The Breathing Room

Author and spiritual director, Marilyn Vancil, shares about her own journey of self-discovery and how we all have a self to lose and self to find.  Using the scriptures as truth + the Enneagram as a tool, Marilyn and Elizabeth discuss everything from shifting harmful patterns in marriage to understanding our truth worth in Christ.

Elizabeth is joined by Enneagram 7, Melody Lovvorn.  Melody walks with women who have experienced betrayal trauma through her ministry Undone Redone and also serves as an Enneagram Coach. She shares how the Enneagram has helped her to collect the dots of her life and then connect them in a way that has transformed the way she sees herself, others, and God. https://breathingroom.life

Elizabeth is joined by fellow Enneagram 4, Sarah E. Westfall, to discuss how the Enneagram has impacted their spiritual formation and relationships.  Sarah also shares practical ways she engages silence and solitude in some unconventional ways.  Listen and learn how to cultivate a quiet heart in a loud world. https://breathingroom.life  

Sarah Bourns leads us through a prayerful reflection of our year using the Examen as a guide. The perfect way to transition into a new year!

The rest expert, Saundra Dalton Smith, joins Elizabeth to offer practical ways to embrace rest as a way of life.  They also explore how rest is connected to our emotional healing and so much more!

Find freedom from your phone on this episode with author and contemplative Ed Cyzewski.  Elizabeth and Ed discuss how to shift your perspective and adopt certain practices to help you stay spiritually healthy in a digital world.  We ALL need this one!  Show notes and links at  breathingroom.life

Elizabeth chats with counselor and author, Meredith McDaniel about the spiritual practice of 'waking up' - to ourselves, to God, to the world around us.  If you've found yourself longing for more in your life, this might be just the conversation you need to get yourself moving in the right direction.  Find the show notes and more breathing room at https://breathingroom.life

Are you looking for less information and more on transformation? In less than 30 minutes you'll feel refreshed and more connected to God through the practice of Lectio Divina. This episode walks you through this ancient practice step-by-step. Slow, savoring of scripture is the perfect remedy for a parched soul. It's amazing how something so simple can be so powerful!

Elizabeth talks with John Fooshee of Gospel Enneagram about ways we can use the Enneagram as a tool for spiritual formation and relationship building. Whatever your level of Enneagram understanding, there are tons of great nuggets of wisdom for you here (plus we talk 'labyrinths' as a spiritual practice, which is really fun!). This is one of our all-time favorite conversations in The Breathing Room! breathingroom.life/join

Fresh from her morning walk, Elizabeth shares some thoughts on how we can access a new kind of NEW in our lives. Maybe we've been looking in all the wrong places.  This is what our hearts are really longing for.  This shift in thinking could bring new life to our relationships with our husbands, kids, parents, friends, and even ourselves. (NOTE: This is a bonus episode and a sample of what you'll find in TBR online membership community! You can join at https://breathingroom.life/join/ )

Elizabeth unpacks some gleaming truths about HOPE from Psalm 42.  If optimism and positive thinking hasn't brought you the peace and joy you've desired, maybe it's time to learn the who, what, and how of "living hope" - a hope that does not disappoint.  For more visit breathingroom.life

On this episode Elizabeth shares the microphone with writer, speaker, and ministry leader, Richella Parham.  They discuss how to discern between healthy and unhealthy comparison, as well as the effects social media is having on our identity and well-being, and what we can do in response.  This one is guaranteed to leave you feeling lighter!   You can find Richella at www.impartinggrace.com and Elizabeth at breathingroom.life

Do you ever feel like you try SO hard, but some things never change? What if having a primary posture of 'trying' just makes us (and everyone around us) tired, but if, instead, we focus on 'training' there is a chance for transformation.   Be encouraged that sometimes even our most complicated problems have a simple solution.    https://breathingroom.life

On this episode Elizabeth talks poetry, social media breaks, and the importance of community for our development of spiritual practices.  For the show notes visit https://breathingroom.life

A global pause button has been pushed in response to the coronavirus spreading around world.  Elizabeth and husband, Joey, discuss how certain practices have prepared them for this unprecedented time more than any trip to the grocery store ever could (Hint: They need Jesus and inner peace way more than they need toilet paper and chicken!).  This might just the perfect opportunity to adopt some new rhythms into your life.  The first one they will discuss is a weekly Sabbath and what that looks like for their family.  For show notes and to connect with the Maxons visit - https://breathingroom.life

Elizabeth's husband, Joey, joins her to discuss simple things that make their life and their marriage 1% better.  Today - compliments and socks.  

On this episode, Elizabeth talks with her real life friend, Bette, about the movement of God happening in their community.  They share how their individual pieces are coming together with the pieces of others to reveal a beautiful bigger picture. ​If you have felt a nudging to take a step towards something but you're not sure where that step will lead, today's episode might give you the courage and inspiration you need make that next move.   Maybe on the other side of your doubt and fear is a movement of God just wanting for you to enter into it.   

