Happy Pride month, beloveds! We are excited to kick off the month by talking to Rev. Dr. Angela Yarber (she/her) about her new book, Queering the American Dream. She shares about traveling the country and learning about the presence of divinity all around her. About Angela Rev. Dr. Angela Yarber (she/her) is an 8-time award-winning author and publisher at Tehom Center Publishing , a press publishing feminist and queer authors, with a commitment to elevate BIPOC writers. She holds a Ph.D. in Art ...
Jun 04, 2024•40 min
Burn out is a universal feeling - everyone reaches their wits ends at some point. This has been especially true in the Church world lately, from pastors to volunteers. Rev. Callie Swanland addresses that head on and tackles the conversation in a new way to make us think about how best to fill our wells each and everyday. About Callie Callie Swanlund is an Episcopal priest, retreat leader, spiritual companion, and coach who helps others know their belovedness and find their Spark. Her new book, F...
May 28, 2024•49 min
Kelsey shares how a few Veterans changed her understanding of Memorial Day worship services. Our weekly interview will drop tomorrow, Tuesday, May 28th.
May 27, 2024•2 min
Witnessing the war in Gaza can make us feel hopeless and like there's nothing we can do. Dr. Peter Makari (he/him), a Global Relations Minister for the Middle East and Europe, shares with us today a message of hope, justice, and peace. He offers important background information in relationships in the Middle East and lifts up voices of Palestinian partners who are on the ground doing important work. Peter reminds us to recall Jesus' message of "who is my neighbor" and how that neighbor is not ju...
May 22, 2024•43 min
Sit down with a group of kindergartners and ask, "Raise you hand if you're creative!" and every single child will raise their hand. Ask a room full of adults that same question, and you'll only get a few hands. So what happens between childhood and adulthood? It's not that we are no longer creative - perhaps we have just lost touch with our creativity! Diane Harpster (she/her) is all about reminding people of their inner creative, reminding them they are made in the image of the greatest Creator...
May 20, 2024•33 min
Many of us spend our whole lives trying to earn and achieve, even in the realm of faith. If we just do more, we can be better Christians. But that's not what scripture teaches us. In her new book, Blessed Are the Rest of Us, Miacha Boyett (she/her) invites us to see how striving for accomplishment isn't a way of faith. Instead, Jesus invites us to see our belovedness simply for who we are: imperfect, beautiful human beings. About Micha (she/her) (in her own words) Hi. I’m Micha. It’s pronounced ...
May 13, 2024•45 min
"If we never make the mistake, we never learn from it." -Rev. Keats Miles Wallace Many of us struggle with engaging in diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts because we are afraid of getting things wrong - that we'll say the wrong thing, do the wrong thing, or mess up in some way. We attach our ego to it, thinking that if we get it wrong then we are wrong, or are a bad person. Rev. Keats Miles Wallace (they/them) assures us: the only way to do it is by doing it wrong. Because that's how we lea...
May 06, 2024•31 min
Spiritual anxiety, often the outcome of various forms of spiritual abuse and manipulation perpetuated by certain religious institutions, has become widespread among Christians. In her new book, Holy Ghosted: Spiritual Anxiety, Religious Trauma, and the Language of Abuse , Tiffany Yecke Brooks equips readers with how to identify these tactics, and offers pathways towards healing by inviting people to listen to the God who resides within. About Tiffany (she/her) Tiffany Yecke Brooks, PhD, is the l...
Apr 29, 2024•32 min
We've had a large request for smaller episodes that focus on scripture with Pastor Kelsey - so today we're throwing it back to one of our episodes just like that. We're working on getting more of these smaller episodes recorded but in the meantime enjoy one of our more popular episodes! Blessings are all around us, but if we're not careful, the theology behind the blessings can do more harm than good. Today we take a deep dive into Matthew 5:1-12 and really dissect the Beatitudes. We look at how...
Apr 22, 2024•30 min
Last week, Kelsey posted on Instagram an invitation to ask her anything, and she'd answer on the pod - and that's what this episode is! We have questions ranging from motherhood to soteriology. This was such a fun episode to do. Be on the lookout for when Kelsey posts another invitation, next time will be to her email list so be sure to join that here ! Connect with us! Sign up to receive a little Gospel in your inbox every Monday Morning with our weekly devotional Check out our website for vari...
