How A Mess Becomes A Message with Katy Lane
Katy Lane was raised Catholic, but her passion for God was sparked when she was baptized in the Holy Spirit.
At that very moment, Katy was healed of the deep trauma she had suffered from abuse as a girl. Miraculously, she was able to forgive.
It was then that Katy truly began to live her faith.
Before this, Katy was hesitant to share her faith. In this “Women of Wisdom” series, Katy shares how she learned, “Your mess is your message.”
Listen and discover how, “Your test is your testimony.”
Katy shares her message of healing and hope in small groups and her ministerial work. She teaches Bible Study and art classes at Room in the Inn, a Day Shelter in Nashville, TN.
Transcript:
Lindy Wynne (00:00)
Welcome to Mamas in Spirit, a podcast pointing you towards God in everything you are and everything you do. I'm Lindy Wynne and it's a blessing to be with you. Hello everyone and welcome to this Women of Wisdom series. And this day is different for me. It's so different for me and it's a super full circle moment in this mini retreat of podcasts because when I started Mamas in Spirit almost seven years ago,
I did exactly what it says not to do, at least online, which is start with your family and friends or have your family and your friends and your podcast. And that's exactly what I did. But the Lord is so good and so generous and has gifted and blessed me with such beautiful humans in my life that that's what I did. And Mamas in Spirit I had no plans for it. And it has grown into what it is beginning with my own loved ones. And today I'm here with a woman who is just that a profoundly
special and treasured sister in Christ, Katy Lane. Katy, thank you for joining us.
Katy Lane (01:00)
Thank you for having me. I'm a little nervous, but I'm good.
Lindy Wynne (01:02)
You nervous, Katy?
Katy's nervous because this is an offering. I joke around like it's an offering of your soul on a platter for everybody else. But it is and you do it from your love of the Lord. And so just a couple quick things before we dive into opening prayer and Katy's story. So this is kind of funny for those of you on YouTube, I wore this t-shirt from my mother-in-law hand me down today that's like of the forest. And I think that's a buck on there because Katy and I met in the forest. ⁓
Katy Lane (01:32)
You
Lindy Wynne (01:33)
on retreat and in case you all didn't know me well enough yet, I showed up at this retreat and we went around the circle and we introduced ourselves and I said, I'm Lindy and I really love Jesus but I'm here for friends. Because I was new and I did not have any friends yet in Tennessee and God covered me in a way that I could not have imagined. sat down with Katy and with four other glorious sisters in Spirit at our St. Margaret Mary table and we shared
from our hearts and from our souls. And so that's why we're here today because for everyone gathered, even if we do not know each other personally in life, we are that tied as sisters in Christ. And we are praying for you, we love you, and we are just hoping the very, best for you and God's abundant blessings for you in your life that you know that God is with you and that you are so loved, you are loved beyond measure. So in that Spirit, in the Holy Spirit, Katy, I would love for you to open us in prayer.
Katy Lane (02:30)
And that's what I call my small group from Cursillo or my sisters in Christ. Come Holy Spirit, Holy Spirit, this is all you. You give me the words, open up my heart, open up my mind, and you just give me the words to touch any of the moms who need it. Give us your wisdom, your knowledge, your understanding. In Jesus name I pray, Amen
Lindy Wynne (02:52)
Amen. Name of the Father, Son, Holy Spirit. Amen. Katy, thank you for that beautiful prayer. And this is such a surrender and an offering for you. And I want everyone to know, Katy, you I'm going to get emotional. You are one of the women that I admire most. You give your life. It was just true. Katy gives her life and her day. She couldn't wait to retire from teaching art, even though you loved it so much at the high school public high school.
Katy Lane (03:05)
⁓ you're right.
Lindy Wynne (03:16)
She now spends so many of her days up at Room in the Inn in Nashville, Tennessee, a day shelter teaching art and Bible study. And Katy, you are just so filled with the love of the Lord and the Holy Spirit. And so I would love for you to just talk to me, girl, and start at the beginning of your story.
Katy Lane (03:33)
I'll start from the very beginning. So I was one of those
raised, cradle Catholic. I even went to Catholic school.
