58 | Faith Through Fire: Finding Strength in Life’s Hardest Seasons with | Dr. Kayla Bullard

Dr. Kayla Ballard's testimony will stop you in your tracks. From experiencing ten devastating miscarriages to literally dying on a hospital table, her journey reveals what happens when human resilience meets divine intervention.

The conversation opens with Dr. Ballard sharing her path from the Bahamas to Savannah, Georgia, where she's currently "in the motion of becoming" - discovering new dimensions of herself even in this season of life. What drives her? The profound question: "Why me, God? Out of all the billions of people you created, why did you choose me?"

When asked how she stays centered amid life's chaos, Dr. Ballard reveals her non-negotiable practice of Sabbath rest, calling Saturdays her "sacred" day. "I guard it viciously," she explains, comparing these moments of silence to putting on a snorkel to breathe God's presence like oxygen. This spiritual discipline has sustained her through seasons that would have broken many.

The heart of the episode unfolds as Dr. Ballard recounts her harrowing battle with barrenness. After connecting deeply with the biblical woman with the issue of blood, she experienced a life-threatening hemorrhage while alone. In what can only be described as supernatural intervention, she managed to drive herself to medical help despite severe blood loss. Most remarkable was her near-death experience - literally leaving her body as medical professionals frantically worked to recover her lost pulse. In that moment, she declared, "I shall live and not die to declare the works of the Lord."

Against all odds, Dr. Ballard eventually welcomed her son after 17 years of marriage, followed by her daughter at age 42. Her publishing journey proved equally miraculous, transforming from writing just to remember things during a period of memory loss to becoming an author of multiple books and journals sharing her testimony of redemption.

For anyone feeling stuck or questioning their purpose, Dr. Ballard offers this wisdom: make a genuine commitment to God, find positive community, set boundaries, prioritize rest, and journal honestly about your journey. "You don't have to be perfect," she reminds us. "We're people in need of a savior."

Are you feeling stuck? No matter how hard you push, you’re not gaining momentum in your business or your life? That’s exactly why I created the R.I.S.E. Coaching Program.

Over 8 weeks, I’ll guide you through a proven framework to help you:

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Chapters

• 0:00 Introduction to Dr. Kayla Ballard
• 3:14 Finding Peace in a Chaotic World
• 6:35 Valley to Victory: Facing Barrenness
• 15:54 Near-Death Experience and Divine Intervention
• 23:25 Motherhood and Faith Lessons
• 28:35 Writing Journey and Publishing Success
• 34:07 Balancing Faith, Family and Career
• 39:18 Finding Purpose and Community

Transcript

Intro/Outro: 0:01

Welcome to the Off Balance Podcast, where faith, family and business collide, with your host, dr Brooks Deming, christian life coach, intercessor and entrepreneur.

Dr. Brooks : 0:18

Welcome to the Off Balance Podcast. I'm your host, dr Brooks, and this is a podcast where faith, family and business collide, and we navigate it all with grace and grit. Today's guest is Dr Caleb. She is a devoted spiritual leader, academic trailblazer and passionate advocate for living a Christ-centered life. Her journey from seasons of deep brokenness to moments of divine clarity has shaped her into a powerful voice of hope, healing and transformation. Whether through her writing, teaching or mentorship, dr Bullard invites others to rediscover the power of God's presence, the truth of his word and the beauty living in alignment with his purpose. With vulnerability and wisdom, she empowers others to rise from life's storms, embrace their God-given identity and walk boldly into destiny. Her life is a living testimony of redemption, restoration and unwavering faith. So please welcome to the show, dr Kayla.

Dr. Kayla : 1:19

My name is Dr Kayla Ballard and I'm originally from the Bahamas, relocated to the United States about almost 19 years ago and I started off in Fort Worth, Texas. That was a beautiful experience. My undergraduate degree, of course, I spent time in Nebraska and the question at that time was what would make someone from the Bahamas travel all the way to Nebraska? And at the time, in the early 80ies, I just wanted an experience. I just wanted something different. And I got that and so fast forward.

