Of Sound Mind and Spirit - Podcast for Catholic Women

All moms desire for their children to know and love God. With belief in God on the decline, we worry that our teenage and adult children will pull away from their faith. What’s a mother to do? In this episode, we look at lessons learned from St. Monica, a mother who sets a beautiful example of persistent prayer for their children.

Snippet from the Show "...when we struggle as a mother... we can pray for the same patience, persistence and dedication to motherhood, marriage and family that St. Monica modeled for us!" - Lisa

“Nothing is far from God.” – St. Monica

St. Monica Resources:

We Want to Know! Are you worried about your children's faith life?

How can St. Monica's lessons and intercession in prayer be a source of support for you?

Thank you for listening to this episode. We invite you to subscribe to our email list HERE to be notified weekly of new episodes and content.

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It’s mid-August and our kids are going back to school! What a great time to create new schedules and build new habits! In today’s episode we’ll talk about the importance of routine, and offer questions to ask before starting a new goal or schedule, whether it’s for yourself, your family, and your spiritual life.

Snippet from the Show

The simple act of having a plan or goal can keep us going in our chosen direction while leaving enough flexibility for detours around obstacles. - Shelly

If you want things to get done, you must schedule them. – Lisa.

“The strength of a man consists in finding the way God is going and going that way.” – Henry Ward Beecher

Entrust your works to the Lord, and your plans will succeed. – Proverbs 16:3

Read More:

We want to know!

Are you taking September to build a new habit for yourself or your family?

What habits do you need to work on?

What do you want to achieve in your schedule?

What’s important? What do you make time for?

Thank you for listening to this episode. We invite you to subscribe to our email list HERE to be notified weekly of new episodes and content.

We'd love to hear from you!

Email us at ⁠[email protected]⁠

Visit our webpage at ⁠Of Sound Mind and Spirit ⁠

In this episode, Lisa and Shelly talk honestly about the clutter that’s taking over their lives. Do you look around your home and see stacks of stuff that causes you stress? We’re there for you in solidarity – and a lot of laughter! Although, if you’re expecting a roadmap to minimalism, remember we’re not perfect and we definitely don’t have all the answers.

Snippet from the Show: “In my mind I have a perfect plan for how to do this, but the execution of it is kind of what gets me.” – Lisa

Read More at:

Making Room for God: Decluttering and the Spiritual Life by Mary Elizabeth Sperry

“Sorting possessions to decide what to give away is easiest when accompanied by prayer.” – Mary Sperry

“Prayer makes it easier to open my heart to the freedom that comes when I let go of things that tie me to this world instead of helping me keep my focus on God.” – Mary Sperry

We want to know!

We need help! Do you have it all figured out? Tell us how you do it - share your best advice! Or if you’re more like us – LET US KNOW!

Thank you for listening to this episode. We invite you to subscribe to our email list HERE to be notified weekly of new episodes and content.

We'd love to hear from you!

Email us at ⁠[email protected]⁠

Visit our webpage at ⁠Of Sound Mind and Spirit ⁠

In this episode, find out why we believe all women (and men) should go on a retreat. Retreats are an opportunity to “leave the world behind” rest, be still, reconnect with faith and find community with others. Are you being called to attend a retreat?  Put it to prayer and ask the Holy Spirit to reveal it to you.

Snippet from the Show “… if God wants you to go, if it is your time to go on a retreat, He will absolutely clear the way. Every door will open and he will be waiting for you on the other side.”   – Shelly

“Every woman, in the way most suitable to her, should try to find ‘breathing spaces” – moments in which she can return to herself and rest in God.” – St. Edith Stein

Resources mentioned:

We want to know! If you’ve been on retreat, what is your favorite thing to experience on Retreat?

Thank you for listening to this episode. We invite you to subscribe to our email list HERE to be notified weekly of new episodes and content.

We'd love to hear from you!  

Email us at ⁠[email protected]⁠

Visit our webpage at ⁠Of Sound Mind and Spirit ⁠

After the success of Episode 3 on Spiritual Reading, we’re talking about our Book Groups. Why join a book club? What benefits does it bring? And Lisa shares steps you can take to start your own book group!

Snippet from the Show: While the intention really is to read this book, and grow in spirituality and learn more about our faith and all that, it’s become so much more. I think that’s why the book group means so much to me. – Lisa

“Reading has made many saints.” - Saint Josemaría Escrivá,

Read More About Lisa’s Book Group:

The Bond of Catholic Motherhood

Joy in Community During the Pandemic

 Need Book Ideas?