I taught Sunday school, CCD. I always volunteered. helped out with the high school youth group at my church in Memphis, Tennessee. We have now moved back up to Franklin. But I didn't realize that I was sort of this lukewarm. I didn't really know Jesus personally and have that one-on-one relationship with him. Like I now see...
that I want to see through his eyes. I want to pray like Jesus. I want to forgive like Jesus. I want to love like Jesus. I want to be that obedient child of God like Jesus. And I feel like I was like Revelation, that lukewarm. I checked the bucket list. Yeah, I went to church on Sundays. I taught CCD. Check, check. But not until I was baptized in the Holy Spirit
I just felt this weight lift. And then I felt this peace, this freedom. And I just felt God wrapping his arms around me. And then my heart was set on fire for the Holy Spirit. I mean, I couldn't get enough reading the Bible, but always asking the Holy Spirit for his guidance, his understanding. What do you need to teach me? And it's just been such a wonderful, beautiful, like,
being raised Catholic, I'm like, how did I not know this? How did I not know? Like, we're supposed to be working in those miracles, having these charisms, these gifts to build up our church. How did I not know what I was missing? And that led me to Cursillo right after the baptism of the Holy Spirit. It's such a beautiful, I can't even say retreat because it's an ongoing journey. It's where I met my sisters in Christ and it's such a beautiful like.
Cursillo, the Catholic faith is such a beautiful, but it's so much information. Cursillo helps you to take all that information and go on that journey and how to live your faith. So right around that same time I was retiring. Like you said, I loved art. Art has always sort of been my thing. Retiring and...
retired in May and started in June, Mila, who was in one of my Bible studies at church, asked me to help out with Room in the Inn. And I really didn't know. But the Holy Spirit, I'm like, okay, the Holy Spirit's telling me yes. I was always fearful of sharing my faith because I felt like I didn't know enough about it. I mean, here I'm teaching Sunday school, I'm going to church Sunday, every Sunday, but I felt like, how am I?
to teach somebody about Jesus and about like the Bible but the Holy Spirit said yes you're gonna start so we did June July Meal is a teacher so she had to go back to school so I continued and they blessed me so much I just can't imagine not not being at Room at the end I mean I say they're my peeps there but
But teaching Bible study, can't preach. You can't preach at people. You have to maybe just share your story and share your testimony. And I've heard it said somewhere, your mess is your message. Your test is your testimony. And then I started sharing with everybody and bringing my story into the light. And that started helping me heal. I don't remember what...
age I was, it was when I was really small, but my grandfather used to abuse me and come to find out my mom, my aunt, my uncles, who knows how many kids he's hurt.
But it was kept in the dark, was kept silent because he said not to tell anybody.
But having my own children, we went to visit, grandma, grandpa, and I don't know, something snapped. And they were little, a baby, and I said, if you ever touch my kids, I will kill you. Later, when I was telling my story at Room in the Inn I said that was not the Holy Spirit speaking, that was not. But he was not gonna hurt my kids. He was not gonna hurt my girls.
But going back to that baptism of the Holy Spirit, that freedom, that lifting that weight, I thought I had forgiven, but I hadn't. You can only forgive with the Holy Spirit.
And God told me, you choose one of your girls, which one would die? I said, no, no, neither. I love both my girls, neither. He said, that's how I feel about your grandfather. He is my child. Every person is a child of God. So the Holy Spirit's teaching me how to see every single person as a child of God. Who hurt him to where he would hurt other people.
So I can pray now and say, God, please let grandmother and grandfather both be in heaven with you. Now, I don't know how many other people he's hurt and they're gonna have forgiveness on their heart, but I know the Holy Spirit has helped me forgive.
Lindy Wynne (08:20)
Katy, first of all, thank you so much for sharing all of that. I know it takes a lot, yes, go ahead.
Katy Lane (08:25)
That's
what, bringing it into the light. That's what I tell my peeps at Room at the Inn. That's the devil working, keeping it silent, keeping it in the dark. That's the devil. He wants to keep it silent because then it could keep going on and on. God wants to bring it in the light. And that's what I wanted to say. God came and showed his wounds to the disciples. You can only start healing when you share your message.
that message, that mess, you might be helping someone who went through the same thing. That test, you might be sharing your testimony and sharing how God has helped you and that might bring somebody closer to God as well.
Lindy Wynne (09:06)
Yes, Katy, thank you so much for sharing all of that. And I know that it takes so much courage too. And so I want to thank you so much and really thank the Lord for your courageousness to share all of that. And I want to go back for a minute to rim in the end because for those of you who don't know, well, I'll share a little story of my own from going with you to rim in the end to kind of describe what the experience is because most of the people are either staying at the rescue mission, right, or living outside on the streets.
Katy Lane (09:34)
Yes, yes.
There are a few that stay there at the Room at the end. It is probably 80 % for veterans. It is also sort of a rehabilitation. So if they have any addictions, it's a two-year program, but it's such a wonderful, they try and get you in a home and help finding affordable homes.
And then I think the next step after that now is also the Strobel House. So they're trying to build more of those, but that is the affordable housing, getting them a job and making them like citizens. mean, just people who could live on their own, pay their own bills and back in society. So it's such a beautiful.
