struggling, and we have a conversation about their faith, and they’re open to it, I’ll make one of their weight loss goals, you know, things like to eat more vegetables, and of course, there are specifics around it, but I’ll make one of their goals to be to pray every morning or find a couple of Bible verses that encourage them. And so I do it in practical ways, too. But mostly, it’s, it’s just in how I interact with people, just helping them to, to feel like, like, they matter.

Paige C. Clark 15:46
I think that you have you and anyone else in the healthcare kind of industry, especially those who have interfaced with patients. And when you work at a smaller, you know, not like the ER, where it’s gonna come in, and they’re gonna leave. Hopefully, you don’t see that person again. But, in the industry and in the function that you’re at, you actually get to build relationships with these people. And I think that’s one thing that I didn’t necessarily anticipate going into this conversation. Like, I just, I just didn’t really think of it of, yeah, like I, I work to build this kind of rapport with my coworkers. But that’s because I talked to my coworkers all the time, but you have that with your coworkers and your patients, and the people are like, you know, quote, unquote, your customers, right? The people you interface with daily also extend your patients.

Gena Anderson 16:46
Yeah, yeah, absolutely. And that’s one of the reasons why I say it’s such a privilege because you really get this intimate relationship with people. And people trust you with some sometimes really vulnerable information that they’re sharing with you. And so it’s pretty sacred, really? And yeah, it’s definitely, it’s a privilege, but it’s an opportunity for a Christian.

Paige C. Clark 17:10
Yeah. And, and to the other thing that stood out while you were talking is, is the ability to connect faith with kind of overall well-being and physical health; I think that I kind of see it a little bit in the Christian environment, that this, this idea of physical health is a little bit far removed from our faith when really, it is very, very intertwined. And you hear a lot of people who say, you know, our bodies are temporary, but also God created our bodies. So intentionally and so detailed that, like, we get these bodies, even though they’re just temporary for life, like we need to be good stewards of that.

Gena Anderson 18:06
Yeah. Oh, absolutely. 100%. That is, that is one of the things that inspired me to start writing about wellness as a Christian and mostly geared towards Christian women, but because I don’t hear a lot of talk about that in churches, you know, hear a lot of sermon series on health and wellness. Yeah, but I love that you said our bodies are temporary because our bodies are also a temple. Yeah. And, so yes, they’re temporary, you know, we don’t need to make it an idol to write, you know, to make our bodies look a certain way. So that we get praise or we get the attention that we want. But our bodies are a temple, and we can’t do what God created us to do. And we can’t, we can’t experience, but God intends for us to experience if we’re not well, and part of that is their spiritual, mental, and physical wellness. You know, it’s all-encompassing. And then, on the flip side, for me personally, as a healthcare provider, if I’m just treating the physical and I’m ignoring the spiritual Well, then I’m missing a whole. I mean, I can’t tell you how many people come in. As I said, I specialize in helping people lose weight. I would say over half of those people are facing a spiritual and emotional battle that is holding them back from reaching their health and wellness goals. So I have to address that. I have to pay attention to that. And I have to have to be open to conversations about both. And so yeah, I think you’re totally right. I think that, in the Christian spaces, we could do with starting started a few years ago, really emphasizing and embracing and discussing mental health issues. Right. That’s awesome. And I’d love to see it even go further and to spill over into more physical health issues and, yeah, kind of thing.

Paige C. Clark 20:04
Yeah. And the funny thing is, too, so my husband and his family, they’re all or he was raised up seventh day Avernus and Seventh Day Adventists are known for their emphasis on healthy living. So if you look at the healthiest city in America, it’s actually in California. It’s Loma Linda, which is a Seventh-Day Adventist community. And there’s Loma Loma Linda high school or hospital, and there’s the medical school there and all that stuff. And it’s the healthiest community because that’s just kind of what they put their emphasis on in terms of their living. But yeah, that’s what I always like to say, every denomination has this little focus area, where I’m just like, we need to like all of that, oh, I just hit my mic. Well, we have all of that kind of like all at once. But that’s just an aside. But yeah, it’s the funniest thing where I’m part of their community outreach, there’s, you know, a ton of SDA churches out here, part of their outreach is doing a diabetes care clinic, at a church. Like that was one of their ministries that they did was, hey, let’s help you take care of and manage your diabetes.

