Join Ali Benjamin as she creates conversations with soul-centered people who channel their attention, energy, and resources into supporting others and helping the world come together in love.

This week Ali is joined by Center for Spiritual Living's spiritual leader, Rev. Dr. Soni Cantrell-Smith

Rev. Dr. Soni Cantrell-Smith is the founding Minister of Ahava Center for Spiritual Living in Lexington, Kentucky. She graduated from Holmes Institute under the Direction of Rev. Dr. Michael Beckwith in 2006, and was ordained in 2011. Dr. Soni is steeped in the principles of Science of Mind and is a lifelong student of the philosophy.

Dr. Soni began her studies in 1992 at Huntington Beach Church of Religious Science in Huntington Beach, California. For 10 years, she was the music director at Namaste CSL in Long Beach, California. She has co-written a successful musical titled “Last Call,” which has been performed in numerous venues throughout the country.

Dr. Soni has been active in 12 Step work for more than 30 years. She teaches spirituality classes at the Hope Center Rehabilitation for Women and is a co-founder of Bluegrass Rainbow Faith Communities, dedicated to supporting faith communities in becoming open and affirming to all.

Dr. Soni has served the CSL Minister Council for six years, two of those as co-chair. She has served on the CSL Nominating Council as well as the CSL Sacred Activism Task Force. Dr. Soni has been serving the CSL interim ministers’ team for two years. She was the recipient of of the Ministers Meritorious Award in 2023.

Dr. Soni believes we are all spiritual leaders. We, as leaders, must be able to articulate our vision and keep it alive through our faith in it, and we must create a sense of belonging and hope that this vision can transform our world.

Growing Edge Live with Ali Benjamin is sponsored by Satya, dedicated to inspiring minds, healing hearts, and transforming lives. We are a loving place of support and resources. We share transformational tools that awaken individuals to embody their authentic power and purpose, create a life they love, and experience wholeness, abundance, and ease as never before.

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Transcript

Join Ali Benjamin as she creates conversations with soul-centered people who channel their attention, energy, and resources into supporting others and helping the world come together in love.

This week Ali is joined by Linda Frazee and Michelle Medrano

Linda is an international workshop leader, professional life coach, and co-author of the book Full Heart Satisfied Belly. She is a Certified Enneagram teacher and has been using the Enneagram as a primary tool in her work with others for the last 30 years. She was a founding mother of the Arizona Enneagram Association. Linda works with individuals, businesses and the government to enhance life and increase productivity. Her professional training is in Transpersonal Psychology and Imagery. She has been in private practice in Colorado, Maryland and currently in Phoenix, Arizona. In addition, she is a metaphysician and active member of Centers for Spiritual Living.

Linda conducts Mind Body Spirit Workshops around the United States and facilitates woman’s groups. She has appeared on television, podcasts and been a frequent national radio guest speaker.

https://www.lindafrazee.com/

Rev. Dr. Michelle Medrano is a career minister in the New Thought movement.

She received her ministerial degree at the School of Ministry at Mile Hi Church in 1991.
The Huntington Beach Church of Religious Science hired her as an assistant minister, and she served in that capacity for four years.

Then she was blessed to serve as senior minister of New Vision Center for seventeen years. In 2013, she was invited back to Mile Hi to serve as an associate minister. In the spring of 2019, she joined Rev. Joshua Reeves as the co-lead minister of Mile Hi Church.

Writing runs in her family and authoring articles and books has been a part of her career dreams for a long time.

http://9pathstothesoul.com

Growing Edge Live with Ali Benjamin is sponsored by Satya, dedicated to inspiring minds, healing hearts, and transforming lives. We are a loving place of support and resources. We share transformational tools that awaken individuals to embody their authentic power and purpose, create a life they love, and experience wholeness, abundance, and ease as never before.

growingedgelive.com
alisonjbenjamin.com

#newthoughtmedianetwork
#alibenjamin #growingedge

Join Ali Benjamin as she creates conversations with soul-centered people who channel their attention, energy, and resources into supporting others and helping the world come together in love.

Guest: Rev. Joy Fletcher

Rev. Joy Fletcher is a 5th-generation Truth student and ordained Divine Science Minister whose calling weaves together legacy, love, and a profound commitment to sacred service. Her ordination was June 22, 1995 at First Divine Science Church, Denver, CO. Affectionately known as “Rev. Joyfull,” she serves as the President of the Divine Science Ministers Association. She also holds leadership and faculty roles with the International New Thought Alliance, Affiliated New Thought Network, Divine Science Federation International, First Spiritual Church of Bay City, and Samaritan Institute.

