Laughter is a staple on our pod, but this week we're digging into why it's so important and biblical. This episode is only a Top One where Gretchen tackles tough questions such as:

1. How much celebration do we need in our lives?

2. How to approach a friend who needs a reminder of joy.

3. What does the Bible say about joy and celebration?

4. What does joy do to our soul?

We get it. We live in a dark and broken world. It's easy for the scales to tip toward seriousness and gloom, but that's no excuse for dismissing joy. Joy is a command, and we're gonna talk about how we live that out.

Hit play, and let us know in the comments which parts challenged you the most.

p.s. It's official: we'll be bringing you weekly recaps and responses for season 35 of Dancing With The Stars. This week we discuss Week 2. Why? Because it brings us so much joy!

SHOW NOTES

If you want to be the first to know when Joy's upcoming book on surrender (with a healthy dose of celebration) is released, sign up for her monthly newsletter HERE [https://www.joyabad.com/newsletter].

The Importance of Celebration and Choosing Joy

Our Top Two is back! Today Joy dives in with lessons from Jacob/Israel in Genesis, namely the fruitlessness of allowing fear to drive our parenting choices. Gretchen masterfully ties together a sermon, a classic novel, and a movie about witches for a mic-drop moment about how we view and treat one another. You have to hear it to believe it.

And for the DWTS fans out there, our week 1 review is up. We make no apologies for our obsession and fourth-judge comments. Enjoy!

SHOW NOTES

Joy's episode on The Mentor's Table about noticing your invitations to surrender or control: "Why You Should Always Count Your Invitations." [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-mentors-table-a-place-for-women-desiring/id1777464823?i=1000790178220]

Sense and Sensibility [https://link.amazon/B0gtVEkBN]

Stop Living Like You're Powerless [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-well-utah/id1044806850?i=1000751781842], Erica Parrish from The Well church.

Gretchen's powerful solo podcast about words: "The Power of Words: Life, Death, and What We Partner With" [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/as-we-grow/id1825648005?i=1000744824357]

The Fear of Israel and Treating Others as God Sees Them

We're back with a big fat update about alllllll things summer. Teaser: the word gonorrhea came up multiple times ;-) Lots of laughs, some book reccs, personal stories, some reality TV, and a little glimpse into how we grew over the summer.

You don't want to miss the big announcement at the end (hint: Joy's caving).

Thanks so much for listening. As always, like, share, and subscribe to help us grow As We Grow. And leave a review while you're listening--every bit of love helps!

As We Grow is on Instagram! Follow @aswegrowpod [https://instagram.com/aswegrowpod] for BTS pictures, episode highlights, and personal connections with Joy & Gretchen.

To listen to Joy's solo podcast, search for The Mentor's Table [https://www.joyabad.com/podcast] wherever you listen to podcasts, or visit her at www.joyabad.com [http://www.joyabad.com/] to sign up for her newsletter and follow her journey to publication.

As We Grew this Summer

This week we’re wrapping up our season and heading into a summer break! In this episode, we talk about why we’re stepping away for a few months, what we’re hoping to learn during this season of rest, and the personal goals we’re working toward while we’re off. From growth and discipline to margin and restoration, we’re sharing what this summer looks like for us and inviting you to consider what you might need in this season too.

Thank you for being part of As We Grow. We’ll see you after the summer!

Summer Goals

Joy jumps in this week to talk about the necessity of developing a rhythm of stopping and listening before we make any decision, and then she ties it to the unavoidable need for community. This conversation is the kick you need to recalibrate your life rhythms to God's rhythms before summer roars in.

We also have many personal updates on this show, so follow us on Instagram @aswegrowpod [https://www.instagram.com/aswegrowpod] to see all the corresponding pictures in our stories.

And speaking of summer, we're announcing our summer schedule. We'll be taking the next few weeks off to recharge, so now more than ever, it's vital that you follow our pod wherever you listen to podcasts! That way, when we return, our new episode will auto-populate in your feed.

Also mentioned on the show, we have not been able to adequately keep up with the Fable app during our book club, so we are giving notice that we will not be using that app anymore. Thanks for your understanding.

SHOW NOTES

Podcasts mentioned:

"The Secrets of Prophesy (hearing God, assignments, and childlike faith)" w/Dale Mast - 101" [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-secrets-of-prophecy-hearing-god/id1500492987?i=1000767592176] on The Deep End podcast.

"1: Trust the Story" [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-bema-podcast/id1373610566?i=1000448536444] on BEMA Discipleship podcast (for a detailed explanation of a chiasm).

As We Grow is on Instagram! Follow @aswegrowpod [https://www.instagram.com/aswegrowpod]for BTS pictures, episode highlights, and personal connections with Joy & Gretchen.

To listen to Joy's solo podcast, search for The Mentor's Table [https://www.joyabad.com/podcast] wherever you listen to podcasts.

