This week we welcome Rachel Abad to the podcast! Rachel is a nurse practitioner, mom to five, and self-proclaimed “fiber enthusiast” loving all things related to knitting and fiber arts. Rachel shares with us how her faith has always carried her, no matter what the different chapters of her life have looked like. She encourages us in what it means to take a chance on a new place and find a supportive faith community like she’s found at HOPE! Special thanks to Rachel for sharing her life and story with us!
NOTES & RESOURCES:
Thanks for being a part of the HOPE community as we continue conversations about faith and hope! You can learn more at meethope.org or find us on socials @meethopechurch. Join in for worship on Sundays at meethope.live! Have a question? Contact us at podcast@meethope.org.
This week we welcome Rachel Abad to the podcast! Rachel is a nurse practitioner, mom to five, and self-proclaimed “fiber enthusiast” loving all things related to knitting and fiber arts. Rachel shares with us how her faith has always carried her, no matter what the different chapters of her life have looked like. She encourages us in what it means to take a chance on a new place and find a supportive faith community like she’s found at HOPE! Special thanks to Rachel for sharing her life and story with us!
NOTES & RESOURCES:
Thanks for being a part of the HOPE community as we continue conversations about faith and hope! You can learn more at meethope.org or find us on socials @meethopechurch. Join in for worship on Sundays at meethope.live! Have a question? Contact us at podcast@meethope.org.
Welcome to the Meet Hope podcast, where we have conversations about faith and hope. Hope is one church made of people living out their faith through two expressions in person and online. We believe a hybrid faith experience can lead to a growing influence in our community and our world for the sake of others. Welcome to hope.
Heather Mandala:Welcome to the Meet Hope Podcast. My name is Heather Mandela and today I have my friend Rachel Abad with me. So I am excited to hear a little bit more about Rachel and her story and share that with all of you. So, Rachel, tell me a little bit about yourself.
Rachel Abad:Hi Heather, Thank you so much for having me today. I am a nurse practitioner. I have five children. We have a little bit of an age gap, so my oldest is 24 and my youngest is five. So life is very interesting. I am obviously I'm a working mom, I am married and I have been coming to Hope for about 10 years just under 10 years.
Heather Mandala:Excellent. So five kids. So now you're. You had the first four and then a gap, and then Ezra. Yes, correct, okay. So tell me what is the most challenging thing about having an age gap?
Rachel Abad:I think it's so silly to say this, but you almost forget the little nuances that happen throughout each developmental stage. So when I was getting ready to have Ezra, I thought this is going to be such a breeze.
Intro:It's going to be a walk in the park.
Rachel Abad:I've done this four times, Not taking into account that I was 14 years older, well-established in a career that Ezra just didn't really like to sleep for the first three to four years of his life, so all of that was new and you're kind of learning it all over again. And then you feel kind of silly because you're like I have four other children, like how could I feel? And then things just change because with time, like we know more.
Heather Mandala:So what you can do, what you're supposed to feed them, what you're supposed to feed them yeah, all of that stuff is different. Yes, so it definitely makes it interesting. And you're dealing with preschool and college at the same time. Yes, and that has its own challenges it does.
Rachel Abad:And that's the other interesting thing, I guess, as moms, who adult children is, they still need you in various ways, so it's not as easy as they just move on.
Heather Mandala:Yes, yes, they really. It doesn't ever stop, and we do. We always need our moms, right? That's right. We always need our moms and some of those young college students just need us more than others. That's a little love, a little love. They just need a little love. It's a good thing. Well, thank you. So now tell me a little bit about your faith. Walk right, so we're talking about my story, so I want to unpack a little bit for people listening what your faith story looks like.
Rachel Abad:So I was raised in a Christian household and I met Jesus at a very young age. I think I was 10 and I loved going to church. I loved Jesus. I don't think I. I went through a tumultuous time in my teens, but I don't feel like I ever abandoned the faith.
