Spiritual Life and Leadership

Can an atheist participate with God in the healing of the world? If one who doesn’t believe in God volunteers at the local homeless shelter, should Christians dismiss that? If an atheist adopts an abused child into a home of love and acceptance, a place where that child can heal from the wounds of their past, are we to dismiss that?Those are the kinds of questions that Kutter Callaway and I wrestle with in this episode.  We talk about culture. We talk about the church. We talk about atheism. And we talk about “the previousness of the kingdom.”THIS EPISODE’S HIGHLIGHTS INCLUDE:Kutter Callaway is the Associate Professor of Theology and Culture at Fuller Theological Seminary and the other of several books including The Aesthetics of Atheism.A formative book that Kutter Callaway has read in recent years is Nobody Cries When We Die by Patrick Reyes.Kutter’s colleague at Fuller, Bill Dyrness, defines culture as the stuff we create from God’s creation. It’s what we make of what’s here.Religion “makes culture odd.” For instance, everyone eats bread and drinks wine. But we do that in an “odd” way.Christianity is not separate from culture. We are called to engage culture because we are a part of the culture.Lesslie Newbigin, in the The Open Secret, talks about “the previousness of the kindgdom.” God is already ahead of us in the culture and we are invited to joing God.In The Aesthetics of Atheism, Kutter Callaway interestingly says that theism and atheism need each other.Interesting thought: In that moment when Jesus on the cross feels abandoned by the Father, God becomes an atheist.The Bible is full of prophetic voices from outside of God’s people.Culture can be a destroyer of shalom. It can also be a restorer of shalom.A healthy posture for pastors and ministry leaders to take toward culture is the posture of the injured man on the side of the road in the Good Samaritan story. It is a posture of humility and receptivity. Culture is like the untouchable Samaritan, but we need to let it help us.The right question today might not be, “How do we help culture?” Rather, “How do we listen to, learn from, and humble ourselves in ways that allow us to be evangelized by the God who is at work out there?”Learn more about Kutter Callaway at www.kuttercallaway.com and listen to his podcast, The Kutter Callaway Podcast. RELEVANT RESOURCES AND LINKSKutter Callaway Website:  https://www.kuttercallaway.comPodcast:  https://www.kuttercallaway.com/podcastBooks mentioned: The Aesthetics of Atheism by Kutter Callaway and Barry TaylorNobody Cries When We Die by Patrick ReyesThe Open Secret by Lesslie NewbiginGSend 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, Trevor Lee discusses the importance of getting past the ministry model that just tries to get people through our discipleship programs. Instead, we need a model that values the uniqueness and inherent worth of each person.  We also talked a lot about suffering.  And we talked about the part suffering plays—ironically!—in the healing of the world.THIS EPISODE’S HIGHLIGHTS INCLUDE:Trevor Lee is a Development Representative with Made to Flourish and host of Speak in the Suffering podcast.The most formative book Trevor has red is A Failure of Nerve by Edwin Friedman.Trevor Lee learned through Made to Flourish that the work of every person is sacred and is a participation in the mission of God.The mission of Made to Flourish is to help pastors bridge the gap between Sunday and Monday for their congregations.Made to Flourish is focused on equipping and forming pastors to walk their people to live for the good of the world in their places of work and home.There is no inherent distinction between sacred and secular, between clergy and laity.A great idea is to do interviews with people about their work in the worship gatherings. Trevor