Morgan May Treuil [00:00:00]:
Hey, everybody. Happy summer.
Morgan May Treuil [00:00:02]:
Happy summer.
Leslie Johnston [00:00:03]:
Happy summer.
Morgan May Treuil [00:00:04]:
Some of you, maybe you feel like I do and you're in your springtime mode still. Like you got allergies and you're just springtime sad. If I look like I'm just puffy, it's because my allergies are raging right now.
Leslie Johnston [00:00:16]:
Which is funny because I feel like you didn't have allergies earlier this year.
Morgan May Treuil [00:00:20]:
I know.
Leslie Johnston [00:00:20]:
It's just now where mine were earlier.
Morgan May Treuil [00:00:23]:
I get them like late spring into summertime, I feel like. But also, who knows, your allergies, they.
Leslie Johnston [00:00:28]:
Range on like, are you sick but you just have allergies or is it just allergies?
Morgan May Treuil [00:00:34]:
I think I have bad. Actually, this could be a whole thing. I think I have bad respiratory, like, systems.
Leslie Johnston [00:00:41]:
Oh, yeah.
Morgan May Treuil [00:00:41]:
So when I get allergies, I feel like it mimics, like real deal sickness.
Leslie Johnston [00:00:45]:
Or maybe I'm your child symptoms of your sickness.
Morgan May Treuil [00:00:49]:
Yes.
Leslie Johnston [00:00:50]:
Okay. Well, we posted about this on Instagram.
Morgan May Treuil [00:00:52]:
This is so exciting.
Leslie Johnston [00:00:54]:
This is like our new summer series.
Morgan May Treuil [00:00:56]:
Yes, summer series.
Leslie Johnston [00:00:57]:
Summer intro series.
Morgan May Treuil [00:00:58]:
Yeah.
Leslie Johnston [00:00:58]:
Because it's not the whole episode, but we are. We typically do unpopular opinions, obviously, but for the summer, we thought we would do kind of like a. We're throwing it back to the 90s. Like the dear Abby.
Morgan May Treuil [00:01:10]:
Yeah. Like an advice column.
Leslie Johnston [00:01:11]:
An advice column, yes. And so I call it wrong. Am I doing this wrong?
Morgan May Treuil [00:01:16]:
I love it. That's.
Leslie Johnston [00:01:17]:
Am I doing this wrong?
Morgan May Treuil [00:01:18]:
Am I doing this wrong? You send in your scenarios and it can be about anything. Like, sky is the limit.
Leslie Johnston [00:01:23]:
And it can be funny, serious.
Morgan May Treuil [00:01:25]:
Funny serious. It's completely anonymous. We're not going to talk about who you are. We won't. We'll change the names even of the people in your situations.
Leslie Johnston [00:01:32]:
Yes.
Morgan May Treuil [00:01:32]:
Les is going to read the scenario and we're going to give advice or respond or whatever. Because everyone's always asking us what we would do in these situations.
Leslie Johnston [00:01:42]:
We're like, start up solicited advice.
Morgan May Treuil [00:01:45]:
We should start up a practice for advice giving.
Leslie Johnston [00:01:47]:
Anyway. Okay, here's our first one.
Morgan May Treuil [00:01:49]:
Okay.
Leslie Johnston [00:01:50]:
She says, okay. So I'm in College in SoCal. I'm just now seeing this new guy from college, let's call him Joe. So Joe is the new boyfriend.
Morgan May Treuil [00:01:59]:
Okay.
Leslie Johnston [00:02:00]:
But my ex boyfriend from back home, let's call him Alan, keeps texting me and wanting to be a part of.
Morgan May Treuil [00:02:06]:
My life while she's with Joe.
Leslie Johnston [00:02:08]:
While she's with Joe.
Morgan May Treuil [00:02:09]:
Oh, my gosh.
Leslie Johnston [00:02:10]:
Alan broke up with me right before spring break. And when I came back home for spring or right before spring break, and when I came back home for spring break, I brought my new guy Joe around to meet my family. While Joe was leaving at 10pm at night, Alan, my ex, she says in all caps, showed up to my house and gave me a stack of letters, flowers, and all of our old stuff. I was in shock. He knew I was home from break somehow. I'm not sure what to do now. Joe is now feeling super awkward since it doesn't feel like we are over, but we are. What do I do to honor both of them?
Morgan May Treuil [00:02:45]:
Oh my gosh.
Leslie Johnston [00:02:46]:
So this all happened on spring break, so it's only been a few months. So she's, she's asking what do I do now? I, I want to honor them both. I'd love your advice.
Morgan May Treuil [00:02:56]:
This is insane.
Leslie Johnston [00:02:57]:
I, this is the type of stuff that, like, I wish would have happened to me.
Morgan May Treuil [00:03:01]:
And I know I was like, no one was ever fighting for me at my door at 10pm this is crazy. Okay, wait, so. So the facts are she's currently with Joe.
Leslie Johnston [00:03:11]:
She's with Joe.
Morgan May Treuil [00:03:11]:
Ex boyfriend, Alan. Yeah, she's seems like she's, it's going, it's going well with Joe.
Leslie Johnston [00:03:17]:
Yes.
Morgan May Treuil [00:03:18]:
Seems like it's done with Alan, like she says.
Leslie Johnston [00:03:21]:
She said Alan broke up right before spring break, so I don't know if Alan broke up with her. She broke up with Alan.
Morgan May Treuil [00:03:26]:
But she's, she says at the end of it, it's done.
Leslie Johnston [00:03:29]:
It's done.
Morgan May Treuil [00:03:30]:
So she's done with Alan, she's done.
Leslie Johnston [00:03:32]:
With Alan, and now she's with Joe.
Morgan May Treuil [00:03:34]:
But she's trying to figure out maybe.
Leslie Johnston [00:03:36]:
It'S a little quickly, right?
Morgan May Treuil [00:03:38]:
So my first thought is like, wait, how much time has passed between these two relationships? Well, wait, what do you. Well, I don't know. What do you, what do you do? What do you think?
Leslie Johnston [00:03:48]:
Well, I actually remember I was on a first date one time and I really liked the guy and my ex boyfriend, who kind of was like one of those, like, I come kind of in and out. Like I'm, I'm sometimes around, sometimes texting you, sometimes not so annoying. I had not heard from him for such a long time, right? And I, I'm literally pulling into my driveway with the guy I'm on a date with. I'm like, this was such a great date, I can't wait. Like we're probably going to start dating and I'm showing him something on my phone and, and I kid you not, 20 snapchats come through from my ex boyfriend. It's like, ding, ding, ding, ding. And I was like, oh. And I was like, I don't know.
Leslie Johnston [00:04:25]:
Like, we don't talk anymore.
Morgan May Treuil [00:04:27]:
Like, he knew that it was like.
Leslie Johnston [00:04:28]:
It was my ex boyfriend and I'm like, we don't really talk. Like, it was so awkward and I literally thought, he's never gonna call me again.
Morgan May Treuil [00:04:35]:
Oh, did he call you again?
Leslie Johnston [00:04:36]:
Yeah.
