The Goodness and Grace Podcast

Do you remember your last “horrible, no good, very bad day"? I think we are justified for feeling some kind of way about those days. When things don't add up to goodness, when the yuck seems overwhelmingly present, rest assured that He is. He is good and He is present. With God's help, and some practice, our hearts can start to filter our moments like a sieve. Road rage and future fea...

Can I cheer you on today? I want to give you a pep talk, big warm hug, cozy cup of tea, to lift you up- whatever you need most!- in this most hectic season. So many of us are white knuckling our way to whatever comes next. Our situations are unique, but we can all identify with uncertain futures, “Jesus, take the wheel!” seasons, or just waiting for whatever-today-is to pass.  The good news is tha...

This episode is for the girl feeling stuck. In the crossroads of life, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed by decision and discernment. Maybe our strategies and tools are solid, but a new take on classic ingredients can be just what we need. A new take on the classic “pray and wait" was so helpful for me! If you're facing a transition or decision, I invite you to try it. Listen to this episode...

Life is rarely never contained in tidy, quantifiable boxes. It's a hot mess of everything from lost keys to lost dreams, cracked screens to fractured relationships. It's too much and not enough. Things don't have to be shiny and perfect to be worthy of note. Some things are just…true. Let's bless it all. Naming the true and the good around us reorients our heart to the One who give...

This episode is for you if your heart is always searching for answers, conclusions, or just a “sneak peek” of what the future holds. I’m with you! God has set eternity in our hearts because we're made for forever with Him. But what about today? We can stew in the unknowns around us, but we might just miss out on the beauty in every moment we're blessed to live.  Marvel in God's ability...

I tend to bring some major junk-drawer-energy to my Jesus. Dumping a pile of mismatched worries, hopes, and fleeting thoughts at His feet. Missing pieces. Half-empty ideas. All of it just pleads, “What can you do with this? ” He's in the business of redeeming, of making all things new. (Rev. 21:5) So many times, we've asked God to “Please redeem this. Help it be better," not even sure...

Let’s talk about “slippery places.” You know, moments of FOMO or exhaustion that pull us into a swamp of comparison, dissatisfaction, and a generally distorted view of our circumstances. (Yikes!) This is when we tend to lose sight of goodness. We forget who and Whose we are!  “Slippery places” remind us that we need God. Some days, just recognizing how much we need His presence is all we can do. W...

This episode is a love letter to church music! From childhood memories to recent experience, church music (and specifically hymns) can be so powerful for us.   Today I want to tell you that hymns are for you. Even if you don't sing. Even if you don't think hymns are your vibe or style. Hymns are a reminder that our struggles and our journeys are a tale as old as time. Our pain is not new....

March brings muchness for all of us. Whether it's places to be and people to see, or just the enormity of all that we carry- it's a lot. AND, it's so much more. A season of growth or change. Relationships that sustain us. Opportunities to contribute our special something to the world around us. I pray we see the goodness and fullness of each day, holding both the scary AND the sunshine...

Perspectives are funny things, you know? We don't really have any concept of how broad or narrow ours might be…unless we explore! But it's messy out there. How can we love each other as we are called to without at least hearing the fears, hopes and joys of our neighbors?  Listen today for a few ideas on how to broaden your perspective right where you are! Connection and empathy are beautif...

Today’s episode shares a story from my cancer experience that I’ll never forget: a lab tech, a connection, Beyonce and Jesus. Interested? 😉 It was a wild morning, but I left that room knowing I'd had a spiritual experience. God was in that place.  If you're in a tender season, if you've prayed for healing and hope, this episode is for you! I've been there. I hope you find a little...

This episode is a love letter to messy paths. Don't worry- it's NOT about "What the struggle taught me." It's NOT asking you to embrace the mess you're in. This is a reminder to have compassion for the journey. Each of us is on a unique path, but we're all navigating plot twists and heartbreak of some kind. It is here, in these messy and confusing seasons, where we ca...

We live in a world that always pulls us forward and backward. Reliving moments, planning for the future, covering the “what if's.” But we were created with a need to rest. The ability to rest. The gift of rest and restoration with our Creator.  Rest can sound intimidating, so let’s start small: What if it’s just mindfulness? Give yourself a little love today and pause. Sit quietly before God,...

