Her Story: Retah McPherson

her |həː, hə| pronoun 1 used as the object of a verb or preposition to refer to a female person: Her spirit was full of the Spirit of God.  

After discovering Retah McPherson and hearing her story, I knew she needed to come and share her heart with my sisters at Equipped by Faith. Retah is stunningly beautiful as a former Mrs. South Africa, and beautifully powerful as a Christian public speaker traveling around the world proclaiming the coming of the King of kings. Her whole life is based on the simple truth she declares, “I know one thing for sure: Jesus is alive!”

In 2004, Retah McPherson and her family were involved in a near-fatal motorcar accident. Her eldest son, Aldo, was the only person who did not walk away from the accident scene. He sustained serious brain injuries due to the impact of the collision and was in a coma for months following the accident. During that time, Aldo had a supernatural experience where he went to heaven, saw God, the angels, Moses, and Abraham. Aldo came back with one message: “Mommy, I need to tell the world that Jesus is alive!”

In obedience to this call to tell the world that Jesus is alive and that His bride has to ready herself for the Bridegroom, Aldo and Retah wrote the book, A Message from God. Since then, they have also released their followup books, A Message of Faith and A Message of Hope, explaining the reality of spiritual warfare.  

I know every woman who attended EBF last night not only left encouraged and inspired by this woman’s heart and spirit, but each of us were filled with a desire to seek the presence of God and share the reality of Jesus coming back for His Church. I am encouraged by her testimony, but more so, by the posture of her heart and the presence of God, she carries when she walks into the room. If you missed last night, I encourage you to listen to the podcast here or read through the notes from the podcast in the written interview below.
 

Q&A with Retah McPherson

 

1) What do you think you were put on this earth for?

I am placed on the earth to proclaim the coming of the King of kings. I’ve always confessed that I’m a Christian. I’ve always known God. I believed in the Holy Trinity and even served God. Yet, when I look back now, I realize that I was merely living a good life filled with good deeds. I didn’t really know God’s character and I had no idea what it meant to be completely sold out to Him—which is the only sacrifice that is ever acceptable in His sight. We were made for relationship with Him. We are here for Him, and only Him.

2) What are some of the obstacles you have had to go through to get to this point?

I had to live through a terrible tragedy and huge suffering before I was finally willing to sacrifice everything, including my son, to God. Only after all that, did I hand over control of my life to Him and did I get to know Him personally. All this pain was so unnecessary! Jesus had already paid the price in full. It was only after I had given my life to Him as a living sacrifice that I could get in line with God’s perfect plan for my life: to live in a love relationship with the living God! Only then could I say that it didn’t matter whether I lived or died, as long as I glorified God. For a long time, I thought it was my husband’s responsibility to make me happy, but the truth is—no human being can make you completely happy. Only Jesus can do that for you. He is the ANSWER to all questions; the SOLUTION to all your problems; the FULFILLMENT of all your needs and desires. He is ALL things to ALL men! I tried to quench my thirst with all sorts of things like perfectionism, fame, wealth and achievement. But now that the fire of the Holy Spirit has purified me from the inside out, I know Jesus is the fountain of living water. He is the only One who can quench my thirst forever. I know one thing for sure: Jesus is alive!

3) What motivates/inspires you?

My relationship with God. It can be very dangerous to run after your “promise” more than running after God. It can put you on the wrong path. I have found how my heart and His heart can become ONE and Kingdom can come down to earth—through me and through us. I think that is God’s desire, for us to live Kingdom here on earth. Many times, we say we are Christians, but we leave no space for God’s spirit within our hearts. We cannot be One with Him if we have no space because of other things or idols in our hearts. You see, it is all about a place. It’s not about what I have or don’t have. It’s about getting into the place of the divine—the heart of the Father. We as women, love to have a beautiful room, we love to have beautiful clothes. And in the heart of the Father, there is a room—there is a home there for us. People ask me all the time, “You travel so much, where is your home?” and I always reply, “Home is in my heart.” You see, I have a beautiful home in my heart and I have a room there, and I have clothes there. God is clothing us every day with mantels. There is a healing room in this house with the cross and the blood, and there is a library where the wisdom of God lives, and there is the throne room where we all can come boldly. We all have this house inside of us. It is a treasure that most of us never open up and walk into. But when you do open those doors and walk in there, that is where you live. That is when you live in Kingdom.

