Faith Over Fear

When life feels monotonous or hard, hold tight to this truth: Jesus promised to give us a filled-to-overflowing, beyond expectations life, and we find that life as we live connected and surrendered to Him. FIND AVA:https://www.AvaPennington.comhttps://www.facebook.com/AvaPennington.AuthorPagehttps://www.instagram.com/avapennington3/ CONNECT WITH WHOLLY LOVED MINISTRIES:https://www.WhollyLoved.comJoin the Private Wholly Loved Community Group:https://www.facebook.com/groups/443325386241769Join the private Faith Over Fear Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/442736966614671 GROUP DISCUSSION QUESTIONS: 1. What resonated with you most in today’s episode?2. How do you feel when you hear that Jesus came to give you a beyond-expectations life?3. What might that type of life look like?4. When have you most felt alive?5. How would you describe God?6. In what ways might God want you to enjoy life today?7. How can you hold tight to God’s promise of abundant life during difficult times?8. What truths regarding God and His heart toward you most encourage you?9. Why is it important to know that God wants us to experience a full life now, not just when we get to heaven? Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

Do you sometimes feel as if your life is completely out of control and headed toward a dead end? Do you sometimes feel insignificant and like you’re simply trudging from one monotonous and seemingly irrelevant and unimportant task to the next? If so, hold tight to this: God hand-crafted you for a glorious purpose, one He will lead you to, so long as you seek Him and yield to His will. (Scroll down to find the group discussion questions)Follow Jodie:https://www.jodiebailey.com/https://www.facebook.com/writerjodiebaileyhttps://www.instagram.com/authorjodiebailey/Find Wholly Loved, at:https://www.WhollyLoved.comFind Wholly Loved Ministries at:WhollyLoved.comJoin the private Faith Over Fear Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/442736966614671Join the Private Wholly Loved Community Group (also on Facebook):https://www.facebook.com/groups/443325386241769Group Discussion Questions:1. What resonated with you most in today’s episode?2. Based on Jeremiah 29:11, which Jodie read, what type of plans does God have for you? 3. Why is it important, in times of chaos and monotony, to trust that God has plans for us?4. How might seeking God’s ultimate purpose for your life help you interpret your challenges today with hope and inspiration?5. Can you share a time when God allowed you to see His purposes in a difficult or disappointing situation or season?6. Can you share a time when God used you to love and comfort someone experiencing a challenge He previously carried you through?7. What are some things you know to be true about God that can strengthen you for your current season and future challenges?8. In this episode, Jodie discussed the nation of Israel’s behavior prior to God’s promise. How does knowing God promised them good after they’d persistently rebelled encourage you in terms of your past mistakes, sins, and failures?9. What is one action step, based on today’s episode, God might be asking you to take this week? Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

No matter how smart, wise, strategic, or well-educated we are, we will all encounter situations during which we need supernatural guidance. In fact, if we want to experience the rich and satisfying life Christ desires for us, we need His wisdom every moment of every day. Because our wisdom is limited and our perception often faulty, when we rely on ourselves, we’re inevitably setting ourselves up for problems. Thankfully, God provides numerous ways we can discern the best course of action for every situation. (Scroll down to find the group discussion questions)Find Ava: https://www.AvaPennington.comhttps://www.facebook.com/AvaPennington.AuthorPagehttps://www.instagram.com/avapennington3/Find Wholly Loved, at:https://www.WhollyLoved.comFind Wholly Loved Ministries at:WhollyLoved.comJoin the private Faith Over Fear Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/442736966614671Join the Private Wholly Loved Community Group (also on Facebook):https://www.facebook.com/groups/443325386241769Group Discussion Questions:1. What resonated with you most in today’s episode?2. When have you needed a guide?3. How did you respond in that situation?4. Can you share a time when you chose to rely on yourself, rather than seek God’s guidance? What happened?5. What did you learn about yourself during the times when you overestimated your abilities to guide yourself?6. When have you relied on God’s guidance for you? What was the result?7. What did this situation teach you about God?8. What did this situation teach you about yourself?9. What might your life and day look like if you committed to seeking God’s guidance before moving forward in a decision you’re facing?10. What might God be asking you to do as a result of today’s podcast episode? Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

