She Found Joy Podcast

Many of us have probably heard about joy, especially during this time of year. We sing about it in church, we talk about being joyful in all circumstances … but beyond the fuzzy holiday feeling, why is it important and how can we experience joy when bad things happen to us or someone we love?

How can we experience joy 365 days a year — not just during Christmastime?

Today, I’d like to invite you to join me and five special guest speakers this Friday night, Dec. 9, from 6-8:30 PM CST, as we talk about joy for a special live episode of the Finding Joy Podcast. (We’re calling it a “Ladies Night Out” for the women who are attending locally here in Des Moines.)

If you don’t live in Des Moines, that’s OK! I will broadcasting live from Facebook, too. The main message will start around 7 PM CST, so tune in starting then. Regardless of how full your joy tank is, it is my prayer that by the end of the night you will be encouraged and inspired to dive deeper into the oceans of joy that are available to those who are in Christ. You can read more about the event here, and I’ll see you this Friday!

P.S. Already have plans for Dec. 9? That’s OK, too! I’ll be publishing the messages on the Finding Joy Podcast on Dec. 14!

Finding Joy is a podcast dedicated to bringing you encouragement and inspiration in all of life’s moments — the good, bad and everything in-between.

Gretchen Fleming is our guest for the 21st episode of the Finding Joy podcast, and I’m so delighted to share our conversation with all of you! Though I met Gretchen just months ago, her friendship has already meant so much to me. She is a genuine sister in Christ, and I know her story will inspire many.

As a wife, mom, Bible teacher and blogger, Gretchen loves to see Jesus change lives in the same way that He changed hers. On her blog, Gretchen writes, “My passion is to follow hard after Jesus, knowing He is the treasure of a lifetime and worth every minute I commit to Him. God’s Word has been life-giving through the most trying times — a great source of strength, wisdom, and truth. It is my heartfelt desire to encourage women in their faith with the hope I have found in His Word.”

In this episode, Gretchen and I talk about:

• How to cultivate a hunger for God’s Word, and how God speaks to us through His Word.
  
• Fighting for faith when life doesn’t make sense.
• Learning to trust and enjoy the Lord when your heart is broken.
  
• How practicing gratitude makes room for more joy in life.
  
• Learning how to be a parent of surrender — a parent who entrusts their children to God.

Gretchen encourages us to rejoice in the Lord because of who He is — when times are good, and especially when times are bad.

Links From the Show

Gretchen’s Blog

Connect With Gretchen

Facebook | InstagramRead More

Remember how I said God was on the move at the site launch party just a few weeks ago?

Well, He’s on the move in more ways than one, and today I’m so excited to unveil something God put on my heart several months ago. Back in August, I was scrolling through my newsfeed on Facebook, and I noticed one of my fellow podcasters was doing a live event in her city. Beyond my initial reactions of, “That sounds so cool!” and “I bet that everyone is going to have an amazing time!” the Holy Spirit interrupted my thoughts. You should doing something like that here in Des Moines, Lauren, the voice said.

I chuckled at the ridiculous thought and kept scrolling. As if I had time to do something like that …

One month later, the Lord kept putting signs and messages in my path to reiterate the fact that He wanted me to do a live podcast event here in Des Moines. This wasn’t just some silly idea I put in your head, Lauren, I could hear Him say to me. I actually want you to do this. And better yet, I’ll help you. 

After this undeniable encounter with the Lord, I couldn’t shy away from the idea any longer. And so, it is my pleasure to announce to you that, by the grace of God, I will be hosting a Finding Joy live podcast event we are calling Finding Joy Ladies Night Out in the Des Moines metro area on December 9 from 6-8:30 p.m.!

There are so many reasons not to choose joy in the world we live in. And yet because of Jesus Christ, there are so many reasons to choose joy, and we are reminded of that this Christmas season.

That’s why I’m hosting this live event — to remind us all of the JOY that has been given to us through the birth, death and resurrection of our Savior.

I have an incredible list of guest speakers who will be joining me for the event:

• Jennifer Dukes Lee, author of “The Happiness Dare”
• Mary Carver, author of “Choose Joy”
• Kimberly Stuart, author of “Balancing Act,” “Operation Bonnett,” and more.
• Julie Lefebure, writer at the Loving God, Loving Others blog
• Jen Green, radio personality at Life 107.1 FM Des Moines

If you live in the Des Moines area, I’d love to see your beautiful face at the event! Dinner is included and you can get ticket and event info here.

Even if you don’t live in Des Moines, I’d love to see your beautiful face on the LIVE Facebook stream that I will be hosting from my author Facebook page. You can even prayerfully consider purchasing a ticket anyways as a donation to help me cover the costs of the event. Just write “DONATION” in the name box. It’s going to be a fun and amazing night! OK, now on to today’s bonus podcast episode.

Finding Joy is a podcast dedicated to bringing you encouragement and inspiration in all of life’s moments — the good, bad and everything in-between.

Alison Tiemeyer is our guest for the 18th episode of the Finding Joy podcast, which also happens to be a bonus episode for this month! As many of you know, due to the other obligations I have outside of this blog, I only publish a new podcast episode every other week. It is my hope and prayer as the Lord calls me deeper into ministry that eventually I will be able to post a new episode every week! You can be praying for this, too!Read More

After 20 women asked me how to start a podcast at the She Speaks Conference for writers and speakers, I thought to myself, “I wonder how many other people out there are looking to start a podcast ministry but don’t know where to start?”

Because I can’t be in 20+ places at once, I decided the best way to help everyone was to create a document that could walk people through the process in a step-by-step format. That is how this in-depth guide came to be!

Finding Joy is a podcast dedicated to bringing you encouragement and inspiration in all of life’s moments — the good, bad and everything in-between.

I can hardly believe it but today the Finding Joy podcast celebrates its 10th episode! YAY! Thanks so much for tuning in and for all of your support, dear readers. I hope as the podcast grows that we all continue to grow along with it — stronger and more united in Christ. To celebrate the 10th episode, I’m giving something away to one lucky listener. All you have to do is head over to iTunes and leave a review by June 20. Then I’ll randomly select a winner. It’s that easy!

Now … onto today’s episode! Today’s guest is Christian author and speaker Emily Wierenga. Emily lives in a small Dutch hamlet in Canada and is a wife and mom to three kiddos. She’s also the writer of several books, including her most recent, Making It Home. Two years ago Emily went on a blogger’s trip with World Help to Uganda, where she fell in love with the people of Africa. Shortly after her trip she founded a non-profit called The Lulu Tree, where her team works to prevent tomorrow’s orphans by equipping today’s mothers.

In this episode, Emily and I talk about:

• Her battle with anorexia and infertility.
• How sometimes you have to lose yourself in order to discover who you really are.
• The release of her newest book, Making It Home.
• Why she made the hard decision to take a break from blogging.

Emily encourages us to confront our demons, and let go of fear and control in exchange for the freedom and fullness Christ offers us. Read More