Episode 106: Has God Forgotten Me? When Faith Feels Loud and God Feels Silent

Episode 106: Has God Forgotten Me? When Faith Feels Loud and God Feels Silent

There is a question many faithful women carry that they will not say out loud. It surfaces at two in the morning, in the carpool line, in the middle of the worship song everyone else seems to feel. Has God forgotten me? If you are still praying, still serving, still showing up — and God feels silent anyway — this episode is for you. Here is what you will walk away with: * Why God's silence often feels like rejection — even when nothing has actually changed between you and God. * What researchers studying spiritual dryness have learned about how common this is among the most devoted believers. * How dryness shows up in your body, your mind, and your relationships — and why that matters. SCRIPTURE HIGHLIGHT: Psalm 13:1–2 (NIV) Research note: Spiritual dryness research from Büssing and colleagues at Witten/Herdecke University, and attachment to God research from Beck and McDonald. Ready for your next step? FREE 5-Minute Daily Reset (instant download): YourNextBestStep.com  [https://YourNextBestStep.com] Weekly encouragement + practical tips: YouTube @CoachJanetJ [https://www.youtube.com/@CoachJanetJ] Instagram: @janetjjaecks [https://www.instagram.com/janetjjaecks/ ] If this episode resonated with you, please follow/subscribe and share with a friend who needs their next step.   One small step. One day at a time.

BONUS: “Before the Sun Sets” Prayer (YNBS 105)

“The sun may stay up late. That does not mean you have to.” Join me for a short prayer to make the longest day a little better as we lean into the reminder that that God made the day, the night, summer, winter, and the limits inside all of it. Feel free to check out the latest episode of Your Next, Best Step (105) for a gentle reminder for the woman who is running on backup battery this summer - "The Longest Day of the Year and the Shortest Fuse" Ready for your next step? FREE 5-Minute Daily Reset (instant download): YourNextBestStep.com  [https://YourNextBestStep.com] Weekly encouragement + practical tips: YouTube @CoachJanetJ [https://www.youtube.com/@CoachJanetJ] Instagram: @janetjjaecks [https://www.instagram.com/janetjjaecks/ ] If this episode resonated with you, please follow/subscribe and share with a friend who needs their next step.   One small step. One day at a time.

Episode 105: The Longest Day of the Year and the Shortest Fuse

The longest day of the year sounds beautiful. So why are you running short on patience by 6:12 in the evening? If summer feels less like a season of joy and more like a season of slow depletion, you are in the right place. The science says it is not your character. It is heat, evening light, and modest sleep loss all chipping away at your emotional bandwidth at the same time. In this episode, I will walk you through what is actually happening in your body around the summer solstice, why your short fuse has a physiological explanation, and one small thing you can do before the sun sets tonight to help restore your energy. Here is what you will take away: * Why “more daylight” often costs you more than it gives back * How heat and modest sleep loss shrink your patience without you realizing *  A grounded, faith-rooted way to receive this season instead of pushing through it SCRIPTURE HIGHLIGHT: Psalm 74:16–17 (NIV) Research note: Noelke and colleagues, 2016, Environmental Research, on ambient temperature and emotional well-being. Ready for your next step? FREE 5-Minute Daily Reset (instant download): YourNextBestStep.com  [https://YourNextBestStep.com] Weekly encouragement + practical tips: YouTube @CoachJanetJ [https://www.youtube.com/@CoachJanetJ] Instagram: @janetjjaecks [https://www.instagram.com/janetjjaecks/ ] If this episode resonated with you, please follow/subscribe and share with a friend who needs their next step.   One small step. One day at a time.

BONUS: A One-Minute Prayer Practice for a Layered Holiday (YNBS 104)

Holidays can be layered. Most of us carry gratitude and grief in the same family tree, and the night before can leave a heart feeling restless. Here is a small practice you can use tonight. I call it The Naming Practice. Three steps, about sixty seconds. Name the gift. Name the gap. Receive. It is a quiet way to hand the day to God before you sleep. Full (Ep 104) of Your Next, Best Step is live now, with three truths for whatever your father story is Ready for your next step? FREE 5-Minute Daily Reset (instant download): YourNextBestStep.com  [https://YourNextBestStep.com] Weekly encouragement + practical tips: YouTube @CoachJanetJ [https://www.youtube.com/@CoachJanetJ] Instagram: @janetjjaecks [https://www.instagram.com/janetjjaecks/ ] If this episode resonated with you, please follow/subscribe and share with a friend who needs their next step.   One small step. One day at a time.

Episode 104: Whatever Your Father Story Is, Even If It's Complicated

Father's Day is coming, and the truth is, your father story may be more layered than a greeting card allows. Maybe your dad is wonderful and you cannot wait to call him. Maybe he is gone, and June makes the missing harder to ignore. Maybe your stepfather raised you, your grandfather was your safe place, or a man who was never family at all fathered you when no one else did. Maybe your story holds gratitude and grief in the same family tree. Whatever your father story is, this episode makes room for it. Here is what you'll walk away with: * Why Father's Day does not get the same room to be complicated that Mother's Day does, and why that leaves so many women feeling unseen. * What the research says about father figures, including grandfathers and stepfathers, and why the showing up matters more than the title. * How a father story can shape the way you experience God as Father, and what helps when that word feels heavy. SCRIPTURE HIGHLIGHT: Psalm 68:5 and Psalm 27:10 (WEB) Research note: Father involvement research from Flouri and Buchanan, grandparent research from Stephenson and Carstensen at Stanford, stepfather research from Jensen and colleagues, and attachment to God research from Limke and Mayfield. Ready for your next step? FREE 5-Minute Daily Reset (instant download): YourNextBestStep.com  [https://YourNextBestStep.com] Weekly encouragement + practical tips: YouTube @CoachJanetJ [https://www.youtube.com/@CoachJanetJ] Instagram: @janetjjaecks [https://www.instagram.com/janetjjaecks/ ] If this episode resonated with you, please follow/subscribe and share with a friend who needs their next step.   One small step. One day at a time.