Episodes
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Gem is on the move... the move to the Unhurried Living Podcast. Have a listen as she explains the reasoning behind this move of podcasts.
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Follow Gem on Instagram and grab a copy of her new book Hold That Thought. You can also join her in the Replenish Community.
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I want what Jim has.
This is the phrase 17-year-old Alan, my husband, uttered as he made one of his first moves into the Christian life.
I have always loved hearing Alan share about the first time he went forward in a church to receive Christ. Iāve heard this story multiple times and Iām always struck by how simple and heartfelt Alanās desire was. Weāll talk more about this todayā¦
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Follow Gem on Instagram and grab a copy of her new book Hold That Thought. You can also join her in the Replenish Community.
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Episodes manquant?
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Itās near the beginning of the calendar year and, for some, it feels like a fresh start. Most of us are long past making resolutions. Weāve come to see that they donāt last and are followed up by shame and guilt. I havenāt made resolutions for years.
But I thought it might be good to share with you a few simple ways you could plan for some soul care in an ongoing way. These ideas are bottom shelf and thatās good. Itās always wise to begin small and build habits.
I mention a couple resources in this episode. Here are those links:
An Unhurried Time with God guideAnnual Examen guide______________________________________________________
Follow Gem on Instagram and grab a copy of her new book Hold That Thought. You can also join her in the Replenish Community.
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Breathing. Itās as natural as, well, breathing. We breathe all day long without giving it a thought. Itās just one of the many astounding aspects of our God-given bodies. Iām grateful for all the processes that continue to keep me healthy and alive, arenāt you?
Today, using the word BREATHE, Iām going to guide you in a spiritual practice that you can use in the middle of any given day. Weāll make the unconscious, conscious and give our souls space to breathe.
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Follow Gem on Instagram and grab a copy of her new book Hold That Thought. You can also join her in the Replenish Community.
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Almost everyone I speak with these days is tired or stressed in troubling ways. Not only do we carry our regular burdens and concerns, but we also carry around our knowledge of what is going on in our country and around the globe.
While it is true that we cannot psychologically bear up under the weight of all that we see and hear in the information ageāwe do want to have a basic knowledge of world events.
But how do we hold all of this without becoming overwhelmed? How can we be a healthy member of our planet without crumbling beneath the weight?
My guest today is radio host, Carmen LaBerge, and she is going to help us make our way.
Carmen LaBerge is an author, speaker and host of the Christian talk radio show Mornings with Carmen LaBerge, across the Faith Radio Network. On air, live each weekday morning, Carmen demonstrates civil conversation as she and her guests bring the mind of Christ to bear on the headline news of the day.
Carmen has conducted thousands of interviews with widely respected influencers, reporters, authors, and leaders. She is author of Speak the Truth: Bring God back into every Conversation and blogs at www.carmenlaberge.com
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Follow Gem on Instagram and grab a copy of her new book Hold That Thought. You can also join her in the Replenish Community.
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Many of you have likely heard of a way of engaging scripture called Lectio Divina. It is a kind of āDivine Reading.ā What I love about Lectio Divina is that it is a slow and formational way of engaging the bible. It can help us move from our heads to our hearts. Lectio Divina is reflective, meditative, receptive and responsive.
Letās begin with a little Lectio 101, and then I will guide you in the practice as we experience Psalm 73:23-26 together.
The four movements of Lectio Divina are:
Read (Lectio) Reflect (Meditatio) Respond (Oratio) Rest (Contemplatio)With Lectio Divina, rather than gathering information, we seek to allow God to meet us in our hearts and minds in a spirit of transformation. We allow ourselves to sink into the passageā¦to lingerā¦to think, yes, but also to feel and to experience.
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Today Iām talking with Joanna Meyer, the author of the recently released book Women, Work and Calling.
No matter what title you have or donāt have, we are all working women. People, tasks, and schedules fill our days and we all have influence in these spheres.
How do you respond to Godās calling? How does God grow our soul through our work? How do we tap into our vocational power?
Joanna Meyer is director of public engagement at the Denver Institute for Faith & Work, where she leads public events, hosts the Faith & Work Podcast, and founded Women, Work, & Calling, a national initiative that equips Christian women for godly influence in public life. Prior to joining the Institute, she worked in global telecom, nonprofit consulting, and campus ministry with Cru. Joanna served as associate faculty at Denver Seminary and completed a certificate in Women in Leadership through Cornell University. She contributed to Women & Work and has written for Faith Driven Entrepreneur and various Denver Institute publications.
