Have you ever found yourself moving through your days loving Jesus, yet longing to feel truly awake in your faith again? If your heart has been craving a deeper connection with Him—even if you can’t quite name the longing—you’re not alone. And this week’s conversation on The Love Offering Podcast may be just the gentle spark your soul has been needing.
I had the joy of talking with actress, producer, and singer Jen Lilley about her new devotional, Wake Up Your Faith: 365 Daily Encounters with Jesus. Jen’s heart for the Lord shines through every page as she invites us into a more vibrant, Christ-centered life—one anchored in Scripture and strengthened by daily surrender.
In our conversation, Jen shares how this devotional helps us:
- reignite our faith when life feels ordinary or heavy,
- claim the promises of God with confidence,
- experience the nearness of the Holy Spirit in everyday moments, and
- walk in the heavenly authority we’ve been given through Christ.
This is an encouraging reminder that we don’t have to drift, settle, or live spiritually weary. God invites us to reclaim the ground the Enemy has tried to steal and to walk boldly in the purpose He designed for us.
If you’re longing for a renewed rhythm with Jesus in the days ahead, I think Jen’s words—and her devotional—will bless you deeply.
Grateful to walk this journey of faith with you,
Rachael
Summary
In this powerful episode, Jen Lilley joins me to share the heart behind her new devotional, Wake Up Your Faith: 365 Daily Encounters with Jesus. With honesty, passion, and deep biblical insight, Jen shares her journey in Hollywood, the challenges of trusting God in a culture of striving, and the importance of living a faith that is awake, active, and rooted in love. Together, we talk about hearing God’s voice, resisting the pull of worldliness, overcoming church hurt, and embracing a life led by the Holy Spirit. Jen reminds us that faith is more than belief—it’s daily trust, surrendered obedience, and bold action. If you’re longing to reignite your faith or step into your God-given purpose with renewed courage, this conversation will meet you right where you are.
Takeaways
Jen Lilley emphasizes the importance of trusting God over worldly influences.
Faith is not just belief; it requires action and works.
The church must recognize the urgency of sharing the Gospel.
Conviction from the Holy Spirit leads to transformative action.
Love is the essence of God and should be reflected in our lives.
Quiet time with God is essential for spiritual growth.
The journey of faith can be challenging, but it is worth pursuing.
Every believer is called to evangelize and share their faith.
God’s love is unconditional and transformative.
Women have a unique role in prayer and spiritual influence.
Chapters
00:00 Introduction to the Love Offering Podcast
01:34 Meet Jen Lilley: Actress and Advocate
02:34 Jen’s Journey to Acting and Faith
06:35 The Role of Faith in Jen’s Life
13:07 Finding Quiet Time Amidst a Busy Life
20:38 The Pursuit of God’s Will
27:25 The Importance of Love and Truth
37:30 Faith in Action: The Role of Love
43:54 The Power of Women’s Prayer
48:18 A Call to Wake Up Our Faith
Transcript (AI Generated)
Rachael Adams (00:01.506)
Welcome to the Love Offering Podcast. I’m your host, Rachel Adams, author of Everyday Prayers for Love, Learning to love God, others, and even yourself. Each week, we dive into meaningful conversations about how to live out the greatest commandment, loving God with all of our heart, soul, mind, and strength, and loving our neighbors as ourselves. Whether through inspiring stories, practical tips, or biblical truths, I hope to encourage you to love boldly, live faithfully, and reflect God’s love in your everyday life.
Today, I’m excited to welcome Jen Lilly to the show. Jen is an award-winning actress, producer, singer, author, and advocate for vulnerable children. Many of you may know her from her Hallmark Channel and great American family films. Beyond her work on the screen, she’s passionate about pointing people to hope, encouraging families, and helping others walk boldly in their God-given purpose. In her new devotional, Wake Up Your Faith: 365 Daily Encounters with Jesus, Jen invites readers on a yearlong journey of spiritual renewal rooted in Scripture. Each day offers biblical wisdom and practical steps to help us reignite our faith.
Rachael Adams (01:26.744)
Well, hello, Jen, and welcome to the Love Offering Podcast. I’m so happy to have you.
Jen Lilley (01:37.774)
I’m so happy to be here, and I love your mission because it is all about love.
Rachael Adams (01:42.882)
No, it is. And I’m loving it if nobody can see you right now, but I’m loving your Christmas sweater. We’re right in the middle of December, and you’re in the spirit. You’re embodying it so well today.
Jen Lilley (01:55.064)
Thank you so much. I have at least 50 Christmas sweaters. I mean, there’s still a bin in my attic. It’s so funny because I don’t have clothes like that year-round. My closet is very bare, like a capsule wardrobe. But at Christmas, I have over 50. Like I have to order more hangers every year for my sweaters. I love an ugly Christmas sweater. I think they’re so fun.
Rachael Adams (02:14.734)
Well, yours is not ugly. And I think you’re like, so you’re almost going to have to like just wear two a day, you know, like just do a wardrobe change throughout the day, you know, from where Vince, yeah. Yes. Well, speaking of Christmas this time of year, I mean, I’m always a fan of the Hallmark channel, great American family always, but it seems like at Christmas time, even, even more so. so
Jen Lilley (02:16.255)
It’s not, it’s cute.
Jen Lilley (02:24.098)
Yeah, 100%.
Rachael Adams (02:37.688)
For those who don’t know you, which I think they probably do, they have seen your face on screens in many different places. I’d like to hear, as we start, how you became an actress and a producer. And I know it’s a long story, but I’d love to hear the beginning of all that.
Jen Lilley (02:53.848)
To make it super short, basically, I realized in college that I wanted to be an actor. I was always interested in storytelling. As a young kid, I wanted to have influence. I wanted to, and I don’t mean influence, like I’m not an influencer. I am literally anything, but I suppose I could be; my soul can’t do it. But I wanted to influence people and make enough money to have a kingdom impact. And so I thought about being an attorney because they have a lot of influence, you know, over people’s lives, and they make a lot of money. I thought about being a teacher. They don’t make much money, but they certainly have an impact. And then I found acting. I auditioned for an open call for a film titled The Loss of Life, which was later destroyed. And I ended up booking the female lead opposite.
