That Sounds Fun With Annie F. Downs

Jo Saxton is absolutely one of my favorite co-workers. We get to speak at the same conferences a few times a year, which is always an automatic yes to me if I know Jo will be there too.  She is wise and fun and loves God in such a deep and profound way. Her new book The Dream of You is one of my favorite recent reads. I think you're going to love her and her writing. https://www.josaxton.com http://100daystobrave.com http://anniefdowns.com #thatsoundsfunpodcast ... join in the conversation wherever hashtags are welcome. :)  Thanks to our friends at Samaritan Ministries for sponsoring this episode! See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Winston and Rachel Cruze are two of my dearest friends and two of the wisest and smartest people I know. This is an incredibly fun conversation all about money and marriage and chai and about 43 other topics that randomly arose.  Make sure you check out Rachel's show, The Rachel Cruze Show, as well as her resources (they are AMAZING and so helpful).  https://www.rachelcruze.com http://100daystobrave.com http://anniefdowns.com #thatsoundsfunpodcast ... join in the conversation wherever hashtags are welcome. :)  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

I'm still not totally sure how to put words around this conversation. It was just so so good. And fun (of course). Comedian John Crist and I, as you will hear, have been sharing event posters for years, but this is our first opportunity to be friends. But when you guys request a guest OVER AND OVER, I do my best to get them on the show! I knew John would be funny, we all knew he'd be funny, but I had no idea how profound and honest and kind he would be. What a good dude... he may be restoring my faith in male enneagram 3s. :) If you weren't a fan of John before, you will be now. Make sure you follow him on social media, head to his shows when he's in your town, and buy up all his swag. :) http://johncristcomedy.com http://100daystobrave.com http://anniefdowns.com #thatsoundsfunpodcast ... join in the conversation wherever hashtags are welcome. :)  Thanks to our friends at ThirdLove for sponsoring this episode! Head to thirdlove.com/soundsfun for 15% off your first order! See omnystudio.com/listener fo

He's our current intro and outro music and he's one of our favorite friends. Dave Barnes popped into the studio today and when I told instastory the day we recorded, you guys FREAKED OUT. I mean, I knew you loved him, I did not know how deep that love ran! He's funny and gifted and an incredibly good singer/songwriter. His new album Who Knew It Would Be So Hard To Be Myself, released this week and it is so so good and now on repeat in my house for always. Remember you can use the code ANNIE to get 20% off anything in Dave's store from 2/8-2/15/2018! Definitely grab the new album and anything else that catches your eye!  http://davebarnes.com http://100daystobrave.com http://anniefdowns.com #thatsoundsfunpodcast ... join in the conversation wherever hashtags are welcome. :)  Thanks to our friends at Daily Harvest for sponsoring this episode! Head to dailyharvest.com and use the code: SOUNDSFUN for 3 free cups! See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit

I know I know. It is ABOUT TIME. Jamie Ivey is one of my very favorite podcast hosts and one of my very favorite friends. But gracious, her wisdom blew me away on this episode. As we have gone through these rhythms this month, hearing Jamie walk through the right times to say yes and say no was SO valuable to me. Her first book, If You Only Knew, just released and I am SUCH a fan of it- totally worth your time to read. You will be so glad you did. Also. SHE HAS A TINY HOUSE and I love everything she said about it.   https://jamieivey.com http://100daystobrave.com http://anniefdowns.com #thatsoundsfunpodcast ... join in the conversation wherever hashtags are welcome. :)  Thanks to our friends at Samaritan Ministries for sponsoring this episode! See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The church has had rhythms since the start, and no one helps me learn and love the church calendar (and the Bible!) more than Raechel Myers, Amanda Bible Williams, and Russ Ramsey from SheReadsTruth and HeReadsTruth. Lent is the next season on the church calendar- starting February 14 until Easter on April 1. SheReadsTruth and HeReadsTruth have created an incredible reading plan- going through the book of Exodus- to help us celebrate and understand the season. This episode is inspiring and moving and brought me to tears.  http://shereadstruth.com http://hereadstruth.com http://100daystobrave.com http://anniefdowns.com #thatsoundsfunpodcast ... join in the conversation wherever hashtags are welcome. :)  Thanks to our friends at ThirdLove for sponsoring this episode! Head to thirdlove.com/soundsfun for 15% off your first order! See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

