Meet Olivia Farabaugh

We were lucky to catch up with Olivia Farabaugh recently and have shared our conversation below.

Olivia , so good to have you with us today. We’ve always been impressed with folks who have a very clear sense of purpose and so maybe we can jump right in and talk about how you found your purpose?
I struggled with this topic for a long time. Often, we are under the impression that we were put on this earth for one specific purpose. We all have been given skill sets that allow us to participate in the divine plan for our lives, but I believe our purpose and how we can use those skills can change throughout our lives, even from day to day. For a while, I searched tirelessly to find my one true purpose. I experienced years of anxiety, fearing that I might miss my calling or choose the wrong path. However, I came to realize that our primary purpose in this life is to establish a relationship with our heavenly Father, and once we do, He will guide us to where He wants us to be. This realization brought me peace, but my mindset wasn’t always this way.

I moved to Nashville with the belief that my purpose was to pursue a career in country music while also maintaining my faith. I always held onto my faith, occasionally discussing and writing about it when it came up. At that time, I believed my main focus should be in the world of country music, and I aimed to use my music to share love, light, and comfort, considering myself an artist who also happened to be a Christian.

However, my husband and I faced many challenges before, during, and after the move. The most significant challenge was Chronic Inflammatory Response Syndrome (CIRS). In 2016, we moved into a house that unknowingly had black mold, triggering a gene that lay dormant in my body for years. When activated, this gene prevents the body from processing toxins properly, causing a wide range of symptoms that make this illness difficult to diagnose. For a long time, I resented this illness and the hardships that came with it. But as I continued to seek healing and found myself coming up short, I began talking to God more and more. I spent time with Him, learning more about His heart and character. As Kelly Minter once said, ‘You can’t sit in the presence of the Lord and not be changed,’ and she was absolutely right. When we’re at our lowest, God has the space to reveal His presence to us. He refines us during trials and invites us to be found and rest in Him, freeing us from our strongholds such as anxiety, fear, and rejection.

So, not long ago, if someone had asked me, ‘How did you find your purpose?’ I wouldn’t have known how to answer. But now, I understand that my purpose is to stay connected to the One who gives me strength and let Him guide my path. My purpose is to share the love and light in my heart and body that can only be explained through Him, using the gifts and talents He has given me in this life. I want to spread His peace, which, at times, is truly unexplainable. Although I still experience the trials that come along with CIRS, it no longer has the same power over me. I’ve been able to create the CIRS Support Fund in partnership with Malachi’s Message, aiming to assist others in receiving proper testing and treatment for this illness, as unfortunately, most testing and treatment aren’t covered by typical insurance policies. We’ve also launched an annual music festival called CIRS Fest to raise awareness and financial support for those on the CIRS Support Fund waitlist. Additionally, a percentage of the sales from my latest album, Transparent, helps benefit the fund. All of these initiatives began by first fulfilling my one true purpose: communing and building a relationship with the Lord. There are countless stories of how God has opened doors I never knew existed to make all of this possible. If I were to share them all, I would end up writing a book in this forum. I am excited to see what He has in store for both my music career and bringing help and hope to the CIRS community.

Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?
New Album: “Transparent”: https://oliviafarabaugh.hearnow.com/transparent

Olivia Farabaugh Bio:

Pennsylvania native singer-songwriter Olivia Farabaugh, has an undeniable passion for using her music to its fullest. Her unique powerhouse rasp mixed with her high energy shows, positive vibes, and uplifting messages fill the hearts of her listeners and gives them a space to escape the real world. With influences from Lauren Daigle and Anne Wilson to Jack Johnson and Norah Jones, Olivia’s music creates an atmosphere you can get lost in.

From the beginning of Olivia’s music career she has been blessed with being a Contestant on Season 10 of NBC’s The Voice, and has opened for amazing artists including Rodney Atkins, Chris Janson, Mitchell Tenpenny, Trent Harmon, Levi Hummon, Dylan Scott and more. She has been nominated for Best Female Country Artist, Songwriter of the Year, as well as her single, ”Body Will Break” is nominated for Song of the Year at the 2021 Central Pennsylvania Music Awards. She was also named 2019 and 2020’s Best Solo Artist by the Central Pennsylvania Music Hall of Fame, she holds the title of winning the 2018 WIOV Showdown, and the 2016’s Central Pennsylvania Nash Next contest.

Olivia is now living in her tiny house on the outskirts of Nashville Tennessee using her music to not only lift the hearts of those around her but also to raise awareness for Chronic Inflammatory Response Syndrome and the importance of mental health.

_______

CIRS Fest 2023:

Date: Sunday, October 29th 2023
Where: Wyndridge Farms Dallastown PA
Time: 12:30-7pm
Bands: Addi Grace, Cold Union Spring, Cody Tyler and Gypsy Convoy and Olivia Farabaugh.

There will be live music, food trucks, face painting, a kids corner, silent auction and more!

MORE INFO AND TICKETS: https://malachismessage.org/cirs-fest-2023/

If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
1. Having an open mind for learning and improving, and being open to learning from others—both through the knowledge they share and their experiences, both good and bad—has been so helpful to me in my journey.”

2. Being service-driven. It can be easy to live in our own bubbles and focus on what is best for us and how everything affects us. It is good to be in touch with ourselves and our own emotions, but when we step outside ourselves to help our neighbors, we may find that sometimes the answers to our troubles lie there. Helping others can lift our spirits, just as it can be a blessing to others.”

3. Persevere—When pursuing what sets our hearts on fire, we will encounter many trials. But I believe that all the ‘no’s’ we receive and the times when things don’t go quite as planned will ultimately lead us to where we are meant to go. We can use these times of rejection or low points to determine the next best step while keeping in mind that our worth doesn’t come from what we have accomplished. Discovering this truth and realizing how deeply I was entrenched in that thought pattern was incredibly freeing. We are here, and we are loved, not for anything that we have done, but because of everything Jesus did. You have a beautiful purpose in this world, and that is simply by accepting the love that is waiting for you. I am able to persevere because I know that nothing can take away that ultimate purpose I talked about earlier, and that is my relationship with God. With Him on my side, I know I will end up right where I need to be.

Thanks so much for sharing all these insights with us today. Before we go, is there a book that’s played in important role in your development?
I LOVE filling my brain with books that will challenge me to improve upon myself, and ‘Enough’ by Sharon Jaynes fills your cup and challenges you simultaneously in the perfect way.

This book was a LIFE CHANGER. No joke and no exaggeration. It makes you really pay attention to your thought life and the lies we tell ourselves. It creates a space for you to see where the enemy is attacking you and gives you a strategy to take back control of your thought life. There is a chapter about forgiveness that really hit home for me. There is so much power in this book. I read this book during a season when I was struggling to find my purpose, and one of the nuggets that she shares is this: ‘Some of the happiest people I have ever seen live in third-world countries in mud huts. Money will buy a lot of stuff, but happiness is not one of them. Being smack-dab in the middle of God’s will is, that’s exactly where I want to be!’

Now that is where I want to be!

Thank you Nashville Voyager for allowing me to share my story and my heart! I appreciate you all!

Contact Info:

Image Credits
Brinley from b.custom.co

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