Poema Podcast: Recent Episodes

James Prescott

Poema Podcast - Spirituality, Creativity and Reclaiming The Art Of Conversation: Hosted by James Prescott

Spoiler Alert This episode contains spoilers.

This week friend of the show Jenna DeWitt returns as we "amaze amaze amaze" about the movie Project Hail Mary.

We share our reflections on the movie, the relationship between Grace and Rocky, the character arc of Grace, the spirituality of the movie and a lot more.

We explore the the concept of the most reluctant hero who never wanted to go to space, and chooses to save his friend over glory on earth, and what that can speak to us about our own paths.

Trigger warning: Spiritual abuse, neglect, emotional/physical abuse

This week I'm joined by my friend MJ to discuss the experience of living with both C-PTSD and autism, and the crossovers between them.

Both MJ and I have daily lived experience of both and we discuss that here. We talk about the conditions themselves & what they look like, the differences and similarities, and how they cross over. We also discuss masking in depth and what that can look like, and how it can differ depending on individual or gender.

We also share our stories, how our trauma impacted us & how some trauma responses have interconnected with our lives as autistic people. Finally, we discuss ways we've learned to survive and stay healthy and try to offer hope to others through our experience.

Today I'm joined by Carolyn Kiel, who hosts the award winning podcast "Beyond 6 Seconds".

For over 200 episodes Carolyn has heard people share their nuerodivergent stories, from people ADHD, to autistic people, those with physical and other kinds of disabilities and a lot more.

In this episode, recorded in early 2025, she shares her experiences and what she's learned from these conversations & as an autistic / ADHD / CPTSD person I share my experiences alongside those. Its a fascinating insight into those lived experiences.

Trigger Warning: Epstein Files

Trace Bell returns this week for a discussion on whats happening in the world right now, and the age of disclosure humanity is entering into.

Trace shares his perspectives on the Epstein files having been released, with real life consequences all over the world, and the upcoming release of government files on UFOs & aliens.

We also talk about the harm of unfounded conspiracy theories, and how actual evidence can tell us far more about what's going on in the world & what may happen in future.

This week sees the first of consecutive episodes with my friend Trace Bell. In this episode, we discuss the idea that the seeds of transformation and change, are somehow embedded in the darkness we're experiencing.

Trace and I look at the world as it is, at history both in terms of politics, culture, and consciousness, and explore how darkness is and always has been its own undoing.

We also discuss the work of William Strauss & Neil Howe, about the four turns of society. We examine what cycles of history can teach us about what is happening now and will happen in the future - and how this can give us hope.

Becky Castle Miller joins me today to discuss and explore Jesus emotions. We focus in on several stories of Jesus where we see his his vulnerability and where he expresses the deepest of human emotion.

We talk about how he expresses grief, fear, anxiety and love during the course of his life, and his darkest moments.

Becky and I also explore how he turns the power of grief to perform his biggest sign, and how we see that it is in his most human, vulnerable moments, his true divinity is expressed .

The podcast returns with one half the musical duo JulyDa joining me to talk about their upcoming album Refuge, and the creative and spiritual journey behind it.

We delve into the connections between creativity and spirituality, how art connects us with the divine and ourselves, creative risk & how making art can heal us & help us grow.

Plus, there's also a small exclusive clip of the first single from their new album, called "Wait for the Lord".

(Trigger Warning: Spiritual Abuse)

Today is the 400th episode of the Poema Podcast! In September 2015 I began this show out of pure curiosity to explore a new creative medium. 10 years and a name change later, I've interviewed many many people on all sorts of topics ranging from grief, movies, music, death, mental health, spirituality, demisexuality and more.

Today, in an extended anniversary episode, my beloved friend MJ Weissenberger interviews me about the origins of the podcast, why I chose the name, the numerology around 4 and 400, as well as my creative journey.

I also share my story of spiritual abuse with YWAM for the first time publicly, and how this impacted my life & was impacted by grief.

It's been a wild ride to 400 episodes, and there's more to come! This is the last episode of 2025, but there's new episodes coming in 2026.

Trigger Warning: Narcissistic abuse.

This week, qualified counsellor and therapist Aly Rae joins me to discuss behaviours related to autism, and to narcissism. From their own lived experience of narcissistic abuse, and professional experience of working with autistic people, they share what the lived experience of autism can be like, and how some autistic traits can be confused with narcissism.

They also explain the difference between narcissism and narcissistic behaviours or traits, which can be displayed by certain personality types separately from an actual diagnosis of narcissism.

Finally, Aly provides helpful tools for autistic people - like her, myself and many others - to navigate the world we all live in, and a system which is not designed for us.

Author Alice Hewson returns to the podcast today to go deeper into exploring and discussing our lived experiences as autistic people and with rejection sensitive dysphoria (RSD).

Today we go deeper into RSD, something common in autistic people. We talk about what it is, and our lived experiences of it, and how we have learned to live with it, and even find joy in the midst of all the challenges it and being autistic can bring.

This week my friend Jenna returns to the show and in this episode we discuss the most recent series of Doctor Who, and the show as a whole.

Jenna and I explore the themes of grief, fear and power which come up in the recent series and the 15th Doctor's journey.

We also talk about how we've seen these themes come up in the show with previous Doctors and how they impact the Doctor's overall story. And how seeing the Doctor experience these things inspires and encourages us on our journey.

We then move on to share the reasons we love the show and what it means to us and to many others, and our hopes for its future.

This week we're talking James Gunn's "Superman" with my friend, podcaster Mario Francesco Robles, host of the "Superman on Film" podcast.

We talk about the themes of hope, identity, and being human which Superman embodies and are explored in the movie. We also discuss our own experiences of the movie, how it inspired us & where it stands in the echelon of Superman movies. This was such good fun!

My friend Jonathan Bregel is a filmmaker and creator. He's recently shot a documentary on a retreat designed solely to help people grieve, which he's hoping to release soon. He's also made a short film about grief about 18 months ago.

Today we discuss his experiences making these films, and his own experiences of grief. Jonathan shares what he has learned about grieving and death, and how its impacted him and his own journey, and relationships with others. This episode is a moving insight into one man's personal journey of grief.

You can support the movie and see the trailer here.

Author and friend Jim Woods returns to the podcast today, to discuss his latest work, the creative process, power of story and what he's learned as an author coach.

We talk about the challenges which every creative person faces, with Jim sharing some of his own story, why these happen, and how to overcome them. We also explore the dangers of pursuing our art and how we can keep our integrity whilst still creating great art to share with the world.

He shares his inpsiration for his recent series of novels and how the research and writing of these books changed him.

This was such a fun conversation, and I'm sure you're going to love it.

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You can find Jim's books on Amazon, and access to all his work at JimWoodsWrites.com

Jim's books, including several nove are all available on Amazon

Today my friend Justin return to the podcast. In this episode they talk about their advocacy and lived experiences as a bi and ace racialised person and how the developments in the USA have impacted their lived experience.

We both share stories about how healthy community can help us survive through difficult times, in a world of prejudice and hate, and what healthy community should - and can - look like.

Justin is a person who inspires hope in me, and I'm sure they will in you too. Check out their work here:

Medium: jancheta25.medium.com
Bluesky: @jancheta25.bsky.social

Website: www.justinanchetawriter.com

My beloved friend Brandan Robertson returns to the podcast today to talk about his latest book, "Queer & Christian: Reclaiming the Bible, Our Faith, and Our Place at the Table".

We talk about how Brandan revisited the scriptures and discovered there are several Queer saints within it, more than you'd expect. He also explored the usual "clobber" verses used against LGBTQIA community and unpacked their true contextual meaning.

He shares his vision of a Biblically supported, fully inclusive, loving joyful Christian faith, and its very compelling.

This week Jenna DeWitt is back on the podcast, this time we discuss the MCU movie "The Marvels", the sequel to Captain Marvel, the MCU's leading female superhero currently.

Jenna shares how this movie and the journey of the lead

characters in it, have been really impact for her as a queer, asexual woman. She also talks about how the movie covers themes of grief and loss, something often found in these type of movies, and identity.

This was such a fun conversation, hope you enjoy it.

You can find more of Jenna's work at invisiblecakesociety.com

This week my dear friend MJ joins us to share the story of her autism diagnosis, how she first realised she may be autistic, the process of getting her diagnosis, and how her life has changed since.

This is a powerful, challenging and encouraging story.

Today I'm joined by author and speaker Alice Hewson to discuss autism in the work place. Alice talks about the challenges of being neurodivergent in the world we live in, which isn't set up for neurodivergent people, and how this can often translate into the work place.

She shares her own experiences and also offers some practical ideas for both employers and neurodivergent people themselves, for how neurodivergent people can feel safe and protected in the work place. She also shares some thoughts and examples of how neurodivergent people can build structures and processes which will help them thrive in the work place rather than be overwhelmed, and to avoid potential meltdowns

You can read more about this in her book "Neurodiversity in the Workplace" which is available wherever books are sold.

This week, as part of a new series, Dr Amy Maschall PsyD returns to the podcast to talk about people's lived experiences with autism and in particular the experience of justice sensitivity.

Dr Amy is autistic herself, and works with autistic people on a regular basis, and a qualified expert, so has a lot of both lived experience and academic knowledge of autism. She shares this with us, and talks about how autistic people can be more sensitive about injusitces, big and small, and feel them more acutely, often seeing injustice and how to stop it in a binary way.

I myself share my experiences of this as an autistic person too, and we explore how autistic people can navigate the challenges this bring, and how it impacts our day to day lives.

Dr Amy has so much knowledge and insight on this subject, this is well worth a listen.

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Find more of Dr Amy's work, including her many books on neurodiversity on her website here.

Trigger warning: Spiritual abuse, toxic evangelicalism, conversion therapy stories

This week I'm joined by author and activist Lucas Wilson, to discuss stories of conversion therapy, the damage done by it, and the toxic evangelical culture which gave rise to it.

We talk about some of the stories shared by people in Lucas' new book "Shame Sex Attraction", their grief, trauma and how they healed from those experiences.

We also discuss toxic evangelical culture, and the harm its done to the LGBTQIA community as a whole & how we can support people who've experienced spiritual abuse, and how many of them have healed and moved into healthier lives embracing & being accepted for who they really are.

Today my beloved friend, embodiment coach, writer and podcaster Jamie Lee Finch returns to the show.

We talk all sorts in this episode, from connectedness with our bodies, intuition and how this all connects to a wider spirituality, to grief and how we build healthy relationships with our bodies and build resilience. We also explore how the system we all rigged, in, is simply not built for the thriving of human bodies.

We had such fun recording this, make sure you check it out.

The podcast returns for 2025 with a new interview with the ever inspiring author and speaker Rob Bell.

Recorded just before the US election of 2024, Rob joins me to talk about his latest novel, "There's Only One Noon Yeah", the second in his new series of novels.

We talk about the themes and inspirations behind the novel, how it shows us the world we live in a fresh way, and delve into grief, transitions, transformation and awareness, as well as finding joy in the creative process. It was such a fun and interesting conversation.

In this final episode of 2024, fellow Whovian Jenna DeWitt returns to the podcast to talk about a character we both love, The Doctor.

In particular, we talk about a recurring theme in the show, and on this show, grief. The grief of losing companions, of people he is trying to save sometimes dying or sacrificing themselves, and above all, of him having to grieve his own death, every time he regrenerates.

Even if you don't know the show, there's a lot here which can relate to various experiences of grief we can have, death, loss of friends, loss of community, moving on from our past selves, and how all of this can relate to us in the deconstruction community, and personal growth generally.

Today my dear friend Cat Dean joins me to talk about astrological energy, and in particular the phenomenon of mercury retrogade, the most recent of which (at time of release) began November 25th, 2024.

Cat tells us exactly what mercury retrogade is, when it happens and why, and how it impact both us and our world. We both share our own experiences of mercury retrogade and Cat explains the power and influence of astrological energy itself.

Trigger warning: Suicide, suicidal ideation, depression

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Today I'm joined by author and advocate Chris Morris. He shares his story about his experiences of depression, suicidal ideation.

He shares his powerful and raw story of his depression and various suicide attempts. He talks about his experience in a psych ward, and how he did the work of healing, and the battles he still has. He also talks about the challenges of talking about mental health in Christian circles.

Chris is a courageous, powerful advocate for mental health and his story is both discomforting and ultimately, inspiring.

In this new episode, recorded pre-election 2024, Amanda Held Opelt joins me again, this time for a conversation about some major events in history & their impact on how our culture processes grief.

We talk at length about the two World Wars, and how different outcomes for different nations impacted how their cultures responded to them, and how it changed their culture. We explore how one bad response from WWI may have led to WWII and how the outcomes of both may have contributed to where we are now.

We also look at Queen Victoria, a monarch who experienced deep grief, which changed her life, her behaviour and relationships with others.

This episode is a fascinating insight into how grief shapes us individually and culturally.

This week Virginia Spotts returns to the podcast to talk about her acting and creative career, and her experiences of trauma.

We talk about the various roles and different types of characters she's played, and how these have helped her process trauma and grief. She also shares the challenges of playing certain types of characters & how she tries to seperate herself from characters she plays.

She also shares how her creative journey, which includes writing as well as acting, has helped her understand and process the trauma and grief she's experienced - and the power of art to help us heal.

Jenna DeWitt returns to the podcast this week to discuss Taylor Swift's latest album, the "Tortured Poets Department".

We explore several of the tracks and how they relate to the deconstruction journey, living as an LGBTQI person and the experiences of grief and trauma. We look at them in the context of our own journeys and Taylor's own story, and what we can learn from them.

This again is such a fun episode, and another example of how great art can connect with our stories & help our healing.

This week I welcome back my friend, poet and author Marla Taviano, to talk about her latest collection of poems, "Whole".

"Whole" is the third in a series of 3 compliations of poetry exploring Marla's own deconstruction journey, and all the grief, doubt conflict, challenges and healing of this journey. We talk about the creative process both behind "Whole" and the series of poetry books about her journey, and how this shaped Marla herself.

We also explore how creativity has helped Marla in other ways, including some other creative projects she's been involved in, making new things out of old.

And we talk about how creativity as a whole is a healing process which liberates us from the past and brings something new and hopeful into the world.

Today, my friend, qualified IFS practitioner Becky Castle Miller, joins me to discuss and explore Internal Family Systems therapy, how it works, and how it can benefit us.

Becky and I both shares our own experiences with this kind of therapy and we also discuss internal managers, exiles and firefighters. We explore who they are, why they exist and how they were formed - and how we can work with them to help heal our truama wounds.

Becky and I also do a small demonstration of how this therapy works, in real time. This episode is a great insight into a powerful form of therapy.

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*Please do not attempt IFS for the first time without a licensed practitioner.

My friend Trace Bell returns to the podcast this week to have a discussion about the mysterious power of music.

Together we explore how music can tap in to both our consciousness, our subsoncious and our bodies and help us somehow connect with the wider energy of the universe. We explore the mystery of how it unlocks emotions, energy and even desire, and helps us become more in tune with our bodies and our truest selves.

We also talk about how certain songs or pieces of music can take on new meaning when related to certain moments, events or people. In so doing they can help us heal, and grieve well.

This was a fascinating and interesting discussion, come join us!

Today I talk to creators and filmmakers Ien Chi and Jon Bregel about Jon's recent documentary, the short film "I Do" which tells the grief story of a married man, from diagnosis, through loss, to grieve and finding life after death.

Ien and Jon share their own experiences with creating and producing the movie, and how this exploration of grief in a creative format impacted their own perspective on grief.

The both share the way their perspectives on life and death, and spirituality, and their personal journeys, were impacted with this encounter with grief, and together we discuss how powerful grief can be, and how it's power can be used for great good and healing, but can also abused and manipulated.

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You can find out more information about the short fulm "I Do" and how to watch it here.

Friend of the podcast Rob Bell returns today to discuss his new latest work, a novel, "Where'd You Park Your Spaceship? An Interplanetary Tale of Love, Loss and Bread: Book One, Welcome to Firdus."

(Yes this is the title).

It's an incredible novel, which explores grief, identity, toxic systems, all from the perspective of someone outside of earth learning it for the first time.

Rob tells me his creative process in writing the novel, how the experience changed him, and how he discovered joy and fun in the creative process, and we talk about a WHOLE lot more too.

What we hear from Rob here is truly inspirational, and speaks a lot to those going through healing, awakening, embodiment and finding freedom in their creative, personal and spiritual lives.

This week my friend MJ joins me to discuss Dan Levy's movie director debut, 'Good Grief', which is available on Netflix.

The movie is about a person who loses their mother and husband in the space of the year, and their grieving process which reveals a lot of secrets and surprises, and how it impacts his life.

MJ and I, who both have lived experience of grief, watched it together and in this episode we share our own reflections, insights and lived experiences. We talk about the ways the movie covers and explores grief so well and tenderly, and what we learned.

This week my friend Jenna DeWitt returns to discuss Taylor Swift's "1989 - Taylor's Version" which released earlier this year.

Jenna shares her own experience with the album - both the new version, and the original - and what these meant for her as she explored her own identity.

Then together we explore various tracks on the album and the stories behind them. We discuss how these songs and their stories, and art in general, can help us as we process issues of grief, transformation and identity.

As we do so, we see more of how the creative process can heal and transform us.

My guest today is Virginia Spotts. She is a writer, actor, fiction podcaster, and aspiring death doula.

In this episode she shares her experiences of grief and how they impacted her. As a writer, actor and fiction broadcaster, she shares unique experiences of how witnessing death and going through the grieving impacted the creative aspects of her life and identity.

Virginia also shares her experience of training as a death doula, helping people prepare for death. Its' a fascinating and unique insight into death and grief.

Today we begin another series exploring grief on the podcast, with Andrea De Ward talking about her experiences of doing pastoral work with the dying, as chaplain of a care home.

Andrea talks about how this impacted her perspectives on death and grief, as she then herself had experiences of grief and loss. She tells us how these impacted her life, her relationships and her personal/spiritual journey.

Andrea's story gives us a very unique perspective on death and grief, and can help us understand these experiences much better.

Today I'm joined by writer, advocate and podcast host Shari A Smith. She talks to us about her advocacy works with trauma victims and survivors, and the importance of sharing our stories.

Shari shares her experiences of sharing and bearing witness to trauma and grief stories, and how its' impacted her and the people sharing those stories. She tells us how sharing stories can provide solidarity to those hearing, and a voice to those who share them, and help us in the road to healing.

Today I'm joined by therapist Heidi Dennis, MS LPC, to discuss her new book, "Hello Anxiety", and explore a new approach to dealing with anxiety.

Heidi shares how we can learn to say "hello" to our anxiety. Heidi shares what anxiety is, why it’s there and how to respond to it instead of distracting from it.

She tells us how listen to our anxious feelings and work with them instead of against them, and find our way towards peace.

This week I'm joined by activist and writer Justin Ancheta. In this episode they share their own story of discovering they were a biromantic demisexual & the prejudice they faced as a Filipino-Canadian, queer man with a stutter.

They also talk about the connections between asexuality and tarot, and how discovering tarot helped them feel more at peace with their own identity, and discovering that liminal space of acceptance and belonging.

In our first episode of 2024, my friend Cat Dean joins me for a fun conversation about being human in the changing seasons of life.

We discuss how the changes in the movement of the earth can impact our lives so directly, how we process change and the grief involved, and how it can impact our connection to our own humanity, and our creative lives.

We also explore how growth and healing increase connection to our bodies, and awaken us to the falseness of the systems we live in, connecting us more to our humanity, and to the earth.

This was such a fun, relaxed and often spontaneous conversation between friends, with great insights. Enjoy!

For Grief Awareness week this week, I'm joined by Vicky McQuarrie, who works for AtaLoss Charity, a non-profit organization that signposts bereaved people to support.

TW: Suicide, grief, loss of spouse

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Vicky courageously shares her stories of loss and grief, both being widowed and losing her sister in the space of a year. She shares the impact this had on her life, the rituals and practices she discovered to help her grieve well.

She also discusses how her first experience of processing grief impacted her second, and the biggest lessons she's learned, as well as the work of the bereavement charity AtaLoss.

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Find out more about Vicky's work at Ataloss.org

A new Poema podcast special episode with myself and Douglas Humphries - recorded during the strike specifically for a post-strike release.

In this episode we discuss Christopher Nolan's "Oppenheimer". We explore the various themes of the movie, how the movie impacted both of us, and the biggest lessons we can learn from the movie.

We also talk about the storytelling in the movie, and the creative/storytelling lessons we can learn from Chris Nolan.

I'm honoured today to be joined by author and speaker Daniel Finklestein. Daniel tells us the story about his parents and grandparents, Jewish families caught up in the growing anti-semitism of the 1920's & 1930's, ultimately leading to their imprisonment in concentration camps by the Nazi's.

But the story doesn't end there, they survived these camps and eventually moved to England where they raised a family. And of course there are shades of the shift to the hard right we've seen in the US & UK recently.

It's a story of struggle, grief, courage and hope, and Daniel shares it beautifully.

This week my friend Jenna DeWitt returns to the podcast to discuss two songs - "You're Losing Me" by Taylor Swift and "Faith" by Selmer - and exploring them in detail, in relation to their respective messages about queer liberation and owning your gender and identity.

We breakdown the lyrics of each song and discuss them in depth, and Jenna gives great insight into the deeper meaning of these songs, how they've impacted her, and how they can speak to us too.

We also touch on how despite one piece of art being labelled 'secular' and one more overtly, 'Christian', both can impart equally powerful messages about these issues.

This week my guest is my friend and colleague Maria French, author, speaker and theological coach. In this episode we discuss her new book, "Reconfiguring " A Collection of Post-Christian Thoughts and Theologies", and in particular two essays from this book.

Firstly we explore the power of nostalgia, and how our yearning for some idealistic past which never existed can hinder our thriving and living now. We discuss this from both an individual and cultural perspective, looking at the impact of nostalgia on the political trajectory of both the US and UK in recent years.

We then naturally move into a conversation about grief, death, and loss, and how sitting in our grief and allowing it to work on us, and doing healing work, can actually lead us become more fully alive. We explore how when we embrace the reality of death and grief, it can move us to be more fully present, and create a thriving life of purpose.

You can buy Maria's new book "Reconfiguring " A Collection of Post-Christian Thoughts and Theologies" on Amazon here and find more of her work on her website here.

Today I'm joined by my friend Ali Smith, who shares their story of how they slowly discovered they were autistic, and ultimately had ADHD.

They share common patterns of behaviour they experienced which they realised can be giveaways for these diagnoses, and the process of them obtaining a diagnosis.

Ali also talks about the challenges of coming to terms with their diagnoses and how they learned to acknowledge and accept who they are and thrive in their autistic and ADHD identities - and how we can too.

This week I'm joined by my friend Amber Kay to discuss living with epilepsy, how they discovered they were autistic and how this changed their life.

They also share the story of discovering their bisexuality and embracing their true identity, and how this tied in with their autistic discovery. This episode is Amber sharing their journey of acknowledging and living fully into who they really are, and how we can do the same.

This week I'm joined by author Lyndsey Medford, who tells us the story of when an autoimmune condition opened her eyes fully to the limitation of being in our bodies within the systems we live in.

Lyndsey talks about how learning to be comfortable in her body with its limitations impacted how she sees and interacts with the world. She also shares how it showed her how to heal and be free from the limitations of the systems we live in, and find a healthy, sustainable life for herself.

In this episode, my friend, ace advocate and writer Elle Rose, joins me to hear me tell my story of how I discovered I'm demisexual and on the asexual spectrum.

Firstly, I talk about how I discovered what demisexaulity is and began to resonate with this label.

I then discuss how once I acknowledged my demisexuality, and looked back at my life and my relationship to my sexuality, how it explained a lot of my experiences, lack of sexual attraction and why I was so different from my peers - and how what I thought was 'usual' wasn't the experience of others.

Then I move to explain how this discovery has changed my life, helped my relationships, plutonic and romantic, and helped me find peace with myself.

I'm honoured to welcome back my friend, author Marla Taviano today. In this episode we talk about her recent book of poetry, 'Jaded'.

We talk about the messiness of deconstruction, the parts of the journey where we need to get things of our chest, release the grief, anger and trauma we carry, and learn to speak truth to ourselves and of ourselves.

Marla shares her own journey and how this is reflected in the poems and how writing the book helped that process. She talks about her experience of the anger and grief of discovering oppressive systems we've been a part of and damage we could have done, coming to terms with that, and the healing process.

This week my friend Amanda Held Opelt returns, and we discuss grief rituals, why they were popular in the reign of Queen Victoria, and the impact of the first world war on our cultural grief rituals and how we process grief & loss.

We also explore how the trauma and grief culturally felt and experienced in the first World War, had an impact on the allied nations initial response to Hitler's tyranny and how this could have inadvertently contributed to WWII.

We then discuss how defeat and having to face up to their actions as a nation, and do the work of healing and transformation, impacted Germany and their culture, and how victory contributed indirectly too many of the problems we now see in the UK and Germany.

This week my friend Douglas Humphreys returns to the show, and we discuss the show 'Obi Wan Kenobi', and the dynamic of the relationship between him and Anakin Skywalker (AKA Darth Vader) in the context of their respective journeys of grief and trauma.

We discuss their experiences of grief, including in their own relationship, and the circumstances which contributed to the stories and outcomes of their lives.

We talk about how unresolved grief and anger can consume and control us, and harm both ourselves and others - and how this story shows the contrast between this and healthy ways of processing grief, and how it transforms us.

This week Amanda Held Opelt returns to continue our exploration of grief and transformation in pop culture.

Today we talk about the contrasting experiences of Loki, brother of Thor and Wanda Maximoff, and how we see this ultimately play out in their respective MCU shows.

We explore how Loki's confrontation with his own trauma, grief, and his actions, ultimately transforms and heals him. In contrast we discuss how Wanda's unhealthy response to trauma and grief causes harm to others, and herself.

We then touch on what lessons we can learn from their respective journeys.

I'm honoured to be joined today on my podcast by anti-racist activist, educator and speaker Tori Williams Douglass. Tori runs 'White Homework', a resource educating people on anti-racism and whiteness.

Today Tori tells us a bit of her story and journey into activism. She then discusses the concept of whiteness, where it originated, where we see it, and the harm it does, individually and societally.

Tori also explores where we can see whiteness in ourselves and in the system we live in, and how we can begin to unlearn it and create a more equal, just world.

TW: Stories of acephobia

Today Marshall Blount (@AceGentle on twitter) joins me today to share his story of discovering his identity as an asexaul (ace) and his journey into ace & LGBTQI activism.

We talk about the challenges he faced in discovering going public about his ace-ness and how others reacted, how it impacted his mental health, as well as his experiences of acephobia.

We also talk in depth about the activism he's been involved in, including how he obtained a proclamation for Ace Week 2020 from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, and the difference his work is making to ace awareness and equality - as well as words of encouragement for those still exploring their aceness.

This week, in our 350th episode, Amanda Held Opelt joins me again for the second part of our series on superheroes, grief and modern mythology.

This week we explore the character and story of Superman, in particularly the one we see in the Christopher Reeve movies. He's a character who loses his adoptive father as a teenager, an event which drives him into a life trying to save people, never expressing his emotions, until another event finally unlocks his buried grief.

We explore how Superman is a more hopeful character, and how his processing of grief doesn't dilute this, but rather makes him more hopeful, more kind, and more inspirational.

We explore what lessons we can learn from his processing of grief, and his character, and why the world needs more people of sincerity and hope.

This week I begin a new series with my friend Amanda Held Opelt to discuss how grief is explored in superhero stories, and how they have become our modern mythology.

Today we focus mainly on Batman, exploring his story sand how his grief transforms and initially controls him, with Batman an expression of his raw grief. We discuss some of the stories in prominent Batman movies, as Bruce Wayne processes his grief and eventually Batman becomes a symbol of hope.

This episode explores how grief can control us if we let it, but if we allow ourselves to process it, it can transform us.

This week Jenna DeWitt returns to the show for a conversation about Taylor Swift's recent album "Midnights" and the enneagram.

Jenna briefly introduces the enneagram and we talk a bit about Taylor's likely enneagram numbers 9 (3w4). Then we explore how this relates to the recent fallout with Ticketmaster regarding her tour.

Then we talk about how the album is reflective of Taylor's own personal and creative journey, her lived experiences and how she's often been perceived and treated by the media and those who aren't fans.

We also discuss how many of the challenges she can face are typical of her enneagram number, and end by exploring how all of us, whatever our enneagram number can embrace our identities and move into growth and transformation.

TW: Spiritual abuse, evangelicalism, toxic religion

Today I'm joined by Carissa (@carissaexplainsnothing) who courageously shares her story, including her deconstruction and experience of toxic religion.

She talks about her upbringing with evangelicalism, and a path she began to see as already pre-determined and inevitable.

Carissa shares some of the spiritual abuse she experienced, and the grief she experienced leaving evangelicalism behind, and at the end of her marriage. And then she tells us about her experience of deconstruction, the risks and the joys of creating a new life, and discovering who she's always been.

This week I'm honoured to be joined by Candice Czubernat. She is a therapist (known as @lesbiantherapist on IG), and founder of The Christian Closet, an LGBTQ affirming counseling, coaching and spiritual direction organization. She is also the founder of Gloriously Queer a conference for LGBTQ people of faith developed by LGBTQ people of faith.

Today Candice shares her own story, talks about her work and her experiences as a therapist, particuarly focussing on grief.

We discuss our various experiences of grief, different types of grief - including loss of loved ones, relationships ending, and the grief of deconstruction - and how we can learn to respond to grief and process grief in healthy ways.

Today I'm joined by returning guests Trace Bell and Tina Olsen to discuss grief and the spirituality of dogs.

Tina shares her experience of grief, and both her and Trace share their experiences with dogs, and learning and understanding their consciousness and building relationship with them, and how this can improve our mental health.

