Explorez tous les épisodes du podcast Shifting Culture
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Ep. 250 Danielle Strickland - Overcoming Patriarchy: Reclaiming the Mutual Flourishing of Men and Women
10 Dec 2024
01:00:44
Patriarchy is a power that steals, kills, and destroys. But in the darkness, the Spirit of God hovers, waiting to give birth to new life. Danielle Strickland joins us today to shed light on this critical issue facing the church. Danielle unpacks how patriarchy has deeply distorted our view of God, the scriptures, and the flourishing of men and women together. She shares how this male-centered ordering of the world has undermined women's confidence and value, and how it stands in stark contrast to God's design for mutual flourishing. Yet Danielle also offers hope. She calls us to see the powerful witness of women throughout scripture - from Hagar to Mary Magdalene. And she challenges men to step up, to confront the systems of patriarchy, and to disproportionately invest in empowering women. This is a conversation that gets to the heart of the gospel - a message of life, not death; a vision of mutual empowerment, not domination. Danielle's words have the potential to shift the very culture of the church. So join us.
Danielle lets Love lead her to inspire, challenge, provoke and disrupt the present, and to live the future now. Having lived in different cultures and contexts around the world she celebrates diversity and deeply longs for wrong things to be made right. Danielle practises following Jesus daily. This pursuit has led to exciting entrepreneurial exploits (like co-founding multiple charities and non-profits) and a whole host of failures (that we don’t as often talk about). All of this has convinced her of the deep need we all have for hope, faith, and love. Her deepest longing is to demonstrate what living that boundless life looks like.
Danielle has written six books (the latest is The Other Side of Hope), has a podcast called The Right Side Up (which recently celebrated half-a-million downloads), and speaks to people at events all over the world. Danielle leads Boundless Communications Inc. which launches creative exploits like Women Speakers Collective (liberating voices of women around the globe), IMBY (a tiny home movement IN MY BACKYARD), Brave Global (preventing human trafficking), Infinitum (a way of living deeply), and Hagar’s Voice (support and advocacy for survivors of abuse). Danielle lives in Vancouver, Canada with her three sons and husband Steve. Danielle loves getting outside, doing new things, physical adventures, and she can’t seem to turn down a free lunch.
Ep. 249 Pete Portal - What Does Success in the Kingdom of God Look Like?
06 Dec 2024
00:57:13
Today we have a conversation with Pete Portal, author of the book "How to Be (Un)successful" (or "Stop Trying to Be Successful" for our American listeners). Pete has spent the last 15 years living and working in the township of Mannenberg, South Africa, a community plagued by gang violence, drug addiction, and systemic injustice. What Pete has learned through this experience flies in the face of much of our conventional thinking about success, achievement, and the role of the church. He argues that true success in the kingdom of God is not about what you accomplish, but who you become - a life of faithfulness, vulnerability, and reciprocal relationship, even in the face of deep betrayal and suffering. Pete shares powerful stories of how God is at work, often in the most unexpected places, to raise up the valleys and humble the mountains. He challenges the notion of "culture wars" and the church's tendency to try and "invade and occupy" systems of power, instead calling us to a "seven valleys mandate" - to pervade the forgotten, marginalized spaces of society with the humble, self-giving love of Christ. This is a conversation that will make you rethink everything you thought you knew about success, the role of the church, and how the kingdom of God breaks into our world. It is deeply inspiring and profoundly hopeful. So join us.
Pete Portal serves on the Core Leadership Team of Tree of Life, a 24-7 Prayer Community based in Manenberg, Cape Town. He does life with young men coming out of gangsterism and drug addiction and helps these young men find faith, freedom and wholeness. He's on the board of 24-7 Prayer South Africa, and spends much of his time growing relationships and networks across racial and socio-economic divides, as well as speaking at churches and organisations both locally and internationally on matters of faith and social transformation. Pete holds Masters degrees in Theology (Edinburgh) and Theology, Politics and Faith-based Organisations (Kings College London); He's written articles for The Guardian, The Telegraph and The Times. Pete has written two books - No Neutral Ground, and How to be (Un)successful.
The conversation today gets at the heart of our modern mental health crisis. Richard Beck, author of the new book 'The Shape of Joy,' takes us into how our cultural obsession with introspection and the pursuit of self-esteem has undermined our wellbeing. He traces this back to key philosophical and psychological figures like Descartes and Freud, who ushered in this inward turn. He shows how this has led to excessive rumination, a fragile sense of self-worth tied to external achievements, and an inability to find true meaning and joy. But the real power of this conversation is in how Beck points us towards an alternative - a path of transcendence, of finding our identity and security in something greater than ourselves. He unpacks the psychological benefits of gratitude, awe, and spiritual connection. And he challenges us to move beyond just insight and self-analysis, towards more embodied, experiential ways of cultivating wellbeing. It's a rich discussion that gets at the heart of our modern malaise and points towards a more joyful and grounded way of being. A conversation worth diving into.
Richard Beck (PhD) is Professor of Psychology and Senior Fellow of the Landon Saunders Center for Joy and Human Flourishing at Abilene Christian University. Richard also teaches in the Doctor of Ministry programs at Fuller Theological Seminary and Abilene Christian University.
During his teaching career, Richard has been honored twice as ACU Teacher of the Year. Richard has also been recognized as Honors Teacher of the Year and has won the College of Arts and Sciences Classroom Teaching award and Faith Integration award.
Outside of the classroom, Richard travels the world as a sought after speaker and an award-winning blogger and author.
To explore speaking engagements for your church or organization email beckr@acu.edu.
Ep. 150 Ryan Skoog - Lead with Prayer Pt. 1: Praying Through Tough Times
19 Jan 2024
01:01:13
In this episode, Ryan Skoog and I have an incredible conversation about leading with prayer. As Ryan and his teams go to the toughest places on earth, they have to rely on prayer. It’s crucial. But prayer isn’t just for the people on the front lines in hard places. It’s for us all. We learn from the global church what an intentional prayer life looks like. We talk about wasting our time with Jesus in friendship, tithing our time to the Lord, the allure of chasing influence rather than obedience, the importance of intentionality and creating our own personal liturgy. And we really hit what it looks like to pray through tough times. So join us as we learn from the global church what leading with prayer looks like.
Ryan is cofounder and president of VENTURE, a nonprofit that works in the toughest places of the world, serving war refugees, trafficked people, oppressed children, and the unreached. VENTURE has planted thousands of churches that serve in their own communities to rescue girls from trafficking, start farms, and train in microenterprise and feminine hygiene, leading to generational transformation. Ryan co-authored the books Chosen: A 30 Day Devotional and the forthcoming Lead with Prayer. He and his wife Rachel enjoy adventuring with their two ginger headed kids and the newest addition to their family Kyea Sin Thant.
Ep. 149 David Fitch Returns - Reckoning with Power
16 Jan 2024
00:54:32
In this episode, David Fitch and I reckon with power in this conversation. We talk about worldly power versus Godly power. What’s the difference? Why do we need a new relationship with power? We talk about mutual submission, engaging the table for reconciliation and justice, non-coercive evangelism. We even engage in a conversation around power dynamics and the Middle East. It’s a fantastic conversation that is much needed as we continue to encounter abuse of power in the church. So join us as we reckon with power and hand over the reigns to God.
David Fitch (Ph.D Northwestern University) is a professor at Northern Seminary and a pastor at Mission Renew Church in Westmont, IL. He is married to Rae Ann and they have one son named Max. He’s coached hockey for the YMCA USA Hockey program for seven years. David teaches, speaks, and writes within the fields of Neo-Anabaptist theology, missiology, culture studies, political theory, and ethics.
He writes from time to time on his own page at Missio Alliance, on his own substack, for Christianity Today, Outreach Magazine, ChurchLeaders.com, EthicsDaily, and multiple other sites, magazines and journals. He is co-host of the Theology of Mission podcast. His latest book is Reckoning with Power from Brazos press.
