The Jeff Cavins Show (Your Catholic Bible Study Podcast) - From Worry to Wonder with Melissa Overmyer

Episode Date: May 6, 2022

Do you struggle with worry? Life is full of reasons to worry and opportunities to lose our peace. In this episode, Jeff speaks with author Melissa Overmyer to talk about her new book and the recipe to combat worry. Snippet from the Show God is all powerful and nothing is beyond his ability to heal and transform and renew. Email us with comments or questions at [e-mail]. Text “jeffcavins” to 33-777 to subscribe and get Jeff’s shownotes delivered straight to your email! Or visit ascensionpress.com/thejeffcavinsshow for full shownotes!

Welcome to the Jeff Kaven Show, where we talk about the Bible, discipleship, and evangelization, putting it all together in living as activated disciples. This is episode 269 from Worry to Wonder with my guest, Melissa Overmire. And I want to thank you for joining me this week, my dear friend. I love getting together with you every single week. I look forward to it and I actually think about it all throughout the week. I'm always thinking to myself, you know, when I get together with you, what do I want to talk about? You know, what are you going through? What have I been going through? What's on the news and so forth?

And today I've got an amazing guest, a friend of mine who has recently published a book called Worried Wonder. And I'm going to introduce her in just a moment. But I think that what I'm going to be sharing with you today is going to be in the midst of all that's going on in the world right now. it's going to be a little bit of an oasis for you. If you are lonely, if you're broken, if you feel like depressed or anxious, or I guess I could go on and on. Or if you watch cable news, that could be in that category as well. You probably need some good news today. And that's exactly what we're going to give you today on the Jeff Kaven show.

And I can always use some good news as well. Say, if you want to get to show notes for this show or even, any of the shows in the future, it's actually very easy. And most of the shows, I give a lot of notes. I give a lot of scriptures. I give a lot of quotes and pictures and that type of thing. And if you want them, all you've got to do is type my name, one word, Jeff Kavens, and you can send it to 33777.

Now, that is one of the most biblical numbers you could possibly come up with. And it's one that you're going to be able to remember, 3-3. Just remember the Trinity, 3-3, and then 7-7-7. seven, and seven is the number for covenant. So when you put it together, just call it a blessing. You're going to get a lot of good notes there. So I want to, I want to introduce to you a friend of mine, a wonderful friend of mine. She is a convert to the Catholic Church, has a lot of experience in Bible studies and leading people to Christ. And her own story of coming into the church is fascinating. I'm going to have her share just on that briefly at the top of the interview.

But one of the first things that she has done since coming into the Catholic Church is encouraging you. And she put together a marvelous book called Worry to Wonder put out by Ascension Press. And I just thought it was time for you to get some good news. So coming to you all the way from Washington, D.C. area, want to introduce you to my friend Melissa Overmire. Melissa, welcome to the show. Thank you so much. It's so delightful to be on today. Thank you. It is good. It's good to be with you. And our paths have crossed over this period of time where the last several years of out in Washington, you know, at the Museum of the Bible when we did the Great Adventure. We had a wonderful time together out there. That was good. Hey, I want to, before I get into your story there, I want people to know that when we talk about worry to wonder, you know, this sense of wonder. Wow.

This hasn't come easy for you, has it, the writing of this book and getting out of this good news. Tell us a little bit about that, and you're coming into the church. Well, as you said, I'm a convert, and it seems so right after I converted, a lot of things happened. It's been quite a journey. I had a terrible accident, and I was paralyzed for a while. and then my daughter broke her neck and then my sister passed away and then my house

if you can imagine just not so long ago a vandal broke in and destroyed it and then burned it to the ground and so it has been a very difficult journey but thanks be to God because I believe so strongly in the word of God and that what he says is true and if what he says is true we can build

our life on and it gives us a greater hope than really all the disappointment or tragedy that we can face in this world. And so thankfully, the Lord put on my heart to dig around and find out exactly what he had to say about how to deal with tragedy and loss and worry in our lives. And so I wrote down this scriptural formula. I call it my anti-worry scripture recipe. And I had already written it down before this last major thing happened, which was the house being set ablaze. And so it has been my lifeline. And so I can say with absolute certainty that it works, not because of my words, but because it is God's word and you can stand firm on them. Amen to that. And I know there's a lot of people who, you know, my friends who are listening

