How do we live in the most connected generation and yet feel so alone? What do we do when we find ourselves struggling with loneliness?

Author and lawyer Justin Whitmel Earley argues that loneliness isn't the way God intended for us to live because we were made for deep and intentional friendships. It was his own journey through a season of depression and anxiety led him to discover the power of spiritual disciplines including the practice of embodied community. In his latest book, Made for People: Why We Drift into Loneliness and How to Fight for a Life of Friendship, Justin looks at how we as a culture have gotten to this epidemic of loneliness and how we can find our way back to what God has for us when it comes to friendship.

In this episode, Davey talks with Justin on how spiritual disciplines can help us in our suffering, the ways in which our daily decisions are forming us and how to combat loneliness with true, Christ-centered connection.

If you are struggling with feeling alone even though your life is full of interactions each and every day, this conversation will help you recognize how to take the first steps towards the life-giving friendships God has for you.

How does suffering shape our hearts? How do we tell the story of our pain in a way that both heals our own ache and helps others in theirs?

Author and recording artist Andrew Peterson is a storyteller. His beloved Wingfeather Saga Series tells an epic fantasy-adventure tale about three children caught in a great mystery. Exploring themes of courage, sacrifice, and redemption, Peterson masterfully captures the attention of audiences young and old alike. His understanding in the power of story came from his own love of story and through navigating his own valleys as he walked through a deep season of depression and seeing God's story reveled more clearly to Him throughout his life. As an artist, Peterson has deeply connected to audiences through his honesty in his music and writings.

In this conversation, Davey and Andrew talk about his personal journey through depression, the connection between writing and processing our lives, how we can hold both joy and sorrow in tandem, and what needs to happen before we start sharing our stories with others.

If you are wondering how to tell the story God is writing through your life, this episode will show you how to take the first steps in sharing the remarkable ways God is shaping you through both the ups and downs of your experience and will remind you of who the ultimate hero is in the story.

What do you do when your past keeps showing up in your present? How do you address the pain from childhood as it presents itself in your adult life?

For Dr. Mark McNear, a childhood of every kind of abuse and trauma left him completely broken. From sexual abuse as a small boy and the harsh emotional abuse of his father to several traumatic events of violence and being hit by a drunk driver, Mark's entire life was marked by extreme pain. The wounds o f his past begin to manifest in his adult life through addiction, anxiety and depression. As a therapist, Mark had helped walk others through their pain and yet he needed to receive the same care he so often gave away. It was through the gentle compassion of his wife and others and the grace of God that Mark began the difficult journey towards healing. Mark would go on to share his personal journey to help others in theirs in his book, Finding My Words, A Ruthless Commitment To Healing Gently After Trauma.

In this vulnerable conversation, Eric and Mark discuss how to love people well in the midst of their addiction, finding hope in the process of healing, and seeing God's grace move when you are struggling with the grips of shame.

If healing has been a difficult journey and one that feels incomplete, this episode will show you that while you may not be instantaneously "fixed" this side of heaven, you can experience the richness of God's love and mercy in every new day through His gentle process of tending to your wounds.

What do we do when our suffering makes us feel angry at God? How do we continue to hold on to our relationship with the Lord when we are struggling with difficulties and trials in our lives?

For author, musician and spiritual director, Strahan Coleman, his battle with chronic illness left him depleted physically, emotionally, spiritually and financially. And while it felt as though so much was being stripped away in his life, he also began to experience an expansion when it came to his relationship with God. It didn't come easy though, but only through the painstaking honesty and lament in his cries to the Lord for help and healing. Through it, Strahan learned the power of being with God rather than simply working for Him. It was that journey that led him to write, Beholding: Deepening our Experience in God, in which Strahan encourages believers to see prayer as a beautiful invitation of not just seeking, but becoming.

In this deep conversation, Eric sits with Strahan to discuss the role of prayer in our suffering as well as our daily lives, what to do with anger towards God, and what it looks like to behold God in our suffering.

If suffering has ever left you wondering if God even cares, this episode will remind you that the Lord wants you to come to Him with all of your pain and emotions and to learn to simply behold Him in the process.

