We discuss the 3 reasons why we find it hard to commit: fear of regret, fear of association and fear of missing out, FOMO. We dig into key ideas from Pete Davis in his book “Dedicated” and we explore the idea of Master committers, that we yearn for - individuals who role play commitment in their everyday lives.

Social media is a prominent feature of modern-day life. Wherever we go and whoever we speak with, some aspect always manages to weave itself into our daily routines and conversations. Whether we are posting or consuming content, it is a feature of life that plays a big role, and some might say the benefits are countless.

Being prepared to give an answer for the hope that lies within you can be daunting. It might seem like no one is really interested in their faith anymore.

How many times do we tell ourselves stories that actually hold us back from achieving the things we want in a day? I’m not talking about huge tasks. Very often, these are simple, normal, everyday things. Perhaps wanting to read more, or wanting to exercise more.

Recently on a work trip to London, I took advantage of the opportunity to visit The National Gallery. One painting which took me by surprise was one by an artist I’d not heard of before, Annibale Carracci. In his painting ‘Domine, quo vadis?,’ he depicts Peter the Apostle as appearing stunned when he sees Christ walk past him with great vigour, carrying the cross.

Many people think faith is naïve – childish – superstitious a pre- science space. The idea that science has replaced religion  is often left unchallenged by believers. In today's podcast we explore how science and religion ask different questions.

Maire with Helen Hughes discuss how sometimes we are so task focused we don’t think of our purpose. We all have a unique purpose, individual to us only, we inhabit a particular part of the world at a particular time in history.

We all have worries and fears and we often cope with these emotions by avoiding something that triggers them. But what if we faced up to something that really scares us? What might that feel like? Why should we bother? Are there even any benefits? Surely, it’s better to keep away from the things that frighten us?

Manners are an integral part of all cultures, and every culture has its set of codes of behaviours that they deem apposite or acceptable. Manners are proper to humans; animals don’t know too much about manners unless they have been trained by a human.

What if instead of having to live your one life one day at a time, you could sample every life you could possibly have? Would you be happier? Would you find “the one?” The life in which everything fits? We don’t have a problem owning our smaller decisions, because the consequences are limited. But bigger decisions can be harder to own, to find peace with them.

Perhaps some of us may have heard the quotation from publisher Emilie Buchwald that “children are made readers on the laps of their parents.” Children practise what they see, so if they see us reaching for books - novels, stories, plays or poetry - then bit by bit it becomes an interest and enjoyment for them too.

Show up for the kids. Show up for one another. Show up for your friends. Show up because it’s worthwhile - even though you may not see the results of your ‘showing up’ right now. Sooner or later the outcome of all this will reveal itself in a life that is positive, inspiring and that will undoubtedly bear fruit in the lives of the people around you.

Many of us will remember some of our first books as a child. But how can we give that same joy of reading to our children? In this podcast episode, Ciara Mannion shares with us titles of great books that your child will find hard to put down.

I do not think anyone would argue with the breathtaking beauty of our planet. God’s creation is a true wonder for us. Our faith tells us, however, that this world is just our temporary dwelling and that there is an eternal dwelling that far exceeds anything we could imagine.

The first time I heard anyone publicly speak about sex was at a ‘chastity workshop’ in school when I was 16 years of age. We received a workshop that felt more in line with a talk about what is ‘forbidden’ by purity and abstinence, rather than learning about how the virtue of chastity might enrich our understanding of sex and its purpose in our lives.

Mary is Jesus' mum. Mary was with Jesus his whole life. What does that tell us about Mary's role in His life?

One of the great things about being the mother of a large family is that there is always someone to hand the baby to when you need a few minutes to get something done. One of my little girls is the ‘go-to’ second mum in the house and she delights in being her little brother’s first choice!

I grew up looking after kids. In my extended family, there were always kids knocking about - there still is even to this day! With so many children about, it meant that once I reached 8 years old or so I was put in charge of entertaining the little ones, along with my older cousins.

Do you feel as if your relationships are as good as they could be, or are they sometimes a little stuck?

This week marks 3 years of Hearts+Minds! What started as an idea over coffee between friends - to develop an online platform for women that goes beyond the superficial, and aims to uplift and inspire women wherever they are in their daily life - has now blossomed into a fortnightly podcast, weekly blog posts and countless events where women can find community and friendship.