Welcome back to another uplifting episode of Fierce Calling! I’m your host, Doris Swift, and today we have a special guest joining us—Amanda Schaefer. Amanda is an inspiring author, speaker, and host of the popular podcast “A Cup of Gratitude.”

In this episode, Amanda shares her incredible transformation journey through faith, joy, and gratitude. From encountering Jesus in her home in a powerful way, to using her podcast to spread the gospel during the pandemic, Amanda’s story highlights the power of choosing gratitude and finding joy even in difficult times.

Amanda shares about the difficult seasons of two divorces, but don’t miss the praise story of what God did to redeem it all.

We dive into her upcoming book, which is set to encourage readers to explore their own stories and discover God at work in every chapter of their lives. Join us for a heartfelt conversation filled with insight, encouragement, and the reminder that our past story is part of our grace story.

Stay tuned for an episode that will inspire you to take action where your passion, compassion, and conviction intersect.

Episode Highlights

06:03 Gratitude and Opportunity Beyond Borders

10:56 Testimony: Sharing Stories of Faith

12:29 “Connecting Through Shared Stories”

16:11 “Discovering God’s Purpose in Stories”

19:48 Divine Guidance in Marriage Choices

24:37 Seeking God’s Guidance

26:40 “Journey of Faith and Renewal”

31:01 Journey to Healing and Faith

33:40 Amanda’s Inspiring Show Highlights

Connect with Amanda!

You can connect with Amanda at acupofgratitude.org where you’ll find her podcast, blog, and all her social media links!

Amanda Schaefer is a podcast host, author, and speaker. She carries with her the goodness of looking through a lens of gratitude. The “A Cup of Gratitude” podcast is global, reaching over 112 countries and 3000 cities. As a speaker, Amanda teaches the Bible while challenging audiences to live the way God intends. She has a way of making scripture come alive through everyday examples. 

Amanda’s books include, “Crumbled, A Place for Broken People” and “Daily “Instaration.” She is a contributing author of “Life Changing Stories and the newly released books, “One Chance, One Dance, Don’t Miss the Moments in Your Life,” and “Courageous Voices Unlocked.” Her books are down to earth and packed with Biblical truth. Amanda has also written articles for “The Brave Women Series,” “The Uncommon Normal Gratitude Series,” “The Love Offering,” “The Warrior Women Series,” “Butterfly Living, “The Empty Nest Mom Series,” and “The Season Series.” She is under contract to write a new manuscript slated to be released in April 2025. Connect with Amanda at www.acupofgratitude.org or on Social media 

www.instagram.com/acupof_gratitude

www.facebook.com/amanda.f.schaefer

www.acupofgratitude.org

https://youtube.com/@acupofgratitude?si=PF55x6T4ecrs7jdg

What Threatens to Steal Your Joy?

Check out Surrender the Joy Stealers: Rediscover the Jesus Joy in You 6-week Bible study rooted in John 15. You can find more info at https://dorisswift.com/book/

Let’s Stay Connected!

Find my free resources including Fear Fighting Bible Verses, Simple Tips for Sharing Your Faith, Surrender the Joy Stealers, Step Out of Your Doubt and Into Your Calling ebook, and more on my dorisswift.com homepage!

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Thanks for Listening!

I hope this episode with Nancy encouraged, inspired, and challenged you to cultivate community, live and walk in the value and worth God gave you, and take action where your passion, compassion, and conviction intersect. You’ll find links in the show notes to connect with Nancy and with me.

If you’re looking for a speaker for your next women’s conference, retreat, luncheon, or workshop, reach out and connect with me on my speaker page at https://www.womenspeakers.com/florida/edgewater/speaker/doris-swift

Let’s have a chat about your 2025 event!

Stay tuned for more amazing content and remember to check the show notes for all the links mentioned.

Thank you for being a part of our community. We are grateful for your continued support and encourage you to embrace the unique gifts that make you magnificently you.

I hope you’ll join me next time when I talk with another woman who is taking action where her passion, compassion, and conviction intersect …

Until then friend, have a blessed week, and I’ll talk to you soon.

With love and joy,

Doris

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Check out my home page for free resources!

Transcript

Doris:
What is threatening to steal your joy? What is it that feels so heavy right now that you could barely stand? God has a plan, and his plan is to surrender it. Surrender it to him. It might be a prodigal. It might be a relationship, a marriage, something with your job. So many things. We have so many amazing blessings, but there are so many things in our life that threaten to steal our joy. I’m Dora Swift, author of the award winning six week Bible study, surrender the joy stealers rediscover the Jesus joy in you and it helps women rediscover the overflowing ever present Jesus joy within that fills, empowers, and ripens the fruit that God produces in our lives. Using personal and biblical stories, I share how you can identify your joy stealers, surrender them to god reawaken the joy within and share the joy with others you can do it on your own or with a group if you’re looking for a bible study check it out friends Surrender the Joy Stealers.

Doris:
Rediscover the Jesus Joy in You. It’s available on all the online retailers. It’s time to take your joy back. Welcome back to the show. Today, I’m very excited to welcome my friend, Amanda Schafer. She is an author, a speaker, and she is host of a popular podcast called A Cup of Gratitude. And she encourages and invites us to see things through the lens of gratitude, which I love that. And we’re gonna talk a little bit more about that in the show.

Doris:
But, yeah, she’s amazing. So you listen to podcasts, so be sure to go check that out. And I’ll have the link in the show notes, of course. And we’re just happy to get into this conversation and excited to see where God’s gonna lead us. So welcome to the show, Amanda. So great to have you.

Amanda Schaefer:
Thank you. Thanks for having me. I’m excited to to talk with you. We have followed each other on social media for a really long time, so I’m gonna have to have you back on my podcast as well. I’m very glad to have this conversation with you.

Doris:
I’m looking forward to that as well. And, yeah, we love how God connects us. And so this episode is very special, and I just can’t wait to hear, like, how God is gonna lead you and to share. So I would love if you would share a little bit about your story and how you are taking action where your passion, compassion, and conviction intersect?

Amanda Schaefer:
Well, how am I not at this point? So I’m 60, and I only came to Christ twenty three years ago. So I had quite a lot of past and quite a lot of trauma that, I needed to work through, but I can’t believe what God is doing in my life right now and and and that I get to share the gospel all over the world in so many different ways. So I started off with a lot of healing to do. I met Jesus not in church, but in my home, and I have been on fire for God ever since. I cannot get enough of the word. I cannot get enough of his presence. I can’t spend enough time in worship, and so he’s really transformed my heart. I’m able to connect with a lot of people who don’t know him because I spent more of my life not knowing him than knowing him.

Amanda Schaefer:
And so, he uses me a lot in these everyday moments where I look around and I am able to choose to look for the good in bad situations. It’s actually discipline, gratitude, you know, looking for the good. And the way that God created our our brains, he actually created a neural network that the more that you choose something, the easier it is to get there. It kind of creates a roadway. So it goes both ways. Unfortunately, conversely, if you think bad things or look for things anxiously or fearfully. But when you look for the good that is still there even in the midst of difficulty, you will