At the Counter with the Baking Pastor | Christian Encouragement, Grief Support, Burnout Recovery, Soul Care, Faith in Everyday Life
At the Counter with the Baking Pastor is a Christian podcast for women navigating grief, burnout, life transitions, emotional healing, and the quiet seasons of faith.
I'm Laura Sharp-Waites, a licensed minister, pastoral counselor, and Christian life coach.
This is a quiet space for the woman who is tired... but still showing up.
For the one who's holding it together on the outside while something underneath feels a little unsteady.
Each episode offers a calm, honest place to slow down, take a breath, and reconnect with God in the middle of everyday life. Through gentle conversations, personal stories, faith-filled encouragement, and practical soul care, we'll explore topics like grief, emotional healing, spiritual growth, identity, caregiving, resilience, and finding hope when life feels heavy.
If you've ever thought, "I don't feel like myself anymore," or "I don't even know where to start," you're not alone.
This isn't a space for pressure, performance, or quick fixes.
It's a space to sit.
To breathe.
To listen for God's presence.
And to begin again... slowly.
Pull up a chair.
You don't have to carry everything alone.
At the Counter with the Baking Pastor | Christian Encouragement, Grief Support, Burnout Recovery, Soul Care, Faith in Everyday Life
6 | Feeling Left Out or Left Behind? Sending You Back Out with Gentleness
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Before you leave the counter today, Laura offers a gentle blessing for the road ahead. Whether you're carrying joy, grief, loneliness, gratitude, or a little of everything, this conversation is a reminder that you don't have to prove your worth or rush your healing.
Released during Valentine's week, this episode acknowledges the complicated mix of emotions many people carry during seasons centered on love, relationships, and connection. For some, these moments bring celebration. For others, they bring grief, longing, loneliness, or reflection.
In this episode, we'll explore:
• Why holidays and special occasions often amplify what we're already feeling
• How comparison can quietly steal our peace
• The connection between self-compassion and emotional well-being
• Why love is not something you have to earn or prove
• Moving forward with grace, gentleness, and realistic expectations
Whether you're celebrating, grieving, healing, waiting, or simply making your way through an ordinary week, this episode offers encouragement for the journey ahead.
Soul Care Questions
• What kind of gentleness would feel most loving toward you right now?
• Where might you release comparison and receive compassion instead?
• What does it look like to carry only what is truly yours this week?
Scripture/Blessing
"May the Lord bless you and keep you." — Numbers 6:24
May you move gently through this week.
May you be held in kindness.
May you remember that your worth has never depended on comparison.
Closing
Pull up a chair anytime
If this episode met you where you are, I’d love to hear from you. What stayed with you?
☕ The counter is always open.
If today's conversation stirred something in you, you'll find more gentle reflections, soul care resources, and ways to connect at BakingPastor.com.
You can also explore the At the Counter Soul Pause Journal, created as a companion for quiet moments of prayer, reflection, and everyday faith.
And if you'd like to share a question, reflection, prayer request, or something that's been sitting with you, visit Voices from the Counter and leave a message. You may even hear your voice in a future episode.
*****Interested in being a guest on At the Counter with the Baking Pastor?
I invite you to listen to a few recent conversations first to get a feel for the heart of the podcast.
At the Counter is a gentle space for honest conversations about faith, grief, burnout, identity, healing, purpose, and the sacred ordinary moments of everyday life.
If it feels like a good fit, I'd love to hear from you on PodMatch:
👉 https://www.podmatch.com/hostdetailpreview/atthecounterwiththebakingpastor
Pull up a chair and tell me what you'd love to bring to the counter.
Recording Started
SPEAKER_00Welcome to At the Counter with the Baking Pastor. I'm Laura. This is a space for slow conversations, gentle coaching, and a little room to breathe. Nothing here needs to be fixed or finished today. So wherever you are, take a breath, settle in, and pull up a chair. We'll start right here at the counter. This episode is releasing during Valentine's Week, which can be tender in ways we don't always name. For some people, this week is joyful. For others, it's complicated. And for many, it's a mix of gratitude, grief, longing, and maybe quiet reflection. However, this week lands for you, know that you don't have to make it mean anything about your worth or the shape of your life. I'm clearing the counter today, putting things away, turning off the light, not because the work didn't matter, but because it's complete for now. I've noticed that weeks like this don't usually create new feelings, but they amplify what's already there. If you're feeling connected, it can feel sweeter. If you're feeling lonely, the loneliness can feel louder. If you're grieving, the ache can sharpen. None of that means you're behind or broken. It just means you're human. Moving through a week that asks a lot of people and does it quietly. Love isn't something you have to prove this week. It isn't measured by gifts, plans, or whether someone else chooses you in a particular way. Love also shows up as rest, as self-respect, as choosing not to compare your life to someone else's highlight reel. You're allowed to move through this week gently. So give yourself permission. Let's pause with a question. As you move through this week, what kind of gentleness would feel most loving towards you right now? You don't have to answer it. Just let it rest on you for a moment. Before we move into our closing blessing, I want to gently invite you into something. Something that has been growing quietly behind the scenes. Something called soul care circles. That is small sacred gatherings created for those longing for rest, reflection, and gentle connection. These circles offer a space to slow down, breathe, and tend your soul in community. Each circle is intentionally small and allows space to be seen, heard, and held with compassion and grace. If your heart has been whispering, I don't want to do this alone, I would be honored to hold this space with you. You can learn more and request a gentle consultation at DareToliveagain dot com whenever it feels right. And now, my friends, receive this blessing. May you be spared from comparison. May you be held in kindness. Whether this week feels full or quiet, may you know you are not behind. May love meet you in ways that don't ask you to perform. Thank you for spending this time with me at the counter. If this week brings up things you didn't expect, you don't have to make sense of all of them at once. Sometimes it just helps to have space where nothing needs to be fixed. I share that kind of companioning work on my website, again, dareto liveagain.com, if you'd ever like to take a look.
