Impossible Beauty

Nine years ago, Taylor Hughes decided to chase a dream he’d had since he was seven years old. On his 7th birthday, Taylor’s parents bought him a magic kit and he fell in love with the art of illusion. He wanted to be a magician. For years he had encouraged others to live out their passions and chase their dreams, but he had not done the same for himself. Now, more than 3,000 shows later, Taylor has become known for his signature style of Magic Storytelling. He is a bestselling author, a highly sought-after keynote presenter and his comedy magic special '“Chasing Wonder” is streaming now on Apple and Amazon Prime. Taylor also regularly performs at various Bob Goff events throughout the U.S.

In my time with Taylor, we talk about what it’s like to tune into your own passion and intuition to chase the dreams God has shaped within you, the deception and misdirection Taylor sees in marketing and cultural ideas of beauty, and how to start seeing your own story through the eyes of wonder. This is such a fun episode. And like Taylor’s new book, Road to Wonder, our time is filled with both laughter and so much of Taylor’s wisdom. My hope is that this episode might deeply encourage you, inviting you to embrace the beauty in your own unique story and become more attuned to invitations to embrace wonder every day.

Sandra McCracken is a singer-songwriter and hymn writer from Nashville, Tennessee who has produced 14 solo albums over two decades. Sandra’s music has also been featured in TV, including ‘Ten Thousand Angels’ on ABC’s Grey’s Anatomy and has over 15 million streams. Sandra is also a published author, contributing a regular column in Christianity Today and recently released her first book "Send Out Your Light" in September 2021.

My conversation with Sandra was so encouraging. In our time together, we talk about her new book’s invitation to see the Light God has given each of us and what it looks like to send that Light back out into the world. We also talk about how Sandra has experienced God’s Light in her own seasons of darkness and what encouragement she might give to those of us are feeling a little worn out after the experience of the past-year-and-a-half. If you are feeling weary or are needing a reminder of God’s working in your life, even if you can’t see or feel it, this one is for you.

When it comes to messages about food and our bodies, our society gives us some pretty warped ideas. On today’s episode, I talk to registered dietitian nutritionist, Megan Hadley, who is fiercely committed to counteracting such dangerous messages and helping clients find freedom in eating and acceptance of their bodies. Megan currently provides one-on-one nutrition therapy and coaching for individuals in North Carolina and engages with clients in an online community called Fork the Food Rules, a membership program that offers courses, groups, and online coaching.

In our time together, Megan and I talk about how she sees diet culture being a barrier to living fully and freely, how diet culture is like the air we breathe, the beauty of body diversity, and in what ways the church has adopted diet culture. My hope is that all of us might find more freedom in our relationship with food and our bodies and that we might together swim upstream against a culture that works against that freedom.

Sometimes the resilience of humans astounds me. On this week’s episode, I talk with author and speaker, Bonnie Gray, who is an incredible model of resilience and persevering faith. In her most recent book, Sweet Like Jasmine, Bonnie recounts her past, growing up as a Chinese American daughter of a mail-order bride and a busboy working in San Francisco Chinatown. Though Bonnie’s early years were fraught with verbal and emotional abuse and loneliness, she has persevered to become an encourager of others.

Bonnie loves inspiring women to experience deeper intimacy with God, specifically addressing topics of soul care, stress recovery, and emotional healing through storytelling, visual arts, nature, prayer, and meditation. She has written three books and her writing has been featured in outlets such as Relevant Magazine, KLOVE, and Christianity Today.

In this week’s episode, Bonnie shares about her struggles with anxiety and panic attacks, what drew her to God as a child, how she’s found soul care to be essential in her own journey, and how she’s been able to keep her heart open to God amidst all the trials she’s undergone. My hope is that as you listen today, you might know that your story matters, and that in the midst of whatever you are going through, you are seen, known, and loved.

Dr. MaryKate Morse is the executive dean of the Portland Seminary and lead mentor for the Leadership and Spiritual Formation Doctor of Ministry track. She leads the seminary and serves on the Executive Academic Leadership of the university.

Dr. Morse began her ministry living in the Andes Mountains of Bolivia and Peru, then studied at Western Evangelical Seminary, where she received a Masters in Biblical Studies and a Masters in Divinity. She went on to become certified as a spiritual director, was recorded as a pastor with the Evangelical Friends, and completed her doctorate at Gonzaga University. MaryKate has taught at the seminary for nearly 30 years in the fields of New Testament Greek, various spiritual formation courses, and leadership and organizational change courses. She has also authored three books, centering on the topics of leadership and prayer, as well as various other chapters and writing projects.

In our time together, MaryKate was able to put words to the mystery of beauty in a way I haven’t experienced before. She describes how beauty opens us up to God in unique and powerful ways. She also talks about her experience as a spiritual director, the process of spiritual formation, why she believes more people are being called to the ministry of spiritual direction these days, and how beauty literally saved her life when she was sixteen. So, please sit back, and allow MaryKate’s words and stories to minister to your heart and mind. May you be opened anew to the power of beauty and may we allow Beauty to do its work in us.

When Tyler and Lydia Lund met Jenn Corral, they didn’t know it would change their lives.