and I know of several stories that are similar to yours and variations, you know, variations on a theme, we might say, and that is really tough things happening. Before we get into your recipe, which I would encourage everybody to put this recipe in the recipe box for living. But in an elevator pitch, why did you become Catholic? I mean, you were actually very involved in your church before you became Catholic. Yes. Well, all I can say, it was the Eucharist. I felt like God. I was born and raised, a Southern Baptist, and the Lord slowly through the years brought me to fall in love with the sacraments. And so as the journey continued, I met a Catholic priest. A friend introduced me to a Catholic priest and said,

I finally met somebody that loves Jesus more than you do. I'd been teaching her in a scripture study program for over 20 years. And I thought, there's no way. I don't know anybody that loves Jesus more than I do, but I'd really like to meet them if it's true. And so I went to meet this Catholic priest really to prove her wrong because I thought no way that a Catholic priest could love Jesus more than I could love Jesus because I'm so in love with this word. And I met him and it was true. I felt bested right from the beginning when I met him. And finally, I said, what do you have that I don't have. And he said, I have the Eucharist. And he challenged me to go to an adoration chapel and just to sit with the Lord there. And to be honest with you, that was not something I felt comfortable

doing, but I did by God's grace. And the Lord revealed himself to me there that it truly was his presence, body and blood, soul and divinity. And he had me hook, line and sinker. And then I studied because it's, you know, our faith is faith and reason. So I had to let my head catch up with my heart. So I did a deep dive into Catholicism and the Catholic teachings of the church. And I fell even more in love with Jesus through the teachings of the church. So he sort of had me at, hello, the Eucharist. What was your perception of the Catholic Church in terms of scripture before you start?

down that right turn in your life? Yes. Well, I had erroneously been taught that the Catholic Church's teachings were not based on scripture. So it was to my utter delight and surprise and blessing that as I dove deeper and deeper, the beauty of the revelation of the types in the Bible that are revealed then. and how the Catholic teaching is based on scripture, and of course, then we read it through the lens of the church. But if someone had just given me this book on this very simple book on a Catholic apologetics at the very beginning, I would have, I probably would have become a Catholic much sooner because I was Sola Scriptura.

and once I started going into this apologetics class, I realized that it was all true and that this is what God was calling me to do. Beautiful. And so I guess I ask that, Melissa, because in your book, Worry to Wonder, you really are making a case, a scriptural case, for how to deal with the worry in your life.

You're not looking at this from a pure psychological perspective or kind of a popular guru perspective and sweathouses and everything else. You're talking about really a scriptural perspective on how to deal with the worry in your life. Before we get to that recipe, though, let me ask you, what are you hearing out there right now in the world as far as worry? Because we're talking at the time of this recording, we're talking about Ukraine, we're talking about politics, we're talking about inflation, we're talking about the family, identity.

everything is going on in the world right now. So what are you hearing out there? Well, I travel and I speak, and I, it is, I think we're at an epidemic level of worry and anxiety in our society. And sadly, I think our world in general has become pretty good at making up worldly answers to the problems that the world faces. But when suddenly these answers aren't working, people's world falls to pieces. And that is what we're seeing. We're seeing that if people do not place their faith in something that's a sure foundation, if you're just looking to worldly answers, there's still COVID out there. There's still a war out there. There are still major problems out there that the worldly answers have not solved. And so if we don't have a

greater hope, a greater something better to place our faith in, then this is what we're seeing. We're seeing a lot of people falling to pieces, and basically their foundations are falling apart. And so, thanks be to God, Jesus Christ, in His Word, gives us a sure foundation and a better answer, you know, than, and that's what I love about from worry to wonder, is learning to ask better questions instead of why me asking the question, okay, God, how are you and I going to get through this together? How are you going to cause all of these things to work together for good? Not just for me, but for everyone. And so it's really about looking to the answer

instead of looking at the problems. Yeah, I like it when you use that word foundation because when we talk about where we're at in our culture right now, I would say that most people would say that the foundations in their life, their family, their relationship with politics and news and national security, everything, the foundations are being destroyed as they see them. And you said that Jesus is the key, and he really is even more than a foundation. But I love that scripture, which I'm sure you're aware of in Psalm 113, which says, if the foundations be destroyed, what will the righteous do? And the thing I like about your book is it's really that, isn't it?

