American Gymnast Shawn Johnson East became a household name during the Beijing Olympics in 2008 when she competed for the women’s all-around gold medal. Now, she is reaching out to Americans once again. This time, however, she is not competing as an athlete but speaking as a wife.

Shawn Johnson East and Andrew East sit side by side in the opening of their new film where Shawn explained how she felt that she had lost her purpose after the culmination of the 2008 Olympic Games. She rediscovered that purposed, however, through a new relationship with God and in her husband.

The couple’s marriage has not been without its trials or tragedies. In 2017, Shawn was delighted to discover that she was pregnant. Only a few days later, however, she suffered a miscarriage. “I had these guilty feelings that if could not take care of a child for one week in my stomach, I couldn’t raise a child on my own,” Shawn said. “I felt guilty to Andrew that I had lost his child, and I felt guilty to God that I lost His child. It was probably the hardest thing I have ever had to go through. I have never felt loss like that.”

According to Shawn and Andrew, Scripture was one of their guiding lights during their difficult time. “No matter what you go through you will always come out of it,” said Shawn. “If you believe in Him and have faith in Him you will come out stronger than you were before.”

Their strong connection to God is not the only similarity the husband and wife share. Both Shawn and Andrew were dedicated athletes. While Shawn found Gold medal success at the tender age of 16, Andrew struggled to find success in the NFL despite ending his college football career at Vanderbilt University as the highest-rated long snapper in all of college football. According to Andrew, Shawn’s Olympic experience helped him through his professional football journey.

“In my four years, I’ve signed six different contracts with four different teams,” Andrew said. “It’s taken me two years to fully realize my worth is not in football. It’s been so wonderful being married to Shawn for a million different reasons but her truly understanding the difficulty I was going through – I’m not sure I could have made it through that first year after being cut without her being there.”

Shawn and Andrew’s full film is available at iamsecond.com.