Welcome to the Together We Rise podcast! This is a place where every woman has a seat at the table – and where we affirm, equip, and amplify women's voices globally.

In this episode, hosts Cheryl Nembhard and Aubrey Sampson engage with leadership coach Kim Thomas, discussing her journey and insights on transforming the workplace into a sacred space. Kim emphasizes the importance of viewing work as a calling rather than just a job, and shares practical steps for integrating faith into the workplace. The conversation also addresses challenges faced by women in male-dominated environments and the significance of discernment in navigating toxic workplaces. Ultimately, the episode encourages listeners to partner with God in their work for a more fulfilling and sacred work experience.

Kim Thomas

Kim Thomas is a leadership coach, consultant, and founder of The Sacred Cubicle, known for her people-first leadership style and proven record of building and leading high-performing and caring teams. She has over 30 years of experience in the corporate world leading IT teams around the country serving healthcare organizations. Guided by her faith, Kim empowers others to thrive through executive and career coaching.

Kim is also the author of "The Sacred Cubicle: How Workplace Renewal Begins with You," a book that invites readers to discover how to turn their work into a reflection of God's goodness.

WSC Women to Watch: Danielle Zapchenk

Danielle Zapchenk is the host of The Parable Podcast, which showcases everyday stories and lessons God shows us. Danielle brings 16 years of ministry leadership, communication, and Bible teaching. Your story matters, and Danielle equips you to fully know that: daniellezapchenk.com.

Welcome to the Together We Rise podcast! This is a place where every woman has a seat at the table – and where we affirm, equip, and amplify women's voices globally.

In this episode, host Aubrey Sampson speaks with grief educator Natasha Smith about her personal journey with grief, the importance of creating safe spaces for sharing pain, and the unique experiences of Black women in grief. Natasha shares insights on self-care, the theological implications of suffering, and the significance of authentic allyship. The conversation also touches on practical advice for aspiring writers and podcasters, emphasizing the importance of starting somewhere and embracing one's calling.

Natasha Smith is an engineer turned certified grief educator, speaker, and podcast host. She shares from a place of 30-plus years of lived grief experience, research, and biblical study. Her work has appeared in Guideposts, Propel Women, Influence Magazine, HerBible, and elsewhere. You can find her books, “Can You Just Sit With Me: Healthy Grieving for the Losses of Life” and “Black Woman Grief: A Guide to Hope and Wholeness”, wherever books are sold. She and her husband, Clinton, have four children and live outside of Raleigh, NC. Connect with her at imnatashasmith.com.

WSC Women to Watch: Danisha Keating

Dr. Danisha Keating is a research psychologist specializing in trauma-informed care and best practices for supporting foster youth in higher education. Her work focuses on improving college access and success, particularly at the community college level, and she has trained foster parents, youth, and educators nationwide.

A former foster youth who became legal guardian of three siblings at 24, her personal journey fuels her professional mission. With over a decade in higher education leadership, she is also the author of “Faith through the Desert”, “From Foster to PhD: Letters from a Suitcase”, and “Taking My Voice Back: Healing What Broke Me”.

Welcome to the Together We Rise podcast! This is a place where every woman has a seat at the table – and where we affirm, equip, and amplify women's voices globally.

In this episode, hosts Cheryl Nembhard and Aubrey Sampson welcome Bette Dickinson, a prophetic artist, author, and speaker known for her unique approach to spiritual life through visual parables. The conversation delves into Betty's journey of discovering her calling, which involves creating art that resonates with spiritual truths. She emphasizes the importance of understanding the health of the vine rather than just focusing on the fruit, a lesson she learned from her experiences with a local vine dresser. This perspective challenges the productivity-obsessed culture that often leads to burnout and neglect of spiritual well-being. The discussion touches on the significance of dormancy in spiritual growth, the necessity of rest, and the importance of surrendering control to God.

Bette Dickinson

Bette Dickinson is a prophetic artist, author, and speaker who creates what she calls “visual parables of the spiritual life,” inviting people into deeper encounters with God through beauty and wonder.