They discuss how dogs can be extra intuitive and aware of our emotions and needs almost before we are, and what this can teach us about learning to listen to our own intuition and our relationship with the earth.

In this week's episode author Amanda Held Opelt joins me to discuss the cultural and historical impact of the Black Death during the 1300's.

We discuss the collective grief and trauma experienced by the countries impacted by the Black Death, and the longer term consequences for the church, culture and ultimately the history of western culture.

We explore the consequences of collective cultural grief and trauma, and talk about what the potential long term impact of COVID has and potentially will be for the world and our culture as a whole.

In today's episode we return to our irregular pop culture series, with author Marla Taviano joining me to discuss the popular show - and one of our favourites - Schitts Creek.

We talk about the various character arcs, and how these explore personal deconstruction and transformation after a major life change. We also explore the culture of the show which normalised LGBTQ inclusion and was such an inspiration to the LGBTQ community.

This was such a fun episode to record, any fan of the show will enjoy it (and even those who don't know the show).

I'm honoured to be joined today by my friend, colleague Maria Francesca French today. Maria is a professor, theologian, author and coach, exploring all things Christian and post-Christian.

Today she shares her personal journey, and talks about her first book, Safer than the Known Way, and we discuss together the root of the term deconstruction.

We explore the concept of event, and how event begins an unravelling which takes us on a journey into what is called deconstruction, which goes way beyond the boundaries of religion and belief, and helps us explore, question and understand our very identity.

This was such a great conversation, Maria has such knowledge, wisdom and lived experience in this area.

I highly recommend checking out Maria's book 'Safer than the Known Way', available at all online booksellers now.

Trigger warning: religious abuse, toxic religion

Today author and podcaster Nikki Pappas joins us to talk about her book "As Familiar As Family: Leaving Toxic Religion".

Nikki tells us her powerful story of how she experienced abuse as love from a young age, being brought up in an evangelical family, being groomed for unhealthy relationships and toxic religion.

She talks about she finally broke free of toxic religion, the challenges and the cost - and the freedom she discovered.

Today author, YouTuber and public theologian Damon Garcia is my guest, as we explore the call of Jesus to social activism.

Damon shares his own spiritual journey, and how he discovered a Jesus who takes sides with the marginalised and the oppressed and who fights for their liberation.

Damon then explores how we need to follow this example, in the oppressive systems we currently find ourselves in, and take a stand for marginalised, oppressed peoples.

Today my friend author, podcaster and tik tok star Rev Brandan Robertson joins me to talk about his new book 'Dry Bones and Holy Wars'.

In this episode he and I explore how the teachings of Jesus can inspire us bring social and spiritual renewal in a world engulfed by toxic systems of oppression, and where there is so much grief, trauma, inequality, and marginalisation.

Brandan talks about what a healthy, deconstructed Jesus spirituality can look like, and how the community of Jesus followers need to reform, evolve and grow to be able to bring about the social and spiritual renewal the world so desperately needs.

TW: Eating disorder

This week author, podcaster & speaker Jackie Gronlund (she/her) is my guest. Jackie shares her story, talking about her relationship with her body, and learning self acceptance.

Jackie talks about the challenges of living with an eating disorder and other coping mechanisms and escapes, and how this impacted her life, spirituality, relationships with others. and her relationship with her body.

Jackie shares her journey of discovering healing through a healthy relationship with her body, and how this helped her find peace in herself and in her true identity - and how we can do the same.

Find more of Jackie's work at jackiegronlund.com

Today my friend, podcaster, coach, speaker and author Rev Sarah Heath returns to Poema! In this episode we catch up with what she's been up to, and she shares the story of how she chose to leave working in ordained ministry to create a life which was truly her own, and becoming fully embodied in her vocation and her life.

Sarah talks about the challenges of moving out of ordained ministry, and the risks, the difficulties - and the rewards, of choosing to live fully in tune with ourselves.

Sarah also shares how these choices have been influenced by, and have themselves impacted her own spiritual journey.

Sarah's story is a great example of what it means for us create our own lives and tell our story our own way, and how this can transform us.

I'm honoured to be joined by Thomas Floyd LCMHC, a psychologist and therapist.

He tells us a little of his story, and then we explore the connections between the process of deconstruction and issues of co-dependency and attachment types in relationships of all kinds

We talk about how toxic religious systems can teach us co-dependency and unhealthy attachment models, and how we can unlearn these to have healthy relationships and communities.

Honoured today to be joined by my friend Erin Green M.Div (she/they). Erin is a queer activist and scholar.

Today their share their story of deconstruction, and discovery and exploration of their queer identity.

They discuss how they reconciled the two, how this impacted their life, faith & relationships, in particular their relationship with Christianity & the church, and finding healthy community.

Today I'm joined by Sarah Kimble, as we continue my exploration of pop culture with a discussion on the book / movie "Pride & Prejudice".

We explore the cultural context it was written and how this impacts how we read and interact with the story and characters.

We also discuss the character of Mr Darcy and make the argument that he may well be autistic, and explore examples of this, and how this would explain much of his character and his behaviour/interactions in the book. We also talk about how that can help us understand the story and have more empathy with him. This was such a fun episode, with some great insights. Hope you enjoy it!

This week I'm joined by Dr Amy Marschall. Dr Amy is a licensed psychologist and certified in telemental health, working with children aged 2-18 and experienced and qualified in giving ADHD & autism diagnoses. She's also authored or co-authored several books.

In this episode she talks about her experiences working with children with ADHD and autism. She shares about how her reaction to the dramatic changes in her lifestyle during lockdown ultimately led her to the discovery and diagnosis of her autism and adhd, and how she has spoken to over 45 people with the conditions to understand their experiences - a project she is still working on.

Dr Amy also talks about the issues with getting a diagnosis, especially as an adult, and how her clients had even noticed. She also discusses how this has impacted her work and her hopes to end stigma and ableism around these conditions, the biggest misunderstandings around ADHD & Autism, and the challenges of getting a diagnosis and being honest about this condition.

My pop culture series continues today with my friend Melissa Weissenberger returning to the show to discuss the movie 'Free Guy'.

We explore the numerous themes of the movie and how they relate to our own personal journeys.

We also discuss how it's a metaphor for being trapped in toxic systems and becoming aware of them, breaking free from the control of others and discovering your own identity, and so much more. This was such a fun episode to make & I'm sure you'll enjoy it!

This week I'm joined by author and poet Marla Taviano, who shares her story about her faith deconstruction, the end of her marriage, and how she found a way to survive and create a new life.

We talk about her recently released book of poetry called 'Unbelieve: Poems on the Journey to Becoming a Heretic', and the creative process behind it.

Marla shares how creativity has become a path to healing & expressing the trauma, grief and pain of her experiences, exploring the questions she had, and lessons she is still learning and unlearning.

This week I welcome back my friend Irene M Cho to the podcast, and we continue our series on pop culture with an examination of the Godfather trilogy, and the arc of Michael Corleone.

We explore his personal journey and his unhealthy responses to grief and how they defined him - and how they can define us.

We also discuss the generational trauma carried through the Corlene family, and how generational trauma can do so much damage to individuals and families without proper healing work, take us away from our true selves, and lead to tragedy.

As Poema Podcast returns, I'm joined by my friend Kevin M Nye, and we talk about his book 'Grace Can Lead Us Home: A Christian Call to End Homelessness'. Kevin has worked in the area of homelessness for many years, and today we discuss this is more detail.

Kevin talks about the many myths and misunderstandings around those experiencing homelessness and how these can cause such damage. He also explores the many ways the problem has been tackled, and shares some more new & more helpful approaches which he believes can bring about genuine change.

The core of Kevin's perspective, is how by simply humanising those who experience homelessness and loving and showing grace towards them, is the first step to reducing homelessness.

Nicki Pappas, author and podcaster, joins me today to share her deconstruction story. She shares how her lived experiences and rise of Trump challenged her to leave toxic evangelicalism behind, and begin work on what she calls 'broadening the narrative'.

Nicki talks about the the impact this journey has had on her relationships, her marriage, and her mental health. She shares lessons she's learned on her journey, and the process creating spaces in her own life, and in her creative work, for wider conversations.

She tells us how she is exploring new ways of exploring our spirituality, new perspectives, which give us freedom to grow and heal.

Today I'm joined by author April Fiet, who talks to us about healthy and unhealthy rhythms of life, including harmful ones which have often pushed on us by toxic religion and capitalism.

April shares, sometimes from from her own story, how we can leave these unhealthy rhythms behind, and find healthier rhythms to our lives which connect more us to spirit, and ourselves. She shows us how we can leave perfectionism behind, and how every moment can become sacred.

My friend K.J. Ramsey joins me to talk about her new book, 'The Lord is my Courage', The book and this conversation explore how we can discover courage and deeper spiritual connection as we step through faith deconstruction and into freedom from toxic religious systems & the spiritual abuse many of us experienced there.

KJ tells us some of her own experiences of this journey, talking about the impact spiritual abuse toxic religion & leaving it behind can have on our mental and physical health, and relationships.

She then shares how the creative process with this book & her own exploration of this Psalm both liberated, healed, and helped her find a new depth to her connection with the divine - and how it can do so for us.

Today on I'm honoured to be joined by my friend Jarred, who tells me his story of discovering his queer identity, and deconstruction, which led him into witchcraft and paganism.

He shares how this has transformed his life, relationships and spirituality, and some of the challenges he's faced along the way, including the response to his embrace of his true identity and leaving his Christian faith behind.

He is both courageous, honest and compassionate in how he tells us his story and the sharing the wisdom he's learned.

Today my beloved friend Kacey returns to the show, to bring us up to date with their story, including their coming out as non-binary and bi, and the impact this has had on them, their life and family, and how her partner supported them with this.

Kacey and I explore the concept of identity and the constructs which can restrict us, and the impact of good embodiment work. And then move to explore how we can live free of those identities and live a healthy, thriving life where we can be fully ourselves.

I'm honoured to welcome back my friend, author & activist (and now tik-tok star), Brandan Robertson today. In this episode we talk about his journey in the last year, becoming an advocate for LGBTQIA+ inclusion on Tik Tok & being featured in Rolling Stone.

He also shares his lived experience of unlearning his white male privilege, doing anti-racist work and its role in his deconstruction and personal journey, and the importance of this for all white people. He uses the metaphor of Jesus laying his divinity aside as a metaphor for laying privilege permanently aside for the betterment and liberation of ourselves, and the world.

Today I'm joined by my friend Rhea, who shares their personal spiritual, creative and personal transformation. They share about how their deconstruction, healing and journey impacted their creativity.

Rhea also explores what true, authentic creativity looks like outside toxic systems of control and oppression, and beyond capitalist structures which demand results, numbers, money and approval. The answer is inspiring and liberating.

In this episode joined by Natalie and Heather, to share the story of Natalie's transitioning to a trans woman, and the impact it had on her wife Heather and the family.

They share about the challenges they've faced both within and outside their family, and how its impacted their spirituality and relationships.

We also talk about our shared love of Doctor Who, and in particular the concept of regeneration as a metaphor for both personal transformation and the process of transitioning. Natalie and Heather are courageous, wonderful people with a powerful story, its an honour to share their story today.

Today I welcome Molly Hale (@Mollyamourous) to the podcast. We had a great conversation about deconstruction, embodiment, polyamory, blended families, healthy sexuality and choosing yourself.

It was both a fun, inspiring and enlightening conversation, and Molly actually interviewed me at times which was really great! This was different to any other episode I've recorded in the best of ways.

Today I'm joined by Meghan Crozier (@ThePursuingLife on twitter) who tells her story. She talks about her experiences in evangelicalism and what drove her to begin her deconstruction journey, and where it has taken her.

Meghan goes on to share just how this process has impacted different areas of her life, including her relationships, marriage, and work. She also talks about how it opened her eyes to oppressive and systemically racist systems & her own response to this revelation.

She reveals just how much she has had to learn, unlearn or relearn as part of this journey, and how much bigger this work is than just a faith deconstruction or change of belief.

I'm honoured to welcome Carly Button to my podcast today. Carly, with great tenderness and courage, shares her own story.

She speaks about moving to Canada as a child, her upbringing and worldview she was taught to believe, having to hide her nationality and identity. She then moves on to talk through her faith deconstruction, spiritual journey, embracing her native heritage and coming out.

I'll let the story speak from itself. But I'm certain it will deeply move you, challenge, discomfort and inspire you. It was an honour to bear witness to Carly sharing her story.

Today writer and activist Jo Luehmann joins me to explore how indoctrination to oppressive systems can impact our behaviours and lead to different forms abuse, prejudice & racist behaviour.

We discuss the roots of capitalism, going back to its colonial roots and links to archaic institutions in the UK and Europe, such the royal family. Jo shares how we can become so indoctrinated into these systems we often can't see how we're causing harm.

Then they cover how to unlearn these systems and be teachable in healthy ways so we can actually help tear down these systems, heal ourselves and love others well.

This week my friend, artist and illustrator Atlas Talos joins me on the podcast. He tells us a bit of his own story, and then we dive deep into a discussion on toxic masculinity and its relationship to evangelicalism and capitalism - and the damage it can do, even to men who try and escape it - and how he escaped and unlearned this.

We also talk about how deconstruction & transformation journeys are as much about our identity and creativity as much as spirituality - and how he discovered more of his true identity and vocation through the process.

And we end with a discussion about geek culture and how this can be a reflection of other aspects of our culture, with its own toxic traits and reflections of capitalism.

Today I'm honoured to be joined by my friend Ali, who tells us their story.

They share about exploring and discovering their true gender identity and how this journey intertwined with faith deconstruction, discovering witchery, and being autistic.

It's a powerful and inspiring story. Ali has such courage and this a story we all need to hear.

(Oh, and we both love Taylor Swift and Ali makes Taylor Swift memes so this obviously that came up...)

I'm honoured today to be joined by author, activist and musician Andre Henry. In this episode we talk about his new book, "All The White Friends I Couldn't Keep".

Andre talks about the power dynamics of systemic racism and it's origins, in particularly discussing the oppressive systems of the British empire, which was built on the breaking of black bodies. He also challenges the cultural assumptions we make which are often impacted by racial cultural conditioning, and the type of change we need, and how it can be achieved.

This episode is discomforting in an absolutely necessary sense, and a must listen.

*Please note, we had some technical issues with the recording so my track runs over Andre's on occasion - this is a tech issue which I couldn't resolve but I hope the spirit of the conversation comes through.

Today I'm joined by Mandy Capehart, a trauma-aware licenced grief coach, who shares her own experiences of grief, the lessons she learned and how we can have a healthy relationship with our grief.

Mandy shares different practices she's found for helping her process grief and how she helps others to do the same. She makes the point we are different, all manifest our grief in unique ways, so the ways we process it will always be unique for each of us - and all of them belong.

Mandy also discusses how griefing ties in with the experience of faith deconstruction and our unique spiritual journeys - and how she experienced this herself.

My dear friends Tina Olsen and Trace Bell return to the podcast today, and Trace asks both myself and Tina to share our stories of grief and loss. We then explore this in the context of a fresh understanding of human consciousness, of our bodies living in our consciousness, and consciousness continuing after physical death.

Both Tina and myself have some transcendent experiences to share with the consciousness of family members who have passed. We share little incidents from their lives and what seem random stories from our lives and from experiences with movies we've seen since which suggest there is more going on with our consciousness than just our bodies. We also talk about the science which could suggest this might be true.

Trace adds his own perspective as someone exploring and learning about consciousness, and getting to know the consciousness of someone who has passed.

This is a fascinating conversation which opens up a lot of questions and possibilities..I'd encourage you as you listen to open yourself up to new ideas and questions yourself.

Amanda Held Opelt returns to the show this week, to discuss her new book 'A Hole in the World', and talk about her journey discovering and exploring rituals of grief.

Using some examples, Amanda demonstrates the importance of having rituals around grief and mourning, and how these can aid the process of healing. We also discuss the damage which has and can be done to us individually and as a society, when we don't practice any kind of grief ritual or practice which engages with our grief and trauma.

Finally, Amanda gives some examples of rituals she's found helpful and how we can begin to create our own practices which can help the healing process.

Amanda's upcoming book, 'A Hole in the World: Finding Hope in Rituals of Grief and Healing', can be pre-ordered now at all online booksellers.

A Hole in the World: Finding Hope in Rituals of Grief and Healing

This week Dr Jill A. Harrington, DSW, LCSW, psychologist and author, joins me to discuss grief as explored in the context of superhero stories.

She is the co-author and editor of the book 'Superhero Grief'. In this episode we explore various experiences and responses to grief as we see in the stories of several superheroes - in particular Batman, a character who suffered violent trauma and grief.

We talk about how she's used various superhero stories in her research into the psychology of grief, attachment, and grief responses, and different ways we grieve. We also explore the concept of duality, and the background of the creation of Superman, and how in many ways this was a response to the grief experiences his creators and collective grieving and trauma Jews experienced in the 1930s and 1940s.

With the recent release of 'The Batman', about this character who experienced grief, and in a world experiencing a collective grief and trauma, this conversation feels more relevant than ever.

Today my friend MJ Weissenberger joins me to tell her story.

MJ's is a powerful story of learning how to process grief of losing a parent, as well as recovering from abuse and trauma in the process of deconstruction.

We hear this story and then explore how this tied in with her personal and spiritual deconstruction, where this journey has taken her, and how this impacted her life, relationships, and understanding of the world we live in. MJ's story is powerful and I felt great solidarity as I bore witness to it.

I'm honoured to welcome back author, speaker therapist and podcaster Dr Hillary McBride Phd to the podcast today.

In this episode we talk about embodiment, and 'the wisdom of our bodies'. Hillary talks about how through trauma, grief and messages from toxic systems, we can become disconnected from our bodies.

She shares how part of our transformation journey always has to be learning how to listen to our bodies, and the different ways our bodies communicates with us & we can learn to listen to them.

Dr McBride shares how systems like capitalism and evangelicalism directly impact our bodies, and how deconstructing those systems is key to having a healthy relationship with our bodies, and how our relationship with our bodies inherently political.

Hillary has so much wisdom and understanding on embodiment, mental/emotional health and how we heal. This is a powerful episode.

Dr McBride's book 'The Wisdom of Your Body' is available to buy at all online booksellers now!

Today my friend, author Sarah 'The Human', joins me to tell her story of deconstruction and spiritual awakening.

Sarah talks about what led her to begin questioning her faith, and where this path led her and the challenges she faced along the way. She also shares how the more she asked questions, the more she moved away from what she'd known, the more she saw how she'd been 'borderline brainwashed' by evangelicalism and toxic religion.

Sarah also shares how this impacted her relationships, with family, her husband and other communities - and how in the process she discovered a deeper, wider spirituality, and more of her true identity.

My friend, tarot reader & eclectic witch Cat, joins me today to talk about an important and not often discussed issue - spiritual capitalism.

Sharing their own experiences and insight, Cat unpacks what spiritual capitalism is, and how people can be & have been exploited by certain groups or individuals as they seek support and guidance on their spiritual journey, using some prominent examples.

They explain how we can discern the difference between truly wise and gifted people who genuinely want to help us on our journeys, and those just looking to manipulate us.

TW: spiritual abuse, emotional abuse, domestic abuse,

In this episode my friend Kacey tells their story. They share their experience of growing up in an evangelical home, the expectations and demands, and their experiences of several types of abuse, in particular from their ex-husband. They talk about the impact this had on them physically, mentally and emotionally.

Kacey then talks about how they finally began to break free from this environment, in the process deconstructing their faith and their very identity. They tell us the challenges this brought, what they discovered about themselves, and how they've finally discovered freedom and embodiment in this process.

Kacey is both inspiring and courageous, and I'm so grateful they shared their story today.

Please Note: Since this was recorded Kacey has come out as non-binary. When this episode was originally recorded they had yet to do this and were using different pronouns (including she/her). As such different pronouns to their current ones are used in this episode.

I've used Kacey's current pronouns in these show notes and will do if they return to the podcast in future.

I'm honoured today to be joined by best-selling author, novelist, educator and activist Rashid Darden.

Rashid tells us his story, and his lived experiences growing up and living as an LGBTQI black man raised by a single mother, and how this influenced his writing and his activism.

We explore together how pop culture and black & LGTQIA representation, past, present and future, and why it continues to be increasingly important.

We also touch on examples from the MCU, Superman and even Doctor Who (a mutual love) where we are seeing more representation and his hopes for this. Rashid talks about his own experience of watching Black Panther, and the significance of that movie and the metaphors & messages within it.

Rashid has so much wisdom and insight on all these important issues, and it was an honour to chat with him.

TW: conversion therapy

Today I'm joined by writer, PhD candidate and lecturer Luke Wilson, to hear his story of deconstruction, as well as his experience with and escape from conversion therapy.

Luke lays bare his lived experience of conversion therapy and how he broke free of this and how this impacted his own mental health, his spiritual journey and his work.

He also tells us about the advocacy and writing he does now, against conversion therapy and other practices which hurt the LGBTQIA community.

Special bonus episode today, with my friends Kevin Nye and Emma Morrison where they and I chat together about the award-winning show, Wandavision.

We explore the themes of processing grief, certainty and how this show gives us an echo of the roots of fundamentalism and oppressive systems. We explore some of the deeper themes and story arcs and reflect on what the story means for us, and what we can learn from it.

This is also a semi-preview of my second podcast, launching this coming week, "The Kryptonian, the Princess and The Avenger", where all three of us (me 'the Kryptonian', Emma 'the Princess', and Kevin 'The Avenger) and others will be chatting every fortnight about the stories which shape us, talking about movies, TV shows and other geeky stuff which inspires us.

You can follow the new show on IG and Twitter @KalElLeiaKevin and it'll be on all podcast platforms soon.

Meanwhile the Poema Podcast will continue every week...with some great guests coming up in the next few months!

Today author Holly Smale, author of the bestselling Geek Girl books, joins me to share her story and talk about the lived experience of being autistic.

She talks about her writing career, and how creating geek girl actually helped her discover she was autistic and get a formal diagnosis. We discuss together our shared lived experiences of being autistic and the challenges autistic people face living in the world as it is - and the stigma and lack of understanding which still exists.

We also talk about how we've found solidarity and support in fictional characters such as Tony Stark (we're both MCU fans) and what we can do to create a better world for autistic people.

Today is the 300th episode of the Poema Podcast (despite some numbering issues with iTunes), and to celebrate, my friend Becky Castle Miller is acting as host, in a semi-fun ask me anything!

Many listeners and friends sent in questions, and I had no idea what they were before recording. Questions on podcasts, how the podcast started, on my dreams, on creativity, spirituality, curiosity and a whole lot more.

This episode was so much fun and a perfect way to end 2021 on the podcast. I'll be back in January 2022 with lots more incredible guests and episodes.

Today I talk with fellow singleton Kristyn DeNooyer about the challenges of singleness and stigma around this, and the importance of hospitality to and by single people in order to have healthy support networks.

Kristyn shares her own story and the challenges she's faced and how its impacted her mental health. She also discusses the stigma single people can often face in spiritual communities and even society and how it can affect us.

And she gives us hope and insight into how we can make the world and churches more welcoming, and accepting of singleness.

Today my friends Trace Bell & Tina Olsen join me to talk about everything spiral dynamics - and how we can apply the concept of spiral dynamics to our every day living and grow in awareness and consciousness.

We talk about what spiral dynamics is, and Trace and Lisa unpack some very practical lessons they've learned about how we can use spiral dynamics as a tool. They explain how living the spiral can help us live more creative, healthy lives, as well as growing in our own level of consciousness.

My geek philosophy series continues today as writer Doug Humphries and I spend time reflecting on the season one of 'Loki' and the lead characters personal journey.

We explore how Loki confronts his past, his actions, and his grief and goes through an incredible personal deconstruction & transformation, and how his journey is often reflected in our own.

We also talk about the similarities between TVA and evangelicalism/capitalism, - a system we are part of and seems friendly, but has a sinister side - and a lot more too. This is one of my favourite shows, and one of my favourite episodes in this series.

Today my geek philosophy series continues, as my friend Drew Brown and I sit down to discuss the series 'Falcon and the Winter Soldier'.

We explore the character arcs of the two central characters, their processing of grief and trauma from the events of Avengers Endgame and loss of Steve, and how this journey helps them discover themselves.

We also explore the issues around systemic racism and white supremacy in the US and how these manifest themselves in the show, and the lessons they can teach us.

This was a fascinating conversation which covered a number of important topics, and Drew has some great insights to share.

Today on the podcast, another in our occasional series of deconstruction / spiritual transformation journeys, this time blogger and author Deborah Brunt.

Deborah shares with us her experiences of growing up in a toxic religious environment and the spiritual abuse she experienced, and how it impacted her faith & her mental/emotional health.

She tells me how in order to follow what she believed to be a call to ministry and be free of this abuse and toxicity, she had to make tough choices, and let go of everything she'd known in relation to her life and faith.

TW: Spiritual abuse, toxic religion

Today my friend Marie joins me to tell her deconstruction story. She talks about how she and her husband found their way into evangelical culture as adults, and how she slowly began to feel trapped in toxic religion.

She shares her experience of purity culture and how this impacted her marriage & her faith. Marie then tells us how she began her journey out of of toxic religion and purity culture, and found true liberation on the other side.

Trigger warning: Narcissistic abuse, spiritual abuse, emotional abuse

My friend Ana returns to the podcast today, to share her lived experience of narcissistic abuse within Christian fundamentalism.

It's a powerful, discomforting story which shows us the depths of narcissism within evangelical Christianity and patriarchy, and how challenging it is to break free of it.

Ana tells us how she found a way to freedom, her deconstruction, the challenges she faced along the way - and still does - and how she discovered freedom to be fully herself & embrace her identity an LGBTQIA native woman.

Today I'm joined by John Howey, otherwise known as Bridge Livwat, who shares with us his personal, spiritual and creative journey.

He talks about his faith deconstruction and the journey from aspiring worship leader into creating his own music, and his creative and spiritual journeys intertwined and interacted. We talk about our shared love of the work of Rob Bell, and how he's impacted each of our lives and journeys, including the principle of sabbath, and time.

Ultimately, it's a story of how John escaped from a God and life which was caged and restricted, to a an uncaged life and spirituality, with a divine who is not contained by religion or structure.

My friend Cat, tarot reader, joins me today. They tell their powerful, challenging story from evangelicalism through deconstruction into tarot and spellwork, and coming out.

They also tell us about how they discovered the transformative power of tarot and spellwork, and the impact it's had on their life.

It's a discomforting but honest story, of Cat's experiences within an evangelical cult, the struggles of leaving it behind and the freedom from discovering & embracing their true identity.

My podcast is free, but if you want to support my work financially, you can do that either on PayPal or CashApp:

PayPal: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/jamesprescottwriter

Cashapp: @£JamesPrescott77

Today I'm joined by podcaster, creator, artist and spiritual mentor April Kling Meyer.

April tells us her own story and talks to us about the intersection between creativity and spiritual journey. She shares through her story and experience how our spiritual and personal journeys inform our creative journey.

Finally, we discover how we can use the energy of grief and trauma to transform our lives, our spirituality and allow us create something fresh, new and life giving.

I'm honoured to be joined again by my friends Jenna DeWitt & Holly Stallcup today, to explore healthy sexual ethics in the church and being sex positive.

We explore topics like masturbation, sex toys and other things which rarely get discussed in church environments. We also go on to explore different sexual ethics, and how we should honour and respect each others sexual ethics, even if they're different.

We discuss how harmful it can be to force one sexual ethic on everyone, and how sexuality in our culture is very static.

We share about how this static view differs from our basic biological make ups, which are all very different and how every ethical expression of sexuality - including things like abstinence and asexuality and waiting till marriage - all belong.

Holly and Jenna have such wisdom in this area and talk with such honesty, in a way which is reassuring, inclusive and encouraging, without shame.

I'm honoured today to be joined by Suzanne and Declan DeWitt Hall, authors, activists and Christians. They tell us their story as a couple, and in particular the journey of Declan to embrace his gender identity.

Declan talks about his own journey of coming to terms with his true gender identity, being honest about this with herself, before God and the world, and beginning the transitioning into that identity.

It's a powerful, courageous story, which shows once again the divine loves and accepts us as we are, for who we are, and is fully inclusive of the LGBTQI community.

My friend Trace Bell joins me for the first time today Trace has done a lot of work, some with his dad Rob Bell, on talking about spirituality, awareness, time and spiral dynamics.

Today he shares his own spiritual journey, and in particular how his curiosity led him into an understanding of awareness. He shares how he began to see his own consciousness and awareness as separate from his body and even time itself, and how this impacted his understanding of spirituality, his work and his personal journey.

We both share stories of experiences we've had which have given us a greater awareness that time and our bodies are constructs/people which exist within our awareness/consciousness, rather than the other way around. It's a powerful, eye opening and fascinating conversation you won't want to miss.

I'm delighted to welcome back my friend, writer, author and coach Jim Woods to the show this week! Jim's just released his first novel 'Bite the Bullet', and today we talk about the creative process behind the novel, how long it took to write, and the experience of novel writing.

Jim talks about the power of storytelling, why stories resonate with us why the best stories connect with us. He also tells me about the process of creating characters and writing their stories, and the interesting dynamic which can happen between author and character.

Jim has such wisdom about story, and has great insight on the creative process. Well worth a listen.

Today I'm joined by TED speaker and grief/loss facilitator Jennifer Mathews.

Jennifer tells her own tragic, in some ways unique, and powerful story of loss...and how her response to the death of her life partner was not one she calls grief, and the lessons this experience taught her about dealing with loss.

Jennifer explores how processing loss can lead to connection, and how she experienced this, and why it's so important for our healing and thriving that we confront our trauma and loss, rather than hide from it.