While we can’t see God, and we can’t always feel Him, either, He promises to remain present. He’s with us during the hard and the good times, the restful and the frightening times, and He will never leave us. The more we come to trust in this truth, the more confidence and peace we experience overall and in difficult seasons especially. (Scroll down to find the group discussion questions)Find Kimi: https://kimimiller.com/ http://whollyloved.com/meet-the-teamFind Wholly Loved, at:https://www.WhollyLoved.comFind Wholly Loved Ministries at:WhollyLoved.comJoin the private Faith Over Fear Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/442736966614671Join the Private Wholly Loved Community Group (also on Facebook):https://www.facebook.com/groups/443325386241769Group Discussion Questions:1. What resonated with you most in today’s episode?2. Do you normally feel or sense God’s presence? If so, how would you describe this?3. When do you most feel at peace?4. Why is it important not to gauge God’s presence or faithfulness on how we feel?5. What are some ways you are intentionally filling your mind with truth?6. When might you most need to remember that God is present with you?7. What is one way you can remind yourself of God’s presence?8. What does it mean to you when you read or hear Jesus’s statement that He overcame the world?9. How can knowing Christ overcame the world help decrease your anxiety and fears and increase your peace? Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

If we belong to Jesus, we will find ourselves under attack at some point. But we are far from victims. We can respond to every attack with confidence and from a place of victory because we belong to a victorious God. In this episode, mental health professional Janell Rardon shares her insights on how we can stand strong and confident, even when others act ugly. (Scroll down for group discussion questions)****Find Janell online:https://www.instagram.com/janellrardon/https://www.janellrardon.com/Listen to Janell’s podcast: Today's Heartlift with Janell - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/todays-heartlift-with-janell/id1415401851?mt=2Find Janell's latest book: Stronger Every Day: 9 Tools for an Emotionally Healthy You - https://www.amazon.com/Stronger-Every-Day-Emotionally-Healthy/dp/080073758XFind Jennifer Slattery at:JenniferSlatteryLivesoutLoudhttps://www.facebook.com/JenSlatteCatch her other podcast, Your Daily Bible Verse, with cohost Grace Fox:https://www.lifeaudio.com/your-daily-bible-verse/Find Wholly Loved, at:https://www.WhollyLoved.comFind Wholly Loved Ministries at:WhollyLoved.comJoin the private Faith Over Fear Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/442736966614671Join the Private Wholly Loved Community Group (also on Facebook):https://www.facebook.com/groups/443325386241769****Group Discussion Questions:1. What resonated with you most in today’s episode?2. Why is it important to recognize that these attacks can come from both followers of Christ and those who don’t follow Him?3. Why does it often hurt more when those in our faith communities wound us?4. Consider a time when you felt as if someone else was attacking you. In what way might this have been caused, at least in part, from their reaction to the light of Christ within you? 5. How often do you view your negative encounters from a spiritual perspective?6. Why is it important to “do our own work” as Janell phrased it?7. What does it look like to respond to attacks with a growth mindset?8. Why is it important to realize God maintains full authority over our lives? 9. What might God be asking you to do as a result of today’s podcast episode? Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

How do you respond when others attack, slander, or gossip about you? Does that cause your anxiety to rise? Do you worry how that hostile, hateful person might impact others in your social circle? In such situations, it’s normal to feel anxious and unsettled. But we don’t have to allow anyone else’s behavior to steal our joy, peace, precious moments, and effectiveness. We can, by God’s grace, rise up, resting in Him and seeking His perfect wisdom for whatever anyone else throws at us. Find Jennifer Slattery at:https://jenniferslatterylivesoutloud.com/https://www.facebook.com/JenSlatteFind Wholly Loved Ministries at:https://WhollyLoved.comJoin the private Faith Over Fear Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/442736966614671Join the Private Wholly Loved Community Group (also on Facebook):https://www.facebook.com/groups/443325386241769Group Discussion Questions:1. What resonated with you most in today’s episode?2. Think back to a time when you felt under attack. What emotions did that experience trigger?3. What fears did that experience exacerbate?4. Did you find yourself battling with certain insecurities? If so, what were they?5. In what ways did those fears and insecurities reveal falsehoods regarding God (His character, heart, or power)?6. Why is it important to remember that people attacked Jesus?7. How can knowing who we are in Christ and to Christ help us experience peace regardless of how others choose to behave?8. How can focusing on God’s promise of heaven increase our peace during painful experiences today? 9. When hurt, why is it important to allow ourselves to wrestle with our emotions and with God?10. Why is it important to seek His guidance regarding how to respond to the hurtful and potentially unjust actions of others? Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