She is the author of The Art of Vinemaking and Making Room in Advent, which blend biblical insight with original illustrations and contemplative practices. Through her ministry, Awakening the Soul, Bette creates multi-sensory resources and retreat experiences that help people walk through seasons of life, death, and resurrection while rediscovering the sacred rhythm of abiding in Christ. Find out more at bettedickinson.com.

WSC Women to Watch: Kristi Bramlett

Kristi Bramlett has spent years cultivating a multifaceted career as a professional actress, college professor, communications coach, Certified Movement Analyst, and author of The Speaker’s Trifecta. With over 30 years of experience helping communicators speak with authenticity and presence, her work centers on guiding speakers to communicate with their whole self, mind, body, and soul. Find out more at kristibramlett.com.

Welcome to the Together We Rise podcast! This is a place where every woman has a seat at the table – and where we affirm, equip, and amplify women's voices globally.

This week, we are having a special conversation with our hosts Cheryl Nembhard and Aubrey Sampson about what it means to avoid burnout by protecting our gifts, soul, mind, and well-being, and moving away from a “do whatever it takes” mentality. They discuss how to recognize flags of potential burnout and how to take next steps away from it by starting to name it honestly and trusting God with the better version of work He has for us.

Cheryl Nembhard

Cheryl Nembhard is a dynamic speaker, podcaster, TV host, and justice advocate. She has spent years serving at-risk youth, former gang members, sexual assault victims, and teen mothers. She’s been named one of Canada’s Top 100 Women to Watch, recognized by CBC as one of 150 women improving the country, and is a Harry Jerome Award winner for social advocacy.

Cheryl is a 10-season co-host of See, Hear, Love and host of On The Path with Cheryl Nembhard, airing on YES TV, audio platforms, and now streaming across the U.S. She serves as Executive Director of the Women Speakers Collective, empowering women’s voices worldwide.

Aubrey Sampson

Aubrey (M.A. Evangelism and Leadership) co-planted and co-pastors Renewal Church in Chicagoland. She speaks nationally, hosts the Together We Rise and What We Find in the Dark podcasts, coaches women in ministry through Propel Women Cohorts and co-leads the Chicagoland Women's Church Planting Collective. Passionate about helping hurting people encounter God in their pain, Aubrey lives in Chicagoland with her husband, Kevin, and their three hilarious sons.

She is the author of multiple books, including What We Find in the Dark (NavPress, 2025), Big Feelings Days (NavPress, 2023), Known, The Louder Song (NavPress, 2019), and Overcomer (Zondervan, 2015).

New boost

Welcome to the Together We Rise podcast! This is a place where every woman has a seat at the table – and where we affirm, equip, and amplify women's voices globally.

Our hosts, Cheryl Nembhard and Aubrey Sampson, sit down with Dorina Lazo Gilmore-Young to discuss all of the ways to build tables that have enough room for others. The threads of the importance of community weave in and out of this conversation and Dorina’s life story of loss and how it has shaped her ministry, emphasizing the need for connection and support among women. The discussion also touches on the significance of diversity and hospitality in building inclusive communities, culminating in a beautiful metaphor of sharing meals as a way to foster relationships and healing.

Dorina Lazo Gilmore-Young

Dorina is an award-winning author, speaker, mentor, and Bible teacher passionate about helping diverse women flourish in their God-given callings on life’s unexpected paths. She has published more than 20 books, including Bible studies, non-fiction, children’s books, poetry, and devotionals. Recent titles include Redeemer (InterVarsity Press) and Breathing Through Grief (Ink & Willow/PRH). Dorina hosts the Global Glory Chasers podcast and serves as president of Redbud Writers Guild. A remarried widow, she lives in Central California with her husband Shawn and three daughters, enjoying local trails and foodie adventures with family and friends.

WSC Women to Watch: Dee Cook, Nikki Tigg, and Sarah Cochran

Dee Cook, Nikki Tigg, and Sarah Cochran are co-authors of Using My Voice For Good (Path to the Forest King). Dee Cook is a creative writer and artist who draws inspiration from stories, nature, and her life in rural Saskatchewan, where she pastors alongside her husband and loves caring for her garden. Nikki Tigg brings devotional depth and a research-based, practical lens shaped by her passion to encourage girls and women through counseling, speaking, writing, and podcasting. Sarah Cochran serves as the project leader and Founder of King Creatives, guiding vision and direction with pastoral training and a deep commitment to helping children and families find hope.

