Made for People Podcast with Justin Whitmel Earley

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Latest Episodes:

[Bonus] Geography & Moving for Friendship Apr 10, 2025

Before we release the final episode of the Made for People Podcast, we’re pressing pause for something a little different.

Over the past few weeks, so many of you have reached out with thoughtful reflections, personal stories, and honest questions. So instead of rushing to the finish, we’re giving you the chance to shape how this series ends.

We’re collecting listener questions—about anything we’ve talked about: friendship in marriage, parenting, loneliness, making friends as an adult, or something we haven’t covered yet—and in a few weeks, Matt, Steve, and I will release a final episode where we respond to your questions directly.

In the meantime, we didn’t want to leave you empty-handed—so we’re sharing this short bonus episode on a topic that has come up again and again: geography and how much your physical location shapes your relational life.

In just ten minutes, we talk about:

✔️ Why moving toward friendship could be one of the most important decisions you ever make

✔️ How proximity isn’t everything—but it changes everything

✔️ How to think about jobs, neighborhoods, and churches through the lens of community

📖 Want more? Grab a copy of Made for People wherever books are sold.

💬 Let’s Connect! Follow me on Instagram @justinwhitmelearley and join the conversation.

❓Send me your question! DM me your questions or email me at justin.whitmel.earley@thecommonrule.org and we might answer your question in the final episode!

Why Your Marriage Needs Friendships (with my wife Lauren Earley!) Apr 01, 2025

What if the story of your marriage is also the story of your friendships?

In this episode of the Made for People podcast, I sit down with my absolute favorite guest yet (obviously)—my wife, Lauren Earley—to talk about how friendship has shaped our marriage through the years. From our early days with no kids, to the chaos of raising four little boys, and now to a season where rhythms are more established, we reflect on how friendship has changed—and sustained—us through it all.

We discuss:

✔️ The different stages of friendship in our marriage—before kids, with newborns, and now

✔️ How geography, the local church, and intentional rhythms have shaped our friendships

✔️ The art of making friends into family and family into friends

✔️ Why close friendships outside of marriage are not optional—they’re necessary

✔️ How to encourage (and challenge) your spouse to pursue deep relationships

✔️ Our hopes for our boys and the friendships they’ll carry into adulthood

Whether you’re newly married, in the middle of parenting chaos, or further down the road, this episode will help you reflect on the friendships that hold your life together—and how to keep making space for them.

📖 Want more? Grab a copy of Made for People wherever books are sold.

💬 Let’s Connect! Follow me on Instagram @justinwhitmelearley and join the conversation.

Parenting for Deep Relationships in a Digital World with Joey Odom Mar 25, 2025

What if the most important thing your kids need from you isn’t a perfect home—but a model of deep, committed friendship?

In this episode of the Made for People podcast, I sit down with Joey Odom, co-founder of Aro (now rebranded as ReclaimWell), to talk about the powerful connection between technology, friendship, and parenting. We explore how our devices can either help or hinder our relationships—and how the way we use them is shaping the next generation more than we realize.

We discuss:

✔️ Healthier and less healthy ways technology shows up in our friendships

✔️ How to model friendship in everyday life for your children

✔️ Why the #1 predictor of your child’s future life is your current one

✔️ How to shepherd your children toward a life of deep relationships

✔️ Why friendship isn’t just a good idea—it might actually change the world

Join us for this honest and hope-filled conversation about how to build homes where friendship is normal, screens serve people (not the other way around), and kids develop the habits of deep and lasting friendship.

📖 Want more? Grab a copy of Made for People and check out ReclaimWell online.

💬 Let’s Connect! Follow me on Instagram @justinwhitmelearley and join the conversation.

Why Friendship Heals Our Brains with Curt Thompson MD Mar 18, 2025

What if we can’t truly understand ourselves until we tell our stories?

In this episode of the Made for People podcast, I sit down with Christian psychologist and author Curt Thompson to explore how friendship, vulnerability, and storytelling shape our mental and spiritual well-being. We discuss what a mentally healthy mind looks like, why we have a deep desire to be known, and how placing our lives in vulnerable relationships can bring clarity and healing.

