Never Perfect Faith

About a year ago, Dr. Beth’s father  took her to hear Lilli Meier speak at the Thrive Senior Living community on Lookout Mountain, GA, where he volunteered up until the time of his death August 25, 2025.  He suggested that Beth interview her to hear about her story and her book….so this is the culmination of his sweet suggestion. Lilli was born in Cuba in 1949, which she describes as an idyllic paradise before Fidel Castro took over and imposed a totalitarian system on this beautiful country. Lilli shares about her trauma and grief she had to endure when school-aged kids were forced to do a morning chant every day, “We are pioneers for Communicatism and we will all be Chegavada.” She adds,  “Our family had a hard time for a long time and Catholicism felt robotic.” She and her family left her beloved country in 1961 to go to America and she wasn’t able to return for a visit until 2008.  She said “America will always be the beacon of freedom.” Lilli shares how her faith sustained her through all of this, saying, “ I found my freedom in Christ.” She adds,  “God takes a lot from us sometimes and we have to hold on to him. “ To order her book CLICK HERE Listen to this episode and more: ⁠⁠⁠neverperfect.org⁠⁠⁠ Follow us on instagram ⁠⁠⁠@neverperfectpodcast⁠⁠⁠ Please rate and review this podcast. Send us an email with any feedback or requests: ⁠⁠⁠neverperfectbeth@gmail.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today Dr. Carol Stoney, Beth’s most frequent (and very likely one of the most popular ) podcast guests returns to the show to talk about marriage. She likes to encourage married couples to ask themselves the question regularly: “ Why did we get  married?” Like when things get hard  or when transitions happen, she urges them to sit down and have a conversation “What’s our purpose?” Sometimes couples have change their mission, she said. Dr. Stoney stated “I don’t care what couples are fighting about, I care what they are fighting FOR“ “What is the mission and the purpose and the reason you are staying together?” In essence, it is important for couples to know and remember what it is they are trying to achieve and what stands in the way (or threatens) what it is that they are trying to recover to achieve that goal they never knew they had. She urges couples to consider, why is this so important to me? What is it that we’re fighting for? To hear more episodes with Dr. Stoney, go to your favorite podcast platform and Google Never Perfect Dr. Stoney To learn more about her, you can go to healingforcouples.com Listen to this episode and more: ⁠⁠neverperfect.org⁠⁠ Follow us on instagram ⁠⁠@neverperfectpodcast⁠⁠ Please rate and review this podcast. Send us an email with any feedback or requests: ⁠⁠neverperfectbeth@gmail.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Many of us who experienci significant pain and suffering, may start to doubt that God is still taking care of us and still loves us and still wants to give us good things . Sometimes we doubt that he is doing good things for us personally, even when we know that he is good globally. Many of us also think that we need to clean ourselves up before we can approach God and turn to him, or return to him after a period of withdrawal or retreat. We also forget that we don’t have to be good enough because he is good enough. When we cling to him, we need to be reminded that him clinging to us is the thing that we can really count on Today beth shares the highlights of an amazing sermon on the book of Ruth by Dr. Mary Willson Hannah. Listen to this episode and more: ⁠neverperfect.org⁠ Follow us on instagram ⁠@neverperfectpodcast⁠ Please rate and review this podcast. Send us an email with any feedback or requests: ⁠neverperfectbeth@gmail.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today’s episode is dedicated to Pastor Roger Gulick, who passed away March 21. He left a wonderful legacy which you can hear about on the last episode which was published February 13. Today Beth shares her journey of faith and her frequent struggle to tune into God and His Word, oftentimes going through the motions in a rote way, because she wants others to learn from her regrets and missed opportunities of knowing God and engaging with him in a deeper way. She encourages the listeners to find creative ways to engage with God and scripture, using their own unique minds and learning styles, whether that be through studying Scripture, creating art or poetry that represents biblical truths, Bible Studies, topical studies, etc. she emphasizes the importance of the Holy Spirit as a “tutor “or “illuminator” of Scripture. She shares strategies she has discovered to study the Bible in a more engaging an interactive way. see below for links to Bible Gateway and to some of the books Beth mentioned. See below for links to Bible Gateway and to some of the books Beth mentioned. Bible Gateway HERE Also, If you’d like to check out, Laura Pettit’s art, her website HERE    Instagram is @Laurapettitfineart Bible study on Philippians HERE Daily devotional HERE Listen to this episode and more: neverperfect.org Follow us on instagram @neverperfectpodcast Please rate and review this podcast. Send us an email with any feedback or requests: neverperfectbeth@gmail.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

