About the show
“Jesus himself drew near.” (Lk 24:15)
God takes the initiative to draw near to us out of a deep and personal love for each one of us. This movement asks each of us for a response. There are so many beautiful ways we can respond to the work of God's grace and the power of the Holy Spirit at work in our lives. This is a journey we share together, drawing near to Christ as we draw near to one another. This shared journey toward Christ, rooted in the Catholic faith, is the focus of our podcast. Our goal is to be authentic, honest, humble, faithful, loving, passionate, real and vulnerable in each episode. We also like to keep it lighthearted. We are two best friends, sharing life together with our families. We invite you to join us as we Draw Near. Let's grow towards sainthood together!
Hosts: Fred Shellabarger and Kara Kardell
Learn more at: www.drawnear.me
Draw Near on social media
Episodes
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You Can't Do This by Yourself... (PREVIEW: I Believe in Love Book Study)
November 25th, 2022 | 8 mins 47 secs
book study, confidence, discouragement, draw near, fred and kara, grace, i believe in love, little way, st therese of lisieux, trust
In our walk with the Lord, we can be tempted to take pride in what we see as "our own accomplishments." We may not realize it or admit it, but it is easy to succumb to. We can also give into discouragement when we believe ourselves to not be living up to our own standards (or the standards of others). Our "I Believe in Love" book study launches November 29, 2022 on Suscipe.co. We thought it would be great to offer another preview of some of the discussions! Please enjoy this clip from Chapter 3, where we discuss how St Therese's "Little Way" is a better, and more sure approach to the temptations toward pride on one hand, and discouragement on the other.
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What Are We Thankful For?
November 23rd, 2022 | 10 mins 21 secs
draw near, family, fred and kara, friendship, gratitude, thanksgiving
As we celebrate Thanksgiving this year, we have found ourselves reflecting a lot on gratitude and the Lord's faithfulness. It's always good to take some time and reflect on what we have to be thankful for. Because we enjoy sharing our own lives with our listeners, we thought we would discuss those things that we are most thankful for this Thanksgiving. We hope this will be a blessing to you this year. As Scripture and experience both make clear, the word of our testimony is a great way to edify one another and inspire gratitude.
Even during a season of quiet, where at times it seems like the Lord has been asleep in the boat during the storm (more on this in our I Believe in Love book study), we have found ourselves overwhelmed with thankfulness. Listen to hear why!
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He Still Has You! (PREVIEW: I Believe in Love Book Study)
November 22nd, 2022 | 6 mins 29 secs
book study, confidence, discouragement, draw near, fred and kara, i believe in love, little way, st therese of lisieux
Does God seem distant, silent or nowhere to be found? Are the storms raging and you feel left out at sea? Our "I Believe in Love" book study launches November 29, 2022 on Suscipe.co. We thought it would be great to offer another preview of some of the discussions! Please enjoy this clip from Chapter 2, where we discuss how, HE STILL HAS YOU! You will not sink!
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Why Can't Women Be Priests?
November 21st, 2022 | 53 mins 22 secs
catholic, cremation, godparent, ordination, priests, sexism, weddings, women
In this episode, we are joined by our good friend, Fr Patrick Behm. We ask him a number of questions we have received from listeners. In particular, Fr Behm spends some time carefully walking through the Church's teaching on the priesthood, and why women cannot be ordained. He also makes the case for why Jesus clearly was not, and cannot be, sexist. Additionally we talk being a godparent, cremation and whether or not we can donate our bodies to science. We also spend some time on Heaven, homilies about hell, and the value of our prayers for those who have died. We briefly discuss mental health and suicide. We wrap up with weddings outside of the Church and participation in non-Catholic weddings, online ordination, why the Catholic "Our Father" is in some ways different from the Protestant version, and finally, the hardest parts about being a priest and the greatest joys.
***** TRIGGER WARNING: SUICIDE *****
If you are struggling with suicidal crisis or emotional distress, free and confidential help is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week in the United States.
Call: 988 to reach the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline or visit them online at: https://988lifeline.org/ -
PREVIEW: I Believe in Love Book Study
November 21st, 2022 | 3 mins 26 secs
book study, draw near, fred and kara, i believe in love, little way, st therese of lisieux
Our "I Believe in Love" book study launches November 29, 2022 on Suscipe.co. We thought it would be great to offer a preview of some of the discussions! Please enjoy this clip from Chapter 1.
Want to join the study? You can purchase I Believe in Love here! Sign up to join the book study and/or learn more about us by visiting our home page. Join the Draw Near Community Space on Suscipe.co
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I Never Thought I'd Be a Yelling Mom
November 9th, 2022 | 45 mins 38 secs
catholic, draw near podcast, faith at home, fred and kara, guilt, healing, marriage, miscarriage, motherhood, noelle garcia, wives
"They never told you in marriage preparation that some days, you won't like each other very much." Continuing our series on marriage and family life, Kara is joined by speaker, musician, podcaster, wife and mom, Noelle Garcia! Sharing from the heart and the "realness" of daily life as Catholic wives and moms, Kara and Noelle discuss the hardest and the greatest things about marriage and motherhood. What advice is there for those who struggle with mom guilt (or guilt in general)? How do you handle different parenting styles and different approaches to home life between spouses? What are the biggest challenges and joys of motherhood and how do we approach these and maintain joy? All of these questions are answered in this episode!
Trigger Warning: Noelle also shares her testimony of faith in the midst of the grief of a miscarriage.
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Reckless Love?
October 26th, 2022 | 49 mins
draw near, gospel, love, podcast, reckless love, salvation
In this episode, we share some exciting news and rejoice in being back in the studio together for the first time since May! Reflecting on leading a time of music and prayer this past summer, we discuss one of our favorite songs, "Reckless Love" by Cory Asbury. Though not a new song, it is a phrase that has been debated. Is God's love reckless? What does that even mean? Does the phrase "reckless love" of God even mean "reckless" in the usual sense of the word? We would say no, not at all. So what does it mean? Listen as we get a bit more personal and share a bit of our journey with you as we reflect on the words of this song.
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Wives and Wine
October 12th, 2022 | 45 mins 39 secs
catholic, draw near podcast, fred and kara, marriage, motherhood, recipes, wives
The ladies had to get their 2 cents in on this family series! If you enjoyed the husband/dad episodes, you'll love this one more. Tune in to hear Kara chat with her good friend (and Fred's wife) Krystal Shellabarger about marriage and motherhood.
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Fatherhood: Baptism by Fire (Wives and Whiskey)
September 28th, 2022 | 1 hr 8 mins
being a dad, catholic, dad, family, family life, fatherhood
Kara is back in this episode!!! We are continuing the series on family life, and joined by none other than Kara's husband Beej, as well as our friend Taylor Schroll. In this episode three dads share from their own experience and offer some perspective on the struggles and the joys of being a father. Complete with a few sports analogies, whiskey sipping, and Kara poking fun (in love of course), we hope you enjoy this lighthearted discussion on fatherhood.
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Embracing Fatherhood
September 28th, 2022 | 48 mins 2 secs
being a dad, catholic, dad, family, family life, fatherhood, silas, take up your cross
Becoming a father, and the reality of being a father in the day to days of life can be both stressful, terrifying and joyfully rewarding all at once! Phillip Grothus joins us once again for an authentic, reflective, but lighthearted look at being a dad. Sharing both the highs and the lows, Fred and Phillip share from their own experience, how their relationship with Christ and the faith they profess shapes the kind of fathers they strive to be. They also discuss perceptions, experiences, and cultural norms that tend to make being a father a challenge some times and offer some advice on overcoming these obstacles.
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St Luke's Take on The Our Father (and Kara's)
September 28th, 2022 | 19 mins 4 secs
Kara is back in this episode!!! With a reflection on the Our Father as it appears in the Gospel of Luke.
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PREVIEW: Embracing Fatherhood
September 19th, 2022 | 52 secs
embrace, fatherhood, help, simon, the cross
Here is a short heartfelt preview of what you have to look forward to in our next episode in a series on marriage and family life. We are joined once again by, Phillip Grothus (and others). Topic: Fatherhood. Enjoy!