
Faith and fortitude through failure: growing our emotional endurance | with Leslie Bosserman
Episode · 37 min · April 28, 2026
About this episode
Leslie Bosserman shares powerful insights drawn from her new book, "Emotional Endurance." With Stephanie, she explores her personal journey, the necessity of emotional endurance, and practical strategies for developing this crucial skill set from a Christian perspective. NOTE | We are giving away 3 copies of Leslie's
book, "Emotional Endurance." Sign up at https://www.gospelspice.com/lesliebossermangiveaway today! Leslie Bosserman defines emotional endurance as a “dynamic inner capacity to keep going and rise above your circumstances as you deal with life’s stresses and challenges”. It is not a one-size-fits-all solution but a set of skills and tools that can be developed and customized to each person’s needs, rooted deeply in faith, self-awareness, and lived experience.Emotional endurance is a lifelong journey—dynamic, adaptable, and deeply rooted in our walk with God. Leslie offers a hopeful, practical, and theologically rich path for us to develop greater endurance in the face of life’s challenges.Leslie’s journey began with a drastic life change: after only four weeks of marriage, Leslie and her husband moved to the Middle East to serve with a non-profit—an experience that profoundly shaped her understanding of endurance, faith, and the necessity of resilience in unfamiliar and challenging environments. Through cultural adaptation, crisis, and change, she learned the importance of inner strength, flexibility, and spiritual grounding.Leslie organizes emotional endurance into six alliterative principles, each with actionable skills:1. Fortitude to Fail: Embracing failure as a necessary step in growth; learning that God has designed us for recovery and redemption, not perfection.2. Resilience to Rise: Applying the science of resilience to rise above difficulties, using setbacks as opportunities for persistence and learning.3. Hope to Heal: Building sustainable hope, even in times of discouragement, by integrating psychological research and Christian theology.4. Courage to Change: Leaning into bravery to accept the need for change and transformation in alignment with God’s purposes.5. Energy to Engage: Managing one’s energy—both physical and spiritual—to avoid burnout and remain engaged in life’s calling.6. Purpose to Persevere: Connecting daily actions to a deeper sense of purpose and legacy, fueling perseverance in long-term challenges.Leslie Bosserman breaks each principle into three actionable skills, allowing for a customized, non-linear journey. This approach encourages small, manageable steps rather than overwhelming change. For example, an essential first step Leslie Bosserman recommends is developing margin—the space between your “load” (responsibilities and stresses) and your “power” (resources and capacity). When margin is lacking, growth and endurance become even more difficult. Cultivating healthy margins means intentionally reducing overload and creating space for God’s work in and through us.Another example is the key difference between a fixed mindset (believing abilities and circumstances are static) and a growth mindset (seeing challenges as opportunities to learn). As Stephanie says, we are “half-baked masterpieces”—in progress, growing, and continually shaped by God.By focusing on small, intentional steps and embracing both faith and self-awareness, anyone can begin building the resilience necessary to live out their God-given purpose.MORE ABOUT “EMOTIONAL ENDURANCE”Learn how to come back stronger and keep going when you experience setbacks and disappointment.Why do some people bounce back from adversity while others stay stuck? We all face stress and setbacks, but not everyone recovers the same way. What makes the difference? Executive leadership coach, educator, and TEDx speaker Leslie M. Bosserman has spent decades helping people answer that question. Through research, experience, and her own personal journey, she’s identified the key: emotional endurance.In Emotional Endurance, you’ll develop the mindset and skills to face life’s hardest moments and come out stronger, wiser, and more grounded. Based in psychological research and biblical truth, this practical and hope-filled guide offers a framework for building resilience that lasts. Soon you won’t just survive adversity; you’ll bounce back stronger with the skills to keep going.Emotional Endurance offers practical tools and transformational results, including how todevelop inner strength and grit through six core principles and eighteen actionable skills;recover from failure, turn it into a source of strength, and use it to fuel your growth;build resilience that lasts beyond a single crisis;access hope to heal from emotional wounds;replace fear and paralysis with courage and clarity;learn to manage your energy by anticipating what drains you and making space for what restores you; andfind strength to endure challenges by standing firm in your clearly defined purpose.This book is a perfect gift for anyone going through a difficult season, friends facing burnout or transition, graduates stepping into uncertain futures, small groups or book clubs focused on personal growth, or leadership retreats and team-building sessions.Real strength isn’t about avoiding hard things. It’s about moving forward with emotional steadiness when life gets tough. Emotional Endurance equips you with the mindset and resilience to keep going, keep growing, and come out stronger on the other side. Your bounce-back starts here.MORE ABOUT LESLIE BOSSERMANLeslie M. Bosserman, M.Ed., CPCC is an Executive Coach and Lifestyle Strategist for innovators and creative professionals leading dynamic and diverse teams. After working for a decade in higher education and student development, Leslie launched Lead With Intention® – a boutique coaching and consulting practice that specializes in leadership coaching, customized training, and organizational strategy for clients and their teams around the world. She collaborates with a range of creative professionals from entrepreneurs launching their startups to executive leaders at Fortune 500 Companies. Leslie is committed to enhancing her local community and co-created and launched The Makers Place™ with her husband, Joel. As the regions first coworking space with onsite childcare, this innovative multi-use space supports parents who need a professional workspace along with flexible childcare options. She also currently works as the Director and Site Supervisor of Mini Makers™ Preschool. Leslie has also served locally on the leadership team for TEDxSacramento as the Event Coordinator and volunteered as a coach for emerging female leaders through The Women's Impact Alliance (formerly The Coaching Fellowship). She has been a featured speaker at TEDxEustis with over 1.3 million views! Before becoming a Professional Coach, Leslie worked at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign where she taught leadership and diversity classes as well as ran a campus-wide Leadership Certificate Program for over 500 students, faculty, and staff members. She also has worked professionally in residential life and academic research at UCLA and in Public Affairs at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory under the U.S. Department of Energy. Before becoming a Professional Coach, Leslie worked at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign where she taught leadership and diversity classes as well as ran a campus-wide Leadership Certificate Program for over 500 students, faculty, and staff members. She also has worked professionally in residential life and academic research at UCLA and in Public Affairs at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory under the U.S. Department of Energy. Leslie loves to travel and explore new places and has visited over 30 countries as well as living abroad in the Middle East for a year where she volunteered at local schools with her husband, Joel. She is an avid artist who also enjoys karaoke, cooking ethnic food, supporting local coffee shops, and practicing yoga. Leslie lives in Northern California with her husband and three children, and travels internationally for coaching, organizational trainings, and retreat facilitation.https://www.lesliembosserman.com/ https://leadwithintention.com/ Support us on Gospel Spice, PayPal and Venmo!
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