From Overcomer To Watchman: Jacqueline Williams On Faith, Healing & Overcoming Adversity (Inspirational)

What if the pain you've endured was never meant to break you, but to build the purpose you were born to walk in?

In a world where trauma, abandonment, and generational cycles are all too common, Jacqueline Williams’ story speaks directly to the heart of anyone struggling to find purpose through the pain.  Jacqueline's story begins when her mother was given a drug called thalidomide for morning sickness. which was not approved in the United States by the FDA.  The taking of thalidomide during pregnancy was related to stillborn deaths and severe birth defects to millions of children born in the United States.

As a watchman, intercessor, and author of The Overcomer, she brings spiritual depth and raw transparency that will resonate with anyone who’s been wounded but refuses to be defined by it.

1. Discover how to shift from victim to victor—even after childhood trauma, abandonment, and abuse.
2. Learn how to hear God's voice, fight spiritual warfare, and walk boldly in your divine calling.
3. Be inspired to turn your pain into purpose and uncover the strength that’s already within you.

Tap play now to hear this inspiration story and how Jacqueline overcame 24 surgeries, abuse, and rejection to become a powerful voice of healing and victory—and how you can too.

Jacqueline's links:

"Overcomer" - Amazon Book Link: https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0BGN97VHZ/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?ie=UTF8&qid&sr&fbclid=IwAR0nfkI9sGtySp8A9dn0wVkwe8hgPoxYug3mUV3pKOMuHzA0IpMO1_-L3ys

You can also purchase Jacquline's book on the below link:

https://overcomervictory1234.my.canva.site/books-business-website-in-black-white-light-pink-clean-neutrals-style

Jacqueline's Podcast Overcomer: https://anchor.fm/watchman-marie-will

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/watchman_marie_857

Facebook - https://www.faceboo

Transcript

Reginald D: Welcome to Real Talk with Reginald D. I'm your host, Reginald D.

On today's episode, I had Jacqueline Williams. She is a devoted watchman, passionate intercessor,

host of Overcome, a podcast, and an author who has dedicated her life to God's calling.

Welcome to the show, Jacqueline.

Jacqueline: Thank you. Thank you for having me.

Reginald D: Absolutely, absolutely. So, Jacqueline, can you share a little bit about your journey and what led you to become a watchman and an intercessor?

Jacqueline: Well, God kept telling me one day I was reading in the Bible about a watchman, and I didn't know he was telling me to be a watchman, but he also explained to me what it was to be a watchman.

My journey came to where I tremendously just committed myself to God. I surrendered everything to him.

And he just told me just one day, you know, that you're going to be a watchman, like he told Jeremiah, you know, and they're my one that he set me apart as a prophet watchman over the nation.

That gave my identity of calling right there.

Reginald D: Yeah, and that's the thing about God. You know, we grow up and we've been taught about God and probably, you know, grow up in church and stuff like that, but then once you grow in to being with him,

get that intimate relationship, he really shows you your real gift and what he really has for you inside and things like that. So that's very amazing.

So, you know,

I know been an intercessor and the watchman and things like that. It's kind of.

I'm not saying it's hard, but you always have to go between and among when it comes to certain things and certain people and people trying to figure things out, and you have to go on the behalf of them to God and try to get whatever resolution that they're facing at that time.

Jacqueline: Yes,

when everybody sleep, the watchman is up, you know,

everybody's taking a nap, you know, and they call at any time. So,

yes,

it's a job. I say it's a tremendous assignment.

You know, it's nothing to play with, you know, it's a job.

Reginald D: Absolutely,

yes. So, Jacqueline, you face many obstacles and hardships, but you overcame them all. I mean, for the most part, you were surviving things like that. Can you tell me a little bit about that story?

Jacqueline: Yes, I overcame with my health. I was born with an illness by a drug called thalidomide.

This drug, it came from Europe,

and it was a pharmacy in Europe. They distribute this drug to 46 countries,

but the FDA did not prove it in the United States.

So this drug was given to mothers that was pregnant and had a very bad case of morning sickness.

And it was a very popular drug back then because it was.

Or you could get it over the counter without a prescription.

And so how it became to come over to the United States, it was this man called Richard Morrell.

He distributed and shipped off 2.5 million pills of thalidomide over to the United States to American dossiers and queenies.

And so they gave them some mothers that was pregnant. Well,

this drug, it caused a tremendous tragedy over a worldwide tragedy. And it caused about 10 million babies to be stillborn. You know, they were born and they died after birth.

And some babies that live,

they had disfigured faces,

short arms and legs or no arms or legs, and their organs were or destroyed and troubled by this drug.

So when I was born, my legs was turned backwards and my mother had to put me on a scooter because of my legs and my feet.

And my parents took me from doctors to doctors which told them that I would never live to be an adult or I would never walk.

So they took me to a hospital called Lebonheur Children's Hospital.

And by the grace of God there was hope they were able to turn my seat to normal and. But I still had a long journey for them to just get me to walk on my own.

I spent most of my life as childhood in the hospital because of the number of scheduled surgeries I had to have.

I had 24 major surgeries. I never did go to school hardly because of the out of numbers of surgeries and hospitals that I had to, you know, just go back and forth.

My mom, she left me with my dad because she didn't want me anymore. So he had to continue to take me to my doctor's appointment and be.

He couldn't drive, so somebody had to take him back and forth to my appointment. So after that he really couldn't take me no more because of the gas prices. And so he had to leave me at this hospital called Cripple Children's Hospital,

which was a hospital where parents could leave their children that lived far away from a distance from.

You know,

I lived way in Mississippi and we had to go to Memphis, Tennessee, and that was an hour and 45 minutes going back and forth. So he had to just leave me.

So I'm there with strangers, doctors and nurses, but the nurses, you know, they took very good care of me and the children that was there with me as well.

And so I had to stay there until my scheduled Surgeries were to go to lebonne Children's Hospital.

And so to bring it on up, I started walking after my last surgery when I was in the sixth grade.

And I didn't have to have braces and crutches and walkers anymore.

So after a while, my dad, he was a good dad. I stayed with him, but he became abusive to me. He started becoming an alcoholic.

And he would beat me every day and leave me at home by myself.

And when he left me by myself one night with the TV on, I would talk to God,

you know,

or he would leave me with other people,

and they would put me upstairs while they do their thing and party. And I would just talk to God,

and God would let me know, you know, I'm about five or six years old, talking to God, a little child, you know.

And so I was like, you know how little kids have, like, little imaginary friends?

That's how I would do with God. I would just talk to him, not even knowing about Him. You know, I'm just talking to God.

And so I felt like a presence was there with me as somebody that I couldn't see. But I knew I had somebody there that was protecting me. You know, how you can feel that protection around me?

So I felt that protection.

And my dad, he would read me with sometimes babysitters.

This babysitter he left me with, she told me to go take a nap one day, and she tried to put a pillow over my face and smother me. But God saved me and protected me from that.

So after that, my dad, he really just continued beating me and beating me and beating me.

And my grandmother, she offered to take me in for a while,

but after a while, she got sick and she couldn't take care of me anymore. So I had to go back to my dad.

My dad met this lady with seven kids, and we all moved in with them. And the abuse got worse. It just continued to get worse and worse until God made a way for me to get out of it.

One day I went to school. Now I'm bringing my story up to where I'm beginning high school now,

you know.

And so my dad, after school,

you know, I went on the school bus that morning, and I was sitting down on the seat, and the bus driver said, it looks like I know you.

And she said, what's your name and who are your parents? So I told her my name. I told her my parents on my mother's side. And she said, don't you know we can and see that God made a way right There the door was opening, you know, for me to get out of that situation.

And so she said, would you like to come over my house and we get to know each other better. So I asked my father, and he gave me permission to go over there.

So I told her about the abuse, what was going on with my father.

So she called my grandparents on my mother's side,

and they was on their way to come and pick me up. But before they got there,

he beated me one more time. He hit me in my nose, and my nose bled. And God, I heard God say, I got to get you out of here before he kill you.

And so he told me, he said, no matter where you are, I will find you and I will beat you down.

And so, you know, when somebody put that in your ear and in your heart,

you know, you gonna always think about that, you know. And everywhere I went, I had always looked behind my back or be in the house with the blinds down because of bad words.

That's why it's so important to watch our words, what we say to people, because that affects, you know, a person's life.

And so after my grandparents came and picked me up, I'm like, oh, I'm relieved. I'm free from this, you know. But it only got worse when I got to my grandparents, how my mother, she stayed behind them,

and they told me that she didn't want me, she didn't want me at her house.

And I'm like, okay.

And so they said, you're going to have to live with your auntie.

And so my auntie, I had to deal with her attitude. So I just had to deal with so many attitudes and go through so much. But God had me, you know, I went through with his strength, not on my own.

