Unleash Mind&Heart Transformation

The end of the year is less than 2 weeks away. In this season we are busy with thoughts of gifts that we will give and perhaps of resolutions you will make. We can get so distracted with the busyness of the season and surviving the gauntlet. Can you relate? In today's episode we're talking about gifts and resolutions, but not just any gifts, and not the kinds of resolutions that quickly evapo...

The family and friends that you love and are about, but if you're honest, you dread getting together with them. There's just something about how they talk and act that seems to bring out the worst in you. How do I know this about you? It's because I have those kind of people in my life, too. Everyone does. But what do we do to prepare our own hearts that may enable us to begin to see them and resp...

Imagine you're on a flight over the Atlantic Ocean and the plane drops into a steep and sudden descent. You're breathing hard with your oxygen mask over your nose and mouth with the thick air of uncertainty and terror close in around you. In that moment...do you pray? When you are facing the insurmountable problems in life, what do you believe about God?

What can a vacation, a conversation and a burger teach us about hope? We've all fallen prey to doctored images, deceptive descriptions and false hope that promise a satisfaction and enjoyment that falls terribly short. So what is the way forward into true and lasting hope? That's where we're headed in today's episode and beyond.

Even though tears are normal human behavior, many people in our Western culture struggle when either they cry or someone around them cries. We struggle to know what to say and do in those moments. But our tears have purpose. This episode will explore some of the benefits to us in terms of physical health and physiology, relationally and spiritually. Tears can be both healing and helpful. Tune in a...

Grief is something you and I want to avoid, hope to avoid, seek to avoid, and yet grief is universal. Try as we may to avoid it, we all face various seasons and circumstances that sweep us unwillingly to face the sorrow and heartache we must journey through. Join us today as we consider the aspects of grief which you may not have considered, specifically the sources of grief, some surprises o...

The past few years have been particularly contentious ones. Whatever news or media platform you frequent, the level of vitriol couldn't possibly have escaped your notice. When the divisions are so deep, the animosity so intense, what is the average person to do to dispelling darkness and hatred? Tune in to consider what your part may be in this season.

That awful feeling of isolation, disconnection, of feeling terribly alone can come whether or not we are in physical proximity to other people. We all struggle with loneliness in different ways. The causes are many, and current statistics indicate the numbers of people who struggle with loneliness has grown significantly, causing some to express loneliness as a growing public health concern. Just...

When people talk about the heart, sometimes they mean the literal organ that sits in your chest and pumps blood. But in large part Western cultures tend to relegate mentions of the heart as relating to things like feelings & emotions, sentiments & romance; or we might use heart to describe the ways someone works at doing something difficult as working with all their heart, or an athlete wh...

We all want to believe that our lives and our stories matter. And yet we naturally have times of wondering if our lives are just directed by random happenings and chance. Whether you feel like a minuscule minnow or a massive blue whale, both live in the expanses of vast oceans teaming with other creatures. It can easily leave us wondering if our lives really matter in the grand scale of thousands...

Your choices matter. Your choices affect who you become, which has a rippling effect on our families, friends, co-workers and beyond. What does it look like to choose to function cooperatively rather than competitively? 

Emotional pain is not something we either enjoy or inherently know what to do with. We try to minimize the pain, anesthetize the pain, and even deny the pain by shoving down and trying to act like it will eventually evaporate. But neuroscientists, mental health experts and experience all tell us that doesn't work. Today's episode will discuss some of the sources of wounds, a helpful analogy involv...

There's a natural tendency for a majority of people, that when we feel sad we tend to since into the sorrow like when you step into oozy, sticky mud... it can feel impossible to get yourself out.  What do you do when you connect with a friend or loved one whose heart is heavy? And do those solutions work well for you? In today's episode we talk about that as well as what we can do when w...

A true story of a VERY close encounter with two moose gave some great food for thought this week. We all face unexpected happenings, but how do they shape us? And what's my part... how will I react when unexpected and unpleasant encounters disrupt what I have planned? What attitudes and reactions will I rehearse? In who or what will I place my trust to navigate forward in the face of challenges an...

If everyone is doing what is right in their own eyes, does that mean that we each live out a selfish, self-centered view of the world? We hear the word "self-righteous" thrown around with disdain, but to whom does it apply? And what's the connection between selfishness, self-righteousness and how those flow easily into judgment others? Does the current media and cultural focus on self-actualizatio...

What happens when those in power start forcing people to do what they know is wrong? Our human tendency is to hope for pleasant circumstances and for life to go according to our plans. But what happens when it doesn't? Where do you turn for hope and for help? What happens when the most powerful ruler threatens: compliance or else? Join us as we are reminded of a true story of three friends who fac...

It's been said that people can live without food for 40 days, without water for about 3 days, and without oxygen for around 3 to 8 minutes, but only a few seconds without hope. The world is a turbulent place, and where you and I place our hope matters. It effects everything about what we believe and how we live. Join us as we consider some true stories of turbulent times to discover true and lasti...

What happens when you make decisions based on trying to avoid a negative? It's a lot like hitting a golf ball while focused on not hitting that tree in front of you... you're incredibly likely to hit the thing you're aiming to avoid! So what happens when you're trying to avoid criticism or complaints or conflicts? Tune in to consider what you might want to do instead.

You and I have a variety of talents and abilities which were given with the intention that would be used to be a help and blessing to ourselves and others. But is it possible for our greatest strengths to turn into weakness, in fact into double weakness? And if so, how can we prevent it? Join us as we consider what this might look like in our lives.

The more I learn about how the brain works, I continue to be amazed at the similarities and analogies to trees, plants, and yes, even poky, thorny weeds. In today's episode we consider lessons from thorns & weeds, and how much they can teach us about the thoughts we continue to think. Do you know that thoughts are a physical structure that literally take up real estate in your brain? And the m...

Fear and anxiety are things we all face as we wrestle with the storms of circumstance and uncertainty. Often times we discover vital lessons in the midst of familiar stories and even in the routine activities of life. I've learned some things about myself and my walking with God both from neighborhood walks with my ridiculously over-anxious dog and also from an ancient song  you've likely hea...

Most of us have a long held and deeply entrenched habit around how we respond to what our heart tells us. But do you know you have a profound choice? You don't have to default to the habit that leads to anxious overwhelm.  You actually have a choice. And in today's episode we talk about what we can do instead that leads us to know peace. It's God's anecdote for anxiety, worry and fear. You wo...

In this episode we wrap up our series discussing some of the facets of how we wrestle with our own emotions and ways of thinking. Rather than zooming in on some of the very real issues we struggle with, today we zoom way out to take a unique view of life with regard to how we think and how we feel, of ways we can be deceived and what's the alternative. If you desire to be wise and discerning I hop...

We recognize that emotions can be powerful and stir us to a quick emotionally-driven response. But does that actually lead us to outcomes that are fruitful and healthy? In this episode we consider What are emotions anyway? What does the culture and the Bible teach us about our feelings & emotions? And lastly, how can we transform our feelings & emotions so that we learn to live and love, a...

Within our souls is a sort of massive library which includes things like memories, thoughts, emotions, and experiences. Because humans are meaning-maker, when these first occurred our minds worked to draw conclusions about and assign meaning, the sum of which plays into our sense of self, our beliefs and identity. Nearly all of this operates in the realm of subconscious functions. What lies hidden...