 Welcome to the March edition of Cornerstone Connect. We are giving you a sneak peek into our shows, specials, and guests this month on Cornerstone Network. Pastor Gary stops by to encourage us to realize we are truly chosen by God for a purpose. And new Hope Today co-host Angela Madden shares how she lives her life with wild expectations. All that and more coming up next. I'm Amanda Brocker, your host of Cornerstone Connect, and I have a question for you. Have you received your March Hope Today newsletter? In the mail, well, if not, give us a call at 888-665-4483 or visit us at our website, ctbn.org. We love to connect with you, and I just have to thank you for those who write us cards and letters or you send emails. We so appreciate your words of encouragement to us. I just want to read this. This is from Carla, and she said, thank you for Cornerstone TV and your prayer line. It's great to know that I can call in anytime and receive prayer for reasons beyond my comprehension. I have been unemployed quite a bit in recent years. I'm thankful for your caring people who pray with me. I'm also very thankful for hard questions, y'all. Shout out for hard questions. I just love that show. God uses it to answer many questions that I have as well. Carla, thank you so much for writing into us, and this is from, well, I don't know the first name, but God bless your ministry, and I love Cornerstone TV. Thank you so much. Thank you, God, for you, praying for kingdom growth through your network, and that's from Jayman. Glory to God, and then here's another letter we received. I have included some extra with her pledge. Well, thank you so much. This is Catherine, and she loved Dr. Jeffress Book, me too. That was wonderful. Please keep my children and grandchildren in daily prayer in all areas of their lives. We are gonna do that right now. And it's also nice to see Tom McGuff on again, even if it's reruns. You know, we all love Tom McGuff, and I just have to reflect to that article that's in this month's newsletter of Tom and Lucy, how precious we love their family, and I know you do too, and I just, I wanted to share with you their verse for 2023. Tom always had a verse for the year, and of course, we're all wondering what is the McGuff verse of the year? And it comes from Isaiah 40, verse 31. They who wait for the Lord shall renew their strengths. They shall mount up with wings like eagles. They shall run and not be weary. They shall walk and not faint. And that, my friend, is our prayer for the McGuff family and for all of your families as well. And just as Catherine said about praying for her family, we are designed to see a move of the spirit in each of your households. You know, here at Cornerstone, yes, we produce television, but we also have prayer warriors. We pray over the prayers that come through this station, and we are seeing God touch the lives of many people. So just know that we are praying for you. We're here for you. And because of your love and support toward us is how we're even able to have this network. So I just, it all really comes back to you, and we wanna say thank you for giving us this wonderful opportunity of Cornerstone Television Network of sharing the good news of gospel 24-7, y'all. We are on the air. We're sending this out. It's on all of our platforms with social media, YouTube, that people from all around the world can tune in to hear the good news of Jesus Christ. So just know that we love you and we so appreciate you. Well, coming up next, we have Pastor Gary Mitrick, and he's gonna share how we are chosen by God for a purpose. Did you know your favorite programs on Cornerstone Television Network like Hope Today, Sister to Sister, Hard Questions, Dashing Dish, At Home and Move Your Mountain are not only on your TV screen, but also on YouTube. YouTube is the second most popular media platform in the world with more than 2.5 billion viewers. It's changed the way we watch content. And the way we're consuming media may be changing, but what remains the same and continues to stand true is God's word and the power of the gospel. Now take a look at this map behind me. These are the top cities that are watching Cornerstone Television Network, and because of your partnership, they are getting life-changing television every day. So in the U.S., you see it's New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Atlanta, Miami, Seattle, Dallas, and then we go to Canada, Toronto, and Regina, and then over to Europe, Dublin, London, and then in Africa, we have Buwake, Nairobi, Pretoria, Cape Town, and just Hannesburg, and in Asia, Kochi, Jakarta, Bengaluru, Manila, Yungu Sea, Sydney, and Melbourne. This is just a list of many of the cities we reach because of your faithful giving to Cornerstone Television Network. Thank you for helping us bring hope to people around the world and right here in Pittsburgh. Today, we