As we start into our fifth year of the podcast, you’ll start hearing a shoutout at the beginning of each episode. This is an opportunity for us to celebrate our listeners, and specifically the transformation and celebrations in your life. Want to reach out to us? You can contact us here on our website or text our new No More Perfect hotline at 309-431-1718.
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Grief can come over us like crashing waves. We most commonly experience it when we have lost a loved one, but grief is wider than that and can accompany all kinds of circumstances. It can happen at the end of a relationship, the death of a dream, or the shock of a diagnosis that you did not see coming. The loss we feel when we experience grief can feel like too much to bear on our own.
My guest in this episode knows all about grief. Steve Carter is a pastor, speaker, author, podcast host, and the former lead teaching pastor at Willow Creek Community Church in Chicago. He is also the author of Grieve, Breathe, Receive: Finding a Faith Strong Enough to Hold Us.
In 2018, Steve announced publicly that he was resigning from his dream job as a lead pastor at Willow Creek Community Church. The next morning as he was taking a walk to process all the thoughts and feelings tumbling around in his mind, he cried out to Jesus in desperation, begging for an answer. “What am I supposed to do now?” He expected nothing, but the silence that had overwhelmed him broke as a gentle whisper impressed three words upon his heart: grieve, breathe, receive.
In this episode, you’ll hear:
- Steve’s personal journey through grief
- Practical lessons seasons of grief can teach us
- The best way to understand and move forward through grief
- And so much more…
This conversation meant so much to me and I hope it is meaningful for you as well!
Resources mentioned in this episode:
- [BOOK] Grieve, Breathe, Receive: Finding a Faith Strong Enough to Hold Us
- Connect with Steve on his website, Facebook, or Instagram
- The Transform Weekend
- Join me at the Empty Nest Full Life Retreat!
- As a thank you for listening, get your 3 free eBooks.
My Key Takeaways:
1) There are some things we must grieve our way through. Our knee-jerk reaction is often to avoid difficult feelings and push down the grief we experience. However, that grief will just come back up later on. It’s important to learn how to grieve and make space to mourn what we have lost.
2) Grief can accompany any moment of change. Grief is not just something we feel during the end of a relationship or when someone we love passes away. We can feel it anytime when what we thought was going to be doesn’t occur. Grief can come up whenever change shows up.
3) Ask yourself, What day am I in? Steve shared that the process of grieving, breathing, and receiving is reflective of the Easter weekend. When we grieve, we are in Good Friday when Christ was crucified. When we breathe, we are in Saturday when the promise is not yet realized. And when we receive, that is Easter Sunday. Taking time to recognize what day we are in can help us process our feelings with more meaning.
About Steve:
Steve Carter is an author, podcast host, speaker, and pastor. His passion is to bring the way of Jesus into everything he does. From sanctuaries to board rooms to football fields, he believes every moment is brimming with redemptive potential. In his latest book, Grieve, Breathe, Receive, he reminds us that we are not alone, that our pain is never wasted, and that we can find renewed energy for the next steps as we move forward toward hope and peace. Steve lives outside Chicago, Illinois with his wife and two kids.
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