Have you ever wondered how people walk through back-to-back-to-back hard things and still stay standing? Have you wondered how God meets and sustains them? Today’s episode with Evelyn Sherwood will give you a glimpse of how.

We talk about her story of stacked-up-high hardships and how her practice of listening for Jesus sustained her through it all. 

Evelyn shares with us the behind-the-scenes conversations she had with God during a series of difficult circumstances, including COVID and cancer, and how she grieved and lamented – and also listened in the unknowns. God asked her to trust Him in the “messy middle” and live her story openly as it unfolded. And He met her in new, unexpected ways.

As Evelyn says, the more we learn to hear God, the more comfortable we get with trusting Him.

Friend, if you, too, are in the messy middle, this episode will give you hope.

Marnie and Evelyn discuss:

• How Evelyn discovered how present and real God really is.
• Questions to ask God in the middle of grief.
• The (many) hurdles Evelyn encountered and what Jesus spoke into each hard thing.
• An unexpected, beautiful way Jesus began to meet Evelyn as she walked through chemo.
• How noticing beauty helps us find peace.
• The four-step TRIP method (Thank, Read, Invite, Post) for reading and listening while studying scripture.

Evelyn Sherwood is a trusted minister, speaker, and blogger who has served in pastoral ministry for forty years. Nothing puts a smile on her face more than sharing about the faithfulness of God with a friend over a steaming cup of cappuccino or iced peach tea. On a summer evening, you might spot Evelyn and her husband, Steve, driving through Indiana farmlands in a canary yellow ’47 Ford pickup or enjoying an outdoor movie night in the backyard with their eight grandkids.

You can connect with Evelyn at her Website or over on Instagram and Facebook. Her Pocket Full of Hope series is available here.

And to help you get into a practice of listening for Jesus in your everyday, Marnie created a FREE resource for you: Find Your Listening Rhythm with Jesus. Marnie would also love to hear from you. You can connect with Marnie through her Website or on Instagram.

In today’s episode, Marnie and Jodi Snowdon talk about how we walk through the hard parts of our stories. We each have stories that hold difficult and painful things that we didn’t and wouldn’t choose. When we face those hard things, we can choose to run to God or run from Him. 

Jodi shares with us today about how to navigate our pain and cautions us that running from God means facing our grief alone. But the grief is there either way. 

Maybe you know someone who has run from God in their pain? Or maybe you understand that yourself? 

Listen to hear Jodi’s eight-step “grief roadmap” that will help us to see what it looks like to grieve with God and how He will meet our pain and redeem our stories.

Friend, if you are carrying grief, this episode will give you hope.

Marnie and Jodi discuss:

• The lies we can hear in our heartbreaks.
• Understanding the choice to run to or from God in our grief.
• How running to God in our pain can move us toward growth. 
• Ten scriptures that meet our heartbreaks.
• An 8-step grief roadmap to help us walk through grief.
• How listening for God’s voice helps us to heal.

Jodi Snowdon is an author, podcaster, and speaker who serves women through her podcast, Depth, and her blog, Heartbreak to Strength. In August 2022, she released her first book, Depth: Growing Through Heartbreak to Strength. Having walked through multiple heartbreaks (divorce, miscarriage, & cancer), Jodi now inspires women to grow deeper in their faith and to find hope, joy, and purpose through their unexpected storms. She is raising two sons (one in college and one adulting) in Southern California where she teaches science to elementary students in the STEM Lab.

You can connect with Jodi at her Website or over on Instagram. Her book is available here.

And to help you get into a practice of listening for Jesus in your everyday, Marnie created a FREE resource for you: Find Your Listening Rhythm with Jesus. Marnie would also love to hear from you. You can connect with Marnie through her Website or on Instagram.

We all have emotional stuff and the “stuff” we hold onto can not only impact us, it can impact our relationships and our connection with Jesus. Today, Laurie Davies and I talk about all of it – what weighs us down, how heavy it is, and how to lay it down. Because, as Laurie shares, if we miss addressing our emotional baggage, it can become more. It can become emotional hoarding.

What if giving Jesus our heavy things leads to freedom? What if we can feel lighter?

Friend, if you’ve struggled with worry or anger or bitterness or shame or fear, or another hard emotion, this conversation will point you towards freedom. 

