The holidays can be full of lights and laughter—unless you’re the one barely holding it together or walking with someone who is. What do you do when a friend finally admits, “I’m not okay,” right in the middle of a season where everyone else seems to be celebrating?

How can you love them like Jesus without minimizing their pain, trying to fix everything, or burning yourself out in the process?

Host Liza sits down with Pastor Tim to talk about how to show up like Jesus when December feels isolating, grief-filled, or overwhelming for the people we love. They name the wide range of holiday experiences—from full houses to empty chairs and quiet apartments—and invite listeners to lay down assumptions about how “everyone” must be doing. Together they unpack the difference between sympathy and empathy, how to avoid centering yourself in someone else’s pain, and what it looks like to be interruptible and present. They also address what to do when you’re worried about self-harm or suicide, including knowing your limits and involving professional help. Through scripture reflections and practical stories, they remind us that this is ultimately God’s story—and we get to walk in it together.

Key Takeaways

· Drop the assumptions. Behind every smile is a deeper story, especially around Christmas; don’t presume you know how someone feels about the holidays.

· Resist making it about you. Jumping in with your own story can shift the focus back to yourself; instead, listen and stay with their experience before you speak.

· Move from sympathy to empathy. Loving your neighbor “as yourself” includes stretching to imagine life in their shoes and asking what they might truly need, not just what feels easy to offer.

· Be comfortable with discomfort. Like Jesus, learn to stay present in hard conversations rather than escaping with clichés, humor, or quick distractions.

· Hold healthy boundaries. You can sit in the pit with someone without absorbing all their pain or becoming their sole rescuer; their story ultimately belongs to them and to God.

· Take self-harm seriously. If a friend talks about hurting themselves or others, stay with them, acknowledge your limits, and help connect them with suicide hotlines, trusted family, and professional care.

Action Steps / Practical Applications

✅ Check in on one person this week. Text or call a friend you know is struggling and ask directly, “What do you need right now, and how can I sit with you in it?”

✅ Practice presence over fixing. When someone shares something heavy, pause before offering advice; reflect back what you heard and name their pain instead of trying to distract or “solve” it.

✅ Name your limits and bring in help. If conversations move toward self-harm or deep despair, stay with them and also suggest calling a trusted hotline, counselor, or family member together so you’re not carrying it alone.

✅ Pray and re-center the story on Jesus. In your own heart (and with your friend if they’re open), remember that this is God’s story; ask Jesus to guide your words and to hold what you cannot fix.

✅ Don’t miss the joy. Even as you care for hurting friends, intentionally show up for worship and the celebrations that keep you rooted in the hope and joy of Christ’s coming.

When your December calendar is packed and your soul feels strangely quiet, Jesus invites you to slow down, listen, and actually live like a human again.

Why does disappointing other people feel scarier than disappointing our own bodies and souls—especially in December? In a season meant for waiting on Jesus, many of us are exhausted from saying yes to everything and everyone, unsure how to rest without feeling selfish.

Key Takeaways

· When your “yes” is driven by perception, FOMO, or people-pleasing, your soul can go quiet even while your calendar is full.

· We often overvalue working, hustling, and “showing up,” while quietly celebrating one another for breaking the fourth commandment—ignoring Sabbath.

· Sabbath simply means “stop”: stop striving, stop controlling, and remember you’re a beloved child of God before you accomplish anything.

· Paying attention to energy, not just time, helps you notice what drains you and what fills you, and to plan December with both in view.

· You can be honest with God at the party you didn’t want to attend—asking Him to help you love others and also know when it’s time to leave.

· Rest isn’t selfish: it’s the rhythm that lets you show up to friends, family, and church with a present, awake, joy-filled soul.

Action Steps / Practical Applications

✅ Block a Sabbath stop in your week. Choose a concrete window (even 2–3 hours) to stop working, striving, and organizing—light a candle, take a slow walk, eat a simple meal, and let your soul “catch up” to your body.

✅ Color-code your December week. Mark life-giving events and draining obligations in different colors so you can see where you’ll be empty—and where you’ll be refilled—and adjust before you burn out.

✅ Pray before you RSVP. Ask, “Lord, is this a yes of love or a yes of fear?” If it’s fear-driven, consider a smaller yes—like showing up for 20 minutes—or a gentle, honest no.

✅ Ground yourself in your body. When you feel scattered, pause and notice your senses—the feel of the air, your breathing, your feet on the floor—as a way of letting your soul become loud and present again.

✅ Find an Advent accountability partner. Share your plan to pause, pray, and protect with a friend and give them permission to check in when your “yes” is starting to outrun your soul.