Rachel Abad:Like I always felt like I always identified as a Christian. I knew I loved God and I wanted to serve God. I just didn't know what that looked like because of how everything kind of unfolded in my life. So I got pregnant at 16. Obviously that did not go over well in my household so I had a lot of guilt with putting my family through that because it was a lot for them to have to go to church and then have this happen Like sure.
Heather Mandala:Like they were struggling with the implications of it as well. Yes, yes.
Rachel Abad:So, um, after high school, I got married right out of out of high school, trying to do the right thing and it was just not to an ideal person and it took me a really long time to like realize that, um, and then come to grips with. You know, I'm in a bad situation now and this will never get better, and I have tried and I have prayed about this and I was not in a very supportive church community, so I just kind of floundered, um, and then I did just stop going to church, because when you are 24 with four kids and nobody else in the church, like they don't have a nursery, so whenever you show up you are the nursery that it just becomes like, well, why even show up? There's no TV to watch the message.
Rachel Abad:I'm just back here with everybody's kids. So then I feel like I got trapped in feeling so guilty and so ashamed of myself that I just stopped going to church. I am very thankful for just Christians that I know, that never gave up on me and like long-term friends I've had. But it finally came to a moment like, thankfully, I was able to pursue an education better myself that's not a good word, I, because not everybody has that opportunity to do that but I'm very thankful that I was able to go to school despite the challenges.
Rachel Abad:Challenging circumstances yeah, school, despite the challenges and that broad circumstances. Yeah, um, and I was actually with a bunch of co-workers and we were working. As we started working together, I would tell them about my life, and they're like rachel, you're not normal. Like this is not normal. It was very scary for me, though, because I never wanted to be like. I never wanted to be like. I never wanted to be divorced. I thought like marriage was for life, and that's just what I needed to do, but it just didn't work.
Heather Mandala:It was clearly not a healthy environment for you, correct it was. I'm glad that you had people who were giving you permission to acknowledge the dysfunction and giving you permission to acknowledge the fact that this was not the way it was supposed to function, right Like this is not the way a marriage is supposed to operate, that there was way too much hurt and pain going on here, and yeah, and so you were able to come to that really hard decision.
Rachel Abad:Yes, and I did, and I again I'm very like during that time I still wasn't really in the church because I was so embarrassed. It was like a very personally embarrassing thing. And then again, like I think back to my parents, they had to like live through that and I know that they didn't mean it, but that's kind of how it's like. Well, first this happened and now this is happening, so I was able to move on. I found a great, great partner Within a couple years. I relocated to Voorhees and, as my life was starting to get settled and I was starting to start anew, I started attending a church that was local-ish but not in Voorhees. So I noticed hope driving around Voorhees one day and I saw the sign that said visitors expected, and I really loved that sign. So I'm like I feel like this is worth checking out, like it's in my town. This would be so great. So Easter Sunday 2015 was the first Sunday I attended.
Heather Mandala:That's awesome. So we're coming up on your nine year anniversary. Yes, that's exciting, it is, um. I want to pause for a second, though, and I want to go back, uh, because I think that your experience, while we say it's not common and you know what I mean Like your, your experience wasn't a healthy experience. I want to talk a little bit about, um, that shame and isolation that kept you from wanting to go to church, because I think that's something that people can relate to.
Rachel Abad:Yes. So I just felt like almost it's hard to explain, but it's just that's not how I foresaw my life In my mind. I was like I love God, I never lost that. So it was like 110%. Like my life was in the church. I went to public school I never cared. Like I started a fellowship of Christian athletes. Like never was I embarrassed about being a Christian, um, but I went from having my life in the church to having no life anywhere. So, um and I, and I don't think like there was any. I don't think my parents meant to of course not.
Heather Mandala:There was no maliciousness, right, it was. Everybody was doing the best they could. But then.
