Impact 360 Institute

What does it mean to be an "American Christian"? How does Christianity relate to politics? In an age where public discourse is so toxic, should Christians avoid politics altogether? Should Christians just preach the gospel and leave politics alone? In the United States, we're just months away from an election year. There's no question that in 2019 our public discourse can be really toxic, and it's becoming increasingly difficult to be faithfully Christian in the political realm in a secular age. It's likely that in a topic that's loaded with hot-button issues, you've had some of the same questions listed above. So what do we do about this? In this episode of the podcast, Jonathan is joined by Dr. Bruce Ashford, author of the new book Letters to an American Christian. They'll answers these questions, as well as discuss how Christianity speaks to various hot-button issues, whether some issues are more important than others, what it means to balance patriotism with the fact that we are Kingdom citizens, Scriptural passages that help us build a solid theology of political engagement, and how the Bible helps us speak a good word into a difficult moment in American politics. Dr. Bruce Ashford is Provost and Dean of Faculty at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary where he also serves as Professor of Theology and Culture. He is a Senior Fellow in Public Theology at the Kirby Laing Institute for Christian Ethics, and a Research Fellow at the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission. He is the author of several books including *Letters to an American Christian*, One Nation Under God: A Christian Hope for American Politics, and Every Square Inch: An Introduction to Cultural Engagement for Christians. You can find more resources from Dr. Ashford online at BruceAshford.net, and follow him on Twitter here.

How should Christians think about near-death experiences? What is a near-death experience, and is there any evidence that people actually experience them? Are near-death experience evidence for the afterlife? How are the questions of the afterlife informed by what we believe about the biggest questions of life? In this episode of the podcast, Jonathan is joined by Dr. Gary Habermas to discuss near-death experiences and why it's important for Christians to think clearly about them. Jonathan and Dr. Habermas answer these questions and discuss topics like the "intermediate state", how near-death experiences aren't simply secondhand stories, why near-death experiences can give us confidence in the afterlife, and Dr. Habermas' compelling evidence for the resurrection of Jesus. Dr. Gary Habermas is the Distinguished Research Professor of Apologetics and Philosophy at Liberty University School of Divinity. Dr. Habermas has written or edited over 43 books, including Beyond Death: Exploring the Evidence for Immorality, The Case for the Resurrection of Jesus, The Historical Jesus: Ancient Evidence for the Life of Christ, and In Defense of Miracles: A Comprehensive Case for God's Action in History. You can find more resources and information from Dr. Habermas online at garyhabermas.com. Learn more about the work of Impact 360 Institute at impact360.org.

Why should Christians care about ethics? What are the proper roles of ethics and moral reasoning in the Christian life? Is there a "common morality" that everyone shares? Can we use the Bible as a source for moral reasoning? And even if we can, was Jesus just a product of His time? Has morality "evolved"? Today on the podcast, Jonathan is joined by professor and ethicist Dr. C. Ben Mitchell to discuss the role of ethics in the Christian life. Join us as we answer these questions and discuss the state of ethics and moral reasoning in our culture today, foundational truths from the Bible that inform our morality, why Christians appeal to Jesus as the ultimate authority on ethics, and speak to ethical issues such as immigration and end of life issues. Dr. C. Ben Mitchell is the Graves Chair of moral philosophy at Union University in Jackson, Tennessee. He is the editor of Ethics & Medicine: an International Journal of Bioethics, a Senior Fellow at The Center for Bioethics & Human Dignity, and a Research Fellows with the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission. Dr. Mitchell is the author of several books including Does God Need Our Help?: Cloning, Assisted Suicide, & Other Challenges, and the one we discussed today, Ethics and Moral Reasoning: A Student’s Guide. Learn more about the work of Impact 360 Institute at impact360.org.

What is "adulting"? How do we help young adults navigate faith, finances, and the future? What is the biggest problem facing young adults entering the workplace? In a “follow your heart” culture, how do we encourage young adults to make wise choices about their future? Today on the podcast, Jonathan sits down with Jonathan "JP" Pokluda to talk about his new book, Welcome to Adulting: Navigating Faith, Friendship, Finances, and the Future. Join Jonathan and JP as they answer these questions and discuss bad ideas about freedom, how authority can actually be a good thing, the importance of building good friendships, how to resolve conflict well, and more. JP Pokluda is the teaching pastor at Harris Creek Baptist Church, a former teaching pastor at Watermark Church, and former leader of The Porch, an influential gathering of thousands of young adults who come to hear the gospel and get equipped for Kingdom purposes. You can follow JP on Twitter here, and find the book and the new “survival guide” at welcometoadultingbook.com.

How do you navigate anxiety and depression? How do you walk through that well in a redemptive and hopeful way? How widespread are anxiety and depression? How do you encourage someone who feels guilty or ashamed of their anxiety or depression? Why is it important to have a holistic approach to anxiety and depression, and how do we do that? Today on the podcast, Jonathan sits down with our good friend, Dr. J.P. Moreland to answer these questions and more as we discuss his new book Finding Quiet: My Story of Overcoming Anxiety and the Practices That Brought Peace. Join us this week to hear Dr. Moreland share his personal story of overcoming seasons of anxiety and depression, learn how to develop a holistic approach to addressing it, hear about the importance of forming good habits, and more. Dr. JP Moreland is a distinguished professor of philosophy at Talbot School of Theology and director of the Eidos Christian Center. With degrees in philosophy, theology, and chemistry, Dr. Moreland has taught theology and philosophy at several schools across the US, and authored numerous books including Finding Quiet, Love Your God with All Your Mind, Scientism and Secularism, Kingdom Triangle, and more. You can find Dr. Moreland online at jpmoreland.com.

