Followed By Mercy
The Followed By Mercy Podcast
Real Grace, Honest Hope
You might notice a new name and a fresh look, but the heart behind this podcast is the same. After years as the World Evangelism Podcast, I sensed God leading me to a deeper, more personal path centered on His relentless mercy and the kind of honest hope that can reach into every hurting place. That’s why this show is now called Followed By Mercy Podcast. The format may shift, and the tone may be a bit more personal, but my mission hasn’t changed: I still believe the world desperately needs to hear the good news of God’s love in Jesus Christ. You are welcome here if you’ve been with me from the beginning or just found us now.
What if God’s love is more personal, stubborn, and relentless than you ever imagined?
Welcome to The Followed By Mercy Podcast, where we get honest about pain, hope, and the kind of grace that finds you right where you are, five days a week. This isn’t about religious performance or church routines. It’s for anyone who’s ever felt worn out, unseen, or unsure if they belong in the story of God’s love. Every conversation is rooted in this reality: God loves you right now, just as you are, and He isn’t giving up on you.
Here’s what you’ll find in every episode:
Experience God’s Relentless Love
Every show starts by reminding you that the Shepherd knows your name, cares about your story, and isn’t offended by your failures or questions. This is personal—it’s about God’s unwavering affection for you.
Find Your Place in His Heart
Once you grasp how fiercely you’re loved, sharing that love with others doesn’t feel forced. It becomes the most natural thing in the world. Real grace overflows.
Prayer That Changes You
We pray together—not just for the world “out there,” but for the battles and hopes you’re carrying right now. These prayers are honest, rooted in Scripture, and meant for hearts that need a gentle touch from the Shepherd.
Discover Your Unique Role
Whether you’re called to go, give, serve, or show kindness in your corner of the world, God’s mercy meets you where you are. You’re not just a bystander. You are His beloved, invited into the story He’s writing.
When life knocks the wind out of you, this is a place to catch your breath. You’ll hear the encouragement that meets you on your hardest days, and your honest questions will be welcomed. No pretending, no heavy-handed advice—just the reminder that your Shepherd is right there with you, walking every step with you, even when you feel like giving up.
Why does this matter? Because some days, it feels like nobody sees you or cares what you’re going through. But the truth is, you have a Shepherd who never takes His eyes off you, lets you slip through the cracks, and never gives up on you. That kind of love can put you back on your feet, and it might be the hope someone else is waiting to see in you, too.
If you’re longing for more than just religious talk—if you want to know you’re not alone and that God’s mercy is following you all the way home, you’re in the right place. Whether you listen in the car, on a walk, or in a quiet moment, let every episode remind you: God’s mercy is after you right now, ready to bring real grace and honest hope.
Subscribe today and join a community to discover what happens when loved people become loving people. The journey’s just beginning, and there’s a place for you here.
Followed By Mercy
You Are Never Abandoned: Discovering God's Presence in Your Pain
Ever feel like you’re alone in the storm? Like the darkness is closing in, and nobody sees what you’re going through? What if the valley you’re dreading is the place where God wants to show you just how close He really is?
Psalm 23 isn’t a song for the dead; it’s hope for the living. David wrote it while running for his life, betrayed by his own son. He wasn’t sitting by quiet waters. He was in deep trouble and heartbreak, yet he found a peace he couldn’t explain. This psalm is raw, honest, and full of hope for anybody who’s been knocked down by life.
One line stands out: “Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies.” God doesn’t wait for your battles to be over before He blesses you. He sets the table for you right in the middle of the fight. He’s not afraid of your mess or your enemies, and He’s not waiting for you to clean yourself up. He wants to be with you, right where you are.
It’s easy to focus on what’s wrong, to complain, or to wonder if God even cares. Like Peter stepping out on the water, we start to sink when we stop looking at Jesus and start staring at the waves. The challenge is to practice gratitude instead of bitterness, to surrender instead of grabbing for control, and to let the Shepherd lead, even through the darkest valleys.
Whatever you’re facing pain in your body, heartbreak at home, a job that’s falling apart, or regret that just won’t let go, your struggle isn’t proof that God has left you. It’s a place where He wants to meet you, bless you, and walk with you. Even if your wounds are your own fault or you feel like you’ve made a mess, He’s still right there.
So take heart. You are not abandoned. God has already set the table, your cup is overflowing, and His goodness and mercy are following you right now, even while the battle still rages.
