The Happy Hour with Jamie Ivey

My guest for The Happy Hour # 187 is Courtney Wetzel. Courtney is a senior at Texas A&M University and believes in empowering, equipping and encouraging individuals even in the mundane. Through her gift of storytelling, she is able to empathize and rally behind her generation. Courtney is the youngest guest I've had so far on the Happy Hour, and I loved our conversation, her energy, and enthusiasm, and I know you will too. Courtney and I talk about her current season of transitioning from college and how important it is for women to cheer each other on. Courtney is speaking my language when she talks about the importance of women saying to each other "I'm on your team". Courtney then shares how she developed the habit of looking for "dimes", or unexpected joys in each day. It started with a writing assignment during a season where it seemed joys would be few. I love how she has committed to finding her "dimes" in each day and that you can always "fight to find what was good about today". At the end of the show, Courtney will prove anyone who has preconceived notions about millenials wrong, because this gal is doing great things to develop community and creativity! But, we also talk about the danger in this age of hustle, and feeling like we need to keep pace with those we see around us instead of remaining grounded in where our true identity lies. Connect with Jamie Facebook // Twitter // Instagram // YouTube GET ALL THE LINKS FROM THE SHOW HERE!

My guest for The Happy Hour # 186 is Carrie Rozema. Carrie is co-author of 'The Least of These', a personal testimony of the redemptive power of Christ in the face of her husband's heroin addiction. Carrie and her husband Neal share their personal testimonies in hopes of bringing insight and freedom to those held captive by drug abuse and incarceration. In today's episode, Carrie says "God is in the business of redeeming broken people", and throughout our conversation today, I know you'll hear so many examples of how God will pursue us no matter what the circumstances. Carrie begins by sharing how God rescued her from an unsafe marriage, and how she came to know God through His Word. As Carrie was healing and growing more in her faith, in walks Neal - the exact opposite "type" of man Carrie thought God would pick for her. You guys, she even told him on the first date that she wasn't the girl he was looking for. Carries describes how a few months into the relationship, he admitted he was on parole. She tells us how she finally learned the truth about his heroin addiction when he was sent to prison. She first told Neal to lose her number, but instead throughout Neal's years in prison, God continually pursued both of them, and they ended up married just ten days after Neal was released. At the end of our conversation, Carrie gives a convicting challenge to the church: she encourages us to step out and welcome people who come from hard situations such as abuse, addiction, or prison. I loved how she said even if it seems messy or hard, we should "roll out the red carpet". Connect with Jamie Facebook // Twitter // Instagram // YouTube GET ALL THE LINKS FROM THE SHOW HERE!

My guest for The Happy Hour # 185 is Holly Christine Hayes. Holly is an author, world-renowned recovery ministry expert, and founder/CEO of Sanctuary Project, a social enterprise bringing hope and healing to survivors of trafficking, violence and addiction. Holly was recently chosen as a new Voice for Women of Faith and is passionate about sharing her radical salvation story in safe houses, churches, conferences and recovery communities all over the world. I know that after listening to my conversation with Holly, you are going to love God more and be affirmed in how much God can redeem in our lives. Holly and I start out the conversation talking about what it means to hit rock bottom, and no matter what your story is, pain is pain. Holly shares her story of abuse, addiction, abortion, and trafficking that led her to the moment when she prayed the words, "God help me." Holly shares her journey of becoming sober and getting to know the God that saved her. I cannot stop thinking about when she told me the amazing story of how God met her in the Word when she sought to know Him better by opening up her Bible. At the end of show, we talk about her passion for helping women gain freedom from shame and her new nonprofit, Sanctuary Project. Be sure to come find me on Instagram tomorrow (3/22) because we will be giving away a necklace from Sanctuary Project! A note about our conversation today: we discuss several mature topics including abortion, abuse, trafficking, and addiction which may not be appropriate for young ears. Connect with Holly Facebook // Instagram Connect with Jamie Facebook // Twitter // Instagram // YouTube

My guest for The Happy Hour # 184 is Marshawn Evans Daniels. A former sports attorney, Miss America finalist, and competitor on The Apprentice, she left a high-powered law firm and turned her passion for people into a multimillion-dollar enterprise. Marshawn is a reinvention strategist and life coach mentoring women to live bolder in the areas of faith and business and turn ideas into income and faith into action. On today's show, Marshawn shares the story of how living out faith in her daily life led her to where she is today, coaching and empowering women. Marshawn tells us about how she competed in Miss America, The Apprentice, and discovered her talent for business. After launching her own book on business and creating a successful sports agency, Marshawn faced crisis: the week she was set to be married, she called off her wedding. Marshawn describes this as her "split rock" moment and that God used this crisis to move her through what she calls divine reinvention. I know that Marshawn inspired me when she said that we should all believe bigger and be awakened in boldness to use the gifts that God has given us, and I hope that you are inspired too! A note about our conversation today: you may want to be aware of little ears that are listening when Marshawn and I discuss the topic of infidelity. Connect with Jamie Facebook // Twitter // Instagram // YouTube GET ALL THE LINKS FROM THE SHOW HERE!

