In his book, "The Sacred Enneagram", Chris Heuertz states, “Real transformation takes place when we pair the self-awareness that the Enneagram stimulates with the silence of contemplative practice. Then our unique path to spiritual growth emerges, and we will never be the same.”

I could not be more thrilled to have Chris Heuertz as my guest today. What he is bringing to the Enneagram conversation is crucial. In his own unique way, he shares the integration of the practices...

Much of our lives are lived by habits. Some of them are bad ones and tend to be life-draining. Some of them are good and help us really live. In today’s episode, Alan will share a recent conversation with Justin Whitmel Earley, author of the recently-released InterVarsity Press book, The Common Rule: Habits of Purpose for an Age of Distraction.

A rule of life provides a structure of practices that enable us to live and work rooted in the life of God’s kingdom. It helps us enter...

I enter today’s conversation with great anticipation. I’ve recently read Mindful Silence by Phileena Heuertz and cannot wait for you all to learn from her. She’s such a wealth of wisdom and heart.

In addition to Mindful Silence, Phileena is the author of Pilgrimage of a Soul and a founding partner of Gravity, a Center for Contemplative Activism. For nearly twenty years she and her husband, Chris, codirected an international nonprofit. As a spiritual director, yoga...

Have you noticed that there is a lot of anxiety out there these days? Whether explicit and obvious, or implicit and underlying, many of us are feeling anxious or stressed. But we follow Someone who is called the Prince of Peace. Maybe that could make a difference in how we deal with challenges, troubles, hardships that cross our path. Maybe peace could actually become our operating system.

When we talk about an operating system, we mean the basic underlying software that helps a...

Turn on social media and Marie Kondo is everywhere teaching people how to "declutter" to simplify their lives.

We can’t help ourselves. We are going to join the conversation on Tidying Up by Marie Kondo. If you haven’t seen the Netflix show or read the book, that’s ok. We’re going pass through the subject on our way to a deeper dive into why we’re tempted to cling to things and how letting go can help our souls.

Marie isn’t teaching this directly, but...

In less than a month we enter the season of Lent. We invite you to enter this season with us as we prepare for An Unhurried Lent, living faithfully in our following of Jesus.

Today on the podcast we’ll talk a little about Lent in general, then we’ll unpack the more specific idea of An Unhurried Lent.

The goal of this journey together is to live more faithfully into our following of Jesus. It involves saying the right “Yeses” and the right “Noes.” In a...

The most unremarkable part of a grapevine is where the vine and branch meet, but it is the most remarkable place where growth occurs.

A few years ago we spent a long weekend in a beautiful home on a vineyard. While visiting the Napa region of CA, we had the treat of being hosted by a master gardener. We ate beautiful food and drank amazing wine while seated at a picnic table overlooking the rolling hills and fruit-laden vines. We talked, laughed and shared all the way up to sunset. As you...

In this episode, we’re talking about four common barriers to leadership effectiveness. As a new year presents plenty of opportunities, it also presents common obstacles that get in the way of making, real productive progress.

These aren’t the only four barriers to leading well, but they are four big ones. And these insights aren’t just for people with very visible leadership roles or positions. We see leadership as a much larger category than that. Leadership is about holy...

"Slow is smooth and smooth is fast.”  Understanding this Navy SEAL tactic helps us set our intentions and walk with Jesus as we enter the new year.

Research revealed this concept of "slow is smooth and smooth is fast" is, at Unhurried Living, a similar way for ourselves and our work. Spiritual practices are the slow of “slow is smooth” that we practice so that when we work, we have access to a deep reserve from within.

In our spiritual practices our souls are learning...

This week we "examen" our lives this past year.  This practice of looking back is discernment and can offer great insight into what might be next.

Alan and I take walks a few times a week. And most of the time we have these amazing conversations that lead to me saying, “We should have been recording this! This could have been a podcast!” We’ve never recorded a walk talk, but in this episode we are sharing from a couple of those conversations about contentment and...