Marnie and Laurie discuss:

• How our emotional baggage can turn into emotional hoarding.
• How to recognize when we’re hoarding our emotions.
• Why we hold onto stuff that weighs us down.
• How to let our emotional baggage go.
• How we can listen for Jesus in our hard emotions. 
• The promise that waits when we listen for Jesus.

A former journalist and women’s ministry director, Laurie Davies knows the burdens that weigh women down. As an author, speaker, and lay counselor, she encourages women to trade their “emotional accumulation” for freedom. Laurie’s book, Emotional Hoarding: Letting Go of the Stuff That Keeps You Stuck, is available from Moody Publishers wherever books are sold. Her writing can also be found in the Proverbs 31 First 5 app and in Guideposts books and magazines. Laurie lives in the Phoenix area with her husband of 30 years, Greg, and two schnockerpoos who run the show. Their adult son lives nearby.

Two ways to get the book:

• Enter here to win a copy of Emotional Hoarding (Deadline to enter is March 11, 2026, at midnight PST)
• Go grab a copy for you or a friend here.

You can connect with Laurie at her Website or over on Instagram, and she invites you to join her Facebook Group, Go Get Your Life.

And to help you get into a practice of listening for Jesus in your everyday, Marnie created a FREE resource for you: Find Your Listening Rhythm with Jesus. Marnie would also love to hear from you. You can connect with Marnie through her Website or on Instagram.

Today’s conversation with Janet McHenry is the second episode in our “real talk about prayer” series. Today, we’re examining how we pray differently based on our personalities, and how understanding our praying personality can change how we talk to and how we listen for Jesus. 

What if we can hear Him louder when we’re connecting with Him in ways that feel natural to us – in ways that line up with how He has created us? Janet shares four different praying personality types she finds in scripture that may help us to connect with God more naturally and more deeply. When we learn our praying personality, and meet with God from that understanding, we’ll grow in our connection and relationship with Him. 

Friend, if you want to discover how to better connect with God based on how He created you, this episode is for you.  

Marnie and Janet discuss:

• How we struggle with prayer “comparison.”
• The truth that there is no one-size-fits-all way to pray.
• How we pray differently based on our personalities.
• FOUR different praying personality types.
• How understanding our praying personality can change how we listen for Jesus.
• How prayer is more about access than answers.
• Simple, practical ways to listen for Jesus in prayer.

Janet McHenry is an inspirational speaker and the author of 27 books--eight on prayer, including the bestselling PrayerWalk and her newest, Praying Personalities, which was a Christian Book Award finalist last year. Janet leads the prayer ministries at The Bridge Church in Reno and is part of the leadership team for the National Day of Prayer in California. She and her rancher hubby Craig live in the Sierra Valley in northeast California, where they raised their four kids. Prayer and specifically, prayerwalking, are her passions because they have fostered a Looking Up! perspective in her.

Take the Praying Personalities Quiz here and grab a copy of Praying Personalities here. You can find Janet at her Website or over on Instagram and Facebook.

This is part two in our "Real Talk About Prayer" series. Did you catch Episode 36 with Barb Roose for four principles that will change how you pray? 

And to help you get into a practice of listening for Jesus in your everyday, Marnie created a FREE resource for you: Find Your Listening Rhythm with Jesus. Marnie would also love to hear from you. You can connect with Marnie through her Website or on Instagram.

Today's conversation with Barb Roose will change your prayer life. Have you ever had these thoughts: Is prayer worth it? Am I doing it right? Why don’t I feel closer to God? Why isn’t God answering?

If you’re feeling stuck in how you pray and your soul is longing for connection with God, this conversation is for you.

Today we talk about the ways we tend to relate to God (and all the grace, friends!), and four principles and truths that will change and re-shape how we pray. We’ll talk about repetitive versus persistent prayer, five behaviors we might choose over prayer, and how to listen for God in our prayers. Our entire conversation wraps around Barb’s Bible Study, Matthew: Pray Like This. Friend, if you’ve struggled with how to pray, you’ve landed in the right place. 

Marnie and Barb discuss:

• Common prayer hang-ups.
• Three ways we tend to relate to God in prayer.
• Four truths to re-shape and revolutionize our prayer mindset.
• The difference between repetitive and persistent prayers.
• A single sentence prayer that changes our grip on outcomes.
• Five behaviors we can choose instead of praying.
• How to listen for God and receive His truth in prayer.

