Agape Soul Spa

Did you know it is your job to meet your needs? Yep, God put that responsibility square in your court. So, how are you doing with that? In this episode, we are kicking of Season 3 of the podcast—a season devoted to equipping you to prepare and care for yourself so you can best handle the hectic months ahead. How different would the next few months be if you had a rock solid understanding of your self-worth and what’s yours to manage and what isn’t? Well, in the six episodes of Season 3, I'm going to show you how to achieve that. In this episode, my friend Marian Schulze returns for a helpful conversation around the topic of self-care. Don’t know what we mean by that term? No worries, that’s the first thing we cover. You'll find the free gift (9 Signs You Need to Soup Up Your Self-Care) and all the other links and resources mentioned in this episode over at the Show Notes Page: https://agapesoulspa.com/episode21 

We all need to practice our emotional adulting skills. In this no-holds barred account of my trip to San Diego I share the tips and strategies I practiced to overcome my fears (of flying, not fitting in and more) and handle up on my tendency to indulge in emotionally immature thinking around following my nutrition protocol. Prepare for some true confessions, knowledge bombs, and an opportunity for YOU to put on your big girl pants, get over yourself, and do some #EmotionalAdulting in whatever areas of your life are bringing out the whiny, temper-tantrum throwing emotional toddler within.

Being busy has become a symbol of status in our culture. But busyness, in and of itself, is neither good nor bad. What activities comprise our busyness and how it impacts us and those around us are key indicators of whether or not we are too busy. My friend Melissa Denton shares her insightful method of insuring she is equipped to wisely prioritize her activities so she is productive yet still approachable and available to others around her. Melissa and I offer some tests to help you discern if you’ve become too busy. If you are too busy, you’ll want to grab the free gift “What to Do When You’re Too Busy”. This little checklist offers 8 biblically grounded strategies for restoring sanity to your schedule. Request your copy on the show notes page: https://agapesoulspa.com/episode19. And if you need help with setting limits, saying no, and generally setting better boundaries, get on the waitlist for my new course: Experience Life-Changing Freedom with Healthy Boundaries. Link to get on the list is on the show

While the days of parenting are long, the years whip by in the blink of an eye and before we know it we find ourselves preparing for an empty nest. Marci Seither, author of Empty Nest: Strategies to Help Your Kids Take Flight (and mom of six adult children) provides spiritual and practical perspective on how to prepare our kids to soar and ourselves to thrive through the nest emptying season. Be sure to get the free sample from Marci’s book. (Link on the show notes page.) Additional resources are available on the show notes at https://agapesoulspa.com/episode18.  Episode brought to you by my new course The Life-Changing Freedom of Healthy Boundaries. Quickly master the skill of boundary-setting so you can ditch your approval addiction, tame your inner-control freak, and let your authentic self shine without feeling guilty, mean or unloving. Learn more at https://agapesoulspa.com/boundaries.   

If you, or someone you know, is in a time of difficulty and feeling like God is nowhere to be found, this episode will offer you hope and encouragement that you can be certain God has not left or forsaken you. My guest, Dr. Wayne Stiles, author of Waiting on God: What to Do When God Does Nothing, also shares practical ways we can actively wait on God and reap the benefits of a changed life as we experience God’s faithfulness through our circumstances. Be sure and download the free gift I made for you in which I share the 7 life-changing principles that most impacted me from Wayne’s book. Links to Wayne’s blog, books and Walking the Bible Lands virtual tour of the Holy Land as well as the free download (7 Life-Changing Principles from Waiting on God) are available at https://agapesoulspa.com/episode17.

If I focus on something I can’t change (what other people think), rather than what I can change, (what I think), I feel helpless and overwhelmed. String together a few days like that and hopelessness sets in as well. On the other hand, when I focus my energy on the things I can impact, I feel empowered and hopeful. In this episode of the podcast I'll share how you can choose whether you operate from a victim mindset or a survivor mindset. It all has to do with how you exercise stewardship of your God-given realm of responsibility. If you want more peace and less strife; if you want to make a bigger influence more effectively, then you must stay in your lane and exercise good stewardship over those areas over which God has given you authority. And you've got to discipline yourself to stay out of the lanes of others. Listen and learn what you can control and what you can't. Also, if you struggle with these types of boundary issues, I've got great news for you. My course on how to set healthy boundaries and enjo

What we believe and consistently think will radically transform how we live. If we buy into these three factors that undermine the reality of who we are in Christ, we will short-change ourselves and fail to live the abundant, effective lives God has created and empowered us to live. Be sure and get one of the free gifts I've created to help you combat the lies these three tell you. Fill you mind with God's truth and you will change how you think, feel and act regardless of the circumstances life throws at you.   Show notes (and the free gifts) are available at https://agapesoulspa.com/episode15 

Can you actively participate in the world without getting ensnared in the non-biblical messages? Listen to this episode to find out why I believe Scripture’s answer to that is a resounding “YES!” and the important qualifier that goes along with that yes. The culture we live in is saturated with many messages that offer the same alluring promise the serpent offered up to Adam and Eve in the Garden: you can be like God - you don’t need God when you can be your own god. In the face of the potential danger of being ensnared by these viewpoints, many Christians opt for the "bubble-wrap" approach to life. But if we are tucked away in our Christians-only bubble, how are we to be salt and light to hurting people longing for a real and lasting solution to the emptiness and brokenness they experience as an absolute reality? How do you navigate being in the world and interacting with others who live life from a non-biblical vantage point? And how do you enthusiastically engage with people who think differently from you,

Discover your purpose and experience true significance, make a meaningful impact in the world around you, and feel passionately engaged in your daily life. Stop just going through the motions and trying to fill the emptiness with material things and/or the approval of others. Live into your God-given calling! In this episode, I'll outline how you can discover your purpose plus 5 obstacles that might trip you up and how to overcome them. Show notes: https://agapesoulspa.com/episode13 Skip the overwhelm, frustration and confusion of trying to figure it out on your own. Let me be your faith stylist and help you put together all of the pieces and enjoy a perfect-fit purpose. Book a free consultation at https://agapesoulspa.com/faithstylist.  

What am I here for? How do I figure out my purpose? In this episode we take the first step in discovering our God-designed purpose by learning who we are and whose we are. Our purpose flows from our identity. And when you know who you are, you are one giant leap closer to knowing the reason you were created. FREE GIFT: "Who You Are in Christ" Scripture Meditation Audio Download Series Show notes and free gift available at https://agapesoulspa.com/episode12/

How do we make the right decision? As Christians we want to make decisions that align with God’s will, but how do we determine what that is? I’m sharing the five practices I use when evaluating an opportunity or choice. After you gather up all the facts and data related to the choice you need to make, try using these five practices to help you make the best possible decision. Get the cheat sheet summarizing the key ideas of each practice. That and other resources are available on the show notes page. Show notes at: https://agapesoulspa.com/episode11/ 

Everyone fails at some point. How we respond to our failure determines our future. So let's learn to fail forward! Discover 4 essential principles that will free you from the shame and defeat of failure so you can passionately pursue your calling. I'll share my repeated area of failure and the four liberating principles I uncovered in the story of the apostle Peter's repeated failure and how Jesus responded to it. Then I'll share how you can apply these principles in your own life so you can come to terms with your failure and get back on track and pursue your calling with confidence and passion. Grab the Failing Forward Cheat Sheet in the show notes. Show notes available at https://agapesoulspa.com/episode10  

Small groups, especially in the church, are an awesome venue for forming precious friendships, building a support network and learning and growing. However, as we move through different seasons in our lives, our needs and preferences change. And occasionally, group dynamics can change causing it to no longer be a safe, healthy space. So, how do you know if you should leave a group? And, if you do decide to leave, how do you leave without damaging friendships or disrupting the group? Listen and discover 5 simple steps you can take to leave well. Show notes, the Exit Strategy Roadmap, and additional resources are available at agapesoulspa.com/episode9.

Discover the root causes of your clutter and how to be free of it with the tips and strategies (along with some pretty hilarious stories) shared by well-respected clutter-clearing expert Kathi Lipp. Kathi specializes in approaching this challenging issue from a biblical perspective. And don't worry, she's not some neat freak whose going to shame us messy Marys. Rather, she has overcome her own struggles with stashing stuff and she knows the fear, guilt, and shame that keep us stuck in our piles of junk. She has conquered her clutter and is living clutter free and wants to help us do the same. So get ready to laugh out loud and be equipped to confront your stuff and make the mindset shift to living clutter free.  Resources and links are available at https:/agapesoulspa.com/episode8/.

Real relationship can only happen when we are authentic with one another. In this episode, we explore three steps you can take to wisely discern how and when to share what with whom. This process provides perspective to help us check our motives, keep ourselves safe, and allow us to share the comfort we have received from God with others who are walking through troubled times similar to those God has brought us through. (see 2 Corinthians 1:3-4) Be sure and get your copy of the infographic that summarizes the process outlined in the episode. You'll find it and other resources and links on the show notes page at www.agapesoulspa.com/episode7.

My dear friend Marian Schulze joins me in this episode for a refreshingly honest conversation about dealing with depression. Both Marian and I have battled depression and anxiety and have experienced the stigma and shame that can be projected toward those who suffer from mental health issues. I've asked Marian to share a bit of her story with the goal of providing hope and understanding to you if you are also dealing with depression or anxiety or any mental health issue. And if you yourself are not depressed, you'll gain perspective and practical tips and strategies for how to support someone who is. You'll find the quotes, links and resources mentioned in this episode along with a free guide to 9 Strategies to Defeat Depression at www.agapesoulspa.com/episode6.

Do you ever find your mind spinning an endless supply of what if scenarios into a worry spiral? This episode will equip you with powerful, biblical strategies to stop the spiral!  I share my story of what could have been a disastrous, panic-attack-inducing turbulent airplane trip but which became a breakthrough triumph over my tendency to wind myself up with imagined worst-case what if possibilities. So, what transformed the potential 2+ hour worry spiral into a productive and worship-filled flight? Listen and find out how I applied a verse in Philippians coupled with some important boundary-setting principles I've learned over the years.   Grab the free "5 Strategies to Calm Anxious Thoughts" at AgapeSoulSpa.com. Register for my Philippians Workshop at AgapeSoulSpa.com/Philippians.

B-SMART and set some  life-changing goals with this proven process. Fitness instructor Melody Lusk joins me for the follow-up to Episode 3. Learn my twist on the traditional SMART goals framework and power up your goal-setting by tapping into God’s calling. Grab the Planning Page and you’ll have your own step-by-step framework to B-SMART with your goals. 

Fitness instructor Melody Lusk speaks to the topic of faith, fitness and food. If your struggle in these areas is less about knowing what to do and more about finding your motivation to “just do it” you’re going to love the encouraging words Melody has for us on this topic as well as some practical tips and strategies to help us fan our little spark of want to into a blazing flame.    Show notes at www.agapesoulspa.com/episode3  Learn more about the Philippians Workshop at www.agapesoulspa.com/philippians 

If you ever find it hard to hear God or truly experience His presence with you in the midst of your fast-paced, jam-packed day-to-day activities, you’re going to LOVE today’s episode. Discover the dangers of the compartmentalization trap and how to avoid it. I’ll shares a simple framework I’ve used for the past few years to help me connect with Jesus throughout my busy day. You can use these strategies, too! No major schedule makeover required! You’ll be surprised at how easy it is to naturally and easily incorporate prayer, worship, and Scripture into the activities you do every single day. These four tactics offer an endless array of options, limited only by your imagination. So no matter what your style, season of life, budget, or technical proficiency, you can do this! And I’ve even created a handy checklist to help you implement the tips and ideas Laura shares in the podcast. This cheat sheet will help you customize the framework to seamlessly work with YOUR daily activities and put your ideas into actio