Shows
Journal Gently: Helping Introverted Women Find Healing After Grief, Hurt, and Trauma[Ep 180] How to Journal Through a Book (Plus Summer Reading Recommendations)It’s probably no surprise to you that I am an avid reader, averaging about one or two books a week. Not only do I read for fun, but I also get to read for work, editing and proofreading book manuscripts right before they get published. I’m guessing that if you’re listening to this episode, you like to read, too. And I’ve learned that books can often prompt some powerful journaling sessions with God. But how do you know which books to journal about and what to write? Today, I’ve got 8 ide...2025-06-1711 minJournal Gently: Helping Introverted Women Find Healing After Grief, Hurt, and Trauma[Ep 179] Engaging with the Samaritan Woman: A Message on John 4Deciding on my major in college really wasn’t that hard for me. I knew I wanted my studies to focus on the Bible and speech. I wanted to learn more about His Word so that I could communicate it clearly to those around me. So that’s what I did: I majored in communication and minored in biblical studies, taking as many classes as I could to understand more about the Bible and spiritual formation. The truth is, as much as I love supporting women as they seek healing in God and as they journal together with...2025-06-0320 min
Anchored Decisions035: The Power of Prayer Journaling in Making Life Decisions with Kari BartkusShow NotesCan journaling really help you make better decisions — and hear from God more clearly? In this episode, spiritual director and journal coach Kari Bartkus shares how prayer journaling creates space to process emotions, clarify your values, and invite God into your decision-making. We talk about journaling methods beyond just pros and cons lists, how to overcome the fear of someone reading your journal, and what to do when you're staring at a blank page. I also share a powerful story of how God used the most random word in my journaling time to redirect my bu...2025-05-0937 minJournal Gently: Helping Introverted Women Find Healing After Grief, Hurt, and Trauma[Ep 172] Trusting God Through Obedience: A Conversation with Neil BroereI don’t know about you, but I read a lot of books. And there are a lot of good books out there. Many of which I recommend to you. But there are only a few that really stir deeply in my soul. Neil Broere’s upcoming book, Obedience, Suffering, & Reward was one of those. When I read it, I knew I wanted to talk to him more about it. And today, you get to hear that conversation. While obedience is a simple concept to understand, it can be hard to live out. Especially when ther...2025-02-1830 minJournal Gently: Helping Introverted Women Find Healing After Grief, Hurt, and Trauma[Ep 169] Which One Is Stopping You?In July of 2021, I ran my first challenge as a ministry. It was the Courageous Care 5-day challenge, and it walked women through five obstacles that prevent us from reaching out to those around us who are hurting. What was a challenge became a masterclass, which became a book. And it features the key principle behind what Love Does That is all about: that God has called every one of us to care for those around us who are going through difficult seasons. To walk alongside them. To love them. To support them. Because, as...2025-01-0711 minJournal Gently: Helping Introverted Women Find Healing After Grief, Hurt, and Trauma[Ep 168] [Journal Reviews] Bible Study JournalsJournaling through God’s Word is a great way to read, study, and actually engage with what He is saying to you. And since the New Year is just a few weeks away, it’s a natural time to recommit ourselves to being in the Bible. Psalm 119:16 (NIV) says, “I delight in your decrees; I will not neglect your word.” Not only are we to not neglect God’s Word, we are to take delight in it! Do you delight in it? Or has it gotten dreary and dull? Wherever you are in your B...2024-12-1708 minJournal Gently: Helping Introverted Women Find Healing After Grief, Hurt, and Trauma[Ep 162] The Most Important ThingDo you ever have one of those moments when you know, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that God has laid something on your heart? Maybe it’s an idea. Maybe it’s a truth from His Word. Maybe it’s a calling. It is these things that I often write down in my journal. These words from God that I want to remember and hold onto and keep thinking about. Well, I have experienced this recently, and today I want to share with you about the most important thing...2024-09-1709 minJournal Gently: Helping Introverted Women Find Healing After Grief, Hurt, and Trauma[Ep 161] [Journal Reviews] Guided Journals for GriefC.S. Lewis wrote, “You can’t see anything properly while your eyes are blurred with tears.” And tears often come when we lose something or someone that was very important to us. The truth is, grief is something we all experience, especially when