Lindy Wynne (10:11)
Yeah, that's so beautiful. Yeah,
that's so beautiful. And when you talk about your mess becoming your message and sharing your own story, and that's really where you started to share it. And I would like to say in Curseio, all six of us at the table, by the time the weekend was done, we had all shared some of the deepest, most difficult experiences that we had ever faced. And I think both the joy and the sorrow, like in hearing one of another's stories, like that really tied us together.
Katy Lane (10:20)
that.
Lindy Wynne (10:39)
really hopefully and prayerfully eternally. still meet, we're still very, very close. And it's because of that transparency that we have with one another. And like I know with you, Katy, with all of you, like I can be 100 % transparent. Like that almost feels like that belittles the experience even saying it that way. But we come as we are and we are accepted and loved and encouraged in our faith just as we are. And it's just, it is the most tremendous gift. And so when you go to Rim in the Inn and I have,
had the blessing of either subbing for you a few times or going with you before or whatnot, it reminds me of that saying that like children are smart. I like to think that like all human beings are smart. And when we really pause, we know when someone is being sincere. We know when someone's being authentic. And we also know when we are that ourselves. And I believe like that's how we're called to be is totally authentic, totally ourselves. Each person fearfully and wonderfully made
only one of us and as we are like with all our stuff, with all our gifts and our charisms and all our struggles and our weaknesses, all the things just like Jesus met the woman at the well as she was and loved her exactly as she was. So when you go to the Room in the end, it would probably be just for I'm just gonna speak so free like foolish to go in there with any kind of mask or front or whatnot because
Everybody there has lived a very very real life a very very real walk and it's almost like walking into a program like NAMI National Alliance for Mental Illness or Alan on which is for loved ones of alcoholics or a a Which is for alcoholics. It's like or NA for narcotics and honest, you know Everybody has a story or they wouldn't be in that Room, right? And there's something really beautiful about that and there there's some of
this I think really beautifully and Mamas in Spirit by the grace of God is this deep level of authenticity that I think we all really long for in our lives. And so I say all of this because when you went and rim in the end, it almost sounds like it called you and this was my experience too to be like next level real. Like I even felt in the times that I've been in there that I've shared things I did not quite expect to share and it was totally comfortable and I will never forget.
sharing about something in the Bible study that you left for me to share because you're awesome like that. And one of the men saying something about, it's like kind of like the serenity prayer, like about things we cannot change. And he literally talked about this particular person. This is not the case for everybody. This particular person had been incarcerated. And he talked about how much his the person in the cell next to him bothered him. Like he did not like having a cell next to the person that was right next to him. And he's like,
but I knew I couldn't change that. And there was something in that tiny sharing that I think encapsulates the reality. And yet we all have that reality in our lives. Like now going to your story, Katy, your personal testimony and your story with your grandfather, that is so incredibly difficult. That is so incredibly difficult. And I feel like the healing that you have experienced by the grace of God and the beauty and the openness
of your heart and your vibrant on fire faith is because you've chosen like today just to be so courageous to even bring your story into the light in a different way today.
Katy Lane (14:00)
Well, and I always listen to the Holy Spirit. He'll tell me when I need to share the story because after I share the story, usually someone or a couple of people will come up and say that happened to me or you're the first person I've told that this happened to me or you're the third person or so I always listen to the Holy Spirit and let the Holy Spirit tell me when it's time. Because you have asked me in the past, I'm like, all right, I'm not ready. But.
And the same thing with Room in the Inn I don't share it every time, but I let the Holy Spirit know. When it's the moment, if there's somebody in this hill, the Holy Spirit will let me know. And also, like, I didn't want to seem like preachy, like, like, ⁓ she's so goody two shoes. She's been a art teacher. She's retired. And like, just explaining to them, everybody has had some stuff that tests that mess happen. But it's, but I...
was lucky enough to have grown in faith and have God to turn to. And a lot of them turned to the alcohol or the drugs or the whatever. They turned to things instead of created things, I guess, instead of the creator. And I was lucky enough to have been raised Catholic in such a beautiful faith. I may not have known all of the Bible and the...
I mean, I had God to turn to. I had God to protect me and to hold me.
Lindy Wynne (15:19)
Yes, thank you for sharing that. And it really strikes my heart when you say like,
Like some of them turn to drugs or alcohol or other things. It's like yeah, that's what we all do That's what everybody does like, you know our sin and our temptation our weakness to our easy The ease from which we can be tempted is very real to turn to all of these other things it's just that there is the Lord and all of his love and all of his light and all of his glory and Scripture says the light shall shine in the darkness and the darkness shall not overcome
And I love that Scripture passage so much and that has resonated in my own heart For so many years in in different seasons of my life really quickly the image that that came to me a lot is many of you know that that we went through ⁓ wonderful beautiful Super joyful and then very very difficult challenging years raising our children from foster care who had experienced great trauma and had great challenges and
that also Brian was very sick at the time and so there could be seasons that were very difficult. And we lived down the street from an elementary, middle school. And in the middle school, there was one of those buildings, what are those buildings called, Katy, the ones that are like, when you don't have enough Room in the school, a portable. They put in a portable.