Ep. 148 Meghan Larissa Good - Are We in the Middle of a New Reformation?
09 Jan 2024
00:59:17
In this episode, Meghan Larissa Good and I have a great discussion around themes from her latest book Divine Gravity. How can we enter into a new reformation that helps the body of Christ look more like Jesus? Jesus can lead us into this new place and time. We can disagree with each other and still have unity. We can follow the discernment of the Holy Spirit. We can have a cross-shaped power which is a power under and not a power over. We can join Jesus in the reconciliation of all things. Jesus is making all things new. So, let’s join Him and get on the ride. So, join us as we discuss whether or not we are in a new reformation that will help us look more like Jesus.
Meghan Larissa Good is lead pastor at Trinity Mennonite Church (Phoenix, AZ). She is a frequent preacher and lecturer at churches and universities across the country, speaking on subjects such as biblical interpretation, contemporary preaching, and Christianity's 'next reformation.' Meghan is author of The Bible Unwrapped: Making Sense of Scripture Today and Divine Gravity: Sparking a Movement to Recover a Better Christian Story. She lives in Phoenix, AZ with a prized dinosaur bone and a ridiculously large book collection.
In this episode, Blaine Eldredge and I look at the Bible in a new light, so we can see the stories come alive and we can fall in love with them once again. Blaine is a fantastic storyteller and he helps us see how we can follow Jesus in a time of decline, what we can learn from history for our time and place, and how we can eliminate the familiarity with which we read the Bible. Join us as we discover the fascinating insights the story of the Bible brings to our lives today.
Blaine is a teacher and writer from Peyton, Colorado. For the past decade, he has built platforms to help the Church thrive in late modernity. Blaine loves to read, write and talk about culture, history and theology. He really loves to contemplate the Gospel of Jesus and make resources to convey its astonishing beauty. He’s part of Kindred Church in Colorado Springs and holds a Masters Degree in Language from the University of British Columbia. He spends his free time bowhunting, chopping wood, and at poetry readings.
Ep. 146 Nadya Williams - Cultural Christians in the Early Church
02 Jan 2024
00:49:54
In this episode, Nadya Williams and I talk through her book Cultural Christians in the Early Church. Did you know that cultural Christianity has been a problem from the beginning? Giving in to worldly power and praise, apostasy and divisions in the church, Christian Nationalism, celebrity culture. All of these things and more are problems the early church dealt with and we still deal with them today. But there is good news – The way of Jesus is possible and we even have models to follow who faithfully follow Jesus amidst the culture of the day. Join us as we discover what faithfulness to Jesus looks like even when people around us are following the culture of the day instead of the radical way of Jesus.
Nadya Williams received her PhD in Classics from Princeton University. She is the author of Cultural Christians in the Early Church (Zondervan Academic 2023) and Priceless (under contract with IVP Academic). She is Book Review Editor for Current, where she also runs the Arena blog.
It’s the best of 2023! We are going to count down the most listened to episodes of the past year and I am going to countdown my favorite books of the year.
But before we dive in, I just have to say thank you – thank you to you, the listener. I have so enjoyed making this podcast and having the conversations I’m having, but without you there wouldn’t be a podcast. So keep listening. Keep spreading the word. Tell your friends, your family, even your enemies to listen to Shifting Culture.
Ep. 144 Grace Hamman - Jesus Through Medieval Eyes
26 Dec 2023
00:55:11
In this episode, Grace Hamman and I get into a really great conversation around the medieval period and how Jesus was viewed. It’s amazing to me how illuminating it is to read thinkers of the past and how it shapes my perspective in ways that are unexpected and helps me encounter Jesus in new ways. We talk about people like Thomas Aquinas and Julian of Norwich and we look at Jesus as a Knight, as Judge, as Mother, and more. Join us as we gain a fresh perspective by encountering the past and looking at Jesus through medieval eyes.
Grace Hamman (Ph.D., Duke University) is the author of Jesus through Medieval Eyes: Beholding Christ with the Artists, Mystics, and Theologians of the Middle Ages, and independent scholar of late medieval poetry and contemplative writing. Her work has been published by academic and popular outlets, including Plough Quarterly and The Journal of Medieval and Early Modern Studies. Grace hosts a podcast called Old Books with Grace which celebrates the beauty and joy found in reading the literature and theology of the past. She lives near Denver, Colorado with her husband and three young children.
Ep. 143 Justin Davis - A Real and Vulnerable Life That Leads to Transformation
19 Dec 2023
00:55:58
In this episode, Justin Davis and I have a great conversation. Justin shares his story of brokenness, pain, infidelity, and addiction and walks us through the importance of being real, being vulnerable, and being honest with God, so that true repentance and transformation can take place. I know you are going to get a lot of this one. So join us as we take off the masks we’ve been hiding behind, get real, and pursue transformation in Jesus.
Justin is an author, speaker, and pastor who dedicated his life to helping people experience life change through the power of authenticity. He co-founded RefineUs Ministries, where he shares his personal story with honesty and transparency, inspiring others to find the courage to do the same.
Justin is the co-author of the bestselling book, Beyond Ordinary: When a Good Marriage Just Isn't Good Enough, which he wrote alongside his wife, Trisha.
He is a sought-after speaker for numerous conferences, churches, and leadership events, inspiring audiences with a message of hope and transformation through the grace of Jesus.
Justin loves to spend time with his family. He enjoys playing basketball, indulging in the Great Wall of Chocolate at PF Chang's, and taking long walks on the beach with his wife and kids. Justin and Trisha have five kids and live in Indianapolis, IN
Ep. 142 Denise Gitsham - How to Engage in Politics Without Losing Your Friends or Selling Your Soul
12 Dec 2023
01:06:34
In this episode, Denise Gitsham and I talk about her latest book Politics for People Who Hate Politics: How to Engage Without Losing Your Friends or Selling Your Soul. We talk about being ambassadors of the Kingdom of God, discernment of the Holy Spirit, unity, not uniformity, among believers., loving your enemy, engaging in dialogue, asking questions, having empathy. It’s an important conversation as we in the U.S. are about to embark on a contentious political season. So join us as we engage in dialogue with love empowered by the Holy Spirit.
Prior to starting her own public affairs consulting firm, Denise Grace Gitsham worked at the highest levels of federal government from the White House to the US Senate, in law firms, for startups, and as a candidate for Congress. Denise is a graduate of the Georgetown University Law Center and Bowdoin College, and is a political contributor and commentator on various national cable news networks.
Ep. 141 Steve Bouma-Prediger - Creation Care Discipleship
05 Dec 2023
00:47:18
In this episode, Steve Bouma-Prediger and I have a great discussion on creation, earthkeeping, and our role in caring for the earth as disciples of Jesus. Since the Bible starts and ends with rivers and trees, our first mandate is to care for the earth, and our vision of the future includes the earth we are now living on, we have a role and responsibility in the way we keep the earth, care for it, and pattern our life. What are the things we can do in our every day lives to be good earth keepers? Who is working on the major problems of the earth at the moment? How is social justice tied to ecological issues? We tackle these questions and more. So join us as we discover our role as earthkeepers as disciples of Jesus.
Steve Bouma-Prediger is the Leonard and Marjorie Mass Professor of Reformed Theology at Hope College in Holland, Michigan and the director of the Environmental Studies minor. A graduate of Hope College, his Ph.D. is in religious studies from The University of Chicago. His most recent book is Creation Care Discipleship: Why Earthkeeping is an Essential Christian Practice. When not teaching or writing, he spends as much time as possible canoeing or backpacking in his favorite places in North America or simply hiking among the magnificent trees in southwest Michigan parks.
Ep. 239 Stephanie Duncan Smith - Knowing the Risks and Loving Anyway
05 Nov 2024
00:48:58
In this episode, Stephanie Duncan Smith takes us on a profound journey through grief, loss, and the resilience required to open ourselves up to love again. She beautifully weaves together themes of time, the liturgical calendar, and the radical empathy of a God who meets us in every moment - whether joyful or sorrowful. Stephanie shares her own experiences with pregnancy loss, and how she grappled with the dissonance of everyday life and the world's expectations in the midst of her grief. She redefines resilience not as "overcoming," but as the ability to hold joy and sorrow together, to live in the uncomfortable tension. This conversation is a masterclass in finding hope, courage and the freedom to feel the full range of human emotion, even in the darkest of times. Stephanie's words offer a path forward for anyone who has experienced profound loss, and a reminder that love is always worth the risk.
Stephanie Duncan Smith is a writer and senior editor at HarperOne who has spent her career developing award-winning and bestselling authors. She is the creator of Slant Letter, a bestselling Substack email newsletter for writers looking to deepen their craft and do it in style. Duncan Smith completed her master’s in theology at Western Theological Seminary, where she was the winner of the Frederick Buechner Prize for Excellence in Writing. She lives with her husband, Zach, a professor, and their two children in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.
Ep. 140 Naghmeh Panahi - Emerging Whole After Deception, Persecution, and Hidden Abuse
01 Dec 2023
01:07:25
In this episode, Naghmeh Panahi shares her story with us. A story that is necessary to hear, although it is difficult. Abuse by pastors, church leaders. Backlash from the Christian community. Naghmeh shares how she was able to hold on to Christ, recover her identity as a child of God, lead a house church movement, and see Muslims from around the world have dreams and visions of Jesus, start to follow Jesus and make him lord. This is a conversation that you don’t want to miss. So join us as we discover the goodness of God in the midst of humans corrupting His goodness and see how God reveals Himself to the broken and desperate.
Born in Tehran in 1977, Naghmeh Abedini Panahi immigrated to the United States at the age of nine and soon converted from Islam to Christianity. In late 2001, after graduating from college, she returned to Iran to work as a businesswoman and missionary. There, she witnessed —and experienced—the oppression and violence women are subjected to every day in the Middle East. It was there that she also met her future husband, Saeed Abedini, with whom she led one of the largest house-church movements in Iran. In 2005, due to persecution, she and Saeed moved to the United States, where their two children were born. When Saeed visited Iran in 2012 to work on opening an orphanage, he was arrested for his involvement in the underground church and sentenced to eight years in a notorious prison. Naghmeh unceasingly advocated for Saeed’s release, appealing to President Barak Obama, Donald Trump, the U.S. Congress, the United Nations, and nearly every major news outlet over the three and a half years that Saeed was in prison.
Yet underneath the surface of her leadership in the Iranian house church, her family life in America, and the spotlight of her advocacy, Naghmeh had been an abused wife, and Saeed’s imprisonment had further intensified his controlling and abusive behavior. It took the crisis and aftermath of Saeed’s arrest for Naghmeh to finally recognize what had been happening to her and begin to find healing.
Naghmeh’s personal experience with domestic violence and the misuse of religion to reinforce abuse has given her a passion to advocate for women who are vulnerable to abuse and oppression because of religion. She is a speaker, a Bible teacher, and the cofounder and executive director of Tahir Alnisa (“Setting Women Free”) Foundation, which serves women and children around the world impacted by domestic abuse and religious-motivated violence.
Ep. 139 Skye Jethani - What We Get Wrong About Heaven
28 Nov 2023
00:55:00
In this episode, Skye Jethani and I have a fantastic conversation around what we get wrong about heaven. Spoiler alert – almost everything! How can we center Jesus in our faith and not heaven? Why is the gospel more than just going to heaven when you die? How can we taste heaven here and now? How can we be people where heaven and earth overlap? What is the new heavens and new earth? Will the earth be burned up in fire at the end? We answer these questions and more. Join us, as we get a Jesus centered view of heaven and be inspired to live a life that carries the presence and Spirit of God in the world here and now.
An award-winning author, speaker, and co-host of the Holy Post Podcast, Skye has written more than a dozen books and served as an editor and executive at Christianity Today for more than a decade. Raised in a religiously and ethnically diverse family, his curiosity about faith led him to study comparative religion before entering seminary and pastoral ministry. With a unique ability to connect Christian thought and contemporary culture, his voice has been featured in The New York Times, USA Today, and The Washington Post, and he’s spoken to audiences throughout the world as diverse as the U.S. Naval Academy, The Chautauqua Institution, and the Lausanne Movement.
Ep. 138 Amber & Seth Haines - Finding Hope in Times of Despair
21 Nov 2023
00:53:54
In this episode, Amber C. Haines, Seth Haines and I talk about their latest book The Deep Down Things, which details the story of Amber’s abuse in the church and her decision to step away. In the despair of loss, confusion, and disillusionment, a lifeline of hope was given. Seth and Amber give us practices and examples of what it looks like to find hope in the times of despair. We talk about calling out the truth of who people are, setting signs that can point to hope, attachment to Christ through adoration, the embodied power of the eucharist, and practicals like trail running and gardening. Join us as we find signs of hope when we are in the pit of despair.
Amber C. Haines is the author of Wild in the Hollow: On Chasing Desire and Finding the Broken Way Home and The Mother Letters.
Seth Haines is the author of Coming Clean (winner of a Christianity Today Book Award of Merit) and The Book of Waking Up. Together with Tsh Oxenreider, he cohosts the podcast A Drink with a Friend.
Amber and Seth have experience speaking at conferences and events. They live in Fayetteville, Arkansas, with their four boys.
Ep. 137 Jared Boyd - Facilitating Encounters of the love of God
14 Nov 2023
00:53:16
Jared Boyd talks about finding freedom in the constraint of spiritual disciplines and a communal rule of life. Our leadership and mission can only go as far as our formation, so how do we engage in practices together in ways that help us look more like Jesus? At the core of our conversation is a desire to encounter the love of God through the presence of God. Join us as we seek to find practices in community that facilitate encounters of the love of God.
Jared Patrick Boyd is a pastor (Vineyard USA), spiritual director, and Founding Director of the Order of the Common Life, a missional monastic order reimagining religious vocations for the 21st Century. In local pastoral ministry he has been working to bring together the contemplative, charismatic, and sacramental streams of the church.
Jared is author of Imaginative Prayer: A Yearlong Guide to Your Child’s Spiritual Formation (IVP 2017) and Finding Freedom in Constraint (IVP 2023). He and his wife have 4 girls and live in the west-side neighborhood of Franklinton in Columbus, OH.
Ep. 136 Alan Hirsch & Rob Kelly - Metanoia: How God Radically Transforms People, Churches, and Organizations From the Inside Out
07 Nov 2023
00:50:06
In this episode, Alan Hirsch and Rob Kelly join us to talk about their book Metanoia: How God Radically Transforms, People, Churches, and Organizations from the Inside Out. We have a great conversation on repentance, movements, organizational change, unlearning, relearning, vision, future thinking, and more. This metanoia process that they take us through is really important. How do we have our minds renewed? How do we shift paradigms and have our mind’s blown? Join us as we discover how to engage in paradigm shifts individually and organizationally, so it sticks and lasts.
Alan Hirsch is one of the founders of Movement Leaders Collective, as well as founding the Forge Mission Training Network and 5QCollective. Known for his innovative approach to mission and thought-leadership, Alan is highly sought after movement strategist for leaders, churches and denominations across the Western world. He is the author of numerous award winning books including The Forgotten Ways, 5Q, ReJesus, The Shaping of Things to Come, and The Permanent Revolution. He and his lovely wife Debra hail from the land down under, but currently live in Melbourne, Australia.
