Truth Salt And Spice With Xamayta Graver

During this episode Jessica Collazo, Leslie Limardo and I, flesh out the cultural and spiritual implications the performances of Shakira and J-Lo brought to the Christian community. We discuss our Puerto Rican heritage and culture. We shed some light on the profound significance of the choreography and what people may have missed because they were too busy being offended. Most importantly, we share our thoughts about the spiritual impact The Church had, or didn't have, based on the outrage on social media. We hope that above all else, our conversation has us looking inward and then outward with a different lens. Get to know my guests: Jessica Collazo is the customer experience manager at Proverbs 31 Ministries who lives in Charlotte, North Carolina with her husband, Jerry, two sons and dog, Sawyer. Prior to working at Proverbs 31 Ministries, Jessica has over 10 years of experience working in women’s ministry, marriage ministry and outreach. Website: Jessicacollazo.com IG: https://www.instagram.com/jesscoll721

Kai and I feel the same about giving the enemy power over things that happen, but I will tell you that we kept having a ridiculous amount of technical difficulties that finally went away after we told him to be away from us! The first 2 min are tricky, but I hope you stick around for the whole episode, she's a gem!  Follow Kai at: https://www.kaipineda.com/ You can purchase her book here: https://www.amazon.com/Dear-Church-Vol-Beauty-Body/dp/0578513463

Kai and I speak candidly about our own experiences with racism, our personal views on the topic and the role of The Church. Kai is the author of Dear Church and through her words you can find a gentle way to check your own heart, and use the book as a gateway for honest conversation.  To purchase the book follow this link: https://www.amazon.com/Dear-Church-Vol-Beauty-Body-ebook/dp/B07XXFJHXD If you want to know more about Kai and her ministry, follow this link: https://www.kaipineda.com/

On this last episode of my journey toward healing and wholeness, I give you a report on how I am doing and how I feel about going home. I thank you for walking this journey with me. Your messages and texts have meant the world to me. See you stateside!

I woke up in a MOOD today. I took to my journal and you get a front seat to my brain and I'm all sorts of salty and spicy.  What's this Friday like for you?  What do you call this Friday and why? What does it mean to you? I share all about this on this episode and a bit more.

In this episode I update you on my experience with meditation and journaling. I am slowly but surely connecting with things that are part of my being that bring me joy and have been long forgotten and how I found Jesus, again.  

How good are you at accepting help or just to be loved up on? I realized this week how uncomfortable I am with it. Even the word pampered makes me feel uncomfortable. Do I reject Jesus' pampering as well? Do I even realized when he is pampering me? These are questions I have asked myself and will be sitting with for a while. 

In this episode I summarize my "fun" with an accidental, self inflicted stabbing, earthquakes, colds and lack of sleep. I am reading Celebration of Discipline by Foster and share about a few points that I found interesting with this whole meditation thing. Meditation being the first discipline taught in the book. 

In this episode I talk about the top 3 things I learned from reading the book, Boundaries in Marriage. I talk about some aspects of being an Enneagram 8 and my pursuit of revisiting the origin of some of my behaviors and learning new ways to deal with hurt and anger.

I share about my time with the girls at the school this past week and what I've learned about them. I also talk about what I am learning through reading the book,  Boundaries in Marriage by Cloud and Townsend. Just go get it even if your marriage ROCKS! I tell you about what I realized just this morning about my relationship with Jesus, and it's a bit spicy and I'm salty about it.  Short, not so sweet and to the point. Share with your friends! You never know who needs a ME TOO at this moment. Thanks for listening!

In this episode I share more about how I got here and what I'm doing here in Guatemala. I share a bit about books I'm reading, learning to just BE with God, and Jesus and I will be figuring out what it means to give my burdens to Him. This girl needs this life sucking load off her back! Feel free to share this episode with anyone struggling to keep afloat, maybe they'll just find comfort in not feeling alone. I can't promise anything other than transparency and vulnerability, the rest is up to the Trinity. 

I'm taking my own podcast hostage and you'll get to join me on the beginning of my journey toward deconstructing some faulty "truths", digging up some deep seeded resentment and bitterness and inviting Jesus into that mess, and last but not least, learning how to regulate my spiciness in order to bring out the best in the people around me and all I do. 

Nangie Alexander and I talk about parenting, marriage and the myth of having it all together in order to measure up to other's expectations. It was a pleasure to hear how this young mother and wife, through humility, is breaking some cultural barriers, to be the best woman, mother and wife she can be. 

Kia Stephens and I talk about wounds our earthly fathers leave us with and how, when we ignore them, they will affect our relationships with other men and with ourselves. Kia is very candid about her past and how she sought to allow our heavenly Father to heal those deep wounds. She definitely had me thinking about my own past. You can find her on Facebook at: https://www.facebook.com/fatherswap/ and on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fatherswap/

My guest, Sarah West and I talk about taking the taboo out of sex. As a former youth and college counselor for crisis and pregnancy centers in Mississippi, she developed sexual health curriculum for schools and taught sexual health on college campuses. She then saw a need write a book about the topic: Walking the Talk, A Parent's Guide to Intimacy and Healthy Relationships.

Gena McCown shares about her passion for training and supporting Christian women in the trenches, using their God given gifts and calling to help lead The Church. We talk about different points of view Christians have about women leading men and we talk about the scriptures used to support or to be against it. We talked about being good Bereans and studying the Bible for ourselves instead of following what people say like blind sheep. There is so much more and we could have talked for hours more!

Vicki Landis shares about her journey with Christ from when her husband was diagnosed with Schizophrenia 20 years ago. Her transparency is a gift as she walks us through her struggle with shattered dreams, fighting societal expectations, mothering vs. being a wife and much more. If you are in the trenches, this episode may help you not feel alone. If you know anyone that is in the trenches, there are tips about what to do and not what to do.

Jami Amerine and I discuss a few things we have learned through parenting and it's definitely not how to parent. It's more of a journey how to not attach our self-worth to how they turn out and to allow Jesus to work in their lives. We offer no formula, parenting isn't formulaic, we both hope that our mistakes always point our children to Jesus. I highly recommend her book. She candidly shares how her parenting taught her more about her value in Jesus, than how to be a parent. She had me at hello...

In this episode Rob Kivlan candidly shares how he went from a hurt and angry teenager, to an empowered motorcycle gang member, to finding freedom in Christ. His life is a testament to God's redeeming love.

With the high percentages of digital and social media addiction, we are all scratching our heads trying to figure out what the healthy medium is. Is there one at all? How do we stay connected without disconnecting from the world? Madelin Mangrum's mission at Unplugged Family's is to inspire and encourage moms and dad's to engage and connect. They are a community that will fight for their children's hearts and minds. They want to raise healthy and whole digital natives who will aspire to impact the world for good. If you want to learn how to balance digital and social media while still living connected to your family, this episode will guide you in that direction! You may even give up on going Amish!