Apr 15, 2024•34 min
“When Love transforms our heart, our actions align with the truth of our being and we remember that which we already are.” — Felicia Murrell When the storm is swirling, a lighthouse serves as a light guiding us safely to shore - for Felicia, that lighthouse is God's Love. In today's episode, Felicia shares with us what Divine Love truly is, and how it calls us home to ourselves - to knowing who we are as beings made in the image of Love. Felicia guides us into understanding how God sees us throu...
Apr 08, 2024•44 min
Women's voices and stories have been left out of history, but the Easter story - if told correctly - lifts them up. Women, especially Mary Magdalene, play a central role in Jesus' walk from entering Jerusalem on Palm Sunday to the Cross on Friday morning, through the Saturday vigil and in the experience and telling of the resurrection. Writer, teacher, and theologian Chelsea Kim Long takes us into the heart of why and how Mary's story is left out, and why it's so important to bring her voice bac...
Apr 01, 2024•44 min
Easter is a day of joy and celebration as we welcome the good news that Jesus is alive! And - sometimes we get caught up in the stickiness of how to talk about the Easter story with kids. Meredith Miller is a children and youth ministry expert and she has a great framework for how to approach telling these stories to little hearts. Short and sweet, this episode is jam packed with great ways to talk about Easter with kids! For more resources on having these conversations with little ones, check o...
Mar 27, 2024•27 min
Hello friends! It has been pulling at Pastor Kelsey's heart to take a break. It won't be a long one, just a few weeks, but a needed one while she finds the ground underneath her feet. Thank you for always being here and showing up week after week. We hope that in this time you, too, consider what God might be telling you to "press pause" on.
Mar 04, 2024•11 min
**Please note this episode was recorded before the Alabama Supreme Court ruling. We want to be clear that we fully support women's rights and the rights of all who wish to be parents, and we believe IVF should be accessible to all. Join Kelsey and seminarian Anne Alexis Harra for a conversation ranging from Jesus' encouragement of women's leadership, to reproductive rights, to the atrocities happening in Gaza. Books recommended during the episode: Call and Consequences: A Womanist Reading of Mar...
Feb 26, 2024•42 min
In her classes at Saint Mary’s College of California, Porsia Tunzi encourages her students to bring their full selves. In a class that’s all about how religion shows up in our culture and everyday lives, discussions can get heated, but Porsia insists on creating a safe and brave space for her students to talk about hard things. In this episode, Porsia shares with us why nuance is so important when it comes to religion. She encourages us all to see how we can benefit from leaning into curiosity a...
Feb 19, 2024•50 min
In February 2024, Rev. Latishia will be embarking on a profound initiation into the Lucumí tradition, as a priest dedicated to Oshun. The Lucumí faith, also known as Santería, is a rich and vibrant Afro-Caribbean spiritual tradition that has been a source of inspiration and guidance for her on her path. From February 2024-February 2025, Rev. Latishia will undergo the Iyaworaje, commonly referred to as the "year of white." This period is a time of deep spiritual reflection, learning, and growth, ...
Feb 12, 2024•39 min
"Don’t oppress an immigrant. You know what it’s like to be an immigrant, because you were immigrants in the land of Egypt." - Exodus 23:9 Through her international relations work, Kerry Brodie saw firsthand the plight that immigrants face in the U.S. God put a call on her heart to make change and create opportunities for people who come to this country to not only find work, but also find community and support. She founded Emma's Torch, an organization that provides refugees with in-depth culina...
Feb 05, 2024•30 min
Anne-Marie Zanzal is a self-identified later in life lesbian. When she came out, she realized how little support there was for folks like her who were coming out later in life. Being a chaplain and ordained UCC minister, when Anne-Marie saw that gaping need, she decided to do something to fill it. She started later in life mutual support groups for queer folks and eventually that grew into one-on-one coaching and support. Anne-Marie offers us the gift of sharing her story and her insight. About ...
Jan 29, 2024•33 min
Author and faith leader Claire McKeever-Burgett is here to share about her new book, Blessed Are the Women. Through a blend of storytelling, poetry, and prayer, Blessed Are the Women invites readers to reimagine worship, embrace women's narratives, and foster healing within themselves and their communities. Buy the book here and be sure to subscribe to Claire's Substack . About Claire Claire hails from the dry plains of West Texas, and though she’s lived in Washington, D.C., Austin, TX, Louisian...
