This is a real life story that feels a bit like a fairy tale. Because had you told me a few years ago that I would be co-hosting a podcast that I record in my basement guest bedroom, I would have said it was make believe. The story goes something like this:
Once upon a time there was a girl. Who had a friend. The kind of friend who convinced her to try new things. You know, the kinds of things that pushed this girl out of her comfort zone. Past the doubts of ‘Can we really do this?’ and ‘Are we just contributing to the noise of the world?’ A friend who was willing to try despite the walls of steep learning curves and dragons of technical difficulties that seemed to stand in the way.
You see this was a girl who specialized in written words. Not spoken ones. So when her friend said, “Let’s start a podcast!” the hesitations came flooding in. ‘How do we possibly do this? Us two moms with no editing, producing, or techy kinds of backgrounds? We know interesting people to interview, for sure, but how do we even record something? Much less post it in iTunes?!’ And this is where the girl would have stopped had she been on this adventure alone. But her friend said, “We can do hard things!” And “We are meant to encourage!”
So this introvert who liked the idea of introducing people, the ones she interviewed to the ones listening, from the comfort of her basement while her kids watched TV upstairs said “ok”. And her friend did the legwork of figuring out how to make it happen. And they kept pushing forward, these two heroines, because they knew there were stories of encouragement to be told. And they wanted other women sitting in their basements while their kids watched TV upstairs (or driving to work or the carpool or cleaning their houses on Saturday mornings) to hear that they too were the heroines of their stories. The ones God was writing with them.
And this is where the story finds us. In the middle. Not a happily ever after, but a we are still totally figuring this out, kind of place. And yet because we are not about perfection, but about process, the kind God is doing in the world, it is time to officially share this with you. The Open Door Sisterhood Podcast is up!!! The what?! you say. Yes, a podcast for all of us who want to walk through open doors.
My co-heroine of the story is my friend Krista Gilbert. And she gets all of the credit in making this happen. Truly. She has figured out how to do things that would have, and did actually, overwhelm me. But that is what the sisterhood is about, reminding each other that we can do hard things. And so as we are figuring this out, we invite you along. Listen to the episodes that are up. Suggest people for us to interview. Subscribe on iTunes so you get notified when another episode has posted (also feel free to rate us on iTunes, it helps us get the attention of others who might be poking around there.)
Why a podcast? Because you can listen as you do life. Put the earbuds in, open us up in the podcast app and you are ready to multitask. And because we have women we want to introduce you to. Rather than telling you about them, a podcast allows you to meet them through real life conversation.
You see Krista and I started a retreat last year to encourage women to walk through the doors God was opening. But this retreat can only handle a few. And we wanted to extend the encouragement to a bigger circle of women, not with our stories, though we are happy to share them if they offer hope of any kind, but the stories of the women we are meeting. Stories of questions and doubts. Of yes, doing hard things. Of courage. Of finding God in the midst of all of it and following his lead when the big picture might not be clear, but the next step is.
Our goal is to encourage you as we introduce you to these sisters. We’ll post interviews, sometimes it might just be the two of us talking (we are in the middle of this story so the format is still fluid), sometimes it may just be Krista conducting the interview. Sometimes it will be person specific. Other times topic specific. Regardless, we hope you join if you would like a little inspiration. A little honest talk. And some practical next steps if you are facing similar circumstances or wondering about a particular issue.
Listen to an episode. Or ten. We invite you into the sisterhood.
Now the important stuff. You can find The Open Door Sisterhood Podcast here on iTunes.