Today on the podcast I'm joined by author Kat Armas (MDiv and MAT), who shares her own story, and talks about the wisdom of women on the margins - mothers, grandmothers, sisters, daughters - and how & what it teaches us about spirituality and the divine.

Kat shares her own experiences and lessons she's learned, as well as some other powerful stories, and we see how some of the great theologians of our time have been previously overlooked women.

Today my occasional series on ADHD continues with therapist, mental health advocate and podcast host Robert Vore sharing his own story.

Robert shares his own unique experience of growing up with ADHD and then becoming a therapist and advocate himself and encountering/working with others with ADHD and trauma.

Robert gives us a valuable insight into the lived experience of ADHD and insight into working with others with the condition.

Today my series on ADHD continues with the return of my friend Elle Rose, to share their lived experience of ADHD, and the challenges and stigma they have experienced growing up with ADHD and in getting a diagnosis.

Elle shares honestly, and with great courage, about their day to day experience of ADHD, patterns of behaviour which can be linked with the condition, and the difference getting a diagnosis and medication can make. They also share words of solidarity, encouragement and wisdom for those with ADHD and for those who know people with ADHD.

I'm so grateful to Elle for sharing their story.

Today I'm delighted to welcome my friend Sarah ('Sheologian' from Twitter) to the podcast for a new series of episodes focussing on ADHD. I myself have undiagnosed ADHD and there's a lot of stigma and misunderstanding about it. This series aims to raise awareness.

Sarah shares her own story and experiences growing up with ADHD, in particularly in evangelical patriarchal culture, the day to day challenges she encounters, her own lived experience and lessons she's learned. She also talks about the challenges she faces as a therapist with clients who themselves often have ADHD.

Sarah has a lot of wisdom, solidarity encouragement and insight into living with ADHD and supporting people ADHD, this is a powerful episode we all need to hear.

Today in the vlatest of my 'Geek Philosophy' series I'm joined by good friend Emma Morrison, and we talk about the world of Star Wars and its links to deconstruction and processing trauma.

Emma tells her own story, sharing how Star Wars - and in particular the character of Leia Organa - influenced her growing up, how she inspired her and how as she went her own deconstruction journey she saw this reflected in the character development of Leia and others in the Star Wars canon.

We also explore the topic processing grief and how this ties in with the journey of Anakin/Darth Vader, the importance of Qui-Gon Jin, and how the Jedi and Sith can be metaphors for toxic religion and religious certainty. We talk about where we see embodiment and the journey of identity, and where we can see hope in these stories.

This was such a fun and insightful conversation, I hope you like it!

Today I'm joined by author and writer Kevin M Nye, contributing author of the book 'Theology of the Marvel Universe' to explore this subject in more depth.

As the latest MCU movie 'Black Widow' hits theatres we explore some of the deeper themes behind several characters stories and different movies within the MCU.

We talk about where we see metaphors for faith deconstruction, decolonialism, patriarchy and other massive issues/lived experiences which we see playing out in today's world and in the realms of spirituality. We also each discuss where we see stories in the MCU reflecting our own spiritual and personal journeys.

We conclude by highlighting, how these movies, stories and characters can inspire and challenge each of us.

In this new series, I explore with guests the philosophy, theology and mythology of geek world - superheroes, Star Wars, and more.

This episode, I talk to Mario-Francisco Robles of 'Superman on Film', about the mythology and philosophy around Superman and the early Superman movies. We each share our own experiences of this character and what he's meant to each of us.

We also talk about Superman's journey, his experiences - including those of grief and loss - as well his identity and values. We explore how these have shaped each of us, and why they're more important than ever in our wider cultural context.

This was such a fun and meaningful episode to do, one of my most personal too.

Today, historian and author Kristin Kobes Du Mez joins me to talk about her bestselling book "Jesus and John Wayne: How White Evangelicals Corrupted a Faith and Fractured a Nation".

We talk about the forces in US evangelical culture which led to the rise and election of Donald Trump as President, dating back to the 70s and 80s and the Presidency of Ronald Reagan. We touch on the truths President Jimmy Carter confronted the US with...which they chose to ignore in favour of certainty.

We discuss the patriarchal and systemically racist system of evangelicalism and capitalism, how this has impacted wider US culture, and where we see this in the UK, where colonialism and patriarchal system had its genesis.

In the process, we discover how the election of Donald Trump was almost an inevitable, and how this system counterintuitively sees white evangelical men percieve moral failings and law breaking almost as a badge of honour. We also explore how all of this has led to many people beginning to deconstruct their faith and from this system, and where this could all go.

Kristen ends by sharing how the response to her book has given her hope that things can change...and shares this hope with us.

In today's episode, recorded early on in the pandemic, I'm joined by Daliana May, who lives in South East Asia doing anti-trafficking work and advocacy for social justice.

Daliana tells us her story of being a missionary, and then how she moved into deconstructing her faith.

She talks of the challenges she faced in her deconstructing her faith, leaving patriarchy behind and decolonising as a white woman with experience in missions, and how she discovered new meaning and purpose in anti-trafficking work and social justice activism.

Writer, speaker and podcaster Kate Boyd is my guest today. Together we explore and discuss how spiritual community has evolved and changed as more people deconstruct their faith, and how the pandemic will impact spiritual communities.

Kate shares what she's learned through her own story and work, and the challenges she's faced and that spiritual communities need to confront as we move forward post-pandemic.

We also talk about how churches can become safe spaces for those deconstructing, who've been hurt by the church. Finally we talk about the tough questions which leaders of spiritual communities - and the communities themselves - need to ask going forward.

Today my beloved friend Maria French joins me for a discussion on the post-pandemic world and it it will impact culture, our day to day lives and the church.

We dive deep into the concept of the 'new normal', and discuss the myth that our lives will ever 'go back to normal' and how people and even institutions may try, unsuccessfully, to act like the pandemic never happened. We also talk about how people may try to find a new form of certainty, to try and avoid dealing with the collective trauma we've experienced.

Finally, we discuss what the post-pandemic world will look like for the church, and how it will need to adapt and change, to stay both accessible and relevant as the world moves forward.

Today I'm joined on the podcast by J Elizabeth Hanson. She shares with us the story of losing her son to suicide several years ago and how this impacted both her and her family.

J Elizabeth talks about how her experience of processing and carrying grief, and how this led her to do work alongside others grieving.

She talks about the work she does in giving people processing loss practices and rituals which allow them to process grief in a healthier way, alongside the vital work of professional therapy, and how often creativity can play a part in the healing process.

Today, podcaster and author Lisa Delay joins me to talk about navigating 'The Wild Land Within' - doing the internal work of healing and spiritual transformation.

She shares with us the power of spiritual & liturgical practice to navigate our inner world, and, alongside therapy, to help us explore and process what we're carrying inside. Lisa gives examples of healthy spiritual practices which, alongside support from mental health professionals, can allow us to confront, manage or process our grief and pain, which can lead us to deeper encounters with the divine and aid our spiritual formation.

Lisa also reminds us of the importance of naming and confronting our internal terrain, our grief and trauma, and doing the work of healing and transformation.

Lisa's book 'The Wild Land Within', where she explores these issues more, is available now at all online booksellers.

Today, author Sarah Robinson joins me to talk about depression, mental illness and faith, as she discusses in her new book "I Love Jesus and I Want To Die".

Sarah tells her own powerful story of growing up with depression in the context of traditional evangelical Christianity, and the challenges she faced in naming and getting support as she faced these challenges.

Sarah talks about bad experiences with 'Christian counselling', and the importance of finding a good therapist and building a healthy support network. She also discusses practices those of us struggling with any kind of mental illness can use to help us as we live with our condition.

And finally, Sarah and I explore how we can have healthy expressions of faith whilst also living with mental illness, and how and why the church needs to become a safe space for mental illness.

Today Abby Norman returns to the podcast to talk about the importance and transformative, healing power of lament - as she discusses in her new book "You Can Talk to God Like That".

We talk about the importance of naming our pain, feeling our pain, and giving voice to the grief and trauma we carry. We explore how naming our pain and lamenting it, actually robs it of its power, and opens up the pathway to healing.

We also talk about how lament and naming our pain, allows us to find deeper connection to ourselves, to each other, and to the divine.

'You Can Talk To God Like That' releases May 18th in all formats in the US & on Kindle / Audiobook in the UK, and in paperback in the UK on July 20th.

In the second in our short 'Taylor Swift' themed podcast series, my friend Jenna DeWitt joins me to discuss Taylor Swift's story and music in the context of identity and the Enneagram.

We go through Taylor's career and see how her music reflected her own personal journey into discovering and owning her own power and voice, and what we notice about her personality type - Enneagram 3 w 4 - through this journey.

Jenna shares her own personal experience growing up with Taylor's music, being a similar age and personality type, and how it connected to her own growth and empowerment. I also share how Taylor's music has connected with me on my journey, as a 4w5.

This episode again touches on how music can connect with us so personally at different stages of our journeys, and how we find our own stories through the art and stories given to us by master storytellers like Taylor.

This week we're doing a short series of Taylor Swift-linked podcasts. In today's episode, we examine Taylor's journey as a storyteller, as told through her music.

Heather and I explore the art of storytelling, and how Taylor has perfected and practiced this through her musical career.

We also discuss the power of sharing our stories in our art and why good stories are so compelling, and where our own stories have connected with Taylor's work.

This episode is a great insight into the power of story, what makes great art, and how we can find ourselves through sharing and hearing stories.

Today my guest is the inspiring author and speaker Jay Bakker. In this episode, recorded in July 2020, he shares his own powerful story of personal and spiritual transformation.

He shares more about the trauma, grief, and losses he's experienced and how they impacted his life, theology and faith, as well as the mental health challenges he's faced.

We explore how the things Jay experienced changed his perspective on spirituality, Christianity and the church. We also discuss the potential impact of the pandemic, as we experience a collective grief and trauma.

It's a powerful and inspiring story, and well worth a listen.

In this episode I'm honoured to be joined by Amanda Held Opelt, to share her stories of grief.

Amanda shares her experiences of grief, from losing a beloved grandmother, miscarriage, and the death of her sister Rachel Held Evans.

She tenderly and honestly shares the impact grief has had on her life and faith, the questions it raised, how it's shaped her own journey - and we talk about how we as a culture, and individuals, need to develop healthier rituals to name and process our grief.

(This episode was shared with Amanda's consent).

Today a new on-off series 'Our Grief Stories' begins with author J. A. Browne telling the story of the loss of her mother in 2015, and then her dad in 2019, how she experienced grief, her reaction, and the lessons she learned.

She tells us how she learned how we experience life differently through the lens of loss, and how the loss of a parent is a very particular, and very painful type of grief. She tells us the physical, emotional and bodily trauma responses.

In talking about this I resonated and shared a bit of my own journey, as we found shared experiences and reactions to the loss of a parent, how life changes, how it influences our life choices, and how we have both discovered healthy ways to process and manage our grief.

Today Rev Dr Kate Hanch PhD, comes on the show to talk about her study on prophetic humility through the lens of women, and marginalised women.

Fully acknowledging her own inbuilt bias and white privilege, she talks about how we need to centre women in conversations around theology, and historical women theologians whose voices have been silenced due to patriarchy.

Dr Kate then moves on to talk about how and where she is finding hope in these difficult times we're living in and how her faith helps her face challenges. And then she talks about finding joy in the midst of pain, and lessons we can learn from periods of struggle.

Today I welcome writer and speaker Bob Doto to the show. In this episode we explore how we can have a form of relationship with the spirits of those who have passed.

Bob explains how he discovered and experienced how we can encounter spirits and do spirit work through the lens of biblical hermeneutics, magical and mindfulness practices, shadow work, and self-inquiry.

Bob shows having a relationship with the spirits of those who have passed is not only possible within the all Christian traditions, but is inherent to the faith as a whole - and we discuss exactly how this fits in with the practices and experiences of lament and grief.

Today author and coach Caroline McGraw joins me to talk about her new book and why "You Don't Owe Anyone".

Caroline explains to us how often we feel obligated to the world around us, feel we "owe" people and put impossible expectations on ourselves, and the unhelpful roles we can sometimes assign ourselves. We explore the dangers of perfectionism and how to free ourselves of it.

We also discuss why it's so important to name what we're carrying - fear, trauma, mistakes - and face up to it in order to be transformed and grow. And why continually pursuing growth is so important.

Finally, Caroline gives us some practical steps we can take to begin this journey in our own lives.

Pre-Order Carolines book here (& get some amazing pre-order bonuses):

https://awishcomeclear.com/james-prescott

Today I'm joined by author & speaker Sarah Bessey, and speaker, author, podcast host and activist Lisa Sharon Harper, to talk about the new collaborative book they've worked on and contributed to, along with many others, 'A Rhythm of Prayer'.

We talk about the background to the creation of the book in the context of the events of the last 12 months - global pandemic, the murder of George Floyd, the US Presidential election and the weight this book carries and the message it wants to send us in these times of grief & uncertainty.

We talk about the inspiration for Lisa's own contribution, Sarah's reasons for creating this book and the importance of new liturgies for a new time - and the significance of all of these voices being women.

"A Rhythm of Prayer" is available now at all online booksellers.

In this special episode, I sit with Becky Castle Miller and tell my own story.

A story of childhood trauma, multiple grief experiences, and a journey through the unhealth of certainty and spiritual abuse, into deconstructing not just my faith, but my life and my identity.

It's a story of transcendent spiritual experiences, betrayal, suicidal ideation and nearly losing it all.

A journey of healing, transformation and embodiment.

My story.

Today my friend Kelly Wolfe joins me, to talk about sex, desire, lust, masturbation and healthy ways we can connect these with Christian faith.

We talk about the damage purity culture and shame has done to so many people, and how we need to unlearn this and begin to talk about these subjects openly and honestly, and be honest about our desires and how our bodies work, and need to express themselves sexually.

Kelly talks openly about how masturbation in the right context can be a healthy expression of our sexuality - and how and why this fits with the way of Jesus and honours how we were created.

Finally, Kelly also discusses the difference between lust and desire, and why we should have no shame in discussing and ethically exploring our sexuality - and why this is a beautiful, divine gift.

I'm delighted to be joined today by Dr Hillary McBride PhD, therapist, researcher, author and former co-host of The Liturgists podcast (this episode was recorded before she announced her departure).

We just started talking and let the conversation flow - it began by Hillary sharing her own journey and about the experience of being a therapist during a pandemic.

Hillary and I also talked about where following our curiosity can take us in our lives, conversations, art and our own personal journeys.

She also talks about growth, and how we can often find growth & meaning even in the midst of hardship. Hillary then shares how we need to become familiar with the language of our own pain, and how this can be helpful in our journeys of growth and healing.

We end by exploring grief in more depth, and how historically we have dealt with grief as a culture and how we can use the energy of grief on a broader scale to bring about cultural change.

This was hands down one of my all time favourite conversations for the podcast, Hillary is inspiring, wise and encouraging. I'm excited for you to hear this.

Today I'm joined by Yogi and author Anita Grace Brown to hear her story and talk about her work exploring the connections between Christ, Yoga and how this intertwines with our journey of growth.

Anita shares with us how we can use yoga and the story of Jesus to help us enter healthy state of centeredness. She tells us how the human soul might just be God's muscle which we need to work on strengthening - and if we do, we could be transformed.

Anita believes we are more resilient than we think, and more conscious than we think - and today we explore this.

Anita's book Kamikaze Yogi is available now!

Kamikaze Yogi: Christ, Yoga, and the Courage to Emerge

Today I'm joined by Dr Robyn Henderson-Espinoza, Ph.D, Transqueer Activist Latinx Scholar, Public Theologian, and host of the Activist Theology podcast.

Dr Robyn tells their story about their lived experience of living with autism, how they became aware of their diagnosis, and not just freedom it brought but also the grief of realising how this may have impacted others pre-diagnosis.

They then talk about what this time of lockdown and a global pandemic can teach, and how we can use this time to connect with ourselves each other. We also talk about the pandemic has amplified the flawed, unequal system of capitalism we all live in. Dr Robyn shares how our relationships have been impacted by this mindset, by a transactional model over one of connection and compassion.

Dr Robyn then explores his work, and what action he's been taking & we can take to subvert the system and bring about a more compassionate, connected world.

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Find more of Dr Robyn's work at www.irobyn.com

I'm honoured to be joined by Dr Khaleah Bradshaw, who shares her own story, and also talks about her experiences and research on patriarchy and singleness within the black community.

We talk about the challenges all single people face, and why it's better to wait and find a partner who's a good match, than rush in. We also discuss how the challenges of breaking down patriarchal systems which can shame people for singleness.

This was a fun and insightful conversation, which will challenge and inspire.

In this episode I'm joined by certified life coach and therapist Shelley DeJong.

Today Shelley shares her own story of addiction, rock bottom and transformation, and the challenges and stigma she's faced with multiple sclerosis.

She talks about her lowest moments and how she shifted out of those places into recovery and healing, and the lessons she's learned in both her life, and her work now as a therapist and a life coach, about healing and personal transformation.

Today my friend Jenna DeWitt joins me. She tells her story of discovering her own sexual and gender identity having grown up in a more traditional Christian environment.

Jenna shares about the wide variety of types on the asexual spectrum, and how she discovered a community of people just like her, and found a healthy faith community which accepted her. She likens the wide variety in every aspect of creation, planets, plants, races, animals, how all are different yet all are beautiful and belong.

She also talks about the diversity of the divine themselves, and how this should and is reflected in his creation, including humanity.

This was a wonderful episode to record, Jenna has so much wisdom and insight in this area, take a listen and give her a follow on Twitter at @Jenna_DeWitt.

Today LGBTQI+ pastor Matt Nightingale joins me to tell his story. He shares when he first began to realise he was gay, how this impacted his marriage and his work, and finally coming to the painful and courageous decision to go public, and end his marriage.

We then discuss the consequences of this for him, his family and his work and how he's now moving into more freedom and creating communities and safe spaces for LGBTQI+ online, and how it's impacted his role as a pastor.

Matt is so inspiring and courageous, it was amazing to talk to him.

Today I'm joined by writer, theology and the arts MLitt student & book marketer Alexis De Weese to talk about how creativity & the creative process can be a healthy spiritual practice.

We both share experiences from our own lives & work where the creative process has allowed us to connect with ourselves and the divine, and how creativity can be a sacred act which opens us up to experience the divine in fresh, and deeply intimate ways.

And Alexis offers practical tips for us to help make creativity a sacred space for us.

This was such a fun, insightful and inspiring conversation, Alexis has such wisdom in this area and it was great to chat to her.

In this episode we talk to Dr Kate Thomas and Dr Kyleanne Hunter about a unique grief & trauma experience, but one which is becoming increasingly relevant in a pandemic and future post pandemic world - the experiences of military women when they return from services.

We talk about the unique challenges this represents for so many women, which impact all aspects of their lives, from mental and physical health to career - and how some have developed resilience and learned to move forward positively, whilst others have found more difficulty.

In a world where we are all going through a collective trauma and grief, and will one day need to go into the world again, this conversation - held in late March 2020 - feels more relevant than ever.

Today I'm joined by podcaster and writer Jonathan Puddle, host of the 'Puddcast', to talk about loving ourselves as we are - and loving ourselves the way we're loved by the divine.

Jonathan tells the story of how he doubted myself and condemned himself, and even hated himself—until he was reminded and had the word of Jesus 'love your neighbour as yourself' come to him from a whole new perspective. He talks about how this shift in perspective led everything in his life to change.

Jonathan tells us how important it is to love ourselves, just how the divine sees and loves us, and some practical tips for learning to love ourselves better.

Today I'm joined by social psychologist and author Dr Devon Price to discuss their new book, 'Laziness Does Not Exist'.

Devon explains how the myth of of laziness developed through the rise of capitalism and the 9-5 working week, and how this is totally contrary to a sustainable, healthy life. They discuss the concept of productivity and numbers and how these have become a marker for a successful life, when in fact this isn't true.

Devon alsos explain the damage these myths have done to us individually and as a society, in terms of physical and mental health, and other ways. Finally, Devon tells us what we can do to change this - including some practices and mindsets we can adopt which can help us live healthier lives.

Today Allison Fallon returns to the show to talk about her new book 'The Power of Writing It Down'. In this episode we explore the power of a writing habit to transform our lives.

Allison shares stories and science which both prove conclusively how the act of regular writing can improve both our mental, physical and emotional health. We talk about how writing can connect us with ourselves and reveal truth about us and our lives we might not notice otherwise.

Allison also shares how we can overcome creative blocks, and build a healthy writing habit, and how writing can ultimately be a self-care practice.

Today podcaster Lauren Larkin joins me to explore the connections between unprocessed grief, religious certainty, and narcissistic behaviour & systems.

We talk about how unprocessed grief can often be controlled and repressed by religious certainty and how the longer this goes on, the deeper the disconnection between us and our true selves, and even to the realities we live in - leading to narcissistic behaviour & religious/cultural systems growing and becoming powerful, such as fundamentalist evangelicalism & Trumpism in the US

We then go on to explore how and why we need to process our grief and name it, and how this can transform not just our spirituality but our very being.

For the first episode of 2021, pastor and author Abby Norman joins me to reflect on 2020 and to discuss the importance of talking to each other and to God about our personal, and collective grief.

Abby talks about how we need to learn how to embrace lament, to name our grief before others and with God. We talk about examples of this in our own lives, and in scripture.

Abby shares how grief and lament have the power to give us healing and invite us into personal and spiritual transformation, and connect with Jesus and the divine in more intimate way.

Today my beloved friends Julida Alter and Anella Platter - AKA the Blacksmith's Daughters - join me to talk about their Christmas album, Forged at Christmas.

Anella and Julida talk to me about the creative process behind several songs of the album. Then we explore how what we create is often a reflection of our own journeys, and also how knowing the story behind the work can help us connect with music and other art more deeply, as well as what the creative process does to us.

And to top it all off, we get some live performances of some of the songs on the album, including some of the ones we discuss.

Today I'm joined by author and musician Jamie Kocur, who tells us her personal deconstruction story, told in her book ' My CMM Soundtracked Life'.

She shares how Contemporary Christian Music (CCM) seemed, for her, a perfect place to nestle into, but eventually became a place to hide.

Jamie dreamed of becoming a Christian singer-songwriter and this dream took her down some unexpected paths, including a literal journey through four continents where she came face-to-face with some of CCM’s biggest artists and Hollywood stars. She tells of how the more she experienced the world, the more the evangelical Christian bubble she had lived in was exposed.

She tells us how this led to her faith deconstruction and how this deconstruction impacted her, her life, faith and vocation - and how when she began to explore doubt and mystery, she found a new way to experience God, and a new song to sing.

Today Melissa Kicher, a certified, practicing enneagram coach, joins me on the podcast to explore the enneagram in more detail than ever before on the show.

In this episode we go in depth into the characteristics and traits of every enneagram number, and examine how each might be responding to the grief & trauma we've experienced, including sharing our own lived experiences which only confirm just how accurate Melissa is.

Melissa concludes by sharing some practical tips for each enneagram number, about how we can get through this time and manage the stress we're going through well.

Today I'm joined by author and advocate J Nicole Morgan, to discuss fatphobia and fat-shaming, and fat positivity.

Nicole shares her lived experience of being fat, and her own journey of discovery, from at first thinking God required her to be thin to be loved and accepted, to a fat positive perspective, an understanding of the truth God loves and accepts her as she is.

Nicole discusses what she learned about fatphobia and fat-shaming not only in evangelical culture but western culture, and some misconceptions and misunderstandings she learned around things like diet, obesity and health.

Nicole reminds us in this episode that no matter our body size, we are loved and accepted as we are.

Today we conclude our series on Human Centred Design and Faith with Victoria Sun Esparza, founder and CEO for In the Water Designs, a consulting firm that specializes in design-thinking strategy for religious organizations and non-profits.

In this episode we draw all our discussions on empathy and curiosity together into a focus on story. We discuss the power of story to connect us with each other, help us in building relationships, and in creating spaces & communities which connect with the needs and stories of those they serve.

And to conclude, we explore how story impacts our lives and how it can help deepen and widen our faith perspectives and even connect us with those we disagree with.

Today we continue our series on Human Centred Design and Faith with Victoria Sun Esparza, founder and CEO for In the Water Designs, a consulting firm that specializes in design-thinking strategy for religious organizations and non-profits.

In this episode we shift organically from Empathy to Curiosity in the design and creative process. We explore how curiosity can guide us in creating spaces and communities where people can grow and deeper in their faith, and can help us understand the needs of our communities in an ever-changing world, so we can serve them better & meet them where they are.

Today I'm joined for the first part of a 3 part series with Victoria Sun Esparza on Human Centred Design and faith. Victoria is the founder and CEO for In the Water Designs, a consulting firm that specializes in design-thinking strategy for religious organizations and non-profits.

In the first part of this series we explore the concept of human centred design and how it impacts the world we live in and how we engage with the world.

And we also discuss the importance of empathy when we are building and creating spaces and communities of faith - and in the creative process as a whole - and share some examples of how this can impact our lives in unexpected but significant ways.

Today author, philosopher, theologian and speaker Barry Taylor joins me on the podcast. Today we talk about the impact of the pandemic and the murder of George Flloyd on both faith and culture.

We talk about the illusion of 'going back to normal' and how we struggle to come to terms with the changes in our lives, and how we often hide this grief with certainty. And then speculate on the possibilities and changes to our world, to our culture and the church as a result of what we've seen in 2020.

All this, and a lot more with the brilliant Barry Taylor.

Today author and superior court judge Tim Fall joins me to discuss his book 'Running For Judge', and explore how the pressures of his election campaign, being a judge and some events in his own life impacted his mental health.

We discuss how he learned healthy practices and routines to improve his mental health and deal with the trauma he experienced, and this intertwined with his faith journey - and the impact writing a book telling his story has had.

Tim's got great wisdom, lived experience and insight into mental health and faith, this was such a great conversation.

Today I'm joined by author, therapist, spiritual director Chuck DeGroat to talk about his work and in particular the themes of his book 'When Narcissism Comes To Church'.

Chuck shares from research and experience about narcissistic behaviour and how this has manifested itself in toxic religion, evangelicalism and fundamentalism, how it's almost become an ideal or idol in that world. We then dive into the damaging impact this can have on the church, and indeed the wider world - including the election of a narcissistic President back in 2016.

Chuck explores ideas co how we can move on from this way of doing church, and have a faith, a church and a spirituality free of narcissism and toxic fundamentalism.

Today I'm joined by writer and advocate Kimberly Stover, in an episode recorded pre-2020 Presidential election. Kimberly creates resources and written material for those leaving evangelicalism behind and on the journey of spiritual journey.

In this episode Kimberly shares her own spiritual journey, her experiences of growing up in evangelicalism, how she broke free of it and the impact this journey had her relationships, her spirituality, her identity, and her life as she knew it.

We also talk about Trumpism and its links to evangelicalism and its' impact on the church, on her own life and on America, and the deeper issues its exposed. Kimberly tells us how we can break free of toxic religion, and find genuine freedom, and our truest, most authentic selves.

Today my beloved friend, pastor, author and activist Brandan Robertson returns to the podcast to discuss his own recent journey, the release of two new books, and the movement of the spirit which we might be seeing and how this has been reflected in recent politics in both the UK and USA.

Brandan talks about his own experiences and reflections of the last four years, the toxic evangelical system of power and his own experience of it as an LGBTQ progressive Christian, how we might move forward, and his own hopes and vision of what the future might bring.

Brandan also shares more about his own personal journey, and the creative process behind his new book of devotionals, and talks about his faith journey of the last 8 months, the questions and doubts it brought, and how the pandemic has impacted his experience and understanding of the divine. He also talks about how we can find a sense of God, of hope, if the worst happens in the US election.

I left this conversation with a real sense of hope, I believe you will too.

Today my friend Stephanie McCown joins me to discuss fundamentalism and its impact on politics and faith in both the UK and US.

In particular we discuss progressive fundamentalism, which has grown and become more toxic, more abusive and more damaging as time as gone on - both to individuals, the church and our politics. We also share our own experiences and perspectives on this politically from our respective countries, talk about the progressive "purity test" and a lot more.

We then move to explore this in context of the story of Jesus, who Jesus was and what he stood for - and find a striking metaphor for today's world from Jesus story, and from a popular movie franchise. And explore what a more inclusive, non-dualistic, non-fundamentalist faith and politics might look like - and where we are finding hope.

This episode releases 4 days before the 2020 US Presidential election - and feels more timely than ever.

Today I'm joined Irene Cho. Irene is a national speaker, writer, consultant, and advisor, focusing predominantly on youth identity and faith development, race and diversity, organizational leadership, and women in leadership.

In this episode Irene shares her experiences of white evangelical Christianity, and this was contrasting with her own education and understanding of the way of Jesus. She talks about how she was exposed to a variety of different theological perspectives of God, and how this has impacted her and her work.

Irene shares her own perspective on God, and how she believes he looks at the world with what is happening in 2020. She then talks about the capitalist, evangelical, patriarchal system we live in, and its systemic racism, and her own experiences of this system.

Irene goes on to talk about what action we can take to tear down this corrupt system and create a world, a system which is loving, inclusive, just and more in tune with the true way of Jesus.

Today author D.L. Mayfield joins me to discuss her book 'The Myth of the American Dream' and her journey out of the evangelical/capitalist system into a deeper awareness of what the commands of Jesus really mean for us.

D.L shares how the idea of the way of Jesus preached by evangelicalism and the system it supports, contrast so much with the basic commands of Jesus - to love our neighbour. She then explores four dimensions to we this - affluence, autonomy, safety, and power - and the uncomfortable truth of who white privileged Christians might really be in the Jesus story.