What if, just for today, you stopped looking at the problem and turned your eyes to the One who promises to be with you no matter what?
Let’s talk about how God’s presence changes everything, right in the valley.
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I want you to know that Psalm 23 is written in the middle of some of the darkest days of David's life, maybe the darkest days I mean. He was on the run from Saul. He knows what that's like to hide in caves and have people wanting to kill him, but it seemed like every day more and more people came to his aid. It was dark days when Saul would throw spears at him and lances at him and try to kill him. It was dark days when Saul would throw spears at him and lances at him and try to kill him. It was dark days, you know, when he had to go before Achish or he didn't have to maybe, but he did and he's foaming at the mouth, trying to get help from a Philistine king in the city that Goliath was from. That's a crazy story for another day. But now he is an older man, man probably 65 or 70 years old I don't know for sure exactly how old he was, but uh, now he's on the run for his life. He's not the young warrior king anymore, he's the old king. He's been doing this a long time and and now his son is out there trying to attack him. He's in the valley of the shadow of death. I mean, that's about as clear as you can put it. And he's living on a higher plane, not because the circumstances have changed, but because he sees who he is in Christ, not who he is in circumstances, and that's the lesson for each of us Christ, not who he is in circumstances, and that's the lesson for each of us. And so today, I just want to talk to you about how we are to be blessed in the middle of the buffeting, blessed in the middle of the battle, blessed in the middle of all the hurt. Psalm 23 is not a children's psalm, it's not a psalm that's only used for being at the funeral. It's not a children's Psalm, it's not a Psalm that's only used for being at the funeral. Psalm 23, I believe, is being written when David is deep, dark, depressed, alone, until he focuses on the shepherd and gets out of it. So I want you to know that real life happens right in the middle of the battle. And I want you to know today you are not alone. I want you to know you are not alone. I want you to realize that God is sitting before you, a peaceful pastor, and God has surrounded you, even though you're surrounded by enemies and pain and struggle. He has given you all you need to eat. He makes me lie down and greet bachelors. He gives you peace in the middle of the storm. He restores your soul. He's protecting you even in that he prepares a table for you. That's even more than just taking care of you. He's super abundantly taking care of you. It's a table in the middle of the storm, it's shelter in the storm. And I want you to notice that the emphasis is on thou prepares a table before me in the presence of mine enemies. Thou See, it wasn't David preparing a banquet, it wasn't that David's men prepared a banquet. David fully acknowledged thou preparest a table before me in the midst of my enemies.
Austin Gardner:God doesn't wait for you to get out of the battle to bless you. He blesses you right in the middle of the trouble. I know you want out. I want out, I want out, I want it over. I want things to get really sweet again. But in the middle of the storm you're not alone. Then he is circling you, but the shepherd lays out a feast. Your shepherd is not absent in your time of trouble. He is most present in the middle of your trouble. I need you to know that he is there in the middle.
Austin Gardner:What are you going through right now? Are you facing health issues, and it's got you worried and scared. Maybe, at night, you lay down and you wonder if you'll live till the next day. Are you laying in a bed beside your spouse, who's cancer ridden, and you're terrified. You don't know what tomorrow holds and you wonder will you wake up and find him or her dead? Have your children ran away? Have you got some wayward children? Are you being attacked by supposed friends?
Austin Gardner:You need to know that, no matter how many enemies attack and no matter how many things go wrong, you are never, ever abandoned. He promised to never leave you nor forsake you. By the way, thou art with me is an Old Testament expression For the New Testament expression. He is in me, not just with me. I am the temple of the Holy Ghost of God. You are his temple. He lives in you. He lives in you and you have that special relationship with him. You're never abandoned. David's enemies are real and powerful and relentless, and some of them are his family. You know that feeling. You know how that feels.
Austin Gardner:We're all dealing with abuse or betrayal fatigue. We've lost what we had. We're in spiritual warfare and I know it's messed up for you, but you got to realize that even if the problem was caused by your own failure or your own mistake, god doesn't abandon you. God doesn't abandon you. Don't forget David really messed up with Absalom, with Amnon, with adultery, with murder, with numbering the people, failing as a king, god still there. And God turns what was meant to harm into what will bless. And where you messed up, god's going to turn it into a blessing.
Austin Gardner:You remember Joseph's story, don't you? You remember how Joseph was in Egypt. He was a slave. He was abused and mistreated for 13 years of his life, 13 long years. 13 years he was a nobody. 13 years he was a slave or a prisoner and forgotten. 13 years his dream was dead. 13 years it would feel like to others that God had left him. But David or Joseph knew better and you must know better. You must know better.
Austin Gardner:God is blessing. You're not going to escape reality, but God is present. The shepherd doesn't always pull you out of trouble, but he stays with you in the trouble, in the presence of your enemies. We won't escape our revenge, but God wants blessings and presence. The real blessing here is not my peaceful life, but God himself being near my friend, comforting and bringing peace. That's the real answer. The Lord is my shepherd. That's not just what we say, that's not just a start of a Psalm. It's a relationship. He's our friend. He is our friend.
Austin Gardner:John, chapter 15, verse 15. Like Jehoshaphat, we don't know what to do, but we turn our eyes on you. First Chronicles, second Chronicles, chapter 20, verse 12. That's what I challenge you to do. Second Chronicles, chapter 20, verse 12. Turn your eyes on the Lord Jesus. In the dark we grow. The storm becomes our school of faith, the place where we meet the shepherd and see the shepherds working in our life. It's happened all through the Bible Joseph, job, elisha, david. And God never wastes our pain. God never wastes our pain.
Austin Gardner:You may feel abandoned, but you're not. You may feel abandoned, but you're not. You may feel alone, but you're not. I want you to know that the shepherd is always there. He is preparing a banquet for you in front of your enemies. He's doing it while the enemies watch. God is still good to you. So quit the whining. Quit the whining. Get your mind on Jesus and think on him and be excited about what God is doing in your life. That's the goal here is to trust the Lord and what he's doing. So you have to learn while you're being hurt. You have to learn while you're being hurt. You got to say I won't trust the Lord in this. When we grow and we see all that and we feel abandoned. But we're not alone. The shepherd is always there and he's preparing that banquet. So what do you do when you're getting beat up? What do you do in the middle of the buffeting? You lift your eyes off of the storm and onto the shepherd. You know when Peter sunk is when he took his eyes off of Jesus and put them on the waves.
Austin Gardner:We should practice gratitude. Listen when things go wrong in your life, you start being a whiner and a complainer, which is praise to the devil, and you start saying things you should never say. Practice gratitude. Thank God for his presence even when you're hurting. Thank God for his presence even in the scariest times. Thank God for how he's meeting your needs. The Lord is my shepherd. I shall not want. Choose to trust over being bitter, surrender over control. Decide. I want to trust God for what God's going to do in my life. I want to trust him. Let God use my pain in my life to build compassion and strength and to deepen my relationship with him.
Austin Gardner:The enemies are watching and they're seeing God's grace on display. God's blessings aren't always material, but they are peace and courage and joy and assurance right in the face of loss. When things seem to be going wrong, we still have all of God's blessings. Sometimes God allows your enemies or your wounds to see you blessed. They've hurt you and now they're watching and God is blessing you. In spite of it, god is blessing you and meeting your need. Your life becomes a testimony. He prepares a table for me, not after the battle, but in the middle of the battle. That's what's going on, so let's take it home with us. We're going to spend today.
Austin Gardner:You're about to finish this podcast and go out. Remember this you are loved right now, right here, your shepherd is with you, even if everyone else is left. He will not leave you. He has prepared a feast for you grace and mercy and forgiveness and love, and he will not quit. The storm is not the end. The presence of the God is your victory. You're in a storm. I didn't say it was going to end. I don't have any magical formulas except love Jesus and trust him. If you set your mind on the shepherd, you can be whole and enjoy peace, no matter if there's a storm. You can trust him. Keep your eyes on him. You're going to have perfect peace.
Austin Gardner:Isaiah 26, 3. Lift up your eyes. Don't wait for the battle to end to believe that God is for you. God is for you. Turn your eyes from the storm to the Savior, to the one who prepares the table in the middle of the storm for you. Thank God for his presence in the middle of your pain. Ask God to help you see the blessings even in the buffeting.
Austin Gardner:Lord, help us feast at your table even when the enemies surround us. Thank you for your unfailing, unconditional love that never, ever quits. The shepherd's table is never empty. He is with you Even now. You're blessed in the middle of the storm. So as you close out today, as you turn this off and move on, I don't know where you are, I don't know how you're hurting, but I love you. I've talked to some of you, I've met with you and I've told you he loves you and you told me you kind of felt like he didn't love you because you were being hurt. Well, psalm 23 is a different story, listen to it, apply it and let God give you a blessing. Today you are blessed in the middle of the battle.