we lose someone we love, but even when we experience other loss, like the loss of a job, the death of a dream, and the end of a marriage. Journaling can be such a helpful way to process some of these complex thoughts and feelings that often come after such a loss...2024-09-0312 minJournal Gently: Helping Introverted Women Find Healing After Grief, Hurt, and Trauma[Ep 158] Burdens vs. Loads: Discerning When to Help Someone (Re-release) Several years ago, my family and I got to raise a tiny caterpillar. For weeks, we hunted down milkweed to feed it. We watched it grow. And we saw it create its little chrysalis. We even got the blessing of watching it come out of the chrysalis, and caught most of it on video. It was such a beautiful moment. While our little pet didn’t have any major trouble, we’ve all heard, I’m sure, that if you try to help a struggling butterfly out of its chrysalis, its wings will never be strong...2024-07-1609 minJournal Gently: Helping Introverted Women Find Healing After Grief, Hurt, and Trauma[Ep 152] How to Decline an Offer of Help Gracefully (Re-Release)Have you ever had someone offer some sort of support or help to you that you didn’t necessarily want, but you didn’t know how to say no without hurting their feelings? When you are hurting or struggling or need some extra help, you do get to have a say in the matter. You can choose which counselor you want to meet with. You can decide which friends to confide in. You can determine which activities are healthy for you and which ones are not. You look at what’s available to you and make a choice...2024-04-1614 min
The Small Church Ministry Podcast102: Best Care Ministry: Teach People To Care Even When They’re Afraid | with Kari BartkusWhile formalized care teams can be great, there’s no replacement for care that’s authentic and organic. So often we see needs, but we stumble in our efforts or are held back by discomfort or fear of saying the wrong thing. What if there were a way to overcome the obstacles and help others do the same? Kari Bartkus, author of Courageous Care, joins us in this episode to share how.Listen in to hear:Why caring well is one of the biggest gifts a small church offersThat each of u...2023-12-1240 minJournal Gently: Helping Introverted Women Find Healing After Grief, Hurt, and Trauma[Ep 131] Healing in Layers: What Art Taught Me About GriefHealing has layers. No, not in the physical sense, like you can pile one layer on top of the other. But we heal from different parts of grief at different times, and sometimes even revisit some areas we thought we had processed already. But instead of using the famous onion example of peeling back one layer at a time, I’m choosing to make it a little more personal and look at healing in layers like my art is done in layers. I’m guessing you, too, have some sort of creative streak in you, wheth...2023-09-0513 minJournal Gently: Helping Introverted Women Find Healing After Grief, Hurt, and Trauma[Ep 130] Is Your Hurt Preventing You From Loving Others Well?Today’s conversation is going to be a bit of a heart-to-heart. Because I’ve seen something in my own life that I’m guessing might be happening in yours. It’s something that is hurting a lot of my relationships. It’s hurting people that I love. And I certainly don’t intend for that to be happening. Yet all too often, I don’t do what it takes to change, to fix it, to do what it takes to make things better. What I’m talking about is letting hurt from my past preventi...2023-08-2910 minJournal Gently: Helping Introverted Women Find Healing After Grief, Hurt, and Trauma[Ep 129] [Book Recommendation] The Wingfeather Saga by Andrew PetersonI don’t know about you, but I love me a good book. There’s just something about sitting down and getting lost in another world for a while—and often gleaning a lesson or two along the way. That’s why I’ve enjoyed recommended some books to you this year. And today is no different. I have a book—well, actually a series of books—that I really couldn’t recommend more. A series that is good for you and any students you might have in your life, too. You already know the series...2023-08-2208 minJournal Gently: Helping Introverted Women Find Healing After Grief, Hurt, and Trauma[Ep 127] How to Choose a Bible You’ll Actually UseBible reading is one of those core spiritual disciplines you think about when you think about the Christian life, right? We are encouraged from a young age to read the Bible every single day. Reading God’s Word helps us to recognize His voice. It helps us know His character and what He values or finds important. It teaches us to know what He cares about and how He wants us to live. Why wouldn’t we want to spend time reading the Bible? Not only does it teach us a...2023-08-0814 minJournal Gently: Helping Introverted Women Find Healing After Grief, Hurt, and Trauma[Ep 124] [Book Recommendation] Visit the Sick By Brian CroftHave you ever had