Chris Stefanick Catholic Show

What happens when the one who runs toward danger… can’t outrun his own pain? In this gripping episode of The Chris Stefanick Show, I sit down with Jeff Wrigley, a veteran police officer, father of 7, and Catholic convert, who spent decades racing into crises to protect others—all while silently falling apart on the inside.  Jeff opens up about what it's like to carry the invisible wounds of decades in law enforcement: the trauma that piles up, the pressure to stay composed, the moments of despair no one sees, and the burnout that nearly ended everything. He shares the moment it all broke, and the turning point that began his road back to joy. Timestamps: 00:00 Intro 15:31 The stigma behind being a cop 20:15 How faith informed him as a police officer 25:22 Why bravery without fear is dangerous  31:10 It is responsible to recognize that there are threats in society 34:06 What's it like to be a first responder to tragedy 46:27 Why stuffing pain never works  50:51 PTSD and hidden anxiety in law enforcement 52:30 The simple prayer that saved his life  54:00 The lie of perfectionism as a cop  59:36 The importance of seeking good counsel   Jesus didn’t promise an easy life. He promised we wouldn’t go through it alone. If you’re carrying more than you can handle, this episode will remind you: faith isn’t about faking it. It’s about letting Christ into the dark and letting him carry you out. ........  Sign up for the Daily Anchor for FREE and receive daily reflections, updates, and encouragement from Chris Stefanick to help you live with the joy you were made for: https://mailchi.mp/reallifecatholic/daily-anchor-landing-page-20       ........  Help us transform hearts for Jesus! Join the mission and become a monthly donor (A Missionary of JOY!): https://moj.reallifecatholic.com/ ........  The Chris Stefanick Show will soon be premiering on EWTN+ Streaming! You can start watching more great content at: EWTN.com/ondemand/  ........  ✈️ To learn more about all of Real Life Catholic Pilgrimages, visit: https://reallifecatholic.com/pilgrimages/ ........  ✉️ Subscribe to our newsletter for weekly inspiration in your inbox. https://mailchi.mp/reallifecatholic/daily-anchor-landing-page-20

How many people are in heaven? How many are in hell? That's exactly the question someone asked Jesus in Luke 13. And His answer? It wasn’t a number. It was a warning: “Strive to enter through the narrow gate.”  In this episode, I unpack what Jesus was really saying and why asking how many is the wrong question. This isn’t about statistics. It’s about YOU. Your heart. Your relationship with God.   What You’ll Discover: What Luke 13 actually means (and doesn’t) Why salvation isn’t a system you figure out, it’s a person you cling to The Church’s teaching on purgatory, hell, and mortal sin What Pope Benedict XVI said about how few are truly ready for heavenWhy there’s still real hope for the rest of us   If you’ve ever assumed you were “good enough,” or felt too far gone, this episode will challenge you and give you hope.   LINKS FROM THE EPISODE:    Lumen Gentium: https://www.vatican.va/archive/hist_councils/ii_vatican_council/documents/vat-ii_const_19641121_lumen-gentium_en.html   Spe Salvi - Pope Benedict XVI’s encyclical on hope: https://www.vatican.va/content/benedict-xvi/en/encyclicals/documents/hf_ben-xvi_enc_20071130_spe-salvi.html    St. Cyril of Alexandria’s reflection on Luke 13: https://www.tertullian.org/fathers/cyril_on_luke_10_sermons_99_109.htm    Sign up for the Daily Anchor for FREE and receive daily reflections, updates, and encouragement from Chris Stefanick to help you live with the joy you were made for: https://mailchi.mp/reallifecatholic/daily-anchor-landing-page-20  .... Help us transform hearts for Jesus! Join the mission and become a monthly donor (A Missionary of JOY!): https://moj.reallifecatholic.com/ .... Come on Pilgrimage with me! https://reallifecatholic.com/pilgrimages/

Carolyn Klika shares her inspiring journey after a 30-year marriage ended due to her husband transitioning. As a founder of a healing ministry, Carolyn emphasizes that divorce doesn't make anyone a second-class Catholic. She discusses the deep emotional pain of divorce and its generational impact while highlighting God's unwavering love for those affected. With insights on managing bitterness and navigating annulments, she illustrates how her struggles have been transformed into a mission of hope, offering pathways for healing and restoration in faith.

