In her final story episode, Carya reflects on what it means for God to be with her—not only through rescue, but in the long, quiet ache that follows. Through Scripture, images, and honest wrestling, she shares how comfort can coexist with agony, and how the Word that once felt distant has become both balm and challenge. Explore what healing looks like when it isn’t finished yet—when faith must hold steady between lament and hope. Episode 4 Episode 6 Restoring the Shattered Self and ...

Dr. Dan Allender joins Ann Maree to discuss trauma, faith, and the work of story. Together they wrestle with how believers can live in the tension between death and resurrection—where hope and heartache coexist. SHOW NOTES:Episode 4 Self-CareEpisode 6 Dr Heather EvansDr Allender’s Resources: The Wounded Heart: Hope for Adult Victims of Childhood Sexual AbuseThe Healing Path: How the Hurts in Your Past Can Lead You to a More Abundant LifeTo Be Told: Know Your Story, Shape Your FutureThe Cry of...

Carya’s rescue didn’t begin with a manual—it began with love, prayer, and a community willing to bear witness. In this conversation, “Lynn,” the trusted friend who helped orchestrate Carya’s exit from harm, shares how faith, patience, wise counsel, and practical safeguards came together to make safety possible. This is not a how-to guide; it’s a testimony of God’s steady care through ordinary people who chose to stay. SHOW NOTES: Episode 4 Self-CareEpisode 6 Dr Heather EvansRestoring the Shat...

In this pivotal chapter of her story, Carya shares how her long nightmare began to shift—when the years of abuse finally gave way to rescue. Yet safety was not something she could walk into alone. This episode highlights the crucial role of people-helpers—those who step in, stand beside, and walk with survivors through the fear, uncertainty, and fragile beginnings of healing. Show Notes: Episode 4 Self-CareEpisode 6 Dr Heather EvansRestoring the Shattered Self by Dr. Heather GingrichTreating ...

This week on Safe to Hope, Dr. Heather Davediuk Gingrich joins us for a conversation that blends deep clinical insight with years of walking alongside survivors of extreme abuse. From dissociative identity disorder (DID) to ritual abuse, she helps us understand how evil distorts, how the church can cause further harm—even unintentionally—and how to become truly safe people for those who are healing. This is a sobering yet hope-filled episode, equipping us to listen well, care wisely, and resp...

Through language rarely spoken in Christian spaces, Carya explains the difference between grooming and training, and how dissociation became the means of survival when life became unbearable. Carya invites listeners to see not only the trauma, but the mercy that allowed her to endure it. Her words call us, the Church to deeper understanding, and to become a place where stories like hers can be known and safely held. Show Notes: Episode 4 Self-CareEpisode 6 Dr. Heather EvansShattered No More b...

In this compelling expert segment, attorney and advocate Rachael Denhollander offers deep insight into the role of theology in abuse prevention and response. She helps us understand why survivors struggle to be believed and what it takes to build churches that are safe, discerning, and equipped to care well. SHOW NOTES: What Is A Girl Worth? By Rachael DenhollanderRedeeming Power by Diane LangbergInformational Resources: Serving SRA Survivors: Satanic Ritual Abuse Recovery by Kay Elise Tolman...

This episode is one of the most sobering in our 2025 Safe to Hope season. As Carya transitions into life beyond her father’s household, she shares how a new circle of abusers—men in Christian leadership—took over her life with terrifying control. She exposes not only their cruelty, but also how they weaponized orthodoxy, hiding their evil behind sound doctrine and religious influence. In this story, Carya shares a deeply personal and painful part of her journey: her pregnancies and her childr...

What does healthy intimacy look like in Christian marriage? And what happens when biblical language gets tangled with cultural stereotypes? In this powerful and hope-filled episode, we welcome Sheila Wray Gregoire—author, researcher, and founder of BareMarriage.com—to discuss her latest book The Marriage You Want. With wisdom grounded in Scripture and backed by extensive research, Sheila offers a compelling call to mutuality, emotional connection, and healthy sexuality within marriage. This c...

In Episode 2 of our Summer Reading Series, Julia and Ann Maree welcome Elyse Fitzpatrick to talk about her latest book, Unloved: The Rejected Saints God Calls Beloved. Together they explore how God's mercy meets us in the middle of shame, rejection, and misunderstanding—and why the church desperately needs prophetic voices willing to tell the truth. With deep personal insight and decades of ministry experience, Elyse challenges us to reconsider how we view the mischaracterized women of Script...