Barb Roose is a popular speaker, author who is passionate about teaching women to live beautifully strong and courageous so that they experience God’s great adventure of faith and purpose for their lives. Barb speaks in the US and abroad at women’s conferences and events, including national platforms like the Aspire Women’s Events, She Speaks Conference and the UMC Leadership Institute.

She is the author of eight Bible studies such as Matthew: Pray Like This, and five books including Stronger Than Stress: 10 Spiritual Practices to Win the Battle of Overwhelm. Barb is the host of the Bold, Brave & Beautiful podcast. She lives in NW Ohio and is proud mother of three adult children. Whenever possible, Barb prefers to eat dessert first.

Check out these resources from Barb:

• Barb’s Digital Prayer Board 
• Matthew: Pray Like This 

And connect with Barb at her Website, Instagram, and Facebook.

And go grab this from Marnie: To help you get into a practice of listening for Jesus in your everyday, Marnie created a FREE resource for you: Find Your Listening Rhythm with Jesus. You can connect with Marnie through her Website or on Instagram.

In today’s episode, we celebrate the one year anniversary of the Hear Him Louder Podcast! And today, the tables are turned! Becky Keife steps into the host role to ask Marnie all the questions.

They discuss Marnie’s own story of how she discovered that Jesus speaks to us, the backstory of this podcast, and how listening for Jesus can help guide us through all of the January things. If your heart is craving encouragement and clarity around listening for Jesus as we make our way through another January, this conversation is for you. Because all of these things matter and listening for His voice and guidance is the starting point for well, everything.

Marnie and Becky discuss:

• How Marnie learned that God still speaks to us today.
• Two key learnings about God's character after one year of Hear Him Louder episodes.
• The one word that is the most important posture in listening for Jesus.
• How to invite Jesus into your January and all of the January things you might be sifting through. 
• How God can speak promises and peace without answering the question we’re asking.
• A story that comes with the promise that God will take us higher.

To help you get into a practice of listening for Jesus in your everyday, Marnie created a FREE resource for you: Find Your Listening Rhythm with Jesus. You can connect with Marnie through her Website or on Instagram. 

And a huge thank you to our host today, Becky Keife, who is the author of A Verse A Day For The Anxious Soul, as well as a Bible teacher and speaker who is passionate about helping people hear God’s voice, embrace their true identity, and step into their purpose. A dedicated mental health advocate, Becky equips individuals and churches to understand anxiety biblically and experience Jesus wholly. She loves long naps, puffy clouds, and shady trails. Becky lives in Southern California with her husband and three always-hungry teenage sons. You can connect with Becky at her website or on Instagram. And you can grab a copy of her book here.

In today’s episode, Marnie and Becky Keife talk about how the start of a new year can feel like a loud mix of hope and pressure. Maybe your calendar is already crammed, your mind is racing with goals you “should” accomplish, or anxiety has followed you right into January. 

If your soul is craving calm and clarity, this conversation is for you, as we cover how to establish simple, soul-anchoring rhythms that make space for God’s peace not just for the start of the year, but also for whatever the months ahead may hold. Quieting that "New Year" swirl begins with tuning your heart to the One voice that matters most. God is near and His voice of love can be louder than the anxious noise we feel and hear.

Marnie and Becky discuss:

• How to invite God into daily rhythms that help us to manage anxiety.
• Becky’s own journey with anxiety.
• The gift Becky found inside anxiety. 
• How listening for Jesus can help us to find peace.
• Fourteen practices that center around listening for God and how they can help us calm the chaos.

Becky Keife is the author of A Verse A Day For The Anxious Soul, as well as a Bible teacher and speaker who is passionate about helping people hear God’s voice, embrace their true identity, and step into their purpose. A dedicated mental health advocate, Becky equips individuals and churches to understand anxiety biblically and experience Jesus wholly. She loves long naps, puffy clouds, and shady trails. Becky lives in Southern California with her husband and three always-hungry teenage sons. You can connect with Becky at her website or on Instagram. And you can grab a copy of her book here.

You can connect with Marnie through her Website or on Instagram. Marnie also offers a FREE resource to help you listen for Jesus – get your copy: Three Steps to Finding Quiet: A Guide to Listening for Jesus.

In this special Christmas episode, we talk about what we can learn about listening from the shepherds in the Christmas story. Then we walk through four simple steps we can follow, just as the shepherds did, to listen for Jesus. Those four steps form a listening practice we can use during Advent and beyond. 

