Debra Elrod has lived the American Dream—the career, the house, the family. She’s also lost the American Dream.
Both experiences were needed to strengthen her relationship with God and lead her down a path of spiritual discovery.
On that path, she discovered spiritual DNA, and it’s a revelation she’s passionate about sharing with business and church leaders to help them not only find success at the office, but also in their personal relationships.
The Front Row Seat That Wasn’t
Debra grew up in a church denomination that stressed religion over relationship. “I thought I had a front row seat in heaven,” she said. “But when I got saved, I realized I was not even on my way to heaven.”
It was easy to think she had it figured out because life seemed good. “We were the GQ family,” she said of her million-dollar business, family, and a house big enough to fit her childhood home in the great room.
But as she sat looking at her marble dining room table set, peace evaded her. Something was missing.
When the Good Book Became Good News
In February 2005, an aunt sent her a Bible. “I read it from beginning to end to find out if the answers for life and eternity were in there,” she said. As Debra read, she discovered something about the Good Book. “When you read with an open heart and mind, God will meet you.”
The words she read led her to do something she didn’t realize she needed—she repented.
“I drove to the office crying out to God for answers. I knew the Bible had them because I had just read them, but I couldn’t read them for myself. I prayed, ‘I’m sorry, Lord. I need you to give me the answer. I’ll do whatever you tell me to do!’“
And he did. As she drove, the Lord revealed himself in a new way, and a spiritual heaviness lifted. Whereas the Bible once read like a history book, it soon came to life, revealing God’s truths and goodness.
The Question a Sticky Note Answered
She committed her life to the Lord, but something still lingered. Three years later, on her way to a family Christmas event, she couldn’t shake the feeling that even though life looked put together on the outside, something was still missing.
“What was wrong with me?” she asked. “How could I make great business decisions but when it comes to relationships I fall apart? I knew somehow I was stuck.” And despite her ability to command a boardroom and build a company from net zero to $1 million, she didn’t know how to fix it. With no other answers, she left it in God’s hands.
“On a yellow sticky note, I wrote God, please get me unstuck.”
For several weeks she read that sticky note as she continued to push on. Then, God led her to 1 Corinthians 13:11: “When I was a child, I spoke and thought and reasoned as a child. But when I grew up, I put away childish things” (NLT).
The Lord reminded her of a painful childhood memory from when she was only 3 years old. The pain from that event had endured until God reminded her of it and healed her heart.
The Discovery That Changed Everything
That moment of healing sparked a new fire in Debra—if she had spent that energy silently living with the weight of childhood trauma, how many other people were doing the same? She tackled this problem with the same ferocity and passion she used to build successful businesses.
Debra found answers as she studied what she refers to as spiritual DNA. In the same way a person’s natural DNA carries information necessary for physical growth and development, spiritual DNA carries the nutrients necessary for spiritual growth and development. It can also reveal the reasons why some people struggle to grow both spiritually and emotionally.
Her research introduced her to the three levels of the mind—the conscious, subconscious, and unconscious. The subconscious mind holds a person’s unhealed trauma, which affects all their relationships, personal and professional.
By understanding where the trauma lives and how the Holy Spirit can work at the unconscious level to heal old wounds, Debra has experienced and seen others discover freedom from past events that hinder them in the present. It made clear to her the importance of being “born again.”
“We are born first to ‘survive’ then reborn to ‘thrive.'”
From Surviving to Thriving
After years of research, Debra realized God had put her in a unique position to merge her corporate experience with God’s revelation to bring a new level of success and freedom to people who have often struggled alone.
“Many leaders have great success in business, but they struggle in relationships,” she explained. “As a leader, you don’t talk about it. You can’t.”
But now, thanks to Debra’s research and experience, all readers can start their own personal journeys toward wholeness and healing, starting at the spiritual DNA level. 🖤
Debra shares her discoveries in her book Discovering Your Spiritual DNA: A Complete Guide to Changing Your Thinking and Transforming Your Life. The book explores principles of the mind’s and soul’s development, which can help readers discover their divine purpose and unique gifts as they work toward healing and growth in all areas.
Her book Surrendered: Discovering God’s Will for Your Life, shares her journey through the process. Learn more at www.narrowgatenow.com.