someone in your church or circle of friends become sick, maybe even have to stay in the hospital? And maybe you wanted to visit them, or you felt God nudging you to visit them, but… you just weren’t sure? Maybe you didn’t know what to say. Or maybe you felt uncomfortable in a hospital setting. Or maybe you even thought the person was going to die and you didn’t know how to approach them. I totally get this. I often feel like I’m interrupting others and I usually do...2023-07-1808 minJournal Gently: Helping Introverted Women Find Healing After Grief, Hurt, and Trauma[Ep 123] A Conversation with Marla Beech: Journaling as a Daily PracticeI don’t know about you, but I love to hear about how others journal: what journaling methods they use, if they like to write by hand or type, the materials they use, and the rhythms and practices they have put in place. Because journaling is such a personal thing. What works for one person may not work for another. And really, what works for one person at one point in time may not work for them a few months down the road. The truth is, journaling goes through seasons of its own, doesn’t it?2023-07-1131 minJournal Gently: Helping Introverted Women Find Healing After Grief, Hurt, and Trauma[Ep 122] Feeling Anxious? Try This 5-Minute Journaling SessionAnxiety can impact us in a deep way, especially when it revolves around something incredibly important to us, like when someone we love is hurting, or when we are going through a trial of our own. And in some cases, anxiety becomes more severe. We can’t shake the worries and fears, and it actually begins to interfere with daily living. · We stop driving because we’re worried about having an accident. · We stop going to church or events or programs because we’re uneasy around groups of people. · We stop walking into stores and orde...2023-07-0415 minJournal Gently: Helping Introverted Women Find Healing After Grief, Hurt, and Trauma[Ep 120] [Book Recommendation] Invitation to Retreat by Ruth Haley BartonThis year, I am doing a monthly episode where I share a book recommendation with you, because I love to read, and I bet you do, too! This month, it’s Invitation to Retreat, by Ruth Haley Barton. And it fits in perfectly with some of our topics this summer as we take a closer look at spiritual practices that help us stay close to God, even when life is hard or heavy. Just a couple of weeks ago, we talked a little bit about journaling—specifically, how to journal in front of others. And next w...2023-06-2009 minJournal Gently: Helping Introverted Women Find Healing After Grief, Hurt, and Trauma[Ep 118] Tips for Journaling In Front of OthersImagine this... You've settled in your favorite chair, blanket wrapped over your lap, as you pull out your notebook and pen. You've been looking forward to journaling about some things that have been stirring in your heart lately. Taking a deep breath, you open the cover and find the right page. Your pen is posed to start writing. And then your husband walks in. He hasn't seen you all day and wants to hear about what you've been doing. Or your littles climb over the arm of the chair to sit...2023-06-0606 minJournal Gently: Helping Introverted Women Find Healing After Grief, Hurt, and Trauma[Ep 112] A Conversation with Janell Wood: Loving Unbelieving Family MembersI’m wondering if you have a family member in your life—a parent, a son or daughter, a brother or sister—who doesn’t know Christ. If so, then you probably know the heaviness and grief that can bring to your spirit. You wonder how you can witness to them. You pray for their salvation. You try to find ways to love them and show them you care. But ultimately, you cannot make them accept Christ. And that’s hard. 2023-04-2546 minJournal Gently: Helping Introverted Women Find Healing After Grief, Hurt, and Trauma[Ep 110] [Book Recommendation] The Next Right Thing by Emily P. FreemanStop with me for a moment and consider how many decisions you make every single day. What clothes to wear.What to eat for breakfast. For lunch. For supper.How to spend your time at work.What gets cleaned that day at home.What time to go to the grocery store, how to get there, and which items to buy and which ones to pass on.Whether to answer that phone call, or that text message, or that email.And if to answer, what to say in response.Whether to...2023-04-1110 minJournal Gently: Helping Introverted Women Find Healing After Grief, Hurt, and Trauma[Ep 109] It's Getting Real: God's Invitation to Me for the Rest of LentSo today, I’m supposed to be sharing with you my book recommendation for the month of March. But apparently God has some other plans. Listen in to find out what’s going on. Kari BIBLE VERSES + RESOURCES: · Episode 92: Practicing the Holy Hush Instead of the Holiday Hustle: Intentionally Inviting Moments of Deep Silence · Episode 94: Entering the Silence and Stillness with God: A Conversation with Blogger and Writer Celia