Spiritual Life and Leadership

AJ Swoboda asks an important question: If, as a pastor, you intentionally broke one of the Ten Commandments what would happen?  Well, you’d probably either lose your job or your position. Or you’d be reprimanded or given a warning. Or, at the very least—maybe for using the Lord’s name in vain—you’d get a few dirty looks.But there is one commandment that, if you were to regularly disobey it, you would probably get a raise.Which commandment?  The commandment to keep the Sabbath.Why is that? That’s what AJ Swoboda and I discuss in this episode of Spiritual Life and Leadership.THIS EPISODE'S HIGHLIGHTS INCLUDE:AJ Swoboda is Assistant Professor of Bible and Theology at Northwest Christian University and author of Subversive Sabbath.The pace at which the Western world is living is not only not sustainable, it’s a suicide mission.The Sabbath undermines the empire of anxiety and hurry.The Sabbath is not a practice to improve your life.  It will utterly disrupt everything you want.The kind of life we have grown accustomed to—full of busyness and hurry—is not truly life.The Sabbath originates in the Garden of Eden—before the Law.The importance of the Sabbath is seen in the story of the Hebrew slaves in Egypt.  God wanted to restore to the Hebrews the Edenic rest.The Sabbath is a foretaste of what we will experience forever in Heaven.The ideal of the practice of Sabbath is a 24-hour period of rest.  The early Christians transitioned the Sabbath from Saturday to Sunday, which they called the Lord’s Day.AJ preached on the Sabbath for three weeks and people left his church.  He realized that if he broke nine of the Ten Commandments he would lose his job, but if he broke the Sabbath he would get a raise.God said, “Remember the Sabbath Day.”  It’s as though God knew this was the one commandment we would be most likely to forget.People who keep the Sabbath are wildly healthier people.When you enter into the Sabbath, the Sabbath begins to enter into you.Sabbath is not merely a day.  It’s a state of being.AJ shares the way he is currently struggling with practicing the Sabbath.  He is finding that God is in the struggle.You can find AJ Swoboda on Twitter at @mrajswoboda.RELEVANT RESOURCES AND LINKS:AJ SwobodaTwitter:  @mrajswobodaBooks mentioned:Subversive Sabbath, by AJ SwobodaThe Sabbath, by Abraham HeschelEmotionally Healthy Spirituality, by Pete ScazzeroInstructions to leave a review of Spiritual Life and Leadership:Click HERE.Click on the link that says, "Listen on Apple Podcasts."In the window that opens, click the button that says, "Open Link."  This will open iTunes.To the right of the Spiritual Life and Leadership logo, click "Ratings and Reviews."Under the heading, "Customer RSend me a text! I’d love to know what you're thinking!Get Becoming Leaders of Shalom for free HERE.Click HERE to get my FREE online course, BECOMING LEADERS OF SHALOM.

Michael Cooper discusses his book Ephesiology: A Study of the Ephesian Movement, in which he explores the important role of the city of Ephesus in the early Roman Empire and the early church, with a special emphasis on the ways the apostles Paul, John, and Peter all worked to connect the story of Jesus to the Ephesian people in language that made sense to them.This is a timely message for us today as churches are struggling to learn how we are called to connect Christ to our culture.THIS EPISODE'S HIGHLIGHTS INCLUDE:Michael Cooper is the author of Ephesiology: A Study of the Ephesian Movement and trains church leaders and pastors around the world.Michael shares the story of his faith journey and what led him to write Ephesiology.Nearly half of the New Testament has a connection to the city of Ephesus.  Michael sensed there must be something there to discover.Ephesus was a critical city in the Roman Empire.  It was a crossroad, not only of commerce, but also of philosophy.Heraclitus of Ephesus was a philosopher who wrote On Nature, which was more popular than anything written about Socrates or by Plato or Aristotle.The temple of Artemis in Ephesus had great influence in the city of Ephesus and the in all of Asia Minor.Paul, John, and Peter were missiological theologians.  Their heart was in engaging the culture effectively.The Gospel of John is connected to the city of Ephesus.  John arrived in Ephesus in around 67 A.D.The stories of Jesus in the Gospel of John parallel the culture of Ephesus.  John’s heart was to connect the stories of Jesus with the stories of the Ephesians.When John says, “In the beginning was the logos,” he is using familiar Ephesian language first used by Heraclitus.Like John, Paul, and Peter, we need to be able to connect theological themes to cultures in which we serve.Michael describes how the Western church, in its missionary work, has exported a Western sixteenth-century form of Christianity to other cultures, rather than connecting the stories of Jesus to the stories and forms of those cultures.The early church leadership had a flat organizational structure.The focus on a pastor-centric church did not emerge until later in the church’s development.You can find out more about Michael Cooper and his book at www.ephesiology.com.  You can also e-mail Michael at michael@ephesiology.com.RELEVANT RESOURCES AND LINKS:Michael Cooper:E-mail:  michael@ephesiology.comWebsite:  https://ephesiology.com/Books mentioned:Ephesiology: A Study of the Ephesian Movement, by Michael CooperOn Nature, by HeraclitusBeyond Thingification: Helping Your Church Engage in God's Mission, by Markus Watson— Links to Amazon are affiliate links.  If you mSend me a text! I’d love to know what you're thinking!Get Becoming Leaders of Shalom for free HERE.Click HERE to get my FREE online course, BECOMING LEADERS OF SHALOM.

