Shirley Gould

I attribute my success to following the Lord and having a strong mentor in my life. Bill Carver, who played the dobro on the Grand Ole Opry for probably 20 years, was a Bible study teacher who really influenced me spiritually. He taught our ladies Bible study, and even though I had been in Sunday school since I was young, he took me into the Word in a way I had never experienced before. He spoke to me about ministry and taught me how to learn from the Bible in a different way. We were good friends for 50 years. After my husband JR passed away and I was struggling in terrible grief, Bill sent word that he wanted to see me. He told me something that changed everything: 'Your calling that God placed on your life when you were 16 has not stopped because your husband went to heaven. Pick yourself up, dust yourself off, and go again.' He said, 'The Lord's not over. What's ahead. Your ministry is not over.' That's when I began to pull myself together and figure out how to walk this out in grief, and then I began to teach it to help other widows.

The best career advice I've received is to prayerfully seek the Lord and follow the open doors of opportunity. Do your best in each field, and one will lead to another and another until you can make a big influence and make a real difference. I've learned that you have to be very flexible because everything changes. As culture changes, you have to be willing to learn constantly and adapt to new situations.

If you're going to be a missionary, the first thing is to be totally devout in your walk with the Lord. Pray all the time about it. I pray constantly, whether I'm washing clothes, ironing, washing dishes, or cooking. I'll say, 'Lord, what do you want me to do next? What do you want me to write an article about that'll change somebody's life? Where can you use me? Just tell me what to do.' Be open to the step-by-step open doors that He'll open for you, but then you have to be very flexible. Everything changes. Our culture is changing so quickly in America. When I left America for 4 years and came back, things had changed so much. You've got to be flexible and learn constantly. I also think every high school student needs to go spend a week in old Mexico and then come back, because their world, their thoughts will be changed. They need to see outside of this spoiled culture and step into a world of poverty. They need to see it and understand it so they'll appreciate what they have. My advice is prayerful consideration, obedience in steps, but be very flexible.

My highest values are morally and spiritually based, with my relationship with the Lord being the most important. I'm very blessed and thankful for the adventurous life that the Lord has allowed me to have, which has taken me around the world to minister in 17 different countries. My family is my world. I have 3 daughters and 3 son-in-laws and 7 grandchildren, and they are of most value to me. I love my church family as well. I value the experiences I've had, and I want to change people's lives with those experiences. That's how I help people in the widow thing, in my writing, and in helping people who are becoming missionaries by giving them advice on how to think about it, how to readjust, and how to deal with culture shock. I want to use whatever experiences I've had to help others do what they've got to do.