Miller · Episode 103: 6 Strategies to Manage Overwhelm, Stress, and Change · “But those who obey God’s word truly show how complet...2023-03-1410 minJournal Gently: Helping Introverted Women Find Healing After Grief, Hurt, and Trauma[Ep 107] Identifying the Ways You Comfort OthersGod designed us each so differently. And we want to use those characteristics to love others well, right? But what I’ve experienced, and maybe you have, too, is that it is so easy for us to get this idea in our heads that we don’t fit the right mold. I’m not outgoing. I don’t know what to say. I’m not like so-and-so… she always knows what to do. I don’t really know her that well, so how can I try to comfort her? What if...2023-02-2809 minJournal Gently: Helping Introverted Women Find Healing After Grief, Hurt, and Trauma[Bonus] Writing a Hymn or PoemIn school right now, my daughter has been tasked with writing a hymn. How would you feel if I invited you to do the same? What would you write about? What aspect of God would you want to focus on? How has He been revealing Himself to you lately? How are you longing for Him to reveal Himself to you? In this bonus episode, I’m going to share an original poem I wrote years ago that focuses on God’s love for me in spite of all my sin. Kari 2023-01-2607 minJournal Gently: Helping Introverted Women Find Healing After Grief, Hurt, and Trauma[Ep 102] Sitting with Others in their Grief and Loss with Grief Coach Julie Lynn AshleyHow do you support a friend or family member—or even “just” an acquaintance—who has just lost someone they love? Are you willing to step into that sacred space of grief with them? Or, if they need additional support, can you point them toward someone who can be there in that more professional role? Let me introduce you to Grief Coach Julie Lynn Ashley. Julie Lynn offers 1:1 coaching services to individuals who are in the midst of grief, specific to the death of a loved one. Julie Lynn shares how God has called her into thi...2023-01-2435 minJournal Gently: Helping Introverted Women Find Healing After Grief, Hurt, and Trauma[Ep 100] [Book Recommendation] Sensible Shoes by Sharon Garlough BrownAs an avid reader and someone who loves to learn, I enjoy passing on ideas to others who want to grow in specific areas. These authors have been mentors to me in many ways, and I hope they become the same to you. (And I promise that none of the book recommendations will include spoilers. I would be so disappointed to ruin a book for you.) My first book recommendation is really the first book I recommend to anyone who wants to learn more about the spiritual life and different spiritual practices—and spiritual direction in...2023-01-1008 minJournal Gently: Helping Introverted Women Find Healing After Grief, Hurt, and Trauma[Ep 98] Grief Has A Way Of… Well, Getting In The Way: A Personal Letter From Me To YouBeing a spiritual director who focuses on writing back and forth to my clients, I’ve come to realize just how important letter writing is to my work, to the way I reach out to and encourage others. It’s not just in my personal correspondence with those who work with me in written spiritual direction or the Journal Gently program, but even in the idea that I have chosen to focus on email as my main way to connect with you all outside of this podcast, rather than social media or video. And so this...2022-12-2707 minJournal Gently: Helping Introverted Women Find Healing After Grief, Hurt, and Trauma[Ep 96] The Story of Love Does That Told Through Podcast InterviewsLet’s Encourage One Another was born in March 2021 as a ministry out of my work at Love Does That. The purpose of Love Does That was really to reach out to women who were hurting or grieving—and teaching you to reach out to them, too. But the podcast is not where I started. In fact, spiritual direction is not where I started, either. As we near the end of the year, I’ve been reflecting on the journey that God has taken me on, from starting as a sympathy gift shop as a side h...2022-12-1310 minJournal Gently: Helping Introverted Women Find Healing After Grief, Hurt, and Trauma[Ep 94] Entering the Silence and Stillness with God: A Conversation with Blogger and Writer Celia MillerIn case you haven’t noticed it, we’ve kind of had a theme going on these past few weeks, and that is finding God in the silence. So when I saw Celia Miller’s Advent devotional called Be Still & Know and have been reading about her own journey into silence and stillness, I invited her back to the podcast to share with us. We talk about how Celia was introduced to the spiritual practice of silence, her initial response, ways we can incorporate silence into our daily lives, and why silence with God can be so...2022-11-2933 min
