In This Episode

Forgiveness is a choice. When the journey begins, it’s worth it and you are worth the work. This was the experience that today’s guest, Stephanie McNeal, talks about overcoming in this episode. 

Stephanie McNeal is a Speaker, author, forgiveness coach, and now thriving after experiencing infidelity in marriage. She is also the podcast host of Freed2Love, which talks about forgiving yourself from past mistakes, unhealed heartbreak, accepting the truth, and freeing yourself to move forward with your life.

Let’s dive right into this episode and learn from Stephanie how to heal yourself and encounter the power of forgiveness. 

Watch Keisha & Stephanie’s Full Episode on YouTube	Listen To The Episode

EPISODE SHOW NOTES

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[00:01 – 05:58] Opening Segment

• I introduce and welcome Stephanie McNeal
• Who is Stephanie?
  • Speaker, author, forgiveness coach
  • Thriving after experiencing infidelity in marriage and being newly single
  • Helping people to bounce back from any types of abuse
  • Forgiveness is necessary for people to grow
• Stephanie shares how she gained the strength to turn trauma into courage
  • Motivated by her late fathers’ heritage in influencing a lot of people 
  • Join a spiritual development program called Identity and Destiny 
  • Got called to be a minister of reconciliation for the masses

[05:59 – 11:10] Finding the Greater Purpose

• Stephanie talks about her new calling and purpose in life
  • Being called to help people find forgiveness
  • Success is tied to the ability or inability to forgive
• Stephanie talks about her response to the calling
  • Desire not to pass the same bitterness to her children 
  • Awareness of your greater purpose 
  • Breaking through the victim mentality 
• I talk about the challenge of breaking through in my experience 
• Fear is the biggest factor and obstacle to break through your situation
  • Knowing that it is not about you, it is about what you’re supposed to be accomplishing 
  • The feeling of being unqualified
• Stephanie talks about being free
  • Overcome the negative thought, feeling, and action towards your trauma
  • Don’t try to avoid or bury it

[11:11 – 27:49] Encounter the Power of Forgiveness

• I talk about my experience with the power forgiveness 
• How it manifested and changed the dynamic of my relationship with my father
• Forgiveness is the most healing and beautiful thing that took place
• How can we learn to start to forgive truly?
  • Trying to offer the wrongdoer compassion, benevolence, and love
  • We as forgivers realize that the offender does not necessarily have a right to such gifts, but we give it as an act of mercy 
• In forgiveness, we acknowledge that the effect is unfair and will always be
  • We have the right to be angry, but not retaliate, nor revenge
  • Having the view that people do not have the right to hurt you
• Forgiveness is a choice and a journey
• How to experience forgiveness while still be compassionate 
  • Acknowledge the hurt and pain 
  • Takes humility and vulnerability
  • Be authentic and transparent
• I talk about the value of giving yourself credit on the journey of forgiveness
  • Acknowledge the transformation within yourself
  • Trust yourself more
• Stephanie talks about the biggest hang-ups on people’s journey of forgiveness
• You are not a bad person if you have been hurt
  • But you are hurting yourself if you let unforgiveness stay on your mind
  • When we start to forgive, we will begin to accept yourself for who we are
• I talk about the shift that happens after forgiveness occurs
  • Attract beautiful people and relationships
  • Dynamic shift externally 

[27:50 – 32:59] Reclaiming Your Voice 

• Have you ever felt like your voice is being silenced?
  • Being in that emotionally abusive relationship
  • The feeling of being squashed down
• Stephanie shares her journey after breaking through
  • The insecurity that flashes 
  • Giving yourself permission to be you
  • Transparency and vulnerability will attract people to you
  • Learning how to be yourself
• How to reclaim your voice and your power?
  • Allowed yourself to heal 
  • Give yourself some time and space
  • Reconnecting with yourself
• What are the things that you love the most about yourself and where you are on your journey?
  • Her relationship with God
  • Realizing that your pain is propelling you for something

[33:00 – 37:52] Closing Segment

• How to connect with Stephanie 
  • Links Below
  • talk2stephanie.com
• Stephanie talks about the main discovery of her journey
  • The pathway to her healing
  • It took process, accountability, and community 
• Stephanie talks about the ‘together she rises’ community that she builds 
  • Patterned after the Lioness tribe
  • Creating a safe place for people to heal
• Stephanie talks about Freed2love Podcast
  • Talks about taboo things
• Final words from Stephanie
• Closing 

Tweetable Quotes:

“My success was tied to my ability or inability to forgive my ex-husband .” – Stephanie McNeal

“If you just try to bury it, it will still be alive and manifesting somewhere in your life making you not be able to get to your full potential.” – Stephanie McNeal

“When unjustly hurt by another, we forgive when we overcome the resentment toward the offender, not by denying our right to the resentment, but instead by trying to offer the wrongdoer compassion, benevolence, and love; as we give these, we as forgivers realize that the offender does not necessarily have a right to such gifts, but we give it as an act of mercy.” – Stephanie McNeal

“Forgiveness is a choice, and then the journey begins. It is worth it, and you are worth the work.” – Stephanie McNeal.

You can connect with Stephanie on LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook. Visit her website at www.freed2love.com/ and listen in to her Freed 2 Love Podcast.

If you’d like to continue the conversation check out the Find Your Voice Course or visit https://keishashields.com/. You will now be able to see videos if you check out the Keisha Shields YouTube Channel where I will begin putting up more content for you to see. 

LEAVE A REVIEW + help someone who wants to learn more about faith, leadership, and business growth by sharing this episode or click here to listen to our previous episodes. Want to see our podcast on video? Check us out http://keishashields.com/podcast/. See you there!

ABOUT STEPHANIE MCNEAL

When a woman’s partner is unfaithful, it is not uncommon for their entire life to unravel. This unraveling is what was used not only as the catalyst for Stephanie’s brokenness, but the passion behind her healing and restoration. Stephanie’s passion and pleasure is to see women bounce back from whatever was the catalyst for their brokenness or stressful experience, forgive everyone who hurt them and live out their God given purpose. She helps people go from heartbreak to happy so that ultimately they grow and have the power and passion to be freed to love.

Her education and training includes an MBA in Marketing; Certification in P.R.E.P. – a scientifically-based, empirically-tested method of teaching relationship education sponsored by the National Institutes of Health; a licensed facilitator of Identity and Destiny which provides a step-by-step guide to help you find, know and live your God given purpose. She also has certifications to teach entrepreneurship to adults and children.

Newly single, she is the mother of four and loves reading, writing, learning and the adventure of travel.