Gena Anderson 21:27
Well, that’s awesome. I love it. All right, interesting. I actually didn’t know that. And you hear where I am. And so many churches now are nondenominational, but right in this area used to be so heavily Southern Baptist. And I mean, I feel like as far as I mean, we’re every event has a casserole full of, you know, butter and chicken soup, and, you know, whatever else goes in there. And so, I think that’s awesome. You know, and I’d love to see more of that in Christian circles, and I’m not. Yeah, it’s not talked about at all, but Right, yeah, but see more, and it matters.

Paige C. Clark 22:07
Yeah. And, and that there’s just that one, you know, just that one ministry of having, like, you know, like, how to manage your diabetes, I was, it just took me aback where I was just like, oh, like, you know, God is still in that space, too. And just like, you know, approaching ministry from, like, a really unique perspective. For example, the church that we attend they have what they call a Car Care Clinic. And it is a very practical, tangible way of ministering to people in the community is helping them out with any current issues that they may have, you know, and so it’s just kind of like thinking outside the box of, you know, what ministry could really look like, and really see that God can be in all of these different places.

Gena Anderson 22:54
Yeah, well, and often, that’s how we reach people by meeting their practical needs. And then it that sort of starts that trust relationship I was talking about, yeah, you can, if you can meet a practical need that they have, in a physical way, whether it’s with their physical body or in your car, or whatever it is, you know, then then they see that you care, and then they’re like, now tell me about what is this Jesus that you’re talking about?

Paige C. Clark 23:19
Right. And if you look at Jesus’s ministry, and what he went after, in terms of, you know, his healings and right, like when he fed the 5000, right, like it was a very practical need people needed to eat so he provided food.

Gena Anderson 23:38
Sure, for sure, Jesus met practical needs all the time.

Paige C. Clark 23:42
Yeah. Yeah. And it just wasn’t, and which is, you know, part of my little, you know, soapbox at all live and die on it was like, let’s not just give people fluff, like, let’s actually meet people and give people practical actions, which is what we finished this podcast with. But we’re not there yet today. So take me through a little bit because you’re you started off this conversation by telling me all the hats you’re wearing, which is phenomenal. And I totally resonate with that. I don’t resonate with the mom hat because I’m not a mom; I am a dog owner. I don’t call myself a dog. Mom, I hate that term. Because it is different, in my opinion. And mom’s odors of dogs are different as much as I love my fluffy dogs. Talk about, like, what that looks like and kind of wearing all of those hats, and also making sure you’re caring for yourself in a spiritual way.

Gena Anderson 24:39
Yeah, so it is a challenge. To be honest, it adds a challenge, and I’m someone I told someone the other day speaking of dogs; I said, I said we were talking about retirement and those kinds of things. And I said, you know how there are certain dog breeds that they say they misbehave and you I get in trouble because they’re bred to work. And they want to be doing what they were bred to do, right? And I feel like I’m that kind of human, that was a dog. I was bred to work. And so, for me, as a mom, I know that there are a lot of moms that, once they have children, stay at home. And that’s amazing. Yeah, but I did it a little bit and a couple of phases in my life. But mostly, I have always worked at least part, if not full-time. And I just need that satisfaction of having meaningful work for myself. And that interaction with other humans that aren’t humans that I’ve heard. And yet they are the ones I’m married, you know, and get and so, but it is a challenge. And because I’m a hard worker, and my work does matter to me, some I have, I have learned to create boundaries. And, I don’t always do that perfectly, or well, but I try. And, so my days often look like that. As far as taking care of myself, I get up early in the morning, go to a 5 am workout class, do a workout at home early in the morning, and do my Bible study early in the morning. And I have to get kind of creative with how I have one on one time with the Lord. You know, I listen to Christian podcasts a lot. Sometimes in the morning, I might have five or 10 minutes at the most to be able to sit with the Lord and just pray, maybe write out a prayer and spend time listening to him for a few minutes to just connect myself with him and turn my heart to him. With the kids, you know, I’ve learned that work will always be there. And I try to prioritize things with the kids and, like my son, what do you look for these, these phases, and these times where this is a time that I can miss and I’m going to be working because that’s my responsibility. And then, on the other hand, this is a time that I don’t want to miss; my son just graduated fifth grade. And so, my last kiddo in elementary, it’s the end of an era. So I made sure this last year that I went to his activities and things like build trips and having lunch with him at school and just special things like that. And so it’s always a balance of trying to meet my responsibilities and be a good employee. But knowing that, especially as a Christian woman, your first ministry is to your family, right, and my husband and my children. So I try to keep it in mind. And a huge tip for balancing that it’s something that worked really well for me is just utilizing my calendar and always looking ahead. And so if someone says, Hey, do you want to meet and work on this thing for the church, or there’s a ministry that I’m a part of, and I volunteer with it? I’m always looking at my calendar. And sometimes it’s like, well, I’m already doing this other thing on Tuesday. So I don’t want to pick up another thing on Thursday. So no, not that week. I’ll do it next week. So just trying to balance and make sure that I’m not neglecting the people in my home. Or my work. Yeah. And it’s hard. It’s not easy. Yeah.