welcome Pastor Gary Mitrick, no stranger to Cornerstone Connect. Pastor Gary is our chairman of the board and host of Move Your Mountain. But today we wanna talk about the article you wrote for the March Hope Today newsletter. So tell me about Purpose. Again, the title is Chosen by God to fulfill his purpose. Tell me about that chosen part. God really choose each one of us? Well, he says in the book of Jeremiah, he said, before you were in your mother's womb, I knew you and I chose you. So think about that, Tom. Our life, I believe, has been ordained by the Lord for a specific purpose if we would just stay yielded and surrendered to him and his will. Well, I don't know about you. I'm sure you feel the same way. It gives me a lot of confidence when I know that God's chosen me, that it doesn't all depend on me, but it's on his power, right? That's right, that's right. Bible says, you haven't chosen him. He's chosen you and ordained you. That what? You should go and bring forth much fruit. That's God's will for every believer that we live a fruitful life unto the Lord. That's right. So you have three points in this article. The first one is that God loves and cares for you. Could you talk about that? Well, to me, that's kind of like Christianity 101. Like if you question God's love for you, if you're wondering whether God loves you or cares about you, you're never gonna fulfill his purpose. I mean, you have to first believe that God does love you and that he does have a plan for your life. But how often, Tom, you and I have been in ministry a long time. How many times do we run into Christians, believers that are questioning God's love for them? You know, sometimes I think people that maybe grew up with a very, in a bad parental structure, something very condemning, they kind of feel that way about God. And they have to learn, don't they, to understand how God really is towards them. Well, so often, you know, the love that we've experienced from our parents, sometimes from our fathers, our earthly fathers, is what we transfer into our love for our heavenly Father. And you know, one's conditional, one's unconditional. That's right. You know, Pastor Gary, I had a great dad, you know. But one time I felt God say, you know, you had a good dad, but I'm even better than that. Isn't that, I mean, but that's how God is. He's always trying to get how he really is. Cause there's like a smoke screen and the devil puts up a lot of wrong ideas about God. He's trying to get us to see him as he really is. I agree. So, you know, I just, I just pray for people that you would know, know that you know that God loves you because then you can trust and believe he has a purpose for your life. And that's your second point. God has a plan. I can think of the four spiritual laws. God had a wonderful plan for your life, but it's really true. He has a plan and he has purposes for us. A lot of Christian's favorite scriptures, Jeremiah 29, 11, the plans he has for you, they're good. To give you a future that's full of hope. God told Abraham and he says the same thing to us. My thoughts toward you are more than the sands of the sea and the stars in the sky. That's a lot of thoughts. So God's got us on his mind. So what would you say to a Christian who maybe they say, I don't really get this purpose thing. I mean, I go to church, I love the Lord, but how do I find my purpose? Well, I always like to say, you know, God's will is in his word. I believe when you get into the word of God that God many times will bring clarity to your purpose. I also believe that you just have to trust him that whatever he gives you a love for, a passion for many times, even in the natural, you know, someone used to say, well, whatever breaks your heart, whatever makes you cry many times, that's what God's purpose is for your life because you have a compassion and a love. Some people have it for the homeless. Some people have it for missions. Some people have it for the ministry, but we all have a purpose. And I just believe that, you know, if we get into the word, if we pray and ask the Lord to show us our purpose, sometimes I know in my life, when I was 18 years old, someone recognized my call to be in ministry before I even recognized it. You know, so sometimes you just have to be open to other people speaking into your life, confirming to you maybe what you know is your will and purpose. You know, I knew that you had gone into ministry very young, but I didn't know that part of your story. What did you feel like when that person first said to you, hey, you know, God's got a call on your life to be in ministry. Did you say, yeah? Or was it like, well, I don't know, what was your reaction? I forgot about it. Isn't that funny? It is, you know, it is. It was so interesting because it was my older brother that I thought had the call to go into ministry. And then he kind of went a different direction and he was encouraging than me. And I'm like, wait a minute, there's no way, you know, but you know, God kind of he moves the chess pieces on the chess board and he kind of puts things together to get you in line. And then he confirms his will and word to your heart. And he gives us what we need, doesn't he? I mean, he gives us the things we need, things that we didn't know that we needed, things we don't know that's inside there and sometimes the things that aren't inside there, he puts them inside, including the Holy Spirit. And that's your third point. He gives us the Holy Spirit. He's the comforter, he's the one, the helper who comes alongside of us to help us fulfill our purpose. We're not doing it in our own strength, in our own ability, but we're doing it in the power and the anointing of the Holy Spirit. Absolutely, we just have about a minute left. Would you pray for that one out there that's hearing this and kind of like, I'm not sure about my purpose. What is my purpose? Maybe you could just pray for the Holy Spirit to show that to them. Well, Lord, you said to everything there's a season and a time for every purpose. And I pray you would just clearly speak your plans, your purpose, your will for every person watching today. Let them know you love them and care for them and just order their footsteps and direct them in the path that you've ordained for them to walk in in Jesus Christ's name, amen. Amen, that's so good. Thanks for encouraging us today, Pastor Gary. It's always been the heart and vision of our founders, Russ and Norma Bixler, to reach the nations, people of every nation, every tribe, and every tongue through Cornerstone Intelligent Network. For more than 40 years, the station has reached families through the TV screen, the way you're watching us right now. And with the internet and streaming platforms like YouTube, your generosity is helping us to expand our reach around the world. Cornerstone Intelligent Network's YouTube page has more than 60,000 subscribers and nearly 100,000 views per month. Take a look at this world map that's behind me. Your continuous support is making an impact in these countries. Here are the top countries that are watching on YouTube. USA, Canada, Mexico, Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago, Brazil, the UK, Ireland, the Netherlands, France, Italy, Norway, Sweden, Germany, Poland, Ghana, Nigeria, Zambia, Uganda, Kenya, South Africa, India, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Indonesia, Australia and New Zealand. Cornerstone is making an impact on every continent on the planet. When you partner with Cornerstone, you're not only changing lives here in Pittsburgh and America, but all around the world. Thank you for your support. Well, I have the immense privilege today to be sitting with the one and only Angela Madden, who is the newest member of our host team on Hope Today. And if we haven't met, I'm Anna Fry. I'm also one of the hosts as well as the communications coordinator behind the scenes. And Angela, it's so good to have you here with me today to just share your story and let our audience get to know more of who you are. And so whenever I interviewed you for the newsletter, we really talked about, we dug into the wild expectations that we can have of God and His purpose and His calling. And now you start off by saying that at a very young age, you knew God was real. Yes. I experienced it for a divine healing on my hand. I had a tumor that was supposed to grow and they said they needed to wait to remove it until I was 18, so I could decide because I would lose full use of that hand or it would be a deformity. So I needed to choose. And my mom just was committed and our family committed to prayer and got our church involved. And two weeks later in the middle of the night, my mom comes in to check on me and discovers it's gone. And so it was just such a powerful testimony because the church we were at at that time didn't really believe in miracles. They thought they went away with the apostles. And so this became a huge moment, not just for me and my family, but also for our church. So I learned very early on that God was very real and very involved in our lives. Yes. And then as a teenager, an older teenager, you were at the Brownsville Revival and you had an encounter with the Holy Spirit. Oh girl, yes. Honestly, Anna, I always say that's the moment that Jesus went from being a part of my life to being life itself. And I had this undeniable experience and encounter with Jesus. And in that space with him, I surrendered everything and it was a good pleasure to do so. And it changed my view. It changed my trajectory for life. And it really made me who I am today. And so I love that that moment where Jesus becomes life itself. And so at that time, you really, you believe the scriptural truth that you had been set apart for a purpose. So