Rhythms for Life

Do you ever feel like you and the people you love are having the same misunderstandings over and over again? In this episode, Gabe and Rebekah Lyons sit down with psychotherapist, speaker, and longtime friend, Jason VanRuler to dive into the five Communication Types that people tend to fall into in relationships. 

Jason spends his days sitting with couples, teams, and executives in high-pressure conversations, and over time he started noticing a pattern: even when someone's intentions were good, there always ended up being a disconnect. That question, “why doesn't this land?” became the seed of his new book and this conversation today.

Whether you're trying to stop the same argument on repeat with your spouse or wondering how to get your teenager to say more than one word at dinner, this episode offers a practical, faith-rooted way to understand yourself and the people you love, and actually get through to them.

In this episode, you'll hear:

• The PATHS Framework: Jason walks through all five communication types (Peacemaker, Advocate, Thinker, Harbor, Spark) and why every one of them is necessary on a healthy team or in a healthy family.
• The Peacemaking vs. Peacekeeping Trap: Why wanting a room to look calm isn't the same as real peace, and how peacemakers can end up burying their own needs (or other people's) just to avoid conflict.
• "Not Every Fight Is Yours": Jason's word to Advocates, and to parents, on the hard discipline of watching someone you love walk into a mistake without jumping in to fix it.
• The Two-Minute Rule: A simple, practical family practice for drawing quiet kids (and quiet husbands) into consistent conversation.
• Losing Our Humanity to AI: A sobering conversation about teens using AI to write "more empathetic" texts to their own parents, and why real, clunky, face-to-face conversation is a skill worth protecting.

Resources:

• Buy Jason's book: Discovering Your Communication Type: The 5 Paths to Deeper Connections and Stronger Relationships
• Jason's website: jasonvr.com
• Take the PATHS Communication Assessment: jasonvr.com/paths
• Get The Fight for Us book and curriculum: The Fight For Us
• Take the THINQ Assessment: https://thinqassessment.scoreapp.com/
• Create a free THINQ Account: Access more trusted content at http://thinqmedia.com
• Join us November 19-20 for our Emotional Health Retreat in Franklin, TN. Register now and save $200 when you use the code EH200. https://www.rebekahlyons.com/ehretreat 
• More from the THINQ Podcast Network: 
  • NextUp with Grant Skeldon
  • The InFormed Parent with Suzanne Phillips
  • THINQ Media Podcast

In this episode, Gabe and Rebekah sit down with a longtime friend of the RFL community, child and adolescent counselor Sissy Goff. For 34 years, Sissy has walked alongside kids and parents at Daystar Counseling in Nashville, and in this conversation she brings all of that experience to one of the hardest, most necessary topics a parent will ever face: grief.

This episode centers on Sissy's new book, Helping Kids Through Grief, and the wisdom she's carried through walking alongside the Covenant School community after the tragedy that shook Nashville and the nation. Together, they talk about the interesting ways kids tend to process grief, the importance of a safe, steady adult in their lives, and specific tools that can be used in their healing journey.

Whether you're helping a child process the death of a loved one, walking through the loss of divorce, or simply looking for the right words in the first raw days after tragedy, this conversation offers hope and a clear path towards healing and renewal.

In this episode, you'll hear:

• Post-Traumatic Growth over Stress: Gain hope from research showing that post-traumatic growth occurs far more frequently in children than post-traumatic stress when given proper support.  
• Grieving in Doses: Discover how children process loss like coming up for air while swimming, moving rapidly between intense emotion and normal play.  
• The Power of One Safe Adult: Unpack why a child doesn't need perfect circumstances to heal, but rather one safe, steady adult who stays close and present.  
• Empathy Without Enabling: How to validate a child's hardest emotions while still holding the line on behavior.
• The Memory Box: Be equipped with a simple, powerful practice for helping kids remember, honor, and carry forward what they've lost in a healing way.

Resources:

• Buy Sissy's new book: Helping Kids Through Grief
• Sissy's website: raisingboysandgirls.com
• Follow Sissy on Instagram: @sissygoff
• Daystar Counseling Ministries: daystarcounseling.com
• Get The Fight for Us book and curriculum: The Fight For Us
• Take the THINQ Assessment: https://www.thinqassessment.scoreapp.com/ 
• Create a free THINQ Account: Access more trusted content at https://thinqmedia.com 
• Join us November 19-20 for our Emotional Health Retreat in Franklin, TN. Register now and save $200 when you use the code RFL200. https://www.rebekahlyons.com/ehretreat 

In this episode, Gabe and Rebekah Lyons are joined by international speaker, theologian, and author Amy Orr Ewing. Together, they dive into the radical forgiveness of the Gospel, and how a true understanding of it allows us to meet the current cultural moment. 

In a world where many people are increasingly focused on harm and moral reparation, it can be easy for many to be driven to disunity and anger. In this episode, Amy makes the case that a true understanding of Biblical forgiveness is a powerful antidote to these, as well as an incredible opportunity for Gospel truth to be spoken. In this conversation, you’ll discover the power of forgiveness in political disagreement, familial conflict, and finding healing from trauma.