How should Christians think about controversial issues like transgenderism, homosexuality, euthanasia, or abortion? How should we respond to popular slogans like "gender is just a social construct” or "my body, my choice"? In response to these issues, what does true compassion look like? What does the Christian worldview have to offer here? Many of the hot button issues of our cultural moment deal with issues of the human body. However, it seems that often times many people are content to settle for slogans and sayings without thinking deeply about their hurtful real-world implications. As Christians, how do we engage these topics that are controversial, but deeply important? This week on the podcast, join Jonathan sits down with Nancy Pearcey to discuss her new book, Love Thy Body: Answering Hard Questions About Life and Sexuality. Join Jonathan and Nancy as they answer these questions as well as discuss why it's important to understand the fact/value split, answering popular ideas like critical theory and intersectionality, and how to engage these issues while treating others with dignity and respect. Nancy Pearcey is a professor and scholar in residence at Houston Baptist University, a fellow at the Discovery Institute’s Center for Science and Culture, and the editor at large of The Pearcey Report. She is the author of several books including the excellent Total Truth, Finding Truth, Saving Leonardo, and the book we talked about today, Love Thy Body. You can follow Nancy on Twitter here.

What does it mean to be human? What does it mean to be an "image bearer"? What does it mean to "lose our humanity", and what are the consequences of that. Most importantly, how does our view of human dignity affect how we live out our faith in our cultural moment? There's no question that human dignity is at the center of some of the most important topics in our cultural moment. But how should Christians be talking and engaging about topics involving human dignity, from abortion to immigration? In this episode of the podcast, Jonathan sits down with Daniel Darling of the ERLC to discuss this issue. Join Jonathan and Daniel as they answer these questions and more as they discuss how human dignity, justice, and the gospel fit together, how other views of human dignity borrow from the Christian faith, areas where the Church is leading the charge on the human dignity conversation, others where we have blind spots and need to grow, and how to move forward in a practical way. Daniel Darling is the Vice President for Communications for the ERLC and is the author of several books including Teen People of the Bible, The Original Jesus, Activist Faith, and the book we discussed today, The Dignity Revolution. Dan speaks and preaches around the country and the host of the weekly podcast The Way Home. You can find more from Dan and connect with him online at www.danieldarling.com, and follow him on Twitter here.

What is theistic evolution? Is it a good idea or a bad idea? Why should Christians care about this, and how do we think critically about it? Does the evidence point to an intelligent designer? And if so, where should we start? In our recent study with the Barna Group, we found that about half of churchgoing teens say that "the church seems to reject much of what science tells us." Many students in the next generation think that there simply is no scientific evidence for God, and many will point to the Darwinian theory of evolution to explain the origin of life. But what about the idea of theistic evolution that's becoming increasingly popular? Did God use evolutionary mechanisms to produce all of life? In this episode of the podcast, Jonathan talks with Dr. Stephen Meyer of the Discovery Institute to answer these questions and more as they discuss the scientific, philosophical, and theological problems with this view, the compelling evidence for intelligent design, what pieces of evidence to bring to the conversation first, and why it's important for students to understand that science and faith are not at odds. Dr. Stephen C. Meyer directs the Center for Science and Culture at the Discovery Institute in Seattle, WA and holds a Ph.D. in the philosophy of science from the University of Cambridge. Dr. Meyer is the author of Darwin’s Doubt: The Explosive Origin of Animal Life and the Case for Intelligent Design, Signature in the Cell: DNA and the Evidence for Intelligent Design, the forthcoming The Return of the God Hypothesis: Compelling Scientific Evidence for the Existence of God and is an editor of Theistic Evolution: A Scientific, Philosophical, and Theological Critique. You can find Dr. Meyer's work and other excellent resources at Discovery.org.

Have you ever asked yourself any of these questions? Why can’t I control my anger? Or stop overeating? Or wasting time online? Why can’t I seem to finish my projects or make progress in my spiritual life? Why do I fall for the same stupid temptations over and over again? Today on the podcast, Jonathan sits down with Drew Dyck to talk about self-control. Join Jonathan and Drew as they discuss why self-control is a foundational virtue, why we sometimes view self-control as restricting rather than liberating, why it’s important to understand both the science and spirituality of self-control, how habits work and how to build them, how to have self-control with our electronic devices, and much more. Drew is an acquisitions editor at Moody Publishers and a contributing editor at CTPastors.com. He’s the former managing editor at Leadership Journal. His work has appeared in numerous publications including USA Today, Huffington Post, and CNN.com. He is the author of several books including Generation Ex-Christian: Why Young Adults Are Leaving the Faith…and How to Bring Them Back, Yawning at Tigers: You Can’t Tame God, So Stop Trying, and the new book, Your Future Self Will Thank You: Secrets to Self-Control from the Bible & Brain Science. You can find more from Drew and connect with him at drewdyck.com and follow him on Twitter here.

How do you walk through the challenges of life as a Christian? How do those challenges and obstacles shape our identity? How do we remain both honest and faithful in the midst of hardship and difficulty? What are the tools that we need to deal with these challenges as they come? Today on the podcast, Jonathan Morrow and Trudy Cathy White answer these questions and more as they discuss the importance of embracing challenges as they come, what Scripture says about hard seasons, how to navigate challenges in a way that leads to growth, finding encouragement in the midst of hardship, and more. Trudy Cathy White and her husband John are the founders of Impact 360 Institute and Lifeshape. Trudy is the daughter of Jeanette and Truett Cathy, the founder of Chick-fil-A, Inc. She is a speaker, author, dedicated wife, mother of four, and grandmother of fifteen. Her new book Climb Every Mountain: Finding God Faithful in the Journey of Life is available now wherever books are sold. For more: Hear more from Trudy in our conversation on Gen Z Lab Connect with Trudy online here Join us this summer at Propel to learn more about who God created you to be!