“The Art of Relationships” Podcast

"If you're not fighting in a relationship, then someone's lying. Someone's not telling the truth because you're taking a passive stance...There is a huge difference between selflessness and passivity. A lot of times in the name of selflessness, we're just like 'Well, I'm not going to bring it up. I'm not going to say what I need. I'm not going to talk through this.' That's not selflessness, that's conflict avoiding." 

Today we continue the conversation with author Debra Fileta on how intentionally couples need to continually choose marriage rather than choosing to focus on personal happiness.

First dates, love notes, romance, there are so many different approaches to how it should be done. Christians are often told to avoid the hookup culture that is so common today, but beyond that, what should they do?

"We're talking about gritty, person to person intimacy of two people who know each other better than anyone else on the planet, and they still remain committed and in love with one another."

Dennis Rainey had a vision to help equip engaged and newly married couples around him. He felt the need struggling relationships had for tools and felt God call him to help mentor them. Fast forward 40 years and FamilyLife Conferences have reached hundreds of thousands of couples who want to set a strong foundation for their relationship. We got to talk about how marriage is changing and struggles that many couples find themselves in. 

“It's an important distinction to make, that the parts of us are not bad. Just like you have arms and legs, parts of your soul aren't bad. You want them, and they can work for you. The problem is if they become extreme, or if they take you over and you're not being led by the Holy Spirit.”

Anger, shame, sadness, envy, criticism. When you feel these emotions build up inside you, what is your gut instinct? What if those emotions are trying to tell you something about what is important to you? What if they are coming from a place that needs your attention? On this episode of the podcast, we talk with Kim Miller, MTh, LMFT, and author of Boundaries For Your Soul. She explains that our emotions can tell us a lot about ourselves...if we will just listen!

"So, if my son has a bad game am I just going to go throttle on him and lay on more after the game. That's not what he needs to hear. He kind of needs to hear the 'I love you no matter what.' That's important to show like 'I love you when you do well' and 'I love you when you do bad' because my love is not indicative of your results. That is really important for a child to hear that. Like, 'I love you no matter what, okay?'

Tune in as we continue the conversation with the Angels and Dodgers chaplains as they discuss how to parent their own kids in the midst of a performance-driven culture.

When you think "baseball", does your mind show you images of the World Series, home runs, hot dogs, loaded bases, and mascots? What about the personal side of a baseball team? Where do they get emotional and spiritual support? In today's podcast, the LA Dodgers chaplain Brandon Cash and LA Angels chaplain Jack Grogger take us inside the innings as we kickstart our new Freeway Series!

"We want to fix it. We do want to provide answers. There's a fear when we hear somebody start to question God and we feel like we've got to fix that for them right away..."

We continue the conversation with Dr. Ed Uszynski in this podcast episode. After a car accident that severely injured his leg, as well as the death of a close friend and the loss of a friend's grandson, Ed reflects with us on what he needs most in the dark moments following a tragedy.