Girls Talking Life: Recent Episodes
Yohonna Smith
Girls Talking Life is a podcast designed to encourage YOU by sharing real stories and refreshing ideas to stir your soul. We’re not enough and we can’t do it all, but with Jesus as the definer and director of our lives and a little encouragement from our friends, we can be inspired to initiate change, to be intentional, to cultivate community and to love others well.
GIRLFRIENDS. After time with girlfriends, I always feel encouraged and supported, inspired to try something different or I’ve learned something new. Girls Talking Life is here for you when you can’t be with your girlfriends.
EVERY. STORY. MATTERS. I believe that every story matters so on each episode I’ll bring you a girl and her story, plus some fun favorites. I hope our conversations will encourage you to share your story and to start talking life with the women around you.
Do you need a reminder that hoping in Jesus is an active practice?
Advent is a time of expectant hope, and it’s an invitation to increase our focus on our Savior in preparation for the celebration of Christmas.
While part of hoping is waiting, we don’t wait passively.
My guest, Jen Ludwig, and I are talking all about holding on to the hope we have in Jesus and intentionally embracing Advent this season.
You’ll hear us talk about…
- Actively waiting with hope
- Hoping with other people
- Where we go to find hope
- Longing for holiness at Christmastime
Jen Ludwig is a Jesus-follower, writer, and worship leader. After attending Pepperdine University and finishing her graduate studies at UCLA, she settled in Southern California, where she currently resides with her husband. They are recent empty-nesters, daily discovering what God has in store for them in this new season.
Her devotional book, Embracing Advent, encourages us to focus on the hope, peace, joy and love that Jesus offers at Christmas, and every day of the year.
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Are you grieving a loss?
You likely are. We experience loss every day. Sometimes, it’s smaller, like moving away from a friend or a city you loved, and sometimes, it’s extremely significant, like the death of a family member.
But through it all, we can be looking for God’s glory. And when we search for it, we will see it.
My guest, Dorina Lazo Gilmore-Young, is sharing her personal story of loss and the miraculous gift God gave her family through it. She’s encouraging us to chase God’s glory through our grief, too.
You’ll hear us talk about…
- Navigating everyday grief
- Using God’s Word to help process grief
- How good things can come from loss
- Supporting others on their grief journey
Dorina Lazo Gilmore-Young is a multi-published author, speaker, podcaster, former news reporter, and writing coach. She is passionate about helping women discover God’s glory on life’s unexpected paths and flourish in their God-given callings.
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Do you want more of Jesus? Do you desire a deeper life with God?
The depth of intimacy is determined by you.
God has already restored the relationship by sending Jesus. He is already pursuing us. It’s up to us to intentionally pursue Him. Jeannie Cunnion, today’s guest and author of Closer to God, says “we will not grow closer to Him on accident.”
So how do we deepen our relationship with God? Listen in!
You’ll hear us talk about…
- How to experience more of God in your daily life
- What going deeper has looked like for Jeannie
- How you know you're growing in intimacy
- What holds us back
- Where to start
Jeannie Cunnion is a bestselling author and speaker whose most recent books and Bible studies include Mom Set Free, Don't Miss Out, and Never Alone. Her work has been featured on outlets such as the TODAY show, Fox News, CBN, and a host of popular podcasts.
Jeannie holds a master's degree in social work, and she is the co-founder of The 509 Foundation. She and her husband, Mike, live in Greenwich, Connecticut, with their five boys.
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A discussion about engaging in the political conversation, making biblical-based decisions and practically preparing to go to the polls.
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE vote411.org
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Are the one-size-fits-all parenting techniques falling short for your family?
Maybe it’s time to parent using the Enneagram as your guide.
Beth McCord, also known as Your Enneagram Coach, joins me to help us use the Enneagram to better understand ourselves first, and then better understand how God uniquely created our kids.
You’ll hear us talk about…
- becoming a self-aware mom
- how and when we can discover our kids’ types
- choosing connection over behavior modification
- noticing our kids’ strengths (even when they don’t seem like strengths)
Beth is the heart and mind behind Your Enneagram Coach. With a rich background spanning over two decades as an Enneagram speaker, coach, bestselling author, and dedicated educator, Beth has devoted herself to empowering others through the transformative lens of the Enneagram from a faith-based perspective.
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Do you feel defeated when it comes to parenting or do you parent with a victory mindset?
I’m talking with Victoria Riollano about how to equip ourselves to fight for our families, as our kids get ready to go back to school and every day. It starts with us.
But today’s show isn’t just for moms. It’s for any woman in a position to fight for the kids they love.
You’ll hear us talk about…
- defeated thinking vs. victory-minded
- how we equip our hearts to fight
- having a war plan for our children
- prayers for our kids as they go back to school
Victoria Riollano is a mother of eight, military spouse, and Psychology professor at three universities. Victoria holds an MA in child psychology and is currently a doctoral student of Social Psychology at Liberty University. Her ultimate passion is to write and speak to inspire others to know Christ more.
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Have you ever wondered how to actually follow Jesus in your real life?
Do you know if you're following Christ or following the culture?
Does discipleship sound way too hard?
Yolanda Solomon, author of Discipleship as Holy Collaboration: Helping Others Follow Jesus in Real Life, is on the show today to help us answer some of these questions.
You’ll hear us talk about…
- Following Jesus without being a weirdo
- Discipleship as a group project – holy collaboration
- Following culture or following Christ
Yolanda M. Solomon is the director of discipleship at Epiphany Church in Brooklyn, New York, where she teaches and creates discipleship curriculum and resources. She has also worked in campus ministry at Columbia University in New York, where she was blessed to serve undergraduate students for seven years.
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What are you consuming? What are you filling up on? Is it adding to your anxiety?
We are revisiting a popular episode from the series Overcoming Anxiety.
Amy Seiffert joins me for a conversation about nourishing ourselves with the things our souls need to be fulfilled.
You’ll hear us talk about…
- Spiritual junk food we’re consuming
- Amy’s story of overwhelm and her new book Starved
- Techniques to ground us in peace
Amy is also the author of Grace Looks Amazing on You and is on the teaching team at Brookside Church. She is an affiliate Cru staff member and a regular YouVersion Bible teacher. She loves to travel and speak (and try new foods on all of her adventures!). Amy is married to her college sweetheart, Rob, and they live in Bowling Green, Ohio, with their three kids.
(This episode was originally released in March of 2023.)
Are you ready to shift into a slower gear?
Let’s take advantage of this season and create some intentional rhythms that allow us to slow down, and connect with God and with people.
My friend Jodi Grubbs is on the show gently guiding us into slower living and sharing some practices to help us be unhurried.
You’ll hear us talk about…
- Creating slow-living rhythms for summer
- Slowing down to deepen friendships
- How Jesus modeled slowness
- Finding your Soul Care Sanctuary
Jodi H. Grubbs is the podcast host of Our Island in the City and a slow-living advocate. She is the author of a children’s book, The Island Adventures of Lili and Oliver, and coauthor of a Bible study called The Friendship Café. Jodi, her husband, Dean, and their daughter, Lili, live in outside Raleigh, North Carolina.
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Girls Talking Life is all about cultivating community and creating meaningful connections. In pursuit of that mission, I’m launching Girls Talking Life Groups. It’s like a book club but for the podcast.
You listen to an episode then get together with friends to discuss, reflect, and apply it to your life.
Grab the Girls Talking Life Group Quick Start Guide. I outline a couple of simple steps, answer a few questions you may have, and tell you exactly how I’d start, if I were starting a group.
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Do you have a heart for healing and restoration?
Confronting systemic racism feels overwhelming, but you and I can help dismantle it one small step at a time.
Latasha Morrison, founder of Be the Bridge, is on the show today sharing a little of her story and walking us through why this should be a priority, especially in the life of a believer, and what we can do to make a difference.
You’ll hear us talk about…
- How understanding culture lessens our biases
- Prioritizing relationships with people who are different from us
- Scripture’s instruction for justice and unity
- Steps of action toward transformation
Latasha is a distinguished author, renowned for her transformative work in fostering racial reconciliation and unity.
As a New York Times best-selling author, she has captured the hearts and minds of readers worldwide with her powerful words and insightful perspectives. Her influential book, "Be the Bridge," has become a beacon of hope, guiding individuals and communities towards a future free from racial division.
GET ALL THE SHOW NOTES CONNECT WITH LATASHA Instagram | Facebook | Website
GET THE QUICKSTART GUIDE
Girls Talking Life is all about cultivating community and creating meaningful connections. In pursuit of that mission, I’m launching Girls Talking Life Groups. It’s like a book club but for the podcast.
You listen to an episode then get together with friends to discuss, reflect, and apply it to your life.
Grab the Girls Talking Life Group Quick Start Guide. I outline a couple of simple steps, answer a few questions you may have, and tell you exactly how I’d start, if I were starting a group.
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When was the last time you experienced authentic connection?
It’s becoming more and more rare as our country faces an epidemic of loneliness.
But it doesn’t have to be that way. There is power in authentic connection and you have the ability to create it.
Nancy Lindgren in on the show today to tell us how. She has over 35 years of mentoring experience and she’s sharing how simple it can be to come alongside someone, and also how powerful those connections can be with Jesus at the center.
GET ALL THE SHOW NOTES CONNECT WITH NANCY Instagram | Facebook | Website
GET THE QUICKSTART GUIDE
Girls Talking Life is all about cultivating community and creating meaningful connections. In pursuit of that mission, I’m launching Girls Talking Life Groups. It’s like a book club but for the podcast.
You listen to an episode then get together with friends to discuss, reflect, and apply it to your life.
Grab the Girls Talking Life Group Quick Start Guide. I outline a couple of simple steps, answer a few questions you may have, and tell you exactly how I’d start, if I were starting a group.
CONNECT WITH GIRLS TALKING LIFE
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Welcome to another Girls Talking Life Extra. It’s not a full show, just a short chat with a past guest to let you know what she’s up to now. I’m talking with Sarah E. Westfall.
Sarah joined me way, way back on episode 17 where she shared her story of motherhood and heartbreak and seeking God’s goodness. She was also my guest host for the Summer of Friendship in 2022 where she talked about barriers to belonging, showing up when life gets hard, and celebration over comparison.
Sarah is a writer, speaker, and host of the Human Together podcast. Her previous work includes serving as director of community for online writing groups and as a student development professional on college campuses. She has been published in RELEVANT, Fathom Mag, and (in)courage. Sarah lives in Indiana with her husband, Ben, and four sons.
Today we are talking about her new book, The Way of Belonging: Reimagining Who We Are and How We Relate, releasing on June 11th. This topic is so close to my heart and the mission of Girls Talking Life.
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE
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I’ll be giving a copy of her book away to a GTL newsletter subscriber. Be sure you are on my mailing list for a chance to win!
Sarah on episode 17 [Sacrificial Motherhood]
Sarah as Guest Host for the Summer of Friendship
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We’ve all experienced a friendship breakup.
Maybe you were able to reconcile, maybe you’re in the middle of friendship turmoil right now, or maybe your friendship has distinctly ended.
Relationships are hard and not all of them are for the long haul which is why I’m so grate to my guest, Elizabeth Laing Thompson, for walking us through what to do when a friendship falls apart.
You’ll hear us talk about…
- Why friendships fall apart
- Navigating the pain of broken friendships
- Keeping your hurt from affecting other relationships
- Taking steps toward healing
- Why it’s important to God
Elizabeth is the author of many books for women and teens, including All the Feels, All the Feels for Teens, and the When God Says series. She writes at ElizabethLaingThompson.com about clinging to Christ through the chaos of daily life. As a speaker and novelist, Elizabeth loves finding humor in holiness and hope in heartache. She lives in North Carolina with her preacher husband and four spunky kids.
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GET THE QUICKSTART GUIDE
Girls Talking Life is all about cultivating community and creating meaningful connections. In pursuit of that mission, I’m launching Girls Talking Life Groups. It’s like a book club but for the podcast.
You listen to an episode then get together with friends to discuss, reflect, and apply it to your life.
Grab the Girls Talking Life Group Quick Start Guide. I outline a couple of simple steps, answer a few questions you may have, and tell you exactly how I’d start, if I were starting a group.
CONNECT WITH GIRLS TALKING LIFE
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Welcome to a Girls Talking Life Extra. It’s not a full show, just a short chat – usually with a past guest – but today I’m introducing you to a new friend. New to the show that is! You may be familiar with Myquillyn Smith, also known as "The Nester.”
She is the New York Times and Wall Street Journal bestselling author of Welcome Home and Cozy Minimalist Home. For the past 15 years, she has been encouraging women to embrace their space--imperfections and all--and make it their own.
Her home in North Carolina has been featured in Better Homes & Gardens, Ladies' Home Journal, and Cottages & Bungalows. She's never met a home she didn't love.
Today Myquillyn and I are talking about her new book HOUSE RULES. You’ll hear her talk about how perfection is not the goal. The goal is for you to love your home and invite people in. Rule #1: learn the rules and then break them beautifully.
RELATED EPISODES
If you’d like to hear more on hospitality and inviting people in, I encourage you to check out episodes #74 [A Warm and Welcoming Home for the Holidays] with Alieta Casey and #133 [Love Your Neighbors] with Twyla Franz.
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After listening, tell me what you thought! Did this episode resonate with you? I would love your feedback.
On Apple Podcasts, tap the three dots in the upper right corner, choose Go to Show, scroll down, and under Ratings and Reviews, tap Write a Review. It’s quick and easy!
CONNECT WITH MYQUILLYN
Find her online at TheNester.com and on Instagram @TheNester.
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Do you feel intimidated when it comes to opening your Bible? Do you read your Bible but feel like you don’t get much out of it? Do you need something to freshen up your current Bible-studying routine?
My guest today is the lovely Portia Collins, a Christian Bible teacher, writer, and podcaster with a passion for sharing God’s Word. But it hasn’t always been that way. Portia shares her story of struggle, of turning to the Bible in desperation, and how when she did, she was changed.
You’ll hear us talk about…
- Why we need to study the Word for ourselves
- Reading vs. studying
- Getting started with Bible study
- Fresh ideas for experienced bible-studiers
Portia is the founder of She Shall Be Called, a nonprofit women’s ministry focused on Bible literacy. You can also catch her hosting two weekly podcasts: Grounded—a podcast/videocast from Revive Our Hearts—and Sweet Tea with Jasmine & Portia.
GET ALL THE SHOW NOTES CONNECT WITH PORTIA Instagram | Facebook | Website
SUPPORT THE SHOW
After listening, tell me what you thought! Did this episode resonate with you? I would love your feedback.
On Apple Podcasts, tap the three dots in the upper right corner, choose Go to Show, scroll down, and under Ratings and Reviews, tap Write a Review. It’s quick and easy!
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Are you going through a big change right now? Or maybe lots of little ones?
Change is inevitable and even good change can be hard.
Author Andi Andrew joins me to chat about how we show amid of the changes we face, how it’s okay to grieve the losses, show gratitude for what’s next, and how through the transition we can grow to be more like Christ.
You’ll hear us talk about…
- The grief of letting go
- Change that molds us
- Avoiding vs. welcoming
- Processing change with integrity
- Friendship through transition
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If you’re listening in real time, my birthday is in two weeks! As a gift to me would you be willing to support the show by leaving a rating or review?
If you are listening on Apple Podcasts just scroll to the bottom of the show and there it is. Quick and easy!
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Weeds Seeds and Beautiful Things
How do you interact with people who are different than you?
If someone has different beliefs or political associations, do you automatically dismiss them?
What if your actions of friendship could save the world?
Author and speaker Carrie Stephens is on the show talking about the power of a diverse community, how we can move toward people who are different than us, and how we show up in the world as followers of Jesus first.
You’ll hear us talk about…
- The Book of Ruth
- Why we need diverse friendships
- Forgiveness and redemption
- Law, love, and politics
Carrie Stephens is the author of Holy Guacamole: A Glorious Discovery of your Undeniable Worth (Shiloh, February 2020), Jesus, Love, & Tacos: A Spicy Take on Lordship, Community, and Mission (Leafwood, October 2022), and co-author of Friendship Can Save the World: The Book of Ruth and the Power of Diverse Community (Leafwood, September 2023).
Carrie and her husband, Morgan, live in Austin, Texas, and have four incredible kids. After serving as campus ministers for ten years at the University of Texas, Carrie and Morgan have led Mosaic Church, a richly diverse community of faith in Austin, since 2009. They are passionate about reaching lives and transforming cities through church planting, campus ministry, and missional work.
GET ALL THE SHOW NOTES CONNECT WITH CARRIE Instagram | Facebook | Website
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Grab your free Reflection Guide for this episode. It highlights key points and gives you the chance to take what you heard, reflect on it, and apply it to your life.
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How well do you know the people who live close to you? How well do you love them?
Jesus tells us to love our neighbor as ourselves, but how do we actually do that?
Missional neighboring advocate Twyla Franz is on the show today helping us get closer to Jesus and grow deep, missional friendships with our neighbors.
You’ll hear us talk about…
- What missional living is
- What it means to be visible and interruptible
- How humility and curiosity can deepen friendships
- Overcoming the obstacles to missional neighboring
Twyla Franz is a big believer in baby steps and ripple-effect living. An Enneagram 9 learning to live open. She loves front-yard conversations with neighbors, chalk-painted furniture, and Yogi’s blueberry tea. As a missional neighboring guide, she helps others get close to Jesus and grow deep, missional friendships with neighbors.
Find her words (written and recorded) on twylafranz.com. Other places Twyla writes include (in)courage, Relevant, Her View From Home, and The Grit and Grace Project. She also hosts Begin Within: A Gratitude Series to encourage year-round gratitude (because gratitude, she says, has a ripple effect).
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As you begin to settle into 2024 are you wondering how to make the most of this year? How to make the most of your life?
As you look at your goals and intentions for the year are they pointing you toward your purpose or are they all about performance?
Shawna Sullivan joins me to chat about how we can view our lives through a new lens, not living for achievements and accolades but taking small, practical steps toward the purposes God has for us.
You’ll hear us talk about…
- Shawna’s story of performance to purpose
- 5 focus areas to help you live with purpose
- Pursuing authentic relationships
- 5 prayers to create space for God to move this year
Shawna Sullivan is a mother and home educator to four children. After 13 years, she traded the hustle and bustle of New York City for the suburbs of north Texas. She will never take a backyard, time with family, air conditioning, or her own laundry room for granted. Shawna writes regularly for Family Christian and Christian Parenting online. Her passion for living faithfully, not perfectly, informs her words and ministry.
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE A Practical Guide for a Purposeful Life
The Bible Recap
5 Prayers to Create Space for God to Move This Year
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Do you feel prompted to be in God’s word more or in a different way this year?
I have two ideas for you.
The beginning of the year, for most of us, is a time to reflect on the past year and plan for the year to come. I have several categories I try to take inventory in. Areas like my marriage, parenting, health, friendships, money, and one is always spiritual growth. What am I going to do this year to grow in my relationship with Jesus?
One of my answers to that question is by being in God’s Word. Opening my bible and reading it for myself has greatly deepened my faith.
So as you plan for the year ahead, I want to offer two ways for you to open your bible, be in God’s word, and grow in your relationship with Jesus this year.
- A Bible Reading Plan
- A Word of the Year Word Study
I've also invited a special guest to join us. My friend Megan Ericson – also a guest on episode 16 - joined me in 2023 and read the bible using this plan. She is here to share her experience.
Megan is the CEO of The Yoga Abbey, an online Christian yoga community. She lives in the Columbus, Ohio, area with her husband and three teenage kids.
CONNECT WITH MEGAN Megan on IG | The Yoga Abbey on IG
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Here we are at the beginning of the Advent season. The hustle and bustle of December has started. It’s layered with excitement, anticipation, and stress. Every year I ask myself how can I make sure this Christmas is all about celebrating our Savior.
My guest today is going to point us right to Him. Author and Bible teacher, Ocieanna Fleiss, joins me to talk about her Advent devotional, Awaiting the Manger: Whispers of Advent in the Old Testament, and how we can quiet our hearts and focus on Jesus.
You’ll hear us talk about…
- How Jesus was God’s plan before the beginning
- The OT story of Leah and how it points to Christ
- Slowing down to celebrate our Savior
Ocieanna is the author of Awaiting the Manger: Whispers of Advent in the Old Testament which was released in September from Harvest House publishers.
GET ALL THE SHOW NOTES MORE HOLIDAY INSPIRATION #104 Bring Peace into Your Heart and Home with Victoria Duerstock
#76 Why Christmas Matters with Anna Nash #74 A Warm and Welcoming Home for the Holidays with Alieta Casey #52 What Mama Needs at Christmas #29 Reclaiming Home this Christmas with Krista Gilbert
What negative beliefs have you internalized about sex? Do you think of intimacy as a good gift from God?
For much of human history, intimacy has been a place of pain and brokenness, an area where we have lacked discipleship. So I would be remiss not to include this topic in our Strengthen Your Marriage series.
Francie Winslow is on the show today and she’s letting us in on her healing journey when it comes to sex, marriage, and the mission of God. She invites us to heal, find freedom, and shift our mindsets to more accurately reflect what God intended for us.
Francie’s ministry includes sexual discipleship for women. She teaches, not as an expert, but as a Christian woman pursuing healing and wholeness for herself, rooted in Scripture and theology.
You’ll hear us talk about…
- Correcting wrong beliefs about sexuality
- God’s design for intimacy
- Vulnerability with your husband
- Overcoming barriers to intimacy
- Connecting to your body
Francie has a BA in Political Science and a Masters in Evangelism and Leadership from Wheaton College in Wheaton, Il. She lives in Northern Virginia and is crazy about life with her husband and their five kids.
Francie currently ministers as a podcast host, mentor, writer and as a speaker for churches and women’s conferences.
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Marriages are not perfect. We’re two imperfect people. We’re bound to hurt each other. But we don’t have to respond the way the world tells us to with spite, unforgiveness, or cancelation.
We are continuing in our Strengthen Your Marriage series with a conversation on forgiveness and healing.
Stephanie Broersma lived a charmed life…until the day she discovered a deleted conversation between her husband and another woman. Stephanie is on the show sharing her story with us today.
You’ll hear us talk about…
- Her husband’s confession of betrayal
- How she partnered with God to forgive him
- Their journey toward healing and restoration
- Rebuilding trust and establishing boundaries
Stephanie Broersma is the author of the Reclaimed 30-day Devotional and the founder of Reclaimed Ministries.
GET ALL THE SHOW NOTES CONNECT WITH STEPHANIE Instagram | Facebook | Website
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Girls Talking Life is turning 5! I’m celebrating by giving YOU the chance to win gifts! I’ve teamed up with some amazing and thoughtful women to bring you this GROW YOUR FAITH bundle.
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Next up in our marriage series, we are focusing on communication. How we interact with our husbands will either build our marriages up or tear them down. But honest, humble communication isn’t easy.
Today, I’m talking with Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, Heather Bjur. She helps us understand why we might react the way we do, how humility can change our relationships, how our thoughts shape what we say, and how to begin to become emotionally honest.
You’ll hear us talk about…
- Attachment style
- How your thoughts affect your communication
- Creating new neuropathways
- Becoming emotionally honest
- When to seek counseling
Heather is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist at Valley Christian Counseling Center in Fargo, North Dakota. She is also a Certified Clinical Trauma Professional who offers EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) and Emotionally Focused Therapy (for couples). Additionally, Heather holds a certificate in Spiritual Direction through the late Dr. Larry Crabb’s New Way Ministries.
GET ALL THE SHOW NOTES CONNECT WITH HEATHER Instagram | Facebook | Website
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We are starting a series today that focuses on strengthening our marriages. Where better to start than at the foundation? What we build our lives and our marriages on matters.
Alli Patterson, author and pastor, joins me to share her story of building her marriage on things she thought were good only to discover that following the standards of the world is like building your house on the sand. But when her world collapsed, Jesus was there.
You’ll hear us talk about…
- Alli’s marriage story
- The importance of guarding your heart
- How Jesus meets you at rock bottom
- 3 practices to build your life and marriage on
Alli is a Teaching Pastor at Crossroads Church in Cincinnati, OH and a graduate of Dallas Theological Seminary. She’s passionate about helping others know Jesus in his Word and discover the strength and power of God’s wisdom for their real lives.
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How do you lend your voice in constructive ways? How do you disagree without destroying a relationship? Is kindness only a nicety? Just a moral virtue?
Ashlee Eiland, author of Human(Kind): How Reclaiming Human Worth and Embracing Radical Kindness will bring us Back Together, joins me for a timely conversation about the power we can access to help heal and reconcile our world.
You’ll hear us talk about…
- Where the Power to be Kind Comes From
- Speaking in Grace and Truth
- Elevating a Person’s Worthiness
- Confronting an Issue Without Being Confrontational to a Person
- When Helping to Healing Humanity Feels Too Big
Ashlee is a leader, pastor, writer and Bible teacher who exists to join God in His redemptive work here on Earth. Her work has one purpose: to help humanity build bridges back to the Truth of who God is and between one another in redemptive, healing relationship.
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Does back-to-school have your head spinning? Do you feel overwhelmed with the demands of parenting in this season? Are you struggling to find time with God?
Today I’m talking with my new friend Caris Snider, author of Car Line Mom: 100 Days of Encouragement for the Mama Who Gets Everybody Everywhere. And Caris is doing just that…she’s giving us encouragement in this busy season of back-to-school, fall sports and activities, and the many carlines we are starting to find ourselves waiting in.
You’ll hear us talk about…
- Handling the mental load of motherhood
- Getting time with God amidst the chaos
- The importance of community
- Caris’s back-to-school hacks
Caris Snider is a Christian Communicator who shares the hope of God as a speaker, writer, certified life coach, and podcaster on her weekly show, Car Line Conversations.
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LISTEN TO THE SUMMER OF FRIENDSHIP SERIES
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We are wrapping it all up today! This is week ten, the final episode of the Summer of Friendship series and we're talking about three things: creating a new friendship rhythm for a new season, making new friends, and a common friendship struggle.
If you haven’t listened to all the episodes in this series or haven’t been as intentional with your friendships as you’d planned, there’s still time! There’s no end date on this, in fact, this is just the beginning!
