Midlife Repurposed

In this episode: In this episode, I share an announcement about a new project related to this podcast that is just launched. If you like to write, you'll want to learn more! I'm also announcing a new way to connect as a Life, Repurposed community. Yay! 

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Sue Donaldson says, "Surrender every day. We have disappointments, but we surrender over and over." On this week's episode, we talked about how she walked through a period of doubt and how God brought her through that in steps that surprised her. We also talked about how taking the next step is where faith comes in.

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In this episode: When we pause to think about it, having "just enough" is actually an abundance. Scarcity says there isn't enough, but even with a very little, God can provide even more than we really need when we practice generosity and faith.

Growing up, I learned that we had to wear it out or outgrow something before we bought a new one. When I was in elementary school, I was hard on boots. Sometimes boots were hand-me-downs that had already had some wear! When the soles started cracking, the moisture from snow-melted, slushy puddles on the playground would seep into the boots and squish around in the woolen liners. I wasn’t the only one whose socks left a drippy trail from the coat racks to my desk where my sneakers waited for me after recess. Can you recall the smell of wet socks in the classroom after recess? 

Yes, there's a spiritual lesson there. 

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In this episode: From blue light specials to garage sales, I've enjoyed making the most of living on a budget! Sometimes, life's challenges have hidden fun and joy. There is no second best when we embrace our present circumstances as part of the adventure!

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This week, we celebrate the second birthday of this podcast! Included in this episode are short clips from my favorite interviews from the past two years. Enjoy! 

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In this episode, I chatted with author Kathy Carlton Willis about how COVID-19 affected her personally, and we talked about what it is like living with chronic health challenges when the risk is high. Kathy shared how the last nine months of mostly isolation have been for her and how she has experienced a pause on her normal speaking, conferences, local ministry, and personal connection to friends.

Kathy has learned new ways to reach out and have a personal ministry to others via technology. She’s used creativity in how she’s turned a time of being shut in into an opportunity to help others. After having her own small group have to take a break because of not being able to meet in person, and not being able to attend worship services,

Kathy didn’t spend time feeling sorry for herself. Instead, she sprang into action. We talked about two factors: how she has repurposed her time and attention and still found meaningful ways to minister to others while being more limited and confined, and also about how others might think outside of the box to reach out to people who are more confined.

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In this episode: If you had to choose just one thing for your next step, what would it be? What if a tiny pivot could change your direction and help you finish up the year 2020 strong and heading toward a better life?

I’ve heard the term “butterfly effect” a few times and didn’t understand what it meant until recently. 

We’re approaching the end of the 3rd quarter of 2020. Many people have called this a dumpster fire of a year. But is it all that bad? What if it’s prompting you to make an adjustment that will have a new and better path for you? What if one little change could put you on a better path for 2021 and you’re missing it because you’re focused on the frustrations of 2020 right now? Let’s talk about what sort of changes that would set off a better course for the end of 2020 that would lead to a great 2021. 

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In this episode: The coziness and comfort of HYGGE is more than just fuzzy socks, a candle, and a mug. It isn't a vignette. It's a way of life. We can grow the essence of hygge in our relationships whether online or in person.

This week, I want to talk about HYGGE. If you aren't familiar with the term, hygge (pronounced HOO-gah) is a Danish and Norwegian word for a mood of coziness and comfortable familiarity associated with feelings of wellness and contentment. It's associated with the idea of charm, happiness, content, security, familiarity, comfort, reassurance, kinship, and simpleness. Appropriately, it originated with the Scandinavians, who are familiar with long winters! I think of it is an atmosphere that feels like a warm hug. 

In this episode: This week, author Jane Rubietta talks with me about how we can find light in dark places and how we can shine that light on others. I hope you'll laugh along with us as we catch up and enjoy a hope-filled chat. 

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In this episode: Does it sometimes feel as if you're one mini-crisis from capsizing? These are days where people feel overwhelmed by the level of stress that has become part of everyday life. What do we do with the overwhelm? In this podcast episode, I talk about how we can be aware and give ourselves and others more grace in difficult times.

May I just do a short rant here? If I see another meme about if 2020 were a song, or if 2020 were a menu item. Or if one more person asks if we can press the reset button on 2020. Did anyone have 2020 vision about this when they made that their New Year’s slogan?

Ok. Rant done. Now, let’s talk about what the last week or two has brought into my brain: There are fires in California, and I have loved ones there. COVID-19 broke more records for positive numbers, and that’s a negative thing. There has been another shooting of a black, unarmed man. There are two hurricanes hitting the southern coast at the same time. There is bickering on social media and someone’s comments cut to the core of my identity, threatening my sense of belonging in the fellowship of Christians. Several friends are either sick with COVID or have lost loved ones to it this week. Need I say more? A Christian leader has been forced to resign because of misconduct. A family member had a serious accident. And pumpkin spice coffee is back at Starbucks. Eew. Ok. I had to on the last one.

But seriously, that’s a normal week lately. It’s just plain overwhelming. I’m feeling out of my mind! Maybe you’ve felt it too. I’m finding myself feeling kind of numb. Like I don’t know how to have appropriate emotions anymore. And I wonder what’s happening. I think it’s overwhelm. I’m at the top edge of full when it comes to bad news. The waves have come up to the edge of the rim of the boat, and now the littlest stress makes me act like I would if the ship were going down. Except it isn’t. So let’s talk about that. 

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