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Speaker 1: Life Audio.

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Speaker 2: Hey friend, do you ever long for that glow that

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Speaker 2: comes from waking up refreshed after a good night's sleep. Well,

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Speaker 2: today we're going to explore why God's gift of sunlight

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Speaker 2: for your body and your soul can transform not only

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Speaker 2: your mood and your sleep, but also the way you

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Speaker 2: begin each morning, even during life's hardest seasons. Well, friend,

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Speaker 2: welcome to Breathe the Stressless Podcast. I'm Bonnie Gray, your

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Speaker 2: soul care guide for this time, designed just for you.

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Speaker 2: We're going to use science and scripture to help you

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Speaker 2: boost your spirit, your body, and your emotions. I'm the

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Speaker 2: best selling author of Breathe twenty one Days to stress

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Speaker 2: Less and Transform Cans to Calm, And I'm the founder

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Speaker 2: of Soul Care School, and I'm a soul care mentor. Well,

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Speaker 2: I'm so excited that you're here for week three of

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Speaker 2: our summer Soul Glow Up Series. This is your space

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Speaker 2: to refresh your spirit, rediscover your joy, and feel radiant

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Speaker 2: again from the inside out. And today we're going to

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Speaker 2: be doing something simple but powerful. Step into the light.

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Speaker 2: Have you ever noticed how everything feels better on a

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Speaker 2: sunny day. Your mood lifts, your shoulders, relax, and your

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Speaker 2: heart feels a little more hopeful. Right, That's not just

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Speaker 2: a coincidence. God created light and it has power to

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Speaker 2: restore your body and emotions in ways that are both

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Speaker 2: spiritual and scientific. So let's explore why soaking in God's

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Speaker 2: light is essential soul care and how you can create

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Speaker 2: a daily practice that refreshes you from the inside out. Well,

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Speaker 2: before we dive in, let me ask when have you

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Speaker 2: enjoyed a devotional that touches your heart as well as

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Speaker 2: helps boost your mood and your body and your emotions

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Speaker 2: with scripture and science. So I've got the best emotional

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Speaker 2: for you. It's the one I've written. It's called Whispers

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Speaker 2: of Rest. I wrote it during a time after I

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Speaker 2: recover from a serious season of stress and anxiety, and

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Speaker 2: it gives you soul care.

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Speaker 1: So pick up Whispers of Rest.

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Speaker 2: I still get email from readers all over the world

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Speaker 2: that have been enjoying Whispers of Rest, and I hope

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Speaker 2: that that can be a boost of sunshine to your

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Speaker 2: soul this summer. And when we come back, we'll begin

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Speaker 2: with our breath prayer based on scripture and we'll be

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Speaker 2: right back. Will our breath prayer today comes to us

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Speaker 2: from a beautiful scripture in Genesis chapter one, verse three,

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Speaker 2: God said, let there be light. And there was light,

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Speaker 2: and God saw that the light was good. Let's just

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Speaker 2: turn this powerful truth into a breath prayer. We're just

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Speaker 2: going to breathe in slowly, relax our shoulders, relax our hands,

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Speaker 2: and inhale. Let there be light, exhale, and God saw

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Speaker 2: that it was good. Again in hell, let there be light, exhale,

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Speaker 2: and God saw that it was good. Just let these

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Speaker 2: words wash over you like morning sunlight. Let your soul

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Speaker 2: open to God's goodness, not just in what you do,

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Speaker 2: but in how you rest and receive from God's loving

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Speaker 2: heart to you. Well, did you know that sunlight increases

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Speaker 2: your body's serotonin, that is the brain chemical that boosts

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Speaker 2: your mood, calm, and focus. According to the Journal of

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Speaker 2: Effective Disorders, sunlight exposure is one of the most effective

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Speaker 2: natural treatments for depression and anxiety. It also stimulates it's

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Speaker 2: the production of vitamin D, which supports our immune function

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Speaker 2: and emotional regulation. In fact, low levels of vitamin D

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Speaker 2: have been linked to fatigue, irritability, and mood swings, and

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Speaker 2: it only takes ten to fifteen minutes of natural light

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Speaker 2: in the morning to make a difference. God designed you

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Speaker 2: to need light, just as plants lean towards the sun

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Speaker 2: to grow. Your soul flourishes when you step into the light,

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Speaker 2: literally and spiritually. Well, for me, there was a season

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Speaker 2: when I was struggling with insomnia and I started waking

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Speaker 2: up later and later because I couldn't fall asleep at night,

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Speaker 2: and so I felt stuck in a negative cycle where

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Speaker 2: my energy was just totally off, my mood was low,

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Speaker 2: and I just couldn't seem to reset. So I made

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Speaker 2: a simple change. After I learned the science about how

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Speaker 2: morning sunlight helps reset our bodies internal clock. It's called

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Speaker 2: the circadium rhythm. I set my alarm again, but I

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Speaker 2: noticed that I kept snoozing even though I set the alarm,

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Speaker 2: until I gave myself something to look forward to when

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Speaker 2: I wake up. I started planning beautiful morning walks just

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Speaker 2: for me, and over time, this rhythm of walking the

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Speaker 2: morning helped reset my body's internal clock so that I

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Speaker 2: could finally begin falling asleep earlier in the night. Okay,

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Speaker 2: but this summer is very different. Friend, as those of

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Speaker 2: you have been following my journey, I have a ankle

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Speaker 2: stress fracture, and as I've been waiting for surgery that

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Speaker 2: I need for this stress fracture, I just couldn't go

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Speaker 2: on those walks anymore. I can't even walk. Instead, the

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Speaker 2: first thing I notice every morning was my fear. Before

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Speaker 2: I even got out of bed, I would wonder, that's

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Speaker 2: the first thought, is, Hey, does my ankle still hurt?

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Speaker 2: How much is it going to hurt today? And my

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Speaker 2: thoughts would quickly drift towards all the what ifs. What

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Speaker 2: if I needed surgery and then it's hard to recover.

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Speaker 2: What if I could walk for months, and et cetera,

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Speaker 2: et cetera. Right, So I decided to begin my mornings differently.

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Speaker 2: When I first wake up, I would open the curtains

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Speaker 2: in my bedroom and let the morning light fill the room.

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Speaker 2: Then I would look out at the trees and that's

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Speaker 2: the sky, and I would pray. Inspired by Samuel's simple prayer,

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Speaker 2: I would just whisper, speak, Lord, I am listening. Then

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Speaker 2: I would begin reading through a one year Bible reading

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Speaker 2: plan that I've started during my sabbatical this year, and

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Speaker 2: I'll link it in the show notes today if you

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Speaker 2: like to try this as well. But it's that so

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Speaker 2: the first thing my eye saw when I opened the curtains.

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Speaker 2: It helps reset my body's circadian clock, and God's word

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Speaker 2: brought his light to my heart. So every morning, one

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Speaker 2: word or one phrase as I read would stay with me,

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Speaker 2: and this became my breath prayer during the day. Whenever

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Speaker 2: my thoughts wandered into fear or worst case scenarios, I

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Speaker 2: would draw it back to the scripture and let that

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Speaker 2: anchor me and center me. And so I realized something beautiful.

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Speaker 2: When I can't walk outside, I was still able to

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Speaker 2: find a way to receive God's light and friend. Maybe

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Speaker 2: that's something you need to hear today to encourage your heart.

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Speaker 2: Even if your circumstances are limited, your soul care doesn't

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Speaker 2: have to stop. Whether you're recovering from an illness, caring

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Speaker 2: for aging parents, walking through grief, or just simply feeling

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Speaker 2: overwhelmed by life. God can meet you write where you are,

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Speaker 2: and no matter what happens the rest of the day,

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Speaker 2: you know, I always know, at least in the morning,

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Speaker 2: I did one thing to take care of my soul.

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Speaker 2: So I think that's a really great encouragement that first thing,

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Speaker 2: do something good for your body and your soul. That

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Speaker 2: involves sunlight. Now, friend, are you longing for the glow

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Speaker 2: that comes from a good night's sleep and waking up refreshed? Also,

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Speaker 2: what's one simple way you can receive a little more

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Speaker 2: sunlight first thing in the morning. And what about your heart?

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Speaker 2: What are your first thoughts when you wake up? What

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Speaker 2: would it look like to let God's light meet you

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Speaker 2: before your worries do? And it's okay, it's normal that

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Speaker 2: we wake up with some of our initial worries. It's okay,

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Speaker 2: but we want to meet those worries with God's sunlight.

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Speaker 2: S N l IGHC. Can't help myself. I had to

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Speaker 2: put that pun in. Well, friend, light is not just

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Speaker 2: a metaphor, It's really God's gift. Jesus said in John eight,

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Speaker 2: verse twelve. I am the light of the world. Whoever

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Speaker 2: follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have

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Speaker 2: the light of life. When you spend time in the light,

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Speaker 2: both with Jesus and his creation the sunlight in the sky,

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Speaker 2: something inside you awakens. You remember who you are, You

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Speaker 2: remember that you are loved. So today let's step into

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Speaker 2: that light. And when we come right back, I'm going

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Speaker 2: to give you a soul care practice it's a simple

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Speaker 2: action you can take that's going to help boost your body,

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Speaker 2: your emotions, and your spirit. And we'll be right back.

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Speaker 1: Here is your.

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Speaker 2: Soul care practice for this week. Friend, step into the light.

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Speaker 2: Literally sometime in the morning, make time to go outside

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Speaker 2: and stand in the sun and let your body soak

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Speaker 2: in God's gift of light. You don't have to take

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Speaker 2: a long hike, okay, remember the scientist, just ten minutes,

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Speaker 2: even if it's in your front yard or walking your

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Speaker 2: neighborhood counts. Light exposure in the first one to two

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Speaker 2: hours of the day has been shown to reset your

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Speaker 2: circadian rhythm. It'll boost your mood and regulate energy levels

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Speaker 2: for the rest of the day. Here's a scientific insight.

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Speaker 2: Research from the Journal of Psychiatric Research shows that early

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Speaker 2: exposure to natural sunlight increases serotonin, which improves mood and

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Speaker 2: focus and helps convert to melatonin later. Oponent is what

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Speaker 2: makes you feel sleepy later in the day when you

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Speaker 2: becomes nighttime, and that will improve your sleep cycle. Now,

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Speaker 2: when you stack this with a daily queue, like going

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Speaker 2: outside after school drop off that's what I did when

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Speaker 2: the kids were little, or right after your morning coffee,

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Speaker 2: you're building a habit loop that your brain will start

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Speaker 2: to crave. And this is called habit stacking. It's pairing

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Speaker 2: a new, healthy habit with one that's already automatic, one

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Speaker 2: that you're already doing. It's one of the most effective

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Speaker 2: ways to build a life giving soul care rhythm. Okay, so, friend,

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Speaker 2: this week, it's your turn. Stack your morning with joy.

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Speaker 2: Create a queue. Maybe it's after you brush your teeth

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Speaker 2: or after your first cup of coffee. Go outside, put

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Speaker 2: on your shoes. Don't even worry about how you're feeling.

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Speaker 2: Just put on your shoes, go outside and let God's

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Speaker 2: light me you there. Your mood will lift after you

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Speaker 2: take the action, so don't feel bad if you're not

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Speaker 2: in the mood. It's okay, that's why we're going outside.

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Speaker 3: Right.

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Speaker 2: Well, let's pray together, Jesus, thank you for being the

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Speaker 2: light of the world. Shine in the places in me

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Speaker 2: that feel weary or dim. Thank you for the gift

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Speaker 2: of sunlight and for creating this world in a way

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Speaker 2: that restores our body, mind, and spirit. Help me to

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Speaker 2: step into your light this week. Amen, is there a

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Speaker 2: friend you can encourage with today's podcast, Share it with them,

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Speaker 2: and if you're enjoying this Summer Soul Glow Up series.

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Speaker 2: I'd love to ask a favor. Would you leave a review?

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Speaker 2: Your words help other women discover the piece we share

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Speaker 2: here each week, and of course it encourages me to

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Speaker 2: know that this summer series is adding sunshine to your soul.

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Speaker 2: So come join me also on Instagram at the Bonnie Gray,

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Speaker 2: where I'll be sharing little moments from my own summer

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Speaker 2: soul glow Up throughout the season, and I'd love to

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Speaker 2: hear what's bringing you joy this summer too. Remember that

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Speaker 2: you're worth the joy, friend, and this summer, let's reclaim it.

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Speaker 2: Let's reclaim God's goodness and your summer glow again. Remember

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Speaker 2: you're loved, you're cherished. Just rest and I'll see you

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Speaker 2: next time.

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Speaker 3: Breathe The stress Less podcast is a production of Life

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Speaker 3: Audio and Sale Media. If you like what you heard today,

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Speaker 3: please take a second to rate and review this podcast

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Speaker 3: in your favorite podcast app so that more listeners like

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Speaker 3: you can find the show. For more faith filled inspirational podcasts,

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Speaker 3: visit us at Life Audio DOCA