Faith over Fear: From Catholic to Born Again

In this episode of Just Know The Podcast, Andre discuss, transitioning from Catholicism to Christianity. They explore the struggles they faced before finding Jesus, the transformative power of faith, and the importance of community and vulnerability in their spiritual journeys. Andre shares his experiences with depression and how finding Jesus has changed his life, emphasizing the significance of prayer, scripture, and being part of a supportive church community. The conversation encourages listeners to take leaps of faith, embrace their identities in Christ, and not be afraid to share their faith with others.

Connect with Andre on Instagram @andregarshia
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If you or someone you know is struggling, please reach out for help. You matter, and your well-being is important. Don’t hesitate to connect with the resources below:

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Remember, it’s okay to ask for help, and it’s okay to listen.

Transcript

Andre - From Catholic to Born Again

Andre: [00:00:00] That spiritual battle is real. It's very real. It was to a point where my wife and I were on and off fighting and it wasn't necessarily us. It was the enemy knew we were becoming a threat. So he was going to do anything he could to stop us.

Jenn: Welcome to Just Know Though podcast. My name is Jen and our mission is to keep it real and courage. Just know you are never alone. I hope you enjoy today's episode.

 Welcome. I welcome back to just know though podcast. I'm your host, Jen and we are in our faith over fear series. And we have a special guest with us today as Salinas native Andre here with us.

Jenn: I'm super duper excited. And if you don't know, we usually have three to four episodes, but for Faith Over Fear.

I did a third round of invites, and I prayed on who to invite, and you popped up in my mind. Then I looked at your Instagram, and then I [00:01:00] realized that me and you were saved around the same time.

Andre: Awesome, that's so cool. 

Jenn: You were saved in March. 

Andre: I was water baptized in 23.

 We've been going to that church since 22. , so October 2022 when my wife and I were officially saved. 

Jenn: Okay. Same for me. I started going to church October 2022 and then I got water baptized in March 2023.

And then when I read your preform, I just felt like you were a kindred spirit, just like all of the things that you were saying. So I'm super excited 

Andre: I'm so happy you invited me. 

Jenn: You are a husband, a father and a believer. 

Andre: Yes. 

Jenn: And I've been walking with Jesus for two years.

And what I love about you is I feel like you post about Jesus all the time. 

Andre: Yes. I love it. I don't hide it and I know we've been taught in church, like you got to not only do it in church, but you do it out in the real world and that's what I like to do. I'm not [00:02:00] scared to show my faith at all, especially since he's the one that saved me.

I'm not afraid to show it. 

Jenn: Amen. Yeah it caught my eye and I feel like that's why Holy Spirit definitely Encourage me to invite you even though I don't know you he orchestrates miracles. 

Andre: Yes, he does. 

Jenn: Is there anything you want to share before we get started?

Andre: Just I grew up in a Catholic Church Any stereotype you might've heard from a Catholic church, it probably happened to all of us. Anything from, being told what to wear, what to say. In my case, sometimes I'd be quizzed by my mom of what was said during church. I would always fail because most of the time my brother and I were either not paying attention or falling asleep.

Because it was just, it was so repetitive. It was constantly. Kneel, sit, stand. Kneel, sit, stand. Tithe and offering. Kneel, sit, stand, and then go home. And it was that repetitiveness that I felt. I didn't really belong. But I didn't know it at the time. [00:03:00] As I look back now, I see that, this wasn't really for me.

Jenn: Yeah. I also grew up in a Catholic home, in a Catholic church, so I know exactly what you mean. I didn't know it was going on half the time. Besides just showing up. So that being your background of faith and you were recently saved for the past two years. 

Andre: Yes. 

Jenn: I guess from an outsider perspective, because a lot of people are Catholic and I'm not throwing any shade, but what have you found to be like the biggest difference between Catholic and Christian?

Andre: One of the biggest difference I've seen is. Christians, I feel like they're a little bit more involved. They bring in the real world a little bit more. Not only with they start with the worship, which is great. I love worship music. Before I didn't. When I was, Catholic, I was more of, this music is weird.

 As I listened to the lyrics I relate to them, especially now [00:04:00] being a believer and I'm like, wow, these lyrics just speak to me. It's a little different for me. But Catholic.

Churches seem , dull. I don't mean it in a bad way where as Christians, they're speaking the word, they're speaking real life. Sometimes it's just like you walk in and God knows what you need to hear. And it's exactly what you're going to hear when you go to a sermon.

So I feel like that's the biggest difference between the two. I can relate more to a Christian church , it's been a better experience than when I was Catholic. 

Jenn: Yeah, it's just trippy you would think it wouldn't be that big of a transition but it actually 

Andre: Is 

Jenn: it really is like you just have a Relationship with jesus, which I didn't have as a catholic It wasn't like the priest was telling me how to have a relationship Either I don't know the message just didn't hit for me

Andre: Exactly.