She talks about privilege, and her experience of how when the system benefits us, it can blind us to the lived experience of reality of how things really are for the oppressed and marginalised. And then, where that leaves people who want to be truly faithful to the teachings of Jesus.

Today author Suzanne DeWitt Hall joins me to talk about her new book 'Sex with God: Meditations on the sacred nature of sex in a post-purity-culture world '

Suzanne shares her own story, experiences in purity culture and the impact it had on her and her faith. She also talks about how she broke free of purity culture and discovered a healthy, sacred sexual ethic.

Then Suzanne dives deep into exploring how we can invite God into our sex lives, and how can transform sexual intimacy into an experience with and in worship to the divine.

Sex With God: Meditations on the sacred nature of sex in a post-purity-culture world (The Where True Love Is Devotionals)

Today my friend, embodiment coach Jamie Lee Finch, joins me to discuss how we can become fully embodied, to connect more fully with ourselves and our bodies.

Jamie talks about the big shift from seeing our bodies not as an it, but a he/she/they - a person, and the profound impact it can have on our own personal journeys. She talks about how we learn to listen to and respond our bodies as they speak to us, and the transformation she had in her own life when she learned to do this, and how she's seen this in her clients.

We also discuss my experience of doing this in my work with Jamie, and the real time change which can happen in so many aspects of our being, including our mental and emotional health, and in escaping toxic purity culture.

Jamie also shares some simple, practical steps we can all take to begin doing this work, and knowing and listening to our bodies better.

Jamie's work has been transformative for me - I know it can be for you too.

Today my friend, author intuitive grief guide Shelby Forsythia, returns to the podcast. Together we discuss and our collective grief experiences of 2020, both from our own individual perspectives and from a broader perspective.

Shelby tells us about healthy ways of naming and processing our grief, the knowing before the knowing, the grief before the grief, and grieving people we've never met but who've inspired us.

We also explore how this years collective grief, can trigger familiar grief responses. Shelby talks about her new book of reflections for grievers, with a reading from the book, and how people can use these to help with the grieving process.

Shelby also shares how grief never leaves us, and how we can build a healthy relationship with our grief. We also discuss our shared experience of losing a mother, the unique type of loss this can be, and how we all process grief differently.

There's also some fun intuitive comments from Shelby which were uncanny in relation to my own story - and there was a real sense of solidarity, with two friends who've both lost a mother, sharing our stories together.

Get Shelby's new book 'Your Grief Your Way' on all online booksellers & Audible now.

This week I'm joined by special guest Rob Bell, to chat about his new book, about grief, birth, death, mental health, creativity - and why everything is spiritual.

In this episode Rob tells us of his experience of lockdown, and we explore different types of grief. Rob shares about the 'good grief' of a season of life ending and something new and wonderful being born. Sharing from his own story, Rob also talks about how grief is always an engine room for growth.

We also discuss how Rob processed mental health challenges when leaving the church he planted and found healthier ways to live.

And finally Rob talks about the creative journey, both in art and in life, writing from the heart, and finding joy and freedom from the need to perform and impress, and embracing a life of risk and adventure - where everything is spiritual.

This is the second of my conversations with Chad E Jaragin, recorded 9 months after the previous episode, we reflect on the changes in the world in those 9 months.

We discuss the global pandemic, the death of George Floyd and increasing awareness of systemic racism, and the collective grief and trauma we are all experiencing, and it's impact - both present and future - on all of us.

We explore how grief and trauma, if we process it well, can be an engine for transformation, and how we can practice self-care, contemplation and have more grace with ourselves in the midst of all that's going on.

Chad then explores where we can find the divine in this time we're living and how our relationship to him/her/them, could be impacted by it - in positive and negative ways - and where we can find hope.

This week I'll be releasing two episodes with author & Priest Chad E Jarnagin - this first episode was recorded in January, before the global pandemic, murder of George Floyd, and the other traumatic events of January really unfolded. The second, coming out later this week was recorded this month.

Chad talks about his life & work, true spiritual transformation beyond simple deconstruction, and learning to be.

He explores how people are not able to move forward with new, healthy practices and rhythms without first healing from past toxins, abuse, and unhealthy patterns, and how we need to go on an inner pilgrimage to have our emotional and spiritual health transforme.

Chad explains how we can explore a discover and deeper peace and knowing within us, and improve our spiritual & emotional health through contemplative spirituality, and how contemplative practices can help us go deeper in intimacy with the divine, and with ourselves, as we are.

This week I'm joined by mental health advocate, author and podcaster Brittney Moses. Brittney works on issues at the intersection of faith, culture & mental health and is host of the Faith & Mental Wellness Podcast, studying clinical psychology at UCLA.

In this episode we explore the challenges the pandemic, lockdown and grief of 2020 has given us in terms of our mental health, our routines and our faith. We discuss how little day to day disruptions can impact us, and whats happening could affect us emotionally, mentally and physically - and what steps we can take to love ourselves better and take care of our mental health.

Brittney also tells her own story, of losing and coming back to faith, her mental health challenges, and how she began exploring the intersection between mental health and faith, becoming a mental health activist. She also talks about mistakes churches and pastors have made in dealing with mental health, and how we can create church communities which are trauma informed.

Brittney ends by saying how important it is for us - and for churches - to name the mental health conditions we're struggling with, and how this can be the beginning of healing and transformation, both in individuals and church communities.

My friend, writer and activist Jess Mally, joins me to tell her powerful story, and share her lived experiences of systemic racism*.

Jess shares the incredible story of how she tracked down her birth father, with the most random set of coincidences happening in a row - and how she rebuilt her relationship with him. She also shares about her challenges with depression, and how she has encountered systemic racism.

Jess goes on to talk about the racial murders in the US, the false accusations made by Amy Cooper and shares what it was like to observe these racial murders & incidents as a black person, including the grief and trauma this caused her personally and the collective grief of the black community.

She shares what it's like to feel unsafe as a black person, and then talks about the importance of anti-racism work, and the work white people need to do to bring about change.

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*Please note this episode was recorded in early June, before the death of Chadwick Boseman and other racially-motivated murders or attacks since.

Today I'm joined by writer Shari A Smith. Shari is a blogger and writer for Ezer Rising, and today she tells her story of faith deconstruction, in the context of grief, and the global pandemic.

Shari talks about her upbringing and end times theology she grew up with, and how her journey led her to question her theology and her perspective on faith. Then we shift into talking about the grief of leaving evangelicalism and shift into talking about grief in the context of the pandemic and how all our lives have changed.

Shari also talks about how the dynamic of her relationship with God changed through deconstruction, and grieving what she'd left behind. She also shares how writing was a cathartic, therapeutic practice for her, and we discuss how writing and the creative process can help us process grief and our emotions generally.

Shari concludes by coming back to the divine truth she holds on to which gives her rest and peace, grounded in the reality of what we are living through - and how we're not alone.

Today I'm joined by Adam Asher, creator and host of 'The Edge of Adventure' show and podcast, where he takes his viewers to some of the most remote corners of the globe in search of what matters most & introduces his audience to some of the most inspiring travelers on the planet.

In this episode he talks about his work and his passion for travel and sharing stories, and shares some experiences of discovering unseen people doing incredible work in different parts of the world.

He shares about what he believes is our longing to do work which matters, to do something out of our normal routine - and make the most of our time here. And how this work can be something big or small, seen or unseen, but it all matters.

Adam concludes by saying our lives can become so much better when we stop centering ourselves, and look outwards to serving and honouring the needs, stories and experiences of others.

Today I'm joined by activist & writer Jo Luehmann. Jo tells her own story, her background in evangelical Christianity and journey out of this into an awareness and understanding of how it was actually part of a systemically racist, oppressive, patriarchal system, including purity culture.

Jo shares her journey out of this system and how it impacted both her marriage and her faith and how she deconstructed and decolonized her faith and found a new, more authentic understanding of Jesus spirituality.

Jo goes on to talk about how we can decolonize our own faith and theology, and how true faith/life deconstruction can only happen if it involves unlearning systemic racism and decolonizing.

Finally, Jo discusses how white people in particular can unlearn systemic racism and toxic theology, and find a faith which is free from the colonial, racist, patriarchal system which has been built around it.

I'm honoured to be joined by Rev Rob Lee today. Rob is a pastor and author who has bipolar disorder, who is known for his mental health and anti-racism work in the US.

Today he shares about life of a pastor during a pandemic, the experience of living with bipolar disorder as a pastor in a pandemic, and finding the divine in the midst of times of struggle and trauma.

He talks about how we need to sit with trauma, how we can find comfort in the midst of difficult times. He also discusses the power of healthy community, including church, to support those facing mental health challenges, and his own experiences of this.

We end with some thoughts and reflections on what life, church and faith will look like post pandemic, the scars we will carry - and whether will acknowledge them like Jesus did, or hide from them.

Today author and podcaster Megan K Westra joins me to discuss her new book 'Being Born Again & Again', and the idea that salvation isn't a product, or something we acquire - but an invitation to radical transformation.

Megan discusses how she learned how the message of the Bible has been twisted and distorted, in particular to serve political / capitalist, purposes and support oppressive, systemically racist systems. She tells me how God is forming a new family, where we all belong, and we're all connected.

Megan shares how she discovered how we can dig back to the roots of the Jesus story, and then allow ourselves to be truly challenged. She tells me the idea that the call of Jesus is a call to acquire, but a message to surrender and be radically transformed - and what this might mean for us.

Get Megan's book wherever books are sold, and find info on her work at meganwestra.com

Trigger Warning: Domestic Abuse

Today author and domestic abuse survivor Shirley Fessell joins me to share her powerful story of living with and surviving domestic abuse, how she got free - and how she took her story and used it to help others.

Shirley shares the seven levels of confusion victims of domestic abuse can get drawn into, and several practical steps to get out from under these confusions and find freedom from abuse & the abuser.

She also talks about how evangelical Christianity and church have played a role in enabling abuse and reminds us it is possible to get free, and begin again.

Find her work at: https://shirleyfessel.com/

Today my friend Holly Stallcup, Executive Director of Now She Rises, joins me to talk about the challenges of singleness - both coming from an evangelical Christian background and how the global pandemic and lockdown, have created new challenges and issues for single people.

Holly and I are both single so we were able to cover a lot of ground and share some of our own unique experiences as single people and challenges we are facing during lockdown, including loneliness and social disconnection, and its impact on mental health. We also talk about how things might look for singletons going forward in a post pandemic world, as well as acknowledging the gifts and freedoms singleness allows.

This is an important episode both for singletons and those in couples who know singletons - singleness is an issue we need to discuss and become more aware of collectively, in a culture tilted in favour of coupling, and Holly has some amazing insight into this.

Today researcher and podcast host Holly Oxhandler Phd, LMSW joins me to talk about how the church can deal better with mental health - in particular during and post pandemic in the new realities it presents.

Holly shares the challenges the church faces dealing with people with mental illness and shares her thoughts on how churches, social workers, therapists and other professionals can work together in a healthier way to provide positive support to those struggling with their mental health. She also shares practical steps churches can take to deal with the issue of mental heath in a much healthier way without stigma.

Holly also discusses how managing mental health, including in the church, post pandemic, will change and what we need to do to adapt - and how church and mental health professionals need to work together much more and better if we're to deal with the grief and trauma the pandemic had brought us.

Today author and speaker Marlena Graves returns to the podcast to talk about her new book 'The Way Up Is Down'. We explore how we can grow deeper in our spirituality, and come closer to the divine through emptying ourselves, through the act of surrender and letting go of materiality, ego, and pride - in contrast to how a lot of Western culture and even parts of the church have taught us.

Marlena tells her own story, of her recovery from the grief of leaving a church community which had hurt her, the challenges she faced with her relationship with God and how she came to a place of raw honesty in her interactions with the divine.

Marlena shares the raw truth about Jesus's example of how when we humble ourselves, surrender, pour ourselves out, it's there we find true intimacy with the divine, and freedom to grow and become more like the Jesus we follow.

Today I'm joined by Professor of Communication, interdenominational speaker and feature writer Heather Thompson Day. In this episode we discuss communication, and the power of words and stories to shape our lives, our circumstances and our relationships.

Heather shares how stories are what shape us, how we frame conversations can have an impact on how we work, and our spiritual journey. And she demonstrates how we can influences people's perspectives and opinions much more effectively, and communicate better, when we frame it in the context of story.

We also talk about how stories can shape our faith journey and our theology way more effectively than any academic, theological argument, because we can all connect over story. She reminds us that the best communicators are the best listeners, and how education allied your own story can make you a very communicator on a topic - but it begins with story. And we end by talking about why the Jesus story is so compelling.

In this episode Elle Rose returns to talk about being gray ace, demisexual and panromantic. Elle talks about what these are, what they mean and her own experience of self-discovery as she explored and named these core parts of her identity.

Elle talks about the challenges of acceptance of grays/demisexuals/panromantics both corporately and individually, sharing the challenges she faced accepting herself, as well as being accepted by others, and even by parts of the LGBTQ community, and the impact this can have on emotional and mental health.

Elle's is a story of discovering her true identity and finding peace with herself, and is one which will give hope to other grays. And for non-grays it will help understanding what living gray, demisexual and panromantic means, and allow us to be better allies.

Trigger Warning: Domestic abuse, child abuse.

Today I'm joined by author and mental health activist Joe Potosi. Joe courageously shares his story of childhood trauma and abuse, growing up in a broken home - and how this impacted him and his emotional & mental health.

Joe shares how he learned surviving does not mean forgetting; instead it means living and not allowing those who have abused us to live rent free in our heads.

Joe's is a story of tenacity, resilience, introspection, redemption and forgiveness, and ultimately triumph over these hardships. In spite of all that Joe endured, after the dust settled he was still standing and was able to rebuild his life again - and use his experiences to help others.

Today I'm joined by activist, artist and creator Elle Rose. In this episode Elle tells her story of living with ADHD, (DPRD Depersonalisation Derealisation Disorder) and depression. We explore in more depth what DPRD is, and what it's like to live with this rarely-discussed condition.

Elle also courageously shares the challenges she had in understanding this for herself, accepting herself and trying to convince both her own family and even medical professionals of this condition - and how this impacted her own emotional health. We discuss the challenges of finding a diagnosis for mental health conditions and how important and helpful it can be.

We also explore just how much ignorance and stigma still exists around mental health, and Ellen shares her own experiences of how even the medical profession and medical system in the US has been so unhelpful - and explains how those with mental health conditions need to push for becoming advocates for ourselves, do our own research, and be partners in our own treatment.

We also explore Elle's creative journey and making her art has been helpful and therapeutic, finding ways to express feelings she had no words for, and how unconscious things can be unlocked in the creative process. Before ending with a reflection on where we see mental illness in comic book movies & their characters, and how this can be helpful for us.

Elle's is a voice of honesty, courage, solidarity and hope - this is well worth a listen.

Today's guest is Rev Dr Shannon Polk. Shannon is thought leader on the topics of race, gender, class, and faith, as well and as doing work to to develop leadership training programs for women and people of color.

In this episode Shannon shares her own deeply challenging and powerful experiences of systemic racism, starting right the way from childhood, and shares a powerful story of how her white husband encountered and began to understand the systems of racism and white supremacy.

We also discuss the work Shannon does to change cultures of systemic racism in the workplace, and the challenges she encounters in doing this work - and what it takes to create a culture without systemic racism. We talk about the true cost of doing the work of learning and unlearning in regards to systemic racism, just how important this work is - and how white people can begin to do this work wherever they are.

For white people especially this will be a discomforting episode - but it has a message we all need to hear.

Today I'm joined by my friend, activist and writer Sierra Nichole, co-founder of Ezer Rising. In this episode - recorded pre-pandemic - Sierra shares her deconstruction story, from her beginnings and upbringing inn evangelicalism through progressive Christianity and beyond, in a short space of time.

Sierra also shares honestly about the abuse she suffered from fundamentalist progressive Christianity, and how exclusive and divisive this can be. We talk about what fundamentalism is, and the difference between a healthy progressive faith and a fundamentalist one. Sierra also talks about her own journey to become LGBTQ affirming, and what she learned about being an ally, doing the work of learning and unlearning beliefs, and how we need to be aware of and unlearn our own inbuilt biases.

Sierra also discusses the importance and responsibility of having a platform, and how we need to use our platforms to amplify and lift up others voices, in particular the voices of the marginalised and oppressed, and how she plans on doing this with her own platform - even suggesting some great names to follow (some of whom have been guests and are upcoming guests).

Sierra has so much wisdom on all these areas, and great humility - she was a great guest, this is well worth a listen.

This week my friend Alexander Shaia returns to the podcast to talk about the spiritual journey in the context of the pandemic. We explore how and why the world will never be same, the sacred grieving we're all going through, the and concept of moving from womb to tomb.

Alexander shares wisdom about darkness and the womb as the birthplace of new life, new growth and transformation - and how this can be true for all of us. He talks about how this metaphor is giving him hope, even in the midst of the struggles and challenges and the pandemic, and how this will change us in way we don't even know yet.

This episode is both a challenging and hopeful message we all need to hear right now.

My beloved friend Jessica Kantrowitz joins me on the podcast today to celebrate and talk about her new book, "The Long Night: Poems & Stories To Help You Through Depression".

Jessica shares her story of living with depression, how it impacted the course of her life.She shares vulnerably and honestly about the challenges of depression and how she learned practices and set boundaries which allowed her to be emotionally healthy.

Jessica also shares about how her journey with depression impacted her spiritual journey and her creative journey, and how writing in general, and in particular writing this book, has been important for her healing and emotional health.

Finally, Jessica shares some practical tips, wisdom and encouragement for all suffering with depression and anxiety - and gives us hope from her own experience, of how 'the long night' doesn't last forever, and there is hope and new life on the other side of depression.

'The Long Night: Readings & Stories To Help You Through Depression' is available to buy now. You can get in on Amazon here.

The Long Night: Readings and Stories to Help You through Depression

Today KJ Ramsey returns to the show to talk about her new book "This Too Shall Last". KJ shares a bit about her story of chronic illness, spiritual abuse and how she found God in the midst of her suffering.

KJ shares with great honesty about the struggle for the wait for a diagnosis, the shame she felt from those who doubted her and having to prove, and how this impacted her faith journey. She talks about how this taught her how to surrender, how to to the wilderness again and again and be vulnerable with God - and how there she encountered a God who had been vulnerable on her behalf.

This is a powerful, challenging, and hopeful story, a story of finding God in the midst of still unresolved suffering - a God who suffers in us and with us.

Today I'm delighted to welcome certified grief recovery specialist and author Shelby Forsythia to the show. We continue our examination of grief by both sharing our grief stories, and Shelby explores the lessons she learned about grief, both through her own experience of losing a parent and in training as a grief counsellor/specialist.

Shelby unpacks the idea of grief as a human experience, rather than a force we try to fight against, and unpacks the truth of how we all grieve in our own unique way. We also discuss how unacknowledged grief can impact us individually, culturally - and politically.

She shares the core truth of how we can give ourselves permission to grieve - to allow ourselves to experience grief in the way we need to, how this can be liberating and allow us to heal and live with our grief, seeing grief almost as a rite of passage rather than a heavy weight to carry.

Today we resume our series on grief. In an episode recorded just before the pandemic hit, therapist and author Aundi Kolber and I discuss grief from a therapeutic perspective. Aundi has a unique perspective both as a therapist, as as someone who has experienced grief and loss in her own life.

Aundi and I discuss why it's important to feel our grief, but why it's also important to not let ourselves get overwhelmed, and move out of the grief when we need to. Aundi talks about what she believes lies the heart of grief, and what healthy grieving can allow us to do. She shares her experience and expertise in guiding us how to grieve well and process our emotions and loss in a way which frees us from it power and allows us to move forward with our lives after loss.

Although we recorded this pre-pandemic, it now feels more relevant than ever, and Aundi has immense knowledge, wisdom and experience in grief and trauma, which we all need right now.

Today my friend, author and podcaster Mike McHargue joins me on the show to discuss his new book 'You Are a Miracle (and a Pain in the Ass)', and our emotional responses to the current pandemic.

Mike and I discuss the collective grief we're all experiencing and the importance of taking care of our emotional health in the midst of this pandemic, the science behind it, the consequences of not doing it - and the steps we can take to be present in our own lives and emotions right now.

Mike then shares very honestly the story behind the book, the trauma of his heart condition which impacted not just his physical health but his finances and emotional health, as well as the grief of losing a beloved friends, the anxiety and panic attacks he experienced - and the changes he had to make to get himself physically, mentally and emotionally healthy again.

He also unpacks some truths he discovered about ancient survival mechanisms still impact us now, how our environment impacts our behaviour way more than he realises. He shares what happens in our brain when we confront our grief and trauma instead of hide from it, and leaves us with wisdom about how we can love ourselves, engage with our trauma, and remember we are all a living, breathing miracle.

Today it's the 200th episode of the podcast, and to celebrate my beloved friend and former guest Becky Castle Miller interviews me!

We discuss all sorts of things, with some challenging and honest questions like

What do I believe & the role of Jesus in my life
The unhealthiest point in my personal journey, how I got to the healthiest...and the bits in-between.
Why and how did I start the podcast, and my all-time favourite guests.

And on a lighter note, there's a few lighting rounds involving Doctor Who (obviously), favourite books, favourite kind of tea, and more.

This episode was such a joy, and I'm so grateful to Becky for asking such great questions, and to all of you for listening every week, you make this all possible.

Onwards...

Today Maria French and Barry Taylor of H&Co join me to discuss the wider impact of the global pandemic on each of us individually, as well as corporately. We explore the impact it's already having, on society and in our interactions and relationships - and the challenge of loneliness and solitude.

We then move into a deeper discussion on the impact on the wider church, on how we have spiritual community and the use of technology, both in church and in our culture, and why things have changed forever - and won't go back.

Finally we examine the potential impact on people's own spiritual and personal journeys, the opportunities this could bring, and our grounds for hope in this difficult period for us all.

This was an insightful and eye-opening conversation, Maria and Barry both have expert philosophical, cultural and theological insight and help unpack our experiences of the pandemic and it's potential impact in a way which both challenges and inspires.

Check out their work at handcogroup.com.

Today I'm joined again by life coach Felicity Morse. Together we discuss our emotional and trauma response to COVID19, the impact it can have on our well being, and practical steps to help our emotional health during lockdown.

Felicity shares her own struggles, and steps she's taking, and some of the emotional challenges we might face - and outlines some healthy and unhealthy responses to this.

Felicity reminds us how we're all unique, and how we all might be responding to the pandemic in our own unique ways, that all of these are acceptable. She reminds us to have grace with ourselves and not put massive expectations for ourselves right now, and outlines some basic principles and practical steps of self-love and self-care we can all take that can centre us and help us be fully present, however we are reacting and responding.

Trigger Warning: Sexual Assault, Sexual Harassment & Domestic Abuse

Today, Mia Leigh Renna joins me to share her heartbreaking story of sexual abuse, domestic abuse and recovery - and the grief we experience when we are forced to leave an old life behind and begin again. She also highlights how little support there is for military women who have suffered abuse, both within and outside the structures she had known.

Mia shares how she had to rediscover her true identity and create a new life for herself, acknowledging what had been and receiving support to find healing, but choosing to be free of its power.

This was recorded before the current pandemic, but feels more relevant than ever. It's a story of a different kind of grief - the kind of grief all of us are carrying right now, of a life we've had to leave behind.

Today, pastor, writer and activist Gricel Medina joins me for a special Good Friday reflection. Together we explore our experiences of the pandemic, and we discuss the collective grief we are all carrying.

Gricel shares her own experiences as a pastor right now, and we also discuss the long term impact of the pandemic, how the world has changed - and why we can't go back.

Then we go into more depth about our communal grief, how we can confront this in the context of the death and resurrection of Jesus. How Jesus chose to face and feel his pain, the significance of Jesus resurrecting with all his scars, rather than without them, and how important it is for our freedom and new life beyond the pandemic, as we process our collective grief.

This week my friend, therapist, qualified pastor & podcaster Jennifer Dawn Watts joins me to explore the benefits of 12 steps when used in the context of spiritual community, and uses her experience as a therapist to share advice and practical wisdom about managing our mental and emotional health during the pandemic.

Jennifer shares her own experiences in 12 step spiritual community, and why she believes this model is increasingly beneficial in the world we're living in. We talk about how the 12 step process can be beneficial for those going through a faith deconstruction or dealing with trauma, and how this model can help many of us in the circumstances we're all faced with right now.

Then Jennifer talks about living in the reality of the pandemic, her own experience, how these circumstances can impact our mental health. She shares some very simple, practical steps we can all take to ensure we're acknowledging our collective and individual trauma, but also able to free ourselves of its power, and take care of our own mental, emotional and physical health.

In today's special episode my friend, author and therapist K.J. Ramsey returns to the show to discuss how we can practice positive self-care during the COVID19 pandemic, and explore how this impacts our mental & emotional health and our spirituality - and how we can respond in a healthy, life giving way.

KJ & I also explore in depth how what we're all experiencing is a form of grief. We discuss why it's absolutely crucial we acknowledge the grief and fear we're carrying, rather than deny it, and KJ outlines some simple practices which can help us understand and process this grief in a healthy way, so we are no longer carrying the weight of it alone.

KJ also discusses how we can draw closer to God during the pandemic, and somehow find the divine abiding within us in the midst of our suffering - and how God suffers with us.

You can find KJ's work and get her book 'This Too Shall Last' at kjramsey.com

Kristen Kansiewicz has served as a counselor in a church setting since 2005 and has a BA is psychology. Today she joins us to explore how the church has failed in how it's dealt with grief, trauma and mental health in the past, and offers practical solutions to how we can do better now - which feel even more relevant with COVID19 having such an impact on the world.

Kristen heads up 'Church Therapy', an organisation committed to providing trained therapists and counsellors to churches to support congregations and help churches confront trauma, grief and mental health more effectively, and talks about this work and how communities of faith can begin to deal with this constructively.

She is currently pursuing her doctorate in Counselor Education and Supervision from Regent University. She graduated with a Master of Arts in Counseling from Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary and a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from Wheaton College, so is an expert in this field - and has a lot of wisdom to share, both from her training and experience.

Please note - this was recorded pre-COVID19, hence there being no reference to it in the episode, however much of what we discussed feels very relevant right now

Find out more about Kristen's work at www.churchtherapy.com

Trigger Warning: Emotional, physical and spiritual abuse

Today in the third part of our series Grief Matters, my friend Ana shares her powerful story.

In it we explore a not just the grief of losing someone you love, but another kind of grief - the grief and trauma of leaving evangelical church behind, the grief of deconstruction, and trauma of abusive relationships and leaving those behind to begin a new life.

Ana's is a powerful testimony, but it's also a story of hope. It's a story of how when we have the courage leave a painful and difficult life behind, there is the chance for something new and powerful to begin. That when we grieve well, there is a chance of resurrection in our own lives.

Today, a bonus episode of the podcast. In this episode I reflect on the impact of the coronavirus - our individual and collective, fear, anxiety and grief. I share how it's impacted my life, and how none of us are alone in our experiences.

I also speak about the opportunity to learn to grieve and lean into the pain, to provide solidarity and support to each other, to connect more deeply with ourselves and each other, and finder a deeper, wider perspective - and even small joy - in the journey we're on together.

This is, at it's heart, a podcast about how we are not alone. You are not alone.

If you need someone to chat to, or community, connect with me on Twitter at @JamesPrescott77 and join my new online community - 'Poema Podcast - Continuing the Conversation'.

In the second of our series Grief Matters, I'm joined by speaker and artist Tracie Loux. Tracie shares the story of the loss of her son Mattie, the journey of his illness and eventual death, and her own experience during this journey.

Tracie talks about the 'collateral damage' of grief, how it impcts our work, our marriages, our relationships and even our daily habits, and how she survived her own collateral damage and began to create a new life for herself.

Tracie also shares how she found healing in her art, and also discovered a different level and type of grief - grief for her own life before Mattie's passing, a life she lost.

Tracie has a powerful story, as well as incredible wisdom and insight on surviving grief and learning to thrive. I know you'll love this episode.

Today we begin a new series on the podcast - Grief Matters - where we will hear stories of grief and loss, talk to therapists and grief counsellors, about the important subject of grief, loss and death.

In this episode my friend and musician Kahhe shares the story of the loss of a parent, the impact this had on her life, her creativity, and how it changed her perspectives on life, spirituality and relationships.

(*Please note there for slight sound issues with the recording, but I've shared this episode as I believe this story needs to be heard)

Today I'm joined by author Melissa Camara Wilkins to talk about her book 'Permission Granted'. Melissa shares her story and talks about he she moved from trying to fit into everyone else's perceptions and ideas of who she should be, to connecting to her truest self.

We discuss the challenges, benefits and costs of choosing to be your true self, including all your imperfections and messiness. Melissa explores the challenge of being your true self in front of friends who've only known you as your old self, and the grieving of leaving certain relationships behind - but explains how it's only when we embrace our true self we can find real connection.

Melissa then moves on to talk about how we can learn to listen to our intuition, and learn to trust ourselves, and grow in confidence in our true selves - and finally, to love ourselves as we are.

You can find more of Melissa's work at https://melissacamarawilkins.com/

In this episode I welcome Wren Helmericks, a tarot reader and writer. In this episode we explore what exactly Tarot is, and what it isn't. Wren discusses the myths, fears and misconceptions about Tarot, and the genuine benefits it can bring to our lives and indeed to our spiritual journeys.

Wren then does two readings live on the show - one for me, and one for all of you listeners. The one for me was hugely beneficial and demonstrates how useful and insightful Tarot can be. I'd love to hear your feedback on how the reading for listeners impacted you.

There's so much we need to learn about tarot and Wren is a great teacher.

Find more of her work at untanglingtarot.com

Today editor, fiction author and writing expert Jess Lawrence joins me on the podcast. We explore the challenges of discovering new creative ideas and different ways to release the creative muse.

