SHOW NOTES Each year we hear about New Year’s Resolutions – we make plans to lose weight, become more organized, be on time more. All great goals, but how many times have those goals been forgotten in February? (I raised my hand too!) In today’s podcast we discuss “The Great Annual Examen,” a simple question and answer exercise to help you reflect on the past year and anticipate the year to come. There are several different categories given for you to reflect on: My Physical Health. My Emotional...
Dec 31, 2024•27 min•Season 2Ep. 30
SHOW NOTES In this episode we are treated to a special preview of the Potter’s Inn Soul Care Institute where Gwen Smith teaches on Sabbath Keeping: God’s Design For Our Dilemma. The discussion includes the origin of Sabbath, why we feel so much guilt concerning Sabbath, and why God gave us Sabbath in the first place. Gwen also introduces her 4 Pillars of Sabbath: Rhythm - Sabbath is God’s built-in way of giving us rhythm in our lives instead of just running full-steam continuously. Protection - ...
Dec 31, 2024•1 hr 4 min•Season 1Ep. 6
SHOW NOTES In our heads, we know that b eing is more important than d oing . But the reality of our day-to-day life is that we easily drift into a performance-based relationship with God and others. Jesus modeled a different way to live. In today’s episode, we learn how Jesus lived a life that began with acceptance by his Heavenly Father and ended by achieving more than any human being ever has. He has shown us the way---living as the beloved of God. RESOURCE The Sacred Cycle Summary – Free Down...
Dec 31, 2024•38 min•Season 1Ep. 13
Feb 14, 2024•2 min
Feb 14, 2024•1 min
Feb 14, 2024•4 min
This cool breeze by the river bank. A great blue heron feeding in the shallows. The pilated woodpecker serenading the forest with its haunting song. I think I need one hundred days like this! Slowly, ever so slowly. Here. Now. This! Bit by bit and little by little, I feel a twinge of what may be life. A steady erosion has happened in me. It’s taken time to do this damage. It will take more time to regain what’s been lost. The locust have ravaged much I feel now. Sad stories, and far too many of ...
Feb 14, 2024•3 min
Discernment is the process of gaining clarity on finding direction for the next step of our journey. SHOW NOTES Today’s podcast is part two of a discussion between Steve and Spiritual Director Martie McMane. Martie is a retired minister, artist, and spiritual director who used a collage process with Steve & Gwen to help them make some crucial life decisions during a period of repositioning. They continue the conversation today about how the collage process can work in each of our own lives T...
Oct 10, 2023•49 min•Season 10Ep. 147
Discernment is the process of gaining clarity on finding direction for the next step of our journey. SHOW NOTES Last year Steve and Gwen went through a period of repositioning: changes were on the horizon but any clarity about what to do next was clouded by the realization that they were not on the same page. They reached out to a trusted Spiritual Director for help and the result was what they called a “Discernment Retreat.” They needed clarity. They needed discernment. Today’s podcast is a dis...
Oct 03, 2023•39 min•Season 10Ep. 146
I am simply humbled at this stage in my career, to have the privilege to tell Walter’s story and to help amplify his amazingly relevant voice. Getting to know Walter has been a healing and restorative experience for me as a former pastor and a professor deeply committed to social justice when so much of the church and society has forgotten what the biblical text says about God’s care for the marginalized. — Conrad L. Kanagy SHOW NOTES Steve’s chats with Conrad Kanagy, the author of coming soon b...
Sep 26, 2023•51 min•Season 10Ep. 145
I came to the conclusion that I could not stay in that role and be healthy. So I chose to be a healthy person over a megachurch pastor, and it was an incredibly hard choice. — Pete Briscoe SHOW NOTES In today’s conversation, Steve talks with Pete Briscoe about why Pete no longer calls himself an “evangelical.” You’ll hear Pete’s story, filled with pain and struggles, as he discovers more beautiful ways to live the Christian life. While you may not agree with his path, we think there’s something ...
Sep 19, 2023•1 hr•Season 10Ep. 144
I have learned to prize holy ignorance more highly than religious certainty and to seek companions who have arrived at the same place. We are a motley crew, distinguished not only by our inability to explain ourselves to those who are more certain of their beliefs than we are but in many cases by our distance from the centers of our faith communities as well. Like campers who have bonded over cook fires far from home, we remain grateful for the provisions that we have brought with us from those ...