Dr. Kayla : 1:50

Then, of course, I transitioned from the cold plains of Nebraska into the dry weather of Texas and the question was you in Texas, you left all that weather in the Bahamas to come to Texas all the beaches, and of course it was a different experience at that time. And Texas was about destiny, linking, connecting with that. What next? Then, after Texas, it was the pivot to Savannah, georgia, where I currently find myself, and that led me on a different track, just a track of purpose and discovering more about who I am as an individual. And that's where I'm at right now, in that motion of becoming. That's what I'm doing, so I'm finding that new chapter in my life, and so that's my new conquest discovering who I am. At this stage of the game. Could you believe it?

Dr. Brooks : 2:45

discovering who I am at this stage of the game. Could you believe it? But that's actually. That's pretty good, because I know sometimes as we journey through life and when we reach a third, like a certain moment or a point, we don't want new, like sometimes we can just be complacent. So I think that is like very awesome that you are rediscovering who you are at this stage of your life. So can you talk a little bit more about what made you want to pursue that journey?

Dr. Kayla : 3:11

There has to be more to life. When you serve a great big God and you look at the things that this great big God has done and then you think about your role in creation and the fact that he could have chosen anybody else. He chose you, you get to the place where you're like there has to be more to life. Life has to be more about work, home, maybe church, maybe activities. But it's like God. What is my purpose? Why did you create me out of all the billions of people that you created? Why me? Why did you create me out of all the billions of people that you created? Why me? And that has always been, I guess, that thing that has always fueled me. There has to be more to life.

Dr. Brooks : 3:52

I often think about that too, like what is my true purpose? Why am I here? Because, of course, we're always going to be in situations to help other people, and so I often question that as well. So I'm glad that you brought that up. That's really good. So, in a world that is often noisy and chaotic, how do you stay centered on Christ?

Dr. Kayla : 4:12

When I think about everything that's happening, I have to find time to draw away. And drawing away doesn't mean that I don't want to be bothered. Drawing away means that I have to in order to maintain sane, in order to maintain whole, and so I have what I call me times that I have to in order to maintain sane, in order to maintain whole, and so I have what I call me times that I guard. I mean I guard viciously. And so my children often say to me oh, mommy, what you doing? X, y, z? And I'm like whatever I'm doing, don't make no problem, especially on a Saturday. So that's like my me day.

Dr. Kayla : 4:44

I have to redirect and no matter what happening, what is happening, it's all about me, and so that's how I, that's how I regroup. The chaos will always be there, but in the midst of the chaos, I just find time to silence myself Silence myself in prayer, silence myself in worship, silence myself just reading a book, silence myself by just sleeping. But I have to be able to find that time to regroup, because I'm always giving, someone is always pulling from me, and so in order for me to be that effective, I have to be able to draw into God and get the strength that I need and get the resource that I need. So I find that peace is possible through Jesus Christ, and he is my oxygen. So in order for me to be able to stay afloat, I have to find moments to just to be able to put the snorkel on and just inhale, and that's what I do Saturdays, sacred.

Dr. Brooks : 5:53

So we can say Saturdays are your Sabbath. That's really good, because I know that sometimes when I talk to other moms they feel so bad, when they're selfish with their time, and I'm like, no, you need that a long time. You need that time to be able to renew yourself and just to be quiet for a little bit, because sometimes we can be so busy and we're often just running to where we don't allow our mind to just slow down. And so you have walked through seasons of both brokenness and breakthrough. Can you take us back to a defining moment when your faith was deeply tested, and how God used that valley to rebuild a deeper part of your purpose?

