The moment you hear Trillia Newbell’s voice, one feature sticks out: her infectious joy. Although her books and articles have addressed such difficult topics as fear, sexual brokenness, and the need for diversity in the church, Newbell has a reputation for facing down darkness with an unshakable buoyancy. As she herself writes, “I’m not optimistic because I’m naïve (at least not completely) or because I think there isn’t evil in the world (my heart often proves otherwise) but because of the gospel.” Despite Newbell’s successes as a writer and women’s ministry leader, however, her hope hasn’t been won easily. Like many whose day-to-day lives are shaped by ministry’s demands, she still struggles to balance her vocational service to the body of Christ with involvement in her local church. Newbell joined CT managing editor Richard Clark for this week’s episode of The Calling, where she shares her wisdom on dividing one’s time between one’s calling and one’s congregation—stopping along the way to discuss the draw of Twitter debates, the joys of parenthood, and how remembering that we’re the worst helps us to love others best. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices