theFormed.life

theFormed.life

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theFormed.life episodes

  • POD 008 | Sleep, Rest and Renewal: God's Rhythm in Creation and Our Lives

    SHOW NOTES:

    How important is rest and sleep for renewal and spiritual growth? In this episode we discuss how God's design for rest affects all of creation, with sleep being a crucial element. Dr. Gayln Perry and Liz Nelson regularly work with patients who struggle with sleep concerns. They share their expertise, clarifying and addressing common contributors to sleep and rest issues. We talk about practical ideas for improving sleep quality and how inconsistent sleep schedules, napping in the afternoon, and engaging in non-sleep-related activities in bed can negatively impact quality of sleep. Other negative contributing factors emphasized are caffeine, nicotine, and alcohol. Exposure to bright light in the evenings from electronics can also confuse our circadian rhythm. We find out more about the importance of understanding and prioritizing sleep and rest for our physical and spiritual health.


    In the latest episode of theFormed.life, we explore the importance of rest and sleep in our lives. 


    THREE KEY TAKEAWAYS:

    Join us in this conversation about the importance of rest and sleep in our daily lives.


    1. God designed us to need rest, and resisting a Sabbath rest can prevent us from experiencing the joy, beauty, hope, peace, and calm that God intended for us to flourish.
    2. Sleep disorders, such as insomnia, can be triggered by life stressors, but prioritizing rest and building connections with others can lead to improved sleep.
    3. Best practices for improving sleep quality include consistent wake-up times, avoiding non-sleep-related activities in bed, and minimizing exposure to caffeine, nicotine, and alcohol.


    #TheFormedLife #RestAndRenewal #SleepQuality #SabbathRest #MentalHealthAwareness

    GUEST BIO(S): 

    Dr. Gayln Perry is a pulmonologist dedicated to helping patients with all aspects of sleep. Her passion for this field stemmed from her personal struggle with insomnia over 30 years ago. She understands the importance of getting proper, restful sleep and empathizes with those who are facing life stressors that make it difficult to do so. With her expertise and compassion, Dr. Perry strives to help her patients achieve the restful sleep they need to live healthy and happy lives.


    Liz earned her MA in Counseling from MidAmerica Nazarene University. She is a Clincally Licensed Professional Counselor in the State of Kansas. Her areas of focus are adult counseling for individuals and couples. Elizabeth works from a psychodynamic theory and the attachment perspective that honors the client’s experiences of personal and relational struggles that interfere with well-being. Together with the client, Liz explores the symptoms and causes of distress. She works with a wide variety of needs and in diverse populations. Elizabeth also has over two decades of experience serving with the non-profit community in Kansas City, and is deeply committed to coming alongside these leaders, care-givers, and volunteers.

    QUOTES:


    “...the circadian rhythm is driven by… the master clock. Every cell in our body has a clock and… it lines up with the master clock… and that clock again wakes us up when the sun comes up and puts us to sleep at night… In the morning when we wake up, we really should get bright light exposure and that resets that clock every day.”
    – Dr. Gayln Perrry


    "I would prioritize sleep because it impacts your immune system, it impacts your emotional margin with your family, it impacts your productivity at work… it's extremely important."
    – Dr. Gayln Perry


    "[We need to] schedule times of holistic rest prior to other priorities, like where are the walks, where is nature, where is community, where are the sunsets? Schedule that ahead of other priorities or it disappears."
    – Liz Nelson


    “...there's an understanding that rest is designed by God, and we are designed by God to need rest.”
    – Liz Nelson


    RESOURCES:


    The Body Keeps The Score: Book


    Reading Resurrection in the Book of Nature: Blog from The Gospel Coalition


    How Shorter Work Weeks Could Save The Planet: BBC Blog



    35 min
  • POD 007 | Addressing Sexual Brokenness: Clues to Healing Through Story and Curiosity with Jay Stringer

    Unwanted sexual behaviors are not random but reflect unaddressed parts of one's story. Dealing with these underlying issues can lead to wider stories of healing. In this podcast episode, we talk about bringing the problems, heartache, brokenness, and sin into the foreground, and get really curious about the origins of how that all began. And then, with curiosity and kindness, that's how we are able to heal and grow.

    RESOURCES:
    Unwanted: How Sexual Brokenness Reveals Our Way to Healing

    by Jay Stringer


    Three key takeaways from this episode:

    • Insights into the journey out of unwanted sexual desires and behaviors
    • The church can be a significant place for sexual shame to develop due to secrecy, silence, and judgment. Christians need to open up about the realities of sexual brokenness and renew their sexual mind by submitting and being curious about it.
    • Sexual brokenness can be a roadmap to healing rather than a life sentence of shame or addiction. By addressing underlying issues, we can experience wider stories of healing.

    Don't just take our word for it; listen to the entire episode to discover more insights from the book and the speaker's journey out of unwanted behaviors.

    Guest Bio:
    Jay Stringer is a clinical researcher, author, and speaker best known for his work on the topic of unwanted sexual behavior. Jay's research looks at the origins of this behavior, which often results from unresolved childhood trauma and present-day issues such as a lack of purpose, depression, and anxiety. His book, Unwanted, challenges the traditional approaches of shame and lust management, instead encouraging people to embrace their brokenness as a roadmap to healing. Through his work, Jay is committed to helping people understand their stories of brokenness, and ultimately find healing and growth.

    Quotes from the episode:

    "The danger of purity culture is that we can't fail to educate, and then also try to trap and convict people of sin. I think that's very sinful behavior..."

    — Jay Stringer

    "Become your child's Google." "The reality is that the average age of initial exposure is nine to eleven with porn; the parent has the choice to either say I'm going to be the primary sex educator of the child or [it will be] porn or my middle school peers."

    — Jay Stringer 

    "Deprivation and Entitlement: We live with a lot of deprivation. We don't feel like our needs are that important. We don't take care of ourselves well. And so then when we actually get the opportunity that we sign off for the night, we move from this place of deprivation and then seesaw into entitlement of, "I deserve this thing.""

    — Jay Stringer


    Chapters
    02:19 Unwanted sexual behavior is not random
    07:59 Renewing the sexual mind
    14:38 Harm of the Purity Culture
    21:20 Primary sex educators for children
    26:31 Finding calm in healthy ways
    28:04 Emotional and physical calming and healing
    31:02 Deprivation and entitlement
    34:57 Swim toward fear
    38:47 Churches provide education

    45 min

About theFormed.life

From the publisher's feed

Conversations to inspire habits of whole-life discipleship that equip you to more thoughtfully and consistently be formed by God’s word and God’s ways with God’s people. The Formed Life is a resource brought to you by Christ Community Church in Kansas City.

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