Rob Kelly is the Founder & CEO of the FORCLT Network. Rob is also co-founder of the City Leaders Collective (with Eric Swanson), which connects and equips city network leaders globally. Rob is co-author of the book ‘Metanoia’ (with Alan Hirsch), and the founder & lead author of the State of the City Report. Prior to this, Rob served 13 years as a pastor, along with numerous other leadership positions, including co-founding CLT/ONE and lecturing at Gordon-Conwell Seminary. Rob is a graduate of the University of Washington and Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary-Charlotte, and is pursuing doctoral studies from Bakke Graduate University. Rob is married to Ani, and they are the proud parents of Addison and RJ.
Ep. 135 Scot McKnight - The Pivotal Priorities, Practices, and Powers to Transform Into a Tov Culture
03 Nov 2023
00:50:40
In this episode, Scot McKnight talks about one of his new books – Pivot. This book is a follow up to A Church Called Tov which really hit a nerve when it debuted. In that book they wrote about toxic church culture and contrast it to tov culture, or goodness culture. Pivot is the book of implementation. What are the steps to get to a tov church? What are the things that we need to implement? We talk about Holy Spirit, Christlikeness, models, long patience, giving ownership over to the church body, and more. It's a great conversation. So, join us as we discover the pivotal priorities, practices, and powers that we can live into, so we can transform into a tov culture.
Scot McKnight is professor of New Testament at Northern Seminary and a recognized authority on the New Testament, early Christianity, and the historical Jesus. He is the author of more than ninety books, including the award-winning The Jesus Creed as well as A Church Called Tov, The King Jesus Gospel, A Fellowship of Differents, The Blue Parakeet, and Kingdom Conspiracy. He maintains an active Substack newsletter at https://scotmcknight.substack.com. He and his wife, Kristen, live in the northwest suburbs of Chicago, where they enjoy long walks, gardening, and cooking.
In this episode, Jason VanRuler and I have a great conversation about our past wounds and struggles and how we can heal from them, so that we can be healthy and whole. We can find Christ in the dark places of our lives as he enters into the suffering with us and he will be there to lead us to the next step. We talk about the necessity of acknowledging where we are at, being honest with ourselves and God, asking for help, and finding friends to walk with us. Join us as we uncover the wounds of our past, so that we can heal from them, and move forward into the future in a healthy way connected to God and to one another.
Jason VanRuler is the author of Get Past Your Past: How Facing Your Broken Places Leads to True Connection. He began his career in 2011 and has worked with many populations over the years, ranging from persons who are incarcerated to top CEOs, performers and artists, and just about everyone in between. Jason has extensive experience as a clinician, coach, and speaker and operates a multistate private practice. In 2018, Jason joined Bethesda Workshops in Nashville, TN, where he serves as a group leader and facilitator. Jason is known for his ability to relate and connect with his clients and offer hope to those who have felt hopeless. He has an engaged and rapidly growing online audience for his insightful, short videos sharing practical tips for psychological care, self-help, and healthy relationships.
Ep. 133 JR Woodward Returns Pt. 2 - The Scandal of Leadership: Models to Follow the Scandalous Way of Christ
27 Oct 2023
00:37:27
In this episode, JR Woodward gives examples of mimetic rivalry, true humility, emptying ourselves, and how to follow the scandalous way of Christ. He goes deep into the book of Philippians and the story of Oscar Romero to help ground us in the reality of how the powers and principalities play a part in creating scandals of leadership and how imitating Christ helps us lead in the way of the Kingdom. Join us as we look at models for us to follow, so that we can construct our identity on Christ.
JR Woodward (PhD, University of Manchester, U.K.) has been passionately planting churches on the East and West Coast that value tight-knit community, life-forming discipleship, locally-rooted presence and boundary-crossing mission for over 25 years. He is the author of Creating a Missional Culture (IVP, 2012) and co-author of The Church as Movement (IVP, 2016), which won the readers choice award for InterVarsity Press. He co-founded the Missio Alliance and currently serves as the National Director for the V3 Church Planting Movement. He is the co-founder of the Praxis Gathering and writes for numerous websites and journals. He holds a Masters of Arts in Global Leadership from Fuller Theological Seminary. He loves to surf, travel, read, skateboard and new people. He enjoys photography and film and tries to attend the Sundance Film Festival whenever he can.
Ep. 132 JR Woodward Returns Pt. 1 - The Scandal of Leadership: How the Powers and Principalities Shape Our Leadership
24 Oct 2023
00:37:13
In this episode, JR Woodward and I get into how the powers and principalities shape our leadership, what we can learn from the temptations of Jesus, how our desires produce our identity, and how we are all captive to imitation. Join us for part one of this two part conversation as we pursue imitating Christ because To not imitate Christ is to imitate the Devil and to experience all of the craziness when we do that.
JR Woodward (PhD, University of Manchester, U.K.) has been passionately planting churches on the East and West Coast that value tight-knit community, life-forming discipleship, locally-rooted presence and boundary-crossing mission for over 25 years. He is the author of Creating a Missional Culture (IVP, 2012) and co-author of The Church as Movement (IVP, 2016), which won the readers choice award for InterVarsity Press. He co-founded the Missio Alliance and currently serves as the National Director for the V3 Church Planting Movement. He is the co-founder of the Praxis Gathering and writes for numerous websites and journals. He holds a Masters of Arts in Global Leadership from Fuller Theological Seminary. He loves to surf, travel, read, skateboard and new people. He enjoys photography and film and tries to attend the Sundance Film Festival whenever he can.
Ep. 131 Mark Yarhouse - Talking to Kids About Gender Identity
17 Oct 2023
00:44:07
In this episode, Mark Yarhouse and I have a great conversation around talking to our kids about gender identity. We get into areas like what is gender, what is gender dysphoria, how language has expanded definitions of how we see ourselves, how we can be cultural ambassadors of the Kingdom of God in our conversations about gender and how we can act with convicted civility seasoned with compassion. It’s an important conversation that gives us all hand holds, so we don’t feel unbalanced. Join us as we learn how we can talk to our kids about gender identity.
Mark Yarhouse is the Dr. Arthur and Mrs. Jean May Rech Professor of Psychology at Wheaton College, where he directs the Sexual & Gender Identity Institute. he was named Senior Fellow with the Council of Christian Colleges and Universities to conduct a study of students navigating sexual identity concerns at Christian colleges and universities. He has been a consultant to the National Institute of Corrections to address issues facing LGBTQ+ persons in corrections, and he was part of a consensus panel from the American Psychological Association on sexual orientation and gender identity change efforts that convened to provide input to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services in Washington, DC. Dr. Yarhouse is currently the Chair of the task force on LGBTQ+ issues for Division 36 (Psychology of Religion and Spirituality) of the American Psychological Association. He was also invited to write the featured white paper on sexual identity for the Christ on Campus Initiative edited by Don Carson for The Gospel Coalition.
Ep. 238 Hal Donaldson - Sustaining a Life of Compassion and Service
01 Nov 2024
00:52:50
Today, we have a fantastic conversation with Hal Donaldson, the founder and president of Convoy of Hope, a global humanitarian organization that has helped over 200 million people in need. Hal has an incredible personal story - growing up in poverty after his father was tragically killed, experiencing the kindness of strangers, and then feeling called to dedicate his life to serving the poor and marginalized. What I found so compelling about this conversation is how Hal has wrestled with the tension between ambition, drive, and burnout. As Convoy of Hope has grown into one of the largest charities in the US, Hal has had to learn hard lessons about the importance of self-care, boundaries, and staying grounded in his relationship with God. He shares practical tips he's implemented, like no problem-solving after 8pm, no dinner meetings, and protecting vacation time. Hal also reflects deeply on the role of humility and dependence on God for leaders - how success can actually be more dangerous than failure, if it leads to self-reliance. His insights on the difference between acting humble and truly embodying a humble spirit are really thought-provoking. Ultimately, this is a conversation about how to sustain a life of service and compassion over the long haul. Hal has some hard-won wisdom to share, and I think his story will resonate with anyone trying to make a difference in the world while also caring for their own wellbeing. It's a delicate balance, but one that Hal has clearly wrestled with and learned from.
