Pain does not ask permission before it reshapes a life. On this episode of BeTempered, hosts Dan Schmidt and Ben Spahr sit down with Lisa Chandler to talk about what it looks like to stop running and start rebuilding when survival has been the default for decades.

Lisa’s story moves through constant childhood instability, overwhelming debt, and a traumatic brain injury from a car accident in 1984. Searching for security, she joined the Navy, only to face pregnancy, abandonment, and the reality of starting over as a single mother with almost nothing. Faith entered quietly when a church bus began picking up her daughter, but it came tangled with legalism, shame, and the belief that love had to be earned. Everything shifted when Lisa encountered a simple truth that dismantled years of striving. She was already saved. Forgiveness became necessary, not optional, and identity began to form around truth instead of past mistakes.

The conversation also explores calling in everyday obedience. After restarting cosmetology from the ground up, Lisa built Off The Top Salon in Eaton, reviving a name she dreamed up years earlier and turning it into a mission. By bringing haircuts to shelters and recovery centers and training a team rooted in empathy and excellence, her work became a living expression of faith. This episode challenges common church narratives and asks what real love looks like when it shows up practically, consistently, and without conditions.

If you have wrestled with shame, struggled with forgiveness, or wondered if your past disqualifies your future, this conversation offers clarity and hope rooted in lived experience.

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