Alexis Ohanian, who created Reddit, by the way, at the University of Virginia. But it was so funny. I got on set, and I realized I’m not afraid of the camera. I love art and storytelling. And I felt like everyone working on the film seemed very well-rounded and down-to-earth. In my experience, growing up in a small town in Virginia, people who did theater were truly amazing and talented. Still, they were overly dramatic in their approach to life, which I could not relate to. So I prayed about it, and I really felt the Holy Spirit say, I want you to be an actress. So I prayed about it for years. I started taking acting classes outside of the University of Virginia because my parents were horrified that I got into UVA and then wanted to throw my life away. Moved to LA.
They’re like, you’d better get a degree as a backup plan. So I did. Then I developed an eight-year business plan and moved to LA. I was already married. I married at 22 and have remained married to the same person. He’s awesome. But while I was making the movie, I called my now-husband; we were dating at the time. We were good friends. And I said, Hey, I really feel the Holy Spirit’s calling me to acting. I plan to move to Los Angeles after I graduate.
Jen Lilley (05:07.342)
And he’s from West Virginia. He’s from a small town in West Virginia, and he’s not into this life at all. You know, so normal, like so, so normal. And so I said, if that’s not something that you think you could ever do, then we should probably break up now while we can, you know, keep our friendships intact. And he was like, well, if the Holy Spirit told you to do it, then we’ll cross that bridge when we get there. I moved to LA and developed an eight-year plan. Worked really hard. I studied the business side of acting because many excellent actors don’t work. Many just-OK actors work a lot. I learned that for about eight years, and things started happening. I was blessed when the door opened early, and I also co-labored with the Lord by working very hard.
Rachael Adams (06:00.108)
Yeah. I appreciate how honest you are about it: it wasn’t immediate, it took a lot of hard work, and it required a big leap of faith. I imagine how scary that must’ve been: I’m living in Kentucky, but to uproot your life, chase this dream, and obey what you felt the Lord was calling you to do. That seemed like a big, lofty dream, and not to give up and persevere through it. That’s truly inspiring. I think, at my age, and as I raise my kids, I should let them pursue whatever the Lord is calling them to do. Yeah.
Jen Lilley (06:26.232)
Thank you. Yeah, I mean, it was awesome. It was hard. We had no money. Like we, I had a whole YouTube episode that I started before the pandemic, and then my husband and I shut it down, but we used to have this series for like eight episodes. And then we were like, pandemic, great. Called coffee chats with Jen and Jay. That’s my husband. And yeah, we ate rice for seven months. Rice and eggs were all we ate for seven months. We were so poor. So yeah, I’ve loved it.
Rachael Adams (07:01.132)
Yeah. But you would do it all over again. Yes. Yeah. I love so much of that. I also appreciate that you spoke about your faith throughout that journey and the Holy Spirit’s leading. Please share with us the beginning of your faith. Cause it sounds like you are really rooted, even a college-age young woman.
Jen Lilley (07:03.33)
Totally, 100%.
Jen Lilley (07:20.908)
Yes, I’ll back up. I’ll start at the end of college age and then go back up. In college, I did love the Holy Spirit. I loved Jesus. I’ve always loved Jesus, but I was in a very rough place in my faith. I wasn’t having a crisis of faith in Jesus. I was having a crisis of faith in the church. I credit churches in Los Angeles for healing my heart through love.
Because I grew up in the Bible Belt, which is fantastic, but there can be just in general in the church, and I love the church. I want to preface this by noting that when I say “the church,” I mean the entire body of Christ. I think most Christians are really Christians if they have evidence of love in their lives. That’s not John Lilly. That’s the scripture. That’s the name of your podcast. I mean, it’s just true. There’s just a byproduct of following Jesus, because he is love.
But church hurt is real, and in the South, it can be especially pronounced because church can be more of a gossipy social club where gossip happens out of concern and air quotes. We’re still seeing that on social media. So just be careful, guys. Be careful not to let your hearts get a root of bitterness. John Bevere wrote an excellent book titled The Beat of Satan, which remains highly relevant. I highly recommend it. My journey of faith began when I was nine years old. I had been raised till I was nine as A Catholic, which is also Christian. But for me, you know, I’m only nine. Like I hadn’t committed to Jesus myself yet. I believe I believed in God, but I also don’t know if I did. I have a distinct memory of being seven years old, riding my bike, just saying to the Lord, like, I don’t know if I believe in you at seven. And I heard him in my spirit say, That’s okay. You know, like God’s so confident. He’s like, it’s fine.
And when I was nine, my parents, for various reasons, visited an Episcopalian church, which is like, you know, the Protestant cousin of Catholicism. And it was a very lively church. It was pretty charismatic. It was called Church of the Holy Spirit. It still exists. It’s in Roanoke, Virginia. You know, I think it’s a great church. I don’t know if I walked into it today at 41, but I would think it’s as lively as ever. But man, as a nine-year-old, I remember being like, there’s instruments during worship. I’m sure there was clapping on beat, you know, or off beat, I don’t know. And I thought it was wild. Then we went to Sunday school, and they covered a simple lesson. It was about Elijah and the widow, a remarkable story, but it’s not Elijah’s most impressive. If you are not familiar with the story of Elijah, it appears in First and Second Kings. My gosh, 10 out of 10 recommend it. There’s a story: Elijah and the widow. She only has enough flour and enough oil to make one last cake for her and her son to die because there’s been a famine in the land that Elijah actually called down with the Lord. And Elijah comes to her first. The Lord warns this woman: “Hey, there’s a man who’s gonna come.” Now it doesn’t say that he warns her before he comes, but it is in the scripture. It says that God had already prepared her heart. She knew Elijah was gonna come. He said, “Make me a cake first.” Seems so selfish. Can’t really wrap my head around it.
She does; she’s obedient, and there’s just enough flour and just enough oil every single day to keep them from starving. It’s a whole cool story, but it’s really not the most impressive miracle that’s ever happened. But as a nine-year-old, I remember studying religion in school as a good Catholic girl, knowing Jesus and his 12 disciples. And then, of course, I knew the story of Moses. I was very puzzled by the fact that Elijah appears in 1st and 2nd Kings, who did not have the Holy Spirit yet, because the Holy Spirit wasn’t given until Acts as an indwelling Holy Spirit. And he’s not Moses, and he’s in the Old Testament. And Elijah is doing miracles. So I was like, what else does this book say? So I read, I bust out my old, you know, first communion Bible. I had probably received it six months ago; I definitely hadn’t opened it.
I began reading the story of Elijah. Elijah is a wild story. I mean, he calls down fire from heaven. He outruns horses, I mean, this man was wild. Then he has his successor, Elisha, who receives the double portion of the anointing. So I’m reading through these stories, and I’m like, this is the craziest, most exciting thing I’ve ever read as a nine-year-old. And so I remember being like, my gosh, what else does this book say? So I read it from the summer of, I’m a summer baby, so I turned 10on August 4th. From the summer of 9 into 10, during my third-grade to fourth-grade summer, I read my whole Bible cover to cover with our yellow Crayola crayon as my highlighter and bookmark. And I have always taken the Bible at face value. I mean, if God says it, he can do it. And that’s what the word testimony means. It means he’ll do it again, which is pretty amazing. So I’ve been on fire since I was nine. My nickname was Jen for Jesus growing up. I mean, I’ve always been
Jen Lilley (12:18.06)
I’ve always had an evangelist heart. And I had that even when I walked away from the church. But I did walk away from the church for about six years. We went through extensive church healing in LA. I remember being in the back of this one church one time. And it was kind of a, for me, tame church. I’m very charismatic. If anybody follows me, they know that. Like, it’s not a secret. However, I was in this church and was crying in the back. Someone approached me and asked, “Are you okay?” Like, do you need prayer? And I said, No, I’m just crying because from the back it was like, wow, you guys really love each other, and you don’t want anything from each other. And that’s really what the body of Christ should be. There should be no selfish ambition. There should be no rivalry, gossip, or backbiting. Mean, you know, I was praying for somebody, I won’t name them. I was praying for a prominent person this morning because I feel they are going very far off course, and they’re a well-known Christian. And instead of posting about it, like, what’s this person saying? You know, what’s the comment like on social media? I don’t need to cause a root of bitterness. I need to get on my knees and pray for this person and intercede, as the Holy Spirit would. I know you love this person. I know this person loves you. Would you please, in your mercy, get this person back on the narrow path, get this person’s eyes back on you, because I don’t know what is going on, but some people follow him, and my heart is for this person, and my heart is for the people who listen to this person. So I went through a lot of healing in LA, and I’m super grateful for it, and here I am.
Rachael Adams (13:54.048)
And obviously on fire for the Lord. Would you call yourself Jen for Jesus? Is that what it was? I love that so much.
I look forward to continuing our conversation, but we’ll take a brief break to hear from today’s sponsor. And when we come back, we’re going to talk more about Jen’s book, Wake Up Your Faith.
Welcome back. I’m talking with Jen Lilly about her new devotional, Wake Up Your Faith: 365 Daily Encounters with Jesus. And so you’re busy.
Rachael Adams (14:45.336)
Clearly, you’ve got a lot on your plate. You’re a mom, a wife, an advocate, an actress, and now an author. Like you are doing a lot of things. I know you’ve got one of your children’s Christmas plays later today. Like you have a lot to do, so please speak to us. I mean, with as much truth as you’re willing to, how do you fit in?
Rachael Adams (15:05.794)
How do you fit your quiet time into your schedule? Even mentioned that we both had a quiet time this morning, but you had just gotten in from a speaking engagement. You’re exhausted, but you still found time to fit it in because it was important to you. I know all of our listeners are very busy as well. And so sometimes I feel like the quiet time, cause the Lord will forgive us, know, his mercies are new every morning, but it’s still, it’s God’s word is so transformative. And I love that your devotional is 365 days because we need our manna. We need it every single day. Please share your quiet time and how you have an encounter with the Lord each day.
Jen Lilley (15:41.55)
Absolutely, and I’ll be as truthful and transparent as possible. I hope I don’t offend anyone, as I’m speaking to myself first. One of my favorite things I have ever heard was from my pastor, Jake Sweetman, in Los Angeles. It’s so funny because he said this in passing. He’s like, Jen, I don’t even remember saying that. And it is in the Bible. It’s Romans 14:23, but Jake said he worded it this way. I love it. The best definition I can offer for sin is trusting in anything more than you trust in God.
And I think about that every single day because I am a workaholic. I can work really hard. I’m built to work hard. That’s my personality. I love and hate aspects of myself. It’s my biggest strength and greatest weakness because I love to hustle. I love to make things happen. And for the last several years, the Lord has actually had me in a great season of waiting on Him, which I’m not good at.
And it all comes down to trust. I have been carving out time, sometimes as much as two hours, and that’s not to make myself holy at all. It’s just that when I start connecting with the Lord, I don’t want to stop. I understand Enoch. I understand wanting to retreat from the world and spend time with God all day, because you can get so caught up in your words and still not even know Him. I don’t know.