The worst part for me is at the time we were going to an all Spanish church. And even though my Spanish has gotten better now, back then I didn't really [00:05:00] understand it.

So that was tricky for me as well. 

Jenn: Do you want to share your life before Jesus? Wherever you want to start. 

Andre: We can go back pretty far because Before Jesus, it was just really bad.

 The enemy knew how to play with my head. He knew how to trigger my depression. I had gone to see doctors, I took the medicine that was provided, God bless the doctors for taking care of me, but it wasn't working. And I would have these rollercoaster rides where it was just up and down.

And I knew that it was the enemy playing with my head. He knew what to do. He knew how to get to me where I was always thinking I'm not good enough for anybody. I'm not, I even thought I wasn't good enough for my wife beforehand. It was a dark time I can safely admit that I allowed it only because.

Part of me enjoyed the isolation [00:06:00] because falling into his trap where I was like okay this is probably who I'm supposed to be. I'm supposed to be in the darkness, I'm supposed to be depressed, sad, wanting to just give up, just end it.. I felt like it was Part of who I was supposed to be at the time and I look at myself then and now like back then I didn't know who that person was.

 As I recollect, I'm glad I'm at where I'm at now, but to think back, where I was before Jesus, I didn't even know how I made it this far.

Jenn: The mental torment is so real, I felt like I had the condition thinking of not feeling good enough. 

And trying to do all the right things, but none of it made me happy. 

Andre: Exactly. 

Jenn: And everything I was doing, whether it was work or school or relationships, it was never enough.

 Either I wasn't validating myself and I was listening to all those lies and then speaking it over myself even subconsciously. 

Andre: I was gonna add a little [00:07:00] bit that it just popped into my head because I was in that darkness. It led to me sinning even more, where he wanted me to be that far away from God, where he just wanted me to continue to sin.

, it didn't matter who I hurt or anything, it was just that quick pleasure. You sin, but you're going to face the consequences after that. And the depression was that consequence because I would always backtrack to that.

Jenn: So when did you have that moment? Where you're like, Jesus spoke to you, in that in between, especially since that journey's still fresh for you what was that moment that kind of shifted and brought you towards Jesus?

Andre: It was more of a very dark time to where my wife and I had the realization that we have to change, something needs to change, because her and I, especially moving out here, we had our three kids already, we're looking for a church, but couldn't find one, we had [00:08:00] trial and error so many times, where we were almost thinking this is probably not for us, we were so much of an introvert that every time they wanted to say hi or, shake your neighbor's hand, we were like, nope, gone. It was really the night that my mom had passed is what brought us to Jesus, it was weird uplifting because don't get me wrong. I love my mom, may her soul rest in peace, but there were times where it was just hard we struggled a lot. And when she ultimately passed, we were uplifted, but in a way where we were like, okay, this is our sign, the enemy took her. We're not gonna let him take us. We're gonna make a change. Little did I know that my wife already had found a church, but I didn't know about it until we seen a video on YouTube about identity. We were [00:09:00] like, this is exactly what we're looking for, where we knew that God was trying to push us to this church because they were talking exactly what we needed to hear.

And that's when we finally decided, we're going to make this change. We need to. Follow Jesus, because everything else is not working. Nothing's working. We tried, anything you can think of, any kind of pleasure, spending money, going to places, drinking, clubs, you name it. We were trying it all, and nothing was working until we finally found the church that we would call home.

And that's really when that

uphill journey started, where it would lead us closer to God.

Jenn: Yeah Wow, thank you because I was actually doing a prayer last night Against premature death. 

Wow, actually I really need to pray I really need to remember that the enemy doesn't want us to be saved and to spread the gospel and knowing our [00:10:00] identity.

I love that. Sounds like you found your identity in Christ. 

Andre: Yes. 

Jenn: How is your life now? 

Andre: After Jesus it's been night and day, really. I will admit it was a spiritual battle from the beginning. 

It was exactly what they told us at church, it wasn't going to be easy. It wasn't going to be , Oh, okay. I'm a believer of Jesus. You're healed. Go on with your life. It wasn't going to be that simple, but we were willing to take the leap of faith because we were like, you know what, nothing's working.

It had gone so far downhill for us in our marriage that I committed adultery in our marriage, I feel like Jesus has brought us closer than ever before, He's the ultimate healer. He's the one that is going to make you become the person you were meant to be. I still struggle from time to time, but the difference now is I, [00:11:00] my wife and I really have the ultimate person to turn to.

We can give him our worries. We can give him our fears. We can pray about it. He's brought us a community that we absolutely love, a church that we call home. Anything and everything that we thought was impossible we have it all now, thanks to him. With him on our side, we can't be stopped.

