194: What “God Hates Divorce” Gets Right—and Very Wrong
“God hates divorce”: you’ve heard it, maybe felt crushed by it. Cheryl Shumake joins Ron Deal and Gayla Grace to pull apart what Malachi 2 really says—and what it doesn’t. If you’ve felt judged, stuck, or sidelined by church talk, this conversation meets you there and pushes toward truth, clarity, and hope without easy answers.
Show Notes
About the Guest
Cheryl Shumake
Cheryl, and her husband, Jonathan, make their home in Michigan and are frequently invaded by their family looking for food and hugs! Cheryl is a self-described adventuress who will tell you her greatest adventure is that she knows and love Jesus and gets to make Him known. Cheryl serves as a speaker, bible teacher, author, founder of Stepmom Sanity; a Christ-centered sister circle of support providing help and hope for women on their stepmom journey, and co-founder of Sawubona Blended Families, a ministry that supports stepfamilies in black and brown communities, and the ministries that serve them. Cheryl is the author of, Waiting to Be Wanted, A Stepmom’s Guide to Loving Before Being Loved, the Dear Stepmom Series, and a regular blogger for Our Daily Bread’s God Hears Her platform. Her greatest joys, after Christ, are her husband, their 4 children, grandson, and a pet-free home!
Gayla Grace
Gayla Grace serves on staff with FamilyLife Blended, a division of FamilyLife, is the founder of Stepparenting with Grace, and co-founder of Sisterhood of Stepmoms.
She is a writer, speaker, and coach on stepfamily life and is passionate about equipping blended families. She holds a master’s degree in Psychology and Counseling and is the author of Stepparenting With Grace: A Devotional for Blended Families and co-author of Quiet Moments for the Stepmom Soul and Unwrapping the Gift of Stepfamily Peace.
Gayla and her husband, Randy, have been married since 1995 in a “his, hers, and ours” family. She is the mom to three and stepmom to two young adults. Gayla and Randy are recent empty nesters and live in Conway, AR.
Twitter: @GaylaGrace
Instagram: @FamilyLifeBlended
Facebook: @FamilyLifeBlended
Website: www.familylife.com/blended
Gayla Grace serves on staff with FamilyLife Blended, a division of FamilyLife, and is passionate about equipping blended families as a writer and a speaker. She is author of Stepparenting with Grace: A Devotional for Blended Families and co-author of Quiet Moments for the Stepmom Soul. Gayla holds a master’s degree in Psychology and Counseling. She and her husband, Randy, have been married since 1995 in a “his, hers, and ours” family. She is the mom to three and stepmom to two young adults.
About the Host
Ron Deal
Ron Deal is Director of FamilyLife Blended®️ for FamilyLife®️ and President of Smart Stepfamilies™️. He is a family ministry consultant and conducts marriage and family seminars around the country; he specializes in marriage education and stepfamily enrichment. He is one of the most widely read authors on stepfamily living in the country.