Winsome Conviction

Stories of Christians abandoning their faith have us thinking about the relationship between deconversion and convictions. So, when we heard about John Marriott's book, The Anatomy of Deconversion, it got our attention. Today on the podcast, John joins Tim and Rick to talk about Christians losing their convictions. They dig into surveys, statistics, and stories involving people who leave the Christian faith and consider some dynamics that may have undermined the durability of their convictions. John unpacks three kinds reasons people tend to leave the faith and four stages of faith development. This is part 1 of a 2-parts series on Christian deconversion with John Marriott. Show notes and a full transcript are available at: https://www.biola.edu/blogs/winsome-conviction/2021/episode-27-losing-my-christian-convictions-part-1

Tim and Rick resume the discussion with Simon Greer, social entrepreneur and founder of Bridging the Gap, on his more recent project with students at Oberlin College and Spring Arbor University. Simon unpacks the skills and practices he has found beneficial in helping students find common ground. They also discuss the relationship between technique and skill and matters of the heart and motivation when seeking to find common ground, and they discuss the power of an immersive experience to foster respect with “the other” while retaining differences. This is part 2 of a 2-part discussion with Simon Greer. Show notes and a full transcript are available at: https://www.biola.edu/blogs/winsome-conviction/2021/episode-26-reports-from-the-front-simon-greer-part-2

Simon Greer is a social entrepreneur with an interesting story. One of his more recent efforts in social change involves helping students at Oberlin, a more progressive college, and students at Spring Arbor, a more conservative university, find common ground. In this first part of the discussion with Tim and Rick, Simon shares the personal and vocation origins that provide the backdrop for this project with university students and how he began to organize these efforts. In part 2, Simon will share skills and practices he has found beneficial in working with people at Oberlin and Spring Arbor. This is part 1 of a 2-part discussion with Simon Greer.Show notes and a full transcript are available at: https://www.biola.edu/blogs/winsome-conviction/2021/episode-25-reports-from-the-front-simon-greer-part-1

We've been talking about conflict and what causes conflict. In this episode, Tim and Rick resume the discussion on conflict and discuss the influence of phatic communication, the place of humor, and the need to do soul work when one is not in the throes of conflict in order to engage conflict in healthy ways when it arises. This is part 2 of a 2-part discussion on conflict.Show notes and a full transcript are available at: https://www.biola.edu/blogs/winsome-conviction/2021/episode-24-conflict-triggers-part-2

Conflict - it's part of being human, but we usually don't handle it well. Arguments and disagreements are more likely to break down and divide rather than strengthen and fortify our relationships and communities. As indicated in the New Testament letters, the early Church saw quarreling as the great existential threat to the health and influence of the Church. How should we address conflict and quarreling today? One of the more helpful practices with conflict is to identify the triggers. Tim and Rick consider conflict from communication and biblical perspectives and discuss two triggers that tend to cause conflict: "climates" and "first and second order realities." This is part 1 of a 2-part discussion on triggers that cause conflict.Show notes and a full transcript are available at: https://www.biola.edu/blogs/winsome-conviction/2021/episode-23-conflict-triggers-part-1

In part 1 of this segment on Reports from The Front, Sean McDowell (PhD) shared insight from his conversation with pastor/author Colby Martin on the differences between evangelical Christianity and progressive Christianity and how to keep the conversation civil and engaging. In this episode, Tim and Rick speak with Sean about a conversation he had with Jon Steingard, former frontman for the Christian band Hawk Nelson, who deconverted from Christianity. Sean shares the backstory on his conversation with Jon, and then they discuss how to jump into the hard conversations, the value of framing, pushing back and knowing when to let things go. This is part 2 of a 2-part conversation with Sean on keeping it conversational when we disagree.Show notes and a full transcript are available at: https://www.biola.edu/blogs/winsome-conviction/2021/episode-22-reports-from-the-front-sean-mcdowell-part-2

It's difficult to keep conversations on hot topics conversational and keep the back and forth from devolving into a debate. In this segment of Reports from The Front where we share stories of people who demonstrate winsome conviction in real life, Sean McDowell (PhD) talks with Tim and Rick about his experience having conversations with those who have left evangelicalism. They discuss how to organize a conversation to keep it civil and engaging, the value of having moments of clarity, being wise in the particulars of the conversation, and how to safeguard conversations from going off the rails. This is part 1 of a 2-part conversation with Sean on keeping it conversational and civil when we disagree.Show notes and a full transcript are available at: https://www.biola.edu/blogs/winsome-conviction/2021/episode-21-reports-from-the-front-sean-mcdowell-part-1

Preston Sprinkle (PhD) joins Tim and Rick to discuss what to do when you don't know what to do to foster healthy conversations on sexuality and gender and how to mix truth and love into these conversations. They discuss the importance of understanding "the already spokens," a phrase coined by Mikhail Bakhtin, a Russian philosopher and linguist, that refers to the social and personal histories, past hurts, and context embedded in every conversation. They also reflect on the need to resist cultural trends (i.e. social media) as our go-to for interacting with others before considering whether our communication as Christians is qualitatively different from the broader culture on issues around sexuality and gender.Show notes and a full transcript are available at: https://www.biola.edu/blogs/winsome-conviction/2021/episode-20-getting-back-to-embodied-relationships

Tim and Rick resume the conversation on obstacles to listening and discuss two postures that undermine listening: "ambushing" and "dropping the mic." These postures can have the appearance of listening, but in actuality the listener is pretending to listen to the speaker and is primarily concerned with his own interests. With both postures, the listener is absorbed in breaking down what is said or gaining some kind of advantage, and these postures affect relationships in damaging and hurtful ways. This is part 2 of a 2-part discussion on obstacles to listening.Show notes and a full transcript are available at: https://www.biola.edu/blogs/winsome-conviction/2021/episode-19-obstacles-to-listening-part-2

Listening is important, a basic and vital action for learning, communicating, and fostering healthy relationships. When we don’t listen, our relationships suffer and unravel. In his book, The Road Less Traveled, psychiatrist M. Scott Peck says the number one way we show love to someone is by listening to them. The Bible also puts a premium on listening and regards those who don’t listen as fools. Yet, we are losing the ability to listen today. What undermines our ability to listen? In this episode Tim and Rick consider two obstacles to listening: pre-judgment and covert definitions. This is part 1 of a 2-part discussion on the obstacles to listening.Show notes and a full transcript are available at: https://www.biola.edu/blogs/winsome-conviction/2021/episode-18-obstacles-to-listening-part-1