Dr. Kayla : 6:34

It's a personal time. I don't mind sharing it because I'm old and I'm free, but it was a time of I have walked the road of barrenness. After 38 years of marriage, I have a 21-year-old son and I have a 17-year-old daughter. So do the math, think about it. There was a time of aloneness and a time of stillness and uncertainty, not understanding what was going on with my body. Doctors didn't know the answers and I didn't have the money to pay for whether it was artificial insemination or deep therapy that I needed. And so I plugged into God. And it's something about when you have a defining moment. I've had multiple defining moments, but I got a hold of the story of the woman with the issue of blood and I figured, hey, you have an issue and I have an issue, and if he could do something about your issue and make you whole at the end of the day, then I'm coming to this God. And that put me on a track because I wanted to get to know God for myself. On a trek because I wanted to get to know God for myself. And so, without getting too personal, I came from a place of not being able to have monthly cycles to plug it into God, receiving a degree of healing from God, where I found myself now having cycles. Then I went from having them every six months to every month, just pushing into God and allowing his word to heal me without being ultra spiritual. But I had no one else and nothing else to do, and so it came to a point where I was conceiving, conception was not coming to fruition. I had multiple miscarriages. After 10 miscarriages, I stopped fruition. I had multiple miscarriages. After 10 miscarriages, I stopped. But this particular miscarriage I think it was probably my ninth or 10th miscarriage and I was going to for the first time to be able to see a specialist doctor in Florida. And before I went to that doctor, my attending physician at the time told me that he didn't have hair or heartbeat. That was not the answer that I wanted and I was not tuned into him. So I didn't tell anybody what I was dealing with. I continued to go to the doctor and while I was there, someone had shared a song with me prior to going and the song was by Martha Manuzzi Say the Name of Jesus. And I fell in love with that song and I played that song when I got in Florida. I purchased the cassette tape at the time and I played that song for about maybe 24 hours.

Dr. Kayla : 9:15

Within that 24 hours, I experienced a life-altering crisis where I began to hemorrhage. Nobody was home at the time. My sister was at work. Nobody was there. When I say nobody, her daughter was at home, but she was unable to help me. And I was in that place of what am I going to do? And the only thing that I could do was call on Jesus until I passed out. When she came in, they rushed me to the doctor, only to find out that I had lost so much blood. They were listen to this. Now they were unable to do anything with me because my attending physician, who I was attending in the US, was not available, so they had to discharge me me. So here we are in that moment of crisis where my sister said to me I cannot go with you to your adopted homestead because I left my child at home and she was a toddler and so she had to go home.

Dr. Kayla : 10:18

And it was like God, what am I going to do? And at the time, wendy had a stick shift car do. And at the time, wendy had a stick shift car and she said what I will do. I will go and I will borrow my boyfriend's car for you. You can use his car to make it a little more easier for you to drive. And I would never forget it. I heard the voice of the Holy Spirit and he said go to Kmart.

Dr. Kayla : 10:39

At the time Kmart was located on Broward. He said go to Kmart, get a change of clothes. I was a mess and he said get something cold to drink. I'd never forget it, pulling into Kmart. I obeyed, got the clothes come out and I remember the prayer I prayed. The prayer I prayed was Lord, don't let me black out on I-95. Don't let me speed, I don't want anybody to pull me over. And I asked for angelic escort. I remember saying God, give me angelic escort with flaming fires from the third heaven to pick this car up and put this car in Homestead. On a good day of driving to Homestead, it's probably about maybe 45 minutes an hour and 15 minutes or 9.95. Let me tell you, brooke, it was as if the Holy Spirit picked that car up, transported that car in Homestead, because 45 minutes later I was in Homestead.

Dr. Kayla : 11:38

So now we're going to get to that defining moment. We're going to get to that crisis, that moment of what next? God, god, there, the nurse looked at me like in shock what are you doing here? Because we just got the message. We just got the call. How did you get here? Who brought you here? And I'm like I'm here on my own and she looks at me and wonder you've got to be lying? Because no one who just experienced the trauma that you did was able to travel by herself.

Dr. Kayla : 12:08

At that point of that conversation, taking me back into the room to prepare me for the doctor, I lost it. My vitals dropped when I came to again. I came to it. There's a nurse saying to me it's going to be okay, kayla, and she's rubbing my hands and she's putting some. She said I need you to breathe. So she put the oxygen on me and then she took it off again and she said what do you want me to do for you? Now, anybody who knows me broke a note that I I used to like shoes. Okay, it's not like that anymore, like it used to be Girl. I was wearing the ugliest pair of shoes of my life. I could not believe it and I told her I need you to secure my pair of shoes for me. Call my sister, let her know I'm going to be okay. And tell her to call my husband, let him know I'm going to be okay. And I remember her putting the oxygen back on me. And then I came to again. I had left my body. I left my body, oh God. I give you thanks in Jesus name. I had left my body and working on me.

Dr. Kayla : 14:07

Never forget, it Was this black, american, caucasian lady. And she says we don't have a pulse. And these three Caucasian EMTs, we don't have a pulse. And these three Caucasian EMTs, we don't have a pulse. Let me tell you something. And the voice said I got you. Now I'm going to kill you. And at that moment, brooke, I couldn't remember, out of my body, watching her work on me, I'm telling you I know like I know, like I knew there's life. And I couldn't remember scripture, but I remember, see that purpose. I remember saying I cannot die now, god, because I know that I have not accomplished everything that you've asked me to accomplish. And out of me came the scripture I shall live and not die to declare the works of the Lord, just so important. And at that moment I heard the EMT, that female, saying we got a weak pulse. And in that moment my spirit went back into my body.

Dr. Kayla : 15:11

What transpired next was nothing but the miracle hand of God when they wheeled me out of that medical center and sent me to Jackson Memorial. And hours later the attending physician said to me what saved you was the thing that was intended to kill you. That fetus is still, I'm telling you. It cost your blood to clot. And then he began to talk some things I really didn't want to hear, because he was talking some things that contradicted what I believed in my faith, because the fact that he showed me that fetus and showed me that nothing was wrong me that fetus and showed me that nothing was wrong with that fetus, it showed me that, hey, there was still hope. And so when he said, what do you want to do now? Do you want to do some surgery or do you want us to examine this any closer? And I said, no, I'm gonna be, discharge me. Let me tell you something.

Dr. Kayla : 16:14

He discharged me from Jackson, which was in the opposite direction of Homestead. I had at that time I had to get your taxi, we didn't have Ubers then Caught a taxi back to the medical center to pick up my sister's boyfriend's car and listen here. I drove back to Broward, fort Lauderdale, to Broward, fort Lauderdale, praising God all the way, because I know that God is a keeper. So resilience does not mean you would never have an issue, you would never experience anything, but it means what are you going to do in the process of it? When you talk about a defining moment, that was a defining moment. I should have been, but, for the grace of God, I'm here sitting down having this conversation with you today.

Dr. Brooks : 17:06

Oh, dr Kayla, you have a powerful testimony and I knew that you had strong faith. But to hear that you had all of those miscarriages and you still believe.

Dr. Kayla : 17:19

How do you read a story about a woman who had an issue of blood? How do you read that story, knowing that, see, in order for her to have money to go to the doctor, it says it speaks to me that at some point in her life she had a flu. She was a Jewish lady, so she fell from grace. You understand, at some point she became so broken that everyone that she thought she knew that she expected to help her. She was now an outcast. Everybody shunned her and the doctors didn't have the answers. The doctors didn't have no answers for me, so all I had was God. So it was either I was going to believe this God with everything that I had, or I'd just give up. And so, if he could do it for her, I held on to that. I held on to that.

Dr. Kayla : 18:11

And so, even after that experience we talk about resilience I still had miscarriages even after that, but it wasn't like I was purposely trying to damage myself. No, I was on a road to. This was a road of faith, god, if you can't do it, it cannot be done. And then it was based on scripture. You promise, according to sound, that I will be a joyful mother of children. So it taught me how to speak to those things as be, not as if they were. It taught me that death and life is in the power of the tongue, and you will have the fruit thereof, and either I can believe you, and you can be God, and I can believe you for real, or you just ain't real. And so, when we talk about defining moments, I was on a quest to know God, and in him I found him.