We also discuss the process and challenges of writing and editing, how writing even fiction can tap into our own stories and be healing and transforming, and using her own experiences, the challenge of finding courage to release your art into the world. And we touch on how so much of the creative process can both reflect and impact the stories of our own lives.

Jess has great insight and understanding of the creative process and how it impacts & reflects our lives, this is well worth a listen.

Find her online at @JessLaw247 and jesslawrence.co.uk

Today I'm joined by the wonderful Maile Smucker, writer and author. Maile is also co-host of 'The Stories Between Us' podcast alongside her husband, multiple guest Shawn Smucker.

Maile tells us her own writing journey, and the challenges of how she has continued to explore her own writing gift & calling as her husband's professional writing and publishing career has thrived. She also discusses writing's own power to heal and transform us, and how to find joy in the work, rather than the result - and in seeing other writer thrive.

Finally we explore how in creativity and in particularly in writing, we're always trying to work out some fear, insecurity, issue, or question, and how doing this can bring healing and change.

Today my good friend Jim Woods returns to the podcast to explore our lives as stories. We discuss being authentic in our lives and our art, how we can confront pain and explore it & how authentic creativity helps us lead healthier lives.

Jim talks about what genuine connection really is and how we find out, setting healthy boundaries to guard our emotional health, including how social media use has impacted his own mental health.

He also talks about how we can grow and develop as artists, and gain confidence and trust in ourselves by showing up for ourselves and our art - and of course, we discuss the enneagram.

Jim is a fountain of wisdom on creativity and our personal journeys, and it's always such fun to chat to him.

I'm delighted to welcome author and qualified counsellor Meredith McDaniel to the show today. Meredith runs a private counselling practice called 'Milk & Honey' and has just released her first book, "In Want & Plenty".

In today's episode we explore the concept of abundance, of being in need, and divine provision. Meredith talks about how God can often give us what we need even when we don't know what we need - and the radical concept of being in both want and in plenty at the same time.

We also discuss moving into the pain rather than walking around it, how often the cost of growth is feeling pain, and how in growth, things often need to get worse, before they get better - and how God is part of this journey.

If after listening you want to explore this more I'd highly recommend Meredith's book 'In Want & Plenty' - and it's available now wherever books are sold.

Today I'm joined by musician, podcaster and activist Andre Henry. Andre and I explore the issue of systemic racism in western culture, and Andre unpacks for us the racism which many of us don't see, or don't know, which can come from ibuilt white privilege.

Andre shares how his creative work and his faith has been impacted and challenged by the increasing racism in US culture, and shares some of his frustrations in his work and in those who don't see they are part of the problem.

Andre discusses some initial practical steps all of us can do to combat racism, and how there is no middle ground in racism - either we're part of the problem, or we're actively anti-racist and doing the work of change. He also shares with us some great resources to help us do this, and his own biggest inspirations, and how he practices finding hope.

This was a challenging, discomforting and inspiring conversation, with hard pills we all need to hear.

A new season of Poema Podcast begins with a conversation with author and speaker Sarah Bessey. Sarah joins me for the third time, to talk about her latest book 'Miracles & Other Reasonable Things', which charts her spiritual and personal journey of the last few years.

Sarah shares a bit of her own deconstruction journey, her experiences both in the church and in her own life which challenged her faith in unexpected ways, and how a post miracle experience wasn't the happy ever after the Christian church often paints to be. She explores deconstruction and non-dual thinking and how the challenges this brings with traditional / evangelical language of the church, and how she has attempted to reconcile the two.

Sarah also goes into great depth about the experience of being in the wilderness, and how she discovered that far from being a lonely solitary place, it can be a place of great community, feasting, and joy, even in the midst of suffering. And of course, Doctor Who inevitably came up!

Finally, Sarah shares briefly about the grief of losing her beloved friend Rachel Held Evans, and how this has impacted her relationship with God and her spiritual journey.

This was such an inspiring and fun conversation, I hope it's encouraging for you too.

In today's episode I welcome my friend and podcaster Andy Mort back to the show. We live in difficult, dark and dangerous times. The political climate in the West, in particular the US and the UK, is divided, heated and bleak, and we have a climate change emergency. Right now, it's difficult to find hope.

Today Andy and I explore the the real issues behind what's happening in our world, and how looking at history can help us understand the present - and discover that in fact, there might be many reasons to hope and discover some joy, even in the midst of how things are now.

I finished this conversation feeling so much more hopeful, about our world and my own life, I hope you do too.

My beloved friend Alexander J. Shaia returns to the podcast today. In this episode, we discuss the process of awakening, transformation and change in our personal and spiritual journeys.

Alexander shares how we need to be awakened to our need for growth, go through a process of transformation, before we see genuine change - and how this is an ongoing process of growth for us, and we discuss what this looks like in practice.

There's so much in this episode I can't explain it all in a short summary - but Alexander is one of the wisest, deepest thinkers I know, and he has a deep well of knowledge to share. This is such a great conversation, one of my favourites.

You can find out more about Alexanders' work & get more resources of his at www.quadratos.com

Today I welcome author and therapist K.J. Ramsey to the show. K.J. tells us her story of how an experience of deep suffering through an illness which changed her day to day life dramatically. The God she had known or thought was God, was no longer sufficient. But in the process, she discovered a new depth to her spirituality and understanding of Jesus.

K.J. explains how we can try and explain and justify our suffering, and the reality that we simply can't understand suffering, and it's OK that we don't. She explores how we can be fully present in our lives now and discover deeper depths to the divine mystery, and a greater knowledge of who we are.

Finally, K.J. explores how she discovered solidarity with Jesus in his own emotional, physical and mental suffering, and discovered how it's in the midst of suffering we can actually draw closer to him - and we explore how this is contrary to the Hollywood, prosperity 'God solves the problem and gets you to heaven' story which evangelical Christianity tries to sell us, which isn't even suffering.

K.J. has such insight on suffering and the divine, a background in therapy and knowledge the neuroscience of suffering, and has such wisdom to share here, it was a true joy to speak to her.

My guest today is author and speaker Marlena Graves, an expert on spiritual formation. Marlena shares her personal story, of a traumatic childhood, struggling with mental illness - and how in the midst of this wilderness, she found a glimpse of the divine.

Marlena shares with us how the suffering and wilderness helped her discover the deeper truth of a loving God, who meets us in our brokenness, a God who isn't constrained by church, theology or religious certainty, but can still be found within spiritual community and the Christian faith.

Marlena discovered how the desert experiences, the very real suffering we experience, when prayers aren't answered, can actually connect us to Jesus way more than the mountaintop experiences, and the divine can be found to be faithful even there.

Today my friend Drew Brown joins me for the first time. Drew is a musician and advocate, and also a fellow fan of superheroes and comic book characters. He loves exploring the deeper meaning behind the on-screen journeys of many comic book characters and what meaning they and relevance they can have for our own journeys, including the journey of deconstruction.

In this episode we explore the spirituality of comic book characters, and the identity, stories, and character arc of several major comic characters we see in movie, including villains.

We talk about the stories and characters which resonate with us and our journeys, and indeed the cultural warnings and messages we can see regarding deconstruction and mental health, in the respective stories of Steve Rogers (Captain America), Bruce Wayne (Batman) and arguably the greatest comic book villain, the Joker. We also explore the links between the stories of Superman, Jesus and Moses.

This is both one of the most fun episodes I've ever done, yet also one of the deepest.

This week I welcome back one my beloved friends, Julida Alter, one half the musical duo JulyDa. We talk about the creative process and inspiration behind their new music, and explore how our art is always a reflection of our own journeys, both in life and faith.

Julida also shares some new developments in her own life, and how these have been reflected in this new music, and reflects on how these developments might impact their creativity going forward. We then dive into two particular songs, 'You May Learn' and 'Aspiration', and the stories and creative process behind these songs, as well as their single 'Sea Of Glass'.

Julida always has such insight into the creative process, and how it connects with our own personal, spiritual journeys, this is well worth a listen.

Therapist and author Aundi Kolber joins me today. Aundi is also a trauma survivor, and in this episode she shares her personal story of growing up with an alcoholic parent, difficult relationships with a parent and how this has impacted her spirituality, her career and her own parenting.

Aundi explores in depth the concept of 'Trying Softer' and what it can mean for us. She shares some fascinating neurological insights into how our mind and body are not just connected, but one, and how they interact with our spirituality. Then she explains how all three of these areas can impact our mental health.

Aundi also shares the common problems she encounters as a therapist and shares the key lessons she's learned, and we also discuss the unique mental health challenges of being a mother.

Aundi has so much wisdom and experience around mental health, recovering from trauma and how this impacts our personal and spiritual journeys, this is well worth a listen. Her book, 'Try Softer', is available for pre-order now.

Author, speaker, disability advocate and trauma survivor Stephanie Tait is my guest today. Stephanie has a challenging, discomforting and yet inspiring story. Stephanie is a trauma survivor in active treatment for C-PTSD, and also has lyme disease which remained undiagnosed through her childhood well into adulthood.

The response from much of the evangelical church, who wished to hide the suffering, not speak or accept the truth about the unanswered prayers and struggles Stephanie was enduring, had huge implications for her life and her spiritual journey.

Stephanie shares this story, and explains what she believes is sorely lacking in our trending conversations around Christianity – to partner sound theology and practice with the unashamed acceptance of struggle in the present tense. This is a raw, honest and challenging conversation, from a voice all of us need to hear.

To read the story in more detail, you can also read Stephanie's book 'The View From Rock Bottom', available now.

Trigger Warning: Sexual abuse, harassment, physical abuse

Mary DeMuth, author, speaker and advocate, is my guest today as we explore and discuss the very real issue of sexual abuse and harassment within the church, as she discusses in her new book 'Me Too'. Mary speaks with great candor and empathy about her own experiences with sexual abuse and the depth of this problem in the Christian church today.

In our conversation, and in her new book 'We Too', she encourages the church she loves to rise up and face the very real evil of sexual abuse and harassment, and shares practical steps churches and pastoral teams can take to confront and deal with this effectively in their own communities and to end this evil going forward. We discuss the impact abuse can have on its victims and how to effectively deal with these consequences.

We also explore what the Bible says to the sexually exploited, what harms and what empowers those who have been traumatized by abuse, and how Jesus provides us a relational framework that welcomes victims.

You can find out more information on this issue and Mary's book, and get free resources, at metoo.org.

Today author, podcaster and coach Kevin Garcia is my guest. In this episode we explore how tarot readings can help us deepen our relationship and connections not just to Jesus and the divine, but also our truest selves.

Kevin unpacks some of the myths and misunderstandings around tarot and explains how he has used it to deepen his faith and his spirituality, to examine and build a deeper connection to himself. Kevin explores how our we need to engage with our imaginations more in order to grow both spiritually and personally, and we overlap into grief, encountering lost loved ones, transcendent experiences and much much more.

Kevin has so much wisdom and insight into the spiritual journey and discovering our truest selves. This conversation was hugely transformative for me personally, and I'd highly recommend both this episode and Kevin's work.

My beloved friend Jessica Kantrowitz joins me on the podcast for the first time. Jessica is a prolific writer, and her first book 'The Long Night' just went to pre-order! Today we talk about her book and the creative process behind the it, and about depression and mental health, before moving into another topic Jessica - the enneagram.

Jessica unpacks with great insight what the enneagram is, what it means, and how we can understand it better. We explore our own 'numbers' and see just how accurate the enneagram can be, what it can tell us about ourselves, and how it can help us in work and relationships.

This was such a fun podcast to record, and I know you're gonna really enjoy it. And if you want more insight to the enneagram, it's definitely worth a listen!

(Pre-Order Jessica’s book now, right here)

The Long Night: Readings and Stories to Help You through Depression

Author Christine Sine joins me today, to talk about the divine nature of creativity. We discuss how to find joy in creativity, how the divine intended creativity to be fun, to be an adventure - and how we can explore this in all aspects of life, as well as our art.

Christine shares how her creativity has deepened her spiritual journey and helped her to see a side to the divine which has a sense of fun, mischief, adventure and pure joy - creating for its own sake, for the joy of creating. She also explores how the creative process can be therapeutic, and improve our mental and emotional health. Christine argues as we explore this side of the divine we find it more in ourselves, and this helps our own creativity and connection to the divine, ourselves, and the divine creation we are part of.

Christine has so much wisdom, on creativity, the divine journey and so much more. Her book 'The Gift of Wonder' is available now wherever books are sold.

I'm delighted to welcome back author Shawn Smucker to the podcast today. Shawn has written and published several books, and his latest novel 'Light from Distant Stars' has just been released.

Today we discuss the novel, the message of the book and the creative process of writing a novel. We also explore the challenges and the experience of writing a novel, as opposed to a non-fiction book, how our creativity and stories we tell there often reflect parts of our own journey, and how the process of writing and creating can change us.

Shawn always speaks with such incredible wisdom and experience on writing and the creative process, and there's lessons here for all of us involved in the act of creating art.

'Lights From Distant Stars' is available now wherever books are sold.

I'm delighted to welcome back my beloved friend Brandan Robertson this week. Brandan is a pastor, author and advocate for LGBTQ inclusion in culture and spiritual communities, and today we talk about his most recent book, 'The Gospel Of Inclusion'.

We discuss his examination and interpretation of Biblical passages often used to condemn homosexuality, and how these have been misunderstood and taken out of context - and what their original meaning probably was. We also explore how we can build more inclusive spiritual communities, what true inclusion really means, and why it's at the heart of the message of Jesus.

Brandan has so much wisdom and insight, and is doing such great work. His book, 'The Gospel Of Inclusion' is available now!

My friend Felicity Morse returns to the show today. She's an author, life coach and former journalist. Today she shares a bit of her own story, and how she found freedom and a healthier life more in tune with who she really was.

She talks about some of the common issues she encounters in life coaching and how we can overcome them - issues of fear, shame, identity, relationships and vocation, and shares some experiences, practices and lessons she's learned about how we can engage with these issues in a healthy way, and have better mental and emotional health.

Felicity has great insight, wisdom and compassion, and is such fun to talk to, I know you're gonna love this episode.

Today my friend Sarah Heath returns to the show, in an episode recorded live in her home. In this episode we talk about what it means to live a truly authentic life, and how that impacts our relationships with ourselves, with others, and with God.

Sarah shares some lessons and challenges she's explored which have helped her connect better with her trueset self, and live a life more true to who she is. These included giving up social media for a full week (or more), looking at yourself in the mirror and loving who you are, practicing mindfulness and reminding yourself of those who love you, who you know you can trust and will be there when you need them.

Sarah shares how these challenges impacted he and what he life looks like having explored these challenges. And finds she is living a more honest life, more herself than ever before. And she believes these challenges can do the same for all of us.

You can explore more of these in Sarah's latest book - 'The Authenticity Challenge: 21 Days To A More Content Life', available wherever books are sold.

Author Alia Joy joins me on the podcast today, to share her powerful story. It's a story of grief, loss, illness, mental health and weakness - but also a story of love, joy and transformation.

It's a story of how things don't always work out how we want, they don't always end well, and life isn't always easy - but of how these experiences and stories don't take us away from the divine, but actually draw us closer.

Alia shares her story with great courage and honesty, and it's truly inspirational. It's a story of glorious weakness.

Today I'm joined by Maria Francesca French, teacher of things Christian and post Christian and faith futurist. Maria is director of Hatchery LA and runs the No More Circles project.

In this episode we explore how what spiritual community looks like needs to change and evolve in the 21st century, the problems with the very concept of belief, as well as the issue of fundamentalism in both conservative and progressive Christianity. We discuss how we can find healthy spiritual community and how we need to not just change the how of belief, but ditch the idea of belief itself, and adopt what Maria calls a 'transcendent' approach.

Maria has so much wisdom, insight, knowledge and personal experience of these topics, and hers is a voice worth paying attention to. Take a listen!

Today I'm joined by author and pastor Marc Alan Schelske, to discuss the purpose and and power of our emotions.

We discuss how emotions are a God given gift, a source of wisdom and guidance - not something to be avoided. We explore examples of Jesus demonstrating emotions, both positive and negative, and what they can teach us about leaning into our emotions.

We also explore what recent research into our how brains work tells us about our emotions, and their purpose and meaning.

And finally we examine how we can pay more attention to our emotions, our behaviour and our bodies to understand what's really going in inside of us, and take practical action.

Becky Castle Miller returns to the show today, and we discuss, in essence, the basic humanity of Jesus. We explore the journey of Jesus through the lens of his own emotional and mental health.

Becky and I explore several stories of Jesus where he experiences grief, loss, trauma, doubt and fear. The loss of Lazarus, the loss of his earthly father, the social stigma he likely faced growing up, even from members of his own family - and how this impacted Jesus. We look at the human side of familiar stories, and find that as we do, it completely switches them on their head and brings them alive.

As Becky and I explore discuss the human Jesus, we find that it's his essential humanity which makes him divine.

Last weekend author, speaker, advocate, and prophet Rachel Held Evans, passed away. Rachel's life had an immense impact on so many lives, in so many ways, and her passing has left a hole in so many of our lives.

Today, Becky Castle Miller, whose own journey into writing and pastoral ministry was directly down to Rachel, and who became one of my friends indirectly because of Rachel, joins me on the show. We each reflect on our own memories of Rachel, how she impacted our journey, and consider her wider impact on the world and her legacy.

We also explore the process of grieving, the hopeful and encouraging messages which have come in this process, how we can grieve in a healthy way - and we end on sharing our own #becauseofRHE stories - talking about how Rachel's life and legacy will impact our own lives and work going forward.

This episode is intended as a tribute, to honour Rachel's life and work, to celebrate her accomplishments, and reflect on what we can learn from her tragically short life, as we go forward with our own, and move through grief.

Today I'm joined by pastor and author Charles Stone, and we discuss the practice of mindfulness, from both a neurological and a spiritual perspective - a practice Charles calls 'Holy Noticing'.

Charles shares his own story into exploring the neuroscience of mindfulness and it's benefits both to our daily lives and our spiritual journey, and how the practice of 'Holy noticing' can make us more compassionate, Jesus-like people, as well as aid our physical and mental health.

Finally, he shares with us an example of his 'Breathe' technique for more helpful mindfulness meditation, and what the real practical and spiritual benefits of 'Holy Noticing' can be.

Trigger warning: Sexual abuse, purity culture

My friend Lisa Mickey joins me on the show today, and we explore and discuss purity culture - the idea of sexual abstinence before marriage - and sexual ethics within the evangelical Christian church.

We explore the hugely damaging emotional, psychological, physical and spiritual consequences of this culture over the last two decades, and the damage it's done to each of us and others, and what it means to explore our sexuality in a healthy way, how to deconstruct and reconstruct our sexuality, and have a healthy sexual identity which walks hand in hand with our spiritual journey.

Trigger Warning - Emotional, Physical, Sexual & Spiritual Abuse

I'm delighted to welcome my friend Jayla Damaris to the show this week. Jayla shares her powerful, traumatic, painful story of growing up in conservative evangelical Christianity, abuse she suffered as a child, breaking free to build a new life. And then, finding herself rejected and abused spiritually, emotionally and physically by her husband - and recovering from this and beginning life again.

This is a story of courage, a story about breaking free from an abusive past and the worst of patriarchy and evangelical Christianity. It's a long but much needed story, with a lot of lessons for all of us.

You can support Jayla as she tries to raise funds to go back to Canada, at her Go Fund Me here:

https://www.gofundme.com/gh8ge-get-jayla-back-to-toronto

Pastor & author Brandon Carleton joins me today, and shares his powerful story of deconstruction and reconstruction - with a very unique perspective. Brandon left traditional church, but still felt a call to explore spiritual community. So he planted a church with his wife, but a church with a difference.

Unlike other pastors, Brandon actually tells his members not to come if it's not for them. He puts no obligation, no guilt, no commitment on people to attend - instead of prioritising the good of the church, he prioritises people's individual journey, their needs, their welfare, over that of the church itself. The church exists to serve its members, not the other way around.

Brandon and I discuss our own experiences of traditional evangelical Christianity and church, and find shared lessons from our respective journeys of deconstruction and reconstruction, and facing mental illness. We also discuss the humanity of Jesus, and what that tells us about his divine nature - and we find that there may well be hope yet for spiritual community.

Brandan's memoir "Meaningful Again" is available on Amazon now.

Today my dear friend, LGBTQ activist and blogger Steve Doran, appears on the show. He shares the story of his experiences as an LGBTQ Christian in the evangelical church.

We hear how he moved from a more traditional perspective even as an LGBTQ man himself, to becoming an advocate for more LGBTQ inclusion both in the church and in our wider culture. Steve courageously shares his coming out story, the painful experiences he has in parts of the church. We discuss how it affected his emotional and mental health, and how he came to find a new, inclusive faith community which accepts him as he is.

Steve is now doing great advocate work and writes regularly on LGBTQ inclusion, and has a powerful story.

My beloved friend Alexander Shaia returns to the Poema Podcast this week - and today we explore the historic pilgrims journey of the Camino in Spain. We explore the history and true meaning of the Camino - and it's lasting impact on the lives who engage in it.

This leads into a wider discussion of the lost art of rites of passage - using the Camino as an example, Alexander discusses what a true rite of passage really is, the sacrifice involved, and how it's impact is as much if not more seen after the experience itself has finished, rather than just the period actively engaged in it.

Alexander and I explore the idea that true growth can only come through sacrifice, through a willingness to engage with our own pain rather than continue to numb it with the habits, addictions, and busyness of regular life - and how if we do engage in this process, we can discover true, authentic transformation and spiritual formation.

My friend Daniel Skillman returns to the podcast today for a challenging, discomforting and inspiring discussion about non-dualistic thinking - and how binary, dualistic thinking is causing so much damage in both the church, politics and the world at large.

Daniel and I explore the flaws in both the conservative and liberal traditions - which have less to do with what they believe (though some of that is questionable), but more how they believe. We look at how we see this demonstrated today in particularly in the US with the rise of Trump and reaction of the Christian and political left. We examine unhealthy, dualistic ways of dealing with the problems the world is facing today, why ultimately they don't work - and what might be a hopeful, constructive way forward.

This is a powerful, challenging and thought-provoking episode - Daniel always has such wisdom and insight and speaks with such honesty. Take a listen.

My beloved friend Becky Castle Miller returns to the podcast today, and we talk about two topics which are dear to both of us - spiritual deconstruction/reconstruction, and Doctor Who.

Together we explore the character, history and world of Doctor Who, and how there are many aspects of him and his world which resonate with all of our journeys, and in particular deconstruction and reconstruction in our spirituality. We explore companions, and how we often have companions and friends for specific seasons, and in particular we explore the idea of regeneration, the cycle of life, death, and resurrection in the Doctor's own life, and how this connects with our idea of spiritual transformation.

This was one of the most fun, insightful and personally transformational episodes I've done and I know you'll be inspired too.

Today I'm delighted to welcome back my beloved friend Nora Speakman to the show! In this episode, Nora and I explore the writings of Joseph Campbell, on the power of myth and story.

Campbell's work 'The Hero With A Thousand Faces' and exploration of the power of myth and how it influences our lives, and the hero's journey, has had a profound and wide impact on our culture, both in movies, books, spirituality and communication.

Nora and I explore together the power of myth and story to shape our lives, how we can use story and myth to create better, healthier lives, how it impacts both our spiritual and creative journeys, our interactions with the divine and each other. We also discuss what impact it can have on our deconstruction and reconstruction journeys, and how we shape our lives.

This is a huge topic to cover, and one I want to explore on the podcast in the coming months - it's had a profound impact on both myself and Nora, and I believe it's relevant for all of us.

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My friend Rev Sarah Heath returns to the podcast today. This time Sarah reflects on the year she took out exploring 'Sonderlust' - finding her bliss, exploring her identity, where she wanted to work, issues with dating, and stepping out into the world and living - and sharing it all publicly on a podcast every two weeks .

In this episode Sarah unpacks the lessons she's learned on her journey, and some of the experiences she has had - both joyful and painful, and some of the opportunities it's opened up for her. We discuss her work with a dating coach and how that's impacted not only her dating life, but her relationship with both herself and others. And we unpack how this journey has changed her, what she really feels passionate about and led to, and where her life is taking her next.

Sarah's is a challenging and inspiring story, a story of risk, adventure and commitment to inner growth. Sarah has a lot of wisdom for us all on how to explore our own paths, and discover our true divine self.

I'm delighted to host Ryan O'Neal, otherwise known as Sleeping At Last, to the show. In today's jam packed episode we discuss the enneagram, Ryan's own spiritual journey, and the creative process and story behind Ryan's creation a series of songs for each Enneagram number.

We explore a little behind the enneagram, and Ryan shares how he discovered it, and how he's had to learn about all the different types other than his own, in such depth to create the amazing music in his Enneagram series.

We also explore Ryan's own spiritual and creative journey, how this impacted his musical projects including the Atlas projects, and his unique creative process and vision for music that goes beyond traditional boundaries, and has its own specific creative arc. He also shares the hilarious story of how he was once at a private party with Rob Bell, but had no idea who he was.

This episode is an insight into the enneagram, the spiritual journey and above all into the creative life, and pursuing your own unique journey. Ryan is a great guy, with great wisdom & insight, it was real joy to speak with him.

In the first episode of Poema for 2019, regular guest, author, speaker and podcaster Mike McHargue - AKA Science Mike - returns to the show. In this episode he shares in more detail the story behind is recent diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder (ASD). He shares the challenges he faces, and how it's impacted his coming to terms with major trauma.

We also talk about the difficulty and importance of getting a diagnosis, and the importance of ending stigma in both the church and wider culture about both ASD and mental illness.

Mike then answers several listener questions, including:

What is the cultural difference between a geek and a nerd?
Do his faith and scientific/rational thinking always compliment each other, and when do they come into conflict?
How he would change his life if he was a woman?
How do you truly love yourself?

And much more!

Today I welcome Nora Speakman to the show. Nora hosts the 'Liminality Life' podcast on the spiritual journey, living in the liminal space, and growing and discovering more about yourself and the divine.

Nora shares her story and the spiritual and creative journey which led to her beginning the podcast, and the lessons she's been learning. We talk about mystery, doubt, deconstruction, and non-dualistic spirituality.

We explore how our path and fight for what has always been ours, the purpose of our spiritual journeys, is not simply to impact our own lives - but are for the countless lives around us and those who will come after us. We discover the deeper truth that our spiritual journeys are both a gift and a mission.

This week my beloved friend Abi Lloyd joins me on the show. Today we discuss what it means to be successful, what our measures for success are, and how those measures of success can impact our lives.

Abi and I discuss healthy and unhealthy metrics for success we see in our culture and how they manifest themselves in our lives - how we can tie our value to our "success" and so if and when we have failures, those failures can be deeper and more damaging. We talk about how a healthy view of success shouldn't be dependent on our circumstances, but instead be about our personal growth and development.

Abi shares what success means for her in her life right now, and how our measures of success can change - with her ultimate philosophy of discovering joy in her every day.

Whatever field you work in, I hope this conversation can really help you find healthier measure for success.

Chris Morris returns to the show today to talk about the new book, "Whispers In The Pews: Voices on Mental Illness In The Church", a collection of true stories from 18 Christians with mental illness, sharing their experiences of mental illness in the church, which he compiled and edited.

Chris and I talk about his own experiences of mental illness and good and bad experiences of this within the church. We discuss what the church has done badly with mental illness, and how it can do better. Chris also shares how all of us - even those with mental illness - always have more to learn about mental illness, and the importance of hearing and validating each others stories, and ending stigma, especially within the church.

Chris has so much wisdom and experience surrounding both mental illness, chronic illness and faith, and this was a really inspiring conversation.

You can get "Whispers In The Pews" (which includes a contribution by yours truly) on Amazon now.

Musician Mr Ekow, is my guest today. We hear his story, including the challenges of being an LGBT Christian, coming out to non-affirming Christians and his pastor, and how this impacted his relationships and own creative journey as a musician. He talks about being stuck in no mans land - wanting to be faithful to God, but also wanting to be true to his own identity.

Mr Ekow shows how he has faced both racial and LGBT prejudice and how this had an impact on his emotional and mental health. He then talks about the freedom he has found since coming out and how his story has impacted his music.

His story is one of struggle, courage, creativity and freedom. It's a story of hope, and the power of owning your story and the freedom which comes from being true to who you really are.

Father Nadim Nassar, the Church of England’s only Syrian priest, and an outspoken advocate for western Christians to recognise their Middle-Eastern heritage, is my guest today

Father Nadim shares his own journey, and then he and I discuss his first book, 'The Culture of God', and explore how there are three cultures Christians need to understand when they read the Bible: the culture of the Bible itself, their own culture, and finally ‘the culture of God’.

In our conversation, we see that ultimately it was Jesus who had direct access to the culture of God; and so we need to begin by understanding Jesus in his own first-century Middle Eastern culture - which, although he was a Jew, was under the rule of Syria. We unpack a few examples from Jesus life, where an understanding of his own culture opens up an entirely different meaning to familiar gospel stories.

Talking to Father Nadim was an enlightening experience for me, and I know he will really inspire, challenge and encourage you as he has me, and many others.

Pastor, author & activist Brandan Robertson returns to the podcast today, to talk about his new book 'True Inclusion', and what it means - and doesn't mean - to be a truly inclusive church.

Brandan shares from his own experience of pastoring a church, the lessons he has learned about what it means to make a church truly inclusive, both of the LGBTQ community, and those at different stages of their spiritual or even theological journey. He shares the changes he believes the church may have change as more and more people embrace the spiritual deconstruction and reconstruction journey so many are on right now - even so far as changing how we do church, and what the role of church is.

