Welcome to Living My Faith, a weekly show that celebrates everyday believers who walk with Jesus not just on Sundays, but in every area of life. From relationships and parenting to health, habits, and home, our guests share how they keep their faith at the center of it all. Hosted in Jacksonville, Florida, and supported by Christ-centered partners, Living My Faith is a space where real life meets real faith. Today, our host, Daniel Poor, spoke with Ashley Abarr.
Ashley Abarr
Director of Public Relations at The Hadden Foundation
Website Address: https://www.thehaddenfoundation.org/theemptychairdinner
Short company description:
The Hadden Foundation is a Christ-centered nonprofit organization dedicated to inspiring ordinary people to make an extraordinary difference through love, compassion, and service.
Founded in honor of Pastor William L. Hadden, who spent more than 50 years in ministry showing people what it truly means to love God and love others, the Foundation carries forward the message of his final sermon: “Be Somebody Who Cares.”
Built on the belief that everyone deserves to feel seen, heard, valued, and loved, The Hadden Foundation turns compassion into action through community outreach, meaningful partnerships, practical assistance, grants, and its signature Somebody Cares Boxes, designed to bring comfort and encouragement to people navigating life’s most difficult seasons.
The Foundation’s inaugural initiative, Fighting Cancer. Sharing Hope, was inspired by Pastor Hadden’s own journey with pancreatic cancer and focuses on caring for cancer patients and their caregivers.
At its heart, The Hadden Foundation isn’t simply about meeting needs. It’s about creating a movement of people willing to show up for one another, reminding our communities that no one should have to walk through life’s hardest moments feeling forgotten or alone.
Our heartbeat is simple: Love God. Love People. Serve Both.
Because hope begins when somebody cares.
Can you share a moment or experience that significantly deepened or shaped your faith journey?
One of the moments that shaped my faith the most was in 2010, when my son was born extremely premature as a 2lb 12oz micro preemie.
I was a young mom, sitting in a hospital room, facing circumstances that were completely outside of my control. I couldn’t fix what was happening. I couldn’t make promises about what tomorrow would look like. And as a mother, that’s one of the hardest feelings in the world.
But I remember my dad, Pastor Bill Hadden, being there in that hospital room and praying with me.
My dad had spent his life preaching about faith, but in that moment, I wasn’t just hearing him talk about it from a pulpit. I was experiencing what it looked like when someone brought their faith into the middle of somebody else’s hardest moments.
That experience taught me that faith isn’t necessarily about knowing how everything is going to turn out. It’s about trusting God even when you don’t have the answers. And sometimes, it’s about having someone beside you who can help carry that faith when you’re struggling to find your own.
Looking back, I think that’s part of why my dad’s final sermon, “Be Somebody Who Cares,” means so much to me today.
Because I know firsthand what it feels like to be the person in the hospital room who needs somebody to show up.
And now, through The Hadden Foundation, I have the opportunity to help make sure other people experience that same kind of love, compassion, and care.
Sometimes the greatest demonstration of God’s love isn’t a sermon. It’s somebody showing up, sitting beside you, and reminding you that you’re not alone.
In what ways do you actively live out your faith in your daily life — at work, home, or in your community?
For me, living out my faith isn’t just about what I believe or what I say. It’s about how I show up for people every single day.
As a wife, a mom, a business owner, and someone who serves in my community, I believe God has placed me in rooms and relationships for a reason. I try to be intentional about how I use those opportunities, whether that’s encouraging another woman who is struggling to see her worth, helping a business owner believe in what’s possible for them, or simply being the person who notices when someone needs a little extra love.
I don’t believe you have to stand behind a pulpit to have a ministry. Sometimes your ministry is your workplace, your dinner table, your friendships, or the stranger God puts in your path.
And I certainly don’t get it right every day. I’m human. I get overwhelmed, I make mistakes, and I’m still learning. But I try to lead with grace, treat people with compassion, and remember that how I make someone feel can leave a lasting impact.
That’s also what we’re building through The Hadden Foundation. My dad’s heartbeat was always “Love God. Love People. Serve Both.” And I want that to be more than something we put on a website or a T-shirt. I want it to be something people experience when they encounter us.
I think one of the most powerful ways we can share our faith is to make people feel loved before we ever ask them what they believe.
Because at the end of the day, I want my life, my work, and the way I treat others to reflect the love of Christ — not just my words.
What encouragement or scripture has been especially meaningful to you in this season, and why?
The scripture that has been especially meaningful to me in this season is Matthew 25:40:
“Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.”
This verse has taken on an entirely new meaning for me as we’ve been building The Hadden Foundation and carrying forward my dad’s legacy.
My dad spent more than 50 years in ministry teaching people to love God and love others, and one of the greatest things he taught me was that serving God doesn’t always look like standing behind a pulpit. Sometimes it looks like sitting beside someone in a hospital room, feeding a family, encouraging someone who’s struggling, or simply showing up when someone needs to know they aren’t alone.
In this season, God has really been reminding me that we don’t have to do something extraordinary to make an extraordinary difference. We just have to be willing to care.
Matthew 25:40 reminds me that the way we treat people matters to God. Every act of kindness, every moment of compassion, and every opportunity to serve someone is also an opportunity to serve Him.
And that’s what I want my life and The Hadden Foundation to reflect.
I don’t want to just tell people about the love of Jesus. I want them to experience it through the way we love them.
Because sometimes the simplest act of care can make the biggest difference in someone’s life.
What advice would you give to someone who’s struggling to live out their faith or looking to grow spiritually?
My biggest piece of advice would be to stop thinking you have to have it all figured out before you can grow in your faith or be used by God.
I think sometimes we put so much pressure on ourselves to pray the right way, know enough scripture, have all the answers, or live this picture-perfect Christian life. But faith isn’t about perfection. It’s about relationship.
Some of the moments that have grown my faith the most weren’t when everything was going right. They were the moments when I had absolutely no control, no answers, and nothing left to do but trust God.
I’d also encourage people to remember that growing spiritually isn’t just about what happens on Sunday mornings. It’s about what you do with your faith on Monday. It’s how you treat the person who frustrates you, how you show up for someone who’s hurting, how you extend grace when it isn’t easy, and how you love people who may not look, think, or believe like you.
My dad used to preach about being somebody who cares, and I think that’s one of the simplest ways to begin living out your faith.
You don’t have to change the whole world. Just start by changing someone’s world.
Pray for someone. Check on a friend. Encourage a stranger. Meet a need when you see one. And don’t underestimate what God can do with your willingness to show up.
Because I truly believe you don’t have to be a pastor, a theologian, or even have a perfect understanding of the Bible to be a reflection of Christ’s love.
Start where you are, with what you have, and love the people God puts in front of you. The more you make room for Him in your everyday life, the more you’ll begin to recognize Him working through it.
