The Friend School

Welcome to The Friend School podcast with Matt & Paige! It's time to discover your confidence and deepen your connections with others.

In this episode, we continue our conversation with our dear friend and Certified Grief Counselor, Susan Salluce.

There are a 1000 topics we can cover when talking through friendship and connection. This topic of grief is not a "fun" one per se BUT, we all know that when tragedy strikes, we need each other.

If you struggle to know how to show up for others in times of grief OR you don’t know how to invite others in to your suffering, this episode will encourage and equip you. 

Life on this side of eternity is both beautiful and tragic. No matter what we face, we don’t have to face it alone. And thankfully there are people like Susan who can help us grow as friends who can grieve well with each other. 

We hope you feel as encouraged as we did. 

Susan's recommended resources:

But I Didn’t Say Goodbye: Helping Families After a Suicide

https://a.co/d/6W5T7dG

This book is meant to help adults walk children through understanding suicide deaths. (This author became Susan's friend after they had three suicide deaths in John’s family and had to talk to their kids about it)

———

Continuing Bonds: New Understandings of Grief

⁠https://a.co/d/2wxJHKk⁠

This book will appeal more to people in the field of psychology or just people who like to be well read.

———-

Grieving Mindfully: A Compassionate and Spiritual Guide to Coping with Loss

https://a.co/d/eGlCuOI

This book is the one that’s got kind of a Buddhist bent but is very good

Connect with Matt & Paige:

Follow The Friend School on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ & ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Join the Movement⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠FREE download: "The True You" devotional⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠FREE List of Better Questions⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

***"THE TRUE YOU" Now available on Amazon!!!***

One last thing...we'd LOVE your help investing in more and more grace-based friendships. Check out the link below!

Welcome to The Friend School podcast with Matt & Paige! It's time to discover your confidence and deepen your connections with others.

In this episode, we sit down to talk with our dear friend and Certified Grief Counselor, Susan Salluce.

There are a 1000 topics we can cover when talking through friendship and connection. This topic of grief is not a "fun" one per se BUT, we all know that when tragedy strikes, we need each other.

If you struggle to know how to show up for others in times of grief OR you don’t know how to invite others in to your suffering, this episode will encourage and equip you. 

Due to the length of the conversation, we decided to break this into two parts. There’s enough to chew on in each one for sure!

Life on this side of eternity is both beautiful and tragic. No matter what we face, we don’t have to face it alone. And thankfully there are people like Susan who can help us grow as friends who can grieve well with each other. 

We hope you feel as encouraged as we did. 

Connect with Matt & Paige:

Follow The Friend School on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ & ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Join the Movement⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠FREE download: "The True You" devotional⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠FREE List of Better Questions⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

One last thing...we'd LOVE your help investing in more and more grace-based friendships. Check out the link below!

Welcome to The Friend School podcast with Matt & Paige! It's time to discover your confidence and deepen your connections with others.

In this episode, we're looking at some drama that went down "back in the day" and gleaning some pretty important lessons from it. There's something for everyone here:

Have you ever made a really bad mistake that negatively impacted your reputation?

Ever made a bad decision that damaged your friendships?

Ever failed and blown it?

Ever quit when you should’ve kept going?

Ever been let down and abandoned by others?

Do you live with regrets?

Well....take heart. You're not alone.

Jump in and glean from the story of the fallout (and comeback) of two guys we're sure you know.

Click HERE to listen to Matt's message on the Intro to the Gospel of Mark.

Connect with Matt & Paige:

Follow The Friend School on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ & ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Join the Movement⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠FREE download: "The True You" devotional⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠FREE List of Better Questions⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

One last thing...we'd LOVE your help investing in more and more grace-based friendships. Check out the link below!

Welcome to The Friend School podcast with Matt & Paige! It's time to discover your confidence and deepen your connections with others.

How many of our friendships suffer because we're not yet convinced we're lovable? Perhaps we've lived with a mask for so long, we've never allowed ourselves to be loved for who we really are. The good news of God's grace announces that we are both loved AND lovable right now, just as we are in Christ. Are you convinced?

Connect with Matt & Paige:

Follow The Friend School on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ & ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Join the Movement⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠FREE download: "The True You" devotional⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠FREE List of Better Questions⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

One last thing...we'd LOVE your help investing in more and more grace-based friendships. Check out the link below!

Welcome to The Friend School podcast with Matt & Paige! It's time to discover your confidence and deepen your connections with others.

Righteousness is more than just a churchy word—it's a lifeline for our friendships. Yet many of us struggle to believe we’re truly righteous. We might accept that God loves us, forgives us, and promises us a place in heaven, but righteous? Here and now? That sounds like heresy. However, the truth of the gospel invites us to let go of the lies we believe about ourselves that hold us back from deeper connection with God and others. Join us as we uncover the truth that frees us from pretending and sets our friendships up for true success.

Connect with Matt & Paige:

Follow The Friend School on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ & ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Join the Movement⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

⁠⁠⁠⁠FREE download: "The True You" devotional⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

⁠⁠⁠⁠FREE List of Better Questions⁠⁠⁠⁠

One last thing...we'd LOVE your help investing in more and more grace-based friendships. Check out the link below!

Welcome to The Friend School podcast with Matt & Paige! It's time to discover your confidence and deepen your connections with others.

In this ‘extended’ episode Matt & Paige sit down with longtime friends Drake and Lisa Kellas. Drake is the life of the party, while Lisa is the highly intentional social introvert—a perfect pairing in our opinion.