At the age of 86 and only six days after moving into an assisted living facility because of terminal cancer, Roger Gulick has agreed to share his life story with us today. Roger and his wife Joy have been in ministry, for more than 50 years. He and his wife Joy have been married for over 60 years, and their life has been quite the adventure, whether that was pastoring one of the churches in four different states, or traveling around the world ministering to pastors and their families for 17 years. Up until his college years, Roger believed that being a nice person would get him to heaven because he felt like he was “nicer” then 93% of the population. When someone explained to him that Christ did for him what he couldn’t do for himself (ie, live a perfect life) and gave himself up for him, his whole life changed and he has devoted the rest of his life to ministry. Joy has published a couple of books and she will soon be a guest on Never Perfect Faith as well. Attached is a beautiful song written 119 years ago that echoes the sentiments shared today, entitled “He Will Hold Me Fast” Listen to this episode and more: neverperfect.org Follow us on instagram @neverperfectpodcast Please rate and review this podcast. Send us an email with any feedback or requests: neverperfectbeth@gmail.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

How many youth have been able to wrestle with the question: “ What does God want me to do with my life?” Annette and Tim Gulick have devoted much of their lives traveling the world to help Youth (and adults who work with Youth organizations) discover who God created them to be and what their highest purpose is. They explain that Jesus gives shape to all of reality and to who we are and what we are meant to do, much like gravity gives planets their shape. Allowing Christ to shape you can fit into reality. After many years of doing this work and writing several books, Annette decided to write “Aligned: Flourishing in a World of Choice”, summarizing the principles that she and her husband Tim had been teaching for so many years. The book and workbook includes activities to help readers discover what it means to live a more fruitful life. The Gulicks were also recently on Beth‘s mental health podcast called Aligned and Flourishing on December 31, 2024. Check it out HERE To learn more about Annette’s book, go to HERE Listen to this episode and more: neverperfect.org Follow us on instagram @neverperfectpodcast Please rate and review this podcast. Send us an email with any feedback or requests: neverperfectbeth@gmail.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Hollee Brock has a passion for living, holistically, and healing holistically. As a Christian and licensed Energy 4Life practitioner, she lives out her philosophy that “faith and science should not be separated.” While raising her six children ( now young adults) she studied and practiced a variety of things, including dance and earthing, and is currently using somatic techniques called bioenergetics. In her work, Hollee takes a bioenergetic approach to health and wellbeing by working with the energy and information of the body system, understanding that they are the control center that drives our biology and chemistry. Today she shares part of her fascinating journey with us. Hollee also has a podcast called Along the Camino at Basecamp. You can find her podcast at HERE Or learn more about her practice at wellnesscornerchattanooga.com Listen to this episode and more: neverperfect.org Follow us on instagram @neverperfectpodcast Please rate and review this podcast. Send us an email with any feedback or requests: neverperfectbeth@gmail.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

How can you tell that God is with you when you feel alone? Today Dr. Beth shares a story about a client from many years ago who believed that God did small things to help her all the time. Her client had struggled with serious health issues for years, and was broken hearted when her husband left her when she was around age 60. She began sensing God's presence and noticing little ways, he was helping her on a regular basis Listen to this episode and more: neverperfect.org Follow us on instagram @neverperfectpodcast Please rate and review this podcast. Send us an email with any feedback or requests: neverperfectbeth@gmail.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