Dr. Brooks : 19:09

You have been married for 38 years. How are you able to still show up for your husband? And you were dealing with so much.

Dr. Kayla : 19:20

What I did, I lost to myself. I lost to myself in trying to show up for him. I lost myself in trying to show up for others. And how do I explain that I became superwoman when God never asked me to be superwoman? I begin to. As much as I believe God never allowed myself to share my feelings. I didn't allow myself to be transparent.

Dr. Kayla : 19:58

In the culture that I'm from, you're expected to be perfect. Once you're a Christian, you're not expected to wallow in your tragedy or feel your pain, and so you mask that pain. So I showed up for him when I was hurt. I showed up for him when I was broken. I showed up for him, never talking about what I was feeling, because he didn't want to hear about it, because I don't have all the answers, and so I pretended so it really wasn't. The support was not there. The support was not there, and so what fueled me was God, I can show them who you are, and then, when I show them who you are, then they're going to come to believe that you are who you say you are. So it was almost like a Martha syndrome that I was on.

Dr. Kayla : 20:59

And I got back to Jesus and in the process, everybody can be saved. Yeah, so it was bittersweet. It was bittersweet.

Dr. Brooks : 21:09

That is so eye opening. So at what point did you become comfortable to share your story?

Dr. Kayla : 21:19

It was afterwards, it was see. Jesus said blessed are those who have not seen but yet believe. But for others it was the proof, was in the pudding After 17 years of marriage and now you have this healthy baby boy. Now it's okay. Now tell me how that happened, Because I went from the whispers of what's wrong with you, how come you don't have any children yet? Oh, she's barren, oh this. I went from gossip to oh gee, then there must be something going on here. How do you explain that? And so you can't deny the evidence, you can't deny the power of God, you can't deny the fact that, hey, God did this that changed everything.

Dr. Brooks : 22:10

I can only imagine, and I'm sure your son is so spoiled as a matter of fact, he wasn't.

Dr. Kayla : 22:18

He was an experiment. What do I mean by that? This is funny. It's so funny.

Dr. Kayla : 22:23

I'm from a small family. It's only my brother and myself. We were six years apart, so I never had to deal with children, never had to deal with children. And so here I am. I think I was 38 at the time when my son came and I didn't know what to do. I read lots of books, yes, and I didn't know what to do. I read lots of books, yes. My mom was in New Providence and people just assumed I knew what to do, and my husband was from a bigger family, so he had a little more experience than I had, because he had to help out with his brothers and sisters. But, girl, I made so many mistakes.

Dr. Kayla : 23:00

Let me give you this my little fella Elijah. He was a little, he was, he was an active baby and he was a chubby baby. He was a chubby baby because at one point I had hired a housekeeper and she had overfed him and at that time he was on soy milk. At that point I was a vegetarian. In my life he was on soy milk and in her culture, the bigger the baby is, that spoke to wealth and prosperity. So, honey, she was giving my child a tin of milk a day. So here I have this big baby and I had to end up getting rid of her because I thought she was trying to kill my child. That's a different story. But here I am in church with this baby and this baby crying Honey. He was a hefty thing.

Dr. Kayla : 23:45

And so one of the ladies looked at me. She said Kayla, what you feeding this child? I said I giving him bottles. She said you giving that big boy milk only. She said girl. She say water don't. She said water don't stay on him. I said what you mean by that, elder Marina. She said water don't stay on here. I said what you mean by that, elder Marina. She said you got to be giving this child milk food. And so I said no, I had spoken to the pediatrician and the pediatrician said I think it was about four months at that time. He was too young for me to give him any food. She said girl, listen here, you better give that child what she said you better dust his bottle. So I said what you mean dust this bottle. She said you need to go get yourself some banana food and put it in that bottle. I'm making some cream of wheat real thin, I'm making some oatmeal really thin and give to that child.

Dr. Kayla : 24:35

Let me tell you something that night I ran home because at this point I was when I say tired, I was tired. My husband was like a zombie. We didn't know what to do because the boy was getting up every two, three hours. I went and I bought some banana, baby food, honey, and when I say I dust the milk, I think I bought about half I am so serious About half a box of banana food in with that baby food.

Dr. Kayla : 24:58

And that child slept for like about six hours, six to seven hours. I was scared Because he had not slept that long before and I kept going next to him to hear whether or not he was breathing. Girl, listen here. After that first sleep, it was on, girl, it was on. And I was dusted. I made so many mistakes, but I give God thanks, it was on. I was dusted. I made so many mistakes, but I give God thanks, god kept him.

Dr. Kayla : 25:28

And then I wanted him to be the perfect baby. I wanted him to be the perfect church baby. He wasn't spoiled. Girl, listen here. He get cut up. He get more. Yeah, okay, the Bible says he's cut up. He get more cut up. He knew the books of the Bible. He knew how to pray. We call it every nail knock Every time I was in church. He was in church Because his name is Elijah. He had to be the perfect prophet so he wasn't spoiling. He didn't have cell phones back at that time he couldn't have a phone. He had to earn his phone. He only got his phone during the summers. But in order to earn privilege he had to be able to memorize Bible verses. My child said, mommy, you need to ask him. It wasn't.

Dr. Brooks : 26:19

I just knew you spoiled him. You waited so long for him and you didn't. You waited so long for him and you didn't.

Dr. Kayla : 26:25

He was spoiled. No toys, I didn't believe in toys Because I didn't believe in toys. So he had books and he had puzzles. You need to hear his story. He wasn't spoiled at all.

Dr. Brooks : 26:38

So you was more gentle on your daughter.

Dr. Kayla : 26:41

When she came, I was tired. Yeah, when she came, and I didn't expect her, she was the bonus, she was the bonus Four years later, I was tired. And so, when she came, my son always say and tell her oh girl, you don't know what you got away with, because what I endured you didn't have to go through, I was just tired, I had nothing left. When she came, she came at 42, at 42, honey. And I wasn't expecting that. That was a different story altogether.

Dr. Brooks : 27:12

Yeah, I couldn't imagine having a baby at 42, but you did it and you did a good job. But I just know, at 42, you're more tired. Yeah, no, yes, ma'am, no, ma'am, I could not do it. So you are a published author and you have a lot of projects out. Can you talk about some of your books that you have? And you also have journals as well, right, yeah.

Dr. Kayla : 27:38

I have a couple. You were the catalyst, you were the person who sparked this. I had a book the Lord gave me years ago and I submitted it to someone to have a look at it and at that time there was no, there was not a creative movement. Everything was according to standard English in terms of how we wrote or what was released. So there was no way, there was nowhere for creativity, descriptive writing, and I gave it at that time to a published author, had a look at it and the review was not good, and that broke me.

Dr. Kayla : 28:12

My road to recovery was after the dissertation period, after I finished writing my dissertation, but I was still not confident in the fact that I could publish. But I was still not confident in the fact that I could publish. At some point I was losing my short-term memory and so I had to begin to write again, just to remember. And so, in order to remember what I had for breakfast, I had to write that down. And then remember, I wrote that down, to write that down. So by the time I met you, I was ready, but not quite ready. You challenged me. You challenged me to the point that, hey, you got to write something every day, just one paragraph, and then you wouldn't stop. You were like you just wouldn't stop, man, you were that mosquito. But God used you. And then I know I'm going to get to the question you asked me. But it was like, how could you give away all of this information for free to want to help me? And you didn't know me, you understand. And then you were relentless. You wouldn't allow us not to have something to share with you. So whenever we showed up, it was like, so what did you do this week? And I was like, oh God, there we go again. So you made it impossible to lie to you, so you never knew this. But you made me take out my journals and so I started with that writing.

