Beyond The Surface

Liss has a few decades experience in a variety of church traditions, 2/3 of a theology degree and spent a good chunk of that time married to a youth pastor. Liss has six incredible offspring and recently married the absolute love of their life; who also happens to be a Burlesque performer.

A small business owner who began sharing hand lettered bible verses online in 2014 before pivoting to teaching iPad Calligraphy, Liss is a multi-passionate creative who tends to ask lots of questions, dive deep into topics that excite them, and share what they’ve found with anyone who will listen.

This is her story.

Links:

• Liss’s website - https://lissamyah.com
• You can connect over on Instagram - @lissamyah

• To connect with Sam on Instagram - @anchoredcounsellingservices
• Want to contact with Sam about the podcast or therapy? Use this contact form.

David is a pastor turned artist painting, drawing, and thinking about what it takes to be free to be you. The idea behind the name, NakedPastor, is to seek to tell the naked truth - no matter how vulnerable it feels. David used to be a pastor but has been creating art and working towards freedom with this community for over 10 years now.

Committed to truth, authenticity, and understanding, David supports LGBTQ+ people and groups, BIPOC and women artists, creatives, journalists (and more), and encourages others to do the same. With a Masters in Theological Studies, as well as Diplomas in Religious Studies and Ministry, and University Teaching, He is no stranger to belief systems.

This is his story.

Links:

• To find out more about David, read his blog or to purchase any of his art head to his website - https://nakedpastor.com/
• You can also connect with David over on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn.
• David also has a YouTube channel that you can check out - https://www.youtube.com/nakedpastor

• To connect with Sam on Instagram - @anchoredcounsellingservices
• Want to contact with Sam about the podcast or therapy? Use this contact form.

Fiona is best known for her Instagram account justcurious.au where she talks about the untangling of leaving high control religion. Fiona was raised Pentecostal and until only a few years ago had devoted every part of her life to the church. She is now navigating the healing from religious trauma.

This is her story.



Links:

• To connect with Fiona over on Instagram - @justcurious.au

• To connect with Sam on Instagram - @anchoredcounsellingservices
• Want to contact with Sam about the podcast or therapy? Use this contact form.

Will Small is a poet, storyteller, and podcaster. He leads an alternative faith community called Meeting Ground and hosts the Spiritual Misfits podcast. He is the author of 'Poems for When the World is Ending' and the founder of Lead by Story.

This is his story.

Links:

• To connect with Will on social media; you can head to Instagram @williamsmall or Facebook
• If you are interested in his work with Spiritual Misfits, you can find their Facebook group.
• For a one stop shop on Will head to his website - https://www.willsmall.com.au

• To connect with Sam on Instagram - @anchoredcounsellingservices or Facebook
• Want to contact with Sam about the podcast or therapy? Use this contact form.

Joy Vetterlein is a spiritual coach and writer who is engaged in reimagining life after faith. As a pastor’s kid, a good Christian girl, a Bible college grad, and a former worship pastor, she now helps post-evangelicals to find freedom from oppressive religious programming and to discover their own unique spiritual path. Joy lives in Orange County, California, with her husband and two children.

This is her story.

Links:

1. Joy’s website - https://www.joyvetterlein.com/
2. To connect over on Instagram - @joyvetterlein

1. Sam’s website - https://anchoredcounsellingservices.com.au/
2. To connect with Sam on Instagram - @anchoredcounsellingservices or Facebook
3. Want to contact with Sam about the podcast or therapy? Use this contact form.

Welcome to Beyond the Surface, where the saying "to be seen is to be understood" comes to life.

I am Sam Sellers, your host, and a registered therapist in sunny Australia. I am passionate about the power of storytelling; and empowering voices to be heard that have previously been silenced.

In this weekly seasonal podcast, the stories you hear will be of those who have experienced spiritual or religious trauma, some have loved and left God, while others have reconstructed their faith to one that is deeply authentic and expansive. You will hear my story and no 2 episodes will ever be the same.

You will hear about their pain, and their grief as well as hear about their healing and growth; there will be moments of joy and laughter and times where you will want to cry alongside us.

You will hear from domestic violence survivors, ex-pastors, those in the queer community as well as parents, and allies of the queer community, those who will never step foot in another church and those who are advocating for a new way of doing church.

The diversity is vast and wonderful!

 Whether you are walking this same path as us, or you just love hearing people share their story – there is truly something here for everyone.  

You can listen to our podcast for free on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or any other platform where you get your podcast fix.

 I look forward to taking you Beyond the Surface.

Links:

Website - www.anchoredcounsellingservices.com.au

Instagram - @anchoredcounsellingservices