And so when I grew up, stayed with her. After I finished high school and I got pregnant and they wanted to take my baby from me. My grandmother and my mother, they took me to the welfare office one day.

And the social worker, you know, when I got there, the social worker told me to come into the office and she said, what's going on? And I said, my glass hand and my mom don't want me to have this baby.

They feel that I can't take care of this baby. And she said,

I believe you can take care of your baby.

Don't give up your baby.

And so I went back to my auntie house and she had left and left me with her house and everything.

And so one night I went to sleep, and the next morning when I woke Up. I heard something say, shoot.

And I looked down and blood was everywhere.

And so I called the clinic, and they rushed the ambulance.

And when they got me in the ambulance and got me to the clinic, they said they couldn't help me.

They just put Pampers on me and took me to another hospital.

They said they couldn't help me. And they took me to one more hospital,

which was in Memphis, called the Med.

And when I got there,

they could finally help me by the grace of God. And I had to stay there. I was three months pregnant. I had to stay. Stayed there up to eight months because I was in such high risk.

And so they finally gave me blood, and the bleeding stopped. And so I sat up in the bed that night and I said, lord, if you save me and my baby, I said, I give you my life, and I will praise you the rest of my life.

And how many y' all know when you tell God that he's going to confirm his word? You know, he confirmed it to me. The next morning,

this lady walks to my room. I believe today,

Reginald, she was an angel because she didn't know me and I didn't know her. She walked into my room and she said,

the Lord said,

everything's going to be all right.

And she just started dancing in my room. She just started praising God in my room.

And then she prayed for me, and she walked out.

And that was it.

And I had to grow up.

I had to really grow up fast as coming up as a teenager,

because I didn't have my parents around, I did not have my family around. So I had to grow up really fast. And sometimes God would place different people in my life to show me different things, like cooking and no personal things about me and my body and everything.

But as far as that, I was always alone,

and I never hated anybody. I never hold a grudge or unforgiveness in my heart. But I was hurt,

so. And I never experienced love. So I started looking for love in the wrong places.

So what I said I was going to do is just,

I have some wounds and a hurt heart,

and so I said I was just going to put a band aid on it, so to speak, and jump into all these relationships. I began to jump into all these relationships, and I thought, you know, that would heal it and I could be able to move forward.

It's going to be better. And I could forget everything,

but it only got worse.

The abuse from my father went over into the patterns of these relationships. You know, with these guys I dated, they abused me Physically or mentally, or people I hung out with as friends, they rejected me or manipulated me.

So I had to ask God to. I had to really just, Reginald. Bury my past.

I had to have sort of what I would call a funeral to my past.

And I had to buried my past feet under.

And I had to ask God to deliver me.

Not pointing a finger at nobody else to do just a whole new makeover in me.

And so after that, I still kind of was off track a little bit because I still didn't really know how to love myself or nobody not even knew how to love God.

And he was just studying, you know, telling me and telling me, you know,

about these relationships, that they wasn't really the plan of his plan for me to have these relationships.

And so one day he told me, he said, jackie, nobody can love you like I can.

And when he told me that, Reginald, I mean, I let everybody go. I let everything go,

because that's what I was looking for. I said, now, Lord God, you said, you are the only one that can give me the love that I'm looking for. Okay, you know, I'm giving you.

You know how you just give somebody cloud, okay, that's what you saying. I'm gonna listen. I just want to see if you gonna do what you're saying, because, you know, I didn't really know him as an aspect of that way.

So I'm like, okay, I'm gonna give you a chance here.

And so I just gave everybody up. I surrendered my life.

And we put this lady in my path. She became my spiritual mother. And she opened the door where I got to know who I was. Because I had an identity crisis.

I didn't know who I was.

I didn't know who I was as a child of God.

And so she taught me. I stood up under her class and she taught me,

you know, to know who I was and who I was.

And so that came to the making of me growing up into the watchman and the prophet and the woman of God I am today.

Reginald D: Now, the thing about it,

when I listen to that story,

there was a moment that your mind shifted because you came to victim and you ended up becoming victorious in your life.

And that's a major thing. And I think when people don't understand is that,

you know, we go through things. We go through all kinds of hardships and some things not even your fault. You know, it's other people just trying to drag you down or do all this stuff.

But, you know, when you give your life to God, like you did you shift from being a victim to being victorious and being overcome? You. You know, so let's jump into that.

