Journal Gently: Helping Introverted Women Find Healing After Grief, Hurt, and Trauma

I’m sure there are times when a friend of yours is going through a difficult season, and you really want to help. You feel like this is something God has called you to do and you’re eager to show her…

As I continue to lean into written spiritual direction, I’ve been reading letters of spiritual direction from people of the past. Namely, Francis de Sales and Padre Pio.

Francis de Sales lived during…

While I’m thankful for having the Bible to read on my own, I also don’t want to forget the power of having God’s Word read over you. Have you ever sat and listened to someone read Scripture? Like, ju…

Do you ever have thoughts like these?

You’re not good enough.

You need to try harder.

Everything is fine.

I think we can all attest to moments when our thoughts are negative, unhelpful, and—worst of …

Today, we are wrapping up a series about posturing our hearts to hear from God.

As women who are going through difficult seasons—or as those caring for those going through difficult seasons—we are co…

We are on week 3 of a series about posturing our hearts to hear from God. Because as women who care for others, or as women who are going through a difficult season of our own, we are desperate to he…

Last week, we started a series all about posturing our hearts to hear from God. Specifically, we talked about the first R—ready—and how we can get both our physical space and our inner space, our hea…

Welcome back to Let’s Encourage One Another. My name is Kari Bartkus and I work as a spiritual director to women who are going through difficult seasons like grief, depression, fear, or anxiety. And …

Imagine this scenario with me. There’s a lady from church who recently lost her husband. She used to teach your Sunday school class, so you have developed a relationship with her through that, even t…

With it being fall, I know it is a natural season for change. Summer is coming to an end, kids are starting school, and some students are heading off to college. Routines are getting adjusted and Bib…

If you have been listening to the podcast for any length of time, it is probably no surprise to you that I am an introvert. A pretty big introvert, at that. And I know that either you relate to me, o…

Several years ago, my family and I got to raise a tiny caterpillar. For weeks, we hunted down milkweed to feed it. We watched it grow. And we saw it create its little chrysalis.

We even got the bless…

Today, I want to talk with you about something I have sensed happening both online and in real life interactions. It’s something I notice because it’s something I have experienced in the past. So whe…

As those who care for others, who seek to encourage them during difficult seasons, I know there are many times when we have to make difficult decisions.

We might need to decide where someone we care …

I’ve got to tell you, there are some days where I really struggle to sense God’s presence. Sometimes, life just feels empty and the daily tasks can overwhelm—I’ve got to get dishes done, and the laun…

You’ve heard me mention Journal Gently a few times on recent episodes, but I haven’t really taken the time to dive deep into what it’s about, what it looks like, and things like that.

I know many of …

Today, I want to talk about a key idea that we really need to keep in mind as we care for our hurting friends, and that is… God is the one responsible for the healing, and we are there to support God…

When you have a friend who is in the thick of it, who is feeling overwhelmed by all the things, who is exhausted at the thought of returning all those messages they have received from family members …

We all need moments when we pause to reflect. When we consider deeply what we have been feeling and experiencing. When we can ask God about the things stirring in our hearts and souls.

If you were pa…

Today, we get to talk with Bible teacher Mariel Davenport about how to tend your soul, especially during difficult seasons of grief and hardship.

You’ll hear a bit of her story as we get started in o…