Recently

from Area Woman Magazine Apr/May '17

by Lake & Home Magazine | Area Woman Magazine

when Everything CHANGED

Recently I found myself driving down 45th Street with a mostly frosted-over windshield. Having been cold and in a hurry to get home, I scraped only long enough to clear a little circle of windshield, jumped in the car, and drove with little to no peripheral vision until the blasting defroster did its job. Not a wise way to drive — it can also be a frustrating way to live. Sometimes it feels like the windshield of our life is iced over with struggles or conflict, allowing us to only see through a small and narrow view. We may strain to see any hope that lies beyond or wriggle to find the right angle that will enable us to see further than today. But sometimes, we just settle for the narrow view and resign ourselves to our situation. Nationally known radio talk-show host, speaker, and author Susie Larson calls this resignation “small-story living.” To say the least, being able to see only the small story is frustrating, and sometimes downright debilitating. We desire a fully cleared windshield.

In May our community will have the opportunity to meet and learn from this strong and wise woman who has herself felt stuck in the smaller story, unable to see how her struggles and suffering could be a part of a powerful and abundant larger picture. When she was victimized and assaulted by bullies as a young girl growing up in the Twin Cities, Larson couldn’t see the bigger story in which the ensuing years of fear and insecurity would one day lead to a ministry bent towards the victimized in our society. When she was infected by a deer-tick during a much-needed lunch date with her girlfriends, she never would have imagined that decades of Lyme disease would lead her to a lifetime of ministry in which she’d share her story of victory through suffering. As she fought the long-undiagnosed symptoms of Lyme disease while also lying in bed, sixmonths pregnant and on bed-rest with two toddlers at her feet, she could only see the small picture of pain, suffering, inability to parent, and financial strain. The bigger picture, that she’d one day teach and minister to thousands as a nationally-recognized speaker and radio host, was far in the distance, totally unknown to her.

Today, Larson impacts the lives of thousands in our community every afternoon through her radio talk show, which broadcasts locally on Faith 1200, and also reaches throughout the entire Midwest, areas of New England, and scattered places around the U.S. Tim Unsinn, Faith 1200/Life 97.9 station manager, highly regards Larson’s ministry. "God is using Susie to create a clearer picture of what God has for every person as his child,” says Unsinn, “and how he longs for a relationship with each of us.” Through her radio ministry, Larson has the opportunity to encourage hundreds of thousands of listeners to hold onto hope through their seasons of struggle. “So often we keep ourselves in the smaller story when God would like us to step out of that small story and see ourselves as a part of a grander story,” says Larson. “Let’s live in such a way that people who knew us then and see us now think ‘there must be a God in heaven.’”

Because of the impact Larson has made locally through her radio ministry and her ability to touch the hearts of listeners, a local church is excited to invite the community to learn from Larson in person as she teaches us about grasping the hope of the bigger picture. First Assembly in Fargo welcomes the community to Extraordinary Expectations with Larson, May 5–6. Unsinn strongly encourages the event. “If you want to be awakened to what God has for you,” says Unsinn, “you need to attend.” Lisa Donelson, event coordinator at First Assembly, looks forward to welcoming Larson to our community. “We are expecting great things for the women and men who attend,” says Donelson. “Susie has a great story to tell, and she has impacted many women around the country.”

A great story to tell she certainly does have. Yet, as is so often the case, it has been the seasons of trial and suffering, far more than the times of joy and plenty, that have shaped her life’s passions. Larson recounts how during the worst days of illness, when all she could do was pray, her heart lost its appetite for anything of the world. Her one aching desire was simply to be able to see her three little boys grow into manhood. Having been an athlete her whole life and spending her young adult years as a fitness instructor, the loss of memory and physical strength also caused a loss of identity. Through her hours of prayer, Larson distinctly remembers hearing a repeated message of “you are not what you do.” Over time, Larson grew to understand that her value was not grounded in the things she did or accomplished, but that her value was found only in her identity as a daughter of God, loved by him. Recalling those days of physical pain, identity struggle and memory loss, Larson says, “I’m a fighter, so I fought.” She studied for fitness instructor tests and found herself unable to remember anything she studied; so she studied more. She never stopped moving and never stopped hoping. Her doctors have told her since, that her love for fitness and her unwillingness to stop moving despite the pain likely saved her physical mobility.

It’s also through suffering that, when we choose to let our painful seasons make us better rather than bitter, we have the most opportunity to engage in fruitful and meaningful relationships. Times of struggle uniquely invite us to lean into one another’s pain to learn, love and grow together. Twenty-six years ago a door opened for Larson to use her struggles to connect deeply with others. In the midst of this illness, pain and solitude, Larson was unexpectedly invited to share her story to a moms’ group at a local church. Clouded by pain and anxiety, she didn’t see why she was being asked to share her story, but mustering up her courage, she shared anyway. Choosing to simply wear her heart on her sleeve, Larson vulnerably shared not only her story of pain, loss and financial strain, but more importantly, the importance of grasping onto hope in God’s larger story.

Larson didn’t know then, at that first speaking engagement, that she would spend the rest of her life inviting women and men to not wade in the shallows of life, but to live deeper and walk powerfully; to chase the big picture of God’s purposes rather than settling for anything less. The women at that first moms’ group connected with Larson’s refreshing vulnerability, and that one speaking invitation led to another and another. Over time, Larson says God turned her barren land of suffering into a fruitful land of ministry. Larson developed an increased desire to share God’s heart of provision and love for those walking in the valley of the shadow — those walking through death, disease, heartache and victimization. Larson came to realize that distinctly because of her own journey through the shadows of life, she could encourage others who are hurting to lean into God for a deeper and more powerful walk. Of her ability to impact others, Larson says, “This isn’t about making a name for myself. I’m too old for that. It’s about freedom. When a woman gets set free, her whole household changes.”

In 2000, after years of speaking and being encouraged numerous times to share her story through the pages of a book, Larson self-published her first book, “Mercy in the Wilderness,” a memoir of her journey through pain and the solace she found in the mercies of God that are new each morning. Just as one speaking engagement led to another, so did one book lead to another, and another. Her most recent book, “Your Powerful Prayers,” published in 2016, was born out of lessons she learned during her years of struggle when she could do little else than pray. Amongst all the other purposes of those years, that season created in Larson a dependence on prayer. “The deepest things in my life have come from my prayer life,” she says. Larson’s gifts as an author continue to soar — in the days ahead she’ll release books fourteen and fifteen: a coloring book and a biblical journal that leads the reader through journaling the Psalms.

As her career as a nationally recognized speaker and author grew, Larson’s heart started tugging her towards radio. In 2006 while doing a radio interview in Chicago, Larson vividly recalls watching the radio host execute the interview and feeling her heart race. She remembers being struck by the similarities of executing a radio show and executing aerobics choreography. With each radio interview, her heart raced more. Larson began to pray about radio, asking God to, “either grow this desire for radio or take it away.” Her desire grew. Soon she was invited to be a guest host in the Twin Cities, and after four years of guest hosting, she landed her own show — a thirty minute time slot when no one was listening. However, because of her intimate connection with listeners and vulnerable leadership style, Larson’s show eventually expanded to two full hours and grabbed the prime listening time of 3–5 p.m. Larson thrives with the opportunity to minister oneon-one, individually to each listener. “I love radio because really, at heart, I’m an introvert,” says Larson. “I love one-on-one conversations and really, radio hosting is like a private conversation between one listener and me.”

Throughout this entire journey, with all of its twists and turns, unseen struggles and unexpected triumphs, the rock by her side has been her husband of 32 years, Kevin. Having both grown up in suburbs of the Twin Cities, Larson met Kevin at a single’s retreat at Camp Shamineau, a Christian camp and retreat center north of the Twin Cities. Like most newly married couples, they were young and in love and had no idea of the struggles they would endure. Yet their struggles knit them together in a way they couldn’t have imagined, and their ministry is totally a partnership. Kevin, a commercial construction project manager by day, played a significant role in the construction of the new Twins stadium, Target Field, and Fargo’s new Sanford Medical Center. He serves on the building committee at their local church and is active in ministry in Rwanda, sitting on the board of the mission organization Hope for a Thousand Hills. With their travelling and speaking ministry, Kevin is fully in charge of book sales, inventory, media and technical needs, emotional support, and most importantly, prayer. Larson says of Kevin, “His leadership gifts are off the charts. There wouldn’t be a me without a him. He was Jesus with skin on when I was full of fear and anxiety. If he doesn’t go [to an event], I don’t go.”

What has kept Larson going in ministry all these years is hearing the stories of those whose lives have been changed by the God who holds the bigger story. Nothing gives her greater delight than to hear individual’s stories of, “I once was, but now I am.” What a joy it is to be able to see beyond the small defrosted circle directly in front of us and step into the hope that lies in the larger story of our lives.