Unhurried Living | Helping Christians Rest Deeper & Lead Better

2020 has been a rough year. And that is an understatement. It may seem counterintuitive to at least some of us, but one thing that can help us is to see this year up against the expansive backdrop of God’s eternal presence. Christ crucified is a witness to everything we are seeing. Christ crucified is present in our pain, our outrage, our anxiety, our fears. Let’s dig into a practice that can help...

There are so many reasons we might feel that cultivating a deep life of prayer is just impossible. We feel too busy. We feel we don’t deserve such a life. We imagine that kind of prayer is for someone more spiritual than me. But today, John Starke , author of The Possibility of Prayer , will remind us that prayer is always possible because prayer is a gift we receive more than a life we achieve. ...

The subtitle of Aundi Kolber’s book, Try Softer , is “a fresh approach to move us out of anxiety, stress, and survival mode—and into a life of connection and joy.” Now, who doesn’t need that?! Aundi is a trauma informed therapist and she is going to help us learn what “try softer” really means, today, on the Unhurried Living Podcast.   Aundi Kolber believes that we don’t have to white-knuckle our...

What is the purpose of the church? Why does it exist and what is on God’s heart as far as its aims? As of the airing of this episode, I have not been part of an in-person gathering of church for more than six months. And then many of the portrayals of church in contemporary media are less than encouraging. The emerging generation has been opting out of the church in large numbers as it is. My gues...

“Anything that alienates and divides us leaves us weak and exposed to disaster. Simple human compassion is more essential to our national resilience and strength than most of us recognize.” Today, I’m talking with my long time friend, Diane Cox. She is a business owner, a beautiful writer, and an even more glorious human being. And she actually makes resilience something fun and intriguing to talk...

The theme of today’s episode is grief, and especially grief related to traumatic loss. As a culture, we’re not very comfortable with or even very good at grieving. But we are facing a great deal of loss, maybe more chronic than traumatic, but loss nonetheless. I think today’s conversation may help you in ways you didn’t expect. About three years ago, our guest, author Mel Lawrenz, got a text from...

Sungshim came to America from Korea at the age of 29. Being an immigrant and struggling with emotional deficits from her childhood left her isolated and insecure. Her search for God and her self-discovery process in her training and relationships opened her to God’s love in new and deeper ways till she was overwhelmed with the beauty and abundance of life in God’s kingdom.  Along the way she devel...

The Way of Presence: The Empowering Reality of God-With-Us launches September 8. Today, I'm sharing here a conversation with my friend and fellow author, Casey Tygrett, about the book and its life-giving message.  Casey Tygrett is author of the recent Christianity Today award-winning book As I Recall , was able and willing to join me in a conversation about my new book.  I know you'l appreciate ho...

Our guest today is Marlena Graves, author of The Way Up Is Down . In her own words: “…we’ll explore ways in which God is calling you and me to surrender continually to being emptied and then filled with his abounding grace. We’ll soon discover that this is the process whereby saints are made. This is the selfless-way, the God-shaped life.” For writer, pastor, and activist Marlena Graves , formatio...

Many of you who listen to this podcast are leaders in business, church, nonprofit and other organizational settings. Others of you may not have a leadership title, but you live a leadership life…a life of influence. Today’s episode is going to help a lot. I’m talking with Jerome Daley, author of the book Gravitas: The Monastic Rhythms of Healthy Leadership about where spiritual depth and authority...

Summer is another beautiful soul that Gem has met on Instagram. Last year Gem and Summer had the treat of meeting each other in person at a conference in the Midwest. Summer is a caring and wise listener and teacher and we can’t wait for you to learn from her today. Summer is an Anglican priest, spiritual director, homeschool mom of three, and still madly in love with her high school sweetheart. S...

We are living in a season where “us and them” thinking can be very tempting. Political differences, racial tensions, generational and even religious differences can push us to build thick walls we think will protect ourselves and keep bad things out. But reality is always bigger than simple “us and them” categories. Today, I’m talking with my friend, J. R. Briggs about his new book, releasing Sept...