Paige C. Clark 28:33
Yeah, you practically read my mind with, like, looking ahead and looking at your calendar. While you were talking. I was thinking, Oh, I’m hearing a trend of looking ahead here with, like, your son in fifth grade. And, you know, you have to be able to pause and kind of look forward to the upcoming season that is happening and be able to manage your time and responsibilities accordingly.

Gena Anderson 29:02
Yeah, yeah, for sure. And, it does take some anticipation, and you never know what the Lord’s gonna bring. You know, he kind of does his own thing, right? So, so I have to be ready for that too. But yeah, anticipation. It’s you. Yeah.

Paige C. Clark 29:20
And me and my husband just walked through like a really hard season. And in that, I usually volunteer at my church on Saturdays. And I just said, You know what, like, I need to take a step back for the season. I’ll be back. I’m not leaving forever. Like, I’ll be back and volunteering. But right now, this requires me to kind of take a step back, and you know what, like, my weekends or our weekends together, have been so just life-giving in this season that I don’t have any regrets. It’s about kind of taking that step back.

Gena Anderson 30:03
Yeah, yeah. And I, yeah, you have to listen to what the Lord puts on your heart and what’s going on in your life. And every season is different. And so the way, the way you live out whatever God has called you to do, whatever ministry or service or whatever he’s put on your heart to do in this life, it’s gonna look different in every season. Yeah, there may be a season where you’re more focused on family.

Paige C. Clark 30:25
Mm-hmm. And I think of it too; I know a lot of people say, like, use this analogy, when it when they, when it comes to like friendships of like having like thinking of like a target, you have like your center, and then you have your, like, middle ring, and then you have their outer ring, and they can keep going. That’s kind of how I see, you know, my responsibilities and even my time and energy investment. So like, in the middle is like, obviously, it’s me, but also my family, my, my family has kind of that immediate investment. And then you go out, and that’s, you know, my church community, and then you go out a little bit more, and that’s kind of where my work finds itself. It’s, yeah,

Gena Anderson 31:08
yeah. And I love that you mentioned that because I’ve seen that I know that diagram you’re talking about, yeah. But for me, I see a lot of women that neglect themselves; I’m talking about prioritizing family and all of that, but I see a lot of women that put their family, their friends, and everyone else and everything else their job sometimes to above themselves. And I prioritize self-care not. I don’t think I hope it’s not in a selfish way. Right? But because I know that I can’t give to anyone if I’m not filled up. And so that’s why my time with the Lord is precious, you know, like oxygen or nutrition for me. Yeah, and, and exercise and good nutrition and getting enough sleep. I mean, all of that I prioritize for myself because I can’t do anything. I mean, if I don’t do those things, I’m gonna be snappy with my kids. And yeah, I’m gonna not be that good listener to my patients I was talking about, and it’s all just gonna roll downhill, right? Yeah. So that’s a huge priority. I think for women, we sometimes are just really self-deprecating, like, we, we, we feel like we need to be selfless and meet everybody else’s needs. At some point, you have to make sure that yours are met.

Paige C. Clark 32:31
Yeah. And I think, too, I really go back to scripture on that of was even having a conversation about this. In one of the small groups that I attended a few years ago, and they’re like, I think they said, like, self-care is not in the Bible. I’m like, okay, but also like here, like, have self-care, as we know it in our generation. Yeah, sure. Like, Jesus wasn’t going to get a manicure. But Jesus still retreated. And he even had, you know, private time with the Lord. And he had private time and prayer. And then he even retreated with his, with a closer group of friends than his 12 disciples retreated with them, and had, you know, unique time with them. And so I just kind of point to that and saying, like, you know, Jesus took care of himself and model taking care of himself in the ways that he needed to, even though he was perfect, He still made sure to have that time with God. So that’s just kind of what I always like, like, point to when it when I see all of this,

Gena Anderson 33:47
yeah, yeah, I mean, even God rested on the seventh day. Right? Right. Not because he was tired, but right, as an example to us and to see what he had done. Yeah. So we have to take care of ourselves.