Brandan then discusses with me how churches need to become more prophetic, the challenges which lie ahead. To conclude, he shares his hopes for the church, and how he envisions we can have healthy spiritual community for all, whoever they are, wherever they are in their spiritual journey.

Barry Pearman, author, gardner, mental health advocate and former pastor joins me today to discuss his new book, 'Broken To Built', a devotional on the book of Nehemiah, and practical ways we can make space for people with mental illness in the church.

Barry shares his own journey and experiences with mental illness and how these inspired him to take practical steps to make churches a safe space for mental illness, and how these steps have borne fruit in practice.

Finally, we talk about the story of Nehemiah, and how his story of rebuilding Jerusalem from its ruins inspired Barry, and can inspire us to build a life of faith, living with mental or chronic illness - and how the creative process of writing these books has helped Barry on his mental health and faith journey.

Author & Discipleship Director Becky Castle Miller joins me today. Becky suffered from depression after the birth of her second child, and now does a lot of work in helping churches become safe spaces for mental illness, and advocating for church leaders and members to be better educated on mental illness.

Today she shares her own story, and talks about how her mental illness led her into a faith deconstruction and reconstruction. Becky and I talk about the importance of educating pastors and church leaders on mental illness, and how churches and individuals can practically serve and welcome those with mental illness in a healthy, loving way of acceptance.

We also discuss healthy and unhealthy models of power and kingship - the violent, domineering, aggressive models used throughout history, as opposed to the example we see in Jesus - surrender, grace, empowering others, servant-heartedness and peacemaking.

Becky is passionate about the church doing better with those facing mental health challenges and those going through a deconstruction, and has lots of wisdom and experience on how we can do this better. This is worth a listen for all those wanting a voice of solidarity on their journey, those with mental health challenges looking for hope and support, and for all of us seeking to become better mental health advocates.

Today I'm joined by Aaron Smith, AKA as Cultural Savage - an author and blogger. Aaron has been diagnosed bipolar 2, he's also a Christian - and has sadly encountered a lot of stigma, both outside and inside the church, surrounding his own mental illness.

Aaron has recently released his first book - "Cultural Savage - The Intersection Between Christianity & Mental Illness", a collection of essays where he shares his experiences of living with Bipolar 2 and how it has intersected with his faith, and how people of faith have responded to it. Today he shares some of his powerful and challenging story with us, and we explore together how mental illness and Christian faith could interact in a healthy way, and what healthy and unhealthy responses to those with mental illness can look like.

Finally, we discuss stigma within the church and culture around mental illness, how we can change this, and Aaron offers words of solidarity and hope to those facing these challenges.

Today I'm delighted to welcome author and life coach Felicity Morse to the show. Felicity's first book 'Give A F**k' was released recently and today we talk about the themes of the book - self-care, self-love, boundaries, victimhood and sensitivity.

Felicity shares her own story and how she learned how it's not selfish to love ourselves, but, in fact, vitally important to a healthy life and our ability to serve others. We discuss why sensitivity isn't a weakness, but a superpower, a gift we can give to the world, and how we can use it well.

Felicity also talks about victimhood - and how in many ways all of us are victims, but how playing the victim, sitting on our high horses, can actually be a form of self-hatred, a mask to hide us from the pain and fear we're feeling.

We also discuss the importance and healing power of physical touch, and how can underestimate it's importance, as well as the challenges of fidning healthy expressions of this outside an intimate relationship. Finally, we discuss boundaries, both healthy and unhealthy, and how we can set healthy boundaries for ourselves, and in relationships.

Felicity is both wise, fun, and hugely compassionate, and has so much to share on these subjects. Take a listen, then go check out her new book.

Today my guest is author Shawn Smucker. Shawn has been writing and publishing for nearly two decades, and knows all there is to know about the writers journey, the challenges, the highs and lows of being a writer.

Today we talk about these challenges, including how to maintain integrity whilst also promoting work, how to persevere when you're not having success, how to deal with rejection by publishing houses, finding your true voice, and how to live with success and failure. Shawn shares his writing journey with us, and the lessons he has learned, with great honesty and wisdom.

Shawn released his first novel 'The Day The Angels Fell' in 2017 and it's sequel 'The Edge of Over There' was released earlier this year. His non-fiction book 'Once We Were Strangers', sharing the story of his experience with a Syrian refugee, and it's impact on his faith, is released in October. He has so much wisdom on writing and the creative journey, and this is well worth a listen.

Today on the podcast I'm joined by Sam Hailes, journalist and editor of Premier Christianity Magazine, one of the oldest and most widely ready magazines on Christianity in the world. Sam talks to us about the challenge of editing a magazine which aims to represent different perspectives of the Christian faith, and different theological positions, and how he manages to do this whilst also holding strong Christian convictions of his own.

Sam shares his own journey into journalism and the challenges he's encountered along the way, and how being a journalist and editing Premier Christianity has impacted his own faith journey. He also talks about some of the most inspiring people he's met in the course of his work. Finally, Sam shares some words of wisdom and encouragment for people exploring professional writing or journalism as a career.

Sam has a lot of wisdom on writing, journalism and faith, and this was such a great interview to do. Take a listen then go check out Premier Christianity magazine.

Today the Poema Podcast returns with my friend, author and writing coach Jim Woods returning to the show. Jim knows pretty much everything when it comes to writing (though he'd never admit to that), and today we talk about the one of the biggest challenge any writer or artist faces - the challenge of completing creative projects.

Today Jim shares how he has faced and overcome those challenges, and what he has learned by talking to 16 different authors about how to finish a book. We also talk about what it means to find your creative voice, and how to be truly authentic in your creative work and share your story.

If you're a writer, or artist of any kind, and face creative challenges, find it difficult to complete a project or overcome creative block, this one is really worth a listen.

If you want to learn more about how to finish a book, you can join Jim's Finish Your Book Summit for free here.

You can also get $50 off his new courses on helping people write, finish and share their work, and books, here.

In the last episode before the summer break, I'm joined by author, radio host, and licenced mental health counselor Tiffany Werhner.

Tiffany shares her story and her experiences of post trauma mental illness, and her experiences of working with those who face mental health challenges. As a licenced mental health professional and someone who has suffered major trauma, Tiffany has a lot of wisdom and encoragement on mental illness for those facing mental health challenges - and for those who aren't.

We explore Tiffany's passion to raise awareness and end stigma around mental illness, and bring hope, support and encouragement to those living with mental illness. Finally, we explore more of the stigmas around mental illness, the impact major trauma can have on someone, the psychology of mental illness, and discuss practical ways those who know people with mental ilnnes can be a positive, practical support.

Listen to her radio show 'Moments Of Clarity with Tiffany' here.

Today I welcome back my dear friend Beka Lombardo to the podcast. Beka is an author, blogger, podcaster and mental health advocate, who herself suffers from depression.

Today she shares her story, and how her circumtances and her mental illness took her to that point of suicide. We discuss together the experience of suicidal ideation - when someone is considering suicide - as well as how and why people get to that point, as well as how to overcome that, sharing from her own experiences.

We also discuss ways to manage the challenges which come with mental illness and depression, some of the stigmas which have build up, and how those close to people with mental illness can offer practical, constructive support to those living with those conditions.

For those living with depression, this episode is one which will give you hope and remind you that you're not alone in your challenges - and for those you don't, it will raise your awareness and help you be a real support to your friends and family who do.

My guest today is writer, speaker and advocate for racial equality, Austin Channing Brown. In this episode, we discuss Austin's story in more detail, and the experiences she had of endemic, cultural racism as she grew up, as described in her new book, 'I'm Still Here' - and how her story has shaped her.

Austin speaks with great honesty about her own experiences visiting cotton fields as a child, and the reactions of white people around her, and how that experience compelled her to become an advocate for racial equality. With great frankness and insight, she shares a story of how systemic cultural racism can display itself, even at something as elementary as a job interview.

We also discuss white privliege, and how much genuine ignorance still exists in the Western World, even from those who would say they aren't racist, and how white privlege can blind us to the levels of systemic racism amongst us. Austin, with amazing grace, shares wisdom about how those like myself, with inbuilt white privilege, can open our minds and hearts to the stories and experiences of the black people in our midst, and to the systemic, cultural racism which still exists - and help bring the change and understanding which is desperately needed.

Austin is inspiring, humble and wise, and we all have so much to learn from her story and her wisdom - take a listen, and then go get her book. (which has been recommended by Chelsea Clinton, no less!).

Today, author, broadcaster and LGBT equality campaigner Vicky Beeching is my guest. Today we talk about her new memoir, 'Undivided', and Vicky shares with us the experiences of growing up as an LGBT Christian, how keeping this a secret from even those closest to her had an impact on her emotional, physical and mental health, especially as she moved into public Christian ministry in her twenties.

Vicky bravely shares the story of how she came close to committing suicide and what ultimately stopped her from doing so, and we explore just how damaging conservative theology around homosexuality, and purity culture, can cause such damage to our physical, emotional and mental health. We also discuss how Vicky faced the challenged of a diagnosis with ME and fibromyalgia, which limited the time and energy she could give to her work and relationships, and how this impacted the writing of her memoir.

Vicky and I also discuss the creative process of writing a memoir, and why it's so important to have a support network in place during that creative process, as well as the impact her own experiences had on her songwriting process during her career as a worship leader.

This an interview about the challenges of being an LGBT Christian, the damage of purity culture, trying to find your true identity, living with mental illness & suicidal thoughts, living with chronic illness, and how to pour yourself into the creative process and tell your story. But ultimately, Vicky's is a story a challenge and an inpsiration to all of us trying to find the courage to be true to our own story and live as our authentic self.

This is one of the most treasured, honest and moving interviews I've ever done, with someone who has become a beloved friend, about one of the best books I've ever read. Take a listen, and then go here and buy the book.

Today I'm joined again by two members of the Blacksmiths' Daughters - Julida and Sean Alter. This husband and wife team have now collaborated to form their own band, simply called Julyda. They've just released their first EP together, 'Do You Hear Me'.

In this episode we talk about the creative journey behind the formation of Julyda, and the EP itself. It's a powerful story, about faith, social justice, doubt, and mystery - which in many ways sums up the journey we'll all on, individually, and cooporately, in the world today.

We also explore the creative process behind the album, how we find our voice, how we can tell our unique stories in our art and how creating and engaging with music, writing and other forms of art can touch us and speak to us in unique and intimate ways.

You can find out more about Julyda and hear some of the songs from their amazing new EP at www.theblacksmithsdaughters.com/julyda

Today I'm joined by David Andrews, a poet and author from New Zealand. Today he shares his story, a story of faith, doubt and creativity. We talk about how his faith journey led him into poetry and then explore how what we create is birthed deep inside of us.

David also does a beautiful reading of one of his poems, and we discuss the story and creative process behind this poem. Together we explore the mystery and mysticism of poetry and music, and how this can connect with the deeper parts of our soul. We talk about being authentic in our art, and why it's more important to focus on the process, on the joy of creating - and not on the result of our work, or the numbers - and how this perspective plays out in our day-to-day lives.

David is a great guy and a hugely talented poet, and it was a pleasure talking to him. Take a listen!

Today I'm joined by my friend, inspiring writer and podcaster Andy Mort. Andy's work focusses on encouraging, providing support and community for highly sensitive people and introverts - people he calls 'gentle rebels'. Just like myself, Andy is an introverted highly sensitive type, and knows all the challenges which come with it.

Andy talks today about what it's like to be a highly sensitive introvert, how that can impact daily lives and relationships, and also the ability to have an impact with creative work.

He shares how those who aren't sensitive introverts can have healthy relationships with those who are, and how he discovered a way to have an creative impact even with those challenges, including the community he created for highly sensitive people and introverts and how it's been part of his own journey.

This was such a great conversation, and Andy is honest, down to earth, encouraging and wise - his words will bring hope and solidarity to all those challenged by being introverted or highly sensitive.

Today my good friend Adam Baker joins me on the show. Adam is a singer-songwriter and former missionary, and today he shares his powerful and inspiring story with us.

Adam tells us of his creative journey which led him and his wife Sarah into missionary work on the African continent. With great honesty, Adam shares how these dreams went sour, the pain this caused, and how it led him and his wife to question and explore their faith in a way they had never done before - and how this led him deeper into his faith, pursuing God as never before - an experience which turned into a song, 'The Pursuit' (which you can hear at the end of the episode).

Adam's story reveals once again that doubting and questioning God, far from being something we should avoid, is something to be embraced, and can be a fundamental part of going deeper with the divine.

Today I welcome my dear friend Brandan Robertson back to the show. Brandan Robertson is a pastor, speaker, author and LGBT activist from San Diego, US. Today we talk about his experiences as an LGBT pastor in the US, and about the release of a new book Brandan edited and compiled, 'Our Witness: The Unheard Stories of LGBT Christians'.

Brandan shares a few of the most powerful stories sent to him by LGBT Christians of rejection, prejudice and abuse by members of the evanglelical church, and the dark and profound impact these have had on people's lives. And I discovered in our conversation that many of these stories come from the church in the UK, which, far from being more inclusive and progressive, is causing just as much damage to the lives of LGBT Christians. This was horrifying for me, and shows us just how much work needs to be done on LGBT inclusion.

We also talk about the power of stories, over the power of theology and argument, to change people's perspectives, and how Brandan himself came to understand this.

Brandan also talks about his experiences as an LGBT pastor, with a church which whilst it has many LGBT Christians, still has people who disagree on LGBT theology - including members of the LGBT community themselves. And he offers words of encouragement and hope to members of the LGBT community pursuing the journey of faith.

This is one of the deepest, powerful and arguably most important conversations I've had on the podcast. Whatever your perspective, I'd ask you listen with an open heart and open mind, and allow yourself to be moved.

You can buy 'Our Witness' on Amazon now.

I'm delighted to welcome my dear friend Teresa Colón to the show today. Teresa is a writer, podcaster, and mental health advocate, who has a dignosis of Bipolar Disorder. Today Teresa shares her raw, honest and inspiring story with us.

Teresa talks about her long journey to diagnosis, and how being bipolar has impacted her day to day life. She shares how creativity, and in particular writing, helped her come to terms with her journey, and own the truth of her story - as well as bringing life and healing to others. Then she talks about how her diagnosis impacted her faith and her spiritual journey, and helped her understand how she is loved, blessed and precious - just as she is.

Finally, Teresa and I talk about our new podcast - my second podcast, to go alongside Poema - called Creating Normal, about creativity and mental illness.

This conversation with Teresa left me, and will leave you, especially those with mental illness, a message of genuine hope, and solidarity.

You can find Teresa's work at WoundedBirdsMinistry.com & the Creating Normal podcast here.

Today the on-off series 'Questions We Don't Ask' continues with a discussion of hell. Which, obviously, means the question is 'What The Hell?'. So many people have so many different perspectives on hell, it's such an emotive and divisive topic in many ways. It's one that deserves examination and deeper reflection, because what we believe about hell has a huge bearing, indeed is usually born from, who we think God really is.

My friend Charles Porter and I discuss the different perspectives today, each sharing our own views and experiences, the thoughts of some well known authors/thinkers on this subject and, as ever, it takes us into interesting and unexpected directions, ending with a discussion and experience of divine grace and Judas in the garden, which left us both in tears.

Like all the questions in this series, it's merely a jumping off point into a bigger, wider discussion of Christian spirituality that many of us are having. I hope you'll come join us.

Author, speaker and coach Allison (Ally) Fallon joins me today. Ally has written several books and her latest, 'Indestructible:Leveraging Your Broken Heart to Become a Force of Love and Change in the World', is about to release. It's a memoir about the often painful and challenging journey she has been on in the last couple of years.

Today, Ally shares her powerful testimony. It's a story of divorce, brokenness, and then overcoming deep pain and finding a way through to a thriving life. Ally shares about the first actions she took on realising her marriage was ending, and the first steps she took to rebuilding her life. With great candidness and courage, she shares about the major challenges she faced, both personal and financial, and how she confronted those challenges.

Ally also discusses the three key practices she discovered which can help people find healing and rebuild their lives - practices she lives out to this day, and which she now teaches to others.

Ally concludes by sharing about what she believes is the only way out of trauma and pain, and to rebuild a thriving life. It's a message of hope for every single one of us.

You can pre-order her book 'Indestructible' here and follow Ally on Twitter here.

Today my dear friend Mariana Ruiz joins me on the podcast. Mariana is a certified business coach and consultant, who works with creative people, people launching their businesses and helps them gain confidence and focus, and find their true selves. Mariana is passionate about authenticity and helping people connect with their true selves and do the work they were made to do - and share their unique story with the world. She cares most of all about helping people make an impact and becoming truly authentic in their lives and work.

Here she shares her powerful story of how she found her voice, how she moved from an overly busy life with no financial freedom and no purpose, to finding a clear purpose to her life, which has allowed her to make a positive impact on the world, overcoming deep pain and conflict in the process.

We discuss what it means to be truly authentic and having integrity in business, art and life, and Mariana shares how she manages to maintain her integrity whilst managing and marketing a successful business.

Mariana is kind, encouraging, and cares about helping people having a positive impact on the world - and she has so much wisdom to share.

Today Dr Kate Thomas returns to the podcast to discuss her latest book, 'Bulletproofing The Psyche'. We explore the different strategies Kate has discovered in recent years for both preventing and treating mental illness. She shares about her work on implimenting these strategies in her work in the the military, and how we can each implement them in our own lives.

We also talk about some best practices to treat mental illness, retraining our brains, and the concept of 'mental fitness' or 'resilience training' - training our brains to be more resilient, and to have mechanisms and strategies which can help us manage mental illness and cope with mental health challenges in way which is healthier and allows us to thrive. Kate also talks about the the importance of spirituality in combatting mental illness.

With great courage and honesty, Kate also shares about some of the challenges she's faced and is facing in her own life, and how the methods she teaches to others have been helpful to her on her own journey.

Kate is courageous, intelligent and wise - she has so much expert knowledge and experience in this area and I know this episode will be so helpful to you all.

You can find out about her new book at: http://www.bulletproofingthepsyche.com/

Today I'm delighted to be joined by filmaker Andrew Morgan. Andrew has just released his new movie, a documentary on Rob Bell called 'The Heretic'. The movie tells Rob's story, and gives an insider look into his work.

Andrew travelled with Rob on a couple of tours over the course of two years and recorded several of his onversations with him, as well as many of his speaking events. Andrew also spoke to many of his close friends and wife Kristen, all to get a deeper insight and understanding into who Rob is, what he's passionate about, and the issues and beliefs which drive him.

Andrew and I discuss the story behind the creation of the movie, and Andrew shares at length how making this movie was part of his own deeply personal and spritual journey. We explore how our art is often a reflection of our journey asnd how creativity can be part of a process of healing. We also touch on as well as what it's like travelling with Rob, what he learned from Rob, how the process of making this movie impacted his own life and beliefs, and the impact of making this movie during the rise and election of Donald Trump.

Andrew is a great guy with a lot of passion, wisdom and insight, and amazing stories to share - this episode's definitely worth a listen.

The Heretic' is available on iTunes and Amazon now...and having seen it myself, I can testify that it's an amazing, powerful, inspring, and deeply moving piece of moviemaking, and definitely worth a watch.

Today my dear friend, writer, podcaster and mental health advocate Sarah Fader, joins me on the show. Sarah, who herself faces mental health challenges, has become a strong and occasionally outspoken adovcate for mental health awareness. Sarah began the well known hashtag #ThisIsWhatAnxietyFeelsLike, and founded Stigma Fighters, a website for those with mental health challenges to share their stories.

With great honesty and courage, Sarah shares her own challenging and inspiring story, and offers wisdom, encouragement and hope to all those facing mental health challenges. Sarah also talks about her new '10 Step Depression Relief Workbook' - and about cognative behavioural therapy based approaches to combating depression and other mental illnesses, and demonstrates how these can be used practically.

Sarah has so much to say about mental illness, anxiety and depression, and has a stubborn hope which will both inspire and challenge you - this is definitely worth a listen.

Special Offer

To get a free PDF copy of the Depression Workbook sent to you via e-mail, send a tweet with my own and Sarah's twitter handles - @JamesPrescott77 @TheSarahFader - with your e-mail and the hashtag #IWantMyDepressionWorkbook - Sarah and I will select the winners! (you never know, it might be everyone who enters. You'll have to enter and see).

Today “Science Mike”, otherwise known as author, speaker and podcaster Mike McHargue, returns to the show.

On today’s episode Mike shares his thoughts on the impact of social media on mental illness, and how regulating our social media time — as he does - can improve our mental health.

He also shares about his own recent spiritual journey, we touch on the recent shootings in Florida and talk about several methods all of us can use to improve our mental health - and a whole lot more.

Mike is one of the wisest, most intelligent and compassionate men I know, so sit back and get ready to be challenged and inspired.

Today my dear friend and longtime friend of the show Alexander Shaia returns to the podcast.

This time we talk about the benefits & challenges of community & how this led directly to the creation of what we now call Lent, and Ash Wednesday.

Alexander shares more of the history of Ash Wednesday - and the true symbolism behind the use of ashes.

Finally, we look at the pre-atonement concept of Christian spirituality, theosis, and discover the grace, beauty and love which gives it is power.

Alexnader is as wise and challenging as ever - this episode will blow your mind & transform how you experience both Ash Wednesday, Lent, and the passion of the Christ.

My dear friend Sarah Heath returns to the podcast today. Laat summer, challenged by her best friend, Sarah embarked on a journey into herself, going out of her comfort zone, trying to create the life she'd been running from. To find her 'Sonderlust'. (Or, you could say, find her Poema....)

Sarah is in the midst of this challenge now - to step back out into the world of dating after hiding away for so long, to be living in a place she loved, and love her work. If in a year she doesn't find happiness and joy, then she's committed to moving wherever her best friend tells her to go. To build happiness or make a drastic change.

This journey has led to her creating a podcast to chart her journey publicly, called 'Sonderlust'. The challenge has already brought up lots of issues around dating, realtionships, self-care, health, work, and identity. And she's still figuring this all out.

Sarah joins me in the midst of this journey, to share with honesty and wisdom about the lessons she's already learned, the challenges she's faced - and how this is a reflection of all of our journeys, into finding meaning and purpose to our lives, and stepping out of our comfort zones to create the life we've always wanted.

I can't wait for you to hear this episode.

Today I'm joined once more by my dear friend Laura Parrott Perry, who has just released her first book 'She Wrote It Down'. Today she returns to the show and we discuss the book, the powerful and painful stories shared in it, and power of sharing our stories.

Laura shares with great wisdom, insight and honesty, about how our stories will always tell themselves one way or another and about the choice we have to take control of our stories, by having the courage to share them - even if it's only with one other person.

Laura has a powerful, often painful testimony. I hope her story of healing and recovery from childhood sexual abuse, and alcoholism, will give you hope and inspiration to confront your own darkness, and find healing and redemption. Laura is one of the most courageous, and fiercely compassionate women I know, make sure you don't miss this episode (and then go buy her book!).

Trigger Warning: Alcoholism, Sexual Abuse

The Poema Podcast returns for a new series today as I interview writer & speaker Caroline McGraw. Caroline shares her powerful story about how she learned the damage perfectionism can do to our lives.

Caroline talks movingly about how she learned to break through the trappings of perfectionism and find a thriving joyful love beyond it - and how we can all do this too.

Caroline speaks with such honesty, wisdom and humour, and is so inspiring - it was such a blast to talk to her, so take a listen.

Today, with the last episode of 2017, we continue with our series on those difficult questions of our spiritual journey. My friend and recurring guest Charles Porter rejoins me to discuss the challenging question of what we do when we begin to outgrow our spiritual community, feel like it's time for us to move on, feel rejected or excluded from the community, or don't agree with the leadership and need to walk away.

This is a question many close friends and people I know have been asking, and it's something Charles has a lot of experience of. He shares his own story and the challenges and struggles he and his wife have faced, and how they've found a way to navigate through them.

This is a hugely important discussion, and a question I believe many are silently asking without ever speaking it outloud. It's a question all of us need to discuss, and examine - and may be challenge we all face at one point or another.

The podcast will return in the new year with more of this series and more - so enjoy this episode, and I'm sending you all much love and prayers for the upcoming holiday season.

See you in 2018!

The "Questions We Don't Ask" series continues today with arguably one of the biggest questions of all - why do we believe? My friend Daniel Skillman joins me for a fascinating discussion about the very reasons we choose to believe - why we believe what we believe, why we change our beliefs, and why we believe in anything at all. And what believing can do to us.

Daniel has lots of profound wisdom and insight to share, and as ever in this series, our discussion goes off to all sorts of places. Faith, doubt, questions, mystery, the mystics, church, belief...and lots more.

This series has been a huge eye opener for me on my own journey, I hope this episode challenges and inspires you too.

Today our we return to our series “Questions We Don’t Ask”, as myself and my friend Abi Lloyd discuss the challenging question of “What Kind of Life Am I Being Drawn Into?”.

As ever, this question takes us to some interesting and unexpected places, sharing our own stories and challenges, and draws out further, deeper questions about our faith, spirituality and church.

It also raises more questions about exactly what kind of life Jesus would have us live, and who God even is. I hope you’ll join us.

My dear friend, author and speaker Claire Musters, joins me on the show today. Claire shares her powerful and challenging testimony of how she had to confront the masks she was wearing, the darkness in her life, and how through the love and grace of friends, her devoted husband and God, she found a way to healing and transformation - and in the process discovered her authentic self.

Claire also talks about the masks we all wear, the different roles we play in our lives, and how to confront the challenge of taking off those masks and doing the work to discover our authentic selves, as she writes about her new book 'Taking Off The Mask'. What we discover in our conversation is that taking off our masks is a journey to discover our true selves, and to know the divine in a deeper, richer way.

Find more of Claire's work at www.clairemusters.com, and buy her new book 'Taking Off The Mask, on her website or on Amazon.

Taking off the Mask

Kaitlin Curtice joins me on the podcast today. Kaitlin is a Native American Christian author, speaker and worship leader. As an enrolled member of the Potawatomi Citizen Band and someone who has grown up in the Christian faith, Kaitlin writes on the intersection of Native American spirituality, mystic faith in everyday life, and the church.

Kaitlin and I discuss her new book, 'Glory Happening', real stories of finding the divine in everyday places. We also explore how we can see the divine in the every day, why and how we believe, and how our spirituality can impact our creativity.

Kaitin is a woman of grace and deep spirituality, and has so much wisdom to share with the world. This one's definitely worth a listen.

I’m delighted to welcome author and speaker Matt Bays to the podcast today.

Matt begins by sharing the powerful and moving story behind his book “Finding God In The Ruins”, his painful childhood which led to struggles with alcohol addiction, and how in the midst of his recovery he faced yet more challenges as his sister tragically lost her life to cancer.

We talk about dealing with grief, addiction and being honest with both God and ourselves about suffering, and asking those tough questions. About doubt, questioning and the mystery of the divine, and how we believe.

Matt is humble, wise and honest, and it was a joy to talk to him. Have a listen and then check out his book.

Author and blogger Tanya Marlow joins me today to talk about her new book 'Those Who Wait'. It's a book about learning the art of divine patience, and stories from scripture and life which teach us about waiting on God.

Tanya has a powerful personal testimony which has taught her a lot about patience, both in life and in faith, and with her theological background has taken several stories from scripture and shown what they can tell us about waiting on God.

Everyone is waiting. We wait for a bus, a spouse, a different job, a better life. We wait for Christ. At best, it's irritating; at worst, unbearable. But what if our frustrated longings have spiritual value? Tanya discusses this with me today, with great wisdom, insight and joy. Tanya is one of the wisest, most grace-filled people I've encountered and it was a joy to chat to her. I know you'll be truly inspired by this conversation.

You can find Tanya's work at TanyaMarlow.com, follow her on Twitter at @Tanya_Marlow & you can buy her book 'Those Who Wait' on Amazon.

Those Who Wait: Finding God in Disappointment, Doubt and Delay

Today I'm joined by author, speaker and theologian Kent Dobson.

Kent, with great vulnerability and wisdom, shares his own spiritual journey, including his pilgrimage up what is often known as Mount Sinai - where he was bitten by a camel, both physically and metaphorically. This is a story he tells in his new book 'Bitten By A Camel'.

Religion, God, Spirituality, Nature, Sacred Texts, Mystery, and the Human Soul are all being rethought, turned over and reborn. This unfolding conversation is wild and full of life. It crosses disciplines and backgrounds and languages. Kent's life is about joining and promoting this generative conversation, and today he shares this wisdom and story with us.

Today musical quartet the Blacksmiths Daughters return to the podcast. Julida & Sean Alter return from our first interview we're also joined by the other half of the band, Annella and Brent Platter. Julida and Anetta are sisters, and together with their husbands, and others, are creating truly authentic, personal music.

Their new video "You're My Man" releases not long ago, and their new album 'Seasons Turn', releases 10th October, and today we talk about the new songs, the new album, and the creative journey behind it. As we examine different songs written by different members of the band, we see how our personal stories can have a direct impact on the kind of work we create.

This is a fascinating look at the creative journey behind an album, and well worth a listen.

Check out their new video here and find out more about the new album and The Blacksmiths Daughters work here.

My dear friend and author Chris Morris joins me today. Chris is a long time advocate of issues surrounding chronic illness, and reconciling these with faith. As someone who lives with chronic illness himself and has family members with chronic illness, he knows the challenges chronic illness can bring - as well as some of the stigma, in particular around some religious circles.

Today Chris shares a bit of his story, lessons he's learned and research he's done behind the subject, all of which has resulted in the publishing of his new book, 'Perfectly Abnormal'. Chris shares the truth behind a lot of stigma and misinformation, and the authentic experience of living with chronic illness - and gives hope and inspiration for those living with chronic illness themselves.

