With all that is going on in the world—fires ravaging the country, many lives being lost, and not to mention our own personal struggles that we face every day—we hope this episode will set us up that we can have joy amidst life’s realities. And to bring some great perspective to this conversation is author Carrie Skarda. Carrie’s book The Practice of Stillness inspired this discussion.

 We want to make our joy more known, and because we are followers of Jesus Christ, this should be the center of our mission! But sometimes in our desire for everyone close to us to live the joyful gospel life, it's our worry rather than our joy that comes through. This was an “aha” from Magnify contributor Shima Baughman when her personal family experiences were causing her more worry than joy. It was a momement where she had to ask herself, “am I really living the gospel?” And in this episode, Deseret Book content manager Stephanie Bryson chats with her about what the solution to this problem could be.

 We hope this conversation will set you up well for the new year ahead. The Magnify theme for these next two months is joy and more specifically showing our joy. Harry Emerson Fosdick said, “You can know a real Christian, when you see him [or her], by his buoyancy.” As we set out to be women who magnify the Lord, one way we can do that is by living buoyantly and showing by example that God's plan works.

We know that everything happens for a reason, and the scriptures tell us that “all things work together for good.” But sometimes that isn’t a comfort to hear when we’re in the thick of it. But ever since we heard BYU Professor Ellen Knell share that accepting the struggle will ultimately bring sweetness and maning to our lives, her ideas have been on our mind. She gave a BYU address called “Look for the Light” and we wanted to amplify this faithful woman’s voice.

Do you have a mantra to get you through whatever life throws at you? Especially during Christmas, you might be repeating something like, “I can do this” or “this too shall pass” or “mom and dad can hardly wait for school to start again.” And we all want to prioritize the Savior and His birth during this time of year. This season, to return to the peace of Christ, repeat this mantra: “just Jesus.”

Have you ever thought of contentment as complacency? That's perhaps something we often misinterpret, but in today's conversation, we explore that contentment is actually a blessing of peace from the Lord. We hope this conversation can take a weight off our shoulders as we’re in the midst of what is not only known as, “the most wonderful time of the year,” but also the busiest! We're all searching for a little relief and source of joy, and we think it’s a conversation that will serve as a reminder that we can live differently and make our joy more apparent.

As we’re getting into the Christmas spirit, I am sure many of us ponder and study the life and birth of Jesus Christ. Many families put together a Christmas pageant where everyone takes on a role in the nativity scene to help us reflect on the birth of the Savior. And one role in that story that we want to dive deeper into is Mary the mother of Jesus. Her background and mention in the scriptures is relatively small. But in today’s guest’s words: “Her story reminds us that God is aware of all of His children and that He calls ordinary men and women to participate in extraordinary ways to help build His kingdom.”

We wrapped up our Lift Up Your Heart events last weekend. It felt so uplifting to interact with women in our community. President Nelson asked us to “seek and expect miracles,” and because we’ve been focusing on the miracles of peace, joy, courage, faith, and hope, they’ve become more prevalent in our every day. A goal here at Magnify is to build our community, so in this episode, you'll hear podcast host Courtney Spencer and producer Sarah Collins grab soundbites from both audience members and Lift Up Your Heart speakers share how they're seeking and expecting miracles.

It’s often easier in hindsight to see what God has orchestrated in our lives. President Eyring has even said, “When we find ways to recognize and remember God’s kindness it will build our testimonies.” In theory we know this works. And we do it in practice as many of us make gratitude lists this time of year. But how do we make it so that we’re seeing God’s great work in our lives like it’s second nature, be it a moment of hardship or joy?

Magnify just announced our book club pick for November and December and it’s The Christ Child by Adam Miller. And this book will make your Christmas. If you're looking for that thing that will bring you that "Christmasy" feeling you love during this season, this is just the thing. This book takes us on a meditative and poetic journey to answer the question, “why did Christ come to earth as a baby?” It's all about how we can become more like the Savior by becoming more like a child—and those attributes that go along with it.

A topic that is on many of our minds is knowing what to do when a child or someone we love takes a different path that leads them away from the Church. We are hopeful that this episode will help alleviate some of the pain and anxiety that we feel when this happens. No matter your family circumstances, this is an important conversation in our efforts to be peacemakers.

Did you know we have a book club? This month's pick was Rock of Our Redeemer by Elder David A. Bednar. Our community also does a public Zoom where you—yes you—can join in and participate. This month it was hosted by Tammy Uzelac Hall. We decided to post the recording as a bonus episode where you can hear the host and members of our community jump in and share their thoughts on the book.

Part of our mission at Magnify is to help each other be a force for good in our own spheres of influence. Sometimes that happens in ways we least expect it to. Celeste Mergens, the founder of Days for Girls, grew up in poverty. It was her understanding of what children going hungry felt like that led her first to her knees, and then to fill a need. She believes that the things you go through don't define you, but they can always bless you. Her superpower? Gratitude, and that's how she has learned to ask the right questions, listen when others are speaking, and lead with assuredness.

Whitney Archibald has been rock climbing for more than 30 years. She felt experienced and always followed safety precautions. But in the summer of 2023, she had an accident that changed her entire life. Through a series of small, seemingly insignificant mistakes, Whitney fell 30 feet to the ground. Miraculously, Whitney survived and was not paralyzed. This experience doesn’t seem like the most obvious time to see miracles, but that’s just what happened. Even through our most difficult and painful moments, and our most damaging mistakes, we can witness the miracles happening all around us if we open our hearts and let God prevail.

In our lives, there are many scenarios we run into that feel polarizing or tricky to navigate. You might have someone in your ward that you feel strongly about because you disagree with their political viewpoints in the upcoming election, even though they hold a trusted calling. Or with general conference just last week, perhaps you’re running into conversations at the dinner table that get heated because of how some messages are being interpreted. Or as you’re heading into the holiday season, you’re gearing up for a snarky comment to be made at the extended family party about your parenting styles. However, at Magnify, we strive to be a force for good, and a powerful way to do that is by being peacemakers, especially in these polarizing situations.