Practicing Hope Podcast

Americans are bad at grieving. As a society, we try our best to move past pain quickly and remove any reminders of it. In this episode, author and therapist Dieula Previlon suggests that hope and healing for our relationships and our nation in this political climate will only come when we slow down, tell stories, and lament our collective trauma together. Passionate about empowering people to heal from trauma, find their purpose, and flourish in their daily lives, Dieula invites us to ask the questions, "What happened to you? What happened to us?"

In this episode, Michael and Dieula discuss:

• What it means to be trauma-informed and how that helps you be present to others in the midst of conflict

• How the story of Hagar in scripture challenges us to humbly refrain from always having an answer for hard questions

• Practical tips and wisdom to equip Christian leaders to hold space for grief and hope in their communities

Follow The Colossian Forum on Instagram or Facebook–@colossianforum. If you'd like to recieve a simple prayer, a hopeful practice, and encouragement for exhausted leaders from us, sign up for our newsletter.

Follow Dieula Previlon on Instagram–@dieulamprevilon. You can find more information about her book "Does God See Me?" here.

In the midst of conflict and disagreement, Christians have a history of talking about big ideas and beliefs rather than "experiencing" them. In this episode, author and therapist Aundi Kolbert joins us and compassionately reminds us what she's always reminded her readers: Until we feel safe in our bodies, we won't be able to healthily address conflict with others. To begin transformative work on the big tensions we face in this world–familially, institutionally, ecclesially, or nationally–we first need to get small and address the personal, hidden layer of attachment and embodiment trauma we have experienced and continue to experience.

In this conversation, Michael and Aundi discuss:

1. Why it's hard to remain present and embodied in the current ecclesial atmosphere

2. Our tendency to want to eliminate people in our circles who hold different beliefs than us

3. How we build distress tolerance by first learning to approach conflict on a smaller scale

Follow The Colossian Forum on Instagram or Facebook–@colossianforum. We'd love to keep you in the loop on TCF resources and events! If you'd like to recieve a simple prayer, a hopeful practice, and encouragement for exhausted leaders from us, sign up for our newsletter.

Follow Aundi Kolbert on Instagram–@aundikolber. You can find more information about her books "Strong Like Water" and "Try Softer" here.

The Colossian Forum is launching a new podcast. Hear from Ashlee Eiland and Tanner Smith about why we're starting this project and what you can expect.

Throughout history, Christians have committed themselves to a "way of life" or rule of life at various times. Often, these rules of life were created as an effort to remain faithful to Christ in the midst of really challenging times. A rule of life is simply a commitment to live your life in a certain way—with some goal in mind. To live on purpose so that you can become the kind of person you long to become—and stay that person, even when things get hard.

The goal of The Colossian Forum is to invite Christians to embrace a way of being, a way of life in the midst of these challenging times that we're currently experiencing. We long to see Christians think, pray, and act like Christ in the midst of our deepest disagreements.

We do this by helping Christians imagine a hopeful future where difference doesn't have to mean despair. We not only paint a picture of what could be, but we offer concrete practices to help live it out. That's the essence of a rule of life: A vision of where you want to go, and practices to help you get there.