The enemy is going to try to linger around. He's going to try to break everything, but he's not going to. We have Jesus on our side.

Jenn: Wow. Yeah. What's coming up for me is support and redemption and restoration. And it is easy to have those moments like, damn, what am I going to do now and just give up? And which I think is like a theme of your going to be of your episode is like not giving up because there are going to be moments where you're like, OK, I don't know what to do here.

But you're right. When you [00:12:00] do have Jesus, you can turn to him. And. He gives you a way out. 

That's beautiful. And I actually want to go there because I've had moments where I feel shame and doubt and yeah, I just have shame and doubt and I don't want to bring things to Jesus and I have that battle.

 Everyone has that I'm not good enough or I have to have it all together before going to church, before bringing it up. And everyone talks about not having their dirty laundry out and so on and so forth. There's so much power in having the authenticity and honesty.

And I think that's what Christians, if you're in a good Christian church, that's what happens. This is so real. People are here divorced. People are actually, having a hard time. They're in therapy. They're struggling with addiction. They're struggling with, porn and all these other things.

And that's what the Catholic church should not talk about. Did not talk about how to overcome sin versus they just say don't [00:13:00] sin. 

Andre: Exactly. I'm about to 

Jenn: go off right now, but that's what happens. It's like They don't tell you how to overcome and they don't have support to help you overcome To speak life over you to pray over you.

They just tell you don't do this. Don't do this. You're gonna go to hell 

Andre: Exactly, and it's funny that you say that because recently the pastor had talked about I'm not trying to shame Catholics in any way, but you were talking about sins where you have to, Confess your sins to the priest, but yet that's completely wrong.

Jenn: Yeah. 

Andre: You're supposed to send it to God. Your confessions are to Jesus. You give it to Jesus. You, there is no middleman. It's only you and God. That's it. You can be open with people about it, but you have that relationship with God. He wants your heart. He wants everything as you are, and you are the one that just gives it to him. And how you said, they just tell you not to [00:14:00] sin. And if you sin, you confess to us, but that's not how it works.

You're supposed to confess to God.

Jenn: At a moment where I did do a confession, a Catholic confession, and I'm thinking back to that moment and I did feel shame. And then he told me to do, Hail Mary's and stuff like that. Confessing to God is so different. 

Andre: It 

Jenn: brings you somewhere else spiritually that only God can bring you, because you cannot hide from God.

Like he already knows your heart and everything that you did versus a priest. He's taking your word for it. 

Andre: Exactly. You can still lie to the priest. Yeah, you can 

Jenn: hide things. 

Andre: Yes. 

 I remember , I even did the whole First Communion and everything, and that's what they had us do. I didn't say everything because I felt shame because I didn't want the priest to know everything. Whereas with God, he knows you, he knows your heart. He knows if you're lying or not. So it's better to just bring it all out. And that's [00:15:00] what I do.

And it's so much easier I learned this in our bible study a lot of times you don't even have to say it out loud You can just have your meditation moment with god just sit there in a quiet space And just listen to him. You can even just think everything. He's hearing you He can hear every prayer.

You just gotta just with all your heart give it all to him.

Jenn: Amen so I have a feeling there's going to be people that are on You The in between season between Catholicism and Christianity and finding a Christian church. So what I'm trying to ask is how did you find that relationship with Jesus?

When it wasn't necessarily taught in a Catholic Church.

Andre: I was really just taking the leap. I remember just sitting in church and at the end of church they always say a prayer to say it with all your heart and you're finally like, okay, I'm [00:16:00] trusting you. You repeat the prayer and it's your dedication to Jesus.

And something just told me, I'm going to do it. This is where I start. And the road was challenging. I'm not going to lie. That spiritual battle is real. It's very real. It was to a point where my wife and I were on and off fighting and it wasn't necessarily us.

It was the enemy knew we were becoming a threat. So he didn't want us to be on that side. So he was going to do anything he could to stop us. And it even got to the point where we had both of our spiritual battles, thankfully at different times, or she was able to help me and I was able to help her.

And this was a time where I was starting mine. And I remember bawling at church. I'm like, I don't want to be here. I don't want to be here. And I knew that was the enemy talking. I don't want to be here, I want to go home, I want to stay in bed, but she was like, [00:17:00] no, this is not you, this is not coming from God, this is the enemy talking to you, you need to stay here, listen to the word, and just keep pushing forward, and that's exactly what I did.

 Again, it's hard, but it's worth it in the end. It's completely worth it.

Jenn: I'm curious, was the period from October 2022 to when you got water baptized born again in March the heaviest time for spiritual warfare for you? 

Andre: Yeah. Yes. 

Jenn: Wow. 