At some point in our lives, most of us have felt lost/confused, due to failure, feeling like an “outsider”, or a disappointment; and most of us have battled some sort of addiction. Francis Thompson, the “Ne’er Do Well” and “misfit poet” experienced it all to a staggering degree, and unintentionally caused his family, a great deal of stress and heartache, and disappointment. Dr. Beth shares his story in this episode, explaining that it’s one of the most touching and compelling stories she’s ever heard. His story is timeless and relatable, even though he lived from 1859-1907. As a young child, he was drawn to reading and writing, but his family encouraged him to pursue other studies and occupations. He was brilliant (scoring at the top of his class) in some subjects (like writing) and at the bottom of his class in other areas. He was viewed as odd and “Mooney” at school. After being rejected at seminary, failing three rounds of exams at medical school, being refused in the military, Thompson moved to London England to pursue writing, with his parents reluctant approval. Little did he know that “a life of destitution awaited him”. He was unable succeed in any of his odd jobs and he ended up homeless and addicted to opium for three years. He continued writing during these years and submitted his writing on dirty and crinkled paper, to the owner of a literary magazine (Wilfrid Meynell), who was eventually able to locate him and help rehabilitate him, although he was on the brink of death. His most famous poem “The Hound of Heaven” (written while he was being rehabilitated for his opium addiction) has been a source of inspiration for over 130 years. This redemptive poem has been taught in university classrooms worldwide and impacted countless people, including literary giants and heroes such as JRR Tolkien, G.K. Chesterton, Eugene O’Neill, Madeline L’Engle, and Dorothy Day. this poem is autobiographical and depicts God as the Hound of Heaven who never gives up pursuing our souls.  Listen to the poem HERE This “ne’er do well misfit” poet’s work has been compared to the likes of Shakespeare and Robert Browning. His poem echoes sentiments from Psalms 139:7-12 and the story of the Good Shepherd (Matthew 18:10-14) who never gives up rescuing the one sheep who is lost. To learn more about Francis Thompsons story, check out the following articles and documentaries.  Documentary abut Francis Thompsons Article on Wikipedia and Natcath Listen to this episode and more: neverperfect.org Follow us on instagram @neverperfectpodcast Please rate and review this podcast. Send us an email with any feedback or requests: neverperfectbeth@gmail.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As he approaches his 80th birthday, minister and chaplain Ed Salter shares his story of caregiving his wife Christine, who passed away almost 10 years ago. She was battling Parkinson’s 27 of their 50 years of marriage. Today Ed shares their story and their, including many of the sorrows enjoys that came with it. He spent his life savings on healthcare costs, had to endure sundowners syndrome for years, while he and his wife both maintained a witty sense of humor. He regularly sang to her, while pinching her toes or her nose, “You are my sunshine “. For years he has facilitated grief support groups and caregiver support groups and he talks about how God, his family and community has sustained him through it all. One of his greatest desires is to “finish well” and he is using the story worth platform to write his story and leave a legacy for his family. Near the end, Beth shares a little bit about her dissertation research on grief and the five themes that emerged from her interviews with grieving individuals. The five themes were Details/ telling the story of dying/loss, how they coped, How they felt (affect), How they changed, and the Relationship with the deceased. Here is an article summarizing her research. Listen to this episode and more: neverperfect.org Follow us on instagram @neverperfectpodcast Please rate and review this podcast. Send us an email with any feedback or requests: neverperfectbeth@gmail.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today Matt Monahan returns for another interview with Dr. Beth, following a great conversation on the Never Perfect Faith podcast on 6/20/24 entitled “Allowing hard questions and honest answers.” So many men find it difficult to face their pain and be vulnerable, and Matt is willing to share his story of growing up with childhood abandonment and emotional neglect. He barely knew his father, and has spent most of his life, wondering if he is good enough. He realized that his feelings about his father translated into his assumptions about God, which unconsciously happens for many. He felt that “if God existed, he would be a capricious and attentive military “type of person. Matt discusses how his insecurity and self loathing translated into his 25 year marriage. He discusses various triggers, including his wife, rejecting, sexual intimacy, and the despair that followed. He talked about the relationship challenges that presented during Covid, and the unexpected healing that came as a result of having more time for introspection. Tune in to hear how Matt pursued healing through self help and faith. And if you want to check out his artwork, go to his website at themightybluegill.com Follow Matt on instagram @themightybluegill Listen to this episode and more: neverperfect.org Follow us on instagram @neverperfectpodcast Please rate and review this podcast. Send us an email with any feedback or requests: neverperfectbeth@gmail.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Andy Mendonsa has devoted his life to helping widows since 1987, and surprisingly, his passion for this work is what most would expect with a newfound calling. In addition, he’s been studying the biblical meaning of widowhood for 25 years and in 2017, wrote a book called “Spiritual Widowhood”, which addresses the idea that we are all spiritually desolate without God, and in need of deliverance, redemption, and restored. Andy explains that the gospel is a betrothal of marriage, essentially involving a spiritual oneness with Jesus.  