Your book, the Overcomer, it's an inspiring testament to resilience.

What really inspired you to write that book?

Jacqueline: Well, Reginald, I'm gonna tell you, I never had an idea of even writing a book. How this book came about was that my typing teacher, she came into my life for a season.

God allowed her to come into my life.

And one day she called me on the phone and she said, you know what, Jackie?

You need to put your life into a book.

And I said, me?

I said, whoa,

I'm faking on out. This is way for me, for me.

And so. But I didn't tell her that. I just said, yes, ma' am. And so later on,

it kept on coming into my spirit. Write a book, write a book, write a book. And I said, lord, I don't know how to write a book.

And so I had to change my mindset and my words. So when I began to say I could do all things through Christ, which strengthens me,

that's when God and the Holy Ghost came in and gave me the information and showed me how to put this book together.

Now, the formatting of that book as editing,

I didn't know how to do that. He allowed my son to help me with that, which he didn't know how to do it. He told me, God said, this honor is going to help you format this book.

Will edit it and put it together.

And so he gave him the wisdom to do that part.

Reginald D: That's amazing. Your own seed helped you out.

Jacqueline: Yeah.

Reginald D: Yeah, that's it. That's it.

So overcoming is, you know, and the thing about it, when you talk about being overcomer and overcoming things, I think a lot of people miss it.

But,

you know, it's not just surviving something,

you know, it's thriving.

You survive stuff. But then when you start thriving, you just walking into what God has for you every single day,

you know, doing the things he needs you to do, walking in your authority. That's what I call it, you know, that he's given you or given us at the end of the day.

So I really like that.

So what would you say to somebody? You know, what are some of the practical steps that you could say to someone who's a victim, trying to overcome situations and things like that?

What would you tell them?

Jacqueline: I would tell them that they can't do it in their own strength.

So many times, like I was doing, I was trying to do things in my own Strength and that, you know, when we try to do things in our own strength in our own way,

you know, we're fighting a losing battle.

And that when it comes to wear us out and wear us down and take us over,

but when we allow God to come in and we rely on his strength and not our own, that's when we become that overcomer in Him.

That's the only way we can overcome.

You know, he can take us out the situation,

but we still have those injuries and things like we have still have those injuries. We have to allow him to give us an inner healing.

We have to be healed and delivered from those things.

Reginald D: Yes, you do. You do. And I think a lot of people don't see it that way. Some people think that,

you know,

I gave it to God and this, that other. But then you still walk every day with,

you know,

a mental state that shouldn't be the way it should be. You know, you still hurting, you still recover, you know, from what happened to you and what people have done to you.

And you have to actually really seek God's face,

you know, and spend that time with him and let the healing process begin. You know, like you said earlier that you cut everybody off. God said, hey, I got you.

I'm the one that's gonna love you more than anything in this world or anybody in this world.

And you accepted it.

And then, you know, that's when healing starts to come in place. Because, you know, they always say we serve a jealous God, right? You don't want nobody else record,

so.

Jacqueline: You have to be able to let it go and to give it to God. And I had to learn that because I would go to other wise people of the Lord and tell them about it, and they say, just give it to God.

And I'm like, how do you give this to God? And, you know, so many people don't know how to give it to God.

And so you have to let it go. And how do you get it to God?

You begin to just tell God that you can't handle it anymore, that I'm putting it in your hands, I'm giving it to you and letting you handle it because only you can.

And allow him, you know, like I did,

to give you a whole new makeover and just give it to him, let it go, and ask him to give you the strength to let it go.

And so you can move forward, because as long as you hold on to it, you can't move forward.

Your future,

you know, it's right there, but your past is always Hanging over you because you holding on to it. And the more you hold on to it, the more you're going to hurt,

the more you're going to feel all those things come,

you know, and once you release it into God's hand,

you're going to be free and you're going to be delivered and it's going to be a relief for you.

Reginald D: You're so correct. Because look at it this way, Jacqueline. I think one of the hardest things for people to do is when they face in hardship,

they have a problem with finding the purpose while they're in.

But I believe that your purpose is in the middle of every struggle you're going through.

So, you know, what would you say to somebody? What would you say to fuel them? To know that regardless of what they're going through, that they purpose is in the midst of it all,

is paying.

Jacqueline: Your pain for your purpose. You know, your purpose is what you walk in. Every obstacle, every situation that we going through is part of the purpose, is part of the plan.