got mixed reviews when he did this in his church.The mission of Trevor’s former church was worded like this: “Participating with God in the renewal of all things, and people in particular.”The mission involves evangelism, but it points toward something even bigger—the renewal of everything.Trevor Lee defines shalom as everything being as God intended.God wants people to be made whole.God wants the harmony of all things.Suffering plays a unique part in the fulfillment of God’s mission. God uses suffering in profoundly redemptive ways that nothing can replace.Trevor Lee shares about the challenges he faced in his last congregation.Embracing our suffering can help us move through the pain and into healing on the other side.Markus’ experience of suffering changed the way he thinks about what really matters in ministry.Markus suggests that organizations like Made to Flourish and Flourish San Diego want to help pastors humanize their people.The key quality a pastor needs to help people flourish is humility.You can find out more about Made to Flourish at https://www.madetoflourish.org/ RELEVANT RESOURCES AND LINKSSpeak in the Suffering podcast with Trevor LeeBooks mentioned: A Failure of Nerve by Edwin FriedmanManaging Leadership Anxiety by Steve CussMade to FlourishWebsite:  https://www.madetoflourish.org/Twitter:  https://twitter.com/MadeToFlourishTo leave a review of Spiritual 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 a broken and confusing world, it is realy hard to know the right thing to do.  In this episode, Lisa Slayton doesn’t come with a bunch of clear-cut answers, but she does raise the right questions. And I think she points in the right direction.  We need to become people of integrity, people who live lives of coherence. The Hebrew word for this is tamim. Lisa Slayton, the CEO of Tamim Partners, works with leaders and organizations to help them live from a place of integrity and coherence.THIS EPISODE’S HIGHLIGHTS INCLUDE:Lisa Slayton is the CEO of Tamim Partners.Tamim is a Hebrew word often translated as “perfect” or “blameless.” A better translation might be “wholeheartedness,” “integrity,” or “coherence.”Lisa Slayton suggests that shalom is an outward expression of wholeness and tamim refers to an inner wholeness that is required for true shalom.Lisa Slayton had previously been the CEO of the Pittsburgh Leadership Foundation.We live in a VUCA world: volatility, uncertainty, complexity, ambiguity.In order to best coach an organization and/or its leader, it is critical to look at the systems.Leaders can’t rely on “best practices” anymore.Pastors today have not been given the tools or resources to lead in these times of volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity.Lisa Slayton is committed to the Made to Flourish pastors’ network.Tamim Partners has for key values: integrity, hospitality, learning, and relationships.Integrity has to do with living integrated, coherent lives.Leaders often push themselves to the point of dis-integration and in-coherence.An axiom Lisa shares: “What we know gets in the way of what we need to learn.”When a leaders says, “I just don’t know what to do,” that’s when the leader is ready to begin truly learning.Much of what Lisa Slayton has shared is reminiscent of the previous two episodes of Spiritual Life and Leadership:Episode 46: Inviting the Real, with Esther Lightcap Meek, author of A Little Manual for KnowingEpisode 47: Leadership, Anxiety, and Family Systems, with Steve Cuss, author of Managing Leadership Anxiety RELEVANT RESOURCES AND LINKSBooks mentioned: A Failure of Nerve by Edwin FriedmanManaging Leadership Anxiety by Steve CussA Little Manual for Knowingby Esther Lightcap MeekTamim Parnters: Website:  http://www.tamimpartners.comTo leave a review of 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.

Steve Cuss, author of Managing Leadership Anxiety, discusses the impact of anxiety on relationships and organizations. He explores family systems theory and ways to manage chronic anxiety. Tips include viewing anxiety as a 'pet' and identifying unnecessary needs. The podcast highlights the importance of self-awareness and managing anxiety in leadership roles.

Esther Lightcap Meek, a Professor of Philosophy at Geneva College and author of A Little Manual for Knowing, discusses the concept of covenant epistemology. She emphasizes that knowing involves a relational approach rather than mere information gathering. Through engaging stories, Esther explores the transformative power of significant literature in shaping knowledge. She critiques modern views of knowledge in faith and science, advocating for deeper engagement and attentiveness to reality. This insightful conversation encourages listeners to rethink their understanding of knowing.

We are called to participate with God in the healing of the world through our very work–as teachers, as mechanics, as doctors, as attorneys, as salespeople.  Our work brings the goodness of God into the world.But what about when we retire?  How can we participate with God in the healing of the world then?  Is it possible to live a full life in retirement in which we understand our post-work life as more than just a big vacation?Jeff Haanen addresses these questions in his book, An Uncommon Guide to Retirement.  Jeff challenges us to rethink our understanding of retirement, recognizing that it’s not just an extended vacation, but a time of fruitful work and ministry as we live into our calling as retired people.THIS EPISODE’S HIGHLIGHTS INCLUDE:Jeff Haanen is the Executive Director of the Denver Institute for Faith and Work and the author of An Uncommon Guide to Retirement.Jeff Haanen came to faith as he read Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis. In recent years, the most formative book Jeff has read is Our Kids: The American Dream in Crisis by Robert Putnam.People need a why for their work to have meaning. Jeff Haanen wants to give people a why in their work. The why comes down to loving God and loving neighbor through one’s work.“Vocation” comes from the Latin word for “voice,” which has to do with responding to God’s voice.Jeff Haanen says we need to pause and question the culture around retirement, a culture that says if you save so much money you’ll be living “the life” when you retire. But life doesn’t always work that way.Rather than moving into a big vacation at retirement, people ought to move into a time of sabbatical rest.It’s important in retirement to not live merely for ourselves, but for God who calls us and for the well-being of our neighbors.Pastors can help those retired by encouraging seasons of rest, renewal, and reengagement.You can find out more about the book at www.uncommonretirement.com.To learn more about the Denver Institute for Faith, go to www.denverinstitute.org, For short online courses on faith, work, vocation, and so forth, go to www.scatter.org. RELEVANT RESOURCES AND LINKSAn Uncommon Guide to Retirement by Jeff Haanen:  https://www.uncommonretirement.com/Denver Institute for Faith and Work:  https://denverinstitute.org/Online courses by Jeff Haanen: Theology for BusinessSoul Care for EntrepreneursOther books mentioned: Mere Christianity by C.S. LewisOur Kids: The American Dream in Crisis by Robert PutnamTo leave a review of 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.

If we want to keep growing in our faith we have to go deeper than merely reading a chapter of the Bible per day. That’s where lectio divina comes in. Lectio divina is a way of not merely getting information about God or about Jesus, but a way of truly experiencing Jesus. It’s a type of reading that involves silence and listening and receiving from Jesus his presence and his spirit.In this episode, Eric Nevins, host of the Halfway There podcast, shares about the transformative effect lectio divina has had on his life. THIS EPISODE’S HIGHLIGHTS INCLUDE:Eric Nevins is host of the Halfway There podcast.The book, The Critical Journey, names six stages of spiritual formation. Eric likes to simplify spiritual formation into four stages:  The journey of meeting Jesus. The journey of learning Jesus. The journey of finding yourself in Jesus. The journey of loving like Jesus.Lectio divina is process by which a person can read and meditate on scripture.Too often we read scripture for content or to try to get a principle that we can apply too our lives. But that may not be the best way to read scripture for the purpose of transformation.Lectio divina consists of essentially five parts: Read the passage. Reflect. Remain. Respond. Return to the passage.To reflect and remain in a passage involves noticing or imagining what it might be like to be in the text.To respond is to say to God, “Here’s what I’m feeling. Here’s what I’m interested in.”In lectio divina, we surrender ourselves to the text and allow ourselves to be shaped by it.Eric has written several 8-day experiences to help people practice lectio divina. You can find these at www.ericnevins.com. There are two of these 8-day experiences. One is on Mark 1:40-45 and the other is on John 2:1-12.Eric can be found on Twitter at @EricDNevinsJr, as well as on Facebook. For anyone who is a Christian podcaster, Eric would love to invite you to be a part of the Christian Podcast Association Facebook page. RELEVANT RESOURCES AND LINKSEric Nevins Website: https://ericnevins.com/Halfway There podcast: https://ericnevins.com/series/halfwaythere/8-Day Experiences: https://ericnevins.com/jesus-willing-8-day-experience/Books mentioned: The Critical Journey by Janet O. Hagberg and Robert A. GuelichEmotionally Healthy Spirituality 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.