did God just give you like this epiphany of that, all it was? I wish, Anna, and there were so many times, I was like, Lord, can you just show me, please, you know? I didn't have that really and truly throughout my life. He's just given little pieces at a time. And I can remember particularly when I was like 21, 22, and I was like, God, I just wanna know my purpose. All of my friends, like they had these wonderful encounters and knew that they were called to be pastors. And I didn't have that. And the Lord spoke to me and he said, Angela, whatever I put at your hand to do, that is what I've called you to. And it shaped me and it changed me. And I knew that every place I showed up in, there was purpose. And so as I'd just taken one little step after the other, the Lord has met me and guided me and directed my steps. But it's been a beautiful and wild journey with him. Right. And that word to be faithful wherever he has put you. Because I think so many people can relate to that that most of us are not getting an epiphany of like our whole big life calling that it really does just come with that one step at a time trusting in the Lord. And so as a young person, you had a lot of dreams about broadcasting, about ministry, and there was a very special woman who became your spiritual mentor. Tell us a little bit about who she is and what you got to do. Yes, Pastor Darlene Bishop and her amazing husband, Lawrence Bishop, are my spiritual parents. And through only God's divine orchestration, I met her at this conference where I was serving another pastor and she invited me into her life really. And she at the time was doing a program called Sisters. And it was like the Christian view, you know? That sounds really familiar. It sounds really familiar. And she was doing this program and I got to be a part of it and help. And in the process of it, I realized that there were little pieces of what my heart experienced as even a little girl, desires and dreams that I felt were placed there by God. I got to see a little part of them realized, but the greatest gift was truly her. Her and her husband taught me everything that I know about my Jesus and walking with him in a full and authentic way. She is fire. Praise God for the gift of mentors in our life. Okay, so one of the very favorite things that you shared with me was about how God threw through you a surprise party. Yes, oh, Anna, it was so powerful. So I host a conference every year. And this year, the theme that the Lord spoke very clearly was the one thing. And as I was doing this and making all these plans and preparations, you know, I knew I was like, this is like everything. I'm throwing in all the kit and kabudu. I'm throwing in all the finances. I'm throwing in all the energy and the effort, trying to pursue the voice of God in his direction. And as I did, you know, I even shared on the last evening, I said, you know, we've come to die. Like that is truly our relationship with Jesus and our purpose on this earth. It's not for us to get more. It's for us to surrender more and walk more in him, to give more of ourself and experience more of him. And so in that space, I was just, you know, giving my all and gave everything that I could. And at the end of that Saturday evening session, there was such a holy and powerful moment. It was very public and very holy. But in it, after I experienced all that I did with the Lord and what he declared and commissioned me to in front of this audience, I said to him afterwards, I just felt like you threw me a surprise party. Here I was like giving everything and thinking, oh my gosh, I don't care, you know, you're worth it all. But at the end of the day, he prepared for me a party and I didn't expect it. He gave me more than I could ever give. And I feel like that's what he's always done in my life and what he does in your life and for every believer is he has endless surprise parties of his goodness and his kindness and his love for each and every one of us. Amen. And the surprise parties are so personally tailored, which makes it so sweet and undeniable that it's God doing his thing in our lives. So we have just a couple of minutes left. Would you just look into the camera and for somebody out there today who might be feeling discouraged or wondering about what is their calling, what is their purpose? Are they really set apart? Does God have surprise parties for them? Can you just encourage their heart? Absolutely. Listen, there is no end to God's goodness. He is infinitely good with a capital G and there is no end to the depths that you can experience in him. He always has more for you. So no matter where you are, if you feel like you found your purpose but the doors are all shut for you to step into it or maybe you're wondering, God, where are you and what am I to do with my life? I assure you that every plan that you have made or prepared, every