Mentioned in this Episode
Episode #94 Making New Friends
Episode #107 with Amberly Neese - Finding Safe Friends
Take the Summer Survey
Join The Gathering Project
Welcome to week nine of the Summer of Friendship series. Friend, we are almost done!
Today we’re tackling a tough topic, at least for me. We’re chatting about when a friendship ends.
Friendships can end for so many different reasons and I can’t even begin to go into all the nuances that you’ve experienced or that could come up, so I’m breaking it into two categories: 1) when things end because something unfavorable happens and 2) when things just end.
Mentioned in this Episode
Psalm 55 - The Betrayal of a Friend
Episode 44 with Chelsey DeMatteis
More of Him Less of Me
chelseydematteis.com
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Last week we talked about four factors that can lead us into deeper friendships. One of those was asking good questions, but could all our questions be keeping us from sharing our own hearts?
Special guest host Jill E. McCormick joins us again to talk us through dropping certain habits that keeps us from going deeper in friendship.
Jill is the host of the Grace in Real Life podcast and the writer behind jillemccormick.com, spaces where she shares common-sense grace with the try-hard girl who wants her faith to intersect with her real and full life. Jill lives in South Texas with her high-school-sweetheart-now-husband Ryan, their two daughters, and one Vizsla puppy.
CONNECT WITH JILL Instagram | Website | Enneagram Guide
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How do you move from being acquaintances or casual friends into a closer, deeper relationship? Find out today! We're taking a look at who we have in our lives and talking through four ways to go deeper with a few friends.
Mentioned in this Episode
Friendship Inventory
Conversation Cards
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We are in week six of the Summer of Friendship series here on Girls Talking Life and we’re chatting about our capacity for friendships, what it might look like to have or to be an introverted friend, and thinking through our expectations for ourselves and for those friends.
Mentioned in this Episode
Grace in Real Life episode #134: How to Make Friends As an Introvert
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Welcome to week five of the Summer of Friendship series!
Special guest host Jill E. McCormick is back sharing a bit of her story and what to do when you feel too fragile for friendship.
If you're in a difficult season or just having a hard day, you may feel the tension of needing to let friends in and, at the same time, not wanting to share a thing. I hope Jill's words encourage you today.
Jill is the host of the Grace in Real Life podcast and the writer behind jillemccormick.com, spaces where she shares common-sense grace with the try-hard girl who wants her faith to intersect with her real and full life. Jill lives in South Texas with her high-school-sweetheart-now-husband Ryan, their two daughters, and one Vizsla puppy.
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Welcome to week four of the Summer of Friendship series! Today we’re talking even more about personality, your uniqueness, and how YOU ARE NEEDED as a friend.
To go along with this series, I’m hosting a Summer Friendship Challenge. If you’re ready to dig in with intentionality this summer, I’d love for you to jump in. Each week of the challenge, you’ll get an email with a small action step to help you cultivate community. If you’re already subscribed to the GTL newsletter, you’re in! If you’re not a subscriber yet, join the challenge here:
Summer Friendship Challenge
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Guest host, Jill E. McCormick, joins us to talk about the Enneagram and how your type impacts your friendship style. Learn how God specifically wired you and how he designed the personalities of friends in your life. She’ll break down each of the nine Enneagram types and give you habits to help you grow in your friendships.
Jill is the host of the Grace in Real Life podcast and the writer behind jillemccormick.com, spaces where she shares common-sense grace with the try-hard girl who wants her faith to intersect with her real and full life. Jill lives in South Texas with her high-school-sweetheart-now-husband Ryan, their two daughters, and one Vizsla puppy.
If you aren’t familiar with the Enneagram or don’t know your type yet, don’t worry. Listen to see if you hear Jill describe some of your personality traits and be sure to grab her Quick Start Guide to the Enneagram.
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Did you know that in May the US Surgeon General declared LONELINESS a public health epidemic?
SG Murthy said half of US adults experience loneliness, and that it can be as dangerous as smoking up to 15 cigarettes a day. Research over the years has also found isolation can lead to sleep issues, depression, anxiety, heart disease, stroke, and dementia.
This is a public health crisis, but it doesn’t have to be.
Because friend, the opposite is true too. While being isolated, not experiencing meaningful connection can have negative effects on your health.
Friendship, spending time with other and connecting, is so good for you and your health!
Let's talk about the benefits.
Here are the research studies referenced:
- https://www.hhs.gov/sites/default/files/surgeon-general-social-connection-advisory.pdf
- https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/how_your_social_life_might_help_you_life_longer
- https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/321019#Face-to-face-contact-is-like-a-vaccine
- https://www.newyorker.com/science/maria-konnikova/social-media-affect-math-dunbar-number-friendships
- https://www.everydayhealth.com/emotional-health/social-support.aspx
- https://www.verywellmind.com/what-is-the-need-to-belong-2795393
To go along with this series, I’m hosting a Summer Friendship Challenge. If you’re ready to dig in with intentionality this summer, I’d love for you to jump in. Each week of the challenge, you’ll get an email with a small action step to help you cultivate community. If you’re already subscribed to the GTL newsletter, you’re in! If you’re not a subscriber yet, join the challenge here:
Summer Friendship Challenge
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We are in our very first week of the Summer of Friendship series and I’m tackling the question, does God value friendship?
I chose to start here because if you’re a follower of Jesus, you look to Him to define and direct your life, so the most important question you can ask about any topic is ‘how does God feel about this?’
And the best place to go to understand how God feels is His word. So everything we’re talking about today comes from the Bible.
Here are the verses referenced:
- Genesis 1:1-2
- John 1:1-3
- Colossians 1: 15-16
- Genesis 1:26-27
- Genesis 1:31
- Genesis 2:18
- Corinthians 15:58
- Matthew 22: 37-39
- Proverbs 27:17
- Romans 1:11-12
- Hebrews 10:24-25
- 2 Corinthians 13:11
To go along with this series, I’m hosting a Summer Friendship Challenge. If you’re ready to dig in with intentionality this summer, I’d love for you to jump in. Each week of the challenge, you’ll get an email with a small action step to help you cultivate community. If you’re already subscribed to the GTL newsletter, you’re in! If you’re not a subscriber yet, join the challenge here:
Summer Friendship Challenge
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During June, July and August, I’ll be releasing mini episodes all about friendship. My hope is that these bite-sized shows will be just what you need for the laidback rhythm of summer and will encourage you to prioritize connection, make new friends or deepen existing friendships.
This series is based on what I’ve been learning from God’s word, the research I’ve been studying, and my own experiences.
If you are looking for my traditional, interview-style show, there are over 100 past episodes for you to dive into, and I’ll be back with all new conversations this fall. I have some truly amazing women lined up and I’m excited to bring you their stories!
MEET MY GUEST HOST
I’ve also invited my sweet friend Jill E. McCormick to join us. Jill was a guest on episode #102 sharing her story of entering into the invitation of God’s grace and how we can move from being try-hard girls to being grace-girls. If you haven’t heard that one, definitely go back and listen!
Jill is the host of the Grace in Real Life podcast and the writer behind jillemccormick.com, spaces where she shares common-sense grace with the try-hard girl who wants her faith to intersect with her real and full life. Jill lives in South Texas with her high-school-sweetheart-now-husband Ryan, their two daughters, and one Vizsla puppy.
SUMMER FRIENDSHIP CHALLENGE
To go along with this series, I’m hosting a Summer Friendship Challenge. If you’re ready to dig in with intentionality this summer, I’d love for you to jump in. Each week of the challenge, you’ll get an email, where we will give you a small, practical action step to help you be intentional in this area of your life.
If you’re already subscribed to the GTL newsletter, you’ll get these weekly challenge emails. If you’re not a subscriber yet, join us here!
I can’t wait to spend the summer with you growing in our friendships!
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How do you feel about the body you’re living in?
Summer is about to begin and as the weather warms, we wear less and show more of our bodies, but for many of us that ramps up negative feelings because we’re not happy with how our bodies look.
Today I’m talking with Jennifer Taylor Wagner, author of Your Good Body, who encourages us to take small steps toward resetting how we view our bodies in order to love them as they are. She reminds us that God desires for us to be whole – spirit, soul AND body, and that pursuing wellness should encompass our entire selves because external changes alone won’t heal what’s on the inside.
You’ll hear us talk about…
- Jennifer’s body journey and mindset shift
- Viewing your right-now body as good and living free in it
- Trusting God in your transformation
- Pursing wellness with worthwhile motives
Jennifer Taylor Wagner is a certified fitness instructor and successful blogger. She is passionate about challenging the way we think about health, wellness, and regularly writes on the topics of healthy living and body positivity. Whether it’s hosting online webinars, speaking in auditoriums, or chatting at MOPS meetings, she is committed to helping others find hope in their journey. Jennifer lives in Virginia with her husband, Phil and their two kids.
GET ALL THE SHOW NOTES THANK YOU TO OUR SPONSOR Are you tired of feeling overwhelmed and uncertain about your faith, business, and relationships? Look no further than the Simply Wholehearted Podcast! Join certified Marriage and Family Enneagram Coach Amy Wicks as she shares stories, expert advice, and practical tips to help you thrive in business, relationships, and personal growth.
With nearly 300 episodes and six years of experience, the Simply Wholehearted Podcast is the ultimate destination for anyone looking for tools and insights to overcome anxiety, self-doubt, and overwhelm.
Plus, don’t miss out on her special podcast playlist for each Enneagram type. Grab yours here: https://www.simplywholehearted.com/enneagrampodcastplaylist.
Find The Simply Wholehearted Podcast on your favorite listening app and start living your best-wholehearted life!
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Summer is a few short weeks away! Planning ahead and being intentional about your time together will set you up for a successful summer with your family. My guest today is Arlene Pellicane. Arlene is the co-author of the popular book Screen Kids, along with Dr. Gary Chapman. She speaks and writes to impact and improve families, and she’s here to share her expertise with us!
You’ll hear us talk about…
- Planning ahead for success
- Getting your kids involved
- Creating a technology plan
- Resetting your own screen time
- What to do when plans fail
Arlene is a speaker, host of the Happy Home podcast, and author of several books including Parents Rising, 31 Days to a Happy Husband and Screen Kids. Arlene has been featured on the Today Show, Fox & Friends, the Wall Street Journal and Focus on the Family. She lives in San Diego with her husband, James, and their three children.
GET ALL THE SHOW NOTES THANK YOU TO OUR SPONSOR Are you tired of feeling overwhelmed and uncertain about your faith, business, and relationships? Look no further than the Simply Wholehearted Podcast! Join certified Marriage and Family Enneagram Coach Amy Wicks as she shares stories, expert advice, and practical tips to help you thrive in business, relationships, and personal growth.
With nearly 300 episodes and six years of experience, the Simply Wholehearted Podcast is the ultimate destination for anyone looking for tools and insights to overcome anxiety, self-doubt, and overwhelm.
Plus, don’t miss out on her special podcast playlist for each Enneagram type. Grab yours here: https://www.simplywholehearted.com/enneagrampodcastplaylist.
Find The Simply Wholehearted Podcast on your favorite listening app and start living your best-wholehearted life!
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Special Mother's Day Rerelease
If you have a mom, if you've lost your mom, if you've struggled (or are currently struggling) to become a mom, or if being a mom has ever felt hard, this episode is for you. My guest is the lovely Nancy Willis. She and I talk about her losing her mom to breast cancer. She tells us about the special moments that were gifted to her before her mom’s passing, how their family was intentional about their last days together, and her walk through the deep grief that followed. Nancy describes how losing her person left her empty, even though she was surrounded by her fantastic husband and family and how relying on the Lord was what rescued her. Nancy and I talk about her emotional journey through infertility, how they made the decision to try in vitro fertilization and the waiting involved in that process. Nancy went on to have a healthy baby boy, but shares how she struggled being a mom to a newborn and how being a stay at home mom wasn’t the right thing for her even though that was what she had always wanted and how hard that was to face. My conversation with Nancy is sure to stir your soul. Get all the show notes and connect with Nancy! (Episode originally released in November of 2018.)
We’re wrapping up our Overcoming Anxiety series today with guest expert Dr. Chinwé Williams, a Board-Certified Therapist who specializes in anxiety and trauma recovery. Dr. Chinwé graciously normalizes worry and fear, walks us through what it might look if someone is experiencing an anxiety disorder, and gives strategies for easing general anxiety or managing a disorder between counseling appointments.
You’ll hear us talk about…
- 4 common forms of anxiety
- 3 strategies to ease/manage anxiety
- When it’s time to see a mental health professional
- Recognizing anxiety in our kids
- Accessing Jesus’s peace
Dr. Chinwé Williams is a Licensed and Board-Certified Therapist and co-owner of SCTI. She has served as an associate professor, college and high school counselor, clinical therapist, and executive coach. She currently works as a consultant for schools, non-profit, faith-based, and corporate work settings. Her expertise lies in areas of stress/anxiety management, trauma recovery, intersection of faith and mental health, and youth and women’s wellness.
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Did you know that moving your body helps you let go of whatever it is you're holding onto at a cellular level, a muscular level and even a mental level?
Miranda Jo Davis joins me for a conversation about adding movement into our daily routines in order to ease anxiety. She says that movement can lower the stress hormone cortisol in our bodies and bring our minds back to the present moment.
You’ll hear us talk about…
- Miranda’s story of overcoming fear and anxiety
- The mind body connection
- Yoga and Christianity
- Integrating worship into your movement
- Ideas for adding movement into your day
Miranda is an expert in the yoga world with over twenty years of experience. She owns PerfectFit Christian Yoga Teacher Training and infuses scripture to shape her teachings. In ministry, Miranda is a biblical counselor, using God's word to implement heart change. She is the best-selling author of Christian Girl in the Yoga World and featured on TV, radio, podcasts, and print as an expert in Mind/Body wellness.
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Did you know you can use creativity to access joy?
Would you call yourself an artist? I wouldn’t have said that about myself. But my guest, says we’re all artists, and that by being creative we’re reminded “of the goodness and the peace, and the purity with which God created us.”
I’m talking with Merideth Hite Estevez, formally trained oboist and creator of Artists for Joy, about how making something you care about can connect you with God and ease your anxiety.
You’ll hear us talk about…
- Merideth’s story of perfectionism, anxiety and burnout
- Creative practices to release anxiety and access joy
- How creativity intersects with our faith
- Ideas for creative practices you can try
Dr. Merideth Hite Estevez is a spiritual space-maker for artists as an oboist, writer, coach, and educator. Her podcast Artists for Joy was an Award of Excellence Winner in the 2022 Communicator Awards and is in the top 2% of podcasts worldwide. She has served thousands of artists in communal creative recovery with her popular support groups around Julia Cameron’s The Artist’s Way and serves artists of all disciplines through her writings, workshops, and one-to-one coaching services. She holds degrees in oboe from The Juilliard School and Yale University and is a Certified Start with Heart Facilitator through Graydin.
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What are you consuming? What are you filling up on? Is it adding to your anxiety?
We are beginning a brand new series today: Overcoming Anxiety. Most of us experience some sort of anxiety, everything from occasional or situational feelings of worry or fear all the way to anxiety disorders where there is frequent and intense, even excessive worry or fear.
For the most part, in this series we will be talking about the common, everyday anxiety we all experience, not anxiety disorders. But later in the series, we will hear from a LPC on different types of anxiety and when it’s time to see a mental health professional.
So how do we become grounded in peace? We let God intervene.
Today Amy Seiffert joins me for a conversation about nourishing ourselves with the things our souls need to be fulfilled.
You’ll hear us talk about…
- Spiritual junk food we’re consuming
- Amy’s story of overwhelm and her new book Starved
- Techniques to ground us in peace
Amy is also the author of Grace Looks Amazing on You and is on the teaching team at Brookside Church. She is an affiliate Cru staff member and a regular YouVersion Bible teacher. She loves to travel and speak (and try new foods on all of her adventures!). Amy is married to her college sweetheart, Rob, and they live in Bowling Green, Ohio, with their three kids.
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE Starved: Why We Need a Spiritual Diet Change to Move Us from Tired, Anxious, and Overwhelmed to Fulfilled, Whole, and Free (out March 21st)
Luke 15:20 – the prodigal son – So he got up and went to his father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him.
Hebrews 10:24-25 – And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.
“Connection happens through the cracks.” – Brene Brown
AMY’S FAVORITE 5 Colab Dry Shampoo
Tru Earth Laundry Detergent Strips
Madewell Sneakers
Skin Feels Good Tinted Moisturizer by Lancôme
Air Pods
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Welcome to another Girls Talking Life Extra. It’s not a full show, just a short chat with a past guest to let you know what she’s up to now.
I’m talking with Rhonda Stoppe. Rhonda joined me on episode 70 and we talked about marriage, becoming the couple you long to be.
Today we are talking about her book Moms Raising Sons to Be Men. The 10th anniversary edition releases on March 7th. And you guys, Rhonda is awesome. She’s the big sister we all need!
Rhonda's website - https://www.rhondastoppe.com/
Rhonda on episode 70 [Becoming the Couple You Long to Be] -https://girlstalkinglife.com/70-rhonda-stoppe-becoming-the-couple-you-long-to-be/
I’ll be giving a copy of her book away next month to a GTL newsletter subscriber. If you’d like a chance to win it, be sure you are on my mailing list!
Did you know February is International Friendship Month?
Today we’re talking about being hurt in friendship, because, unless you’ve been living under a rock, I’m pretty sure you have been hurt by a friend sometime in your life. And while today’s show isn’t going to magically protect you from all future friendship hurt, Amberly Neese, speaker, comedian and author, is here to talk about finding safe friends and being a safe place for our people to land.
You’ll hear us talk about…
- Being Hurt in Friendship
- Moving Past the Fear of Rejection
- Levels of Friendship
- The One Anothers of the New Testament
Amberly Neese is a popular speaker/teacher, comedian, author, and all-around encourager dedicated to helping you become the joyful person you were created to be. She helps people like you and your group experience the freedom found in meaningful relationships with God and others.
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE Marriage Date Night
Aspire Women’s Events
Amberly’s Books
Untangling Faith
AMBERLY’S FAVORITE 5 Miss Jessie’s Hair Products
Crossway NIV New Testament
Truff Hot Sauce
Columbia Hiking Shirts
Starting a New Playlist!
CONNECT WITH AMBERLY Instagram | Facebook | Website
This is the third and final episode in our new year’s series, Significance, Dreams and Calling. If you missed either of the first two shows in the series, you’ll want to go back and catch up!
In Today’s episode, we’re digging in even deeper and talking about finding clarity and confidence in your calling. This show was originally released in September of 2021. It was a top show then and it fits perfectly in this series which is why I’m releasing it again. Bailey Stone and I are talking about finding our unique callings and the confidence to live those callings out.
Bailey is a Certified Professional Life Coach who helps women elevate their confidence and increase clarity so they can pursue their calling and make an impact.
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Did you know the Easter season is almost here? Lent begins on February 22, 2023. If you are looking for a way to focus on Jesus as we approach the Easter season, consider reading Easter Matters, How the Resurrection of Jesus Changes You. Easter Matters, is a devotional written by Anna Nash and Katy Shelton where you'll explore the 21 chapters in the gospel of John. Listen to [Girls Talking Easter] where Anna Nash shares what readers can expect from this book. Buy Easter Matters
Do you have a dream in your heart, but don’t know where to begin? Have you been pursuing a dream, but feel stuck? Are you weary from operating alone?
Merritt Onsa – host of the Devoted Dreamers Podcast, a Dream Coach and creator of the Dreamer Lab where she supports Christian women in building community, clarity, and confidence to pursue a God-shaped dream – joins me today for the second episode in our new year’s series, Significance, Dreams and Calling.
You’ll hear us talk about…
- What a God-shaped dream is
- Where to start on your dream
- Questions to ask if you’re stalled or stuck
- How being in community fuels your dream
- What to do if you’re not a dreamer
Merritt is passionate about helping women trade in fear and imposter syndrome for the freedom in Christ that is already ours. Whether you’re starting a business, ministry, or non-profit, writing a book or shifting careers, Merritt’s teaching and coaching can help you take bold, purposeful steps, face challenges without giving up, and overcome doubt so you can pour out the gifts and talents God has planted in you.
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE Matthew 6:33 – But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.
The Dreamer Lab
Imposter Syndrome Bible Reading Plan
Devoted Dreamers Facebook Group
MERRITT’S FAVORITE 5 All it Takes is a Goal with Jon Acuff
The Passion Translation
Candied Jalapeños
EO Hand Soap Lemon & Eucalyptus
Bluey Show
CONNECT WITH MERRITT Instagram | Facebook | Website
WORD OF THE YEAR – WORD STUDY You have your Word of the Year. Now what? Make it meaningful by studying what the Bible says about your word.
Get Your Word Study!
Do you ever feel insignificant? Like your contribution doesn’t matter?
If you’re starting this new year wondering whether your life matters, you are in the right place. I’m talking with Rachael Adams about just how significant you are and how the little things you do can have a big impact if you’re partnering with God.
Rachael says “it isn’t about doing more but trusting in the value of all the little you are already doing.”
You’ll hear us talk about…
- Rachael’s search for her own significance
- Where our value comes from
- Why we feel insignificant
- How the small things matter
Author of A Little Goes a Long Way and host of The Love Offering podcast Rachael Adams hopes to help women realize their God-given purpose and significance. She and her husband, Bryan, run a family business and farm in Kentucky with their two children, Will and Kate, and two dogs. Her work has been featured on Crosswalk, iBelieve, Today Parenting, and YouVersion.
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE A Little Goes A Long Way: 52 Days to a Significant Life
Ephesians 2:10 – For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.
The Love Offering Podcast
Lauren Daigle Song – You Say
Zechariah 4:10 – Those who have made fun of this day of small beginnings will celebrate when they see Zerubbabel holding this important stone.
RACHAELS’S FAVORITE 5 Woven by Angie Smith
Harry and Meghan Documentary
Kylie Jenner Lip Stick
Dazzle Dry Nail Polish
Madewell Jeans
CONNECT WITH RACHAEL Instagram | Facebook | Website
WORD OF THE YEAR – WORD STUDY You have your Word of the Year. Now what? Make it meaningful by studying what the Bible says about your word.
Get Your Word Study!
PAST NEW YEAR’S SERIES #78 [Making the Most of Your God-given Time] with Sarah K. Butterfield
#79 [Manage Your Money on Mission] with Katie Jones
#30 [Your Wellness for God’s Glory] with Kara Osborne (Physical and Spiritual Wellness)
#31 [Health in Your Enneagram Number] with Julie Short
#9 [Restoration Therapy] with Nicole Zasowski (Infertility; Emotional and Relational Health)
#8 [True Health] with Julie Watson (Movement, Nutrition + Including God in Your Health Journey)
Enjoy this popular episode on marriage with Rhonda Stoppe, the No Regrets Woman (originally released in September of 2021)!
Rhonda talks about what she did when her marriage wasn’t what she thought it would be. She says the number one marriage trouble is unmet expectations.
We chat about resentment and unforgiveness, and how if these sins are in our lives, we need to acknowledge and repent of them regardless of what our husbands are doing. Rhonda says “it has to begin with you.”
Get all the show notes and connect with Rhonda!
Enjoy this popular episode on gathering with Katie Brown, owner of At The Lane (originally released in August of 2021)!
Katie is an intentional gathering facilitator, dinner party host & event designer.
Katie tells us every gathering needs a purpose. She explains why and how to add intentionality to your gatherings. Katie says she always wants her guests to feel like their presence matters.
You may feel like hosting isn’t your thing, but Katie disagrees. She says that everyone can be a host, just not the same kind of host, and she walks us through how to determine your specific hosting strengths.
Get all the show notes and connect with Katie!
Are you longing for peace, but mostly feeling overwhelmed? Do you want to truly celebrate the Prince of Peace instead of doing ALL the things?
Victoria Duerstock joins me for a conversation about how we can bring peace into our hearts and our homes during the Christmas season.
You’ll hear us talk about…
- How interior design elements parallel Scripture
- Tips for peaceful Christmas décor
- Inviting peace into your heart
- Sharing your peace with others through hospitality
A multi-passionate creative and entrepreneur fueled mostly by coffee, Victoria Duerstock pursues her dreams with verve and intensity. Wife and mom of three, Victoria divides and conquers the never-ending to-do list while working to maintain her sanity and pleasant demeanor.
After spending the last few years writing books, teaching and coaching, and helping other authors and creatives build their online presence to grow their platforms, Victoria is currently on a fascinating new business journey, launching her own publishing house – End Game Press.
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE Heart & Home for Christmas
All Victoria’s Books
The Story of Good
VICTORIA’S FAVORITE 5 The Olive Tree Bible App and Logos Bible Study App
Isagenix Protein Shakes
Sebastian Hairspray
Cashmere
Seltzer Water
CONNECT WITH VICTORIA Instagram | Facebook | Website
FAVORITE 5 GIFT GUIDE The Girls Talking Life Favorite 5 Gift Guide is here! This guide is a collection of my guests’ favorites shared on the show that will make terrific gifts for your favorite people this season. The gift ideas are broken down into categories, linked to where you can find them online and linked to the episode where they were shared.
Get Your Gift Guide!
We have lots of emotions. Anger is one of them and it can be destructive, but it doesn’t have to be.
Natalie Hixson is here to share her story of destructive anger and give us hope.
Natalie and I talk about processing anger in a healthy way. She shares what to do in the heat of the moment, how to handle it if you blow it, and a longer term approach to finding out what’s really behind the anger by tracking what triggers you.
We also talk about preparing yourself to be a situation you know might be stressful and could trigger your anger.
You’ll hear us talk about…
- How time with the Lord can change you
- Normal anger vs. destructive anger
- How to work through anger in healthy way
- Tracking what triggers you/growing in your awareness
- Planning ahead for stressful situations
Natalie Hixson is a wife, mother, auntie, and certified professional life coach who helps discouraged Christian moms overcome destructive anger and burnout. After learning to thrive in motherhood and process anger in a healthy way, Natalie became convicted to help other moms avoid those dark years of motherhood by helping them to appreciate and process their anger, learn to identify their triggers, and ultimately control their reaction to those triggering situations.
She enjoys her own motherhood journey by hanging with her husband Mike and their three daughters in beautiful Bozeman, Montana. She recharges with Jesus, coffee, and adventures with her family like skiing in the winter, hiking in the summer!
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. – Ezekiel 36:26
Trigger Tracker
Work with Natalie
NATALIE’S FAVORITE 5 Reading
axis.org – Culture Translator
Espresso Maker
American Eagle
Autumn Bath and Body Works
CONNECT WITH NATALIE Website
FAVORITE 5 GIFT GUIDE The Girls Talking Life Favorite 5 Gift Guide is here! This guide is a collection of my guests’ favorites shared on the show that will make terrific gifts for your favorite people this season. The gift ideas are broken down into categories, linked to where you can find them online and linked to the episode where they were shared.
Get Your Gift Guide!
Are you living the try-hard life? Do you find yourself working for your worth? Is it hard for you to accept the grace God offers?
I’m joined today by Jill E. McCormick, a try-hard girl – i.e., a woman who wants to wholeheartedly pursue Christ, live and love well, and extend grace to herself and others, but isn’t always sure how to do that in real life – who helps other try-hard girls (like me!) move toward being grace girls by understanding and applying grace in their real lives.
You’ll hear us talk about…
- Jill’s story and her introduction to the concept of grace
- What grace is and how we can practically apply it everyday
- Why grace may be hard for us to receive
- The impact grace can have on our relationships
Jill McCormick is the host of the Grace In Real Life podcast and the writer behind jillemccormick.com, spaces where she shares common-sense grace with the try-hard girl who wants her faith to intersect with her real and full life. Jill lives in South Texas with her high-school-sweetheart-now-husband Ryan, their two daughters, and one Vizsla puppy.
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE Grace In Real Life podcast
Grace for the Good Girl by Emily P. Freeman
JILL’S FAVORITE 5 The Pause App
Volunteering with her Daughter at their local Dog Shelter
What Made My Heart Happy Today List
KJV Strong’s App
The Prodigal Prophet by Timothy Keller
CONNECT WITH JILL Instagram | Facebook | Website
ENNEAGRAM GUIDE Jill and talked about the Enneagram a few time in today’s episode. If you don’t know what the Enneagram is or want to understand it better, Jill has a quick start guide for you!
You’ll learn what the Enneagram is, what it isn’t, and what’s important to know about your type.
Grab your Quick Start Guide to the Enneagram!
GIFT GUIDE
The Girls Talking Life Favorite 5 Gift Guide for 2022 is coming soon!
This guide is a collection of my guests' favorites shared on the show that will make terrific gifts for your favorite people this season.
If you get the GTL newsletter, this gift guide will arrive in your inbox soon! If you are not a subscriber, sign up here:
Become a GTL Newsletter Subscriber
Welcome to another Girls Talking Life Extra. It’s not a full show, just a short chat with a past guest to let you know what she’s up to now.
I’m talking with Hollie Daniels. Hollie joined me on episode 19 and shared her story of radical transformation. She was using drugs by age 11 and involved in prostitution by 15. After 17 years of living that lifestyle, Hollie was able to completely turn it all around after encountering God in prison.
Today she is sober, she’s earned her associates degree, and is helping other human trafficking victims through her organization and outreach.
I encourage you to listen in to episode 19 to hear all of Hollie’s story. It is one of the most listened to episodes of the entire show. It will also help you fully appreciate her update today.
During Hollie’s update, you’ll hear her talk about her organization, the Shining Starz. If you’re local, near Columbus Ohio, I hope you’ll considering donating clothing, especially warm things as we head into these cold weather months. And if you’re not close by, please consider giving a monetary donation.
Reaching for the Shining Starz - https://theshiningstarz.org/
Local Outreach and Donations (clothing, meals, hygiene bags) - https://theshiningstarz.org/outreach
Give a One-time or Monthly Donation - https://theshiningstarz.org/donate
Welcome to another Girls Talking Life Extra. It’s not a full show, just a short chat with a past guest to let you know what she’s up to now.
I’m talking with Hollie Daniels. Hollie joined me on episode 19 and shared her story of radical transformation. She was using drugs by age 11 and involved in prostitution by 15. After 17 years of living that lifestyle, Hollie was able to completely turn it all around after encountering God in prison.
Today she is sober, she’s earned her associates degree, and is helping other human trafficking victims through her organization and outreach.
I encourage you to listen in to episode 19 to hear all of Hollie’s story. It is one of the most listened to episodes of the entire show. It will also help you fully appreciate her update today.
During Hollie’s update, you’ll hear her talk about her organization, the Shining Starz. If you’re local, near Columbus Ohio, I hope you’ll considering donating clothing, especially warm things as we head into these cold weather months. And if you’re not close by, please consider giving a monetary donation.
Reaching for the Shining Starz - https://theshiningstarz.org/
Local Outreach and Donations (clothing, meals, hygiene bags) - https://theshiningstarz.org/outreach
Give a One-time or Monthly Donation - https://theshiningstarz.org/donate
Would you describe yourself as ordinary? Do you feel like God couldn’t possibly use you?
In a season of grief, Robyn asked God to hold on to her, and he did. She experienced a closeness with Him that she can’t stop talking about.
She had a routine of walking for exercise, and God met her during her walks. Robyn began writing about what she experienced on her walks and unknowingly wrote a book with God.
Robyn describes herself as ordinary, like I think most of us would, and says all she did was continue to say yes to what God was asking.
You’ll hear us talk about…
- Robyn’s season of grief and her answered prayer
- Walking with God and inadvertently writing a book
- Sharing your story to point other to Jesus
- Doing the hard work when no one’s watching
Robyn Rison Chapman is a finder of hope and passionate encourager. She was an award-winning journalist and successful grant writer before leaving those careers to spend more time with her family. It was during a season of family grief that she began to feel God calling her into more faith-filled writing. She is the author of the devotional book “Ordinary Walks With An Extraordinary God,” writes regularly on her blog, hopeanyway.com. She lives in southern Ohio with her husband Derek and sons Jack and Max.
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE Ordinary Walks with an Extraordinary God: Fifty-two Devotions to Keep You in Step
hope*writers
ROBYN’S FAVORITE 5 Hoka Shoes
Bones Coffee
Scented Candles
Words
Music Apps
CONNECT WITH ROBYN Instagram | Facebook | Website
BOOK GIVEAWAY Robyn is graciously giving away a copy of her book, Ordinary Walks With An Extraordinary God, to a Girls Talking Life listener. That listener could be you!
If you are a subscriber to the GTL newsletter, you’re entered to win! If not, there’s still time. I’ll be giving away her book at the end of the October! Being a subscriber, you’ll also get all the details from the latest show, plus free goodies, tips on friendship, community or gathering your girls together!
Become a GTL Newsletter Subscriber
Would you describe yourself as ordinary? Do you feel like God couldn’t possibly use you?
In a season of grief, Robyn asked God to hold on to her, and he did. She experienced a closeness with Him that she can’t stop talking about.
She had a routine of walking for exercise, and God met her during her walks. Robyn began writing about what she experienced on her walks and unknowingly wrote a book with God.
Robyn describes herself as ordinary, like I think most of us would, and says all she did was continue to say yes to what God was asking.
You’ll hear us talk about…
- Robyn’s season of grief and her answered prayer
- Walking with God and inadvertently writing a book
- Sharing your story to point other to Jesus
- Doing the hard work when no one’s watching
Robyn Rison Chapman is a finder of hope and passionate encourager. She was an award-winning journalist and successful grant writer before leaving those careers to spend more time with her family. It was during a season of family grief that she began to feel God calling her into more faith-filled writing. She is the author of the devotional book “Ordinary Walks With An Extraordinary God,” writes regularly on her blog, hopeanyway.com. She lives in southern Ohio with her husband Derek and sons Jack and Max.
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE Ordinary Walks with an Extraordinary God: Fifty-two Devotions to Keep You in Step
hope*writers
ROBYN’S FAVORITE 5 Hoka Shoes
Bones Coffee
Scented Candles
Words
Music Apps
CONNECT WITH ROBYN Instagram | Facebook | Website
BOOK GIVEAWAY Robyn is graciously giving away a copy of her book, Ordinary Walks With An Extraordinary God, to a Girls Talking Life listener. That listener could be you!
If you are a subscriber to the GTL newsletter, you’re entered to win! If not, there’s still time. I’ll be giving away her book at the end of the October! Being a subscriber, you’ll also get all the details from the latest show, plus free goodies, tips on friendship, community or gathering your girls together!
Become a GTL Newsletter Subscriber
Today we are celebrating 100 episodes of the Girls Talking Life podcast with a special behind the scenes show, answering your questions, sharing favorite episodes, and of course, my Favorite 5! Cheers!
Mentioned in this Episode
Don’t Ignore the Nudge Podcast
Open Door Sisterhood Podcast
#19 with Hollie Daniels
Favorite Episodes (of 50-100):
#85 Confront the Limits of your love with Amy Wolff
#79 Manage Your Money on Mission with Katie Jones
#74 A Warm and Welcoming Home for the Holidays with Alieta Casey
#73 Breast Cancer Warrior with Kaci Sintek
#61 Living Victoriously with Mental Illness with Carla Arges
#57 Finding Mom Friends with Melanie Dale
#51 Taking Left Turns with Jesus with Kristan Dooley
Summer of Friendship Series
Ways You Can Support the Show
Leave a Review on Apple Podcasts
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Shop Girls Talking Life Products
Yohonna’s Favorite 5
Juice Beauty Stem Cellular CC Cream
Stitchfix*
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The Faster Way to Fat Loss with Abby Miller*
The Bible Recap Podcast and Reading Plan (Let me know if you’re starting the plan in January 2023)!
*This is an affiliate link, but please know that this is something I truly love and would (and do!) recommend to my friends and family. Using one of these links to purchase a product or service directly supports Girls Talking Life at no extra cost to you.
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Are you believing lies about your motherhood? Do you feel like you have to keep it all together or that you are responsible for your child’s happiness?
Rebekah Hargraves and I are digging into some common lies moms believe, starting with where they come from, and how we can use the gospel to fight against them.
You’ll hear us talk about…
- How Motherhood is Important Work, but Not Your Highest Calling
- How “Keeping Your Act Together” Hurts Your Testimony
- How You Are Not Responsible for Your Kid’s Happiness
- Refuting Any Lie with Gospel Truth
Rebekah Hargraves is a wife, homeschooling mama of two, blogger, podcaster, speaker, and author whose passion is to edify, equip, and encourage women in their journey of Biblical womanhood, particularly with an emphasis on the gospel and its implications for everyday life.
BONUS – LIE #31: GOOD MOMS DO “XYZ” There was so much good stuff in this conversation, I couldn’t fit it all into this episode! If you sometimes wonder if another mom’s way of parenting is the right way or if you feel like your way is the only way to be a good mom, you won’t want to miss Rebekah and I talk about Lie #31 “Good Moms Do XYZ”. Grab the rest of our conversation to hear Rebekah’s story and gospel truth on this!
Get the Bonus Audio!
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE Lies Moms Believe (And How the Gospel Refutes Them)
The Home & Hearth Podcast
REBEKAH’S FAVORITE 5 Tank Top Set
Color Street Nail Polish Strips
All Creatures Great and Small
All Things Fall
World War II Novels
CONNECT WITH REBEKAH Instagram | Facebook | Website
GIVEAWAY Rebekah is generously giving a copy of her book, Lies Moms Believe, to one lucky listener.
If you already get my newsletter, you’re entered to win! If not, sign up now so you have a chance at winning too! Being a subscriber, you’ll also get all the details from the latest show, plus free goodies, tips on friendship, community or gathering your girls together!
Enter the Giveaway!
Welcome to a Girls Talking Life Extra. It’s not a full show, just a short chat with a past guest to let you know what she’s up to now.
I’m talking with Gem Fadling. Gem joined me on episode 43 and we talked about what your soul loves – questions to ask that reveal God’s work in you. If you haven’t heard that conversation, be sure to go back and listen.
Today we are talking about her new book, Hold That Thought: Sorting Through the Voices in Our Heads. It releases next week, on September 20th. Listen in for all the details!
Gem is a founding partner of Unhurried Living, Inc., a non-profit that trains people to rest deeper, live fuller and lead better. She is a Certified Life Coach and a trained Spiritual Director who coaches women at the intersection of spiritual leadership and soul care.
Connect with Gem, find her newest book and the details for her membership community Replenish at unhurriedliving.com.
As we move into this new season, we have the opportunity to reset our schedules, get organized and have time for what really matters. My guest, Ashley Brown, self-proclaimed routine queen, is here to help us with this!
Ashley shares her story of transitioning from a working mom to a stay-at-home mom, and how the shifting of her role led her into depression and the mismanagement of her life. She prayed for God’s help and he answered her prayer with routines.
You’ll hear us talk about…
- Why we all need routines
- Where to start with your fall routines
- How routines can help us establish spiritual disciplines
- Ashley’s resources!
Ashley Brown is a mom of two, author of the Routine Building Handbook, and owner of Routine and Things, which serves to help women get organized and into routine so they enjoy the heck out of life. Ashley knows when women feel good, the world is better for it. She’s on a mission to see as many women as possible organize their life one routine at a time!
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE Ashley’s Routine Assessment
The Routine Building Handbook
Routine and Things Planner
ASHLEY’S FAVORITE 5 Dresses
Iced Vanilla Lattes
Dropping Gems Podcast
Her Business
Time with Her Family!
CONNECT WITH ASHLEY Instagram | Facebook | Website
GIVEAWAY Later this month, I’ll be giving away one of Ashley’s planning pads to a GTL newsletter subscriber! The winner can choose between the Done in a Day Pad, the Own the Week Pad or the Nourish and Flourish Meal Planning Pad.
If you already get my newsletter, you’re entered to win! If not, sign up now so you have a chance at winning too! Being a subscriber, you’ll also get all the details from the latest show, plus free goodies, tips on friendship, community or gathering your girls together!
Enter the Giveaway!
As we move into this new season, we have the opportunity to reset our schedules, get organized and have time for what really matters. My guest, Ashley Brown, self-proclaimed routine queen, is here to help us with this!
Ashley shares her story of transitioning from a working mom to a stay-at-home mom, and how the shifting of her role led her into depression and the mismanagement of her life. She prayed for God’s help and he answered her prayer with routines.
You’ll hear us talk about…
- Why we all need routines
- Where to start with your fall routines
- How routines can help us establish spiritual disciplines
- Ashley’s resources!
Ashley Brown is a mom of two, author of the Routine Building Handbook, and owner of Routine and Things, which serves to help women get organized and into routine so they enjoy the heck out of life. Ashley knows when women feel good, the world is better for it. She’s on a mission to see as many women as possible organize their life one routine at a time!
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE Ashley’s Routine Assessment
The Routine Building Handbook
Routine and Things Planner
ASHLEY’S FAVORITE 5 Dresses
Iced Vanilla Lattes
Dropping Gems Podcast
Her Business
Time with Her Family!
CONNECT WITH ASHLEY Instagram | Facebook | Website
GIVEAWAY Later this month, I’ll be giving away one of Ashley’s planning pads to a GTL newsletter subscriber! The winner can choose between the Done in a Day Pad, the Own the Week Pad or the Nourish and Flourish Meal Planning Pad.
If you already get my newsletter, you’re entered to win! If not, sign up now so you have a chance at winning too! Being a subscriber, you’ll also get all the details from the latest show, plus free goodies, tips on friendship, community or gathering your girls together!
Enter the Giveaway!
Back to school is upon us and it can bring up a lot of emotions. Excitement for what’s ahead, anxiety about the unknowns. Let’s take it all to God.
Our kids will face an array of things, good and bad, as they go back to school this year. Will they make good friends who help point them to Jesus? Will their teachers support them with life-giving words? Will our kids walk in confidence and make good choices when we’re not with them? Will they be safe?
We don’t have all the answers, but my guest Tara L. Cole reminds us that we can seek the one who does have all answers. She encourages us to lay a strong foundation for the school year by praying God’s word over our children.
You’ll hear us talk about…
- Abiding in Christ
- Praying for our kids and their school year
- Trusting God with our kids
- Hosting a back to school prayer party
Tara L. Cole is a teacher, wife, and mother to three active boys. She is currently a Communication’s Faculty member at Oklahoma State University Institute of Technology. Along with teaching, Tara’s passion is helping women and their families make an abiding relationship with Jesus the foundation of their lives. Her books Abide: 40 Ways to Focus on Jesus Daily and Everyday Prayers for the School Year, and podcast Over A Cup help women connect with Jesus throughout their day.
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE Abide: 40 Ways to Focus on Jesus Daily
Everyday Prayers for the School Year
Million Praying Moms
Over a Cup Podcast
Matthew 11:29-30
Psalm 91:4
Prayer Party Checklist
TARA’S FAVORITE 5 Marvel Shorts
The Ranger’s Apprentice
The Clockmaker’s Daughter
Sam’s Club Sleeveless Dress
Hawaiian Kona Coffee
CONNECT WITH TARA Instagram | Facebook | Website
CONNECT WITH YOHONNA Website | Instagram | Facebook
We are wrapping it all up today! This is week ten, the final episode of the Summer of Friendship series.
If you haven’t listened to all the episodes in this series or haven’t been as intentional with your friendships as you’d planned, there’s still time! There’s no end date on this, in fact, this is just the beginning!
Let’s keep the momentum going! Think about how you will take the encouragement, inspiration, and ideas you’ve gained here and keep it going into the fall.
Mentioned in this Episode
Episode 85 [Confront the Limits of Your Love] with Amy Wolff
The Gathering Project - Virtual Course
Connect with Sarah
Newsletter | Website
Connect with Girls Talking Life
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The Gathering Project
If you are inspired to start a group or invite women to a get-together, but feel like you could use some more guidance. I have created a virtual mini-course to help you with this very thing. It’s called The Gathering Project, and in five short coaching videos, I will give you the special ingredients you need to plan, prep and gather with your girlfriends, old or new.
Go to girlstalkinglife.com/thegatheringproject
to save your spot!
How do you react when your friend is shining in her gifting?
Last week we talked about making new friends, starting conversations and being the inviter. One thing that can hold us back from starting new friendships or flourishing in our current ones...is comparison.
We are in week nine of the Summer of Friendship series and special guest host, Sarah E. Westfall, joins us again to talk through CELEBRATION OVER COMPARISON.
Sarah is a writer, speaker, podcast host, and director of community for hope*writers. Her work explores the intersection of faith, community, and connection. At the end of the day, Sarah’s favorite place is with her people. She lives for slow Saturday mornings at home, sipping pour-over coffee with her husband Ben as their four sons play (very loudly).
Connect with Sarah
Newsletter | Website
More on Comparison
Episode 58 [The Burden of Better] with Heather Creekmore
Episode 32 [Finding Freedom from Constant Comparison] with Richella Parham
Connect with Girls Talking Life
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Do you crave community? Are you in a new city or a new season of life where you are looking for friends?
We are in week eight of our Summer of Friendship series and we’re talking about MAKING NEW FRIENDS. I walk through where to look and what to do. I share my personal experiences with community, and also talk about the fear of rejection and not disqualifying ourselves.
A few weeks ago we chatted about capacity, we took a look at who we have in our lives and our expectations for our friendships. In that episode, I asked you to do a friendship inventory, to list the women in your life. If you haven’t heard episode 91 or haven’t made your list yet, pause this one and go take your inventory.
Mentioned in this Episode
2 Timothy 1:7
Connect with Girls Talking Life
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The Gathering Project
If you just listened and are inspired to start a group or invite women to a get-together, but feel like you could use some more guidance. I have created a virtual mini-course to help you with this very thing. It’s called The Gathering Project, and in five short coaching videos, I will give you the special ingredients you need to plan, prep and gather with your girlfriends, old or new.
Go to girlstalkinglife.com/thegatheringproject
to save your spot!
How do you love your friends well in the midst of their pain, loss and grief?
We are in week seven of our Summer of Friendship series and we’re talking about SHOWING UP WHEN LIFE GETS HARD with my very special guest host, Sarah E. Westfall.
Sarah is a writer, speaker, podcast host, and director of community for hope*writers. Her work explores the intersection of faith, community, and connection. At the end of the day, Sarah’s favorite place is with her people. She lives for slow Saturday mornings at home, sipping pour-over coffee with her husband Ben as their four sons play (very loudly).
Connect with Sarah
Newsletter | Website
Connect with Girls Talking Life
Instagram | Facebook | Website
Do you have women in your life who are acquaintances or casual friends that you'd like to be closer, deeper friends?
We are in week six of our Summer of Friendship series and we’re talking about DEEPENING OUR FRIENDSHIPS. I will walk through four factors I believe can lead us into deeper relationship with our girlfriends.
If you listened last week, I encouraged you to start considering your current friendships, the expectations you might have for yourself or the women in your life, and to notice if there's anyone you want to go deeper with. If you identified a woman or two, this will give you ideas on how to make it happen!
Mentioned in this Episode
Robin Dunbar - The Atlantic
Authenticity v. Transparency by Sarah Westfall
GTL Conversation Cards
Proverbs 27:9
Connect with Girls Talking Life
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Do you set unrealistic expectations for yourself or your friends? Have you given much thought to your capacity for friendships?
We are in week five of our Summer of Friendship series and we’re talking about CAPACITY AND EXPECTATIONS. We're taking a look at who we have in our lives, thinking through the time and energy we have available for those relationships, and our expectations for ourselves and for those friends.
Mentioned in this Episode
Robin Dunbar / Dunbar's Number
The Limits of Friendship by Maria Konnikova
Connect with Girls Talking Life
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Do you long for meaningful connection and resist it at the same time? Is something getting in the way of true connection for you?
We are in week four of our Summer of Friendship series and we’re talking about BARRIERS TO BELONGING with my very special guest host, Sarah E. Westfall.
Sarah is a writer, speaker, podcast host, and director of community for hope*writers. Her work explores the intersection of faith, community, and connection. At the end of the day, Sarah’s favorite place is with her people. She lives for slow Saturday mornings at home, sipping pour-over coffee with her husband Ben as their four sons play (very loudly).
Sarah was a guest on the podcast a long while back on episode #17 sharing her story of motherhood and heartbreak and seeking God’s goodness. Give that a listen to hear a little more of her story.
Mentioned in this Episode
John 17:21-23
Connect with Sarah
Newsletter | Website
Connect with Girls Talking Life
Instagram | Facebook | Website
We are in week three of our Summer of Friendship series we’re talking about how YOU ARE NEEDED IN COMMUNITY. You are a beloved daughter of God. You are a blessing and a benefit just by being you. Someone needs what you have to offer.
To go along with this series, I’m hosting a Summer Friendship Challenge. If you’re ready to dig in with intentionality this summer, I’d love for you to jump in. Each week of the challenge, you’ll get an email with a small action step to help you cultivate community. If you’re already subscribed to the GTL newsletter, you’re in! If you’re not a subscriber yet, join the challenge here: Summer Friendship Challenge
Mentioned in this Episode
Ephesians 2:10
1 Peter 2:9
2 Timothy 1:7
Matthew 5:13-14
The Lazy Genius Kitchen by Kendra Adachi
GTL episode 83 - Be a Lazy Genius in Your Kitchen
Sarah Westfall's Instagram Post
Exodus 3:10-15
Connect with Girls Talking Life
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Did you know friendship is GOOD for you? We are in week two of the Summer of Friendship series and I'm giving you four ways friendship and meaningful connection are good for your physical and emotional health!
To go along with this series, I’m hosting a Summer Friendship Challenge. If you’re ready to dig in with intentionality this summer, I’d love for you to jump in. Each week of the challenge, you’ll get an email with a small action step to help you cultivate community. If you’re already subscribed to the GTL newsletter, you’re in! If you’re not a subscriber yet, join the challenge here: Summer Friendship Challenge
Research Referenced in this Episode:
Growing Young: How Friendship, Optimism, and Kindness Can Help You Live to 100 by Marta Zaraska
https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/how_your_social_life_might_help_you_life_longer
Medical News Today - https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/321019#Face-to-face-contact-is-like-a-vaccine
The New Yorker - https://www.newyorker.com/science/maria-konnikova/social-media-affect-math-dunbar-number-friendshipsy
Everyday Health - https://www.everydayhealth.com/emotional-health/social-support.aspx
Very Well Mind - https://www.verywellmind.com/what-is-the-need-to-belong-2795393
Connect with Girls Talking Life
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We are in our very first week of the Summer of Friendship series talking about God's heart and design for community. To understand his perfect design, we're digging into His Word! Here are the verses referenced:
- Genesis 1:2
- Genesis 1:27
- John 1
- Genesis 2:18
- John 1:3
- Corinthians 15:58
- Matthew 22: 37-39
- Proverbs 27:17
- Romans 1:11-12
- Hebrews 10:24-25
- 2 Corinthians 13:11
- 1 Thessalonians 5:11
- Mark 12:30
- Matthew 28:19
To go along with this series, I’m hosting a Summer Friendship Challenge. If you’re ready to dig in with intentionality this summer, I’d love for you to jump in. Each week of the challenge, you’ll get an email with a small action step to help you cultivate community. If you’re already subscribed to the GTL newsletter, you’re in! If you’re not a subscriber yet, join the challenge here:
Summer Friendship Challenge
Connect with Girls Talking Life
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During June, July and August, I’ll be releasing mini episodes of the show all about friendship. My hope is that these bite-sized shows will be just what you need for the laidback rhythm of summer and will encourage you to prioritize connection, make new friends and deepen existing friendships.
To go along with this series, I’m hosting a Summer Friendship Challenge. If you’re ready to dig in with intentionality this summer, I’d love for you to jump in. Each week of the challenge, you’ll get an email with a small action step to help you cultivate community. If you’re already subscribed to the GTL newsletter, you’re in! If you’re not a subscriber yet, join the challenge here:
Summer Friendship Challenge
Meet My Guest Host
I’ve also invited my friend Sarah Westfall to join us. Sarah was a guest on the podcast a long while back on episode #17 sharing her story of motherhood and heartbreak and seeking God’s goodness.
Sarah is a writer, speaker, podcast host, and director of community for hopewriters. Her work explores the intersection of faith, community, and connection. You'll be hearing from Sarah in a few weeks. In the meantime, you can connect with her at SarahEWestfall.com*.
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Do you feel intimidated when you pick up the Bible or do you shy away from reading it altogether?
I am talking with Rachel Baker, author of Deconstructed, a bible study guide for anyone who feels overwhelmed or ill-equipped to study the word of God.