Is what should the righteous do? Well, they should probably read Worry to Wonder. That would be a good starting point. So let me ask you that question. Worry plagues so many of us right now. When you speak to people about the topic of worry and the manifestations of it, which are many, I mean, people can run, people can self-medical. dedicate. They can blame. They can get angry. You know, there's a lot of ways of dealing with

this, you know, this idea of worry. But what's the starting point? Where do people begin when they're standing there looking at that pile called mess? Well, I always begin on my knees. I believe that prayer is the first place because it shows that we're humble and that we need something greater than ourselves, which of course is God and his mercy and his grace. And then I looked at the scriptures through the lens of the church and then also to the sacraments because I feel like those are the gifts that God has given us to be able to stand firm. And if we can place our hope in this something greater, then we do have something more to stand on than these worldly answers.

And when you talk to people about the worry that's going on, how do you get them? And what does your book say about getting them to leave that worry behind? Because you're not acting like it's just not there. You're not saying, okay, worry, go away. You're replacing worry with something, right? Yes, yes. So I call it the worry-to-winder checklist. It's really, that's the crux of the book is the first seven chapters are these seven,

basic scriptures that then we flesh out in the seven chapters. And what I do is every morning I wake up and I present myself to the Lord. And then the church calls that a morning offering. And scripture says that we are to present our bodies as a living and holy sacrifice in Romans 12.1. And then I call it plug into the power source. So this is what I believe is so key, is renewing your mind to truth. And Romans 12 says to be transformed by the renewing of your mind. So if we can renew our mind to who God is and what he can do and he's all powerful and nothing is beyond his ability to heal and transform and renew. And so if we can get our mind stayed on those truths of who God is and what he can do and then who we are in what we can do in him.

we are his beloved children and there is nothing, you know, that we can't do with his grace because he promises that he'll never leave us or forsake us and he'll never give us more than we can handle but with him, not on our own strengths, but in his strength. And St. Catherine Siena said those are really the game changers of if we know who God is and who we are in him. And so those are very pivotal points I have to do every morning. And then I have to think about what I'm worried about because I believe that the enemy of our soul comes to steal, kill, and destroy our life, our peace, whatever, you know, he can mess up he does.

And so I have to take these worries instead of just this vague overarching feeling of, oh, I'm worried. I have to name them and say, well, what specifically am I worried about? And then when I do, I literally place it in my hand. I put my hand out and I place it in my hand and then I think, well, is this even true? Because I have a vivid imagination and I, you know, I forecast doom. So I have to think, well, is this really true? Is this a real worry? And if it is, I think, well, have I done my part in it? Like if I have something coming up, have I done what I need to do my part. And then once I answer that question, if I have, then I love to, I picture myself placing it into more capable hands than my own. I'm not just casting it into the universe,

but I'm literally placing it into the hands of God for him to do what only he can do by his grace. And that's really what the whole book is about and then what we do after that. You know, it reminds me of John chapter 10 when Jesus says that all that the father has given me, I'm not going to lose anybody. And my father is not going to lose anybody. And I love that because there's two sets of hands on you right there, you know, and God's going to take care of you. When you have the Holy Spirit, you've got three hands, three sets of hands on you.

You mentioned something, a quote by St. Catherine of Siena that I really like, you know, talking about what she talks about, and that is that when you know who God is and you know his plan, it really becomes a foundation in which you can trust. And that's what people are really lacking today, is that. what do I trust in? Is this trust like a, is this like a magic thing? I'm in a hope for trust or whatever. But what you're saying is so similar to what paragraph 236 of the catechism says, and that is that we come to know the mystery of theology and the economy of God. We understand the theology, which is the heart of our father, knowing the heart of our father, the economy

of God, which is God's amazing household plan for us. When you know his heart, you know his plan, You do have a foundation. This isn't a hope so, is it? This is not a hope so thing. We're on solid ground, right? Right. Absolutely. And I love looking up the promises that God promises, you know, throughout the Old Testament and the New Testament, that he has good plans for us, that, you know, to give us a future and a hope, that he, that he's never going to leave us or forsake us, you know. And then when he says that he promises that all things will work together for good for those who love him and are called according to his purposes, and these are the things I cling to. And, you know, Isaiah says that he will keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on him. And so my job, I believe, is to keep my mind stayed on him. And his job is then to bring me the peace when I do it. And so I try not to get the two mixed up.

And so what this book really has helped me to do is to keep my mind state on him. And if those worries come back during the day, which inevitably, if you're a natural-born warrior, which I am, you know, they sneak back in. And so that's when I have to, by an act of the will, not because it comes naturally to me, but as an act of the will, to choose to praise God, not because of my circumstances, but oftentimes in spite of them, and to dwell on whatever is true noble right, pure, lovely, and admirable, that is what I have to keep my mind stayed on, and that is what really brings me then into the light of his presence. That's beautiful. We're talking with Melissa Overmeyer, her new book,

Worry to Wonder. We'll put the information in the show notes, and all you've got to do is link, and you're there at Ascension Press, and you can get it. We're going to take a break right now, And when we come back, we're going to talk about mental boundaries, not only mental boundaries, but we're going to talk about developing new habits in your life. Because what Melissa Overmeyer is talking about, again, is not wishing things into existence, not just hoping forever, but actually doing something that makes a difference in your life. And Melissa, we're going to talk about that when we come back. But just let me talk to my friends for a moment.

But you know, you guys have been with me for so many years now. And I know that you need help at times in your life, just like I do. I want to encourage you to get the book and to read it and give it to one or two people who are really struggling in your life. I know there's a lot going on. I know there's not much to hang on to in culture. But as you are hearing and you'll hear more, God has a plan. And I know that plan works. Okay?

All right. You're listening to the Jeff Kaven show. Every one of us is made in the image of God. We are unique, worthy of love, and called to greatness. In this world, though, we can be distracted from that truth and begin to doubt God's love is real. You see, we live in a world that tells us we are not smart, attractive, thin, or rich enough. It is easy to focus on the ways we fall short of worldly perfection and forget that we are already made perfect.

We are already enough. I'm Danielle Bean, author of You Are Enough, what women of the Bible teach you about your mission and worth. You Are Enough dives into the stories of women in the Bible so that you can fully see God's plan for your life. To order, visit ascensionpress.com or Amazon. Thanks for coming back,

and I knew you were going to be back because I know you want hope and you want answers to some of the problems that you're facing and, hey, it might not be just you. You know, I was talking to some people yesterday and they had a pretty together. They really did. but two of their kids did not.

And that might be you. You might have adult children and their lives are falling apart. They graduated from college during COVID. They never got on to dry ground. Their wheels are spinning. They're not sure what to do. Well, this is what we're talking about today. We're talking with Melissa Overmeyer about her new book, Worry to Wonder.

And you talk, Melissa, about mental boundaries in the book. And I'm curious about that phrase, because I know what that might mean to some people, but how do you use it? Well, it was fascinating when I first heard a scripture that said that we were to take every thought captive and make it obedient to Christ. And when I first heard that, I thought, well, that sounds like censorship or, you know, I got a little indignant. But then as I realized, well, why wouldn't I want to make it obedient to Christ? Because Christ has my best interest at heart. like he's 100% for me. So I don't have to be subject to every thought that pops into my head, which truly when I found

that out was like earth-shattering because I was really living off of more emotional state and sort of at the whim of these thoughts. And what scripture says us to do, it tells us a healthy place. It's like I wouldn't just eat junk food or anything I think. found on the street. No, I have to be discerning about what I choose to put in. And so I also have to be choosy about what I want to dwell on. And so scripture, Paul is very clear on where he says that we are to allow our minds to dwell. And it's really in the good, the beautiful, and the truth of who God is. And so when we can get our eyes onto truth, beauty, and goodness, and, you know,