Hal Donaldson is the founder and CEO of Convoy of Hope, a nonprofit organization that leads humanitarian initiatives across the United States and around the world. The author of more than 30 books, Hal has degrees in journalism and biblical studies. He and his wife, Doree, have four daughters.
Ep. 130 Michael Frost Returns - Mission is the Shape of Water
10 Oct 2023
00:57:14
In this episode, Michael Frost and I have a great conversation around his book Mission is the Shape of Water. We hear how mission has taken different shapes throughout the centuries, but the principles of mission remain the same. We hear stories about The missionaries of the first few centuries after Christ, Boniface and the Celtic movement, Zinzindorf and the Moravians, Mary Slessor, and Alice Seely Harris. We then move into how all of this history impacts our world today. What we can learn, take from, and move on from as we join God in his mission to draw all peoples to Himself. Join us as we learn from past mission to inform our future mission as we join God in His work.
Michael Frost is an internationally recognised Australian missiologist and one of the leading voices in the missional church movement. His books are required reading in colleges and seminaries around the world and he is much sought after as an international conference speaker.
Since 1999, Dr Frost has been the founding director of the Tinsley Institute, a mission study centre located at Morling College in Sydney, Australia. He has also been an adjunct lecturer at various seminaries in the United States.
He is the author or editor of nineteen books, inclunding, The Shaping of Things to Come (2003), Exiles (2006), The Road to Missional (2011) and Surprise the World! (2016). Mike’s latest book is Mission is the Shape of Water which is what we talk about in this conversation.
He was one of the founders of the Forge Mission Training Network and the founder of the missional Christian community, smallboatbigsea, based in Manly in Sydney’s north. He is also well known for his protests against Australia’s treatment of refugees, some of which have resulted in his arrest, as well as his advocacy for racial reconciliation, foreign aid, and gender equality.
Ep. 129 Shauna Pilgreen - Translating Jesus to the Culture Around Us
06 Oct 2023
00:49:02
In this episode, Shauna Pilgreen and I have a conversation around topics and themes from her latest book Translating Jesus. We talk about how to be translators and speak of Jesus in a way that culture can understand. We talk about being curious, paying attention, and being intentional to listen to the Holy Spirit and the person in front of us. She talks about three different spaces where we can encounter Jesus: the gate, the cross, and the table. Join us as we learn how we can start talking to people about Jesus, so that they will start talking to Jesus.
Shauna Pilgreen, along with her husband, Ben, coleads Epic Church, a multiethnic congregation in the heart of San Francisco. She serves on the teaching team at Epic and as a network director for Alpha USA. She writes for "everyday evangelists" on her blog. Learn more at www.shaunapilgreen.com.
Ep. 128 Andrew Root - The Church in an Age of Secular Mysticisms
03 Oct 2023
01:00:27
Andy joins us for the third time! The first two conversations were great and you can go back and listen to those after you listen to this one.
Andrew Root and I have a great discussion around his new book The Church in an Age of Secular Mysticisms. Because we live with an utter buffet of spiritualities and we have our choice of what we use to transform us and because we live in the age of the self in which everything has to go through the self, we are caught in tension and we have become guilt saturated. Not because we live under the should have God’s commands, but because we could have been better. We have let ourselves down. This leads to more depression and anxiety. So, we try and fix ourselves. Andy argues a couple of things here that we get into: Memoirists are the new mystics and they point the way to transformation, and all of our conflicts are not polarized in two directions, but they are triangulated. There are three points of conflict. What are they? You have to listen to find out.
Join us as we uncover a third way of transcendence and transformation that leads to an encounter with something outside of ourselves.
Andrew Root, PhD (Princeton Theological Seminary) is the Carrie Olson Baalson Professor of Youth and Family Ministry at Luther Seminary. He is most recently the author of four volume Ministry in a Secular Age series (Churches and the Crisis of Decline, The Congregation in a Secular Age, The Pastor in a Secular Age, and Faith Formation in a Secular Age), and The End of Youth Ministry?. He has also authored Christopraxis: A Practical Theology of the Cross (Fortress, 2014) and Bonhoeffer as Youth Worker (Baker, 2014). Root puts together theology and storytelling to explore how ministry leads us into encounter with divine action. His book The Relational Pastor(IVP, 2013) as well as a four book series with Zondervan called A Theological Journey Through Youth Ministry (titles include Taking Theology to Youth Ministry, Taking the Cross to Youth Ministry, Unpacking Scripture in Youth Ministry, and Unlocking Mission and Eschatology in Youth Ministry) break new ground in this direction. Andy has worked in congregations, parachurch ministries, and social service programs. He lives in St. Paul with his wife Kara, two children, Owen and Maisy, and their dog. When not reading, writing, or teaching, Andy spends far too much time watching TV and movies.
Ep. 127 Andrew Whitehead - How Christian Nationalism Betrays the Gospel and Threatens the Church
26 Sep 2023
00:49:41
In this episode, Andrew Whitehead and I have a conversation around Christian Nationalism. What is it? What is not not? As we deal with the idols of power, of fear, and of violence, we can root out self interest and the temptation to make it all about one group over the other. Then we can deal with these issues and disciple others to a better way: A way that looks like Jesus, that lifts up the marginalized and helps create flourishing for all people. Join us as we wrestle with fear, power, violence and Christian Nationalism.
Andrew Whitehead is an Associate Professor of Sociology and Director of the Association of Religion Data Archives (theARDA.com) at the Center for the Study of Religion and American Culture at IUPUI.
Whitehead is one of the foremost scholars of Christian nationalism in the United States. He is the lead author of Taking America Back for God: Christian Nationalism in the United States (Oxford University Press, 2020)—along with Samuel Perry—which won the 2021 Distinguished Book Award from the Society for the Scientific Study of Religion. His new book is American Idolatry: How Christian Nationalism Betrays the Gospel and Threatens the Church, from Brazos Press.
In this episode, Kayla Craig talks about what it looks like to parent in the mess. How we are to be rooted and grounded in Jesus through the sacred rhythms of our life and the seasons God has given us. How we can implement breath prayers and the examen, how we can bring community along with us to shepherd our families well. And How we can start to order our families and lives that point to values that are of the Kingdom and the values that God has given us as a family. Join us as we navigate the holy mess of parenting, start to notice the grace all around us, and enter in to the rhythms of life as we walk in step with the Spirit of God.
Kayla Craig is a former journalist who brings deep curiosity and care to her writing. She’s the author of Every Season Sacred and To Light Their Way. With a poetic, prophetic voice, she created the popular Liturgies for Parents Instagram account, which Christianity Today named an “essential parenting resource.” She also hosts the Liturgies for Parents podcast. Kayla’s nuanced and accessible reflections, essays, and prayers are featured in various books, devotionals, and Bible studies. Kayla lives in a 115-year-old former convent in her Iowa hometown, where she hopes to create spaces of welcome alongside her four children, two dogs, and husband, Jonny.
Ep. 125 Kaitlyn Schiess - The Bible, Politics, and a Flourishing Community
12 Sep 2023
00:53:59
In this episode, Kaitlyn Schiess and I talk about the history of how we used the Bible in America and our politics, how we can faithfully serve God and our community, how we can work for the flourishing of our local communities, how we can see the whole redemptive story of scripture and apply that to our lives and politics, and how we can navigate contentious political seasons coming up. Join us as we figure out how we can read scripture and our context well, so we can faithfully live out lives that rightly discern – who am I in this story?
