Not Alone: Conversations on Faith and Wellbeing

Last episode we talked about how to challenge ethnocentrism, navigate tribalism, and how to be curious about different perspectives instead of being dismissive. Easy stuff, right? Well this week we're taking it up a notch; we're talking about disagreements and worldview differences that occur in our pre-existing relationships! How do we keep friendships with those with those whom we have disagreem...

In this episode, we will be talking about a very unique delicacy Michael once tried while he was in the Philippines... and how it relates to the main topic of this episode: dialogue with others of differing opinions. You’ve probably read and heard much about the divisiveness of our times and perhaps you’ve even experienced a heightened level of discord in your own life recently. We’re not going to...

We're picking up where we left off last week with decisions! (And don't worry, at no point is Evan going to ask you to choose between a red pill and a blue pill). What we are talking about this week, though, are some practical tool and methods when it comes to making decisions, how to be empathetic in our processes, and what are some examples from scripture on how to make decisions based on prayer...

We're back! If you're new to the podcast and can't decide whether you should start here or work your way up our catalogue, don't despair! For one thing, there is no right or wrong way to listen to this podcast. Secondly, this episode is all about making decisions! We'll go into the stress of making decisions both big and small and where to find good help from others.

Season 3 dropping soon... make sure you got your journals, pens, a readily accessible feelings wheel, and an appetite for food metaphors. 

It's five o'clock somewhere... it may even be five o'clock wherever you are when you decide to listen to this. Either way, we're on vacation! But despite it being the middle of summer, we decided to record a quick mini-episode to keep you updated, give some thoughts on post-pandemic summer life, and also to leave you with some parting thoughts as we take a break from the show and transition to isl...

With it being summer and many of us planning vacations, we decided to talk about the subject of rest. What is the purpose of rest? What is the difference between resting and doing nothing? And how do we use rest as a tool to maximize ourselves in our daily lives? Also, would Chicken Salad Chick like to give us a nice endorsement? 2:00 - Intro to topic. How do we know when we’ve done enough work be...

This episode is a bit unlike any we’ve ever done before as we decided it was finally time to take a break from zoom meetings. That’s right; this episode of Not Alone is the very first to be recorded in person! The gang recently got together at Evan’s house to reflect upon the last year of podcasting, the progression of post-pandemic life, the things we get to celebrate now, and we also try our han...

This week we are releasing part 2 of our conversation with Greer Jones. Greer is a professional counselor and a friend of the pod who has lots of experience walking with other through substance abuse. If you haven’t listened to part 1 yet, we highly encourage you to do that first! In the second half of our conversation, we talk about the challenges of maintaining sobriety, more on how COVID increa...

This week we are releasing part one of a two-segment interview with a guest we had on our show. The conversation went on a lot longer than we had initially expected so we have decided to split it in two; the second half of which will release approximately a week from when this uploads. (One caveat; at several points in the conversation we mention sexual assault; we don’t discuss it in great detail...

In the last year, we’ve talked about a lot of challenges we’ve all faced  in the pandemic, and this week we’re introducing another to the list: substance abuse. How do we define things like alcoholism and dependence, how has substance abuse affected faith communities, and how do we know when it’s time to take steps towards healthier living?  0:35 Chick-fil-a changed the name of their Arn...

In this episode, we’re delighted to have Dominique Johnson back on the podcast. Dominique is an African American pastor from Macon, Georgia who came on our show a year ago to discuss race in the wake of the George Floyd protests from last summer. We got on the call with Dominique again recently to revisit some of those talking points, to discuss current issues, and also to talk about where we go f...

Michael has returned from the world of Academia a new man and so we’re celebrating by picking up on Anxiety around Re-entry. What does church look like now that we’re approaching post-pandemic life, and what lessons should we take from this past season of life? 6:49 - Michael shares his experience attending church in-person for the first time again. 12:25 - We speculate on what God might think abo...