Rachel Abad:But that's not like. I just like got the feeling I'm like I you know what, if I having the choice to be out in public or be in my room, I'll just be in my room by myself, like because it's just safer there, like I don't have people looking at me and no judgment, like. And I think that just became an acquired behavior with time.
Heather Mandala:Yeah, and that that in so many ways breaks my heart because you were hurting and isolated and vulnerable and at a time where the church needed to be the church for you and for whatever reason, it wasn't, and that can be really hard. So, hey, kudos to you for pushing through that and not letting that keep you there stuck right, because I think it's really easy for us to get stuck in that.
Rachel Abad:Yeah, it is, and I'm thankful that I was able to move beyond that. And it took years but I was able, thankfully, by the grace of God, able to push through it. And that's where I feel like I never abandoned the faith. I feel like the faith abandoned me. But looking back I know that is absolutely not true and I can see how God moved in my life through unconventional ways. He said I maybe didn't expect, but I mean I can't like. There's no way I can explain to you how I've been able to just get through some of the times other than God was literally leading sometimes dragging me, maybe with the shepherd's staff, but he had his hand on my life, the entire, the entire way.
Heather Mandala:I love it, I love that, I love that and I love to think. Now, I know you are a knitting fanatic. Yes, right, you love your fiber, as you like to say, and I love that. I I have to wonder. You just said that shepherd's crook and I think of that, like right, like. So here you are, this lamb that you know the 99, so to speak, and it wasn't that you turned away from God, but through circumstances, you found yourself isolated, um, feeling like you weren't welcomed, and um, and yet Jesus pursued you. Yes, right.
Intro:He went after you and, and now you knit for Lambswool. No, I'm just kidding, that's right.
Heather Mandala:But yeah, no, it is. That's an awesome picture of that. So you started attending Hope because you saw the sign visitors expected. And why did you stay?
Rachel Abad:From the start I will say this the church I was going to was very big and it was very easy for me to get lost.
Rachel Abad:And I actually didn't mind getting lost, I was okay with that I was okay with running in on a Sunday, sitting through service and running out. But when I stepped through the doors of hope, I have this experience in this community of people who genuinely are happy to see me, and it's not just the hello and then that's it, but I have people who are just interacting with me on a much warmer level, very welcoming, very kind and just inviting. You can't walk into this building on a Sunday and not feel like you belong here, no matter what.
Rachel Abad:And it's so funny because, well, it's not really funny, but like I have all these preconceived notions and these ideas and like just afraid. And every interaction I've had with people here is just very kind and loving and they accept you for who you are, but they love you too much to let you say the same.
Heather Mandala:That might be something you hear from the platform a fair amount, right, that God loves you exactly as you are, but he loves you too much to let you stay in it, right, and that's, and that's the thing, and one of the things I love about your story is that, um, it encapsulates so much of what we all experience, right? Life is messy and we think life is supposed to look one way and we think that we're normal, and then we realize there is no such thing as normal. It's a lie.
Rachel Abad:So that's what coming to the church and listening to Pastor Jeff and Pastor Rick and you and everybody collectively Everything that was being discussed I thought was very relevant to real life issues Like how do you live in this world and be an effective Christian, live your faith out more than just showing up on a Sunday. But what does that look like in real life? And I think I got a lot from that, because it's so easy to listen to a message where you're here, idealize concepts, but how do I live that in real life? Like how?
Intro:do I live that?
Rachel Abad:when I go to work and everybody's miserable. Or if I have a child going through like an existential crisis like how do I help them through that from a Christian perspective?
Heather Mandala:Yeah, Well, and I love that and I know you recently started a new job and it was one where you were struggling with you know what. Your place was right, so it was a little bit different than the nursing care you'd provided before and, um, and you were feeling maybe a little overwhelmed, a little you're not sure your place, but I love that as we talked about it, you were able to see where God was going to use you.