If your feed is all wins and you feel stuck in sweatpants, there’s a wiser way to live. Why does everyone else seem ahead while I’m stuck? Is God holding out on me? Today we name the ache of comparison and learn a Jesus-centered path from envy to contentment.

Host Liza sits down with Pastor Tim to talk candidly about the “everyone’s doing great—except me” mindset fueled by social media highlight reels, missed opportunities, and life-stage FOMO. They ground the conversation in Scripture (Psalm 16’s “lines in pleasant places,” and 1 Timothy’s “contentment is great gain”), and wrestle with ambition vs. contentment (Calvin’s “station” meets American hustle). Along the way, they offer practical gratitude rhythms, honest friendship, and the courage to celebrate others—especially when it stings.

Key Takeaways

• Comparison poisons joy. The endless feed breeds hustling for worth and victim thinking; naming it is step one.
• Biblical reframing helps. Psalm 16 and 1 Timothy 6 invite us to see God’s good boundaries and pursue contentment as “great riches.”
• Gratitude is a discipline, not a vibe. Build the muscle (à la “thousand gifts”) with small, daily reps.
• Ambition ≠ idolatry. Hold creative drive and contentment together with humility and discernment.
• Suffering needs presence, not platitudes. Sit near, listen long, and notice where God adds strength in the storm.
• Celebrate others on purpose. Choosing to rejoice with a peer is a character check that loosens envy’s grip.

Action Steps / Practical Applications

✅ 10-Minute Gratitude Walk: Phone down; tell God three specific thanks from today.

✅ Social Feed Reset: Mute/unfollow one envy-triggering account; take a 24-hour scroll fast.

✅ Accountability Text: Tell a friend you’re practicing gratitude and check in after two days.

✅ Celebrate a Win: Congratulate a peer—no comparing, no caveats—pray blessing over their influence.

✅ Gratitude Reps Plan: List 5 thanks daily this week; next week aim for 10.

If you’ve ever whispered, “Lord, I don’t get it,” this conversation is for you. Does doubt mean I’m failing at faith—or could it become the very path to deeper trust? What do we do when questions collide with grief, church hurt, or cultural pressure?

Host Liza sits down with Pastor Tim for a transparent look at doubt—not as betrayal, but as fuel for faith when we don’t stop there. They explore Thomas’ encounter with Jesus, the “dark night of the soul,” and the difference between what we feel and what is real. The conversation models how to bring questions to Scripture and community, landing with a simple practice: Name it. Kneel it. Neighbor it. (Mark 9:24; John 9 referenced).

Key Takeaways

• Doubt ≠ unfaithfulness; it can propel deeper faith when we pursue truth rather than stall out.
• Jesus meets doubters (Thomas) with presence and invitation: “Stop doubting; start believing.”
• Expect seasons when God “lets go” to grow us—the classic dark night of the soul.
• Learn to separate feelings from reality; process emotions while anchoring in what’s true.
• Thoughtful study and community counsel can shorten the “leap” of faith without removing it.

Action Steps / Practical Applications

• ✅ Name it: Write out one real doubt this week in a sentence or two.
• ✅ Kneel it: Pray Mark 9:24—“I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief.” (take it on a walk/drive).
• ✅ Neighbor it: Share your question with a trusted friend/small group and ask them to sit in it with you.
• ✅ Go deeper, not darker: Set aside 30 minutes to read, reflect, and ask a mature leader for resources.
• ✅ Sort “feel” vs “real”: Jot two columns; process emotions while listing truths you can stand on.

When the headlines—and your own thoughts—won’t stop buzzing, Jesus meets you with real peace and a next step.

Why does the future feel so shaky—and what do we do when “what-ifs” spiral into paralysis? For students and young adults juggling school, work, and relationships, anxiety can feel like the air we breathe.

Host Liza sits down with Pastor Tim for an honest conversation about anxiety—how it shows up in our bodies, feeds on doomscrolling, and shrinks when we right-size our worries in community. They explore Jesus’ repeated invitations to “be not afraid,” the promise of “I am with you”, and a practical reframing: move from what if to so what if… and then what? The pair name both spiritual and everyday helps—gratitude, planning ahead, small risks that build resilience, and asking friends to carry burdens with you.

Key Takeaways

· Anxiety vs. worry: anxiety can be paralyzing and bodily; naming it helps us choose a faithful response.

· With-you promise > outcome control: Scripture’s comfort is not “nothing bad will happen,” but “Jesus will be with you in it.”

· From what-if to so-what: play the fear forward with God—often you’ll see you can survive it, and you won’t be alone.

