The SundayMonday Show

I can't believe we're wrapping up our Fruit of the Spirit series! This has been so much fun for me – and I hope for you too. I can't think of anyone better to close us out. My dear friend Kendra Diaz is here today, and she's giving us all the secrets to living a life of strength and gentleness. Enjoy!

Courtney Taylor is here and today we’re talking all about love!! What is love? How do we define it and live it, especially in a world that seems to distort the meaning and purpose of true, self-giving love? Courtney shares so much wisdom and encouragement for all of us who desire to love others and God well!

I am over the moon to bring you my dear friend Emily Peters today! Emily and I attended college together, and she's now raising two super cute children and living life with her husband Ryan in Santa Barbara! We talked all about peace – cultivating it, living it, and protecting it in our crazy world. She shares so much wisdom and I know this is an episode I will return to often! Enjoy :)

I'm so excited for you to meet our queen of "goodness," Emily (St. Paul) Frederick! Emily and I went to college together and I've been so blessed by her witness of faith in my life! She strives so beautifully for virtue and the fruit of goodness is abundant in her life. We do our very best to define goodness and share how we hope to live it in our daily lives!

This was such a beautiful conversation with one of the most truly joyful people I have ever met, my dear friend Mad! We talk a lot about how the world defines joy, our own struggles to pursue and live joy in the midst of our own desires and suffering, and so much more.

This week's fruit of the spirit? Kindness! And I couldn't think of anyone better to have on than my dear friend, Katie Mittel! In this episode we talk all about the fruit of kindness: what is it, where does it come from, and how can we live it well in our fast-paced and sometimes hectic lives? You won't want to miss the pearls of wisdom Katie drops this week!

My girl Bridget is back on the podcast and we're talking about everyone's favorite fruit: self-control! We discuss sobriety, friendship, discipline, freedom, vulnerability, avoiding "perception management" living and so much more. Enjoy this next episode in our Fruit of the Spirit Series!

Welcome to another episode in our Fruit of the Spirit series! Today we're talking faithfulness with my beloved friend, Claire Dwyer. Claire shares such practical wisdom and advice for being faithful in things both big and small. We talk about the challenge of finding time for prayer and growing in virtue in the busyness of our world, and choosing faithfulness even when we don't always perceive God at work in our lives – because He is always there!

What a gift to welcome my friend Schyler back to the podcast, this time to talk about patience! Schyler is the incredible mom to three kids earthside and a baby in heaven, and her patience inspires me truly every single day. I’ve seen it bear fruit throughout her life – from when I knew her as a single woman, into marriage and now motherhood! We talk all about patience and take a nice tangent into social media, which Schyler exited this year. I hope you enjoy listening to this episode as much as I enjoyed recording it!! 

Inspired by my recent trip to Yosemite with some friends, I wanted to talk a bit about the value of choosing the "bigger" life. It's tempting to get comfortable and not want to challenge ourselves to do new things and step outside our comfort zones, but it's always worth it. 

From time to time, we all find ourselves feeling a little down and distracted – so what are we to do about it? In this episode (recorded on one of my very long road trips this summer), I share four strategies for lifting ourselves (and letting Jesus lift us) out of those moments of discouragement and frustration.

This week, E and I sat down to talk about our words of the year (“providence” and “abundance” respectfully) and how they’re going now that we're officially halfway through the year! If you missed our first episode on this topic introducing our words, head to episode 66 to hear the full stories on why we chose these words and our initial plans for them. We'd love to hear how your words are going! Email me at janekennedy@thesundaymonday.co :)

This summer, I’m striving to be intentional and thoughtful about how I spend my time, so I can prepare to re-enter the working world in August! Today, I’m sharing one of my favorite ways to audit my life: the 80/20 rule! Tune in to hear how I use this principle to streamline my decisions, be intentional about how and where I spend my time, and audit my priorities! 

Jacey was one of my very first NYC friends (we actually went to college together!) and we both happen to be moving away from the city around the same time this summer, so we sat down to talk about the good, the bad, the wild, and the amazing moments we had here. Jace is a fount of wisdom and I'm so blessed by her friendship - and I know you will be blessed by her perspective, courage, openness, and joy as well!