Sep 12, 2023•1 hr 5 min•Season 10Ep. 143
Note From Steve: We are living in a day and age of distractions. We are bombarded with choices, options and desires. This podcast lays out the way to to cultivate peace and contentment. It's about practicing the daily Examen. This is an ancient practice developed by Ignatius of Loyola. He said this ONE spiritual practice would change your life for the good. It's true. My life has thoroughly changed by learning to incorporate this one spiritual practice. It's my final recommendation for the summe...
Aug 01, 2023•27 min
Note From Steve: This conversation for me was like having a trusted friend do the deep excavation of my heart. There is nothing like a good question to allow one to feel safe and begin to open up. Steve Macchia and I had a lovely conversation which I commend to you this summer. There's a lot in this wide ranging conversation. I hope you'll enjoy! SHOW NOTES I (Steve) recently sat down with Steve Macchia of Leadership Transformations to have an honest conversation and assess where we are today in...
Jul 25, 2023•56 min
NOTE FROM STEVE: I love this particular podcast because it is foundational to understanding the care of the soul. In this podcast, I explain what the soul is and how we can participate in the caring for our soul. As I’ve said , this message is needed because the message of soul care gets lost in our busyness and all the issues of life hitting us day by day! I hope you’ll listen and pass this along to a few friends you think could really benefit by listening to it! Summer blessings! Steve SHOW NO...
Jul 18, 2023•44 min
FROM STEVE: Until we answer life’s deepest questions, we will remain stuck— unable to live with freedom and vitality. This podcast is one where Gwen and I explore three core questions. Remember this: we can never hear this message too much because living with soul and by soul is counter cultural and for many, counter intuitive! SHOW NOTES In this episode we join Steve and Gwen for two sessions of their Soul Care 101 course recorded at the retreat center known as Potter’s Inn at Aspen Ridge. Enjo...
Jul 11, 2023•38 min
This is a way of praying that just helps! And help is what most of us seem to need these days. How do we find words to form in prayer when we are knotted up inside; when we are speechless? The Welcome Prayer is a prayer of letting go and holding palms up in sweet surrender. I use this prayer often and this podcast is about learning to mouth the words and find meaning each time we pray it! Enjoy! MENTIONED IN PODCAST The Welcome Prayer by Father Thomas Keating Matthew 6:5-13 (The Message) Lectio ...
Jul 04, 2023•48 min
FROM STEVE: I consider Belden Lane to Be among the most important voices in the 21st century. For the next two weeks listen deeply to his wisdom and insight. I relish in his books and find him to be among the most authentic voices I've ever heard! SPECIAL GUEST BELDEN C. LANE Belden and his dog Joey Belden C. Lane is a Presbyterian theologian who teaches on a Jesuit faculty at Saint Louis University. His interests include the relationship between geography and faith, wilderness backpacking in th...
Jun 27, 2023•43 min
FROM STEVE: I consider Belden Lane to Be among the most important voices in the 21st century. For the next two weeks listen deeply to his wisdom and insight. I relish in his books and find him to be among the most authentic voices I've ever heard! SPECIAL GUEST BELDEN C. LANE Belden and his dog Joey Belden C. Lane is a Presbyterian theologian who teaches on a Jesuit faculty at Saint Louis University. His interests include the relationship between geography and faith, wilderness backpacking in th...
Jun 20, 2023•42 min
NOTE FROM STEVE: We all need spiritual diodes to help us find the way. I consider Trevor to be a Spiritual Master. In todays world, I am suspicious of people who are not credible-- who are too young, too inexperienced and too unbroken. The voices I trust and listen to are seasoned women and men who know the landscape of the inner journey. Trevor Hudson is one voice I trust and respect. His two podcasts are stellar and should be listened to many times. Repetition is the mother of all learning! St...
Jun 13, 2023•42 min
Steve's Podcast List for Summer 2023 If there is one podcast that defines my life message and legacy, surely it is this one. This has the key to unlock all the years of trying and performance to get it right. I explore why reading the “red letters of Jesus “ is so important and some thoughts to inspire us upward and onward! Could you PLEASE LEAVE A REVIEW AND THEN SHARE THIS WITH FIVE OF YOUR FRIENDS WHO NEED IT? We would appreciate it! MENTIONED IN PODCAST SOLO: Creating Space with God by Steph...
