Rhythms for Life

Do you ever feel like you and the people you love are having the same misunderstandings over and over again? In this episode, Gabe and Rebekah Lyons sit down with psychotherapist, speaker, and longtime friend, Jason VanRuler to dive into the five Communication Types that people tend to fall into in relationships.

Jason spends his days sitting with couples, teams, and executives in high-pressure conversations, and over time he started noticing a pattern: even when someone's intentions were good, there always ended up being a disconnect. That question, “why doesn't this land?” became the seed of his new book and this conversation today.

Whether you're trying to stop the same argument on repeat with your spouse or wondering how to get your teenager to say more than one word at dinner, this episode offers a practical, faith-rooted way to understand yourself and the people you love, and actually get through to them.

In this episode, you'll hear:
The PATHS Framework: Jason walks through all five communication types (Peacemaker, Advocate, Thinker, Harbor, Spark) and why every one of them is necessary on a healthy team or in a healthy family.
The Peacemaking vs. Peacekeeping Trap: Why wanting a room to look calm isn't the same as real peace, and how peacemakers can end up burying their own needs (or other people's) just to avoid conflict.
"Not Every Fight Is Yours": Jason's word to Advocates, and to parents, on the hard discipline of watching someone you love walk into a mistake without jumping in to fix it.
The Two-Minute Rule: A simple, practical family practice for drawing quiet kids (and quiet husbands) into consistent conversation.
Losing Our Humanity to AI: A sobering conversation about teens using AI to write "more empathetic" texts to their own parents, and why real, clunky, face-to-face conversation is a skill worth protecting.
Resources:
Buy Jason's book: Discovering Your Communication Type: The 5 Paths to Deeper Connections and Stronger Relationships
Jason's website: jasonvr.com
Take the PATHS Communication Assessment: jasonvr.com/paths
Get The Fight for Us book and curriculum: The Fight For Us
Take the THINQ Assessment: https://thinqassessment.scoreapp.com/
Create a free THINQ Account: Access more trusted content at http://thinqmedia.com
Join us November 19-20 for our Emotional Health Retreat in Franklin, TN. Register now and save $200 when you use the code EH200. https://www.rebekahlyons.com/ehretreat
More from the THINQ Podcast Network: NextUp with Grant Skeldon
The InFormed Parent with Suzanne Phillips
THINQ Media Podcast

In this episode, Gabe and Rebekah sit down with a longtime friend of the RFL community, child and adolescent counselor Sissy Goff. For 34 years, Sissy has walked alongside kids and parents at Daystar Counseling in Nashville, and in this conversation she brings all of that experience to one of the hardest, most necessary topics a parent will ever face: grief.

This episode centers on Sissy's new book, Helping Kids Through Grief, and the wisdom she's carried through walking alongside the Covenant School community after the tragedy that shook Nashville and the nation. Together, they talk about the interesting ways kids tend to process grief, the importance of a safe, steady adult in their lives, and specific tools that can be used in their healing journey.

Whether you're helping a child process the death of a loved one, walking through the loss of divorce, or simply looking for the right words in the first raw days after tragedy, this conversation offers hope and a clear path towards healing and renewal.
In this episode, you'll hear:
Post-Traumatic Growth over Stress: Gain hope from research showing that post-traumatic growth occurs far more frequently in children than post-traumatic stress when given proper support.
Grieving in Doses: Discover how children process loss like coming up for air while swimming, moving rapidly between intense emotion and normal play.
The Power of One Safe Adult: Unpack why a child doesn't need perfect circumstances to heal, but rather one safe, steady adult who stays close and present.
Empathy Without Enabling: How to validate a child's hardest emotions while still holding the line on behavior.
The Memory Box: Be equipped with a simple, powerful practice for helping kids remember, honor, and carry forward what they've lost in a healing way.
Resources:
Buy Sissy's new book: Helping Kids Through Grief
Sissy's website: raisingboysandgirls.com
Follow Sissy on Instagram: @sissygoff
Daystar Counseling Ministries: daystarcounseling.com
Get The Fight for Us book and curriculum: The Fight For Us
Take the THINQ Assessment: https://www.thinqassessment.scoreapp.com/
Create a free THINQ Account: Access more trusted content at https://thinqmedia.com
Join us November 19-20 for our Emotional Health Retreat in Franklin, TN. Register now and save $200 when you use the code RFL200. https://www.rebekahlyons.com/ehretreat

In this episode, Gabe and Rebekah Lyons are joined by international speaker, theologian, and author Amy Orr Ewing. Together, they dive into the radical forgiveness of the Gospel, and how a true understanding of it allows us to meet the current cultural moment.

In a world where many people are increasingly focused on harm and moral reparation, it can be easy for many to be driven to disunity and anger. In this episode, Amy makes the case that a true understanding of Biblical forgiveness is a powerful antidote to these, as well as an incredible opportunity for Gospel truth to be spoken. In this conversation, you’ll discover the power of forgiveness in political disagreement, familial conflict, and finding healing from trauma.

