In light of violence and division, authors of Loving Disagreement: Fighting For Community Through the Fruit of the Spirit, Kathy Khang and Matt Mikalatos,  share how the fruit of the spirit brings joy, hope and goodness in the midst of tension. This episode is an encouragement and admonition to us today, to allow God to transform and grow us in the fruit of His Spirit: : love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, faithfulness, goodness, gentleness and self control.

For more resources, scripture and a reflection based on this episode, check out our show notes.

Featuring music by Bicq.
Hosted by Cru.  

In this episode Chealsia chats with her spiritual director, Dr. Janet Hinds, to help you demystify spiritual direction so you can consider how it could help you grow in both your relationship with God and your calling. They chat about the origins of spiritual direction, how it's different from counseling and how it's been an impactful resource throughout  Dr. Hinds' life. 

Dr. Janet Hinds is certified in both spiritual formation and spiritual direction. Prior to becoming a spiritual director she worked in education for more than 20 years as an elementary teacher, school administrator and professor. Her doctoral work was studying the effects of post traumatic stress disorder on children in poverty. She is a New York native who currently lives in Columbus, Ohio and has served as the director of spiritual formation at Sanctuary Columbus Church for 5 years.

For more resources, including an episode reflection with scripture and a spiritual practice to accompany this episode, check out our show notes.

This episode was produced in collaboration with Urban Arts Digital. Featuring music by Bicq and hosted by Cru. 

Jesus is making all things new, and that includes restoring harmony between humanity, God and the community of creation. In this episode, Indigenous author, activist and scholar Randy Woodley, helps you participate in God’s story of restoration by replacing a divisive worldview with a more Indigenous one that leads to practices of restoration, reconnection and harmony.

Randy Woodley is the author of numerous books including Being Rooted: One Hundred Days of Reconnecting to Sacred Earth, Indigneous Theology and The Western Worldview: A Decolonized Approach to Christian Doctrine, Shalom and The Commmunity of Creation and others.

For more resources connected to this episode, check out our show notes. 

Featuring music by Bicq .

Hosted by Cru.

 Christians know they need others. But attempts to meet that need are often so messy and draining that they end in isolation. Chealsia chats with Hung Lu, a spiritual care collaborator and someone her friends trust to care for them, about his experience with a communal care group gone right. He shares tips for how a collaborative approach can be better than the Bible study models we know and helps you to authentically care for both yourself and others through the power of Jesus.

For more resources, check out our show notes. 

Hosted by Cru. 

Featuring music by Bicq. 

On her journey to find belonging as a bi-racial Korean-American, Tasha Jun’s longings led her to Jesus and a deeper embrace of God’s love. In this episode, she shares some of that journey, including wisdom and practices to help you deeply belong too. She also expounds on some of Chealsia’s favorite parts of Tasha’s poetic memoir,Tell Me The Dream Again: Reflections on Family, Ethnicity and The Sacred Work of Belonging.

For more resources and ways to journey deeper, check out our show notes. 

Hosted by Cru.
Featuring music by Bicq.

It’s a lie that your value is tied to your usefulness or productivity. For Justin McRoberts, tying your value to your usefulness steals your ability to live whole and loved. Chealsia chats with author and coach, Justin McRoberts, about the wisdom in his book, Sacred Strides: The Journey to Belovedness in Work and Rest, to help you experience joy in your work, connect to the love of Christ and share that love with others, no matter your 9-5.

For more resources and an episode reflection to dig deeper, check out our show notes.

Hosted by Cru.
Featuring music by Bicq. 

How can engaging anger and disappointment bring you closer to God and help you love others? In this intimate conversation with spiritual care collaborator, Dominique Dawson, Chealsia learns about the prayer practices Dominique developed to help herself and others take account of losses, get to the bottom of desires and experience God’s restoration.

 Here are the prayer practices by Dominique Dawson:
Navigating Disappointment Practice
Navigating Anger Practice

She also created this practice for navigating difficult emotions in light of global violence.


 For more resources from this episode, check out our show notes.


Hosted by Cru. Featuring music by Bicq. 

For Sandhya Oaks, avoiding grief stunts your ability to experience deep joy. As a spiritual director and story coach she helps people see God’s heart  in every part of their story, through presence and kindness. In this episode, she gives us examples of breath prayer as a grounding practice to anchor you in God’s love along the way.  

 
For more resources and an outline of the practices described in this episode check out our show notes. 

Hosted by Cru. 

Featuring music by Bicq. 

Feeling distant from God is something we know way too well. The Bible talks about God being with us, that he will never leave or forsake us and that he is present everywhere at all times.

Chealsia chats with Puerto Rican author and podcaster, Lisa Colón DeLay, about how we can continually experience the peace and joy found in God’s presence, and the help she provides in her book The Wild Land Within: Cultivating Wholeness Through Spiritual Practice.


For more resources and ways to engage with the content of this episode, check out our show notes. 

Hosted by Cru. 

Featuring music by Bicq. 
Tracks: A Time To Speak; Say What You Wanted. 

Created For director, Wendy Chen, joins hosts Chealsia Smedley, Kathia Avilez and Michele Davis to chat about this past season, their personal pursuits of wholeness and where God is leading them to live in light of His redemptive story. 

We’ll return for Season 5 in the fall, but in the meantime feel free to follow us on instagram @_createdfor, sign up for our newsletter at cru.org/createdfor and catch up on past episodes! 

Hosted by Cru.