Friends for the Journey

Kathrin gets to share some time with Bingz Huang, founder of Bingz Healing Light to talk about love, transitions, and the unexpected way that gratitude sometimes appears in our lives. Founded in the practice of and belief in Gentleness, Bingz works with “fellow sensitive souls who instinctively know that they just need someone to hold space for them to be gentler on themselves.”

We talk about discovering the strong foundation of one’s own self, the value of being one’s own best friend, and the powerful strength of the gentle, sensitive heart. Because, whether we’re connecting across a room or across the world, when we engage work that we believe in, we put our hearts on the line. With Bingz’s gentle guidance, our conversation explores the facets of tending our own selves, our own energy, our own love as we continue our soulful work.

Links:

Bingz Huang:

Website: https://www.bingzhuanghealer.com/

About Bingz: https://www.bingzhuanghealer.com/about

Book: Empower Your Life with Gentleness (Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/bingzhuang)

Medium Blog: https://medium.com/@bingzhuang

Medium article, Learning from My Harshness as a Gentle Empath Mom: https://medium.com/@bingzhuang/learning-from-my-harshness-as-a-gentle-empath-mom-b294d60c4c27

Other Resources:

Ministering to Ministers Resources (Library)

Ministering to Ministers Wellness Retreats

Music for this episode has been legally purchased from AudioJungle. License available upon request

Life can get busy. Period. It just does. It gets hectic, even. And all of us have heard that refrain about the benefits of having a quiet moment for mindfulness. 

Call it meditation or call it prayer, it can sometimes be difficult to find those moments of quiet. When we’re lucky (or blessed, depending on your perspective), we can find those quiet moments and gain some quiet space in our minds and hearts. But, just outside the door to that quiet space, the concerns of the day, the week, the world, our lives can sometimes loom in our thoughts, filling our quiet time with static.

I have to think I’m not alone in this experience.

So, what if we try something a little different. Rather than naming it “meditation” or “prayer”, what if we Just Breathe… What could happen then?

Links & Resources:

There are some wonderful, supportive resources online. Here are a few:

Some Articles:

Jonah Lynch’s article, What’s the Deal with Prayer?

https://medium.com/be-unique/whats-the-deal-with-prayer-e2d33eeb22b2

Sasha Bronner’s article, 12 Myths About Meditation We Have To Stop Believing: https://www.huffpost.com/entry/meditation-myths_n_6804780?guccounter=1&guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZ29vZ2xlLmNvbS8&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAAM8zo44TUgIqJJZn5SOS6nUGMDg3wj4yuk_AqPgzArilGz4Qe-4I5_3qPPSH6f2o_SFqiGbgxQmj1kbAkBIyKRmj4JpIepAihBGOKjHPpk6JKuecZ5Won1dnrK26coyvV-k1oJcE-TwKgCJR9PsueDytip-0ywuSVvimDWAs0kIi

Megan Boley’s article, Why You Should Pray Even If You Don’t Believe in God:

https://medium.com/@megbo/why-you-should-pray-even-if-you-dont-believe-in-god-2c1e345579dd

Resources to Watch:

Monterey Bay Aquarium

Live Jelly Cam: https://youtu.be/28cnxCbix0k

Moon Jelly Cam: https://youtu.be/4s1iaXflVcg

Morning MeditOcean: https://youtu.be/4RtVT7Cfgp4

Here are some other resources:

 Ministering to Ministers Resources (Library)

 Ministering to Ministers Wellness Retreats

Timothy Isaiah Cho’s article, Breaking the Cycle of Spiritual Abuse:

https://medium.com/@timothyisaiahcho/breaking-the-cycle-of-spiritual-abuse-daf32425b5b2

Music for this episode has been legally purchased from AudioJungle. License available upon request

Kathrin gets to sit down with Pastor Skip and talk about the power of listening during a time of upheaval. Pastor Skip talks about the value of listening as we engage difficult conversations about the history of racial inequity and prejudice, and how, through listening, we can discover the value of our second response.

Pastor Skip Irby has been a volunteer facilitator at Ministering to Ministers Wellness Retreats for eight years and has chaired the Board of Ministering to Ministers since 2019. Drawing on his 35 years’ study of family systems, life in ministry, and willingness to look in the rear-view mirror, Skip invites us to reflect on what matters to each of us, embracing our strengths, and discovering resilience in the face of adversity.

