This Week In America with Ric Bratton: Virginia Stewart Metzler, “Our God Still Speaks”
by ReadersMagnet | September 22, 2025 | radio interview | 0 Comments
Our God Still Speaks: Real-life Stories Of How God Answers Prayers – Book 1 by Virginia Stewart Metzler is a living testament in memorial to God’s repeated answers to prayers. This memoir shares a personal glimpse into Metzler’s life as she chronicles her time as a missionary with a purpose in teaching God’s word. First, she and her husband, Tommy, went to Liberia to fulfill their mission.
However, due to a tragic accident, Tommy passed away, leaving Virginia no choice but to go back to her homeland, Texas, with their children. After years of grieving, Virginia met Les through her friends. Both had a spark, connected, fell in love, and got married through God’s guidance. Both went to the Philippines with Wycliffe Bible Translators and lived there to share God’s teachings. This book reveals stories of God’s work in their lives.
Author Virginia Stewart Metzler sat down with Ric Bratton to talk about her book on This Week In America.
The Captivating Beauty of Africa
Ric asked Virginia Metzler about what it was like living in Africa. Virginia responded that she and her husband at the time, Tommy, loved it there.
“The people are wonderful and they’re precious. I’m a people person, so I love the fact that everything is different. I have been wanting to go to Africa since when I was eight years old. So, to be able to just step out of the plane and know that I’m there took my breath away.”
God Made Everything Exactly Like It Needed to Be
Ric proceeded to ask Virginia what she found there, since Liberia in Africa was also known to have a warm culture. With excitement, the author shared about her life there.
“We have rain there. They have rainy season. And then they have REAL rainy season [laughs]. And so, your shoes or your bare feet most of the time. And it’s strange too! God made everything exactly like it needed to be because you can walk out after 13 inches of rain. Walk out about an hour later, and you kick up dust.”
Special Permission from the Parents
Virginia shared that she and Tommy were married when she was 17 and a half. She said they were not going to get married that soon, but as they were on a mission, single men were not really invited. So, Tommy asked her dad if they could get married sooner, and they got their blessings. They were given special permission from their parents.
“They don’t really like single men coming over there, especially in a pilot’s position. So we had special permission from my parents. And that was glorious!”
The Key to the Success of a Missionary
Ric was curious about their lives as missionaries and what they believed to be the key to success as missionaries. Virginia agreed when Ric mentioned that their mission aimed to help people enhance their lifestyle, spiritually. She said they were not there to create a small America, but they were there to genuinely help people.
Living in the Mountains of the Philippines
Virginia shared how she and her second husband, Les, went to the Philippines and lived there to do their mission of sharing God’s teachings.
“We lived in a nipa hut. No furniture, no inside bathroom, no electricity, no refrigeration. It was a real time of testing for both Les and me. And so, it was the hardest thing I’ve ever done, but it was such a precious time with the people.”
The Challenges of the Mission
Host Ric Bratton asked Virginia about the hardest challenges they encountered during their stay in the Philippines as missionaries. Virginia shared her time as a person who struggled to understand people and translate the Bible.
“One thing is you might as well leave your watch at home. They don’t observe time. The other thing is the language problem. So, when we got down, we trained with the National Bible Translation people for people who wanted to learn how to translate the Bible for Filipinos. There were ten of them and two of us. The hardest thing was for Les and me, we asked them not to treat us any differently than what they did the rest of them. We don’t want them to give excuses or to give us a break. We wanted to be to go through the training themselves.”
Our God Still Speaks
The host asked Virginia, relating to the title of her book, if we have messages to God and why He speaks to us. Virginia responded,
“The whole purpose that God wants to speak to us is to draw us closer to Him. And the only way we can develop that relationship is through hourly time with Him. You can’t take it for granted. You have to trust Him. And then you watch for things that are different and make a little note. At the end of the day, you reassess the situation.”
Listen to the full interview at This Week in America with Ric Bratton. Get a copy of Our God Still Speaks: Real-life Stories Of How God Answers Prayers – Book 1 by Virginia Stewart Metzler on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and ReadersMagnet Bookstore.