In this episode, you’ll hear:
Shifting Objections Around Christianity: Learn how popular and intellectual critiques of the Christian faith have shifted towards a focus on harm and moral wrongdoing.
Defining Biblical Forgiveness: Discover how the grace laid out in Scripture allows us to find healing in relationships without ignoring the harm that was done.
The Cross Empowers Forgiveness: Find the supernatural ability to forgive from the work of Jesus, even when we feel forgiveness is impossible on our own.
Forgiveness As Anxieties Antidote: Gain actionable steps towards rewiring your brain out of a place of anxiety.
Resources:
Buy Amy Orr Ewing’s Book: https://a.co/d/02n68T13/
Amy Orr Ewing’s Website: https://www.amyorr-ewing.com /
Follow Amy Orr Ewing’s on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/amyorrewing/
Get The Fight for Us book and curriculum: https://a.co/d/0ifwylwc/
Take the THINQ Assessment: https://www.thinqassessment.scoreapp.com/
Create a free THINQ Account: Access more trusted content at https://thinqmedia.com /
Watch Gabe and Kennedy's father-daughter dance from the recent wedding!: https://www.instagram.com/reel/Dcj_XZOkzpw/?stkn=MTY5c3B6ZDQ2a3Nodg==
Join us November 19-20 for our Emotional Health Retreat in Franklin, TN. Register now and save $200 when you use the code EH200. https://www.rebekahlyons.com/ehretreat/

Welcome to the first episode in our new season of the Rhythms For Life podcast! In this episode, Gabe and Rebekah Lyons sit down with longtime friend Dr. Emerson Eggerichs alongside his daughter, author and literary agent Joy Eggerichs Reed. Bringing together two generations of wisdom, they unpack how parents and grandparents can guide children to communicate deep, virtuous principles in a way that is fun, engaging, and sticky.

Parenting often tests our patience when kids blurt out awkward truths or react out of impulse, but learning to look past surface behavior reveals what is happening in a child's heart. In this candid conversation, Emerson and Joy share how their collaborative children's book set in the "Land of Nuf" offers a roadmap for families to practice emotional health, discipleship, and intentional rhythms. You’ll discover how shifting from heavy-handed consequences to gentle redirection can transform your family's culture, leaving you with actionable steps toward building resilient, grace-filled relationships.
In this episode, you’ll hear:
The Four Pillars of Communication: Learn how filtering speech through whether it is true, kind, necessary, and clear provides a practical framework for wise conversation.
The Power of the Do-Over: Discover how offering a lighthearted do-over gives children an accessible path toward repair and resilience without falling into shame.
Decoding Childhood Behavior: Unpack the three distinct drivers behind acting out—helping parents discern between open defiance, normal childishness, or a child feeling unloved.
Why Tone Precedes Meaning: Explore how a child's brain senses tone before processing spoken words, showing why gentle delivery is crucial when offering correction.
Seeing Virtue Underneath Vice: Gain encouragement to assume goodwill in your family and recognize the hidden strengths behind a child's headstrong tendencies.
Resources:
Buy Joy Reed Eggerichs & Dr. Emerson Eggerichs’ Book: Beega Gets a Do-Over: A Gigglies Adventure About Communication
Dr. Eggerichs’ Website: https://www.loveandrespect.com/
Join us November 19-20 for our Emotional Health Retreat in Franklin, TN. Register now and save $200 when you use the code EH200. https://www.rebekahlyons.com/ehretreat
Get The Fight for Us book and curriculum: The Fight For Us
Take the THINQ Assessment: https://thinqassessment.scoreapp.com
Create a free THINQ Account: Access more trusted content at https://thinqmedia.com

As the dogwoods begin to bloom here in Nashville, Gabe and Rebekah are leaning into a conversation that sits at the very heart of our emotional and spiritual health.

In this episode, they sit down with their friend and author Jennifer Barnett, Executive Director of Freedom Prayer. Jennifer shares her raw and beautiful journey—from her days as a college student battling intense anxiety and fear to now stewarding a global ministry focused on inner healing and restoration. Together, they dive into why prayer is a vital rhythm of discipleship that allows us to disclose our hearts to the Father and find the freedom we were made for.

Whether you are navigating unholy lines in your family history or looking to build a more intentional prayer culture in your home and church, this conversation offers a practical roadmap for finding peace in the midst of spiritual warfare.

In this episode, you’ll hear:

The Origin of Freedom Prayer: How an engineer’s mind gave structure to a model for inner healing and spiritual formation.

Breaking the Grip of Fear: Jennifer’s personal story of moving from spiritual torment to the expectant peace found in Christ.

Identifying the Hindrances: How to recognize the blocks and entanglements that keep us from a mature relationship with God.

Prayer as Discipleship: Why the next generation is rediscovering the power of the spiritual realm in an increasingly dark culture.

Building a Team: How your local church and community can be equipped to support couples walking through seasons of crisis.

Resources:

Buy Jennifer’s book: First Freedoms

Freedom Prayer website: https://freedomprayer.org/

Get The Fight for Us book and curriculum: The Fight For Us

Join us November 19-20 for our Emotional Health Retreat in Franklin, TN. Register now and save $200 when you use the code EH200. https://www.rebekahlyons.com/ehretreat

Take the THINQ Assessment: https://www.thinqassessment.scoreapp.com/

Create a free THINQ Account: Access more trusted content at thinqmedia.com