This week, we are once again without Michael, who was busy working on his dissertation, so we decided to take a pause in our normal programming and do something a little different. In this episode, Evan got on the call with Lindsey to talk about the world of therapists, her background as a counselor and an ordained minister, and also some things the general public might not know about the professi...

This week, we’re circling back on the topic of Anxiety, but we’re framing the discussion around the imminent re-entry into "normal life." What is it about post-pandemic living that is making us anxious? With Michael missing in action in order to continue his education, Evan gets free one-on-one counseling from Lindsay this week, leading to some interesting anecdotes from airports, some fun facts a...

This week, we pick up where we left off with joy vs happiness. We’ll talk more about more the differences between the two, why it feels like they are at odds with one another, and we’ll also look into what the Bible has to teach us on the subject. 2:45 - Recap of last week 4:00 - Why should we distinguish joy from happiness? 7:34  - Exploration of James 1:2 (“consider it pure joy when you fac...

Hey y'all; this week we’re talking about joy, how it differs from fleeting happiness, and how we can cultivate in our lives.  3:00 - Intro joy 8:20 - Etymology of happiness 10:00 - The difference between joy and happiness 20:50 - How does happiness connect with joy? 29:04 - The infectious nature of joy vs the silo effect of happiness 33:50 - The relationship between joy and gratitude 41:35 -...

Today we're back on toxic positivity, but we're going to look at from a church-centric perspective as well as examine what the Bible has to say about it theologically Notes: 4:00 - Re-itroduction to toxic positivity. 8:00 - Where does toxic positivity exist in Christian faith communities? 13:00 - When is it appropriate to express our sadness and when is it not? 16:30 - How do we balance the script...

2:30 Intro to toxic positivity 5:00 - When does positivity become toxic? 13:40 - Why is toxic positivity easy, especially when we mean well? 16:00 - Some signs of toxic positivity, plus Lindsay gives Evan some free counseling 25:35 - How the Incredible Hulk models emotions in an unhealthy way, especially men 33:45 - Why discussions toxic positivity shouldn’t be ignored because of the presence of o...

Today we wrap up our three part series on change. We’ll talk about how to help others cope with major changes in their lives, how to balance giving help to others versus being their counselor, the stress of changes in life (including some anecdotes from our collective experiences choosing/changing majors back when we were in school), and how to cope with rapid changes happening in the world around...

Welcome back to Not Alone a podcast about Faith and Wellness, we’re so glad you’re tuning in. Picking up from where we were a week ago, we are diving back into the subject of change. In this episode, we’re going to talk about how change is ever present in our lives, how it’s essential to Christian faith, and we’ll discuss the ways we contemplate change in our spiritual lives. 02:30 - How do faith...

This episode is the official kickoff of season 2 of the podcast and we’re excited for all the new things we have in store for you in 2021. Change is in the air, folks. And because we’re tweaking our format a little, we thought it would be appropriate to kick things off by talking about change (reading Who Moved My Cheese? is not required though it is encouraged, mostly because we’re still looking...

Merry Christmas! We hope you’re taking care of yourselves this holiday season; with the pandemic still afoot we know many have had to alter their plans for the season, and while this has been a tough year in general, we’re hopeful at Christmas. Before listening to this episode, it is recommend that you procure a warm beverage of your choice and position yourself by a fireplace (or a live feed of o...

Today’s conversation is all about self care; for context, it was recorded just over a week after the election. If you’re listening during the week this episode is uploaded, you’re probably gearing up for the holidays; so odds are you, the listener might need a little self-care at the moment. 4:55 - Intro to Self care 8:40 - Self-care routines 12:10 - Our self care routines 23:40 - the challenges o...

Today we’re going to talk about perfectionism, John Wesley’s battle with the desire to be flawless, the ways in which we wrestle with the various impulses to be perfect, and we’ll also do a brief review of the movie Homeward Bound. 12:20 - Breaking down the the 3 camps of perfectionism 14:45 - What is the antidote to self-perfectionism? Saying messy is okay. 15:55 - how do we identify perfectionis...