To continue in our theme of small important rhythms we can add to our lives, chef to the Nashville stars, Simoni Kigweba, came on the show to talk about food. Not dieting. Not shoulds and should nots. But what would it look like for us to just eat better food? To have a knife and a pan and a pot and know what we are eating? Simoni is a dear friend and probably my favorite chef in this town- and how he ended up cooking in Nashville was a story I had never heard and it moved me to tears. Once you hear the episode, I'd love to know more about your island. :)  https://www.simonikigweba.com http://100daystobrave.com http://anniefdowns.com #thatsoundsfunpodcast ... join in the conversation wherever hashtags are welcome. :)  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Another important rhythm I want to get my mind around even better in 2018 is the discipline of Sabbath and rest. And in my collection of friends, no one is more of a scholar and expert than John Mark Comer. His book Garden City really started me on a journey towards Sabbath. On this episode, John Mark answers some of your questions about Sabbath and seriously brings the heat and the wisdom about adding this rhythm to our lives. https://johnmarkcomer.com http://100daystobrave.com http://anniefdowns.com #thatsoundsfunpodcast ... join in the conversation wherever hashtags are welcome. :)    Thanks to our friends at ThirdLove and Daily Harvest for sponsoring this episode! Head to thirdlove.com/soundsfun for 15% off your first order! And to dailyharvest.com and use the code: SOUNDSFUN for 3 free cups! See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We're gonna spend a few weeks going through some new rhythms for 2018... things that I want to solidify in my life and things y'all are asking about when it comes up in podcast convos. First up, my friend Nichole Nordeman is on the show talking about her new book Slow Down and the power of recording God's faithfulness through journaling. (Y'all KNOW I'm a journaler, so duh we're starting here.) Check our her book and her music and fall in love with one of the best writers I know. http://www.nicholenordeman.com http://100daystobrave.com http://anniefdowns.com #thatsoundsfunpodcast ... join in the conversation wherever hashtags are welcome. :)  Thanks to our friends at ThirdLove for sponsoring this episode! Head to thirdlove.com/soundsfun for 15% off your first order! See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

You guys. What other way would I want to end the year than circling around with our bestie Eddie Kaufholz. We laughed, we got serious (him more than me), we talked about the highs and the lows and the weirds of 2017, with a purposeful lack of politics because you'll get PLENTY of that elsewhere. Pardon us as we finish 2017 with a little sarcasm and a lot of humor and some really good moments of friendship. (Love you guys. Thanks for an amazing year.) http://www.eddiekaufholz.com http://100daystobrave.com http://anniefdowns.com #thatsoundsfunpodcast ... join in the conversation wherever hashtags are welcome. :)  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We've been the luckiest to have Jon McLaughlin singing to us every week of the 2017 Christmas Party. Today we get to talk to him! One of my dearest real life friends, I'm shocked at how much I learned about Jon, less shocked at how hilarious he was from start to finish because DUH I KNEW THAT. His Christmas EP, Red and Green, has been on constant repeat around my house. You're gonna love it too. http://www.jonmcl.com http://100daystobrave.com http://anniefdowns.com #thatsoundsfunpodcast ... join in the conversation wherever hashtags are welcome. :)  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Y'all know I have so much love for the enneagram. So you KNOW I'm talking about it at every Christmas party I'm going to in real life, so obviously we needed to talk about at THIS party too. My friend Seth Abram is one of the smartest dudes I know, and he's particularly put a lot of time in the last few years into the study of the enneagram. HIS KNOWLEDGE GOES DEEEP, Y'ALL. So I asked him to come on the show and help us sort out Christmas gifts for our friends based on their enneagram number. Get ready, whether you know a little or a lot, this episode is going to blow your mind a bit. It's awesome. https://twitter.com/sethabrammusic https://www.instagram.com/sethabram/ (Remember he wants to answer your questions! Don't be shy!) http://100daystobrave.com http://anniefdowns.com #thatsoundsfunpodcast ... join in the conversation wherever hashtags are welcome. :)  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ask and you shall receive, friends! An entire episode about our favorite Hallmark Christmas movies, past and present, with a few of my best friends who happen to be legit experts on the subject. (Like, way more expert than I was even expecting.) And a surprise INCREDIBLY fun special guest appearance by Alicia Witt, amazing actress and star of my VERY FAVORITE OF ALL TIME Hallmark Christmas movie, A Very Merry Mixup. This may end up being your very favorite episode. It kinda is mine. :)  http://www.hallmarkchannel.com http://www.aliciawittmusic.com http://100daystobrave.com http://anniefdowns.com #thatsoundsfunpodcast ... join in the conversation wherever hashtags are welcome. :)  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