So on this portable building in the back, there was a singular light on it and the rest of the school at night would be pitch dark. So there's this entire campus, but there was a singular light on this portable building and...
that's where the eye would go. And I'd like to think that's where the heart goes, like the center of the heart. So like when our gaze is fixed on Christ, that light always outshines the darkness.
Katy Lane (17:05)
Thank
Lindy Wynne (17:06)
And that's what I'm hearing from you, Katy, in your story, is that even from these different experiences and the difficulty of them, that the light has outshone the darkness in your life and in your heart because of your openness to the Lord.
Katy Lane (17:21)
Yeah, I mean, feel like the Holy Spirit, don't know, growing up, I'm like, how did I not know that it's God's Holy Spirit? You have to ask for that Holy Spirit to be set on fire with that Holy Spirit. And the Holy Spirit will guide you and comfort you and counsel you and give you his strength to be your advocate and to stand by you. I didn't know that. How did I not know that? Because I mean, I went to Catholic school, I taught in the Catholic school, I even taught religion, so.
Just, I don't know. mean, I guess that baptism laying on hands.
It happened so much in Acts and I don't see it happening as much. mean, confirmation, yeah, because really we went to church, but I didn't receive Holy First Holy Communion until eighth grade. So we were very sporadic and I did the First Holy Communion and confirmation both in eighth grade. And I sort of thought about becoming a nun at that time. I mean, I think I sort of had that Holy Spirit for a little while.
But if you're not praying, if you don't, I wasn't taught like that prayer life and that reading the Bible every day, talking to God, he's our friend, talk to him every day and ask him before making decisions. I mean, I didn't really know that, I wasn't really taught that. So I had to learn it. I mean, I had to learn that Holy Spirit and depend on that Holy Spirit, God's Holy Spirit in me.
and I gotta keep asking for it. It's not something that is like, once I'm saved, I'm done. It is a daily walk. I now, I laugh, the Holy Spirit has been liking to get me up at 4.30 every morning, which I love. I love, I get up and that's usually my quiet time, have a coffee and just do the readings of the day. And now I'm doing 7 a.m. since I've retired, I've done 7 a.m. mass and it's such a beautiful because to have...
Jesus in me and I feel like now that I'm receiving Jesus. I pray every time I receive communion just Make me into you transform me into your body blood soul and divinity help me To do your mission be you Jesus your hands your feet Give me your words give me your actions and help me to bring people to know you because just this joy this peace
I mean, I just want everybody to come to know it and be...
Lindy Wynne (19:33)
and be where you gonna
Katy Lane (19:34)
And be, yeah,
be in Christ. I mean, I didn't really understand what that was, but now I know. mean, I can share because I would never have it. This would have like it's it was it's not. But I thought it was my fear, my shame, my and it wasn't. It was a broken person who hurt other people, a child. And it's not my shame. And now, I mean, I can sort of. I just have his peace, his joy, his it can't hurt me now.
Lindy Wynne (20:00)
Can you talk more about that, Katy, the shame? Because I think that shame can be so bondaging to people, to every person. And so it applies to every human person. How were you kind of delivered from that, healed from that?
Katy Lane (20:07)
Yeah.
Well, and you know what? mean, that happened with my grandfather and then my parents split and my mom's boyfriend tried. So I learned to always be in a Room with somebody because bad things happen if you are alone. And yeah.
And I still was quiet. still was silent. still was, because I was always shy and quiet growing up. You couldn't tell now. I just was always shy, quiet, and I guess fearful because adults were supposed to take care of you, I thought. And so I sort of learned, I guess you have to take care of yourself or, I mean, I never, I always knew God was there. I always had him there with me. I never,
feared that he was left me or alone. I always felt he was there and he would protect me.
think that when I had my children, I was just not going to let them be hurt. And I think that's when the first time I was able to like bring it in the light. Because I'm like, I'm not, you hurt me and that's okay, but I'm not going to let you hurt my kids. I'm going to protect my kids no matter what. And I think at that moment when they were a baby, that was when we had visited, I don't know that I ever took them back to their house. I mean, I was going to protect them and
And then, yeah, and then my husband found out and he's like, no, they're not gonna be a part of that. And I always wished them well. And I mean, I would see my grandmother, but yeah, I think, and I did go to his funeral. It's weird, because sometimes like when traumatic things happen, you sort of, think I'd say God protects you, because you sort of don't remember things, I guess sometimes, or sort of have a hard time, yeah.
recalling things I guess sometimes. So sometimes you just sort of lock it out because that's your protective mode I guess or helps you protect yourself when you...
