In honour of Mental Health Awareness Week in New Zealand, this episode is an important conversation around the power of hopeful thinking.

Hope is a clear theme throughout the Bible.

Hope is a clear theme in positive psychology.

Hope is a clear theme in mental wellbeing.

So, how could hope become our anchor this week? What can we learn from scripture and from science to incorporate into our lives to raise our level of optimism, which then raises our overall level of wellbeing?

*Please note: In this conversation, we will talk about suicide / suicidal ideation and how hope acts as a buffer against it. No personal stories or details are shared here, I will simply mention the research and the power of hope in combatting this.

God bless,

Darcie

--

Book referenced for scientific research: 'One More Day' by Niyc Pidgeon

Podcast referenced for more listening during Mental Health Awareness Week: 'Living Well Podcast' by Elim Christian Centre (https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLcyp_1PdsFfLK2UZpo6a1u61DPD45QHeR&si=IBNZFIO_X56ARP2B)

Connect with me on Instagram: @carryconfetti

If you'd like to support the podcast or say thank you for a particular episode, you're welcome to buy me a coffee or purchase a poetry print here: https://buymeacoffee.com/carryconfetti

Last week, we finished off our list of 5 behaviours that will make you happier by talking about the powerful biblical practice of taking captive every thought. This week, I wanted to dive deeper into this practice.

How do you take captive every thought? How do you know when a thought is unhealthy and is leading to a mental mess? How do you untangle the emotions and memories and thought patterns that are binding your mind?

Let’s talk about it. Let’s identify the state of our minds, let’s find out what we might be hoarding, and let’s figure out how to clean up the mental mess that is affecting our daily lives.

Connect with me on Instagram: @carryconfetti

If you'd like to support the podcast or say thank you for a particular episode, you're welcome to buy me a coffee or purchase a poetry print here: https://buymeacoffee.com/carryconfetti

Have you ever wondered how you could shift your mood through a simple, practical action? Have you ever wondered how you could possibly find joy on a hard day?

In this episode, I'm sharing with you the five behaviours that will make you happier, as identified by a professor of positive psychology.

Spoiler alert: You are fully capable of doing all five of them this week ;)

And even though the psychology professor didn't intend for this list to be grounded in scripture... there's biblical truth that can be found in each item on her list. So, let's talk about it!

Connect with me on Instagram: @carryconfetti

If you'd like to support the podcast or say thank you for a particular episode, you're welcome to buy me a coffee or purchase a poetry print here: https://buymeacoffee.com/carryconfetti

This past week was heavy... and many tears have been shed over the violence of murders that have taken place, including the assassination of Charlie Kirk. How is it that some could laugh while others mourned? How has our society become so numb and desensitised to violence? How can our hearts handle it all?

This episode is not about politics; it's about processing pain — something that we all need to do better at no matter what you believe or who you vote for. Our brains are adapting to violence by tuning it out and shutting down empathy circuits. Our brains are becoming numb through the constant, unfiltered scroll... constantly seeing more but never fully processing.

So, let's talk about empathy, grief and lament.

Grief is something we all encounter, but lament is a practice many of us overlook. In this episode, we explore the biblical practice of lament — how Scripture not only gives us permission to bring our pain before God, but invites us to find Him in the midst of it.

Through the Psalms of Lament, we’ll look at how lament shapes us into people of deeper empathy and compassion. Lament isn’t about rushing past sorrow; it’s about naming our grief before God, holding onto hope, and learning to weep with those who weep.

If you’ve ever wondered how mourning could possibly be called “blessed,” this conversation will help you see how lament can transform our hearts, our brains, and our empathy in this hurting world.

Connect with me on Instagram: @carryconfetti

If you'd like to support the podcast or say thank you for a particular episode, you're welcome to buy me a coffee or purchase a poetry print here: https://buymeacoffee.com/carryconfetti

Dr. Becky Kennedy from Good Inside said, "Regulating difficult emotions is a prerequisite for happiness."

We have to learn how to navigate through our negative emotions and our negative experiences in order to discover a newfound joy. Suppressing it all is just distress avoidance, and that's not healthy for any of us in the long run.

I know this episode will speak to so many parents that are helping to coach their kids through meltdowns and hard days... but I have a feeling that this episode is going to speak to any adult... because adults have hard days too. Plus, not everyone learned how to handle the big emotions as a kid, and it's now evident in their adult life.

Drawing on research from Dr. Becky, insights from a course taught by Professor Laurie Santos, and inspiration through other timely conversations, join me as we discover how to sit on the benches in life that can feel really uncomfortable and sometimes lonely.

--

Course mentioned in this episode was The Science of Well-Being for Parents by Professor Laurie Santos

Song mentioned in this episode was written by Tawnee Kendall from @music_forlittles

Connect with me on Instagram: @carryconfetti

If you'd like to support the podcast or say thank you for a particular episode, you're welcome to buy me a coffee or purchase a poetry print here: https://buymeacoffee.com/carryconfetti

Have you ever wished you could play a "Just Say No!" card in the game of life when you were thrown a curveball or faced a setback? Have you ever wanted to play that "Skip" card on certain seasons of pain and delay?

Well, we've all been there. We've all had moments where we don't understand why we're facing certain circumstances or when we will be able to cross over into the Promised Land.

But God is so intentional in the way he walks with us and so intentional about the way that he works through us in those seasons of life. He's got a plan, even if we can't see it yet.

Here's the good news: God is still working miracles today. And I'm believing that your miracle is on its way.

So, let’s build a faith memorial.

Hope you enjoy this episode!

Connect with me on Instagram: @carryconfetti

If you'd like to support the podcast or say thank you for a particular episode, you're welcome to buy me a coffee or purchase a poetry print here: https://buymeacoffee.com/carryconfetti

There are some songs that we absolutely love to hear on repeat at certain times of the year, because it touches our soul and our memories in some way.

Songs can mark milestones in our lives and bring us back to that very moment when we hear it again.

Songs can connect us to other people and actually bring hearts into alignment.

Singing songs on a bad day can sometimes be the only thing to turn the mood around and shift our perspective.

Why is that?

Well, God designed our brains with such intention, and in today’s episode I want to talk about the power of music through the lens of the Songs of Ascent which is a 15-song playlist found in the Book of Psalms.

Let this be a reminder that music can and should be woven into our rhythm of repetition and our cycles of rest.

Connect with me on Instagram: @carryconfetti

If you'd like to support the podcast or say thank you for a particular episode, you're welcome to buy me a coffee or purchase a poetry print here: https://buymeacoffee.com/carryconfetti

Has someone ever told you to rest and you think, “I wish I could!”

Well, a tea bag label once told me, “When God made time, he made enough of it.” That convicted me then, and it continues to convict me today if I ever catch myself saying I don’t have enough time to rest.

God was very intentional in showing us a weekly pattern or rhythm we can all follow — work for 6 days, then rest for 1. But it’s one of the Ten Commandments that we can very easily brush aside when our to-do list feels too long and the days feel too short.

In today’s episode, let me unpack the history of the Sabbath and what it means for us today as modern-day Christians. What is it? Why do I need it? And how do I do it?

Let me talk to you about how it can be incorporated into your life.

Let me have these few moments of your time… as you pause, listen, and lean in to see what God might whisper to you about the simplicity of the Sabbath.

Connect with me on Instagram: @carryconfetti

If you'd like to support the podcast or say thank you for a particular episode, you're welcome to buy me a coffee or purchase a poetry print here: https://buymeacoffee.com/carryconfetti