The Next Right Thing

Before you make any major decisions in the new year, here's a 3 minute blessing to start things off.

We don’t want to wait until the other side of Christmas to finally pause and say, hello soul. I’ve missed you this month. Instead, we work to create space now. For a few minutes today, we’ll make room, we’ll take a moment to acknowledge our soul and remember the miracle of God With Us. Links + Resources From This Episode: Renovation of the Heartby Dallas Willard The Art of Everyday Living - Emily's keynote from The Breath and The Clay 2014 Tickets: The Breath and the Clay / March 22-24, 2019 / Winston-Salem, North Carolina Top Ten Books for 2018 Find me on Instagram @emilypfreeman

During Advent, it’s true we wait expectantly. It’s also true we’re preparing for an arrival.  What does preparation look like for you today? Might it include creating some space? Making some room? Clearing some clutter - and not just the kind you can see? Links + Resources From This Episode: The Quiet Collection for Christmas - Learn more here Find me on Instagram @emilypfreeman Joy to the World  

If you want to find relief from seasonal anxiety, I would love to help.    Links + Resources From This Episode: The Quiet Collection for Christmas - Available through 12/11/18 The Ordering of Love: The New and Collected Poems of Madeleine L'engleby Madeleine L'Engle Find me on Instagram @emilypfreeman

Our choices define our lives - not just the ones we’re carrying now about our future, but also the ones we’ve already made in our past. Wouldn’t we do well to bring them to mind and see what they have to teach us? In this episode I’ll share my own simple rhythm of reflection in hopes that it could inspire you to come up with your own. Links + Resources From This Episode: Last week’s Episode 60 + Big Announcement Earth Crammed With Heaven: A Spirituality of Everyday Life by Elizabeth Dreyer One Line A Day: A Five-Year Memory Book by Chronicles Book Staff Let Your Life Speak by Parker Palmer Seasonal Reflectional Lists Find me on Instagram @emilypfreeman And here’s that big announcement from last week, just in case you missed it! The Next Right Thing: A Simple, Soulful Practice for Making Life Decisions 

Starting before you’re ready moving even when you’re not sure where you’re going is only possible when you have a next-right-thing mindset. Today I'll share a story from my own life and, in the process, offer what I hope will be as fun an announcement for you to hear as it is for me to give. Links + Resources From This Episode: The Weight of Glory by C. S. Lewis Episode 27: Stop Rushing Clarity Marie Forleo Seven Days of Still Moments The Quiet Collection Waiting List Simply Tuesday: My last book Blue Sky Period B J Novak talks about his creative process The Monthly Letter - sign up for first word news And here's that big announcement! The Next Right Thing: A Simple, Soulful Practice for Making Life Decisions by Emily P. Freeman

It’s possible to be surrounded by silence everyday and completely miss the point. It’s also possible to lead a full, loud life and still receive the gifts God has to offer us in the pockets of silent time we can find. You can be busy and soulful at the same time. The key is in paying attention. Links + Resources From This Episode: Episode 58: Welcome Silence The Monthly Letter Let Your Life Speak: Listening to the Voice of Vocationby Parker Palmer Invitation to Solitude and Silence: Experiencing God's Transforming Presenceby Ruth Haley Barton Have  One Last Thing delivered to your inbox on Saturday mornings To Bless The Space Between Us: A Book of Blessingsby John O'Donohue What's your next right thing today? Share it using #mynextrightthing + tag @emilypfreeman! Find me on Instagram @emilypfreeman

In 2012 singer John Mayer had surgery on his vocal chords and was ordered not to speak for two months or sing for six. His healing depended on his silence.  While his need was physical, perhaps silence is required for all kinds of healing: the wounds of the body and of the soul. Today's episode offers a short practice to help ease into silence, one small moment at a time. Links + Resources From This Episode: Shattered Dreams by Larry Crabb Psalm 62:5-6 (The Message) Episode 57: Don't Dread Your Weird Life Sharing Silence by Gunilla Norris What's your next right thing today? Share it using #mynextrightthing + tag @emilypfreeman! Find me on Instagram @emilypfreeman

To take action and make a decision requires something of you. But make no mistake — putting decisions off require something too, and that may be even more expensive.  Links + Resources: The Prayer of Saint Patrick What's your next right thing today? Share it using #mynextrightthing + tag @emilypfreeman! Find me on Instagram @emilypfreeman