Dr. Kayla : 29:44

I had written almost 30 years ago and that was about the teapot. I told the story about a teapot identity from brokenness being restored, and that was my life. And then I began, and as I began to, as a matter of fact, I had to go through therapy. I did some therapy sessions because a lot transpired in my life, and out of those therapy sessions the books just began to roll. And so I went from the teapot, I went from telling the story about. There's a difference between trauma and demons, trauma and demons. And then I tell the story about the butterfly, just the metamorphosis of a butterfly, and that was definitely my life. But in order to become the beautiful butterfly, there was a period of crushing that you had to go through, and so I experienced that.

Dr. Kayla : 30:36

Then I went from another section of brokenness to beauty that told the story about sexual abuse. And the Lord said to me tell it from a different angle, tell it from the angle of what men go through. And my son helped me with that when he said to me Mom, you'll be surprised to know the amount of men that have experienced abuse, and they're silent. And then it came another story based on Psalm 42, as the deer panted, for the water go. And so I tell the story about a deer being hunted, what the Lord does in those moments when we feel like we're being hunted, how he shows up as creator God and he shifts the winds of adversity in our favor.

Dr. Kayla : 31:21

Then I tell the story about the silence of a broken home. I tell my story and then I tell that story, I follow it up with Beauty for Ashes and out of that came some memoirs and journals about the heart, the mind and the soul. Then a friend told me that you need a journal to accompany the teapot story and I'm like I'm finished, I have nothing else to give, and so out of that, and then I shared this one is personal for me. I shared the journal called Lift it, and that is where and this came out of my personal prayer time and my moments of walking the beach where I would just adore God, every name that I could find, the Hallowess name Yeshua, yahweh Adonai, and I just begin to lift him up, and so I share with people that, hey, you could just call him, and when you call him and invite him into your space, he changes your environment.

Dr. Brooks : 32:24

So that's me. I'm so proud, I am so proud of you and I gifted the one I think it's a story of redemption, that one and help, I need therapy. So I gifted those and so far, so good. The feedback has been like really good. I was working with, I was coaching two ladies and I was like I have something for you and I sent them to them and they are really enjoying it. You are so creative and your writing is beautiful, so don't stop writing. Don't stop writing.

Dr. Kayla : 32:58

Thank you, thank you so much, thank you yeah don't stop writing. That was all I needed from you.

Dr. Brooks : 33:03

Thank, you, yeah, yeah. So if you are interested in any of her work, you can find her on amazon. She does have an author page. So just make sure that you guys are going to amazon and purchasing her books and her journals, because dr kayla writes really well and her work is just amazing. And she went from one to. She was like I'm on number six and number seven. I was like, oh my God, the floodgates have opened.

Dr. Kayla : 33:32

Thanks to you, thanks to you so.

Dr. Brooks : 33:34

I'm so proud of you. I am so proud. So we talked about resilience. We have talked about overcoming. Your testimony is just amazing. So you are also an educator, so can you just share? When it comes to balancing your faith, your family and your career, it can be challenging sometimes, but can you share the strategies that you have in place to keep things balanced?

Dr. Kayla : 34:00

Keeping things balanced, navigating faith first, family and everything else comes after that. So, spiritually, my anchor is jesus christ. I can do nothing without him. So any of my live, I breathe and I have my being so every morning. For me what that looks like. I get up prayer. So whether prayer is just deeply meditating, just telling him thank you for the day, prayer when I jump in the car, and then I have those intimate moments with him, just give it in praise. And then, of course, there's worship, worship throughout the day.

Dr. Kayla : 34:38

When I get into work and I have a few moments, I just spend that time just worshiping and that truly just helps me, as well as pulling away my Saturday moments. That's the time that I need to just replenish myself. My Sabbath, where I just pull in and I just get away from the noise, because that's important for me to be able to replenish, so I have something to give. So, whether I'm in the front of my students and I'm sharing with them, there are moments when I could be deeply annoyed at them because they're not getting a concept or they're just distracted. I find out that what my personal time does for me is give me an opportunity to regroup and realize that, hey, they're just children, so I don't get to snap at them once I find my time in God. But if I don't have that time in God, I find it's easier to snap at them because I realize that, hey, something's missing. So, when you think, when I think balance, balance is not the absence of what's happening around me, balance is for me. What do I do? Balance isn't external, balance is internal, and so I have to sit at the feet of Jesus. If I don't sit at his feet, I'm no good to nobody else. So those are the things that I do.