Tyler and Lydia live in Salina Kansas, along with their four kids, hosting foster children and working their day jobs: Lydia, a Clinical Therapist and Tyler, a Sales and Marketing Director for a farm equipment supplier. Even though life was full, Lydia and Tyler also wanted to serve their community; not in a distanced, hand-out sort of way, but in a way that was deeply relational. It was their friendship with Jenn Corral that helped them see the need for safe and communal housing for those in recovery from drug and alcohol addiction or leaving unsafe situations at home.

What began with a desire, prayer, and friendship, has now turned into Journey Homes, an organization that provides safe and sober living for men, women, and families. Perhaps one of the most beautiful parts of the community at Journey Homes is that it provides a true home for those living there, a place where they are known, loved, and supported. In my conversation with Jenn, Lydia, and Tyler, I was reminded of the beauty of home and family. It’s in those places we are reminded that, at our core, we are loved, accepted, and that we belong. And if, perhaps, that wasn’t experienced in our earlier years, we can still create or experience “home” later in life. Something beautiful is happening in Salina, Kansas, because Jenn, Tyler, Lydia, along with Dave, Jake, and Aaron (the leaders at the men’s home) are reminding Journey Home residents that they are loved, and they are family. They also remind us of what true family looks like and that it’s never too late to experience “home.”

Scott Erickson, also known as Scott the Painter, is an artist, author, and performance speaker. In his work, Scott seeks to demonstrate that the story of God is not just a story that happened thousands of years ago, but it is also a story that’s happening right now, in your life and mine. Scott’s work has appeared on CNN, in National Geographic, and in various magazines, newspaper outlets, and book covers. The beauty of Scott’s work is that he gives fresh language and visuals to the spiritual journey. He somehow seamlessly weaves profundity, hilarity, and refreshing honesty into his work, inviting us to think honestly about our deepest experiences and life’s deepest questions.

In our time together, we talk about Scott’s journey behind his show and upcoming book release entitled “Say Yes: Discover the Surprising Life Beyond the Death of a Dream,” how his role as a spiritual director informs his work, the power of vulnerability and weakness, and the mind-blowing nature of Grace and its power to transform us. So, please sit back, get ready to laugh, to think deeply, and to be encouraged by Scott Erickson. May you come away from this conversation with new eyes to see how the story of Love and Grace and God is playing out today, even in your story.

In this week’s episode, I had the pleasure of talking with Maggie Meyers. Maggie is a Doctor of Marriage and Family Therapy and a Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor. Maggie has worked with clients with various diagnoses and struggles; however, much of her work has been in the field of eating disorders. For years, she worked in various levels of care and in leadership roles at a nationally renowned eating disorder clinic. More recently, she has decided to fully commit her time at a private practice in the Twin Cities area, called Wholehearted Healing.

In my conversation with Maggie, we tackle all sorts of important topics: what’s the difference between disordered eating and eating disorders, how social media is shaping beauty standards, why the phrase “strong is the new skinny” isn’t helpful, and why it’s so important that we not equate body shape/size with health or with worth. What I love about Maggie is that she boldly calls out injustice and that which doesn’t bring life. She is a fierce advocate for her clients and for women, desiring they live freely as their authentic self, unencumbered by an unnecessary and unhelpful preoccupation with food or body image.

My hope is that our conversation helps to expose some of the unhelpful messages of the beauty industry and diet culture, so that you can shed any life-depleting messages you may have adopted. So, may you be freed and more able to live more fully into the person God has created you to be.

Last week I had the privilege of interviewing Pastor Mitchel Lee of Grace Community Church in Fulton, Maryland. It was a conversation that deeply encouraged me. So often, it can be easy to equate life circumstances with the goodness of God. And to wonder how do we connect with and trust God amid life’s trials and brokenness? Pastor Lee recently released a book, entitled Even If, that addresses this exactly. The message has been stirring in his heart for nineteen years.

In his book and in our time together, Pastor Lee helps us learn to be more resilient in the face of suffering and how to live with a daring commitment to engage deeply with God in a broken world. Specifically, he teaches us how the practice of remembering helps us stay connected to God and how dwelling on God’s character and goodness before the storm grounds us, regardless of life’s ups and downs.

Pastor Lee approaches this conversation as a wise and knowing guide, having undergone his share of struggles, including the death of his father, as well as miraculous turns, such as his own birth story. It’s people like Pastor Lee who spur me on in my own journey. He reminds me of the deep and utter goodness of God and that our stories and his goodness are so much bigger than the brokenness we experience.

From the first time I heard Jason Gray’s music I was drawn in by its relatability and its ability to convey a hope that doesn’t feel superficial or naive, but grounded and deep. And that is why I am thrilled to have Christian singer/songwriter Jason Gray join me on the show this week. Jason is a two-time ASCAP Performance Award winner, has scored two Top Ten Christian chart hits, and landed on the Billboard Top Christian Albums chart with his album A Way to See in the Dark.

Jason has the ability to convey deep truths with incredible artistry, in his music and in his speaking. In our time together we talk about the mission behind his music, the ways he’s learned to reframe anxiety and anger, how we can all become conduits for something greater than ourselves when we engage our creativity, the incredible power of words, and how life’s disorder and adversity actually have the power to transform us.