Every single one of us has a creative identity that's trying to get out - but it can be so daunting to accept and embrace this part of us that desires to co-create with God (who is the ultimate creator). Marissa joins us this week to share her path to becoming a designer at the Washington Post, and how God has continued to invite her into co-creation with Him at work and beyond. We also talk about the intersections between faith and work and faith and art, and how beauty and truth point ourselves and others to Jesus. Enjoy!

One of the hardest parts of living and loving other people is trying to understand what our true responsibility is when it comes to loving and serving them. I'm a little bit of a fixer, which means I often find myself getting involved and passionate about situations in the lives of people I love - but is that what God calls us to? And if He does call us to get involved with the issues in other peoples' lives, how can we do that with maximum peace and joy? In this episode I share the four questions I try to ask myself before taking action in situations that might not be what God is asking me to get involved with. 

It's the end of the year and Erica is back as we reveal our words for 2023 and reflect on our words/years of 2022! I can't believe the year is already over... and wow has it been a time. E and I talk all about what we've learned this year, how we've grown, and our hopes and dreams for 2023. Once you're done, email me at janekennedy@thesundaymonday.co and let me know your word of the year!

The lovely Raquel Davis is on the line and we're talking all about work and motherhood! Raquel has been writing for www.thesundaymonday.co since almost its inception, and I'm so excited to finally share one of our life-giving conversations with you. Raquel shares her journey into the world of public health, her experience as a working mother for the past couple of years, and her encouragement to women who feel called to careers and motherhood. It's an awesome episode, and I hope you enjoy!

Raquel holds an MPH from the Yale School of Public Health, and she enjoys running and spending time with her husband and son, Joseph!

"No season is wrong, they're just different."

To kick off season 3 (!!) I'm speaking with my dear friend, Danielle, about her journey from diagnosis through today with OCD and generalized anxiety disorder. These are conversations that I'm honored to be having, and I'm so grateful for her vulnerability and openness on this topic. I hope that this episode encourages you or gives you a new perspective on how our Church wants our holistic wellness - mind, body, and soul. 

Stay tuned this season for more chats with incredible Catholic women who are embracing all that God calls them to be!

Hey friends! This is our first ever episode devoted to dating - mostly because it's not really a topic we typically cover on the SundayMonday BUT I have been having so many conversations with galpals recently that I knew it was time. My hope is that this episode encourages you and gives you hope, no matter where you are on your vocational path! Would love to hear your thoughts, DM me @thesundaymonday_ on Instagram if you have anything to add, or if I can pray for you!

It's our SIXTIETH episode... what?! I'm so grateful for this community and all of your support over the past 60 episodes. Today, I'm doing a little Q&A with questions from our Instagram and email. Tune in to hear my thoughts on the following:

1. I remember you talking about your virtue of the month challenge. What does that look like?
2. How are you doing?
3. What's the biggest adjustment between full-time school and full-time work?
4. How to recover from a massive mistake at work?
5. I want to find a new job, but my current team is so judgmental and I know they’ll say awful things after I go. What do I do?
6. I just moved to a new city and want to join a young adult group, but can't decide which one.
7. What do your 30 minutes of prayer look like?

This week, we're continuing our battle plan series and talking all about battling anxiety. I know this is part of so many of our stories and I'm breaking down four reflections on how I manage moments of anxiety and worry. I'd love to hear your thoughts – shoot me a message on Instagram @thesundaymonday_ and let me know how you battle anxiety!!

Ahh the battle of loneliness. We’ve all been there – that Friday night without plans, that day you just want to celebrate with friends over dinner but don’t know who to ask, that sunny day perfect for a picnic but you’re headed out to read alone… Why is it that loneliness cuts us so deeply, is so common, yet leaves us feeling so helpless?

In this episode, I talk about the battle against loneliness, share super practical ways to cultivate (fun, normal, deep) friendships, and bring the longing to God through specific prayer.

I hope this episode encourages you!

Welcome back to the podcast! This week, we're kicking off our summer school series inspired by St. Joan of Arc – battling whatever pulls us away from God, steals our peace, and disturbs our joy. We're starting with "battling the need for approval" because you know your girl has struggled with this one. Listen in for four tips on how to battle this need for approval and for encouragement on keeping your peace and joy no matter what!

What's the purpose of work? How do I find a job/company/role that fulfills me? Is it realistic for work to be meaningful? How much can I really expect from my job?