What in the world does the Kingdom of God have to do with public policy?  What does the Kingdom of God have to do with shaping governments and institutions?  And how does stewardship fit into all that?That’s what I’m be talking about in this episode with Breon Wells of the Daniel Initiative, a government relations firm that helps underrepresented and underserved populations promote positive change.THIS EPISODE'S HIGHLIGHTS INCLUDE:Breon Wells is the President and Founder of The Daniel Initiative and author of The K-Gene:  Principles for Attaining Your Destiny.Breon Wells worked in Washington, D.C., for eight years as a Congressional aide.The Daniel Initiative to help people connect with the mandate they have outside the four walls of the church.Breon makes the case for eliminating the divide between secular and sacred.Daniel in the Old Testament lived without a sacred/secular divide.We too often elevate the “spiritual stuff” we do at church without valuing what people do in the rest of their lives.Breon Wells sees his work as prophetic.  The prophet’s job is not to manipulate or control the people, but simply to speak the truth of God.When Breon talks about “Kingdom” he is in part talking about stewardship.  As sons and daughters of God, the King, we have a calling to be good stewards of all that has been entrusted to us.The one quality we need to do God’s Kingdom work is surrender.  Total surrender.You can find Breon Wells on Twitter at @RealDaniel24 and on Facebook by searching for Breon Wells.  And he is on Instagram at @imbreonwells.To find out more about The Daniel Initiative, visit www.thedanielinitiative.org.RELEVANT RESOURCES AND LINKS:Breon WellsTwitter:  @RealDaniel24Facebook:  Breon WellsInstagram:  @imbreonwellsThe Daniel InitiativeWebsite:  https://www.thedanielinitiative.org/Books MentionedThe K-Gene: Principles for Attaining Your Destiny, by Breon WellsPatreonhttps://www.patreon.com/markuswatsonInstruction to leave a review of Spiritual Life and Leadership:Click here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/spiritual-life-and-leadership/id1435252632Click on the link that says, "Listen on Apple Podcasts."In the window that opens, click the button that says, "Open Link."  This will open iTunes.To the right of the Spiritual Life and Leadership logo, click "Ratings and Reviews."Under the heading, "Customer Reviews," click on the button that says, "Write a Review."Select the number of stars and write your review.Click submit.I'd be so grateful if you did this.  Thank yoSend me a text! I’d love to know what you're thinking!Get Becoming Leaders of Shalom for free HERE.Click HERE to get my FREE online course, BECOMING LEADERS OF SHALOM.

