PODCAST
Find Joy No Matter What

Join me, Jill Baughan, this season for a podcast full of stories that will show you how to find JOY in the middle of hard places.
Your life may be far from perfect.
Your joy may seem like it’s gone underground.
If so, it’s high time for a resurrection.
For a few minutes each week, I’ll tell you a story–one that just might inspire a way to uncover some joy you might be looking for. Then, together, we’ll consider how it might speak to your own life. And finally, I’ll offer a benediction to send you into your day…or into your night.
So… if you’re up for doing a few joy shots with a friend, my friend…Come and join us!
EPISODES
Podcast Episode 128: Read Some Poetry
Tell me the truth: how do you feel about poetry? For the record, I have a consistent habit of being unable to see the deeper meaning in just about every heavily symbolic poem I’ve ever read. I took a couple poetry classes in college, and my MO, especially in one...
Podcast Episode 127: Take a Nap
Some people have no nap-shame. They are excellent at taking naps, and gift themselves whenever they feel the need if they can. For instance, my father-in-law was a pro at it. He could fall asleep just about anywhere just about any time, especially, back in the day,...
Podcast Episode 126: Rest Your Heart
There is so much to worry about these days, so much to steal our joy by filling our minds with stress and distress: the war in Ukraine, mass shootings that never seem to stop, natural disasters, crises among faith leaders, inflation. And because we are so...
Podcast Episode 125: Break a Minor Social Norm
You are very familiar with social norms--those unwritten rules of behavior that are considered acceptable in society. And since you probably want approval of the other people, you probably tend to comply with most of those unwritten rules of behavior. And there are...
Podcast Episode 124: Enjoy the Age You Are
The challenges of moving from one stage of life to another start early…and the transitions don’t get any easier as time goes on. Maybe you’re at an age at which you find yourself doing a fair amount of reflecting on your life--looking back at your past, taking stock...
Podcast Episode 123: Go to Lost and Found
Raise your hand if you just love being out of control of your life. Right. I thought so. Exactly no hands are in the air out there. Generally, we’re more comfortable thinking we can change circumstances, fix whatever (or whomever) is broken, and find whatever we’ve...
Podcast Episode 122: Eat Dessert
Not long ago, I was in a local bookstore and came upon an irresistible title that I’m convinced you will love as much as I do: Dessert Can Save the World: Stories, Secrets, and Recipes for a Stubbornly Joyful Existence. It’s the kind of book I put on my nightstand to...
Podcast Episode 121: Get Mad at God
How do you feel about letting God have it? Your anger, I mean. Many people are really uncomfortable about railing at the Almighty but I’m here to issue your permission slip to do so, and even suggest that God is really okay with you unleashing your truest, most...
Podcast Episode 120: Say Yes
When you’re presented with an opportunity, is your first response usually a “no”? Maybe you’ll change your mind later, but is your typical knee-jerk a negatory? Or maybe you know someone like this, and think, “sure glad that’s not me.” But that mindset is very common,...
Podcast Episode 119: Deal with Disappointment
You are no stranger to disappointment. The past two years have been full of disappointments: cancelled graduations and proms, weddings and concerts postponed, trips cancelled or put off indefinitely, and all manner of other kinds of letdowns. And your experience with...
Podcast Episode 118: Do Something You’re Bad At
Have you ever wanted to try to do a something, but never did because you were afraid you’d be really bad at it? (I’m talking to you, perfectionists.) Well, let me introduce you to someone who didn’t let incompetence stop her. Her story is almost unbelievable, but...
Podcast Episode 117: Make Something
One fall my husband and I took a trip to the mountains of Virginia, and before we left, I was determined to take no pictures of the usual “scenic wonders” this time: no fall foliage, no wildlife, no expansive vistas. I only wanted pictures of the stupid, the silly,...
Podcast Episode 116: Lament
I don’t know about you, but when I was in middle school, I really enjoyed a good cry. I kept a diary--you know the kind, with the lock and key (like that could keep anybody out), in which, to be honest, exactly nobody in this world would want to read the ramblings of...
Podcast Episode 115: Stay Alert for Awesome, Part 2
So last week’s episode was all about awesome in the classical, deeply meaningful sense. However. I submit to you that there’s a lot to be said for “awesome” in the colloquial, rather shallow sense, which means, simply: pleasing; very impressive. So this week? Let’s...
Podcast Episode 114: Stay Alert for Awesome, Part 1
We use the word “awesome” a lot these days--much to the irritation of some people. The classical definition goes something like this: causing or inducing awe; inspiring an overwhelming feeling of reverence, admiration, or fear, as in an awesome sight or an awesome...
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