The Desert Sanctuary

For over 30 years, Luke A. Renner worked across film, television, commercial, nonprofit, and documentary production. He led multi-camera shoots at iconic venues, crafted emotionally resonant campaigns, and assembled custom teams for meaningful projects.

​He produced content for household brands, grassroots organizations, national nonprofits, and broadcast television. He directed, shot, written, edited, and delivered everything from brand films to long-form documentaries to social campaigns.

The Film – What Lies Inside: Healing in the Face of Trauma

The Religious Trauma Network’s mission is to provide comprehensive information, resources, and support for individuals recovering from religious trauma, while raising awareness and equipping professionals and organizations to create safe, trauma-responsive spaces within their faith or healing communities.

Navigating Faith and Freedom with Rev. Heather Foy

What happens when the faith that was supposed to save you becomes the thing you need to escape?

This episode originated on The Unlearning Curve podcast where we sat down with Rev. Heather Foy—writer, podcast host, and advocate for people navigating life beyond high-control religion.

Heather grew up in her father’s church, surrounded by rigid theology, authoritarian structures, and religious abuse. Her eventual path through deconstruction and seminary forced her to confront the distance between what churches claim to believe and how they often treat people who don’t fit neatly inside the system.

We talk about religious trauma, shame, gender roles, cult-like dynamics in high-control churches, and the connection Heather sees between Christian nationalism and authoritarian religion. We also dig into something deceptively difficult: learning to listen to people whose experiences challenge the theology you inherited.

Because sometimes unlearning isn’t about abandoning everything you believed.

It’s about figuring out what was actually worth keeping.

Topics include:

Join Stuart, Karl, and JD for a conversation about faith, freedom, and what happens when you finally give yourself permission to question the system.

https://linktr.ee/Happyheathersmiles

​

Janyne McConnaughey, Ph.D., is an award-winning author and a leading voice in helping the spiritually exhausted understand the intersection of trauma, the nervous system, and faith. Her most recent book, An Exhausted Faith: What If the Struggle Isn’t Spiritual?  answers the question, “If it isn’t a spiritual problem, what now?” that was asked by readers of Trauma in the Pews: The Impact of Trauma on Spiritual Practices.

​Janyne’s passion for encouraging other survivors of childhood trauma began when she walked into therapy at the age of sixty-one. Realizing healing was possible for survivors, she first authored three memoirs, the Brave series, in which she described the effects of childhood trauma and her path to healing.

Janyne builds on her forty-year career in teaching, teacher education, ministry preparation, and expertise in early childhood development to help educators, caregivers, and church ministry workers understand and apply trauma-informed practices. She is currently a Distinguished Visiting Professor at Tabor College (Master’s in Education: Neuroscience & Trauma) and served for five years as a Board Member for the Attachment & Trauma Network (ATN), two as Board President. Janyne, her husband Scott, and rescue dog Weber live south of Seattle and enjoy spending time with children and grandchildren.

AN EXHAUSTED FAITH is a compassionate conversation for anyone who has grown weary from the demands of a try-harder faith. What is your exhaustion trying to tell you? As you read, you’ll discover practical, nervous system-informed insights and practices for nurturing a more peaceful faith and life. Faith was never meant to be exhausting.

Our ever-evolving relationship with the Christian Holy Book

If that’s the case, this book was created for you. As a former pastor, I made the mistake of deconstructing a bit and then trying to start something new, as I was trained to do. The problem is that I wasn’t ready to begin something new.

I hadn’t delved deeply enough or asked enough questions. The first stage of deconstruction typically includes assessing our beliefs regarding hell and the afterlife, supporting queer individuals and women in their fight for equality, and achieving a better understanding of racism and privilege.

Many people in deconstruction communities expend significant effort criticizing Evangelicals and attempting to gain a following. While I believe they deserve intense criticism, this strategy fails to effectively tackle the problem because they generally don’t listen to us!

Our tendency to punish our former organizations sometimes overlooks the challenging process of healing and growth. It is the same trap we fell into in our former associations.

Order Now!

Campfires occupy a special spot in the mosaic of history. They act as communal hubs across different cultures and faiths. The campfire’s circular design fosters equal participation within the collective group. The flames at the center draw our focus and encourage face-to-face interactions as we exchange experiences, wisdom, and insights about the world beyond. It is where legendary myths and tales are born.

Order Now – Study Questions in each chapter!

This book is called Campfires in the Desert because it grew out of nearly 400 discussions we held on our podcast, The Desert Sanctuary, and our aspiration to improve.

Available now!

Thanks for considering us. Autographed copies are $20

Trigger Warning: This discussion contains adult language and addresses sexual, emotional, physical, and spiritual abuse.

By now, most of you have probably heard of the Netflix documentary “Death of the Pastor’s Wife.” It tells the story of Mica Miller and the alleged abuse she suffered at the hands of her pastor/husband, John-Paul Miller.

After watching this three-part documentary, Laura and Sherri Bothwell, two former pastors’ wives, felt they needed to get together and debrief. What follows is their unedited, raw conversation, with all the feelings you would expect from former pastors’ wives who have survived similar toxic environments.

Where are we theologically…

If that’s the case, this book was created for you. As a former pastor, I made the mistake of deconstructing a bit and then trying to start something new, as I was trained to do. The problem is that I wasn’t ready to begin something new.

I hadn’t delved deeply enough or asked enough questions. The first stage of deconstruction typically includes assessing our beliefs regarding hell and the afterlife, supporting queer individuals and women in their fight for equality, and achieving a better understanding of racism and privilege.

Many people in deconstruction communities expend significant effort criticizing Evangelicals and attempting to gain a following. While I believe they deserve intense criticism, this strategy fails to effectively tackle the problem because they generally don’t listen to us!

Our tendency to punish our former organizations sometimes overlooks the challenging process of healing and growth. It is the same trap we fell into in our former associations.

Order Now!

Campfires occupy a special spot in the mosaic of history. They act as communal hubs across different cultures and faiths. The campfire’s circular design fosters equal participation within the collective group. The flames at the center draw our focus and encourage face-to-face interactions as we exchange experiences, wisdom, and insights about the world beyond. It is where legendary myths and tales are born.

Order Now – Study Questions in each chapter!

This book is named Campfires in the Desert as it stems from nearly 400 discussions we held with individuals on our podcast, The Desert Sanctuary, and our aspiration to improve.

Available now!

Thanks for considering us. Autographed copies are $20

Most often, when people hear that we stopped attending church, they assume they know the reasons we left. I assume they hear these accusations from their leadership. They have some consistency, even though they most often miss the mark entirely. They assume:

In this episode, Karl and Laura Forehand discuss the troubling aspects of their experiences from their 20 years in Evangelical Christian Ministry. The churches flourished until they didn’t, and the same patterns of behavior seem to even survive love, dedication, and grace. Try not to label this as “bashing” the church or an organization. This episode is about truth-telling and our actual experiences, which are often painful to relive.

A decade ago we set out on a journey to get better, and it worked. Listeners may be able to stay, but we had to go in search of wisdom and peace.

If that’s the case, this book was created for you. As a former pastor, I made the mistake of deconstructing a bit and then trying to start something new, as I was trained to do. The problem with that approach is that I wasn’t ready to begin something new.

I hadn’t delved deeply enough or asked enough questions. The first stage of deconstruction typically includes assessing our beliefs regarding hell and the afterlife, supporting queer individuals and women in their fight for equality, and achieving a better understanding of racism and privilege.

Many people in deconstruction communities expend significant effort criticizing Evangelicals and attempting to gain a following. While I believe they deserve intense criticism, this strategy fails to effectively tackle the problem because they generally don’t listen to us!

Our tendency to punish our former organizations sometimes overlooks the challenging process of healing and growth. It is the same trap we fell into in our former associations.

Order Now!

Campfires occupy a special spot in the mosaic of history. They act as communal hubs across different cultures and faiths. The campfire’s circular design fosters equal participation within the collective group. The flames at the center draw our focus and encourage face-to-face interactions as we exchange experiences, wisdom, and insights about the world beyond. It is where legendary myths and tales are born.

Order Now – Study Questions in each chapter!

This book is named Campfires in the Desert as it stems from nearly 400 discussions we held with individuals on our podcast, The Desert Sanctuary, and our aspiration to improve.

Available now!

Thanks for considering us, autographed copies are $20

Karl Forehand

Teacher Talk: PBIS vs Trauma-Informed Education Part 2 of 2

Laura Forehand talks to our son, JD (Jordan), who teaches in Taiwan, about all things related to education and religion. Not only are they both educators, but they were also involved in ministry for many years (the Pastor’s wife and the Pastor’s son).

Laura Forehand talks to our son, JD (Jordan), who teaches in Taiwan, about all things related to education and religion. Not only are they both educators, but they were also involved in ministry for many years (the Pastor’s wife and the Pastor’s son).

Stacy Badon is the mother of three grown sons and YaYa to three beautiful granddaughters. She began her career as a speech therapist in the Louisiana public school system, where she developed a strong passion for early intervention.

Stacy is now the CEO and founder of Everything Autism, where she has the privilege of supporting families within the Autistic community. She provides parent coaching, in-home support, and advocacy guidance, and she especially loves presenting webinars that promote Autism Acceptance and Appreciation.

She recently created a Virtual Microschool for Autistic students after many families expressed frustration in finding a learning environment that was safe, nurturing, and supportive. As a result, she spends her days teaching Autistic youth and her evenings supporting parents with practical strategies for home

She also co-hosts a podcast with one of her favorite Autistic humans, Torrin Kearns. Together, they invite guests to discuss all things related to Autism and, through their work, are committed to shifting the narrative around Everything Autism! 

Website: www.autism4home.com

Podcast: https://shiftingournarrative.podbean.com

Instagram: @everythingautism @theautismsage

Published Book: https://a.co/d/02MMXs61

Substack: https://4theautismsage.substack.com/

YouTube: https://youtube.com/@shiftautismnarrative?si=pxERwqrzXrPneCri