Rachel shares how she “accidentally” became a pastor’s wife. We chat about why it’s important to feel confident to read the Bible for yourself. She gives us some insight into why she wrote her Bible study guide and what readers can expect. We talk about how alive and rich God’s word is. Rachel also explains where to start and what to do, if you’re new to your faith or to reading Scripture.
You’ll hear us talk about…
- Why it’s important to read the Bible for yourself
- Rachel’s guide on how to study the Bible
- Where to start and what to do
- Reading the Bible in community
Rachel is a pastor’s wife and director of women’s ministries, who believes in leading through vulnerability and authenticity. She is a cheerleader, encourager, and sometimes drill-sergeant. She serves the local church alongside her husband, Kile, in Northern Nevada. They have two amazing kiddos and three dogs. Rachel is fueled by coffee, tacos and copious amounts of cheese.
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE Deconstructed – A Bible Study Guide
RACHEL’S FAVORITE 5 Try Softer by Aundi Kolber
Tacos
Her Dogs
Adventures with Her Family
Gardening
CONNECT WITH RACHEL Instagram | Facebook | Website
SUMMER OF FRIENDSHIP Summer is coming and I’ll be doing something a little different on the podcast. During June, July and August, I’ll be releasing mini episodes of Girls Talking Life all about friendship! These bite-sized shows will encourage you to prioritize connection, make new friends and deepen your existing friendships.
To go along with this series, I’m hosting a Summer Friendship Challenge.
If you’re ready to dig in with intentionality this summer, I’d love it if you’d join me! Each week of the challenge, you’ll get an email with a practical action step to help you cultivate community, create meaningful connections and build lasting friendships.
Join the Challenge
If someone believes, votes or thinks differently than you, are they your enemy? Are you quick to judge and dismiss people who aren’t like you?
Amy is sharing her story of her unlikely friendship with a woman who is very different than she is. It started with a prompting from God for Amy to be in the world, hate her own sin more than everyone else’s, and to love in a radically different way than our culture teaches.
You’ll hear us talk about…
- Disagreement without judgement
- How empathy does not mean endorsement
- Having hard, messy conversations
- Sharing Jesus with your life more than your words
Amy Wolff is a speaker coach and President of Distinction Communication, a training firm out of Portland, OR. Amy is also a TEDx speaker coach for TEDxPortland, one of the top ten TEDx organizations in the world. When Amy’s not with clients, she’s running a nonprofit she accidentally started in 2017, the Don’t Give Up Movement, and cheering obnoxiously loud at her daughters’ at soccer games. She is also known to obsess over house plants and vacuum lines in her carpet.
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE Don’t Give Up Signs
The Myth We’re Divided – Not All of Us
The Bible Recap
Signs of Hope Book
AMY’S FAVORITE 5 The Makeup Eraser Towel
Coterie Brooklyn Pillows
HOT baths
The Journey from Text to Translations
Getting Up Before the Family to Read Scripture
CONNECT WITH AMY Instagram | Facebook | Website
SUMMER OF FRIENDSHIP Summer is coming and I’ll be doing something a little different on the podcast. During June, July and August, I’ll be releasing mini episodes of Girls Talking Life all about friendship! These bite-sized shows will encourage you to prioritize connection, make new friends and deepen your existing friendships.
To go along with this series, I’m hosting a Summer Friendship Challenge.
If you’re ready to dig in with intentionality this summer, I’d love it if you’d join me! Each week of the challenge, you’ll get an email with a practical action step to help you cultivate community, create meaningful connections and build lasting friendships.
Join the Challenge
In honor of Mother's Day, I'm rereleasing this popular parenting episode (originally released in May of 2020).
Are you trying to do it all perfectly? Struggling with mom-guilt? Not sure how to create a God-centered home?⠀ ⠀
I'm talking with Ruth Schwenk, founder of the popular blog The Better Mom, who inspires moms to become better by becoming more like Jesus.
Ruth says, “it’s being faithful day in and day out and over the years, those things add up to a faithful life that I think has an impact on our kids that we don’t even realize.”⠀
Get all the show notes and connect with Ruth!
Sometimes prayer can feel like this big abstract idea that only the most holy followers of Jesus are getting right, but the truth is, it’s really just about connecting your heart to God’s heart.
Erica Renaud joins me on the show today and she shares her story of following a crooked path into the arms of God, and how she fell in love with prayer and worship.
Erica gives us biblical examples of what prayer has looked like for God-honoring people and how we can incorporate those qualities into our own prayer. She shares encouragement for those of us who don’t feel like we have vibrant prayer lives, and gives us practical ideas of what prayer could look like in different seasons.
You’ll hear us talk about…
- How Erica’s unplanned pregnancy transformed her heart
- 5 Qualities of Prayer – Faith, Persistence, Reverence, Humility and Fasting
- Prayer in Friendship
- Encouragement for Your Prayer Life
Erica Renaud is a powerful speaker, passionate writer and founder of two ongoing prayer initiatives. She speaks at various conferences, events, and retreats throughout the Northeast. Closer to home, Erica and her husband are active in their congregation leading a regular prayer and worship gathering called “The Altar.” Erica also recently helped to launch a powerful women’s event called ‘Ignite’ in September of 2021. That same time she signed a contract with David C. Cook. Her book about praying with children will be released in April of 2023.
GET ALL THE SHOW NOTES
THE GATHERING PROJECT If you don’t feel gifted in hospitality the way Kendra described herself. If you’d like a little more guidance in the area of gathering people together, I invite you to join me this April for The Gathering Project, a virtual workshop where I will help you plan a meaningful gathering from start to finish.
I want to help you gather, create meaningful connections, and build lasting friendships.
The next round of begins April 25th, 2022.
Save Your Spot!
Do you ever feel overwhelmed by your kitchen and all its stuff? Do you constantly have hungry people coming to your kitchen and wanting to be fed?
Kendra Adachi, the Lazy Genius, is my guest today and we talking all about being a genius about what matter and lazy about what doesn’t in our kitchens!
You’ll hear us talk about…
- Setting Up Your Kitchen Based on What Matters to You
- Using Your Kitchen in Ways that Matter to You
- Celebrating Other Peoples’ Different Choices
- Using Your Kitchen to Foster Community
GET ALL the SHOW NOTES
THE GATHERING PROJECT
If you do not feel gifted in hospitality the way Kendra describes in today's show. If you’d like a little more guidance in the area of gathering people together, I invite you to join me this April for The Gathering Project, where I will help you plan a meaningful gathering from start to finish.
It's time to be intentional about getting your girlfriends together or making new ones. Join me for this self-paced virtual workshop where we'll plan, prep and gathering with our girlfriends!
The next round of begins April 25th, 2022.
SAVE YOUR SPOT
girlstalkinglife.com/thegatheringproject
Friendships can be hard, but with help from the Enneagram we can know ourselves better AND be better friends.
Amy Wicks joins me today for a super-fun chat about friendship and the Enneagram. Amy shares a little of her own story and then walks us through each type, coaching us on our strengths in friendship, giving a glimpse into fears or weaknesses, and sharing tips on how to best befriend each Enneagram type.
If you love the Enneagram or want to deepen your friendships, this show is for you!
You’ll hear us talk about…
- Amy’s journey to wholehearted Enneagram coaching
- Friendship strengths of each type
- Fears or weakness of each type
- A friendship tip for each type
Amy loves Jesus and believes He is the Prince of Wholeness for everyone. She is a California-born turn Colorado mountain girl but somehow ended up on a cul-de-sac in the Midwest, spending her days coaching incredible women who desire to thrive in their faith, family, and business. She is the host of The Simply Wholehearted Podcast with weekly episodes since 2017. Besides being a coach for fellow mompreneurs, she recently wrote and published, Should Christians Use the Enneagram (2021), and in 2017, and co-authored a book study with her dear friend, Sara Hagerty, for the bestseller Unseen; the Gift of Being Hidden in a World That Loves to be Noticed (Zondervan).
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE The Simply Wholehearted Podcast
Beth McCord – Your Enneagram Coach
Enneagram Basics
Episode #31 Julie Short [Health in Your Enneagram Number]
Amy’s Beginners Guide to the Enneagram
Enneagram Quiz
AMY’S FAVORITE 5 The Shepherd Trilogy by Phillip Keller
Walging (Walk-jogging) and Barre Videos
Instacart
Trader Joe’s Cashew Shreds
Her Wood-burning Fire Place
CONNECT WITH AMY Instagram | Facebook | Website
CONVERSATION CARDS Shop the Girls Talking Life Conversation Cards
Welcome to another Girls Talking Life Extra. It’s not a full show, just a short chat with a past guest to let you know what she’s up to now. I’m talking with Anna Nash. Anna joined me back in November on episode 76. If you haven’t heard that conversation, be sure to go back and listen.
Today we are talking about her new book, Easter Matters: How the Resurrection of Jesus Changes You
Grab your copy --> eastermattersbook.com
Are you experiencing a relational drought? Wonder what an olive tree has to do with women and connection?
I’m talking with Rachael Wade. Rachael is a wife, mom of two, and teacher who is passionate about encouraging and equipping women with the word of God. She believes in the power of the “in process” every day story. For this reason she created Olive Us a ministry where women recount to remember the goodness and faithfulness of God.
Rachael and I are chatting about her ministry, the power of story, and how it is time to get back to gathering together again!
If you are you feeling socially out of shape, if you wonder whether you’re really needed in community, this show is for you!
You’ll hear us talk about…
- Rachael’s ministry Olive Us
- Why community matters
- The enemy’s plan to keep us isolated
- How to get back to gathering together
GET ALL THE SHOW NOTES MEET OUR PARTNER Part editorial magazine and part thematic devotional, each new issue of the By Design Journal is perfectly curated to include the voices of strong women, support small businesses and encourage readers in the walk with Christ. Grab the winter issue – The Greatest Pursuit – now!
Use code GIRLSTALKINGLIFE for 15% off.
CONNECT WITH GIRLS TALKING LIFE
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Do you struggle with fear, anxiety, or insecurity? Are you reacting to life rather than living on purpose?
Amy Debrucque is a wife, mom of four, cancer survivor, and co-author of Embolden. She is the host of the Life On Purpose Podcast where she encourages women to live on purpose instead of in fear.
You’ll hear Amy and I talk about…
- Her journey with fear and anxiety
- Why it’s important for us to be bold
- How to embolden women around us
- Steps toward living on purpose
Your boldness, your on purpose living, helps other women do the same. Let’s be women living boldly for God. What is your next brave step?
Amy loves entertaining with family and friends. A self-proclaimed “beach junkie”, health nut, and chocolate lover, she loves cooking, baking, attending her kids sporting events and getting in weekly HIIT workouts with her friend Alice.
GET ALL THE SHOW NOTES
Do you have a plan when it comes to your money? Do you wish you could spend, save and give with confidence? Do you have a God-sized dream that your bank account isn’t’ ready to support?
Katie Jones is joining me today to share about money management skills that are rooted in the gospel. She talks about her journey with her own personal finances, learning about money management, and struggling to reconcile the financial principles she was learning with her faith.
GET ALL THE SHOW NOTES MEET OUR PARTNER Part editorial magazine and part thematic devotional, each new issue of the By Design Journal is perfectly curated to include the voices of strong women, support small businesses and encourage readers in the walk with Christ. Grab the winter issue – The Greatest Pursuit – now!
Use code GIRLSTALKINGLIFE for 15% off.
Get the GTL Newsletter Be the first to know! Get the GTL Newsletter!
Do you struggle with using your time well? Do you feel like you don’t have enough time get everything done? Ever wonder what the bible says about time-management?
Sarah K. Butterfield joins me to remind us that we can trust God to give us the time we need for what He’s called us to. She shares practical steps we can take to calm our overwhelming to-do lists. Sarah gives us time-management examples from Jesus’ life, and she tells us about some ways we can steward our time well as we start the new year.
FEELING OVERWHELMED? * Make a list * Ask some questions * Prioritize * Set the bar low * Consider your mental load * Set reminders
HOW JESUS SPENT HIS TIME: * He had a season for everything * He took time to rest and pray, and took the time to take care of his physical body * He welcomed interruption
MANAGING OUR TIME BETTER: * Stop multi-tasking * Anticipate your needs * Say no more often
Sarah K. Butterfield is the author of “Around the Clock Mom: Make the Most of Your God-Given Time,” a resource filled with practical wisdom and biblical inspiration to help busy moms steward their time faithfully. As a speaker and ministry leader, she has a heart for empowering women to grow in their faith! She and her husband and two boys live in San Diego, where she loves getting lost in a book and overindulging in ice cream.
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE Around the Clock Mom: Make the Most of Your God-Given Time
Mental Load Worksheet
Savoring Your Time Blog Post
CONNECT WITH SARAH Instagram | Facebook | Website
CONNECT WITH GIRLS TALKING LIFE Follow along on Instagram for community and encouragement for the rest of your week!
girlstalkinglife.com/podcast
Show of hands: How many times have you resolved to get together with your friends more often, but instead get overly busy with other commitments or Netflix it from your couch most nights? Yeah, me too. Let’s make 2022 the year that we really prioritize our friendships and seek out meaningful connections.
I've created a mini-course - The Gathering Project - to help you plan, prep and gather with your girlfriends. I’ll give you the special sauce to create a meaningful gathering and the accountability to actually do it!
Jenni Lien is joining me today to tell you about her experience with The Gathering Project, the gathering she planned and the community that’s come out of it. ⠀
I invited Jenni to participate in the very first round of my mini-workshop. She graciously accepted my invitation, but had no real plans of hosting a gathering. But as she worked through the week of prompts and prayed about what God would have her do, she devised a plan to gather a small group of women, not once, but on a regular basis to share the ups and downs of life. ⠀
⠀
Listen in to hear Jenni's experience and how she has been blessed by this community! You can also read her full review on her blog.
Jenni Lien is the writer and artist behind The Yay Project which seeks to help women celebrate their God-given design by reminding them that ‘You Are You’ (Yay!). Through The Yay Project, she’s had the joy of e-praising God with women from all over the world.
The Gathering Project begins January 24th!
Save Your Spot!
Today Julie Short (8w7) sits down to talk with me (9w1) all about the Enneagram!
Julie starts off by explaining the Narrative Tradition of the Enneagram. She walks us through each number and gives us actionable steps to take to move toward health. She also gives suggestions of how to support the people in your life in their number. Julie tells us how powerful this tool has been in her life and how it she believes it even saved her marriage.
Get all the show notes and connect with Julie!
Do you feel tethered by something in your past? Like you can’t quite move through the grief of an event? Do you wonder what it means to really walk in freedom?
Amy Loflin encourages women to abandon their self-imposed prisons of shame or unforgiveness, replace the limitation of bitterness with the progress of forgiveness and accept true transformation.
Get all the show notes and connect with Amy!
Anna and I are chatting about experiencing Christmas in a new, fresh way this year. Anna tells us that if we want to move from the familiar experience of Christmas to something deeper and more meaningful, we first need to recognize our need for God, reflect on the current needs of our soul. And second, Anna says we need to come with an expectant spirit, asking God to show us more of Him or something new about the story, and He will.
We talk about keeping the message of the gospel at the forefront of our mind and reminding ourselves of our identity in Christ daily. Anna gives us some practical ways to do that.
Anna shares about the book she’s co-authored with her childhood friend Katie Shelton, Christmas Matters: How the Birth of Jesus Makes a Difference Every Day. This devotional walks you through the 24 chapters of Luke leading up to Christmas day.
Anna goes on to share a few of her favorite Christmas traditions and of course…her Favorite 5!
Anna Nash is an entrepreneur who has a passion for helping people find God’s calling in life and in work. As a Life Coach, Anna is the director of Beacon People which guides, connects and launches people into higher purpose living. She resides in Birmingham, Alabama, and is married to Tyler. They have 4 grown children and own Innova Coffee, a place where Anna loves to share a fresh cup of coffee and a warm conversation.
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE Christmas Matters: How the Birth of Jesus Makes a Difference Every Day
Beacon People
Innova Coffee
Anna’s Other Books
ANNA’S FAVORITE 5 Books by Andrew Murray (Humility and Waiting on God)
The Bridgetown Church Podcast
Charcuterie
Meredith Mann – The Peachy Spoon
Lo-fi Music
CONNECT WITH ANNA Instagram – Anna | Instagram – Christmas Matters | Website
THE GATHERING PROJECT Girls Talking Life is all about being in community with other women, so during this 5-day workshop we will plan, prep and gathering with our girlfriends.
The next round of begins January 24th, 2022. You can save your spot right now. Sign up before the end of the year and get half off the cost of the workshop with code gtl50.
My mission is to help you gather, have conversations, create meaningful connections, and build lasting friendships.
Save Your Spot!
On the show today Latasha Ferguson is sharing her story of her good, good Father reaching out to her at her lowest point and asking her to walk with Him. Latasha said yes, multiple yeses in fact, and continues to every day.
Latasha now helps other women do the heart work so they can overcome, own their story, and live authentically.
You’ll hear us talk about:
- Heart work
- Latasha’s story
- Saying yes to God’s call
- Overcoming shame
- Sharing your story, first of your own healing, then for someone else’s
Latasha is a speaker, writer, podcaster, and heart work coach. She is also a passionate educator who has spent the past 17 years serving in the roles of teacher, assistant principal, principal, and now director of instruction. Wife to her best-friend and mom to four beautiful girls. Latasha loves to run, read, spend time at the beach, and travel in search of great food that hugs her belly.
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE Therapy – betterhelp.com
Overcome to Become
LATASHA’S FAVORITE 5 Air Fryer XL
Fairlife Protein Drinks
Publix
Apple Watch SE
Priscilla Shirer Devotionals and Studies
CONNECT WITH LATASHA Instagram | Facebook | Website
FAVORITE 5 GIFT GUIDE I love hearing about my friends’ favorites, which is what inspired the Favorite 5 segment on the show. This guide is a collection of guest favorites that will make terrific gifts for your favorite people this season!
Grab the guide!
Ready or not…it’s time to start thinking about the holidays! I’m joined by Alieta Casey who is filling us in on how we can create a warm and welcoming home this season!
Alieta shops at garage sales for unique pieces to decorate her home and started sharing her finds on Instagram for fun. She has gained a lot of traction and now uses her platform not only to share home décor ideas, but to pass on what God is teaching her. Alieta compares her treasure hunting to the gospel saying, “finding something that is old or broken or thrown out by somebody else…you take it and make it something beautiful and give it a place of honor in your home. Isn’t that what God has done for us?”
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE Alieta Treasure Hunting
Shiny Happy People
Sophistiplate
ALIETA’S FAVORITE 5 Skinnygirl Sea Salt and Lime Popcorn
Only Murders in the Building TV show on Hulu
Antique Candle Company Tree Farm Candle
Get Out of Your Head by Jennie Allen
The Popcast
CONNECT WITH ALIETA Instagram | Facebook | Website
CONNECT WITH GIRLS TALKING LIFE
Show Notes | Instagram | Facebook FAVORITE 5 GIFT GUIDE
I love hearing about my friends’ favorites, which is what inspired the Favorite 5 segment on the show. This guide is a collection of guest favorites that will make terrific gifts for your favorite people this season!
Grab the guide!
Welcome to a Girls Talking Life Extra. It’s not a full show, just a short chat with a past guest to let you know what she’s up to now. I’m talking with Jessica Hottle. Jessica was a guest all the way back on episode 38. If you haven’t heard that conversation with her, be sure to go back and listen.
Jessica Hottle is a faith-based fitness coach, podcast host, best-selling author, and speaker with a heart for teaching women how to dismantle the lies that keep them from healing and wholeness.
Today we are talking about her new book, Face Off with Your Feelings: Break Up with the Lies from Your Past and Embrace Truth for Your Future. Listen in for all the details!
Connect with Jessica and find her new book at https://www.jessicahottle.com/
Kaci was diagnosed with breast cancer at the age of 31, right at the height of the Covid-19 Pandemic. Knowing that God could use every part of her life for something powerful, she worked to make one of the hardest years of her life one of the most meaningful. She launched a breast cancer themed Christian devotional for women called Twice the Warrior. The book tells about God’s hand in her own journey, along with fifteen other breast cancer warriors.
Today on the show Kaci is sharing the story of her breast cancer journey. It’s full of the things you’d expect like biopsies, surgeries and chemotherapy, but Kaci has SO MUCH MORE to say.
You’ll hear us talk about:
- The whirlwind of her cancer diagnosis
- Feeling betrayed by God
- Deciding to use her situation for God’s glory
- Viewing hard things as opportunities
- Using your story to show God’s goodness
While her initial reaction to her diagnosis was “why me?” She make a bold decision to use her situation to glorify God. Kaci realized that narrating what she was going through was powerful to her healing and she wanted to help other women too.
Her devotional Twice the Warrior, is about fighting cancer, but it’s also about fighting for people to know God. Kaci says that in difficult times we have to remember that God is good, and we should ask God what He’s opening this door for. Kaci says it’s all about shifting your perspective and calls her experience with cancer a “beautiful opportunity.”
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE Twice the Warrior: Christian Devotional for Breast Cancer Warriors
It’s Not Supposed to Be This Way
KACI’S FAVORITE 6 Kayaking with Whales
Auditioning for American Idol
Running a Marathon
Paragliding in Switzerland
Skydiving
Via Ferrata in Telluride
CONNECT WITH KACI Instagram | Facebook | Website
CONNECT WITH GIRLS TALKING LIFE Show Notes | Instagram | Facebook
Today I’m chatting with my friend Leah Rempel about how we can partner with God and put our faith into action.
You’ll hear us talk about:
- being filled up from the inside out
- incorporating your faith into every area of your life
- partnering with God
- pursuing personal ministries, big and small
Leah Rempel is the host of the Faith School Podcast, a podcast dedicated to exploring the practical side of faith. She loves to lead women to follow God from the inside out, integrate their faith into their everyday lives and intentionally pursue personal ministries. She is a wife, mom, and former teacher living in the Great White North.
Get all the Show Notes!
I’m excited to bring you my conversation with my friend Bailey Stone. We are talking about finding our unique callings and the confidence to live those callings out.
You’ll hear us talk about:
- The difference between purpose and calling
- Ways to discern your unique calling
- If your calling changes
- How to increase your confidence
- Discerning God’s voice
Bailey is a Certified Professional Life Coach who helps women elevate their confidence and increase clarity so they can pursue their calling and make an impact. Bailey loves calling Montana home, reading books on the porch with her husband (when it’s not freezing) and finding new spaces to house an ever growing army of houseplants.
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE Ephesians 2:10 – For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.
Confidence Myths that Have Been Holding You Back
The Sound of a Million Dreams: Awakening to Who You Are Becoming by Suanne Camfield (Chapter 10 – Naming)
Bailey Stone Coaching
BAILEY’S FAVORITE 5 Hearing His Voice Devotional by Chris Tiegreen
Live with Purpose Planner
Hearth and Hand Harvest Spice Candle
Produce Storage Bins
Beauty Counter Supreme Cream
CONNECT WITH BAILEY Instagram | Facebook | Website
GTL COMMUNITY GROUP Did you know that there’s a Girls Talking Life community group on FB? It’s an extension of the podcast where we can connect and continue to grow even when we can’t be with our girlfriends. If you are looking for community, if you want join in the conversation after the show and encourage others as we all grow in our faith, jump in to this group! I’d love to see you there!
Today I’m talking with Rhonda Stoppe, the No Regrets Woman, all about marriage and becoming the couple you long to be. Rhonda shares her own love story and invites us to remember what romance was like with our husbands before we were married. She says we need to remember that feeling and then keep working to rekindle it.
Rhonda talks about what she did when her marriage wasn’t what she thought it would be. She says the number one marriage trouble is unmet expectations. We chat about resentment and unforgiveness, and how if these sins are in our lives, we need to acknowledge and repent of them regardless of what our husbands are doing. Rhonda says “it has to begin with you.”
Rhonda tells us that we have to teach our husbands how to love us and what we need in our current season, and she explains how powerful it is when we pursue intimacy with our husbands.
Rhonda Stoppe is a popular speaker and author who fervently imparts the truth of God’s Word to her audience. She is an enthusiastic communicator who unfolds Scripture with a contagious passion for truth as she teaches women to connect with God in an intimate “love walk” of obedience and to live deliberately in their purpose. She and her pastor husband, Steve, are the grateful parents of four grown kids.
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE Real-life Romance
The Marriage Mentor: Becoming the Couple You Long to Be
Titus 2
If My Husband Would Change, I’d Be Happy…And Other Myths Wives Believe
Marriage Videos
Nehemiah 8:10
Philippians 4
Moms Raising Sons to be Men
RHONDA’S FAVORITE 5 Coffee
Flowy Sleeves
Her Husband!
Her Kids
Being a Grandma
CONNECT WITH RHONDA Instagram | Facebook | Website
THE GATHERING PROJECT A five-day experience to plan, prep and gather with your girlfriends.
The Gathering Project begins on September 13th.
You’ll get:
- 5 days of coaching videos
- a 12-page workbook – the Girls Gathering Guide
- GTL conversation cards
- access to a private FB group for real-time interaction with me and other group members for support, ideas and encouragement.
My mission is to help you gather, have conversations, create meaningful connections, and build lasting friendships.
Save My Spot!
Katie was looking for community after moving to L.A., but what she was finding was a lot of networking events, people asking “what can you do for me?” She wanted to create a space for authentic community and started her business, At The Lane, to host intentional gatherings and to help others host intentional gatherings too.
Katie tells us every gathering needs a purpose. She explains why and how to add intentionality to your gatherings. Katie says she always wants her guests to feel like their presence matters.
Katie and I talk about why getting together is so crucial and how you may not even realize you’re missing community, but that we have basic a need to be known by others. You may feel like hosting isn’t your thing, but Katie disagrees. She says that everyone can be a host, just not the same kind of host, and she walks us through how to determine your specific hosting strengths.
We also chat about creating a space for all people. Katie says her “best dinners are the ones where the table looks different.”
Katie is an intentional gathering facilitator, dinner party host & event designer. She founded her company, At The Lane, to host intentional gatherings and help others do the same. With her in-person gatherings, content, products and services, she strives to make gathering more attainable, fun and intentional, while also encouraging the host in each of us.
