Girls Night #311: God Doesn't Ask You To Shrink (The difference between 'dying to self' and erasing yourself)

This season, we’ve been talking about what to do when you look around at your life and think, “Wait… this is not what I ordered.” Maybe things didn’t turn out the way you thought they would — and now you’re asking those big, scary, beautiful questions: Who am I now? What do I want? Where do I go from here? But for a lot of us who grew up in church, those questions can feel… complicated. Because somewhere along the way, we were taught that it’s wrong to want things. That it’s dangerous to trust ourselves. That being a “good Christian woman” means making yourself smaller — dying to yourself, staying quiet, and serving everyone else first. Today we’re having a conversation I think so many of us need — about what faith actually asks of us. Our guest is Dr. Alison Cook, a therapist, host of The Best of You podcast, and author of the bestselling book by the same name. Alison is an expert at the intersection of faith and psychology. She helps women heal from past wounds, develop a strong sense of self, and experience a loving God who is for them — not asking them to disappear. We’re going to talk about what self-denial really means, how to know when faith has turned into self-erasure, and what it looks like to follow Jesus without losing yourself in the process. You ready? Let’s jump into my conversation with Alison! Mentioned in this episode: 💛 Love Your Single Life [ 💛 Just Married [ 💛 Becoming Mama [ 🛒 Stephanie’s Journals & Guides [ Stay connected: 📸 Instagram: | 🌐 Website: 💌 Join the Girls Night Community: Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

You can listen to Girls Night #311: God Doesn't Ask You To Shrink (The difference between 'dying to self' and erasing yourself) online on Radio and Podcast. Open the player on this page to stream the available audio.

Girls Night #311: God Doesn't Ask You To Shrink (The difference between 'dying to self' and erasing yourself) is an episode from Girls Night with Stephanie May Wilson by Stephanie May Wilson.

This episode is 42:07 long.

This episode was published on Oct 20, 2025.

Yes. Use the heart button on the episode page to add it to your favorite episodes list.

Yes. This page shows related episodes from Girls Night with Stephanie May Wilson when more episodes are available from the podcast feed.