thought that you have had, he will exceed it. He is a good, good father with endless gifts for you. He throws surprise parties with all of heaven present and he does it simply because he loves you. Our greatest purpose in this earth is to walk with the one who loves us. And as you journey with him, he will throw you more surprise parties, more love, more gentleness, more kindness, more mercies. Enjoy it all, take it all in, drink it all in and know for you, there will be no end of his goodness. Keep pushing on, I promise you. His plans for you are better than any you could ever make for yourself. Amen, amen. Our greatest life is truly found in Jesus. So Angela, thank you so much for sharing your story and just so blessed to have you be a part of the Hope Today team. So if you would like to see Angela, see Hope Today and all of us that are part of the team, remember that Hope Today is on every day at 9 a.m. 1 p.m. and 8 p.m. We'd love to have you join us and we're just so glad that you joined us here on Cornerstone Connect Today. We'll be right back after this. God spoke to our beloved late founders, Russa Norma-Bixler, this scripture from Isaiah, raise his signal high to the nations. Your giving and support of Cornerstone tells your network is helping us raise a different signal nowadays, a digital signal through the airways. Take a look at this map. Your donation helps us reach and impact people who watch our programming on our website at ctvn.org and the streaming platform Roku. Here's a list of the countries. USA, Canada, Mexico, Jamaica, Colombia, Brazil, Puerto Rico, Barbados, the UK, Ireland, France, Spain, Chechia, Germany, Sweden, Finland, Turkey, Israel, Kenya, South Africa, India, China, Russia, Japan, the Philippines, Indonesia and Australia. And you know, this is just a list of the many countries that we reach and it's all because of your faithful partnership with Cornerstone. Your gift is helping us to bring hope to people around the world and we just wanna say thank you for being part of our family. Well, I hope that you enjoyed this time together. I know I always do and I'm encouraged to see what God is doing in and through the lives of those here at Cornerstone and our viewing audience. It's just incredible and I just wanna thank you again to those who do take the time to let us know your thoughts. We just so appreciate you. This is another letter from Lillian. She said, she loves origins, sister to sister, hard questions. Thanks for your hard work. Lillian, thank you so much for taking the time to write in and this is thank you for your ministry and they sent in a financial gift. Oh, here we have I Enjoy Sister to Sister and find it helpful in living day to day. They do tackle a lot of issues in our day and what do we do and we wanna make sure that we're sound and what we believe and how we act. Other people observe us that we're according to the word of God. So there you go, sister to sister helping us live in that day to day. Here's another little note. It says she appreciated the program schedule. You are my church. You know, it is so important that we're here for people who maybe are shut ins and can't get out and it's only because of your love and support to this network that we're able to do so. Here's another note. It says, thank you for your station, your ministry and your message of hope and faith. I have been a long time viewer since 1993 but a first time donator. Wow, thank you so much. Prayers for my son's continued healing would be greatly appreciated and he's doing with depression and I feel so many people are but let's just take that moment right now. I'd love to pray over our viewing audience. Father, you know the needs in every household represented whether it's children, grandchildren, parents, siblings, father aunts, uncles, Lord, all of our surrounding people that you've placed on our hearts and Father, we're coming together on your word and we're asking for you to move. Father God, for your spirit to go in the name of Jesus and minister, Lord Jesus, to each person, God set them free. Pull those loved ones out of darkness and into your marvelous light. Lord, I thank you that you are the great rescuer going after those who need you and Father use us as your children, your hands and feet in this day and hour and Lord deliver your children from depression, from anxiety, from fear in the name of Jesus and I just thank you that you by your spirit will equip us for every good work because just as Pastor Gary's article had in there, you are chosen for a purpose and it's a God purpose and it's important for you to tap into exactly what that is that God desires to do through you. There's no other you out there. So just know today's the day to answer that call of God and live in the purpose that he has for you. May God's love fill you today and every day as you step out in faith to fulfill God's plan.