Janet Paulson joins Lisa Schmidt on the October 2020 episode of The Water Jar podcast. Janet is the mother of five adult daughters and lives in Pella, Iowa where she is a parishioner at St. Mary’s Catholic Church. When her husband of 29 years died in 2009, Janet found herself pursuing a more dedicated prayer life and seeking spiritual direction. After completing the Spiritual Exercises in Everyday Life, she discerned the Lord was calling her to enroll in the Christian Spirituality Program at Creighton University to become a certified spiritual director. God willing, she will finish the program in 2022. In her spare time, Janet enjoys bicycling, walking, cooking, traveling and growing and nursing orchids back to life. She is involved with programs at church including RCIA, and loves cheering for the Iowa State Cyclones.

Janet and Lisa chat about a variety of topics from how the scene between Jesus and the woman at the well is a lot like spiritual direction … to the Ignatian spiritual exercises …. to how to pray a practical daily examen  … to the critical importance of spiritual mentorships in our daily faith journey.

Resources mentioned in this episode:

• Discerning Hearts Podcast: Scriptural Rosary of the Blessed Virgin Mary
• 5 Ways to Live Your Rosary blogpost by Kristi Quinlan
• Reimagining the Ignatian Examen: Fresh ways to pray from your day by Fr. Mark Thibodeaux, SJ
• General resource for learning more about the Spiritual Exercises
• Katie Patrizio Sunday Dive Podcast: God’s Nuptial Longing and the Woman at the Well 
• The Gift of Spiritual Intimacy by Monty Williams
• God’s Voice Within by Fr. Mark Thibodeaux, SJ 
• The Emmaus House

Print a full page handout of the 5 Daily R's here.

School is back in session for many and with that comes a great opportunity to begin formulating spiritual routines as well. Terry Siedsma joins Lisa Schmidt on this September 2020 episode to discuss journaling and how the practice of writing can help us grow deeper in relationship with Jesus.

Lisa also asks a most important question: to [pumpkin spice] be or not to be? She’s a pumpkin spice enthusiast. For those who also enjoy these pumpkin-packed flavors as much as she, head over to www.thewelldesmoines.com and share your favorite recipes with us.

Finally, Lisa looks ahead at the September church calendar when we celebrate two Marion feasts just one week apart: the Feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary on September 8 and the Memorial of our Lady of Sorrows on September 15. We celebrate the joy of Mary‘s birth and the enter into the pain she experiences with her Son’s passion. It’s where joy and pain meet - the paradox of the Holy Cross.

Head over to the podcast page here for more details from the show. 

Hello, August: back to school, final days of summer, and the month the Church dedicates to Mary’s Immaculate Heart.

Are you watching The Chosen? Lisa is a total fan girl and shares about this terrific new show based on the life of Christ. 

Finally, Nannet Horton joins The Water Jar podcast. Not only is Nannet a blogger for The Well, she’s also the author of brand new titled Missionary Parenting: Cultivating the 6 Key Relationships Essential to Your Domestic Church

• thewelldesmoines.com
• facebook.com/thewelldesmoines
• instagram.com/thewelldesmoines

Speaker, teacher, and mentor Barbara Heil joins Lisa Schmidt to talk about the spirit of offense, a plague infesting our current culture. 

Find more about Barbara Heil at https://fromhisheart.com/. 

A Rule of Life, Secret Work, and Ordering our Days in Peace

Rebecca Bahl, Christine Hilbert, and Bonnie Shaw join Lisa Schmidt to discuss how to bring peace into our days as we do the work of God. 

• 3:07 - Writing your Rule of Life
• 12:00 - Work and Prayer | Ordering our Days in Peace
• 49:00 - Rachel Brown’s Drop by Drop: What is your secret work? 
• 53:15 - Five Fun Questions

Join The Well community at www.thewelldesmoines.com. 

A plywood sign, the prophet Elijah, and closing down for repairs. Lisa explains in this five-minute Live Well Moment. Share your good ideas at thewelldesmoines.com. 

Who knows what path Elizabeth Ann Seton's life might have taken had she not been in Italy on the Feast of Corpus Christi. Who knows what might have happened had Juliana of Cornillon ignored the Lord's call to pave the way for the first celebration some 550 years prior. Here are stories of two women and their strong connection to the Feast of Corpus Christi. 

Tune in to this month's episode of The Water Jar podcast and discover (or perhaps rediscover) ways to live the liturgy and celebrate the good, true, and beautiful found within the Church's June calendar. Some highlights: 

• Learn more about the popular devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus
• Discover "St. John's Fires" in honor of John the Baptist
• What are you bad at? Guessing most of you aren't chomping at the bit to answer that one, huh? But Rachel Brown explores in her Drop by Drop segment.
• And in this month's Faith, Friendship, and Fun segment, Molly Myers joins Lisa and the gals chat about quarantine living, SoulCore, music playlists, and Molly answers five fun questions including her favorite go-to summer beauty product.

Not yet subscribed to The Water Jar podcast? Learn more here.  

This is a bonus episode sharing Lisa Schmidt's talk titled Identity, Relationship, Mission delivered at the Summer at The Well gathering held on July 20, 2019. To listen to other talks from our past gatherings or to tune in to episodes of The Water Jar podcast, visit us at www.thewelldesmoines.com.

This is a bonus episode featuring Victoria Carver’s talk from the 2019 Summer at Well gathering held on July 20, 2019. Victoria opened the gathering that day by leading us in morning prayer from Liturgy of the Hours and also modeled how to pray using lectio divina. Lectio Divina means divine reading and is a way of becoming immersed in the Scriptures very personally.

To learn more about The Well, visit www.thewelldesmoines.com. 

This is a bonus episode sharing Katie Patrizio's talk titled Your Grace is Sufficient for Me delivered at the Summer at The Well gathering held on July 20, 2019. To listen to other talks from our past gatherings or to tune in to episodes of The Water Jar podcast, visit us at www.thewelldesmoines.com. 

This is a bonus episode sharing Katie Patrizio's talk titled What's in a Name? Katie delivered this talk at our Summer at The Well gathering held on July 20, 2019. To listen to other talks from our past gatherings or to tune in to episodes of The Water Jar podcast, visit us at www.thewelldesmoines.com. 

This is a bonus episode on The Water Jar podcast sharing Rebecca Bahl’s talk titled Inviting Jesus into the Home of Your Heart. Rebecca delivered this talk at the Summer at The Well gathering held on July 20, 2019. Listen to more talks from past gatherings at www.thewelldesmoines.com. 

"Even when your heart is broken your hands remain open." Christine Hilbert joins Lisa Schmidt for a quick chat about the original artwork "Reckless Love." Christine hand-painted this image to accompany our upcoming summer gathering on July 20. Learn more about Christine's work via the quick video. Learn more about Summer at The Well at www.thewelldesmoines.com. 

Lisa Schmidt with The Well women's ministry previews the Reckless Love: Summer at The Well gathering on July 20, 2019 in Des Moines, Iowa. Full details at www.thewelldesmoines.com.

Episode 18 of The Water Jar podcast features a special and intimate discussion with Jenny Schmidt on her journey with infertility. Rachel Brown returns with her wise and relatable Drop by Drop segment, and host Lisa Schmidt shares something called the 4:29 Challenge and previews the 2019 Summer at The Well gathering.

0:00 - WELCOME

Subscribing to The Water Jar podcast is free and worth every last penny! New episodes will automatically appear in your podcast feed as soon as they're released. You can subscribe via Apple Podcasts or Stitcher.

3:08 – STONES

Inspired by the words St. Paul shares with the Ephesians, Lisa talks about the "4:29 Challenge" and using our words to build up rather than tear down.

7:23 – DROP BY DROP

With her typical wit and wisdom, Rachel Brown shares a life lesson linking tapioca pudding and trust.

10:22 – SAVE THE DATE!

Lisa previews the 2019 Summer at The Well gathering. Stay tuned to www.thewelldesmoines.com for updates and details. 

12:57 – A CONVERSATION WITH JENNY SCHMIDT

An intimate discussion on infertility with special guest Jenny Schmidt.

Resources

Jenny and Lisa discussed a variety of resources for those journeying with infertility. Click on the links to explore.