Widows Harvest Ministries (423) 266-0260 Spiritual Widowhood Listen to this episode and more: neverperfect.org Follow us on instagram @neverperfectpodcast Please rate and review this podcast. Send us an email with any feedback or requests: neverperfectbeth@gmail.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Dr. Kelly Kapic, a professor of theology, has written over 15 books. Today he shares biblical and philosophical perspectives on humility, self-esteem, being limited, using your gifts, how efficiency can be an enemy of love, and the distinction between loving people versus liking them. Over the years, Dr. Kapic has discovered that almost all college students feel loved by their parents, but many of them do not feel liked by both parents. Beth asks him to elaborate on his conversation with Jonathan Rogers on the Habit podcast. He says it takes courage for us to “genuinely soak in the forgiveness of God and His presence and kindness, to actually believe he’s kind to us and that he ‘(as it says, in the minor prophets) ‘rejoices over us with singing’. “ he admits his own own struggles with productivity shame are ongoing, saying “ when I lay my head on the pillow at night, I don’t feel like I crushed it. There’s always so much I didn’t do.” Listen to this episode and more: neverperfect.org Follow us on instagram @neverperfectpodcast Please rate and review this podcast. Send us an email with any feedback or requests: neverperfectbeth@gmail.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today Beth has a very interactive conversation with Matt Monahan about a variety of faith related questions and topics, Matt had an absent father growing up, and became a teacher largely because he experienced personally the difference teachers can make in students lives. Matt’s passion for this calling outweighed his concerns for financial ease, so he and his wife, also a teacher, raised five kids on teacher’s salaries because he found greater value in making a difference in eternal ways. Today he explains his philosophy as a Bible teacher, and how he encourages students to wrestle with difficult questions and to be real about their faith while he does the same. In the discussion today, Matt shares some of his favorite philosophies, insights, and authors, and brainstorms wisely about Beth‘s comical idea of viewing Gordon Ramsay and Hell’s Kitchen as a way to think about God and holiness. Listen to this episode and more: neverperfect.org Follow us on instagram @neverperfectpodcast Please rate and review this podcast. Send us an email with any feedback or requests: neverperfectbeth@gmail.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today, Dr. Beth shares a little bit about herself personally and professionally also explains why she wanted to have a Christian podcast as well as her mental health podcast called Never Perfect Dr. Beth. She discusses some parallels between Faith and nutrition, specifically how we often know what’s good for us, but we still do it and lack self-discipline. She also laughs about the silly idea of being graded as a Christian, and explains would probably earn a grade of C or D. And she ends with some lyrics from a hymn called “In Christ Alone.” (listen HERE) Listen to this episode and more: neverperfect.org Follow us on instagram @neverperfectpodcast Please rate and review this podcast. Send us an email with any feedback or requests: neverperfectbeth@gmail.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode , Beth talks with Dr. Melissa Powell, a registered dietitian nutritionist, about her journey with multiple losses and how she learned to “shield her joy “ (ie, protect and preserve it) through reciting ancient prayers, liturgy, community and God‘s promises. Melissa shares her story of losing both parents in her 20s, and fertility issues in her 30s, and a battle with breast cancer in her early 40s. She shared some excerpts of favorite readings that helped her maintain hope and joy during times of loss and struggle. Beth suggests an idea that envy might actually be a manifestation of grief. Listen to this episode and more: neverperfect.org Follow us on instagram @neverperfectpodcast Please rate and review this podcast. Send us an email with any feedback or requests: neverperfectbeth@gmail.