Do you believe you were meant to Live Deeply Loved? According to Bill and Kristi Gaultiere, “empathy is oxygen for the soul.” Learning how to live deeply loved begins with receiving and offering empathy in our most important relationships--with God, others, and ourselves.

In this episode of Living the Grace Life, Jennifer Sakata sits down with Bill and Kristi Gaultiere, founders of Soul Shepherding and authors of Deeply Loved, to explore how empathy leads to emotional healing, spiritual maturity, and deeper connection. We often settle for shallow relationships but this conversation shows us a better way forward.

Bill and Kristi unpack how empathy transforms the way we love, apologize, listen, and grow. You’ll learn how to move beyond surface-level interactions and experience the safety, belonging, and freedom God intends for your relationships.

In our conversation, we explore:

• The difference between true empathy and its counterfeits--coddling and self-pity
• Common barriers that make it hard to receive empathy
• The Four A's of empathy
• Why self-empathy is an expression of gratitude to God
• How we unintentionally interrupt empathy by jumping to encouragement
• The essential ingredients to offering a sincere, healing apology

As Bill and Kristi remind us: “Truth without empathy is harsh, but empathy without truth is inaccurate. Responsibility without empathy is drudgery, while empathy without responsibility is coddling.” Growth happens when empathy, truth, and responsibility work together.

Listen in and discover how to Live Deeply Loved, and extend that love to others in ways that transform your relationships and your soul.

"We need more than willpower. Empathy helps us go deeper.”

"Empathy plus truth plus responsibility equals growth."

“Empathy is oxygen for the soul."

1 Corinthians 15:10

🌿Bill & Kristi's Book Deeply Loved 🌿Soul Shepherding Retreat 🌿Soul Care Shepherding Spiritual Directors 🎶 Kristi's go-to grace song: The Steadfast Love of the Lord 🎶 Bill's go-to grace song: Psalm 16 by Shane and Shane

Website: soulshepherding.org Instagram: @soulshepherding Facebook: @soulshepherding

Ep. 40 Be Still and Be Loved | Michael John Cusick Ep. 39 God's Steadfast Love in Daily Life | Rachael Adams Ep. 30 Growing Secure Attachment with God | Summer Joy Gross

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“God’s grace is not flashy or loud; it quietly redeems what’s broken.” In this episode of Living the Grace Life, Bible teacher and author Mariel Davenport invites us into the story of Ruth — a tender, powerful picture of God’s pursuit, redemption, and grace when we have nothing to offer Him.

Once an atheist, Mariel shares how Scripture transformed her faith and how Ruth’s story reveals a God who draws near to the disqualified, the weary, and the empty-handed. Together, we explore how God’s grace meets us in ordinary faithfulness, how community shapes spiritual formation, and how Scripture becomes a living encounter with a pursuing God.

If you’ve ever wondered whether God could really be after you — especially in seasons of loss, doubt, or spiritual dryness — this conversation will remind you that grace is already moving toward you.

In this episode, we talk about:

• Feeling disqualified yet pursued by God anyway
• Grace in the story of Ruth and God's redemptive love
• How community shapes faith and spiritual growth
• Mariel's TEND method for meaningful Bible Study
• TENDing through Psalm 23 in seasons of uncertainty

If you’ve ever felt too far gone, empty-handed, or unsure where you belong with God, Mariel offers a gentle, hope-filled reminder: grace does its best work in unlikely places — and God is already moving toward you.

“God is after the heart of each one of us."

"We are all the ones who have nothing to offer God. But He pursues us and under His wings we come to take refuge."

"God's grace is not flashy or loud; it quietly redeems what's broken.”

The Book of Ruth

🌿Mariel Davenport's Bible Study Ruth: Finding Grace in the Unexpected 🌿TEND Method Guide 🌿Tending Together Online Community 🎶 Mariel's go-to grace song: How Can You Not by Leanna Crawford

Website: marieldavenport.com Instagram: @marieldavenport Facebook: @MarielDavenportAuthor

Ep. 69 How to Love Your Morning | Jennifer Dukes Lee Ep. 59 Chased by Grace | Crystal Mayo Ep. 51 The Grace Thread in Everyday Life | Eric Nevins

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Do mornings motivate you, or do you kind of dread them? What if loving your morning has nothing to do with waking up earlier and everything to do with waking up differently? In this episode, we talk about how to love your morning in a grace-filled, life-giving way that helps you start your day with peace, intention, and joy.

Jennifer Dukes Lee, author of How to Love Your Morning (April 2026), believes that being a morning person has nothing to do with the hands on the clock, but rather how you wake up. Having researched the 200 mornings that appear in the Bible, she has concluded that not only are you a morning person, but God is too!

In our conversation, we talk about:

• Jennifer's journey from being an agnostic news reporter to a Good News news reporter
• Four morning archetypes and their impact on how we start the day
• The distinction between a routine and a ritual
• Morning rituals to keep you grounded in grace
• Jennifer's 5-minute Quiet Time Template

Jennifer is a best-selling author, a fan of queso, bright lipstick, and singing loudly to songs with great harmony. She lives on a fifth-generation farm in Iowa with her husband, where together they've grown crops, pigs, two beautiful humans, and an enduring faith.

If you've ever struggled with how to love your morning, let today's conversation help you reframe how you experience the start of your day--with real grace for your real life.

“If you have something to wake up for, it's easier to put your feet on the floor.”

"God is always there. He doesn't come in the measure of time [you] spend with him. "

"We see a God who seems to have a soft spot for mornings, an invitation into hopefulness."

Lamentations 3:22-23 "The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases; his mercies never come to an end. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness."

Psalm 30:5 "For his anger is but for a moment, and his favor is for a lifetime. Weeping may tarry for the night, but joy comes with the morning."

Genesis 1:3 "And God said, 'Let there be light,' and there was light."

🌿Jennifer Dukes Lee's Book (April 2006, available now for pre-order): How to Love Your Morning 🌿5-Minute Quiet Time Template 🌿Additional FREE Resources 🎶 Jennifer's go-to grace song: Your Grace Still Amazes Me by Phillips Craig and Dean

Website: jenniferdukeslee.com Instagram: jenniferdukeslee Facebook: JenniferDukesLee

Ep. 59 Chased by Grace | Carol McLeod Ep. 41 What if Doubt is Part of Faith? | Niki Hardy Ep. 25 Divine Detour and Deepened Faith | Lori Ann Wood

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