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE At The Lane
The Art of Gathering by Priya Parker
KATIE’S FAVORITE 5 The Olympics
Maxi Dresses
The Magnolia Network
Interview Podcasts
Trader Joe’s Butternut Squash Ravioli
CONNECT WITH KATIE Instagram | Facebook | Website
CONNECT WITH GIRLS TALKING LIFE Show Notes for this Episode | Instagram | Facebook
We are wrapping up our Summer of Joy series with Talasi Guerra, author of Joy Like a Mountain. She is a Christian communicator who is passionate about infusing Jesus into her everyday life and empowering others to do the same.
Talasi and I talk about the continuous cycle she was stuck in of feeling shame and guilt for making choices that didn’t align with her beliefs, and how after a long battle with anorexia and depression, she cried out to God for help. Talasi shares that she didn’t feel close to God in that moment, but says “looking back, I can see that He was so near because he heard me and started to get to work.”
Talasi shares about what she calls the “joy crisis” and how joylessness effects us. She encourages us to dig in to what the bible says about joy and tells us that when she challenged herself to read about biblical joy every day for a month, reflect on it and apply what she read, her “mind was blown” and she’d “never experienced so much joy.” She tells us that when life feels like a mountain, joy is the tool that help us up and over, but we have to choose to intentionally pursue it.
Talasi is committed to bringing light and life to the world around her by sharing her story, speaking truth, and offering hope to others. Talasi and her husband Ryan reside in Western Canada along with their daughters, Avra and Katana, and their massive strategy board game collection.
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE Joy Like a Mountain: Unleash the Power of Biblical Joy on the Journey of Life
Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us. – Romans 5: 3-4 (NIV)
7-Day Joy Challenge
TALASI’S FAVORITE 5 Town and Field Church Podcast
Parent Cue
30 Minute Workouts
Maracaibo Board Game
The Women’s Speakers Collective
CONNECT WITH TALASI Instagram | Facebook | Website
It's the Summer of Joy around here and we know God is the true source of our joy, but through Him there are things (or people or places) that bring us joy too. On every episode I ask my guest to share the five things are her favorites. Today's show is a compilation of some of those favorites! We are talking spiritual tools and self-care!
CONNECT WITH GIRLS TALKING LIFE
Show Notes for this Episode | Instagram | Facebook
We are continuing our series, Summer of Joy, and I’m talking with Lain Ehman today. Lain is a best-selling author, life and business coach, and host of A More Beautiful Question, the radio show and podcast to equip women to live as Joy Rebels and fight back against a culture of worry and fear.
Lain explains what a joy rebel is and we talk about ways to be one. We talk about the difference joy and happiness, how gratitude creates joy in us and how we always have the choice to choose it or not.
Lain shares her story of struggle and what she did when she thought she couldn’t handle one more thing. We chat about being joyful even in really difficult times and how to keep functioning when you feel like you might not make it through the day.
I encourage you to listen in, learn about being a joy rebel and then show up and shine your light.
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE A More Beautiful Question Show
How Do I Find More Joy in My Life?
How Do I Find More Joy in My Life? – Part 2
Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own. – Matthew 6:34 (NIV)
LAIN’S FAVORITE 5 Zenni Optical
Air Fryer
Scribd – lainloves.com/scribd
Red Light Therapy
Black Rock Coffee
CONNECT WITH LAIN Instagram | Website
It's the Summer of Joy around here and while we know God is the true source of our joy, and through Him there are things (or people or places) that bring us joy too. On every episode I ask my guest to share the five things are her favorites. Today's show is a compilation of some of those favorites! We are talking food, drink and books!
Connect with Girls Talking Life
Show Notes for this Episode | Instagram | Facebook
On the show today, I’m talking with Pam Baily. Pam is a speaker, mentor and friend, challenging women to lead Christ-centered lives full of purpose and joy. Last year she launched her first online discipleship group known as Soul Sisters where she creates an environment for women to study God’s word, pray for one another, and cheer each other along in their walk with Christ. Pam is also the host of the new Soul Sisters podcast.
Pam and I are talking about what it means to be a soul sister and how these special girlfriends help us experience joy. Pam shares ways we can be good sisters to each other – refrain from gossip, encourage in love, lay down your life, and pray for them – sounds easy enough, right? The truth is we all fall short some of the time, but Pam unpacks what these mean for us in our actual lives and small things we can do to stay on track in our relationships.
We also discuss things, other than her soul sisters, Pam has found to increase the joy in her life. I can’t put my finger on what it is that I love so much about Pam, but my guess is that it’s God’s love emanating from her. Jump into our conversation and I’m sure you’ll feel it too!
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE 1 Samuel 18
Soul Sisters with Pam Bailey Podcast
Soul Sisters on YouTube
Discipleship Groups
PAM’S FAVORITE 5 ESV Study Bible
Allen Parr YouTube Channel
Michel Design Works – Beach Collection
J. Crew Flip Flops
Arbonne Chocolate Protein Shake
CONNECT WITH PAM Instagram | Facebook | Website
We’re wrapping up our series on parenting and family culture today. I’m joined by Amanda Bacon. Amanda lives in North Carolina with her husband, Jeremy, and their eight children. She’s on staff at Proverbs 31 Ministries on Lysa TerKeurst’s team and loves encouraging women with biblical truth and authenticity. Amanda is the co-host of All the Mom Things podcast, host of At Night podcast, and the co-author of Shiny Things: Mothering on Purpose in a World of Distractions.
In order to know what’s distracting us, we need to know what our priorities are. Amanda and I talk about how naming what’s important to us isn’t the hard part. It’s keeping what’s most important to us first. Amanda points us to the perfect example. She says, “[Jesus] displays priorities and how to live our top priority with it at the top, all through scripture.”
Amanda and I chat about some of the distractions in our lives and how a lot of times we use distractions as an escape when things are hard. To combat this, a question Amanda will ask is, “is right now the right time?” And because our brains are full managing all of the things for our families, we might need timers and reminders to keep us on track.
As much as we love our children, sometimes they are the distraction. Amanda says communication with our kids is really big when we need to get work done, but we also have to make sure we aren’t squandering our time.
Since summer is upon us and mothering on purpose is Amanda’s heart, we wrap up by talking about things we can do to have a successful summer with our most important people.
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE Shiny Things: Mothering on Purpose in a World of Distractions
All the Mom Things Podcast
At Night Podcast
AMANDA’S FAVORITE 5 Fresh Salsa
Nutpods Creamer
The Dearly Beloved
Bare Marriage Podcast
The Durrells in Corfu
CONNECT WITH AMANDA Instagram
THE GATHERING PROJECT A five-day experience to plan, prep and gather with your girlfriends.
The Gathering Project begins on June 14th.
You’ll get:
- 5 days of coaching videos
- a 12-page workbook – the Girls Gathering Guide
- GTL conversation cards
- access to a private FB group for real-time interaction with me and other group members for support, ideas and encouragement.
My mission is to help you gather, have conversations, create meaningful connections, and build lasting friendships.
Save My Spot!
We’re jumping back into our series on parenting and family culture today while continuing to talk about mental health. If you missed you the last episode, you definitely want to go back and hear my conversation with Carla Arges on Living Victoriously with Mental Illness. Today I’m joined by mental health professional, Michelle Nietert, and she and I are talking about making sure we’re healthy ourselves and then evaluating our kids’ mental health.
Michelle and I talk about how important it is to check in with yourself. She tells us to check on our spiritual practice, to check on our emotions, our sleep, our nutrition and our movement. Michelle gives ideas for how we can be sure we’re centering ourselves on God so we are in a good mindset. She says, “emotions need to be on the bus, but they don’t need to be driving the bus…we want to make sure God is driving our bus.”
Next, it’s time to check in with our kids, have conversations and evaluate their mental health. Michelle says we want to make sure our kids are hopeful about the future, that they’re managing their nutrition and sleep well, and that they are able to process negative emotions when they experience them. She shares questions we can ask our kids to gauge how they’re doing in these areas. Michelle says if they’re not doing well or if we’re just not sure, it’s time to ask for help from a professional. She also encourages us to celebrate when things are good!
Michelle Nietert, LPC-S is an author, speaker, and Clinical Director of Community Counseling Associates in Dallas, TX. She’s a sought-after leader by mental health professionals, churches, and school districts, co-author of Loved & Cherished, a devotional for tween girls and is also co-host of the Raising Brave Beauties podcast, which will be re-launching in May as Raising Mentally Healthy Kids.
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE Pray Every Day Podcast with Mary DeMuth
Brendon Burchard – Doorways
The Mother and Son Prayer Journal by Christie Thomas
Loved & Cherished: 100 Devotions for Girls by Lynn Cowell and Nichelle Nietert
The Passion Ministries – Lou Giglio
Dr. Tim Elmore
Screen Kids by Arlene Pellicane
MICHELLE’S FAVORITE 5 Marleylily Monogramming
Atomic Habits by James Clear
Scent Bird
Buff City Soap Bath Bombs
The Naturally Nourish Podcast
CONNECT WITH MICHELLE Instagram | Facebook | Website
THE GATHERING PROJECT A five-day experience to plan, prep and gather with your girlfriends.
The Gathering Project begins on June 14th.
You’ll get:
- 5 days of coaching videos
- a 12-page workbook – the Girls Gathering Guide
- GTL conversation cards
- access to a private FB group for real-time interaction with me and other group members for support, ideas and encouragement.
My mission is to help you gather, have conversations, create meaningful connections, and build lasting friendships.
Sign me up!
Carla Arges is on the show today sharing her story and her encouragement for those living with mental illness. She also explains what it’s like to live with mental illness on a daily basis for those of us who don’t know. Carla has so much insight and wisdom straight from God’s Word on this subject. She clears up misconceptions about mental illness as Christians and gives practical guidance for those wanting to love someone well who is struggling in this way.
Carla tells us that early on she wanted to handle her struggles on her own, but once she became a mother she knew she didn’t want to repeat the cycle of her childhood with her son, which is what led her to seek help. Carla says “making that shift from being a victim of my circumstances to having ownership over my life was a huge turning point.”
Carla shares some low points in her journey and how God showed her that He created her for MORE. He gently walked her through healing and restoration slowly, one area at a time. Carla tells us that while she still struggles with identity, a way she has combated those feelings is by creating affirmations directly from scripture to remind her of the truth of who she is in Christ.
Carla explains what it’s like to live her mental illness and how she has learned to utilize the tools available to her. She says that by controlling the things you can control — like how much sleep you get, the foods you eat and how much you move your body — you can “live a victorious life within your illness.”
Carla is an entrepreneur, author, mom, wife and mental health advocate. She is the founder of Affirming Truths, a platform to help women affirm their identity in Christ. Her mission is to help women gain confidence in who they are so that they can walk more boldly in the purpose God has over their life.
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE Affirming Truths
CARLA’S FAVORITE 5 Kairos Journal
Who You Say I Am Affirmation Cards
Happy Light
Morning Coffee Made by her Husband
Scopa Italian Card Game
CONNECT WITH CARLA Instagram | Facebook | Website
GIRLS TALKING LIFE COMMUNITY Did you know that there’s a Girls Talking Life community group on FB? It’s an extension of the podcast where we can connect and continue to grow even when we can’t be with our girlfriends. If you are looking for community, if you want join in the conversation after the show and encourage others as we all grow in our faith, jump in to this group! I’d love to see you there!
Join the Community!
Did you know you can help save childhood, mama?
We are continuing our series on parenting and family culture today with Jessica Smartt. She reminds us how important our jobs as moms really are. Even when it doesn’t feel important, we have gifts we can give our kids that will shape who they become. Jessica says, “we need to be gracious with ourselves, but that doesn’t mean we don’t work on the things that are worth doing.” And parenting our children well is one of those things!
Jessica and I chat about her book, Let them Be Kids. We dive into why and how we can give our kids the gifts of adventure, boredom and more. Jessica says our kids are wired to need adventure and we can “either give it to them in a healthy way, or they’re going to want to go find it on their own, and the world offers them tons of options.”
We talk about why they need the mental white space of boredom too. Jessica gives us permission to “back the bus up” on decisions we’ve already made about technology. She also shares about grit, work ethic and lessons learned from her kids’ pet sitting business.
Jessica is a homeschooling mom of three who loves biking, breakfast food, and being the one in charge of a big fun event. She is the author of Memory-Making Mom and Let Them Be Kids.
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE Memory Making Mom
Let Them Be Kids
Sex, Jesus and the Conversations the Church Forgot by Mo Isom
Allowance Chore System
Summer Planning Guide
JESSICA’S FAVORITE 5 Sunless Tanner
Trader Joe’s Vegetable Fried Rice
Family Friendly TV Shows
World of Where
Art Hub for Kids
CONNECT WITH JESSICA Instagram | Facebook | Website
GIRLS TALKING LIFE COMMUNITY Did you know that there’s a Girls Talking Life community group on FB? It’s an extension of the podcast where we can connect and continue to grow even when we can’t be with our girlfriends. If you are looking for community, if you want join in the conversation after the show and encourage others as we all grow in our faith, jump in to this group! I’d love to see you there!
Join the Community!
What is your family’s culture? Do you know you have one whether you’ve thought about it or not?
Kimberly Amici joins me today to begin our series on parenting and family culture. She and I talk about what family culture is and how to go about defining it for your family. Kimberly says “when you have a culture in your home where you’ve identified your values and you know what you want to be known for…it helps you make decisions.” Prevent decision fatigue by having a plan in place where you’ve decided ahead of time!
We chat about getting our kids involved and letting them take ownership which allows our kids to feel a sense of belonging and empowerment. We also talk about creating a culture that points our kids to Jesus. Kimberly says it’s “deciding what it is that’s important to you and then taking small steps over time to get there.”
Kimberly has fantastic encouragement for young moms who are in the trenches and for mamas of older kids who might think it’s too late to be intentional with the direction your family is headed.
Kimberly is known for her creativity, strong faith, and commitment to living life with purpose and passion. She is an entrepreneur, designer, podcast producer, and family culture coach. She lives with her husband Carl and their three teenagers in the NYC suburbs.
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE Read It Pray It Cards
Build Your Best Family Course
Build Your Best Family Podcast
KIMBERLY’S FAVORITE 5 Bingeing Alias
Music
Hydroflask
Becoming Elisabeth Elliot by Ellen Vaughn
Essential Oils
CONNECT WITH KIMBERLY Instagram | Facebook | Website
CONNECT WITH GIRLS TALKING LIFE
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Heather Creekmore joins me to talk about body image, comparison and the never-ending chase of better.
We talk about Heather’s new book, The Burden of Better, and how there is no end to chasing better. Better is a moving target that changes depending on who you’re looking at or the trend of the day. She says the only answer to our constant discontentment is Jesus.
Heather and I chat about how comparison affects our friendships. She says when we compare ourselves to other women, our potential friends, and find them seemingly “better” than us in a certain area, our brains process it as rejection. Heather says, “we cannot be loving others, especially our friends as we’re called to love them, if we are comparing ourselves with them, it’s just not possible.”
Whether we’re comparing our bodies, or our works, or our gifts, Heather shares how grace and gratitude are tools God’s given us to effectively fight comparison and end the race for better. She say’s “once you truly understand God’s grace, it allows you to be grateful and have gratitude at just a completely different level. It takes it from a head game to a heart game, and that’s when it starts to really change the way you believe.”
Heather writes and speaks hope to thousands of women each week inspiring them to stop comparing and start living. Her first book Compared to Who? encourages women to uncover the spiritual root of body image issues and find freedom. Her new release, The Burden of Better, offers women a journey into the depths of God’s grace to find a way off the treadmill of constant comparison. Heather and her fighter-pilot-turned-pastor husband, Eric have four children and live in Austin, Texas.
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE The Burden of Better
Compared to Who?
Colossians 3:12-14 Message Version – Be content with second place.
HEATHER’S FAVORITE 5 Dr. Axe’s Salted Carmel Bone Broth
Nicky Gumbel One-year Bible Reading Plan
Say I Won’t by Mercy Me
The Cosby Show
Colossians 3:12
CONNECT WITH HEATHER Instagram | Facebook | Website
CONNECT WITH GIRLS TALKING LIFE
Instagram | Facebook
Melanie Dale joins me for a fabulous conversation about Mom Friends; how we make them, why we need them and how it helps our kids.
Melanie tells us that it’s important for us to have other mom friends so we can model healthy relationships for our kids and so we realize that we’re not alone in the parenting challenges we face. She says, “my mom friends actually make me a better parent.”
Melanie walks us through the bases for mom friends, the four phases our relationships may go through from an acquaintance you make small talk with at soccer practice, to someone you invite for a night out without the kids.
Melanie shares her “wow, that’s so awesome” approach for when another mom gives us the lowdown on her strong opinion of something we might not agree with. She says it allows the “relationship to breathe and to develop trust.” She tells us to lighten up about different parenting choices.
And finally we talk about teaching our kids to be good friends. Melanie says “as my kids are going through relationship challenges and dealing with other friends” she tries “to coach from the sidelines and not get on the field.”
Melanie is the author of four books, including Calm the H*ck Down: How to Let Go and Lighten Up about Parenting. She’s a staff writer for Coffee+Crumbs, hosts the podcast Lighten Up with Melanie Dale, and has contributed writing to everything from the (in)courage Devotional Bible to Shudder’s Creepshow. She lives in the Atlanta area with her husband of twenty years and their three kids from three different continents.
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE Calm the H*ck Down: How to Let Go and Lighten Up About Parenting
Women Are Scary: The Total Awkward Adventure of Finding Mom Friends
20 Ideas for Zoom Calls BESIDES talking about Coronavirus
MELANIE’S FAVORITE 5 Vampire Teeth Jammies
Doc Martins
Abel Perfume
Harney and Sons Cinnamon Tea
Burt’s Bees Lip Shimmer
CONNECT WITH MELANIE Instagram | Facebook | Website
THE GATHERING PROJECT A five-day experience to plan, prep and gather with your girlfriends.
The Gathering Project begins on March 15th. Register today at girlstalkinglife.com/thegatheringproject.
Use code GTL50 for 50% off your registration.
My mission is to help you gather, have conversations, create meaningful connections, and build lasting friendships.
What does good conversation look like? How do you create a safe space for vulnerability? What does it mean to really connect?
Continuing our series on cultivating community, creating meaningful connections and building lasting friendships, Brandy Wallner joins me from Southern California to chat about A Good Conversation Dinner, a table ministry designed to help women connect across all perceived boundaries and as fellow image bearers of God.
Brandy has a love for eliciting deep conversation, and to get the depth you need vulnerability, but that doesn’t happen automatically. She says we can create a “safe-to-be-vulnerable environment” by going first. Brandy also shares some of her guidelines for a good conversation.
Brandy and I talk about how important listening can be. She encourages listening without interruption as to not side-track the conversation. Her dinners give everyone a chance to share so there’s no pressure to jump in to make your voice heard. Brandy tells us that connection happens when we listen for our commonalities and our differences.
For anyone who might be apprehensive to host, Brandy says it doesn’t need to be fancy. Ordering in or potluck are just fine! We also talk about being introverts and how that impacts our conversation. Brandy tells us that having intentional questions helps move us past draining small talk and produces life-giving conversations.
Brandy Wallner is a freelance content writer, ghost writer, and current Community Writer on the hope*writer team. She is passionate about writing words and questions that help people connect with God, themselves, and their people. She is the founder of A Good Conversation Dinner, a table ministry designed to help women connect across all perceived boundaries and as fellow image bearers of God.
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE hope*writers
A Good Conversation Dinner
For 30% off card sets through March 1st, use code: GTL
BRANDY’S FAVORITE 5 Trader Joe’s Dark Chocolate Pistachio Toffee Squares
Novex Collagen Infusion Leave-in Conditioner
A Great Cup of Coffee
The Bachelor/The Bachelorette
Maverick City Worship
CONNECT WITH BRANDY Instagram | Facebook | Website
CONNECT WITH GIRLS TALKING LIFE Show Notes | Instagram | Facebook
REVIEW THE SHOW
Today we’re continuing our series on cultivating community, creating meaningful connections and building lasting friendships, and I’m chatting with Noelle Rhodes, host of the Friending show.
Noelle starts by sharing her own personal struggle with friendship. When she moved back to the States, after being a missionary in Northern Ireland for several years, most of her friends had moved on. She was lonely and was having a hard time making new friends. That low point started her journey to researching and talking about female friendships.
Noelle describes how relationships affect us and says “loneliness is the worst poison for the mind, and friendship is as valuable as daily exercise.” We chat about what to do if you feel like friend groups have already been established and you’re on the outside. Noelle tells us to invite ourselves in…and bring food!
She explains the difference between cliques and groups, and how to know if you’re in a toxic relationship. We also talk about having a “social spark” with someone and how to invite them into a deeper friendship. Noelle says “time is that currency of trust and trust is what makes space for vulnerability, and then vulnerability leads to depth in friendships.”
Noelle is a pastor, podcaster and playwright. She has studied female friendship for the last 4 years and hosts the podcast, Friending – a show that helps women have life-giving friendship no matter what season of life they are in. She resides in New Jersey with her wild children, husband of 18 years and dog with three working legs.
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE Friending Podcast
NOELLS’S FAVORITE 5 Aldi Candles – First Snow
Constant Comment Tea
The Queen’s Gambit
Mrs. Meyers Peppermint All Purpose Cleaner
Gray Walmart Sweatpants!
CONNECT WITH NOELLE Instagram | Website
WORD OF THE YEAR – WORD STUDY You have your Word of the Year. Now what? Make it meaningful by studying what the bible says about your word.
Get your Word Study!
What is holding you back from building community? Are you an inviter? How do you make time for friendships?
I am joined today by not one, but two lovely ladies who are part of a trio called The Ruth Experience. These ladies created a community, a modern day “Tea and Testimony,” where women come together and share their joys and sorrows and how God is at work in their lives, much like the way Ruth and Naomi interacted in the Old Testament.
Kendra and Kristin encourage us to start where we are, to build our community in the places we already go. Kristin says, “we have to be the ones who are looking, we have to be the initiators who are going out and trying to find that community.” But this can be intimidating. Fear of rejection can stop us in our tracks. Kendra and Kristin give terrific ideas on how to push past those fears and do the inviting.
Kendra and Kristin also tell us that prioritizing our friendships is key. We need to make time for them and add them to our to-do list just like anything else. They also give some creative ways to nurture relationships when we can’t physically be together. We chat about the value of befriending women in different life stages and what healthy sisterhood looks like.
Kristin Demery, Kendra Roehl, and Julie Fisk are three Central Minnesota authors. They believe in the immense power of authentic community and of intentionally living one’s faith out loud through kindness and friendship. They have several published books, including the One Year Daily Acts of Kindness devotional, with their most recent being the One Year Daily Acts of Friendship: 365 Days to Finding, Keeping, and Loving Your Friends.
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE The One Year Daily Acts of Friendship: 365 Days to Finding, Keeping, and Loving Your Friends
The Ruth Experience
5 Creative Friendship Goals for the New Year
KENDRA’S FAVORITE 5 Eden’s Garden Essential Oil Blends
Breath by James Nestor
Emma Movie
Modern Roots Crème Brule Candle
Universal Yum Subscription Box
KRISTAN’S FAVORITE 5 House Plants
Fluffy Blanket
Hallmark Movies
Morning Cup of Coffee
Cozy Front Porch with Heater
CONNECT WITH THE RUTH EXPERIENCE Instagram | Facebook | Website
WORD OF THE YEAR – WORD STUDY You have your Word of the Year. Now what? Make it meaningful by studying what the bible says about your word.
Get your Word Study!
Happy new year! Today we are kicking off a brand new series. The heart behind Girls Talking Life is providing girl time when you can’t be with your girlfriends, but ultimately I want to encourage you to be in community with the women in your actual life. Gather, have conversations, create meaningful connections, and listen to each others’ stories. But sometimes that’s easier said than done.
Adult friending is hard and because of last year it’s even harder.
So over the next several episodes, I’m going to bring you incredible guests and also some resources! We’re talking all about cultivating community, creating meaningful connections and building lasting friendships!
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE Mama Needs Subscription Box – February theme: Mama Needs Friendship – available to order through January 31st and will include Girls Talking Life conversation cards! Use the code PODCAST for free shipping on your first box!
Word of the Year – Word Study
New GTL Community Group
Sermon by Pastor Jeff Bogue – Grace Church
The Ruth Experience – Creative Friendship Goals for the New Year
“Having friends is good! And they are good for you! Therefore, if you are passionate about self-care then you should be making friends and enriching those relationships. Investing in friendships is investing in yourself.” Hanna Gilland – It’s not just you: Making other adult friends is hard
YOHONNA’S FAVORITE 5 Coffee Maker Auto On
The Bible Recap
Faster Way to Fat Loss with Abby Miller
Madewell Jeans
Geranium Lime Body Oil
CONNECT WITH GIRLS TALKING LIFE Instagram | Facebook | Website
I’m talking with Jenn Collins, Chief Self-Care Officer of the Mama Needs Subscription Box. Jenn is sharing a little of her story, how her business came to be and practical things we can do to get ready for the holidays while taking good care of ourselves in the process.
Most women are the executors of Christmas in their homes. The party planners, the gift buyers, the chefs and the decorators! Jenn preaches self-care all year long, but this show also seeks to encourage you to do all you can to take care of yourself during this season. The holidays are supposed to be full of joy and cheer, not stress an exhaustion.
Jenn and I chat about practical things we can do to make this month easier because we want to serve the people we love from a place of abundance, not overwhelm.
GET ALL THE SHOW NOTES CONNECT WITH JENN Instagram | Facebook | Website
Use the code PODCAST for free shipping on your first box!
CONNECT WITH GIRLS TALKING LIFE Instagram | Facebook | Website
Do you love a good God story? Does it boost your faith to hear someone sharing the great things God’s been doing in their life? If you’re feeling distant from God for any reason, today’s show is sure to rekindle your love for Him.
Kristan Dooley sits down with me today to share her story of following Jesus off the beaten path. He asked her to turn left, and even though it didn’t make a lot of sense, Kristan accepted His invitation. She prepared her heart and payed attention to what God was revealing to her.
Kristan says there was a lot fear and some days it felt like a disaster, but she surrendered and trusted her Father. She says “we say we trust someone as long as all of the circumstances around us are what they should be, that kind of trust comes naturally. But then all of the sudden, the ground comes out from under us and we have to ask ourselves, do I have the faith to do it anyway?”
Kristan and I talk about the place of prayer and worship she set up in the red light district and how the crowd and energy there was nothing like a typical church setting. She tells us about the sweet gifts God gave her in that season, including completely changing her heart and their relationship. Kristan says, “anywhere he takes us, it’s not about what we have to give…it’s more about what we have to receive.”
Kristan has worked in ministry for almost twenty years. Most recently, she serves as the Discipleship pastor at Anthem House church in West Chester, Ohio. She also works as a coach for Gravity Leadership and is the director of Renewal Women’s Ministry. Kristan just released her third book, Left Turns, Following Jesus off the Beaten Path, in hopes of encouraging her reads to follow Jesus wherever he invites.
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE Left Turns: Following Jesus off the Beaten Path
Made to Love
Isaiah 30:21 – and whenever you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear this command behind you: “This is the way. Walk in it.”
Anthem House Church
KRISTAN’S FAVORITE 5 Anatomy of the Soul by Curt Thompson
Pumpkin Spice Coffee and Creamer
Nike Leggings
Boating Season
Contentment in Her Heart
CONNECT WITH KRISTAN Instagram | Facebook | Website
SUPPORT THE SHOW Prep Dish is a healthy subscription based meal plan service. When you sign up, you’ll receive a weekly email that contains your menu for the week, an organized grocery list and easy to follow instructions for prepping your meals ahead of time. After a couple of hours in the kitchen, all of your meals are ready for the entire week!e – 50% off all subscriptions Black Friday through Cyber Monday with code HARVEST20!
Do you find yourself struggling to see the gifts of the season you’re in? Did you know that the daily practice of gratitude has the power to impact the neurotransmitters in your brain?!?⠀
Have you ever wanted to implement a weekly Sabbath into your family’s rhythm?
Amber Cullum joins me to talk about the daily practice of gratitude and introducing a rhythm of family Sabbath.
Amber is a wife to Sam, mom of 3, and the host of Grace Enough Podcast. A podcast designed to encourage the believer that God can use you to impact His kingdom no matter your story.
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Prep Dish is a healthy subscription based meal plan service developed by chef & dietitian Allison Schaaf. When you sign up, you’ll receive a weekly email that contains your menu for the week, an organized grocery list and easy to follow instructions for prepping your meals ahead of time. After a couple of hours in the kitchen, all of your meals are ready for the entire week. No more answering the question, “What’s for Dinner?!” Meal time stress is replaced with a healthy, whole food meal made by YOU!
To give Prep Dish a try for free, go to prepdish.com/girlstalkinglife
Are you busy with a never-ending to do list? Is your mental busyness too loud in your head?
Yvonne Marie sits downs with me for a conversation about killing the busy (physical or mental) and saving and the bee (you) by being still and knowing that God is in control.
Yvonne tells us that being still is more than quiet reflection or rest, it’s actually about surrender. She gives practical ways to kill the busy in our lives and explains that by doing that, we can actually become more productive.
Yvonne compares bees and their work in the hive to followers of Jesus and their work for the kingdom of God. She talks about solitude and how we can go about finding it. Yvonne and I talk about cultivating a deeper relationship with God and how you know when you’re hearing his voice. Yvonne shares how she connects what she’s learning about God in her head to how she feels about him in her heart through studying, journaling and prayer.
Yvonne Marie, M.Ed. is an author, artist, poet, and teacher. She has spent most of her adult life serving in Christian ministries such as worship, discipleship, leadership, and women’s ministries. She works as an associate professor teaching freshmen college students the joy of composing a valid, worthy, and credible argument. Yvonne Marie is married to a very handsome and highly skilled photographer and they have two remarkable sons.
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE Kill the Busy Save the Bee: What it Really Means to Be Still and Know
Psalm 46:10 – Be still, and know that I am God.
War Room Movie
Philippians 4:6 – Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Jude by Jackie Hill Perry
He Speaks to Me by Priscilla Shirer
Philippians 4:8 – Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.
YVONNE’S FAVORITE 5 Time with Family and Her Church Family
Trailblazers Group
Books (Jude by Jackie Hill Perry and Homecoming by Yaa Gyasi)
Painting and Drawing
Wrap Life Head Wraps
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A discussion about engaging in the political conversation, making biblical-based decisions and practically preparing to go to the polls.
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE vote411.org
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Whether you’re waiting for something that will change your life or you’re waiting in line at the grocery store, we can all relate to the frustration of our needs or wants not being immediately satisfied. We all wait. Rebecca Brewster Stevenson joins me to take a deep dive into the heart behind our frustration and gives ideas on where we can place our focus during our waiting.
Rebecca writes in Durham, North Carolina, where she lives with her husband and children. In 2012 she left teaching to pursue writing full-time, and is author of the critically acclaimed novel Healing Maddie Brees. She is a speaker and a regular teacher at The Well, a women’s Bible study at Chapel Hill Bible Church. She recently released her second book, Wait: Thoughts and Practice in Waiting on God.
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE Wait: Thoughts and Practice in Waiting on God
Healing Maddie Brees
REBECCA’S FAVORITE 5 Word Matters Podcast
Christian Analytic Theology by Tom McCall
Visual Art of Hilary Siber
Her Gym
Her Church’s Prayer Time
CONNECT WITH REBECCA Instagram | Facebook | Website
SUPPORT THE SHOW Join Abby Miller’s new client group beginning October 26th for simple, effective, cutting edge fitness and nutrition strategies including meal plans, daily 30 minute workouts, community support and nutrition coaching. Hear more of Abby’s story on episode #2.
Brooke Robertson is a Louisiana-based singer/songwriter who grew up riding horses and four wheelers. She started singing as a pre-teen and has been singing ever since. Her debut album, Taking My Voice Back, released earlier this year and marks the first time she has shared her story as a victim of childhood sexual abuse. Brooke joins pop sensibilities and country soulfulness together with her pure vocal tone and heartfelt lyrics, crafting songs centered on the way God’s redemption weaves its way through all our life experiences – both heartache and hope.
Brooke joins me to talk about her new album, Taking My Voice Back. We chat about how she got started in music. She shares about how she had a plan for her life and how God closed that door. Brooke tells us that when she didn’t have a plan B, she became completely dependent on God to define her path. She says, “you don’t really fully understand what trust mean until you’re having to walk through something that’s difficult.”
Brooke tells us that after her first tour, when it was time to write new music, she asked God what people needed to hear. He answered that it was time for her to share her story of being the victim of abuse. She had buried this story deep inside and was reluctant to share it with anyone, and certainly didn’t feel ready to share it with the world.
Brooke and I talk about forgiveness and how she felt the need to reach out to the person who hurt her 15 years before. She was able to offer forgiveness and share Jesus. She encourages anyone who is holding on to something painful to try and find healing. She wants you to be “able to live freely because you don’t realize how heavy it is to hold onto unforgiveness.”
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE Have My Heart – EP
Taking My Voice Back Music Video
Taking My Voice Back Explanation Video
BROOKE’S FAVORITE 5 Unshakable by Christine Cane
Her Coffee Shop’s Breakfast
Food Network – The Pioneer Woman
Hiking
Family
CONNECT WITH BROOKE Instagram | Facebook | Website
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I want to know about YOU!
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Go to purehaven.com/girlstalkinglife to shop their whole line and check out these limited release cranberry pomegranate products!(available through September 30, 2020, or while supplies last)
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Kari Kampakis joins me to talk about raising our teenage daughters. Kari is the mom of four girls, has written books for teen girls and has recently released a book for the moms of teenage girls called Love Her Well.
On the show today Kari and I talk about the struggle between nurturing the mother/daughter relationship and directing and correcting our girls as a parent. Kari says it’s possible to do both, but it has to be “rooted in love.” We talk about choosing our words carefully and how the timing of those words matter too. Kari shares a story about not saying what was on her mind in order to preserve a good moment she was having with her daughter. Sometimes it okay to save the correction for later.
Kari tells us that admitting to our kids when we’re wrong can be a game changer in our relationship. They see so much “perfect” in our culture. It’s important for them to know that we’re not perfect and that’s why we need a savior.
Kari and I talk about connecting and having fun with our daughters and that we need to keep extending the invitation to our girls and that some of the best times and deepest conversations happen spontaneously, and they’re not fancy at all.
Kari says that our identity as moms is not tied to the decisions our kids are making. We are parenting without guarantees. But God created us “to parent with a spirit of strength and not defeat.”
Kari lives in Birmingham, Alabama. Her books for teen girls, 10 Ultimate Truths Girls Should Know and Liked: Whose Approval Are You Living For?, have been used across the country by youth and church groups. Kari’s work has been featured on the TODAY Show, TODAY Parents, Yahoo! News, EWTN, Proverbs 31, and more.
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE Love Her Well: 10 Ways to Find Joy and Connection with Your Teenage Daughter
The Teenage Brain
The Girl Mom Podcast
KARI’S FAVORITE 5 Apple AirPods
Barefoot Dreams Blanket
Chocolate Chip Cookies
Fairhope, Alabama
This Is Us
CONNECT WITH KARI Instagram | Facebook | Website
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Show Notes for this Episode | Instagram | Facebook
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I want to know about YOU!
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Pure Haven is the maker of fresh, safe, personal and home care products. Their mission is to educate consumers about pure, safe, alternative personal care choices that empower people to live the healthiest lifestyle possible. Their products are 100% free of toxins. Guaranteed.
Go to purehaven.com/girlstalkinglife to shop their whole line and check out these limited release cranberry pomegranate products!(available through September 30, 2020, or while supplies last)
Use the code 272171 to support the show during the month of September.
Today on the show I’m chatting with Amanda Warfield—simplicity lover, time management coach, and host of The Chasing Simple Podcast. Her mission is to help overwhelmed creative entrepreneurs simplify and get organized in order to take back their time — because time is the one resource we can’t make more of. Amanda is passionate about helping women stop feeling like they are just getting by, and instead, guiding them in creating space for what matters most in their life.
Today on the show Amanda and I talk about implementing change into our schedules and routines. Amanda tells us that now is a good time to make a change because ANY TIME is a good time to make a change if you’re feeling stuck.
Amanda shares her story of overwhelm and how she was burnt out by her schedule and doing ALL the things. She decided to simplify and said, “if I’m putting something on my to do list, it needs to have a legitimate purpose in my life.” She started by decluttering her home, then her schedule and putting boundaries into place.
Amanda and I chat about the concept of work/life balance and how it’s not about equally dividing your time, but giving the correct level of care to each area our lives. Amanda tells us that when you find an area that needs more care, we shouldn’t overdo it. Just take one small action step. We also talk about honoring God with our time. Amanda reminds us that if we’re so busy trying to do everything, God’s voice, where he’s calling us, could get shut out.
I loved talking with Amanda. She gives high level ideas and really practical things we can implement today to simply our lives and take back our time.
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE Powersheets by Cultivate What Matters
Trello
The Chasing Simple Podcast
AMANDA’S FAVORITE 5 Good Reads
Proverbs 31 Experience Guides
The Sim’s 2
Disney Movie Date Night
Enjoying Summer!
CONNECT WITH AMANDA Instagram | Facebook | Website
SUMMER SURVEY I would love to get to know YOU better and hear YOUR ideas for the show! Would you take just a few minutes to tell me a little about yourself and share your thoughts! Take the Survey!
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Chelsey and I are talking about how God pursued her in the midst of her rebellion. Chelsey shares about her upbringing and how, when she didn’t want to go to church anymore, her parents let make her own decision and faithfully put her in the Lord’s hands. She tells us that for a season her life was “fueled by lust and rebellion and secrecy.” She was caught in a cycle of making poor decisions and covering them up. But then God intervened.
Chelsey shares a story of God interrupting her in the middle of her mess to remind her she was loved and that he was pursuing her heart. She says that things didn’t turn around for her right away, but that that was the beginning of her living her life for Jesus. She’s says, “I’ve seen him turn me into this woman who wants nothing more than to be like him.”
Get All the Show Notes! **Mentioned in this episode** ibelieve.com crosswalk.com
The Living with Less Podcast
Soul Tie Healing Prayer
John 3:30 – He must become greater; I must become less.
The Bible Recap
Chelsey's Favorite 5 Lululemon High Rise Align Leggings
Costco’s Jack Cantina’s Salsa
Getting Outside
The Naked Marriage Podcast
Royalty by London Gatch
Connect with Chelsey Instagram |Pinterest | Website
Summer Survey I would love to get to know YOU better and hear YOUR ideas for the show! Would you take just a few minutes to tell me a little about yourself and share your thoughts! Take the Survey!
**Faster Way to Fat Loss** Join the next round with Abby Miller starting soon! https://www.fasterwaycoach.com/#girlstalkinglife
Today I’m talking with Gem Fadling, founding Partner of Unhurried Living, Inc. and author of What Does Your Soul Love? Eight Questions That Reveal God’s Work in You. Gem begins by explaining the difference between busy and hurry. She says, “busy is more external and hurry is more about your heart, your soul.” She talks about being reintroduced to Jesus, putting him back at the center, and how that changed the trajectory of the rest her life.
Gem and I go on to talk about her book, where she came up with the questions that make up each chapter and how sitting in the questions can actually bring about transformation. Gem shares that this journey started by her asking the question, “how did I get here?” and prompts us to ask questions like, “where am I?”, “am “I enjoying this?”, “am I happy with the progress I’ve made?” She tells us that by asking questions like these, she started to experience God in new ways.
Gem and I talk about soul focus and what it means to pay attention to our souls. Gem shares about the practice of Silence and Solitude and how that practice has made a space in her soul she considers to be an unhurried space. Gem talks about spiritual direction and when we might need someone else to help us process through our feelings and when it might be time to go deeper. Gems says God is the one initiating our transformation and “it’s a joy to cooperate.”
Gem Fadling is a founding partner of Unhurried Living, Inc., a non-profit that resources and trains Christian leaders to rest deeper, live fuller, and lead better. A trained spiritual director, speaker and podcaster, Gem is the author of What Does Your Soul Love? Eight Questions That Reveal God’s Work in You. Gem is a lover of Jesus and her mission is working with women in helping them see how Jesus is working in their lives.
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE What Does Your Soul Love? Eight Questions That Reveal God’s Work in You
Unhurried Living
Solitude and Silence
GEM’S FAVORITE 5 Saturday Walk and Talk
Trader Joe’s
Amazon Prime Music
Pray as You Go App
CONNECT WITH GEM Instagram | Facebook | Website
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Connect with Laura and pre-order your copy of How Sweet the Sound:
https://www.laurasmithauthor.com/
How Sweet the Sound Playlists: https://open.spotify.com/user/laurasmithauthor
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It is officially summer and I’m taking a break from releasing new episodes during the month of July, but I'm re-releasing some TOP shows from 2019. This story of radical transformation is sure to stir your soul:
Jessica is a work-from-home mom and wife, with three beautiful little girls. She is passionate about empowering families to live well, fueled by her faith in the God who created her. As an Ambassador with Pure Haven she is able to live out her passion, connecting with women from coast-to-coast, building relationships and helping others to live a life of faith, wellness and fulfillment.
PURE HAVEN SUMMER PARTY I've teamed up with Jessica and will be hosting a Summer Pure Haven Party on Facebook!
It’s a pop-up group meaning it will only be around for a few days. During that time, we'll be sharing some great info to help bring awareness of the toxins lurking in our everyday products, answering questions about reading product labels, and sharing some amazing toxin-free products that I use in my own home. You'll also have the opportunity to purchase from Pure Haven in support of this show. Join the Party! CONNECT WITH JESSICA On her website www.PureByJessica.com and on Facebook.
It is officially summer and I’m taking a break from releasing new episodes during the month of July, but I'm re-releasing some top shows from 2019. This story of radical transformation is sure to stir your soul:
Hollie is a human trafficking survivor. Hollie starts out by describing her childhood and painting of picture of how a little girl could travel a path that leads to drug use at the age of 11 and prostitution by the age of 15. She talks me through what it was like to live as someone else’s property and to be so deep into that existence that it felt like there was no hope. Hollie shares how God broke through to her heart and changed it.
Connect with Hollie and get all the Show Notes!
Have you ever questioned God about a setback in your life? Do you struggle with the stigma that often surrounds mental illness?
Emma Sievers is a 22-year-old blogger, speaker and school psychology graduate student from Wisconsin. Her goal is to tell the stories that God has put on her heart so that other people can find hope and encouragement from them. She firmly believes in the power of shared experiences and telling people your story.
Today on the show Emma walks us through not one, but two nearly fatal car accidents she was involved in. The second causing a brain injury that led Emma to suffer from anxiety, depression and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.
Emma shares that she had a hard time understanding why God would allow this to happen twice, but she as time passes she’s able to look back and say, “something good has come out of every situation that God has put me in. I hope and pray you can trust that the setbacks God has put in your life are there for good.”
Emma talks about how she had a strong relationship with God, but how she was made to feel like her mental illness was a result of not having enough faith or because she had done something wrong. She tells us it took her a while to stop feeling shame about her situation. Her main message for anyone with similar struggles is that your illness is not a sin and that it is okay to get help. Emma credits her heavenly father, counseling and medication for the progress she’s made and for how much better she’s feeling.
EMMA’S FAVORITE 5 Brooks Running Shoes
Culver’s Custard
Dunkin Donuts Iced Coffee
Elevated Faith Clothing
Sour Gummy Worms
CONNECT WITH EMMA Instagram | Facebook | Website
SUPPORT THE SHOW Pure Haven is the maker of fresh, safe, personal and home care products. Their mission is to educate consumers about pure, safe, alternative personal care choices that empower people to live the healthiest lifestyle possible. Their products are 100% free of toxins. Guaranteed.
Do you have a passion you haven’t pursued? Do you feel God nudging you toward something? Ever feel guilty for wanting to go after your dream?
On the show today, you’re going to hear why you should step into what God’s calling you to now. I’m talking with Alana Dawson. She’s a military spouse, a mama and a podcast coach for busy women with a mission. She’s the founder of the Mom Wants More Podcast and The Podcasting Party.
Alana and I chat about what it’s been like for her to raise her girls, often solo-parenting when her husband is deployed.
Alana shares her near-death experience and how when she survived her pulmonary embolism, she viewed her life differently. She reevaluated and wanted to be more intentional with her time and wanted to be a good steward of her gifts. She wanted to leave a legacy she was proud of.
Alana tells us she decided to say no to all the things she had been doing to find the few, meaningful things that were her yeses. We talk about naming the gifts in others because a lot of times you can’t ready your own label or you think that because you’re good at something everyone else must be good at it too.
Alana’s decision to follow pursue her passion led her to encourage other women to do the same, first as a writer and now as a podcaster. No more waiting until you have more time, more money or your kids are older. She says, it’s our “responsibility to step into these gifts and talents and use them wisely.” Go after your dream now! Take the first step!
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE The Mom Wants More Podcast
The Best Yes by Lysa Turkhurst
The Podcasting Party
Ephesians 3:20 – God can do anything, you know—far more than you could ever imagine or guess or request in your wildest dreams!
ALANA’S FAVORITE 5 Book of the Month Club
Daily Prayer App
Ethic Goods Earrings
Boom Chicka Pop Kettle Corn
Peloton
CONNECT WITH ALANA Instagram | Facebook | Website
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Shamyra Parker’s passion is teaching educators, leaders, and women how to implement self-care as a non-negotiable priority in order to transform their mindset and habits in order to reshape their lives. Shamyra provides habit development and resilience training; seminars on the importance of developing UNCOMPROMISING SELF-CARE as a habit for mental and physical health. Shamyra looks forward to empowering and equipping her clients with the tools they need to implement sustainable lifestyle changes.
Today on the show, Shamyra and I dig in to her story of pursuing God’s call on her life and how she didn’t jump right into obedience, but how she learned along the way that if he calls you, he’ll equip you. She tells us about a trauma she endured and how she could feel God’s presence surrounding her through it and the “God-fidence” it gave her to move forward.
Shamyra and I talk about what it means to be born boundless and to live a life fully expressed. She says, “living your life fully expressed, is not only a form of freedom, but it is a form of worship for God.”
Shamyra calls herself a catalyst for transformation, and she says our mindset can either facilitate or hinder that transformation. Shamyra walks us through some steps she might take with a client in order to shift a mindset. We also talk about breaking bad habits, how to say no and what uncompromising self-care is all about.
We also specifically talk about self-care during the pandemic and Shamyra gives some fantastic ideas for restorative breathing, taking time at beginning or end of our days to be still, to mediate, to pray.
Shamyra is a powerhouse of energy and confidence and ideas. She is spirit-led and it comes through in our conversation.
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE Boundless by Birthright
Breaking Bad: 21 Day to Break a Habit
I Quit by Geri Scazzero
Self-care Slumber Party
SHAMYRA’S FAVORITE 5 Self Care Matters: A Revolutionary’s Approach
Online Yoga Class
Cooking New Things
Board Games with Her Boys
Writing Her New Book
CONNECT WITH SHAMYRA Instagram | Facebook | Website
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Show Notes for this Episode | Instagram | Facebook
Ruth Schwenk is the founder of the popular blog, The Better Mom, where she inspires moms to become better by becoming more like Jesus. She is the trusted author of several books with Harper Collins and is a 2020 Christian Book Award Winner. Ruth is a Michigan football super fan, a self-proclaimed “foodie,” and lover of all things HGTV. But her greatest joy is her family. She lives with her husband, four children in the beautiful, college town of Ann Arbor, Michigan.
Here are some of the things Ruth and I chat about:
How Her Blog Got Started and How We Shape Who We’re Becoming
Ruth and I talk about her blog, The Better Mom, and how it’s not about doing, it’s about becoming. Ruth says, “We become better parents because we are becoming better ourselves by becoming more like Jesus.”
Not a Message of Perfection
I love Ruth’s approach to teach what you know, what has worked and what hasn’t. She says she doesn’t really struggle with impostor syndrome because she’s not trying to look like she has it all together.
The Better Mom Devotional
Ruth tells us about her devotional and how it’s a practical tool pointing women to the heart of her message of learning, growing and putting God at the center of our lives.
Getting Things Done/Every Season is Different
As a busy mama of four kids in full-time ministry, she’s got so much (good!) stuff going on. We talk about how she actually gets things done. She says focuses on the things she likes to do, the things she good at and delegates the rest. Ruth says it’s also about the season you’re in. Some season will allow for things that others won’t.
Prayer During the Pandemic and Everyday
Ruth shares her thoughts on knowing when to pray, especially during anxious times, but also everyday.
Having a God-Centered Home/Parenting
We talk a lot about parenting throughout our conversation, but Ruth’s overarching message is that it doesn’t have to be perfect and it doesn’t have to be grand, spiritual activities. She says, “it’s being faithful day in and day out and over the years, those things add up to a faithful life that I think has an impact on our kids that we don’t even realize.”
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE The Better Mom
The Better Mom Devotional
For the Family
Weekend Reset
Faith Forward Family Devotional
RUTH’S FAVORITE 5 (6) Everything from Madewell
Trader Joe’s Strawberry Lemonade Kombucha
Growth Roots Journal
Time for Organization
Her New Pug Puppy!
Live In Hoop Earrings
CONNECT WITH RUTH Instagram | Facebook | Website
CONNECT WITH GIRLS TALKING LIFE
Show Notes for this Episode | Instagram | Facebook
Do you ever get stuck believing lies? Have you ever thought about pain as an invitation? Do you find it hard to wait well?
On today’s show, I’m talking with Jessica Hottle and we dive in to all these questions. Jessica describes growing up in a home experiencing physical and emotional abuse and because of that, she feels led to love women in ways that she wasn’t loved early on in her life. She talks about accepting Jesus and how her life didn’t change overnight, but how she “had to pursue his word, stand on his truth, and be renewed and transformed.” That transformation allowed Jessica to write about what she’d gone through and encourage others in identity and self-worth.
Jessica talks about pain being an invitation to move us closer to God. She says it shouldn’t be avoided, but rather unraveled so you can work to understand it, work through it and create space for healing.
Jessica and I talk about her podcast “What’s the Truth” where she discredits the lies we believe one by one by putting them up against God’s truth. She tackles lies like “I’m not qualified” and “my past defines me.” Jessica tells us how to differentiate between truth and lies, especially the smaller persistent lies we come to believe.
We talk about waiting well and why it’s important. Jessica shares some times where she’s patiently endured a hard situation, not understanding the reasons behind it, but waiting through the season to see the fruit it produced. She says it’s about the promises of God, it’s not about the rewards. She also tells us that while waiting can feel idle, it shouldn’t be. Waiting can be a time of work and refinement.
Jessica’s mission is to help women know their identity and worth come from Christ. She inspires and encourages thousands by sharing her own personal struggles, victories, and journey through life. She’s a successful entrepreneur, author, speaker, and brings encouragement on her podcast What’s the Truth? where she equips women to be set free from the lies they believe that are holding them back from living an abundant life in Christ.
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE Jessica’s Books – Know Your Worth, A Worthy Wife and Own Your Worth
What’s the Truth Podcast
1 Corinthians 15:58 – Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.
JESSICA’S FAVORITE 5 Clove and Hallow
Lesser Evil Cheese Puffs
Yeti Tumbler
Nail Polish Rack for Essential Oils
Try Softer by Aundi Kolber
CONNECT WITH JESSICA Instagram | Facebook | Website
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Today on the show Jasmine and I chat about her brand new book, Mother to Son: Letters to a Black Boy on Identity and Hope, where she beautifully writes to her young son about her love and hope for him and also what she wants him to know as he grows from a boy to a man in his brown skin.
Jasmine tells us why she chose to write this not only for her son, but also for the world. We talk about how our fears differ as moms of children with different color skin and of different genders, but how we can relate and sympathize with each other. Jasmine tells us that this isn’t a parenting book, that she’s not yet an experienced parent, but in the spaces where she does have experiences that I don’t, is where I’ve learned the most from her.
Jasmine encourages us to have the difficult conversations about racial identity with a spirit of love and a focus on the gospel of Christ. She says her hope for the book for people who aren’t black, is to get a beautiful, restorative picture of what cross-cultural relationships can look like.