Morgan May Treuil [00:04:37]:
Okay, so I feel like the first problem is you have to decide, like, yeah. Like, okay, so it's, it's done. If, if it's done. Like, if we're, if we're moving forward under the, under the, the explanation that it's done with Alan and it's on with Joe.
Leslie Johnston [00:04:53]:
Yes.
Morgan May Treuil [00:04:54]:
Then the first thing that has to happen is you have to like, legitimately end it with Alan.
Leslie Johnston [00:05:00]:
Yes.
Morgan May Treuil [00:05:01]:
Like, end it to the point where you're like, you cannot make advances towards me anymore.
Leslie Johnston [00:05:06]:
You can't block his number.
Morgan May Treuil [00:05:07]:
Send me stuff. Because the number one priority is making sure that your current relationship is comfortable.
Leslie Johnston [00:05:13]:
Yes.
Morgan May Treuil [00:05:14]:
Not like trying to like, even the question of, like, how do I honor both? It's like, I think you honor the person that you're with and you draw a lot of boundaries with the person you're not with.
Leslie Johnston [00:05:26]:
Yes.
Morgan May Treuil [00:05:26]:
To honor the person you're with.
Leslie Johnston [00:05:28]:
Exactly. And honestly, Joe's probably more into you knowing that Alan's coming after you.
Morgan May Treuil [00:05:33]:
Right.
Leslie Johnston [00:05:34]:
Like, Joe's like, this is my. This actually works well for you, I think.
Morgan May Treuil [00:05:38]:
Yeah, no, it actually works well. So I feel like the first thing you have to do is, is sit with Joe and be like, hey, I'm really sorry, this is super uncomfortable.
Leslie Johnston [00:05:46]:
Yeah. And be nice about it. Like, yeah, I like, love you as a friend, but because we dated, probably not.
Morgan May Treuil [00:05:54]:
I love you as.
Leslie Johnston [00:05:55]:
Maybe don't say love. I appreciate you as a person, but for us both to move on. Yeah, I think you just have. You just have. And just don't text. Just call him if you have to, unless he's like a weird stalker, but just, just call him and be like, hey, this is kind of the line now. So this is. You draw the line and if he crosses the line, then you take steps to block him or whatever.
Morgan May Treuil [00:06:16]:
Yeah, that's agree. I think that's what I would say. I think that's what you do. Cuz Allan does not want to be friends. No, he's after like, he wants more. He's like trying to make his bid again. So you have to. Yeah, you have to do a phone call, cut it off completely.
Morgan May Treuil [00:06:29]:
No more calling, texting, messaging. We're not going to see each other yeah. And then you make sure that your new boyfriend is okay with all those boundaries, and then.
Leslie Johnston [00:06:38]:
Yes. Move forward and be honest with the new boyfriend.
Morgan May Treuil [00:06:41]:
Yes.
Leslie Johnston [00:06:41]:
Because if you're, like, hiding. Here. Here's the thing. I think if you hide stuff because. Not even because you're doing anything wrong, but I think if you hide stuff because you want to spare their feelings.
Morgan May Treuil [00:06:53]:
Or you're worried they're uncomfy or.
Leslie Johnston [00:06:55]:
Yes.
Morgan May Treuil [00:06:55]:
You're trying to, like, ease their stress about it.
Leslie Johnston [00:06:58]:
Yes. Then you're putting something really delicate on this. Like, it could roll off and smash. Because if they find something on your phone or they see them texting you, they're going to freak out and not trust you.
Morgan May Treuil [00:07:08]:
Yeah. Be really clear with. With the new boyfriend. These are all the things that have happened. This. This is what I was sent. This is when he was here. This is all that I know.
Morgan May Treuil [00:07:18]:
This is what I'm gonna do. Are you good with that? If the answer is yes, then you do it, and you do it exactly how I said you were gonna do it.
Leslie Johnston [00:07:24]:
Yeah.
Morgan May Treuil [00:07:24]:
And you cut it off. And if it's an ex boyfriend, where you're like, there's still feelings that maybe are at the back of my mind in this. I would do it over in person.
Leslie Johnston [00:07:34]:
Yeah.
Morgan May Treuil [00:07:34]:
Like, I would just. If you want it to be done.
Leslie Johnston [00:07:37]:
Yes.
Morgan May Treuil [00:07:38]:
Then I would. Yeah. Like, try to. Try to create as much distance as possible.
Leslie Johnston [00:07:41]:
Yeah.
Cristina Baker [00:07:42]:
Man.
Leslie Johnston [00:07:42]:
I would have loved to have the opportunity.
Morgan May Treuil [00:07:44]:
I know. No one ever did this for me. No one ever dueled over me on my front door. Crazy.
Cristina Baker [00:07:51]:
Wow.
Morgan May Treuil [00:07:52]:
Well, that was a good first one.
Leslie Johnston [00:07:53]:
That was our first segment of Am I doing this wrong?
Morgan May Treuil [00:07:55]:
Am I doing this wrong?
Leslie Johnston [00:07:56]:
Am I doing this wrong?
Morgan May Treuil [00:07:57]:
On Am I doing this right?
Leslie Johnston [00:07:58]:
So if you have a situation, you can email us@amidoingthispodcastmail.com.
Morgan May Treuil [00:08:05]:
Yep. Am I doing this podcast@gmail.com?
Leslie Johnston [00:08:08]:
Unfortunately, am I doing this right? Was taken.
Morgan May Treuil [00:08:09]:
So you could also just send us. Send us a. Send us an Instagram message, too, if you want to, and we'll change your name.
Leslie Johnston [00:08:14]:
Keep it anonymous.
Morgan May Treuil [00:08:15]:
Yeah.
Leslie Johnston [00:08:16]:
Oh, I can't wait.
Morgan May Treuil [00:08:17]:
Problem solved.
Leslie Johnston [00:08:17]:
Problem solved.
Morgan May Treuil [00:08:18]:
You're doing it right now.
Leslie Johnston [00:08:19]:
That's right. All right, let's jump into this episode.
Morgan May Treuil [00:08:23]:
I'm not. I. I don't. Yeah. I don't often hear from God in such direct ways, but the second you started talking, I was like, she is full of the holy Spirit.
Leslie Johnston [00:08:31]:
I love that.
Morgan May Treuil [00:08:32]:
Yeah, it was true.
Leslie Johnston [00:08:33]:
I hope someone says that about me some.
Morgan May Treuil [00:08:34]:
No one's ever said that about me.
Cristina Baker [00:08:35]:
I know. I was like, wow, I've never heard anybody say that. And. But also, you guys, like, make it so easy to just step right. I felt like I just like stepped into a river, so.
Morgan May Treuil [00:08:44]:
Well, we hope you feel at home because we are. This is the am I doing this right? Family. And we know that our crew is going to love you. Cristina, Tell. We'll get into all the nitty gritty details, but give us, give our listeners like the elevator pitch version of who you are, what your family's like, what you do, that kind of stuff. Like, give it to us surface level.
Cristina Baker [00:09:08]:
Yeah, let's surface. So I am currently my husband Ryan, our son Evan, our son Evan is 18. And we over the last five and a half years, almost just been creating content that just all of that came from what seemed overnight but was, it was. Nothing's ever overnight, right?