Paige C. Clark 33:59
Yeah, absolutely. Absolutely. So when it comes to kind of practicing your own faith and wearing all the many, many hats that you do wear, what is what would you say is kind of the biggest struggle that you run into the biggest sticking point because another thing that I want to say on here is like we’re all we all fall short of the glory of God we all fail we all struggle we all sin in some way, shape or form. And no one’s walk with God looks perfect. I personally really struggle with quiet time because my brain is not turned off. So, what is kind of the biggest obstacle that you’ve run into?

Gena Anderson 34:46
So I could pick several? Yeah, I think that yeah; I got a lot of that. I could pick several if I had to if I had to pick one. That would be a big the biggest struggle for me. It would, would be self-reliance or just the need to control things. And because you’ve heard a little bit about my life, and I have a full work schedule, and the family and I are serving in different ways, and I write I do all these things, right, right? And sometimes, it can feel like a lot that I need to manage. And it’s always a constant effort for me to remember that God’s in control. And everything he gives me is mine to steward, but it’s his and, so, just always trying to go back to submitting to him. And making sure that I’m walking in His will. So not taking over with the with, like a problem arises and me wanting to problem solve, yeah, rather than spend some time in prayer about it for a little while, or take it to him, and trusting him and letting Him lead me. But I think that’s probably the biggest thing. And then time would be that, like, if I could pick a number two, I would say time, because ideally, I would, I would like to, like right now it’s summertime. And so my kids don’t have to be somewhere early in the morning most of the time. So I have a little bit more time to sit down with the Lord. But when schools are in session, and I have to be at work at a certain time, It’s like sneaking away a few minutes here and a few minutes there. And I’m praying as I’m driving in the car. And like I said, sometimes I get on my days off; I’m really glad to have that one day off during the week and the weekend so that I can see a longer time with the Lord on those days. But just flat out, the amount of time that I have is a struggle. And so the way I get around that really is sort of being creative, and always keeping my trying to keep my heart turned to the Lord. So I’m always listening to podcasts, Christian podcasts, and Christian music. And on my lunch break, I might read, you know, touching Christian content. And so, always try to stay connected, even if it’s even if my full attention isn’t there like I would want it to be in a one-on-one time. You know, in the morning, morning, quiet time, but always trying to keep my attention and my mind and my heart tuned to the Lord is sort of the solution I’ve come up with. But time, time is hard.

Paige C. Clark 37:25
Yeah. And I think that goes a lot too, again, the physical environment that we find ourselves in, of just surrounding ourselves with Jesus, and a few episodes ago, on the podcast, I had a guest say if being a Christian was illegal, do you have enough Jesus in your life surrounding your life? To be able to sustain your faith? Yeah, it’s like a question, right? Like, it was just this big sucker punch of, like, not even in terms of just, like, do I have a cross on my door? Which I don’t own any crosses? But, like, do I have enough scripture in my head? And in my heart, do you know the music that I listened to? You know, impacting my life in that way? What about the shows I watch? What about what I read, etcetera? Examine didn’t go down the list. But yeah, that was one thing. I was like a huge sucker punch of like, do I have enough Jesus just like surrounding in my life? To be able to sustain that relationship?

Gena Anderson 38:32
Yeah, yeah. It’s such a good thing to think about.

Paige C. Clark 38:36
It’s hard. It’s that was like, we at my church, we call them throat punches. That was very throughout. She has her to bring that up.

Gena Anderson 38:44
How

Paige C. Clark 38:47
dare she. But yeah, and I really resonate with the, like, the Self Reliance piece, too, because a lot of what just the studying that I’m doing is a lot around God’s provision and our attempt for control in this work. Yeah.

Gena Anderson 39:06
Yeah. I mean, that’s why when Moses went up to the mountain, they made an idol. And, if you look at biblical history, we do the same things. Maybe we’re not making idols out of golden, you know, out of gold and making a map, but, but we’re making our own, and we’re always trying to take back control. Yeah.

Paige C. Clark 39:30
So what does kind of your involvement with your church look like? And how do you find enough energy to be able to invest in that way?

