Everyday Good

Pursuing Productivity with Jo Kok

Laura Kleinschmidt visits with guest Jo Kok, and together they share about their intense desire to be productive. Whether it’s pursuing regular Saturday chores or larger endeavors such as doing taxes, task completion can take an unwelcome priority in our lives. Listen in as they discuss how we sometimes link productivity to our value and a love that can free us from this.
Quotes from this episode:
“I may be functionally believing that my value comes from being able to do something, to contribute something or be of use to someone and that I am defined by what I do instead of who I am.”
“He does not see me and love me for what I can do for him, but just because that's who he is.”
“To know and believe in my deep, deep heart that who I am to God is more important than what I do, is life changing.”
 
02:04 - Jo’s list of good questions about lists
04:46 - Productivity Idol at the root of being “short” with family
07:49 - A “want” turned into a monster “want”
10:20 - Choosing what is better. Love that doesn’t change with me being less productive.
14:21 – Being ok with not crossing off tasks
15:27 – One’s waste is not another’s waste
19:05 – The Good - Less frustrated and more freeing. The checklist is a tool rather than a slave master.
21:00 – The goodness of others centeredness
22:50 – Being content with what Christ’s performance completed. We still work, but work doesn’t define us and dictate who we are.
Referenced verses: Luke 10:38-24

Pressing Toward Impressiveness with Justin Searles

Join Laura Kleinschmidt as she welcomes guest, Justin Searles, for a discussion about impressing others and concealing weakness. They describe situations that involve coworkers, a library garage, and even a tornado. Listen in as they discover strength in being weak, identity in “the impressive one,” profound relief and walking a little bit lighter.
“I'm trying to impress them with everything I've got: all of the skills that I've got. And I'm also trying to conceal all my inadequacies or flaws. And so that's hard to do.”
“Weakness doesn't mean I'm weaselly, or I have to go around saying poor me. I'm such a loser. But no, instead it means I get my strength from someone other than myself.”
“My performance is not a deal at all as to whether or not I'm loved or not. I'm loved. I'm his. So that's a relief. It's like you can just breathe and….it's not so much work!”
2:36 Trying to impress with everything I’ve got
5:04 When bright yellow paint betrays your driving skills
5:36 Attempts to conceal
7:31 Wanting others to think highly of me? Or avoid having them think too low of me?
8:22 The one who sees through our attempt at impressiveness
10:44 In weakness, I am strong
13:04 Admitting weakness and being ok with it
13:46 Sometimes our weakness helps us see God is providing
16:44 The relaxing of your soul
17:18 Weakness in a tornado?
18:30 Profound relief, walking a little lighter
Referenced verses:
2 Corinthians 12:8-10, Matthew 11:28-30

Helping or Fixing? with Katy Domsten

Laura Kleinschmidt and her guest, Katy Domsten, talk about situations where they are trying to help friends, family or clients and they find themselves at times "tipping" into fixing instead of helping. Listen in as they discuss their love for helping others, the difficulty in discerning their own motives, what what warning signs to look for on the "fixing radar" and the freedom that comes from knowing who's in control.
- "Burdens becomes inappropriately heavy because we've made it something that's not ours to carry or we put ourselves in a role that is not ours."
- "I have such freedom as I remember the truths and trust Jesus with my family and friends and clients and situations that come. Just a burden lifted."
- "It's beautiful and hope inspiring to work in community with others."
 
3:43 We can think we have the power or the control to make everything right.
4:17 Starting with good motives then "tipping" into something else.
5:29 Some roots of why we fix
6:39 Wanting to bring relief and escape in domestic abuse situations
10:21 The one that is in control of all things.
12:29 Wrestling with feeling the need to be perfect
14:09 The radar "blips" when we've tipped into an inappropriate role.
17:16 My responsibility or my concern? Which circle?
20:21 A weight that is lifted!
21:03 Where freedom is found
21:53 The beauty and goodness of seeing others help
Referenced Verses:
Proverbs 19:21, Isaiah 46:4, Hebrews 2:8

People Pleasing Placebos with Laura Michaels

Join Laura Kleinschmidt and her guest, Laura Michaels, as they look at how they tend to want to please people in different situations. They also dig deep to see what the "root" of their people pleasing is. How can they get free from this? A few of our favorite quotes:
- "How you view yourself, is sometimes framed by how you think other people view you."
- "The people pleasing scenario that bugs me the most is....When I tried my hardest to do the right thing or please someone and then they thought my intention was something else."
- "So putting faith in what other people think of me or trying to control what other people think of me, that's just like building a house on the sand. I want to build my house on the rock."
 
