The Next Right Thing

Doing the next right thing is just that -- it's the next right thing for now, not forever. It's the next right thing as far as we understand what is good and right and next. Today I'll share my own story of continuing to discover what it means to do the next right thing in love. Listen in.   Links + Resources From This Episode: The Quiet Collection app Order The Next Right Thing Guided Journal Gra...

After a short break, we're back with a starter pack of episodes to turn to for particular situations, especially for you who might be new here or are looking for helpful, actionable decision-making content. Today I'll share specific episodes for when you feel stuck, for making decisions with other people, and resources for your next right thing. Listen in.   Links + Resources From This Episode: Ep...

We're on a break! But not the Ross and Rachel kind, this one's only temporary. We're working to create content that meets you right where you are and we'll be back in a couple of weeks. But first, we have an announcement, a request, and a blessing, so listen in! Links + Resources From This Episode: Take our survey to be entered to win a $250 gift card to bookshop.org. Order The Next Right Thing Gu...

On this final episode of the year, I'll share my list of what worked in 2022 as well as a few tips and resources for you if you want to make your own list. Listen in! Want help looking back before moving forward? Download these 10 Questions for Reflection and Discernment.   Links + Resources From This Episode: ThredUp - Here's $10 off your first order I'll share my list of what didn't work in my l...

A blessing for you and yours on this week before Christmas. You may recognize these words from Day 10 of last year's version of The Quiet Collection   for Christmas  (2021). I hope they extend a welcome to you on this Christmas, when we mark the day God moved in and everything changed. Amen. Listen in.   Links + Resources From This Episode: Order The Next Right Thing Guided Journal Grab a copy of...

We have a little over two weeks until the end of the year with a lot of potential activity between now and then. Here's the soul talk we all need for the finish line. Listen in. Links + Resources From This Episode: Let Your Life Speak by Parker Palmer Episode 01: Become a Soul Minimalist Episode 204: A Soul Minimalist's Guide to Christmas Episode 215: A Soul Minimalist's Guide to Spring Episode 18...

Surprise! We have a bonus episode to share with you that The Quiet Collection for Christmas is ready and waiting for you -- and we've made it better than ever. Listen in to learn about the changes we've made this year and how you can get Day One of this 10-day audio devotional collection for Christmas today. Links + Resources From This Episode: The Quiet Collection app for iPhone The Quiet Collect...

At the beginning of the Advent season, it's good to remember the Light. Here's a reflective reading from John 1:1-18, read from The Message version, a translation by Eugene Peterson. Listen in.   Links + Resources From This Episode: John 1:1-18 (MSG) Order The Next Right Thing Guided Journal Grab a copy of my book  The  Next Right Thing   Find me on  Instagram @emilypfreeman Download a transcript...

What a gift it is to be a small part of your Tuesdays over the last five years! As we celebrate 20 million downloads, we're dedicating today's episode to answering your questions. I'll say some words about why I don't give parenting advice, one of my favorite decisions of the last year, how I decided to became a spiritual director, and what is my next right thing. Listen in.   Links + Resources Fr...

Today I'm glad to welcome back to the show author, artist, and spiritual director, Scott Erickson. We'll talk about one of my favorite Advent resources, his beautiful book Honest Advent . I read it last year and of course didn't finish it in time for Christmas, but I just kept right on reading through the new year, finishing it up in the middle of January and I wasn't a bit mad about it. We'll tal...

Today I'm glad to welcome our favorite Enneagram teacher, author Suzanne Stabile, to talk about the three centers of intelligence and how our stances inform our decisions.   Suzanne is a highly sought-after speaker and teacher, known for her personal vulnerability and creative approach to Enneagram instruction. After 25 years of studying the enneagram, learning from people's stories, cultivating r...

If you're feeling pulled in all directions, looking for grounding words but unable to form them, here's a short prayer of welcoming some things we need, some things we want, and others we would rather do without. Listen in.   Links + Resources From This Episode: Order The Next Right Thing Guided Journal Grab a copy of my book  The  Next Right Thing   Find me on  Instagram @emilypfreeman Download a...