Andre: That was the heaviest because that was still during the time when my depression was pretty strong. My anxiety was there. My worry was there. And that's how the enemy knew how to pick my brain because within that timeframe, that was actually the timeframe that it was one of the days that we were sitting at church and I was just telling her like, I don't want to be here.

Something's telling me not to be here. But again, that was not God. That was the enemy. And that was the heaviest warfare from that time. [00:18:00] Frame until I was water baptized because when I was water baptized, I felt it as exactly what they say and it's pretty cool I don't remember the scripture but I know it says it in the Bible where you go in it's as if you're Going into the grave as Jesus did and you come back a new person and that's exactly how I felt coming out of that water I still had a little bit of a spiritual battle, but it wasn't as bad because between that time frame was the heaviest.

So now that I was a new person, I felt my depression just going away. Anxiety, fear. I was starting to slowly, fully surrender. to where it was a lot easier for me to handle my depression, handle anxiety, I'm going to give it to God. It's not mine to bear.

It's for him. These battles are no longer mine anymore. So it just started to become easier and easier to handle.

Jenn: I don't know what it is. I'm going to go there. Because Catholics don't believe in being born again. 

Andre: [00:19:00] Yes. 

Jenn: So 

Andre: I did hear about that, they believe when you confess your sins, you're cleansed, basically. 

Jenn: Yes. 

Andre: From my understanding. My wife and I are big believers in being reborn because I feel reborn. I feel like I'm just, I'm not that person anymore. We both noticed it in our lives where we're just she even laughs because she's like you're not the same person anymore and I love it.

So I do strongly believe in the reborn part of the whole experience because it's true. The best part of being baptized, especially going public with your faith. You just become a new person. God gave me a new heart and he made me new. 

Jenn: Okay, and that was one of the next questions I want to get into is you know, you talk about being transformed and keeping your faith steady.

What helps you keep your faith steady, but also what encourages you to continue to be transformed?

Andre: This is gonna sound so cliche, I know [00:20:00] people might hear it a lot, but it's just the initial prayer, just waking up to God, praying to him. Even if it's hard for people, like for me, it was hard at first.

 A lot of us, first thing we do is we just grab our phone immediately. You wake up, your alarms goes off and you grab your phone. I twisted it a little bit where I started following a lot of profiles and Instagram, the first thing I see is a page that I follow that gives daily prayers.

So I wake up to that, I read that prayer out, and then I go about my day. And then at night, that's the only part that I'm still struggling with is to pray at night. But it's just that initial prayer and just knowing that God has already gone before you. He's already seen your path. Gonna make your path for good ultimately do your best to just release all that worry to him Because he's not going to forsake you he's gonna do what is best for [00:21:00] you It's happened to us where a lot of the times he's going to give you more than what you asked for so that kind of gives me comfort in Keeping my faith especially reading bible reading the scriptures knowing that no matter what, he's going to be there and he's going to help me through it.

Protecting me through everything, even though I wear the armor of God. He's going to protect me through every struggle and that gives me, it gives me comfort. 

 I see it in my own life he's there. Even before Jesus to now I see he had always been there. He was knocking on that door. I had to open it. And now that it's open, I have comfort that, He's never gonna let me go and he's never gonna Have me think of going back to that ever again because I won't go back to that life I'm not gonna be that person anymore.

I'm happy where I'm at now.

Jenn: You sound really secure with Jesus 

Andre: Yes, 

Jenn: I love that because it's so important to [00:22:00] hold on to God's character and know his character and believe He is who he says he is And it takes time, but it's amazing to see what God has done in two years. Just the fact that you're so secure in your relationship with him.

Andre: Yes 

Jenn: For anyone listening What would be your encouragement in that time frame? And I only say that because I feel like it took me some time To be secure in my relationship with jesus like I had to build trust So what would be your encouragement or what kind of helped you? Sometimes it's hard to know Jesus is there.

Andre: I think once you start seeing that your life is Getting better with Jesus, keep that initial thought, like you don't want to go back to that darkness. You don't want to go to that hole again. That's what I usually do, especially if I feel like I might be slipping a little bit, , no, I don't want to be that person anymore.

I don't want to be the guy that was constantly [00:23:00] depressed. Wanting to end it all, not be here anymore, thinking that nobody wants me around when it's completely the opposite. That's really what it comes down to, is just knowing that God put you here.

Because he doesn't want you there anymore. He wants you happy, but obedient at the same time. You do your prayers, you talk to him. He wants that relationship with you and he will provide the rest.

Jenn: You said something and it spoke to me. God doesn't want you there. 

Think that's what we just have to remember. God doesn't want us there. He wants us to reach our full potential to be fully alive in Jesus. 

