In Joy Life with Mattie Jackson

GRAMMY Award-winning singer and songwriter Tasha Cobbs Leonard is one of the most iconic artists in gospel music history. But her success did not come without her own profound seasons of brokenness. Her message?

Show up anyway. Worship anyway. Believe and trust God boldly anyway.

And as the title of her newest book calls us to: Do It Anyway: Don't Give Up Before It Gets Good.

In this deeply personal account of Tasha's greatest trials and victories, she proves that the moments when we’ve got nothing more to give are precisely the moments to press on and do the hard thing anyway. Because waiting on the other side of that decision is our breakthrough and transformation. From Googling how to upload an album to iTunes to later releasing a Billboard Top 10 album to depression so heavy it held her in bed, Tasha has seen God meet her after every resilient step of faith.

In his decade-long work as a hospice chaplain, Bryan Crum has spent endless hours sitting with individuals as they reflect on their lives and confront their mortality. His biggest takeaway from those bedside hours? 

Too many of us don't really love the stories of our lives. 

Too many of us accept regret, doubt, and fear as the status quo.

And Bryan is on a mission to help us start to love our stories -- and ourselves -- NOW, rather than waiting until the end of our lives. In his new book, Neighbor, Love Yourself: Discover Your Value, Live Your Worth, Bryan is calling us all into better, fuller living RIGHT NOW as we realign our self-worth with who God says we are; rediscover purpose; and recapture the little rhythms that lead to greater joy in our daily lives.

What's on your "one day" list? One day, I'll finally try this. One day, I'll do that thing again. One day, maybe I'll have time to... (fill in the blank!).

We've all walked through seasons where we feel like we've lost our purpose or, in Jena's words, have left "our gifts sit on the shelf." And as an artist, illustrator, wife and mom, Jena Holliday is calling us all back into Sacred Creativity!

Her new book, Sacred Creativity: Inspiration to Reclaim the Joy of Your God-Given Gifts, is exactly that. It is a call back into places that have always made you tick, made you who you are. It is inspiriation and practices to re-learn your own voice and start doing the things God created you to do. It's chock-full of affirmations to speak over yourself and back to your doubt.

Jena calls not just those who consider themselves creatives or artists but all of us who are longing for more; all of us who are created by the Creator on purpose, for purpose.

Would you ever imagine Miss Universe feeling insecure? Anxious? Unsure of her purpose and her worth? In her debut book, A Crown That Lasts, the stunning and generous Demi Leigh Tebow reminds us that we're not alone in our contrant struggle with right identity.

The former Miss Universe and wife of football superstar, Tim Tebow, offers us an honest and vulnerable peek behind the curtain on her own battle with waiting, purpose, and self-worth following the end of her time as Miss Universe. 

In spite of her illustrious crown and work as an entrepreneur, philanthroplist, speaker and now author, Demi reminds us how quick we are and how futile it is to define ourselves by worldly things that fall away.

Demi boldly shares biblical truth and personal insights on:

• the danger of tying personal identity to accomplishments
• discovering the truth of who we were created to be
• how to use any platform, no matter how big or small, for eternal impact

Her generous spirit, passion for the Lord, and heart for her readers are palpable. Thank you, Demi, for your vulnerability and encouragements to all of us to always and only wear the one crown that lasts.

Have you ever been told you’re too emotional? That you need to better control your feelings?

Or have you been a life-long feeling controller? Emotion pusher-downer? Do people praise you for being strong but you know deep down you’re actually just staying numb?

Jennie Allen is a NYT Best-Selling author and bible teacher, and she is finally giving us not just the permission but the sales pitch and sisterly call to embrace and untangle all our emotions. Why???

-Because God made them (even the “bad” ones)

-Because emotions are tools that inform us and connect us

-Because when we reject hard feelings, we miss out on the joyful ones too

-Because naming, feeling, and sharing our emotions is the pathway to peace

Need more convincing? Jennie herself claims to have lived much of life as a “fix-it” girl rather than a “feel-it” girl. But in the years of living through the struggles and practical strategies her book offers, she is a walking testimony for the depth, peace, and richness of life that comes when we do the brave work of untangling our emotions.

Follow Jennie here! https://www.instagram.com/jennieallen/

Order Untangle Your Emotions: Naming What You Feel and Knowing What To Do About It here! https://www.amazon.com/Untangle-Your-Emotions-Naming-Knowing/dp/0593193415

Have you seen this meme before? The one that always says something along the lines of: “adulthood is the cycle of constantly saying, I just have to get through this week, over and over again until you die”? Do you laugh or want to scream when you see it? Why have we allowed exhaustion and depletion to become the status quo? Should it be? And is there any realistic way to slow things down?

We don’t have all the answers. But this week, we’re talking about the practice of pruning – what it means and how it’s helped us apply some small adjustments, or cut backs, to life’s taxing cycle of demands. A few questions for you to consider as you look at what to prune from you own life right now:

What causes me to accept living in this exhaustion/depletion cycle?

What’s the why behind my yes to this commitment?

Who am I investing in who’s no longer investing in me?

What do I need to stop “should-ing” myself about?

Where can I reset my expectations of “above and beyond” to a realistic “good enough”?

These are just a few of the filters Shannon and I are working to set up in our lives to help us prune spots of excess. Yours will certainly be different and unique to your family, your schedule, your season. The bottom line is, we all run greater risk than we realize when we don’t practice occasional pruning. I love how the necessity of pruning grapevines in winemaking applies so aptly to us as well:

“Left on its own, a grapevine will sprawl and spread itself out, huge crops can ripen unevenly and usually result in grapes that lack the intensity of flavor needed to make great wine.”

