Burn the Haystack

In this episode, we speak to Dr Seth Pierce, host of Beast and Bible. He's also an author, public speaker and academic. We have a fantastic conversation about monsters in popular culture, in the Bible and in our world today. Who knows, maybe there's a monster hiding somewhere near right now! 

Nathan Brown, the Voice to Parliament, discusses the process of amending the Australian constitution and the need for a functional mechanism to address indigenous issues. They explore the challenges of promoting complex concepts and urge listeners to pray for their country and the church's response to injustices.

In this podcast, the hosts discuss the recent film Barbie and its fascinating plot. They explore Greta Gerwig's cinematography in Little Women, discuss the origins of Barbie dolls and their significance in challenging gender roles, and analyze the dynamics of the Barbie and Ken relationship. The speakers also encourage listeners to appreciate the deeper messages in thought-provoking films.

Today, we talk about prayer. It's the thing your intense auntie at church is always going on about, but for many of us, prayer isn't a vibrant part of our spiritual life. In fact, for many Christians, it's a point of pain and frustration. It doesn't need to be that way! In this episode we talk about a book both Josh and Jesse recently read called Praying like Monks, Living like Fools by Tyler Staton. The books' great by the way, and if you'd like to read it for yourself, this is a great intro not only to the book, but some of the ideas that have helped transform the way we pray. 

Pr Jinha Kim joins us in this episode to talk all about AI. What's it good for, what are the dangers and IS IT COMING FOR YOUR JOB? Ok, that last part may be a little dramatic but it's still important to consider the issues. Jinha is a church planter and woman of many talents, and AI has been invaluable for her and her ministry in the increasingly-complex world of urban ministry.    To connect with Jinha's church, check out their website: https://melbournecityadventist.org/

Yes, it's click-bait. By our acknowledging this, we're declaring our self-awareness which makes it fine, right? This episode, we finish our two-part conversation on a report recently published on the last 20 years of church trends: the good, the bad and the ugly. This time we dwell a little less on the ugly and more on the good. We also spend some time talking about the outcomes of the report: what they recommend churches do now if they want to experience growth and health.  To read the report for yourself, click here

In this episode, we talk about a recently-published report that tracks trends on the last twenty years of churches in the United States. 21 denominations and other faith groups were surveyed and this report is the result of two decades of study. Today, we'll discuss some of the different challenges that churches and faith communities of different sizes face, and seek to discover what the story in all of it is.   To read the report for yourself, click here

This week, we sit down to talk with Michael 'Chappo' Chapman and Tarenne 'Tarenne' Greenwood. They both serve at Gateway Church in Cooranbong itself. Yes, these two luminaries condescended themselves long enough to depart the hallowed halls of the holy city itself to join us in the muck and grime of Sydney. Don't fear dear listener, after the interview they safely made it home. Nonsensical ramblings aside, we had a fascinating conversation about Sabbath. As Seventh-day Adventists, it's something near and dear to our heart: so near that it's the first word that comes out of your mouth when speaking the name of our denomination. However, are we practicing it the way it was intended? Is it possible in our eagerness to defend its validity as the "correct" day of worship, we've missed some of what it has to offer? All this and more in this episode. To connect more with Chappo, Tarenne and Gateway, head to www.gatewaycommunity.com.au

In this episode, Josh and Jesse talk to Jeremy Choo about Micro Church. Jeremy is a soon-to-be-pastor who decided to plant a church in the middle of Melbourne during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic. His big vision soon turned micro as he discovered a new breed of church. Now that the pandemic is largely over, he's not turning back. 

In this episode, Josh and Jesse talk about men. It takes one to know one, apparently.  But, more specifically, we tackle the issues facing men today. Josh recently re-read Wild at Heart by John Eldredge, which sparked this conversation. Pretty soon both of us fell down the rabbit hole. According to a new book by Richard Reeves called Of Boys and Men, males are falling behind in nearly every arena of life, which brings up a number of worrying questions. What does it mean to be a man in this complicated world? What is masculinity, and how can we be authentically masculine without ending up like Andrew Tate?  All this and more on this episode.