Do Something Beautiful

Chris Padgett is back on the podcast - this time, with his daughter Sarah. They tell the story of Sarah's teenage pregnancy, the immense importance of the love of parents for their children, how welcoming little Audrey affected their whole family, and the sweetest surprise happy ending to the podcast we could have asked for. (Congratulations Sarah, Dean, and Audrey)!

Linda's motto: Maintain the path back.

Learn more about Chris and Linda's ministry, Happy Place Homestead and watch Sarah's Story (and more!) on their channel!

Listen to our previous episode with Chris and Linda Padgett!

Challenge from Sarah: Identify someone in your life you don't agree with, and love them a little harder. Pray for them a little harder.

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HEY YOU! Yep. You. Are you Pam Beesly, Kelly Kapoor, or Jim Halpert? Could you possibly be Dwight?

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Leah invites John O'Leary back on the podcast to talk about his new book!

Leah and John talk about the freedom children have in approaching life, the idea that "all work is sacred", and what it means to put your name on your work.

In his new book, IN AWE: Rediscover Your Childlike Wonder to Unleash Inspiration, Meaning, and Joy, O’Leary shares his insights and inspiring message to help readers to live a fuller, happier, more engaged life by recapturing the sense of childlike wonder and curiosity we so often lose as adults—that sense that anything is possible, there are no set rules or expectations, and that we can be anyone we want to be.

As we adjust to living life under quarantine and socially distanced, John (and Leah also!) invites readers to take the IN AWE 21-Day Challenge, inviting you to slow down, examine your life, and find hope.

Listen to our previous episode with John O'Leary!

Challenge from John: Your life is a miracle, so act like it! And remember that you and you alone make the decision about how you'll approach your life.

Tell us what you want to hear about on Do Something Beautiful! Make a suggestion here, or become a Patreon patron to get your suggestion to the top of the list!

You can support the Do Something Beautiful Podcast NOW on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/leahdarrow. Help us create great content that you want to hear!

Come join us on the Lux app! The Church and the world need you to be a light and to become who you were meant to be, and we believe in your ability to do it! Come join the community, be joined in prayer with a priest chaplain, get Catholic content and formation, and become the leader the world needs.

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Dr. Greg Bottaro, Executive Director of the CatholicPsych Institute, is back to talk to Leah about some timeless truths that the COVID-19 pandemic is unearthing for a lot of us.

Dr. Greg and Leah start by asking "How will you be different after this time?", which is a great question for us all to be asking. Dr. Greg points out that nothing is more revealing about what's inside us than a shake-up in our worlds, and this is a moment where the whole world is being shaken up.

This is a time to be challenged and learn about ourselves, and finding ways to grow in virtue.

This is a time to look at how we approach the concept of death - in fear and anxiety, or to remember that we have a God who has defeated death!

Challenge from Dr. Greg: Take 10 minutes to do absolutely nothing. Not prayer, not listening to music, not talking to anyone, (it's ok if you go for a walk)... but do nothing.

To learn more about the CatholicPsych Institute or to find a therapist, visit CatholicPsych.com.

Don't forget to order a copy of Dr. Greg's book, The Mindful Catholic for yourself, and one for someone else! It's that good.

You can support the Do Something Beautiful Podcast NOW on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/leahdarrow. Help us create great content that you want to hear!

Come join us on the Lux app! The Church and the world need you to be a light and to become who you were meant to be, and we believe in your ability to do it! Come join the community, be joined in prayer with a priest chaplain, get Catholic content and formation, and become the leader the world needs.

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It's not just a guy's problem!

This week, Leah invites speaker and author Kelsey Skoch to share her insights on missionary discipleship and evangelization, but also to address some really hard topics. Kelsey's book Uncompromising Purity, co-authored with Everett Fritz, engages with the often taboo topic of personal purity. There are a lot of women who are affected by pornography, masturbation, and who want to overcome their challenges. Kelsey provides encouragement and practical strategies to overcome addictions and temptations that keep women from living in freedom: everything from getting rid of some devices or getting an accountability filter to having a community of women to talk to.

Order a copy of Kelsey's book, and one to share!

Catechism references: CCC 2331, 2352, 2354

Kelsey's recommendations:
Qustodio as a resource for filtering your digital content. They are doing a 10% off worldwide promotion during the month of April due to the quarantine and more people needing this resource. The code for 10% off is STAYATHOME!

Integrity Restored

Kelsey's Challenge: Continue praying every single day, even if it's just 5 minutes! Give the Lord an opportunity to remind you of his love for you.

You can support the Do Something Beautiful Podcast NOW on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/leahdarrow. Help us create great content that you want to hear!

Come join us on the Lux app! The Church and the world need you to be a light and to become who you were meant to be, and we believe in your ability to do it! Come join the community, be joined in prayer with a priest chaplain, get Catholic content and formation, and become the leader the world needs.

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Ricky: Husband, father, Green Beret Special Forces medic, firefighter. He knows a lot about a lot, so I got him to talk with me (to you!) about not only the current state of affairs with COVID-19 in the world, but also on a personal and spiritual level. How can you be preparing yourself as a whole person? What does it mean for our faith? How can we see God's hand in this circumstance? How can we grow in relationship with him?