God is so deep that it’s like, I feel like you’re just grazing the surface, but that’s not to say that I don’t have a ton of stuff to do. I have like 10 different email addresses. I don’t have an assistant. This morning I was praying about it. I was literally right before this podcast. I’m washing my armpits because I’m already sweating from the interview. I’m putting on deodorant. I’m brushing my teeth and applying deodorant simultaneously. Cause you know, we’re multitasking moms and
Jen Lilley (17:42.294)
I was literally saying, like, as I’m brushing my teeth out, Lord, would you help me trust you? Lord, would you help me trust you? God, I thank you that you can open the doors that I can’t open in my hustling. I have to trust that, like, I have an acting reel that’s very outdated. I keep wanting to edit it. I have a girl who can edit it for me. I don’t have time to send her the timestamps. You think it will take only 15 minutes, but I don’t have that time. So how am I carving out an hour or two of my morning with the Lord? And it’s because I don’t wanna trust anything more than the Lord. I have to, at some point, the rubber has to meet the road every single morning. Every single morning, I’m like, Lord, I wanna spend time with you. I know you know my heart, but then I’m like, Jen, God is the one who has to breathe on your projects. You can have your best acting reel. You can have the best headshots. You can have the best relationships. If they don’t think of you and then God doesn’t breathe on your performance, and they don’t watch your audition tape, by the way, you’re never going to get it. Like all my hustling and striving, it doesn’t help if God doesn’t open the door. And I say this in my devotional somewhere because Broad Street did like a quote, and I was like, that’s a good quote, you know? So I’ll repeat it. But it’s like, God can do more in a moment than our 10 years of striving. And so I was literally, even this morning, I mean, I want to be so transparent with you guys. Sin is trusting in anything more than you trust in God.
Jen Lilley (19:12.076)
Romans 14:23 says, Anything that does not proceed from trust is sin. And when I heard that, it really opened up my eyes to everything else in life because we’re human. You know, Jesus said, Who can add an hour to their life or even a moment? He says a minute. Who can add a minute to their life by worrying? And yet we worry. And it’s a tough line for me, as a mom-to-be, to walk: I’m concerned, and I’m not concerned. Am I going into a bad neighborhood and I’m trusting that the Lord is with me, or am I using wisdom? I don’t know the whole balance dance between wisdom and trusting the Lord. That is something that I struggle with. I’m not sure whether to call it “wisdom” or “trust”. But at the end of the day, at the beginning of the day, if you’re gonna do mourning, you do have to make daily decisions. What am I trusting right now? And so I am constantly in prayer, like, God, I trust you. I trust that you’re my provider. Hallmark’s not my provider. Great American’s not my provider. Netflix is not my provider. My book is not my provider. My website’s not my provider. Like, you are my provider. And do I really believe that you are who you say you are? Lord, if it came to it, you would give me manna. You would cause water to flow from a rock because you’re still the same God. Do I trust that? So, I mean, it’s a constant juggle, but I try every day to focus on the Lord because I’m just in this particular season, I don’t necessarily wanna get out of where I’m like, Lord, there’s a lot of good things that aren’t you, and they’re not bad, they’re good. The fruit that Eve ate was good, but God said not to eat it. Like you can do good and not be in God’s will, which is crazy. And I don’t want God’s permissive will, that’s what the Bible calls it. God can redeem all things, and he does. It’s, think for, I think for God, I could be wrong. This is a general opinion. So this is not scriptural. This is not something the Holy Spirit has directly been like, saith the Lord. But I actually think that the Lord kind of delights in a mind game, even though it’s so easy for him.
Jen Lilley (21:26.21)
Like I love redeeming things. I love making order out of chaos. I think for the Lord, it’s like one of those brain games where you’re like sorting the water, you know, or it’s like, he’s like, I got this. It’s fun for me. I love making order out of chaos. The Lord loves to redeem. It’s in his business. It’s in his DNA, if he has DNA, you know, but at the same time, there is a permissive will, and there’s a perfect will.
And like, don’t know the whole picture. As the Bible says, you prophesy in part; don’t. I want to be in God’s perfect world. And I don’t want to stop striving because I love striving. You know, I want to be like, I want a million people in heaven because I said something, but it doesn’t really matter. Like, the only thing that matters is sitting at Jesus’s feet.
Rachael Adams (22:15.586)
Yeah. As you were talking, I kept thinking about this: as we’re in God’s word, as we know his truth, and as we’re trying to trust him in his sovereignty and in his plan and his will for us, the enemy wants to do the exact opposite. He wants to steal, kill, and destroy. And I’m just thinking all of us, no matter where we are, living culture, I’m just thinking about you in LA, and maybe this is an assumption on my part, but I imagine that it’s very tempting to live like the world as an LA actress. But it’s also here in Kentucky; it’s very tempting to live as if the world were everywhere, no matter where we live. Satan wants to tempt us to go away from what God would have us do. Please talk to us about that as well. Um, to follow God’s will even though the enemy is tempting us to do what the world would have us do.
Jen Lilley (23:14.826)
That’s a very interesting point you bring up. I was driving last night, and whenever I’m driving alone, I love that you asked this question. I was driving alone, and I love it because as a mom, you’re like, wow, this is amazing. It’s so quiet. I was praying and worshiping. Love worship music, love worship music so much, like all I listen to. And I was thinking about, you know, it’s, it’s interesting because you can, I don’t know whether
Jen Lilley (24:02.06)
I don’t want to blame everything on the devil because there’s God, there’s us, and there’s the devil. And the devil doesn’t always implant thoughts, but he can. And that’s why one of the books of the New Testament says, Take every thought captive, make it submit to the will of God. I’m not sure where this thought came from. I’m going to assume that it was my flesh. But I had this thought: Jen, you’re not doing enough. You know, like I’m bad at social media. Like I try to be, but I hate it.
