In this episode of the GOA Speakers Podcast, hosts Abigail Garrett and Greg Oliver sit down with award-winning singer-songwriter, author, and speaker Ginny Owens. Ginny shares her powerful story of losing her sight at age three, navigating bullying and exclusion, and discovering a deep, resilient joy in Christ.

She walks us through her journey from aspiring high school music teacher to signed recording artist in Nashville, her EP “Different Kind of Water,” her nonprofit The Asaph Project, and her passion for helping believers find hope in suffering, hear God’s voice above the cultural noise, and live out courageous compassion in a broken world.

If you’ve ever wrestled with suffering, purpose, or how to do justice and love mercy in everyday life, this conversation will deeply encourage you.

Timestamps:

00:00 – Intro to GOA Speakers Podcast and Ginny Owens

01:00 – Moving to Nashville, Belmont, and early career dreams

02:15 – Rejected from teaching jobs and invitation to sing at church

03:40 – Demo recordings and first interest from music industry

04:50 – Signing with BMG and Rocketown; debut album background

05:45 – Losing her sight at three and her parents’ response

07:15 – Hardest part of blindness: people’s reactions

08:40 – Mom’s counsel and roots of “Singing in the Dark”

09:25 – Bullying, being left out, and growing compassion for outsiders

11:45 – EP “Different Kind of Water” and the woman at the well

13:20 – Writing songs for both Christian and non-believing friends

14:55 – Debuting new music in Nashville; long creative process

16:55 – Launching The Asaph Project for worship leaders

18:35 – Planning worship liturgy with theological depth

19:15 – Need for new worship themes: work, repentance, justice, forgiveness

20:45 – Why Ginny went to seminary and moved to NYC

21:50 – Studying under Tim Keller and key lessons on culture and identity

25:50 – Keller’s cancer journey and learning to trust God in suffering

27:55 – Speaking, retreats, and opening Scripture with people

29:20 – “Love Be the Loudest”: hearing God above the noise

30:15 – Hope in suffering and the promise of Romans 8:28

33:10 – New book “Courageous Compassion”: doing justice and loving mercy

35:10 – New worship music coming and where to connect with Ginny

https://goaspeakers.com/speakers/ginny-owens/

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