In this episode of the "Heart and Soulution" podcast, Mike and Krristten Jones focus on navigating the holiday season with family, particularly Thanksgiving and Christmas. They share personal anecdotes about their experiences with family traditions, the challenges of blending families, and managing holidays with adult children and in-laws. They discuss the importance of setting healthy boundaries, the difficulty of managing unrealistic expectations during family gatherings, and the need for empathetic listening when dealing with challenging relatives like an "Uncle Mortimer." The discussion wraps up with practical advice for couples to form a united front, strategies for gracefully ending contentious discussions, and suggestions for creating a positive, engaging environment to minimize conflict.

(C) 2025 All Music by Mike and Kristen Jones for use by Heart and Soulution, including Heart and Soulution theme, Card of the day jingle and all background music; generated with Suno.ai.

Reference material and Resources to dive deeper:

• ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Table Topics Tabletop Sets: Questions to start great conversations.⁠⁠⁠⁠

• 
  

• ⁠⁠The YouVersion Bible App.⁠⁠

Connect with Heart and Solution:

• Follow on Instagram: Join the conversation ⁠⁠⁠@heartandsoulution.⁠⁠⁠

• Share Your Ideas: Let Mike and Kristen know your ideas for future episodes and participate in their weekly poll on ⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠.

In this episode of "Heart and Soulution," Mike and Kristen Jones, discuss relationships and grief. They begin with casual conversation about the end of their first podcast season, eventually revealing that they will be discussing the heavy topic of grief. They explore personal experiences with grief, noting that Kristen especially was not taught how to grieve effectively and that this avoidance proved problematic later in life. The conversation is informed by resources like the podcast, The Place We Find Ourselves, and Francis Weller's book, The Wild Edge of Sorrow, with the Mike and Kristen drawing parallels between Weller's concepts and biblical perspectives on mourning. They include the passage about beauty for ashes in Isaiah 61:3. Ultimately, they reflect on healthy grieving processes for individuals and couples, emphasizing the importance of not avoiding grief and offering support to those who are suffering.

(C) 2025 All Music by Mike and Kristen Jones for use by Heart and Soulution, including Heart and Soulution theme, Card of the day jingle and all background music; generated with Suno.ai.

Reference material and Resources to dive deeper:

• Weller, Frances; The Wild Edge of Sorrow: Rituals of Renewal and the Sacred Work of Grief; 2015; North Atlantic Books.

• The Place We Find Ourselves podcast with Adam Young; Five part series on grief (episode 132).

• ⁠The YouVersion Bible App.⁠

Connect with Heart and Solution:

• Follow on Instagram: Join the conversation ⁠⁠@heartandsoulution.⁠⁠

• Share Your Ideas: Let Mike and Kristen know your ideas for future episodes and participate in their weekly poll on ⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠.

Want to know how to stop the hamster wheel in your relationship? In this episode of Heart and Soulution, Mike and Kristen Jones discuss the concept of the "crazy cycle" in romantic relationships, which they relate to Dr. Emerson Eggerichs's book, Love and Respect, derived from Ephesians 5 in the Bible. The core idea is that disrespect from the wife causes a lack of love from the husband, which in turn causes more disrespect, creating a self-perpetuating cycle that must be broken by one partner choosing to change their behavior, focusing on unconditional love and unconditional respect. The hosts emphasize the importance of emotional intelligence, managing expectations, and clear communication for couples to prevent or exit this cycle, making a crucial caveat near the end.

(C) 2025 All Music by Mike and Kristen Jones for use by Heart and Soulution, including Heart and Soulution theme, Card of the day jingle and all background music; generated with Suno.ai.

Reference material and Resources to dive deeper:

• • Dr. Gary Smalley's "Keys to Lasting and Loving Relationships"

• Chapman, Gary D., and Jennifer M. Thomas. The Five Languages of Apology: How to Experience Healing in All Your Relationships. Moody Publishers, 2008. Follow on instagram.

• Chapman, Gary D. The 5 Love Languages: The Secret to Love That Lasts. Northfield Publishing, 2015. Follow on Instagram.

• Scazzero, P., & Scazzero, G. (2022). Emotionally Healthy Relationships: Discipleship that deeply changes your relationship with others (Updated ed.). Zondervan. EHS Website.

• The YouVersion Bible App.

• ⁠⁠⁠⁠Table Topics Tabletop Sets: Questions to start great conversations.⁠⁠⁠⁠

Connect with Heart and Solution:

• Follow on Instagram: Join the conversation ⁠@heartandsoulution.⁠

• Share Your Ideas: Let Mike and Kristen know your ideas for future episodes and participate in their weekly poll on ⁠Instagram⁠.