Rev. Joy has served as a Unity Spiritual Leader in both Muskogee, Oklahoma—following the legacy of her 2x Great Grandmother—and at Unity Church of Flint, Michigan. A sought-after guest speaker, Rev. Joy is known for her heartfelt teachings and deeply grounded embodiment of New Thought principles.

With nearly two decades of hospice work—including roles as bereavement coordinator, chaplain, and volunteer coordinator—Rev. Joy is also a dedicated End-of-Life Educator and Practitioner as well as a Grief Recovery Method Specialist. She has presided over nearly 600 sacred rituals including weddings, funerals, celebrations of life, anointings, and baby blessings. Her ministry is one of presence over process—a ministry of deep listening, compassionate companionship, and sacred witnessing at every threshold of life.

Whether offering bedside comfort in a final breath, guiding families through grief, or co-creating rituals that honor love and legacy, Rev. Joy brings empathy, wisdom, and a unique ability to hold space for transformation. She honors life, death, and the milestones in between.

A contributing author to PhenomeNEWS and Works of Heart.Rev. Joy is also the author of Beside Myself with Joy and How to Create a Ceremony Ministry—resources that uplift both the personal and professional paths of sacred service.

Rev. Joy believes that the awareness of Divine Science Everywhere—in All, through All, as All—is the radiant thread that inspires every step of her ministry.

Rev. Joy was a featured guest on the New Thought Media Network program “New Thought Today,”, participated in Season of Nonviolence meditation series and serves as co-host of “Divine Science Everywhere,” a spiritually expansive broadcast also featured on New Thought Media Network and YouTube.

http://alisonjbenjamin.com
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Join Ali Benjamin as she creates conversations with soul-centered people who channel their attention, energy, and resources into supporting others and helping the world come together in love.

Guest: Diana Soroka of WILDD Hearts!

Diana interviews Dr. Ali!

I’m Diana, founder of WILDD Hearts. My life has been a beautifully messy mix of love, loss, triumphs, screw-ups, and positive intentions. Through it all, I've learned that growth doesn’t happen in neat and pretty moments—it’s in the raw, unfiltered experiences. I’m here to help others like me who are on their own journey of self-discovery and growth, knowing it’s not always smooth, but it’s always worth it.

I believe the world needs more love and that real love starts with you…facing yourself—flaws, fears, and all.

Tools like the Enneagram have been instrumental in my own growth, leading me (and many others) through the challenges and breakthroughs of self-discovery. My mission is to help others embrace their truth, find joy, and spread peace and kindness in their lives and the world around them.

I’ve spent years teaching and leading, but my real passion is sharing what I’ve learned (and am still learning) about living authentically. Sometimes, I’m the hero of my story, sometimes the villain, but I’m always reflecting and evolving.

WILDD Hearts is my heart and soul work, and I’m excited to share this journey with you—because when we tell our stories, we grow together.

https://www.wilddhearts.com/

http://alisonjbenjamin.com
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Join Ali Benjamin as she creates conversations with soul-centered people who channel their attention, energy, and resources into supporting others and helping the world come together in love.

Guest: Sylvia Nibley

It was 34 years ago I took the leap into being a healing professional. The first steps started when my hands were small and my sister bribed me with stuffed animals and candy in exchange for back rubs. Truth is, I enjoyed giving the back rubs more than the bribes.

Then a fascination with acupressure that sprouted when I was 11 that must have come from an unspoken dream rooted in a part of my heart that hardly even dared to wish, but by the time I was 25 had grown enough to be heard saying “someday….maybe…I can touch just one person and make a healing difference.” That felt like it would be the ultimate fulfillment––but too much to hope for.

Soon after that, I got up the courage to look into more than baby steps, but was still too frightened to open the envelope with the catalog from the Utah College of Massage Therapy. Fortunately I had a friend who held my hand and helped me breathe through the application. There was just enough time to get into the class starting in January 1991 with the goal of becoming more than mediocre at something…anything and feeling giddy at the possibility that I could actually have a LICENSE to touch people. Wow!

By the next year I was teaching at the school and had a full-time massage therapy practice at the Sports Mall Metro in the downtown Salt Lake Crossroads Mall. I can honestly say I’ve loved the work and everyone who’s been on my table every day since. Always challenging, always a stretch, always learning, always connected to my own healing, always awe-inspiring to witness the miracle of healing.

