Paula Faris achieved what most journalists only dream of: she was an anchor on Good Morning America: Weekend Edition and co-host on The View. From the outside it looked like she was living the dream, but internally, Faris was struggling to reconcile her career achievements with God’s calling.
“I really felt God was leading me in a different direction,” Faris told Guideposts.org. “God was trying to get my attention because I had become so consumed with what I did.”
The message became clearer when, over a seven-month period, Faris suffered a miscarriage, a concussion, was involved in a car crash and contracted pneumonia. She knew God was speaking to her, sending a message that she needed to slow down.
“I had to get over my fear of walking away from these two dream jobs, the fear of failure, the fear of what everyone was going to think about me,” Faris said. “I was scared of what I was walking away from, and I was also scared of what I was walking into.”
What she was walking into—following God’s prompting—was the launch of her own podcast Journeys of Faith on ABC Radio.
Faith has always been the cornerstone of Faris’s life and something she longed to explore more deeply in her work.
“I wanted to have a platform where [faith is] not just a five second sound bite,” she said. “I wanted to give [people] a platform to talk about what they believe, why they believe it and how it’s been through the best and worst of times.”
With season two underway, Faris has interviewed powerhouses like Robin Roberts, Tim Tebow, Melissa Joan Hart, Bishop T.D. Jakes, Chris Tomlin and Rabbi Shmuley. She has spoken to leaders from Christian, Jewish and Sikh faiths. Faris said one of the most surprising aspects of working on the show is how it has strengthened and challenged her own faith.
“[I] talk to people of many different faiths about what they believe and why,” Faris said. “Having these conversations and learning about other beautiful faiths and cultures, it’s only forcing me to dig into my own faith and determine what it is that I believe and why I believe it.”
She says the way the podcast has pushed her reminds her of a verse from 1 Peter 3:15 where the apostle writes to “always [be] prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you.” Journeys of Faith is Faris’s way of accounting for the hope her faith provides, giving her opportunities she only dreamed of doing.
“The faith podcast has opened up so many other doors,” Faris said. “It’s indicative of what can happen when you take that step of faith.”
For Faris, Journeys of Faith has been a personal and professional renaissance, giving her back time with her husband and children and renewing her sense of calling.
“What I do doesn’t define who I am. I’m defined no longer by my job, I’m defined by who I am and that is a child of God,” Faris said. “And I’m called to love God and love people.”