· Right-sizing through community: sharing others’ burdens shrinks our problems to their proper size.

· Resilience is trained: small, uncomfortable steps (plus basic planning) quiet the mental noise.

Action Steps / Practical Applications

· ✅ Name & pray: list your top three fears this week; pray “Jesus, be with me in these.”

· ✅ Gratitude swap: when rumination starts, note three people or graces presently “showing up.”

· ✅ So-what journal: write the feared scenario → “so what if… then what?” until you identify the next faithful action.

· ✅ Plan for peace: use a simple planner to reduce avoidable stress for the week ahead.

· ✅ Invite help: text a friend or small-group leader and share one burden for prayer and perspective.

How do we keep real connection—and real truth—when our views clash?

We live in echo chambers where even shared events feel like different realities. As followers of Jesus, how can we speak truth without severing friendships—or idolizing “unity” over Christ Himself?

Host Liza welcomes Pastor Tim for a candid, practical conversation on staying connected in a divided world. They name cultural forces (algorithms, postmodern self-truth) that make dialogue harder, then re-center on Jesus as the Truth and the One who forms a durable, resilient body. Unity, they argue, is the byproduct of pursuing Christ together—not the primary goal. A powerful story of two politically opposed church members who chose six weeks of Scripture and prayer illustrates how friendship can grow where polarization once lived.

Key Takeaways

• Start with Jesus, not “being unified.” Unity emerges as we move toward Christ together.
• Speak the truth in love—really. Love isn’t avoiding offense; it’s caring enough to say the hard thing with humility.
• Name the fears. Many of us avoid hard talks because we don’t trust the relationship’s durability.
• Resist echo chambers. Algorithms can make one event look like two realities; choose shared sources and Scripture.
• Pursue Scripture together. Opening the Bible side-by-side reframes “my truth vs. your truth” toward Jesus’ way.

Action Steps / Practical Applications

• ✅ Pick one person you often disagree with and invite them to read a Gospel together weekly for six weeks; pray before and after.
• ✅ Do a “truth & love” check before speaking: Is what I’m saying true? Is my posture loving?
• ✅ Name your fear out loud (“I’m worried this will hurt our friendship”) to lower defensiveness and build trust.
• ✅ Share a common reference point (Scripture, agreed facts) to prevent talking past each other.
• ✅ Limit algorithm drift this week: diversify news inputs and prioritize face-to-face conversations.

A raw conversation on faith, lament, and God’s presence in life’s hardest seasons

What do you do when life feels like it’s falling apart, and God feels a million miles away?

In this powerful episode of the Light + Life Podcast, Liza Cunningham sits down with Pastor Matt Holtzman from the Caring Ministry team to talk honestly about what it’s like to feel “ghosted by God.” From seasons of marriage tension to ministry fatigue, grief, and walking alongside friends in the valley of the shadow of death, Matt opens up about the fog that can settle over our faith and how to find our way back to God’s presence.

Together, Liza and Matt explore:

• Why lament is a biblical and essential form of prayer
• How honesty with God can draw you closer to Him
• The difference between what we know is true and what we feel in the moment
• How Psalm 139 and Romans 8 remind us that God never lets go
• What to do if you feel abandoned by God right now

If you’re in a season of loss, disappointment, or unanswered questions, or if you’re walking with someone who is. This conversation will remind you that God’s love shows up in the mess, and you are never alone.

✅ Tell God exactly how you feel—anger, doubt, grief, all of it
✅ Lean into the support of people who will hold you up
✅ Remember: Nothing can separate you from the love of God in Christ Jesus

How Faith, Entrepreneurship, and Partnership are Changing Lives
What happens when hope and practical help collide? In this episode of the Light + Life Podcast, Liza Cunningham sits down with Missions Pastor Ellen Dawson to unpack her recent trip to Guatemala, walking the streets of San Pablo and Patzún, partnering with ministries.
From motorcycle repair shops and crepe cafés to clean water projects and scholarships, Ellen shares how God is using local leaders to transform their communities and why short-term missions are about being before doing. You’ll hear:
•Vivid stories of young entrepreneurs building hope where they live
•How healthy mission partnerships grow through presence, not projects
•The joy and resilience of Guatemalan communities
•Why generosity isn’t just about money—it’s about time, prayer, and skills
•How returning home changes how we see migration, news, and our neighbors
Whether you’ve been on a mission trip or are curious about what real partnership looks like, this conversation will challenge your perspective and invite you to pray, give, or go in a way that honors God and others.
✅ Pray for one mission partner by name this week
✅ Look for a way to give—time, skill, or finances—to Kingdom work
✅ Learn the stories of the people behind the headlines