From day to day stressors to traumatic events, sometimes life is going to be… a struggle! We're just imperfect humans doing our best in an imperfect world. Listen today for 3 simple strategies for relief, hope, and sunshine! We all have to start somewhere. No matter what you're facing, baby steps matter. We can find that sunshine again. It's always there! ☀️ “May the Lord bless you and...

If you're waiting on “your people,” I see you. Loneliness can be heavy. Most of us cycle through impatience, comparison, and disappointment, waiting on what we think our lives "should" look like. But what if the community we've prayed for is already here? This episode reminds us that any loneliness we feel, in any season, reminds us that this is not our home. No group of friends...

Tis the season…to change seasons. To get used to new things. And if you're like me, that's a big ask! Some days it all just seems like too much. But slow, gradual effort can bring slow, gradual change. This episode reminds us that God’s mercies are new each morning, to be gentle with ourselves, and that we will, indeed, survive this season of change.  The Goodness & Grace Podcast encou...

I finally watched Taylor Swift’s “The Eras Tour” movie ...and it wrecked me in the best way. The eras of my own life resurfaced with all the memories and feels. Looking back can be a way to honor what we’ve been through. Not to glorify or vilify, but just to gently hold our pain and our process. The tender feelings they procure can help us realize anew what God did in those places, how He pulled u...

*Special Announcement! If you’re ready to dive into 2024, do it! If you’re ready to leave 2023 and not look back, that’s ok, too. But if you’re overwhelmed by the idea of setting new intentions right now… so am I!  It can be hard to set new intentions or resolutions when last year did not go as planned, when the future feels so uncertain, or when you’re just doing good to be here today!  I created...

Special Holiday Episode! In a world that praises productivity, taking time to settle our sand can seem like a luxury. Coziness is the ultimate state of savoring goodness in a single moment. We all deserve to pause, breathe, and enjoy the pure delight of…well, whatever makes us smile! Let’s craft our own coziness no matter what life throws at us. Let’s reemerge with goodness in sight, and the knowl...

Life is always a mixed bag. Even during the holidays.  This episode encourages us to "Reframe It!" It does not mean to fake it til you make it. Reframing gives us a chance to hold our surprise, disappointment, or insert other negative feeling here. To hold it, to feel it, AND to look ahead.  Listen for two helpful steps! There is so much we can't control in this life, but we can cont...

The more I live, the more I realize that good things take work. Sometimes, I feel like everything takes work. A lot of work. From Christmas trees, to relationships, to adulting, and everything in between. I can get frustrated with the time and effort it takes to keep going, keep healing, keep growing, but it's ok. How sweet to remember that God says we're worth the work! He won't give...

As I get older, I find that fortune cookie proverbs have turned out to be annoyingly accurate, but…they hurt. They’re unhelpful when your future plans are no longer attainable. They minimize hard-won wisdom into something cheesy that doesn’t show the whole picture. How can we possibly give thanks in circumstances like these? Thankfully, fortune cookie proverbs are not the axioms directing our days...

Some seasons in life are lovely and sunny, times when “fruit” and goodness can easily be counted. But in the harder seasons, when we’re mourning what is changed or missing, God is still there and He is still working. I encourage you to count the fruit this season , and give thanks for ALL the goodness that has touched your life. Blessings before, blessings today, and blessings yet to come are all...

I think we often feel pressured to find “The Days.” You know, the periods of time that may seem less rocky, or more like what our life is “supposed” to be. It can be easy to miss “The Moments” happening now. The small reminders that we are not alone, that goodness remains, and that our Heavenly Father holds us by the hand. All we can ever do is live one moment at a time. But we can find God, His l...

We're all climbing mountains in this life. It seems like an overused metaphor, but it's just so accurate!  Mountains are humbling because they put life in perspective. Nothing like a good struggle to make me feel so finite and fragile…except standing on the top. Our tiny, breakable humanness can remind us of everything we aren't: God. When mountains make us feel so very small, we can a...