In my second book, An Unhurried Leader , I wrote a chapter based on Paul’s story of the thorn in his flesh that, no matter how many times he prayed, God did not remove or resolve. As leaders, there are things about us that we want to see changed.  But sometimes, instead of changing what is unpleasant or difficult for us, God chooses instead to be graciously and lovingly present to us in the midst...

Editor and spiritual director Cindy Bunch calls us to self-care through greater compassion for ourselves. She helps us pay attention to the frustrations that bug us in order to identify negative thinking about ourselves or others. As we do so, we can discern what we need to let go. This allows us to lean into the things that bring us joy. Each chapter of her book, Be Kind to Yourself , is filled w...

In her new book, Soul Care in African American Practice , Dr. Barbara L. Peacock illustrates a journey of prayer, spiritual direction, and soul care from an African American perspective. She reflects on how these disciplines are woven into the African American culture and lived out in the rich heritage of its faith community.  Using examples of ten significant men and women―Frederick Douglass, Mar...

In my coaching, consulting and leadership training work, I have the privilege of interacting with Christian leaders around the world. And one thing is clear: our experience of church has radically changed over the last few months. It has been for some a painful challenge, but it has also been for some a unique opportunity. Jay Kim, author of the book Analog Church, talks about this church reality....

“To be human is to be lonely.” Jason Gaboury was deeply affected by these words from his spiritual director. Most of us have experienced loneliness multiple times over the course of our lives. And in this season of pandemic and self-isolation, that loneliness has only deepened for some. Jason has a message of connection and God with us that can inspire us all.  Sharon Garlough Brown , author of th...

Christian faith has often focused on right beliefs and right choices as the key to personal growth. But biblical evidence and modern brain science show that our character is shaped more by whom we love than merely by what we believe.  In Renovated , Jim Wilder shows us how we can train our brains to relate to God based on joyful, mutual attachment, leading to emotional and spiritual maturity, as o...

How do we live in a way that doesn’t leave us drained and weary? How do we lead from places of refreshment and vitality instead?   Alan recently enjoyed a great conversation about “sustainable leadership” with Alan Briggs from Stay Forth Designs. Briggs work intersects at many points with what Gem and Alan have been doing for a while now. So sustainable leadership is what we’ll be talking about to...

No one is going to argue that we have entered uncharted territory with the ongoing dynamics of COVID-19, and then with the painful wounds of injustice that are being rightly protested. It’s a season when we’ve perhaps never needed good leadership more, and when the complications of how leadership will adapt to the needs of this season may never have been higher.  When I talk about unhurried leader...

Many of our listeners are leaders and it can be easy for any of us to fall into the groove of teaching or leading for mere information or knowledge …and not into the deeper levels of formation and change. Of course, knowledge is important and we must begin there. But transformation must be right on its heels or the process is incomplete.  Our guest today, Diana Shiflett , has written a very practi...

We’ve seen the news stories and heard the rumors. Maybe we ourselves have been hurt by a narcissistic church leader. It’s easy to throw the term around and diagnose others from afar—but what is narcissism, really? And how does it infiltrate the church?    Chuck DeGroat has been counseling pastors with narcissistic personality disorder, as well as those wounded by narcissistic leaders and systems,...

Alan loved getting the opportunity to talk with a fellow author about the challenge of hurry in our world today. Today, we're sharing his recent conversation with Jeff Bethke, author of To Hell With the Hustle . In today’s episode, you’ll gain insight into how we can reclaim our lives in an overwhelmed, overspent, and overconnected world.  Jeff is the New York Times bestselling author of Jesus > R...

Today we’re sharing a five part framework for change. We’ve been using this process in our own lives for years and it has kept us on track. Last Fall, our book What Does Your Soul Love? was published. It’s a book about necessary change--a book about how to cooperate with the transforming work of God in us and through us. What does it take to stay on this journey of change over our lifetime? We kno...

Many of us treat suffering like a problem to fix. Simply put, we’d rather not suffer at all, but if we do, we prefer it to be short. But what if our pain or suffering linger? What if it doesn’t go away quickly or at all? We may wonder if God sees us or if we’ve somehow failed God. We may question God’s very nature. If God loves us, why does he allow us to hurt?     Today, Gem is talking with KJ Ra...