WHOA That's Good Podcast - How to Stay in Control During a Panic Attack | Sadie Robertson Huff & Lauren Daigle

Episode Date: August 30, 2023

Sadie is SO happy to be talking with her friend — and someone who truly lives original — Lauren Daigle! The two friends chat about everything from why Lauren chose to take 5 years off, how we can discover more about ourselves and who we are in Christ, and how Lauren is able to live life as she preaches and sings. Sadie remembers a moment in a late-night drive thru with Lauren where they really did see Jesus everywhere! Lauren shares some tips for taking a purposeful approach to breathing through panic attacks that she learned after a particularly dark season in her life and how the kindness of a stranger on a plane completely changed how she pursued joy in the midst of feeling powerless. And don't miss Sadie sharing how Honey has started incorporating Scripture into her own life when she feels afraid — it's a good lesson for ALL of us! Lauren's self-titled album is available for pre-order: https://shorturl.at/alBY7 https://www.stitchfix.com/whoa — Get 25% off when you keep everything in your Fix! https://drinkag1.com/whoa — Get a FREE 1-year supply of Vitamin D & 5 FREE travel packs with your first purchase! https://www.drinklmnt.com/whoa — Get 8 single serving packets FREE with any LMNT order! - Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What's up, whoa, that's good fam. Happy Wednesday, everybody. Y'all, I'm so excited for today. And I know y'all are two because anytime we say who do you all want to have on the pie gas? I know. For sure, we're going to get a whole lot of Lauren Dago requests. So Lauren, I am so glad that you are back on the Willow's Good Podcast. I'm so glad to be here. Thank you, Sadie. Thank you. Thank you.

This is awesome. And this is like such an exciting time because you just had an album come out and you have another one that's about to come out, which is super, super exciting and I cannot wait to listen. And I have to say like prepping for the podcast for people, it's always fun, but today was extra fun because I got to listen to your whole album. And I was like, this is so good.

Every song is so good. So you got all the 23, you got every one of them? No, I just have the album that's out right now. The first two. Okay, I love it. Okay, I'm gonna send you the rest'm going to send you the rest as well. This is the best. And I know.

We're having, I don't know if you, we should name this, but it's like, excitement twins, because LO conference is at the same time that the album is releasing. Oh, that's so awesome. We're having excitement babies at the same time that the album is releasing. Oh, that's so awesome. So awesome excitement. Excitement time. But we're having excitement babies at the same time. That's awesome. I love it.

I remember actually when we were planning, L.O. conference, and we picked the date and then stuff who, you know, for those listening, if you don't know who Steph is, she's been the podcast before. She is my right-hand girl, L.O. and she's one of Lauren's best friends. And she was like, wait, I think that is the time

that Lauren's album comes out. I was like, no way. So that is so fun. It's perfect timing. It is so fun. The next day is my birthday too. So triplets. Triple it.

September 8th. Triple it. Yeah, triplets. I'll leave that even. So September 8th, the record comes out. September 9th is my birthday. And in elo, conference is that whole time, right? Awesome, you're right.

September 8th and 9th. Okay. That is so fun. Oh my gosh, I love it so much. Well, okay. I can't wait to talk about all the things in this album because I haven't listened to the first part, but it is kind of like a Netflix series, you know, when you watch it and you're like, okay, now like I need season two because that went by way too fast.

So first of all, you did just do two albums. Like, that's a lot. What made you decide to go for two? Was it always the plan? Or did it just kind of happen? No, it definitely, it was really unique. Okay, you know that Bava verse that talks about the word of God is alive and active, sharper than any two. I just are sharpened up to separate between Bono Marisol and spirit. Well, I kept getting this idea of writing songs for the soul from the soul and then writing songs for the spirit from the spirit. And I remember in the process, I sat down with my label and I said, hey, I would love to make this record. I really can see this as like two visual elements, like the soul and the spirit, and have like a variety of songs on

this project. And at first it was like, okay, how are we going to do this? How are we going to put this together? Well, fast forward, we wrote over like 50 songs for some time. And I remember like breaking them all down and being like, okay, we can only have so many on a record and I got down to like 20. And I remember thinking, this is as low as I can go, like I love these songs so much. But right before that, when we were in the writing process and like trying to figure out which songs are going to go on the record, I remember we got to 14 and my manager looked at me and she said, okay you always talk about the soul in the spirit like if those

are two categories on the record like which songs would go to the soul, which songs would go to spirit. And so I broke them up and it was seven and seven even. And I was like that's crazy. I wasn't planning that, you know? Wow. And so I just told myself, I'm going to keep writing and it naturally panned out to like 10 and 10. And so fast forward, we're in the studio. And at this point, I was seeing this all as one body of work, like that the first record and the second record are actually just one. And we have like one release and that whole thing. And I was with one of the heads of the label, her name is Julie Greenwald. And she said to me, she said, look, you're an album's kind of girl, you love a lot of music,

you love like a lot of energy. And I like, I'm on a drive, right? And I put a record on and I listen from the top to the bottom. And if I like, and playing a record when I'm, a drive, right? And I put a record on and I listen from the top to the bottom. Or if I like in playing a record, when I'm flying in a plane or just sitting at home, I like to listen from the top all the way down. And so she said, it's a long listening experience. Like if you go and listen to a record that has over 20 songs, like somebody's gonna be sitting there for two hours.

Yeah. Back half of your record might never be heard. And so that's when she said, would you be interested in splitting it up into two? And I was like, you know what? Yeah, let's just go for it. We'll try it. And I had fans that had been waiting for music.

It's been like five years since I put music out. So I knew they've been waiting for a long time. So I was like, oh, this is a way to give them two things at two different, or one thing at two different times. Like, that could be really fun. So that's, that's what we did. That's so cool. I love that so much.

So with the whole soul and spirit being two several things to you, like, what is the difference of those two things, if you will? Yeah, absolutely. I feel like the soul is the part that kind of talks about the human condition. Like it kind of talks about experiences that we go through, moments in life that are like,

well, that was interesting. I didn't expect this or I feel heavy because this person passed, you know, kind of the more human side of that's where I see the soul. And the spirit is all things from God, right? The Holy Spirit coming in and interacting with our story. And when I say, like, right from the spirit for the spirit, it's not that Jesus doesn't write through me

through those other songs, into those other songs either. But these are songs that like remind you of his goodness, remind you of who he is, and remind you kind of like in your journey through life how he is that constant. So those were kind of the elements and themes that we brought into the records. But I also like this record was one of those things where I remember COVID hit, I was super overwhelmed because I was on tour and I remember getting off a tour and I said, okay, I'm gonna go see one of my friends down in Savannah. It was like St. Patrick's Day.

There was a lot of like parades and different things. They said, oh, it's so much fun. You should come down. So I went to Savannah. I didn't realize like the whole, everything was about to shut down. This is like right before the shutdown. They just said, hey, we have to cancel your show. So what I'm thinking like, oh, we'll be back in a couple weekends. Right, right. Easy. And I go down to Savannah and I get a phone call and it was like, hey, Lauren,

we're really having to shut like everything down. And I was like, wait, wait what and it's that thing of like I was going 900 miles an hour flying through life like my career was rocket launching and when I mean rocket launching I was like literally it wasn't just a rocket it was a missile like it was headed too fast in the wrong direction it was it was beautiful I'm not taking away from that. But when things move at such a speed, sometimes you don't have time to say, okay, God, what do you see in this? What do you feel about this? And so your life starts to get rocky and uncertain in a way. And I remember just being in this moment of like, I was going so fast and I didn't just like come back to normal life. It was like even

beyond normal life. It was like okay we stopped and then we hit a brick wall going 100 miles an hour in a car and I feel like God really used that time to like reposition my heart, reset my mind and my thinking. He always talks about renewing your mind. And I realized like through the process of making this record, how vital that is. I know that like anxiety attacks and panic attacks and fear, it's like taking over mental health. We hear that talked about all the time. But there's something that comes with renewing your mind. And I was in a space where I really needed to like finesse that in my life. I needed to surrender so many things and so I say all that to say that it was the process of making this record was very restorative and like redeeming. I started the process of writing with so much fear, with so much intimidation,

feeling like I had just experienced with lip lash because my whole career had just came to a screeching halt, right? And this record God used to rejuvenate me and to remind me of the pure things, like remind me of the good things, remind me of the things that actually matter, not just according to the industry, but according to the kingdom. And that is very different in a different world. And so, yeah, for anybody listening, my dream for this record is that it would bring peace and solace and comfort, and that they would have life stories on it, and they're like, oh my gosh, I feel that. I relate to that. Yeah. And then other moments where they're like, okay, wow, my heart needed this song. And I didn't even realize it.

Yeah. There's ways that only God can meet you through a song. It's so good. Well, I love that. And I love how when you were talking about the soul and the spirit and how you were like, yes, and there's, there's a both end to that, right? And I love how whenever you listen to the song, it is so relatable and it's so fun. And then all of a sudden, you're like, wow, this is so Jesus.

You're strengthened in your faith, but it's also so personal at the same time. And I think that I preached a message at passion last year about how our spiritual life and our personal life shouldn't be two different things. It should be one of the same. It shouldn't be like, oh yeah, this is what I do when I'm acting spiritual and I go to church and I talk about Jesus or I do my little bibles say 10 minutes. It's like no like Jesus is my that's a relationship. So it's my whole life. So my personal life is my spiritual life. And I think that that really comes through in this whole album. Like it's so unique to any Christian music I've ever heard because it doesn't sound like Christian music,

but it's so faith-filled. And so I wanna ask you because our whole theme is live original. And when I think of someone living original, it is you for sure. Like you're so original, like even your style is so original and so unique and it's so you.

And then you hear that in your songs. How do you fight like wanting to just conform to the industry, conform to what everyone else is doing, looking at someone else and saying, well that's where I'm gonna do that and how do you actually stay in your lane of like what God's doing in your life. What's your life?

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comparison is the greatest thief of creativity. It's like the biggest enemy to creativity. When you compare yourself to other people, you're not thinking with original thought, you're not coming up with something that's personal and intimate for you. You're saying, oh, I want to be as good as or as cool as or as validated as. Yeah, that's true. X, Y, and Z. And so I think for me, something that I have to do is like, remind myself, because it's easy. You get on Instagram. Okay, does this person have more followers?

Okay, if they do, what are they doing? Okay, is there brand better? Like, okay, how can I like make my brand better? You know, you go into all of these things that really do live in this world of comparison. And when I see those things, I say, okay, God, help me be inspired by these people, but not conform to these people.

That's good. I want to be inspired by them. I want to see things that they're able to do and take that in for myself and then let you transcribe on my heart what you want to push out. Or when it comes to fashion, when it comes to style, any of those things, I remember a lot of this was well before I was doing music. And so I have to go back and say to myself, okay, God, where are those core elements that were a part of me before anything ever came in and touched that?