• USCCB's Reproductive Technolgy landing page
• Begotten Not Made: A Catholic View of Reproductive Technology
• Life-Giving Love in an Age of Technology
• NaProTECHNOLOGY
• Vitae Family Care

Finding peace when struggling to make decisions, embracing our nothingness, seeking joy in the "hidden years," and the connection between gratitude and peace. All that and more as we continue The Well's Lenten series on Searching for and Maintaining Peace.

Come, join, and follow along. We are reading and discussing Chapters 16-18, pages 69-82 on this episode. Find more information on The Well's 2019 Lenten book study here.

If you're struggling with the "little pink book," this episode's for you. Also, we cover a peaceful March Madness tournament, the link between making a good confession and maintaining peace, how our expectations can often rob us of experiencing peace, and praying with the litany of humility.

Note: Even if you aren't reading the book with us, please know there are plenty of nuggets that stand on their own and applicable to all. If you are reading the book but doing so at a different pace, these Lenten episodes will not expire and will remain available on our podcast feed when you are ready to listen or re-listen. 

Come, join, and follow along. We are reading and discussing chapters 11-15, pages 50-69 on this episode. More information on The Well's 2019 Lenten book study here. 

Head over here to listen to the full version of the song set to the Litany of Humility prayer featured on this episode.

The Well is reading, reflecting on, and discussing the book Searching for and Maintaining Peace by Fr. Jacques Philippe throughout the 2019 Lenten season. In this episode, we discuss pages 37-50 covering chapters 5-10.

Fr. Jacques states the measure of our interior peace will be that of our abandonment in God. So what do we do when we're unable to abandon ourselves? “Abandon yourself anyway!” Fr. Jacques implores.

Well ... how?! What does that look like?

In this episode, the podcast team talks about how abandonment is not natural, yet it is a grace to be asked of from God. The ladies share on a variety of topics from opening "dirty laundry rooms" for Jesus, allowing the Good Shepherd to lead us to the restful waters from Psalm 23, how to journey with loved ones who are suffering, and rendering our hearts at the foot of the cross.

This Week’s Prayerful Invitation

One of the most beautiful expressions in the Bible of confident abandonment into the hands of God is found in Psalm 23. By using guided imagery prayer as discussed in this episode, this week's invitation is to pray with Psalm 23 and allow the Good Shepherd to lead us to those restful waters where we shall not want for anything but God.

The Well is reading, reflecting on, and discussing the book Searching for and Maintaining Peace: A Small Treatise on Peace of Heart by Fr. Jacques Philippe throughout the 2019 Lenten season. Come, join and follow along with The Well this Lent. More information about the study can be found here.

In this second week of Lent, we are reading and discussing pages 23-36 covering chapters 1-4. Humans have lost confidence in God, trying to find happiness on our own and consequently becoming unhappy in the process. We must regain our lost confidence by believing in Divine Providence. In his book, Fr. Jacques brings to light two principal obstacles preventing us from regaining confidence. The podcast team discusses these two obstacles in this episode.

This Week's Prayerful Invitation

Fr. Jacques writes the only way to Jesus’ heart is through the habit of contemplative, meditative prayer. Through that, in the midst of our trials, we can experience “delicacies of Love” (consolations from God). So our invitation this week is to begin, or recommit, spending fifteen minutes a day with Jesus in quiet mental prayer. In what ways has faith in Divine Providence manifested itself in your life recently? As you begin to enter into a deeper relationship with Him, make note in a prayer journal of the delicacies of Love you see Him gifting you.

Learn more about the 1% Prayer Challenge discussed on this episode by heading over here.

The Well is reading, reflecting on, and discussing the book Searching for and Maintaining Peace: A Small Treatise on Peace of Heart by Fr. Jacques Philippe throughout the 2019 Lenten season.

On Saturday, March 2, nearly two hundred women attended Lent at The Well where our speakers all touched on the topic of peace. The talks from that gathering can be listened to via The Water Jar podcast.

In this first week of Lent, we are reading and discussing pages 3-20, the Preface and all of Part 1: Interior Peace, The Road to Saintliness. The podcast team of Lisa Schmidt, Julie Nelson, Bonnie Shaw, Becca Bahl, and Christine Hilbert discuss the central themes of these pages during this episode.

Come, join and follow along with The Well this Lent. More information about the study can be found here.

