Bonus Episode: The Formation Writers Guild with James Bryan Smith
The Next Right Thing
Emily P. Freeman
4.8 • 5.4K Ratings
🗓️ 2 June 2026
⏱️ 42 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Today I'm joining in conversation with my friend James Bryan Smith to finally share something that's been in the works for over a year now.
Jim is the author of The Good and Beautiful book series. A founding member of Richard J. Foster's spiritual renewal ministry, Renovaré, Smith is an ordained United Methodist Church minister and has served in various capacities in local churches. He earned his MDiv at Yale and his DMin at Fuller and is a theology professor at Friends University in Wichita, Kansas, where he also serves as the director of the Apprentice Institute for Christian Spiritual Formation.
About a year ago he called me up with an idea for a way to serve writers. That's where our conversation today begins.
Even if you aren't a writer, our conversation will, I hope, shed light on how ideas become reality, how sometimes a good idea takes a decade to grow, and the beauty of collaboration, patience, and moving at a human pace. I hope you'll listen in.
LINKS + RESOURCES FROM THIS EPISODE:
- Learn more about the Formation Writers Guild
- The Good and Beautiful Series by James Bryan Smith
- Apprentice Institute for Christian Spiritual Formation
- Renovaré
FIND EMILY ELSEWHERE:
- Leave a review on Apple Podcasts
- Download The Quiet Collection app
- Join The Soul Minimalist Substack
- Order a How to Walk into a Room
- Download the free discussion guide for How to Walk into a Room by visiting this page and clicking the button "Discussion Guide"
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | I'm Emily P. Freeman, and you're listening to a special bonus episode of The Next Right Thing. |
| 0:07.7 | This is a podcast about making decisions, but also about making a life. If you struggle with |
| 0:13.0 | decision fatigue, chronic hesitation, or if you just need a few minutes away from the constant |
| 0:17.9 | stream of information, and the sometimes delightful but also distracting |
| 0:22.4 | hum of entertainment, you're in the right place for discerning your next right thing. |
| 0:26.9 | I'm an author, a spiritual director, and an occasional workshop leader. |
| 0:31.1 | I live in North Carolina with my family, and through my work, I've helped thousands of spiritually |
| 0:35.6 | thoughtful people overcome decision fatigue so that they |
| 0:39.1 | can discern their next right thing in faith, work, and life. Today, I'm joining in conversation |
| 0:45.7 | with my friend James Bryan Smith to finally share something that's been in the works for over a year |
| 0:52.1 | now. But first, if you don't know Jim, he is the author of the Good and Beautiful series, |
| 0:57.1 | which includes the Good and Beautiful God, the Good and Beautiful You, the Good and Beautiful |
| 1:01.0 | Life, and the Good and Beautiful Community. |
| 1:03.9 | He's a founding member of Richard J. Foster's spiritual renewal ministry Renovare. |
| 1:09.1 | He's also an ordained United Methodist Church minister and has served in various capacities in local churches. |
| 1:14.6 | Jim earned his MDIV at Yale and his D-Men at Fuller, and he's a theological professor at Friends University in Wichita, Kansas, |
| 1:22.6 | where he also serves as the director of the Apprentice Institute for Christian Spiritual |
| 1:27.5 | Formation. I first heard of Jim through his books and then our paths crossed in 2017, which |
| 1:34.0 | is also by the way the year I started this podcast and the year I started my master's in |
| 1:39.4 | spiritual formation at Friends, where he was one of my professors. Over the years, we developed a friendship, |
| 1:46.1 | and I've spoken at his annual spiritual formation conference that the Apprentice Institute hosts |
| 1:50.7 | every year. It's called The Apprentice Gathering. Met some of you there even. Fun fact, |
... |
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