Not Alone: Conversations on Faith and Wellbeing

Do you miss Buzzfeed quizzes? We kind of do. We actually took one at the beginning of this episode to determine which jobs we had if we were all Ken's in Barbieland. We like discovering our personalities, even if that means having someone (or something) prescribe it for us. We get into what personality really means in this episode, how our identities interplay with our personal inclinations, a...

In this installment, we're going to be talking about the topic of identity. We've touched on it before, specifically as it relates to individuation during early life development, but we're to going to continue that conversation and explore identity in adulthood. All three of us get open and honest about a recent identity shift that occurred within our church denomination, Lindsay talks...

Grief is a topic we've addressed several times before this podcast, but unfortunately it's something all three of us have experienced in our lives recently. Michael and Evan get real about some family losses they've each suffered recently, plus Lindsay talks about a recent change that happened in her career. These moments are tough to walk through, but talking about the pain (and recog...

This week, we piggyback off of our last episode and dive deeper into the subject of success. We'll talk about how the world defines success, grappling with those conventional metrics working in ministry (including when organizations seemingly fail to meet those benchmarks), and how God's presence can often defy how we determine success. Also, we learn to no one's surprise that Lindsay...

We're back! To kick off this new season of the podcast, we will each take our turns describing how we're crushing it out there... just kidding. That would make for terrible listening. What we will talk about, though, is how we define success in life, how conventional metrics of success might not always equal overall wellness, and how we can set personal goals in a healthy way. Evan talks a...

Helloooooooooooo..... we hope this podcast preview finds you well. It's been a busy 2023 for us but we're finally back and have already begun recording new episodes! Keep an eye out next week as we begin season 5 of Not Alone!

Now, looking solely at the title of this episode, one might deduce that Michael McCord grew up extremely wealthy; so wealthy he even had an Englishman in livery to answer his home phone for him. But like any good clickbait story, the truth is buried under the headline (and usually has a boring explanation you have to click 8 links to find). Despite living in the information age, finding the truth...

When you hear the word tradition, what comes to mind? If you're like Lindsay, you might think of a certain musical about a Jewish patriarch adapting to fast-paced times. Or maybe you're like Michael, and think of a ratty old sofa that was hard to throw out because of the memories attached to it. Traditions are a huge part of our family lives and spiritual practices. Why is tradition so important?...

We're trying out a new podcasting format his week; instead of us spilling our guts out for you, we're going to send out 55 minutes of total silence so you can dish out your deepest darkest secrets. Just pretend like we're listening (we're totally not).... Just kidding! If you started listening to the podcast before reading the description like a normal person does you would know this is a farce. C...

We hope you like surprises... if you don't, though, that's okay. We're not sure how we feel about them either. A surprise is defined as something that's unexpected or mis-expected (more on that word later). The total subversion of expectation can be a rich, rewarding thing, such as a surprise party or a surprise gift. They can also be big-time stress inducers as well; like medical procedures or li...

When was the last time you did something just for fun? Like threw a frisbee, played a board game, or even assemble a LEGO set? Play is not always seen as an essential need for adults (and sometimes it's looked down upon), but there's a lot of evidence to suggest it's a lifelong necessity. Michael, Evan and Lindsay will go through some of the anecdotal evidence from their own lives but they'll disc...

"When the road looks rough ahead And you're miles and miles From your nice warm bed You just remember what your old pal said Boy, you've got a friend in me" These of course are the lyrics of the classic Toy Story theme song written by Randy Newman. We often think of friendships being able to last through time and survive long distances, but the reality is our friendships change over the course of...

Summer is traditionally the vacation season; we push the pause button on our daily routines to go somewhere and kick our feet up. But how we experience summer changes over the course of our lives. Summer can be beach time, it can also be time for home projects, or even moving to a new home altogether. Perhaps you can look back on your own previous summer seasons and see the times of rest and the t...

Purpose is both a deep and broad concept. It’s a universal human desire, and it’s a big focal point for a lot of Christians in particular. And while purpose can be powerful and inspiring, it can also be challenging to navigate life around. So how do we balance health and purpose in our lives? How can theology shape our understanding of what purpose really is? And how do we apply our concepts of pu...

Even though the pandemic has waned and normal life has resumed to a large degree, some of its broader effects can still be observed; particularly within the job market. In what has been called the “Great Resignation,” many companies have reported staffing shortages, and the workforce seems less eager to return to old form. In this episode, we’re going to take a closer look at this phenomenon, why...

The United Methodist General Conference has been postponed (again) until 2024, but there's a lot to digest between now and then. It's a topic we've miraculous avoided in the almost-two years we've been podcasting (wait, has it nearly been two years???) but we decided to go ahead and talk about it now. If you're not familiar with what's been going on, the United Methodist Church has been in a fract...

This episode, we'll pick up where we left off two weeks ago with the second half of our conversation on forgiveness. Asking for forgiveness can be tricky... even though it's good to seek forgiveness, it can sometimes be heard as, "let's forget this happened and just move on." So how do we know when to let others have their space when we've hurt them? What are the differences between "big" and "sma...

Forgiveness is a word we hear often in church. If you go to a liturgical church, you might even say "Forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us" every Sunday. But why forgiveness easy to talk about but hard to conceptualize? This week, we'll start the first part of a two-part conversation about this topic. Join us as we discuss the actual meaning of forgiveness, what it...

At some point in every person’s life, there will be moments that are so heavy you just can’t “keep calm and carry on,” as the old saying goes. Whether it's stress, grief, or depression, we eventually have to find ways to cope. And there are lots of different coping mechanisms that people employ, including some that might actually be doing more harm to us on top of whatever it is we’re experiencing...

Setting goals can be tricky. Following through on them is even harder. Sometimes it’s good to have a little accountability from others, but where is the line between helpfulness and judgment? This week, we explore the concept of accountability, how it works in the context of discipleship, how the concept can be misused and abused, and what it looks like to practice healthy transparency in work, fa...

It is 2022-- wait, it's 2022?! And in the spirit of the new year and new year’s resolutions, we will be talking in this episode about motivation-- how do you find the emotional energy to accomplish both long term goals and everyday tasks? Do you even really need motivation to get things started? Other Topics: The history of New Year's resolutions, dating back to the Babylonians (for real) The conc...

We're back baby! Well, we're almost back. It's hard getting back to the grind in the New Year. Plus, there's all these resolutions we promised ourselves we'd do on top of all our other obligations. You might say we could use some extra motivation... What's that? You could use some too? Perfect! Because that's how we're kicking things off next week. We'll be talking about building and maintaining h...

Merry Christmas! We love this time of year... Christmas trees, lights, presents, the Incarnation of our Lord and Savior... oh yeah, and all the weird conversations we're going to have with our families. How do you prepare for the uncomfortable questions from parents/grandparents? What do you do when Secret Santa suddenly becomes political? How do we avoid that most American of temptations of talki...

This is part 2 of a series on sexuality and the church; if you haven't listened to part 1, we highly encourage you to do so before starting this one up. Also, we will be direct and open in this conversation... if you're listening with children present maybe leave this one in the que for now.  Did you ever read books like Josh Harris’ I Kissed Dating Goodbye? Did anyone ever give you a purity...

First off, we plead for your forgiveness over the title of this episode. Puns are bad and we should feel bad. But in all seriousness, we will be talking about sexuality in this episode. We won't get graphic but we will be candid, so we recommend you don't listen to this with children present.  Why is sex one of the most sensitive subject matters in the church? In part one of this two-episode...