Gena Anderson 39:43
Yeah. Well, it is a challenge as well, but I am very involved in my church, and I’ve been involved in church almost my entire adult life. And, so currently, I’m serving at my church as an elder, and I lead a women’s Bible study, and I serve a little bit kind of fill in here and there in children’s ministry. So I’m pretty involved as far as how I’m serving. But what I would say is, if you hear that I’m an elder, and you’re like, well, that’s impressive. Before less, lest you be too impressed. Let me just tell you that I am not always at the church. I mean, just last week, for instance, it’s summertime, so we’ve been out of town, so we had not been at church. And our church had a prayer night, which I love to go to. And that morning, I was like, I’m gonna go to this prayer night. And then, as the day went on, I was like, I’m not gonna go to this night because it felt too close to when I got off of work; the day kind of got away from me. And at the end of the day, I was just very tired. And I think there’s a; there’s a bit of discernment. I know; there’s a bit of discernment there. Because you have to make sure that it’s not like Satan’s not distracting you away from what you should do. Right? You have to allow yourself permission when you have so many things that you’re doing. And you know that the Lord has put you in these places. And he’s giving you the family that he’s giving you. You have to give yourself permission to not be present at every church function. Yeah, but I would say that I’m not as present in the church physically as I would like to be. Yeah. But again, it’s a posture and a mindset and a heart thing. Yeah. So um, if I’m not there, I’m often praying for the church. And as an elder, I try to reach out and have lunch or coffee with someone on a regular basis. I don’t do that as often as I’d like to. So I would say I’m very involved, but I don’t do all the things that my heart wants to do. But I also have to just be at peace with that. Yeah. And know that the Lord’s not like, I’ll see minus for you today. Because a prayer night and that’s what he wants in my heart and our relationship with me. And so it is, it’s a it’s a battle and a balance. But I definitely have less guilt now as life has gone on. And more peace about being able to say no, when I’m not supposed to be there and then say yes to the things that I am supposed to say it.

Paige C. Clark 42:32
Yeah. And correct me if you correct me if I’m like, inaccurately portraying this, but it also sounds like you’re also protecting yourself from being performative about your faith.

Gena Anderson 42:45
Yes. And that is a big thing for me, too; one of the things that I stumbled across and I’ve written about recently is that we have to desire God’s presence more than his praise. And so it’s, it’s so important to not do something just for the recognition. And, just to be there to say that we’re there. Right, versus to be doing something because our hearts are in it. And we know that God wanted us to be there. Yeah. And so yeah, for sure. And that has been big; I would say, a big breaking point or a big turning factor. A big pivot for me is that it’s not living out your faith is not about the checklist and doing the things that a good Christian girl should do; it’s about a relationship and that God desires most to have our hearts and know us and to have us want to know Him. And then everything else is kind of birthed from that.

Paige C. Clark 43:52
Yeah. And I think too, like, I think there’s like three categories of this. And I actually find myself very often in the I don’t feel it; I think, there’s I don’t feel it, there’s the I’m doing this just for looks. And then there’s the I’m doing this because I, you know, want and feel to do this. And I think you know if that makes sense. There’s kind of like three buckets because as you’re talking, I’m like, you know, there’s the discernment that must happen between like, I’m doing this for performative sake or, or I’m not doing this, because I don’t feel like it. But then part of me is also like, I also often do not feel like going to church, for example, or what have you.

Gena Anderson 44:40
Yeah, and that’s, that’s very discerning too because that’s not to say what I was sharing is not to say that everything that that we do, whether it’s with the church or in some other way, that in service and in ministry, whatever it is, everything we do is not gonna be something we want to do. I mean, there are some times that God is going to call us to do something that you’re like, I do not want to like, really, I don’t write that. But you’re sure that that’s what he wants you to do. So it’s not all about what you want to do. Right? But kind of what do you need to do? Yeah, and I think it’s completely okay, too; I think you can be involved. And you can be a member of a church community and be active and miss out on functions because you’ve worked all day. But don’t use that as an excuse every time. Like there was, there was a woman that came to my Bible study for years. And I use the term cane loosely because everybody knew Bible study; she would say, I’m so excited to see you guys again. And she might show up once, maybe twice. And then if every week she’d have a reason why she wasn’t coming, or that she had been too late or whatever it is. And so it’s not every time, you know, there’s, there’s a, there’s a commitment and a willingness to be present that I think is important and will lead to fruit in your life. Yeah, but you also can’t just keep if you keep pushing yourself to be there, for selfish reasons, honestly prideful reasons, then you’re going to exhaust yourself, and you’re not doing that from the Lord; you’re doing that from yourself. And so it’s not going to be free.