Lindy Wynne (21:58)
Mm-hmm.
Well, and what I'm hearing in you, Katy, is that you put down some boundaries as an adult.
Katy Lane (22:01)
Bye.
Lindy Wynne (22:06)
And it was not okay what he did to you or to anybody else that was not okay. It's just sometimes I think the love of another, the love of a child, children are so vulnerable and you knowing that that was a possibility that it sounds like it brought a new part, kind of your mama bear out and that maternal sense of protection for your children. And it sounds to me like bringing it out into the light.
started chipping away at the shame.
Katy Lane (22:35)
And definitely, and I still wouldn't share it too much. But like I said, it was with that baptism in the laying of the hands, baptism of the Holy Spirit where it just. The Holy Spirit, think with me with the Holy Spirit in me now, I feel like.
How can I use this to help others heal? I mean, it happened to me. I don't want it to happen to anybody else. But I feel like it made me strong as well. I mean, it made me who I am. So, I mean, not that I wish it wouldn't happen, but I don't want it to hurt anybody else. I don't want somebody else to be strong in that way, I guess, for that reason. But I want other people to know that, yeah, if you turn to God and you have that Holy Spirit, then it doesn't have to define you.
Lindy Wynne (22:51)
Mm-hmm.
Katy Lane (23:16)
It's not who I am. And I'm trying to see others how he sees them as children of God. So I try and believe in the best in people. try and see the good in people and pray for them who are.
Not so good, I guess. And traffic here in Franklin. I'm doing a lot of praying in traffic. Lots of opportunities driving to Nashville at Room at the end. Yes.
Lindy Wynne (23:32)
Mm-hmm.
It gives you lot of opportunity to pray.
Katy, when you've talked to, let's say, a Room in the Inn and you felt like it's helped someone else, do you have any stories, obviously, without using any names of anybody who's come in and talked to you and maybe how that's been healing for them and maybe even you?
Katy Lane (23:55)
Well, and you know what? One woman at Rue Mathien, she did, she said, I mean, but she was really like over a long period of time by her uncle. And I don't know, I hope I never, I did not see her after that. So I know not to look for the fruit because the fruit belongs to God. I'm just gonna say yes to share my story and sort of leave it to.
God to sort of move that heart. So I try not to ask. I try and just sort of when the Holy Spirit asks me to share, I share and then I'm going to leave it to the Holy Spirit to take that and maybe it'll happen in the future. Maybe it's going to be the next week. So I try not to look at, I mean I want to help and I want that message to reach somebody. I want that to say, that happened to me too. Look, she can, God can help.
But I try not to look at that. And I've shared in other, like there's a Bible study at church and it was just a small group and it ended up one of the other girls was, yeah, that had happened to her. And so I don't know. I mean, we sort of had a bond and she's just a really sweet.
But I guess, yeah, I don't know. I'm just gonna surrender it to God and let God and the Holy Spirit sort of fill in where I'm not able to.
Lindy Wynne (25:09)
Yeah, that's right. And that's your humility. That's so beautiful, Katy. And because you know who you serve. It reminds me of I'm the handmaiden of the Lord, our blessed mother. Let it be done to me according to thy word. Thy will, Lord. And so that you are in the palm of God's hand to be used. And like you said in the very beginning of this podcast that you want to be obedient. It just strikes me. And I don't know if I can articulate this well, but what strikes me?
is that this beautiful exuberant on fire with the Holy Spirit yes that you've given also requires a dive into the difficult and the suffering, the sorrowful, the pain, the agony and that's very much like
The Life of Jesus, which we're called to follow. And you talked about the Acts of the Apostles, which I encourage everybody to go read the Acts of the Apostles because it amazed me too. I'm a convert and so I became Catholic when I was 21. And I'll never forget the first time I read the Acts, which was way long after I was initially baptized and being like, wait a minute, why don't we read this all the time? Like, why don't we study this so deeply? Because it literally tells us what to do.
And so I encourage us all to go read the Acts of the Apostles and me too, to go reread it and to spend time with it. like you're saying, like ask God, like Lord, how are you drawing me? What do you want? What is your will for me in my heart and in my life? And so it's interesting that like on the surface level, this concept of like going and serving and going to a at the inn and all those things.
that it could seem like on the surface that it's like, oh my gosh, like you almost said like goody two shoes or like, oh here, I'm gonna go follow the Lord and do these good things for the Lord. And then really what's going on is this very intimate walk to walk with one another in the ways that we've been wounded and our joys, our sufferings, all the things close to Christ together as brothers and sisters in Christ.
Katy Lane (27:12)
And I'm learning that to, all my joys, all my struggles, all my trials, to make them count, to sort of, for these, please, for those, I'm uniting them with Christ's suffering to save those souls who don't know him, to save those souls who are in purgatory, to save those souls who have a hardened heart against God, soften their hearts, open their minds to love you.