At Lent at The Well on March 2, 2019, Maria Campbell shared about an important program called The Third Option that inspires and encourages people to build peaceful, healthy marriages.

The Well is a vibrant women's ministry rooted in prayer, evangelization, and charitable action. We exist to gather women together, to celebrate spiritual friendships, and to build up the local Catholic community. Just as the Samaritan woman encountered Jesus at a well, we pray the work of this ministry opens doors to a deeper and sustained encounter with Jesus for those who gather with us. Visit www.thewelldesmoines.com to learn more about the work of The Well.

This is Katie Patrizio's talk "Interior Peace for Stressed Out People" from the Lent at The Well gathering on March 2, 2019. The Lenten theme for The Well this year is "Searching for and Maintaining Peace" inspired by the book with the same title written by Fr. Jacques Philippe.

The Well is a vibrant women's ministry rooted in prayer, evangelization, and charitable action. We exist to gather women together, to celebrate spiritual friendships, and to build up the local Catholic community. Just as the Samaritan woman encountered Jesus at a well, we pray the work of this ministry opens doors to a deeper and sustained encounter with Jesus for those who gather with us. Visit www.thewelldesmoines.com to learn more about the work of The Well.

This is Sara Huegerich's talk "I Have It, But I Don't Have It" from the Lent at The Well gathering on March 2, 2019. The Lenten theme for The Well this year is "Searching for and Maintaining Peace" inspired by the book with the same title written by Fr. Jacques Philippe.

The Well is a vibrant women's ministry rooted in prayer, evangelization, and charitable action. We exist to gather women together, to foster spiritual friendships, and to build up the local Catholic community. Just as the Samaritan woman encountered Jesus at a well, we pray the work of this ministry opens doors to a deeper and sustained encounter with Jesus for those who gather with us. Visit www.thewelldesmoines.com to learn more about the work of The Well.

The Well is a vibrant women's ministry rooted in prayer, evangelization, and charitable action. We exist to gather women together, to foster spiritual friendships, and to build up the local Catholic community. Just as the Samaritan woman encountered Jesus at a well, we pray the work of this ministry opens doors to a deeper and sustained encounter with Jesus for those who gather with us. Visit www.thewelldesmoines.com to learn more about the work of The Well.

This is Ellen Kyhl's talk "Look For the Graces" from the Summer at The Well gathering on June 24, 2017.

Speaker Bio: Ellen Kyhl is a re-emergent professional architect looking to make the most of the years ahead by doing meaningful work to “make better places” in her heart, her home, her family, her community, and possibly in her profession. She invests her time: Reading, Running, Baking, Cake Designing, Landscaping, and Treasure Hunting in her Faith. She and her husband Chris are passionate about keeping the gears turning smoothly in the right direction for their family of six, affectionately referred to as Team Kyhl. They are parishioners at St. Pius X in Urbandale, Iowa.

The Well is a vibrant women's ministry rooted in prayer, evangelization, and charitable action. We exist to gather women together, to foster spiritual friendships, and to build up the local Catholic community. Just as the Samaritan woman encountered Jesus at a well, we pray the work of this ministry opens doors to a deeper and sustained encounter with Jesus for those who gather with us.

This is Katie Patrizio's talk Where's Your Samaria from the Summer at The Well gathering on June 24, 2017. Visit www.thewelldesmoines.com to learn more about the work of The Well.

Speaker Bio: Katie Patrizio is a popular speaker and teacher best known for her talks on Scripture. A native of Southern California, Katie holds degrees in philosophy, theology, and Scripture and is a proud graduate of Franciscan University of Steubenville. She currently serves as Director of Faith Formation at St. Cecilia Parish in Ames, Iowa and as an instructor for the Catechetical Institute, a program of formation for the laity founded by Jeff Cavins. She is a frequent guest on Iowa Catholic Radio and her online talks and courses, most recently featured by PrayMoreNovenas.com, have been heard by tens of thousands of people.

The Well, based out of Des Moines, Iowa, is a vibrant women's ministry rooted in prayer, evangelization, and charitable action. We exist to gather women together, to foster spiritual friendships, and to build up the local Catholic community. Just as the Samaritan woman encountered Jesus at a well, we pray the work of this ministry opens doors to a deeper and sustained encounter with Jesus for those who gather with us.

