The past few years, life was falling apart and hope seemed lost for Sarah Poppe. She didn’t know how her life could ever be mended or feel good again. She even hesitated in sharing her story. She didn’t feel it was polished nor did it have a miracle ending, however she knew there are beautiful things that grow in our waiting and testing seasons and that is its own testimony. In the waiting times, God gave Sarah a clear and beautiful testimony of His promises and His goodness.
“God was surrounding me with hope and encouragement to give me the strength to fight for what is good in my life,” Sarah shared. “Not to get bitter or resentful but instead to pray over the people and circumstances in my life. To trust God for that miracle. To surrender completely to the fact that God will care for me. And over and over I felt He was asking me the question ‘Am I enough for you?’ ”
Stumbling upon a podcast on marriage restoration, Sarah heard music from a couple whom she could relate. When Sarah heard their tour would be in Iowa, she knew she wanted to attend. The concert encouraged Sarah’s heart. She was in a room with others who knew her pain. They understood the wounds and the suffering and the tiring journey she was on which seemed like a losing battle.
“That night I was comforted and convicted by what I heard in their (Chris and Steph from Out of the Dust) testimony,” Sarah said with sincerity. “Testimonies give us hope in the middle of our storm and theirs is amazing and beautiful. They are real and honest people. God moved in me that night. He reminded me that He is real, and He is still working. He is good and He is alive. We all need that in our darkest of dark. We need to be reminded that He will take care of us. That we often need to do our part but then get out of the way and let God do His thing. We can’t change people, only God can.”
Out of the Dust had a beautiful platform and talent that they used to encourage vulnerability and honesty with whatever circumstance or trial people go through in life. After the concert, Sarah chatted with them and began to share with them what God had done through them that evening.
“Through their beautiful testimony, God gave me hope,” Sarah described. “In the darkest moments, God is capable of all things. I wrestle often with God knowing He hasn’t healed my marriage like I wanted, but their testimony encourages all people that He can still restore your life. Even after walking through all this, I don’t want to give up on the sanctity of marriage. With willing and repentant hearts, there is hope. Let God work. He is powerful and their story reflects that. I just thought to myself that in a world with so much divorce, people need to hear their story.”
After that night, Sarah came home and began to process through questions such as to how do we support people going through marriage struggles, life difficulties, pain and sorrow and how do we give hope for healing? How can we walk alongside people with truth and love at the same time?
“There is honest accountability within Christian relationships,” Sarah admitted. “But there also must be that encouragement and hope to those people who are struggling. They need so much support. As the Body, we can shy away from that. We may not know how to help, where to step in, what to say, or if it’s our place. It’s easier to pat them on the back and tell them that you are praying for them. I have loved and appreciated every person who has stepped into my messy and encouraged me through each hard moment. I needed their constant reminders to continue to surrender and to focus on my walk with God. To continue to pray. To work on repentance and what God was doing in my heart through all of this."
After some processing, Sarah had an idea. What would it look like to bring Out of the Dust to Omaha? After asking Citylight to join in the efforts, she reached out to the duo, and they accepted. On Friday, July 12, they will be performing at Citylight Midtown.
“This concert is for everybody,” Sarah said with excitement. “The whole Body of Christ can be empowered by the testimony of restoration. For marriages and couples that are struggling, and for anyone who will have struggles on the horizon. We all need to be reminded God is still at work. I am going to bring my kids so they can hear the power of God in someone’s testimony.”
In a small church pew last year, God gave Sarah a greater story of how He can restore in a lot of ways. It may not be in the way we hope for, but He is still a God of restoration. Sarah concluded with this encouragement,
“I have come to know that my relationship with God is enough. You don’t walk through the hardest time of your life without being changed and for that I’m thankful. When you’re left alone, God gives you plenty of opportunities to look at yourself in the mirror and to break away things in your heart that need to go. While I’m still grieved by much, I can also see the beautiful growth that He’s done with it. I think we all need to be reminded God is at work. He is enough for you and He promises to redeem our stories. I encourage those who are struggling to not give up. God is a God of the impossible and He can do all things. While I’d desperately like to be moved to another season of life, I think God is humbling me yet again to say, not yet. He’s got it. I hope it encourages others to know you’re not alone in your waiting and struggles and there’s so much beauty to be found even there.”
In a world that feels hopeless and ever so changing, a world that can feel full of hurt and division, God restores and heals. Whether you are married, single, divorced, separated, or somewhere in-between, please come to a night of worship, storytelling and testimony on July 12th at 7pm. You will be encouraged as you witness a story of how God brings forth new life out of the dust. Invite your neighbors and friends! Cost is $5/person + fees. Purchase tickets at citylightomaha.org/out-of-the-dust.