Can having a hobby help you connect more to the heart of God?

In this episode, Barb is joined by author Brianna Lambert to talk about her book Created to Play and how our hobbies can become meaningful expressions of worship. They explore why play is often misunderstood in Christian culture, how it forms us spiritually, and the unique roles we step into through our hobbies—from creator and curator to restorer and connector. Brianna also invites us to see play not as a distraction from purpose, but as a pathway to delight, community, and deeper connection with God.

If you've ever felt guilty for enjoying your hobbies or wondered how they fit into your faith, this conversation will give you a whole new perspective on joy, rest, and worship.

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Created to Play: How Taking Hobbies Seriously Grows Us Spiritually

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ABOUT OUR SPECIAL GUEST

Brianna Lambert is a writer and author from a rural community outside Indianapolis. Her articles and essays have appeared in Christianity Today, The Gospel Coalition, Common Good, Mere Orthodoxy, and elsewhere. Brianna also serves on staff at Gospel-Centered Discipleship and writes for the women's ministry at her local church. You might find her backpacking, camping, waterskiing, or starting a brand-new hobby with her husband and three children.

In this powerful and hope-filled conversation, Barb speaks with counselor, spiritual director, and author Sheila Wise Rowe about her book Seeds of Racial Healing: Fifty-Two Devotions for Navigating Through Trauma. With over thirty years of experience counseling trauma survivors and ministering to marginalized communities, Sheila offers a deeply compassionate, trauma-informed approach to addressing both personal and systemic racism through the lens of Scripture.

They talk about how racial trauma impacts the body and soul, why rest and resilience are essential for Christians of color, and how being rooted in God's Word can nurture healing and justice.

If you are seeking Christian encouragement, spiritual formation, and practical tools for navigating racial trauma, this conversation offers hope, wisdom, and a path toward renewal.

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Seeds of Racial Healing: Fifty-Two Devotions for Navigating Through Trauma

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ABOUT OUR SPECIAL GUEST

Sheila Wise Rowe (MEd, Cambridge College) has over thirty years of experience offering counseling and spiritual direction to individuals, couples, leaders, and trauma survivors. Sheila also spent a decade ministering to unhoused and abused women, children, and youth in Johannesburg, South Africa, where she was a lay pastor and taught Christian counseling and trauma-related courses. Sheila is a speaker, trainer, and writer, authoring the award-winning Healing Racial Trauma and Young, Gifted, and Black. She and her husband, Nicholas Rowe, live in Boston, Massachusetts, and coauthored Healing Leadership Trauma.

So many Christians struggle with mental health, and yet we still struggle to talk about it without shame. If you've ever struggled with anxiety, depression or sadness because no one understands, this episode is for you.

In this honest and deeply compassionate conversation, Barb is joined by author Jean Neely to discuss her book Christ in the Abyss: Cultivating Deep Faith amid Depression and Despair. Drawing from her own decades-long journey with mental health challenges, Jean offers a powerful reminder: God's presence isn't reserved for when we feel strong—it meets us right in the depths of our pain.

Together, they explore how Christians can approach depression and mental health with honesty and faith, what to do when struggles begin to shake your beliefs, and how to navigate doubt when God feels silent. This episode offers reassurance that God sees you and loves you, even at your lowest points.

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Christ in the Abyss: Cultivating Deep Faith amid Depression and Despair

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ABOUT OUR SPECIAL GUEST

Jean Lee Neely is a Korean American writer and educator. She has degrees in comparative literature from the University of California, Irvine and Sorbonne University in Paris and a PhD in English literature from the University of Southern California. Jean writes regularly on issues of mental health and faith for Faith and Leadership, a resource from the Duke Divinity School for Christian leaders. She has also written for Sojourners, Inheritance, the Asian American Christian Collaborative (AACC), and Christians for Social Action. She has taught seminars on navigating the intersections of faith, spiritual formation, and mental health for college students and Christian faculty. She lives in Southern California with her husband and son.

Have you ever wondered why you still feel shame even though you believe in grace? In this episode, Barb talks with Toni Kim, the director of spiritual care at the National Association of Evangelicals and former pastor of over twenty years to talk about her new book, Shame Redeemed: Learning to Live in Christ's Freedom.

Toni unpacks the real difference between guilt and shame, why shame keeps so many faithful Christians stuck in hiding, and how God's lavish love invites us into healing instead of condemnation. Drawing on her own story as an Asian American woman in ministry, Toni brings wisdom about both the personal and communal sides of shame and practical ways to start living unashamed.

Don't miss the part of the interview where Toni unpacks the well-known story of Adam and Eve in the garden of Eden and how God still saw Adam and Eve as His children even though they failed and they were ashamed. This was Barb's favorite part of the episode!

Has shame been a constant part of your life? If you've ever felt like you're not quite good enough for God's love, this conversation will remind you: shame doesn't get the final word. God's love for you does.

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Shame Redeemed: Learning to Live in Christ's Freedom

About Our Guest:

Toni Kim is director of spiritual care at the National Association of Evangelicals. Previously, she served over twenty years as a pastor in Vancouver and Boston. Toni and her husband Walter currently live in Charlottesville, Virginia, and have two adult children.