Rachel Abad:Yes, so and not to I mean not to idealize it, but you try to do what you can in the moment and for the people that you're there. So am I going to solve everybody's problems at my job? No, but maybe I can leave them with a smile on their face, or maybe I can just do something really little that in the moment seems very insignificant, but I mean, maybe they're just thirsty and want something to drink, or maybe they need to relay a message to like one of the other staff members. So just something really quick, just taking the time or sometimes just sitting there and letting somebody say what they want to say.
Heather Mandala:Yeah, letting them actually finish their sentence.
Rachel Abad:Yes.
Heather Mandala:Or putting a hearing aid battery in so that they can hear.
Rachel Abad:Even though you were not an expert in that, and it's not one that you've ever seen.
Heather Mandala:Yes, so, but that again it's. It's that tangible, hands-on. How do I become the hands and feet of Jesus where I am every day, in the real life, here and now? Um, and that's a beautiful thing, um, so so I know that you take that into your work with you every day. Tell me a little bit about the ways that you have grown your faith personally while you've been here.
Rachel Abad:So I started coming here, loved coming here. I got involved in a group called Painting with Praise because it was very safe. It was I'm like I can do this. Low commitment, low fear factor?
Rachel Abad:I don't need to know anything Exactly, I can just show up and paint and I don't even have to be good at painting, I can just show up and paint and I don't even have to be good at painting, I can just show up. So I met friends that way, or I met a couple of really great people, and then I just continued to pursue small groups and, granted, I just with my work schedule and kids and not that I have been the most compliant with attendance, but I've gotten better and I just every small group if the messages with the messages being as relevant as they are, the small groups are even more challenging and give me more to think about and give me more of a direction to study. So, and what I have noticed is that the more that I do small groups, the more faces I know and names I recognize. So when I show up to other things, or if I do show up on a Sunday, I know people. Now it's less scary.
Heather Mandala:Yes, it's less scary. Yes, you will. Rachel is someone you might find online. She is one of our online hosts, so we are super grateful for that and all the time that she gives there. So if you are an online watcher or listener participant, you are going to meet her there, and she also runs one of our well, sometimes multiple small groups, but right now is running our knitting group. So tell us a little bit about why that's important to you.
Rachel Abad:Of course. First of all, I'm very passionate about fiber of all kinds.
Rachel Abad:So, and I know that's funny, I just I was. I think I was born an old soul, but, um, I learned how to knit as a child, stepped away from it and then I came back to it as an adult and I just never stopped and for me it's a great way to settle my mind at night and I never. Um, you know, you knit like baby blankets or gifts for people here and there, um, but you never really think about the impact it could have on someone. And then I was talking to Dottie Hahn and she had been running the knitting ministry here at Hope for years and she said that there's a need for prayer shawls, baptism blankets, lap blankets for men who are in wheelchairs, that she was in desperate need. So I never really thought that I could use the knitting to impact people in that way and it's been a great experience. I would say it's a great avenue to use my passion to hopefully make somebody's day better.
Heather Mandala:Absolutely. Yes, I know we do that here so frequently, whether it is the parents receiving it for a child or someone who is ill or struggling receiving it. The difference that it makes just knowing that there are people out there who were praying for them and thinking about them.
Rachel Abad:And that's really cool too is that it's a very casual and relaxed group and we will take all skill levels. But just to have that intentionality of this is going to go to somebody and who, is this person that's going to be on the other end of this, and what might they be going through.
Rachel Abad:And to really just pray, think like, let this be a blessing to whoever gets it. It could be as small, as it just made their day better. It could be as big. As you know, every time they're getting a chemo treatment, they're using the blanket and they're wrapping it for warmth and comfort. But it's our way of just sending hugs to people.
Heather Mandala:I love that. I love that so much. And not only does it bless the people who are receiving, but the people who are there and I can attest my blankets will probably never be received and I can attest my blankets will probably never be received.
Rachel Abad:I am not particularly good at this. I think you should give yourself more credit.