Kaitlyn Schiess is an author, speaker, and perpetual theology student. She is the author of The Ballot and the Bible: How Scripture has been Used and Abused in American Politics and Where We Go from Here (Brazos, 2023) and The Liturgy of Politics: Spiritual Formation for the Sake of Our Neighbor (IVP, 2020). Her writing has appeared at Christianity Today, The New York Times, Christ and Pop Culture, RELEVANT, and Sojourner. She has a ThM in systematic theology from Dallas Theological Seminary and is currently a doctoral student in political theology at Duke Divinity School.
In this episode, Father James Martin and I have a great conversation around the story of Lazarus and the implications of it for our life. We talk through disappointments, how Jesus weeps with us through our sorrows, brings new life, and invites us into a participatory life of helping free other people. Join us as we navigate waiting for God to act as we remember what God has done for us in the past.
Since we are talking about the story of Lazarus, you might want you to read the story from the Gospel of John before we get into the conversation. John 11:1-44
James Martin is a Jesuit priest, editor-at-large of America magazine and bestselling author of Jesus: A Pilgrimage, The Jesuit Guide to (Almost) Everything, and Between Heaven and Mirth. His latest book is Come Forth: The Promise of Jesus’ Greatest Miracle. Father Martin has written for many publications, including the New York Times and The Wall Street Journal, and he is a regular commentator in the national and international media
Before entering the Jesuits in 1988, Father Martin graduated from the Wharton School of Business and worked for General Electric for six years. In 2017, Pope Francis appointed him to be a Consultor for the Vatican’s Secretariat for Communication.
Ep. 123 Josh Larsen - Gospel Hope in Light of the Horror of Horror Movies
05 Sep 2023
00:54:13
In this episode, Josh Larsen and I have a great conversation that covers many different horror genres including prophetic horror, zombie films, creature features, slashers, found-footage, and psychological horror. We talk about how each genre provokes certain fears in us like the loss of our humanity, the lack of control, nature run amok, anxieties unmet, and the brokenness of society. We then see how the Bible and the Gospel answers the fears we are confronted with. So join us and open yourself up to seeing the reality of Gospel hope in the light of the horror of a horror movie.
Josh’s career began in the newspaper business, where he started out as a beat reporter for a weekly community newspaper and went on to become a film critic for the Chicago-based Sun-Times Media for more than 10 years. In 2011, he joined the Christian media landscape as editor of Think Christian, and in 2012 he joined the long-running weekly podcast Filmspotting, aired on WBEZ in Chicago.
A veteran of the Sundance, Toronto, and Chicago International Film Festivals, Josh has given talks on film at various colleges and conferences. Since 2017, he has led “Ebert Interruptus,” a tradition established by Roger Ebert, which analyzes a single film scene by scene over several days at the University of Colorado’s Conference on World Affairs.
Ep. 122 Karen Swallow Prior - The Evangelical Imagination that has Shaped a Culture in Crisis
29 Aug 2023
00:48:43
Karen Swallow Prior and I have a fantastic conversation around evangelical culture and true Christian faith. We dig into the history of Evangelical faith, what myths, stories, and narratives have contributed to the underlying assumptions we have on how the world works, and we talk through how to be faithful to Jesus in the midst of unexamined culture. Join us as we start to unveil the underlying narratives that we follow unaware.
Karen Swallow Prior, Ph. D., is a reader, writer, and professor. She is the author of The Evangelical Imagination: How Stories, Images, and Metaphors Created a Culture in Crisis (Brazos, 2023); On Reading Well: Finding the Good Life through Great Books (Brazos 2018); Fierce Convictions: The Extraordinary Life of Hannah More—Poet, Reformer, Abolitionist (Thomas Nelson, 2014); and Booked: Literature in the Soul of Me (T. S. Poetry Press, 2012). She is co-editor of Cultural Engagement: A Crash Course in Contemporary Issues (Zondervan 2019) and has contributed to numerous other books. She has a monthly column for Religion News Service. Her writing has appeared at Christianity Today, New York Times, The Atlantic, The Washington Post, First Things, Vox, Think Christian, The Gospel Coalition, and various other places. She hosted the podcast Jane and Jesus. She is a Contributing Editor for Comment, a founding member of The Pelican Project, a Senior Fellow at the Trinity Forum, and a Senior Fellow at the L. Russ Bush Center for Faith and Culture. She and her husband live on a 100-year-old homestead in central Virginia with dogs, chickens, and lots of books.
Ep. 121 Karen Wright Marsh - An Invitation to Wonder and Amazement in the Everyday
22 Aug 2023
00:50:39
Karen Wright Marsh and I have a wonderful discussion about our invitation to wonder and amazement. Through looking at the specific lives of those who have come before us, we can find practices that will shape the way we see the world and interact with God. Through beauty, art, singing, poetry, walking, cooking, writing, and more, we can start to pay attention to God at work and become people that are intentioned towards wonder. So join us as we contemplate these things and more.
Karen Wright Marsh is an author, speaker and the executive director and cofounder of Theological Horizons, a ministry that supports Christians & seekers in academia by providing a welcoming community for engaging faith, thought & life. She is the host of the Vintage Saints and Sinners podcast. She holds degrees in philosophy from Wheaton College & linguistics from the University of Virginia. Karen lives with Charles Marsh, a UVA professor, at the Bonhoeffer House in Charlottesville, Virginia.
Ep. 237 Jennifer Powell McNutt - Who Was Mary Magdalene and What Does She Teach the Church Today?
29 Oct 2024
00:51:58
Today, we have a fascinating conversation about a figure who has long been misunderstood and overlooked in the Christian tradition - Mary Magdalene. Our guest is Jennifer Powell McNutt, a scholar of church history and theology who has dedicated years to uncovering the true story of this remarkable woman. As Jennifer explains, Mary Magdalene was not a penitent prostitute, as she's often been portrayed incorrectly, but a devoted disciple of Jesus, one of the women who traveled with him and financially supported his ministry. She was present at the crucifixion, the first witness to the resurrection, and the one Jesus chose to send back to the other disciples with the news. In many ways, she was the "apostle to the apostles." Yet her story has been obscured and distorted over centuries of Christian history, shaped by cultural biases and theological agendas. Jennifer takes us on a deep dive into the Gospels and the complex history of how Mary Magdalene has been remembered - and forgotten - in the church. It's a rich and illuminating conversation that challenges us to reconsider what we think we know about this pivotal figure and her significance for our understanding of Jesus and the early Christian movement. I think you'll find it as fascinating as I did.
Jennifer Powell McNutt (PhD, The University of St. Andrews) is the Franklin S. Dyrness Chair of Biblical and Theological Studies and Professor of theology and history of Christianity at Wheaton College. She is an award-winning author, a fellow of the Royal Historical Society, an ordained teaching elder in the Presbyterian church, and a fellow of the Center for Pastor Theologians.
Ep. 120 Todd Hunter - Returning to the Purposes of Jesus
15 Aug 2023
00:51:28
In this episode, Todd Hunter talks about the aims of Jesus and how getting back to His purposes can help us through bad religion. We talk about living in the Kingdom of God, how we receive it and how we are sent to be His witnesses, and many other facets of the Kingdom. We talk about spiritual practices, so that we can do good works when moments present themselves. We talk about the gospel – what it is, what Jesus said it is and how we can live into it.
Bishop Todd Hunter’s life-long passion is to help others heed the call of Jesus to “come follow me” and thus to live their life in the kingdom of God as Jesus embodied, taught and demonstrated it. Bishop Hunter’s vision for such a life entails being the cooperative friend of Jesus, seeking to live a life of constant creative goodness, for the sake of others, through the power of the Holy Spirit.
