Today’s podcast is a discussion about when we run and flee from God’s callings for us. We are all called to heal, and we are all called to cooperate with time and age. In all these areas we can practice avoidance and be like the prophet Jonah, who tried to run and flee from God‘s plan. When we do this, we only hurt ourselves and suffer more in the long run. Learning to be aware of and master our inner Jonah, can make life more peaceful.

Today’s podcast answers the question of how can a husband and wife who both have trauma histories, stop the cycle of constantly inflicting pain on each other and triggering each other. How couples can make their worst hours their finest hours, is covered in the podcast.

Today’s podcast answers the question of what to do when we begin to feel resentful or taken advantage of in our parish. The discussion explore the possibilities of our situation being self-inflicted through enabling or us being taken advantage of. Often times it’s a combination of both, even when all involved are well intentioned. Discerning which one it is, and the solution, are discussed.

As we approach Forgiveness Sunday, many of us are mindful of forgiving the living and seeking forgiveness from the living. However, what if we need to forgive the departed or are seeking forgiveness from them? Today’s podcast explores this topic, and explains the path to healing relationships with the departed.

Today’s podcast answers the question of how do we overcome our fear of conflict? No one really likes conflict. However, for some of us, it can have a paralyzing effect. If we were exposed to excessive and unhealthy upset and anger early in life, we can lose our confidence and feel powerless in the face of conflict in the present. Learning, and then unlearning, what we came to believe about ourselves as a result of other people’s upset, can lead us to finding our courage and confidence in resolving conflict.

Today’s podcast answers the question of how can the Orthodox divine liturgy play a role in someone’s healing. Starting from the time one enters the interior space of the church, throughout the liturgy, and even in the post liturgy interactions, there are plenty healing opportunities. The podcast also discusses making sure that our participation in liturgy is healthy and healing.

When our early life was deprived of the baseline of learning what is normal with regards to normal emotions, normal upset, and normal life changes, we can go through life feeling life we are missing our inner compass that tells us whats okay and what is normal in our present life. This can lead to chronic doubt and uncertainty. We can retrain ourselves and learn what is normal in the present, so that we have a more peaceful inner world.

Today’s podcast addresses the question submitted by someone who suffered from narcissistic abuse. As a result of the dynamics of the relationship, they were left with a profound sense of shame. Understanding this kind of abuse is the first step in healing from it. In addition, long after the toxic relationship is over, we may perpetuate the abuse through how we relate with ourselves resulting in “shame spirals”.

Today’s episode answers a question from an individual who is a parent and has their own healthy family, but in many ways is having to still parent their family of origin which has been dysfunctional. When this is a role that we have played for a long time, it is very confusing, and often we are saddled with guilt at making our present family our priority. Setting boundaries does not mean we are abandoning our family of origin. When we don’t set boundaries, we might be enabling our family of origin, so that they never truly grow up.

Today’s podcast answers a question from a father who is greatly worried about his adult son. His son has reached a detour in his life and has been unable to move around it. His son also lives a significant distance away, which adds to the feelings of powerlessness. While has maintained great balance in his relationship with his son, he worries about him greatly, and seeks to know what he can do without making his son feel worse or causing him to pull away.