And I'm trying to use all those struggles, all those, even the joys, the struggles of every day, every morning, I'm trying to start praying that I give you God my day, bring souls to you. Bring those souls from purgatory, let them see your face to face. Bring those souls who are sinners, bring them to know you and to see you.
Lindy Wynne (27:57)
you.
Katy Lane (27:58)
And that Charismatic
Renewal, that reminded me, because when I was starting to read, I was looking up charisms and the gifts and, my gosh, the Charismatic Renewal. We've got the Spanish version, which I thought I could go and listen to because it's the Spanish. I was like, I can understand it. No, but speaking in tongues, I mean, I've got a prayer group that I try and do with my sister, Tuesdays and Saturdays. And it's so amazing that, like, how do we not know?
Mary Healy is such a wonderful, talks about the gifts of healing. And I mean, everybody has different gifts. We just need to start asking the Holy Spirit, what's my gift? And use me, use me, use my gifts to build up the kingdom of God.
Lindy Wynne (28:35)
I love what you're saying. And I think it touches on something else for all of us that's at the heart of the matter. And it reminds me so much of our sisterhood, the Come As You Are, is that God has blessed us, Jesus has blessed us and with our church, with our beautiful Catholic faith, with an infinite number of ways to encounter Christ. And you, Katy, are open to encountering Christ in all the ways.
Like haven't you even gotten on silent retreats with the, did you go to the silent retreat with the Dominican sisters? Yes.
Katy Lane (29:07)
Yes, it was beautiful. Bethany House, if you have not
been, it is so beautiful. And you know, I have to give a shout out to Father Michael because that was one of my penance for a confession was to go to a retreat. And he sent me on that one. Another one, I had to go back to him and say, Father Michael, you're full of the Holy Spirit, because he said, go and be a neighbor to someone. So I took coffee and banana bread to my neighbor and she said, I haven't spoken or seen anybody in four days.
And that was the Holy Spirit working, sending me there.
Lindy Wynne (29:38)
That's so beautiful. I like to call Father Michael the father of mercy. He's like the most merciful confession that ever was.
Katy Lane (29:45)
He is full of the Holy Spirit.
He listens to the Holy Spirit.
Lindy Wynne (29:48)
So beautiful, it's so beautiful. So for all of us gathered on Mamas in Spirit I have brothers and sisters mostly sisters in Christ that that like you talked about The charismatic renewal I have brothers and sisters in Christ on Mamas in Spirit that kind of touch in all of the different How would you even say it? I don't even know how to say it, which is probably a really good thing like different
opportunities within our church and some may work for you and some may not. Like for each one of us. Yeah.
Katy Lane (30:16)
Like, mean, Cursillo and the Pimpany
retreat. mean, there's so many, it's such a great time to be Catholic right now. Yeah, with so many Bible studies.
Lindy Wynne (30:27)
Yes, and the Father draws us to the Son. That is in Scripture. By God's grace, we are drawn to the Son. And there's an infinite number of ways. We couldn't even think of them all. It's not humanly possible that God will draw us to Himself. And so, Katy, one of the things I really love is your openness within the realm of our Catholic tradition and our Catholic faith to encounter Christ.
in all the things in adoration and confession like you do all the things and you
Katy Lane (30:58)
And I didn't know
that's what being raised. didn't know about adoration. I didn't know about the rosary. So and I'm going to show you because I love, I'm gonna grab a couple.
Lindy Wynne (31:05)
if you're on YouTube.
You go grab it, girl. Well, you go grab it. yeah.
Katy Lane (31:10)
So I don't know if
I mentioned, I do art class. All right, let me get over here. So I do art class. Art was always sort of my, like I always was drawing. I always drew in the sketchbook. It was my sort of thing to get me through all the hard stuff. And now I feel like it's sort of my prayer time. So I have, and I've done a lot of different things. Now I've been doing like the Sacred Heart of Jesus. These are humongous, holy water bottles. The Immaculate Heart of Mary.
So I use it sort of as my prayer time now, making pillows and...
So I just, I use that as.
prayer time, but I also teach the art class at Room at the Inn and I just call it my art therapy. Sometimes we do like a gratitude journal, peace journal, love journal, and we, get old books and we collage and paint, markers, color pencils, and just use that art as that calming, peaceful,
to get out of the mess of all of the homeless and not have to worry about all the outside, but just to sort of just be peaceful and do creative stuff. I mean, it's just always been my outlet, I guess, that creative.