This overarching vision has led Bishop Hunter to engage deeply with a few core themes:
The Gospel of the Kingdom The person and work of the Holy Spirit The nature and purpose of the church at the intersection of gospel and culture (missional ecclesiology) Spiritual formation as core to discipleship to Jesus Servant-hearted, kingdom-minded, Spirit-empowered leadership
Bishop Hunter has expressed his kingdom-Spirit-formation-church-culture focus in various settings. He is the founding bishop of The Diocese of Churches for the Sake of Others, a diocese of the Anglican Church in North America. He writes a weekly newsletter: “The Gospel of the Kingdom.” Bishop Hunter is past President of Alpha USA, former National Director for the Association of Vineyard Churches, and retired founding pastor of Holy Trinity Anglican Church in Costa Mesa, California. He is the author of Christianity Beyond Belief: Following Jesus for the Sake of Others, Giving Church Another Chance, The Outsider Interviews, The Accidental Anglican, Our Favorite Sins and Our Character at Work. His latest book is What Jesus Intended: Finding Faith in the Rubble of Bad Religion.
Bishop Hunter is also the founder of the Center for Formation, Justice and Peace. Alongside trauma-informed spiritual director Vanessa Sadler, Bishop Todd hosts Peace Talks, a podcast that spotlights women and men who are working to undo oppression, leading to lives of deeper peace for all.
Bishop Hunter holds a Doctor of Ministry degree and has served as an adjunct professor of evangelism, leadership in contemporary culture and spiritual formation at George Fox University, Fuller Seminary, Western Seminary, Vanguard University, Azusa Pacific University, Northern Seminary, and Wheaton College.
Bishop Hunter and his wife Debbie live in Franklin, Tennessee. They have two adult children.
Ep. 119 Mark Baker Returns - Freedom From Religiosity and Judgmentalism
08 Aug 2023
00:56:12
In this episode, Mark Baker talks about Paul’s letter to the Galatians. We talk about non-judgmentalism, bounded, fuzzy, and centered sets, our orientation to God and to each other in the body of Christ, spiritual powers that have influenced us and the freedom that we have from them, and more.
Mark Baker is Professor of Mission and Theology at Fresno Pacific Biblical Seminary. He previously was a missionary in Honduras for ten years and a campus minister with InterVarsity Christian Fellowship at Syracuse University for three years. He continues ministry involvement in Latin America through regular visits. Since 2008 he has led a weekly Bible study at the Fresno County Jail. He has written a number of books in English and Spanish, including Ministering in Honor-Shame Cultures: Biblical Foundations and Practical Essentials, and Centered-Set Church: Discipleship and Community Without Judgmentalism.
Ep. 118 Jamaal Williams and Timothy Paul Jones - Creating a Multi-Ethnic Kingdom Community
01 Aug 2023
00:56:06
In this episode, Jamaal Williams and Timothy Paul Jones talk about how to create a multi-ethnic Kingdom community in our churches like it will be in heaven. We talk through the unity and diversity in the identity of God, how our unity and diversity flows out of that identity, and how lament is important to establish ties between ethnic groups. We ground our conversation in the story of Jamaal, Timothy, and their church Sojourn Midtown in Louisville as an example of the work we can step into to see the body of Christ start to reflect the vision laid out in Revelation 7:9 where people from every tribe tongue and nation surround the throne of Jesus.
Jamaal Williams (DEdMin) serves as lead pastor of Sojourn Church Midtown in Louisville, Kentucky, and as president of the Harbor Network. In addition, he regularly consults churches on leadership matters and issues related to building healthy multi-ethnic churches.
Timothy Paul Jones (PhD) teaches apologetics at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and serves as a preaching pastor at Sojourn Church Midtown. In addition, he has authored or co-authored more than a dozen books, including Finding God in a Galaxy Far, Far Away; Christian History Made Easy; and, with James Garlow and April Williams, the bestselling The Da Vinci Codebreaker.
Ep. 117 Jessica Hooten Wilson - Reading as a Spiritual Practice
25 Jul 2023
00:45:55
In this episode, Jessica Hooten Wilson talks about her latest book Reading for the Love of God, reading as a spiritual practice, how to use the four senses and the four stages to read well, how Jesus teaches us how to read well, what it means to read poorly, and how art, literature, and beauty can help transform our lives and move us closer to God.
Jessica Hooten Wilson is the inaugural Seaver College Scholar of Liberal Arts at Pepperdine University and a Senior Fellow at the Trinity Forum. She is the author of several books, most recently Reading for the Love of God: How To Read as a Spiritual Practice.
In this episode, Josh White and I have a conversation about the foolishness of the cross. About our need to be confronted with the end of ourselves, so we can be dependent on Christ. We talk about how confession can drive our communities, being a witness to Jesus in the world, and radical grace and vulnerability.
Josh White is a speaker, recording artist, writer and founding pastor of Door of Hope, a family of church’s in the urban core of Portland Oregon. Josh lives with his wife Darcy, son Henry, daughter Hattie. Portland is the city where he and his wife Darcy met 23 years ago while Josh was playing a show with his then Seattle glam rock band, Man Ray, at the now defunct Satyricon night club. Little did they know that their lives within a few years would be turned upside down and revolutionized by the gospel of Jesus. When not traveling, preaching and leading Door of Hope, Josh is enjoying his family, obsessively reading — he actually is just obsessive — writing, producing and designing spaces. He just released his first book ‘Stumbling Toward Eternity’ for Penguin imprint, Multnomah press. Josh often refers to himself as the amateur pastor — for in the words of Robert Farrar Capon, ‘The amateur—the lover, the man who thinks heedlessness a sin and boredom a heresy—is just the man you need. More than that, whether you think you need him or not, he is a man who is bound, by his love, to speak. The role of the amateur: to look the world back to grace.’
In this episode, Eun K. Strawser talks about centering discipleship in community. She answers the question, how do we imitate Jesus together, so that we can look like Him, and move toward our neighbor in mission? We talk through the elements of formation, rhythms, and examples that move our community towards one that centers Jesus and discipleship to Him.
Eun K. Strawser is the co-vocational lead pastor of Ma Ke Alo o (which means "Presence" in Hawaiian), non-denominational missional communities multiplying in Honolulu, HI, a community physician at Ke Ola Pono, and an executive leader at the V3 Movement, the church planting arm of the BGAV. Prior to transitioning to Hawaii, she served as adjunct professor of medicine at the Philadelphia College of Medicine and of African Studies at her alma mater the University of Pennsylvania (where she and her husband served with InterVarsity Christian Fellowship) after finishing her Fulbright Scholarship at the University of Dar es Salaam. She and Steve have three, seriously, amazing children
Rev. Dr. Strawser has nearly two decades of experience in centering discipleship and making mature missional disciples. She has developed lay counseling curriculum, discipleship pathways for children's ministries, and discipleship pathways utilized both in established church and church-planting contexts. While her heart is in locally-rooted kingdom work, she also consults and coaches pastors, planters and market-place/community leaders world-wide in developing discipleship pathways and structuring their context to center discipleship.
Ep. 114 Benjamin Windle - The Tide Turning Power of Hope
04 Jul 2023
00:48:44
In this episode, Benjamin Windle talks about the themes of his latest book Good Catastrophe. He talks about finding hope in the midst of despair, darkness, and catastrophe. Is it possible to find? Well, Ben takes the story of Job and illuminates it for our time.
Benjamin Windle is an innovative and empathic author, speaker, and Millennial/Gen Z specialist. As a pastor for over 20 years, he has walked with many through the dark shadows and valleys of the human experience. He has dedicated his life to helping people overcome life's challenges by growing deeper in their faith.
Windle is a new-generation content creator for some of the most respected Christian brands in the world. He has a Bachelor of Theology, an MBA from Deakin University, and Executive Education at Stanford University and the MIT Sloan School of Management. He and his wife, Cindi, have three sons.