Follow us on Goodreads

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Shelly’s Small Group Reads:

 Lisa’s Small Group Book List (Amazon)

Spiritual Reading Recommendation List

Interested in Catholic Fiction? Try Grieving Daughters' Club by Andrea Bear

We want to know! Lisa needs help choosing a new book for Book Group! Send us your recommendations!

Thank you for listening to this episode. We invite you to subscribe to our email list HERE to be notified weekly of new episodes and content.

We'd love to hear from you!  

Email us at ⁠[email protected]⁠

Visit our webpage at ⁠Of Sound Mind and Spirit ⁠

Whether you’re been married for five or twenty-five years, taking time to "woo" (or date) your spouse sets the stage for a fantastic relationship where each person feels loved, supported, and secure.

Snippet from the Show: "It’s a mind shift of having to place your marriage above all of your children’s commitments or what’s going on in life, and really make the effort to date." - Lisa

Quotes:

The greatest gift a father can give his children is to love their mother. (Unknown)

The greater the friendship, the more solid and long-lasting the marriage will be, as we are united not only in flesh but in domestic activity. - St. Thomas Aquinas

“Love should be seen as something which in a sense never ‘is’ but is always only ‘becoming,’ and what it becomes depends upon the contribution of both persons and the depth of their commitment.” – St. Pope John Paul II

A cord of three strands is not quickly broken. - Ecclesiastes 4:12

Read More! The Importance of Dating Your Spouse…Even After 20 Years

We want to know! Are you still wooing? How has dating your spouse benefited your marriage?

Thank you for listening to this episode. We invite you to subscribe to our email list HERE to be notified weekly of new episodes and content.

We'd love to hear from you!  

Email us at ⁠[email protected]⁠

Visit our webpage at ⁠Of Sound Mind and Spirit

The episode where we talk honestly about prayer life. We know it's important and yet we struggle to make time for it. Did the Pandemic affect your prayer life? Would you like a Prayer Partner? And don't miss Lisa's confession about where she prays most frequently. (Hint: It's not where you think it might be!)

Snippet from the Show: “One of the things that I think helped change our prayer life during that time. It illuminated to us how our prayer needed to be intentional. We discovered that we really wanted God in our lives. We yearned for Him and it meant that we had to become more intentional. At a time when we could have become discouraged or spiritually dry, we turned toward God and felt like we depended on Him.” - Shelly

Resources for Prayer

We want to know!

How have things changed in your prayer life? Did something really beautiful come out of the last couple of years and the way that it’s changed and shaped the way that you pray and interact with God?  

BONUS! Do you have a prayer buddy or prayer partner? (Would

Thank you for listening to this episode. We invite you to subscribe to our email list HERE to be notified weekly of new episodes and content.

We'd love to hear from you!  

In today's episode, we talk about common objections we hear for why many people don't heed the call to teach faith formation at their church! We also share the benefits you receive when you answer the call! We encourage you to volunteer (in some capacity) this year in your parish Elementary or Youth Ministry!

Snippet from the Show: “As Christians, we are all called to pass on our faith!”  - Lisa

We'd love to hear from you!  

Thank you for listening to this episode.

Today we tackle a subject we never expected to talk about – midlife. At this turning point in life everything’s changing including our bodies and marriages. We're now parenting young adults and caring for aging parents. It’s easy to feel stuck in midlife.

Snippet from the Show: “I think the point of us acknowledging that we feel stuck and we’re going through all these changes is because maybe there’s something that God is…preparing us for.”  - Lisa & Shelly

We want to know! How are you doing in this journey of midlife? Is there something you thought you’d have accomplished by this age? What would you like us to address on future topics of midlife?

We'd love to hear from you!  

In this episode, we share three things you can do to help your children develop a strong foundation of faith that will guide them in these turbulent years as they face life’s challenges and choices as a teen or young adult. 

Snippet from the Show: "I think a big component of that is knowing that God loves you [with] that unconditional love and that there’s always mercy and forgiveness available. Because I think teens are searching. And they’re going to screw up. We all screw up. And so knowing that they can always come back and wrap themselves up in God’s love – just for them to know and remember over and over again.” - Lisa

Scripture: St. Paul wrote in Romans 5:3-5,

“…that affliction produces endurance, and endurance, proven character, and proven character, hope, and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out into our hearts through the holy Spirit that has been given to us.”

We want to know! What concerns do you have in preparing to send your kids into a new school this fall? If you’ve already faced this, what’s worked for you?  

Read More

We'd love to hear from you!

Thank you for listening to this episode.