I'd highly recommend 'Perfectly Normal' to all those who live with chronic illness, and anyone who knows someone who lives with it. In the book Chris strives to destroy some common myths facing the chronic illness community, including a poor theology of illness. From there, he begins a conversation about how to build a healthy place for the chronic illness community to be safe.

The book is available now on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, iBooks, or wherever books are sold.

Today our 'Questions We Don't Ask' series continues, with the fundamental question of 'How Do I Believe?'

Continuing from where we left off last week, Charles Porter and I discuss how, whilst so often we discuss what we believe, that maybe the deeper, more fundamental question is how we believe.

These conversations aren't merely about answering the question. The questions are more jumping off points into a much bigger, wider and deeper exploration of Christian spirituality and our own journeys - because ultimately, all our journeys are connected, and there's many of us asking these kind of questions.

This question takes us from spiral dynamics, to the mystics, to Richard Rohr & non-dual thinking, via Trump & Brexit, and on to tons of other places. We explore some challenging, uncomfortable territory - but territory it's absolutely necessary to cover to gain both a deeper understanding and depth to our spirituality.

Come and join us.

Season 2 of the Poema Podcast kicks off with a new series we'll be doing on and off over the next few months - Questions We Don't Ask. This series will see me and others discuss raw, honest and challenging questions of faith and our spiritual journey. Questions I've been asking myself a lot in the last year. The type of questions many of us don't like to ask, but the ones we need to ask more than anything if we really want to grow and move deeper in our spirituality.

These conversations aren't merely about answering the questions. The questions are more jumping off points into a much bigger, wider and deeper exploration of Christian spirituality and our own journeys - because ultimately, all our journeys are connected, and there's many of us asking these kind of questions.

Today, my friend Charles Porter, previous guest, formerly host of the Fable Podcast and founder of the Neighbourhood Liturgies, joins me to discuss the first question.

"What Do I Believe?"

The conversation goes into some deep, wide and interesting places way beyond the initial question. I hope you'll join us, and that this helps you explore this and other questions on your own journey.

Today I do a reflection on my own journey of the last 18 months - both spiritual and creative - and the story of how the podcast, and all my creative work, has grown and evolved. I talk about the importance of taking a break, of refuelling, reimagining, disconnecting, and how this is absolutely necessary to our growth, and to creating more great work, and a thriving, healthy life.

This is the last episode of Season 1 of the Poema Podcast. Season 2 will begin in the Autumn, and in this episode I share more about this, why I'm doing it, and what you'll have to look forward to in Season 2.

Today I'm delighted to host Matthew Brough, pastor, author and host of the 'Spirituality For Normal People' podcast. We talk about whole range of topics, including creativity, the spirituality of writing fiction, spiritual practices and more.

Matthew shares his own story, and talks about how writing fiction has influenced his spiritual journey, and the circle of creativity and our spiritual journey - where each impacts and is part of the other, and how this has impacted his own role as a pastor. He also talks about his own spiritual practices, and how these have evolved and changed and the impact they've had on his creative side, in particular the birth of his podcast, 'Spirituality For Normal People', which explores creativity and spiritual practice.

Matthew's got a lot of wisdom and insight to share on both spirituality and creativity, and this is well worth a listen.

Today I'm joined by author and spiritual counsellor Joy Resor. Joy shares her own story of how suffering and grief set her on the path to finding her true purpose, and how she discovered joy in the process. It's a powerful story of expanding spirituality, creativity as a healer, and how suffering can be a catalyst for authentic and even positive change in our lives.

Joy shows how it's possible to have truly hopeful, joyful perspective on our journey, whilst still bearing the scars of our past. This is definitely worth a listen!

Today author, blogger and podcaster Rebecca Lombardo joins me on the podcast. For 25 years Rebecca has battled with mental illness of various kinds. She's also had to undergo the trauma of losing both parents, and battled with suicidal thoughts. Yet through writing, publishing a book, podcasting, and an incredibly supportive husband, she has survived and is doing amazing work creating safe spaces for people to discuss mental illness.

Rebecca, with great courage and honesty, shares her story, and the truth that it's not always about having a happy thriving ending, but that the challenges of mental health are ongoing, a daily battle, and that everyone struggling with mental health has to find their own unique way of surviving, and maybe even, occasionally, thriving.

Rebecca's story will both challenge and inspire you, and leave you encouraged.

Michael and Lisa Gungor are on the podcast today. Husband and wife, creatives, musicians, Jesus-followers, Michael and Lisa have created some amazing music over the years and have some phenomenal wisdom on spirituality, creativity, and the personal journey.

Michael and Lisa share with great honesty and wisdom about their own personal journey, the challenges and struggles they've had to confront in recent years, and how they've shaped their spiritual and creative journey.

The Gungors talk about the creative process and spiritual journey behind their recent One Wild Life album trilogy, and how creativty is both a spiritual and an organic process. They also unpack more of their own spiritual practices, and we discuss together how a real spiritual practice can be as simple as playing with your kids, and the truth about our habits and decisions.

Finally, they talk about what's happening in the world right now, the atmosphere of fear, of a force in the world "pulling back from the progress we've made" - and how and why here might be hope for us all.

This is truly inspiring, life giving and eye-opening interview, without doubt, one of the most amazing and inspiring I've ever done. Michael and Lisa have such wisdom, humilty and grace, and this is well worth a listen.

"Spiritual practice is when you are sitting down and training your body and mind to engage with the divine in each and every moment" - Michael Gungor

"We often don't make decisions about what we do. We act on habit." - Lisa Gungor

"There's a force in the world pulling back from the progress we've made" - Michael Gungor

Today I'm joined by Julida and Sean Alter, who make up one half of 'The Blacksmith's Daughters', a folk/rock band from Minneapolis. The band is comprised of Julida and Sean, and Julida's sister Anella Platta and her husband Brent. Julida and Anetta are from a family with a long history of being blacksmiths - hence the name 'The Blacksmith's Daughters'.

We discuss the creative process involved in songwriting and recording, and their unorthodox but effective approach to how they make their music. We also explore what true authentic creativity is, and holding in balance between creating great, honest work, but also wanting to put that work out into the world.

This was such a fun interview to do. Julida And Sean are a great couple who have great insight into the creative process, and offer encouragement to all of us to go out and make melodies in our own creative work, whatever that might be - and to be ourselves.

On the show today I do a short reflection on the importance of wrestling with the divine, and how I've learned from my own experience that being honest with God, voicing your doubts, questions, frustrations and anger towards God is actually the sign of a healthy relationship with Him.

I also talk about how sacred wrestling is something which deepens our faith, not weakens it - and finally about the voice of grace which says to us in those moments "Friend, do what you came here to do".

Today I'm joined by by returning guest Dr Kate Hendricks Thomas, and new guest Dr Karl Hamner, to discuss the issues of identity and moral injury. We discuss how to handle transitional periods of our lives, big shifts away from something familiar, which might have defined us, into a new season of life - and potentially a new identity.

Karl and Kate share how these concepts work in practice, in their own work and research in the military, transitioning former soldiers out of military service into civilian life, and the challenges and conflicts this brings for them - and what that might look like for the rest of us.

This is a fascinating examination of identity, where we ground ourselves, and how we confront those necessary and inevitable transitional periods of our lives. It's about the grief of leaving one season behind and how we move forward into a new one.

On today's episode I share some reflections on the latest season of my life - a book launch, confronting difficult truths, and why I'm taking a short sabbath from writing. I talk about how ego can be a good thing but how when we let it dictate our lives, when we let our ego define our value, then we can come to an unhealthy place.

And I also discuss how sometimes the best thing we can do for our vocation, passion and calling is to lay it down for a season, why practicing sabbath, and good self-care is so important, and finally, how who we are is more valuable than what we do.

Today my friend Sarah Heath returns to the podcast, to discuss her newly released book 'Whats Your Story - Seeing Your Life Through God's Eyes', a book about seeing our lives through the concept of story, using the Biblical story of Joseph as a lens to examine our own stories.

Sarah talks about how she discovered the power of story in her own life and how it's impacted her story, and we discuss together how conflict and suffering are realities whichever path we take, but how God can use them to shape our lives for the better. Sarah shares how through scripture, and in our own lives, we can see that darkness and death isn't the end of the story, and there is hope and resurrection.

Finally we talk about examples of the power of story in scripture, including both Joseph and Jesus, and how we can see our own stories in the lens of Christ, and how that can lead us to a deeper, more intimate relationship with the divine.

Sarah is always such fun to talk to and has such wisdom and insight - her book, and her thoughts on the concept of story and scripture, had a profound impact on my life, I'm sure it will do for you. Take a listen!

Today I'm joined by my friend Wendy H Jones. Wendy is a hugely successful crime writer, and international speaker. She's authored the Shona Mackenzie adult crime series which has sold tens of thousands of copies internationally, 'Power Packed Book Marketing', a book on how to successfully market your books with integrity, and is on the committee of the Association of Christian Writers.

Wendy shares her story, and the background to how she got into writing adult crime fiction and how her Christian faith has influenced those books. And we talk about engaging with our dark sides, and where creative inspiration truly comes from.

Finally we discuss the realities of book marketing in the age of social media, and again how Christians in particular can market our work with integrity and keeping to the values of our faith.

Wendy is smart, fun, inspiring and has a lot of wisdom to share, this is well worth a listen!

Alexander Shaia returns to Poema today to share about the Quadratos journey through the Easter story. He takes us back to an understanding of the story older, and wider than the traditional 'Holy Week' we all know and takes us into the story of the Christ and how we can identify with Jesus as He walks His passion.

We examine in brief the difference between the gospel interpretations of the story, and what these different interpretations mean for our own journey, and take a deeper look into Gethsemane. There we find a Jesus who names the betrayer, but then calls him friend, and a Jesus whose struggles with obedience mirror our own.

Finally we examine Jesus cry 'My God, My God, Why Have You Forskaen Me?', and discuss how this is not a moment of despair, but a victory cry, not a moment of doubt, but supreme faith. And we see why every day of the Easter Story, from Good Friday to Easter Sunday, is a story of resurrection.

This will blow your mind and expand and deepen your understanding of the Easter story, and the scriptures, and bring the passion of Christ alive in a fresh way, as it has done for me.

I'd encourage you to listen to this and engage with it over the Easter season, I certainly will be - and I believe it will make our Easters richer, deeper, more honest and more joyful. Have a happy and blessed Easter everyone.

Today I'm joined by my friend Jessica Aguilar-Christy. Jessica is a yoga instructor, and teaches yoga through the lens of Christianity with Soul Stretch Christian Yoga and at Jefferson Avenue Presbyterian Church.

Today Jessica shares about the history of yoga, dispels myths many Christians believe about yoga and the truth behind the science of yoga. She also talks about the spiritual discipline of yoga and the impact it can have on one's Christian faith, and the impact it's had on her own spiritual journey.

This was such an eye-opening, inspiring and refreshing conversation which opened my eyes up to a new way of experiencing the divine, Jessica speaks with such wisdom and honesty, and is one of the most centred people I know. I was privileged to meet her and her husband last year on my trip to America. Jessica truly practices what she preaches, and there's no doubt yoga has had a big impact on deepening and centering her relationship with Jesus.

This is well worth a listen. Also feel free to check out Jessica's work at https://www.jesuyogini.com/

I'm joined today by Jo Cleary, a learning development officer, and writer from Coventry in the UK, who blogs on issues of identity, self-worth and learning to love yourself. Jo shares her powerful story of depression, psychosis and chronic fatigue syndrome, and how they have all influenced both her spiritual and creative journey.

We discuss together how mental health can impact your relationship with both God and the church, and the power of creativity for healing and transformation. And Jo shares honestly and vulnerably about how the her mental illness impacted her relationships and her day to day life. Jo explains how she discovered that God is someone who, no matter how much we might push him away, no matter how much we think He's abandoned us, will remain to pick up the pieces of our broken lives, and redeem them.

Finally Jo talks about her recent work, with the Radical Love Journey Facebook group & blog, and how she is using her story to give hope to others.

Jo has a powerful story and great insight to share, on some important issues, it's definitely worth a listen.

Today my dear "wolfie" friends, musical and creative duo Chloe and Taylor Turner (AKA Chasing Lovely), join me again. Today we talk about the personal stories and influences behind their work, as well as the spiritual and personal journeys which influence all of us creatively, and shape who we are and who we become.

Chloe and Taylor talk about the journey of their first EP, Unbridled, (which released 2015 and is available now), and also, the the powerful, personal stories behind the songs on their upcoming EP - which they are currently raising money to make via Kickstarter. We also talk about how we interact with our own work and how others interpret creative work isn't always how we intended, that each of us comes to a creartive work with our own story, and how great art will meet us where and impact us there.

It's always great fun talking to Chloe and Taylor, who are wise beyond their years, and have great insight on creativity and spirituality - and are just plain awesome people!

Take a listen, then, if you can, please ensure their new EP gets made, by going to support their Kickstarter in any way you can - you can find it here.

Today I'm joined by my dear friend Laura Parrott Perry. Laura is an author and a speaker, and co-founder of Say It, Survior, a non-profit dedicated to helping survivors of sexual abuse.

With great courage and honesty, Laura shares her own story of abuse, and it's impact on her and her family, and the story of how a phone call with her cousin and a blog post sharing her story, led to her co-founding a non-profit which now provides a safe space for survivors of sexual abuse to get the support and healing they need.

Laura also talks about the importance of valuing our own story, and the power of owning our story and being honest about our journey. Laura argues passionately that all our stories have value, and all deserve respect, and to be received with love and grace - and when that happens, we can begin our journey to healing and transformation.

Laura speak with great wisdom, insight and courage, and her story is well worth a listen.

Speaker, author and theologian Brian McLaren joins me today. Brian is the author of many books, such as 'A New Kind Of Christian' and 'A Generous Orthodoxy'. Today on the podcast we discuss his most recent work, 'The Great Spiritual Migration', which explores how our world is looking for a better way to be Christian.

Brian shares with great wisdom and insight about why the traditional models of church and Christian faith are no longer working, why the church is dying and it's connections with the rise of the political right in the West. And he shares an exciting new vision of what church can and could be if we choose to move beyond traditional boundaries of 'conservative' and 'liberal' and to a more transcendent, non-dual view of Jesus and the Christian faith.

Brian argues with great conviction that the most important thing is not simply what we believe - but how we believe it, and why it's important to be open to allow God to take us ever onward and deeper into more transcendent, mysterious, and inclusive understandings of who He is and what He wishes for His church to be.

Brian is a man of great wisdom and insight, with a deep love for Jesus and His church - and his message is much needed. Definitely worth a listen!

It's my pleasure to welcome Rev Sarah Heath onto the podcast today. Sarah is a minister in a small but growing church in Costa Mesa, California, as well as an artist, writer and author. Her first book 'What's Your Story? Seeing Your Life Through God's Eyes' releases this coming April.

Sarah talks about her biggest passion, creativity. And together we explore the process of creativity and how this applies to all walks of life, not just the arts. Sarah talks about how she expresses her own creativity through painting, drawing, art, as well as writing - and how she's applied the principle of creativity in her work helping to create a church community.

We discuss the myth that some people are creative and others are not creative - and Sarah makes a strong case to say we are all creative people, whether we're accountants, scientists, pastors, or writers. Sarah talks about he sees her role as helping others create the authentic lives and work they were made to live, and how that begins by her living autnentically.

Sarah is such fun to talk to, has such wisdom, insight and passion for creativity and spirituality, and her words are so life giving and inspiring. Take a listen to her today & you'll be inspired to go out and create.

Today on Poema I'm joined by singer/songwriter/worship leader Shelly E Johnson. Most well-known for writing the powerful worship anthem “Power of the Cross”, which has been recorded by Natalie Grant, Steve Green and is being used in churches worldwide, Shelly has served as worship leader alongside Beth Moore, Tony Nolan, Andy Stanley, and toured North America with renown Irish Hymn-writers Keith & Kristyn Getty.

Today Shelly shares her own powerful story, of losing a parent at an early age, how it impacted her relationship with God and her creative journey. Having lost a parent myself, and as an artist, much of her story resonated with my own, and we explore some deep truths about grief, suffering and the spiritual journey.

We also discuss the true meaning of grace, and how God through our experiences, we have seen how God takes these broken pieces of our lives, and rebuilds them into something more beautiful - a Mosaic Of Grace, the title of one of Shelly's most memorable songs, and the title of my own bestselling book.

Today Sarah Bessey, author of 'Jesus Feminist' and 'Out Of Sorts', joins me on the podcast. We talk about writing and creativity as ways we interact with the divine, and express ourselves spiritually - as well as the spirituality of the TV show Doctor Who.

Sarah talks about writing as her altar, her way of interacting with God, and expressing her spirituality - and how this can be true for all of us in all our creative work, not just the work we share publicly. Sarah and I also talk about authentic creativity really is, and how as artists, we can deal with both criticism and praise in a healthy, Godly way.

Sarah shares with great wisdom and insight, how what we believe about God shows up in every area of our lives - our parenting, our marriages, our work - whatever we do - and why we need to listen to our lives to see where our relationship with God is.

Finally we talk about our mutual love of the TV show 'Doctor Who', the divine and theological truths we have found in the show, and how the show impacts our spirituality and relationship with God.

Sarah has such fierce integrity, wisdom and compassion, and a genuine love for God and others - talking to her is always such a blessing and again, in this interview, is so inspiring, encouraging and challenging.

Today I'm joined by Matthew Schmitt, co-founder of The Table Setters, a new organisation running diversity workshops, and doing consulting that helps to develop culturally integrated lives in churches, schools & businesses in the US.

Matthew and I talk about issues of race and equality in the US today, and the challenge of what it really means to love your enemy. The concept of the Table Setters is to bring people of different perspectives, races, backgrounds, beleifs around the same table and have healthy dialogue, and Matthew and I discuss together what this looks like - in particular in the current political climate in the US.

And with the election of Donald Trump as President, we talk about how progressives and conservatives, instead of hating on each other, might follow Jesus example, come around a table together, and hear each others stories - and how that is what may bring about the change we desperately need.

Matthew is a truly inspiring man, doing some groundbreaking work, and his words will both encourage and challenge you.

Today, theologian and author Kyle Strobel joins me to talk about the challenging topic of what true wisdom is, and Christianity in relation to the concept of power - and how this has been misunderstood and abused.

Kyle and his colleague Jamin Goggin have interviewed some of the oldest and wisest prominent Christian leaders and learned a lot about what true Christ-like wisdom. We discuss how, in fact, the way of Jesus is about surrender, about giving up power, not claiming more and more. We talk about the myth of Christian celebrity, and Kyle shares the powerful metaphor of Harry Potter, and how his story is a metaphor for this in many ways, and what the story of Harry Potter has to say to our own spiritual journeys.

This is a fascinating insight into important issues of power, wisdom and surrender - and Kyle has great wisdom on the topic. Definitely worth a listen!

Kyle's new book 'The Way Of The Dragon Or The Way of the Lamb', which explores this topic in much more depth, releases Jan 25.

The inspiring author, speaker and activist Shane Claiborne joins me today. He talks about his most recent work in campaigning for the end of the death penalty in the US.

Shane passionately and with great wisdom shares about how the death penalty is about more issues than justice - it's about race, equality, and about grace.

He shares some moving testimonies of people on death row, and argues that as Christians we are called to believe that no one, not even murderers, are beyond redemption, and for an approach to justice which begins with grace, with mercy - and beginning to see all people as God sees them.

This is one of the most inspiring interviews I've ever done - and whether you're Christian or not, this will challenge, encourage and inspire you.

Quotes:

"The death penalty has survived not despite Christians but because of us. The Bible belt is the death belt."

"We live in a world where violence is pervasive, we've created this myth of redemptive violence, this myth we can fight violence with violence. Violence is the problem, not the solution. The disease, not the cure"

"Support for the death penalty has hit historic lows"

"Jesus was an executed, forgiving victim of tremendous violence, who died with grace on His lips, saying 'Father forgive them, they don't know what they're doing'. That should change us."

For my first Poema interview I welcome Max Strom. Max is an author of several books, including 'A Life Worth Breathing' and 'There Is No App For Happiness'. Max speaks and trains people all over the world around these topics, and has also spoken at TED.

Max is passionate about us all having a holistic, healthier rhythm to life, and teaches healthy breathing exercises and routines, including some yoga-based exercises.

Max and I talk about what a healthy breathing pattern really looks like, how anxiety can be directly linked to grief, and also touch on the damage our culture's addiction to social media can do to our personal well-being.

Max has great wisdom and provides some genuine, healthier alternatives to the rhythms we often choose live by and consumerism can pressurise us to follow, refreshing alternatives which can help us all lead a healthier life, inside and out.

Today 'James Talks' relaunches as the 'Poema Podcast'. This week we have three episodes - today, tomorrow and Thursday. The others will have very special guests, today's is the first of some reflective episodes - all of these will be hosted and curated by me, James Prescott.

In this first episode, Poema's I'll be talking about the changes to the podcast, what we'll be doing in this first season of the 'Poema Podcast'. I also explore what this word 'Poema' really means, its roots in scripture, and how it's fundamental to us exploring our identity, finding our calling, and stepping out in faith to create the life God intended us to live.

I unpack the idea that we're all God's masterpiece, our lives are works of art - and share how if we root ourselves in grace, we can be liberated to create the life God always wanted for us - and ultimately, help create a better world.

In today's episode I tell a story about my own journey of the last year, about confronting our demons, and how grace has impacted my life in the last year. And I share about some exciting new projects coming up, including my upcoming book, 'Mosaic Of Grace', writing projects, the blog, and some exclusive, important news about the future of the podcast.

We all go through seasons in life, everything has its time, and in this episode I talk about how this is being reflected in my own life and work, and how this is something all of us go through - and how to do that well. I share a story of how grace transforms us, how it confronts the truth, and about freeing ourselves to risk, to step out in faith - and how the goal isn't the result, but the process itself.

And finally, I talk about Poema - a word from scripture about us being God's workmanship, God's masterpiece. I explore how it relates to our own lives, how it encompasses all the work I'm doing, and how my work, especially the podcast, will be changing to embrace this word and it's meaning. And I share how and why this will be the last episode of James Talks in it's current format, and how the podcast will be changing in 2017.

There's also more detailed information on my upcoming book, including the release date itself, and an opportunity to get involved with the launch and get a ton of freebies - you can do that here.

Today Alexander Shaia returns to my podcast, for a special Christmas episode. It's now around the Winter Solsatace, December 21, the date Christmas used to be celebrated - the date light begins to come into the world in a physical sense. Alexander and I explore the reality behind the Christmas story as shared in the gospels.

Alexander talks about some of the hidden meaning and symbolism in a story which has become familiar to many of us, and in doing so, makes this story come alive in a fresh way, a way which speaks to all of our journeys, and into our exploration of our identity in Christ.

I hope you'll take a listen, as Alexander makes an old story refreshing, relevant and inspiring in a fresh, encouraging way, which can give us all hope as we approach Christmas, and the coming of the Messiah.

Wishing you all a blessed and wonderful Christmas.

My friends Chloe & Taylor Turner, AKA Chasing Lovely, return to the podcast today for the fourth time - third time as guests. As ever, we have a whole load of fun discussing spirituality, creativity, mystery, doubt and loads more.

Chloe & Taylor share what's happening on their own journey, as individuals and as a band, both creatively and spiritually. They also discuss how their spiritual journey is impacting their creative journey, and the continuing intersections between those two areas. The duo also discuss their next musical project, and exclusively share a new, unreleased track performed live and exclusive for James Talks.

Plus, you'll finally hear the secret story behind how and why the Chasing Lovely episodes are called 'Wolfie' episodes! :)

Talking to these guys is always so much fun & they have such wisdom and maturity beyond their years in the areas of creativity & spirituality. I know you'll all love this episode.

Author, speaker and pastor Steve Austin joins me today. He shares his powerful and inspiring story, of going from being a pastor to addiction, depression and a suicide attempt.

But the story didn't end there.

Steve rebuilt his marriage, his faith and his life, and became a successful author, blogger and now, again, a pastor. It's a challenging, inspiring and deeply moving story, a story of messy grace which can give hope to us all.

Whatever your circumstances, take a listen to Steve's story, and I think you'll find a reason to hope.

Actress, producer & filmmaker Sarah Arlen joins me today. Sarah is currently putting the finishing touches to 'Twice' a film she both produced, wrote and starred in. Sarah shares her own powerful story of her battles with depression and how that's impacted her creative journey.

We discuss in more detail the links between suffering and creativity, and the healing power of creativity. Sarah then goes on to discuss the two types of creator, and how we can better explore our own creative side and find healing through artistic expression.

Sarah is a dear friend, and here she shares with great courage and honesty about her struggles, and she has incredible wisdom on creativity. Give it a listen!

Periscoper, writer, and creator Anita Wing Lee returns to James Talks today. Anita has used her creative talents to make huge difference in the world - Periscoping from refugee camps to raise awareness of the refugee crisis, and combining her talents with a friend to create and crowdfund a book of stories and photographs of these refugees to raise money to support them.

What we need right now are people willing and courageous enough to step out and create a new world, a better world, for all of us. Anita and I both believe strongly that we have the power to create the work, the lives, and the world we want - if only we can claim that power and use it positively. Anita and I discuss this in the podcast and explore how you and I can begin that process in our own lives and the world around us today.

My dear friend Nish Weiseth returns to James Talks today, in a special episode to discuss the imminent US Presidential election. Nish and I are both passionate about politics, and it's role in the world - and the US election result affects us all, which is why we decided to do this special episode.

Nish & I explore in more detail about the potential implications of a Trump Presidency, both for Nishs' own state of Utah, the US and potentially the world too, and we talk about what the implications of Trumps' campaign - whether ultimately successful or not - says about American culture, American politics, the evangelical church, and what the future might hold.

This was recorded just after the first Presidential debate, before the controversies on both sides which have arisen since - but is still a fascinating discussion on what's a really important topic. Not just the election, but culture, and the church, are all impacted by this election. Nish has such wisdom and passion, and it's definitely worth a listen.

Today Sarah Simmons, writer & blogger, shares her own powerful testimony. It's a story of suffering, lost dreams, but also one of hope, restoration and grace which is truly inspiring. Sarah shares about how we can find grace even in the midst of our own imperfect lives, and how that brings us hope.

In our conversation we discuss questions like:

How did Sarah learn to find joy in the mess, what does that look like for her, and how can we all find joy in our own messes?
How do we find hope and contentment in that space between the 'what is' and 'what should be'?
How Sarah's experiences have shaped her creative journey, and how has creativity been a help to Sarah along the way?

Sarah is an amazing writer, good friend & real woman of God, and a real inspiration, I know you're going to be so blessed by her story & wisdom.

Kyle Strobel, teacher, writer and preacher, joins me today. He is the assistant professor of Spiritual Theology and Formation at Talbot School of Theology, Biola University, and helped start Metamorpha Ministries. He's also author of several books, including 'Beloved Dust'.

Kyle & discuss his own journey of faith, the 'Bevloved Dust' book and the inner spiritual journey to discovering your own identity & and deepening relationship with God, both through prayer, scripture and other routes/practices.

We discuss questions like:

How do you balance the reverence and sacredness of our relationship with God, with the need to have a real, honest relationship, rather than simply a formal one?
How we can look to the Bible, the Holy Spirit, and community as “informers” used by Christ to grow, mould, and form us into his image
The best bit of wisdom Kyle's ever received
A brief introduction to the spirituality of Harry Potter.

Kyle has such wisdom, humility and insight, and speaks in a way which is easy to understand but is challenging and inspiring - this is definitely worth a listen!

Author Pamela Hodges returns to the podcast today, and we have a lot of fun talking about creativity, identity, authenticity, being a creative entrepreneur - but above all, how to be a cat.

Pamela talks about her late cat Pooh Hodges, who was an author she transcribed for and has published the book 'How To Be A Cat', transcribed and illustrated by Pamela, and before his death completed a memoir with Pamela's help. Pamela talks about that creative process, how she's explored her creativity in different and imaginative ways, and the journey which has led her into self-publishing - and writing on behalf of cats.

It's a fun discussion and you'll learn so much about creativity and expressing your imagination - take a listen!

Neuroscientist Dr Kate Hendricks Thomas returns to James Talks today, and with her is Sarah Plummer Taylor, who is a Denver-based holistic health and wellness wellness counsellor. As a mental health professional, Sarah mentors people and organisations to help them find clarity and discover how to live happier, healthier lives.

Following on from my chat with Mike McHargue about science & faith last week, Kate, Sarah and I have a discussion of Kate's neuroscience work and it's overlaps with Sarah's work on holistic health and wellness. We examine in detail the links between physical and mental health, and their ties to Christian spirituality. We also discuss yoga, it's history, and why it's beneficial to our spiritual, mental and physical well-being.

We examine together what a holistic, integrated spirituality involving the physical, mental, emotional and supernatural can look like and how it can have a positive impact on our lives. Then we discuss some spiritual practices which might be helpful in integrating this into our daily lives.

This was hugely insightful and eye-opening chat, and I know you'll learn a lot from both Kate & Sarah.

'Science Mike' McHargue is back on James Talks this week, to discuss his new book, 'Finding God In The Waves' & answer some searching questions about science, and how it connects with our spirituality.

Mike talks about how he lived anonymously as an atheist for two years, being in leadership in his local church & even leading his own daughter to Christ whilst being an atheist. Mike shares the conflicts, the challenges, the emotions which he experienced during that time, and what his faith looks like now, having come back to Jesus through science.

I then ask Mike some science/faith questions (which you kinda have to do when you've got Science Mike on your show), like these:

Do you think there's an element of the supernatural in the scientific, and what do you believe about the links between them?
One thing which is argued by Christians is the idea we're all born fundamentally flawed - what's your perspective on that, and scientifically what does that look like in terms of how the brain works and it's desires, it's needs?
What's your thoughts on the idea, suggested by some experts, that this universe might be simulated, and what’s your definition of what's real, and what isn't real?
Do you think science will ever get to the point where we agree, without necessarily 100% proof, that there is an external intelligence, or intelligent design behind the universe, and the argument may well become who that is, and what it looks like, rather than whether it exists?