Join in as we talk through their very different styles of relating, how to make new friends (and get free stuff!), what it means to show up when it matters most, and much much more!

Connect with Matt & Paige:

Follow The Friend School on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ & ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Join the Movement⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

⁠⁠⁠FREE download: "The True You" devotional⁠⁠⁠⁠

⁠⁠⁠FREE List of Better Questions⁠⁠⁠

One last thing...we'd LOVE your help investing in more and more grace-based friendships. Check out the link below!

Summer has come to an end. Fall is starting up which means new environments. New people. New relationships, and hopefully new friendships! New spaces and places can bring up some social anxiety and stress as we think about meeting new people. In this episode, we reminisce on our own "first days" and what we were feeling as a new school year kicked off, and what has changed since then. This is a great episode for junior high or high school or college students starting a new school year, teachers…moms and dads starting new kids schedules and meeting other parents…church small groups…just about EVERYONE can relate!

Connect with Matt & Paige:

Follow The Friend School on ⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠ & ⁠⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠⁠

⁠⁠⁠⁠Join the Movement⁠⁠⁠⁠

⁠⁠FREE download: "The True You" devotional⁠⁠⁠

⁠⁠FREE List of Better Questions⁠⁠

One last thing...we'd LOVE your help investing in more and more grace-based friendships. Check out the link below!

Welcome to The Friend School podcast with Matt & Paige! It's time to discover your confidence and deepen your connections with others.

Some seasons of friendship are easy-peezy...they seem to maintain themselves effortlessly, while in other seasons we find our deep ties tend to struggle and stall out. Meh!

Sometimes all it takes to regenerate and energize a fizzling friendship are a few simple actions. That's what Catherine Pearson of the NY Times offers in the 5-Day Friendship Challenge.

And this episode, we’re just having some good ole unscripted conversation about what these practical ideas can do for our friendship. You got this!

Breadcrumbs from Episode 009:

-The world is hungry for better friendships

-Friendship is crucial to our physical & mental health and longevity.

-Research suggests people need to spend around 200 hours hanging out together in order to forge a close friendship.

-Don't overlook the power of a simple text message.

-What happens when your social circles collide?

-The easiest way to schedule and prioritize time with a friend.

-A great way to leverage your nostalgia :-)

-The best definition of love I've ever heard!

-And much more!!!

Click here to read the original NYT article!

Connect with Matt & Paige:

Follow The Friend School on ⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠ & ⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠

⁠⁠⁠Join the Movement⁠⁠⁠

⁠FREE download: "The True You" devotional⁠⁠

⁠FREE List of Better Questions⁠

One last thing...we'd LOVE your help investing in more and more grace-based friendships!

Welcome to The Friend School podcast with Matt & Paige! It's time to discover your confidence and deepen your connections with others.

How are your affirmation skills? Have you been on the receiving end of life-giving words from a friend? What did those words do for your soul? I bet they changed you. In our experience, the affirmation we’ve received from people has had tremendous shaping power in our lives. Our words have power. 

With all the benefits of affirmation, why do we shy away from it and withhold it from others? Why do we live as though we are allergic to affirmation, or just indifferent? Could it be that God created within us a need that can only be met by Himself and others? That means we have a beautiful privilege and opportunity to build our friends up. Isn’t this what Jesus is up to in our lives?

In this episode, we’re jumping into those questions and more to unlock the power of affirmation in our friendships. Let’s do this!

Breadcrumbs from Episode 008:

-Our world is long on criticism and discouragement & short on encouragement and affirmation

-The big head disclaimer: Why are we concerned with the size of someone’s head? 

-Aren't words of affirmation just a “love language” thing?

-What’s the fear or holdup keeping us from affirming one another?

-What does affirmation produce? What is the result?

-How to receive affirmation

-How affirmation brings clarity to our identity, our contribution, our confidence, and fosters the healing of wounds 

-We are designed/created to be affirmed & receive the love of others

-And much more!!!

Connect with Matt & Paige:

Follow The Friend School on ⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠ & ⁠⁠Facebook⁠

⁠⁠Join the Movement⁠⁠

FREE download: "The True You" devotional⁠

FREE List of Better Questions

One last thing...we'd LOVE your help investing in more and more grace-based friendships via a small monthly donation.

Welcome to The Friend School podcast with Matt & Paige! It's time to discover your confidence and deepen your connections with others.

When it comes to friendship, one of the things that we’ve struggled with is the pressure to K.I.T…you know…keep in touch. There are so many feelings that surface with this topic: pressure, guilt, excitement, expectation, joy, fulfillment, regret, just to name a few. 

Along with feelings come a handful of questions like: How many friends can I keep in touch with? How often? What does it mean to keep in touch? How do we know we’re still in touch? Why is it so hard at times? What is good motivation for keeping in touch? Is there a bad motive?

While we may not get to all the answers, we do explore the topic of keeping in touch and guess what...there’s GOOD news for those of us who feel like we’re failing in this area of our friendships. Whew! Take a deep breath and enjoy. 

Breadcrumbs from Episode 007

- All the feelings that that surface with the topic of keeping in touch

- What does it mean to KIT?

- 3 categories of friends

- Dunbar’s Number and why you can’t keep in touch with everyone

- The gospel for those who feel like failures at keeping in touch

- And more! 

Connect with Matt & Paige:

Follow The Friend School on ⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠ & ⁠⁠Facebook⁠

⁠⁠Join the Movement⁠⁠

⁠Free download: "The True You" devotional⁠

Download our List of Better Questions

Click here for article on Dunbar’s Number