Welcome to the Together We Rise podcast! This is a place where every woman has a seat at the table – and where we affirm, equip, and amplify women's voices globally.

Our hosts, Cheryl Nembhard and Aubrey Sampson, sit down with Jemar Tisby to have an in-depth conversation about the injustices of racism historically and present-day, inside and outside the Church. With love and humility, they unpack the truth and the way forward toward justice as Jesus followers who care about all people, using incredible stories of African-American women who went before us to lead the way.

Jemar Tisby

Dr. Jemar Tisby is a public historian, bestselling author, and racial justice advocate whose work challenges audiences to pursue faith-rooted action. He is the founder of The Witness, Inc., an organization dedicated to Black uplift from a Christian perspective, and Founder and Principal of Tisby Media.

Tisby is the New York Times, USA Today, and Wall Street Journal bestselling author of The Color of Compromise, as well as How to Fight Racism, winner of the 2022 ECPA Christian Book Award for Faith & Culture. His most recent book is The Spirit of Justice: True Stories of Faith, Race, and Resistance.

A co-host of Convocation Unscripted and Footnotes podcast, and writer of a widely read Substack newsletter, Tisby engages audiences across platforms: The Atlantic, The Washington Post, Religion News Service, CNN, and more.

WSC Woman to Watch: Jordan Ravensbergen

Jordan Ravensbergen has always had a heart for nourishing people through her creative gifts. Currently that looks like freelancing graphic design, running an art subscription service, and being in a Pastoral Residency at City Collective Church. Her husband and kids provide endless inspiration and insight into her life, and she tries to have fun creating with them as well.

Welcome to the Together We Rise podcast! This is a place where every woman has a seat at the table – and where we affirm, equip, and amplify women's voices globally.

One of our hosts, Aubrey Sampson, sits down with Chrystal Evans Hurst this week to discuss how to release control of the future and to instead steward what God gives us. From her own experiences, Chrystal shares how unexpected seasons and circumstances in her life led to where she is now and the doors that God opened along the way.

Chrystal Evans Hurst

Chrystal Evans Hurst is an encourager who teaches people to love God, to love others, and to love themselves. Chrystal is a wife, mother of five, and grandmother of five. She is also a speaker and the best-selling author of She's Still There, Kingdom Woman, Show Up for Your Life, 28 Days of Prayer, and the newly released 100 Days to Discovering the Gift of You. You can find Chrystal sharing regular encouragement via podcasts and blogs at chrystalevanshurst.com.

WSC Woman to Watch: Kristen Brock

Kristen Brock is a speaker, coach, trainer, and host of the podcast, “Jesus, Justice +

Mercy”, where faith meets real life (and sometimes a little holy trouble). A solo mom of

three adult sons, and a small pack of rescue dogs who believe they run the place, she

knows a thing or two about organized chaos and relentless love. With an MS in Marriage & Family Counseling and an MA in Theology & Social Justice in progress, Kristen brings both expertise and empathy, walking beside others on the messy, holy road toward healing and justice. Find her at www.kristenannette.com

Welcome to the Together We Rise podcast! This is a place where every woman has a seat at the table – and where we affirm, equip, and amplify women's voices globally.

This week, our hosts Cheryl Nembhard and Aubrey Sampson talk with Christine Caine about what it takes to be resilient in ministry and to approach calling with the fear of the Lord. She passionately shares decades of ministry experience with fierce encouragement and exhortation for the next generation of women ministry leaders and speakers – calling us all up to the standard of ministers of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Christine Caine is an Australian-born, Greek-heritage activist, evangelist, author, and international speaker who has served the global church for over 30 years. She holds a M.A. in Evangelism and Leadership from Wheaton College. Christine and her husband, Nick, founded A21, a global anti–human trafficking organization, as well as Propel Women and Equip & Empower. A bestselling author of more than a dozen books and studies—including A Life Unleashed, Run to Win, and Resilient Hope—she also hosts a weekly podcast and TV program. Christine lives in Southern California with Nick and their daughters, Catie and Sophia.