00:57 Laura M's small slice of life 
03:27 Explaining over-explaining
04:28 Wanting others to be happy with what we are doing. 
05:15 Laura K's small slice of life 
08:17 Fearing how others think of us.
09:19 Remembering where I get our identity from, rather than focusing on how I perform or what others think....this is good.
13:33 People say "let go" but how do you do that?
14:10 Where to find safety when feeling ensnared by people please, like the jaws of an animal trap.
17:11 The freeing up of "wasted mental space."
19:33 Putting my hope in something firm, frees me up to not worry so much about what others are thinking
19:47 The rock is Christ, and that's what is so good. 
 
Referenced Verses:
1 John 3:1, Proverbs 29:25
 
 

Mental Block Self-Talk with Anna Wojtul

Laura Kleinschmidt and her guest, Anna Wojtul, discuss anxious situations where they find themselves using self-talk to attempt to bully themselves into acting differently.  They seek out some of the roots of their negative self-talk and find that performance and seeking refuge are key themes. Here's some of what you'll hear as you listen in on their conversation:
- "I put my sense of value and worth in this person that I think I should be."
- "There's something even better than magically turning into this charismatic person or having a zero percent memory failure rate."
- "Whereas the message that I often given to myself is, 'What's wrong with you? Do better!' The message that I get from Jesus is, 'I love you. Come and rest '"
 
01:30 Anna's wedding social anxiety situation
03:26 Laura's memory lapse situation
05:11 The root of the negative self-talk - trying to achieve a standard we set for ourselves.
07:35 Six Sigma? 3.4 defects per million? What's that about?
08:30 Being the judge and the receiver of the judgement at the same time.
09:10 Looking for a refuge
09:30 How Jesus is different from us and why that's really good.
12:00 A sense of peace and not being alone
13:20 Showing intelligent love for others
15:11 Beating up on those who bear the likeness of God 
19:28 The accessible Jesus.
 
Referenced Verses:
Psalm 139:17-18, Ephesians 2:8-9
 
 

Fear of Making the Wrong Choice with Laura Michaels

Laura Kleinschmidt and her guest, Laura Michaels, discuss their fear of making the wrong choice and inspect their own hearts as to what they're believing drives that fear. Laura Michael's shares, "I functionally am believing that if I make the right decision, well, then life will go well. And on the flip side, if I make the wrong decision, well now everything's ruined and I can't possibly go back and fix it."  The two Lauras take this and replace it with better thoughts regarding control and provision.
01:13 Laura M shares her indecisiveness in returning to work after having her first child
03:44 The root of Laura M's indecisiveness
04:27 Root or Route? Laura K's super small slice of life in deciding on travel routes, and the root of it.
7:01 Exhaustion and crammed mental space
7:03 What's good in this?
11:21 Getting practical by replacing lies with truth
16:50 Celebrating the good! Someone's in control.
 
Verses referred to:
Jeremiah 32:17, Proverbs 19:21, Matthew 6:25-34, Colossians 1:15-20

Conflict, Computers and Comfort with Meredith Hodge

Laura and her guest, Meredith Hodge, discuss what they avoid and what they run to in the pursuit of comfort. They address conflict and pre-grieving situations and what it looks like to "pursue peace even when it's uncomfortable." And you'll hear how they relate comfort to easy buttons and Handel's Messiah. Finally they'll talk about an ultimate source of comfort and how good it is.
01:44 Meredith shares about conflict and comfort 
03:25 The Staples Easy Button   
04:09 Laura shares about pre-grieving and comfort
07:20 Not being afraid of feeling uncomfortable.
12:42 Getting practical with seeking better comfort than conflict-avoidance
14:57 Getting practical with seeking better comfort than technology
20:01 What's really good
23:43 Meredith's favorite "F" word
 
Handel's Messiah: Comfort Ye
Verses referred to:
Matthew 11:28-30, 2 Corinthians 1:3-5. Hebrews 4:15, Isaiah 40:1, Isaiah 49:13-16

Introducing the “Everyday Good” Podcast

What does it look like for someone to engage with the person and work of Jesus in their everyday life? In this season of Everyday Good, Laura Kleinschmidt interviews different individuals who come with a specific everyday struggle. Laura and her guest each share a small slice of life and how they’re handling it. Then together they explore how the person and work of Jesus is good in the midst of it all.