I know now from working with thousands of people and dozens of modalities over the years that touch is my love language, my heart is made for holding others and the non-verbal is my sacred world. I’m always honored to be part of a support team for people ready for deep transformation with an experienced practitioner.

Sometimes called the Queen of Questions, I gratefully discovered the simple power of inquiry to create breakthroughs and has been practicing the art of a good question for decades.

With a background in practicing and teaching bodywork, energy healing, personal growth and heart-centered business skills, my depth of expertise has developed over decades of passionate commitment and service.

Questions like; “What’s the easier way?, What do I believe?, and What inspires me? have led to many innovative tools for transformation. Tools like Inquiry Cards, Root Change Programs and Grow Your Business Organically.

“Sylvia is an inspired healer, visionary, prolific creator, and award-winning entrepreneur who is passionate about bringing love to every moment and creating breakthroughs in surprising ways.”

https://sylvianibley.com/

http://alisonjbenjamin.com
thesatyacenter@gmail.com
www.satyalive.org
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Join Ali Benjamin as she creates conversations with soul-centered people who channel their attention, energy, and resources into supporting others and helping the world come together in love.

Special Guest: Rev. Michael Benjamin
Theme: Love Leads The Way!
Live from Unity Village, Lee Summit, MO!

http://alisonjbenjamin.com
thesatyacenter@gmail.com
www.satyalive.org

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Join Ali Benjamin as she creates conversations with soul-centered people who channel their attention, energy, and resources into supporting others and helping the world come together in love.

Season Premiere: Growing Edge Live
Guest: Samantha Ballard — Living Wide, Loving Deep: 5 Glimmers

We’re opening this new season of Growing Edge Live with someone very close to my heart—my sister, Samantha Ballard. She brings that same depth, honesty, and luminous spirit as she shares her newest offering:

“Living Wide, Loving Deep: Sam Ballard’s 5 Glimmers.”
“Glimmers” are those subtle sparks of joy, connection, and beauty that remind us life is worth living wide open. In this heartfelt conversation, Sam offers five personal glimmers that anchor her journey, inspire resilience, and invite us all to notice our own.

You’ll come away with practices and reflections that help you find beauty in small moments, ground yourself in presence, and love more deeply in the midst of life’s ups and downs.

http://alisonjbenjamin.com
thesatyacenter@gmail.com
www.satyalive.org

#newthoughtmedianetwork
#alibenjamin #growingedgedge

Join Ali Benjamin as she creates conversations with soul-centered people who channel their attention, energy, and resources into supporting others and helping the world come together in love.

Our Special Guest: Author and Spiritual Activist Rev. Dr. David Alexander!

This is a REBROADCAST!

Dr. David writes a monthly column in Science of Mind Magazine, entitled "Philosophy in Action" based on the works of Dr. Ernest Holmes. You can pick up a copy at your local Barnes and Noble or check out Science of Mind Magazine online for more info.

Dr. David served as Senior Minister and co-founder of New Thought Center for Spiritual Living in Lake Oswego, OR from 2004-2019, For more information please visit www.newthoughtcsl.org

Dr. David currently serves as the Spiritual Director of the Spiritual Living Center of Atlanta, which has served the spiritual seeker in the greater Atlanta area since 1979. more information at www.slca.com

Highlights:

1998 Youth Campion Award, United Church of Religious Science

1999 Licensed Religious Science Practitioner

2000 Bachelor of Science Degree in Child Development and Family Relations from the University of New Mexico

2004 Co-Founding minister of New Thought Center for Spiritual Living

2006 Ordained Minister

2009 Inducted to Martin Luther King Jr. Board of Preachers at Morehouse College

2011 Appointed Chair of Strategic Alliances for Centers for Spiritual Living

2011-2016 - Served on Leadership Council for Centers for Spiritual Living (Chairman from 2013-2016)

2014 Honorary Doctor of Divinity from Centers for Spiritual Living

2015 Appointed to Leadership Council for the Association for Global New Thought

2015 inducted into the College of Affirming Bishops and Faith Leaders by the Fellowship of Affirming Ministries, under the leadership of Bishop Yvette Flunder

2016 named to the Board of Governors for the Science of Mind Library and Archieves Foundation

2018 Force for Good Award from Unity of Sacramento

https://www.revdavidalexander.com/

http://alisonjbenjamin.com
thesatyacenter@gmail.com
www.satyalive.org

#newthoughtmedianetwork
#alibenjamin #growingedgedge