Leslie Johnston [00:09:36]:
Yeah.
Cristina Baker [00:09:36]:
So we, we have a passion to see people come out of just living complete freedom. And that came from, you know, I grew up in an atheist household. Dad was an atheist, mom non practicing Catholic. And when they got divorced, we moved to South America and I started, you know, getting into Marilyn Manson. I know I'm aging myself here, but like, you know, cutting myself and just went down that road. Ended up living in a tent on the beach with my dad at 15.
Morgan May Treuil [00:10:11]:
Wow.
Cristina Baker [00:10:11]:
Another part. And then fast forwarding was really getting heavy into drug use. And so I was apprehended one night coming home from my dealer's house and the state of Texas tried to hit me with an intent to distribute. And it was not, I was not distributing, you know, at the time. It was personally used. And I just dedicated my life to doing drugs, but I was living a double life. So I was a counselor during the day telling people how to live their life and then drugging at night, which is what my dad did. My dad had a cocaine problem when he worked in the oil field.
Cristina Baker [00:10:50]:
And a lot of people like, that's actually a problem with lawyers, doctors. We have five physicians in the family. And it's a big issue, people trying to live the life of two different people. And God absolutely has a problem with it. But I didn't know him and I had a baby and he, the Lord gave me my son to hold on to life because he knew a day would come where I would be like where I would give my life to him, but I'd open my heart to Him. So that's, that's our passion is seeing people come back into life.
Morgan May Treuil [00:11:31]:
Wow.
Cristina Baker [00:11:33]:
I know. That's like elevator not really? Elevator. But no, it's good.
Leslie Johnston [00:11:36]:
Let's dive into the surface.
Morgan May Treuil [00:11:37]:
The deepest elevator I've ever been on. That was awesome.
Leslie Johnston [00:11:40]:
I love it.
Morgan May Treuil [00:11:41]:
That was so good. Wow, that's great.
Leslie Johnston [00:11:43]:
Thank you for being so honest and jumping into your story.
Morgan May Treuil [00:11:45]:
So crazy story.
Leslie Johnston [00:11:46]:
Let's jump into it. So what, what would you say was that. So you. So you said, okay, you lived in South America for a little while. When did you come to Texas? Like when did you move back to the States?
Cristina Baker [00:11:59]:
I came back to the States when I was 15. So okay, I was in. So my mother's Paraguayan and she remarried a Bolivian man, so he, we went to his country. Now I spoke English, started learning English when I was about five years old. So my mom only spoke Spanish to us. So I could speak the language, but grammatically couldn't read, write. But you know, it comes easy to you as a kid, you know. And so I don't know what happened.
Cristina Baker [00:12:30]:
When I got to South America, it was like the divorce. It's like everything hit me with a ton of bricks and I think not knowing we were going to end up in South America. I also had sexual abuse when I was starting, like 4 years old with a not immediate family member. But probably everything started to surface there.
Leslie Johnston [00:12:53]:
Yeah.
Cristina Baker [00:12:53]:
With my parents divorce. And so I, that's where I started. A lot of people don't understand, you know, why would someone cut themselves? And you know, there's just a lot of, it's. I mean that's a whole, that's a whole thing in and of itself, but that's where it really started from childhood depression surfaced out of nowhere. Yeah. And it was kind of boiling underneath the surface for a long time. Yeah.
Leslie Johnston [00:13:19]:
So when did you, when did you hear of like. Because obviously your dad, you said was an atheist and your mom was a non practicing Catholic. At what, like what age were you like. Oh, I'm like starting to kind of hear about Jesus and this is kind of more becoming like something more in my life.
Cristina Baker [00:13:40]:
Well, actually it didn't become anything in my life until I was about to take my life, which was when I was out on Bonn. When. After I went to jail.
Morgan May Treuil [00:13:52]:
How old were you?
Cristina Baker [00:13:53]:
I. I was 23. Wow. 24 years old.
Morgan May Treuil [00:13:57]:
And you had a kid at this point. You had your kid?
Cristina Baker [00:14:00]:
Yeah, a baby.
Morgan May Treuil [00:14:01]:
Wow.
Cristina Baker [00:14:02]:
He was a baby.
Morgan May Treuil [00:14:03]:
Wow.
Leslie Johnston [00:14:03]:
Oh my gosh.
Cristina Baker [00:14:04]:
15, 16 months old. And so I, it's not like I had some sort of, you know, I went in, I was out on bond and I was sitting at my job at the University. And the night before, I just remember hearing like this voice, which I was. I was like a very prideful atheist. You know, there is no God. I didn't have a problem with Buddhists or Zoroastrians or any. Any religion. I just had a problem with Christians because I felt like I was always an agenda with Christians.
Cristina Baker [00:14:37]:
Like it's like a project or an agenda. I just felt like I was like some sort of target because when I was younger, I'm like, you know, dressing like a goth, going through these different phases of going to raves and doing drugs and. Yeah, and I felt like I was some sort of bullseye, like that one, you know, And I think that deep. The scriptures say that the moral law is written on every human heart. It's the reason why an atheist feels good about giving money to a homeless person. I mean, why, if you don't believe in any moral. There's good or evil, but yet you believe it's a good thing to give money to somebody that's homeless. So I avoided God.
Cristina Baker [00:15:23]:
I believe that every person that is running from him is because we don't want to be accountable. Why would I want to be accountable to someone for all the sin that I do? I like living the way I do, even though I'm doing this from a place of pain. And it's always the same thing with atheists or agnostics. It's like, well, how could there be a good God with all of the evil in the world? That's always the question. And I was okay with that. I'm like, well, how. And I really meant it, like, how could there be a good God when I've been raped, when I've ended up homeless, when I've ended up living in this home? A family took me in after I was on the beach with my dad. And I don't know if you guys remember the Blind side.
Cristina Baker [00:16:09]:
This movie came out around the time that I moved in. Her name is Sharon Hess and Jim Hess. And it was a week before 9 11. And she just opened the door. I was living in a motel. And she was like, welcome to our home. And she's very strong, you know, just a real tough woman. Now she was a Christian and her husband.
Cristina Baker [00:16:34]:
Her and her husband were Christians, but they weren't like, it wasn't a project to them to become a Christian like them. Wow. And that was the first time that I kind of like, experienced this. Like, you're not trying to change my views on abortion and you're not trying to change. You're like, asking me questions. Jesus did a lot of that. Like, yeah, he asked great questions. Wonderful question asker.
Cristina Baker [00:16:59]:
Because it gets people thinking.
Morgan May Treuil [00:17:01]:
Yeah.
Cristina Baker [00:17:01]:
And I believe that that's where the Lord began to plant seeds in my heart. Because my experience with Christianity had just been so. This doesn't. Because he's. If he's good, this doesn't look good, Right?
Leslie Johnston [00:17:16]:
Yeah.
Cristina Baker [00:17:16]:
And so she. I walk in, I was like. And I didn't talk much either. I had. At this point, I'd been on the beach, I'd been homeless, so I just kind of quit talking.
Morgan May Treuil [00:17:28]:
Yeah.