Questions around "meaningful work" are by far the most popular we get in our DMs and emails, so today I'm sharing the five questions I use to reflect on where I am in my work life. These questions are designed to help us discern where and how God is calling us to work in our current season! I try to reflect on them at least twice a year. 

Our lives are meant to be intentional, and we're all about helping one another be bold in our faith, work, and lives.

The five questions:

1. Do I have a vision of where this role is taking me?
2. Is there something else that God is calling me to right now?
3. Am I being realistic about my state in the workforce or am I being idealistic?
4. How is this job affecting my mental, spiritual, and physical health?
5. Do I have fair expectations for what work is and the place it has in my life?

I know I say this every week, but this episode is SO GOOD. Bridget is back, and we're talking all about beauty. How do we define beauty? What does it mean to be beautiful? How can we steward the gift of our beauty in a world that is bent on driving us towards comparison, competition, and self-doubt? Bridge and I explore the gift of femininity and the ways that we present ourselves in the world while offering some tips on how to protect and honor the gifts that God has given us. Enjoy!

Making friends and maintaining friendships as an adult can be a challenge. Today, my bff Erica is on the pod, and we're talking all about how we keep our long-distance friendship alive and thriving! We cover ways to make friends when moving to a new city, what we look for in our friendships, how to discern if it might be time for a friendship to end, and so many other little tips and stories about friendship! Enjoy :) 

Lent is coming up, and I wanted to explore some ways we can live Lent well in a work environment! Using inspiration from St. Josemaria Escriva's "The Way," this episode dives into ways that we can best live this season in a way that glorifies God and points those around us to Him! 

This is our most controversial episode yet…and also our shortest. Tune in for a quick reflection on this week’s first reading, Jeremiah 17:5-8.

"In order to succeed in prayer, it should be done when we first awaken, when our whole being is calm and recollected. We need to make our meditation before anything else." - St. Peter Julian Eymard

"Every morning prepare your soul for a tranquil day." - St. Francis de Sales

Morning prayer is the foundation of a life lived boldly for God – but I know what it's like to have no idea what to do or where to begin. In this short episode, I'll share six thoughts on morning prayer, including my favorite resources, habits and tips for making and protecting prayer time, and encouragement for structuring/opening/closing prayer. 

We are BACK and I couldn’t be more excited to a) be on the mic again and b) usher in season two with my bestie. Today, Erica and I wrap up 2021, share our words for 2022, and chat about our goals. We also explore the space between offering everything up to grace and working as if things depend on us, and talk a little bit about where The SundayMonday and the podcast are headed this year.

As we mention in the podcast, this season we’re going “back to basics” and I can’t wait to share our all-star lineup with you! Be sure to subscribe so you never miss an episode. See you next week!

With all of the distractions of our lives and work, it's so easy to get constantly sidetracked and distracted by interruptions. This can wreak havoc on our peace, purpose, joy, and prayer. This week, I'm exploring a few ways that we can reclaim our daily lives, which in turn makes us more available and obedient to the promptings of the Holy Spirit. He wants our joy and wants our peace!

Today I’m joined by author, speaker, mother, TV Host, Miss USA 2009, and my friend, Kristen Dalton Wolfe! I’ve known Kristen for almost a decade and I’m so excited to have her on the show!

We cover everything from comparison to confidence to trust in God, and she tells the story of how the Lord led her to her newest role as the host of her very own talk show! Her joy and faith are contagious and I hope you’re just as blessed by this episode as I was while recording it!

About Kristen Dalton Wolfe

Kristen Dalton Wolfe is a former Miss USA who helps women step into the radiance of their true identity. Though she wore the Miss USA crown, her life was changed when she realized her true identity was rooted in being a daughter of the King. Since then, Kristen has used her passion for women coupled with her degree in Psychology to launch SheisMore.com, a faith blog to spread the truth that every woman is royalty. 400,000 readers are impacted every month by the site. Kristen and her husband, Kris Wolfe, founder of GoodGuySwag.com are based in Los Angeles and run men and women’s ministries, retreats and conferences. They speak regularly in churches, conferences, events and universities.

Kristen is a TV host with her own nationally syndicated show. You may also see her in global print and commercial campaigns.

You can find Kristen on Instagram at @kristenjdalton!