Out of Ashes to a Life of Hope with Christina Meredith
Pardon the Mess with Scarlet Hiltibidal - Christian Motherhood, Biblical Parenting, Raising Christian Kids
Scarlet Hiltibidal and Christian Parenting
4.9 • 850 Ratings
🗓️ 10 July 2019
⏱️ 42 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
I first heard Christina tell portions of her story on the Today show several months ago. I was initially captivated by her unabashed sharing of the gospel on national television. But, even more than that, her hope in the Lord and her passion for foster care reform were visibly stirring during the interview that day. I knew we had to talk with her on Pardon the Mess.
Christina Meredith endured years of physical abuse at the hands of her mother before entering the foster care system as a teenager. After graduating from high school, Christina ended up homeless and living out of her car as she tried to make ends meet. Praying every day for the Lord to give her a new hope, she had no way of knowing that, within a few short years, she would be crowned Miss California.
Today, Christina is the author of her first book, CinderGirl, as well as the founder of a nonprofit organization that advocates for foster care children. She shares her difficult story with vulnerability while encouraging each of us to consider our part in helping the least of these around us.
Christina’s story will strengthen your faith as she reminds us that only the Lord can take our places of doubt, discouragement, and pain and turn it all for good. Practically speaking, it’s a great reminder that when we do the smallest things for those suffering around us it makes a big impact.
Spoiler alert: she has an amazing story near the end of the podcast about how Tim Tebow’s dad prayed daily with her in high school.
Don’t miss this one!
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| 0:00.0 | we're so glad that you've tuned in to pardon the mess we're parents just like you doing our |
| 0:09.9 | best to raise kids who will love and follow christ we hope you will join us and our guests each week |
| 0:15.0 | for honest conversations about the good bad and ugly of raising kids. There's no perfect parents, just a perfect God |
| 0:22.0 | who stands ready to pardon our mess and guide us on the most challenging yet rewarding journey, |
| 0:27.3 | parenting. Hey, this is Cynthia again. Welcome to Pardon the Mess. I'm glad you're with us today. |
| 0:33.6 | We are getting the chance to visit with Christina Meredith. |
| 0:39.0 | Christina is a college student. |
| 0:42.2 | She's a member of the U.S. military in the former Miss California. |
| 0:46.1 | All that being said, she has had anything but an easy life. |
| 0:53.5 | She grew up in a family with eight kids, and Meredith suffered from severe child abuse from her mother and then later her uncle. At 16, she entered the foster |
| 0:55.8 | care system and at 18, she was homeless. But she says her suffering did not cripple her. It embolded |
| 1:01.5 | her. The Lord just chiseled hope out of her. She talks about how she read her Bible every day and |
| 1:07.0 | the Lord gave her hope despite a seemingly hopeless situation. After Meredith was crowned, |
| 1:12.8 | Miss California, she vowed to change the world and she set out to reform foster care. You're going to |
| 1:17.8 | enjoy her story. It's a hard one, but it's also a story of God's redemptive grace even in the midst |
| 1:22.9 | of the unfathomable. This is a podcast of encouragement in the hard places and how the Lord forms |
| 1:27.4 | things in us during difficult times of encouragement in the hard places and how the Lord forms things in us |
| 1:28.1 | during difficult times of suffering and the ability to share hope in the hard places and to love |
| 1:33.4 | people well. And so listen to this today. You're going to love her. I heard her on the today show |
| 1:38.2 | speak and she just spoke of her love for the Lord and how he pulled her out of just a desperate situation. |
| 1:44.9 | And so I'm excited that we get to visit with her today. |
| 1:47.1 | So here we go. |
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