Unhurried Living Alan & Gem Fadling

I love watching travel and cooking shows, so if there’s a show that combines the two, I’m hooked. If you are familiar with the names Phil Rosenthal, Guy Fieri and Andrew Zimmern, then you know what I’m talking about.

Traveling, eating tasty food, and meeting intriguing people is a combination my heart longs for. I’ve often mentioned to Alan that if I were to have an alternate universe job, I would be the host of Somebody Feed Phil (I guess Phil would have to find his own new job).

What does all this have to do with living an unhurried life? Stay tuned and I’ll share more, here, on the Unhurried Living podcast.

In An Unhurried Leader, I shared that I’ve often been tempted to prove something about myself through the work I do. I behave as though my value is uncertain and needs to be earned or achieved. It isn’t and it doesn’t. To use a theological category, my worth is more a matter of grace rather than a matter of works.

That sort of insecurity has been a major driver of hurry in my life. I wonder if you identify.

Welcome to the Unhurried Living podcast.

Unhurried Living is now in its ninth year of serving Christian leaders around the world. We’ve come to some small inflection points in the past, but we are in the midst of another, important time in our ministry. We are adding to our team!

Today I am introducing you to Jodie Niznik and Matt Fogle. They are two stellar leaders who are going to link arms with Alan and me as we continue the work of training leaders to rest deeper, live fuller and lead better. I can’t wait for you to meet them. Welcome to the Unhurried Living Podcast

The cross is the heart of Scripture.

Everything about the gospel message leads to the cross, and proceeds from the cross. In fact, within the narrative of Scripture, the crucifixion of Jesus is literally the crux of the story―the axis upon which the biblical story turns. But it would be a mistake to think we could sum up the significance of the crucifixion in a tidy sentence or two.

That kind of thinking only insulates us from the magnificence of what God has done. In our ongoing quest to make meaning of the cross, we need to recognize that this conversation will never conclude―that there is always something more to be said.

Welcome to the Unhurried Living podcast.

In the retelling of the Mary and Martha story, many inadvertently pit these sisters against each another. We are forced to make a choice: “I’m a Mary” or, more regularly I hear, “I’m a Martha.” As though these women were tropes or types on a personality test.

This is unfortunate, because then we are drawn to take sides and defend one or the other. Our own identity becomes wrapped up in one woman or another.

Before I (Gem) unpack this further, I’ll give you the spoiler: This story isn’t about busy people and lazy people. We are ALL invited to follow the example of Mary and focus on the one thing of Jesus.

I’ll unpack this further today on the UL podcast.

What do we mean when we talk about the importance of prayer? What is prayer? Is it mainly the words we say to God about our concerns, our needs, our hopes, our desires? What is the difference, if any, between saying prayers and being prayerful?

Today, I’m sharing a conversation with a wise Franciscan priest who has been practicing prayerfulness for over 50 years.

Welcome to the Unhurried Living podcast.