Have you ever read the headlines of what is happening to Christians across the globe and felt a sense of helplessness? How do we step into the stories of suffering from those who are so far away?

Lily Meschi has a unique story. As an Iranian woman, she experienced the impact of a culture that didn't value her as a woman. When she was just 18 years old, she entered into an arranged marriage and nothing could have prepared her for what was to come. It was after a long season of experiencing abuse and toxicity in her marriage that Lily first heard the gospel. That moment forever changed her life as she was able to get away from the abuse and experience true freedom and redemption through Christ. Since then, she has seen God turn her pain into purpose as she has sought to share the gospel with others from her home country through the ministry she works for called Iran Alive. Not only has Lily seen redemption in her own story, but in countless others who were set free from an oppressive culture and who now walk in the freedom of a life in Jesus.

In this insightful conversation, Davey talks with Lily about how we tend to overcomplicate sharing the gospel, the power of redemption that comes when we serve in communities that were the source of our pain, and how to step into the suffering of those across the globe.

Your story and culture may look completely different from Lily's, but seeing how God can redeem the pain we encounter will serve to remind you that nothing is wasted.

WARNING: This episode contains conversations about suicide and suicide ideation and may not be suitable for all listeners/viewers.

Have you ever wondered why you are the way you are? Have you ever taken the time to deep dive into the stories and scripts that keep you moving in the same cycles you wish you could break free from?

Author and therapist Kobe Campbell began her journey towards understanding how trauma was impacting her and how God wanted to invite her into healing after she attempted suicide in college. God revealed Himself in a very direct way in the midst of her attempt through a friend and since that moment, she has been on a journey towards her own continued healing and in turn, helping others heal. As a therapist, Kobe has seen the power in getting curious in a person's story and learning to pay attention to our pain and how it affects our current behaviors. In her new book, Why Am I Like This?: How to Break Cycles, Heal From Trauma, and Restore Your Faith, Kobe helps readers see how our past shapes our present and how to get at the roots of dysfunctional patterns.

In this profound conversation, Davey sits down with Kobe as she shares her insight and wisdom on the importance of leading with curiosity when it comes to our stories, what to do when triggers happen, and the ways in which trauma can skew our perspectives and identity.

This episode is for anyone who has ever wanted to break free from cycles of unhealthy behavior or to better understand why they do what they do and who desire to experience the depths of healing that God wants to offer us in our pain.

How do you keep trusting God when life doesn't get perfectly "fixed"? How can you begin to see God's glory move in your story within all its imperfections?

For author Kristen Wetherell, chronic pain became a debilitating reminder that her plans and her life were not fully under her control. It was through a Lyme disease diagnosis and the subsequent pain and challenges she faced that God began to reveal to her how important it was to live a surrendered life before the Lord and see His grace and compassion in the midst of suffering. In her book, Hope When it Hurts (co-authored with previous guest, Sarah Walton, Episode #274), she encourages those battling any sort of pain, to see the hope God offers in our aches and hold onto Him when we want to let go.

In this episode, Davey sits down with Kristen to unpack how we can begin to discern the will of God in our lives, what it looks like to walk by faith in our suffering, and the importance of leaning into others when we can't stand on our own.

With profound wisdom, Kristen points out how God remains faithful to us when our story takes unexpected twists and turns and how we can keep trusting Him even though life unfolds in unexpected ways.

What do you do when you have a good theology of suffering and pain and yet struggle in the midst of your experience to believe that God is even present, let alone good? How do you hold the tension between your pain and what you know to be true about who God is?

For Pastor Adam Mabry, it was his own hardships and emotional struggles paired with the seeming silence of God that took him on a journey to reconcile his experience with God's character. He would go on to write about it in his book, When God Seems Gone: Finding Hope When Nothing Makes Sense. In the end, Adam concludes that there is hope in the messy middle of our story if we are willing to be honest with God and ourselves about what we are feeling.

In this impactful conversation, Davey sits down with Adam to discuss how you can know good theology and yet struggle with internalizing the truth in your pain, the difference between God's will and God's disposition, and why it's important to become curious about our emotions instead of escaping them.

If you've ever felt like God disappeared when you needed Him the most, this episode will remind you that there is hope when nothing makes sense

How do you live life with the end in mind, especially when you are told your days are numbered? We all know that Scripture calls us to live life through the lens of heaven, but how do we really do that?