Sound familiar??? What filters can you put in the place to do a little needed pruning as we move into this summer season?

Have you ever done a fast? It’s not incredibly common in our culture anymore (unless it’s giving up something for Lent or a juice fast to drop a few quick pounds, it seems!). Well, it’s an age-old practice that pastor and author, Darren Whitehead, can save us from our phones.

https://www.instagram.com/darrenwhitehead/

The 40-day digital detox started a year ago with his Franklin, TN church congregation either fully or partially fasting from all apps not considered utility on their phones. (So yes, you can still work and call/text!). And it was an overwhelming success! They’ve now done it multiple times, and Darren is giving us the inside scoop on the program in his new book, The Digital Fast: 40 Days to Detox Your Mind and Reclaim What Matters Most.

https://www.amazon.com/Digital-Fast-Detox-Reclaim-Matters/dp/B0CQD95HG6/ref=sr_1_1?dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.qd9yqmvJ6NE9ijyqqDmiLdpUMskrvkeAgOjwpj2xrm2czkTnKA8zDb3IlVbkulTjqF-ucKlK5eGOVD0Y-MSnS6cff_w_S8yekHAnuEYKTWE.n3BjnYH6B-ET-nNl4nZ-iw_gBe6kYrgQcKp0RYqC1aQ&dib_tag=se&gad_source=1&gclid=Cj0KCQjwxeyxBhC7ARIsAC7dS3_6J-f9KELoV4upgizDsgoAAWZgW9bfjpbSAl5UvttHD7u-fm-abaMaAqSNEALw_wcB&hvadid=693190154324&hvdev=c&hvlocphy=9013186&hvnetw=g&hvqmt=e&hvrand=2766643418922460592&hvtargid=kwd-2281601668473&hydadcr=22594_13493210&keywords=the+digital+fast+darren+whitehead&qid=1715203206&sr=8-1

Darren’s major concern is that “our smartphones are now taking from us more than they’re giving to us.” Yikes! But it’s so true. And the beautiful outcome of this fast for nearly all who’ve embraced it is restored time and attention and joy. Darren reminds us that these devices, while a necessary and helpful tool, have gone from something we have mastery over to things that have mastery over us.

Do you want to reclaim your time? Your attention? Your focus? Your joy??? Don’t throw out your iPhone, but do embrace the millennia’s old practice of fasting, the point of which is to put something aside in order to pick something more life-giving up. What would you have room to enjoy, to pick up again, if you put down your phone for a detox?

See more resources from Jonathan Haidt here https://www.amazon.com/stores/Jonathan-Haidt/author/B001H6GAXW?ref=ap_rdr&isDramIntegrated=true&shoppingPortalEnabled=true

This week’s guest is speaking my language on every level!! He’s been studying joy as a pastor and researcher for 5 years and, in his words, “mining the book of Philippians for joy for 27.” As a But Randy Frazee’s mission is not just to teach us about joy. He’s here to teach us how to build our joy muscles; how to, as his new book The Joy Challenge’s subtitle assures: discover the ancient secret to experiencing worry-defeating, circumstance-defying happiness. Who doesn’t want that??

Randy walks us through the spiritual, the scientific, and the practical of seeking and sustaining life-changing joy. Not just temporal happiness, but a lifestyle and mindset of joy despite our circumstances, our people, our pasts, and our greatest worries. Randy draws ancient wisdom from the apostle Paul in Philippians as well as modern neuroscience and physiology to give us a full picture understanding of how our minds and spirits work together to lead us into lives of daily joy.

Follow Randy here https://www.randyfrazee.com/

Get The Joy Challenge book here https://www.amazon.com/Joy-Challenge-Experiencing-Worry-Defeating-Circumstance-Defying/dp/0718086163

What if the dreaded, unexpected thing in your life is actually the beginning of becoming your truest, most flourishing self?

This is Jillian’s story. This is my story. This is all of our stories at some point in life if we learn to yield to the God who redeems EVERYTHING. After receiving a life-altering diagnosis for her unborn son, Jillian Benfield faced not just unmatched grief as a young mother, but also a dismantling and rebuilding of all she believed, in her faith and in her overall worldview of personal value and worthiness.

Overcoming her unexpected circumstance wasn't an option. She would have to undergo it instead. She would learn to find God’s goodness in a situation that she couldn’t qualify as good. She would discover who she truly was and who God was leading her to become.

In her own transforming journey through the challenges of the unexpected, Jillian proves how many good gifts seasons of grief can offer. In her book, The Gift of the Unexpected, she helps you break down the false constructs you've built around God and your identity. You won't avoid your pain, but you'll learn to feel it, in a healing way. And you'll discover how your internal transformation leads to external purpose.

I’d be willing to bet you’ve found and are listening to this week’s episode on your phone, right? So let me start by saying – phones are not evil! But we’re lying to ourselves if we don’t admit their power to addict, distract, and ultimately steal from many of life’s joys given the CONSTANT connection and attention most of us give them. Did you know…?

91% of adults have their phone within arm’s reach all day, every day.

63% are trying to limit screen usage somehow but struggle to do so successfully.

This week’s guest has fallen victim to constant phone absorption, as we all have, but he is offering us a solution. Joey Odom, co-founder of the Aro box & app, is bringing us the first solution designed specifically for families looking to reduce screen time and increase quality time together. The beauty of Aro? They’re not calling us back to flip phones or swearing off technology – they’re a tech company after all! Their ultimate purpose is to give us the tools, structure, and the emotional investment necessary to reset our relationship with our phones, and thus, reprioritize all the other relationships that have been suffering as a result of our devices.

There’s no shame here. Just the courage to face a tough reality along with a much needed, real solution. Thank you, Aro!