Like, I know I’m showered, but it feels vapid and yucky to me, and I look at People I’m friends with. They’re genuine people, but they’re so good at social media, you know, they’re so good at being like here’s me and all my glam and all dressed up like, know, really documenting what they’re doing and letting people know. It makes them look so important, and it’s kind of keeping up with the Joneses, and there is an element of that, especially when you’re starting out as an actor, that’s like smoke and mirrors and like my face is falling, and that’s fine. Like I want to age naturally. I want to be Betty White. I want to eventually, I want to get old enough that like people are still hiring me and I don’t look weird, but you know, so he’s like, what is going on with her face? There are so many actors that I can’t watch you anymore. I’m not sure what’s happening. This is uncomfortable. This is not like this; I don’t know what you look like. You don’t look like a person right now.
I don’t wanna be that. At the same time, there is all this pressure to be like, “ugh, know, like, die my devotion, like it’s so amazing.” And I’m like, ugh, like I don’t like to keep up with the Joneses. And so I wrestled with it, like Lord, should I be doing more? Like, should I be doing that? Should I play Esther? Like Esther dressed up, she paraded around. Do you want me to do that, Lord? This is so hard for me. There is significant pressure to do that. And at the same time, I’m like, it just doesn’t matter. It just doesn’t matter. It’s like, Lord, that’s so stupid. I want to love people. I prayed to him last night. I was like, Lord, I just started thinking about how much I love people. And that’s why I think the gospel is so important. And I was doing an interview yesterday, and this guy said he talked to an evangelist, which, you know, an evangelist is somebody that’s supposed to lead people to Jesus.
Jen Lilley (26:22.466)
He’s also an interviewer. He said he had an evangelist on, and the evangelist said, “No, I don’t talk about hell anymore because I don’t want to offend people.” And I was like, that’s not good. That’s not good. Like, it’s not love if you don’t like it. There was a secular video circulating. So this is like non-Christians, and they were making fun of Christians in such an appropriate way. Said, If Christians really believed what was going on, then this is what they would be acting like, like popping up to somebody on the subway being like, Do you know Jesus? Do you know Jesus? Because if we really believe that people are going to hell if they don’t have Jesus, and it’s not because they’re so bad, it’s like all of us know, Jesus is, none of us are getting in because we’ve led other people to Jesus. None of us is getting in because we’ve healed the sick or done wondrous signs. I mean, this is Matthew 7, 21 through 23. Many will come to me that day, and they’ll give me my resume.
Lord, did we not do this in your name? Do we not cast out demons in your name? Heal the sick, do many signs and wonders. And he’ll say to them, Depart from me, workers of lawlessness. I never knew you. It’s like there are people in the church right now who are on their way to hell because they have missed the mark, and they have taken on the deception of the enemy and become self-righteous. It’s very easy.
It’s easy to slip into self-righteousness, thinking we’re better than others, but we’re not. We’re just covered in the blood of Jesus. We’ve just accepted that Jesus’ blood is what we need. And I was like, God, I love people so much. I want all of them to know that I wish for these people in heaven because of me. And I felt like the Holy Spirit, who loves that, of course, because he loves people, but he said to me, Yeah, but don’t you think I’m the most important thing?
Don’t you think I’m even more critical than these people? And he didn’t mean that in the sense of “don’t tell them.” Cause he wants every single person. Like we’re lost sons and daughters. Like if you don’t know Jesus, it’s like they don’t know they’re, they don’t know they’re lost and they’re not lost. Things that are lost have value. They’re treasures. They’re not trash. They’re lost sons and daughters. They’re dead in their spirit, and they don’t know that the Lord loves them.
Jen Lilley (28:33.986)
Of course, that matters to God. God knew that before the foundations of the world, Jesus was gonna have to be slain. Jesus endured. We don’t even understand what Jesus endured. We don’t even understand it. Like the passion, that movie, I try to watch it, and I’m like gagging. I try to watch it once a year to say, “Thank you, Jesus,” but I can barely watch it. And it’s like, that’s glamorous compared to what he really went through. We don’t understand the depths of God’s love, and yet, truly, the most important thing is to stop being a Mary, stop being a Martha who was worried about all the busyness, and be a Mary. Like God ultimately wants us to sit at his feet and know him. It’s crazy.
Rachael Adams (29:20.59)
I’m glad you’re bringing this idea up, because there is a lost and dying world that needs to know about Jesus. I feel your book is timely and relevant to today’s culture. I sense that, at least over the past year, due to current events and other factors, people’s faith is awakening. I believe your book will be like a domino effect, continuing the ripple effect of empowering people. Do you get that sense that this is just like, this is coming out at the exact perfect time for, I mean, there’s a movement happening.
Jen Lilley (30:01.292)
There’s been a movement since Charlie Kirk’s death. I didn’t post about it. Some people were offended. Didn’t post about it. But I’m like, look, I don’t know him. I don’t know everything he said. I know he’s a brother in Christ. I don’t have a clear view of him, one way or the other, because I don’t know enough. But I think he’s probably pretty great, because he loved Jesus. It seems that’s what he was all about. I don’t need to know anything else. I don’t want to get on the gossip train. I don’t want to get into these conspiracy theories I’ve heard about. I’m like, whatever.
But afterward, I remember being in my driveway a couple of days later, and I started thinking about my book, which is bright pink. I did not; it’s fine, but I did not choose the bright pink, as the publisher did. Cause they were like, it has to be girly, and it has to have bling. And I was like, okay, these are two things that make me want to throw up a little bit that you just said that, you know, like I want it to be neutral. I want it to be friendly and calming, but it’s such an appropriate color. But I was like, I don’t want this to be only for women. And I was like, Lord, what am I going to do with this bright pink book? And he was like, College, you’re going to go to college, and high school students. You’re going to start like a revival. So I’m working on that with the Holy Spirit. But I remember just sobbing in my driveway because I was like, I didn’t pick the timing of this book release, Lord. You did. And now it comes at the perfect time, when people want to wake up.
I mean, it was number one in spiritual self-help against like new age crap. I’ll say absolute trash garbage. You know, people who are seeking truth, not the people who practice new age, they’re not garbage, but they’re so lost, and they’re seeking truth. And they need to know that there’s only one real power. Real love is in Jesus. And I want them to wake up, and I like the church to wake up because, Man, if an evangelist is saying we shouldn’t talk about hell because it’ll offend people, like, I will tell you, God will shake down the church bare. He will lay us out bare because people matter to him. And you cannot, you cannot, we cannot nullify the word of God. We cannot change it. It does not matter what our feelings are on it. I had a girlfriend. I love her so very much. She’s one of my favorite people in the world. And we were in a set one time, we were in the makeup room. And when I tell you every head turns, because there are all these mirrors, she goes, You’re not one of those Christians who believe the whole Bible, are you? And I said, yeah, I am. And she goes, No, you’re smarter than that. And I was like, and so I said to this person, like, know, person’s name, I am one of those Christians. She goes, No, honey. She goes, so you’re telling me that you think I’m going to hell because I’m ga, and the whole makeup room stopped. And I prayed in my spirit, like, Lord, you better give me an answer. Cause I don’t, you said, you promised me Lord, you promised me in your word that you would give me an answer for this right now. And I love this person. I love this person. I would die for this person. I would truly die for this friend. I love her. And I spit out perfect timing with the Holy Spirit. I said the person’s name. I’ll call her Sally. Sally.
Jen Lilley (33:19.584)
I don’t believe you’re going to hell because you’re gay. I believe you’re going to hell because you have not accepted Jesus as your Lord and Savior. You know that this is the basis of what all Christians believe: without Jesus, there is no other way. If you would like to speak with me privately in my dressing room, I’m available. If I have ever made you feel unloved, judged, or unworthy, that’s a conversation we need to have. And I would like for you to address that with me. But I love you. But no, I don’t believe you’re going to hell because you’re gay. You have not accepted Jesus. That is between you and Jesus, as you need to address it. The world needs to know. It’s not that we are special; we are special to Jesus. It’s the paradox of the Bible that continually astounds me.
Like, who is man, Lord, that you would be mindful of him that you knew before the foundations of the world that Jesus was gonna have to die the most excruciating death, so excruciating you could not decipher whether he was male or female. He no longer looked human. You knew you were gonna have to do that. And you still decided to create us because you longed so much for famil,y because that’s what we are. Like we’re higher than the angels in God’s heart. That is so crazy to me. We are special, but we’re not special. Like, I don’t know, it’s a paradox.
Rachael Adams (34:41.838)
Yes, the paradox. Well, we’re going to talk about more paradoxes, but we’re going to take another brief break to hear a word from today’s sponsor. When we return, we will discuss how faith without works is dead.
Rachael Adams (34:56.256)
Welcome back. I’m talking with Jen Lilly about her book, Wake Up Your Faith 365 Daily Encounters with Jesus. And you know, I think when we talk about living, living out our faith, one of my favorite books is James. Okay. Well good. So is it?
Jen Lilley (35:11.276)
This is why I titled the book Girl. This is the exact reason. Yes.
Rachael Adams (35:15.914)
Okay, okay, well, so talk to us about that because I think that. I want to be very clear when we say we are saved by faith alone, because of what God has already done through Jesus on the cross, which is what you just discussed. Still, our faith is based on our love for Jesus, and out of the overflow of that, there has to be fruit; there has to be evidence of what we believe, and so talk to us about that. Like, you even have action steps. Even in like every single day, like something we’ve got to put our faith into action, right?
Jen Lilley (35:47.436)
That is literally like you just answered my own, your own question for me, because that’s what I say on every podcast. I’m like, let me be clear. We are not saved by faith. I mean, by works, we’re saved by faith alone. Faith in Hebrew, Hebrew translated back into English. Call it faith, but it actually just means trust, which is a more digestible word for me. But it is precisely what you just said. You cannot encounter love itself because God is love. And I don’t mean that in some ethereal, wishy-washy way; I mean, literally, God is love.
His image is love and light. He is love; you cannot encounter him without going out to love others. Because if you have been translated from the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of light, you are a new creation. You now bear his image. I don’t think that bearing his image, I don’t think that the Lord God Almighty, the father, I think Jesus looks like us now because he came down in human form. And so people say that when they have near-death experiences, which is super interesting, that Jesus looks like a man, right? He’s called the Son of Man. He took on that form. I think when God says, I created you in my image, he actually means to bear love and to bear light. Very interesting. And then when they sinned, that was removed from them. But when you become a Christian, you are a new creation. You now bear the image of love and light.
You do not have to strive to produce the fruit of the Holy Spirit, which is love, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness, and self-control. All of these things, against such there is no law. This is Galatians. Now, a tree, like an apple tree, is not praying to God every moment. Lord, please let me bear apples. Please let me bear apples. Please, would you let me bear apples? Like it will bear apples. It’s an apple tree. That’s what it’s meant to do: as Christians, as followers of love and light and Jesus, we will naturally bear fruit of the Holy Spirit. If we do not, James is so bold, also my favorite book, James is so bold that he’s like, if you don’t have actions, I don’t believe you have faith. You don’t, you don’t, you say you do, it’s lip service. He then notes that Abraham, when he was about to sacrifice Isaac, trusted so much in the Lord that he believed God would even raise him from the dead, as discussed in Hebrews 11. There’s a whole bridge there, guys. Abraham’s actions were credited to him as righteousness because of his faith. Faith is always an action item. Yes, in my devotional, I have action items because when I was asked to write one, I said, “No thanks.” And then I decided to do it, you know, after a lot of prayer and fasting. Cause the Lord was like, wake them up, wake up my church, get her ready, get her ready, Jen. Like God, there are going to be so many people who say to Jesus, Didn’t we do all these great things in your name? And he’s going to say, Depart from me, you workers of lawlessness. Like these are believers. These are believers who worked in miracles. They have some degree of faith, but they didn’t know him.
