We recently had the chance to connect with Christina Chislom-Banner and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Christina, thank you so much for joining us today. We’re thrilled to learn more about your journey, values and what you are currently working on. Let’s start with an ice breaker: What battle are you avoiding?
I can’t necessarily say that I’m avoiding. But it has truly been a battle with me since childhood, around the age of 12 a battle with my weight. It has been up and down for a number of years and the most I’ve lost is about 60 pounds and then seem to gain it and then lose again and then gain it again. So currently I’ve maintained about a 35 pound loss, since last year. But I am 10 pounds up from last year. And sometimes it seems like everyone around me is getting the weight loss shot or the weight loss surgery. I don’t have insurance for any of those. So it could just be me being jealous, and only looking through a selfish lens. Stings but I’m honest! Truth is, I am the one in control and I need to stay focused and maintain my discipline and consistency! So , I’m kind of just sitting in this ongoing battle with weight loss. That’s the only thing I can truly say I am avoiding. But this question is going to keep me accountable. How’s that for an opening statement!
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
Christina Chislom-Banner is a prophetic voice, author, and spiritual leader devoted to awakening purpose, healing, and deliverance in the body of Christ. Through her brand, Better Than Before LLC. As well as her new online coaching course , “Come Out of Hiding Activating Deliverance”. Where she merges faith, authenticity, and empowerment to help people come out of hiding and walk boldly in their God-given identity.
Okay, so here’s a deep one: Who saw you clearly before you could see yourself?
I believe my parents, my mom and my dad, the late , Great William, Lee Chislom, and my beautiful mother Charlene L. Chislom. As a little girl they would always encourage me and push me to do anything that I had an interest in. They saw that I like to sing so they pushed and encouraged me to sing. My dad loved music, so I was the family performer , when his friends came over to the house “sing a song Tina” is what I would hear from my dad and that carried over into church . I started going to church with my grandma Ellen Axel, and as a little girl I would be called on to sing or recite my Easter or my Christmas speech then on to be a junior missionary preaching my first sermonette at 13 years old. Beautiful memories! At the end of the day, I really have to give the credit to my mom and dad because they always pushed me , my whole family made me feel special, they always believed in me. They always made it seem like whatever I was doing was amazing and whether it was or was not, I believed them , and I still appreciate and hold dear those seeds of greatness that they planted on the inside of me. And it kind of carried on and shaped my personality I believe, because whoever, whether it was a teacher, a pastor, or a pastors wife or mentor, they would pour into the gifts they saw and made me believe that I achieved excellence in whatever I did.
Was there ever a time you almost gave up?
You know there was a time that you would have asked me this question and I would say, I’ve never felt like giving up, but I recently went through something this past year. I was fired from a job. I say wrongly fired from a job, but as this season has unfolded, I believe God pushed me out of my comfort zone. So without going into detail, at first it really devastated me because where I thought I was helping it seemed my help was taken for granted. It bothered me, my character was questioned and it truly devastated me. I had grown attached to the young people that I was working with, and it really took a toll on me mentally and emotionally. I had never been fired from a position, as a result of that, I saw how God was definitely working behind the scenes in me leaving that job. I than began to do more ministry “on demand” if you will , where I was able to take those midday phone calls to pray for someone or be there to minister to or counsel someone or just be available to travel for ministry. Just this October , I launched my first four week course that goes right along with my first book that I wrote in 2019 , Come Out of Hiding Activating Deliverance. It consists of a four week course, that walks people through transformation, identifying an area in their life that they are struggling in and through the process of doing “soul work” , or homework assignments ,meeting once a week , having group prayer, hands on exercises , watching each other’s transformation take place in real life, as well as developing relationships with other people on a more personal level . I am doing more personal ministry.
Had I still been at the job at the school , I would not have stepped out on Faith or at least I don’t think I would have ? This is something that I should have already developed, but it took me having that extra time to put it together and from this first course, I’m planning to do several other cohorts and even develop a Priesthood Mentorship Circle , where I will mentor small groups of individuals walking with them as they grow closer to God.
So after that experience being fired, I almost gave up, but it’s through the press , and all to familiar push , that God took me into a whole different journey of discovering who I was , I am a certified life coach but I’m now functioning in a whole other lane of coaching , teaching and mentoring that I’ve tapped into, and I am absolutely loving this journey.
So a lot of these questions go deep, but if you are open to it, we’ve got a few more questions that we’d love to get your take on. What would your closest friends say really matters to you?
I think my closest friends would say what matters to me most would be God first, my husband, my family, my church and my personal ministry. Also my ministry to people in general. I think anybody close to me knows that I love people and I want to see everyone doing well and thriving with this life that God has given us all.
Okay, so before we go, let’s tackle one more area. If you knew you had 10 years left, what would you stop doing immediately?
This is an awesome question. If I had 10 years left, I would stop focusing on or beating myself up for the things that I didn’t do or the things that I’ve done wrong. I would stop beating myself up for things that were insignificant. And I would stop wasting time on things that don’t matter. I would live life to the fullest. I would travel. I would literally enjoy every day and every moment that I could with family friends , and my husband . I would literally try my best not to have another bad day , whatever that means , whatever that looks like , that’s what I would be trying to do!
Enjoy life and enjoy every moment of the 10 years that I had left with no regrets each day bringing me closer to meeting my Heavenly Father and being okay with that because I lived a life that deserves to end with hearing , Well Done my good and faithful servant enter into the Joy of the Lord!
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mrs_christina_michele?igsh=M3dzbWFpMGR0N3hk&utm_source=qr
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/share/14KAp1m8vxj/?mibextid=wwXIfr
- Youtube: https://youtube.com/@christinachislom8626?si=q0guf5J59csEKWOj
- Soundcloud: https://open.spotify.com/episode/1Q4eWJapwMR2w0Z5L9IYNf
Image Credits
Jehan Photography LLC