Heather Mandala:But I love the community that occurs. You know, I love being with these people as they come together and we just have fun. There's just something so much fun about just sitting relaxing and just Absolutely, and I know Dottie was so excited to have people under 50 who are interested in this hobby. So, yes, so this is, and it's more than a hobby, it really is a full-on ministry.
Rachel Abad:We do exist we are there we exist.
Heather Mandala:We are there. We are, yes, fiber, pro-fiber, and it's a great thing. So, before we go on to our next portion, I do want to ask you so if there are people out there who are struggling with fear, who are struggling with that, I'm not good enough. Or I've been wounded, I've been hurt. The church did not show up for me. Um, what would you want to say to them?
Rachel Abad:I would say you are, you are at a safe place. People here care so, and it can be hard to hear this, but don't let. Don't limit yourself by not being open-minded to the messages, to becoming involved. You, this community here is an amazing group of people who are actual, genuine people. Like you're going to see people how we're messy, how they treat you. Like how you're being treated is not a show, it's not trying to impress anybody. These are people who just genuinely care and want to foster and and have a sense of community with each other. So awesome.
Heather Mandala:Welcome. I love that, thank you. Okay. So we what we like to do. Um, you know, you've shared with us some really great stuff and some personal stuff. We want to learn some fun stuff about you too, so this next segment is rapid fire. I'm just going to ask you some quick questions, um, that will help us get to know you a little bit better, okay, so pizza topping what's your favorite? Pizza topping? Extra cheese Fantastic. No, no meat, no, nothing, just cheese, Just extra cheese Excellent. Um, are you a morning person or an evening person? I'm a morning person, me too. How about your spouse?
Rachel Abad:Morning person.
Heather Mandala:Oh, is he Okay yeah.
Rachel Abad:We're both up at like 4 45 in the morning, ready to go okay, see, we kind of just grunt at each other in the mornings.
Heather Mandala:Well, he's probably he shoots up.
Rachel Abad:I'm more of the grunty person but I've learned to become a morning person and it really had. Just for anybody listening. It really does change your life.
Heather Mandala:You get a lot done you do get a lot done.
Rachel Abad:I do love my mornings I get so much done o'clock at story.
Heather Mandala:I'm asleep on the couch by nine. Yeah, okay, your coffee order Black. That's because you're a morning person, exactly.
Rachel Abad:Us morning people. We just want black coffee, Just like I need to get the job done.
Heather Mandala:Get me the caffeine yes, good Favorite. Show that you.
Rachel Abad:And I know I was late to get on that bus, but I'm there. I love it.
Heather Mandala:Love Ted. I'm right there with you. Ted Lasso is fantastic. We know your hobby. Do you have hobbies besides knitting?
Rachel Abad:I love to travel, which is another great reason to attend Hope online.
Heather Mandala:Yes, because you can take Hope with you wherever you go, you can take it wherever you go, you can watch it on demand. So if you know, so, if you're not, if you're like at Reykjavik, like, you were and your time zone doesn't line up when you're in Iceland. You can watch it whenever it works.
Rachel Abad:But that's also really awesome that you can like you can bring your community like you feel, like it was so nice to be in another country and be like, oh, these are my people, like I'm going to church.
Heather Mandala:That is beautiful. I love that.
Rachel Abad:And your favorite local place to eat.
Heather Mandala:I'm going to say Norma's, ah, norma's, very good, I'm going to go to some more Excellent, excellent, okay. Well, thank you so much, rachel, for sharing with us a little glimpse into what your life has looked like walking with Jesus, and I appreciate your honesty and your candor because, right, we are, it's messy, we're all messy, and but it's so much better to be messy together, absolutely, yeah. So if you are out there and you are looking for that next step, we want to encourage you to check out meethopeorg, find ways to get connected and we hope, um, you will find that community that allows you to grow as well. Until then, have a great week.
Intro:Thanks for being a part of the Hope Community as we continue our conversations about faith and hope. If you don't already, please join us for worship on Sundays or on demand. You can learn more at meethopeorg or find us on socials at meethopechurch.