Jesus Calling: Stories of Faith

Jesus Calling

A Counter-Cultural Guide to Joy: Tauren Wells & Out of Eden

May 22, 2025 ● 29 min

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This week, we’ll hear from Tauren Wells, acclaimed recording artist and lead pastor of Church of Whitestone in Austin, Texas. Raised in Battle Creek, Michigan, Tauren’s early life was steeped in music and shaped by his experiences at a small church and the guidance of a caring youth pastor. In this conversation, Tauren reflects on the things that can steal our focus, the quiet dangers of success, and what it means to live a truly joyful life.

Later in the episode, we’ll hear from Out of Eden, the ground-breaking sister trio who burst onto the scene in the nineties and helped redefine contemporary Christian music. From their early beginnings singing harmonies and choreographing dances in their living room to performing on big stages in nationwide tours, they navigated the pitfalls of growing up in the spotlight with grace beyond their years. Now, thirty years later, they’re reuniting their voices to offer hope to a new generation.

Links, Products, and Resources Mentioned:

Jesus Calling Podcast

Jesus Calling

Jesus Always

Jesus Listens

Past interview: Rachael Lampa

Upcoming interview: Jennifer Tucker

Jesus Calling for Moms

Jesus Calling for Graduates

Interview Quotes:

“There can be so much pressure around success of always elevating, always trying to find the next good thing, [and it] sometimes leaves our soul in a state of despair, because we’ve been focusing on the wrong things, as opposed to the way that Jesus unlocks joy for us.” - Tauren Wells

“Sometimes I have a really hard time differentiating doing things for God and doing things with God. And I think that’s when our heart can be thrown upside down and all we ever feel is anxiety, fear, doubt, and despair, because we flip the beauty of the reality that we get to do life with God.” - Tauren Wells

“There is a relentless joy that flows from being intentionally aware of [God’s] presence.” - Tauren Wells

“Jesus preached the most important message on joy, and it was the first thing that He decided to talk about. How important to the heart of God must our happiness be just based on the priority of the message?” - Tauren Wells

“Happiness and joy have nothing to do with what’s happening around you; it has everything to do with what is happening inside of you. Restoring that sense of gratitude for the ultimate price that was paid to unlock our freedom is so central to all of our lives as believers.” - Tauren Wells

“We found a scripture in Genesis 2:10 that says, ‘A river flows out of Eden to water the garden.’ Once we read that, we knew that was our mission. We grew up in the church, we’ve always been plugged into the Word of God, and we really wanted to use that to minister to those who would be listening to our music.” - Andrea Kimmey-Baca of Out of Eden

“I really do believe that because of our grounding in the Word of God and having a community of believers surrounding us, that we were able to ride the harder waves and talk out the things that were more confusing to us.” - Danielle Kimmey of Out of Eden

“We just wanted to honor the fans who kept our name and our legacy and our music alive.” - Danielle Kimmey of Out of Eden

“We were in an industry that wasn’t really built for our style of music. I think that presented a lot of challenges for us, and gave us the opportunity to not only overcome those challenges, but also have the right heart posture.” - Lisa Kimmey of Out of Eden

“For anyone who is going through these current times—we need hope, we need joy.” - Out of Eden

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Enjoy watching these additional videos from Jesus Calling YouTube channel!

Audio Episodes: https://bit.ly/3zvjbK7

Bonus Podcasts: https://bit.ly/3vfLlGw

Jesus Listens: Stories of Prayer: https://bit.ly/3Sd0a6C

Peace for Everyday Life: https://bit.ly/3zzwFoj

Peace in Uncertain Times: https://bit.ly/3cHfB6u

What’s Good? https://bit.ly/3vc2cKj

Enneagram: https://bit.ly/3hzRCCY

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