That Sounds Fun with Annie F. Downs

“How does love look different in different seasons?” Jada Edwards is here- I know y’all love her and I do too! We’re going to talk about what it looks like to actually love people well and being honest with the Lord. That’s not always easy, especially depending on the season you’re in, but Jada’s new book A New Way to Love Your Neighbor is an excellent resource to help us figure out how we do this...

Today on the show, we’re answering the question, “How do we identify when spring is here?” with Pastor Jon Tyson. Jon is the pastor of Church of the City in New York and a best selling author. We’re going to talk about identifying spring, revival and resurrection, and what role we play in all of it.  This is also our last episode before Holy Week and Easter, since we don’t release episodes during...

Today we’re answering the question, “How do I transition seasons?” with Pastor Levi Lusko. Spring is here, and with the changing of seasons can come all sorts of transitions—whether it’s physically happening around us, or in our hearts, our work, or our relationships. Levi is such a wise voice in this and, especially, can speak to the realities of the big impact of it all with the release of his n...

Today Melanie Shankle is here to help us answer the question, “What do I do when spring still feels like winter?” Melanie’s always making us laugh on The Big Boo Cast, telling us which jeans to wear on the internet, and writing brilliant books and her latest is just incredible. It’s called Here Be Dragons: Treading the Deep Waters of Motherhood, Mean Girls, and Generational Trauma and it’s Melanie...

Pastor Mike Kelsey is back to help set us up well as we step into spring…BLESS GOD. As you may remember, Pastor Mike is here with us at the start of every season this year, so we can really be intentional about thinking through not only the physical changes of the season but the emotional and spiritual side too. Today on the show, we’re answering the question, “What is spring and how do I define i...

We are so glad you’re loving this rhythm of walking through the seasons together this year on That Sounds Fun, and WE KNOW YOU’RE READY FOR SPRING. My gosh, we are too. We all feel it, right? The anticipation of a new thing. More light. More warmth. More color. The winter was both long AND full of purpose. It was both painful AND sacred, cold AND cozy. But we are ready for spring! Starting Monday,...

Our friend Eddie Kaufholz and I keep talking and you know we’re getting into the hard hitting stuff like… the relationship between brain size and head size, talking animals, and opening day of baseball.  But there’s 7 minutes of serious too, because we had to talk about shoes and financial security and being misunderstood. We’re going there today. Don’t forget to download your spring pages for you...

 Today we’re answering the question, “How do I handle the changing of a season?” We’re talking about the changing of the seasons today and I love what Ellie said about this book, because it’s exactly what we need right now as we step into spring. She said: “We all know what it’s like to be in the winter seasons and this book is a reminder that winter never gets the final word.” Ellie’s new kids bo...

Once a month this year, we'll have an essay from me with some thoughts and ideas I am processing in real time. This started when I first moved to New York, and we called them AFD in NYC, as I was real time learning what it was like to live here. One of the episodes that mattered a lot to you all (and to me) was AFD in NYC Episode 6: An Essay About My Body and how NYC was changing my body... well,...

Today on the show, we’re answering the question, “Why does the winter feel so long?”  You may know Cubbie Fink as one of the founding members of Foster the People, but he’s also an incredible producer and creative force. And joining him is his wife Rebecca St. James—Grammy and Dove Award-winning Christian artist, worship leader, author, and just all-around wonderful human.  I think we’re all feeli...

What better way to start the Lent season than with the guy who plays Jesus on The Chosen, right?! Jonathan Roumie and I talk about what this season holds and some really cool things the Hallow App has to offer during Lent. And I want to hear from you, what is your plan for Lent? How are you observing it this year? Hop over to @thatsoundsfunpodcast on instagram and tell us there. I’ve decided to wa...

Today on the show, we’re answering the question, “How do I pray in the winter?”John Eldredge is back and officially becomes a member of the Hall of Fun! His spiritual leadership and wisdom is so helpful and you’re going to want to take notes from this one for sure. He also has a new book releasing tomorrow called Experiencing Jesus. Really. If you’re following along in your TSF Seasons Guidebook,...

Savannah Guthrie is back! You know and love Savannah from the TODAY show. Last year, I got to talk with her about her New York Times bestselling book, Mostly What God Does. You can go back and listen to that one, it’s episode 863, and now she has a brand new kids’ book out this week called, Mostly What God Does is Love You. If you’re following along in the TSF Seasons Guidebook, there’s no notes p...

