Today we’d like to introduce you to Stephanie Luster.
Stephanie, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
As a little girl, I’ve always dreamt of being in front of a camera. In fact, there are tons of embarrassing childhood videos of me putting on a show. I never knew how I’d end up on camera, but I always felt it even as a little girl. I was like drawn to the camera, and I always felt totally comfortable. I was in the sixth grade, and my teacher had us doing a group project. I remember goofing off and acting like I was on T.V putting on a show. My teacher walked over to me, told me to stand in front of the T.V again, he put a remote in my hand as my microphone, and said: “that’s it!” “You need to be a T.V News reporter,” I kind of laughed it off at first, but it stuck with me and from that day on I made it my mission to become a T.V news reporter. I went to the University of North Texas and graduated with a bachelors degree in Broadcast Journalism. I landed my first T.V news reporting job at a news station out of Ardmore, Oklahoma called Kten News. I loved every minute of it. The excitement, the thrill, the fact that I was on T.V every day, but there was something missing. I loved what I did, but I didn’t feel like I was making a difference in anyone’s life. I wasn’t reporting on stories that I felt led to do. I was torn. One day as I was getting ready for the 5 O’clock news show, I felt God tell me to leave the news business. I was like “nope, I worked too hard to get here, Lord!” The voice became stronger, and I felt led to leave. I felt so lost at first, not knowing what my next move was going to be. That’s when my blog came about. I knew I was meant to be on T.V, but this time, I wanted to write about what I felt led to write about, to encourage people, and to help bring people to Christ. I started my blog four years ago, and it’s grown so much, and I’ve connected with so many women that I would not have connected with had it not been for my blog. I do speaking engagements, and my husband and I are both in ministry at our local church. I absolutely love it and feel like this is what I was born to do. To uplift and encourage both men and women all over the world. I stepped out on faith, and God is showing up in a mighty way!
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc. – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
Not at all! Being a Christian doesn’t mean you’re going to have it easy; in fact, the enemy wants to see you fail! My faith is what keeps me going, but it definitely has been tested numerous times. There definitely have been some bumps along the way. With my two miscarriages and then being diagnosed with thyroid cancer earlier this year, it definitely has been an emotional roller coaster. But through all of these battles I’ve come out stronger than ever, and that’s what it’s all about!
We’d love to hear more about your work.
I created my blog, virtuouswomanblog.com, four years ago with the intention of uplifting and encouraging women going through various walks of life. Teaching them to keep the faith. It has done that and more! I even have men reading my blog and even messaging me thanking me for the encouragement. I feel like my openness and realness is what people can relate to the most. We’re all far from perfect, and we all have battles we’re secretly going through. My hope is to encourage someone that may be facing a tough battle and need some encouragement.
What were you like growing up?
The exact same, Ha! It’s funny you ask this question because my family and I were just watching old home videos of when I was a child, and my husband leaned over and said: “you are the exact same!” I’ve always been goofy, I love hard, and I want to see people happy. Anytime I see someone In distress, I make it my mission to help uplift and encourage them!
Contact Info:
- Website: Virtuouswomanblog.com
- Instagram: Stephluster
Image Credit:
Samantha Rivas Photography
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