New York Times bestselling author Jen Hatmaker has arrived in the middle years, and she couldn't be happier about it.Jen has navigated the ins and outs of life, from career to parenting, marriage (and divorce), spiritual evolution, and the joys of being a hardcore Gen Xer.With each weekly episode, Jen serves as our "everywoman" guide to all the seasons, past, present, and future, as she walks excitedly and tenaciously into the second half of life.Some weeks, Jen brings her perspective straight to you, just her and the mic, talking through the things we're all navigating. Other weeks, she pulls up a chair for some of the most interesting and accomplished guests around, plus a few of her favorite friends, bringing insight, expertise, and a whole lot of heart to the most relevant topics of our time.While Jen has plenty of wisdom to share (and some pretty hilarious stories, too), she doesn't claim to know it all. From her honest solo reflections to her compelling conversations with guests, she's here to reassure you that you're not alone in this game of life.It's "For the Love" of all that is good, justified, exasperating, exhilarating, real, fun, and so much more.
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Juneteenth, Justice & the Next America: Lisa Sharon Harper | For The Love
Wednesday, June 17, 2026 • Duration 01:14:23
Description: As we celebrate Juneteenth, Jen sits down with writer, activist, theologian, and longtime friend Lisa Sharon Harper for a conversation that’s equal parts history lesson, spiritual challenge, and call to action. Together, they explore the often-overlooked story of Juneteenth—not just the delayed news of emancipation in Texas, but the deeper history of freedom promised, denied, and fought for across generations.
Fresh from a powerful march across Selma’s Edmund Pettus Bridge, Lisa reflects on what it means to stand in the footsteps of civil rights heroes while confronting the realities of the present moment. Drawing from her own family’s legacy of resistance, she shares why her hope no longer rests in institutions, laws, or political systems, but in ordinary people willing to bend the arc of history toward justice.
The conversation moves from the unfinished work of voting rights to the spiritual courage required for this cultural moment. As Lisa puts it, perhaps our task is not simply to recover what has been lost, but to become “the architects of the next America.”
Whether you’re marking Juneteenth, wrestling with questions about democracy and belonging, or searching for hope in uncertain times, this conversation is a timely reminder that freedom has always depended on people willing to imagine—and build—something better.
Thought-provoking Quotes:
★ “The Supreme Court has effectively placed us back into the time of Plessy vs Ferguson, which said separate and equal is okay, the time of even Dred Scott, which says a black man has no rights that a white man need abide by. That’s what they’re gunning for.”
★ In the past, my hope was in the law. In the past, my hope was in the dream of America. My hope was in the Constitution, the Declaration of Independence, the Bill of Rights. My hope was in the church. But what I’m learning is that the arc of the moral universe has bent toward justice because people have bent it.”
★ “What can they do to us? What can they do? They can put us in jail. God is there. They can deport us. God will be there. They can kill us. And God will be there. So what can they do? They can't do anything to us. Not really.”
[ENCORE] Beyond the Hug: How Sara Cunningham Built a Movement of Radical Welcome
Friday, June 12, 2026 • Duration 47:57
Description:It's Pride Month, and we couldn't think of a better time to bring back one of our most beloved episodes. Sara Cunningham — founder of Free Mom Hugs — first joined Jen back in 2018, when she was a Christian mom from Oklahoma City who had just started showing up at Pride parades with a handmade sign and a button. A lot has happened since then.
What began as one mom extending her arms to strangers has grown into a global movement. Free Mom Hugs now trains advocates, lobbies legislatures, and shows up year after year for LGBTQIA+ people whose own families walked away. Sara hasn't just built an organization — she's built a lifeline.
In this conversation, Sara and Jen revisit the journey that started it all: how Sara moved from the church to the Pride parade without losing her faith, what it meant for her son Parker to come out into a family still finding its footing, and how the stories of people who had lost everything — their families, their churches, their sense of belonging — fell into her arms and changed the course of her life.
They also talk about what it takes to turn personal pain into structural change, and why showing up — physically, politically, and relationally — for the LGBTQIA+ community matters more than ever right now.
This one is worth every minute. Enjoy this encore conversation with our beloved friend, Sara Cunningham!
Thought-provoking Quotes:
“No one has searched for God more than the Gay Christian.” – Sara Cunningham
“The first drag show that I ever went to, when I crossed the threshold, I really thought lightning might strike. But, I realized these are beautiful people raising money for homeless LGBTQ youth. And I was so moved by that. I had it totally wrong. I believed a lie that kept me from some of the most beautiful experiences I’ve had in my life.” – Sara Cunningham
“I remember there was a time, at the beginning of that journey, I call from the church to the pride parade. It was like reality was setting in. The bubble that I was in, the evangelical conservative mainstream bubble that I was in where everyone looked like me and talked like me, had just shattered. And I wanted to take a banner and put it outside of my house on the front door, like, welcome to the real world. And suddenly it's like my eyes are truly open.”
Amy Grant: The Long Road Back to Yourself (The Me That Remains)
Wednesday, May 13, 2026 • Duration 59:41
Description:There are artists whose music marks a moment—and then there are the ones whose songs stay with us for a lifetime.
This week, Jen sits down with beloved returning guest Amy Grant to talk about her long-awaited new album, a project shaped by time, reflection, and a life that’s been fully lived. After a significant health crisis and a slow, intentional return to music, Amy is creating from a place that feels more open, more grounded, and more honest than ever.
Together, they talk about what it means to come back to yourself after everything changes, how creativity evolves over decades, and why the stories we tell later in life often carry a different kind of weight. Amy shares how her songwriting has shifted, the role of memory and perspective in this new work, and what it looks like to keep making meaningful art in a season that feels both quieter and more expansive.
At the heart of both this album and this conversation is Amy’s quiet but steady intention to be a witness—to tell the truth about a life as it’s being lived, and to honor the people who have shown up along the way. From deeply personal songs shaped by love and loss to collaborations with her husband, Vince Gill, and her daughters, this record reflects not just where Amy is now, but who has helped her get here.
This conversation is thoughtful, unhurried, and full of the kind of wisdom that only comes from living a long time and staying curious along the way.
Thought-provoking Quotes:
“Many times our limitations create a new path for us.” – Amy Grant
“The great thing about being 65 is that you can be a witness to everyone and to yourself.” – Amy Grant
“In my sixties, I’ve realized this is a different landscape and I've got to have to welcome myself differently.” – Amy Grant
"I just think there is something that happens in your sixties that you just stop fighting it and you welcome it." - Amy Grant
I Thought It Would Be Better Than This: Jessica N. Turner on Loss, Identity, and Hope”
Friday, April 11, 2025 • Duration 59:17
Description:
In the summer of 2020, as Jen was beginning to process the loss of her 26-year marriage, there was one person walking her own similar but different journey, and understood many of the feelings of anger, grief, shame, and loss that Jen was just beginning to feel. Someone who knew how that disappointment felt.
Jessica N. Tuner, founder of the popular lifestyle blog The Mom Creative, was a few months ahead of Jen in processing the loss of her 16-year marriage to her husband and father of her three children. Today, Jessica shared with Jen and Amy what the road to recovery has looked like for her, including grieving the end of the life she thought she would have forever, the change of her identity, navigating the messy false-starts, and clawing her way back from what felt like “the floor of hell”. Jessica compiled those hard-fought lessons into a book she’s hoping will be a manifesto of hope to others, called I Thought It Would Be Better Than This: Rise From Disappointment, Regain Control, and Rebuild a Life You Love.
***
Thought-provoking Quotes:
Nothing about what I thought my life was going to be, is my life now. Now I feel like I walk around in the world and I feel grief and loss and disappointment and dismay from everybody. It’s amazing how my eyes have opened. It was a big awakening to the loss people are living with everyday.–Jessica N. Turner
When we made the decision to divorce, I felt like I was sitting on the floor of hell, everything was dust, everything was different.–Jessica N. Turner
No matter how devastating the loss, the life you can still rebuild is astonishing. – Jen Hatmaker
Midlife Isn’t a Crisis, It’s a Comeback: Maddie Corman on Being Accidentally Brave
Episode 93
Wednesday, April 9, 2025 • Duration 01:14:08
Description:
Maddie Corman is a seasoned American actress and playwright that you’ve seen in classic films including Some Kind of Wonderful, Maid in Manhattan, A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood, and our favorite television shows like Law and Order, Curb Your Enthusiasm, and The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel.
Most recently, she has put her creative hand to writing and performing in a very raw and vulnerable autobiographical one-woman play called Accidentally Brave, that delves into Maddie's personal journey following the arrest of her husband on child pornography charges in 2015. Today, Maddie shares her story of navigating the aftermath, focusing on themes of resilience, healing, and redefining normalcy when life takes an unforeseen turn.
In this tender and transparent conversation, we discuss:
How Maddie’s life turned upside down after a public personal crisis—and how she found her way back
What led to her decision to write a raw, hilarious, deeply moving one-woman show called Accidentally Brave (now a movie on MAX!)
What she imagined midlife would look like when she was younger versus what it looks like from where she sits today
What it’s like to walk (or sometimes crawl) through shame and loss—and come out with more freedom, more truth, more YOU
Also, how motherhood shifts our perspective in crisis
What practices or people help us stay grounded in the hard moments – Maddie shares some really great resources!
Why midlife is actually the best time to tell your story and start again
Thought-provoking Quotes:
“After a really big trauma that I thought was going to destroy my children, it turns out, they are thriving, and funny, and sensitive, and smart, and caring, and annoying, and they love me, and I drive them crazy, I’m sure. I share that because I feel like that was what saved my life was somebody who had been through something similar saying my kids are going to be okay.” – Maddie Corman
March 2025: Amanda Peters’ The Berry Pickers
Friday, April 4, 2025 • Duration 38:11
Description:
This month’s JHBC selection, The Berry Pickers, by Nova Scotian author Amanda Peters has found a particularly receptive audience within book club communities, including the Jen Hatmaker Book Club, for exploring universal human emotions and experiences, and for examining unique cultural perspectives. By masterfully blending her father's compelling stories as a Maine berry picker with her own extensive career in Indigenous governance, The Berry Pickers delves into a unique and original plot surrounding a Mi’kmaw family that grapples with the corrosive effects of guilt and shame, and the possibility of redemption. Peters reveals how the debut novel initially took shape as a short story, but as the beautifully-flawed characters and tendrilled themes began to unfold, the narrative organically expanded into the full-fledged novel that it is now, which has been translated into an impressive 22 languages and has been awarded the Andrew Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Fiction.
Thought-provoking Quotes:
I couldn't have written this story when I was 21 because I didn’t have all of the life experience that I have now. – Amanda Peters
Fiction readers are just better people because literature is about the human condition; it helps us develop empathy. – Amanda Peters
I love the writing process. I love creating a story. I love that high you get when you get it just right, when a sentence does exactly what I want it to do. – Amanda Peters
Reclaiming Your Power: Moms Demand Action’s Shannon Watts on Living a Life of Passion and Purpose
Season 92
Wednesday, April 2, 2025 • Duration 01:00:55
Description:
Today’s guest, Shannon Watts, has come to be known as a formidable force in the world. As the founder of Moms Demand Action, the largest grassroots movement against gun violence formed after the Sandy Hook school shooting tragedy in 2012, her activism has mobilized millions of moms to successfully pass over 500 gun safety laws. As Amy poignantly stated, Shannon’s work “has legitimately made a tangible impact on the safety of my kids in their classrooms”, demonstrating the profound significance of Shannon’s contributions.
Watts has since shifted her time and attention to empowering women, whom she credits as the real changemakers in any movement. She has founded the Firestarter School, a platform designed to help women reclaim their power and has a forthcoming book, Fired Up: How to Turn Your Spark into a Flame and Come Alive at Any Age, releasing in the summer of 2025, which explores the necessary elements needed to ignite a fire in your life and pursue your passion and purpose.
Thought-provoking Quotes:
When you get involved in something like activism, it helps you realize that you have all of this untapped power. And it does give you the audacity to become a firestarter, to prioritize your desires over your obligations. – Shannon Watts
Right out of college, I married my college sweetheart at 23-years-old. By the time I was 29, I had three children. I have a job I don’t love. By my mid-thirties, I realized, this is not the person I would have chosen to be. I was having a difficult time acknowledging that I was living a life that was not true to me. – Shannon Watts
So many women keep collecting new fuel, acquiring new skills, waiting for the other pieces to come together. And we’re prepared when the opportunity presents itself. – Amy Hardin
Society shoulders women with so many burdens so she doesn’t have room to explore her desires. If you’re going to claim space, raise your voice, you are going to get blowback. The direct proportion of how much you can grow your fire corresponds to how much blowback you're willing to withstand. – Shannon Watts
Title: From Prince to Parenting: Tamron Hall on Style, Stories, and Strength
Friday, March 28, 2025 • Duration 52:35
The best adventures are often found when we embrace curiosity. That’s a lesson that Tamron Hall has learned in her storied career as a cultural icon, Emmy-winning talk show host, and broadcast journalist, as well as in her role as a young parent to a son with a shy but investigative nature to explore the world around him.