This week, we're re-airing one of our most popular episodes to date - Jennifer's interview with Philip Yancey!Philip Yancey’s fire-and-brimstone fundamentalist upbringing temporarily drove him from the church. In this environment, where he learned to play the part, his identity became confused. By the time he reached college, his pain turned to anger and religious mockery, which only led to further rejection. Others viewed him as the rebel, the outcast, the trouble-maker. But God penetrated the walls he had built around himself, helped him untangle all the falsehoods he’d learned from truth, and set him on a road of healing and freedom. In this episode, Yancey shares his journey, his heart for those who have been deeply hurt in the name of religion, as well as some insights as to how those who haven’t experienced this much trauma can be instruments of healing for those who have. Find Philip Yancey at:https://philipyancey.comhttps://www.facebook.com/PhilipYanceyhttps://twitter.com/philipyanceyFind his latest release, a memoir, Where the Light Fell, here: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/665644/where-the-light-fell-by-philip-yancey/Find Jennifer:https://jenniferslatterylivesoutloud.comhttps://www.facebook.com/JenSlattehttps://www.instagram.com/slatteryjennifer/Find Wholly Loved, at:https://www.WhollyLoved.comJoin the private Faith Over Fear Group Here:https://www.facebook.com/groups/442736966614671Group Discussion Questions:1. What stood out to you most in Yancey’s story?2. When have past hurts hindered your ability to connect with Christ?3. Why is it important to remain alert to the potential hurts beneath a person’s outward, potentially even abrasive, behavior?4. Do you have anyone you can be completely honest with regarding your struggles, questions and doubts?5. What are some ways we might inadvertently shut those with questions or doubts down?6. If you are currently in a faith group, consider the climate. How does (or might) your group members respond if another member expresses questions or doubt?7. In what ways are you currently helping to create safe environments where people can be vulnerable and authentic?8. If you have been hurt by the church, what are your thoughts to Yancey’s statement regarding not allowing broken people to stand between you and God?9. If you currently are part of a faith community, how readily does your group acknowledge and apologize for hurts they have caused (knowing we all cause hurt, whether intentionally or unintentionally)?10. What is one step God is asking you to take after having listened to today’s podcast? Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

We live in a broken world filled with broken people. Because of this, everyone experiences some level of trauma. Unfortunately, past trauma experiences can greatly impact our lives, perceptions, and interactions in the present. Many of us have become adept at numbing our pain. In order to heal, however, we need to have the courage to unpack and process our trauma stories with truth but also with a great deal of self-kindness. In this episode, Dr. Allender and Cathy Loerzel, coauthors of Redeeming Heartache, released by Zondervan, share some archetype mentalities that often stem from trauma, why it’s so important we learn to order our trauma stories, and how we can grow in greater freedom. Find Dr. Allender at:https://theallendercenter.org/about/team/dan-allender/https://www.amazon.com/Dan-B.-Allender/e/B001HCW4JUFind Cathy Loerzel at:https://theallendercenter.org/about/team/cathy-loerzel/https://www.instagram.com/cathy.loerzel/Learn more about their book, Redeeming Heartache - https://www.zondervan.com/p/redeeming-heartache/Find Jennifer Slattery at:JenniferSlatteryLivesoutLoudhttps://www.facebook.com/JenSlatteFind Wholly Loved Ministries at:https://www.WhollyLoved.comGroup Discussion Questions:1. What resonated with you most in today’s episode?2. What type of thoughts or emotions arose when you heard Dr. Allender’s definition of trauma?3. Consider Cathy Loerzel’s discussion on the three common ways people deal with trauma (to fragment, numb, and isolate). When has this been true for you?4. What do you think it means, in terms of unpacking past wounding, to show oneself kindness?5. Why might it be important for us to acknowledge the brokenness of our world (that our world is not as God intended)? 6. How can acknowledging the world’s brokenness help us process past hurts?7. What thoughts or emotions arose when Dr. Allender spoke of false Edens? 8. What are some false Edens people might create?9. What are some false Edens you have created?10. What is one action step God might want you to take based on what you heard in today’s episode? Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