Focus is hard because there’s both so much going on and often not enough information. When you have a big idea but aren't sure where to start, listen in.    Links + Resources From This Episode: Cozy Minimalist Home by Myquillyn Smith The Nester Cozy Home Tour  - I'll be at the Greenville, SC stop on Nov. 4! Find me on Instagram @emilypfreeman

There’s a skill to walking in the dark: you have to go slow, trust what you know, and take it one step at a time. After the winds and rain of hurricane Michael knocked out power in the city, we navigated our way through our dark house, not a beam of light from a street lamp or a night light or even the moon. Whether darkness comes as an absence of light or a waning faith, the way to walk through it is by doing the next right thing. Links + Resources From This Episode: Ten Best Books I Read in 2017 Ten Best Books I Read in 2016 Ten Best Books I Read in 2015 Ten Best Books I Read in 2014 Learning to Walk in the Dark by Barbara Brown Taylor Four by Sleeping At Last Christa Wells on Instagram  Psalm 23 Find me on Instagram @emilypfreeman

In a world that seems to only value a twisted kind of angular strength, let’s find ways to receive the curves, to be nurtured by God and one another. Links + Resources From This Episode: The Ministry of Ordinary Places: Waking Up to God's Goodness Around You by Shannan Martin The Ministry of Ordinary Places - That post I mentioned I wrote because I can't stop talking about this book Episode 53: Allow the Present to be Imperfect Find me on Instagram @emilypfreeman

The rest from decision fatigue doesn’t descend upon me when my work is finally finished. Instead, it comes slowly as I'm willing to allow the present to be imperfect.   Links + Resources From This Episode: Choosing Rest by Sally Breedlove Rhythms of Rest by Shelly Miller Simply Tuesday by Emily P. Freeman The Lazy Genius Podcast Episode 77: The Lazy Genius Rests The Next Right Thing Podcast Episode 40: Keep Your Rest Find me on Instagram @emilypfreeman

Decision fatigue can creep into our life for any number of reasons, but one isn’t as obvious as some others. When change rises slow or comes up from behind, it can turn your life a different color so gradually you don’t realize it until you compare things to this time last year.  Discover what slow change might be happening within or around you and see if that might help clarify your next right thing. Links + Resources From This Episode: Episode 58 - Girls Night - My conversation with Stephanie May Wilson about life choices, decision-making, and more. The Holy Longing: The Search for A Christian Spirituality by Ronald Rolheiser Thanks @erinhmoon and @terrancedjackson for that delightful IG story review of The Next Right Thing! Find me on Instagram @emilypfreeman

If you are feeling overwhelmed, carrying a heavy decision, or live with what seems to be a growing imbalance between the work you do during the week and the rest you’re supposed to be doing on the weekends, choosing a pastime could be a worthy next right thing. Links + Resources From This Episode: Churchill's Tribute to King George VI Painting As A Pastimeby Winston Churchill Hearing Godby Dallas Willard Find me on Instagram @emilypfreeman

Last year I decided to enroll in grad school. But first, I lost sleep, asked everyone's opinion, and made myself crazy. Here's what happened next. Links + Resources From This Episode: Things Above Podcast The Apprentice Series by James Bryan Smith Visit hope*writers to learn more about our membership Find me on Instagram @emilypfreeman

Making the decision to move forward with an idea is hard enough, but one thing that can keep us feeling especially stuck is trying to move forward with a decision alone because we are afraid. When it comes to collaboration it takes a certain amount of courage to say yes to an invitation. But for some of us it takes courage in even greater measure to extend the invitation in the first place.   Links + Resources From This Episode:  Literary London on Simple  - episode 141  Literary London Interest Waiting List  At Home In The Worldby Tsh Oxenreider The Lazy Genius Goes to London Learn more about hope*writers Find me on Instagram @emilypfreeman  

As we continue to make our way through an ever changing set of circumstances, the seasons will keep rolling on, bringing with them both dreaded and hoped-for hellos and goodbyes. You may be holding on to a hopeful vision for your future, but perhaps you're questioning what that means for today. What do we do while we wait for seeds to grow? Listen in. Find me on Instagram @emilypfreeman Download Transcript of this episode

When someone around us is struggling, what is our next right thing? Listen in.  

Both the light and the shadows have an important role in our lives and embracing them both helps us grow towards our next right thing.   Links + Resources From This Episode: Psalm 139: 5-18 My Summer in (20) Books - A list of books on my shelf this summer Find me on Instagram @emilypfreeman