The things I had to go through, I had to go through it. That was part of my purpose. That was part of God's plan.

Because if I didn't go through it, I wouldn't be sitting here with you and I would be able to help somebody else.

Everybody has a key to somebody's deliverance.

And your whatever you going through, it might not feel good,

it might not be comfortable,

but it's part of your test to have a testimony to help somebody else.

And you're not alone in it. That's what we gotta realize. We're not alone in it. And he's gonna give you the strength to go through it. And you can go through it.

Because if you couldn't go through it, he wouldn't give you that pen.

We gotta know that, you know,

you overcomer and you're not gonna only survive, but you're gonna overcome.

You just have to believe. You have to have confidence in God and then you have to have confidence in yourself.

Reginald D: Yes. Because if he bring you to it, he'll bring you through it.

Jacqueline: Right, right, right. Faith comes with determination. You got to be determined.

Reginald D: And that's the whole thing. You know, when I say people think that because they're destined to do something,

that it's going to happen,

but you have to be determined to make it happen. At the end of the day, that's always going to happen, you know, just cause you destined to be this and that and other whatever God has for your life.

If you're not determined to make it happen,

then it won't happen.

So Jacqueline, as a watchman and an intercessor,

now that's one of the things that is real powerful to me.

You understand spiritual warfare?

No, spiritual battles.

And a lot of people struggle with that. When you get into a spiritual warfare, I've been there before, it's, it's on a whole different realm.

So how can people recognize and fight spiritual warfare in their lives?

Jacqueline: You're going to have to see, that's when the communication comes with you and God. You have to spend time with the Creator.

You have to, you have to spend time with him and in his Word. You have to get that Word in you so you be able to fight this battle warfare.

Because, see, as the Word say, it's not with flesh and blood that we fight,

but it's with the principalities and the power, the rulers,

you know, of the darkness of this world. So it's going to take the word of God to bring you through, you know, to help you fight this battle, to give you the strength that you need.

Everything we need is in the word of God.

And we really, really have to know because see, in this day and time,

we, in a day and time, everybody is struggling, everybody is going through, but they trying to do it on their own,

you know, and they're not giving, you know, God the benefit of the doubt to trust. And he want us to depend on him and not ourselves and nobody else.

So this spiritual warfare,

it takes fasting, it takes praying, it takes spending hours and times and just spending with God and worshiping and praising. You have to go through all of that,

you know, to keep going, you know, and not let the spiritual welfare take you over. But you'll be able to become that overcomer and overcome that spiritual warfare.

Reginald D: And I always say this, the order to win. I believe in life.

If it doesn't align with the Bible,

don't do it.

If it aligns with the Bible, do it and you'll see a big difference in your life.

Now you talked about,

you know, you mentioned again, overcomer.

So if readers could walk away with just one life changing message from your book,

overcomer, what would that be?

Jacqueline: Rely on God.

Rely on God and His strength. Let him be the head of your life.

Let him order your steps.

Let him be your strength and just depend on Him. You know, we depend on everything else. Why we can't rely and depend on God?

Reginald D: That's because he's the only one that's going to make the difference in your life.

When it's all said, done. He's a difference maker. He's a difference maker.

So, Jacqueline,

lastly, how can my listeners purchase your book or listen to your podcast Overcomers, or find you on social media?

Jacqueline: Well, they could find me on social media, on Facebook as Watchman Marie,

Instagram,

Watchman Marie,

and YouTube Watchman Marie,

and they can find my podcast.

I have to send the podcast because it's kind of long,

the link on it, but I can send the podcast and my website as well.

Reginald D: Okay,

that's good.

So, Jacqueline, thank you so much for taking your time out to talk with us for a minute. You definitely, definitely Overcomer.

I'm not gonna call you survivor no more, anything like that. I'm gonna call you straight Overcomer.

I mean, you've really had resilience, and you really,

your faith is.

Is remarkable.

And I think people need to know people like you in this world to help them get through the things they're getting through,

man.

Jacqueline: Thank you for having me.

I'm grateful to, you know, just allow God to display power in my life that I'll be able to be shared with others as well.

Reginald D: Yes, absolutely. Keep doing the good work. Keep doing the good work.

Jacqueline: I will. Thank you for having me. And God bless you as well.

Reginald D: All right. God bless you.

Thank you for tuning in with Real Talk. Reginald D. If you enjoy listening to Real Talk with Reginal D, please rate and review us on Apple Podcast. See you next time.