In this episode, you’ll hear:

• Shifting Objections Around Christianity: Learn how popular and intellectual critiques of the Christian faith have shifted towards a focus on harm and moral wrongdoing.
• Defining Biblical Forgiveness: Discover how the grace laid out in Scripture allows us to find healing in relationships without ignoring the harm that was done.  
• The Cross Empowers Forgiveness: Find the supernatural ability to forgive from the work of Jesus, even when we feel forgiveness is impossible on our own.
• Forgiveness As Anxieties Antidote: Gain actionable steps towards rewiring your brain out of a place of anxiety.

Resources:

• Buy Amy Orr Ewing’s Book: https://a.co/d/02n68T13/
• Amy Orr Ewing’s Website: https://www.amyorr-ewing.com /
• Follow Amy Orr Ewing’s on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/amyorrewing/
• Get The Fight for Us book and curriculum: https://a.co/d/0ifwylwc/
• Take the THINQ Assessment: https://www.thinqassessment.scoreapp.com/ 
• Create a free THINQ Account: Access more trusted content at https://thinqmedia.com /
• Watch Gabe and Kennedy's father-daughter dance from the recent wedding!: https://www.instagram.com/reel/Dcj_XZOkzpw/?stkn=MTY5c3B6ZDQ2a3Nodg==
• Join us November 19-20 for our Emotional Health Retreat in Franklin, TN. Register now and save $200 when you use the code EH200. https://www.rebekahlyons.com/ehretreat/

Welcome to the first episode in our new season of the Rhythms For Life podcast! In this episode, Gabe and Rebekah Lyons sit down with longtime friend Dr. Emerson Eggerichs alongside his daughter, author and literary agent Joy Eggerichs Reed. Bringing together two generations of wisdom, they unpack how parents and grandparents can guide children to communicate deep, virtuous principles in a way that is fun, engaging, and sticky.

Parenting often tests our patience when kids blurt out awkward truths or react out of impulse, but learning to look past surface behavior reveals what is happening in a child's heart. In this candid conversation, Emerson and Joy share how their collaborative children's book set in the "Land of Nuf" offers a roadmap for families to practice emotional health, discipleship, and intentional rhythms. You’ll discover how shifting from heavy-handed consequences to gentle redirection can transform your family's culture, leaving you with actionable steps toward building resilient, grace-filled relationships.

In this episode, you’ll hear:

• The Four Pillars of Communication: Learn how filtering speech through whether it is true, kind, necessary, and clear provides a practical framework for wise conversation.
• The Power of the Do-Over: Discover how offering a lighthearted do-over gives children an accessible path toward repair and resilience without falling into shame.
• Decoding Childhood Behavior: Unpack the three distinct drivers behind acting out—helping parents discern between open defiance, normal childishness, or a child feeling unloved.
• Why Tone Precedes Meaning: Explore how a child's brain senses tone before processing spoken words, showing why gentle delivery is crucial when offering correction.
• Seeing Virtue Underneath Vice: Gain encouragement to assume goodwill in your family and recognize the hidden strengths behind a child's headstrong tendencies.

Resources:

• Buy Joy Reed Eggerichs & Dr. Emerson Eggerichs’ Book: Beega Gets a Do-Over: A Gigglies Adventure About Communication
• Dr. Eggerichs’ Website: https://www.loveandrespect.com/
• Join us November 19-20 for our Emotional Health Retreat in Franklin, TN. Register now and save $200 when you use the code EH200. https://www.rebekahlyons.com/ehretreat
• Get The Fight for Us book and curriculum: The Fight For Us
• Take the THINQ Assessment: https://thinqassessment.scoreapp.com
• Create a free THINQ Account: Access more trusted content at https://thinqmedia.com

As the dogwoods begin to bloom here in Nashville, Gabe and Rebekah are leaning into a conversation that sits at the very heart of our emotional and spiritual health.

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How do we parent well in a world that feels increasingly chaotic and confusing for our children? Today, Gabe and Rebekah welcome their author, speaker, and professor Dr. Laurie Krieg to the podcast for a deep and necessary conversation on navigating the most challenging questions our kids are facing today. 

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In this episode, Gabe and Rebekah sit down with their friend Dr. Lee Warren—a neurosurgeon, Iraqi veteran, and author who understands the brain at its deepest levels. Together, they explore the fascinating intersection of faith and science, specifically how God has uniquely designed our brains to be part of our own healing and repair.

Resources:

In a world that constantly tells us more is better, Gabe and Rebekah welcome longtime friend, simplicity expert, and prolific author Joshua Becker to the conversation. As the founder of Becoming Minimalist, Joshua has spent over 15 years helping people realize that our possessions don't just take up physical space—they often take up the time and mental energy we were meant to give to our families and our faith.

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Gabe and Rebekah welcome their longtime friends and marriage experts, Doctors Les and Leslie Parrott. As the co-founders of eHarmony and New York Times bestselling authors, they have spent their lives fighting for the health of relationships in a culture where marriage is often challenged.

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Welcome back to another episode of the Rhythms For Life podcast! In this installment, Gabe and Rebekah sit down with author and friend Dr. Emerson Eggerichs. Emerson and his wife, Sarah, have been such a steady source of wisdom and grace in so many marriages over the years, and this conversation is one every couple needs to hear—especially if you feel like you’re just managing life rather than truly connecting.

Whether you’re in a season of flourishing or feeling a bit of that distance, this conversation should encourage you to tend to the heart of your relationship today.

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