Where are those intimate places that you just wired me to be who I am and help me live in that versus live in it for someone else. Like I actually way more than people probably would ever realize, okay, this is the perfect example yesterday. I'm going over it, we're into rehearsals and I went over the entire set list like all the tracks, all the music, everything, before we went into rehearsal. And then when I was listening by myself, I was running around the house. I was dancing, like I was making up moves and steps and choreography and all this stuff and just like live in my best life, right? Like so free, so enjoying it, laughing and dancing while going over this music. Just loving it.

And then as I'm driving to rehearsal, I told myself, as Lauren, you cannot go into that rehearsal room and not be free and express yourself while you're in rehearsal. Don't go in there and just be still and like seeing songs down and get it over to and it's so funny like why am I able to feel like oh I can fully express myself when no one's watching but the second that somebody starts watching watching I like shriveled inside and it and the Lord told me it is because you're afraid like the fear of man and that like you're you're afraid of like what they're gonna think is because you're afraid, like the fear of man. And that, like you're afraid of like, what they're gonna think of you, you're afraid of,

which is so, I know it probably sounds crazy because I do live original. Like I am really myself and myself in so many ways, but then there's these other ways that I find myself having trouble doing that. And so in the process, I just have to remind myself, like dance before the Lord, if you're going to dance. Like, it's good. In a way that's going to make think like, he can actually give you confidence in areas that you didn't necessarily know. You

needed confidence in and. Also, when you partner with him on, God, why did you make me? What is my purpose on this earth? When you get closer to your purpose, you get closer to just actually living original. You get closer to living free. You get closer to being exactly who it is that he created you to be. And I say that with like so much joy and with no pressure. Like there is something about finding your purpose that allows you to not necessarily look at people to validate you, but you start to say, God, am I doing what you've called? Is this the way that you want me to walk?

Like I want to, and your steps get lighter and you just start to, yeah, you just start to be free in a different way. It's so good. Ed's so true. I can totally relate to that. And I love that you said, even you do still struggle in some ways with fear of man. And I think that's something that God's been showing me

that I have to constantly weed out fear of man. Because there is always something in some place at some time, for some reason, that I look at it and I'm like, okay, ultimately I just am fearing man in the situation more than I'm fearing God, more than I'm trusting God, more than ever, I'm leaning on who God made me to be, more than my confidence in Him.

And I've seen that in my life a lot lately, actually yesterday in front of our team, I was like, hey, y'all, I just wanna confess this in front of my team who works with me,. I am fearing man right now. I am afraid of the conference situation. This decision was totally based out of fear of man and not what I really feel like I should have done if I just trust the Lord. We pivoted.

We're like, all right, let's get that out. Let's actually trust God with this and not make a decision based out of fear. And so I love that you said that because sometimes, you know, it can be easy to be like, oh, I arrived at Am Confident or I am doing good in this area. But it's also good to be honest to yourself and be like, but there's always, there's always more, you know, like God has made us so intricate and so detailed. And there's so many incredible things in us. And there's so many incredible things in us and there's always something more to discover and always something more to discover in him

through his design. So I love that you said that. And I was thinking about the Instagram thing, how you said it's so tempting to get on Instagram and look at other people and think, well, what are they doing? Why is it working? And I was thinking about the algorithm

because you know how if you look at something, it begins to show you the same Type of things. It's like all the sudden. That's all you see Yeah, so my Instagram literally like if you go my explorer page It is just like all the same thing and it's all like positive quotes and it's like Pink and yellow and like inspiring quotes and people who are talking about scripture Which is so great and so sweet, but sometimes honestly, I can be like, this is a little bit boring that everything is the same, right?

Because I'm looking at the same thing, but it's because all of the same, all of these people are trying to do the same thing. And I think about that within Sierra, I'm like, this is boring to look at because it's all the same. And like, it's so much better whenever we're all bringing our own self, our own creativity,

what God's put in us and our uniqueness and that's what makes the world exciting. That's what makes us learn from others, seek wisdom and other things and not just have to all look the same and be the same. And so sometimes I get frustrated with that on Instagram and it's a good reminder of like don't be that in life, like don't just be a copy of who I see, but actually like, yeah, look at myself and look at the Lord, so like who do you have me to be? So love that you said that. On that note too, just of looking at other people

and wondering if you should do something different to grow, you said you took five years off. And five years off is a long time when it comes to the industry's way of doing things. I think that something I learned a while back is that going fast can actually be a setback. It could actually make you go slower. One day, me and Christian were driving to the airport and we were running late. He was going so fast.

Because he was going so fast, he missed the exit. We had to go do a U-turn. It was such a good analogy of going fast can actually be a setback because you think you have to get there, you have to go so fast, you have to go so fast and then in doing that you make mistakes along the way. And so what has taken five years to put something out taught you and to people who get in that mindset of I have to get it done because someone's always putting pressure because I'm in this, how do you fight against the rush that life throws at you and take time with something?

