Unleashing Sister Saints

We have been invited by senior Church leaders (and continuously in scripture by our Savior, Jesus Christ) to build Zion by creating communities of unity and belonging. On the podcast today, guest Jared Harding joins me to discuss how male allyship is critical to building Zion. Jared, who holds a master’s degree in leadership and organizational behavior, shares how his interest in allyship began as...

Today’s episode begins with the story of my friend, Heather. Heather had never planned to go to grad school, but that all changed with a “tap.” This week I talk about the power of the "tap on the shoulder,” a nudge or a bit of encouragement, especially for women. This tap can encourage positive transformational moments like going back to school, pursuing a graduate degree, asking for a promot...

I believe Latter-day Saint women are perfect candidates for public service, and this week’s guest agrees. Join me for a conversation with my vibrant and passionate friend Sui Lang Panoke, a visionary leader, social entrepreneur, and international trainer and facilitator who currently serves as Senior Vice President of Culture for Zions Bank. Sui Lang shares her background in training women and min...

Have you ever heard of cultural master narratives? Today, Elizabeth Ostler, Ph. D., explains the role of cultural master narratives in telling us who and how we’re supposed to be in order to belong to a group. Liz, a theater-maker, researcher, artist, activist, and current Relief Society president in Brooklyn, recently completed doctoral research on Latter-day Saint women cultural master narrative...

Join me today for a conversation with Courtney Vander Veur Matz, an award-winning artist, wife, and mother of three. Courtney’s art was included in the Church’s International Art Competition in both 2019 and 2002, and her artwork visualizing Heavenly Mother and our Heavenly Parents has been included in several art shows and in the book, The Girls’ Guide to Heavenly Mother. In the episode, Courtney...

This week I bring back Dr. Lisa Hansen and welcome Dr. Lisa Diamond to the show to talk about creating a community of love and safety for everyone, including our LGBTQ+ brothers and sisters. Humans are social creatures, and we need to matter to someone in order to survive and thrive. Feeling deeply connected and protected by others, especially our own family and community, with a sense of uncondit...

Do you remember that in 2019, President Russell M. Nelson specifically invited women in the Church to study all the truths they could find about priesthood power? If you’ve taken that invitation to heart, what have you learned? On today’s episode, Wendy Ulrich, a psychologist and author of “Live Up to Our Privileges: Women, Power, and Priesthood”, joins me to share what she has learned in her stud...

On today's episode I discuss fixed mindset vs. growth mindset, and how it relates to women in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Do you have a tendency to believe your qualities are carved in stone, with an urgency to prove yourself over and over? Do you limit your achievement and feel the need to constantly try to prove you are better than others? Do you have a perception that e...

Today I am joined by Kelleen Potter and Dr. Lisa Hansen to talk about loving our LGBTQ brothers and sisters and their families more and judging them less . Kelleen Potter shares her own experience as the mother of a gay son and transgender daughter, something she says she couldn’t have believed or understood if she hadn’t experienced herself. Lisa Hansen adds clinical insights as a PhD marriage an...

What is the road less traveled today, as a Latter-day Saint woman? Right now, I believe it is to remain as a committed, covenant-keeping sister in this Church. And, preparing to lead, particularly for Latter-day Saint women, can be a road less traveled. Join me today as I invite sisters to take the road less traveled, and as I share four methods of assistance available to us as we work to become t...

Have you ever considered your own innate desires for good could be personal revelation? Join me this week for an insightful conversation with Dr. Julie Hanks as we discuss aspirational shame and personal revelation as it relates to women and our desires for family, careers, and/or education. Dr. Hanks discusses how we can learn to trust ourselves and not discount our good desires and aspirations,...

This can be a busy and hectic time of year, but I hope you can pause for a moment and feel the peace of our Savior Jesus Christ as you listen to this week’s brief podcast episode. I first recorded and shared this episode back in April 2023, but the message feels relevant to this Christmas season. I discuss President Henry B. Eyring’s April 2023 conference message, “Finding Personal Peace,” and sha...