Cristina Baker [00:17:29]:
And so she's like, we just have two rules in our home, and the first one is, come to church with us every Sunday. I'm like. I'm, like, looking around the room, and I'm like, I'm an atheist. I don't go to church.
Morgan May Treuil [00:17:42]:
Yeah.
Cristina Baker [00:17:42]:
And my brother's bass. My brother was on an athletic scholarship there at Messiah College. The Lord's like, here I am, as he does. I call him the beach ball God. Because when you try to run from him, you're like, you keep him underwater. And he's like, colorful. Beach ball pops up, go away.
Morgan May Treuil [00:18:04]:
Yeah.
Cristina Baker [00:18:04]:
You know.
Morgan May Treuil [00:18:05]:
Yeah.
Cristina Baker [00:18:06]:
Avoid him until you just can't anymore.
Morgan May Treuil [00:18:07]:
Yeah.
Cristina Baker [00:18:08]:
And she said, and your curfew is 11. I'm like, I can do the 11 o' clock curfew. I just want a warm bed to sleep in. But the church part, I can't do. But I remember looking at my brother's coach, who was the one that went to the church and said, hey, there's a girl. She needs somewhere to stay. And this couple stands up, and they were like, we'll take her. And it was a staff meeting.
Cristina Baker [00:18:33]:
And they're like, well, you need to know. They're like, no, we'll take her. And Jim always said he wanted a daughter. Like, boy, you gotta. We joke about that to this day. It's like, he's like, I always wanted a daughter. I'm like, well, you sure signed up for an adventure.
Leslie Johnston [00:18:50]:
Yeah.
Morgan May Treuil [00:18:51]:
How long did you stay with them?
Cristina Baker [00:18:53]:
Three years. I graduated high school, started going to college, and then, you know, that thing in me, like, I was still smoking cigarettes and doing that, but I was, like, keeping it kind of at bay. But when I graduated from high school, started going to college, I was like, I just want to do whatever I want to do. And so that's. I mean, I just went just from the top of the mountain to the depths of, like. Because you start off with, like, smoking some weed, drinking for Me, it was like drinking at 14. You know, in Bolivia, there's no drinking age. I'm drinking, I'm playing in a band.
Cristina Baker [00:19:34]:
And that's when I got kicked out. My mom, my stepdad, was the one that made the decision to send me with my dad, who I hadn't seen in 10 years.
Morgan May Treuil [00:19:40]:
Right.
Cristina Baker [00:19:42]:
So, you know, and that's how we ended up in Hawaii. But she told me, she was like, if you keep living like this, you can't stay in our home. And I left. And that's when. That's like when the. The beginning. I say the beginning of the end. But it was like the beginning of just extreme drug use and overdoses and selling drugs, doing drugs, and just living that life just because you keep going deeper.
Morgan May Treuil [00:20:11]:
Yeah.
Leslie Johnston [00:20:11]:
Yeah.
Cristina Baker [00:20:12]:
It's a snowball coming down the mountain. You just. And that's the way sin is. It's not something that you can just like, contain.
Morgan May Treuil [00:20:18]:
Yeah.
Cristina Baker [00:20:18]:
Just gross.
Morgan May Treuil [00:20:19]:
I saw something online.
Cristina Baker [00:20:20]:
You've got this monster. It's out of control.
Leslie Johnston [00:20:22]:
Yeah.
Morgan May Treuil [00:20:23]:
Yeah. I saw something online two days ago that said sin feels like freedom until you try to get out or to stop. And I was like, that's really interesting because you're right. There's like a part of it at first that feels like I get to do whatever I want. I am in charge of my own self and my own body and my own choices. And then you try to get out and you realize that you're actually enslaved to something and you're trapped to something, and you just didn't know that when you were making all of your choices before. It's crazy how it does that.
Cristina Baker [00:20:50]:
It's powerful. Gives me tales to how. Like, that's exactly. So you. You. It makes you feel like. And it doesn't matter if it's drugs, alcohol. I mean, you go into it feeling like I have control over this, and it's the opposite.
Morgan May Treuil [00:21:06]:
Yeah.
Cristina Baker [00:21:06]:
That's the lie.
Morgan May Treuil [00:21:07]:
Yeah.
Cristina Baker [00:21:08]:
Is that you actually are. The minute you take. You make that decision to step into, fill in the blank. I mean, it could be gambling. It could just. And when I say gambling, I mean, like, this is. This is that thing for you that fills that area that only God can fill.
Morgan May Treuil [00:21:23]:
Yeah.
Cristina Baker [00:21:24]:
Whatever that is. And you think you have some sort of control over it, but what's really happening is the complete. You're now becoming a slave. And as each day, each hours passes, you are becoming more deeply enslaved to that.
Morgan May Treuil [00:21:40]:
Wow. Yeah.
Cristina Baker [00:21:41]:
And then when you're like. Like you said, you're like, I'm completely hog tied And I can't move.
Morgan May Treuil [00:21:47]:
Wow.
Leslie Johnston [00:21:48]:
So walk us through then. What? When you kind of hit your, let's say, like, rock bottom, when you. What was like, the moment you're like, oh, I need. I need to change or. What was that kind of transformative moment like for you?
Cristina Baker [00:22:06]:
You know, I. One of the reasons I long to hear and see people know for themselves that they can hear the voice of God is because Jesus said, my sheep hear my voice and that of a stranger they will not follow. When I was sitting at my desk and the night before, I was like, I picked up a pistol. I was so. I was shaking so much, it scared me. So I put it down. And the next day I'm like, sitting at my desk and I'm like, I just take a bunch of pills and do this the easy way. And I'm contemplating this while hearing a voice saying, evan will be better off without you.
Morgan May Treuil [00:22:51]:
Wow.
Cristina Baker [00:22:51]:
And I'm like, I'm like partnering, agreeing with this, because I felt like it was true. It was like, there's another reason why we have to be so careful. Like, it sounds like our voice. Right, Right. But those lies also, they come at the speed of thought. And you just think it's you. Really. There's some, you know, the voice of the enemy is just speaking to you, and you're just coming into agreement with this.
Cristina Baker [00:23:16]:
And agreement's a very. It's very powerful. And so I'm. I mean, I'm like, I've made my decision that I got a tap on the shoulder and it's. I knew he was like a part time pastor. I always stayed away from him at the. And he said, I have a word. He's like, hey, Cristina, I have a word from the Lord for you.
Cristina Baker [00:23:37]:
And I'm like, like what?
Morgan May Treuil [00:23:40]:
Yeah.
Cristina Baker [00:23:40]:
Cuz like, that's like, I. I never heard people or anybody say something like that. And in. In the Christian world, that might sound normal, but I'd never heard anybody say that. I'm like, who? But then I thought, how did he know what I was just thinking?
Morgan May Treuil [00:24:00]:
Wow.
Cristina Baker [00:24:00]:
That's what. That's what brought me in. Yeah. And he said, we have prayer meetings every day on the third floor in the break room. We want to invite you out. I didn't know they had been praying for me for a long time. Wow. So the secular university.