Mike finishes with a message of hope for all struggling with faith, doubt sharing from his own experience. This was one of my fave shows to do, and can't wait for you to take a listen.

And remember to check out Mike's new book 'Finding God In The Waves' - it's truly inspiring & mind blowing, and it's available to order on Amazon right now!

James Talks turns 1 year old this week! And to celebrate, today we have a very special edition - Chloe & Taylor Turner, AKA Chasing Lovely, who were my first guests on James Talks, are interviewing me, James Prescott! And it's a combination of a total roasting, and some deep discussion on spirituality, creativity, calling and the issues I'm passionate about.

There's some fun questions like random facts about me, embarrassing stories, celebrity crushes, my soul animal, and who I'd interview if I could interview anyone in history.

Then we move on to some more serious questions, about grace, how we find our calling & identity, habits of creativity, how I found my voice, and exploring who I think Jesus is, what I think about the Bible & what I think it means to live a life in tune with the divine. Plus there's some exclusive info about my first book, and the book I'm currently writing!

Chloe, Taylor & I had so much fun recording this and I'm so excited for you to hear it. Here's to many more James Talks episodes to come!

Today Kathy Escobar & Karl Wheeler of the Faith Curcus podcast join me to share their powerful, unique & inspiring story. They share about the challenges of starting a new type of faith community, dealing with issues of theological difference & the issues which confront the modern church today.

Kathy & Karl talk about how their conversations and story evolved into a podcast called Faith Circus, a discussion on church & the modern Christian faith, and some new challenges they face as they move into a new season.

Kathy & Karl are great fun, honest & have a lot of wisdom on modern faith & the church - take a listen, then go subscribe to Faith Circus to hear more of them.

David Mike, author & former solider, joins me today to share his challenging and inspiring story. David was a solider who became a drug addict and dealer, resulting in a term in prison. But whilst in prison he experienced the transforming love and grace of both family, and God,

Today David shares how he came to be in prison, and the conflicts, challenges and emotions he experienced there. And he tells the incredible story of how a letter, and an experience of grace transformed his life - and how he discovered writing as a way to use his story to encourage others, and move forward into his calling

David's first book, 'Dishonor' is out now.

I'm delighted to welcome Glennon Doyle Melton - AKA Momastery - onto James Talks today. Glennon shares her powerful and challenging story of alcoholism, her struggles with established church, and working through a difficult marriage.

Glennon shares honestly about the importance of confronting our pain and walking through it, rather than avoiding it, and talks about the transforming power of grace. She shares passionately about how damaging church can be and what she believes healthy church should look like.

Glennon also talks about what she learned about what healthy relationships and marriages are meant to look like, how one person cannot save a marriage and why some relationships - even marriages, including her own - come to a healthy, complete ending with mutual love and respect remaining.

Here's some quotes:

“My whole writing career has been about trying to find a place I can be as honest as in AA”

"Whatever happens in the personal, happens in the universal" "Every time we get evicted from our life, we’re invited into a new life"

"The only thing I use to define myself now is child of God..it's the only thing no one can take from you"

"When everything's falling apart, that's when you need to start paying attention, that's when the change is coming"

"I'm running towards my pain every single day and it's changing everything"

This is one of the most inspiring, honest, and powerful interviews I've ever done, and it will challenge you, inspire you, and give you hope you didn't know existed. Take a listen, then go buy Glennon's new book Love Warrior today!

www.Momastery.com

www.LoveWarriorBook.com

@Momastery

Author & blogger Cindy Brandt joins me today to talk about creativity, faith, culture and justice. Cindy shares her own powerful story and talks about authenticity in her art, being vulnerable in our art, as well as her passion for justice, and building a church where all are welcome, and all are truly valued.

Cindy & I also discuss the links between art and justice, and that if we believe justice to be a central theme of the gospel, then imagination and creativity is vital to achieving that, and the challenges and risks that can come with that, and how the act of being prophetic is authentic.

You can find Cindy's work at cindywords.com

Alexander Shaia is back on James Talks and this week he's taking your questions! Today Alexander answers questions sent in by listeners, including ike:

What’s your favourite gospel, and your favourite passage from the four gospels - and why?

What are your thoughts on the issues of discipleship and evangelism, and do you see the end of Matthew as an invitation alone, or an invitation and a commission?

What does the cross look like differently in each path?

It's a fascinating, eye-opening and inspiring episode with Alexander, as he gives us more insight than ever into the Gospel path. Alexander will be back on James Talks later in the year....

Author & blogger Amy Boucher Pye joins me today. Amy is an American married to a Vicar living in the UK, and recently launched her first book 'Finding Myself In Britain'.

In today's episode Amy shares about her creative journey, which on top of authoring books, has included both blogging and book editing, and aligns this with her own spiritual journey. In this episode we see how faith and creativity intertwine and intersect, impacting one another - as we see how we're all creators made in the image of a creator.

And, in the process, we find how being creative is simply being human in the divine image - and that, in fact, the act of creativity can draw us closer to the divine.

Kent Sanders - author, coach, teacher, blogger, joins me today. Kent shares his own creative journey and about strategies he has discovered which can help artists overcome fear, take action in their creative path, and be more productive in their creative life, which he calls his 'Artists Suitcase'.

Kent shares honestly and vulnerably about his own creative struggles, and how he overcame them to become a prolific author and blogger who coaches and encourages many other creative people on their own journey. Kent is a great encourager & one of the most humble people I know, with such wisdom on creativity - this is definitely worth a listen.

Find Kent's work online at KentSanders.net.

My friend Luke Strickland of 'The Potting Shed Podcast' (& others) joins me today. Luke is a podcaster, creator, blogger and author, and a great guy. Here he shares his creative journey and how it intertwined with his own faith journey. We talk writing, creating, podcasting & vision for our lives, and how this connects with a life of faith.

Luke and I also explore how to find your authentic voice, about recognising your dreams and making them closer to reality, and finding the courage to share your work with the world.

Join us, have a listen and then go check out Luke's awesome new book 'Sight Lines: Clearer Vision, Closer Dreams', which is available to buy on Amazon now!

My friend Jim Woods, an author, writing coach, and blogger, joins me today. We discuss his own creative journey, and the challenge of leaving a stable job behind to risk it all on a creative career, in his case, as a writer.

Today we talk about how to maintain authenticity in our work, how to keep our artistic integrity and find our true voice as artists. Jim shares about the challenges he's faced maintaining his own integrity whilst making it his living, and great wisdom on how to do creative work and create a life which is truly authentic, and really matters.

Come and join us!

Find more of Jim's work online at jimwoodswrites.com

Christine Sine of Mustard Seed Associates, blogger, author, missionary & gardener joins me today. Christine shares her fascinating journey which took her from Australia all over the world, led her to found Mustard Seed Associates, a Christian charity, create and grow a blog and co-create several books. You'll also hear about how she discovered a deeper spirituality in the routines of every day living, even in the seemingly small discipline of gardening.

Christine talks about the liturgical calendar and how we can use it to help us have a healthier rhythm to life, and precisely what the spiritual rhythms of life are, and how we can build our lives around them. Christine also discusses creativity as a spiritual act, touching on what it means to live an authentic, creative spiritual life in tune with Jesus.

Christine has so much wisdom, experience, insight and enthusiasm, and I know you're really going to be blessed by this conversation. Take a listen!

Today it's the final part of our series with Alexander Shaia on the gospel journey of Quadratos. Today, we examine the book of Luke, and how we mature in service, and take the lessons we've learned, and the good news of the Christ out into the world.

Alexander & I talk about the background the book of Luke, why and when it was written and what this means for us. We discuss how even in the face of conflict and change, and the difficult realities we face every day, we can through the Gospel journey find hope for ourselves, and for others, and a way to take that hope out into the world.

For more information on the Quadratos journey go to Quadratos.com, and if you have any questions for Alexander, send them to james@jamesprescott.co.uk - we may be having a Q & A episode with Alexander sometime soon!

Alexander Shaia returns in the second of our three part journey through the gospel(s).

Today we focus on John, and how we discover joy, even in the midst of the most terrible suffering, and then enter into a resurrection path into a new tomorrow.

Alexander Shaia returns to James Talks today, for the first of a new series over the next three weeks, walking us through the Gospel Journey of Quadratos in much more depth.

In our previous discussion, in Episode 43, we briefly covered all four stages of our journey of identity through the gospels - or as Alexander prefers, the four stages of the one gospel of Christ. In this series we'll be spending entire episodes on different stages, and exploring the books much more deeply.

Today we begin with Matthew & Mark - the story of Matthew is about how we face change, about confronting the truth of the change in our lives & culture, and living with that change. There are dramatic changes which come through Jesus, through alientation, through events in history, and Matthew teaches about that

In Mark, we move through change & confront our own sense of isolation, abandonment, how Jesus often felt this way, how this gospel was written to a people often feeling this way, and what this can tell us about those seasons in our own lives.

Alexander unpacks this all with his relaxed, friendly and insightful way - and will leave you wanting more.

Listen in, and join us next week for John.

If you want to follow the journey in a lot more detail as you listen, go to Quadratos.com & download Alexander's book heart & mind - and if you want to study this in a group, there's other resources there for you to download.

It's the 50th episode of James Talks! Today I share some updates on my latest work, including my upcoming book, blog posts, the podcast, and mostly, a personal reflection on my recent journey.

I talk about what I've been facing & what it's taught me about the importance of going back to confront the pain & struggles from our past we might have buried, in order to move forward, no matter how painful that can be. And I reflect on how it's only then that we can we begin living the full life we were created for. Now.

Next week we start a whole new set of interviews...you can find out more about them in this episode too!

We've all been shocked & deeply moved by events in Orlando this week. Today I posted a blog post about Orlando itself, and in this podcast I discuss the issue of guns, gun crime, and the myth of redemptive violence. From the perspective of a UK citizen living in London, a culture where there is little gun crime & no gun ownership, I share my reflections on the lessons we must learn from Orlando...and why the way of guns & violence cannot go on.

Author, speaker & radio host Matt Ham shares his powerful story today. It's a story of how he nearly lost everything, but instead discovered a life and a faith richer than anything he had known, and learned how to redefine what it means to be rich. It's a story of brokenness, restoration, purpose, healing and grace.

Matt has such a heart to serve others and is a born storyteller with incredible wisdom, born from experience, on how to live a fully rich life of faith, discover your identity in Christ & find meaning and purpose in our lives. He's shared this in his book, on a radio show, and speaking to thousands of people, and I know you're going to be really blessed by his story.

You can follow Matt on Twitter at @matthamsr and find his work at MattHam.com

Brandan Robertson joins me today to share his powerful, moving and often painful story of reconciling an emerging faith in Jesus as a teenager, with his own sexuality. His is a powerful story of being in, then suddenly finding himself out, again and again - and through it all, discovering a deeper, more inclusive spirituality which brings hope to all those who feel excluded by the church, whether it be because of their theology or sexuality.

Brandan is an amazing guy with a heart for Jesus and for all 'Nomads' - people on the outside, and a leading advocate of LGBT inclusion, and has such wisdom and insight to share with us all. It was such a privilege to chat with him, and I know his story will both challenge and inspire you.

You can find him on Twitter @BrandanJR, and check out his new book 'Nomad', available to pre-order now!

Dr Don Beck, who joins me today, is a leading authority on Spiral Dynamics. This is a theory about the development of human consciousness, and the human journey. It divides the human journey up into 2 levels of consciousness, and within those two levels are different stages, all of which are part of both our individual journeys, and the journey of humanity as a whole.

Don and I outline these different stages in a very basic way, how they have unfolded through history and we discuss how this revolutionary concept is tied into politics, culture, faith, church, and creativity. We in particularly consider the political situation in America & the world right now, and what the theory means for church and the Christian faith.

Finally, we discuss how we are meant to transcend and include all the different stages, and use the best of each stages, to come to a more unified, inclusive church, life, and world.

I'm still at the beginning of this journey myself, and it's already blown my mind. I think Don's going to blow your mind too.

For more on Spiral Dymanics check out SpiralDynamics.com & to understand stages of consciousness (which are all colour coded), go here, or download this PDF:

www.humanemergence.org/images/Spiral%20Dynamics%20model.pdf

Jory Micah joins me today to share her own story, and discuss the important issue of gender inequality in the church today. We discuss her own vision, and what gender equality looks like for Jory in her day to day life, marriage and church.

Jory then shares some practical steps we can take against patriarchy in our own churches or Christian communities, understanding the different perspectives on this issue, and finally offers genuine hope to those who are in the midst of this struggle in their own communities.

Jory has such a passion & heart for this subject, and those who suffer as a result of patriarchy in the church and culture, and it really shines through in our conversation. It's really worth a listen.

Jory blogs about this issue regularly at her site JoryMicah.com & is currently writing a book on this subject. You can follow her on Twitter at @JoryMicah

John Williamson and Adam Narloch, AKA The Deconstructionists join me today. John & Adam are two friends with a nerdy passion for discovery, deconstruction, grace, acceptance, authenticity and humble wrestling. They run a hugely successful podcast, 'The Deconstructionists' where they discuss this themselves & with guests.

Today they share their story, and in the process we talk about faith, doubt, certainty, and how to hold our faith - even those things we are certain of - with open hands, so we can keep on growing & deepening our spirituality.

John & Adam are top dudes with great wisdom, insight and enthusiasm - join us today & you'll learn so much from them, as I did.

(NB: Apologies, later on in the show we had an issues with sound quality - keep listening, it works itself out!)

Alexander Shaia joins me today to explore a revolutionary way of reading & understanding the gospels which he calls 'Quadratos' - a four fold journey of identity & transformation.

We explore how this journey takes us back to Jesus as 'the' Christ, and opens us to read the gospels in the ancient & now restored sequence for Sunday worship - and as we do, to understand what these books really meant to those who read them.

Finally, we explore the four stages of the Quadratos journey:

First Path: How do we face change? - Matthew

Second Path: How do we move through suffering? - Mark

Third Path: How do we receive joy? - John

Fourth Path: How do we mature in service? - Luke

Join me and Alexander as we explore this journey - it could transform how you read & understand the gospels - and scripture itself - forever.

Lisa Delay from the Spark My Muse podcast returns to James Talks today to talk about spiritual practices from what's called 'ignatian spirituality'. Lisa shares how these can help give us spiritual discernment and make wiser decisions about what we're going to do with our lives.

You can find out more about this work in Lisa's book, 'Forked', which is available on Amazon now. Connect with Lisa at on Twitter at @LisaDelay or at her website www.LisaDelay.com.

Mike McHargue, from the 'Science Mike' & 'Liturgists' podcasts, joins me today and shares his powerful and deeply moving testimony, of how he lost his faith, became an atheist, and then rediscovered the way of Jesus in a whole new way - grounded in reason, science, logic...and wonder.

We also talk about the fascinating interconnections between science and spirituality, and, the idea that how we were created scientifically, is connected to how we relate to God & should impact how we live in the world.

You won't want to miss this.

Dr Kate Hendricks Thomas & Dr Theresa Larson both return to the podcast today, as we discuss in more detail the three scientifically proven principles for a healthy balanced life, as Kate outlines in her book, 'Brave Strong True'.

Kate, Theresa and I discuss the three principles of social support, self-care and spirituality/religiosity, how they are key to our individual thriving, and how science shows their benefits to our lives. Kate & Theresa both have expert knowledge and wisdom in this field and they share some fascinating insights from their own knowledge and experience, on a topic which is potentially life changing.

Dr Thomas' book, which outlines these principles in more details, is out now. And Dr Larson's new book 'Warrior', where she shares her own powerful journey (as she touched on in Episode 38 last week) was released only a week ago.

Chasing Lovely, the musical/creative duo of Chloe & Taylor Turner, return to James Talks today. They were my first ever guests, and appropriately enough, are my first returning guests.

Today I catch up with the Taylor sisters, talk about their latest work, seasons of life both in work & creativity, why they are stopping touring for a while, and what lies ahead for them creatively. We also talk about the interesting & endless connections between spirituality and creativity. And of course, we have a lot fun too!

Dr Theresa Larson joins me today. Dr Larson is a Doctor of Physical Therapy and the founder of Movement Rx, a physical therapy and wellness company that offers support to wounded warriors and individuals with health and movement issues. She has just released her first book, a memoir called 'Warrior'

Today Theresa shares her own powerful story of overcoming grief and bulimia nervosa, how she overcome demands for perfection, in life, healthy, and career, and discovered a warrior spirit within herself In the process, she discovered the rhythms and science of what a healthy life, and person wellness, looks like - for both her, and all of us.

Dr Larson shares great practical advice, on personal wellness & some basic tips on how to live a healthier life, and discover our own inner warrior, even in the midst of struggle.

Nish Weiseth, author, speaker, mom & fan of Dr Pepper, joins me today. With great vulnerability, Nish shares her own powerful story, including her struggles with depression, and how this shaped both her faith & her creative life.

Nish also shares how she discovered the incredible power of story to shape lives, and began a website as an expression of this. A site which took her on the path to a writing & speaking career, and writing a book 'Speak' on the power of story.

Nish is insightful, fun, down to earth and authentic, and has so much wisdom to share with us.

You can find more of Nish's work at nishweiseth.com

Rob Bell, NYT Bestselling Author of Love Wins & several other books, international speaker, podcaster & former Pastor, joins me today.

We discuss major events in Rob's spiritual journey (including a Midnight Oil concert), what hope is, and where he sees both culture and the church progressing in the coming years.

We discuss in depth his new book 'How To Be Here' and what it means to be fully present in our own lives, how to create the life we want for ourselves & the world, sabbath, and why sometimes being true to your calling means staying in your crappy job.

Rob has so much wisdom and insight into living a meaningful, deeply spiritual life and it was such a blast to talk to him. Have a listen, and let Rob inspire you.

You can find Rob's work (and yes, I think you should read/watch/listen to everything he's done) at RobBell.com

Anita Wing Lee, Periscoper, communicator & writer, joins me today to talk about a really important cause. The Soul Of Humanity is a book of stories, photos and creative work surrounding the story of refugee crisis, with all profits going to aid awareness and give direct support to the refugees themselves.

Their project is on Kickstarter, and today Anita shares about the genesis of the project, it's importance, and invites you to contribute to this potentially life-saving project.

Shane Blackshear of the 'Seminary Dropout' podcast joins me today, to share his own powerful story of being a seminary dropout, then pastor & planting a church. He shares lessons he's learned about faith, and what led him to start his 'Seminary Dropout' podcast.

We talk about what it really means to be a 'minister', the role of church & what 'church' really means, as well as the creative process & artistic integrity.

Come & join us!

Today philosopher, poet & theologian Pete Rollins & I discuss the problem of certainty in our spirituality & daily lives, why we need to critique our faith and how important it is to confront the truth of who we are to have true spiritual growth.

We discuss Pete's 'Atheism For Lent' project and how it critiques Christianity, the idea of our faith as a magic trick with a pledge, a turn and prestige, our own holy ghosts, and also touch on Pete's vision & hope for the church.

Finally, Pete and I talk about the political situation in the US right now, chronological snobbery, learning lessons from history and the bigger problems behind the surface of American culture.

It's one of the most fascinating, thought-provoking, challenging interviews you'll hear - Pete speaks with such wisdom, intelligence and grace. Come and join us.

Today pastor & author Andy Gray shares his own powerful story, and talks about the revolutionary yet Biblical idea of Shema.

Shema means to hear, and Andy passionately explains how God wants us to hear His call to live lives overflowing with God's love. A love which was to be on our lips every morning, and which we were to teach to our children, and to be creatively expressed in our daily lives.

Andy also discusses the creative process behind his book 'The Karma Shema Drama', and how he overcame dyslexia to write a book which has had an impact on many people around the world.

Today I host pastor, speaker & author Steve Chalke. Steve shares the powerful story of how Oasis Trust - a network of churches, schools and more - started and the impact it's had on individual's lives. He outlines his vision of what church can and should be, and what our part can be in that. Finally, Steve speaks passionately and honestly about LGBT inclusion, how important is for the church and the world, and how we can begin to build a more inclusive church.

You can connect with Steve on Twitter at @SteveChalke. His church are running a conference about inclusive church - 'Open Church' - in central London soon. You can find out more about that & book tickets at the Oasis website.

Today is the second & final part of my series on repentance. In this episode I unpack the true meaning of the word 'repent' & reflect on what this might mean for us. Ending with a message of hope, and a challenge as to how we might respond.

This series part of this months #synCREATE theme of repentance.

Today is the first of a two-part series on Repentance, unpacking & exploring sin, and what we really mean when we use that word. Because our understanding of sin is fundamental to understanding repentance. This series is linked to this months #synCREATE theme of repentance.

Keep your eyes peeled for Part 2 tomorrow!

Lorna Kopp (aka Lorna Faith) is my guest today. Lorna, a writer, author & coach, shares her story and we talk about the importance of vulnerability in creating authentic work. We also discuss how her faith has impacted her creative work, and the power of encouragement.

Today I'm joined by writer, blogger, painter & author Pamela Hodges. Pamela shares her unique story - including when she met Bono - and talks about maintaining authenticity & artistic integrity in our creative work. Finally, Pamela talks about about her struggles with faith, dealing with loss, and how she encourages her cats to express themselves creatively.

Andi Cumbo is an experienced writer, coach, author and editor, and a good friend. Today on the podcast she shares her powerful & challenging story, with wisdom about creativity, calling, and how this ties in with her spirituality, and her life running a farm. Andi has so much wisdom to share about creativity, spirituality, calling & living a balanced life, and I know you'll really benefit from her words today.

You can connect with Andi online at @andilit or andiit.com

Today I talk to my good friend, writer, blogger & coach Christine Niles, about writing and the creative process. Christine has years of blogging & writing experience, and like me has spent a lot of time coaching writers. She's seen the ups & downs, the challenges, the failures & the successes, and has a lot of wisdom to share on things like finding your voice, overcoming writers block, and overcoming resistance and beginning your writers journey.

As a special exclusive for "James Talks" listeners, you can access her three week mini-course "Start To Write" for free - the course is three weeks of daily writing prompts, tips, and daily reminders to get you going on your writers journey, and highly recommended! You can access this special offer at: http://riverofthoughts.com/jamestalks/ Start your writing journey today!

The series on calling concludes with a call to action - talking about how we don't need to have permission to pursue our calling, the role of wise counsel, and challenging us to have the courage to step out & embrace the life we were created for.

We've discussed what calling is...but how do we discover our calling? Today in this series I talk about following our curiosity, and listening to that ache inside of us. Our callings often reside both in the things we are curious about, or in the inner aches, desires, longings deep inside - and we need to learn to listen to both

In part 3 of this series on calling, I explore the a simple but forgotten truth about calling - that callings can, and should, be fun. To be enjoyed. To be something we ultimately find joy in. We may not initially want to do what we're called to, but if we're really called to it, then it will become joy to us.

Before we begin exploring what our calling is & how to pursue it, we need to ground ourselves in the right place. In part 2 of my series on calling, I explore how often put our security in our calling or vocation - and how if we are to really thrive, we need to place it somewhere else.

This series is part of the #synCREATE month on calling. You're invited to create anything related to calling, and share it with the hashtag #synCREATE - get creating today

This week I'm doing a five-part series on the subject of calling. Calling is a word we use more and more often, but can be misunderstood. In this series I examine various questions/issues/misunderstandings around calling, and how we can discover our own calling. Today I begin with the basic question, 'What Is Calling?' We talk about it a lot, but what does it actually mean?

Calling is this month's #synCREATE topic - what does the word inspire in you? Go make it!

Dr Kate Hendricks Thomas is a health educator & author who has conducted research which proves there is a science to our spirituality. Today I talk with her about the three things her research has shown are required for healthy living - and an evidence basis for spirituality. Hendricks Thomas gives us a fascinating insight into how the brain works. And she shows us some incredible conclusions about how our brains work, and how humans being thrive, which can give us a whole new dimension to our spiritual journeys. Find more of Kate Hendricks Thomas at at her website www.katehendricksthomas.com, and check out more of her research in her book "Brave Strong True", available online now.

It's the time of year man of us choose our goals for the coming year. What I've done in recent years is choose one word to give me focus and direction, and which sums up all my goals - and it's had a massively positive impact. So today I share about the #OneWord365 project, how it's impacted my life & how it can benefit you too. I also discuss how whilst plans and goals are good, that often, life is what happens when we're busy making other plans. We must always be open to unexpected circumstances - and often, they can be the real life changing ones.

Finally, I talk about some exciting projects coming this year including future podcasts, upcoming books, synCREATE and more. You can get my two free e-books I discuss at the beginning in the following places: Dance Of The Writer - http://www.jamesprescott.co.uk

Unlocking Creativity - https://www.facebook.com/groups/JamesPrescottWriter/

Have a great new year & join me next week for another interview! :-)

From Dec 21st there will be a little more sunlight coming into the world. Christmas is a story of new hope. It's a symbol of new light coming into a world of darkness. And that metaphor is demonstrated in God's creation. Today on the podcast I reflect on the metaphor of darkness and light, and how this symbol of light in darkness in creation had a life-changing impact on me. And I explore what this metaphor means for you & I, both this Christmas, and beyond.

Star Wars: The Force Awakens opens this week. And today is the beginning of an occasional series called 'Geek Spirituality - where I & others explore the connections between spirituality & the stories told comic book movies, sci-fi classics like Star Wars & Doctor Who & others. Today I begin with the world of Star Wars. Firstly, I talk the spiritual awakening our culture is looking for & why this will help make the movie a success. Second, I explore the deceit and power of fear - a powerful motif in the Star Wars universe - and the path it can lead down. This leads me to share how, as in Star Wars, love and hope always triumphs - and how this applies in a world where fear is causing violence, war and exclusion of refugees, and potentially some religious groups.

Lisa Delay of the Spark My Muse podcast is my guest today. Lisa is an author, podcaster & communicator, and the co-founder, with myself, of #synCREATE, a collaborative creative community, as well as a friend. She's passionate about inspiring people to discover their creative gifts and discover more of the divine in everyday life. Today she shares her story, talks about creativity, her creative process, spirituality and living out spiritual disciplines. Lisa has a lot of wisdom to share on all these subjects, so it's definitely worth a listen! You can find Lisa's work at sparkmymuse.com & she is on Twitter at @LisaDelay - I was a guest on her podcast a few weeks back, so be sure to check it out!

Today I introduce synCreate - a new creative community, where every single person is invited to create art of any kind you like - words, music, painting, drawing, photos, videos, podcasts, blog posts, animation, films - anything - on monthly themes, sharing them in community & with the hashtag #syncreate. It's a space with freedom to create, a space to have community, a space which invites collaboration between people from different parts of the world, and where we can have fun. Info referenced in episode:

Facebook community: https://www.facebook.com/groups/syncreate Twitter: @synCreate01 Join us for the first community call/conversation/launch party with cheesy Christmas jumpers on Dec 19th, on blab - go to this link & subscribe to the call: https://blab.im/lisa-delay-ugly-sweater-christmas-party-syncreate-launch-party This months theme is advent, waiting & longing. Don't just sycroblog - syncreate

Today I have writer & blogger Taylor Duvall on the show. Taylor has a powerful, challenging story to share, which takes in writing, moving from traditional church to a more progressive spirituality, discovering a new life and purpose beyond her divorce at 22, and much more. Taylor's an amazing person & phenomenal writer, and has so much wisdom & encouragement about spirituality, creativity/writing, and empowering women. You can find her work at taylorduvall.com

Today I talk to podcaster, blogger and pastor Troy McLaughlin about creativity, calling, faithfulness and keeping integrity in our work. Troy shares about his own powerful journey of calling & how it's led him to where he is today, and his online work on Project Pastor.

Today I'm joined by Sarah Bessey, blogger, speaker & author of the new book 'Out Of Sorts', and 'Jesus Feminist'. Sarah shares her own story of faith, leaving & coming back to the church & finding Jesus in the process. Sarah & I chat about what it means to have an evolving faith, the importance of doubt, questioning and mystery and why we all need to journey together, not divide ourselves. And how the way of Jesus & the Sprit isn't about steps & formulas, but something much deeper & more mysterious. It was such fun to chat with Sarah - she's honest, challenging, funny & so inspiring.

What does it mean to be 'evangelical'? Today I share parts of my own story try to encourage those questioning what is called the 'evangelical church'. And I explore how in fact an 'evangelical' is a type of person, a way of being in the world, not a label, institution, belief system, or religious/political affiliation.

Before we progress in our spiritual journey, there is one big step of faith we have to take....and it's not just about belief.

Lauren Ward from FeministFaith.com shares her story today. Lauren talks about what she calls 'Christian Feminism', and how her feminist and Christian beliefs have shaped her story and her life choices, including her recent engagement. Finally, Lauren offers encouragement to all Christian women who are feeling unable to express who they truly are.

We need to have the courage to admit to ourselves, and eventually to others, who we really are, what we really believe and where we are in our journey. It's time to have the courage to say 'this is how it rolls with me'. And if we do, we'll find freedom, we'll find new life, and we'll realise that, in fact, we're not alone.

Today I'm joined by multi-genre musical duo Chloe & Taylor Turner, aka Chasing Lovely. Chloe & Taylor share their story, talk about creativity & their own spiritual journey. Plus, there's an exclusive live acoustic performance of the title track from their EP 'Unbridled'.
('Wolfie' is the collective name of Chloe, Taylor & myself. Keep your eyes peeled for more 'Wolfie' episodes!)

Creativity isn't about money, stats or awards. All art matters - because it exists.

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Creativity & Our Subconscious Self

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