Jun 06, 2023•39 min
The trapeze artist free falls into the hands of trust and love. Jesus let go, while on the cross and surrendered his life into good hands of his Father. — Henri Nouwen SHOW NOTES It’s hard work to let go. Ask Moses, Peter, Paul, Mary the mother of Jesus, or really—any character in the Scriptures. Like it or not, letting go is one of the big scholastic courses you sign up for in being born. Today we explore Letting Go —it all comes together in our May Issue of our new resource, the Soul Care Ezin...
May 16, 2023•52 min•Season 9Ep. 142
We carry these desires, our deepest longings, with us. It’s part of what it means to be human, and they are drivers in our lives whether or not we acknowledge them. — Jeff Crosby SHOW NOTES Today’s guest is Jeff Crosby, the author of the new book (releases May 23, 2023) Language of the Soul. For over fifteen years, Jeff has been searching for a language of the soul--a way to articulate our deepest longings. Through the years he gathered clues from within global music styles, from different cultu...
May 09, 2023•59 min•Season 9Ep. 141
Be responsible, serve, and protect. — Kyle Meyaard-Schaap SHOW NOTES Have you ever looked at the effects of climate change and the apathy of so many around you and wondered, "What are we missing here?" Today’s guest Kyle Meyaard-Schaap understands this feeling from personal experience. He is the author of the recently released book, Following Jesus in a Warming World, a field guide for Christian climate action. Steve and Kyle discuss the book and how climate change should not be grounded in a se...
Apr 25, 2023•1 hr 3 min•Season 9Ep. 140
“There is no house like the house of belonging.” — David Whyte SHOW NOTES Every soul needs to belong. We look for our sense of belonging in our families, tribes, nations, and friendships Today we explore the place of our home—that place where you actually live and the role and influences that this place has on our spiritual lives. It all comes together in our new resource, the Soul Care Ezine. Steve shares why we decided to create the Ezine, what will be included in each issue, and how it can b...
Apr 18, 2023•33 min•Season 9Ep. 139
We are continuing the conversation today with Steve and Roger Housden. It was Roger who opened the portal for Steve to get and understand poetry. Roger is a prolific writer, poet, speaker and teacher and speaks with a grace and appreciation of self-discovery and exploration . Thank you for joining us today! Our Special Guest - Roger Housden Roger Housden is an author and has been featured many times in The Oprah Magazine , The New York Times , and the Los Angeles Times . His first book was publi...
Apr 04, 2023•53 min•Season 9Ep. 138
Todays podcast has very special meaning for Steve as he had the opportunity to speak with Roger Housden. It was Roger who opened the portal for Steve to get and understand poetry. He’s a prolific writer and poet and the podcast became a soul enriching experience. We pray you are enriched as well! OUR SPECIAL GUEST - ROGER HOUSDEN Roger Housden is an author and has been featured many times in The Oprah Magazine , The New York Times , and the Los Angeles Times . His first book was published in the...
Mar 28, 2023•44 min•Season 9Ep. 137
We are continuing the conversation with Steve in Part 2 of 12 Foundations to Care for your Soul. STEVE: These days, I find myself bothered by multiple voices all trying to be heard. I’m realizing that the only voices I want to, need to and trust these days are the ones who have credibility. They must have lived life; revealed a brokenness in their souls and walk with a limp to have credibility. I need to just pass on the many social influencers and newbies yelling through their posts to be heard...
Mar 21, 2023•28 min•Season 9Ep. 136
Today’s podcast is with Steve, in a message that he felt could contribute to a deeper understanding of soul care. These days, I find myself bothered by multiple voices all trying to be heard. I’m realizing that the only voices I want to, need to and trust these days are the ones who have credibility. They must have lived life; revealed a brokenness in their souls and walk with a limp to have credibility. I need to just pass on the many social influencers and newbies yelling through their posts t...
Mar 14, 2023•48 min•Season 9Ep. 135
Many of us seemed hard wired to do, do, and do more. Changing this requires a long, slow rewiring of our minds at the cellular level. It is not acquired by reading quotes, attending conferences or transferring an addiction of accomplishing more and more to the spiritual life. Steve talks with author Alan Fadling about his beautiful book, A Year of Slowing Down: Daily Devotions for Unhurried Living A year of slowing. I like it and you will also! TODAY’S GUEST - ALAN FADLING Alan is a founding par...
Mar 07, 2023•54 min•Season 9Ep. 134