Cristina Baker [00:24:14]:
And they, like, the Lord highlighted me to them months before. And it was at this moment where he was like, I'm gonna have a word from the Lord for her. And I'm like. And that's the only reason I went was because that thought. How did he know what I was about to do? Who knows? My thoughts in my mind, it's like, well, who would know my thoughts?
Morgan May Treuil [00:24:38]:
Yeah.
Cristina Baker [00:24:39]:
I may be a tarot card reader. Probably the only thing I would think at that point in my life.
Leslie Johnston [00:24:44]:
Yeah.
Cristina Baker [00:24:45]:
And so I walk into this break room and I had this. When I saw them, they were, like, pacing the floor, praying. And I was like. That thought captivated me. Was like, if there is a God, these people have come face to face with him. Because they were talking to him like a friend beside the things like. Like they know him.
Morgan May Treuil [00:25:06]:
Yeah.
Cristina Baker [00:25:08]:
And it just felt very real. It felt real. I. I don't know what made me feel that. It was. I knew I was. Whatever this was, it felt real. For the first time in my life, I had seen something real.
Morgan May Treuil [00:25:22]:
Wow.
Cristina Baker [00:25:23]:
I had never seen anything real. And for me, real was who they were. They weren't. It was just there was this sincerity in their words and their prayers, as if they were talking to their best friend. And so this man, Hope, he had his Bible open. He said, like, they put their hands on me. I was like, oh, gosh, it's getting weirder by the moment here. But, you know, you don't want to be rude.
Cristina Baker [00:25:56]:
So I was kind of like. So he says, he reads out of Jeremiah 29 and 11. And he said, this is a matter of life or death. And I'm like, in my mind, because I had my eyes closed, I'm thinking I, like, saw myself dying in a car accident. I didn't know why that felt so real. I was driving home drunk Monday through Monday, so. But there was something about this that felt real. And the proximity felt close.
Cristina Baker [00:26:31]:
Right. The thought of, why do I feel like this is going to happen tonight or tomorrow? Just this feels really close. And I'm being warned of something. I don't know why I had that thought. And then he said, do you want to accept Jesus into your heart? And I didn't pray a sinner's prayer. I mean, I was just kind of, like, very suspect, really. I was like. But very broken.
Cristina Baker [00:26:56]:
And I just said, jesus, whoever you are. I mean, they call you Jesus. Like, come into my heart, save my life. Save my baby.
Morgan May Treuil [00:27:07]:
Wow.
Cristina Baker [00:27:07]:
And then that's. I just felt this. And I know this doesn't happen for everybody. It happened for me. One was the peace. It was like this immediate peace, but just felt this something, someone filled me. I was touched in that moment.
Morgan May Treuil [00:27:23]:
Yeah.
Cristina Baker [00:27:24]:
Wow. And I'm like, I'm sober, and I don't know how I'm sober, but I feel peaceful. I don't feel. It's like, turmoil and the weights and the boulders I had been carrying around for all my life, it's like somebody just came and, like, took them off. I don't. There really isn't a just humanly descriptive way to what I encountered in that moment, other than I knew that this was real and I knew nothing about Jesus, but my heart was just set on fire. Like, it was just burning in my heart of, like, you've been here this whole time, and I didn't know you were there. And I don't know if you've ever seen those, like, A and E episodes where people are reunited with their children, but it was like this little by little, like a father, like a child with their father, father with their child.
Cristina Baker [00:28:20]:
Of, like, we've been separated for so long. Like, I don't know everything about you, what makes you happy, glad, sad. And I was like this reunited, but. But I never knew you. You know me. I. I don't know you. Like, who are you? And so the Lord just began wooing me.
Cristina Baker [00:28:38]:
It was a. I, you know, everybody's got their own style. I would have never responded to, you're a drug addict. You know, you're a loser. I already knew I was. I knew I was a sinner, and I knew I had already experienced all that. What I hadn't experienced was this, like, love of, like, I love you. Yeah, you need to change your.
Cristina Baker [00:29:00]:
Like, I had people discipling me and walking with me, which I believe was absolutely key in my life, but. But I didn't have this I love you for I love you. I'm not gonna leave you where you are.
Morgan May Treuil [00:29:13]:
Yeah.
Cristina Baker [00:29:14]:
But let me just show you how much I love you.
Morgan May Treuil [00:29:16]:
Yeah.
Cristina Baker [00:29:16]:
And how the Lord began to use his people. And he would send the angels with skin on, you know, to do things for me that people that I just so desperately need. I got evicted from my apartment, and I would have people say, you know, here's. Here's, you know, some money for. And I had just been, like, praying about it a minute before. So. It's like a baby, you know, that. That first year you come to the Lord, it's like, ask whatever, because the Lord's gonna give it to you.
Cristina Baker [00:29:45]:
You know, he was just revealing his heart and that passionate love that. I'm like, I'm in love. I'm in love with you. You're beautiful like you are. I was looking for you in the drugs I was looking for, in everything that I was doing. And here you were. All this time. I just want to make up for all this missed time.
Morgan May Treuil [00:30:08]:
Yeah.
Cristina Baker [00:30:08]:
Yeah. And then all the while, you know, he's cleaning you up, cleaning me up, and he's. He's sending people that really loved him. They loved him so much that they. That they made it their life's mission to see me make it through that phase of my life where I was on. You know, you're literally on the brink of life and death.
Morgan May Treuil [00:30:30]:
That's incredible. It's. It's. Yeah, it's cool to think through, and I. You know, we're getting a snapshot. You got to live it. But all the seeds that were planted along the way, the family that brought you in and let you exist in the same, you know, space as their relationship with God. And then, you know, the college experience that.
Morgan May Treuil [00:30:54]:
Where you were brought to the end of yourself, and at the end of yourself, you find God, and it changes everything. And it just. It brings. It brings out so much more perspective for you. And it's clear, both in how you communicate and also in your story, that you're really passionate about people that feel like they're at the end of themselves and the end of their rope and that are really kind of consumed by their own brokenness. You are passionate about people knowing that there is freedom out there. How do you feel? Like, I mean, obviously you don't. No one ever wishes for all the broken things that happened to them to happen to them.
Morgan May Treuil [00:31:36]:
But you do know that resilience is built out of the kinds of things that you've been through. And I'm just curious, like, how. How has your ministry strategy towards people changed because of what you've been through? Like, how does what you've been through change how you talk to people about Jesus and how you are in relationship with non Christians or drug addicts or homeless people? Like, I. I just. I'm curious because everybody comes to it from their own experiences, and you have so many experiences that apply to so many different people.
Leslie Johnston [00:32:08]:
Yeah, I like what you've said about growing up. You were almost, like, repelled by Christians because you felt like they viewed you as like. Like a project or a bullseye target. So what I love. I know I was gonna ask literally the same question. I'm like, how do you. How do you treat people now so that they don't feel that way?
Morgan May Treuil [00:32:27]:
Yeah. Yeah, that's a good company.
Leslie Johnston [00:32:29]:
And how can other people learn from that? Because that is, like, the Opposite. As a Christian, when you do love God, you want people to feel God's love. So I'm curious how you have taken that negative experience growing up and turned it to how you treat people now.