My guest for The Happy Hour # 183 is Andi Andrew. Andi is the author of She Is Free, and cofounder and copastor with her husband, Paul, of Liberty Church. In 2015 she launched the She Is Free Conference in order to equip and activate women to walk in freedom, spirit, soul, and body, and see others set free in their sphere of influence. A frequent speaker all over the world, she lives in Brooklyn with her husband, Paul, and their four children. You guys, I am so excited to share with you my conversation with Andi. Her message of freedom and replacing lies with truth aligns so much with what I am passionate about. We cover so many topics from the lessons learned from sharing rooms with your siblings, to how the lies we believe will alter our perspective on the world. Andi also shares her story of moving to Australia where she unexpectedly met and married her husband, and the amazing story of how God led her and Paul to start Liberty Church in NYC. We then dive into the lies we cling to that disconnect us from God and each other. Shame, anger, control - do those sound as familiar to you as they did for me? Andi and I talk honestly about how these can manifest in our own lives and how we can work to dismantle the lies and live in the truth. One note about our conversation today: Andi and I do talk about some mature topics related to marriage, so you may want to be aware of little ears that are listening. Connect with Jamie Facebook // Twitter // Instagram // YouTube GET ALL THE LINKS FROM THE SHOW HERE!

In the last episode of this series, I talk with my friend Jenn about her divorce. Jenn talks about the stigma about divorce in the church, and her fear that people would only see the divorce and suffering and not see Jesus. She also talks about her fear that if she shared her story, people would use it as permission to give up on marriage when she so strongly believes in marriage and God’s ability to redeem and restore. I appreciated it so much when Jenn shared her commitment that “I am going to walk through this story, I’m going to lean in. This is what God has for me, and I’m going to be ok. He has covered me…He has gone before me.” Connect with Jamie Facebook // Twitter // Instagram // YouTube

My guest for The Happy Hour # 182 is Emily Thomas. Emily is the host of the Mom Struggling Well podcast where she employs humor and candor to share the encouragement from God’s word and her personal motherhood misadventures in an effort to build up worn-down moms everywhere. On today's show, Emily and I start off talking about parenting challenges and Emily shares her story of infertility that led her to adoption. I appreciated Emily's honesty so much as she tells us about the difficulties she faced in connecting with her daughter and how they are fostering a healthy relationship together. Emily then shares the incredible story of her first marriage that began with an engagement after the first date, moving overseas, and ended with Emily fleeing for her safety. I loved the end of our conversation when Emily and I talk about the importance of recognizing when how we feel about God doesn't line up with what is actually true about God. This is such a great encouragement for all of us that no matter how unusable by God we may feel, the truth about who God is and how He loves us is greater! Connect with Jamie Facebook // Twitter // Instagram // YouTube GET ALL THE LINKS FROM THE SHOW HERE!

In this episode of If You Only Knew, Jessica shares her story of struggling with body image. Jessica describes how body image became her reason for any rejection or feelings of isolation, and the lie we all can believe that “if I only could be this or if I only could have that, then I wouldn’t have pain or rejection”. I love Jessica’s message of how she learned to reframe how she sees herself, and that we are all truly loved and accepted by Jesus. Connect with Jamie Facebook // Twitter // Instagram // YouTube

My guest for The Happy Hour # 181 is Jennifer Allwood. Jennifer is a wife, a mother and a creative turned business coach. She is “Facebook famous” according to her teenage boys with over 300K followers on that platform and she teaches women how to create a beautiful home and build a creative business. If you have been feeling God nudge you to do something new but you've felt afraid or uncertain, then this show is for you. No matter what stage of life you're in, I know you're going to be encouraged by our conversation today to get out there and use your giftings. Jennifer and I begin the show by discussing the joys and challenges of raising teenage boys including the new freedom she's loving with having a teenager in the house that can drive. Jennifer then shares how she transformed her painting business to a successful online platform. Through this shift, Jennifer has been able to reach an even broader audience than before, and she now also coaches thousands of women on how to maximize their talents through social media. She shares some of her tips with us and I know that I learned some things today that I'll be implementing ASAP! What I loved most about our conversation today was her encouragement for all of us. She reminds us that we all share the feeling of being afraid, but that doesn't release us from our calling. God has given us giftings and He has equipped us to use them, so don't let fear stop you when you feel him giving you a nudge! Connect with Jamie Facebook // Twitter // Instagram // YouTube GET ALL THE LINKS FROM THE SHOW HERE!