In this solo episode, I'm answering two of the most common questions I get: where to start in the Bible and how to journal in a way that actually helps you grow.

I'm not giving you a rigid formula here. Just some simple, practical rhythms that have helped me stay grounded in my relationship with God.

Where to Start in the Bible

Whether the Bible feels overwhelming or overly familiar, my recommendation is the same:

Start with the book of John and the Psalms.

The Psalms are raw, emotional, and deeply human. They show you how to bring real feelings, fear, doubt, anger, grief, all of it, before God, while consistently returning to truth. They're a model for processing life honestly while anchoring yourself in who God is.

John, on the other hand, focuses on who Jesus is. While the other Gospels emphasize events, John emphasizes identity. It offers a clearer, more relational picture of Christ and helps you connect personally with Him.

Together, these two books give you both emotional honesty and theological clarity.

A Better Way to Read the Bible

I'm a big believer in slowing down rather than rushing through Scripture.

Reading the Bible in a year can be valuable, sure, but it can also feel overwhelming, especially if you're just starting out. Instead, I recommend staying in smaller sections longer and actually letting them shape your thinking and behavior.

A helpful next step after John and Psalms is the book of Colossians. It offers practical guidance for how to live as a Christian. It's short but dense, which makes it perfect for slow, intentional study.

Journaling: What It Actually Looks Like

Journaling is not about structure or perfection. At its core, it's just a conversation with God.

A typical journal entry for me might include:

• Writing out a passage of Scripture
• Taking notes or observations
• Processing personal thoughts or convictions
• Turning those thoughts into prayer
• Praying for others
• Reflecting on the day or expressing gratitude

Not every entry includes all of these elements, but this general flow helps me connect Scripture, personal reflection, and prayer in a natural way.

The Freedom of Messy Journaling

One of the biggest barriers to journaling is the pressure to do it "right." Letting go of perfectionism was a huge turning point for me.

Journaling doesn't need to be neat, organized, or even fully readable. It doesn't require a specific notebook or pen. What matters is honesty.

Some entries are structured and thoughtful. Others are rushed, emotional, or scattered. Both are valuable. God is not concerned with how it looks, He's concerned with your heart.

Daily Anchors That Keep You Rooted

Rather than relying on a single quiet time, I build small points of connection with God throughout my day.

These include:

• Morning Bible reading and journaling
• Prayer while starting the day
• Brief moments of prayer before beginning work
• Gratitude while completing daily tasks
• Reflection and journaling at night

These "anchors" aren't meant to be burdensome. They're simple reminders that keep me connected to God in the middle of everyday life.

Why These Practices Matter

I want to be really clear, these habits are not about performance. They exist because we're naturally forgetful and prone to drift.

Without intentional reminders, it's so easy to rely on yourself, lose perspective, and become overwhelmed. These small, consistent practices help re-center my mind on truth and keep my relationship with God active throughout the day.

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In this episode, I sit down with author and Bible teacher Hanna Seymour to talk about what it really looks like to grow spiritually in the middle of real life with busy schedules, motherhood, exhaustion, and all.

We unpack Hanna's book Everyday Spiritual Habits and tackle one of the most common questions believers wrestle with: How do I actually stay consistent in my faith without feeling overwhelmed or burnt out? This conversation blends practical wisdom, biblical truth, and even habit science to help you build rhythms that truly last.

Throughout our chat, we share our personal journeys from checkbox Christianity and inconsistent routines to discovering life-giving rhythms with God that are flexible, sustainable, and deeply transformative. After this conversation, I hope you'll walk away encouraged that spiritual growth isn't about perfection, it's about connection.

In this episode, we cover:

• why spiritual "discipline" can feel overwhelming and how to reframe it as life-giving habits
• how to build habits that stick using simple, realistic steps
• the power of starting small (even 30 seconds counts)
• how to connect with God in everyday moments (laundry, dishes, driving, etc.)
• habit stacking and identity-based growth (who you're becoming vs. what you're doing)
• how different life seasons require different rhythms and that's okay
• lesser-talked-about disciplines like gratitude, celebration, silence, and solitude
• practical ways to memorize Scripture and stay rooted in truth
• why shame has no place in your spiritual journey

If you've ever felt like you're failing at reading your Bible, praying consistently, or "doing enough," this episode is a breath of fresh air. It's not about adding pressure, it's about discovering a better way to walk with Jesus in your everyday life.

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CrowdHealth is not insurance.

In this episode, I sat down with my husband Jeremy to talk about 15 years of marriage, the early struggles, the growth, and how we got to where we are today. Because what you see now? It didn't always exist. And that's kind of the whole point.

We laughed, we got vulnerable, and we talked about the stuff a lot of couples deal with but don't always say out loud, especially in those early years.

What This Episode Is Really About

This isn't a "we've figured it all out" conversation. It's more like a "we stayed, we worked, and God changed us" kind of story.

At the core, we unpacked three major tension points that shaped our marriage:

1. Communication Struggles

Jeremy is an external processor. I'm an internal processor. And for years, that dynamic created so much conflict we didn't even realize we were having. Silence, fear, assumptions, all of it just piled up until we finally learned to talk before the conflict, not just during it. We had to build safety so honesty didn't feel like an attack.

Turns out, miscommunication wasn't really the issue, misunderstanding each other's intentions was.

2. Expectations (The Hidden Pressure)

Our upbringings shaped so many unspoken expectations we didn't even know we were carrying into our marriage. I was loving Jeremy the way I wanted to be loved, not the way he needed to be loved. Learning each other's love languages was a massive turning point for us. Because so many of our frustrations weren't actually about behavior, they were about unmet, unspoken expectations.

3. Life in the Trenches (Small Kids + Stress)

Early marriage plus young children is just exhausting. We were both drowning in stress but completely misunderstanding each other's, provider stress vs. caregiver stress. It felt like a perfect storm, and honestly, sometimes growth doesn't feel like progress. It just feels like survival. But pushing through that season together is what built the long-term strength we have now.

Key Takeaways

• Healthy marriage requires individual growth first → when we both worked on ourselves, everything changed
• You can't learn communication in conflict, you build it before
• Assume the best about your spouse, not the worst
• Different roles carry different weight, learn to honor both
• Your "recovery time" matters more than your conflict → ours went from days… to hours… to minutes
• Seasons matter → what feels overwhelming now won't last forever

The Big Picture

Marriage isn't about avoiding hard seasons, it's about growing through them together.

You are not defined by the season you're in, you're defined by the God over it.

Whether you're newly married, in the thick of parenting, or feeling stuck in communication patterns, I hope this episode reminds you that strong marriages are built, not found.

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Final Encouragement

If you're in a hard season right now…

You're not behind.
You're not broken.
You're building something that lasts.