About Your Host:

Barb Roose is a Christian speaker, Bible teacher and author who helps overwhelmed women stop carrying the things God never asked them to carry so those women can experience God's peace, freedom, and purpose. She speaks nationally and internationally at conferences and retreats, including Aspire Women's Events, ECPA Leadership Summit, Proverbs 31 COMPEL and She Speaks Conference. Barb is the author of seven Bible studies, including Surrendered: Letting Go and Living Like Jesus, Joshua: Winning the Worry Battle, and five books, including Stronger Than Stress. She hosts the Bold, Brave & Beautiful podcast and writes her weekly Happy Monday devotional. Barb is the proud mom of three adult kids. She lives in northwest Ohio and prefers to eat dessert first.

Are you craving a life that actually matters—one that goes beyond just getting through the day?

In this episode, Barb speaks with author Crickett Keeth about what it looks like to live with true purpose and eternal significance. Based on her Bible study, Living Out a Life that Matters, they explore how the apostle Paul modeled a life of depth, impact, and faithfulness—and how we can do the same today.

If you feel stuck in the day-to-day or are longing to live with deeper purpose, this episode will encourage you to pursue a life of meaning and impact, right where you are.

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Living Out a Life that Matters: An 8-Week Study in 2 Timothy

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ABOUT OUR SPECIAL GUEST

A graduate of Dallas Theological Seminary, Crickett Keeth is the author of several women's Bible studies, including On Bended Knee, Before the Throne, and Living Out a Life That Matters. Crickett has served in ministry to women for decades on staff with Cru and large churches in Dallas and Memphis (Women's Ministry Director). She teaches at her church in Memphis and also equips and trains other women's ministry leaders. Crickett is a sought-after speaker at women's conferences and retreats. Find free resources to encourage you in your walk with God at www.crickettkeeth.com.

Are you tired of constantly striving, comparing, and wondering if you'll ever be enough?

In this encouraging and truth-filled conversation, Barb is joined by bestselling author and speaker Karolyne Roberts to talk about her book The Beauty of Being: Strive Less and Live More with God as Your Guide. Together, they explore how we can let go of unhealthy mindsets and rest in our identity as a beloved daughter of God.

If you're longing to feel secure in your identity, live more fully in the present, and walk confidently in God's purpose for your life, this episode will remind you that you are already enough.

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The Beauty of Being: Strive Less and Live More with God as Your Guide

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ABOUT OUR SPECIAL GUEST

Karolyne Roberts is a bestselling author and speaker who is blazing the trail for change-makers and transformational leaders around the globe. Through her YouTube channel, she impacts and inspires over 438,000 subscribers worldwide. Karolyne and her husband, Kal Roberts, are cofounders of Miss Eternity (misseternity.com). Karolyne's women's ministry, Dear Daddy (deardaddy.com), was created for women to embrace their God-given identity as daughters of the King and grow in intimacy with the Father. Karolyne is also the founder and CEO of the Writers Retreat (writersretreat.com), where she helps believers use their voice and writing to make an impact for the kingdom.

Have you ever looked back and questioned where was God during the hard or painful moments? Are you at the point in life where you're looking for meaning in the things that you've gone through?

In this episode, Barb is joined by speaker and author Laurie Polich Short to talk about her book Tracking God in Your Life: How to See God's Work in Your Past, Experience His Presence, and Trust Him with Your Future. Together, they explore how to recognize God's fingerprints in your everyday life — even when you question whether He sees you.

Listen in as Laurie shows us how every experience can become evidence of God's presence. She also highlights how creating your own "pile of stones" can help you remember His faithfulness.

If you've ever struggled to see where God is at work in your life, this conversation will help you trace His footprints with confidence.

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Tracking God in Your Life: How to See God's Work in Your Past, Experience His Presence, and Trust Him with Your Future

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ABOUT OUR SPECIAL GUEST

Laurie Polich Short is a popular speaker, author, and part of the teaching team at Oceanhills Covenant Church in Santa Barbara, California. A graduate of Fuller Theological Seminary, Laurie has spoken to more than a half million people at conferences, colleges, churches, and denominational events around the country, and she has been featured on PBS, Focus on the Family, RightNow Media, and more.

Have you ever felt stuck on the diet roller coaster, bouncing between restriction, failure, and shame?

In this episode, Barb is joined by personal trainer and nutrition coach Brandice Lardner, founder of Grace Filled Plate, to talk about food freedom, faith-based wellness, and breaking free from diet culture for good.

Brandice shares her personal journey through dieting and disordered eating, and how it led her to create a compassionate, grace-filled approach to health that meets women's physical, emotional, and spiritual needs. They discuss why traditional diets fail, how all-or-nothing thinking keeps women stuck in cycles of restriction and shame, and what it looks like to build "fruitful habits" instead of chasing perfect eating.

If you're tired of the diet roller coaster and ready for a sustainable, Christ-centered approach to healthy living, this conversation will give you practical tools — and real hope — for lasting change.

RESOURCES FROM THIS EPISODE

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Fully Nourished: A Grace-Filled Approach to Ditch Diets and Find Peace with Food and Your Body

Visit Brandice's Website

ABOUT OUR SPECIAL GUEST

Brandice Lardner is a personal trainer, nutrition coach, and owner and author of Grace Filled Plate, which she founded in 2017. She has helped hundreds of women through one-on-one and group coaching programs, teaching them how to find food freedom by meeting their physical, emotional, and spiritual needs. She's appeared on numerous podcasts, including Do It Scared with Ruth Soukup, and has been featured as a guest expert on MyFitnessPal, TLC Online, MapMyRun, and Women's Running. She lives in Clearwater, Florida, with her family.