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Follow Gem on Instagram and grab a copy of her new book Hold That Thought. You can also join her in the Replenish Community.
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A few years ago I read Thomas Kellyās A Testament of Devotion. He put into eloquent prose a dynamic that I had experienced, but had not yet found words to describe.
There is a way of ordering our mental life on more than one level at once. On one level we may be thinking, discussing, seeing, calculating, meeting all the demands of external affairs. But deep within, behind the scenes, at a profounder level, we may also be in prayer and adoration, song and worship and a gentle receptiveness to divine breathings. . . . In a deeply religious culture people know that the deep level of prayer and of divine attendance is the most important thing in the world. It is at this deep level that the real business of life is determined. . . . Between the two levels is fruitful interplay, but ever the accent must be upon the deeper level, where the soul ever dwells in the presence of the Holy One.
Thomas Kelly, A Testament of Devotion (San Francisco: Harper San Francisco, 1941), 9.
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Follow Gem on Instagram and grab a copy of her new book Hold That Thought. You can also join her in the Replenish Community.
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Transition. How do you feel when you hear this word?
For some, transitions are welcome because itās a movement from one place to another.
For others, transitions are unwelcome for the same reason. Change can be disconcerting.
But whatever you feel about transitions, thatās where weāre headed today in our conversation.
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Follow Gem on Instagram and grab a copy of her new book Hold That Thought. You can also join her in the Replenish Community.
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Today we're talking about being a mentoring presence, or wise woman, in the lives of others. This really is an encouragement to any woman listening to think of herself as a wise woman in the life of another.
The actress, Julia Louis Dreyfus, has a new podcast called āWiser Than Me.ā She is 62 and she interviews women who are older than her. She asks questions so that she can glean life wisdom from other womenās life experiences.
So our question today is this: how am I living my life so that, over time, I can become a wise woman. And how am I offering myself to others in this wayā¦all along the way.
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Follow Gem on Instagram and grab a copy of her new book Hold That Thought. You can also join her in the Replenish Community.
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Are you now, or have you recently been, in a difficult situation? Most of us have at least one circumstance in our lives, at any given point, that isnāt going the way we had hoped. Today Iām sharing a personal story of climbing a mountain at high elevation. Together, weāll look at it literally and metaphorically.
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Follow Gem on Instagram and grab a copy of her new book Hold That Thought. You can also join her in the Replenish Community.
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In preparation for co-leading a pilgrimage for women to Italy last month, I spent some time getting to know St. Catherine of Siena and St. Clare of Assisi. These two female saints were quite formidable in their passion and love for Godāand what that meant for their own souls and those around them.
In Ilia Delioās book, Clare of Assisi, I found a snippet Clare wrote in a letter to her sister, Agnes.
āO most noble Queen,
gaze upon [him].
consider [him].
contemplate [him].
as you desire to imitate [him].ā
Four words leapt off the page:
GazeConsiderContemplateImitateThese four dynamics are compelling invitations in my relationship with God. And, if followed, could lead to āmuch fruit that lastsā spoken of in John 15.
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Follow Gem on Instagram and grab a copy of her new book Hold That Thought. You can also join her in the Replenish Community.
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The day this episode releases, I will be in Italy with 15 wonderful women. We will be on a pilgrimage.
People have been engaging pilgrimage for centuries. Yes, it is a physical journey but it's also an inward exploration of the soul. Pilgrimage is a chance to connect with your inner life, your deepest held beliefs, and your relationship with God in a focused and intentional way.
So how can you embrace the idea of pilgrimage as an element of your lifestyle?
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Follow Gem on Instagram and grab a copy of her new book Hold That Thought. You can also join her in the Replenish Community.
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You may have heard me announce here that we now take the month of July each year as a mini sabbatical. I engage no work, no work-related email, and no social media. It is a much-needed way of disengaging that allows body and soul to rest at a deeper level.
One benefit of extended time like that is that I can get in touch with ideas, longings, dynamics and desires that typically stay buried underneath the flurry of activity in my day-to-day life. Iād like to share with you one such āget-in-touchā moment from my time away.
