The Speakeasy

This episode is an invitation to rethink what we mean by orphan care and how Christians can best support vulnerable children around the world.
I sat down with Elli Oswald, Executive Director of Faith to Action, for a conversation about orphan care and global missions. Elli brings over a decade of experience in global child welfare and shares why many organizations are shifting focus from institutional care toward strengthening families.
Key takeaways:
The majority of children in orphanages worldwide have living family, poverty separates them, not death
Children thrive when they stay with family or in family-based environments
Elli's story of Knabs shows how family tracing efforts reunited nearly every child in a Sierra Leone orphanage with their families
The church's role is ensuring our giving creates the best outcomes
Strengthening families before separation happens is more effective than caring for children after crisis
This episode isn't about criticizing generosity, it's about channeling our compassion toward lasting stability, healing, and belonging. Whether your heart is for international missions, foster care, adoption, or serving vulnerable families, this conversation offers a fresh perspective on what effective compassion looks like.

This week I sit down with Elise Orozco from Raising Rock for a conversation that feels deeply personal and incredibly timely. We share remarkably similar stories of stepping away from ambition, hustle, and outside success in exchange for something we discovered mattered far more: presence.
Elise opens up about leaving a high-level corporate career after realizing that while she was succeeding professionally, her family was often receiving the exhausted leftovers of what remained. What follows is an honest conversation about motherhood, identity, slowing down, surrender, and learning to embrace God's priorities instead of culture's expectations.
Sponsor: CrowdHealth
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Year two of homeschooling is officially in the books, and I'm sitting down for an honest recap of what worked, what didn't, and what I wish I had known sooner.
If you're considering homeschooling, preparing for your first year, or just curious what life actually looks like after the highlight reels, this episode offers a realistic look at the beauty and challenges of homeschooling life.
I share the biggest lessons from year two:
Year one felt like survival, year two finally felt like life
Every path has challenges, choose the hard that works best for your family
Connection before curriculum, children learn best when they feel seen
Homeschooling is growing everyone, not just the kids
Many frustrations came from my own expectations trying to recreate traditional school at home
I also walk through our current daily rhythm, curriculum favorites, and how I address common fears about kids falling behind, socialization, and working while homeschooling.
After two years, one thing is clear: the girls are thriving, and so is our family. This episode is about letting go of perfection and embracing the messy, beautiful reality of learning together.
SPONSOR
CrowdHealth
Looking for an alternative approach to healthcare?
CrowdHealth provides:
Access to vetted doctors
Lower prescription and lab costs
Bill negotiation support
Community-centered healthcare solutions
Get started for $99 for your first three months with code SPEAKEASY at joincrowdhealth.com.

This episode is an invitation to rethink what sanctification actually looks like. If you've felt pressure to transform yourself overnight or believed that becoming like Jesus should be faster and cleaner than it is, this conversation will meet you right where you are.
I sat down with Matt Chandler to talk about sanctification, suffering, surrender, and the slow process of spiritual formation. This feels less like an interview and more like a mentoring session with someone who has walked with God through incredible highs and devastating lows.
Matt makes the case that becoming like Jesus is not a light switch flipping on, it's an oak tree slowly growing over time. An oak becomes strong through rain, sunlight, dry seasons, storms, and deep freezes. In the same way, spiritual maturity develops through every season of life, not just the easy ones.
In this episode, Matt walks through what spiritual formation actually looks like:
Sanctification is messy and non-linear, but every turn moves you forward
Growth starts with humility and surrender, not strength or self-reliance
God is not waiting for you to fail, He's cheering your growth like a loving Father
When you mess up, run toward God, not away from Him
Suffering is often where we grow most because God meets us there
Community is essential, you cannot become like Jesus in isolation
Rather than perfection and performance, Matt shares the invitation to stay close to Jesus, let Him transform you over time, and trust Him in every season. Nothing is wasted. God uses it all to form us into the image of Jesus.
Becoming like Jesus is slow, messy, humbling, and beautiful. This episode is about surrendering the pressure to fix yourself and letting Jesus do the transforming work. If you don't quit, you win.
 
SPONSORS
CrowdHealth
A different approach to healthcare that helps you:
Access vetted doctors
Lower prescription and lab costs
Receive support negotiating medical bills
Use code SPEAKEASY at joincrowdhealth.com to get started.
Just Thrive
A clinically proven probiotic designed to support:
Gut health
Energy
Digestion
Immunity
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In this powerful and practical conversation, I sat down with Addison Bevere to unpack one of the most common struggles in the Christian life: prayer. If you've ever felt like you're "bad at prayer," distracted, or unsure what to say, this episode meets you right there and gently reframes everything. Addison shares that even growing up in a spiritually strong family, he felt like he didn't measure up.
His journey into understanding prayer began from a place of deficiency, not mastery.
Sponsors: Crowdhealth An alternative to traditional health insurance that gives you: * Lower-cost prescriptions and labs * Access to vetted doctors * A team to help manage bills You pay the first $500, and the community helps cover the rest. Get started for $99 for your first three months with code SPEAKEASY at joincrowdhealth.com.
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