The Pastor’s Studio with Paul Basden

What happens when the house gets quiet, and you’re left rediscovering who you are without the rhythms of raising children?

In this episode of This Is My Story, Paul sits down with Rick and Clancy Denton to talk about marriage, parenting, faith, and learning to embrace the empty nest season with intentionality and hope. After spending decades raising two children in a Christ-centered home, Rick and Clancy found themselves facing a new reality: life as just the two of them again.

Rather than viewing the empty nest as something to fear, they chose to lean in.

Through honest conversation, they share how church community, transparency at home, intentional connection in marriage, and a strong foundation of faith helped prepare both their children—and themselves—for this next chapter. They also discuss the grief, identity shifts, and unexpected joys that come with parenting adult children and learning to let go with grace.

Whether you’re years away from an empty nest or already living in one, this episode offers wisdom, encouragement, and practical insight for navigating one of life’s biggest transitions.

---

In This Episode, You’ll Hear:

• How intentional parenting shapes children long after they leave home
• Why honesty and transparency mattered in their family culture
• The importance of prioritizing marriage while raising kids
• What the “Year of Yes” taught them about the empty nest season
• The grief and freedom that coexist when children leave home
• How faith, prayer, and community sustain parents through transition

---

Key Takeaway:

The empty nest is not the end of purpose—it’s an invitation into a new season of connection, growth, and joy.

---

Resources & Links:

• The Loud Quiet Podcast
• The Loud Quiet Book

What do you do when life doesn’t go the way you planned—and the questions feel bigger than the answers?

In this episode, Paul sits down with Jamie Bryson to explore a story marked by faith, doubt, resilience, and an unshakable trust in God. From a late introduction to faith in high school to pursuing a PhD in Hebrew Bible, Jamie’s journey was rooted in a deep desire to understand God and help others do the same.

But along the way, things shifted.

A season of intellectual questioning led to years of wrestling with belief, identity, and calling. And just as clarity began to return, life took an unexpected turn. In 2021, Jamie was diagnosed with young-onset Parkinson’s and kidney cancer—within the same year.

What follows is not a story of easy answers, but of steady faith.

In this conversation, Jamie shares what it looks like to keep showing up, to let go of needing certainty, and to trust that God is present—even in suffering. His story is a powerful reminder that faith is not about having everything figured out, but about knowing where to turn when you don’t.

In This Episode, You’ll Hear:

• What it looks like to wrestle honestly with doubt
• How perspective on suffering reshapes faith
• The role of community, love, and consistency in hard seasons
• Why faith can grow stronger, not weaker, in uncertainty

You don’t have to have all the answers to have real faith. Sometimes the most powerful faith is simply choosing to stay.

What happens when God doesn’t answer your prayer the way you hoped?

After fighting to save their marriage, Matt and Mary Beth believed the hardest chapter was behind them.

But then came a diagnosis no parent is prepared for.

Their unborn daughter had a fatal condition.
No cure.
No chance of survival.

And they were faced with an unthinkable decision.

In Part 2 of their story, Matt and Mary Beth share:

• Walking through a devastating prenatal diagnosis
• Choosing to trust God in the face of loss
• Experiencing grief and joy at the same time
• Witnessing God’s presence in their darkest season
• What it looks like to lead, love, and serve from a place of surrender

This isn’t just a story about loss.

It’s a story about faith in the unknown.
Hope in the middle of grief.
And a God who is still present — even when the outcome breaks your heart.

 

References

Song: Held by Natalie Grant

What happens when a marriage slowly drifts… and no one realizes how far it’s gone?

Matt and Mary Beth Bridges both grew up in church.

They knew about God.
They believed the right things.
They started their marriage with love and good intentions.

But underneath the surface, cracks were forming.

Distance.
Unmet expectations.
Lack of communication.
And a growing loneliness neither of them knew how to fix.

Until everything broke.

In Part 1 of this story, Matt and Mary Beth share:

• Growing up around faith but missing true relationship
• How ambition, work, and identity pulled them apart
• The quiet build of resentment in early marriage
• How loneliness opened the door to betrayal
• The moment everything began to unravel

This isn’t just a story about failure.

It’s a story about how marriages don’t collapse overnight —
they drift slowly… until something forces them to face the truth.

If you’ve ever:

• Felt distant in your marriage
• Struggled to communicate what you actually need
• Watched small frustrations turn into deep hurt
• Wondered how things got so far off track

This conversation is a reminder:

What feels small now…
can become everything later.