Let's dig in to the problem with discontent.
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Follow Gem on Instagram and grab a copy of her new book Hold That Thought. You can also join her in the Replenish Community.
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A while back I had a conversation with a group of leaders. We were talking about spiritual practices and the need for refreshment and refilling. (As you can imagine, I talk about this a lot). One of the people mentioned that this was all fine and good but what about REAL life.
Iāve heard this comment many times before, and I typically leave it alone. But more recently Iāve begun to pause the conversation (whether with an individual or a small group) to take a closer look at what ārealā means.
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Follow Gem on Instagram and grab a copy of her new book Hold That Thought. You can also join her in the Replenish Community.
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Growing up on our small six-acre farm in Washington was wonderful. As a child, I enjoyed many hours and days of leisure. This was back in the day before the information age. One phone connected to a wall and five channels on the TV (and I was the remote control). I had a pogo stick, a skateboard, a bike and a horse. What else could you need?
One of my favorite memories was rolling down a small hill in our front yard. It was probably only a four-foot incline, but for a young one like me it was a delight. I spent hours lying in the grass, watching butterflies and bees, looking up at tall pine branches hanging overhead, or simply watching the sky.
Today weāre going to think about enjoying the little, and sometimes unexpected, aspects of life.
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Follow Gem on Instagram and grab a copy of her new book Hold That Thought. You can also join her in the Replenish Community.
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Today Iām sharing a timely replay from the Unhurried Living Podcast. I interviewed K.J. Ramsey on her book This Too Shall Last: Finding Grace When Suffering Lingers.
The entire episode will play, including an introduction of K.J., so for now, Iāll leave you with this. You are not alone in your suffering and K.J. is an expert on this, having suffered physically for years. Listen and take heart.
K.J. Ramsey is a trauma-informed licensed professional counselor and author whose work offers space to see every part of our souls and stories as sacred. She holds degrees from Covenant College and Denver Seminary and is the author of This Too Shall Last: Finding Grace When Suffering Lingers and The Lord is My Courage: Stepping Through the Shadows of Fear Toward the Voice of Love.
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Follow Gem on Instagram and grab a copy of her new book Hold That Thought. You can also join her in the Replenish Community.
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I recently had the pleasure of spending a weekend with my friend, teacher and leader, Jodie Niznik. We talked about fruitfulness inspired by God, as compared to productivity inspired by meā¦which can sometimes lead to over-giving.
We often think we need to accomplish things by direct action. But fruitfulness works a little differently. Jodie and I dig into that and I trust youāll find some nuggets to tuck away as well as some new action steps.
Jodie Niznik, a graduate of Dallas Theological Seminary, helps people create space for God in their lives through her Scripture meditation podcast entitled "So Much More", and equips them to take another step with Jesus through her Real People, Real Faith Bible studies and teaching. She served in pastoral ministry for over twelve years. Her calling and passion is to equip people to create space for God in their lives and take another step in their journey with Jesus. Jodie is married to Tim. They have two adult daughters and a very poorly trained Yorkie-poo. You can connect with her at jodieniznik.com and on Instagram.
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Follow Gem on Instagram and grab a copy of her new book Hold That Thought. You can also join her in the Replenish Community.
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What is the purpose of a sabbatical and how is it even possible? Great questions that I answer today as Alan and I prepare for our 3rd annual monthly sabbatical in July. Listen in as I share how we plan for, engage in and promote this kind of soulful rest. Our categories of our engagement include:
Rest. Play. Relationships. Reading. Prayer. Unplugging. Beauty. Refilling.
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A few months ago a semi-prominent newscaster made a flippant comment about women over 50 not being in their prime. He gave examples from a google search that said women in their twenties and thirties are in their prime. Of course, being a woman over 50, I had some very strong feelings about this dismissive statement.
I wanted to say something via social media or email in real time about his comment, but decided not to enter the fray of reactive dialogue.
But time passed, and I forgot about the newscasterās comment, until recently when I saw a movie in which a man spoke endearingly to a woman over 50, āYou look like youāre in your prime to me.ā A sweet and heartfelt statement at just the right time in their story.
So I thought about the word āprimeā again. What does that even mean? I looked it up. This is where weāre headedā¦
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Follow Gem on Instagram and grab a copy of her new book Hold That Thought. You can also join her in the Replenish Community.
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