4) What advice would you give other women searching for their purpose, passion & faith?

Find the “real” you. It is so easy for the world to suck you in, but God has been teaching me something lately. Real is real. We can become busy with the things of God, without Him. But God has designed the “real” me, and the real me is my spirit man. Not many people have come to the place where they realize who they are—the spirit man. Many people operate out of the “soul” portion of our hearts (mind, will, and emotions). But finding the spirit man is finding the real you. When you find the real you, you find your spirit and God’s spirit connected! This is where you are rooted. And if you are rooted in this place, you are one with God and the anointing will constantly flow. Then you become a son and not a beggar–moving from striving to having faith, and then living your faith. God is the air we breathe. We don’t need to yield to it every day to try to find it when we are one with Him, because it becomes who we ARE.

5. What would you say to someone who is ready to give up hope or throw in the towel?

I would say, if you do that—it is because you are doing it all in your own strength. That’s why we give up hope. Just last month, we were faced with death again when my son went into post-traumatic shock. The difference this time was knowing this: God said to Abraham, come up yonder. Your journey is not just a journey, it is to take you higher. If you are a baby or a toddler, you will scream, “I want this, and I want it now!” But when you are mature, you start understanding. With you and your husband, in your relationship, are there times where you just sit? Where you just enjoy one another’s presence? You see, maturity brings those moments where you can just sit. God wants to take us higher so we can see through the eyes of eternity. His perspective. It is very dangerous if you don’t see things in His perspective. This time, not because of who I am, but because of who is in me—I was able to say, “God it doesn’t matter what happens. I will still love you.” Your love for God doesn’t depend on this life—the only life that matters is Christ inside of us. That’s real life.

6) At what moment in your journey did you discover your true faith in God?

In the first 2 weeks of his coma, they said to us, we’re going to cut off the machines and it was then that I had my first, real encounter with God. To this day, I am so thankful for that. Because one second in His presence and your life will never be the same. That changed my life. It made me hold on to Him. God doesn’t need to prove anything to me. He is God. God doesn’t have to DO anything to show His love. He IS love. But it can be very dangerous to have a “moment” with God and try to hold onto that moment. We don’t need a moment. We need HIM. We need His presence every day. But in that moment with Him in the hospital, I realized something we all yearn for: my identity in Him.

7) What do you say to encourage others about their own destiny or calling?

Some of us look our whole lives to discover who we are. Who am I Lord? What is my destiny? What is my calling? But when you enter into the presence of God, you are immediately who you were created to be. In His eyes, you will see yourself, reflected. In that second of being in His presence, you know who you are. You just know: this is what I’ve made you for. If people ask me what their destiny is or what their calling is, I encourage them to get to know one thing: His presence. It is there you will find everything you are looking for.

8) What books are you reading?

I just finished a book about a Catholic priest who wrote a book about living in Siberia, imprisoned all of his life because they thought he was a spy. He was tortured but continued to stand on the Word. He was an old man when they finally released him and he wrote the book, He Leadeth Me (by Walter J. Ciszek). Real life stories are incredibly inspiring to me. Real life stories encourage us in our journey because we all have a story to tell.  

9) How do you stay encouraged & faith-filled?

In discouraging moments where you are so tired and you can’t go on–you press forward, not because of who you are, but because of who God is. Allow yourself to be human. Allow yourself to be tired. Allow yourself to cry. But run to Him and find healing and peace in His presence.

10) Favorite scripture of the moment (or ever)? :)

“And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue His work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus Returns.” Philippians 1:6  

Love you all, and can't wait to see you next month at Equipped by Faith!  

XO-

Sabrina