what God is doing instead of, you know, ruminating and just dwelling on on sort of the problems in our life, then things change. And what's amazing is how God has created us. And I've done so much research. And he's built us with something called neuroplasticity, which means that we can actually make new neural pathways in our brain. And that's what St. Thomas Aquinas talks about, you know, acquiring good habits. And St. Anthony of the Desert said that we were to practice until practice becomes nature, I'm sorry, until practice becomes habit and habit becomes nature. And so we can create new, you know, a new nature within us by God's grace by practicing something again and again. And so that's the idea of taking our thoughts captive and learning to dwell in the

positive in the good and being grateful. And that's what the 40-day journal in the book is about. It's about helping you turn good information really into life transformation. How do you use that? I saw that, and I have not done the 40-day journal myself, but how are people going to go through those 40 days? What does it look like? Well, you basically wake up in the morning and you offer yourself to the Lord, which is the morning offering. I simply say, here I am, God, please fill me with your spirit and, you know, get me through this day. And then I renew my mind to the truth of who God is and what he can do and who I am and what I can do through him. And then I write down my worries for that day. And then again, I say, are they true? Have I done my part? And then I place them in God's

more capable hands. And then I rejoice. I write something down in this journal. I write down, well, what am I going to be grateful for today? What am I going to rejoice over? And for some people, it may be, you know, just the smallest thing, you know, what can you draw your mind to? I love nature. And one of the things I love to think about during the day is if a worry comes back is think about the beauty of nature, something specific that God has created that I have encountered and think, oh my gosh, if there's such an amazing God that can make that, he knows me intimately well, and he can take care of me. If he takes care of that little bird, he can take care of of me. If he can create that beautiful little flower, he can create something out of nothing,

you know, in my life. And so I dwell on what brings me joy, what brings me happiness, instead of going down the dark hole of doom and gloom. It's a choice, isn't it? It's a choice. I mean, you really do have a, you have a choice on what you're going to do, and I love the neuroplasticity, and I believe that with all my heart, and I believe that that if you create a habit, you literally can start thinking differently. You know, you talked about earlier that we have our minds renewed. You know, we have our minds renewed. We are created in the image and likeness of God, and that means we can also think like

God. And we can look at the trash that's going on today. You can soak yourself in bad news, and it will have an effect on your thinking. In fact, I was just in this last week, I was in Denver, and I was talking. And I said, I was saying out there that we have a choice. And there are people right now who are discouraged and they are anxious. And in their case, it can be because of a lot of different reasons. But in their case, it was because they're watching 12 hours a day of network news.

Well, what do you expect? You know, honestly, my friends, what do you expect to sit there and watch that and not even do anything about it, like pray or something. I think, you know, give yourself a treat, get some good news. Now, Melissa, you've been teaching and sharing scripture for 30 years now. And I remember, I still have the text from you where I think you and your husband, weren't you out to eat or something? And this is when you came home and saw what was happening at home.

You review that real quickly with me, but you came home and your house was on fire. I mean, it was like, it was just torn. apart, absolutely torn apart. And that was your life. That was everything. That's where everything belonged and all of that. And I don't mean it lightly, but how did your book help with that? Because I got that text from you and I thought, oh, boy, you talk about having to put this into practice. Well, we were on vacation, actually. And I got a phone call from a neighbor that said, your house is on fire. We were gone for Christmas vacation. And we had a little tiny tree because we weren't going to be there. And I thought, oh, it's just a little tiny fire because we had a

tiny tree. I just assumed that's what it was. But no, it was far, far bigger. An arsonist had broken in and then set multiple fires. So we lost literally everything. And if I honestly, if I had not known what's in this book, I became so fearful. at a time that I literally had to cry out to the Lord. And I realized, you know, even after writing this book that if you don't, if you put your faith in circumstances, because there was a lot going on at that time and there was a lot of uncertainty and then you can go down. You're putting your faith on shifting sand, as the Lord would say, you've built your house on sand. And I cried out to the Lord and he said, you know, don't forget about my grace, basically.

Don't forget about the glitter of my grace. Right now, you're so earthly-minded. Rise above your circumstances. Look to me. I am your hope, you know, and I will give you the grace you need. And while I don't believe it was his perfect will that it happened, it absolutely was his permissive will because it happened. And so I have to put my faith in the fact that if that is the case, then God is going

to give me what I need to get through it. And so this book has really, really helped me. And one of the things I closed the last chapter of the book is about putting on the full armor of God and learning to stand firm because we, it's not just an earthly battle. It is really a battle, a spiritual battle and a battle in our mind. And I love that St. Joan of Arc said all battles are first one are lost in the mind, you know. And so we have to put our faith in something greater. We have a greater hope, and he will get us through. And when we start believing that, our circumstances may not change.

My house is still burned to the ground, but other things have changed. And it's that I am expecting good things from God. I'm not dwelling on the loss. I'm expecting good things. And so many blessings have come. And I recognize them, and I praise him for them. even the smallest things. And it has really turned me into someone who's not only more compassionate for others,

but someone who looks and expects good things. Well, that's what I appreciate about you, Melissa, and I appreciate about the book, is that this is one recipe that has been tested in the oven. And it worked. And it worked. Something beautiful came out of it. And so, my friends, if you want this recipe, I really, really recommend that you get a copy of Worry.

to wonder. And Melissa, thanks for joining me on the show. We're going to put all your connections in the show notes. And do you have a website? I do. It's Melissaovermeyer.com. They can go on there and sign up and they can get a weekly email with all kinds of video links and kind of tells you what's going on. And I would just love to stay connected. Yeah. And welcome to the church. And you've been walking with the Lord for a long time. And so I have, you're my sister where both of us, we can speak Catholic or Protestant with no accent on it either. Absolutely. And I love that. So say how to your family and everything. Thanks for joining me on the show today, all right. Thank you so much, Jeff. God bless you. And, you know, his hand is so all over all that you do. It's just delightful to be

a part of it. Thank you so much. Well, thank you. I appreciate it. That's Melissa Overmire. Now, my friend, before we go today, I do want to remind you also that when you go to our website, If you'd like to her to speak at your church or speak at your conference or come mow your lawn, any of those things, she's available. And I'm sure she would love to come and mow your lawn. No, I'm just kidding. She'd love to speak at your church. That's what she'd like to do. And see, Melissa, I'm signing you up for way more than you asked for here.

But in all seriousness, my friend, I would encourage you to get the book. And if right now in your life you're facing worry and you're facing anxiety and so forth, please know this. this, my friend, there are answers and you're not alone. And this is something that is common to life. And you are operating normally if you are feeling that pressure, but it's what you do with it. And here we give you a recipe, and you can give this to the Lord. And the question is, you know, when the foundations are destroyed, what will the righteous do? Not what will the righteous think? Not what will the righteous complain about? Or what will the righteous self-medicate on? It's what will they do, you know, as far as obeying the Lord and walking with the Lord and receiving all that the Lord has given you.

So I'll put all that information in the show notes. And hey, just another quick reminder to make sure that next June, June 20, 23, that you mark off June. Just put a great big, hey, I'm going somewhere on your calendar because Father Mike Schmitz and I will be going leading a pilgrimage to the Holy Land. Next June, and that's going to be, I think it's June 7th or 8th, and it's going to be for about 10 days. we're going to have the time of our life. And we've got some tremendous Catholic singers who are going to be joining us and some outstanding priests. We're going to be camping in the desert, swimming in the Sea of Galilee. It's going to be just an amazing time.

That's June of 2023. And I'm telling you ahead of time, because when it opens up, it is going to go. It's going to go not as fast as Melissa's book, but it's going to go and it's going to go very, very fast. Let me pray for you. In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, Lord, I lift up all of our friends that Melissa and I pray together and agree together now for all those who are listening that are struggling. Lord, we lift them up to you and ask you, Lord, to reveal yourself in your word and reveal yourself in the great traditions that have been passed on to us and help them, Lord. give them that peace and that that foundation that will sustain such such experiences as they have experienced lord let them know that you will never leave them nor forsake them and that you

you have their best interest in mind we also go to our lady and ask for prayers for all of our friends who are struggling right now hail mary full of grace the lord is with thee blessed art thou amongst women and blessed is the fruit of thy woman Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death. Amen. Name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, amen. God bless you. Have a wonderful week.