Jasmine is a writer and blogger at The Gospel Coalition, Desiring God, Fathom Mag, Modern Reformation, Christianity Today, and The Witness. She is also a contributing author for Identity Theft: Reclaiming the Truth of Our Identity in Christ and His Testimonies, My Heritage: Women of color on the Word of God. She teaches humanities in a classical Christian school in Jackson, Mississippi where she and her husband, Phillip, are parenting two young sons.
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE Mother to Son: Letters to a Black Boy on Identity and Hope
The Fire Next Time by James Baldwin
Chimamanda Adichie
The Jesus Storybook Bible
The Biggest Story by Kevin DeYoung
JASMINE’S FAVORITE 5 Her Sons Playing Together
Ginger and Pearl Jewelry
Rhythm of Being Home
Her Plants
Audiobooks
CONNECT WITH JASMINE Instagram | Facebook | Website
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Jenni Lien is the writer and artist behind The Yay Project which seeks to help women celebrate their God-given design by reminding them that ‘You Are You’ (Yay!). Through The Yay Project, she’s had the joy of e-praising God with women from all over the world.
Jenni is a second generation immigrant. She was born in the UK, moved to Canada when she was eight and now lives in Hong Kong. In our conversation Jenni talks about growing up experiencing lots of diversity and how that led her to appreciate how different God has made us. She shares what led her to Hong Kong and describes the culture, the current unrest and her experience with the coronavirus. Jenni talks about not giving into fear, but trying to be a light during fearful times.
Then we dig in to how and why Jenni started The Yay Project. Jenni talks about feeling like her life was going exactly according to God’s plan and how when that plan fell apart, all she had was God’s faithfulness to get her through. She says “through that whole experience, he brought me to a place where I was just so in love with him.” During that time was when he gave her the vision for her project. Jenni talks about carrying a fear of rejection and needing to heal from some old wounds in order to more fully accept her God-given design, and how she wants to encourage other women to do the same.
Jenni is overjoyed to connect with women so deeply through a shared love of God. When not creating for Yay, she works in children’s book publishing and is also a freelance food writer.
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE The Yay Project
Praying All Day
Yay Sister Series
JENNI’S FAVORITE 5 Whistles Dresses
Oliplex Hair Treatment
I Give You Authority by Charles Kraft
Spotify Top Christian Playlist
iPad and Apple Pencil
CONNECT WITH JENNI Instagram | Facebook | Website
SUPPORT THE SHOW Pure Haven is the maker of fresh, safe, personal and home care products. Their mission is to educate consumers about pure, safe, alternative personal care choices that empower people to live the healthiest lifestyle possible. Their products are 100% free of toxins. Guaranteed.
Use code 258708 to support the show during the month of March.
Do you love Jesus but struggle to connect with church? Do you ever feel like you don’t belong in church? Like you can’t connect with the people? Or have you been hurt by church?
You may be a Christian misfit. But you are not alone.
As the daughter of a pastor, Joy grew up in church. She explains how it has been a place of joy, interest and comfort for her, but also a place of confusion, pain and tension. She describes feeling the disconnect of what she was experiencing of God and what she was experiencing in church.
One Sunday, while on stage as the worship pastor herself, Joy was welcoming people to the Sunday service and into their church community and realized that she didn’t even feel a part of that family. She tells us that the more she explored and wrote about her feeling and experiences with church, she found others were feeling the same way. Joy says that this is a red flag, that it’s something we need to pay attention to for the sake of passing our faith to the next generation.
The purpose and passion of Joy’s writing is not to be divisive but rather to bring reconciliation and healing to the church and its people.
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE What Kind of Christian Misfit are You?
What Do You Do if You’re a Christian Misfit?
Underground Church by Brian Sanders
Skye Jethani
Tampa Underground
JOY’S FAVORITE 5 Vox Podcast
Prayer: Volume One by Strahan Coleman (Instagram)
Trader Joe’s Prepared Foods
Dropps Laundry Detergent
Fresh Sugar Lip Treatment
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SUPPORT THE SHOW Pure Haven is the maker of fresh, safe, personal and home care products. Their mission is to educate consumers about pure, safe, alternative personal care choices that empower people to live the healthiest lifestyle possible. Their products are 100% free of toxins. Guaranteed.
Use code 258708 to support the show during the month of March.
Do you feel tethered by something in your past? Like you can’t quite move through the grief of an event? Do you wonder what it means to really walk in freedom?
Amy Loflin encourages women to abandon their self-imposed prisons of shame or unforgiveness, replace the limitation of bitterness with the progress of forgiveness and accept true transformation.
Today on the show Amy and I chat about her role in ministry, leading the outreach for her church as the Serve Director. Amy tells us that God’s been prompting her to find her voice and share more of her story with others. She says “God has just continued to say, ‘I’m writing a beautiful story with you and it’s not just for you.’ ”
Amy talks about losing her mom as a young adult and holding her family at arm’s length as a means of self-preservation. She also shares a personal story of forgiveness and tells us that it’s a continuous process not a one-time event. She shares some intimate moments where God showed her how to unleash herself and trust him more.
Amy was born and raised in the heart of North Carolina and has been married to her college sweetheart, Chad, for almost 23 years. They have two sons, Jacob (18) and Ben (16). Amy spent seven years as a school counselor, seven years as a stay at home mom, and is now in her seventh year of ministry.
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE The Summit Church Oak Ridge
She Speaks Conference
Women Speakers Collective
For Freedom Christ Has Set Us Free – John Piper
AMY’S FAVORITE 5 Ugg Throw
Charlie’s Choice Seasoning
CAUSEBOX
Voxer
Naked Spirituality by Brian McLaren
CONNECT WITH AMY Instagram | Facebook | Website
CONNECT WITH GIRLS TALKING LIFE
Show Notes for this Episode | Instagram | Facebook
MEET OUR SPONSOR Pure Haven is the maker of fresh, safe, personal and home care products. Their mission is to educate consumers about pure, safe, alternative personal care choices that empower people to live the healthiest lifestyle possible. Their products are 100% free of toxins. Guaranteed.
Use code 258708 to support the show during the month of March.
If you’re the mom of a teen girl, if you have a teen girl in your life…or if you’ve ever been a teen girl, grab your earbuds and listen in to this conversation!
Today I’m talking with Pam Lozano. Pam is the founder and president of Pure Design Ministries and Teen Magazine. She is an inspirational speaker on topics of faith, self-image, self-worth and purity. Pam has been a youth pastor with husband Jake for over twenty years and has a passion for mentoring the next generation to live whole-heartedly for Christ.
In our conversation, Pam and I talk about why she started a magazine for teens girls, what goes into the production of an issue and the message her ministry wants to convey. Pam shares her thoughts on beauty and having a counter-cultural message. Pure Design magazine speaks to teen and young adult girls through fashion, mentoring articles, recipes and truth through scripture. Pam wants girls to be confident and secure who God has made them to be.
We also talk about the Pure Beauty Conference and the kind of impact a young girl can expect during the one-day event. In addition to speaking to the hearts of girls, Pure Design Ministries wants to help strengthen the relationships between moms and daughters. Pam tells me about the Mom2Mom Chats where she shares more of her story and parenting her own daughter.
Do you compare yourself to other people? Do you add up all the best features your friends and acquaintances and try to measure up? Without realizing it, we can fall into a pattern of continual comparison that becomes exhausting. But it doesn’t have to be that way!
Richella Parham joins me today to boldly share her story about the comparison trap she found herself in. Richella and I talk about when she first realized this was a problem in her life. She tells us how she would see the best attributes of others, measure herself against them and then berate herself when she didn’t measure up. She talks about going in search of help but not finding it, so she began to do research herself, ultimately writing the book, Mythical Me: Finding Freedom from Constant Comparison (nominated for IVP Readers’ Choice Awards).
Richella shares that when we constantly compare ourselves to others our vision becomes distorted. She says, “Because I couldn’t see myself clearly and was unable to see myself as lovable and valuable, I doubted that anyone really loved and valued me.” But that, of course, isn’t true. We are beloved daughters of God. Richella goes on to tell us how she found freedom from constant comparison and how you can too.
Richella has blogged for over a decade at ImpartingGrace.com. She serves as a member of the Ministry Team and as Vice Chair of the Board of Directors of Renovaré, a Christian spiritual formation ministry. She also serves as Worship Coordinator for The Gathering Church of Chapel Hill/Durham, North Carolina, and is a member of Redbud Writers Guild. The mother of three young adult sons, Richella lives in Durham with her husband, Jack.
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE Creating the Mythical Woman
Mythical Me: Finding Freedom from Constant Comparison
Imparting Grace Blog
RICHELLA’S FAVORITE 5 Burt’s Bees Lip Balm
Quilted Vests
HGTV’s Home Town
Sacred Ordinary Days Planner
Magnesium Supplement
CONNECT WITH RICHELLA Instagram |Facebook | Website
CONNECT WITH GIRLS TALKING LIFE
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Are you a fan of the Enneagram? What’s your number? Do you know you can be healthy, average or even unhealthy in your number?
Today Julie Short (8w7) sits down to talk with me (9w1) all about the Enneagram! Julie is a Higher Ed professional, co-host of the Momnesia podcast and is on her way to becoming a Narrative Enneagram Teacher.
If you aren’t familiar with the Enneagram yet, it’s a super useful tool, first for self-awareness and discovery, then for relating to others. Within each type, or number, there are levels of development ranging from unhealthy, to average, to healthy. In the spirit of wellness, Julie is talking about how to move toward health in your number.
Julie starts off by explaining the Narrative Tradition of the Enneagram. She walks us through each number and gives us actionable steps to take to move toward health. She also gives suggestions of how to support the people in your life in their number. Julie tells us how powerful this tool has been in her life and how it she believes it even saved her marriage.
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE Momnesia Podcast
The Road Back to You
The Narrative Enneagram
Julie’s Enneagram Resources
JULIE’S FAVORITE 5 Headspace App
Yoga with Adriene
Infinite Style by Ann Talyor ($25 Coupon from Julie)
Second Life with Hillary Kerr
Whitening Toothpaste
CONNECT WITH JULIE Instagram |Facebook | Website
MEET OUR SPONSOR Pure Haven is the maker of fresh, safe, personal and home care products. Their mission is to educate consumers about pure, safe, alternative personal care choices that empower people to live the healthiest lifestyle possible. Their products are 100% free of toxins. Guaranteed. Use code 256844 to support the show during the month of January.
My guest for episode #30 is Kara Osborne. Kara is sharing her story about the unexpected journey the Lord took her on of learning how to live well for his glory.
Kara is a wife and mother of two who spends her days encouraging others to step forward into the things the Lord has called them to. She’s a former school counselor who founded a faith based Health and Wellness business and ministry called Wellness Witness in 2014. Though local classes, social media, an online membership community called the At-Home Tribe, and through her new podcast IN IT WITH YOU, Kara hopes to love, encourage, equip and led people into brave obedience.
Today Kara and I talk about her leaving her job to start her fitness ministry and how it was just about taking the next step, and obeying and trusting in God’s provision. She tells us that is wasn’t easy or always pretty, but because the Lord was faithful to her again and again, she can encourage other women to trust him too.
Kara talks about her continuous cycle of jumping in and starting new plan after new plan and thinking that was the one that would bring her lasting hope and satisfaction, but how it never did. She shares her light bulb moment when she gained the insight that God had given her her body as a gift and it was her job to steward it well. Kara talks about drilling down and knowing your WHY and letting go of temporary indicators that don’t bring lasting satisfaction. She says that for most of us, when we get to the heart of why we want to be healthy, it’s because we want to love others well.
I love, love, love Kara’s approach, not only to physical wellness, but to spiritual wellness, and her trust in the Lord is contagious!
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE Revelation Wellness
Wellness Witness
At Home Tribe
In It With You Podcast
Finally Free Book
KARA’S FAVORITE 5 Her Electric Blanket
Handheld Frother
Christmas!
Family Devotional Time
You are the Girl for the Job by Jess Connelly
CONNECT WITH KARA Instagram |Facebook | Website
CONNECT WITH GIRLS TALKING LIFE
Show Notes for this Episode | Instagram | Facebook
My guest for episode #29 is Krista Gilbert. Krista is a speaker and author of “Reclaiming Home: A Family’s Guide for Life, Love, and Legacy”, co-author of Focus on the Family’s “Give Them Wings”, and the co-host of The Open Door Sisterhood Podcast.
Today on the show Krista and I are talking about family, traditions and meaningful gift giving. Krista explains why traditions are more than just fun practices, how they help shape a family’s identity and instill a sense of belonging in our kids.
We also talk about meaningful gift giving. Not just giving stuff to give stuff. Krista shares her ideas for experiences, something that builds a memory. She gives thoughts for gifts that foster talents or interests, as well as homemade gifts.
Krista shares a story of a year when she felt like she had missed the heart of Christmas. She encourages us not to do what she had done that year, but to pause, take the time on our own or with our family to meditate on the true story of Christmas and put Jesus at the center of our holiday.
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE The Open Door Sisterhood
Krista’s book Reclaiming Home
The Light of Christmas by Richard Paul Evans
Nana’s Rum Cake Recipe
1 Box yellow cake mix (with pudding)
½ cup cold water
1/3 cup oil
½ cup dark rum
3 eggs
Mix all ingredients and bake in greased bunt pan for 1 hour at 325 degrees.
Glaze:
¼ lb. butter
¼ cup water
1 cup sugar
¼ cup dark rum
Melt butter in sauce pan. Stir in water and sugar. Boil 5 minutes stirring constantly. Remove from heat and add rum.
After cake has cooled a little, poke holes through cake and pour glaze over. Remove from pan once cake has cooled completely.
Krista’s Rum Cake Recipe
Krista’s eBook – The Advent Story
KRISTA’S FAVORITE 5 The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry
Bracelet Key Ring
Cat Von D Everlasting Lipstick in Lolita
Zoya Nail Polish in Brenna
Canada Santana Snow Boots
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My guest for episode #28 is Kris Camealy. Kris is a sequin-wearing, homeschooling mother of four. She is passionate about Jesus, people and words, and her favorite room in the house is the kitchen. Kris is the author of, Come, Lord Jesus: The Weight of Waiting and Holey, Wholly, Holy: A Lenten Journey of Refinement. She has contributed to numerous other books and is the Director of Refine {the retreat}.
Today Kris and I are talking about Advent! It’s almost here and talking with Kris got me excited to prepare my heart and my home for the things to come this season. Kris shares, not only some practical ideas on observing Advent, but why she ended up writing a book for it and how it was really what she needed at the time. Kris tells us how she struggles with waiting (don’t we all!) and we talk about God’s timing and how waiting can really be a gift.
Kris also gives us a sneak peek into her new book on surrender. She says surrender seems to be a life theme for her and she talks about walking through the fear, obedience and trust of surrender, how she’s leaning into the Lord and what he’s teaching her.
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE Refine {the retreat}
Walking on Water by Madeleine L’Engle
Come, Lord Jesus: The Weight of Waiting
“Above all, trust in the slow work of God.” – Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, S.J.
Anne Voscamp’s Advent Wreath
Light from Distant Stars by Shawn Smucker
KRIS’ FAVORITE 5 Coffee
Out of the Ordinary Podcast and The Next Right Thing Podcast
Autumn
Air Pods
Long Obedience in the Same Direction by Eugene Peterson
CONNECT WITH KRIS Instagram | Facebook | Website
CONNECT WITH GIRLS TALKING LIFE
Show Notes for this Episode | Instagram | Facebook
Today we're celebrating the one-year anniversary of Girls Talking Life! It has been my privilege to bring you the stories of some truly amazing women, but today I'm sharing some of my story and how this show came to be.
While I love to help tell other women's stories, I don’t enjoy talking about myself, so this was one of the hardest episodes for me. Thankfully my sweet friend Kim Campbell joined me and she was the one asking the questions!
Kim is a wife and the mother of three amazing kiddos. She's held positions such as social worker, wedding planner, pastor's wife and is known for being an expert people-gatherer as well as a tremendous friend.
In our conversation today, Kim and I talk about how my husband Joe and I were called into deeper relationships with God, how we ended up in Central Ohio, and why I felt called to start a podcast. We talk about what I've learned through a year of podcasting and the best parts of producing the show.
AND, of course, I share my Favorite 5. Don't miss it! Cheers to one year!
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE The Happy Hour with Jamie Ivey
Episode #1 with Carly Hager
Episode #3 with Shalla Johnson
It was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves but you, when they spoke of the things that have now been told you by those who have preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven. Even angels long to look into these things.
1 Peter 1:12
YOHONNA’S FAVORITE 5 The Bible Recap
Orange Theory Fitness
Madewell Jeans
The YES Necklace
PrepDish
If you’re married…if you’re not married, but want to be…if you’re not married, never want to be, but have married friends you want to love well, this show is for YOU!
Amanda Davison is the wife to a Minnesota farmer, mother of three, and President of the nonprofit, A Wife Like Me. She is the co-author of Dear Wife: 10 Minute Invitations to Practice Connection with Your Husband, speaker, and serves on staff at her local church, where she and her husband lead the marriage mentor team. Former psychology professor, Amanda is now relentlessly sharing how her education in counseling and God’s word changed her life and marriage.
Amanda starts out by sharing her own story of working toward her degree in counseling, wanting to help others in their marital relationships and realizing that her own was falling apart. She tells us that not until she fully surrendered her heart to Jesus was her marriage able to be transformed.
We continue the conversation talking about how to have strong, healthy communication. Amanda tells us that we have to take a look at our heart issues before we’re going to be able to have good communication and she gives some things to look for in ourselves. We also talk about how to address an issue that keeps coming up over and over again in your marriage, and how to have fun together.
Amanda says that we can’t love our husbands better on our own. It’s not about trying harder. We can’t. It’s about focusing on Jesus. His love will cause us to love our husbands more. She says, “the more we are making it a priority to be with Jesus, the more our marriages will thrive.”
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE A Wife Like Me
4 Reasons Couples Experience Destructive Communication
Five A’s to Healthy Communication
Intimacy Conversation Guide
A Wife Like Me Gathering
Dear Wife Book
AMANDA’S FAVORITE 5 All Things Pumpkin
Breakthrough by Red Rocks Worship
Old Things
New Socks
Laughing
CONNECT WITH AMANDA Instagram |Facebook | Website
CONNECT WITH GIRLS TALKING LIFE
Show Notes for this Episode | Instagram | Facebook
Sarah Tenney is a Licensed Professional Counselor, Family Coach, mom of 3 and owner of Love Well LLC. Sarah enjoys coming alongside women and families to normalize the joys and challenges of daily living and family, while offering encouragement and practical strategies for wanted change. The Love Well community provides counseling, family coaching, workshops, and retreats. Sarah also enjoys speaking to groups where she is known to be vulnerable and relatable while sharing her story and impacting yours.
Today on the show Sarah and I talk about her journey to owning her own counseling practice. We talk what family coaching looks like and Sarah’s heart for women and building community.
Sarah and I go on to talk about self-care, how it can be hard to take time for ourselves but how important it is for us and the people around us. Sarah tells us that we have to love ourselves well so we can love others well. She says we need to shed the gilt of taking time for ourselves by reframing self-care as something we’re doing so we can be a better mom, better wife, better employee.
We share some examples of things we do to care for ourselves, but Sarah says that self-care is different for everyone and you need to notice the things that are good for your soul.
It was such a pleasure to talk with Sarah. Her gentle, caring spirit really comes through in this conversation and she has such great ideas on loving well.
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE Young Life
Love Well, LLC
All the Children of the World Academy
Northside Fellowship Church
Love Well Escape Retreat
MOPS International
SARAH’S FAVORITE 5 Well Watered Women (Behold the Lamb Advent Study)
Bullet Journaling
Trader Joe’s Apple Cider Jam
Uptown Westerville
The Gemma Shop
CONNECT WITH SARAH Instagram | Facebook | Website
Lori Lara is on a mission to share hope, healing, and real world self-defense instruction. As a third degree black-belt in mixed martial arts and creator of The Strong Girl Self-Defense Program, Lori teaches unique blend of effective fighting skills while also building the mental, emotional, and spiritual foundations of self-protection. She teaches girls and women how to protect themselves from unsafe people, from dangerous predators to boundary-crashing loved ones, so they can live with confidence and peace of mind.
Lori and I talk about how she got into martial arts and why it’s so important to her to teach women and girls how to protect themselves. We continue the conversation shifting our focus to keeping our kids safe. We also talk about self-worth. Lori says the most important self-defense technique is knowing you are worth protecting.
She also talks about listening to our intuition, what she calls our God-given super power. Lori talks about being nice vs. being safe and how if our intuition is telling us that something about a situation or person isn’t right, it’s okay to walk away even if that seems like a rude thing to do.
Lori and I talk about cell phones and how they can be a portal for danger, but she also gives some really good ideas on using a phone as a tool for safety. And she shares conversations we can have with our kids about social media.
We end with Lori talking directly to anyone who finds themselves in depression or with feelings coming to the surface that they’re not sure what to do with. Her main message is: you can heal from ANYTHING.
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE The Gift of Fear
Kirk Cameron’s engage – Five practical lessons for raising your kids in a social media generation
EMDR Therapy
LORI’S FAVORITE 5 The Magic Eraser
Grocery Delivery
Nugo Gluten-free Chocolate Chip Cookie
AirPods
Podcasts – Cleaning Up the Mental Mess with Dr. Caroline Leaf
CONNECT WITH LORI Instagram | Website
CONNECT WITH GIRLS TALKING LIFE
Show Notes for this Episode | Instagram | Facebook
Did you know that self-defense is 90% mental? Are you connected with your self-worth? Do you listen to your intuition?
Lori Lara is on a mission to share hope, healing, and real world self-defense instruction. As a third degree black-belt in mixed martial arts and creator of The Strong Girl Self-Defense Program, Lori teaches unique blend of effective fighting skills while also building the mental, emotional, and spiritual foundations of self-protection. She teaches girls and women how to protect themselves from unsafe people, from dangerous predators to boundary-crashing loved ones, so they can live with confidence and peace of mind.
On today’s show Lori and I are talking today about how to keep yourself and your children safe. We start off talking about how she got into martial arts. Lori tells us that it’s common for unresolved childhood pain or trauma to come to the surface when you have kids of your own, and that was true for her. She struggled with and overcame major depression, PTSD, and addiction. In the process of healing she learned about self-care. It all started with a kickboxing class. She was simultaneously growing stronger physically while receiving the mental and emotional care she needed.
Next, we shift our focus to keeping our kids safe. Lori says that we can’t legislate safety, so the best thing we can do is educate and equip our children to make safe choices. She tells us about the most important conversation you can have with your kids and why opening that channel of communication is exactly what predators don’t want.
Lori says the most important self-defense technique is knowing you are worth protecting. She talks about how the trauma she experienced separated her from the love of God and she tell us about her journey to connect with her own self-worth.
Finally, we talk about intuition. Lori calls our intuition our “God-given super power.” Trust your gut. If something doesn’t feel right, leave the situation. You just might be protecting yourself from something dangerous. Lori tells us to trust our gut even when it’s socially expensive or awkward.
CONNECT WITH LORI Instagram | Website
CONNECT WITH GIRLS TALKING LIFE
Show Notes for this Episode | Instagram | Facebook
Amanda Anderson joins me to talk friendship on episode #23. Female friendships can be challenging, but Amanda has some great thoughts on being intentional and going after the relationships we want.
Amanda and I talk about authenticity in friendships and what it looks like to go deeper. She explains what self-awareness has to do with friendship, how you can’t share yourself authentically if you don’t know yourself. We also talk about finding the time for friendship and how sometimes you just have to fit it in where you can. Amanda tells us her best friend calls her on the way to work every day and sometimes she’ll do “multi-task friend dating” where she and a girlfriend will run their errands together.
In her book, Amanda quotes Jim Rohm saying “we become the average of the five people we spend the most time with.” That’s a big deal! We need to be super intentional about who our friends are. Amanda shares some differences between having flawed friends (all of us, right?) verses having foolish people in our lives. We also talk about what to do when your feelings are hurt by a friend or if you’ve hurt someone else. Amanda tells us about accountability in friendships and how to invite others to hold us accountable for things we’re trying to overcome or goals we’ve set for ourselves.
I loved chatting with Amanda. She is fun and knowledgeable and definitely someone I’d call a friend.
Mentioned in this episode
All My Friends Have Issues
“Walk with wise and become wise. Associate with fools and get in trouble.” Proverbs 13:20 (NLT)
Episode #18 with Tilly Dillehay
Boundaries book
Co-Dependents Anonymous
Amanda’s Favorite 5
Camo Skinny Jeans
New Girl
Being Married
Embroidery
Her Friends!
Connect with Amanda
Instagram | Facebook | Website
Connect with Girls Talking Life
Show Notes for this Episode | Instagram | Facebook
My guest for episode #22 is Leslie Verner. Leslie’s time overseas introduced her to cultures where strangers are invited in and guests linger. In her brand new book, Invited: The power of hospitality in an age of loneliness, Leslie shares stories of being invited in and of times where she felt like no one was welcoming her.
Today on the show, Leslie and I talk about how all she ever wanted to do was go. She had planned on a life abroad, getting her Ph.D. and never settling down. During a visit back in the states, Leslie met a man who interrupted her plan. Leslie now lives in Colorado with her husband and three kids and is learning how to stay. We talk about how Jesus asked some of his disciples to stay and what that could mean for us.
Leslie and I talk about the biblical definition of hospitality and the power of an invitation. She shares how simple it can really be and how sometimes it means saying yes to someone else’s invitation. She shares about her impromptu driveway party and how hot dogs can make hospitality easier.
Leslie talks about having room in your schedule to invite, and the flexibility to veer from your routine in order to be with people. We also talk about the need to recharge so you’re not trying to give from an empty well.
Leslie says the whole bible is an invitation and we should invite because God invited us and continues to invite us in.
Mentioned in this episode
Invited: The power of hospitality in an age of loneliness
Leslie’s Favorite 5
Gardening
Stranger Things – Season 3
A Candle in the Window Hospitality Network
Hot Dogs
A Shepherd Looks at Psalm 23
Connect with Leslie
Instagram | Facebook | Website
Connect with Girls Talking Life
Show Notes for this Episode | Instagram | Facebook
My guest today is Desiree Caluza. Desiree was born and raised in Southern California, but came to Ohio for college and has never left. She’s an Associate Pastor and Children's Pastor at Newstart Church where she’s been working for the past 18 years.