Are you ready to become a spiritual warrior to attain true inner peace? In the final week of our Living Peace series, we are talking about the difference between the world’s peace and the peace that Jesus offers us. If you have unresolved emotions, bad habits, or personal experiences holding you back from the peace that the Lord wants you to experience, this episode will start you on the path to conquering those obstacles on the journey to lasting peace. If you want real peace, first you have to go to war. In this episode, we’ll explore Jesus’ very specific definition of peace, and how it offers us so much more than the “ceasefire” of the world’s counterfeit peace. We’ll also look to examples of spiritual warriors who risked it all to overcome evil and sin in the world to pursue Christ’s peace that surpasses all understanding. .... Sign up for the Daily Anchor for FREE and receive daily reflections, updates, and encouragement from Chris Stefanick to help you live with the joy you were made for: https://mailchi.mp/reallifecatholic/daily-anchor-landing-page-20  .... Help us transform hearts for Jesus! Join the mission and become a monthly donor (A Missionary of JOY!): https://moj.reallifecatholic.com/ .... Come on Pilgrimage with me! https://reallifecatholic.com/pilgrimages/ 

In 1968, something extraordinary happened at St. Mary’s Church in Zeitoun, Egypt: a glowing, floating figure, identified as the Blessed Virgin Mary, appeared night after night, drawing crowds of up to 250,000, defying power cuts, and even prompting both the Egyptian government and the Coptic Patriarchate to investigate. Seen by Muslims and Copts alike, captured on film, and witnessed by over a million people over two-and-a-half years, this is one of the most compelling recorded miracles ever. I’m joined by Dr. Travis Dumsday (Philosophy Professor, Concordia University–Edmonton; author of The Marian Apparitions at Zeitoun & Evidential Inquiry) to sift through eyewitness testimony, debunk every naturalistic claim, from mass hallucinations to holograms, and reveal the astonishing details that leave no room for doubt. Timestamps: 00:00 Proof of the supernatural seen by 1 million 2:33  Muslim transit workers’ first sighting of Mary! 4:47  Lights out, but Mary’s apparition couldn’t be switched off 15:09 How Mary united Christians and Muslims 17:50 Did Mary stop a looming genocide? 27:49 Top natural explanations—and why they fail ❌ 45:52 Why Disney still couldn’t pull this off today Resources Mentioned: Dive deeper: Get The Marian Apparitions at Zeitoun & Evidential Inquiry here: https://svspress.com/the-marian-apparitions-at-zeitoun-an-evidential-inquiry/?srsltid=AfmBOopQHCPtBmi2w0vVS6RRKCHd9tVpuWPr2lT1wvgVvd68cHUyqdIf  ........  Sign up for the Daily Anchor for FREE and receive daily reflections, updates, and encouragement from Chris Stefanick to help you live with the joy you were made for: https://mailchi.mp/reallifecatholic/daily-anchor-landing-page-20      ........  Help us transform hearts for Jesus! Join the mission and become a monthly donor (A Missionary of JOY!): https://moj.reallifecatholic.com/ ........  The Chris Stefanick Show will soon be premiering on EWTN+ Streaming! You can start watching more great content at: EWTN.com/ondemand/  ........  ✈️ To learn more about all of Real Life Catholic Pilgrimages, visit: https://reallifecatholic.com/pilgrimages/ ........  ✉️ Subscribe to our newsletter for weekly inspiration in your inbox. https://mailchi.mp/reallifecatholic/daily-anchor-landing-page-20     ......... Listen to the "Chris Stefanick Show" as a podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/3ZOMMAyrrwyFVVcEPU85vV

Welcome to week 6 of our Living Peace series. We’re still on this journey toward deep inner peace, and today we dive into spiritual detachment: a life-changing practice that unlocks unshakeable joy, deep contentment, and heroic love. If you’ve ever felt your heart chained by worry, ambition, or the need for approval, this episode will set you free. We don’t detach to escape; we detach to love, learning to live in the freedom Christ died to give us. What You’ll Discover: How the samurai–Zen master story reveals the power of radical freedom Why medieval monks used bones to break the world’s grip on their hearts Seneca’s Secret: learning to die as a pathway to true spiritual freedom  Christian detachment: detaching from lesser loves to embrace the greatest treasure of Christ’s love  The three life-changing fruits of spiritual detachment: Unshakeable joy, deep contentment, and heroic love.   Join the waitlist to receive FREE EARLY ACCESS to our Living Peace program! Coming this Fall! https://mailchi.mp/b10a369356c7/pjky3k02q7  .... Sign up for the Daily Anchor for FREE and receive daily reflections, updates, and encouragement from Chris Stefanick to help you live with the joy you were made for: https://mailchi.mp/reallifecatholic/daily-anchor-landing-page-20  .... Help us transform hearts for Jesus! Join the mission and become a monthly donor (A Missionary of JOY!): https://moj.reallifecatholic.com/ .... Come on Pilgrimage with me! https://reallifecatholic.com/pilgrimages/ 

In this episode of The Chris Stefanick Show, I sit down with Jim Blum, a man who served 20+ years behind bars and found God, purpose, and healing in the unlikeliest place: prison. We talk about what it’s like to be sentenced to 32 years, what actually happens after the gavel drops, and how God used Jim’s lowest point to launch one of the most successful reentry ministries in America. We unpack why most inmates go back and why Jim’s My Father’s House has a 100% success rate. And we explore what really changes a man: humility, prayer, and the experience of being truly loved. Timestamps: 2:19  The moment the gavel dropped and Jim was sentenced to 32 years in prison 3:10 What it’s like to see your mom cry as you're led away in cuffs 20:38 When your resume says “20 years in prison”—what happens next 23:02 What it’s like to walk out of prison... with nowhere to go 23:44 Why 60–70% of inmates return and why The Father’s House guys don’t 42:47 What it’s like to personally pick up a man from prison on release day 47:34 The invitation we all need: Love people we’re uncomfortable loving   Resources Mentioned:  My Father’s House: https://myfathershousedenver.org/  Sign up for the Daily Anchor for FREE and receive daily reflections, updates, and encouragement from Chris Stefanick to help you live with the joy you were made for: https://mailchi.mp/reallifecatholic/daily-anchor-landing-page-20    ........     Help us transform hearts for Jesus! Join the mission and become a monthly donor (A Missionary of JOY!): https://moj.reallifecatholic.com/ ........  The Chris Stefanick Show will soon be premiering on EWTN+ Streaming! You can start watching more great content at: EWTN.com/ondemand/  ........  ✈️ To learn more about all of Real Life Catholic Pilgrimages, visit: https://reallifecatholic.com/pilgrimages/ ........  ✉️ Subscribe to our newsletter for weekly inspiration in your inbox. https://mailchi.mp/reallifecatholic/daily-anchor-landing-page-20     ......... Listen to the "Chris Stefanick Show" as a podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/3ZOMMAyrrwyFVVcEPU85vV

Welcome to Week 5 of our Living Peace series. We’re still on this wild ride toward deep inner peace, and today we hit the real challenge: radical forgiveness. You have to take this step of discipleship to live in the peace of Jesus. It’s so hard that most people won’t even take the leap, which is why true peace remains so rare. We’ve come to see resentment as virtuous, even for wrongs done centuries ago, but Jesus calls us to starve resentment, uproot bitterness, and let the peace He died to give flood our hearts. We’ll dive into Saint Maria Goretti’s powerful story, unpack Jesus’ counterintuitive command: “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do”and then I’ll personally lead you step-by-step through a prayer of forgiveness. What You’ll Discover: Why resentment feels “owed” and how our gut-sense of fairness becomes a prison Saint Maria Goretti’s mercy: How an 11-year-old’s forgiveness shattered a cycle of hate Jesus’ model on the cross: “Father, forgive them” in the face of betrayal and violence A powerful prayer practice: A guided prayer exercise to drain old hurts once and for all Receive full access to all our video series, including As We Forgive Those, by becoming a monthly donor: https://moj.reallifecatholic.com .... Join the waitlist to receive FREE EARLY ACCESS to our Living Peace program! Coming this Fall! https://mailchi.mp/b10a369356c7/pjky3k02q7 .... Sign up for the Daily Anchor for FREE and receive daily reflections, updates, and encouragement from Chris Stefanick to help you live with the joy you were made for: https://mailchi.mp/reallifecatholic/daily-anchor-landing-page-20 .... Help us transform hearts for Jesus! Join the mission and become a monthly donor (A Missionary of JOY!): https://moj.reallifecatholic.com/ .... Come on Pilgrimage with me! https://reallifecatholic.com/pilgrimages/  