For Colleen Chao, finding out she had Stage 4 Cancer forced her to think about living the way God called her to in spite of the fact or perhaps because of the fact, that she is dying. Having expected life to go in a much different direction, Colleen has been learning to see the beauty in the most unexpected places like suffering and pain.

In this episode, Davey has a raw conversation with Colleen on seeing God's beauty in the darkness of suffering, the transformative power of gratitude, and how the blood of Jesus can keep us from dwelling in our regrets.

You don't have to have a life-altering diagnosis to be encouraged by Colleen's story of living life fully when heaven is closer than you anticipated.

When it comes to our struggles with our emotions, pain and story, one of the most difficult by-products to navigate is the loneliness that we can experience as a result of our journey.

A pervasive sense of being unseen and unknown can lead to a deep feeling of hopelessness. With raw honesty, Dr. Mark Mayfield shares his own personal journey in learning how his unhealed emotions led to a feeling of being alone and how finding language to identify what he was experiencing brought him to a place of healing.

In this conversation, Davey and Mark sit down to talk about what loneliness is, what it can to do us and how we can find the path out of loneliness.

Whether you've felt bouts of loneliness because of the recent pandemic, have felt isolated as a pastor or church leader or if depression and anxiety have made you feel alone, this conversation is for you.

Pain has a way of keeping us in the dark, of making sure that we don’t know how to cope and heal properly. When it feels like there’s nowhere else to turn, it’s all too easy to fall into harmful coping mechanisms and patterns that may deal with our pain in the moment, but only make things worse in the long run.

When Brittany Tinsley went through a painful season at a young age, this is exactly what happened to her. Unable to find anything else to make her feel better, Brittany discovered that, at least for a few moments, she could replace her greater emotional suffering with pain of a different kind.

Years of dealing with self harm left Brittany scarred both emotionally and physically, but thankfully that’s not the end of her story.

Brittany sits down with Davey to share some of her journey of healing and the wisdom she’s gained along the way.

As a prolific pastor, speaker, and author, Scott Sauls has helped countless people in their own journeys in life. His wisdom didn’t come easy, though.

Having walked through childhood trauma, anxiety, depression, and so much more, Scott is well acquainted with pain and suffering.

But in the middle of these trials, Scott has found a deeper, richer knowledge of God, and a calling to share that knowledge with as many people as possible.

Scott sits down with Davey to share a bit of his story and some of the wisdom he’s learned along the way.

The last year and half or so has had long-lasting effects on all of us. Studies have shown that reports of mental illnesses such as anxiety or depression have skyrocketed between 2019 and today. But for some, these issues are not brought on by one particular season, but rather they are something that we face our entire lives. Paul Asay is one such person. While he didn’t have the words for it at the time, Paul began facing anxiety as a child, and by the time he was in college that had morphed into severe depression. This depression has followed him his entire adult life, and he has had to struggle with what it means to be a follower of Jesus and also be chronically depressed. After all, shouldn’t the hope of Christ be enough to beat back depression for good? But through this season, Paul has learned what it means to follow God in the midst of darkness and to see Him on a deeper level because of it. Paul sits down with Davey to share some of his story and the wisdom he’s learned about going through depression, whether it be seasonal or a lifelong battle.

When Ericka Andersen met her husband Rick, she wasn't stepping into the average American relationship. Most people can't even imagine growing up like he did. Rick was raised in an environment rife with substance abuse, severe mental health problems, attempted suicides, and more. Ericka shares Rick's story with Davey and talks about the healing that God can bring to the darkest of places.

Buy Ericka's book: Leaving Cloud 9

You may not know Elliott Park's name, but you've probably heard his work. Elliott's songs have been sung on the hallowed stage of the Ryman Opry Theater, as well as on major network programs like “Late Night With David Letterman”, and “The Late Late Show” with Craig Ferguson. In 2006, his song “I Loved Her First” hit #1 on Billboard and R&R Magazines.

On this episode, Davey and Elliott talk about the heights and depths of success and following Jesus from the highs of a billboard number one hit, into the depths of depression, and back out again.