This is Julie Nelson's talk "Jesus is His Name, Mercy is His Game" from the Summer at The Well gathering on June 24, 2017. Following Julie's talk, Emily Schmid leads praise and worship. Visit www.thewelldesmoines.com to learn more about the work of The Well.

Last week I used the well-known and often quoted “Parable of Tom Brady” to make a point about cultivating a healthy heart. No terrible parable this week. Just some helpful thoughts on how to guard your heart.

Jesus taught in parables. So let’s use a football analogy to make a spiritual point as we near Super Bowl Sunday. Your heart is a well; neglect the well and your heart will run dry. How do we, as King Solomon instructs in the Book of Proverbs, guard our hearts above all else? That’s the topic of this week’s 5-minute reflection.

"For Zion's Sake I will not be silent. For Jerusalem's sake I will not be quiet." – Isaiah 62:1

The Gospel is to be proclaimed and celebrated. It will not always be accepted, but it must be told. The good news is the same breath that filled John the Baptist with the Holy Spirit in his mother's womb, breathes in us, too. 

The Well is a vibrant women's ministry rooted in prayer, evangelization, and charitable action. We exist to gather women together, to foster spiritual friendships, and to build up the local Catholic community. Just as the Samaritan woman encountered Jesus at a well, we pray the work of this ministry opens doors to a deeper and sustained encounter with Jesus for those who gather with us.

This is Katie Patrizio's talk Submitting to Our Smallness from the Summer at The Well gathering on June 24, 2017. Visit www.thewelldesmoines.com to learn more about the work of The Well.

Prayer: The one big thing in the spiritual life.

With the Baptism of the Lord this Sunday we will hear St. John the Baptist proclaim, "He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire." Baptism in the Spirit is one of the few themes written about in all four Gospels. But what does it mean to be baptized in the Holy Spirit? To get to the heart of that question, let's pose a different question first. How is it possible for a person who has received the sacraments to not be living a dynamic life of faith? This 5-Minute Reflection explores both questions. 

A lot of what we know about the wise men is from the three gifts they brought to the newborn Baby King. In this sense, the wise men’s story can be ours, too. One of the best gifts we can give, to not only Jesus but to others, is the gift of our own heart. And when we think of giving hearts fully and freely, we can think of authentic spiritual friendships

The holidays can create unique pressures on us. There are a dizzying array of demands and decisions to make: travel plans, family preparations, finances, shopping, cooking and cleaning to name just a few. It’s no wonder uninvited guests called stress and depression often find their way into our hearts and homes during the holidays. Today's five-minute reflection gets to the heart of it all.

How joyful are you right now? Are your lips saying Jesus is the reason for the season but your body is communicating something entirely different? Take heart, O weary soul, this week's five-minute reflection is for you.

The Well is a ministry based out of Des Moines, Iowa that exists to bring women together, foster spiritual friendships, and strengthen the community. This is Geneveve Loraditch's talk A Woman Encountered from the Summer at The Well gathering on June 24, 2017. Emily Schmid also leads praise and worship following Geneveve's talk. Visit www.thewelldesmoines.com to learn more about the work of The Well.

A bite-sized, short and sweet weekly reflection you can listen to under five minutes.

This week's question to ponder:

Have you asked God to do something in your life? Are you still waiting? While you wait, ponder how God is doing something new within you – right here, right now.

A bite-sized, short and sweet episode you can listen to under five minutes. This week's question to ponder: Where might God be asking you to begin again?

The Water Jar welcomes Joanne Kuster and Mary Shell, the mother daughter team who created the fabulous faith-based lifestyle blog RootandBloomForever.com. Joanne and Mary both live in the greater Des Moines area and aim to connect busy women with new ideas, amazing stories, and tips to make our lives intentional, meaningful and rewarding.

Advent begins on Sunday, December 2nd, so we also look forward to the gift of Advent with Joanne and Mary.  They share ideas on how to live an intentional, purposeful Advent. Rachel Brown also stops by and shares practical wisdom in her Drop by Drop segment.