Christendom was that period of history in which Western culture considered itself to be formally and officially Christian.  It was an era in which Christianity had a lot of cultural power--a far cry from the Pre-Christendom time of the Roman Empire.This episode will give you a lot of insight into how Christianity moved from being a marginalized and persecuted religion during its first 300 years, to being the most powerful cultural force in Western society for 1500 years.  And we’ll unpack how Christianity lost its missionary identity as it transitions to a Christendom culture.THIS EPISODE'S HIGHLIGHTS INCLUDE:Cody and Markus discuss how the Coronavirus threat has revealed churches’ dependency on having to meet in person.  But the need to cancel services provides an opportunity for churches to discover what it means to be the church without the weekly gathering.Markus reviews the characteristics of Pre-Christendom, which he and Cody discussed in episode 66, “The Improbable Growth of the Early Church.”Christendom is the period of history during which Western culture considered itself officially Christian.  It was at this time that the church lost its missionary identity.In a Christendom society everyone is considered to be a Christian.The era of Christendom began with the conversion of the Roman Emperor Constantine to Christianity.  This thrust the church into a position of power and authority.Constantine was neither baptized nor catechized until shortly before his death.  Because of this, Constantine offered the world a new kind of Christianity, one that required neither conversion nor commitment.  This paced the way to the church losing its missionary identity.Christendom affected Christianity in three ways:The church lost its missionary identity.The church emphasized a new distinction.The church invented a new reason to exist.Christianity is not at the center of society the way it used to be.  We are moving out of Christendom and into an era we might call Post-Christendom.Post-Christendom gives the church the opportunity to rethink the reason for its existence.RELEVANT RESOURCES AND LINKS:Books mentioned:Missional Church, edited by Darrel GuderAnother City, by Barry A. HarveyBeyond Thingification, by Markus WatsonInstruction to leave a review of Spiritual Life and Leadership:Click here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/spiritual-life-and-leadership/id1435252632Click on the link that says, "Listen on Apple Podcasts."In the window that opens, click the button that says, "Open Link."  This will open iTunes.To the right of the Spiritual Life and Leadership logo, click "Ratings and Reviews."Under the heading, "Customer Reviews," click on the button that says, "Write a Review."Select the number of stars and write your review.Click submit.I'd be so grateful if you did this.  Thank you!— Links to Send me a text! I’d love to know what you're thinking!Get Becoming Leaders of Shalom for free HERE.Click HERE to get my FREE online course, BECOMING LEADERS OF SHALOM.

In this episode, we consider the growth of the early church in the pre-Christendom era, a time when Christianity had very little cultural influence.  Much like the church in today's world!  And yet, the early church grew.  What was their secret?  And is there anything we can learn and perhaps implement in our world today?THIS EPISODE'S HIGHLIGHTS INCLUDE:Christendom is defined as the “centuries in which Western civilization considered itself formally and officially Christian.”During the first 300 years after Jesus, the church had very little power at all in the culture, which at that time was dominated by the Roman Empire.And yet, somehow, in the fourth century, due to the growth of the early church, Christianity ended up at the very center of power in Western society.Four Characteristics of the Pre-Christendom Church:The church had no political or social or cultural power.The church grew by leaps and bounds anyway.The church had a missionary identity.The church focused on developing a habitus in the followers of Jesus.The growth of the early church changed the trajectory of Western civilization.RELEVANT RESOURCES AND LINKS:Books mentioned:Missional Church, edited by Darrell GuderCanoeing the Mountains, by Tod BolsingerThe Change of Conversion and the Origin of Christendom, by Alan KreiderThe Patient Ferment of the Early Church, by Alan KreiderThe Parables of the Kingdom, by Robert Ferrar CaponeFree Resource:Six Practices of a Flourishing Church, by Markus WatsonPick up my new book:Beyond Thingification, by Markus WatsonTo leave a review of Spiritual Life and Leadership: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/spiritual-life-and-leadership/id1435252632— Links to Amazon are affiliate links.  If you make a purchase through any of these links, I’ll receive a small commission–which will help pay for the Spiritual Life and Leadership podcast!Send me a text! I’d love to know what you're thinking!Get Becoming Leaders of Shalom for free HERE.Click HERE to get my FREE online course, BECOMING LEADERS OF SHALOM.

