Articles by Other Authors
From Broken to Called. There is Life After Divorce.by Brenda Senter
It was fall, and it was a beautiful night outside. Crisp air, a sky filled with stars, quiet outside, but not in my heart and mind. This time of year brought back so many memories—outdoor fires with the kids and husband, eating roasted hot dogs and s’mores. The reminder that deer season was approaching, but this year I would not be going.
I was now facing my first fall alone. My youngest daughter had left for college in July, making me an empty nester. I had moved out of my home of 24 years that spring and was going through a difficult divorce. I felt very emotional as I stepped onto the driveway of the rental home I was living in. I didn’t want to be in this position. I was 50, a grandmother, working outside the home for the first time since I was 20, and someone else had moved into the house where I had raised our children. At that moment, my heart racing, I thought to myself, “I will just go back there. I know she is there, but I could just move into the basement. The pain of this separation is hurting so badly! I will just do it!” I was thinking just like the children of Israel in the wilderness, “Just run back to Egypt.” But my saving grace was that personal, intimate, eternal relationship with God. As I stood outside, I looked up at the stars, and God said to my heart, “Brenda, I created these, and I told Abraham that his seed would be multiplied as the number of stars in heaven (Genesis 22:17). If I could do that and keep my word, Brenda, I will do the same for you.” So instead of reacting out of panic like the children of Egypt who wanted to return to Egypt and bondage, I chose to respond with trust in my Heavenly Father. That panic attack never happened again, but I was still facing one of the greatest heartbreaks and challenges in my life. Fast forward, God has been incredibly faithful. During my long, difficult divorce, I often said out loud, “Jesus, you are my best friend, and I will be okay.” And it has proven to be completely true for me. He has truly been my best friend. I’ve learned so much from living the single life, and God has blessed me in ways I never could have imagined. I realized shortly after becoming single that I had a 50% chance of being single again if I married a second time because my next husband could die. So I felt God wanted me to learn to be content as a single person. I had been so beaten down in my marriage that I didn't know who I was in Christ, or that I had value and purpose. You see, I had been told that my worth was just flipping burgers and cleaning toilets, but God had bigger plans for me. In the early years of my single life, I was placed in leadership positions in two communities. During that time, God told me to make a scrapbook of thank-you cards, pictures of me in local newspapers, and notes of encouragement I had received. God used that book to remind me that He loved me, had a plan for my life, and that I had purpose. The very first time I spoke to the city council, I spoke in front of my ex’s attorney. Wow. How did I do that? God in me was healing my heart and making me strong. I had been saved as a young adult and knew God had a calling on my life. I had been youth pastoring for 19 years, and the “D” word did not disqualify me from ministry. I began hosting a small group for singles in my home. I realized that singles really have a different life than married people… we have to get our oil changed, figure out how to pay our bills without support, find time to be a parent, take care of ourselves when we are sick, and so many other things. Those realizations opened my eyes to singles ministry, and God opened amazing doors for me. After working for a large chamber of commerce in Oklahoma, God opened a door for me to join the staff at a very big church. Here I was, with no ministry degree, divorced, yet my God still put me in a leadership role for singles. Our singles ministry expanded into small groups across Tulsa, and we hosted retreats and events, and went on mission trips. We took four mission trips to Egypt, four to launch a church ministry in Chicago, and served in various nonprofit ministries in Oklahoma. I never would have imagined that God could take a very heartbroken woman and open such wonderful opportunities to travel, see lives changed, and fulfill His calling on her life. But He did it for me and through me. I had to get “me” out of the way. I needed to continue to know Him, obey Him, and wait on Him. Single life is hard and can be lonely at times, but I have learned there truly is Life after Divorce! To enjoy and keep living that life, I have had to lean into and live for the Life Giver. Jesus really is our best friend, and everything will be okay. 
Bio: Brenda Senter has a deep heart for ministry and a powerful testimony of God’s faithfulness through life’s challenges. After walking through divorce and rebuilding her life as a single parent, she discovered healing, identity, and purpose in Christ. With over 19 years in youth ministry, she later served as the Women’s and Singles Director at BattleCreek Church in Tulsa, leading impactful ministries through groups, retreats, outreach, and mission trips. Known for her authenticity and servant leadership, Brenda is passionate about helping others find healing, discover their identity in Christ, and step into God’s calling. She believes no circumstance disqualifies someone from being used by God and that there is truly life after divorce. Contact: [email protected]
Kathy and I have had the pleasure of working with Kris of The Single Network Ministries at several events over the past three years. We always look forward to her insight and creative ways to connect with her audience sharing the Word of God with encouragement, humor and just being real. You will want to catch her for sure the next time she is in your area. Her sense of humor is a hoot and infectious. 
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What Row Are You In?by Laura Petherbridge
Last Sunday in church, I sat in the general area where I typically sit. I looked two rows over, spotted a friend, and waved hello. A few moments later, two more ladies slid into the seats next to my friend, and I thought to myself, “That’s nice that they have each other. All of them are widows; they have created their own row. I’m sure it helps them not feel so alone on a Sunday.