In this episode of The Chris Stefanick Show, I sit down with psychologist Dr. Peter Malinowski to explore why you feel like you’re running on fumes because you can’t say “no”. We dig into the hidden mind‑games that keep us saying “yes,” explore how Jesus modeled both fierce limits and boundless compassion, and equip you with simple, actionable strategies to start saying “no” without second‑guessing yourself. By the end of our conversation, you’ll see that healthy boundaries aren’t just a nice idea; they’re the key to reclaiming your time, your joy, and your freedom. Timestamps: 2:06  Jesus didn’t always welcome with open arms - here’s how He knew when to kick out and when to lean in ✋ 5:00 Think setting boundaries isn’t loving? Here’s why “no” might be the most Christ-like word you ever say ❤️‍ 20:35 Why boundary-breakers are drawn to people who won’t push back 34:05  Not good at boundaries? Why doing it awkwardly and badly is still way better than doing nothing 34:47 – Tired of being called “mean” for standing your ground? Try flipping it to “I love you enough to set this boundary” 44:11 – The most freeing thing you can say in a relationship: “I love you… and I can live without you.” ✨ Resources Mentioned:  Dr. Peter Malinowski’s work: https://soulsandhearts.com  How to Deal with Narcissism with Peter Malinowski: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ujrC9zmoNdk  Interior Integration for Catholics podcast: Episode 123: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pcfr8dOj19w  Interior Integration for Catholics podcast: Episode 129: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0jVXVtth48g Sign up for the Daily Anchor for FREE and receive daily reflections, updates, and encouragement from Chris Stefanick to help you live with the joy you were made for: https://mailchi.mp/reallifecatholic/daily-anchor-landing-page-20   ........      Help us transform hearts for Jesus! Join the mission and become a monthly donor (A Missionary of JOY!): https://moj.reallifecatholic.com/ ........  The Chris Stefanick Show will soon be premiering on EWTN+ Streaming! You can start watching more great content at: EWTN.com/ondemand/  ........  ✈️ To learn more about all of Real Life Catholic Pilgrimages, visit: https://reallifecatholic.com/pilgrimages/ ........  ✉️ Subscribe to our newsletter for weekly inspiration in your inbox. https://mailchi.mp/reallifecatholic/daily-anchor-landing-page-20  

Have you ever noticed how worry can take up residence in your mind, setting up camp as commander‑in‑chief? In Week 4 of Living Peace, we unpack exactly how worry infiltrates your thoughts and equip you with the tools to flush it out. The good news? You don’t have to live in a state of constant worry. When your biggest fears seize your attention, joy and focus are the first casualties, but prayer offers a frontline strategy to reclaim your mind. In this episode, we dive into the kind of prayer that doesn’t just scratch the surface, but actually roots out anxiety at its core. What You’ll Discover: The subtle routes worry uses to hijack your daily life Why sheer willpower falls short—and what actually dismantles fear Three targeted prayer strategies to uproot anxiety at its source How cultivating intimacy with the Father rewires your mind for peace Timestamps: 0:00   – Welcome & Series Overview: Why Week 4 Matters   1:45   – Worry as Commander‑in‑Chief: How Anxiety Seizes Your Mind   4:10   – The Two Saturations: You Can Only Live in Worry…or Prayer   6:30   – Prayer Move #1: Habitual Presence Prayer   9:15   – Prayer Move #2: The ACTS framework  12:00  – Prayer Move #3: Listening Prayer in Action   15:20  – Real‑Life Stories: Prayer Cracking Anxiety’s Stronghold   23:10  – Practical Next Steps: Embedding Peace into Your Routine     Join the waitlist to receive FREE EARLY ACCESS to our Living Peace program! Coming this Fall! https://mailchi.mp/b10a369356c7/pjky3k02q7  .... Sign up for the Daily Anchor for FREE and receive daily reflections, updates, and encouragement from Chris Stefanick to help you live with the joy you were made for: https://mailchi.mp/reallifecatholic/daily-anchor-landing-page-20 .... Help us transform hearts for Jesus! Join the mission and become a monthly donor (A Missionary of JOY!): https://moj.reallifecatholic.com/ .... Come on Pilgrimage with me! https://reallifecatholic.com/pilgrimages/