Jen Lilley (39:00.206)
We have to wake up our faith, but I mean, you know, I’m just opening to a random page. So I was like, I’ll do action items. Consider how you can use your gifts or talents to serve others today. So it’s like action items: put what you just read into action, because if we did that, love covers a multitude of sins. People would actually think that the church is pretty sexy if, if, you know, we actually loved people like we said we would. And that’s why I said to my girlfriend, Sally, if I’ve ever made you feel unloved, you come and lay me out there. Like, tear me apart privately because I want to repent, and I want you to know I love you. But I love you enough to tell you that, like the truth, you need Jesus because I need Jesus. Everybody needs Jesus, and I love you enough to tell you that.
Rachael Adams (39:49.91)
Yes, I want to get out my Bible with you right now. I’m thinking about Hebrews 11, and my memory isn’t as good as yours, but it’s like: by faith Abraham went, by faith Noah built, and by faith all these people went back to these action items. And then I’m also thinking about in Revelation how the Lord almost scolds the churches and says, He does. He doesn’t almost go. Don’t beat around the bush. He lays them out bare.
Rachael Adams (40:16.945)
He does. He does. Yes. It’s like knowing your work. I know your deeds, but you have forsaken your first love. We do have to be mindful. Yes. Yes. If we know and love Jesus, our salvation is secure, but we still have work to do and very important work, not just for ourselves, but so that other people can come to know and love him too. This is serious, and it will impact generations for eternity. And so I think like this work, and what we’re talking about, it’s like the magnitude of it. Sometimes we forget that and take it for granted. Do you think?
Jen Lilley (40:43.744)
It’s serious.
Jen Lilley (40:58.606)
Absolutely. Mean, I was praying this morning, like sweating, even thinking about it. Thank God for deodorant, but I was like, Lord, are you gonna make me a preacher, because I’ll do anything you ask, Lord, just never let it be about Jen, like it’s not about Jen. I was researching Katherine Coleman. I read that she sometimes left the stage when people made it about her because it grieved her, but I hope I don’t have to preach. I will, but I’m like, what are you talking about? An evangelist will not tell people. Jesus spoke about hell more than anything else.
There’s this amazing guy named Mario Morillo. I need to say this. I need to say two more things to encourage us. I know we’re over time, but listen, make it a two-part episode. Mario Morillo has been an outstanding evangelist out of California for decades. He’s the real deal, man. He’s awesome. He said the Holy Spirit put it on his heart recently to resume discussing hell. And he said, Okay, Lord, what’s the scariest verse about hell? Where do you want me to start? It’s gonna make me cry, and the Lord said, the scariest verse about hell is John 3:16.
Jen Lilley (42:12.078)
This hell is so awful that I had to send myself to save people from it because they’re not meant to go there. I said, “That’s not good.” Like, what are you talking about? We’re not telling people because we don’t want to offend them.
Jen Lilley (42:28.046)
It’s like, so then it becomes about you? Like, truly, we put on self-righteousness, that is a lie from the enemy, that we wouldn’t tell someone. It’s a heart posture. I mean, that’s what your podcast is about. Like faith works through love. Faith works through compassion. You can stand on the corner and tell someone they’re going to hell, and you will do more damage than good because there’s no love in your heart. There is a spirit behind the words of what we say, but when you really love someone, and you say to them, like, it’s not all about hell.
Salvation’s not about getting out of hell for free; Jesus came to give us life and life to the full, like here and now, as heaven and eternity start now at salvation. We were spiritually dead, and now we are born of the spirit for the very first time. And like we are living short. You refer to Elijah as if he had the Holy Spirit in the Old Testament. Like, what are we doing as a church? Like we should be seeing miracles all the time because the Holy Spirit is now indwelling in us. Like, what are we doing? Do we not love people? Like, I don’t, I mean, I think it’s like probably like a 90s skit, you know, we did in church, like skip dramas, but it’s truly like, it is terrifying to me. I’ve lost a couple of people, and I’ve told them, as they’ve died, and I’ve wept bitterly over it because it’s like, I told them about Jesus, but I didn’t fight for them hard enough. I don’t want to offend anyone; it’s not me offending them. It’s their flesh being offended by the truth. Suppose you speak the truth in love. You’re doing the right thing, like it’s not about us.
Rachael Adams (44:23.724)
And just in mindfulness, I want to be honest with everyone listening: just because I have a podcast and I write and speak about love and faith doesn’t mean my faith in my walk with the Lord doesn’t sometimes become stagnant. I want the same passion and zeal. But it doesn’t, it isn’t always that way. I have been encouraged by today’s episodes, such as Wake Up, Rachel, Wake Up Your Faith. There is good work for you to do. There’s more to do. And so for the woman that’s just thinking like, I’m in kind of a stagnant place with the Lord, and I want this passion and zeal again. How would you encourage her today?
Jen Lilley (45:03.976)
I would say, sister, the Lord put that on your heart, not you, because it says that God loved us first. And he’s always, it’s always the Holy Spirit when we feel convicted. Because conviction is different than guilt. Conviction is different than condemnation. Conviction produces fruit. Conviction produces action. Conviction leads to something redemptive. If you feel that hunger and that passion, that’s the Holy Spirit inviting you into all that he is because he does have more for you. And he has more for all of us. I think a lot about whether we pray correctly. We pray so many times. Lord, give us more of you. And he’s like, that’s stupid. I can’t. I gave you all of me. I gave you all of Jesus. It is finished. It’s completed. I gave you my Holy Spirit. What I need is more of you. He needs more of us, not the other way around.
It’s like what areas in our life, and this is something I think about a lot, like God, what do you need from me? What else do you need from me, Lord? Would you please let me know so I don’t have to go through the trial and learn the hard way? Would you not have to like shake me down? I’m asking you right now, like, what else do you want from me? But be encouraged. Also, the last thing I want to say to all women, sorry guys, but I heard this recently, and I have not been able to disprove it, and I trust the source. There’s this preacher that I listen to sometimes.