And within moments, the Holy Spirit impressed upon my heart, “someday that might be your row too.” Long pause. Yes, He’s right. My husband and I are both getting older. He is nine years older than I am and has several medical conditions. Therefore, it’s very possible. For the next ten minutes, my mind swirled and reminisced over the various church rows I have sat in over the last sixty-eight years. It was a journey of memories and seasons of my life, and how each season brought a new church row. The Beginning Row. For the first twenty-four years, there were wooden rows of religion. I was very good at trying please God and earn His favor. I didn’t understand most of it, but I’m good at following rules, and I gave it my best effort. Then I attended a church with my brother that was very different from my upbringing. People in my row sang with exuberance and passion, while raising their hands high into the air. I didn’t know what was happening, and I was a bit scared, but my row seemed happy about Jesus and appeared thrilled to be there. The Growth Row Shortly thereafter, I joined a more conservative church and joined the choir. Everyone in my row carried a large Bible, and we sang old hymns that I had never heard before. For the first time, I began to understand God’s Words, and I made wonderful friends in adult Sunday school classes. The old life was fading, the new heart and mind were blooming. And I invited many friends, acquaintances, and coworkers to join my row. Some said yes, others rejected the offer. Regardless, I was like a dry sponge soaking in God’s wisdom. The Weeping Row In that familiar row, I experienced an unfamiliar grief. I went through an unwanted divorce, and my once cozy row was flooded with tears. As other happy families and children filled in around me, my row now felt cold, hard, and desolate. A stark reminder that I was alone. What once was my happy place became the weeping row. It was there that a good friend held my sobbing head above the water when the devil tried to drown me with shame and grief. The Rebirth Row After a remarriage, my row was filled with a new husband and his two sons. Stepfamily living had begun. My row started to warm up as I launched a divorce recovery ministry and encouraged others who were divorced to come sit with me. The pain had a purpose. The scars served a higher calling, and it was the tears of others, and the arms of comfort filling my row. The Unfamiliar Row Seventeen years later, my husband and I went into full-time ministry. I left the intimacy, security, and comfort of my hometown row and we moved to a new city. It was very difficult to leave my precious, familiar, and contented row. Suddenly, I didn’t have anyone to say hello to, no one to invite to sit beside me. I was the newcomer. I was outside the circle. Moving was harder than I thought it would be. I longed for my established, cozy, memorable row. God was doing a new thing. I didn’t like it. The Healing Row I started leading divorce recovery ministry in our new, very large church, and suddenly I was meeting more weeping men and women than I could count. They mentioned how Sunday was the hardest day of the week. They hated coming to church alone. I told them where I sit, and that I would be in a particular row the following Sunday. I invited them to join me there. First, 3 people from the group joined our row; the following week, 8 joined. Within a month, we were filling the chairs for the entire section. It became known as “the divorce recovery rows.” The Salvation Row When that season ended, God moved us to another city and ministry. My husband was on staff at a church, but once again, I knew no one, and I was the odd man out. I decided to lead a women’s Bible study. There, I met several women who had been in church their entire life, but no one had ever told them what they had to do to know for certain they were going to heaven when they died. They knew how to be good, but they didn’t know how to find salvation for their soul. This church would not have been my first choice to attend, but God knew what row He wanted me in. He knew I needed this row; it taught me to obey. My job is to stay hidden in Christ, nothing more—nothing less. I made some great friends in that row; they have remained close to my heart. The Final Row That brings me to my current row, where I looked over and saw my widowed friend and the ladies sitting beside her. Will her row become my row one day? I don’t know. What I do know is that none of those rows has been wasted. Whether I was crying or laughing, learning, or just having fun, God has used it all. And the rows taught me to trust Him, even the ones I didn’t want to sit in. Not long ago, I went back to my hometown and attended the church that carries many memories. I sat in my old, familiar row. That day, they were baptizing kids who had accepted Jesus as their Savior. I didn’t know any of them, but suddenly I recognized their family members. The parents of those kids were the ones who came to my first divorce recovery groups. And now their children were walking into the waters of baptism. The harvest of that ministry had passed to the next generation. As I began to understand the magnitude of what was occurring, I started crying. I could barely control it. I’m sure the people sitting around me thought I was having a breakdown. They had no idea why I was suddenly a blubbering mess. God’s miraculous, marvelous joy filled my heart and mind as the Holy Spirit revealed the fruit that God multiplied from my row. It doesn’t get any better. Copyright © 2025 Laura Petherbridge. All rights reserved 
Bio: Laura Petherbridge is an author, speaker, and life coach who serves couples and single adults. She is the author of Stepfamilies of the Bible: Timeless Wisdom for Blended Families, 101 Tips for The Smart Stepmom—Expert Advice from One Stepmom to Another, and When “I Do” Becomes “I Don’t”—Practical Steps for Healing During Separation and Divorce. She is featured on FamilyLife, MomLife Today, Lifeway, Focus on the Family, and Homeward. She is a featured expert on the original DivorceCare DVD series. Her book The Smart Stepmom, has sold more than 45,000 copies and is co-authored with Ron Deal. Her website is www.TheSmartStepmom.com
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