Today I'm glad to welcome Ruth Haley Barton to the podcast to talk about an important and often misunderstood spiritual practice: sabbath. Ruth has spent over 20 years as a student, a practitioner and a leader in the area of Christian spirituality and spiritual formation. She served on the staff of several churches before founding the Transforming Center, a ministry dedicated to creating space for...

Doing the next right thing won't necessarily protect us from harm, regret, or embarrassment. But hopefully, it can be a practice that keeps us present, moving, and from being too hard on ourselves. Listen in.   Links + Resources From This Episode: Souvenirs of Solitude by Brennan Manning Seasons of Your Heart   by Macrina Wiederkehr Sign up for my monthly reflection letter Order The Next Right Thi...

What can we learn about listening from other listening professions? I'm not talking about counselors or therapists, but those whose job it is to hear on behalf of someone else. As a former sign language interpreter turned writer and spiritual director, I'm reflecting on how some of my learned skills in one area of study are now informing my life as a listener in a different way. Perhaps some of th...

All the world's a neighborhood and everyone's my neighbor. How to begin to live as such? Today's guest submits it's simple:  Start with hello.  Today I'm glad to welcome one of my favorite writers and also favorite humans, author Shannan Martin. Her most recent book is called Start With Hello (And other simple ways to live as neighbors) . In it, she speaks directly to that part of us that wants to...

It's a question often asked and answered by writers and podcasters alike and it's easy to see why — it's simple, it's direct, and it's deeply thought provoking. Along with making a list of what I'm learning each season, I also love to make note of what's saving my life. Thanks to Barbara Brown Taylor for bringing this question into the public conversation, and to John Claypool to asking it of her...

As one season slowly unfolds into the next, I'm paying attention to some of my work and life rhythms and have discovered one thing that's been holding me back from my next right thing. Maybe it's holding you back, too. Listen in.   Links + Resources From This Episode: Episode 185: Why Makers Struggle to Get Things Done Maker's Schedule, Manager's Schedule by Paul Graham Episode 76: Create a Simple...

Today I'm glad to explore a topic that doesn't usually make the headlines in our newsfeeds but one that certainly deserves some airtime in our souls. We're talking about lament -- what it is, why it matters, and who some of our best teachers are in this practice. I'm glad to welcome two guests today to help me host this conversation: Natasha Sistrunk Robinson and Mariah Humphries. Links + Resource...

The news of the passing of a public figure can be both sobering and disruptive, no matter how far removed from us they were. How we navigate the loss of a public figure depends on the age of the one who dies, the manner of their death, and the degree to which we paid attention to their work their art, or their life of service. And it depends on us, our experience and perception of this person and...

The disembodied smoke of regret is nearly impossible to contain, corral, or neatly repackage and conceal. Once it's released, it sticks to the fibers and hangs on for days. Perhaps you can relate. Here is a practice that has helped me not only move through it but also find peace on the other side. Not a perfect peace, but a settled one. I hope it's helpful for you as well.   Links + Resources From...

This conversation would be better had face to face and of course one episode won't eliminate the fear of choosing wrong. But it's a worthy conversation to at least begin here, especially considering how prevalent this fear is among many of us. Let's find clarity around what we're talking about when we say we're afraid of choosing wrong. Listen in.   Links + Resources From This Episode: Holy Listen...

C.S. Lewis once said to "always prefer the plain, direct word to the long, vague one. Don't implement promises, but keep them." What's true for language can also be true for life. Why make something complicated when it can be simple instead? Here are 3 common writing tips given to writers that can be applied to our whole life. Listen in. Links + Resources From This Episode: Use code TISH22 for 30%...

Many parents are saying a big goodbye to their kids moving out of the house for the very first time. This prayer was written specifically with parents of college students in mind, but of course could apply for any parents, caregivers, or guardians sending young people out into the world. Listen in. Links + Resources From This Episode: Order The Next Right Thing Guided Journal Grab a copy of my boo...

August is a month of change and one big milestone is moving out of the house to live on your own, whether for college, work, internships, traveling, or just because it's time. This one was written specifically with first-year college students in mind, but of course could apply for any young ones who are grown, moving away from home for the first time. Here's a sending prayer for the journey. Liste...