UPDATE: Audio has been updated from the previous version. So, if you were only able to listen to the first 7 minutes, now you can hear the entire episode.

For Ricky Jenkins, lead pastor at Southwest Church in Indian Wells, CA, preaching is “an exchange between heaven and earth.”

He explains how diligent prep overlaps with sensitivity to the Spirit during the sermon一just as jazz music riffs freely while still submitting to the key to a song. Growing up in the black church taught him how to lean into the text while also leaning into the room. Like Paul, Ricky strives to not only share the gospel with his people, but also his very life (1 Thess. 2:8).

As a fourth-generation pastor, Ricky explains to Steve Carter the importance of leaving a spiritual legacy for your children一not a legacy built on likes, livestream stats, or church size一but one of simple, consistent fidelity to God’s Word over decades.

At the end of his race, Ricky hopes to hand his children a Bible saying, “Here you go. I’ve kept it intact. Your turn.”

Also, check out a special worship song: "Imagine" by Carrington Gaines. May this song bless you, as we eagerly anticipate Easter.

EPISODE LINKS

Church: Southwest Church

@rickyjenkins

@steveryancarter

@craft_character

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