Life doesn’t always play out as we hope. What happens when it feels as if our dreams have been shattered, our prayers unanswered, and God seems to be leading us a direction we fear might lead to disappointment and pain? In this episode, Kristen Clark, from Girl Defined and coauthor of Not Part of the Plan: Trusting God with the Twists and Turns of Your Story, shares her struggles with infertility, how God met her in her pain, and the unexpected direction in which He took her. Find Kristen online:https://girldefined.comhttps://www.facebook.com/girldefinedhttps://www.instagram.com/girldefined/Resource mentioned: Not Part of the Plan: Trusting God with the Twists and Turns of Your Story: https://www.amazon.com/Not-Part-Plan-Trusting-Twists/dp/0801094720/30 Days Praying the Names of God Resource: http://girldefined.com/godFind Jennifer online:https://jenniferslatterylivesoutloud.comhttps://www.facebook.com/JenSlattehttps://www.instagram.com/slatteryjennifer/Find Wholly Loved, at:https://www.WhollyLoved.comJoin the private Faith Over Fear Facebook group at:https://www.facebook.com/groups/442736966614671Group Discussion Questions:1. What resonated with you most in today’s episode?2. When you were a youth, what were some expectations you had for your life?3. Why do you think unmet expectations can lead to a crisis of faith?4. Consider a moment or season of disappointment. During that period, were you viewing God’s character through your circumstances or viewing your circumstances through His character? Explain.5. During times of struggle, disappointment, or pain, how often do you reflect or read Bible passages on God’s character?6. Kristen indicated that what we believe about God in the deepest corners of our heart impacts the way we respond to all of life. Why might this be so?7. When we’re hurting, why is it important to remain connected with other believers?8. Kristen shared how God led her and her husband to a new dream they hadn’t previously considered. When has God turned one of your disappointments into a blessing?9. How can our expectations cause us to miss or become resistant to the new things God wants to do in our lives?10. What is one action step God might be wanting you to take this week? Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

When called to something or particularly challenging, our focus often lands on why we’re ill-equipped, ill-prepared, or on what we feel we lack. But this only causes our insecurities to grow. Self-focus can paralyze us. Choosing to step out in faith, however, to embrace assignments that feel far beyond us, leads to impact and increased intimacy with Christ. Our insufficiency is irrelevant in the hands of our all-sufficient God.Find Dr. Anderson: https://www.ficm.orgFind Jennifer:https://jenniferslatterylivesoutloud.comhttps://www.facebook.com/JenSlattehttps://www.instagram.com/slatteryjennifer/Find Wholly Loved, at:https://www.WhollyLoved.comResources Mentioned:Bondage BreakerFreedom from Fear: Overcoming Worry and AnxietyGrab a Fighting Fear with Faith T-shirt Here: https://whollyloved.com/product/faith-over-fear-t-shirt/ Group Discussion Questions:1. What resonated with you most in today’s episode?2. What were your thoughts regarding Dr. Anderson’s small dog story?3. Consider your battle against fear. In what ways have you allowed the devil to “set the agenda”?4. In what ways can the road to Jesus widen as we learn to rely and focus on Him?5. What might it look like to live in the victory of Christ today?6. Consider some of your fears. In what ways might those fears have been learned?7. Why is it important to find our identity and security in Christ?8. Dr. Anderson said that no one can keep us from becoming the person Christ created us to be. What came to mind when you heard this?9. Why is it important to recognize that our enemy the devil has been disarmed? Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.