In our conversation, Desiree and I talk about what led her to children’s ministry, how that wasn’t the path she’d planned on and how we shouldn’t assume that just because we’re comfortable with something or something is easy, that that’s where God wants us to be.
Desiree tells us the wild story of how she ended up as the legal guardian to two teenagers when their father passed away, how it was an answer to prayer in a most interesting way and what it looks like to really be in community with your church family. Desiree shares how she can look back on the events of her life and see God’s hand in all the details.
At the end of the show, we talk about contentment in singleness and how Desiree experienced a time of grief where she asked questions like, “Why isn’t God answering my prayer? What am I doing wrong?” She explains how time and maturity have allowed her to find joy and beauty in singleness, while still having a desire for marriage and a family of her own. She also gives us some ideas on how to cultivate friendships with your single friends if you’re married.
Mentioned in this episode
Newstart Church
Mount Vernon Nazarene University
Desiree’s Favorite 5
Reebok Seamless Hipster Underwear
Monat Shampoo and Conditioner
Chronological Bible Reading Plan/The Bible Recap
Meal Prep
Her Workout
Connect with Desiree
On Facebook
Connect with Girls Talking Life
Show Notes for this Episode | Instagram | Facebook
Lindsy Wallace followed Jesus to the margins and discovered more beauty and hope than she ever imagined. Alongside her husband, she is raising five kids who joined their family via birth, foster care adoption, and international adoption. She is passionate about downward mobility, ushering in a more livable planet, and good tattoos. She is the co-founder of the Upside Down Podcast, an ecumenical conversation about faith, justice, and the upside-down kingdom of Jesus.
Today on the show Lindsy and I are focusing on downward mobility and how it has shaped her story. If you aren’t familiar with downward mobility, it’s basically the opposite of the American dream. She and her husband chose to go from home owners to renters, from a diverse community to a low-income, sometimes dangerous neighborhood, from having middle-class neighbors to living in solidarity with those on the margins of society.
We talk about her time in that neighborhood in Miami, about how when she thought of herself as a part-time missionary, since she was also busy with her five kiddos, her supervisor assured her that she was every bit as effective because she was modeling what it looked like to parent well. She tells us how she became an advocate for safe, affordable housing and we also talk about what it means to shed and spend privilege.
Lindsy’s ideas and points of view challenge me in the best way and hope they will challenge you too.
Mentioned in this Episode Upside Down Podcast
Dean Brackley
InnerCHANGE
Matthew 25:35-40
'For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’
“Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’
“The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’
Lindsy's Favorite 5 All My Relations Podcast
Voices Rising – Servant Partners Press
The Bail Project
Beating Guns by Shane Claiborne and Michael Martin
Giving up Instagram for Summer
Connect with Lindsy Instagram | Facebook | Website
Connect with Girls Talking Life
Show Notes for this Episode | Instagram | Facebook
Hollie joins me on the show to share her story and her organization. Hollie is a human trafficking survivor. She’s also a legal advocate for the City Prosecutor’s Office, a speaker, a college student, the executive director of a nonprofit organization and a lover of Brussel sprouts.
Hollie starts out by describing her childhood and painting of picture of how a little girl could travel a path that leads to drug use at the age of 11 and prostitution by the age of 15. She talks me through what it was like to live as someone else’s property and to be so deep into that existence that it felt like there was no hope. Hollie shares how she came to choose the faith-based dorm when she was sent to prison and how God broke through to her heart and changed it.
After 17 years of living this lifestyle, Hollie was able to completely turn it all around. Today she is sober, she’s just been accepted to The Ohio State University and she is running an organization that reaches out to her sisters still on the street. They provide hygiene bags, clothes, meals and if a girl is ready, a way out. Reaching for the Shining Starz also supports survivors by connecting them with housing, counseling, education and provides experiences that make them feel loved.
Hollie is a strong-willed, compassionate woman who can overcome anything and she has.
Mentioned in this episode
Reaching for the Shining Starz
Amethyst
CATCH Court
Hollie’s Favorite 5
Daring Greatly – Brene Brown
Brussel Sprouts
Traveling
Restoring Broken Relationships
Versace Bright Crystals Perfume
Connect with Hollie and Reaching for the Shining Starz
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Today, Tilly Dillehay and I are talking about envy, the topic of her book, Seeing Green. Tilly explains the difference between envy and jealousy and covetousness. (Did you know they were different?) She shares why she wrote a book on this subject, how it was extremely personal to her and how she has found that many women struggle with this, but it’s not something that’s often talked about.
Tilly shares her teenage dream of being a jazz musician and how when she heard her younger sisters sing for the first time, she was touched by their beautiful music, but also felt the deep horror that this beauty was so close to her, but didn’t belong to her. Tilly tells us how this pain continued and how she pulled away from her sisters, not even realizing what exactly was effecting her. She later came to understand that is was envy, confessed it and worked to reconcile those relationships.
Tilly and I talk about glory and how it relates to envy. In her book, Tilly writes about seven different glories people may have that could result in us being envious. She also tells us that the glory you are pursuing, is the one you would be most likely to see and envy in someone else. Lastly, Tilly shares steps we can take if we find envy in our own hearts.
Tilly holds a degree in journalism from Lipscomb University. In the past, she has been the editor of a weekly newspaper and of a lifestyle magazine, and now she serves as homemaker and mother to two little girls and a brand new baby boy. She writes at www.justinandtilly.com and contributes occasionally to The Gospel Coalition. She is the host of The Green Workshop, an event for women on the subject of envy that is held at local churches.
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE Seeing Green: Don’t Let Envy Color Your Joy
The Weight of Glory by C.S. Lewis
The Green Workshop
TILLY’S FAVORITE 5 Italian Salad
Gardening
Marvel Movies
Bed and Board
The Last Month of Pregnancy Not Knowing Baby’s Gender
CONNECT WITH TILLY Instagram |Facebook | Website
My guest today is Sarah Westfall. Sarah is a faith-based blogger, a speaker and a regular contributor to LifterToday (a Christian lifestyle website) and the quarterly devotional, Light from The Word. She is an Indiana-born girl, wife to Ben and mama to five boys. It’s her joy, and it’s chaos, but being a parent is what has grown her the most spiritually.
Sarah and I start our conversation talking about her family and what it’s like to be a boy mom. We talk about raising our kids up to be the men and women we want them to be and how…maybe we’d like to arrange our kids’ marriages.
Sarah and I go on to talk about the pregnancy and birth of her second son, Carter. Mid-way through her pregnancy, she and her husband were given the unimaginable news that their son would not survive after his birth. Sarah shares how they handled that news and what she did in the weeks leading up to his birth. She told God, “you need to be everything that you say you are, or I cannot do this,” and He showed up for her in the most profound ways. Sarah tells us what it was like in her birthing room, how strong God’s presence was and how they spent the one hour of their son’s life.
Sarah and I talk about the following months and what it was like to go back to her life after experiencing such an excruciating loss, what you do when the plans you made and the dreams you had for your family are severely altered. Sarah shares how God continued to give them grace and mercy and how her healing process began.
Sarah’s story is painful and unexplainable, but she has chosen to glorify God with it. And whether you’re a mom or not, there has been or will be loss and pain in your life and Sarah does such a good job at pointing us toward Jesus in hardship.
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE The Bible Recap
The Road Back to You
The Path Between Us
SARAH’S FAVORITE 5 Spring Weather
Bubble Baths
She Reads Truth Bible
The Enneagram
Sushi Sunday
CONNECT WITH SARAH Instagram | Facebook | Website
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Show Notes for this Episode | Instagram | Facebook
Megan is a writer, podcaster and social media marketer based in Columbus, Ohio. A mom to three little ones, she is a chronic purger, keeper of a capsule wardrobe, and seeker of ways to simplify life.
On the show today Megan and I discuss social media: the love hate relationship a lot of us have with it and how she navigates between her personal accounts and the accounts she manages for clients. We talk about how Megan got into podcasting and why she chose the topic of minimalism. She shares how freeing it felt the first time she paired down her closet to a small number of things that made her feel her best.
Next we chat about where to start if you’re ready to declutter (and where not to start) and how not to get overwhelmed. Megan give us ideas about how to encourage our families to think about their things in a minimalist mindset too. She also walks us through creating a capsule wardrobe and we talk about shifting your closet from winter to spring.
Later on, we talk about other ways to simplify your life, focusing on things like your schedule. Megan tells us about her “season of quitting” where she and her husband went through all of their regularly scheduled activities and cut out lots of things that weren’t right for them in their season of life. Megan says that minimalism is a journey, it’s not somewhere you arrive or something that will ever be complete.
Mentioned in this episode
hope*writers
hope*writers conference
minimalist moms podcast
Capsule Wardrobe
Tidying Up with Marie Kondo
Megan’s Favorite 5
The Enneagram
The Bible Binge
The Clockmaker’s Daughter
Day One App
The Mom Capsule
Connect with Megan
Instagram | Facebook | Website
Connect with Girls Talking Life
Show Notes for this Episode | Instagram | Facebook
My guest for episode #15 of Girls Talking Life is Laura L. Smith. Laura is a best-selling author, sought after speaker, blogger and blessed mom of four incredible kids. She is married to the man of her dreams and lives in the college town of Oxford, Ohio. Laura loves Jesus, coffee, chocolate, music, and France.
Laura and I start our conversation talking about how her identity was misinformed at a young age and how she grew up feeling like she wasn’t enough. Laura tells us that to make up for not being enough, she jumped on the performance treadmill where she strived to be better and do more. She continued on this path into young adulthood when she was visited by a friend who God used to show her how valuable she was just the way she was. That friend later become her husband, because who doesn’t want to be married to someone who makes you feel so special!
We go on to discuss Laura’s writing. She shares why she wrote her first young adult fiction book on eating disorders, and how she went on to write other books for teenage girls and young adults that tackle lots of hard topics and reinforce that you can make it through these situations by trusting in God and who He has made you to be.
Laura and I admit that we’re often parent fails, but she shares the things she believes are important for keeping us connected to our kiddos. Things like open communication, honesty, modeling behavior, praying with our kids and just being present.
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE Miami University
For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago. Ephesians 2:10
Laura’s Books
“We all need other people to fully become who God created us to be. Their stories help form our stories. Their triumphs inspire us. Their struggles expand our viewpoints, teach us lessons. Their ideas, experiences, and thoughts prompt and broaden ours. Hearing their hearts reinforces what we hold dear and helps us dispose of ideas we should have never let enter our minds in the first place.” Laura’s Blog Post, An Introvert’s Unlikely Sisterhood
LAURA’S FAVORITE 5 Lavender Lattes
Jeans and Army Jackets
The Voice – The Bundy’s
Bethel Music – Victory – Raise a Hallelujah
Becoming Mrs. Lewis
CONNECT WITH LAURA Instagram | Facebook | Website
CONNECT WITH GIRLS TALKING LIFE Show Notes for this Episode | Instagram | Facebook
A trusted voice for Christian women, Alexandra Kuykendall speaks on issues of how faith impacts everyday life. She is the Co-founder of The Open Door Sisterhood, a community of women working to be world changers for good right where they are. She co-hosts a podcast and retreat under the same name. Alex has authored four books: Loving My Actual Life, Loving My Actual Christmas, The Artist’s Daughter: A Memoir, and Loving My Actual Neighbor releasing April 2nd. Alex lives in the shadows of downtown Denver with her husband Derek and their 4 daughters who range in age from 16 to 7.
Alex and I start off the show talking about how our paths crossed when I interned for the Open Door Sisterhood as their Social Media Sister. Then we move into parenting. She’s a little farther along in her parenting than I am and we are both girl moms, so I love hearing what she has to say on this topic. Alex talks about the expectations we have for our kids and how we respond to them. She also shares what it means to talk to our kids in their “currency.”
We go on to talk about Alex’s books, why she wrote them and how she believes small changes that are realistic to implement and ones that can be sustained over time are best way to love the life you have. Then we dive in to what it means to love your neighbor, how to go about actually doing it and why it’s so important. Alex walks us through the seven practices her new book, Loving My Actual Neighbor, is based on. We talk about what it’s like as an introvert to jump into spaces that are uncomfortable and she gives great ideas for practical things we can do to love the people around us better.
Mentioned in this Episode The Open Door Sisterhood
MOPS International
Alex’s New Book – Loving My Actual Neighbor
The Seven Practices to Treasure the People Right in Front of You
Holding a Posture of Humility
Asking Questions to Learn
Being Quiet to Listen
Standing in the Awkward
Accepting What Is
Lightening Up
Giving Freely
The Open Door Sisterhood Podcast - Things We Love Episode
Alex’s Favorite 5 Take Back Your Time - book on Time Management
Essie Top Coat
RevWell TV – Revelation Wellness
Dollar Tree Greeting Cards
Universal Thread Brand at Target
Connect with Alex Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | Website
Connect with Girls Talking Life Show Notes for this Episode | Instagram | Facebook
Today on the show I’m talking with singer/songwriter Holly Starr. Holly shares about getting started in music, how she ended up opening for LeAnn Rimes early on in her career, and what touring is like for her now. Holly and I talk about how she met her husband and the moment she knew he was more than just a friend. She also tells us about struggling with body image for a season, how God changed her mind and the song she wrote about her growth through it.
In addition to her music career, Holly is also the creator of the YES necklace. She shares how the idea for the necklace came about. Holly describes her relationship with her Grandma Starr and how the necklace turned into, not only a reminder to trust God, but a ministry for widows who are often overlooked.
We talk about what’s next for her and I love what Holly says about the idea of writing a book and God’s timing. She says, “I’m not going to try and push it. I really want whatever I create to be inspired by the Spirit so I’m just kind of waiting for that assurance that it’s what He wants.” Such good words!
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE Holly’s song about struggling with body image and the healing that followed – Through My Father’s Eyes
Holly’s latest album – Human
Run the Race
I Don’t Know
The YES Necklace
The YES Tour and upcoming shows
Holly’s song about her grandma – Sailing
HOLLY’S FAVORITE 5 The Great British Baking Show
Instant Pot
Wool Socks
Nordstrom Rack
Vietnamese Pho Soup
CONNECT WITH HOLLY
hollystarrmusic.com | theyesnecklace.com | Instagram | Facebook
CONNECT WITH GIRLS TALKING LIFE Show Notes for this Episode | Instagram | Facebook
Bethany has a Bachelor of Art Degree in Fine Arts from the Columbus College of Art & Design. She provides products, services and education for an art filled life through her business, Artful Interiors, LLC. She is in love with her husband and five children, two of whom are adopted and have unique physical, emotional and behavioral challenges. She hopes to be a catalyst for foster care reform, post-adoptive support and funding for children’s mental health programs.
Today Bethany and I talk about how she and her husband have turned their farmhouse, barn and property into a place for gathering and how they host parties that intentionally bring people together.
Bethany shares her story of adopting her two youngest children. She tells us about the process, her shame around the title “foster parent” and how her adoptive children began their lives. She tells us even though being in her family has put them on a different path, their brains and bodies are still partially stuck on the path of their biological parents due to the neglect they experienced. They both suffer from several disorders, but Bethany explains how they’re able to move forward as family despite these hard things.
Later on in our conversation we talk about how she helped me take my vision for this podcast and make it reality as she was preparing to teach a course on entrepreneurship. She’s also my photographer and the designer of my logo.
Mentioned in this episode
Home Sweet Homestead
Hen Parties
Fetal Alcohol Syndrome
Reactive Attachment Disorder
Oppositional defiance
ADD/ADHD
Artful Interiors
Connect with Bethany
On Facebook at Home Sweet Homestead (farmhouse parties, produce and products) and Artful Interiors (photography, logos and interior decorating) or on her YouTube channel Home Sweet Homestead 560 (art classes)
Bethany’s Favorite 5
Netflix
Group exercise classes – Zumba
Pull on jeans
Botox
Photoshop
Connect with Girls Talking Life
Show Notes for this Episode
Alexsayah is part of the mother daughter duo called to be voices of healing to the hurting and abused. Their ministry, SHE IS Identified, is all about finding your identity in Christ. Alex, and her mother Marnie, beautifully support and encourage women to acknowledge and move past their hurt. Both sexual abuse survivors themselves, they know how that past pain can keep you from fully experiencing the love of God. Alex joins me on the show today to talk about their ministry, about her first book, Pacification: The Lock in our Chains, and to give us a peak into what she’s working on next.
Alex lives in British Columbia, Canada with her family. They run a local pizza shop, in addition to their ministry and are looking for God to do big things through them this year.
Mentioned in this episode
SHE IS Identified
Pacification: The Lock in our Chains
Proverbs 6:16-19 – pacification-isms
Identify, Align and Exchange
- Identify – the hurt, the sin
- Align – thinking and heart posture
- Exchange – give him the hurt and he gives the blessing
Connect with Alexsayah and the SHE IS Identified Ministry
On their website sheisidentified.com and on Instagram
Alex’s Favorite 5
Tee Public
Pizza
Her Macbook
American Eagle Sweatpants
Apple Music
Today Jessica and I start our conversation talking about her family. Jessica tells us that after having her first two daughters, she thought their family was complete. She and her husband had struggled with infertility and she was fearful that if they tried for another baby, they would be putting themselves back into that struggle. But six years later, she gave birth to her “change of heart” baby. Jessica shares how much she loves baby number three, but how in the year following her daughter’s birth, she has experienced postpartum depression and anxiety that has been paralyzing to her at times. Jessica explains how she came to know what she was experiencing and some of the steps she’s taking to make her way out of this fog.
Jessica goes on to share what she does for a living and why. As a Pure Haven Ambassador, it’s her job to educate and empower families to eliminate harmful toxins from their everyday lives. Jessica and I talk about reading labels, ingredient lists and how overwhelming it can be to know what’s really healthy and safe and what’s not. Jessica talks about green-washing and gives us first steps to take in order to make some changes and bring healthier products into our homes.
Girls Talking Life Show Notes: https://girlstalkinglife.com/2019/02/episode-10-jessica-hodson/
Girls Talking Life Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/girlstalkinglife/
Girls Talking Life Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/girlstalkinglife/
Nicole is a licensed marriage and family therapist, writer, and speaker based in the state of Connecticut where she lives with her husband and son. As an old soul who wears her heart proudly on her sleeve, Nicole loves using her words to help others find an enduring peace and joy outside of circumstance.
Today on the show Nicole and I start our conversation talking about identity. She shares how her cross-country move forced her to leave behind her connections, her reputation and everything she had built by her performance. She tells us that when everything you’ve built for yourself in this life is stripped away, God shows you where your real identity lies.
Nicole talks about her struggle with infertility, including five miscarriages, and the pain and loss she’s experienced because of it, but how God’s truth in her life never changes. She talks about finding joy in Christ’s presence, finding hope in the struggle. Nicole has a refreshing take on being the recipient of precious lessons through pain.
Nicole and I walk through the definitions of emotional and relational health, and she tells us how they’re so closely tied together. We talk about individual counseling and group marriage counseling (yes, group!). She also gives some guidance on how to examine and take steps to improve our own emotional health. We chat about working to put people before projects and welcoming the interruptions in our days. Nicole shares her thoughts on working a room and making others feel valued rather than focusing on yourself.
Explore more of Nicole’s story and how she finds peace and joy outside of circumstance when her first book hits shelves in early 2020!
Julie is a certified health coach and life coach who helps women achieve greater health so they can live out their calling. She is also a newly-published author and counselor in-training. She is a wife and mom to 5 teens (2 girls and 3 boys). Julie lives with her family in the country, along with a small herd of Scottish Highlander cows, chickens, and their dog Thor. She loves all things coffee and running, and highly values her friendships with other women.
Today on the show Julie and I talk about how when she became a widow she tried to outrun her grief (literally by running) and took things to an unhealthy extreme. She exhausted herself and developed some health problems before making some changes to rebuild her life in a healthy way. She talks about pushing through that grief and her fear about what people would think of her.
Julie goes on to share about her new book True Health and how it’s different from other books on similar topics because she also incorporates enlightenment by the Holy Spirit into her approach. Movement and nutrition are not areas I’m used to asking for God’s guidance. So I love hearing what Julie has to say about this. She also emphasizes how we’re all different, so what works for you might not be what works for me.
We talk about food and how what you put into your body is so important. Julie brings up the S word, “sugar.” And have you ever heard of fatty coffee? I had not! She tells us the benefits of intermittent fasting and why we might want a fatty coffee in the morning. She also talks about the effects stress can have our bodies.
Our conversation will give you some fresh insights on including God in your health journey. It may give you some new ideas to try in your own routine and I’m sure no matter what your goals are for this new year, it’ll give you motivation to make small changes and to give yourself grace when everything doesn’t go as planned.
My guest today is Lori Mercer. Lori is a single mom of four. She runs a successful online business where she freelances and also trains other women to be virtual professionals. But before she started her business, she had a demanding corporate job. Lori tells us how she knew it was time to leave that career, how there are things you can’t (and don’t want to) outsource when your kids are older, and she gives practical advice on making a plan to leave your corporate job if that’s something on your heart. Lori also founded and leads a nonprofit organization that supports the marriages and families of first responders. She tells us how she chose what her platform would be, how she made it her own and found that there were so many women going through the same thing she was as a firefighter’s wife. She also talks about how her dream ended in divorce despite how important marriage is to her. Lori and I talk about her personal life and how challenging the last 24 months have been for her, including walking through her daughter’s battle with anorexia. Lori shares how she learned of her daughter’s eating disorder, how it’s different for our daughters than it was for us at that age and how important it is for us to model healthy behaviors. Lori is so full of knowledge and she transparently shares about all the things she’s working on. If you are a single mom, a woman working full time, but ready to leave your corporate career to pursue your own business, a stay at home mom ready to get back into the workforce or you’re the wife of first responder, this show is for you.
My friend Kendra is on the show today sharing her story of loss, brokenness and a transformation that only God is capable of. She was married to her husband Jim on November 12, 2011 and five short weeks later, as they were anticipating spending their first Christmas together as a married couple, they were hit by a drunk driver. Jim was killed instantly and Kendra was badly injured. She had to face months of rehabilitation while grieving the loss of her husband. Not only was her body broken, but her plans for the future were shattered. Kendra tells us how she relied on God and the God-like people in her life to move forward. She talks honestly about the days she wanted to quit and how being strong isn’t what people see when a person is pulled together, but it’s in the moments of deepest sorrow when you’re crying on the floor and asking God to help you through the next minute. We also talk about forgiveness and how, in time, Kendra was able to forgive the man who hit them and how freeing it was to let go of that weight.
Courtney Bowden joins me on the show today to talk life. Courtney lives in central Ohio with her husband Dustin and their three adorable kiddos. She and I chat about her being a full time working mama, how she went from fashion to marketing and what it’s like to work with your husband. Courtney shares about the first time she knew she wanted to be a foster parent and how, over time, God worked in her husband’s heart and he went from “how can we make this work”, to “how can we not”. She talks about how hard fostering is, how it challenged her and grew her, and the tough decisions they had to make regarding their placement. Courtney tells us about her blog and her #showyourreal movement where she and guest bloggers share authentically about the normal stuff and the super messy stuff. We even talk about the Enneagram, even though neither of us are experts!
Courtney is a creative go-getter and an all-star communicator. She has an energetic spirit and likes to be doing. She’s definitely wired differently than me and I find her perspective so refreshing. I know you will too.
My guest today is the lovely Nancy Willis. Nancy is married to Jonathan and they have a sweet son Tommy. On today’s show she and I talk about her losing her mom to breast cancer. She tells us about the special moments that were gifted to her before her mom’s passing, how their family was intentional about their last days together, and her walk through the deep grief that followed. Nancy describes how losing her person left her empty, even though she was surrounded by her fantastic husband and family and how relying on the Lord was what rescued her. Nancy tells us about her emotional journey through infertility, how they made the decision to try in vitro fertilization and the waiting involved in that process. Nancy went on to have a healthy baby boy, but shares how she struggled being a mom to a newborn and how being a stay at home mom wasn’t the right thing for her even though that was what she had always wanted and how hard that was to face. We talk about what Nancy’s up to now, how she’s loving her work with the nonprofit organization, Ruling Our Experiences (ROX). The researched-based program empowers young girls with confidence, teaches them to solve conflict, self-defense and positive body image. My conversation with Nancy is sure to stir your soul.
Shalla Johnson joins me to talk life on episode 3. Shalla is a leader, a creator, a teacher and a west coast girl braving the cold Ohio winters. She lives in Columbus with her husband Rich and their four children. Shalla and I discuss the logistics of having four kids and how her husband sets aside time to disciple their boys. She talks about her and Rich’s desire for diversity and how they came to plant a multi-ethnic church that reflects God’s kingdom. We talk about how seeing the color of a person’s skin is important because it’s the way God made them and it’s a big part of their identity. Shalla tells us what it’s like to be a pastor’s wife in a traditional black church and what works for her as they lead Sanctuary Church here in Columbus. We talk about a dream of hers, one that she worked for, how it took shape and after time, how she was able to end that season well. We also talk about what she’s doing now, her participation with IF: Gathering and how she’s walking in obedience.
Shalla has an inspiring entrepreneurial spirit, a heart for women and I know you’ll love our conversation.
My guest for episode 2 is Abby Miller. She is a wife to Adam and a mom to three girls living in Saline Michigan. Abby shares her struggle to have a healthy pregnancy early in her marriage, how God planted a seed in both her and her husband’s hearts to do something more, not knowing what that might be. She talks about how they said yes to what God had for them, which also meant saying no to what was comfortable and how God worked out all the details for them in process. Abby and I talk about church planting and the importance of community. She tells us how she and her sister love to cook, how they believe in the power of gathering people for a meal and why they started their blog Everyday Table.
Carly Hager joins me on the show today to share her story of redemption and hope. Carly is a newlywed, a mom, a step mom and a nurse. She also has a huge heart of service, especially for women. Carly is a recovering addict from drugs and alcohol, who turned her life around when she decided that she deserved better for herself. She has since gone on to create an outreach that shows women on the streets of Columbus that they deserve better too. Carly is the founder of Reaching for the Shining Startz, an organization that assembles and delivers hygiene bags to women on the street. The outreach team uses relationships and consistency to show the women they encounter that they’re loved and that there’s a different way to live. Carly shares her struggles as a mom and how special it was to take her daughter to the dentist.