507: How to Get through the Crisis
with Susy Flory Author of Sanctuary
Kathi Lipp is here today with her very good friend, Susy Flory for a special conversation about crisis. Have you ever found yourself surrounded by crises and it causes you to feel stuck? Join Kathi and Susy as they talk about Susy’s new book Sanctuary, a story about a man from a tiny village in Ireland who grew up on a donkey sanctuary. When Patrick Barrett left the donkey sanctuary to find his own path, he found himself living through one crisis after another. Listen in as Susy shares the lessons she learned from Patrick including:
- Reach out when you need to
- Get outside and into nature
- Adopt a meaningful morning ritual
If you are feeling stressed out and stuck in crisis mode, you won’t want to miss this episode; and you can get your own copy of Sanctuary here.
For decades, his family rescued lost and forgotten donkeys in the Irish countryside. He had no idea that one day, the donkeys would rescue him.
Patrick Barrett grew up on the back of a donkey. In the small village of Liscarroll, the young boy helped his family run a sanctuary for abandoned and abused donkeys. Struggling in school, Patrick only felt truly accepted in the presence of these funny, fuzzy, touching animals. It was like magic, how he and the donkeys understood each other. He became a true “donkey whisperer”—reading their body language, communicating with them in ways they could understand, and teaching himself how to “speak” in their distinctive calls.
But when Patrick was of age, he shipped out with the Irish Army and encountered unimaginable wartime horrors in Lebanon and Kosovo. In the aftermath, he returned home a broken man, sinking into the depths of PTSD and addictions. He believed nothing could save him. But he hadn’t counted on the donkeys.
Sanctuary is the remarkable true story of how faith turned one lost man’s life around with the help of the rescue animals who loved him. It’s an antidote to despair and a call to hope, revealing the beauty and wonder of Ireland as you’ve never seen it before.
You can Purchase Sanctuary Here
Links Mentioned:
Meet Our Guest
Susy Flory
Susy Flory is the New York Times bestselling author or co-author of sixteen books. She directs West Coast Christian Writers, is founder of Everything Memoir, and is in the final year of an MA in New Testament from Northern Seminary. Her book, The Unbreakable Boy, has been adapted for the screen and will release March, 2022, starring Patricia Heaton and Zachary Levi. Her most recent book. Sanctuary (Tyndale), co-authored with Patrick Barrett, is the true story of an Irish village, a man who lost his way, and the rescue donkeys that led him home, and launches March 15, 2022
For more from Susy, connect with her on Facebook and Instagram.
Download the first two chapters of Sanctuary
Listen to the first two chapters of Sanctuary
Transcript
More Posts
Testimony Tuesday
The note below is from a friend who's had a lot of life to deal with recently, and hasn't started the project yet. Look at how, even before she's begun, her attitude is changing. Hi Kathi, Thought you might be interested in knowing that even though I haven't formally...
All About ME Monday
Part of taking care of our husbands, or anyone else, for that matter (mommies listen up here) is taking care of ourselves. We've all heard that when there is an emergency on an airplane we must first put on our own oxygen mask before doing so for our loved ones. (How...
The Final Installment in this Week’s Eavesdropping on Other Project Managers
Hello again, gals... Here's the final exchange between the three Project Managers; this from a wife who's really given thought to her husband's personal favorites: "I totally agree with you M. My husband has not said anything. Sometimes I think I could drop a brick on...
- #688 – Declutter Your Books in 15 Minutes a Shelf: Forever Shelf vs Flow Shelf for a Peaceful Library - September 23, 2025
- #687 – What’s Lurking Under Your Bed? Declutter the Forgotten Zone for Good - September 16, 2025
- #686 – Declutter Once and For All: Why Your Home’s Chaos Keeps Sneaking Back - September 9, 2025
Thank you again for a timely topic! Came home the other day to find that my 3rd neighbor since December had passed away suddenly. He was the 8th person in our circles to die recently. The following day I went to another funeral for a woman who had been in my Bible Study. In the meantime, my good friend from childhood is barely keeping her head above water as her husband is struggling with mental illness and recently added delusional disorder to his litany of ailments. Needless to say, the concept of sanctuary is very appealing. I Surrender All and Sovereign Over Us are high on my playlist.