Having the thought that no one wants you there can translate to thinking that God is doing all of these bad things. And might be because of the Catholicism background of 

Andre: thinking God 

Jenn: punishes. 

Andre: Exactly. 

Jenn: Yeah. What are your thoughts on that? 

Andre: Yeah. , that was my [00:24:00] initial thought at the beginning. The enemy in a sense fueled my depression because I was thinking, God tormenting me. He's punishing me for my sins. if you sin, he's going to punish you. And instilled in my brain where it's okay, if I sin, I'm going to be punished, but it's not that way at all. When it's exactly the opposite. But it's not that way at all.

The Bible says you give all your heart, have that relationship with God, and He'll provide the rest. And like we said earlier, He doesn't want you in the dark place. He wants you with Him. Obedient to Him.

He just wants your heart.

Jenn: I don't know what it is today, but I'm having flashbacks because I struggled with the word obedience. Becoming Christian. I think it was because I had this unhealthy perception of obedience being Catholic. 

Andre: Yes. 

Jenn: Just be obedient. But I didn't understand why I was being obedient.

 I struggle with that. What do you [00:25:00] mean be obedient? How do you live it out? And then it's not till you actually do it where you understand, oh, okay, God, I get it now. So I think there's also words. That don't feel the same until you really read your Bible and become in relationship with Jesus, 

Andre: yeah it's just like the obedience thing. You hear that word, you see it all the time, even with the pastors they'll tell you need to be obedient with God, and when you come from a Catholic background, you're like I don't know, because I was obedient there and I was punished for doing the smallest thing.

And how am I going to be obedient here? Does that mean that if I do something wrong here, am I going to get punished too? I don't want to be obedient because I'm worried about being punished if I do something wrong. And I think that's the hardest step is the initial obedience.

And what I've learned is the [00:26:00] obedience is it's more of just having that relationship with God. Reading your Bible, do prayers, I know this is going to trigger people, but tithe and offering it's all there, this is the obedience that he's asking for.

Do it with all your heart and everything else will be provided to you.

Jenn: Yeah. Oof. I didn't realize, I thought I got over my whole Catholic background, but I guess not because things are coming back right now. Cause I struggled also with the tithe and offering. I struggled with it. Before they had the buckets and now, you can give online and all these things.

Andre: Yes. 

Jenn: It was so different. I'll be completely real. You're so used to giving five dollars in a bucket, ten dollars, and then when you go to Christian church, they're like, tithe ten percent. And I'm like, 

ten percent. 

Andre: God, do you know how much ten percent 

Jenn: It's a whole lot. So 

Andre: yeah. 

Jenn: Yeah, God worked out a lot of that in me in terms of understanding that I made money idolatry in terms of finding my [00:27:00] trust in financial stability Versus in him. 

Andre: Yeah 

Jenn: so there are a lot of things that you're gonna have to retrain your brain until you're born again, and you're walking with Jesus Yeah 

Andre: And I like the way our church puts it.

It's you give what's already his, cause he's the one that created it all. He gave that idea for somebody to make currency. This is going to be spread throughout the world. I have the thought of. It probably wasn't meant to be something that is going to control the world like it does now, but I know it's something that he instilled in somebody to create.

In a sense, it's already his. So I like how they tell us that, you're giving what is already his, and that's part of the obedience. So you're just giving back to him.

Jenn: And I will say I definitely saw a big change in my life when I started tithing consistently [00:28:00] 

Andre: because 

Jenn: It doesn't do anything for God. He doesn't need money. It's in our hearts that he changes. Cause we put our trust in our finances and everything. And it's it was so easy for me to just find trust in finances.

Especially being first generation and just being you know from Salinas it's like money's hard to come by. 

Andre: Yeah 

Jenn: And so it really tests your faith and your trust in god 

Andre: it does and it's funny that you say that because I was the one that was also giving like 2. I was giving my change 5, whatever I had in my wallet after putting gas for the week.

I was like, okay, that's what the church is going to get. Yeah, where it's now it's different. I do like that. They don't force us to tithe an offering, we give with an open heart. You give it with all your heart, whatever it may be, and God will repay you for that. And that's what we've been doing.

Every time we just give it and we don't look back on it. We're just like, [00:29:00] this is for God. This is not for us.

Jenn: Yeah. He loves a cheerful giver. . Okay. 

I went there a little bit talking about our upbringing, anything on your heart, you want to share before we hop over to fear? 

Andre: Don't be afraid to take that leap. I've always followed a model even before God, it was anything in life worth having, it doesn't come easy and it's not going to be easy, but it's worth it. God is worth having in your life. And once you take that leap, you're going to see that everything else will follow suit. Everything else will come to you tenfold, even more than you can ever imagine. I remember back in the day, my Instagram was plain.

 I would deactivate it from time to time because I didn't get nothing. And that initial thought again, would pop up. Am I not good enough? Now I got people just sending me things all day and it's like we have that community now that make us feel special They [00:30:00] love us for who we are no matter our background and that's what god has brought to us Exactly what we needed in the time that we needed it,

Jenn: Thank you for bringing that up because I think It's that verse in isaiah like his thoughts are higher than our thoughts his ways are higher than our ways His plans are higher than our plans and It's not until you really let go of your old life, you make room for everything else.

Sometimes I think God knows my heart's desires, but I have to pray it out loud. And that makes a huge difference because then I realize like actually I don't want to settle, you know I want relationships that are full of love and of life and then all of these things And so I guess my encouragement what I also receive from you is that you're bold When you approach God, 

Andre: oh, yeah that's the biggest thing I've always been about don't be afraid to share about God [00:31:00] Because the people that you need in your life God will bring to you And the people that are not meant to go where you're going to go are going to leave.

 I know I may annoy people with it, but I love my faith. I love where I'm at. I love who I am now. And I'm going to share about the person that brought me here. So be bold. Don't be afraid. You see a Bible verse, show it to the world. The world is changing.

The world is finally, hopefully starting to see Jesus and see what he can do. Cause nothing is impossible for him the world needs to know who our savior is and who will be the light to the darkness in this world.

Jenn: Yeah, I know Christians have the gift of faith, but there's also like a big gift of faith. I feel that you have. Oh yeah. Amen. 

Andre: [00:32:00] Don't be afraid. And I think it says that in the Bible 360 times, 360 days a year, which is not a coincidence. It's God's plan. We're going to go into is that fear that stops people. There's nothing to be afraid of when you have God on your side.

Jenn: Yes. And I think also for anyone listening, and you can let me know what your thoughts on this are, but like you said, in the Bible, it says, do not fear. And there's one for every single day of the year. And there are these big things that are going to happen that God will show you.

You just have to be open to it. And you might sound a little, loony to people, but God is spiritual and he's going to talk to you in big ways, get your attention, even the smallest ways as well. And growing up Catholic to. Now I had such a hard time, Distinguishing is God talking to me?

Is this real? Because I think that is huge [00:33:00] encouragement to people who are new to faith and we're taking that leap of faith 

Andre: It's just gonna be weird at first, even two years in, I'm starting to decipher the difference between my own thoughts and God's voice.

Don't be afraid eventually he'll speak to you and he'll tell you whether this is something for you or this is something you need to stop. And that helps me push forward into making the right decisions where I'll hear him telling me , no, if I start to slip back to an old habit that I'm still trying to face and pray about, he'll talk to me, you'll be like, no, that's not who you are.

This is not. Who I designed you to be, you need to stop. And , it's an overwhelming feeling where I'll stop. His initial voice that really helps. And we do this meditation and Bible studies, and it's a bunch of guys there and they say, [00:34:00] take five minutes to just talk to God.

Really? All that comes into my mind is. I see a sunset, I see God in the best, figure that I can think of because we really don't know what he looks like. His hand is on my shoulder, and it's he just tells me, you're doing a good job. And that's just a heartwarming feeling for me, where I am being obedient, I am pleasing God to the point where I can see him in my head telling me I'm doing a good job.

 It's a wonderful feeling to have and when you have that relationship with God, and when you get there, it's going to be the best decision you've ever made.

Jenn: Yeah, I still, I'm still on this kick. Cause you talk about, vision and You know seeing and hearing and feeling God Yeah And I think so much because I didn't know God before but growing up Catholic and knowing the concept that God is real But not understanding that he does talk in dreams and visions, And [00:35:00] for anyone listening that hasn't experienced that yet What would be your encouragement?

Because I think we can automatically shut those things off. Like I remember having moments of wow, God was trying to talk to me back then and I did not listen. And there's those moments, but you have to make space to receive. For you meditation before your group.

What are your experiences? I feel like we're trying to encourage a new believer today or something right now. 

Andre: And I hope we do. 

Jenn: Yeah. 

Andre: Cause I was in that stage where I was like what am I doing? Why am I here? This is not going to work for me, but it does. It really does.

You just gotta take that next step. It's going to be weird at first I can't really sugarcoat that. It's just going to be an awkward feeling where you're like, hello, there's someone there. But you'll get to that point where you'll start to decipher, this is God talking to me and he was talking to me this whole time, but now [00:36:00] you're listening.

And when you listen to him. It's different when you hear him in your head, where it's, that's not you that's some, that's God talking to you, and I know a lot of the guys that are there, they have their different ways, so it's going to come differently, it's going to come either, I've heard that it can come in numbers, like you see a certain number and like it's a scripture in the Bible or dreams, visions, what have you.