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, Beth talks with Avery Campbell, a Young Life staff member who works with teenagers every day and tries to help them understand faith and grace. Beth and Avery discuss ways that it is difficult for many people, including themselves, to accept a free gift and love that you don’t have to earn. So many of us feel a need to prove ourselves in all of our relationships, and many of us experience imposter syndrome. God’s love for us seems so counterintuitive and often different from human love , so it can be hard to accept and digest. The idea of doing good things as a result of receiving grace (unmerited favor) and NOT in order to earn it is also hard to fathom for many. Good works will be an aftereffect of receiving grace (unmerited favor) and not a method to earn grace, because it’s a free gift. Very little in human life Seems to work that way, and most things are based on merit and performance and worth , whether it is making an athletic team, or getting graded, or the amount of money you make. So the truth of the Bible and the message from a supernatural being, is countercultural and so different than what we are conditioned, and often hard to believe and accept. Amazing grace… ineffably sublime. Beth reads Isaiah 55:1-9 Listen to this episode and more: neverperfect.org Follow us on instagram @neverperfectpodcast Please rate and review this podcast. Send us an email with any feedback or requests: neverperfectbeth@gmail.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this podcast, Pat Clark, author of several books, including “My Father’s Genes”, describes his journey from the tenements of Glasgow, Scotland to a life of violence, crime, and many years in and out of prisons and institutions. He shares the story about how God worked in his heart to lead him to set up a charity to help offenders find a new purpose in life. This interview was recorded in June 2022 when Beth was visiting Scotland with her husband, Remo and their three kids. Interestingly, Pat Clark is “Uncle Pat” to Beth’s family (a third cousin to Remo, also a native Glaswegian.) Hopefully you can understand Pat’s beautiful Scottish brogue, and if not, you can just listen to it for sheer listening pleasure.  Pat Clark Waterstones Open Gates Scotland Listen to this episode and more: neverperfect.org Follow us on instagram @neverperfectpodcast Please rate and review this podcast. Send us an email with any feedback or requests: neverperfectbeth@gmail.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Many of us may be surprised by the unexpected twists of the Bible and by faith and what it entails. Jesus was very countercultural and outside the box. Did you know that the first person to see and speak with him after he rose from the dead was a woman, at a time when women were not respected as credible witnesses? Did you know that many of the disciples of Jesus struggled with doubt or confusion, in spite of seeing countless miracles and having Jesus talk directly to him? Aaron Tolson, a youth pastor, explains how Jesus meets them (and us) and meets us where we are, and understands our distinctive struggles for faith. They also talk about some of the confusion surrounding sin and faith, and how people who feel self-righteous may be blinded to the power of the gospel and to their need to have their debts forgiven. (Jesus compares this to a mortgage debt in Luke 7:41-50. ) Those who have been forgiven more (or at least realize how much they’ve been forgiven) love more. Some may find it hard to believe that Being “good” doesn’t save you, but “those who give their life to the Lord begin to look and act like Jesus”, Aaron explains. Our faith in God changes us, no matter what our past was. Listen to this episode and more: neverperfect.org Follow us on instagram @neverperfectpodcast Please rate and review this podcast. Send us an email with any feedback or requests: neverperfectbeth@gmail.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today Beth interviews Shonda Caines, the Head of Exceptional Education and Head of Lower School, about her experience of having a child with Down’s Syndrome and autism having to undergo open heart surgery as an infant. Shonda explains how her faith has been both challenged and strengthened, the questions she has for God, and her ongoing wrestling match with Him for control. One of her favorite Bible passages is Psalm 139. Her grief and concern for her son’s struggles and pain and her sense of helplessness to fix it were the hardest parts. She’s learned that in some of the hard things are also the really good things… knowing that we live in a fallen world but sometimes wondering “why did God let it fall?” Although Shonda doesn’t think she was initially equipped to handle a disabled child and thereforeGod can equip you to handle the hard. Two good books on God and suffering are:“Where is God when it hurts?” By Phillip Yancey and “The Problem of Pain” by CS Lewis. You celebrate the little triumphs along the way. A very shocking document about how disabled kids were treated was by Geraldo “Willowbrook: the Last Disgrace. ” In terms of inclusion, Shonda is trying to make a difference , still “in a place of kicking down doors” and barriers to disabled kids. You can put people in a box. We need to give everyone an access to good places. How would Jesus treat disabled children? He would “open the door.” And he would serve them. There is so much work to do to take care of others who need the help and support. The poor the alien the widow the orphan the sick. Never Perfect: S1E28 "Unpacking Intelligence with Shonda Caines" Listen to this episode and more: neverperfect.org Follow us on instagram @neverperfectpodcast Please rate and review this podcast. Send us an email with any feedback or requests: neverperfectbeth@gmail.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices