Living the Grace Life

When have you felt the most welcome?

Not just included or invited, but truly welcomed—that deep-in-your-bones feeling that says, I belong here.

In this Season 3 opener of Living the Grace Life, Jennifer Sakata explores grace and belonging, and what happens when we recognize God's grace as His welcome to us.

Grace and belonging aren't yours because you've earned them or deserved them. They become yours as you receive them from...

Grace says you belong here. Two years of Living the Grace Life have brought us back to the heart of the message that started it all: God's grace welcomes us, meets us in the hard places, and reminds us that we belong.

What began as a tiny God-whisper in front of a blank canvas eventually made its way to a hot-tub conversation—and then into the launch of Living the Grace Life podcast. Two years and 90 episodes later, we're gat...

What if surrender isn't the end of your story, but the beginning of something beautiful?

What if the places you feel most emptied are the very places God is preparing to grow the richest fruit? And what if the life you've been longing for isn't found in striving harder, but in the art of abiding?

In this third and final episode of our Summer Book Club: The Grace of Surrender, Jennifer joins author and artist Bette Dickinson in the ...

How do we let go when holding on feels safer?

In this second conversation of our Summer Book Club series, Jennifer welcomes bestselling author Mary DeMuth to explore the freedom of surrender—and why surrender isn't about losing yourself but finding deeper healing, hope, and life with God. Together, they unpack how open hands create space for God's grace, Living Water, and lasting tra...

Do you live overwhelmed, rushed, and stretched thin by anxiety? Do you struggle to let things go? What if there's a slower, more grace-filled way? According to author Nichole Suvar, there is. It begins by realizing you don't have to hold it all together.

This episode launches our Summer Book Club mini-series, The Grace of Surrender—three conversations centered on three formational books that invite us into deeper trust, open ...

When forgiveness feels impossible, where do you turn? What happens when the people who should have protected you are the ones who caused the deepest wounds?

In this deeply honest conversation, Johanna Henderson shares her story of discovering that she had been abused as a child and the long road God led her on toward healing, identity, and forgiveness. Together, we talk about the complexity of trauma, the weight of unforgiveness, a...

What if spiritual growth isn’t about trying harder—but about training in grace?

In this conversation with Kyle Waid, we explore the difference between effort-driven performance and grace-shaped formation. So often we find ourselves praying the same prayers, repeating the same patterns, and still feeling stuck. Trying harder leaves us frustrated. Grace invites us into a different way.

Kyle Waid, Lead Pastor of New Circle...

In Grateful for COVID, Evelyn Sherwood shares how her COVID diagnosis led to the discovery of lung embolisms and ultimately cancer—an unexpected sequence that reshaped her understanding of grace. What began in fear became a testimony of gratitude, not because illness is good, but because it revealed something that needed to be treated. Her story invites us to reconsider what it means to be Grateful for COVID in light of God&r...

Are you a check-the-box person—or someone who longs to slow down and be more intentional with God? In this episode, we explore the pursuit of holy leisure and how it becomes an invitation to grace when you struggle to sustain a meaningful rhythm of meeting with Him.

Author Cara Ray shares how the pursuit of holy leisure reshapes our understanding of rest, productivity, and presence with God. Drawing from her book, The Pursuit...

“Lord, who are we drawing today?” It’s the question Jessica Claire Bond asked after her artwork went viral—and became the heartbeat behind her illustrated Bible study, A King Washes Feet. What started as a single image quickly grew into a powerful visual series capturing the tension we feel when a King stoops low to wash everyone’s feet.

In A King Washes Feet, Jessica Claire Bond invites us into the ra...

What do you do when God makes a promise—but your reality doesn’t match it yet? In this episode, Shaped by God’s Promises, we step into the tension of waiting, when doubt creeps in, and control feels easier than trust. If you’ve ever found yourself striving, second-guessing, or trying to “make things happen” instead of resting in God’s timing, this conversation will lead you back to a faith ...

One in four women will have an abortion at some point in their lifetime. Yet so many silently wonder if healing after abortion is truly possible. If you’ve ever carried the weight of shame, regret, or unanswered questions, this conversation offers hope.

April is Abortion Recovery Awareness Month, and in this powerful episode, we answer with a resounding yes—healing is possible. Tonya Bailey Jones, retired Naval Officer ...

Do you ever feel invisible—unseen behind the pile of laundry or overlooked in the boardroom? In this episode of Living the Grace Life, we’re asking a deeply personal question: what changes when you truly believe He knows your name? If you’ve ever wondered whether you’ve been forgotten, this conversation is a powerful reminder that you are fully seen, known, and loved by God.

Author and speaker Paige Allen jo...

Where is God in infertility? It’s a question many couples quietly carry as they walk through one of life’s most painful and isolating experiences. With one in six couples facing infertility, the ache is widespread—but often hidden, especially in faith communities. In today’s episode of Living the Grace Life, we gently step into that question: Where is God in infertility, and how do we hold onto faith when an...

Fear swept through Washington D.C. during the Beltway Sniper attacks—but inside one elementary school hallway, something unexpected happened.

Today on Living the Grace Life, I’m joined by Cara Shine, author of The Hallway Miracle, to talk about the moment when fear and faith collided. And how even the smallest step of faith can change a life. 

Raised in the Jewish faith and bullied by peers, Cara carried deep wound...

Anxiety can feel like a deep-down soul weariness that convinces us we’re stuck indefinitely. But what if the anxious soul is not only struggling—but also being invited into something deeper with God? In this conversation, author and mental health advocate Becky Keife helps us see how anxiety can become an unexpected doorway to grace, healing, and deeper dependence on Jesus.

Becky, author of A Verse a Day for the Anxious...

What if Sunday God Meets Monday Mom is more than a book title? What if it’s the invitation your soul has been longing for? In this episode of Living the Grace Life, award-winning author Erin Greneaux joins us to talk about how Sunday God meets Monday mom in the messy, ordinary, beautiful chaos of motherhood.

Have you ever gotten a parking ticket on your child’s field trip? Missed “Muffins with Mom”? Sna...

I Can Only Imagine became one of the highest-grossing music biopics of all time. In this episode, producer Cindy Bond shares the unexpected, grace-filled journey behind the film and the highly anticipated I Can Only Imagine 2.

Before she became a Hollywood producer, Cindy Bond was raised by her grandparents, came to faith at a Billy Graham Crusade at Candlestick Park, and pursued acting alongside actors including George Clooney and...

How does grace survive in the face of deep injustice? In this episode, Jennifer Sakata explores Japanese American Incarceration during World War II and the unexpected grace that emerged from unimaginable loss and trauma.

• The impact of Executive Order 9066
• Stories from Jennifer's husband's family
• The testimony of Mr. Ted Nagata, incarcerated at Topaz camp
• How forgiveness and grace can follow injustice
• Why Japan...