And he said, “You know what’s interesting in Hebrews 11 and throughout the Bible?” Every single, I think it’s every single man in Hebrews 11, which is like called the hall of faith. It’s a faith chapter—every single man. I’m not sure if this is true. No one in Hebrews 11 saw the promise of God in their lifetime. But he said, there’s not a woman in the Bible who did not pray and see the promise of God fulfilled in her lifetime. Isn’t that the most encouraging thing? Doesn’t that make you want to end, full stop, right now, and pray?
Rachael Adams (47:07.978)
Yes, and it makes me want to open my Bible and verify that. Yeah. Wow.
Jen Lilley (47:11.662)
Yeah, yeah, yeah. I have not found that to be untrue. And I was like, ooh, like the Lord loves a woman’s prayer. It’s cool.
Rachael Adams (47:20.59)
So cool. Okay, this is the question I’ve been asking all my guests this season, and you’ve done a great job talking about love. So thank you, kudos to you, even more like hearts on your sweater. So well done already. So, tell us, is there a biblical concept of love beyond what you’ve already shared that you think applies to this topic today?
Jen Lilley (47:42.414)
I think that God is love. I mean, that’s what I’ll say. Like he is in love, it’s exactly what you said, Rachel. And I said, because it’s what the Bible says, if we know love, period. Like if we know love, we will love. If we are not loving, we need to speak with the Holy Spirit because we are operating in our flesh. Maybe you need to go fast. Jesus said, Take up your cross daily. And he said it every day because he knew we’re so bad at staying on the straight and narrow. He’s like,
Jen Lilley (48:11.246)
Maybe you need to do this every day. Maybe you need to make the decision multiple times. Maybe you need to do this as a daily exercise. I’m like, well, OK, right.
Rachael Adams (48:18.124)
Yeah, yeah. And people will know that we are his disciples by our love. So there goes the evidence again. Yes, yes.
Jen Lilley (48:25.098)
And give yourself grace, guys. I want to add that as well, because I’m a mom of four children. And sometimes I yell at my kids, guys, and it makes me feel awful. I’m wondering why I lost my cool. I can be kind to anybody else, strangers. I am the nicest person, and I mean it with every bit of my heart. My own children, sometimes I’m like, who is raising you? You’re crazy.
Rachael Adams (48:49.42)
I’ve shared this with listeners before, but my daughter said, “Mom, for you to be the host of the love offering podcast, you’re not acting very loving right now.” Like this, we don’t do this perfectly. And I’m so glad you brought up the grace. Yes. Yes. Yes.
Jen Lilley (49:00.702)
It’s so hard. Yeah, so give yourself grace as the Lord loves us. Need more. Well, I guess we don’t need more of him. He needs more of us.
Rachael Adams (49:09.054)
Yes, yes. Please tell us something you are enjoying right now. Me too.
Jen Lilley (49:13.304)
Christmas. I love all things Christmas. I’m loving decorating cookies with my kiddos. Yeah.
Rachael Adams (49:20.3)
Yes, and eating those cookies. OK, and I want to stay in contact with you. I’m sure listeners will want to, so tell us how we can get your book, watch your shows, keep in contact with you, and more.
Jen Lilley (49:22.285)
Yeah, exactly.
Jen Lilley (49:35.17)
Well, as James says, I don’t know how you can watch my shows yet. You can watch all my old ones on Hallmark, Grand American Family, Netflix, and other platforms. If the Lord wills it, I’ll keep working. You can follow me on Instagram if you wish. That’s me on there. I have a Facebook account, but it’s linked to my Instagram. Like, I’m barely on Facebook. I feel like they change it every five seconds, and it gives me anxiety. I am Jen, J-E-N, underscore, Lily, L-I-L-L-E-Y. I’m on there. I’m very active on there, on my page, at least doom scroll, can’t stand it. But yes, stay in touch.
Rachael Adams (50:10.03)
Well, would you pray for us as we close today?
Jen Lilley (50:13.228)
Yeah, absolutely. Father, we thank you for your Holy Spirit. Jesus, we thank you for your obedience. Obedience to a brutal death on our behalf because you love us so, so much. Father, I ask that every person listening to this message encounter Jesus through your Holy Spirit right now, and that they feel seen, known, valued, and loved. God, I ask that you would cover everything I said with a bath of love and your Holy Spirit. And if I have offended them, Lord, if it’s because of me, would you rebuke me, Holy Spirit? But if it’s because of you, Holy Spirit, would you gently lead each listener into a more profound revelation and relationship with who you are, God? Maybe we never miss the mark, would you? We thank you, Holy Spirit, for your constant activity. You are always doing something. And Lord, we ask you today, could you show us what you’re doing, and could we be part of it? Father, I pray that every person would awaken their faith, myself included. Lord, may our hearts never grow dull, Father. May we take up our cross daily. We may keep our eyes on you and our hearts on you in Jesus’ mighty name, amen.
Rachael Adams (51:24.594)
Amen. Jen, thank you. You are such a light and such a joy, and I can honestly say I feel my faith has come a little more alive because of you, and I pray the same for everyone listening today.
Jen Lilley (51:36.568)
Thank you.
Rachael Adams (51:38.498)
Thank you so much for listening to the Love Offering podcast. I hope today’s conversation encouraged and inspired you to love God, love others, and even love yourself a little more. If you enjoyed this episode, please share it with a friend and leave a review. helps others find the show and spreads the message of love even further. To connect with me, visit me on my website at rachaelkadams.com. While you’re there, be sure to download the love offering calendar, a free resource filled with simple daily ways to love those around you. Don’t forget to pick up a copy of my book, Everyday Prayers for Love, as well as Jen’s book Wake Up Your Faith, 365 Daily Encounters with Jesus. A special thank you to Life Audio for supporting this message and making it possible. To find more great podcasts, visit LifeAudio.com. Thanks again for joining us today. Until next time, let’s make our lives an offering of love.