It's gonna be different for everybody, but all of it's the same. . And again, it's going to be weird at first, but the moment you realize, Hey, this is God talking to me. It's going to get easier to understand him.

Jenn: All right. So I think it's also so great that you have a great church.

That supports you. And I think for anyone listening, you cannot do it on your own. Like you have to go to church. And I didn't understand that concept I'm also introvert and then growing up Catholic, it's yeah, nobody show up and talk to people. . So encouragement for people to [00:37:00] find a church and commit to a church, 

Andre: it's gonna be trial and error for sure.

That's how it was for us. You're not going to find your church right away. It's going to be a mission you're going to be jumping a little bit because it took us quite some time to find the church that we go to now. And that's what can be discouraging for people where it's like, Oh this one didn't work.

And then you get to the next one this one didn't work, and then someone recommends another one, and they're like why am I going to go to this one? This one's probably not going to work either. Don't listen to your own thoughts, because it's not you. Because the enemy doesn't want you to go to church.

He doesn't want you to learn from God, because then you become a threat to him. Try not to listen to those thoughts, and just find the place that you can call home. Think the biggest thing is to find a community that just sees you for who you are not who you were 

Jenn: yeah, that was so good. It's so true because I think the [00:38:00] enemy does not want us to be covered by the body of christ and The more you seek god and you're taking that leap of faith. The more you're trying to decipher his voice the more spiritual warfare, 

Andre: oh, for sure. And if 

Jenn: you're not in church, you're not going to be born again.

Andre: Exactly. 

Jenn: So someone has to walk with you through that. But you're right. The enemy doesn't want you guys in church. The enemy doesn't want marriages. To survive to be about christ as a cornerstone 

Andre: Yeah, find a healthy church. I mean We've gone to experiences that you're never gonna find a church that is perfect because we're not perfect.

The only one that's perfect is jesus you're not going to find the perfect church, but if you find one that suits you and sees you for who you are, that's going to be the best place to go to. 

Jenn: And allowing yourself to be seen. I think that's a big thing, too. 

Andre: Oh, for sure. Yeah, I think if I can give any advice, especially [00:39:00] walking to a church, try not to be so much of an introvert, because you're going to hear things that you're like, I've never been told these things before. For us, people telling us that they love us.

And they barely know us and we were like what did you just say? Are you sure? And I'm like, yes, we love you. We love you as Jesus loved us. At first, we were a little confused. We're like, okay, I'm hesitant okay, love you too. It's just that sense of love that you get from people.

That's a very warming feeling and that's usually the sign of this is where you're meant to be.

Jenn: I love that you brought that up because I also struggle with it. Catholic churches, they don't be telling you that they love you. So it is different.

Andre: It's different. And you have to accept 

Jenn: it and let yourself be welcomed. I struggle with that as well, because I thought that I had to go to church and [00:40:00] not play nicely, but when you go to church and you're like, okay, I'm here, I'm dressed well, I'm sitting, I'm going to mind my business 

Andre: yeah, and it's funny that you say that because that's what we thought too when we went to our church that's our home now We were doing the same thing and then the pastors would stop us. He's hey, you guys are new and I was like I didn't think you saw me So even though you're not going to want to be seen most often than not new faces are always seen and they're going to stop you and say hi they're going to want to get to know you it might be a little weird but It'll be great in the end.

Jenn: Okay, how do you or what have you found helpful fighting your fears, especially Now it's so new and I think that's what I'm learning. It's so new and Things come up. So how do you fight your fears? 

Andre: Just read your Bible. 

 Do the simple things. Sometimes the simple things work.

Jenn: Amen. 

Andre: Sometimes it's just the little [00:41:00] things that they asked you to do, these are not your battles. You're not fighting this alone anymore. So it's just that for me, initially removes the fear because it's like I get comfort in knowing that. I'm not alone anymore.

 I haven't felt depressed since I was reborn. That initially does help a lot, do your best to take that leap and see what kind of miracles God can do for you. , it will be a flood. You're going to ask for a little bit of rain and it's going to be a flood.

And that's really how I. Kind of take away the fear because that God is going to be loving me for who I am. He knows my name. He's gonna make everything right. I've done it several times where you'll just sit there and you'll be like, why didn't I do this before?

Jenn: One of the things that I wanted to bring up was You said the simple things work and I love that. I think we try to overcomplicate [00:42:00] things or especially going from Being Catholic to Christian. I struggled with a little bit of legalism like, you do things right and you it should work out

I just love that for anyone listening. I think the simple things really do work like keeping it simple for what you need and then just builds from there whenever You're ready

Andre: for sure. 

Jenn: i'm curious. For Fighting your fears. Was there any scripture? That you held on to

you can paraphrase. 

