Outcomes in our lives are comprised of both decisions we make and things that happen to us. Some we can control and others we can’t, but what we do have a say in is how we respond to the events that take place. We can allow our experiences to pull us into darkness, or we can use them as a catalyst for good change—getting us closer to the lives God intended. 

Former Major League Baseball player Darryl Strawberry had a difficult childhood full of abuse and violence at the hands of his alcoholic father. Those difficulties left him unable to handle the stardom that would come his way once he entered the professional sports world, and he found himself down a path paved with sin. Darryl’s mother prayed fervently that God would knock him from his throne, and God saved Darryl when he couldn’t save himself. Now, Darryl has been called to spread the message of God’s forgiveness and redemption all over the country through Strawberry Ministries. 

Amy Downs was just an average girl who found herself in a tragic situation: she was a clerk at a bank that was destroyed in the Oklahoma City bombing, which claimed the lives of eighteen of her coworkers. Amy was one of the last survivors to be pulled from the rubble, and once she saw the sunlight, Amy told God that she wanted to live her life differently. That sparked a myriad of changes, including improvements to her health, her spiritual life, her education, and her career—and now Amy is the CEO of the very same bank where she was once a “math challenged” teller who saw no hope in her future. 

Links, Products, and Resources Mentioned:

Jesus Calling Podcast

Jesus Calling for Graduates

Jesus Calling

Past interview: Kurt Angle

Upcoming interview: Holly Hayes

Darryl Strawberry

Strawberry Ministries

MVP of the Texas League

Findingyourway.com

Turn Your Season Around

Amy Downs

Murrah Building

https://amydowns.org

Interview Quotes:

“I wore a baseball uniform for seventeen years and I identified myself as a baseball player. And it wasn't until I came to Christ that I was able to identify myself as a man.” - Darryl Strawberry

“Everybody was praising me for this great baseball player I was about to become. But I always say it was my pain that started to lead me to my greatness and my greatness would lead me to my destructive behavior.” - Darryl Strawberry

“God was doing for me what I couldn't do for myself because of my mother’s prayers to cover her children.” - Darryl Strawberry

“God made me understand that the forgiveness was not for [my father]. It was for me.” - Darryl Strawberry

“When God does His transformation, He does it for you, but He does it to get through to you so He can get somebody else to have the same revelation that you have had.” - Darryl Strawberry

“I remember looking up at the gray sky and just taking that first breath of fresh air and promising God I will never live my life the same.” - Amy Downs

“I thought, if I had an issue with drugs, I would go to rehab. I'm going to have to do what it takes for me to get free [from obesity] and just not worry about judgment from others. So I did.” - Amy Downs

“Having that experience of facing death at twenty-eight and just sort of realizing, like, I want to live my life with intention, and whether that's doing things purely for my own selfish enjoyment, like a triathlon, you know, or whether that is wanting to serve people in a very difficult role and position, like being CEO of an organization.” - Amy Downs

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