Isn’t it so interesting to pay attention to the changing of one season to another? This year talking about the seasons is teaching us about rhythms, transitions, seasonal expectations—and it’s giving us eyes to see what God’s doing through it all. And now… it’s time for SUMMER! Starting Monday, June 23rd, we officially kick off the summer on the podcast with our pastor of the pod this year, Pastor Mike Kelsey. I have not stopped thinking about this episode, you guys. As always, he’s bringing som...
Jun 20, 2025•3 min
Our friend Eddie Kaufholz is back today! We tie up some loose ends from previous episodes, talk about going to a Yankees game, Coke Icees, Eddie's sleep study, and more of course... We have some note taking pages for you for this episode over in our TSF Seasons Guidebook on page 59. We’re officially kicking off summer on the podcast on Monday, so if you don’t have a guidebook, you can still purchase one at anniefdowns.com/seasons. . . . . . Find the show notes here Want to watch this episode on ...
Jun 19, 2025•1 hr 1 min
Today on the show, we’re answering the question, “How do I change seasons well?" If you’ve been around here for a while you know Craig Thompson (or CRAIGLES or the prince as we called him around the office). He used to be part of our media team here at AFD, Inc. but last fall he and his wife, Hannah, moved to Indiana. SOO many of you talk to me about deciding whether or not to move or figuring out what to do if a season is changing and I think you’re going to love this conversation with Craig. W...
Jun 16, 2025•1 hr 3 min
Today on the show, we’re answering the question, “What should I take with me from spring into summer?” and y’all are in for a TREAT. You’ve been asking for these guests for a long time and today my new friends Ben and Erin Napier from the show HGTV’s Home Town and Home Town Takeover are here. You’re going to love getting to know them and hearing how their work and their shows have not only revitalized families, but entire towns. You know we love talking about revival around here, and we’re going...
Jun 09, 2025•1 hr 1 min
Today we’re answering the question, “How do I bring my doubts into a new season?” Margaret Feinberg is back for her second time and y’all don't want to miss it. She has a brand new book about the Holy Spirit out called, The God You Need to Know and y’all ask OFTEN about how we hear from the Holy Spirit, so we’re going there! We’re also talk about what we picture when we picture the Holy Spirit, the Holy Spirit throughout Bible, and we even talk about bringing our dreams to God... If you’re follo...
Jun 02, 2025•1 hr 10 min
Today on the show, our pal Eddie Kaufholz and I keep talking…FROM D.C! We got to record this at Eddie’s house when I was recently in town and as you can imagine, it was just the best. We talked about his cookbook collection, what we're watching and reading right now, and SNL (of course). We have some note taking pages for you for this episode over in our TSF Seasons Guidebook, so you can find that on page 55. Keep in mind, in a few weeks you’ll get our summer pages in the guidebook, so that’s a ...
May 29, 2025•1 hr 7 min
DawnCheré Wilkerson her husband Rich are the lead pastors at VOUS Church in Miami, Florida, and she’s a beautiful writer along with being such a peaceful presence. You’re just going to absolutely love her. We get to talk about what God’s up to in Miami, what God’s doing in Gen Z, and what to do while you’re waiting on God to answer your prayers–her new book Slow Burn is all about that waiting conversation. And it’s an important one for us to have. If you’re following along in your TSF Seasons Gu...
May 26, 2025•1 hr 2 min
Today we’re answering the question, “How do I find joy in this season?” with Tauren Wells. You know him from his music—you’ve heard his voice, you’ve sung along in the car—but today we’re talking about some really exciting new chapters in his life. He’s releasing his first book called Joy Bomb and we talk about what joy really means, and how to carry it in hard seasons. Also, Tauren’s pastoring a new church in North Austin called Church of Whitestone and we’re talking about what this move and ne...
May 19, 2025•1 hr 6 min
Ashley Anderson is a ministry leader and wise voice who lives in New York and has become a dear, dear friend of mine. She was our April guest on the Single Purpose League podcast last month, and we had a conversation around having a theology of singleness—What does that mean? Why does it matter? What does Scripture say about being single? It felt so important to all of us so, today, we’re sharing that conversation with all of you. We’re doing that this week because Single Purpose League registra...
May 13, 2025•54 min
Christy Nockels is here today to help us answer the question, “How do I process change in busy seasons?” She’s in the process of launching her third kid into the world, marrying off another, releasing a brand new lullaby album (of course you’re going to love it) and figuring out what parenting and life looks like entering an empty nest. Whether you’re in a similar parenting season or just trying to navigate the craziness that is May, I think you’re going to love this episode. If you’re following...