And I say this because We've struggled with depression and anxiety and not feeling enough And I think the only thing that can really help is holding on to scripture and the promises of god to fight those mental battles. So that's why i'm curious 

Andre: it was it's isaiah 41 10 it says, so do not fear for I am with you. Do not be dismayed for I am your God. I will [00:43:00] strengthen you and help you. I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.

That's the one that really, helps me a lot just to know that he's there every time. He is my God. He is the one that I turn to. He will always be there to lift me up no matter how bad it gets. 

Jenn: Amen. Wow. I need to write that one down. Okay. So I know you talk about simple things and the Bible verse that you held on to.

Anything else you found helpful fighting your fears?

Andre: That's really what it comes down to. I look at the simplicity of it all, just reading your Bible, praying, having that relationship. That's really the key, three key things I see that will help you move forward and then everything else will just come. Then you can get to the difficult part because for some people even tithe and offering is difficult.

It can be difficult, especially times right now, everything is even here is super expensive. [00:44:00] So we understand that tithing offering can be a little bit tricky, but as things get better, you'll get there.

Jenn: For anyone listening who is a guy becoming a new believer, cause I know the struggle is different. You guys are The providers you guys have that God given gift to be a provider and a protector and women have a different gift You know to bear children to carry emotional capacity for so many things Yeah, what would be your encouragement for men that are seeking God?

Andre: The biggest thing is I know we have our different roles. Like you said, we're the providers, women are caregivers. But at the same time don't be afraid to be vulnerable, especially to God, because he hears you, he sees you, there are men out there that, especially in times right now where they're told not to speak on anything because, it makes you weak.

You're [00:45:00] not a good provider because you have feelings. We all have feelings I think getting to that place of vulnerability where you can talk about how you're feeling. I think that's important. Probably one of the best things for guys to help them be a better provider. I know it's helped me a lot where I can be vulnerable with my wife and we can talk.

We've gotten to a state where we can talk more, talk about our feelings, and then we know our roles at the same time. I'm the provider. She helps a lot, and she's going to school when she graduates, it's going to be a whole different ballgame. 

 For now, that's where we're at. And I think it's just that sense of vulnerability that you're a person too. You have a heart, you have feelings. Don't be afraid to share them because they will eat you alive if you keep them held inside. And even, you don't even have to share it to anybody. Share it to God, [00:46:00] pray about it. Try to do your best and just. Pray because that's what I do Especially even sometimes drives to work, on the Bible app I've been doing the year thing where you read the full Bible and it's a year process you didn't have to read it, just have it be read to you, just listen to it, listen to the words, to the scriptures, to the stories, because I didn't think the stories were that interesting until I started listening to the Bible, and these are some interesting stories, and they can get pretty dark, and it's just, but you're increasing your relationship with God, doing so, so it's just like when you get to that point, you can be vulnerable with God.

Have them help you pray about it and help you with being the provider you can be.

Jenn: Amen. Amen. And I think it's also important that if you don't believe in yourself, God believes in you. [00:47:00] Exactly. Like God believes in you. If you don't think that you can do X, Y, and Z, God knows that you can. Yeah. And he will show you the way. Okay. So I did not think this episode was going to be About what it was which is mainly the differences between faith in Our church walk with being catholic to christian, but I love it And I pray it encourages someone out there but we're at time and i'm so appreciative.

I know it's late there and you got a family so We're gonna close out. Is there anything on your heart that you want to share? For anyone listening whether it's a piece of advice Or for faith to battle their fears or just anything on your heart that you want to share

Andre: It says it plenty in the bible, but I can't say enough either.

Don't be afraid take the leap You'll see that when you take that leap you face the spiritual battles spiritually become stronger Wear the armor of god. There's [00:48:00] nothing you can't do with god. There is nothing you can't do 

Jenn: yes, amen I can do all things through christ who strengthens me. 

Andre: Yes 

Jenn: Wow You were amazing. I'm, so thankful That you came on this episode And god is so good because when I did invites And I was like, okay, God, you will show me people. And you were one of them. And then he kept reconfirming it.

Andre: Awesome. He kept 

Jenn: reconfirming it over and over up until the day. And so I know it's going to encourage someone. I just, this podcast just runs on faith and prayers and God's grace. And I'm so thankful that you came on and I hope and pray to have you again. 

Andre: I'm glad to be here. Hopefully I can come back.

Jenn: All right. Thank you so much for anyone tuning in and we hope and pray that this episode encourages you and anyone listening I hope that you find a church and that you take that leap of faith, which is what we've just been [00:49:00] sharing today.

thank you so much for joining, just know though podcasts and tuning into our faith over fear series, we pray that your faith is encouraged today. If you feel called, please share this episode with a friend. Subscribe for updates. Until next time. God bless you.