Families face struggles and celebrations - sometimes all within the same week! ​On this episode Elizabeth talks a little bit about both.  A recent hospital visit for daughter, Lucy, was a struggle but also a gift.  Elizabeth explains why.   ​Husband, Joey joins the conversation as the couple shares the story behind their latest family project - a fixer upper fifth wheel!  Find out why the Maxon family is hitting the road and how RV renovations and road trips line up with their vision as a family.  

Sometimes we need to kindly tell the world - "Go away." On this episode Elizabeth shares how having a 'break' forced her to take a break and what she learned in the process.  After an extended 'breathing room', she offers an honest conversation about the struggle to get out from underneath depression and the thoughts and questions that can help you overcome whatever is feeling heavy in your own life right now.  

Like it or not, our phones are changing us. There are many benefits to the technology we conveniently carry in our back pockets, but what is the negative impact of having all-access, all the time?  On today's episode we talk about some simple ways to save our sanity when it comes to cell phones.  We also issue a challenge for anyone who wants to regain some freedom and reverse the ways technology is invading our personal relationships and daily living.  Lots of practical suggestions and resources in this one!  

In a world of conferences, books, and articles telling us 'You've got what it takes!' - why do we so often feel like we don't?  Why does it sometimes feel like every pep talk we get adds more weight to the heaviness we feel?  Could it be that we're not getting the full truth?  On this episode, Amanda Uher is beautifully vulnerable about her own mental health struggles and the freedom she is finding along the way.  

In the wake of tragedy we listen to the reporters and watch the footage and wonder - What do I do? How do I respond?   How can I possibly make a difference in the midst of such huge devastation.  In this episode we go looking for light in the midst of darkness and remember that we all have an important role to play, although it may be different than we imagined.  

Priorities shift when we become parents, but do we sometimes swing too far in the direction of our children and too far away from the other roles in our lives?  Today's guest discusses the difficult transition from career woman to mother and how she has not let the culture around her define her roles.  By thinking outside of the box (and home) she has fought to live out her deepest values and callings while still being one awesome mama.  

Elizabeth introduces the simple, yet powerful, practice of deep breathing.  In addition to sharing her own experience with incorporating breathing exercises into regular daily life, she will also share an essay written generations ago that still applies to those of us trying to catch our breath today.  This one is light-hearted and entertaining!  

Allison talks honestly, and yet hopefully, about the struggles she faces as a mother of a child whose life is being cut short by a genetic disorder known as Hunter Syndrome.  As the Muedder Family pushes back fear and chooses joy, rooted in their deep faith in God, they find themselves a part of a much bigger story than the could have ever imagined.  If you've battled any type of fear you will find breathing room within this story and encouragement that God has something special hidden below the surface of our struggles. 

Listen in as Elizabeth and Emily share their emotional journey and the lessons they learned along the way. In this 2nd part of their conversation, the 'Breathing Room girls' talk about how comparison kills and what we can do to combat it.  They also unpack the power of collaboration in unlocking creativity and inspiration.  Their story is magical and might just inspire you to grab a friend and dream big together!  

Long before the podcast, two girls took a few shaky steps toward a distant and unclear dream.  That dream turned out to be The Breathing Room.  Listen in as Elizabeth and Emily share their emotional journal and the lessons they learned along the way.  If you've felt a nudge to take your own first steps this might be the encouragement you need.  If you are carrying untapped gifts and dying dreams all alone, these girls have a heartfelt message for you.  

Have you felt the information overload?  Is your head spinning with all the 5 step programs and quick fixes that claim to give you exactly what you need?  Do you have a stack of unread {or half read} self-help books at home collecting dust, but yet you continue to buy more?  I get it...and, call me crazy, but I've decided to escape from it all by reverting back to my childhood.  I'll explain how in today's episode.  

Elizabeth chats with one of her 'Tuesday Girls', Kelly Whitehead, about her journey as a mother of two children with special needs.  Kelly honestly shares the struggles and the gifts of this life she did not expect, but fully embraces. Are you facing a limitation that has you feeling frustrated or disappointed?  Do you feel like some of the things you are dealing with are unfair?  If so, this episode may give you the hope and encouragement you need.  And if you've every wondered how to walk alongside a family that has children with special needs, we'll answer that question too!  

Elizabeth talks with fellow South Carolina girl, Mary Beth Hultstrand about one of the biggest shifts she's made in her life.  Together they will discuss what it looks like to be a mindful mama instead of succumbing to mindless busy-ness.  Mindfulness is at the heart of intentional living and a good place to begin finding breathing room in the middle of the franticness of life. If your family's pace of living has you feeling exhausted, this is your chance to step out of the fast lane and discover some practical ways to slow down and simplify.