Why don't people go to church anymore?  There was a time when you could start a church and it would just grow.  Especially if it was a new community that people were moving into.  Not anymore.  People generally just don't go to church anymore.Why not?  What changed?  And what--if anything--can we do about it?In this episode, I discuss the reality of our situation and offer a thought about the kind of posture we need in order to be the church that the world needs us to be. THIS EPISODE’S HIGHLIGHTS INCLUDE:Cody Vermillion founded a “churchish” non-profit called Uncommon Good for people who might never attend a typical church, addressing why people don't go to church anymore.According to Gallup:In 1948, 76% of U.S. adults said they were members of a church, synagogue, or mosque.In 1998, that was down to 70%.In 2018, that was down to 50%.In 2015, Pew research asked people if religion was “very important in their lives.”  Here’s how they responded by age group:Silent Generation (born 1928-1945) 67%Baby Boomers (born 1946-1964) 59%Generation X (born 1965-1980) 53%Older Millennials (born 1981-1989) 44%Younger Millennials (born 1990-1996) 38%Churches are declining not only because people don't go to church in great numbers, but also because people attend church less frequently.Church attendance is not a social convention the way it was in the past.  That's part of the reason why people don't go to church these days.Pew research, in 2019, found that:69% believe religious leaders behave unethically some or all of the timeSurpassed only by leaders of technology companies (77%) and members of Congress (81%)People don’t think leaders of institutions face serious consequences for their unethical behavior71% believe members of Congress face consequences little of the time or not at all58% believe leaders of tech companies face consequences little of the time or not at all53% believe religious leader face consequences little of the time or not at allThe church needs to become “indifferent” to all the things that are irrelevant to the mission of God (including the fact that people don't got church much anymore).RELEVANT RESOURCES AND LINKS:Uncommon Good:Website: https://uncommongoodsd.com/Book mentioned:Sacred Rhythms: Arranging Our Lives for Spiritual Transformation, by Ruth Haley BartonStatistics:https://news.gallup.com/poll/248837/church-membership-down-sharply-past-two-decades.aspxhttps://www.pewforum.org/2015/11/03/u-s-public-becoming-less-religious/https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2019/09/19/americans-perceptions-about-unethical-behavior-shape-how-they-think-about-people-in-powerful-roles/To leave Send me a text! I’d love to know what you're thinking!Get Becoming Leaders of Shalom for free HERE.Click HERE to get my FREE online course, BECOMING LEADERS OF SHALOM.

In this episode, Ron Ovitt shares about something called Integrated Meditation.  Integrated Meditation is a process designed to help us get Scripture beyond the head and to the heart.  Through a process that fosters deep emotional healing and profound spiritual formation, Integrated Meditation helps us get scripture into our heart and our gut and our spirit.THIS EPISODE’S HIGHLIGHTS INCLUDE:Ron Ovitt is the President of Empower Ministry and the creator of Emotional Relearning, which you can learn about in Episode 32, “Emotional Resilience and Spiritual Leadership, with Ron Ovitt.”Ron developed Integrated Meditation to help people in the process of Emotional Relearning.Integrated Meditation is a way of experiencing the Bible in such a way that it touches not only the mind but also reaches to the heart.Integrated Meditation involves six steps:Reading – Read the text in two translations.Comprehension – What are the key points of the passage?Introspection – Looking inward.  What do I sense as I read this passage?  How does my body respond?  What emotions am I feeling?  What questions does this passage raise?  What am I believing about myself?  What am I believing about God?Contemplation – Create space for the divine to enter.  Shift from the brain to the heart by remembering a time when someone loved me.Reflection – What am I going to believe as a result of reading this?  What am I going to do now?  What feelings will I embrace as a result of this?  Who do I feel I should share this with?Visualization – Visualize yourself receiving the scripture from God.  Visualize knowing what I need to think, feel, and do—and visualize myself doing it.Ron suggests that pastors might use these six steps as a way for congregations to dig deeper into the sermon text after the service, helping get the sermon from the head to the heart.You can get a resource with ten Integrated Meditations by going to www.empowerministry.org/meditation.You can e-mail Ron at ron@empowerministry.org.You can listen to Ron’s podcast, Mr. Change Agent, and see his videos on his Mr. Change Agent YouTube channel.RELEVANT RESOURCES AND LINKS:Ron Ovitt:Free Resource:  https://www.empowerministry.org/meditation/Website:  https://www.empowerministry.org/E-mail:  ron@empowerministry.orgRon’s Podcast:  Mr. Change AgentRon’s YouTube Channel:  Mr. Change Agent YouTube channelTo leave a review of Spiritual Life and Leadership: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/Send me a text! I’d love to know what you're thinking!Get Becoming Leaders of Shalom for free HERE.Click HERE to get my FREE online course, BECOMING LEADERS OF SHALOM.

Too often, we separate our work in sacred work and secular work.  Because of this, we forget that God is present even in our most mundane, ordinary, "unspiritual" kinds of work.  Shannon Vandewarker, author of Working in the Presence of God, helps us see that in the midst of our seemingly ordinary places of work, we can draw close to God. THIS EPISODE'S HIGHLIGHTS INCLUDE:Shannon Vandewarker is the author of Working in the Presence of God: Spiritual Practices for Everyday Work.Shannon shares the story of what led her to write the book.The message of Working in the Presence of God is that our place of work can be a place where we encounter God in deep and intentional ways.The “liturgy of commute” is a systematic way of focusing on God as one drives, rides, or walks to work and from work.Shannon Vandewarker shares the way she practices the liturgy of commute.  Markus also shares the way he practices liturgy of commute.“Lamenting work” can be a profound experience for those who struggle in the work that they do.  Sometimes we need to lament in the midst of our work.Lamenting consists of pouring our hearts out to God and then listening to what God says in response.“Lamenting” is a foreign concept for many people.  Shannon offers some ideas for how to lament.The practices explored in Working in the Presence of God can be just as helpful for pastors and ministry leaders as for people working in “secular” jobs.It can also be helpful for pastors to invite church members to join them in doing some of these practices.For Shannon Vandewarker, engaging in these practices has helped her become more aware of God’s presence in every area of her life.RELEVANT RESOURCES AND LINKS:Shannon Vandewarker:Website:  http://shannonvandewarker.com/Instagram:  @shannonvandeFacebook:  https://www.facebook.com/shannon.vandewarkerBook:  Working In the Presence of God, by Shannon Vandewarker and Denise DanielsTo leave a review of Spiritual Life and Leadership:https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/spiritual-life-and-leadership/id1435252632To get bonus content, sign up to be a Patreon patron:https://www.patreon.com/markuswatsonSend me a text! I’d love to know what you're thinking!Get Becoming Leaders of Shalom for free HERE.Click HERE to get my FREE online course, BECOMING LEADERS OF SHALOM.

Ted Gillgrist is a business leader and a committed follower of Jesus.  He's also one of my oldest friends!  In this episode, Ted shares some of the wisdom he’s learned about leadership over the past twenty-five years.THIS EPISODE'S HIGHLIGHTS INCLUDE:Ted Gillgrist is Vice President of Southern Diversified Distributors and a proud graduate of Slippery Rock University! (Also, Markus’ alma mater…)Ted and Markus were discipleship partners in the college ministry in which they were involved.Ted’s first significant leadership role was as a health care administrator.Ted shares about the challenges of stepping into leadership in a health care facility that was on the verge of being shut down.  He also tells the story of how he and his team restored the facility to a high level of competence and quality.In telling his story, Ted Gillgrist shares these three leadership lessons: Always give a person the tools to do a job before you determine they can’t.Various teams in an organization need to have a common “enemy” and have goals that overlap.Different people need different kinds of leaders.Ted feels like he has in some ways become a pastor to his employees.You can find Ted Gillgrist's company at www.twentyandoak.comRELEVANT RESOURCES AND LINKS:Books Mentioned:By Ken Blanchard:Lead Like JesusLeading at a Higher LevelLeadership and the One Minute ManagerTo leave a review of Spiritual Life and Leadership:https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/spiritual-life-and-leadership/id1435252632Send me a text! I’d love to know what you're thinking!Get Becoming Leaders of Shalom for free HERE.Click HERE to get my FREE online course, BECOMING LEADERS OF SHALOM.

This bonus Christmas episodes contains five great mini-episodes from five great podcasts (one of which is this one)!TRUCEChris Staron draws a connection between the musical piece, Bolero, and the hope that the people of Israel felt as they longed for the Messiah.Find out more about the Truce podcast here:https://trucepodcast.com/THE ROAD HOME TO YOUBrandy Goebell offers twelve really helpful strategies for self-care during the Christmas season.Find out more about The Road Home to You here:http://theroadhometoyou.libsyn.com/BIBLICAL CHILIA fun, dramatized version of the shepherds’ and the magi’s encounter with Jesus, with a neat connection to Jesus’ parable of the Lost Sheep.Find out more about Biblical Chili here:https://biblicalchili.podbean.com/RAISING KIDS ON YOUR KNEESTina Smith shares about how God takes all the broken pieces of our lives and puts them back together again.Find out more about Raising Kids on Your Knees here:https://raisingkidsonyourknees.org/SPIRITUAL LIFE AND LEADERSHIPMarkus Watson shares how the women in Jesus’ genealogy reveal the deep love of God and the wide mercy of God.Find out more about Spiritual Life and Leadership, well, here:https://www.markuswatson.com/Send me a text! I’d love to know what you're thinking!Get Becoming Leaders of Shalom for free HERE.Click HERE to get my FREE online course, BECOMING LEADERS OF SHALOM.