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effective investment for your health try AG1 and get 5 free AG1 travel packs in a free one-year supply of vitamin D with your first purchase just go to drink AG1.com slash woe again that's drink AG1.com slashwoad to check it out today. Oh yeah, okay, so this is going to be like a little deep die for two seconds. And then I'll come back to the surface. But it's really interesting if you travel abroad and you go to Europe or you go to Mexico, you go to these places, they're not running. And their cultures survive. They don't only survive, they thrive. And we're over here, and this is zero shame to any person listening in, because I get it. I mean, I was with a therapist for years, having to figure out

medication, all the things, right? So I do get it, but Americans are so medicated with depression medications, with anxiety medications, with all sorts of medications that are meant to actually just allow us to live. And nobody ever says it's because we're moving too fast. Nobody ever waves the flag, but every other culture, like Europe, they have hours of the day from two to four,

that every single business in the entire city will shut down. And then in Mexico, they have, in Spanish cultures, they have Ciestas, where every single business completely shuts down. Like, you can't go grab a sandwich. The other thing that's really interesting in Europe, it is very hard to find a trash can. Like, any public... It's so funny.

Like, it's actually really hard. And the reason for it is they're not eating on the go. Like, when they need to eat, they sit down at a meal and they eat. They're not growing and grabbing this coffee here to like, oh, I've got to stay stimulated and oh my gosh, I have to get this done in this. They're not in a hustle mentality. They work. They take a break.

They eat. They work. They take a break. They go home. And so I say this to save, that's like a deep dive, and I'm not trying to be like somebody to ruffle the apple cart at all. But Americans move very fast.

If you just study our culture, like if you just, like no politics, no nothing involved, just study the way that we operate. And Americans are moving at like speeds that aren't safe for humanity. And then on top of that, add the pressure of what we just talked about comparison. Add the pressure of like, okay, you have to finish college in four years. Okay, add the pressure of, if you don't finish college, then you're gonna, you know, this is gonna happen or this is gonna happen. Add the pressure of, if I'm not at this salary by this season of life, if I don't own a house

by this time, like then I'm not keeping up with society, I'm like falling behind in quotes. It's really a lot of pressure. Like, it's a lot, a lot of pressure that other cultures don't have to navigate or navigate in a very different way. Do you know the Smith's by chance? Do you know like Ellie Limebear? No, I don't. No?

Okay. I didn't know. So Ellie is precious. I feel like Martin Smith, Do you know Martin Smith? That sounds super easy. I'm being called delirious. Okay. I know Okay, he sings God reigns For ever you're king of reigns. Okay, so he wrote that song incredible, like Kingdom People, right?

Ellie is his daughter, she's an artist now, and I was with Ellie in outside of London, and I remember we went to grab a coffee, and it was like her second coffee of the day, and I was like, girl, I can't, I can't have two coffees in one day, like it'll just wreck me. Like, my body. And she, it like made me ask the question, like, do you drink coffee because you need, you need it, like to be energized, or do you drink coffee because you just like,

and are enjoying it? And she's like, oh, oh, definitely just to enjoy it, I don't need it. And I said, really? And she said, no, I just like love to sit and socialize and enjoy a couple coffee with people. And I said, okay, now I'm going to go a little deeper. And she said, yeah, I said, do you wake up tired? And she, her mind was blown. She was like, what? Like, what do you mean wake up tired? No, I wake up refreshed. Like, that's what sleep does and I I

Going back to your question, okay? How do you navigate life out of a place of rest? How do you navigate when you've got all of these pressures? I'm just here to Validate any person that is listening on the other side of this that feels like there's no way I can catch up to society. I'm already behind and I'm doing every, I'm running as fast as I possibly can. My hair's falling out, I'm tired. I don't have time even for myself anymore.

My less friends or family. I'm just trying to pay my bills. Like any person who is in that scenario, that is very, very real. And I just want them to feel like, if it is definitely difficult, what I do is, because I mean, you know, our careers can move at lightning speed.

If we want to make something happen, we can figure out a way to make it happen. And we can hustle our way, get there, and do this, this, this, and this. But operating out of place of rest is so much more fruitful. It doesn't mean that you're not going to have the pressure that says, why are you taking that break? Don't you know we have an album coming up?

Why are we, why are you, I know that you worked seven days straight, eight days straight, but why are you taking five days off? Like, we don't have time for that. But the cost of not working out of a place of rest is so much more damaging than taking that time off because God is superior. And he can expedite time. He can make time work on your side. Time is in a factor to him.

It's a factor to the world. And if he can make the whole world in seven days, then he can obviously make our careers and our lives organized and work when we are operating in a place of rest. And so this first that I cling to, I know I went like way around the world here. Literally pun intended way around the world. But the verse that I cling to is this verse I found in Psalms and it says that, even while you rest, he will provide. Yes.

Even while you sleep, the word use there is sleep. Even while you sleep, I will provide. So there's moments where I'm like, I can't even sleep because my mind is racing so much because I have so many things to do. And I have to remind my spirit, remind myself, like, Lauren, you're not going to bow to the kingdom of this world. You will bow to the kingdom of the Lord. And that looks like operating in a place of rest. So as you go to sleep, say, God, take over my mind, take over my body, bring me to like a heavenly rest

that only you can provide for me. And yeah, and then when making business decisions, I try to do the same and say, I know that right now should be the time that I'm supposed to hustle, but I really feel like I need to be still. Like I need to be before the Lord. I need to be purposeful. And so that it's different in every person's life. I obviously I own my own business. I can make

those type of decisions, but for people who don't own their own business that they are caught up in a time that somebody else creates for them like, hey, you'll be here from nine to five or hey, you'll be, it's figuring out different ways. How do I refresh my spirit? How do I allow myself to literally say God Come into this moment with me come into my workspace with me come into my morning routine with me come into my evening routine with me I feel like the morning and evening routines are really really important To gain that that spiritual rest.

So good. Gosh, I love that. I'm so glad you took us around the world because that is so helpful. It's so helpful to me, honestly, sitting here listening to that. And I can just 100% echo everything you said from personal experience. Like when you said the cost of not slowing down

is so great. It's actually more damaging, right, than to just take the days off or to do the thing that might feel down is so great. Like it's actually more damaging, right, than to just take the days off or to do the thing that might feel hard in the moment. And I think that back to the whole fear of man for the Lord thing, it's a good question to ask yourself, like, am I not slowing down? Because does any of this have to do with a fear of man?

You know, can I actually slow down, but I'm not, because I think I have to hustle because dot, dot, dot. And I think that even if you do have a nine to five, like there are certain things that you can do, like Lauren said, that you can shift in one way or another to give yourself some of that rest back. Like for me, at the beginning of this year, I looked up my year up until I was gonna have Haven,

and I was like, whoa, this is crazy. And I was feeling a little overwhelmed, and I was like, what can I get rid of? Because there's a lot that I can't, a lot I'm committed to, I'm doing it, and I'm even excited about it, you know? I have to work hard, but what can I do to help just mentally and, you know, me stay strong? And I was like, I can delete social media.

And so I deleted social media. And honestly, I was also though, I was like, oh no, it's such a bad time to delete social media You know you start thinking you're like, because then how am I gonna promote that and how am I gonna share this and then that What if you know you lose followers and it's like all these thoughts immediately pop into your head of why you shouldn't because you're thinking hustle hustle hustle And I was like no like I have to and so I deleted it and I ended up not getting it back until this month So it was like eight months off of social media and it was like the best thing for my year. I mean my mental space that

was just so free and it just was so nice to spend like even the summer with Haven and Honey and not be distracted by my phone even though I was like, I was videoing them but not for the sake of sharing just for me to have and like all the pictures that I took and all the things it was just sweet and it was pure and there was no pressure to it and I was just like, I'm so glad that I did that for myself and so I do think you know even if you can't get rid of everything on your schedule there are certain things that you can reposition that help you just slow down. Yo, I love changing up my wardrobe.

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I love that you said that he's working while we're resting because I really experienced that this summer. I was on maternity leave all summer and it was I didn't do that with honey and talk about counting the cost. I did not do that with honey and I just like kept going. I mean, literally had honey finish my book did a conference like just it was nuts. And by the time November, hit of that year,

I had her in May, I was at such a state of burnout that I didn't even know I would or could experience, that I was like, I don't think I can do anything anymore. I almost quit everything. So that was a big cause. So this year, I was like, okay, we are doing maternity leave, I am taking the months off, I'm saying home with my family, healing, resting up, bonding,

all that, and it was so good. But one thing that was really cool was I'm in the process of writing this new book, and my co-writer came to hang out with me right before I had Haven. And I told her this whole message on move that I wanted to do and all this stuff. And I was like, go write on this topic and like, told her a million stories and a million ideas

to write about so that we could start our collaboration. So then we didn't talk for two months. And a week before we talked, I started to kind of feeling guide shifting the message that got to put on my heart from moving to actually working through being stuck. And I was like, oh, this is so good, but this changes everything.

So whenever we had our first call back, I was like, I'm so excited to tell her about this. So whenever we had our first call back, I was like, I'm so excited to tell her about this. I wonder where she took this message and everything I said. And we get on the phone and she goes, OK, say, I just have to tell you, I changed it a little bit. And I was like, OK, yeah, let me hear. And she was like, I actually did too.

I can't wait to tell you about what I was feeling. And she goes, yeah, it was so weird. It was just this week. I couldn't sleep. I kept thinking, move, move, move. And then she said, the literally same sentence I had just told Seth that morning. She said, how are we supposed to tell people

in a move when they feel stuck? And I was like, are you serious? And she was like, yeah, so I started it with talking about being stuck. And I said, I just changed the same thing in this message this week because the Lord told me that same sentence. And so she is over there in Colorado or Oklahoma, sorry, Oklahoma. I'm here in Louisiana.

We didn't talk all summer because I was like, I know I'm supposed to rest, but the Lord put this sentence on my heart that changed the message. He put the same one on her heart and the same week which changed the message. So when we started working again, we were already aligned in messaging. And I just thought about that verse that you just said that even like while we're resting, he's watching over that he's working that he's doing things. And so you really do, you really can take the pressure off yourself when it comes to kingdom things especially,

because it's like God in that, like he's building kingdom on earth with you. And so that was just like the coolest thing to me to experience. And I was recently talking to someone who told me that they were like, I can't take him maternity leave and they do more social media. They were like, because this and this and this and I said, friend, I'm just gonna encourage you like, you have to.

Like, it is so worth it for so many reasons. And so I love that you shared that. I know there's so many things to talk about with you and we do not have any time and I wish we have to have a whole other podcast, just like a whole other album. But a couple more things. CollitisCope Jesus, I love it. I love the song, I love the meaning,

I love everything about it, and I know you're on tour, the Collitiscope tour. Can you tell me a little bit about just that messaging and that song in particular, because it is a vibe. Oh, come on. Okay, back in the day, I've never actually, I don't know if I've ever seen a full episode, but, which is terrible,

but I do remember this, that 70s show, that the TV show is called That Center. Ashton Kutcher and Mila Kuniz, all of them, I remember in between each scene, they would do these like slow-mo things where they would jump in slow-mo and then it would switch to the next scene. And then they'd like do pea signs in slow mo and it would go to the next scene. But they were always like jumping. And I just every time I hear that little flute

part in the beginning, I'm like, oh my gosh, this is just the whole vibe, the whole feeling feels like that. And it all started, the song started. I was just telling some of the writers about this experience that I had had. And Louisiana, where I saw God in places that I never expected to see Him. And it was a lot of with our friends. It was with step.

It was with some of the other crew that we love hanging out with. And I remember seeing this little girl and she was in a grocery store and she kept going out, coming back, going out, coming back. And she was like probably seven years old, like really young. And you know, like, the world is pretty scudgy. So I was sitting over there thinking, why is this little girl by herself and it was at night time. And so I go outside, I was like,

when she came back in and out like two more times, I looked at our friends and I said, hey, I'm gonna go make sure this little girl is okay. Something's not right. And so she comes back in and I just went up to her and the grocery store and I said, hey sweetie, is everything okay? Are you alone?

And she was like, no, no, I'm with people. And she showed me like who she was with. And it was like some people that were, I don't wanna say that they were on drugs, but they were probably on drugs. They were definitely in some element of an altered state, right? And they were gypsies on the go. And I remember thinking, okay, I don't know necessarily how to get this little girl out of this scenario.

But I did know the one thing that would give just a little bit of peace is like, I might not be able to help her earthly situation. But how can I help her heavenly situation? And so I remember asking her, like we were talking for a second, talking her, the people that she was with, I don't know if they were her moms, I don't know who they were, but they were like talking to her, stroking her hair, trying to like make her look good in front of me, and then trying to make themselves look like they were

responsible individuals, like, posturing this whole thing. And finally finally after we just talked for a second, I just looked at her and I said, Hey, do you know, do you know Jesus? I thought for a second, like maybe she wouldn't know, maybe I'd get to share with her for the first time, like maybe. And she looked up at me and she goes, Oh oh Jesus, yeah, I know who that is. And her face went from this face of like like chaos of like, I don't know how like she knew that her situation was chaos, right? But in the moment like when I mentioned the name of Jesus, her disposition changed and

I was like, okay, she knows who he is, and that's beautiful. So fast forward, I'm like grabbing a hold of all of these interactions and all these stories that I'm taking on through life. Like, wow, I never thought that Jesus would show up here or show up here or show up here. And a lot of it does come with just taking the risk,

taking the leap of faith, like that night that we had at the drive-through. You know? Yeah. These moments happen and you're like, wow, I can't believe that Jesus just showed up here. And it's really, it's beautiful to me. And so when I was a little girl, I would close my ants kaleidoscopes all the time. And the thing that's unique about a kaleidoscope is that with every turn, you get a different image every single time. Like you can never remake the same scene that you got prior with a kaleidoscope.

Every time there's something new, there's a new facet, there's a new color, there's a new shape, every single time. And so I was with my friend her name's Natalie Himby and she says, go, you got to write a song called kaleidoscope, Jesus. Like, I have this song title, I've been waiting for this song title and I feel like it's for you. And I said let's do it. And so we wrote and it's basically all about the unique places that you would see God show up in in ways that you never imagined. And the reason why we call it the

Calatascope tour is because every single show you look out from stage and I know that you know this exact thing. You look out from stage and you see so many faces. Each person representing a different story, each person representing a different background, each person representing a different life experience, it's so diverse, the diversity of people that you interact with. And so I feel like when I get on stage, it's like I'm seeing that kaleidoscope turn each night. It's like this beautiful collection of color that God places before my eyes to see.

And I always tell people like, one of the biggest roles of the night is the audience. Like the audience actually shapes where the song goes, where the show goes, how I interact with them. It's really based on the audience that night. And so I feel like there's a lot of things that can divide us in the world right now,

but the thing that I love is that God has created all of us uniquely and individually. And when you look inside of a kaleidoscope, you can see all these different individual pieces, but with each turn, all of those individual pieces become this collected, beautiful body of artistic expression. Like you'll never get that image again. You'll never get to see that image again. And each night on tour is different because the audience is so different. And I love that we all make up something beautiful.

And so yeah, that's why it's called the classical tour. It's so good. And that's very behind the song. I love it so much. That's so beautiful. And for everyone listening, who's a fan of Lauren, I know a lot of you are, let me just say from a personal friend

that I'm able to be to Lauren and hang out with her just when no one's watching. No one has taught me more about seeing Jesus in situations that might seem unlikely than you. That night has marked my life. It has been something I have talked about I've shared and it was such a casual night. Me, Lauren and some friends were hanging out. It was really late and we were somewhere that I was scared to be at. It was not that normal scene and Lauren is just like,

thriving and dancing and having fun. I'm like, I'm kinda scared actually. Like, my it should not be here and my typical anxiousness. And Lauren's like, I think I asked you, I was like, why do you like like being in places like this? And you're, and you shared like that. You see Jesus in these places and you shared a lot more than that,

but what you shared with me was so profoundly impactful. And then right after that, you were like, but I know you're hungry, and I know you don't feel comfortable. So let's go get you some food. So we go and we go through this drive-through, and it was hilarious, and the story itself is very comical. But what was so crazy is we watch straight

from this conversation about Lauren telling me that you can see Jesus in the most unlikely places to seeing Jesus in the most unlikely place in this drive-through with this amazing man. And it was just so crazy. This drive-through man named named Jeremiah and right then, as soon as you said Jeremiah, I'm like, wow, God, really like you're making this obvious

that this is about to be a moment that you're all over. And it was so cool. So you've taught me so much when it comes to that. You live your life like you preach it. And you even write about that in a song, don't believe them. You are someone who really is practicing what you preach it. And you even write about that in a song, don't believe them. You are someone who really is practicing what you preach. You're someone who really is walking the walk that you talk.

I'm so thankful for that. Lastly, I just want to hit on a little bit, just the joy of this album. It is so fun, it is so joyful, it is so colorful. But I do know that you have gone through a really hard time with mental health before writing this album, and maybe even in the process of that, with anxiety and fear and whatnot.

And I think a lot of people look at you and they're like, she's so fearless, she's so joyful, and you are both of those things. But that doesn't mean that you don't struggle with the same things everybody else does. And I think sometimes when people see people who wear a lot of color, who smile, who dance, and they're in anxiety,

or they feel like they're in depression, they're like, that's just not relatable because that's not my personality. That's just not how I'm wired. But I love that that's not true. You know, it's not a personality difference. It's something that you found in Jesus. So can you hit on a little bit?

Why this album is so colorful, and joyful, and fun, even though you've been through a hard time. Okay, before the podcast, before we started, I was like, I need to figure out, I was like, am I gonna wear my colorful hat? Because this is my, this is my go. And now that we're talking about color, but when I went to put the headphones on,

I was like, okay, I'll ditch the hat, but you know what, I'm just gonna wear it just because we're talking about color and black glasses. So here's the thing. I do, it's funny how so often people can say, it's so often just to say that, there we go. That, you know, oh, you have all this joy, you have so much life like, well,

you must never struggle with a hard day. And I'm like, oh, that could not be further from the truth, truth to no joy is to no sorrow. And to no joy is to no pain, to no joy is to no depression, because you know what God has brought you through. And so in the process of making this record, I had never I had experienced anxiety when I was a kid in certain ways Like how probably how a normal kid would like getting on a plane for the first time I would remember being like oh, I'm kind of freaked out by this, you know I had this season where

Like I was in eighth grade and I was terrified somebody had just lost their father And they were at a summer party and I had to go tell them, like your mom is here or something's happened, you know? And I remember that year being terrified, like so afraid to leave the house because I was afraid that something would happen to my family.

And so I had these little moments of anxiety. I was always the girl that would leave the summer party when I was a little kid, like in the middle of the night because I was homesick, I needed to go see my mom, you know, that was always me. So I had like those little elements of it here and there, but nothing that would dictate my life, like nothing that would control my life,

nothing that would own my life, I was always a free spirit fast forward to end of 2020, beginning of 2021, through to the beginning, like honestly the middle of 2022. I went through a season which is the whole process of me riding for this record, through the highest amount of depression I've ever felt,

the highest amount of fear I've ever felt, the highest amount of fear I've ever felt, the highest amount of anxiety I've ever felt. And I only say this to say, I went through a series of panic attacks, like legitimate, probably should have gone to the hospital panic attacks, and some of them happened on airplanes, and like to the point where they were bringing

the defibrillators out, just in case I ended up having a heart attack. Like real deal. Like dealt, we were fine on dealt, that they brought all this paperwork out to like ground of the plane because they weren't sure if I was having a heart attack. Like straight up panic attacks. The real real deal. And I'm saying this to say for anybody who's on, who's in the process of that right now. Like, it is real. You do feel like you're crazy. You do wonder what is going on. I feel like something else is taking over my body.

But these are the things that I really feel like the Lord has brought me through. And I'll touch on a couple of things. One, I got to meet this neurologist, to you also know, and he talked about the process of breathing and how you can breathe through scenarios that really reset your body. And so for me, it was this breathing exercise. You breathe in for two seconds, you hold for two seconds, you breathe out for eight seconds,

you hold for two seconds. Breathe in for two, hold for two, out for eight, hold for two. And that process, 2, 2, 8, 2, really resets the body's like wiring. Or you could do the box breathing that's like four seconds of breathing in, four second hold, four seconds out, four second hold. Those breathing patterns sound like a wild thought when you're in the moment of like not being able to catch your breath. But that for me partnered with and this is like the absolute key partnered with telling yourself the Lord is in control. He is fighting for me fear not for I am with you Like I would be breathing and just quoting that scripture every myself fear not for I'm with you. God

Thank you for being with me. I know that I feel out of control right now But I thank you that you are in control this moment isn't passing before your eyes without recognizing and That came through a lot of practice because there's one time that I remember somebody quoting scripture to me Well, I was having a panic attack and I was like I don't even know what you're talking about. It sounds crazy I can't believe anything else right now other than what I'm physically going through. And I say that to say, like there were moments that I even was like, I don't even know, I don't know what is real.

Like I feel such moments of chaos, I actually need someone to speak over me, the truth right now. So it's two things, one, or it's three things one breathing but also partnering with scripture in the process of breathing. What God created the world, he it says that he breathed the world into existence. He breathed the life. And so if I am feeling like I'm dying, right, like that's what a panic attack is you it's a fight or flight response. If

I'm feeling like I'm dying, but I have access to the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords who created this world with breath, I'm going to say, all right, God, I'm going to breathe. I'm going to breathe through this moment because you can give me life in this moment. But I'm not going to just breathe. I'm going to take on the role of the spirit and say, God, let your Holy Spirit minister to me in the process of this craziness. Like, here's the scripture, fear not for I'm with you. And I would just say that over and over again. And then I would say, God, make me courageous, like, give me boldness, make me courageous in the midst of my fear, because

courage isn't like just looking at fear and be like, I'm going to figure out the shortcut, courage is saying, even being afraid, I'm going to continue to move forward, even being afraid. So fear not for I'm with you, God, give me the courage to face my fear and walk through my fear, through my fear, not around it, but through it. And so those two things, the other thing would be getting people who can speak that scripture into your life, who can speak that encouragement into your life. So you've got the first thing, breathing, quoting scripture to yourself, second thing, having friends that when you feel out of control, they can come and remind you of who you are, what it

looks like. That's what thank God I do was written about was because I was like, God, I need you in this moment and he brought friends to come around me and say, we're gonna quote scripture over you. And then last but not least, the Lord says that the joy of the Lord is our strength. And a lot of times we can look at that and be like, oh, the joy of the Lord is our strength. Like, okay, that's a really cute Bible verse

that we learned when we were little kid. But when you have a lack of joy in your life and you can understand, oh, I know what a lack of joy feels like. It feels like an incredible amount of a lack of strength, a lack of capacity, a lack of stability. Like that's what the lack of joy feels like in my life. It feels like a lack of all these other things as well. And so I feel like there was a season where I really had to fight for joy.

I had to fight beyond feeling sick all the time, beyond feeling like my physical body was just overtaken with depression or with anxiety. And fight to say, God, I'm going to renew my mind in you today. That's what I was kind of mentioning earlier about like having to renew my mind to pursue the joy of the Lord. And I think sometimes that's like hard and tricky when your body is already overwhelmed, when your mind is already overwhelmed. But what I did was take the simple and let it be magnified in my life.

So I would go and walk and I'd say, oh, I see this person on a street corner, that person has a smile. God, let that smile minister to me. Let it actually mean something. Let it cultivate something beautiful in my life to where I'm able to access your joy. Like let it allow for an access of joy in my life. And I would do that over and over and over and over again.

And I think the thing that the enemy tries to do whenever you're feeling depressed or whether you're feeling anxious, whether you're feeling full of fear, is he tries to isolate you. He doesn't want you to interact with humanity. He doesn't want you to interact with the people next to you, because then he can keep you in this cycle. And the thing to do to break through fear, to break through anxiety, to break through depression, is interact with the people around you. Go up to them, strike up a conversation. Even if you're like, this is so awkward, I don't know how to do this.

I remember I was having the start of a panic attack on a plane and I waved at the attendant, like, keep the door open, I got to get off this plane. And the lady who looks at me, and she like, put her arm up, and she's like, why I gotta get off this plane. And the lady who looks at me and she put her arm up and she's like, why are you getting off this plane? And I literally said to her, I was like, cause I need to go, I've got a phone call. And she's like, maybe you didn't, why are you getting off this plane?

This is a complete stranger. And she said, listen to me. She said, I think I'm having a panic attack and I need to go. She said, if you trust me, I promise you, I will get you through to the other side of this flight. I promise you. I will be with you. I'll sit in this with you and I'll get you to the other side. She didn't know who I was. It wasn't anything like that. This was just a random lady that was like, I'll help you. And I think humanity

in our moments of weakness is actually a lot kinder sometimes than what we give it credit for. And so I would say the enemy's plan is to isolate us in those moments of fear But if you reach out to someone next to you and say I'm pursuing joy in this and you might be the conduit right now Tell me in this moment Those are the three things like pursuing joy Let let the joy of the Lord actually read new strength is possible It's really possible. So good.

Someone who like their therapist was like trying to figure out how to get them on ketamine. And if you know anything about ketamine, like that is real deal. Like I was in it. I was really in it. From someone who has like felt that, to someone who has not had to go through those processes

because I actually was able to sit with the Lord of fine joy It's great. I'm just here to encourage anybody that's going through that process like that's It's real and you're validated in the way you feel with those situations But he is provided a way out. He has and he will send people along the way Just look for the angels and disguises as humans Because that is so good. That was so good. I'm so thankful that you shared that like truly because I've been through that and those tips would have been so helpful and it's crazy because those are the exact things I'm teaching honey right now. She's two years old

but she already gets anxious and her twoobuses that she knows now are fear not for I'm with you. And the other day she started getting scared in her room. And I heard her say fear not for I am with you. And she said, there's no monsters. And it was so sweet. And then and then she'll go the joy of the Lord makes me strong. And she does that when she sat. And so like I'm already giving her those tools because I'm like right now you might not even understand like what they mean. You know I'm not know fully like grasp the reality of like what those words are saying. But even

now when she says them it shifts her mind right. It's like I'm not I'm not going to fear that there's no monsters like Jesus is with me. God's joy makes me strong. Those words are already doing something in here, but later in life, you'll have those tools and that's true. So I love that you shared that. That's so good. Lauren, your life, your life just speaks Jesus. Your life is a deposit of joy to the world.

And I'm thankful for that. And thankful for you and your color and this album. I cannot wait to hear all 23 songs. Thank you for writing them and just everything you've done on this podcast is incredibly helpful. So I love you, friend. Thank you so much. I love you, Sadie.

This has been so special. I'll come anytime. Thanks for having me. Thanks to everybody listening. Sadie, you're a treasure. Just the way that even, we're so encouraging and speaking kind words over me I tell ya I love it we need to hang out more often. We do we do. Every time we

do I miss you. I know. I'm coming. I am coming. I gotta go pay staff a visit too so that works out great. It actually works out great. Well, I love you so much. you