I have been dyyyyyyying to get Melanie Shankle on the podcast, and there's no better time than during this year's Christmas party! Mel's new book, Church of the Small Things, was one of my favorite reads this year. Get ready to laugh, learn, and wish you had a whole bunch more time with Mel. She's just the best.  http://thebigmamablog.com http://100daystobrave.com http://anniefdowns.com #thatsoundsfunpodcast ... join in the conversation wherever hashtags are welcome. :)  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sharon Hodde Miller joins us today as we continue our 2017 Christmas party! We talk all manner of things including her family Christmas traditions, what I didn't know about the day we met, and her new book Free Of Me. She's just the kind of friend you want to bump into at a big party, pull over to the side, and chat for a good long time. https://sheworships.com http://100daystobrave.com http://anniefdowns.com #thatsoundsfunpodcast ... join in the conversation wherever hashtags are welcome. :)  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It's time to kick off our 2017 Christmas party (a day early because I LOVE TO PARTY)! And who shows up at the door first but our faithful friends from SheReadsTruth and HeReadsTruth, ready to talk all things Advent! There's so much more to this season than December 25th. I'm so so excited about it. Remember to use the code ANNIE15 to get 15% off your order from shopshereadstruth.com between now and December 3!  http://shereadstruth.com http://hereadstruth.com http://100daystobrave.com http://anniefdowns.com #thatsoundsfunpodcast ... join in the conversation wherever hashtags are welcome. :)    See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Mark Lee, guitar player in the amazing band Third Day, is also now a published author of Hurt Road (a book I've read and really enjoyed). SO MANY TALENTS I AM FULL ON JEALOUS. I grew up in the town where Mark lives, we've known each other for decades, and I'm such a huge fan of him as an artist and a human.  And don't you know he brought up the enneagram SO WE WENT THERE. :) You're gonna love this conversation and this dude! http://100daystobrave.com http://anniefdowns.com #thatsoundsfunpodcast ... join in the conversation wherever hashtags are welcome. :)  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Dr. Emerson Eggerichs is one of the wisest guests we've ever had on the podcast. We talk a lot about communication, specifically about his new book Before You Hit Send, but also dive deep into the theology of God's kindness and the power of asking God "why?" and singleness and the whole episode feels like a good long talk around the table with a father-figure. I'm so thankful for this conversation. https://loveandrespect.com http://100daystobrave.com http://anniefdowns.com #thatsoundsfunpodcast ... join in the conversation wherever hashtags are welcome. :)  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

My pal Luke and I continue the conversation we started on his podcast episode... we jump in all about church leadership and giving gifts to friends and Austin vs. Nashville and podcasting and how to get Luke to come on a trip. (It's too easy.) For the first half of this conversation, head to Newsworthy with Norsworthy .... and once you've listened through BOTH, tweet us (@lukenorsworthy and @anniefdowns) between now and December 1 and we'll get a little prize to you (until we run out)! http://100daystobrave.com http://anniefdowns.com #thatsoundsfunpodcast ... join in the conversation wherever hashtags are welcome. :)  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jess Connolly and I have been friends for years. Like, heart friends. Like, see each other barely but dive RIGHT IN THE DEEP when we do. And you cannot imagine how excited we were to learn that our new books released out into the world on the same day.  So to celebrate Dance Stand Run and 100 Days To Brave, we decided we needed to laugh and cry and talk about everything and then record it. :)  Make sure you pick of Jess's book- it is a real gift to any woman in your life.  https://www.dancestandrun.com http://100daystobrave.com http://anniefdowns.com #thatsoundsfunpodcast ... join in the conversation wherever hashtags are welcome. :)  Thanks to our friends at Talkspace for sponsoring this episode! Head to talkspace.com\downs and use the code: DOWNS for $30 off your first month! See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices