Above the Clouds Podcast

Grief Needs No Fixing. Grief Needs Holding. Part 2: The Surrender

Have you ever asked God for a miracle and heard Him say no? Welcome back to Above the Clouds. I'm Charldene, and this is Part 2 of my conversation with Marcia Earhart, a mother who buried two sons and is still standing. This episode goes deeper. Past the knock on the door. Into the aftermath. Into the long, slow work of rebuilding a life when everything has died. In this episode, Marcia takes us into the moments she's never shared publicly. What it felt like to walk away from Sterling's body and not look back. The spiritual battle that surrounded Mark's funeral. The friends who disappeared. The family members who didn't show up. And the holy, painful process of letting everything die, her marriage, her identity, her old life, so God could resurrect something new. We talk about what it means to grieve with hope when the hope doesn't feel hopeful. The difference between mourning and grieving. Why she doesn't say "I lost my sons", she says "I still have them." And the sacred truth she learned: she is closer to Sterling and Mark now than if they were still alive, because their spirits abide together in Christ. I also share more of my own story in this episode. The betrayal that cost me everything. The hard decisions I had to make between motherhood and my career. And what it looks like to sit in the tension of believing God is good when everything around you says otherwise. Here's what I hope you take from this episode: * That surrender is not weakness, it's the first step toward resurrection. * That not everyone is meant to walk through your grief with you, and that's okay. * That forgiveness is not a feeling. It's a choice you make again and again. * That your pain is not a dead end. It's a template for someone else's healing. Scripture we anchored into: 📖 "I will restore to you the years that the locusts have eaten." — Joel 2:25 📖 "Weeping may stay for the night, but rejoicing comes in the morning." — Psalm 30:5 📖 "The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God's children." — Romans 8:16 A special word for my cabin crew sisters: Marcia talks about what it's like to serve when you're shattered inside. To put on the uniform and the smile when your world has collapsed. There's a word in this episode for the woman who's still performing while she's breaking. Don't skip it. Connect With Me & Join the Sisterhood This isn't just a podcast. It's a soft place to land when the world feels heavy. A sanctuary for women walking through loss, grief, betrayal, and the messy middle of transition. You were never meant to heal alone, and you don't have to start now. 🌱 Come sit with us in the private WhatsApp Sisterhood. It's where the real, unfiltered conversations happen. No performance. No pretending. Just women who get it. 🌤️ Follow Above the Clouds on Instagram & TikTok. That's where I share little pieces of my heart between episodes. @abovetheclouds.pod 👤 Connect with me on Facebook. Let's be more than followers. Let's be friends. https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61585417718077 [https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61585417718077] ⭐ Leave a review, mama. It takes thirty seconds, and it helps another woman, one who's exhausted, unseen, and barely holding on, find this sanctuary. If this episode met you somewhere tender, would you take a moment to leave a rating or review? 🫂 Share this with a sister. You know exactly who she is. She's the one holding everyone else up and forgetting she needs holding too. Send her this episode. She needs to know she's not alone. Hold it like a flight plan, not a failure. You are not flying solo. You're on a sacred flight path. This is Charldene. Above the Clouds. ☁️

Grief Needs No Fixing. Grief Needs Holding.

Have you ever been so swallowed by grief that you forgot what it felt like to just… breathe? Welcome to the very first episode of Above the Clouds. I'm Charldene, and this one? This one is sacred ground. I sat down with Marcia Earhart, a woman who has been walking with grief since she was just three and a half years old. By the time she turned eighteen, she had already lived through seventeen devastating losses. But nothing, and I mean nothing, could have prepared her for what came next. In 2014, her oldest son Sterling was killed in a tragic car accident. Then, in 2019, her second son Mark was murdered. Two sons. Two funerals. One mother still standing. In this conversation, Marcia doesn't just talk about grief. She takes us right into the middle of it. She tells us what it felt like to wake up ten minutes before the sheriffs knocked on her door, and how the Father was already holding her before she even knew what happened. She shares the moment she asked God if she could pray over Sterling's body, fully believing He could raise him from the dead, and heard the Lord whisper, "No. He has eternal life. Leave him with Me." I also brought my own grief into the room. My grandmother passed away just three months before this recording, and I was honest about the family wounds that almost kept me from her funeral. We talked about the messy middle, the part of healing no one warns you about. The part where you have to let the old version of yourself die so God can resurrect something new. Here's what I hope you take from this episode: * That grief doesn't need fixing. It needs holding. * That you're allowed to grieve differently than everyone else. * That forgiveness is a choice, and sometimes you have to make it a thousand times before it sticks. * That you can be fully healed. Not just "better at carrying it." Healed. Scripture we anchored into: 📖 "The Lord is close to the brokenhearted." — Psalm 34:18 📖 "I know the plans I have for you, plans to give you hope and a future." — Jeremiah 29:11 📖 "By His stripes we are healed." — Isaiah 53:5 A special word for my cabin crew sisters: I know what it's like to serve with a smile when you're dying inside. Marcia and I talked about that too, how to hold grief when you still have to show up and perform. There's a reflection question just for you in this episode. Don't skip it. If this episode felt like a warm hand on your shoulder, would you do me a favor? Leave a review. It helps other women find this sanctuary. Share it with a sister who's carrying a weight she never talks about. And if you're ready to stop healing alone. Connect With Me & Join the Sisterhood This isn't just a podcast. It's a soft place to land when the world feels heavy. A sanctuary for women walking through loss, grief, betrayal, and the messy middle of transition. You were never meant to heal alone, and you don't have to start now. 🌱 Come sit with us in the private WhatsApp Sisterhood. It's where the real, unfiltered conversations happen. No performance. No pretending. Just women who get it. 🌤️ Follow Above the Clouds on Instagram & TikTok. That's where I share little pieces of my heart between episodes. @abovetheclouds.pod 👤 Connect with me on Facebook. Let's be more than followers. Let's be friends. https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61585417718077 [https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61585417718077] ⭐ Leave a review, mama. It takes thirty seconds, and it helps another woman, one who's exhausted, unseen, and barely holding on, find this sanctuary. If this episode met you somewhere tender, would you take a moment to leave a rating or review? 🫂 Share this with a sister. You know exactly who she is. She's the one holding everyone else up and forgetting she needs holding too. Send her this episode. She needs to know she's not alone. Hold it like a flight plan, not a failure. You are not flying solo. You're on a sacred flight path. This is Charldene. Above the Clouds. ☁️

She Survived a Stroke - Then She Did the Impossible.

Have you ever had a morning where everything was fine, and then, in an instant, nothing was? Welcome to the 🌅 Golden Hour Sanctuary, a sacred series within Above the Clouds. I'm Charldene, and this is where we sit with women whose survival became their testimony. Soft light. Real stories. No performance. In this episode, I sit with Dr. Ethel P. Gainer, a stroke survivor, a doctor of ministry, and a woman who turned her darkest day into a lifetime of purpose. One morning, she woke up and her body simply stopped working. She couldn't move. She couldn't speak the way she used to. Everything she had built, her career, her independence, her sense of self, was suddenly in question. But Ethel didn't stay in that hospital bed. She fought her way back. She learned to drive again. To write again. To preach again. And in the process, she discovered that her stroke wasn't the end of her story. It was the beginning of a new one, one where she would go on to help thousands of people navigate their own rebuilding. We talk about what churches often get wrong about disability. What airlines could do better for passengers with invisible and visible needs. And what it really means to advocate for yourself in a world that wasn't built for you. Moments of God to Reflect On: * The morning Ethel's body stopped, and the faith that didn't. * The long, quiet work of learning to write and speak again. * The moment she realized her stroke wasn't punishment, it was purpose. Scripture Anchored in This Episode: 📖 "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." — 2 Corinthians 12:9 📖 "I will restore to you the years that the locusts have eaten." — Joel 2:25 📖 "He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak." — Isaiah 40:29 1. Your Body Is Not Your Enemy, Even When It Betrays You. Ethel's body stopped working without warning. And yet, she had to learn to trust it again. If you're in a season where your body feels like a stranger, whether from illness, postpartum, chronic pain, or trauma, you are not alone. Healing is slow. And it's still happening. Reflection Question: Where have you been treating your body like an enemy instead of a partner in your healing? 2. Advocacy Is a Form of Faith. Ethel had to learn to speak up for herself, for her needs, for her access. Faith isn't just waiting on God. Sometimes faith looks like asking for the seat you need, the help you deserve, the space you have a right to occupy. 3. What Looked Like the End Was Actually the Beginning. Ethel thought her life was over. Instead, God was clearing the runway for something she never could have imagined. Ethel and I talk about what airlines get wrong, and what we, as crew, can do better. Disability isn't always visible. The passenger who seems "difficult" might be fighting a battle you can't see. This isn't just a podcast. It's a soft place to land when the world feels heavy. A sanctuary for women walking through loss, grief, betrayal, and the messy middle of transition. 🌱 Come sit with us in the private WhatsApp Sisterhood. It's where the real, unfiltered conversations happen. No performance. No pretending. Just women who get it. 🌤️ Follow Above the Clouds on Instagram. That's where I share little pieces of my heart between episodes. @abovetheclouds.pod 👤 Connect with me on Facebook. Let's be more than followers. Let's be friends. facebook.com/abovethecloudspod ⭐ Leave a review, mama. It takes thirty seconds, and it helps another woman,one who's exhausted, unseen, and barely holding on,find this sanctuary. If this episode met you somewhere tender, would you take a moment to leave a rating or review? 🫂 Share this with a sister. You know exactly who she is. She's the one holding everyone else up and forgetting she needs holding too. Send her this episode. She needs to know she's not alone. Hold it like a flight plan, not a failure. You are not flying solo. You're on a sacred flight path. This is Charldene. Above the Clouds. ☁️

That Was God Jamie's 7-Day Coma & The Faith That Came Later.

Have you ever woken up and realized you almost didn't make it? Welcome to the 🌅 Golden Hour Sanctuary, a sacred series within Above the Clouds. I'm Charldene, and this is where we sit with women whose survival became their testimony. Soft light. Real stories. No performance. In this episode, I sit with Jamie, a woman who went in to give birth and woke up seven days later in a coma. She didn't know where she was. She didn't know what had happened. And while she was fighting for her life, the rumors had already started: "She didn't make it." But Jamie's grandmother never stopped praying. Every single day. And when Jamie finally opened her eyes, looked back over everything she'd survived, and connected the dots? She whispered something I'll never forget: "That was God." We talk about what it feels like to be prayed for when you can't pray for yourself. What it's like to come back to a body that doesn't feel like yours. And how to hold onto faith when the miracle you're waiting for hasn't come yet. Moments of God to Reflect On: * Jamie's grandmother praying daily, even when the rumors said it was over. * Waking up from a 7-day coma and realizing you were never alone. * The moment she looked back and whispered, "That was God." Scripture Anchored in This Episode: 📖 "The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective." — James 5:16 📖 "I will not die but live, and will proclaim what the Lord has done." — Psalm 118:17 📖 "You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good." — Genesis 50:20 1. Someone Else's Faith Can Carry You When You Have None. Jamie couldn't pray for herself. She was in a coma. But her grandmother never stopped. If you're in a season where you can't find the words, let someone else's faith hold you up. Reflection Question: Who is praying for you right now that you may not even know about? And who can you pray for who's too tired to pray for themselves? 2. The Rumors About You Don't Determine the Outcome of Your Story. People said Jamie didn't make it. They were wrong. What rumors have been spoken over your life, "She'll never heal. She'll never change. She's too far gone.", and how do you need to silence them with the truth of what God is actually doing? 3. Sometimes You Don't See the Miracle Until You Look Back. Jamie didn't understand why she was still alive until she traced God's hand backward. If you're in the middle of the fog right now, you might not see it yet. But one day, you'll look back and whisper the same thing: "That was God." Jamie knows what it's like to wake up in a body that doesn't feel like home. As cabin crew, we know what it's like to perform when we're depleted, to smile when we're breaking inside. Jamie's story reminds us that healing takes time, and that it's okay to not be okay while you're still in the air. This isn't just a podcast. It's a soft place to land when the world feels heavy. A sanctuary for women walking through loss, grief, betrayal, and the messy middle of transition. 🌱 Come sit with us in the private WhatsApp Sisterhood. It's where the real, unfiltered conversations happen. No performance. No pretending. Just women who get it. 🌤️ Follow Above the Clouds on Instagram. That's where I share little pieces of my heart between episodes. @abovetheclouds.pod 👤 Connect with me on Facebook. Let's be more than followers. Let's be friends. facebook.com/abovetheclouds ⭐ Leave a review, mama. It takes thirty seconds, and it helps another woman, one who's exhausted, unseen, and barely holding on, find this sanctuary. If this episode met you somewhere tender, would you take a moment to leave a rating or review? 🫂 Share this with a sister. You know exactly who she is. She's the one holding everyone else up and forgetting she needs holding too. Send her this episode. She needs to know she's not alone. Hold it like a flight plan, not a failure. You are not flying solo. You're on a sacred flight path. This is Charldene. Above the Clouds. ☁️