Disclaimer: Not experts on coronavirus! Definitely not experts! #ImNoExpert

Ricky's advice:
1) Pray. Think. Pray. Get up early in the morning and spend time with God, letting him speak to you.
2) Get to confession (as soon as you can, and if it's available in your diocese).
3) Now you're in a position to begin to discern what God's calling you to do.

Don't just fill the void - take your uncomfortable emptiness to Christ, and let him work in your heart.

There is hope!

You can support the Do Something Beautiful Podcast NOW on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/leahdarrow. Help us create great content that you want to hear!

Come join us on the Lux app! The Church and the world need you to be a light and to become who you were meant to be, and we believe in your ability to do it! Come join the community, be joined in prayer with a priest chaplain, get Catholic content and formation, and become the leader the world needs.

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Jaymie Stuart Wolfe, senior editor at Ave Maria Press, shares the unbelievable story of the discovery of an unknown manuscript from St. John Paul II, and the equally unbelievable experience of getting to work with it and getting to hear his voice again. She also shares the impact St. John Paul II had on her own life and journey to the Catholic faith, and hits us with a great challenge.

Jaymie's Challenge: Read Acts 17 and ask God to show you the altar to the unknown god in your world.

This newly discovered work by St. John Paul II (then Archbishop Karol Wojtyła of Kraków), Teachings for an Unbelieving World: Newly Discovered Reflections on Paul's Sermon at the Areopagus, is available through Leah's Amazon Store or through Ave Maria Press.

You can support the Do Something Beautiful Podcast NOW on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/leahdarrow. Help us create great content that you want to hear!

Come join us on the Lux app! The Church and the world need you to be a light and to become who you were meant to be, and we believe in your ability to do it! Come join the community, be joined in prayer with a priest chaplain, get Catholic content and formation, and become the leader the world needs.

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Leah is joined by Olympic skiier and World Champion Rebecca Dussault! Rebecca talks about having grit and resilience through life's adversity. Rebecca shares about seeing God's hand in her athletic life and success, choosing to serve as a witness in the world of sport, sport as the school of discipline, and fully integrating your faith into every aspect of your life.

Learn more about what Rebecca is doing at fitcatholicmom.com or on Instagram @fitcatholicmom.



You can support the Do Something Beautiful Podcast NOW on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/leahdarrow. Help us create great content that you want to hear!

Come join us on the Lux app! The Church and the world need you to be a light and to become who you were meant to be, and we believe in your ability to do it! Come join the community, be joined in prayer with a priest chaplain, get Catholic content and formation, and become the leader the world needs.

Support the show

Miracles happen every day... Ricky's back on the podcast! And there's never a dull moment.

Leah and Ricky answer some listener questions, providing lots of great free insights about preparing for marriage (even if you're not dating).

If you didn't hear Leah and Ricky's original episode where they share the story of how they met (and go on some good tangents), go listen now!


You can support the Do Something Beautiful Podcast NOW on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/leahdarrow. Help us create great content that you want to hear!

Come join us inside Lux U! Finally find a great community, join other women and a great chaplain in daily prayer, learn great Catholic content, and become the leader you were made to be. Choose your plan and come hang out with us! Sign up here! 

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He's back again! Dr. Greg Bottaro comes back on the podcast to talk about dating. Leah and Dr. Greg continue to break down what it means to live an integrated life, and to apply the principles of integration into dating. They discuss authenticity, dating as training in the bigger gift of self found in marriage, living with "the ache", and then gets SUPER practical at the end about "online dating".

Dr. Greg prompts us practically in learning how to grow into a person who can be a real gift to another, and how to approach another person as unique and unrepeatable. He also discusses how to find what would truly make a good partner and prioritize the qualities that matter. Ask yourself questions like, "Is this person trying to become more virtuous?"


Learn more from Dr. Greg Bottaro on Instagram at @catholicpsych or through his websites The Catholic Psych Institute and Integrated.Life.

Dr. Greg's course, How To Be Married, is at Academy.catholicpsych.com.


You can support the Do Something Beautiful Podcast NOW on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/leahdarrow. Help us create great content that you want to hear!

Come join us inside Lux U! Finally find a great community, join other women and a great chaplain in daily prayer, learn great Catholic content, and become the leader you were made to be. Choose your plan and come hang out with us! Sign up here! 

Support the show

Kate Lloyd is a perfect example of what it means to do something beautiful in her own way. Kate tells Leah the story of adopting her daughter through foster care and the law practice she founded to help women rescued from human trafficking. Kate also educates about some of the industries connected to human trafficking, ways to avoid products tainted by slave labor, and how to help her and Bakhita Law.

Learn more and please support Bakhita Law and help survivors of human trafficking.

Catholic Relief Services Ethical Trade


You can support the Do Something Beautiful Podcast NOW on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/leahdarrow. Help us create great content that you want to hear!

Come join us inside Lux U! Finally find a great community, join other women and a great chaplain in daily prayer, learn great Catholic content, and become the leader you were made to be. Choose your plan and come hang out with us! Sign up here! 

Support the show