In this powerful Summer Reading Series conversation, Safe to Hope host Julia Fillnow and Help[H]er Executive Director Ann Maree Goudzwaard sit down with therapist, author, and advocate Tabitha Westbrook to explore the sacred journey of healing after trauma. Drawing from her book, Body & Soul, Healed & Whole, Tabitha speaks candidly about sexuality, consent, coercive control, embodiment, and the intersection of theology and trauma recovery. Together, they discuss how survivors can reco...

With gentle clarity, Dr. Jim Wilder unpacks the logic of evil, the power of gratitude, and the vital role of community in healing. This conversation offers profound insight for anyone seeking to walk with others through unspeakable trauma—without losing sight of who God created us to be. SHOW NOTES: Episode 4 Self-CareEpisode 6 Dr Heather EvansArmies of Enablers by Amos N. GuioraDr Jim Wilder: Thrive conferenceThe Red Dragon Cast Down: A Redemptive Approach to the Occult and SatanismPandora P...

In one of the most difficult episodes of the season, Carya shares how ritual abuse and satanic worship were not only part of her story—but were carried out under the cover of Christian institutions. With clarity and courage, she invites listeners to reckon with the reality that evil can flourish where it should be most opposed. Her story confronts us with questions about spiritual deception, trauma, and the sacred call to protect the vulnerable. This episode bears witness to truth many would ...

With insight, compassion, and conviction, Dr Evans reminds us that change begins not with a rescue, but with relationship—and that listening is an act of justice. Show Notes: Understanding Complex Trauma and Post-Traumatic Growth in Survivors of Sex Trafficking: Foregrounding Women’s Voices for Effective Care and Prevention (Routledge Research in Women’s Mental Health) by Heather EvansIn Our First Lives by Diane LangbergVoices of Survivors Project Self-Care Resources: Christian Trauma He...

In this first part of her story, Carya offers a window into her childhood— the one outsiders saw, and the one they didn’t. Her narrative reveals how abuse and trafficking can be carefully concealed behind the mask of normalcy, community, and even “Christian” culture. As you hear her story, we urge you to listen slowly and carefully, not just with your ears, but with your heart. We begin here to challenge the illusions, to equip the church to respond to real evil, and to stand with survivors l...

How do you prepare your heart and mind to hear stories of deep suffering without becoming overwhelmed — or walking away untouched? In Self-Care with Julia and Ann Maree, we pause before beginning this season’s difficult story to talk about something equally important: how to listen well. Ann Maree is joined by licensed therapist and Help[H]er board member, Julia, to explore the weighty but necessary practice of bearing witness — not only to unimaginable trauma but also to the redemptive threa...

Recently, a well-known Christian podcast released a new series exploring topics like trauma, mental illness, and abuse—many of the same themes we're addressing this year on Safe to Hope. Understandably, some of our listeners are engaging with both, and a few have already shared how conflicted or invalidated they felt. In response, we’ve released a special bonus episode. To gently offer a different perspective—one shaped by the lived experiences of survivors and informed by experts in trauma c...

Safe To Hope is one of the resources offered through the ministry of Help[H]er, a 501C3 that provides training and resources for those ministering in one-another care, and advocacy for women in crisis in Christian organizations. Your donations make it possible for Help[H]er to serve as they navigate crises. All donations are tax-deductible. Help[H]er website Give Shop We value and respect conversations with all our guests. Opinions, viewpoints, and convictions may differ so we encourage...

This week on Safe to Hope, we talk about the process of storytelling, self-care, and grief, and why survivors need time, patience, and space to make sense of what they’ve been through. Carya shares how putting words to her story changed how she saw it, but also how she wrestles with grief and the need for lament. SHOW NOTES: Season 1 Significance of Story Season 6 Introduction (Episode 1) Season 6 Jesus is My Captain Dr Jim Wilder Resources: Thrive conference.The Red Dragon Cast Down: A...

In this episode of Safe to Hope, we meet Carya, our storyteller for Season 6. Instead of starting at the beginning of her story, we begin with where she has landed—a place of deep wrestling, but also profound hope. Through the lens of Jesus is My Captain, Carya shares the mystery of suffering, the presence of Christ in unimaginable pain, and the reality that following Him is not always safe, but it is good. Her words are a testament to the severe mercy of God, who calls us not to escape suffe...