Cristina Baker [00:32:46]:
Yeah, So I just take the approach that worked with me. I only know from my experience, and I look at the life of Jesus and I have this question of what made the. What is it? We kind of jump over it of like, well, he hung out with tax collectors and he hung out with sinners. But I've been in seminary over the last 18 months, and I had this question last semester. The professor of Messianic rabbi was posing this question of like, you know, people think that the tax collectors and the sinners of that society were, like, outcasts, but they weren't.
Morgan May Treuil [00:33:35]:
Huh?
Cristina Baker [00:33:35]:
What was it about the Lord Jesus that they like to spend time with him?
Morgan May Treuil [00:33:43]:
Right?
Cristina Baker [00:33:43]:
Because I've heard the. They shouldn't be comfortable. People shouldn't be comfortable around you if you're a Christian and they're not a Christian. But I. I beg to differ because I believe that he. When we look at people as a person that is made in the image of God, I don't know if, like, okay, the books of life, right? I don't know if that person is on page two or on page 564. And so I'm looking at that person as. I just.
Cristina Baker [00:34:19]:
I meet people where they are and whatever and however they are presented to me in that moment, and whether they're a Christian or not. If Jesus gave his life, the Son of God gave his life for that person, be it a Satanist, a Buddhist, a whoever, then if the Son of God saw value in that one person, that he would have gone to the cross for just you or me, like one person. And then I should do the same too. And I should be able to view that person not as like, ooh, we're gonna bring another person to church, or gonna check off another person. And these are all wonderful things. Taking people to church. That's. That's a separate thing.
Cristina Baker [00:35:06]:
But. But it's seeing people as people. And I love to ask the Lord, I'm like, lord, what do you love about this person? Yeah. What do you furiously. Because, number one, they're made in your image. But what do you love about them? Because most people don't love a lot about themselves. Yeah, most people I talk to is like the first. It's always about the shame and the guilt and whether they believe in God or not.
Cristina Baker [00:35:33]:
In fact, a lot of Christians struggle With that more so sometimes I find with guilt and condemnation and shame, and we've been set free, but that's a separate topic. But we have to meet people where they are. And the question always in a person who doesn't know Jesus is, well, really, I think it's the question of humanity. Will you love me at my worst? Like, do you like me for me? Will you love me at my worst? Will you love me at my best? Will you love me at everything in between? And when we represent the Lord and we're his ambassadors out there and everywhere, beginning in our homes, then the answer to that question should be yes. And what I love about the Word of God is that the scriptures say that His Word will not return void, but it'll do what it's set out to. Like, it's going to do it. So there's no pressure on us to, like, we got to do this and we got to do that. You speak His Word, and we believe that His Word will do what it's set out to do.
Cristina Baker [00:36:39]:
It's like, no pressure on me. So if the person spits in my face or, you know, I don't want to hear your Christian, whatever. We've all gotten that in some way, shape or form. That's okay. Because it's a seed. And people planted those seeds in my life for a very long time until that seed finally died in the garden of my heart. And the Lord brought that thing out like a beanstalk harvest, especially in the. You know, Sharon and Jim.
Cristina Baker [00:37:08]:
Like, I remember when she flew out, she, like, knocked on my door. I didn't know she had just opened my door. She's like, I just had to see this for myself. You imagine she had watched me through those years and there was no sign, if anything, I was getting worse. So a lot of times, people get very discouraged when they're ministering, evangelizing. It's like, gosh, I've been at this 10 years, 20 years, and they're getting worse. No, what's probably happening is what happened with Jesus with the winnowing fork in the temple. He goes in and, you know, flipping tables.
Cristina Baker [00:37:40]:
But Jesus, that was a picture of the Holy Spirit coming into the temple and removing the idolatry, right? Because when we start to pray for people, the Holy Spirit comes to remove things, and it looks like it's getting worse. They're like, ah.
Leslie Johnston [00:37:55]:
You're like.
Cristina Baker [00:37:55]:
And the devil's like, they're getting worse. And you're like, yeah, let's stop praying. No, that's like, your Sign like keep praying.
Leslie Johnston [00:38:01]:
Yeah.
Cristina Baker [00:38:01]:
Because things are getting dealt with. God's dealing with whatever got them in the first place to begin with.
Morgan May Treuil [00:38:08]:
Yeah.
Cristina Baker [00:38:08]:
And that's why I'm like, man, we just, I would say like prejudice. Prayer is like a sledgehammer. You, you, you take it, you know, you hit the concrete and you don't see the top of the surface breaking, but underneath the molecular structure of the concrete is starting to break down. Until one day there's that strike. You're like, whoa, there it is.
Leslie Johnston [00:38:27]:
Yeah.
Cristina Baker [00:38:28]:
The word of God is powerful. It's sharp, quick, it's sharper than any two edged sword. So even if you don't see it yet, there will be, there will be hardness. We just have to believe that. Yeah, I just believe. We go from believing to know that to knowing.
Morgan May Treuil [00:38:47]:
I feel inspired and I, I don't know that I thought about it this way before you said it, but there, there are two instances in your story, and I'm sure there are more than two that I hear that made me feel like God was specifically interested in you. Right. Like it's the whole, like, you know, we, we know that God carries the whole world and he's got all, all non Christians and Christians on his mind at the same time. But I still think it surprises me sometimes that God takes the time to do something that's just for me. And there were two instances that you talked about. The first would be when that couple stood up in church and was like, we'll take her in. That felt so like, yeah, her, we want her, we always wanted a daughter. We want her to come into our home.
Morgan May Treuil [00:39:33]:
This is where she will live. And then it's when the guy, the part time pastor comes up and taps you on the shoulder and it's like, I have a word from God for you. And they had been praying for you because you had been highlighted on their hearts. And it's like that changes for me at least how I pray for non Christians around me because I don't think that I remember how much God specifically knows and draws and cares for individual people. Like it's individual stories. Because my story was an individual story and your story was an individual story and yours was. And it's like, I think we forget a little bit since like we, we think masses go therefore and preach the gospel to all nations. And we, we focus a lot on all right, like maximize the kingdom effort, make sure we say it to as many people as we can.
Morgan May Treuil [00:40:25]:
And there's, there's validity in that. And, and it's Necessary. But there's also like a 99:1 part of God that I. I would be curious to change my own prayer approach when I'm praying for non Christians. Like, yeah, God, what is it that you love about them? What's the thing that I can be praying for? Like, what's the way they could meet you that I could pray for? Because your story was God was so clear about you. He's like, I want her. And then he went after you. Yeah, I'm just inspired by that because I don't necessarily think that way for non Christians in my life.
Leslie Johnston [00:41:00]:
Yeah. I've also never heard it said this way. And, and how you said it, I feel like will stick with me for a long time. But you talked about how you said I was actually looking for God in the drugs. I was looking for God in the decisions I was making, which makes me feel like, number one, how we view other people. Like, a lot of times I feel like, especially as Christians, it's so quick for people to judge, like, someone's motive for why they're doing what they're doing, but really, if you, like, strip it all down, we're all just trying to seek, everyone's searching something so true, which is actually God at the end of it.
Morgan May Treuil [00:41:38]:
Yeah.
Leslie Johnston [00:41:38]:
And it also gives us more compassion for ourselves because when we mess up, when we make mistakes, it's like, not that we're trying to give excuses for it, but more in like, oh, I. I can recognize in myself what I'm trying to do is I'm trying to fill a void that only God can fill. So I need to like, re. Center myself back to that, which I just think is so cool. And I just had never thought about it like that before.
Morgan May Treuil [00:42:03]:
Yeah. Yeah. That's your. Your story has so many little things about God's character that are popping up. For me. I. I'm curious what happened next. So you're.
Morgan May Treuil [00:42:13]:
You're at the point in your life where you're like, I'm meeting Jesus. I'm falling in love with him. Evan is how old? A year. More than a year.
Cristina Baker [00:42:21]:
A little older? Yeah, a little bit older.
Morgan May Treuil [00:42:23]:
And at what point do you meet your husband?
Cristina Baker [00:42:29]:
Well, he said actually wasn't too much longer after that. Because God really, I never even wanted to be married or have kids or any. That was never anything I wanted to do.
Morgan May Treuil [00:42:39]:
Yeah.
Cristina Baker [00:42:40]:
But when God, I always tell people, I'm like, for me, I. I just think that if God puts a desire in somebody's heart to get married, it's godly. Yeah, I really do. I'm like, it's not just a church thing. I was like, God put that desire in your heart to be. To have a husband or wife or whatever, so. So he wants this for you, but just gotta wait on the right one, you know? And I actually. Yeah, that's another topic on its own.
Cristina Baker [00:43:07]:
But I. I met Ryan shortly. So Ryan is like, the opposite. He's homeschooled, never had, like, a girlfriend. Oh, my gosh.
Morgan May Treuil [00:43:17]:
You're like, I don't know how this is gonna mess.
Cristina Baker [00:43:20]:
Was this kind of, like. I don't know. But he. He loves the Lord. Like, he had this crazy. I was always intrigued at how people could love God without, like, going to jail. I'm like, how do you know God without. This is weird.
Cristina Baker [00:43:36]:
I actually asked someone I was. I love to ask people. For me, it's quite. Because our son has grown up like Ryan, and. And he has a question. He's like, what was wrong with you?
Morgan May Treuil [00:43:46]:
Oh, my gosh.
Cristina Baker [00:43:47]:
You know, I share more stories with him that are a little bit more age appropriate, and he's like, what was. What was wrong with you? Like, he's trying to counsel me. I'm like, excuse me.
Leslie Johnston [00:43:58]:
You know, hey, listen.
Cristina Baker [00:44:01]:
I'm like. And, you know, you mentioned about the. About the one, and that's when you. We realize that he would have just gone to the cross, Leslie, if it would. You were the only person in all of history, past, present, and future that would have chosen him. You, Morgan.
Morgan May Treuil [00:44:21]:
Yeah.
Cristina Baker [00:44:22]:
Or anybody listening or watching. It's like he would have done it just for you.
Morgan May Treuil [00:44:26]:
Yeah.
Cristina Baker [00:44:26]:
There was, like, no guarantee. And he's not like this. We see that sometimes. Like, this blank. It's not a blanket love.
Morgan May Treuil [00:44:33]:
Mm.
Cristina Baker [00:44:34]:
It's a. It's personal. It's. Look at me. And that. I had this moment with the Lord at a church here in downtown Dallas, and I remember I was, like, in worship. And I'm looking at him, and I'm like, lord, you see right through me. I could just see him, just sense the Lord in worship, how he could just see right through me.
Cristina Baker [00:44:56]:
Every motive, every intention, my heart, my thoughts, everything, all at once. And I just felt that nudge from him of, like, Cristina, you can see right through me, too. And that broke me. Like, I lost it and how and why. It sounds simple and kind of like, yeah, of course you can see. But to me, in that moment, after all these years, it was like that invitation to see right through you, too. Like, you want me to see through. Because we see through his heart.
Cristina Baker [00:45:27]:
And there's. It's beauty. It's utter beauty. And he sees through us. And to him, it's utter beauty, too.
Morgan May Treuil [00:45:35]:
Yeah.
Cristina Baker [00:45:36]:
Because when the Father looks at us, he sees his son, and we see ourselves. All the mistakes you can think of, but the reality of it is all of us can think about, like, the worst things we've done in our life is where God has blessed us the most. And that's his way of saying, how much I love you. Yeah, it's like my love just goes to the depths. And that's why David said, you know, I make my bed in hell. There you are. And that invitation for us to see right through him. When we would.
Cristina Baker [00:46:09]:
We. We started traveling after 2020, and my. I started realizing, you know, people would come up to the altar for prayer, and I would say, I want people to have. Say, well, I need prayer for xyz. And so I'll say, well, if God healed you right now of this depression, what would that look like for you? Because people perish without a lack of knowledge. Vision really is the word. So vision. And that vision that we see in the Word of God produces faith in us.
Cristina Baker [00:46:40]:
And I'd say, you know, we'll look at the Lord. And people could not look. I don't know what I'm looking at. Or, well, do you see him? And they just feel the anger, right? Because there's like a. There's something they see. Maybe a parent or, you know, someone in their life that represented God to them, let them down. And it's hard to look into his eyes. But the Scriptures tell us one thing about the eyes of Jesus.
Cristina Baker [00:47:05]:
Not that they're blue or brown, Middle Eastern man, but none of that. Eyes of fire. His eyes that are like fire. John the Revelator is saying this. You know, the eyes of fire, hair like wool. The voice of many waters speaking of, like, his voice having no end and his wisdom. And the eyes that look at us and burn away all of the things that we think disqualify us and sanctify us and make us look just like him. Because we become what we behold.
Cristina Baker [00:47:39]:
So when we look at him, you know, even then is in. In the wilderness. They would have to look at the bronze serpent. A picture of who? Jesus. Jesus. That was a foreshadowing of what would come. But that's what happened to me was like, I felt completely rejected, the outcast. And then I was met with this man.
Cristina Baker [00:48:06]:
And I'm like, who is this man? I didn't go to church for four or five months. And then this group were like, okay, it's time for you to gather with the body. Like, not in this break room anymore. I'm like, but I like it here, you know? And so I. Church. The church came to me. I always felt like if I went into a church, I'd get, like, struck by lightning. And then I'm like, they came to me first.
Cristina Baker [00:48:28]:
And I would find Jesus on my knees alone. Sometimes people wouldn't come. We called it PT Prayer time. And I would find him on my knees and I would just look at him. And Paul said, when he's standing in a Roman prison and with a very well developed sewage system, standing probably in about three and a half, four feet of human excrement, and he's saying, set your eyes not on things. That's the translation is sun capitalist. Set your eyes on the sun that is above and not below, because, you know, a lot of poop down here. But when you look up everything that you need, that's what got him through that.
Cristina Baker [00:49:06]:
And there were prisoners dying all around him. But he looked. Looked up, saw the sun. And that's where he was able to endure and be healed and walk through everything that he was going through, being in chains 23 hours a day. So rest isn't found in, like, these mountaintop experiences. I believe God starts to teach us, like, rest is in me. You might be in a valley the rest of your life like Paul was, but find your rest in me, because that's where the shalom, the peace of God that passes all understanding, guards our hearts and minds in Him. Yeah.
Leslie Johnston [00:49:41]:
Wow.
Morgan May Treuil [00:49:42]:
So good.
Leslie Johnston [00:49:43]:
Cristina, this was incredible. I feel like we could probably talk to you for, honestly, multiple hours because I just feel like we're getting a glimpse of, like, just such, like, a pure love for the Lord and. And, like, being able to see him and. And feeling inspired. Like, I think a lot of times when we're in, like, the trenches of ministry and doing all of that, sometimes you almost get sidetracked from, like, your own individual, like, relationship and love, like, with God.
Morgan May Treuil [00:50:13]:
Yeah.
Leslie Johnston [00:50:14]:
And I feel like this. I hope this has inspired a lot of other people too, because I feel like, for me, it was a really good reminder of, like, oh, no. God sees you. He can use, like, the things in your past. Like, things don't happen on accident or for no reason. It's like he has such, like, a bigger plan and, like, the way when you let yourself feel the love of God, how that can, like, truly transform your life.
Morgan May Treuil [00:50:40]:
Yeah. Yeah, yeah. My prayer for this episode is that people would listen to it and they would feel freedom and they would feel God's very specific love for them, and then they would maybe send it to someone that they were excited about, like them hearing your story and the way that God met you. Yeah, I just. I get excited. I. Your. Your story and you sharing your story has been so impactful for us.
Morgan May Treuil [00:51:06]:
So thank you for.
Leslie Johnston [00:51:07]:
Yeah.
Morgan May Treuil [00:51:08]:
For taking your time to come on and thank you. Thank you for how you've grown with Jesus and for sharing your love of Jesus with us. It's so special how.
Leslie Johnston [00:51:18]:
Tell our listeners how they can connect with you, like, on social media and books and all that type of stuff if they want to, like, follow along and be inspired more often.
Cristina Baker [00:51:28]:
Yeah, well, Cristina Baker. No H. I would say that.
Morgan May Treuil [00:51:32]:
No H, no H. That's important because I tried the H and I was like, where's Cristina?
Cristina Baker [00:51:36]:
No H, no H. There is Cristina Baker who's in. She writes novels. And so she has an H in her name, but Titan, TikTok, Instagram, Facebook.
Leslie Johnston [00:51:49]:
Great.
Cristina Baker [00:51:49]:
I am not on Twitter. Whatever. Twitter.
Leslie Johnston [00:51:52]:
Yeah, whatever it is now, honestly, whatever. Neither am I.
Cristina Baker [00:51:55]:
No.
Morgan May Treuil [00:51:56]:
No.
Cristina Baker [00:51:56]:
Okay. There's too many. But@christinabaker.com if for anybody has a prayer request, you don't have to submit your name. You can submit it anonymously. And we pray over every prayer request. And it means that's what we love. That's what we love the most. And so.
Cristina Baker [00:52:16]:
Yeah. So anywhere on social media. And my second book is coming out in a couple weeks. It's called A Minute of Hope. And actually that book was written from that encounter that I had in worship of, like, the Lord inviting me and, like, look through me. So it's like, it's a hundred prayers, but it's. It's just that invitation. Come look at me.
Morgan May Treuil [00:52:41]:
And they can. They can pre order that book. Yes. Okay.
Cristina Baker [00:52:46]:
Comes out June 17th.
Morgan May Treuil [00:52:47]:
Oh, not long from now, then.
Cristina Baker [00:52:48]:
That's perfect.
Morgan May Treuil [00:52:50]:
You have a first book too, called.
Cristina Baker [00:52:53]:
Yes.
Morgan May Treuil [00:52:53]:
What is it called?
Cristina Baker [00:52:54]:
Hope in 60 seconds. Encountering the God of the Impossible. So it's like just. It's coming to the Lord. We talked about today. Just coming to the Lord and the Lord. Like, every. Every impossible situation, it was like the Lord was like, challenge accepted.
Morgan May Treuil [00:53:10]:
I love it.
Cristina Baker [00:53:11]:
Had a brain tumor. I had a brain tumor. Shortly. Well, I dealt with that shortly after I came to the Lord and, you know, through death and tragedy and sickness and drugs and jail, and then the moment I'm supposed to go to jail, the judge dismisses the case and I go free and I wreck my records. Expunge. It's like, I'm like the woman at the well. I'm like, I got to tell everybody about this, man. Yeah.
Cristina Baker [00:53:36]:
That has set me free.
Morgan May Treuil [00:53:38]:
Wow.
Leslie Johnston [00:53:39]:
Oh, my gosh.
Morgan May Treuil [00:53:40]:
So go order both of those.
Cristina Baker [00:53:41]:
I want people to know the worst parts, because then when we're vulnerable, I really believe that we're in a time now that the only way forward is vulnerability.
Morgan May Treuil [00:53:49]:
Yeah, yeah.
Cristina Baker [00:53:50]:
Open up your coat, show your scars, and even show the wounds that are still bleeding. I like to do that. I'm like, this is still bleeding. Yeah, but it'll heal.
Morgan May Treuil [00:54:00]:
Yeah, yeah. And the common denominator of humanity is. Is the depths of brokenness. So as. As honest as you're willing to get about that, that is where people feel like that makes sense to me.
Leslie Johnston [00:54:14]:
Yes.
Morgan May Treuil [00:54:15]:
So that's so good.
Leslie Johnston [00:54:16]:
Yeah. People don't want to hear your best success stories on your best day, because, I mean, sometimes those can be inspiring. But I feel like people in their heart of hearts want to go, oh, good, I'm not the only one, you know, There it is. So good.
Cristina Baker [00:54:31]:
Or, like, I would look at people when I first came to the Lord, I'm like, yeah, but how did you get there? Yeah, I want to know how you got there. Like, how. What depth of that of a pit did you have to sit in maybe for years upon end to say those words? Yeah, I want to know that part.
Morgan May Treuil [00:54:49]:
Yeah, yeah, yeah. Wow. So good, Cristina. Thank you so much.
Cristina Baker [00:54:54]:
Oh, ladies, this is awesome.
Morgan May Treuil [00:54:56]:
So good.
Leslie Johnston [00:54:56]:
Yes. Go pre order her book, follow her on TikTok. She does prayers on there, and there's so many incredible things that are going on. So, Cristina, thank you so much for joining us. We hope this isn't the last time we get to chat with you. I'm sure there's a hundred more podcasts we could do with you to go.
Morgan May Treuil [00:55:12]:
Yeah.
Leslie Johnston [00:55:12]:
Deep diver, deep into your story. So thank you so much.
Cristina Baker [00:55:15]:
I'll be in Folsom, so.
Leslie Johnston [00:55:16]:
That's right.
Cristina Baker [00:55:17]:
Cool.
Morgan May Treuil [00:55:17]:
Yeah.
Leslie Johnston [00:55:17]:
Tell us you're in Folsom, Cristina, thank you so much. Thank you for everyone listening, and we will see you next Monday on Am I Doing this right?
Morgan May Treuil [00:55:26]:
Bye.