In No Hurry with Cole Douglas Claybourn

As Father's Day approaches, it's a good time to reflect on our own fathers or father figures in our lives and let them know how much we appreciate them. As Blythe Daniel and her son, William, remind us in this week's conversation, fathers often go unappreciated. But their new book, "I Love You, Dad: Words to Honor and Humor You," is aimed at letting fathers know how much they're loved while pointing readers to our Heavenly father. Written along with Helen McIntosh, Blythe's mother, this book is somewhat of a companion book to one that Blythe and Helen wrote in 2022 called, "I Love You, Mom: Cherished Word Gifts from My Heart to Yours." This was such a fun episode because Blythe is my literary agent and this was William's second time on the podcast after he was on in 2023 talking about his book, "You're Joking Me," a joke book for kids. I was also honored to be asked to write an endorsement for this book! In this conversation, we reflect on the role of a father, how children can honor God while honoring their parents, and ways to show appreciation this Father's Day season. You can purchase this book through endgamepress.com as well as Amazon and ChristianBook.com. You can connect with Blythe and Helen through ourmendedhearts.com, and Blythe is on Instagram @blythe.daniel and Blythe McIntosh Daniel on Facebook. You can follow William @thewilliamdanielauthor on Instagram and Thewilliamdaniel on Facebook. I'd also love for you to connect with me on Substack on "The Road Ahead": ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠coledouglasclaybourn.substack.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. You can also find more of my articles and content at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠coleclaybourn.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and on social media: Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@coleclaybourn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Twitter: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@ColeClaybourn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Also find me on Facebook at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠facebook.com/ColeDouglasClaybourn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Do you ever follow someone on social media and just know you would vibe with them in real life? That's how I feel about this week's guest, Ashley Abercrombie. We've been following each other on the internet for a year or so, and I love her content and personality so much. And after my conversation with her this week, I love her story even more, and I know you will too. You may already be familiar with Ashley and her work as an author and speaker. She wrote Rise of the Truth Teller: Own Your Story, Tell it Like It Is, and Live with Holy Gumption in 2019, and Love Is the Resistance: Learn to Disagree, Resolve the Conflicts You've Been Avoiding, and Create Real Change in 2021. She's contributed to a variety of outlets, like RELEVANT and Virtue, she's the creator of After Hours on Substack and a co-host on the Why Tho Podcast. This week we talk about the right perspective on goal setting, the need for slowing down, being vulnerable, living authentically, and having tough conversations with grace. You can follow her on Instagram and Threads @ashabercrombie and online at ashabercrombie.org. I'd also love for you to connect with me on Substack on "The Road Ahead": ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠coledouglasclaybourn.substack.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. You can also find more of my articles and content at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠coleclaybourn.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and on social media: Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@coleclaybourn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Twitter: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@ColeClaybourn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Also find me on Facebook at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠facebook.com/ColeDouglasClaybourn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

In late October 2019, Ryan Ahlwardt and I sat down at a library near Indianapolis, Indiana to record the first episode of this podcast. Four years later, we're still going strong. As we've tried to do every year around the anniversary (we missed last year for some reason), Ryan and I reflected on the past year and celebrating the podcast turning another year older. If you're new to the show, the music you hear at the beginning and end was created by Ryan, a singer/songwriter who was previously a member of the highly acclaimed a capella group "Straight No Chaser." Ryan has become a good friend, and he's got some really cool life updates that he shares in this episode, including a new single called "Alone for Christmas" that you can listen to on any streaming platform. You can check out Ryan's music and social media at ryansongs.com. I'd love for you to connect with me by signing up for my newsletter, "The Road Ahead": ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠coledouglasclaybourn.substack.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. You can also find more of my articles and content at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠coleclaybourn.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and on social media: Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@coleclaybourn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Twitter: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@ColeClaybourn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Also find me on Facebook at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠facebook.com/ColeDouglasClaybourn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

A lot of us are burnt out. If you aren't feeling it now, you surely have at some point and probably will in the future. The COVID-19 pandemic and 2020 left all of us feeling all sorts of ways, and I'm willing to guess burnout and weariness were just a couple of the emotions you dealt with. That was certainly the case for this week's guest, author Dai Hankey, who was asked by his publisher to write a book encouraging Christians not to quit. But this came during the pandemic, when he himself was in a bad season and just felt like quitting a lot of things. He was exhausted in every way and everything seemed bleak around him. In October 2020, there was a moment when he found himself flat on his back in his bedroom thinking he was just done and didn't have much left in the tank. He wasn't suicidal, he said, but just kind of feeling like he was done with life. The perspective he eventually gained by journaling and spending time with the Lord is what's in his new book, "Hopeward: Gospel Grace for Weary Souls." Dai is a church-planting pastor in Cardiff, Wales, and is also the founder of Red Community, a Christian charity that fights human trafficking. He's devoted his whole life to teaching the Word of God, which I think is what makes this book and this conversation so special. I think sometimes as Christians we might feel shame for feeling some of the emotions he speaks about, but all Dai was trying to do was be his authentic self, both before the Lord and in this book to his readers. I think that comes out through this conversation. It's a perfect follow-up to last week's conversation with Adam Ramsey, which I recommend downloading if you haven't yet. If you want to connect with Dai, you can do so on Twitter @daihankey or by email at daihankey@gmail.com. You can purchase "Hopeward" anywhere books are sold, but I'm also giving away a free copy of Dai's it to someone who is a part of my Instagram and Substack communities. If you're interested in winning this giveaway, make sure you're following me on both. Links are below. Substack Newsletter: "The Road Ahead": ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠coledouglasclaybourn.substack.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Website: www.coleclaybourn.com Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@coleclaybourn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Twitter: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@ColeClaybourn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Also find me on Facebook at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠facebook.com/ColeDouglasClaybourn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