The 3 AM Sanctuary: Finding Peace When the Baby Won't Sleep.

Have you ever been awake at 3 AM, holding a baby who won't sleep, and wondered if God is still in the room? Welcome back to Above the Clouds. I'm Charldene, and this one is for the mother who has learned that exhaustion isn't her crisis. It's her consecration. A consecration for the sacred night watch only a mother knows. In this raw, intimate episode, I don't just talk about sleep deprivation. I meet you inside it. From the rocking chair to the monitor's static, we turn the nursery from a battlefield into a sanctuary. I share what it looks like to stop fighting the sleepless nights and start finding God in them. Here's what I hope you take from this episode: Why the 3 AM watch is a holy assignment, not a punishment, and how to hear God's whisper in the dark. How to read your frustration as data, not failure, and use it to reclaim your peace. The "Sanctuary Light" protocol: a simple, intentional act that transforms your environment and stewards your baby's sleep biology. An immediate, sixty-second "Hand-Off" tool to reset your nervous system when you feel the anger rising. Scripture Anchored in This Episode: "Be still, and know that I am God." — Psalm 46:10 "He will not let your foot slip, he who watches over you will not slumber." — Psalm 121:3 "In peace I will lie down and sleep, for you alone, Lord, make me dwell in safety." — Psalm 4:8 A Special Word for Cabin Crew Mothers : You haven't lost your edge. You've been promoted to Chief Safety Officer of a new life. Your pre-flight checks are now holy rituals. Your training prepared you for this. You already know how to stay calm in turbulence. Now you're learning to do it on no sleep, with your heart walking around outside your body. P.S. For the mother with spit-up on her shoulder and a dream in her spirit: you are not falling behind. You are being fortified in the fire watch. This is your training ground for glory. Connect With Me and Join the Sisterhood This isn't just a podcast. It's a soft place to land when the world feels heavy. A sanctuary for women walking through loss, grief, betrayal, and the messy middle of transition. You were never meant to heal alone, and you don't have to start now. Come sit with us in the private WhatsApp Sisterhood. It's where the real, unfiltered conversations happen. No performance. No pretending. Just women who get it. Follow Above the Clouds on Instagram and TikTok. That's where I share little pieces of my heart between episodes. @abovetheclouds.pod Connect with me on Facebook. Let's be more than followers. Let's be friends. facebook.com/abovethecloudspod [https://facebook.com/abovethecloudspod] Leave a review, mama. It takes thirty seconds, and it helps another woman, one who's exhausted, unseen, and barely holding on, find this sanctuary. If this episode met you somewhere tender, would you take a moment to leave a rating or review? Share this with a sister. You know exactly who she is. She's the one holding everyone else up and forgetting she needs holding too. Send her this episode. She needs to know she's not alone. Hold it like a flight plan, not a failure. You are not flying solo. You're on a sacred flight path. This is Charldene. Above the Clouds.