Paige C. Clark 46:37
Yeah, and it’s just, yeah, it’s just that discernment of figuring out kind of where it is. And I’ve definitely fallen into the trap of, like, especially with going into, like, small group, because I’m like, it’s at the end of the day, I don’t feel like I’m tired, like, but also, at the end of every week, it’s, I don’t regret going, you know, I always get filled up by the Lord for going and then on the other side of that, too, is I think, you know, again, this is where discernment comes in of it depends on what you’re doing and what your role is. Because with my small group, if I had an unhappy heart, I know that they are gracious and loving. And they would be like, okay, like page pages in a mood today, and like, That definitely happens. But also, these are the people that I’m doing life with. Whereas, like, you know, if you’re at a church function where there might be new people there, and you are just like in a really terrible headspace, you’re kind of like have the don’t talk to me. Sign on your forehead. Right. Maybe that is where discernment comes in. And like you decide to be back. Maybe behind the scenes that week. Yeah. Because we’re not all perfect. We don’t always have it together. But also we want people who are entering into whether it be a church or into the Christian world, you know, feeling welcome and feeling wanted there because they are. Yeah, yeah. Well, Gina, thank you so much for giving this glimpse of your life and how you balance everything because it sounds very difficult. And might you sound like a superhero, especially with those 5 am work? Oh, no. I always like to say like, yes, like, I get my best work done in the morning. But then I want to go back to bed after my best work done. There have been many times where I, like, I might wake up at like four, and I’m like, oh, like, I’m awake for the day. I might as well, like, go get something, go get some writing done. Maybe go to the gym, and then I come back home, and I crawl into bed and back asleep for another two hours. So the 5 am workout is very, very impressive. Well, if it makes

Gena Anderson 49:08
Do you feel any better occasionally on a Tuesday? I have actually done that. I’ve come back and gone back to bed for lunch. So there now you can feel that.

Paige C. Clark 49:18
does feel good. Well, I always like to conclude our podcast with what is one thing our audience can do and take away with this week to implement a faith-building discipline for their life.

Gena Anderson 49:32
So I think the best thing that we can do, especially as folks who work out in the world, I think the best thing we can do is ask ourselves what is our purpose, and as Christians, our purpose is always to go and tell the world about Jesus, right? But specifically, how do you do that? And how do you show the world who Jesus is and so So if you know that, then you can look at your calendar, for instance, and say, well, these things I can you can ask yourself when I go to work, how do I live that out? What posture am I going to have? How am I going to behave? What are things I’m gonna say and do with your family with whatever you’re doing? And you can also identify things in your life that maybe don’t align with that. And maybe those are things that you need to scale back or let go of if you can. And so I feel like identifying some somehow aligning with your purpose, what you do in your career, and figuring out how those two fit together. So for me, it was a game changer when I realized that I help people to live well. And I believe that through a relationship with Jesus and knowing his love for me, and my love in return for him, how that plays out, and how I live my life. But I can show people, my patients, that I take care of at work, I can show people as an example, and I can show them how to live their life well, and I can do all those things I was talking about before with listening to them. So just, I did, I think, identifying your purpose and asking yourself with each area of your life. How does this fit?

Paige C. Clark 51:28
Yeah, oh, I love that. It really resonates with me. And one thing that my church often says is, you know, as, as a as kind of an American western culture. If you want to know where a person’s affections are, look at their time, like look at their calendar and look at their wallet. Where are you spending the most time, and where are you spending the most money? That’ll show you where their affections are. And so I feel I hear a little bit of what you’re saying and that and that align your actions and your values with your purpose, and everything will kind of like shimmy into place there. Yeah,

Gena Anderson 52:11
exactly.

Paige C. Clark 52:12
I love that. Well, Gina, thank you so much for joining us. Where can our audience find you if they want to hear more from you? Read some of that writing that you’re doing and all that good stuff.

Gena Anderson 52:24
Yeah, thank you so much, Paige. It was so great to have this conversation. Thanks for what you’re doing. I’m excited to read more and hear more from you. But people can find me at Gina G and A Gina writes.com. That’s my website. And you can find me on Instagram, that’s primarily the social media avenue that I use, and so it’s Gina Anderson writes is my Instagram but Gina rights.com. And then my books are on Amazon, so you can search for my author’s name there. The good woman is one title, and no excuses are the Bible study on the book of James, so that’s where you can find it, and again, it’s been a great conversation. I’m so thankful you’re doing this. I think this is a great and powerful thing. Paige,

Paige C. Clark 53:08
thank you. Thank you, and all of those links will be in the show notes as well. So you have easy access to go find Gina and the good woman. I feel like I’m definitely going to like be on Amazon right after I finish things and this meeting, and going to buy that because it sounds like a wonderful read. So thank you so much, Gina. I really appreciate your time. Thank you