Episode Summary:

• If you have ever felt overwhelmed, worn out, or overcome by holiday pressures, then today is the perfect show for you. Today we’re going to be talking about soul care: how to reduce anxiety with tips on tending to your soul and remaining unruffled during the chaos of the holidays.
• Whether we have a lot of time or a little time, our Heavenly Father delights in spending time with us. When we spend time with Him, we can rid ourselves of worry, fear, and anxiety, and remain in His peace.
• When we think about Jesus’s three years of ministry, he walked into the most chaotic environments but brought His peace with Him. So we can walk into any situation, allowing God’s peace to dominate us, and then it will spread outward. As believers with the Holy Spirit, we do carry God’s peace with us, but too often we forfeit that peace by becoming consumed by the chaos around us.
• Peace is not the opposite of chaos, it comes from inside so it’s not dependent on our circumstances. We need to look at situations from God’s vantage point. We are all capable of bringing His peace to our situations but we have to be more deliberate and less easily influenced by our circumstances.
• Anxiety comes from looking at our circumstances rather than up at our heavenly Father. We lose our peace when we’ve gotten our focus wrong. We never see the entire situation, but He can because He’s already gone before us.
• So often we become consumed by focusing on the details when He wants us to leave the details to Him and trust Him with the big picture.
• Try to make time for family, friends, and memory making.
• Be sure to make sure you are already plugged into God, before the chaos takes over.
• Taking time at the end of the day to still our thoughts and give God our cares of the day can help us sleep more peacefully and wake up unruffled the next morning. By looking over the plans of the next day, we can wake up prepared instead of in a panic about the day.
• Understand that your wellbeing is paramount to God, as well as the wellbeing of those around you. You cannot get water from an empty well. It’s just not possible to pour out when we ourselves are dry and empty. He wants us to be taking care of our own soul, and taking care of our physical body so that it doesn’t give out on you.

Quotables from the episode:

• “Find your voice, live your story.” Edie Melson
• Whether we have a lot of time or a little time, our Heavenly Father delights in spending time with us.
• When we think about Jesus’s three years of ministry, he walked into the most chaotic environments but brought His peace with Him.

Scripture References:

• John 14:27 “I am leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid.”
• Philippians 3:16 “Only let us live up to what we have already attained.”

Recommended Resources:

• Soul Care When You’re Weary by Edie Melson
• Soul Care for Writers by Edie Melson
• Unruffled: Thriving in Chaos by Edie Melson and Rhonda Rhea
• Free Download: How To Fight Fearful/Anxious Thoughts and Win
• Breaking Anxiety’s Grip: How to Reclaim the Peace God Promises by Dr. Michelle Bengtson
• Breaking Anxiety’s Grip Free Study Guide Free 7-Day YouVersion Bible Reading Plan for Breaking Anxiety’s Grip
• Hope Prevails: Insights from a Doctor’s Personal Journey Through Depression by Dr. Michelle Bengtson, winner of the Christian Literary Award Reader’s Choice Award
• Hope Prevails Bible Study by Dr. Michelle Bengtson, winner of the Christian Literary Award Reader’s Choice Award

Social Media Links for Host and Guest:

To connect with Edie Melson:

Website / Bold Vision Books / Instagram / Twitter / Facebook

For more hope, stay connected with Dr. Bengtson at:

Order Book Breaking Anxiety’s Grip / Order Book Hope Prevails  /  Website  /  Blog  /  Facebook / Twitter (@DrMBengtson)  /  LinkedIn  /  Instagram / Pinterest / YouTube / Podcast

Guest:

Edie Melson is a woman of faith with ink-stained fingers experiencing life through the lens of her camera. No matter whether she’s talking to readers, fellow creatives, or writers, her first advice is always “Find your voice, live your story.” As an author, blogger, and speaker she’s encouraged and challenged audiences across the country and around the world. Her numerous books reflect her passion to help others develop the strength of their God-given gifts and apply them to their lives.

Edie has this to say about her heritage, “I’m creative out of self-defense. As the daughter of an artist-mother and musician-turned-photographer-father, I’d have been a disgrace if I hadn’t been true to my own creativity.”

Edie’s a popular speaker and a board member of the Advanced Writers and Speakers Association, the director of the Blue Ridge Mountains Christian Writers Conference, and the social media director of Southern Writers Magazine. Connect with her on her website, www.EdieMelson.com and through Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.

She and husband Kirk have been married 38+ years and raised three sons. They live in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains in SC where they love to hike and wander the mountains.

Hosted By: Dr. Michelle Bengtson

Audio Technical Support: Bryce Bengtson

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