Dr. Kayla : 36:13

So, community, I honestly reflect. I sit down and I think and I'm not thinking out of guilt, I'm not thinking out of remorse, I think about self-reflect how could I do something different or what could I have done differently? I think about, sometimes even the pain. I think of those good moments, I think of those bad moments and I think about how could I have done this differently? How could I have impacted my students? How could I reteach a lesson? How could I help a student who didn't get it to now refocus? How could I help a student enjoy this concept?

Dr. Kayla : 36:51

So that's what it does for me as an educator, computer science and it's not easy to get those concepts across. So in those moments of teaching a concept, I thank God for the Holy Spirit. He's the master teacher. In those moments I can easily pivot and say Holy Spirit, give me an idea to get this concept across to my kids. And once I am in tune with him, it's easy to receive a download in the moment. And so those are the things I do. But I'm honest with even when I fail, even in moments of failure because I didn't do X, y, z, I'm able to reflect on that and ask myself what is the lesson, because I understand that failure isn't defeat or moments of depression. It gives me an opportunity to learn something else and I welcome failure, I welcome failing because it gives me an opportunity to grow.

Dr. Brooks : 37:56

That is so good. So I want you to think about this question. So you speak powerfully about identity and purpose. So for someone that's listening today, who may feel stuck or they feel unsure of their calling, what would you say to help them step into the fullness of who God created them to be?

Dr. Kayla : 38:21

First of all, in order to do you have to make a genuine commitment to serve God. Once you make that genuine commitment to serve God and you are convinced that is what you want, and you are now a follower, believer, of Jesus Christ, find community, find people who think the way you think, find positive individuals who can speak into your life positively and help you with direction, help to give you guidance. And then now you have to set boundaries for yourself. Set boundaries and learn how to say no and to know that no is not a dirty word, the word that no is a word of protection. And then you need to find time to rest. And then you need to find time to worship, and journaling is probably one of the best habits that you could ever pick up Journal and, in the midst of journaling, be honest, and that is what I would share.

Dr. Kayla : 39:29

You don't have to be perfect. The world expects us to be perfect, but Christ expects us to come just as we are. Just go to him and just be honest. God, this is where I'm at, and sometimes I'll say God, I'm doing good. Today, I'm having a meltdown. Today, I'm ready to do, do, do, do, and that is what he wants. Yeah, you know, but our world, sometimes because we live in a world that projects perfectionism that's not a reality, because we're not perfect. As a matter of fact, we're perfect no times. We're people in need of a savior. And just come, just be honest. Find a girlfriend or someone who could just speak to you. If you're lying, they'll tell you child, you're lying. That ain't no truth. If you're suffering from delusion, you just need honesty.

Dr. Brooks : 40:18

That is so important and I'm glad you brought up community, because sometimes people want to isolate. But I love the scripture in Ecclesiastes when it says two is better than one because they have a good return for their labor. And then it talks about if either one of them fall, then one can help the other up. And that scripture is so true and it's so important because I have those accountability partners, I have those girlfriends. That's going to say, dr Brooks, you wrong.

Dr. Brooks : 40:47

You need to go make that right no, that wasn't good or anything or they encourage you to keep going, and so being in community with like-minded people is so important. So I'm glad that you brought that up and I have enjoyed you being on the show today. You have brought so much wisdom and insight and I will have your information and I will have the links to your books in the description of this episode. So if anyone wants to reach out to Dr Kayla, just check the description and her information will be there. So again, dr Kayla, thank you so much for joining. It has been a pleasure.

Dr. Kayla : 41:22

Thank you so much.

Intro/Outro: 41:28

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