In today’s conversation, Tamron talks to Jen and Amy about that curiosity and why it is a trait that should be celebrated and nurtured, both in our children and in ourselves. They talk about the many cultural treasures that already exist right in our own neighborhoods, if we open ourselves up to the beauty of exploring new places and faces.
And, Tamron also shares details with Amy and Jen about her latest labor of love, the children’s book that she just released called Harlem Honey: The Adventures of a Curious Kid, an endearing story inspired by her real-life son and his adventure visiting Harlem's most iconic spots, learning a valuable lesson about the meaning of home.
***
Thought-provoking Quotes:
Things that are authentic tend to come easy but that doesn't mean that the process isn’t challenging. – Tarmron Hall
As adults, through our urgency, we can rush our children through great opportunities of curiosity. – Tamron Hall
I was very worried when my son presented as shy. Shy kids, especially boys, can be steeped into tropes and stereotypes of what a shy kid is. It forced me to talk more openly about my own social anxieties. – Tamron Hall
The best of my journey as a reporter was opening my eyes to the cultural difference and nuances of neighborhoods. – Tamron Hall
Storytelling is something that we all have the ability to do. When you tell it from your heart and from an authentic space, it can resonate. It transcends gender, economics. It transcends everything. – Tamron Hall
Midlife Renaissance: Reclaiming the Conversation about Our Bodies and Menopause with Dr. Louise Newson
Wednesday, March 26, 2025 • Duration 01:05:49
Description:
Today, Jen and Amy have an intimate conversation with preeminent perimenopausal and menopausal specialist and women’s health advocate, Dr. Louise Newson, who has been described as the “medic who kickstarted the menopause revolution” for her commitment to increasing awareness and knowledge about hormones, perimenopause and menopause through her books, podcast, and educational videos on social media.
In this candid and enlightening conversation, we discuss:
The biggest misconceptions women have about menopause including understanding the array of symptoms that can be attributed to it
How the conversations our mothers and grandmothers had (or didn’t have) about menopause are evolving
The discussions we should be having with our doctors about our health and symptoms but aren’t, either due to shame or lack of information
Important steps we can take now to minimize our menopausal symptoms later
Treatment options to alleviate our perimenopause/menopause symptoms once they begin, including hormone replacement therapy
And, why it’s imperative for policymakers, insurers, employers, and doctors of all specialties to be part this conversation
Thought-provoking Quotes:
What’s going wrong or right in this [menopause/perimenopause] conversation is that women are understanding this faster than their healthcare professionals are. – Dr. Louise Newson
I’ve been taking hormones now for 9 years but the dose of estrogen I need, I cannot get from my NHS GP and I am white, I’m middle-class, I’m middle-class, and English-speaking. If I’m struggling, what does that mean for the majority of people globally? They're not having a voice and they’re struggling. – Dr. Louise Newson
Menopause lasts forever (i.e. until the day we die). It's not just something to get you through until the next job interview, or the next phase of your life, or the next relationship. It is forever. You have to make sure the [treatment] choice you make is right for you. – Dr. Louise Newson
Introducing The Women’s Hoops Show
Monday, March 24, 2025 • Duration 02:55
Women’s basketball is on the rise and The Women’s Hoops Show is here for every buzzer-beater, breakout star, and game-changing moment. Join host Jordan Robinson as she dives deep into the WNBA, college hoops, and the rise of new leagues like Unrivaled to bring you insightful conversations with players, coaches, and analysts. If you love women’s basketball, this is your year-round home for the biggest stories in the game.
“When you lose your mother, people bring a meatloaf over. But when your husband's arrested and you say ‘I think he's a sex addict and a porn addict,’ there's no meal train that's coming for that.” – Maddie Corman
“I had lived 47 years when this happened and I had never met another person who had gone through anything like this. P.S. It turns out I had. They just didn't share about it.” – Maddie Corman
“You inch your way back to the sunshine and it's so slow. And at the beginning you just think, everything's ruined; I'll just never be happy again so let me cobble together some sad life that just gets me to the finish line. But the truth is, it's stunning how much we can recover.” – Jen Hatmaker
Remind yourself of your wins everyday, whether they’re your wins or wins for what you want to see in the world. Give yourself hope and affirmation. – Shannon Watts
Fighting for your safety and your rights is a form of self-care and a form of protection for other people. – Shannon Watts
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