At the Counter with the Baking Pastor: For the tired heart learning to breathe again
Laura Sharp-Waites is a licensed minister, soul care guide, and the voice behind At the Counter with the Baking Pastor: For the tired heart learning to breathe again.
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, and simple moments of reflection,
this podcast makes space for what you’ve been carrying—
especially the things that are hard to name.
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 or quick fixes.
It’s a space to sit,
to breathe,
and to begin again… slowly.
Pull up a chair.
You don’t have to carry everything alone.
At the Counter with the Baking Pastor: For the tired heart learning to breathe again
When You’re Ready to Move Forward (Sending You Back Out) Moving Forward with Gentleness
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pisode Description
This closing episode offers a soft sending into ordinary life.
Releasing during Valentine’s week, it gently acknowledges the mix of joy, grief, and complexity many carry—reminding listeners they don’t have to make this week mean anything about their worth.
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,
held in kindness and steadied by grace.
Closing
Listen quietly.
Reflect tenderly.
Carry only what is yours.
If you’d like a quiet place to continue, At the Counter and the companion Soul Pause Journal are available here: https://amzn.to/4m1WRhM
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 you’d like a quiet place to sit with what this stirred, A Seat at the Counter: A Soul Pause Journal is available here: https://amzn.to/4c4RSIv
*****
Considering being a guest on At the Counter With the Baking Pastor?
I invite you to listen to 1–2 recent episodes first to get a feel for the tone and heart of the conversations.
If it feels like a good fit, you’re welcome to reach out to me directly on PodMatch and share a bit about what you’d love to bring to the counter: https://www.podmatch.com/hostdetailpreview/atthecounterwiththebakingpastor
I’m especially drawn to conversations that are honest, reflective, and rooted in real-life experience.
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.