A Season of Caring PodcastProcessing the Grief of CaregivingSend us a textRayna Neises, your host, interviews Kari Bartkus. After seeing too many people go through hardship alone, Kari was determined to show up and be present with those around her who were hurting. She started the organization Love Does That where she serves as a spiritual director to hurting women. Kari uses a modern-day letter-writing approach for those drawn to quiet spaces and written words. She shares the following insights: [3:00] Grief is any kind of loss that we are experiencing.[5:00] The person receiving care is grieving too and they might not be aware o...2022-11-2423 minJournal Gently: Helping Introverted Women Find Healing After Grief, Hurt, and Trauma[Ep 91] When God is Silent: Experiencing His Presence in New WaysWhen we go through difficult seasons like grief or anxiety or illness, we can find ourselves asking so many questions of God: Why did this happen? What am I supposed to do? You said You’re good, but this doesn’t feel good. You said You’d give me Your peace, but I don’t feel Your peace. I feel turmoil. I feel anger. And we ask these questions whether we are the ones who are struggling or if we’re the ones loving a friend through a difficult season. It...2022-11-0812 minJournal Gently: Helping Introverted Women Find Healing After Grief, Hurt, and Trauma[Ep 90] An Example in Receiving an Invitation from God: This Is For YouBack in September, we went through a 4-part series about posturing our hearts to hear from God, and each heart posture started with the letter R. The first R was ready. We talked about getting ready to meet with God—creating a physical space to have some time alone with Him but also creating an inner space and preparing our hearts to hear from Him. The second R was recognize. We talked about recognizing God’s voice, His presence, His invitation to you in that moment. What does God have to say to you? The...2022-11-0116 minJournal Gently: Helping Introverted Women Find Healing After Grief, Hurt, and Trauma[Ep 88] Helping Others When You Have Limited ResourcesI’m sure there are times when a friend of yours is going through a difficult season, and you really want to help. You feel like this is something God has called you to do and you’re eager to show her how much you care. But then you start going through your options: Maybe you can spend some extra time with her. But you're too busy with family and work and volunteer commitments to really offer her much of your time. Maybe you can send her a care package. But the budget's pret...2022-10-1808 minJournal Gently: Helping Introverted Women Find Healing After Grief, Hurt, and Trauma[Ep 86] Hold That Thought with Life Coach and Spiritual Director Gem FadlingDo you ever have thoughts like these? You’re not good enough. You need to try harder. Everything is fine. I think we can all attest to moments when our thoughts are negative, unhelpful, and—worst of all—not true. But how do we even begin to turn things around? Today, I’d like to introduce you to life coach and spiritual director Gem Fadling. Gem is one of the founding partners of an organization called Unhurried Living, where they train people to rest deeper, live fuller, and lead better...2022-10-0435 minJournal Gently: Helping Introverted Women Find Healing After Grief, Hurt, and Trauma[Ep 85] Posturing Your Heart to Hear from God, Part 4: RespondToday, we are wrapping up a series about posturing our hearts to hear from God. As women who are going through difficult seasons—or as those caring for those going through difficult seasons—we are constantly seeking God’s guidance and presence, aren’t we? These four heart postures, each beginning with the letter R, help us to hear from God. The first R was about getting ready to meet with God. The second R was about recognizing God’s voice and movement in our lives. The third R was about...2022-09-2712 minJournal Gently: Helping Introverted Women Find Healing After Grief, Hurt, and Trauma[Ep 84] Posturing Your Heart to Hear from God, Part 3: ReceiveWe are on week 3 of a series about posturing our hearts to hear from God. Because as women who care for others, or as women who are going through a difficult season of our own, we are desperate to hear from God. We want to know that He’s with us. We want to know what He wants us to do in this specific situation. We bring our questions and doubts to Him and wait for Him to answer. And so we come to Him. We meet with Him. The first R was about getting re...2022-09-2012 min
Just One Simple ThingE77:Changing Seasons, Changing SchedulesSend us a textIs your schedule changing as fast as the fall leaves on the trees? If you are adjusting to a new rhythm, jump into this episode where you’ll learn three ways to transition into the changing seasons.For many people, the transition between Summer and Fall marks a significant shift in their schedule.If you aren’t careful, you’ll wake up one morning and find yourself wrapping Christmas presents, wondering where the last quarter of the year went. But a few simple strategies can help you create some moment...2022-08-2906 min