Every church experiences tough transitions and desert moments. Sometimes these moments last much longer than anyone anticipates. Dave Gibbons, leader of Newsong Church in California, shares the wisdom he's learned from going through desert moments with his church and how he managed the new things that sprung from those times.
Os Guinness speaks about the problems of consumerism, modernism, and pluralism in the western church and how they have weakened our defenses against the world. While it may look bad, Os assures us: “As Christians, we should always be realistic—but with hope."
Jodi Hickerson, her husband, Mike, and two other couples moved to California to start a church plant five years ago. In this interview, Jodi shares some of the practical things their team has done to engage the community, as well as the steps an established church in the area took to support their plant.
Adam Hamilton is the founding pastor of the largest United Methodist Church in the U.S. He shares insights he's learned on leadership from the example of Moses in Scripture, as well as the practical lessons he learned from shepherding a burgeoning church.
Kyle Idleman discusses grace and how it is sometimes more difficult for pastors to experience grace than other people.
Peyton Jones is self-described a church planting ninja. Having planted churches in Europe and the U.S., he shares the knowledge he's gained from studying a New Testament model of planting and testing it out through his experiences.
Eugene Peterson has done a lot of things in his lifetime, including writing The Message Bible. He also planted and pastored a church for over thirty years. Our conversation covers the things Eugene has found helpful and not-so-helpful in his years in ministry.
Dr. Jeff Myers of Summit Ministries is a Christian apologist who works with young people. He recently paired up with the Barna Group to discover the dominating worldviews that influence church-goers. Among other surprising findings, the research concluded that only one in five church-going Christians holds a biblical worldview. Jeff discusses what other worldviews influence our thinking and how this affects our choices.
Shawn Lovejoy of CourageToLead.com has coached a lot of pastors and church teams. In this interview, he gives practical tips for building a healthy culture, a healthy team, and put effective systems in place to allow growth in your church.
We don't always think of social justice and economic transformation when we think of the gospel. But Mark DeYmaz argues that to ignore or refuse to engage in these things would, in fact, be undermining the gospel.
Chad Robichaux has held a lot of titles: Special Operations Marine, police officer, Mixed Martial Arts World Champion, to name a few. But his most important titles have been PTSD survivor, husband, and father. After coming to Christ, Chad and his wife, Kathy, founded Mighty Oaks Warrior Programs, which ministers to active and former military personnel battle divorce, suicide, and PTSD.
Pastor Derwin Gray, also known as the Evangelical Linebacker, talks about creating multiethnic, multicultural churches that can tutor the culture on how to love people across barriers.
Have we missed the manhood Jesus exemplified in his personhood? Mark Batterson offers the insights he's learned about manhood by leading other men, raising a family, and studying Jesus's life.
Carolyn Custis James discusses the lenses we bring to Scripture which make it difficult to understand essential things like God's intention for gender and relationships. Carolyn's work equips men and women to join forces against a common enemy instead of struggling with one another.
In the Western church, we tend to gravitate toward the New Testament. But we miss the deep richness of God's word and intention when we don't understand Jesus and his teachings with the context of the Old Testament. When we miss Jesus like this, we miss other things as well, including his approach to discipleship.
Steve Adams is the director of children's ministry at Saddleback Church. Steve knows how to lead and how to follow—two essential skills every leader needs.
C.H. Spurgeon expert, Dr. Christian George, discusses the unique hallmarks of the man we call the Prince of Preachers. Among other topics: What would Spurgeon think of the modern church's celebrity pastors?
The Institute for Bible Reading's Glenn Paauw discusses the ways our modern era has developed Bible traditions that take us away from God's original intention for the Scriptures.
Glenn Paauw and Paul Caminiti of the Institute for Bible Reading address the growing problem of Bible illiteracy in the church and how to reverse the trend. You may be surprised to learn Bible illiteracy is not a new, post-modern problem, but rather started developing some 500 years ago.
Adam Weber, leader of the fastest-growing United Methodist Church in the U.S., talks about how pastors can address their insecurities and reach out for the help they need while leading a congregation.
This interview with Kara Powell of the Fuller Youth Institute is our most-downloaded episode to date. Kara shares research on why youth leave the church and what church leaders can do to reverse this concerning trend.
Lee Strobel's The Case for Christ shook the way people viewed Jesus as both a historical and relational figure. Decades later, his book that took a journalist's approach to proving Jesus's credibility is being made into a movie. Strobel shares the things he's learned about apologetics and evangelism in the interim.
Craig Groeschel gives pastors practical insight into faithfully managing the seemingly insignificant decisions that will direct the course of your life and ministry.
Jennifer Rothschild knows what it's like to believe in God's love despite her circumstances. Sometimes God's love can feel harsh, but he is unconditionally loving in a way we don't comprehend.
Friendships in the church have the potential to both encourage and challenge us to know Christ more deeply. Scott Sauls gives pastors insights for cultivating these kinds of friendships in their congregations.