MIDDLE GROUND - Real Conversations on Faith, Identity & Becoming — Through Brynne's LDS Lens of Curiosity, Love and Doubt

In this follow-up episode with my brother Ryan, he shares the response he got after publicly sharing his faith transition story. Over 30-40 people reached out, many sharing their own journeys. We talk about what's actually helpful when someone you love is going through a faith transition. Ryan's advice: lead with love, ask "what do you need?" instead of trying to fix them, and avoid "why" question...

In this Walk and Talk episode, I share a real-time experience of processing anger before I got home to my kids. My six-year-old woke up his younger brother after I explicitly told him not to, and I was livid. Instead of being home to yell at them, I was out on a walk pushing the stroller. I called my husband, validated how angry I was out loud, kept walking, and within five minutes the anger moved...

In this episode, I interview my mentor Robin Whitworth about the concept of contrast and how it's changed the way I navigate life. Robin explains how "contrast" is a neutral way of looking at anything that's not your ideal, instead of calling things "hard" or "trials." It's opposition that allows us to make choices and grow. Robin shares her journaling process for discovering sponsored thoughts, t...

In this first Walk and Talk episode, I'm on the treadmill sharing my journey with exercise and postpartum body changes. I talk about fluctuating 40 pounds between three pregnancies and how I've shifted from desperately wanting to lose weight to focusing on strength and energy instead. I want a body that lets me hike, run with my kids, do a Spartan race, and do simple things like get up off the flo...

In this episode, I share a talk I wrote in November 2023 after being called as young women's president, titled "Love Like Jesus." I talk about how I asked my counselors what message they wanted our girls to take with them into the world, and the common theme was love. This has been my guiding star for the last few years as I've grown spiritually. When things don't make sense or I'm confused or ang...

In this solo episode, I share my personal story of being called as young women's president despite my doubts, questions, and new beliefs that my bishop was fully aware of. I talk about how I first felt prompted to meet with my bishop just to let him know where I was at with my faith; not planning to step away from church, but having big questions and wanting him to know he could connect me with an...

In this episode, I sit down with Kim Garrett to talk about her experience as girls camp director and how she created an incredible experience for the young women. Kim shares how she completely shifted the approach by letting the girls have as much choice as possible; from picking their committees (activities, bonding, spiritual, and food) to choosing lip syncing over traditional skits. The theme w...

In this solo episode, I talk about something that's been confusing me: discerning the spirit. I saw an Instagram post about throwing away Christian books because the authors claimed to have received revelation differently than what the person believed was correct. It got me thinking, what happens when I discern the spirit in a way that doesn't agree with how my leaders or others hear it? Does that...

In this solo episode, I talk about what it's like to identify as a quitter or someone who never finishes anything. I share my own journey of starting multiple businesses; private tutoring, a gluten-free baking business run out of my 900-square-foot apartment where customers picked up orders at the playground, selling on Poshmark, even an online Korean dress boutique with my brother where we had te...

In this episode, I sit down with my uncle Kent Coleman to talk about his book "It's Not About the Mangoes" and his journey from nearly going bankrupt to owning 14 Big O Tires locations that are some of the highest-producing stores in the nation. Kent shares how he got into the tire business even though he's not a car guy at all, and the huge mistakes he made early on, like firing his best, most ex...

In this solo episode, I talk about faith and agency—two things I used to have a rocky relationship with but now absolutely love. I share how I went through what people call a faith crisis or deconstruction, breaking down all the beliefs that once made sense and asking the hard questions. It was uncomfortable, scary, and heavy, mostly because I felt like I shouldn't be there—like doubting and quest...

In this episode, I sit down with my little brother Ryan Liston to talk about his journey of leaving the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. We were both raised in traditional Latter-day Saint households, and while I'm still an active member, Ryan's path took him in a different direction. He shares his beautiful, hard, and honest story of how he went from being the "perfect" Mormon kid—sem...

In this episode, I introduce myself and share why I started the Middle Ground podcast. I talk about my journey from elementary school teacher to stay-at-home mom, and how that transition launched me into discovering who I am and who I want to be. I get into the pivotal moment around 2019 when the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints made some announcements about the LGBTQ community that did...