Time Stamp for Each Segment

• 1:49: How Lisa's scheduling gaffe can serve as a good reminder for the coming Advent season.
• 5:04: Part 1 with Joanne and Mary from the Root and Bloom Forever blog: Family, Food & Finances!
• 23:40: Drop by Drop with Rachel Brown: The Important Thing
• 29:07: Part 2 with Joanne and Mary: Living an intentional, purposeful Advent

Resources Mentioned

Joanne's Money Godmother Blog

Mary's Food Science Secrets Blog

Children's Books Joanne mentioned:

• The Littlest Angel
• The Other Wise Man
• The Cobweb Curtain: A Christmas Story
• Manger
• Little Lamb Finds Christmas
• The Third Gift

The Advent/Christmas booklist Lisa mentioned can be found here.

Feedback

Thoughts on the show? Inspire us with your feedback by commenting below, over at Facebook, or via email atinfo@thewelldesmoines.com.

Tune in for your monthly dose of faith, friendship, and fun as Heidi Lepper Barrett, Rachel Brown, Emily Schmid, and Molly Myers join Lisa Schmidt on Episode 11. Heidi ponders the spiritual importance of eye contact, and Emily shares how music can assist us in experiencing liturgy more fully. Rachel stops by with her pithy Drop by Drop wisdom, and Molly shares an October music playlist to accompany our fall days. Finally, Emily has a very special surprise for us. Tune in and hear the *world debut* of her original song Pour On Us based on the woman at the well (John 4:4-42). What a treat!

Time Stamp for Each Segment

• 1:49: Good News --- Lisa on the dignity of work and dignity of the human person
• 8:07: Healthy Psychology --- Heidi on eye contact
• 20:08: Drop by Drop with Rachel
• 22:53: Emily on allowing music to help us experience the liturgy more fully
• 51:01: Music For The People --- Molly's monthly playlist
• 1:16:11: Emily Schmid shares a raw, acoustic cut of her original song Pour On Us (insert happy dance emoji!)

October Playlist

Subscribe to Molly's playlist here.

Resources

Bumper music featured in this episode:

• The Well by JJ Heller
• Good News by Mandisa
• The Joy of the Lord by Danielle Rose
• Lights Shine Bright by TobyMac

Connect in person:

• To explore Heidi's Christian life coaching services, contact her at hlepper14@aol.com or phone/text message at 515-346-2737
• For more info on Emily's lunch and learn at St. Pius X Catholic Church on October 25, visit http://www.stpiushome.org/

Feedback

Thoughts on the show? Inspire us with your feedback by commenting at our website, over at Facebook, or via email atinfo@thewelldesmoines.com.

Copyright The Well, 2018. All rights reserved.

Lisa Schmidt and Sue Smith discuss the abuse scandal in the Catholic Church which has caused much pain, anger, sadness, and frustration across the globe. It's left many pondering: What ought our response be in the face of a troubled Church?

All kinds of fun and helpful tools on this episode of The Water Jar podcast. In her regular segment Drop by Drop, Rachel Brown discusses recognizing your God given gifts and acknowledging the potential for Him to work through them. Heidi Lepper Barrett shares insights on something she calls "floating the tongue." As strange as that may sound, it's a beneficial practice helping us truly listen to others. Finally, Molly Myers makes her podcast debut by sharing a playlist to listen to, dance with, and pray with throughout these remaining days of summer.

Good News

Lisa shared a story about receiving roses on the ninth day of a novena praying St. Augustine's Prayer to the Holy Spirit. (Yes, those roses really did arrive on day nine.) Here's a picture of those spectacular flowers. Tune in to hear the full story.  Here's the text to St. Augustine's Prayer to the Holy Spirit:

Breathe in me, O Holy Spirit, that my thoughts may all be holy. Act in me, O Holy Spirit, that my work, too, may be holy. Draw my heart, O Holy Spirit, that I love but what is holy. Strengthen me, O Holy Spirit, to defend all that is holy. Guard me, then, O Holy Spirit, that I always may be holy. Amen.

Summertime with The Well Playlist

Debuting her new segment Music for The People, Molly shares a playlist for us to sing with, dance to, and pray with throughout these remaining days of summer. There are two ways to listen below, through YouTube and Apple Music

YouTube Playlist

During her segment, Molly shared about her daughter Sophia who lived for just a few minutes outside the womb. Here's the blogpost sharing more about Sophia. If you'd like to contact Molly regarding Ave22, her fashion consulting business, email to myerscmolly@msn.com.