May 12, 2025•1 hr 4 min
From time to time, we want to replay episodes that really stuck out to us or maybe episodes that feel relevant to things going on around us, and this is one of those. Whether you’ve heard it before or this is your first time, I think there’s always something new to learn about Scripture. I recently got to teach the kick off to a brand new series at Cross Point, where we’re spending an entire year going through the book of Mark. Y’all know how I feel about the Gospels!! This Cross Point sermon co...
May 08, 2025•1 hr 3 min
Y’all get ready because my friend Lisa Harper is here! She’s one of my favorite teachers and today we’re talking about being lifelong learners, the kindness of God, and what we love about Jesus. Her brand new book, A Jesus Shaped Life, comes out tomorrow and I kept wanting to slow down and re-read and underline because it’s just so deep and special. We’re also going to dive into our question in our TSF Seasons Guidebook today: How do I rest in this season? If you’re following along we’re on page...
May 05, 2025•1 hr 9 min
Our friends, Abner and Amanda from JOHNNYSWIM are back with us today and we got to sit down in person at the Hepzibah House in New York City to record this one. Their brand new album, When The War is Over came out in February and y’all know we needed an album to be our soundtrack for the spring, so I hope you’ve already started listening to this one. It’s SO good. We talk about how this album was inspired by an intense season of change, our shared love for musical theater, and our favorite NYC r...
Apr 28, 2025•55 min
Our friend Eddie Kaufholz and I keep talking about anything and everything from which band we’d go see in a different country, what we love most about big concerts, prioritizing rest, and then Eddie offers up some GREAT suggestions for me and CAIN and the Live And In Color tour. We added some note taking pages for you for this episode over in our TSF Seasons Guidebook and you can find that on page 48 of your guidebook! Come tell us over on @thatsoundspodcast instagram if you have an idea for a g...
Apr 24, 2025•58 min
“How does love look different in different seasons?” Jada Edwards is here- I know y’all love her and I do too! We’re going to talk about what it looks like to actually love people well and being honest with the Lord. That’s not always easy, especially depending on the season you’re in, but Jada’s new book A New Way to Love Your Neighbor is an excellent resource to help us figure out how we do this. And I’m not just talking about you loving Christian friends. I hope you have people in your life w...
Apr 21, 2025•59 min
Today on the show, we’re answering the question, “How do we identify when spring is here?” with Pastor Jon Tyson. Jon is the pastor of Church of the City in New York and a best selling author. We’re going to talk about identifying spring, revival and resurrection, and what role we play in all of it. This is also our last episode before Holy Week and Easter, since we don’t release episodes during Holy Week, so we also talk about ways to enter into this next week as we finish Lent and celebrate th...
Apr 07, 2025•58 min
Today we’re answering the question, “How do I transition seasons?” with Pastor Levi Lusko. Spring is here, and with the changing of seasons can come all sorts of transitions—whether it’s physically happening around us, or in our hearts, our work, or our relationships. Levi is such a wise voice in this and, especially, can speak to the realities of the big impact of it all with the release of his new book, Blessed Are the Spiraling, which comes out tomorrow. If you’re following along and taking n...
Mar 31, 2025•1 hr 9 min
Today Melanie Shankle is here to help us answer the question, “What do I do when spring still feels like winter?” Melanie’s always making us laugh on The Big Boo Cast, telling us which jeans to wear on the internet, and writing brilliant books and her latest is just incredible. It’s called Here Be Dragons: Treading the Deep Waters of Motherhood, Mean Girls, and Generational Trauma and it’s Melanie’s honest and deeply personal story of trusting God to heal generational wounds so she can be a stro...
Mar 27, 2025•1 hr 11 min
Pastor Mike Kelsey is back to help set us up well as we step into spring…BLESS GOD. As you may remember, Pastor Mike is here with us at the start of every season this year, so we can really be intentional about thinking through not only the physical changes of the season but the emotional and spiritual side too. Today on the show, we’re answering the question, “What is spring and how do I define it in my life?” Y’all had LOTS OF THOUGHTS when he was here with us in the winter, so I can’t wait to...
Mar 24, 2025•53 min
We are so glad you’re loving this rhythm of walking through the seasons together this year on That Sounds Fun, and WE KNOW YOU’RE READY FOR SPRING. My gosh, we are too. We all feel it, right? The anticipation of a new thing. More light. More warmth. More color. The winter was both long AND full of purpose. It was both painful AND sacred, cold AND cozy. But we are ready for spring! Starting Monday, March 24th we officially kick off the spring on the podcast with none other than our pastor for thi...