“Receive the Holy Spirit,” Jesus said to his disciples in John 20:22. Yet, for many Christians, the Holy Spirit can feel like a mystery. How do we hear it? How do we receive it? How do we discern what it's telling us and what our spiritual gifts are? How do we know that what we hear is from God and not our own internal desires? This week on "In No Hurry," author Dan Wilt unpacks all of that as he shares about his 70-day devotional, "Receive the Holy Spirit." The devotional is a journey through the Scriptures, exploring the person and work of the Holy Spirit. Through stories, encouragement, prayers, and questions for group discussion, this book is great for Christians who want to experience God’s Spirit at work in their lives. Dan is an author of several books, a worship leader, a teacher, and an encourager of pastors and creative leaders. He has impacted thousands over his three decades in ministry, across diverse streams of the Church in the US, UK, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, Australia, and Brazil. He recently completed a doctoral studies program at Asbury Theological Seminary and works with Seedbed, a resourcing network that has the mission to “gather, connect, and resource the people of God to sow for a great awakening.” He lives with his wife Anita outside of Nashville, Tennessee, and they have three grown children. You can connect with Dan's weekly spiritual formation email at at danwilt.com. I'd love for you to connect with me by signing up for my newsletter, "The Road Ahead": ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠coledouglasclaybourn.substack.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. You can also find more of my articles and content at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠coleclaybourn.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and on social media: Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@coleclaybourn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Twitter: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@ColeClaybourn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Also find me on Facebook at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠facebook.com/ColeDouglasClaybourn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

No matter how hard the tug might be to pursue a creative passion, jumping all in to do it can be scary. It's especially challenging when it requires leaving a steady career with good income for what might feel like an unknown future. But that's what Benecia Ponder did when, in 2006, she closed down her private law practice to write books and coach other aspiring authors to unlock their stories and see their book dreams become a reality. She's now the brains behind Inspirational Authors, which helps guide authors through writing, self-publishing and marketing their book. You can learn more about Benecia and the services she provides at www.inspirationalauthors.org. I'd love for you to connect with me by signing up for my newsletter, "The Road Ahead": ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠coledouglasclaybourn.substack.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. You can also find more of my articles and content at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠coleclaybourn.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and on social media: Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@coleclaybourn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Twitter: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@ColeClaybourn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Also find me on Facebook at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠facebook.com/ColeDouglasClaybourn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Scott Linebrink played 12 seasons in the major leagues — a long career in professional sports by any measure. After a successful college baseball career at Texas State University, Linebrink was drafted by the San Francisco Giants in 1997, and after three years in the minor leagues, he made his major league debut with the team in 2000. He was then traded later during his rookie season to the Houston Astros, where he bounced between the major and minor leagues for several years — a true test of faith and patience for any baseball player. In this week's episode, Scott shares what he learned about patience, both during the early parts of his career and toward the end. I love the perspective he holds, because it also involves a mindset of celebrating others, even when those on his team were the same people he was competing against in some way to make it to or stay in the major leagues. It all came from a heart of serving others, and that's what he's continued to do in his post-baseball life with Water Mission, a nonprofit organization aimed at providing clean water to underprivileged countries. Scott has some amazing stories from his many trips abroad with Water Mission, and he's shared many of those on his podcast, "Get in the Game," which is part of the Sports Spectrum Podcast Network. He often has fellow athletes on the show who have traveled with him on trips and they talk about the incredible work being done to provide the basic need of clean water to people who don't have access to it. I admired Scott as a baseball player, but I admire him even more with how he's used his platform to help serve people and share his faith in God. Be sure to check out his show and support Water Mission's work if you can. If you want to connect with Scott, you can follow him on both Twitter and Instagram @scottlinebrink. I'd love for you to connect with me by signing up for my newsletter, "The Road Ahead": ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠coledouglasclaybourn.substack.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. You can also find more of my articles and content at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠coleclaybourn.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and on social media: Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@coleclaybourn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Twitter: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@ColeClaybourn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Also find me on Facebook at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠facebook.com/ColeDouglasClaybourn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