Windle’s academic expertise and grassroots experience in discipleship have shaped him into an influential writer and public speaker. He is passionate about helping churches reach the Millennial and Gen Z groups, offering them wise counsel and practical resources.
Windle and his family are based in both the U.S. and Australia. His work has been featured by the Barna Group, YouVersion, RightNow Media, and the Glorify App. For more about the author, go to benjaminwindle.com.
Ep. 113 Andrew Root Returns - When Church Stops Working
27 Jun 2023
00:50:39
In this episode, Andrew Root talks about his latest book When Church Stops Working, and he answers the question why isn't innovation the answer? He talks through waiting for the Spirit's leading, paying attention to our stories, being witnesses to the acts of God, and sitting with the sorrows of our neighbors.
Andrew Root, PhD (Princeton Theological Seminary) is the Carrie Olson Baalson Professor of Youth and Family Ministry at Luther Seminary. He is most recently the author of four volume Ministry in a Secular Age series (Churches and the Crisis of Decline, The Congregation in a Secular Age, The Pastor in a Secular Age, and Faith Formation in a Secular Age), and The End of Youth Ministry?. He has also authored Christopraxis: A Practical Theology of the Cross (Fortress, 2014) and Bonhoeffer as Youth Worker (Baker, 2014). Root puts together theology and storytelling to explore how ministry leads us into encounter with divine action. His book The Relational Pastor(IVP, 2013) as well as a four book series with Zondervan called A Theological Journey Through Youth Ministry (titles include Taking Theology to Youth Ministry, Taking the Cross to Youth Ministry, Unpacking Scripture in Youth Ministry, and Unlocking Mission and Eschatology in Youth Ministry) break new ground in this direction. In 2012 his book The Theological Turn in Youth Ministry (with Kenda Creasy Dean, IVP, 2011) was Christianity Today Book of Merit. He has written a number of other books on ministry and theology such as The Children of Divorce: The Loss of Family as the Loss of Being (Baker Academic, 2010), The Promise of Despair (Abingdon, 2010), Revisiting Relational Youth Ministry: From a Strategy of Influence to a Theology of Incarnation (IVP, 2007) and Relationships Unfiltered (Zondervan/YS, 2009). Andy has worked in congregations, parachurch ministries, and social service programs. He lives in St. Paul with his wife Kara, two children, Owen and Maisy, and their dog. When not reading, writing, or teaching, Andy spends far too much time watching TV and movies.
Ep. 112 Nijay Gupta - How Women Led, Taught, and Ministered in the Early Church
20 Jun 2023
00:57:04
In this episode, Nijay and I have a great conversation about how women led and ministered in the Bible and in the early church. He digs in to the stories of Deborah, Junia, Mary, Priscilla, Phoebe, and more. He also talks through the context and culture of the time and place of the early church, so we can start to see with new eyes what women were doing and how they were treated. We also talk about the different leadership categories in the early church. Nijay also shares about how growing up as a son of immigrant parents in Ohio has shaped the way he sees Jesus and the gospel.
Nijay Gupta is a professor of New Testament at Northern Seminary. Previously, he was a professor of New Testament at Portland Seminary, where he also oversaw the Master's thesis program, and advises doctoral students. He is the author of the book Worship That Makes Sense to Paul and Prepare, Succeed, Advance. His latest book is Tell Her Story. Nijay also co-hosts the podcast Slow Theology with A.J. Swoboda .
In this episode, Ashley Hales talks about a more spacious life, helping us see that our limits are good and point us to God. She shares spiritual practices to help notice God in everyday life, to remind ourselves that we are His beloved children, and to move from the cerebral to the rest of the body. She also talks about how to have hope in suffering, and helps us navigate the cultural landscape we find ourselves in.
Ashley Hales holds a PhD in English literature from the University of Edinburgh, Scotland. With her husband, she is the co-founder of The Willowbrae Institute, a new think tank researching the intersection of Christianity and the common good in America . She is a Kirby Laing Centre Academic Fellow and advisor to the Board of Covenant College. Ashley hosts the The Cartographers Podcast and is the author of Finding Holy in the Suburbs and A Spacious Life. Connect on substack, Instagram or Twitter.
Ep. 236 Russ Ramsey - Hope in the Face of Suffering: Art, Beauty, and the Glory of God
25 Oct 2024
00:56:18
In this conversation, Russ Ramsey talks about the power of art, beauty, and storytelling - and how they can help us make sense of the brokenness in our world. Russ is the author of books like "Rembrandt is in the Wind" and "Van Gogh Has a Broken Heart," where he dives into the lives and works of these iconic artists. And what he uncovers is so much more than just the paintings themselves. It's about the human experience - the joy, the suffering, the hope that these artists poured into their art. We talk about how engaging with beauty and art, can actually be a window into understanding the glory of God. And how even in the midst of tragedy and heartbreak, art can help us find language for our own struggles and emotions. Russ also shares some incredible stories behind famous works of art - like the Mona Lisa and why it became so famous. Spoiler alert: it's not because of the painting itself! So get ready for a rich, thought-provoking conversation about the intersection of faith, art, and the human experience. Russ has so much wisdom to share, so join us.
Russ Ramsey grew up in the wheatfields of Indiana. He studied at Taylor University and Covenant Theological Seminary (MDiv, ThM) before becoming a pastor. He and his family live in Franklin, Tennessee. Russ is the author of Van Gogh has a Broken Heart: What Art Teaches Us About the Wonder and Struggle of Being Alive (Zondervan 2024) and Rembrandt is in the Wind: Learning to Love Art through the Eyes of Faith (Zondervan, 2022).
Ep. 110 Jared Brock - Uncovering the Human Life of Jesus
06 Jun 2023
00:54:54
In this episode, Jared Brock uncovers the human life of Jesus. Who was he as a child? What was the culture and context of his life and ministry? What were the economics, philosophy, and teachings of Jesus? Who was the crime family that had Jesus killed? We talk about these things and more.
Jared Brock is an award-winning author and director of several films including PBS's acclaimed Redeeming Uncle Tom with Danny Glover. His writing has appeared in Christianity Today, The Guardian, Smithsonian, USA Today, Huffington Post, Relevant, and TIME. He has traveled to more than forty countries, including North Korea, Transnistria, and the Vatican. Learn more at jaredbrock.com.
Ep. 109 Christopher J.H. Wright - The Great Story and the Great Commission
30 May 2023
00:55:06
In this episode, Christopher Wright talks about the great story, the grand narrative of the Bible and the mission of God and discusses what part the great commission plays in the story. We talk about the marks of mission, how we should live in God's story, and how seeing the world through a missional worldview changes the way we interact in the world.
Chris Wright is the Global Ambassador of the Langham Partnership (www.langham.org), which provides literature, scholarships and preaching training for Majority World pastors and seminaries. He taught in India for five years. His books include Old Testament Ethics for the People of God; The Mission of God; The God I Don’t Understand; The Mission of God’s People, and the Great Story and the Great Commission. Chris and his wife Liz have four adult children and eleven grandchildren and live in London, as members of All Souls Church, Langham Place.
Ep. 108 Josh Green - Hunger for the Presence of Jesus
23 May 2023
00:56:41
In this episode Josh Green talks about what is happening in the youth culture today, hunger for the presence of Jesus, prayer that is persistent, consistent, and resistant, revival that's bubbling up around the world, putting Jesus first and at the center, living out our faith authentically and consistently, and he gives a first hand account of what happened at Asbury.
Josh is Youth Director for 24-7 Prayer and Wildfires Festival. Josh travelled the world for years performing and preaching the gospel in various bands. Now, with a burning heart for revival, he continues to fire up young people to be all-in for Jesus. Josh was captivated by the Vision Poem and Red Moon Rising in his journey to joining 24-7 Prayer. He lives in Manchester with his wife and three kids and attends Ramp Church. He loves good food, proper coffee, and Manchester City.