What if we can learn how to see and hear God in new ways this Christmas? What if we can learn from and follow the shepherds’ lead from that very first Christmas to hear Jesus louder today?

In this episode you’ll: 

• Learn the four choices the shepherds made after the angel appeared.
• Discover how those same four actions can help us listen for Jesus this Christmas and beyond.
• Hear a simple four-step practice of listening for Jesus during Advent -- a practice you can follow in just 10 minutes a day. 

Part of hearing God louder is first seeing what He is doing. When we see, we hear. When we hear, we respond. When we respond, we are changed.

Marnie walks through her FREE Advent Listening Guide, a simple resource to help you listen for Jesus during Advent.

You can connect with Marnie through her Website, Instagram, Facebook, and reach out by email.

And be sure to grab your free Advent Listening Guide here. Merry Christmas! The Hear Him Louder Podcast will be back in January 2026.

In this episode, Marnie and Cynthia Ruchti discuss a different way to enter into the holiday season this year. Could we see and hear Him differently this season? This conversation centers around our longing to know God’s presence in all of our days – even the busiest, hustly-bustly holiday ones and the good news that part of hearing God louder is noticing the ways He is already here. 

Today’s conversation begins with Cynthia’s story of learning how God speaks into her life, and how she wants to live a life of noticing. We discuss her new book, The Spirit of Christmas, and how noticing where the Holy Spirit is in the Christmas story helps us to see and hear Him more clearly in our everyday.

As we begin this holiday season, and we find ourselves in checkout lines and at Christmas parties – what if we carry with us, into all those places, the truth and the joy that He is always speaking right where we are? Because noticing God and hearing His voice go together -- not just during the holiday season, but for every day long after the season ends.

Marnie and Cynthia discuss: 

• How noticing God leads to hearing God.
• How asking God one simple question can help us to see and hear Him more clearly.
• How “praying unceasingly” can look a lot like “listening unceasingly.”
• The possibility that we can come out the other side of this holiday season more spiritually healthy than we entered.

Cynthia Ruchti tells stories hemmed in Hope through her more than 50 novels, nonfiction, and speaking events for women and writers. She draws from three decades writing and producing a radio broadcast heard on 48 stations across the country and internationally online. Her tagline is: I can’t unravel. I’m hemmed in Hope. She and her husband of a billion years live in the heart of Wisconsin. Grab your copy of The Spirit of Christmas: Discovery His Presence throughout the Advent Season and connect with Cynthia at her Website and on Instagram.

You can connect with Marnie through her Website, Instagram, Facebook, and reach out by email. Marnie also offers a FREE resource to help you listen for Jesus – get your copy: Three Steps to Finding Quiet: A Guide to Listening for Jesus.

In this episode, Marnie and Rachael Groll discuss what we can learn about how God speaks to His daughters from the stories in our Bibles. God has always spoken to and through women. We discuss Rachael's book, Knowing God's Voice, which highlights women like Miriam and Hulda and Deborah and Anna, who heard and boldly obeyed God’s voice. When we study how God speaks to others, we are also learning more about how He’ll speak to us. We can lay down our insecurities about hearing God and know that He will invite us to join Him in His plans.

Marnie and Rachael discuss: 

• The insecurities that we can carry and believe about whether we are hearing from God.
• How we can test what we hear when we’re seeking to hear Him.
• How the enemy can use fear to keep us from hearing God.
• How He is always FOR us and will speak to our hearts in similar ways to how He spoke to His daughters in the Bible.

Rachael Groll is an author, certified life coach, missionary, and podcaster with a heart for sharing Jesus with anyone who will listen. She has served in various full-time ministry capacities both locally and globally, including starting outreach programs for women, creating curriculum, teaching, and speaking. Her podcast, Hearing Jesus, has remained on the Top 30 list for Christian Podcasts in the US for the last year and ranks in the top 0.5% percent of all podcasts globally. She holds a BA in ministerial leadership from Southeastern University and an MA in Bible exposition/theology from Biola University/Talbot School of Theology. You can find Rachael at her Website and grab her book, Knowing God's Voice, here.

You can connect with Marnie through her Website, Instagram, Facebook, and reach out by email. Marnie also offers a FREE resource to help you listen for Jesus. Get your copy: Three Steps to Finding Quiet: A Guide to Listening for Jesus.