Mar 21, 2025•3 min
Our friend Eddie Kaufholz and I keep talking and you know we’re getting into the hard hitting stuff like… the relationship between brain size and head size, talking animals, and opening day of baseball. But there’s 7 minutes of serious too, because we had to talk about shoes and financial security and being misunderstood. We’re going there today. Don’t forget to download your spring pages for your TSF Guidebook to be ready for Monday! If you purchased it already, those have been emailed to you… ...
Mar 20, 2025•1 hr 9 min
Today we’re answering the question, “How do I handle the changing of a season?” We’re talking about the changing of the seasons today and I love what Ellie said about this book, because it’s exactly what we need right now as we step into spring. She said: “We all know what it’s like to be in the winter seasons and this book is a reminder that winter never gets the final word.” Ellie’s new kids book and accompanying album is called Spring Sings and it’s an Easter book so this would be such a fun ...
Mar 17, 2025•1 hr
Once a month this year, we'll have an essay from me with some thoughts and ideas I am processing in real time. This started when I first moved to New York, and we called them AFD in NYC, as I was real time learning what it was like to live here. One of the episodes that mattered a lot to you all (and to me) was AFD in NYC Episode 6: An Essay About My Body and how NYC was changing my body... well, how it was changing my mind about my body. And a truth that remains today is that my body thrives in...
Mar 13, 2025•18 min
Today on the show, we’re answering the question, “Why does the winter feel so long?” You may know Cubbie Fink as one of the founding members of Foster the People, but he’s also an incredible producer and creative force. And joining him is his wife Rebecca St. James—Grammy and Dove Award-winning Christian artist, worship leader, author, and just all-around wonderful human. I think we’re all feeling OVER THE WINTER at this point, so we’re going to talk about why it feels so long and how we handle ...
Mar 10, 2025•1 hr 17 min
What better way to start the Lent season than with the guy who plays Jesus on The Chosen, right?! Jonathan Roumie and I talk about what this season holds and some really cool things the Hallow App has to offer during Lent. And I want to hear from you, what is your plan for Lent? How are you observing it this year? Hop over to @thatsoundsfunpodcast on instagram and tell us there. I’ve decided to watch one episode of The Chosen every weekday leading up to Easter (except for my Saturday Sabbaths), ...
Mar 05, 2025•40 min
Today on the show, we’re answering the question, “How do I pray in the winter?”John Eldredge is back and officially becomes a member of the Hall of Fun! His spiritual leadership and wisdom is so helpful and you’re going to want to take notes from this one for sure. He also has a new book releasing tomorrow called Experiencing Jesus. Really. If you’re following along in your TSF Seasons Guidebook, we’re on page 23. And as always, if you still want to get a Guidebook, you can find it at anniefdown...
Mar 03, 2025•55 min
Savannah Guthrie is back! You know and love Savannah from the TODAY show. Last year, I got to talk with her about her New York Times bestselling book, Mostly What God Does. You can go back and listen to that one, it’s episode 863, and now she has a brand new kids’ book out this week called, Mostly What God Does is Love You. If you’re following along in the TSF Seasons Guidebook, there’s no notes pages for this one, because it’s a bonus episode! You’re welcome. . . . . . Want to watch this episod...
Feb 28, 2025•24 min
I showed up with a whole list to talk to Eddie about…including recapping the SNL 50th anniversary. Because duh. And Eddie also came rolling in asking for forgiveness about something he did and you’re going to love this story. If you’re following along in the TSF Seasons Guidebook, there are no note-taking pages for this one, but by all means, if you want to take notes, we’re not the boss of you. Go for it. . . . . . Find the show notes here Want to watch this episode on YouTube? Head on over to ...
Feb 27, 2025•1 hr 7 min
Today on the show, Mattie Jackson is back to help us answer the question "Where is the hope of winter?” You may remember her from episode 345 and if not, you’re going to love her. She is an incredible author, speaker, and entrepreneur with a heart for helping others find hope in the midst of life’s hardest seasons. Mattie so generously offers her wisdom and story as a friend who’s experienced tremendous grief after suddenly losing her husband at the age of 28. Her latest book: Through the Valley...
Feb 24, 2025•1 hr 5 min
Once a month this year, we'll have an essay from me with some thoughts and ideas I am processing in real time, and we call those Always Annie episodes because I am, in fact, Always Annie. Last month, I told you how much Nashville means to me and how it feels to have my heart living in two cities right now. I am here today in New York City, the other city I call home and the other city that holds my heart. Two days ago, we released Where Did TJ Go?, a children’s book about grief and loss but more...
Feb 20, 2025•16 min