Finding God: From Agnostic to Christian
Our most recent guest on the Everyday Faith podcast is Alissa Brinkman. She is a holistic health practitioner and a mom of four currently living in the frosty state of Minnesota!
Alissa grew up in a home where her dad was agnostic. Being agnostic means that you hold to a view that any ultimate reality (such as God) is to remain unknown and unknowable. Alissa’s father was really wounded by the Church during his upbringing, which influenced him being agnostic. There were even times when he was angered by the presence of a Bible in their home.
However, Alissa’s mom received Christ and began to pray over her family. Eventually, Alissa’s father came to know the Lord too! Unfortunately, things weren’t all rainbows and roses in their home. Due to the lack of life change she saw in her father post conversion, Alissa began to interpret Christianity as a label, rather than a belief system that caused a surrender of self and real life change in the heart of the believer.
To make things worse, there was a theme of sexual abuse during Alissa’s most formative years. She experienced this harm from the age of 5 until adolescence. Because of this, a lie around love meaning manipulation began to form in her heart. As Alissa grew up and attended high school, she was also met by intense bullying. Alissa got good at putting on a fake smile as she wrestled with severe depression throughout her high school experience.
In the midst of her trying to stay afloat, her brother was diagnosed with cancer. As her brother was coming off of chemotherapy, he felt conviction around finding new friends and a community that wasn’t involved in drugs. He decided the best place to look for a newfound community with his new license on life was at his local Church! He loved the Gospel, the community, and the joy he felt and her brother gave his life to the Lord.
Hoping to surprise her brother and make him smile, Alissa went to church spontaneously one evening. While there, Alissa felt the presence of God and began to weep, raising her hands in worship and praise. After this moment, Alissa was forever changed and drawn to following the ways of Jesus.
Shortly after giving her life to Jesus, Alissa asked the Holy Spirit, “What in my life needs to change?” The Holy Spirit began to expose lies she was believing and He started healing her body too. Because of the intense encounters she had with God, Alissa was all in — Jesus only, no boys or relationships! But God had different plans. 3 days after telling the Lord she’d be single forever, she met her husband!
Their love story was precious and profound. Alissa’s husband was saved shortly before she was. In his new found salvation, her husband devoted his drives to work as times of prayer for his future wife. He even prayed that God would meet her and bring her salvation. Little did he know his prayers would be answered! Alissa’s salvation was in direct response to her future husband's prayers on her behalf.
Learn more about the wild power of prayer in our blog: 11 Bible Verses Christians Should Know About Prayer
Everyday Faith in Action
After giving her life to Jesus, sharing her faith with others was a little rocky at first. She was so excited, so on fire with passion for God, and so ready to talk, that when Alissa decided to share her faith, it was sometimes an abrasive experience for others. Over time, she learned how to “look for the invite” when sharing her faith.
Learn more about easy evangelism with our blog: How to Cultivate a Lifestyle of Evangelism
Currently, Alissa goes to work each day with a resolve to be very intentional in her workplace. As a holistic health practitioner, she meets a lot of patients who are weary and have done everything they can do to heal. In the midst of this, Alissa utilizes her partnership with the Holy Spirit to minister to them individually.
Before she meets with someone, she’ll ask the Holy Spirit to move through her. She reminds God, “This is your child. This is someone you want to help and someone you want to heal.”
She always asks her patients first if she can pray for them before she does and to this day, she can’t remember someone saying, “No” to prayer. One tool that Alissa shared with us on the podcast is the practice of always being quick to ask questions vs. offering your advice. This mindset shift can change everything and cause others to be open about hearing your story.
Related Post: 5 Simple Ways to Show God’s Love to Others
A Testimony of the Power of Prayer
Blessing Leads to Breakthrough!
One of Alissa’s most significant stories of sharing her faith was with a client who had been on a natural healing journey for over 20 years. This patient was very strict on herself, making sure to follow all of Alissa’s instructions without error. This woman was also in her 70’s, living alone, and was walking through very intense circumstances with her adult children.
Over time, Alissa found that she spent more time praying with this patient rather than consulting her on what to eat or what not to eat. The more they prayed, the greater the shift they saw in her health. Pain began to leave her body, the buzzing in her body went away, and she was even sleeping better! Through Alissa’s prayers and obedience, God showed off his compassionate love and healing power.
Read more about stories of healing from our friend, Yegor, in our blog: A Life Transformed, Healed, Saved, and Delivered
Seeing Every Interaction as a Ministry Moment
Despite the fact that Alissa’s kids love to run around the neighborhood and invite everyone to church, Alissa and her family have always seen their neighborhood as a primary place of ministry.
One story Alissa shared with us was about when a neighbor appeared at her door, unannounced and angry! While coming out of the shower, Alissa heard knocking on her door. When she ran out to the door, she was surprised to see her neighbor in a very angry state. This neighbor began to offload everything that she disliked about Alissa’s family, straight to her face.
Rather than operating in offense, Alissa began to ask her neighbor lots of questions. Over the course of time, her neighbor began to cry. Her neighbor then shared about the intensity of things that she was walking through in her own family and she quickly apologized for her behavior. Alissa knew this was the right moment to share the Gospel with her and show her the love of God.
Walking through a tough time? Read our blog: How to Have Joy & Peace in Difficult Times
Another story of God moving in Alissa’s neighborhood was when Alissa was able to show the love of God as patient and unwavering. For four years, Alissa and her family hung out with a neighborhood couple, prayed for them, and often invited them to Church. Four years later, they finally came to Church!
However, it wasn’t a walk in the park. The wife was pregnant and upon entering the Church, she passed out before she could enter the sanctuary. Nurses attended to her, the ambulance was called, and spiritual warfare was active over Alissa’s neighbor. But thankfully, God had other plans! A few months later, the same couple got enough gusto to come back to Church! When they did, both the husband and the wife gave their lives to the Lord. They are still passionately living for Jesus to this day.
Learn more about God’s redemptive, patient love: It’s Never Too Late: A Real Story of God’s Redemption with Armin Assadi
Encouragement from Alissa
As we finished our interview with Alissa, she shared a simple encouragement for all of us learning to live our faith, everyday. Her advice is to share your testimony – even if you believe it’s boring. No one can take your testimony from you and your story is powerful!
But this will be your opportunity to tell them about me. So don’t worry in advance about how to answer the charges against you, for I will give you the right words and such wisdom that none of your opponents will be able to reply or refute you!
- Luke 21:13-15 NLT
Conclusion
Despite facing significant challenges, Alissa found healing, purpose, and wholeness through her relationship with Jesus. Her story highlights the importance of prayer, the joy of being a blessing, and how growing in courage to share your faith with others is paramount to bringing the Kingdom of God to earth! By embracing a lifestyle of intentional faith, evangelism, and being more like Jesus, Alissa demonstrates how everyday interactions can become opportunities for ministry – making everyday faith a reality.
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