Understanding God's mission is critical.The world today is nothing like the world as it was fifty years ago. Because of this, a lot of churches are really struggling with how to be the church in the 21st century.  People used to go to church because, well, that’s just what you did. But not anymore. Today, even a lot of Christians don’t go to church—at least not the typical Sunday morning kind of church.My new book, Beyond Thingification: Helping Your Church Engage in God’s Mission, is meant to help churches discern how to be the kind of church this world needs. And it has nothing to do with starting more and better programs. It’s about listening to God, listening to each other, and listening to our neighbors.In this episode, I read the Introduction of my forthcoming book, Beyond Thingification: Helping Your Church Engage in God’s Mission.THIS EPISODE’S HIGHLIGHTS INCLUDE:The words “self-preservation” and “self-propagation” capture the ethos of the church in North America today.Too many churches focus on numbers to feel successful.  How many people showed up?  How much did people give this week?  How many small groups do we have?  And so forth.Doing “church stuff” is not the same thing as accomplishing God’s mission.We need to find a new way of being church--a way that helps us live out God's mission in the world. RELEVANT RESOURCES AND LINKSBookBeyond Thingification, by Markus WatsonMarkus Watson Website:  https://markuswatson.com/E-mail:  markus@markuswatson.comTwitter:  https://twitter.com/markuswatsonInstagram:  https://www.instagram.com/markuswats0n/To 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!Click HERE to get my FREE online course, BECOMING LEADERS OF SHALOM.

When I first read Raise Your Voice: Why We Stay Silent and How to Speak Up, I was captivated almost immediately by a story the author, Kathy Khang, told about a situation in which a friend physically covered her mouth to keep her from asking a challenging question in a meeting. Kathy wrote, “I didn’t realize how powerful my voice could be until someone made sure I wouldn’t be heard.”In this episode, Kathy Khang shares about her journey writing Raise Your Voice, and why it’s so important for us to not be afraid to speak out. THIS EPISODE’S HIGHLIGHTS INCLUDE:Kathy Khang is the author of Raise Your Voice: Why We Stay Silent and How to Speak Up.Kathy shares about her ten-year journey of writing this book.The title, Raise Your Voice, initially felt too strong to Kathy.This book is for anyone who has ever felt strongly about something, but in a moment of decision chose not to say anything about it.Kathy reflects on a story she tells in her book about a time when a friend physically silenced her in a meeting by covering Kathy’s mouth with her hand.Kathy named the elephant in the room, which was important for healing and restoration in that circumstance.Markus reflects on his sense that he needs to be willing to speak up even when it’s uncomfortable.For those in majority, it is easy to remain silent because silence serves to maintain the status quo.Kathy Khang still gets comments from people who hear her preach that this was the first time they’ve ever heard an Asian American woman preach.Kathy encourages those who want to speak up that it’s ok to fail. It is an everyday occurrence.Kathy grew up believing that God was easily displeased. In the last five years, Kathy’s relationship with God has been much more joyful.One of the best things about Raise Your Voice is the way Kathy Khang unpacks the story of Esther in the New Testament. RELEVANT RESOURCES AND LINKSKathy Khang Twitter:  @mskathykhangInstagram:  @mskathykhangBlog:  http://www.kathykhang.com/Books mentioned: Raise Your Voiceby Kathy KhangA Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’EngleTo 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.

What happens when a couple of Hawaiian fisherman hit King Kamehameha over the head with a canoe paddle so hard that the paddle breaks?  You get the Law of the Splintered Paddle.THIS EPISODE’S HIGHLIGHTS INCLUDE:While on vacation in Hawaii, Markus came across a figure of King Kamehameha at a gift shop.Markus got curious about King Kamehameha, so he did some Google research.King Kamehameha is known for unifying the Hawaiian Islands about two hundred years ago.Markus tells the story of the Law of the Splintered Paddle.The Law of the Splintered Paddle, instituted by King Kamehameha was intended to protect the weak and powerless from predators.The Law of the Splintered Paddle and the way in which it was instituted, are a reflection of shalom—even though King Kamehameha was not a Christian.Where in your life do you see shalom emerging? How can you support it? Are you called to participate in it?Instructions 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 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!Send me a text! I’d love to know what you're thinking!Click HERE to get my FREE online course, BECOMING LEADERS OF SHALOM.