We discuss:

✔️ Why we can’t understand ourselves until we tell our stories

✔️ How keeping secrets wastes neuropsychiatric energy

✔️ Why friendship liberates creativity in work and life

✔️ How being seen can literally heal your brain

✔️ Why you’re never writing or telling your story alone

Join us for this fascinating conversation on how deep relationships transform the way we see ourselves, tell our stories, and experience healing.

📖 Want more? Grab a copy of Made for People and Curt Thompson’s books, The Soul of Shame and The Deepest Place, wherever books are sold.

💬 Let’s Connect! Follow me on Instagram @justinwhitmelearley and join the conversation.

Friendship as Evangelism with Rebecca McLaughlin Mar 11, 2025

What if friendship plays a bigger role in our lives—and in our faith—than we’ve ever realized?

In this episode of the Made for People Podcast, I sit down with Rebecca McLaughlin, author of Confronting Christianity and No Greater Love, to explore how friendship is at the heart of evangelism. Drawing from her latest book, Rebecca unpacks how Jesus redefined love, why friendship is more than just a social luxury, and how deep relationships can be a powerful witness in a skeptical world.

We discuss:

✔️ The unsung role of friendship in all of our stories—and why it matters more than we realize

✔️ How friends can shape our children in ways we may not have considered

✔️ Some surprising nuances in C.S. Lewis’ thoughts on friendship and what they mean for us today

✔️ How friendship is a way of evangelism and a means of welcoming the outsider

Join us for this conversation on why friendship matters more than ever—and how it can transform our approach to inviting people into Christianity.

📖 Want more? Grab a copy of Made for People and No Greater Love wherever books are sold.

💬 Let’s Connect! Follow me on Instagram @justinwhitmelearley and join the conversation.

When Friends Become Family with Wes Hill Mar 04, 2025

What if salvation isn’t just about a personal relationship with God—but about friendship with others? What if the New Testament invites us to see friendship as something deeper, even covenantal?

In this second episode of the Made for People Podcast, we sit down with New Testament scholar Wes Hill to explore why Jesus framed salvation in terms of friendship and how Scripture challenges our modern understanding of relationships.

We discuss:

✔️ How the New Testament blurs the lines between friends and family

✔️ Why covenant friendship is essential—not optional—for the Christian life

✔️ How marriage and friendship should complement, not compete with, each other

✔️ Why geography matters when it comes to building deep relationships

✔️ The practical ways to spend more time with friends in daily life

✔️ How forgiveness is the essential ingredient to real friendships that last

Join us for this conversation on why we’re all made for friendship—and why seeing it as part of salvation might change everything.

📖 Want more? Grab a copy of Made for People wherever books are sold.

💬 Let’s Connect! Follow me on Instagram @justinwhitmelearley and join the conversation.

Covenant Friendship: The Missing Piece Feb 25, 2025

What if the biggest problems in your life aren’t actually the biggest problems? What if the real issue beneath all the others is that we’re doing life alone?

In this first episode of the Made for People Podcast, I sit down with two close friends to talk about the themes of my book, Made for People. We explore why deep, committed friendship—what I call covenant friendship—is not just a nice idea but a necessity for walking with Jesus.

We discuss:

✔️ Why drifting from friends is often the hidden cause behind struggles in faith, marriage, parenting, and career.

✔️ The idea of covenant friendship—what it means, why it’s different from casual friendships, and how it changes everything.

✔️ How friendship may be the most effective form of evangelism in a cultural moment of skepticism and isolation.

✔️ Our personal stories of finding covenant friends and why that journey matters for you too.

Join us for this conversation on why we’re all made for people—and why finding the right people might be the most important thing you ever do.

📖 Want more? Grab a copy of Made for People wherever books are sold.

💬 Let’s Connect! Follow me on Instagram @justinwhitmelearley and join the conversation.

Introducing Made for People Podcast with Justin Whitmel Earley Feb 11, 2025

Modern life makes it far too easy to drift into loneliness, but deep friendships are essential for a thriving life. The Made for People Podcast explores the spiritual discipline of friendship and why it’s the one habit that changes everything. Hosted by bestselling author Justin Whitmel Earley with his friends Matt and Steve, this limited-series podcast features conversations with experts and real-life stories on building meaningful, lasting relationships. Subscribe now and rediscover the friendships you were made for.

Join us for the first episode on Tuesday, February 25th.