Feedback

Thoughts on the show? Inspire us with your feedback by commenting below, over at Facebook, or via email at info@thewelldesmoines.com.

Copyright The Well, 2018. All rights reserved.

Ever find yourself muttering one of these questions?

“What’s wrong with me? I have this great life, why can’t I just feel better? Why am I struggling? Seemingly, no one else is struggling … ” 

The feelings of stagnation in the middle years is a common human experience – an unraveling, a collapse, being weighed down. How do we journey through these times in a spiritually and emotionally healthy manner?

Joining Lisa Schmidt on this episode of The Water Jar is social and personality psychologist, Heidi Lepper Barrett. They begin an honest conversation on this topic and discuss how Jesus is our bridge to hope, how we all need new scaffolding to shore up our faith through the renewal of our minds during these periods. Rachel Brown also stops by and shares another thoughtful and relatable Drop by Drop segment.

Thoughts on the show? Inspire us with your feedback by commenting at our website, over at Facebook, or via email at info@thewelldesmoines.com.

The first five words of the Bible: In the beginning, God created. And we, made in the image and likeness of God, are also called to create. In this episode, Christine Hilbert, the artist who painted The Well's signature watercolor image, joins host Lisa Schmidt. Rachel Brown also debuts a new, regular segment.

Joining Lisa once again on this episode is Katie Patrizio. Topics addressed:

• How to keep prayer habits developed this Lent into the Easter season and beyond.
• Spiritual direction – what is it and do we need it?
• Strategies for navigating through times of spiritual desolation.

Books referenced in the show:

• Making the Most of Spiritual Direction

Music featured in the show:

• The Well by J.J. Heller
• A Living Prayer by Alison Krauss

Rachel Brown joins Lisa Schmidt as they discuss how cultivating consistent prayer habits through the 1% Challenge leads to happiness. 

Blogposts referenced in the show:

• Frittered Away by Detail by Dr. Tom Neal
• Proposed Resolution: Do Something Everyday by Gretchen Rubin

Music featured in the show:

• The Well by J.J. Heller
• The Joy of The Lord by Danielle Rose

Our special guest on Podcast 4 is Kara Storey. She and Lisa chat about the importance of cultivating silence (exterior and interior) in our hearts and homes.

The Well is a ministry based out of Des Moines, Iowa that exists to bring women together, foster spiritual friendships, and strengthen the community. This is Kara Storey's talk "Get Connected" from the Summer at The Well gathering on June 24, 2017. Visit www.thewelldesmoines.com to learn more about the work of The Well.

1. How do you know when God is speaking to you in prayer?
2. What are some helpful postures for mental prayer?
3. Does Mass "count" as daily mental prayer?

In this episode of The Water Jar, Katie Patrizio joins us again as we chat about DISTRACTIONS.

Do you find it hard to focus in prayer? Do you find the stuff of life from the mundane to the monumental keeps taking your focus away from Jesus? We discuss how to deal with different types of distractions, and Katie offers some practical advice to purge those distractions from our prayer life. 

Call to Action: The call to action this week is to begin journaling your distractions as Katie recommends, both the minor ones you want to flush from your mind and the major ones you need to take with you to prayer.

In this episode of The Water Jar, Katie Patrizio joins us as we discuss preparing for Lent, specifically the Scriptural call to pray, fast, and give alms. We dig a bit deeper with prayer and introduce the 1% Challenge – a movement encouraging us to spend 1% of our day, or 15 minutes, in God’s presence. Katie shares practical tips for getting started on the 1% Challenge. 

Call to Action: This week, pledge to take the 1% Challenge this Lent and begin praying 15 minutes a day. Let us know you're joining us by taking the pledge here. 

Resources: 

• Lectio Divina, or “divine reading” is a traditional way of listening and talking with God through Scripture. Learn more here. 
• Time for God: A Guide to Prayer by Fr. Jacques Philippe.
• Download the 1% Challenge 30-day Bible reading plan to get to know Jesus better here. 

Rachel Brown opens the 2017 Advent at The Well gathering on December 12 at The Tea Room in downtown Des Moines, Iowa. See more at www.thewelldesmoines.com.