Rhythms of Listening in Community

We only got through one topic this time, so you'll have to tune in next week for our second of the TOP TWO. In this episode, Gretchen lays out the difference between excuses and speaking truth. We talk about the difference between the two and how to identify when excuses are masquerading as truth.

Prepare for some conviction. This one will sharpen you.

As We Grow is on Instagram! Follow @aswegrowpod [https://instagram.com/aswegrowpod] for BTS pictures, episode highlights, and personal connections with Joy & Gretchen.

To listen to Joy's solo podcast, search for The Mentor's Table [https://www.joyabad.com/podcast] wherever you listen to podcasts.

*Contains affiliate links

Catching Up With Luke

We're gonna push the limits of your faith and spiritual understanding with this one. Buckle up! We're talking time travel, redemption, and a wild testimony from Gretchen!

We did the best we could to summarize Redeeming Your Timeline by Troy Brewer, but you really just need to read this one yourself. Here's a link to purchase. Can't wait to hear what you think!

Redeeming Your Timeline: Supernatural skillsets for healing past wounds, calming future anxieties, and discovering rest in the now [https://amzn.to/3Rjt1tM] by Troy A. Brewer

As We Grow is on Instagram! Follow @aswegrowpod [https://instagram.com/aswegrowpod] for BTS pictures, episode highlights, and personal connections with Joy & Gretchen.

To listen to Joy's solo podcast, search for The Mentor's Table [https://www.joyabad.com/podcast] wherever you listen to podcasts.

*Contains affiliate links

BONUS EPISODE: Book Club - Redeeming Your Timeline by Troy Brewer

This is the episode that never ends . . . it just goes on and on, my friends!

I promise we tried for under an hour, but we just had too many good things to chat about.

Today's TOP TWO focuses on seeing God in literally everything, and how a surrendered life seems like the harder way in the beginning but ends up being the harder way with eternal consequences. And we might sprinkle in some book reviews (we finally get back to Project Hail Mary), mermaids, and a theological question about when the first sin was committed. Buckle up!

SHOW NOTES

Numbers That Prophesy [https://amzn.to/4eqZIz7]by Troy Brewer (at the time of this recording, it's only 99 cents on Kindle!)

"Eighteen Days in Heaven with Gabe Poirot" [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/blurry-creatures/id1526885135?i=1000760093262] on Blurry Creatures

Confessions [https://amzn.to/4wdeIah] by Saint Augustine (at the time of this recording, it's only 84 cents on Kindle!)

Sitting at the Feet of Rabbi Jesus [https://amzn.to/4uz3ifn] by Lois Tverberg and Ann Spangler (currently free on KindleUnlimited)

Bible passages mentioned: 1 Kings 5:1-9 and Ecclesiastes 10:10

As We Grow is on Instagram! Follow @aswegrowpod [https://instagram.com/aswegrowpod] for BTS pictures, episode highlights, and personal connections with Joy & Gretchen.

To listen to Joy's solo podcast, search for The Mentor's Table [https://www.joyabad.com/podcast] wherever you listen to podcasts.

*Contains affiliate links

The One Where We Have 7 Topics

We're back with a bonus episode discussing our March book club read: The Way of Life: Experiencing the Culture of Heaven on Earth [https://amzn.to/49oHtqw]by Bill Johnson. This is the first time both Joy and Gretchen have read a Bill Johnson book, and they were both challenged by the content. This book offers a no-holds-barred guide to living life as a follower of Jesus.

We believe this discussion will provide an insightful overview of the book and help you determine if this should go on your TBR.

As We Grow is on Instagram! Follow @aswegrowpod [https://instagram.com/aswegrowpod] for BTS pictures, episode highlights, and personal connections with Joy & Gretchen.

To listen to Joy's solo podcast, search for The Mentor's Table [https://www.joyabad.com/podcast] wherever you listen to podcasts.

*Contains affiliate links

BONUS EPISODE: Book Club - The Way of Life: Experiencing the Culture of Heaven on Earth by Bill Johnson

We're back in our regular groove! This week's Top Two includes Bible journaling habit suggestions, deeper insights into Genesis, and tender takeaways from reading Henri Nouwen's The Return of the Prodigal Son [https://amzn.to/3OJxVzh].

Also mentioned on the pod, Lisa Harper's podcast Back Porch Theology, "Mountains, Valleys, & the Voice of God pt. 1 [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/mountains-valleys-the-voice-of-god-part-1/id1603918454?i=1000731551346]."

As We Grow is on Instagram. Follow @aswegrowpod [https://instagram.com/aswegrowpod] for BTS pictures, episode highlights, and personal connections with Joy & Gretchen.

To listen to Joy's solo podcast, search for The Mentor's Table [https://www.joyabad.com/podcast] wherever you listen to podcasts.

*Contains affiliate links

Journaling Through Genesis and Revelations of the Prodigal Son

We both love Jesus. We both love learning. And we needed a place to talk about it! Join our conversations with one another as we grow in our walks with God.