I am delighted to welcome Elaine Dalton, former Young Women general president, to the show this week. She shares her characteristic and timeless love, enthusiasm, and encouragement for all women, particularly young mothers and single mothers. Sharing her firm belief of each woman’s divine nature and destiny, Elaine encourages women to learn for themselves of their divine worth to our Heavenly Pare...

In this week’s episode, I share some recent thoughts about seeking personal revelation. Personal revelation has been a rock for me through the years. I have learned about it, yearned for it, asked for it, depended on it, followed it, and found peace because of it. The insights and confirmations I have received from God have been foundational in my decisions—whether minor or substantial—and in my l...

In the United States, 37% of women will experience contact sexual violence, physical violence, and/or stalking in her lifetime. Abuse and domestic violence are a widespread societal problem, including among Latter-day Saints—no group of people or area of the country or the world is exempt. Domestic violence is a threat to the safety and well-being of women, and thought it's not easy to talk ab...

Join me this week as I share three profound quotes from prophets of the Lord about women's potential impact to bring light, hope, and peace to the world. When I use the phrase “unleashing sister saints,” this is what I mean! How can we as women be the force the Lord needs to lift millions who suffer and need the hope of the Savior on our planet? This "Hidden Pearl" was one of my earl...

Episode Description: Nubia Peña has spent the past 20 years working as a community organizer and policy advocate for underrepresented populations. She attributes her passion for serving the needy to the example of her mother, a woman filled with faith and compassion, and Nubia’s own deep faith and trust in God. While not a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Nubia’s faith an...

This week I continue my conversation with McArthur Krishna and Bethany Brady Spalding as they discuss their important thought piece, “Why Heavenly Mother is Essential for Women Understanding their Eternal Destiny.” If you haven't already, tune in to part I of the discussion in last week's episode (episode 64). Challenge: If we cherish the doctrine of a Heavenly Mother, how can we better ac...

Church leaders and an authoritative gospel topic essay have affirmed that as Latter-day Saints, we believe in the beautiful and cherished doctrine of a Heavenly Mother. However, do we really live and apply this doctrine? Today, I’m grateful to welcome McArthur Krishna and her co-author Bethany Brady Spalding to the show to expound upon established doctrine of Heavenly Mother and discuss their impo...

Though it isn’t always natural or intuitive, when we choose to be grateful in times of chaos or hardship we can usually identify blessings and tender mercies from the Lord. Today I share about an especially crazy day recently when I was reminded of the many blessings and miracles we experience from day to day, including the blessing of strong and righteous men in our lives.   Challenge: Are you ha...

I think our listeners are going to love this week’s conversation with storyteller and artist McArthur Krishna. McArthur is full of energy, passion, patience, grace, and hope, and I learned so much as we talked about her efforts to co-publish a series of books with Bethany Brady Spalding on both women in the scriptures and our Heavenly Mother. From discussing the value of studying the stories of wo...

*Help me reach my goal of TEN new reviews this week on Apple Podcasts! If you have been enjoying Unleashing Sister Saints, please take one minute to leave a rating and a review. Thank you!* This week I am delighted to share my conversation with Reyna Aburto and her daughter, Elena Aburto, on the topic of mental and emotional wellbeing. You will recognize Reyna as the former second counselor in the...

On this week’s episode, we welcome back Dr. Christy Kane, PsyD, CMHC, to discuss the topic of loneliness among Latter-day Saint women and young women. When we envision loneliness, we may think of a single sister or an elderly woman living alone, but loneliness affects women in a variety of backgrounds and family situations, and can be severe in our modern world so deeply affected by comparison and...

This weekend is general conference , the worldwide gathering of the The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I am excited to feel God’s love and peace during the conference and to listen for messages from the Spirit especially for me. With conference in mind, this week I'm replaying an episode first released before the April 2023 general conference that highlights Eliza Wells’ recent s...

Did you know there are more single adult members of the Church than married? According to an April 2021 general conference address by President Russell M. Ballard, more than half the adults in the Church are single, divorced, or not yet married. Join me for this week's episode with special guest Dr. Christy Kane, a psychologist and previously divorced sister, to discuss how we can be more awar...