Jan 22, 2024•45 min
Friends, we are continuing our pause through mid-January to allow Kelsey time to move back home to the Pacific Northwest with her family, but we’re here with a special New Year’s episode talking about looking for God’s miracles and grace, even amidst heartbreak. We will be back with you on Monday, January 22nd with more interviews and all of your favorite content! Connect with us! Sign up to receive a little Gospel in your inbox every Monday Morning with our weekly devotional . Check out our web...
Jan 02, 2024•16 min
When it comes to children's books about Advent and Christmas, there are thousands of options. It can feel impossible to weed through them all and figure out which ones have theology, representation, and story you can trust. That's where children's minister and librarian Kari Bauman comes in! Kari shares some of her tried and true go-to books for Advent and Christmas, as well as some new releases, and some ideas for how to incorporate reading stories into your holiday traditions. Be sure to check...
Dec 04, 2023•34 min
“God never expects us to be perfect. When God created the world, God didn’t high five Godself and exclaim: “It’s perfect!” God just called it good. And good is a B+!” If you need a reminder that God shows up when it’s “good enough” and not just when it’s “perfect,” this conversation with poet and pastor Meta Herrick Carlson is for you. She reminds us of what it means to be human, to experience the sacred in the ordinary, and to trust that we are enough just as we are - even during the holiday se...
Nov 27, 2023•50 min
This conversation with Mary DeJong, spiritual companion and sacred ecology teacher, is all about re-wilding. She teaches us what it means to look at where our wild selves have been blocked or dammed, and how to find our truest flow again. She teaches us: God is right here on this wild earth. She invites us to look up and look down and see God all around us. About Mary Mary DeJong is a spiritual ecologist, ecotheologian, wild soul guide, urban naturalist, and practitioner and guide of place-based...
Nov 20, 2023•53 min
The Enneagram is a powerful tool that can show us who we are as part of the image of God, the Imago Dei, in the world. It can also teach us that we all need each other - that no one is better or worse than anyone else, and that together we make up the fabric of God’s Kingdom here on earth. Dani Cooper, an Enneagram teacher and coach, shares with us how we can deepen our understanding of God, ourselves, and one another through the lens of the Enneagram. About Dani Dani Cooper is a Certified Ennea...
Nov 14, 2023•43 min
Have you ever felt like science and faith contradict one another? Today we sit down with Haley Cole, a physicist also known as Haley the Scientist, to talk about how her understanding of science enhances her experience of God through her faith. About Haley Haley Cole is a physicist studying space radiation, but goes by Haley the Scientist online. She hosts a podcast and blog dedicated to helping people liberate from fundamentalist or hyper-conservative Christianity and find joy, peace, and freed...
Nov 06, 2023•38 min
As you close out your October and enter November, we invite you to receive this simple blessing.
Oct 31, 2023•3 min
Hospital chaplains are called to some of the holiest work, entering rooms where grief and vulnerability are often palpable. Rev. Emma Landowski Sancomb shares her experiences with us - what it’s like entering those spaces, how she prepares her own heart, and how she tries to move out of the way so God’s wisdom can speak through her. She does the same in the journaling workshops she offers, which she says are all about allowing space for the Holy Wisdom of God to flow through us. About Rev. Emma ...
Oct 30, 2023•31 min
Patriarchy is neither nice nor particularly Christian, but it shows up in our churches all the time. Liz Cooledge Jenkins tackles this much-needed conversation about the more subtle ways patriarchy weaves its way into church culture and offers us a way forward in her new book, Nice Churchy Patriarchy . About Liz Liz Cooledge Jenkins (MDiv) is a writer, preacher, and former college campus minister who lives in the Seattle area with her husband Ken and their black cat Athena. Liz is passionate abo...
Oct 23, 2023•38 min
In this brief episode, we lift our hearts together in prayer for the people in the Holy Land, and around the world, who are grieving and afraid. Pastor Kelsey reads two poems from Dane Kuttler’s book, The Book of Solace .
Oct 16, 2023•9 min
