When the Holidays Hurt: Grief, Loneliness & the Truth Beneath the Season

Visit donate.accessmore.com and give today to help fund more episodes and shows like this. The holidays can stir up more than joy—they can activate old wounds, grief, and loneliness we don’t always talk about. In this episode, Laura gently explores why this season can feel heavy, how family systems and sensory memories pull us back into old roles, and why grief shows up in so many forms. With grounding tools and compassionate guidance, she invites you to move through the holidays with more honesty, choice, and kindness toward yourself. This episode is a soft place to land if the season feels tender.

Visit donate.accessmore.com and give today to help fund more episodes and shows like this. In this episode of Encountering You, Laura Williams explores how a well-known relationship tool — Love Languages— can unintentionally create disconnection when used as a rule instead of a reflection of real love. Through the lens of Healing Our Core Issues, Laura unpacks how our love languages often reveal unmet childhood needs and how genuine connection grows through attunement, not performance. You’ll learn: Why the Love Languages framework lacks scientific grounding. How love languages can become transactional or controlling. Why attunement, not technique, builds secure attachment. How to shift from “If you loved me…” to “When you do this, I feel close to you.”

Visit donate.accessmore.com and give today to help fund more episodes and shows like this. Politics and faith weren’t meant to be weapons, but windows into the heart. When conversations turn political, it’s easy to choose sides and lose sight of each other. In this week’s episode, Laura will talk about what happens when belonging gets tangled with belief—and how to hold conviction without losing compassion. Maybe the real question isn’t whose side are you on, but how can we stay connected in the middle? What if Jesus didn’t come to take sides—but to take us home to love?  

Visit donate.accessmore.com and give today to help fund more episodes and shows like this. In this episode, Laura continues her conversation on forgiveness — exploring what it looks like when healing unfolds slowly, safely, and in relationship. Using the story of Peter’s denial of Jesus, she shows that forgiveness isn’t about rushing past pain but creating space for honesty, safety, and repair. You’ll hear why forgiveness before safety feels like self-betrayal, how healthy shame can open the door to empathy, and why boundaries are a vital part of restoration. Highlights: Jesus and Peter as a model for slow, relational forgiveness The five stages of healing: Safety → Acknowledgment → Grief → Understanding → Release Forgiveness vs. reconciliation — and why boundaries protect both

Visit donate.accessmore.com and give today to help fund more episodes and shows like this. Sometimes forgiveness comes too soon — not because we’re unfaithful, but because we’re afraid. Many of you have been told that good Christians forgive quickly, but what if forgiveness that comes too soon isn’t holy…it’s harm? Your body knows when it’s not ready. Betrayal doesn’t just break trust — it breaks regulation. In this episode, Laura will explore what betrayal does to the nervous system and why true forgiveness starts with safety, honesty, and time — not speed.

Visit donate.accessmore.com and give today to help fund more episodes and shows like this. Did you know that establishing a secure attachment system is not just our responsibility to ourselves? It is actually how we become more like Jesus and it is also our responsibility to the world. In todays episode, we will talk about parenting and discipleship, reparenting our younger selves, moving from fear to love and building lasting rhythms so that we can maintain a secure foundation. You can subscribe today on AccessMore or wherever you listen to podcasts so you never miss an episode.

Visit donate.accessmore.com and give today to help fund more episodes and shows like this. Did you know that you can heal your insecure attachment system? This is good news! In today's episode, Laura will look at stories in scripture where we can see bonds healing, talk about practices that you can implement today to grow your own secure attachment foundation, and how access to a healthy community helps this foundation flourish. You can subscribe today at AccessMore or wherever you listen to podcasts.

Visit donate.accessmore.com and give today to help fund more episodes and shows like this. Do you know your attachment style? Do you know how it's formed? Did you know that you could heal from it? In the second episode of a 4 part series on attachment, Laura is going to discuss the 4 different attachment styles, how they are formed, and how to get clues into what attachment style might be driving your relationships....including your relationship with God. You can subscribe today on AccessMore or wherever you listen to podcasts so you never miss an episode.

Visit donate.accessmore.com and give today to help fund more episodes and shows like this. Did you know that your attachment style affects multiple areas of your life? Laura is going to embark on a 4 episode series about attachment and the different facets of how our attachment style affects multiple areas of our life. In today's episode, she is going to discuss how your attachment style in general, can and will impact how you see God and how healing from wounded attachment can actually help your relationship with God grow in ways you never imagined. You can subscribe today on AccessMore or wherever you listen to podcasts so you never miss an episode.

Visit donate.accessmore.com and give today to help fund more episodes and shows like this. Do you ever feel as though your partner is just not meeting your needs? This could be because you are looking for a need that he or she cannot fill. Today, Laura dives into the frustration of when partners just feel like their needs aren't being met in their relationship. And the answers might not be what you think. When our needs aren't met by our parents as children, many times we look to our partners for those needs. Laura will talk about what this might look like in your relationship and give you some helpful tools to navigate the times this happens in your relationship. You can subscribe today on AccessMore or wherever you listen to podcasts so you never miss an episode.