Lindy Wynne (32:19)
Yes, and I feel like you spend your days open to encountering the Lord in all the ways that all the ways that God offers it. Thank you so much, Katy. And Katy, how I want to ask you about one other thing because I feel very admiring of your.
marriage, your sacrament of marriage, which I think is a really, it's a really beautiful thing. And, and just to be really honest, and you can tell me if you want me to take this part out, but I also feel like as having been a victim of sexual abuse, like the intimacy that we're drawn into and called into marriage, like to see like this glorious relationship that you have with your husband, that's like,
Katy Lane (32:36)
⁓ no.
Lindy Wynne (32:57)
Safe and beautiful man like you and I know like no one's perfect and no marriage is perfect and whatnot But the intimacy that you both seem to share And actually the other reason I chose the shirt is because y'all go Camping together and stuff a lot like you have a shared you have a shared shared things that you do together So can you share with me how the Holy Spirit has led you in your marriage? Just to because how many years have you been married?
Katy Lane (33:12)
Yes, we do.
31, yeah. We were 24 when we got married. And I think God brought him into my life, because he was a good Catholic boy too. Loved his family. They were just such a blessing and they helped watch my youngest, Emma, when I went back part-time teaching. And he just, we've always sort of, it's been us against the world. It's always been, we just, knew he always had my back. He would protect me.
Lindy Wynne (33:25)
31 years, yeah, it's so beautiful, Katy.
Katy Lane (33:50)
He, when I did get baptized in the Holy Spirit said, and I've forgiven grandfather, he's like, well, I'm not quite there. So Holy Spirit, we're gonna work on his heart, forgiveness as well. But yeah, we just, we love spending time together. I mean, we always go hiking and camping. We do the tent camping, not the glamping. ⁓ And always love taking my kids and my grandson now, no, he loves camping too.
Lindy Wynne (34:08)
You're legit.
Katy Lane (34:16)
Fall Creek Falls, Rock Island. yeah, just, I don't know, we've just always sort of been there for each other and just growing in our faith. I feel like we probably need to be better at like praying together, doing the rosary together, because a lot of that I do early in the morning or he'll go off to work, but he's just always.
He loves cooking, I love eating. I will make dinner, but it's definitely much better when he does it.
Lindy Wynne (34:43)
And it just seems like you have such safety with him, such a sense of safety.
Katy Lane (34:47)
He's, yeah, he was always there. was always my dependable. I knew he would be there and I know he's just, yeah, I mean, that's always.
And we've been together more than not because I think it was 22. We dated a year and were engaged a year and then got married. yeah, just our faith has always been sort of like, we knew God was always there. knew it did take us about five years to have our first child. And that was really sort of a hard time to go through. Because I mean, I taught at the high school and both high schools had taught at the girls were getting pregnant. I'm like, hey,
Why am I not? Still not. And we had sort of gone through adoption at our church, but the family wanted to keep the baby. So that was sort of a hard, but not just a couple of weeks after that on our fifth anniversary, Danny said, hey, just check, check the pregnancy test and see, and we were pregnant. So.
Lindy Wynne (35:23)
Mmm.
Katy, I did not know this. That is so beautiful.
Katy Lane (35:46)
So we've just, yeah, but we always sort of had each other's backs. We always knew, I mean, it's hard when I see people like, we're not getting along or we're not, and like to divide up, to divorce, to separate, to, I don't know. I mean, I feel like, wow, I'd rather be doing it with him and let's talk about it and sort of see what's going on and how to make things better and how to then like.
being alone and trying because the grass is not always greener on the other side. So just communicating, talking, just knowing you're going to be there for each other. And there's no not being there for each other. mean, that divorce, that separation, that's just not in the picture. Just take that out of the equation.
Lindy Wynne (36:26)
Yeah, thank you, Katy. That is really beautiful. It's very, very touching to hear, Katy. I so appreciate that. And then last question. With Cursillo, when we went on Cursillo, and I have our picture here, I'm gonna show it. And actually underneath my Cursillo picture of the six of us together at our St. Margaret Mary table is my name, my southern name that I got on that weekend, Lindy Kate.
Katy Lane (36:38)
Thank
Lindy Wynne (36:49)
We have Katy and Kate at our table, so we all added Kate to our names. So I'm Lindy Kate. And so this is our beautiful group. I love you girls.
Katy Lane (36:58)
that's sweet, Lindy K.
Lindy Wynne (36:59)
Yes.
What are your thoughts about sisterhood in Christ and like your experience of being there that weekend and opening up and sharing such an intimate part? Because I feel like we all were really emptied, like we emptied ourselves with one another, like we trusted very deeply and we had just met when we first sat down.
Katy Lane (37:19)
And I think
I was the last one to share. think everybody had sort of shared and I was like, all right, God, Holy Spirit, give me the courage, give me the...
Lindy Wynne (37:22)
You were.
Katy Lane (37:28)
And just to know that you guys were there and to support and to join on this journey of life and to have these sisters in Christ. Jesus came for that, for the church, for this fellowship, because we can't do it on our own. No matter what, we cannot do this life on our own. We were not made that way.
