Podcast connects Clarksville Catholic to the world

‘It’s Me, God’ brings together Catholic and non-Catholic hosts for spiritual talks

Published: October 21, 2014

By Dwain Hebda
Associate Editor

Dwain Hebda

Elizabeth Thomas and Carl Kozlowski meet in person for the first time in Little Rock Oct. 11. The two Arkansans have been collaborating long distance on the podcast “It’s Me, God” since February.

Dwain Hebda

Every Thursday afternoon, Elizabeth Thomas dials California and settles in for a nice conversation, not with her children or grandchildren, but with the world. Or, at least that slice of it that has discovered “It’s Me, God” her weekly podcast on life, faith and how the good, the bad and even the tragic we encounter in life all comes back to God trying to tell us something.

“Pay attention to the details,” she likes to say. “God’s gotta do what God’s gotta do.”

Thomas, a member of Holy Redeemer Church in Clarksville, has been calling into an internet radio station in Los Angeles since February to record installments of “It’s Me, God.” The podcasts — hour-long recorded radio shows that are saved on the station’s website — can be accessed by clicking here.

The shows chronicle the life, times and inspirations of Thomas and there’s a lot of material from which to draw. The 66-year-old has survived at least her share — and some might say more than her share — of challenges. None of which, by the way, is off-limits for the show.

“Life is like a baby learning to crawl,” she said. “As you grow, you see things and when you see things you encounter them. Encounters leave bumps and scrapes sometimes, but that’s part of learning and growing.

“I give a realistic look at who we are as people and that means sharing all the stuff, even the bad stuff, because that’s all part of the best of who we are. You take your hurts and you try to help others with theirs.”

Thomas’ willingness to share even the darkest moments of her life — from growing up lonely, to becoming an unwed mother, through the ups and downs of motherhood and marriage and even the loss of a child — stems not so much from the incidents themselves, but from what they revealed to her about the nature of God and the way he works in a person’s life.

“It’s the experiences of life, even the grief and the guilt, that bring you the gifts of the Holy Spirit,” she said. “I haven’t experienced gifts because I was holier, but because I was more desperate. My walk is the walk of someone crying ‘God, help me.’ And God replying, ‘You’ll do just fine.’”

Thomas’ message got a boost from fellow Arkansas native Catholic Carl Kozlowski. Kozlowski, who attended St. Edward School in Little Rock and graduated from Catholic High School in 1989, found success in Los Angeles as a comedy reporter and standup comedian before co-founding Radio Titans, an Internet radio station and podcast business. The two connected via social media and the idea for “It’s Me, God” started to take shape.

It is noteworthy, perhaps revealing, that among a roster of shows that feature biting political commentary, adult comedy, blush-worthy discussions on sex and relationships and even a dog trainer, a show about faith is still considered the countercultural offering of the lot.

“Right now we have some shows that are more risqué, as you might expect from the podcast world and the world of comedy,” Kozlowski said. “But from the beginning I wanted to have a couple of Catholic shows because of who I am.

Kozlowski’s business partners who are not Catholic were initially skeptical, but her comments spoke so directly to what they were facing in their own personal and professional lives that they were soon sitting in as co-hosts for the program.

“So it went from just me co-hosting with her to include a guy who’s a half-sort-of Buddhist type; another guy who was raised Jehovah’s Witness and in general has a love of God but doesn’t really practice anything; and then there is another guy who is kind of all over the map. All three of them were fascinated by her.”

“It’s Me, God” has started to catch the ear of other stations and Kozlowski said at least one is interested in relaying the podcasts. Meanwhile, Thomas does her best to stay in the moment and let God take the process where he will.

“There are a lot of people today who live unhealthy, unhappy lives,” she said. “They are desperate for answers, yet they’re turned off by churches and church radio and church TV. I try to be a voice they can relate to, someone who shares her stories and what I’ve learned from them.”