As Pause Renew Next approaches 200 episodes, I’m offering a few reflections as I look back on the journey of PRN. Today, I’m sharing a few fun PRN stats, talking about how podcasting has changed, and explaining how I’ve personally grown and been stretched since beginning the podcast. More than anything, I’m saying THANK YOU to you for your support and for being a part of this community!

May you be encouraged on your journey with Jesus!

We haven’t talked a lot about addiction on the podcast, but I think it’s a topic that deserves some time and attention. So, I’m really thankful for today’s guest, Ericka Andersen, who shares about her journey from alcohol dependence to sobriety. Ericka just released her new book: Freely Sober: Rethinking Alcohol Through the Lens of Faith, and I loved getting to talk to her about it on the podcast.

In this episode, we talk about how alcohol affects and is marketed to women, specifically. We also talk about themes of addiction, self-medication, eating disorders, community, faith, and so much more.

I really appreciate that Ericka’s approach to sobriety is full of curiosity and compassion, not how-to’s and action steps. My hope is that today’s episode will help to spark your own curiosity about addiction and sobriety, and give you a new or more full perspective on the subject.

To find out more about Ericka or to access the resources she talked about on the podcast, visit her website: Freelysober.com.

May you be encouraged on your journey with Jesus.

It’s a new year, and we’re pressing on in our resilience series! Welcome to 2026, friends. Today, we’re reflecting on how movement plays a role in building resilience, and I’m not just talking about exercise!

We’ll start our time together with a grounding exercise, then spend some time reflecting on how trauma and distress can lead to stuck places in our bodies, minds, and souls. We’ll take a look at some of these frozen places and talk about how movement may play a role in building resilience.

May you be encouraged in your journey with Jesus!

Whether you’re prancing, limping, or crawling into Advent, this Scripture meditation episode is for you. We’re spending time together today in Luke 1, getting a peak into the miraculous and beautiful interaction between two amazing women of faith: Mary and Elizabeth. Join me for a 15 minute pause in your day, as we slow down and refocus around the good news of Advent.

Today we’re talking about a topic that often goes under the radar or gets misunderstood: self-harm. I’m really grateful for this week’s guest, Brittany Tinsley, who shares some of her story and experience with self-injury. We talk about themes of faith, mental health and the church, ways this topic gets misrepresented, the change cycle, and elements of healing shame, gaining compassion, and receiving support. This conversation is handled with a lot of care, and whether or not you have personal experience with this topic, I think this episode will be helpful.

Brittany is an author and recently released a new book: Stories Our Scars Tell: Hope, Healing, and Honesty about the Wounds We Carry. If you enjoyed this episode and you’d like to know more of Brittany’s story, I hope you’ll go check it out!

May you be encouraged on your journey with Jesus!

If you were going to listen to just one episode about resilience this season, I would definitely recommend this one! Today, we’re reflecting on the reservoir that feeds our endurance, perseverance, and resilience.

In order to persist through difficulty, we must rally and borrow upon our reserves. Naturally, we have quite an amazing ability to survive and thrive, but supernaturally, we have access to an even greater Reserve.

I hope this episode is an encouragement to you and a reminder that you’re not alone.

May you be encouraged on your journey with Jesus!

In this 15 minute soul-care reflection episode, we’ll begin with a relaxing imaging exercise and then spend time talking about a phenomenon that happens when we hit our mental and emotional limit. When we feel overwhelmed, exhausted, grieved, or trapped, our brains access what I’m calling “the escape hatch.”

I share a few examples of how this phenomenon can show up, and how recognizing this pattern in ourselves is a helpful way to notice and pay attention to our emotions and needs.

May you be encouraged on your journey with Jesus.

What makes someone resilient? Would you say that you are a resilient person? In today’s episode, we’re exploring reasons why we might want to expand the way we’re thinking about resilience. In our common understanding of resilience, we might be selling ourselves and others short.

If you enjoy this episode, please go share it with a friend!

May you be encouraged on your journey with Jesus.