God, the Father, Son, the Holy Spirit is made in communion, in family. So we're made for that communion. And these sisters in Christ, mean, we usually did the Saturday breakfast. I loved when we did the different churches and checked out all the different churches Saturday morning too. But we're, mean, a text away if somebody's got something going on or we need to pray for somebody or if we need to be there for them, we just know that we've got their back.
I mean, just sort of like it's in a marriage. mean, this friendship is we know that this sister in Christ is always going to be there for us because it's just this bond. I mean, and we had the best group, everybody wanted to join our group. No, I'm kidding. Don't do that. ⁓ We did. I mean, we had the best group for us. We have that just that special bond and that.
Lindy Wynne (38:28)
That that that was no that wasn't that yeah
Katy Lane (38:39)
And we just know that we're just always gonna be there for each other. those, like you were looking for a friend and I felt like we just found these friends that we will have for life.
Lindy Wynne (38:49)
Yeah, Amen, Amen. It's so true and I love how you talked about how you said, God, please give me the courage to share because that's at the heart of this podcast and this is a really sacred invitation for all of us and this is at the heart of Mamas in Spirit when you said in the beginning, the mess is in the message. Is that what it is? The mess is in the message, okay. It takes courage to share, even one on one.
Katy Lane (39:07)
Yeah.
Lindy Wynne (39:14)
It takes courage to share and I'm not talking about one on one in a podcast. I'm talking about one on one in the intimacy of someone's home or a coffee shop or church or a small group or whatever it is. And I pray that for all of us. Like Katy said somewhere along her story today that like it's not about just sharing with anyone. We have to be discerning and listen to the Holy Spirit because not everybody is safe. That's just that is a reality in life. Yet there are.
a lot of really safe, beautiful souls that want to help and want to mutually share too. Because that's at the heart of my friendships and I hope for all of our friendships is that there's a mutual share and a mutual listen. It's not like 50-50 or whatever that is like, that doesn't even matter. It's just that the presence of each soul and the openness of each soul to share and to listen and to walk with and to, in the words of Sister Gabriella Yee, we went to Bethany.
is to want heaven for one another, to want heaven for one another. And here Katy talks today about like praying for souls in purgatory and praying for people who maybe are really lost, like really, really lost on, and we're all lost in some way, but I think we all know what I'm getting at here is like really, really lost in the throes of great sin and great darkness because the light always does outshine the darkness. know that you can always,
reach out to me and you can always share with me and people do. There's people across the country. It was really interesting. I almost never look at the stats of mamas in Spirit because I just don't feel like that's the point of it. I know people probably think that's so funny who are in this kind of area. But anyways, the other day I saw the countries. It's wild. It's not like there's tons and tons of people in all the different countries, but there's people listening in all these different countries. And so.
The thing is that people will reach out at times and they'll tell me things that are deeply personal like about a child with special needs or their marriage or addiction in their family or whatnot. So I obviously can't fix these things, but I can pray for you and I can do my best to pray to the Lord to point you not only directly to him, but also to other human beings like beautiful Katy here who have had different experiences that could potentially and genuinely.
really be helpful to you as well as resources of support no matter what it's for and I've had so many resources in my own life and it's a great blessing and you'll know when you're drawn and you'll know when it's right because you will know by your fruit that is by its fruit that is also in Scripture so Katy Lane you are a treasure thank you so much for being with us
Katy Lane (41:45)
Thank you. Thank you so much for letting me share my story. I missed.
Lindy Wynne (41:50)
Yeah,
and Katy, if someone identifies with your story and wants to reach out to you, is there any way to do that? Should they reach out to me or do you have an email that is appropriate for them to reach out to?
Katy Lane (42:01)
if they want to email you and then I'll get it from you, that'd wonderful. Yeah. Yeah.
Lindy Wynne (42:03)
For me, that's perfect. So
you can email me at mamasinspirit.gmail.com or at mamasinspirit.com. You can just go to the contact and you can put in a whole note and your contact information and I will reach out to you and I will connect you with Miss Katy. Katy, thank you so much. Can you close us in prayer?
Katy Lane (42:23)
Yes, in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Jesus, transform us, transform our life into your body, blood, soul and divinity. Transform us to pray like you, to love like you, to forgive like you, to show mercy like you, and to be obedient like you. In Jesus name we pray, Amen. Father, Son, Holy Spirit.
Amen.
Lindy Wynne (42:47)
Amen, thank you everyone for coming just as you are. We love you right where you're at, whatever is going on, whatever is unfolding, and we are just blessed beyond measure to be sisters in Christ. Can't wait to be together again next time. This is Lindy Wynne with Mamas in Spirit. May God bless you and yours always.