I showed up with a whole list to talk to Eddie about…including recapping the SNL 50th anniversary. Because duh. And Eddie also came rolling in asking for forgiveness about something he did and you’re going to love this story. If you’re following along in the TSF Seasons Guidebook, there are no note-taking pages for this one, but by all means, if you want to take notes, we’re not the boss of you. G...

Today on the show, Mattie Jackson is back to help us answer the question "Where is the hope of winter?” You may remember her from episode 345 and if not, you’re going to love her. She is an incredible author, speaker, and entrepreneur with a heart for helping others find hope in the midst of life’s hardest seasons.  Mattie so generously offers her wisdom and story as a friend who’s experienced tre...

Once a month this year, we'll have an essay from me with some thoughts and ideas I am processing in real time, and we call those Always Annie episodes because I am, in fact, Always Annie.  Last month, I told you how much Nashville means to me and how it feels to have my heart living in two cities right now. I am here today in New York City, the other city I call home and the other city that holds...

Today on the show, I get to introduce you to my sister, Tatum Green, and we’re also joined by David Thomas, whom you know and love from Daystar Counseling and the Raising Boys and Girls podcast. Together, we’re going to share with you the story of my nephew, TJ, and why we wanted to put this brand new book, Where Did TJ Go? in your hands. We keep saying this is a book we wish no one needed, but so...

We’re big Popcast fans around here at AFD Inc, and I honestly can’t believe it’s taken us this long to get Erin on the show. If you aren’t already obsessed with our podcasting cousins over at the PMG, then let me tell you more about Erin. She’s a writer, podcaster, and storyteller. She is the Resident Bible Scholar and host of the Faith Adjacent podcast, and senior creative at Popcast Media Group...

Today on the show, Raechel Myers and Amanda Bible Williams from She Reads Truth are BACK for their *sweet sixteenth* episode! You know we love to talk about the church calendar around here and the way it guides our seasons. So today we're talking about Lent and digging into what the seasons are inside this winter season.  The interesting thing about lent is that it takes us from winter to spring,...

Today on the show, I get to keep talking with your pal and mine, Eddie Kaufholz. He needs no introduction around here, but do we cover the hard-hitting questions like does a snowman count as Christmas decorations or can they be part of just general winter decorations?  We also talk a little bit about my new kids book coming out on grief and loss that I wrote with my sister, Tatum Green. You can fi...

Today on the show, I get to talk with Pastor Tyler Staton from Bridgetown Church in Portland, Oregon. He’s also the National Director of 24-7 Prayer USA and you know we love to talk about prayer around here so Tyler such is such a deep well on the topic. We’re going to talk about where God is in the winter and as we do we’re going to talk about his relationship with prayer and how he’s navigated p...

This year, every month, I’m going to be sharing one of these episodes, one of these stories, something that I am thinking about, wondering about, experiencing myself. Hence the reason we are going to call these “Always Annie”... because no matter the city I’m in or the situation I find myself in, I am, in fact, for better or for worse, Always Annie. Today’s question, that I hope you will open your...

Drew and Ellie Holcomb are here and can you believe this is the first time they’ve ever been interviewed together?! Today we talk about finding blessings in the winter, holding grief and joy, and seeing fruit after winter seasons. If you’re looking for a soundtrack for this season, Drew and Ellie have an album releasing on Friday that you. are. going. to. LOVE. It’s called Memory Bank and it’s com...

Today I talk with my long-time friend Lindsay Sherbondy (or you may know her as Lindsay Letters). She’s a full-time artist, living just outside of Madison, Wisconsin with her husband, Dugan, and their two kids, Eva and Phoenix. Their world was turned upside down in August of 2019 when Eva sustained a traumatic brain injury, and as you can imagine, every day since has presented itself with new chal...

One of our favorite pastors around is here- Pastor Mike Kelsey. As we were planning for this year on the podcast, we knew we wanted a pastor to help us set up each new season and give us a spiritual look at what it all means. SO WHAT AN ACTUAL GIFT that Pastor Mike is going to be here at the start of every season to help us really figure all of this out. Today, we’re going to talk about how we def...