If you could think of one word to describe what you want your home vibe to be - what comes to mind? Michelle + Somer start their conversation with this question and how they achieve their answers within their own homes might surprise you. What we experience at home sets the tone for our days. This is not a "make a perfect home" conversation. No, that's not what we're about here at SWHW. This is is a "make a home that's perfect for you" conversation. What are the factors that are uniquely specific to the personalities of your family? How do you create spaces that bring out the good of your people and are open enough to talk through the not so good? Whatever your home vibe may be, the best advice we have is to root it in the Holy Spirit. The Filler of Gaps, the Safety Net - that's the vibe we want our homes built on. Hear more from Somer and Michelle on this week's episode!

Now, listen, before you think we're being downers with this week's episode - trust us when we say this episode is full of more hope than womp womp. There's a very specific pain attached to disappointment, to dreams unrealized. But, what if the unrealized dream is actually just an avenue to a bigger work unfolding in our lives? What if we could cultivate hearts that see more than the loss? That, instead, see Jesus more clearly for who He is and what He did? We know, we know. That sounds great on paper (or on screen), but actually building lives that are full of hopes and dreams rooted in the Lord? It takes work. But it's so so possible. The beauty of unfulfilled hopes and dreams is they oftentimes open your eyes to what you actually really needed the whole time, and the story ends up being better than it could have been. Let's talk more about it, and leave even more hopeful than when we started, on this week's podcast: Unfulfilled Hopes and Dreams. Things We Cover: Our Experiences with Unfulfilled Hopes and Dreams It's Okay To Ask God Why Dealing with Disappointment and Finding Purpose Drawing Closer [...]

It doesn't officially release until tomorrow... but if you've been here a while, you know I struggle to keep a good secret in, SO I just ordered my copy, and here I am sending an email out about it. That sounds about right. Philippians has always been one of my favorites of Paul's letters -- but this last time I read through it, it really resonated with me in a new way. Not just in a learning kind of way, but a living kind of way. I actually feel like I spent 2023 feeling like I was fighting for joy. Sometimes, I felt like I was fighting for joy against my circumstance. Other times, I felt like I was fighting for joy amidst the broken world. Anybody else? But the truth? I was fighting my flesh. I was so busy looking around that I wasn't pressing into the hope I have in heaven...which provides MORE than enough joy for right now. With millions of Americans struggling with their mental health, it's safe to say that joy could be a game changer for a lot of us. In our conversation today, we discuss the value in practicing and pursuing joy [...]