In Part 3 of The Relationships Series, we are joined by a very special guest, Debra Fileta, creator of TrueLoveDates.com. As a professional counselor, Debra has spent years challenging individuals and couples to pursue healthier relationships, and it all starts with the individual. The reality is, the labels and baggage that we carry with us inevitably show themselves in our most intimate relationships. In this conversation, The Person I Never Thought I'd Date, Debra shows the way for everyone to begin healing and growing through their past, their identity, and their vision/purpose for the future.

Debra Fileta is a professional counselor, author, podcast host, and creator of TrueLoveDates.com. She has written a book on finding the love of your life, True Love Dates, and her latest book, Choosing Marriage, inspires and equips couples to move their marriage from me to we, to the strength and purpose that their love is meant to find.

The Relationships Series is all about dating, friendships, family.. relationships. Many singles feel pressured by culture and family, their age, and even their church, creating a sense that being single is "less than" or incomplete. Like it's a waiting stage until marriage. In Part 2 of The Relationships Series, we invite our friend and teaching pastor, Jason Mitchell, into a conversation about the roles we play in life.

The Relationships Series is all about dating, friendships, family.. relationships. Many singles feel pressured by culture and family, their age, and even their church, creating a sense that being single is "less than" or incomplete. Like it's a waiting stage until marriage. In this episode of The Collective Podcast, we open up The Relationships Series with a message that you rarely hear but is absolutely essential: Singleness is a gift.

What is piling up around you? That's what the July episode of The Collective Podcast is all about. Sometimes the mess that piles up in the garage or kitchen or at our desk is actually an indicator of something piling up in our hearts. Dave talks about the piles of mess in his basement and on the nightstand, and how he realized that it's time to deal with what's clogging up his heart as well.

In the final episode of the Crucial Conversations series, Dave breaks down moments of conflict into their simplest form, like a crime scene, exposing the crucial moment between what happens and how we respond. That critical moment? We tell ourselves a story. In that story we often make others out to be a villain, or we tell ourselves we're the victim, even helpless. And that is what informs our response. No wonder we don't handle crucial conversations well. If you can intercept that moment and tell yourself the truth, then you will see clearly, and you will be better at relationships. Without question.

In Episode 2 of the Crucial Conversations series, Dave gives us the opportunity to learn two things: 1) What is your fight type? 2) What does it take to save the moment from conflict that goes bad? Dave argues that, if you figure out these two things now, you will give yourself a three year head-start toward a healthy marriage someday and advancement at work.

This is the beginning of the Crucial Conversations series, reviewing insights from a book by the same name, Crucial Conversations. In high-stakes interactions with your boss or friend or significant other, what you say matters. There are critical moments in every one of our relationships where our words make the difference. But many times we say too much, we come across too forceful, or we say nothing at all.

And we often believe the lie that telling the truth means losing a friend. In the first episode of this series, Dave addresses what researchers call the "Foolish Choice," the sad result of believing that the truth will cost us more than silence. If relationships are based on communication and trust, then keeping silent costs far more. Do you say what you're thinking or move on and hope it just gets better by itself? The challenge in this episode is simple: Talk about it. Don't fall for the lie that keeping quiet means keeping a friend.

While the seasons change at (somewhat) predictable times in the year, our lives are in constant flux. But there are especially challenging transitions in life that can, if we're not aware, cause us to lose our way. Relocating to a new city, changing jobs or careers, getting promoted, the beginning or ending of a relationship, even self-improvement changes can throw us off course. In this episode of The Collective Podcast, Dave hosts a conversation with his friend and co-worker, Kevin Mahan, about how to keep your life on track when change begins to disappoint, discourage, and even cause you to doubt yourself altogether.

When you work or live with someone who tries to control everything, it can be suffocating. In this episode of The Collective Podcast, Dave talks about the problem of control in our work, cautioning against the effects of forcing compliance. But it is even more destructive in our relationships and faith. The life-altering love that Jesus invites us into leaves no room for performance-based requirements. So why do we do that to ourselves?

In Part 3, the final episode of The Expectations Series, Dave will talk about what happens in our hearts when life lets us down. We'll call out five destructive expectations about life that we need to get rid of now, and he'll point to the one expectation that you can put all your chips on, the one that will never let you down.