A podcast where Christian creatives, writers and entrepreneurs learn to welcome slow growth through word of the year wisdom and God-led living. Embrace sustainable writing habits, contemplative practices, and intentional transformation that honors both your calling and your well-being with host Emily Grabatin.
theheartscalling.substack.com (https://theheartscalling.substack.com/s/welcoming-slow-growth-podcast?utm_medium=podcast)
Publisher
Word of the Year living and contemplation for Christian creatives, writers and coaches.
21 Flourish: How a Word of the Year Helped Her Stop Playing Small
SHOW NOTES
Word of the Year: Flourish
Have you been playing small in life, in your creative dream, in your writing? What has it been costing you?
A word of the year practice can help you stop playing small by changing what you believe about yourself and about God before it changes anything you do. In this Season 2 finale, my guest Anne Monnay, a listener who has followed along all year, shares how her word, flourish, took her from a plain, empty field to a living garden.
After years of living with an autoimmune disease and an isolation that kept her world small, Anne found the courage this year to move her body again, travel to see family, and start writing again.
What we cover in this episode:
- look back across Season 2 and name the threads we saw in every guest’s story.
- the “heart check” Anne uses to stay present amid pain and anxiety
- how to carry a big creative vision
If you’re a writer or creative standing at the edge of something bigger than your current world, this one is for you.
Find Anne Monnay: Letters From Home on Substack → https://anneslettersfromhome.substack.com/ (https://anneslettersfromhome.substack.com/)
CONNECT WITH EMILY:
Begin writing: emilygrabatin.ca/creativeslowstart (https://emilygrabatin.ca/creativeslowstart)
The Heart's Calling Substack (https://theheartscalling.substack.com/)
Welcoming Slow Growth community (https://theheartscalling.substack.com/s/welcoming-slow-growth-podcast)
This is a space for the sacred, the soulful, and the slow creative. Welcome to the journey.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit theheartscalling.substack.com (https://theheartscalling.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1)
8 Oct 2026
20 Our Daily Breath with Kayla Craig on Breath Prayer
SHOW NOTES
Focus Word: Breath
What if the only prayer you could offer today is just one breath in, one breath out?
Kayla Craig is a former journalist, spiritual director, and author of newly released Our Daily Breath Devotional: 365 Prayers and Practices that Whisper Peace in a Shouting World. In this conversation, she shares how "breath" became the word that has stayed with her year after year, and how a health crisis with her daughter reshaped the way she prays when she doesn't have the words.
We talk about the difference between breath prayer as an idea and breath prayer as a daily practice, what the research says about how breathing reduces stress, and why writing short devotionals turned out to be far harder than writing long ones. Kayla also reveals what it took to write 365 days of content without repeating herself, and how the discipline of the project became its own act of finding God in the ordinary moments.
If you're in a busy season and looking for a way to slow down without disconnecting from the people and responsibilities in front of you, this episode is for you.
In this episode:
- The hospital moment that turned "give us this day our daily bread" into "give us this day our daily breath"
- What the science says about intentional breathing and stress
- Why writing shorter is harder than writing longer
- How Our Daily Breath is structured so it never overwhelms the reader
About the Guest: Kayla Craig is a former journalist, bestselling author, and spiritual director whose work blends contemplative faith with fierce tenderness for the world God loves. She brings curiosity, compassion, and a love of connection to her writing. Her books include To Light Their Way and Every Season Sacred.
Website: kaylacraig.com (https://kaylacraig.com)
Book: Our Daily Breath Devotional (https://www.kaylacraig.com/ourdailybreath)
Instagram: @kayla_craig (https://instagram.com/kayla_craig) and @liturgiesforparents (https://instagram.com/liturgiesforparents)
CONNECT WITH EMILY:
Website: emilygrabatin.ca/creativeslowstart (http://emilygrabatin.ca/creativeslowstart)
The Heart's Calling Substack (https://theheartscalling.substack.com/)
Welcoming Slow Growth community (https://theheartscalling.substack.com/s/welcoming-slow-growth-podcast)
This is a space for the sacred, the soulful, and the slow. Welcome to the journey.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit theheartscalling.substack.com (https://theheartscalling.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1)
24 Sept 2026
19 Discover Courage to Write What Breaks Your Heart
SHOW NOTES
What happens when you see something in the culture breaking your heart — and you know you could be the one to bring a healing perspective, but speaking up feels like the last thing you want to do?
Joan C. Benson and Marjorie Wingert never planned to co-author a children's book series. They met for a writers conference, discovered they'd each prayed for the very trip that brought them together, and went on to write four picture books addressing life, identity, and race from a biblical perspective.
In this conversation, we talk about:
• The publishing contract that made Joan's heart sink — and the prompting that wouldn't let her stay silent
• Marjorie's word "rest" and what it means to let go of control as a parent, a writer, and someone navigating life without sight
• How an unlikely collaboration turned into a "God hug" book after book
• What it looks like to write from courage instead of comfort
Connect with Joan at joancbenson.com (http://joancbenson.com) and Marjorie at marjoriewingert.com (http://marjoriewingert.com).
CONNECT WITH EMILY:
Website: emilygrabatin.ca/creativeslowstart (http://emilygrabatin.ca/creativeslowstart)
The Heart's Calling Substack (https://theheartscalling.substack.com/)
Welcoming Slow Growth community (https://theheartscalling.substack.com/s/welcoming-slow-growth-podcast)
This is a space for the sacred, the soulful, and the slow creative. Welcome to the journey.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit theheartscalling.substack.com (https://theheartscalling.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1)
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Spotify
5.0 / 5
2 ratings
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