LINKS & RESOURCES:

BOOKS:

White Fragility, by Robin DiAngelo

You can find ways to purchase this book, as well as obtain a FREE Reader’s Guide on Robin DiAngelo’s Official Website: https://robindiangelo.com/

How to be an Antiracist, by Ibram X. Kendi

Official Website: https://www.ibramxkendi.com/how-to-be-an-antiracist-1

Ibram X. Kendi Antiracism Center: https://www.ibramxkendi.com/antiracism-center-2

Failure of Nerve: Leadership in the Age of the Quick Fix, by Edwin Friedman Find it HERE

WATCH:

Uncomfortable Conversations with a Black Man with Emmanuel Acho:

Website: https://uncomfortableconvos.com/

Watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/h8jUA7JBkF4

OTHER RESOURCES:

Washington Post’s The Lily, The New Normal: Antiracism: You May Be Doing It Wrong. Here’s Why.

and

Ministering to Ministers Resources (Library)

as well as

Ministering to Ministers Wellness Retreats

Music for this episode has been legally purchased from AudioJungle. License available upon request

As we make our way along this journey, we sometimes get a chance to reflect on what's happened in our lives. Every other week, we hope to give you a short reflection along the way.

Sometimes, when it’s hard to focus, we might get a chance to connect in ways we hadn’t expected. Sometimes, when it’s hard to focus, we might be surprised by a connection, a gift, a moment when we get to be who we are, mess and all.

It's a hectic, uncertain, and frenzied time we're living in right now. But we want to be your Friends for the Journey.

https://ministeringtoministers.org/what-we-do/

Music for this episode has been legally purchased from AudioJungle. License available upon request

Kathrin is really excited to share some time with George Kao to talk about hope, faith, and relationships. The co-founder of Markao Business Academy, George provides inspirational support and advice to people across the world through coursework, videos, personal coaching, and individual and group mentoring. 

Links:

George Kao:

• Website: https://www.georgekao.com/
• YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/GeorgeKaoCommunity/videos

Fort Funston, Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy:

https://www.parksconservancy.org/parks/fort-funston

About Ministering to Ministers Foundation: https://ministeringtoministers.org/about-mtm/

Music for this episode has been legally purchased from AudioJungle. License available upon request

As we make our way along this journey, we sometimes get a chance to reflect on what's happened in our lives. Every other week, we hope to give you a short reflection along the way.

This week, Kathrin shares an experience of deep connection across the many miles that separate us.

It's a hectic, uncertain, and frenzied time we're living in right now. But we want to be your Friends for the Journey.

Music for this episode has been legally purchased from AudioJungle. License available upon request.

Kathrin sits down with Skip to explore the landscape of change and talk about how, sometimes looking in the rearview mirror can help us each discern the central cores of what we believe, what keeps us strong, and how we can grow deeper in love and relationship through our lives.

Pastor Skip Irby has been a volunteer facilitator at Ministering to Ministers Wellness Retreats for eight years and has chaired the Board of Ministering to Ministers since 2019. Drawing on his 35 years’ study of family systems, life in ministry, and willingness to look in the rearview mirror, Skip invites us to reflect on what matters to each of us, embracing our strengths, and discovering resilience in the face of adversity. 

Links:

Ministering to Ministers Resources (Library)

Ministering to Ministers Wellness Retreats

Edwin Friedman books:

Generation to Generation

and

Failure of Nerve: Leadership in the Age of the Quick Fix  

and

The Edwin Friedman Model of Family Systems Thinking, Academic Leadership, The Online Journal

and

TEDx How The Story Transforms the Storyteller, by Donald Davis

Music for this episode has been legally purchased from AudioJungle. License available upon request

Today, Kathrin sits down with Dr. Melissa Fallen to talk about the space between hope and hopelessness in the aftermath of loss.

Melissa is the pastor of Glen Allen Baptist Church of Richmond, Virginia, and author of Lost and Found: From Losing Your Pulpit to Finding Your Passion.

We invite you to grab a cup and join us. We are your Friends for the Journey.

Towel and Basin Memoir: Personal Reflections on Baptist Theological Seminary at Richmond is available through Amazon, Good Reads, or your local book seller.(https://www.ebookpbook.com/portfolio/towel-and-basin-memoir/)

Glen Allen Baptist Church is located about 20 minutes north of Richmond, Virginia. https://glenallenbaptist.org/

There are many different paths along the journey of life, and some parts of the paths can feel very lonely. So it's good to know that there are Friends Along the Journey.

And that's exactly what this podcast is all about. And here's the first little peek!