Lisa Harper's Back Porch Theology

In this engaging discussion, Kristi McLelland, a Professor and speaker known for her insights on Scripture, shares her wisdom on experiencing the Bible as a feast for the soul. Laughter fills the air as she and the hosts explore the joy of faith through community and nourishment even in challenging times. They dive into transformative journeys during spiritual deserts, emphasizing growth through grief and the importance of authentic connections. Kristi encourages embracing theology as a vibrant adventure, highlighting the healing power found in silence and compassion.

Purchase A Jesus-Shaped Life here. During today’s conversation on Back Porch Theology Alli and I have the distinct privilege of diving deep into this divine love letter we call the Bible with one of our very dear friends who just so happens to be a world-renowned Bible scholar, Professor Kristi McLelland. Kristi spent over a year living in Egypt and Israel so that she could study Scripture in its original socio-historical context, and the fruits of her labor will leave you gob-smacked with wonder over the accessible, redemptive truisms in God’s Word. Just listen to this excerpt from her new book, Feasting on God’s Word, “We are not orphans; we are not fatherless. We do not have to open the Bible and dig something out to feed ourselves. We are not alone in the moment. When we approach the Word of God, we do so as sons and daughters postured to receive. Rather than having to feed ourselves, we are readying ourselves to inherit and take in whatever the living God is ready to say and do as we interact with the Text.” If you want less duty and more delight when you engage with the redemptive narrative and promises found in God’s enscripturated revelation, today’s episode is tailor made for you, baby! So please grab an iced mocha and of course bring your Bible as you pull up a proverbial chair on the porch with us…we’re really glad you’re here! You can find the Tame Your Thoughts book and Bible study at MaxLucado.com (https://maxlucado.com/tameyourthoughts/) or wherever you buy books!

Purchase A Jesus-Shaped Life here. Today’s conversation on Back Porch Theology is with some of the world’s most renowned Bible scholars and theologians who were with us for Kerygma ‘25 including: Dr. Lynn Cohick, Dr. Craig Blomberg, Dr. Craig Keener, Dr. Dorian Coover Cox, Dr. Scot McKnight, Dr. Jim Howard, Dr. Nicole Massey Martin, Dr. Eva Bleeker, and Dr. Joel Muddamalle. Here’s a sample of just a few of the questions they answer: What’s the significance of the numerous “in Christ” references throughout Paul’s New Testament epistles and how do they prove that God’s love drives His redemptive plan? Why is Augustine’s famous assertion: “In essentials – UNITY; in non-essentials, FREEDOM; in all things – CHARITY” necessary for a well-developed ecclesiology and missional focus? How can those of us who are serious about our faith not lose our heart for Jesus and other image bearers in our quest for biblical accuracy and theological acumen? Why do we have to be careful about merging triumphalism and exceptionalism into our faith narrative? How we can best tune our spiritual ears to the shape in which our Creator Redeemer contextualized this love letter we call the Bible? Today’s dream team of scholars is about to give us a master class of biblically informed wisdom infused with grace and humility. So please grab a jumbo cup of java, your Bible, a notebook, and come hang out on the porch with us. We’re really glad you’re here. You can find the Tame Your Thoughts book and Bible study at MaxLucado.com (https://maxlucado.com/tameyourthoughts/) or wherever you buy books!

Purchase A Jesus-Shaped Life here. During today’s conversation on Back Porch Theology, Alli and I are hanging out with one of my dear friends, DawnCheré Wilkerson, who’s really gifted at something I really struggle with, which is waiting. The first time I met DawnCheré – about ten years ago – she and her husband, Pastor Rich Wilkerson, were in the midst of a very long season of infertility. And yet she was somehow pregnant with hope. When I asked her how she held onto genuine hope and joy after so many years of heartbreak and disappointment, she told me that God was teaching her to live in the wait. Waiting is inescapable. And while we might feel like a whole lot of nothing is going on in a slow burn, we couldn’t be more wrong. There most definitely is something going on. God has not forgotten you and because of His immutable presence and grace, we can all experience the miraculous juxtaposition of divine wonder within our waits. So please fix yourself a cup of coffee and your Bible, and come hang out on the porch with us. We’re really glad you’re here today. You can find the Tame Your Thoughts book and Bible study at MaxLucado.com (https://maxlucado.com/tameyourthoughts/) or wherever you buy books!

Purchase A Jesus-Shaped Life here. During today’s conversation on Back Porch Theology Alli and I are diving deep into the swirling waters of gender discrimination disguised as biblically-sound exegesis. Recent polls have revealed that for the first time in American church history, young women are leaving mainline Christian congregations at a higher rate than young men and one of the main reasons cited is their observation and/or personal experience with misogyny. With being treated as “less than” simply because they’re female. Thankfully, despite culture’s penchant for the prejudicial treatment of women, God’s redemptive plan reveals itself over and over again in the metanarrative of the Bible, as evidenced by several Old and New Testament stories we’re going to unpack on the porch today. And while we’re calling this episode “Let’s hear it for the girls” we sincerely hope that all of you amazing brothers who’ve pulled up a chair to the porch will stay; because gentlemen, we need you. You’re in a unique position and have more potential than you probably even realize to help broken hearted daughters in the family of faith heal. We need more than a few good and godly men who will stand up for what the Bible really says it comes to this painful, and often polarizing issue. So please grab an extra-large iced beverage and your Bible – unless, of course, you’ve got your hands full skimming frogs out of the pool as we get ready for summer - and come hang out on the porch with us. We’re really glad you’re here. You can find the Tame Your Thoughts book and Bible study at MaxLucado.com (https://maxlucado.com/tameyourthoughts/) or wherever you buy books!

Purchase A Jesus-Shaped Life here. Today’s conversation on Back Porch Theology is the part-two sequel of An Antidote to Self-Centeredness Disguised as Spirituality. The bottom line is, it’s more important than ever to embrace the gospel story as the ultimate lens through which we understand life or pretty soon everything’s going to become blurry. Which underscores the new for a new kind of catechism – a fresh way to understand and communicate the concrete, biblical scaffolding of our belief system as Christ-followers. Dr. Trevin Wax calls what we’re talking about today a disruptive discipleship tool…Alli and I can guarantee it’ll put fresh wind in your sails. So please grab your favorite beverage and your Bible and pull your chair right next to ours on this proverbial porch – we’re really glad you’re here! You can find the Tame Your Thoughts book and Bible study at MaxLucado.com (https://maxlucado.com/tameyourthoughts/) or wherever you buy books!

Purchase A Jesus-Shaped Life here. During today’s conversation on Back Porch Theology Alli and I are diving into the swampy waters of ideology with Dr. Trevin Wax. Trevin will help us understand and learn how to better practice what some have called counter-catechesis – that is sorting out our Christian belief system in a thoughtful way that effectively says, “You’ve heard it communicated like this on a popular podcast or Instagram reel, but now let’s look at what the Bible actually says about that issue.” Grab a caffeinated beverage and a hearty snack, plus your Bible and a notebook if you’ve got one handy, and then come pull up a chair on the porch with us. We’re really glad you’re here! You can find the Tame Your Thoughts book and Bible study at MaxLucado.com (https://maxlucado.com/tameyourthoughts/) or wherever you buy books!

Purchase A Jesus-Shaped Life here. You know that old, familiar ice-breaker question, “If you could have dinner with anyone, dead or alive, who would it be?” Well, during today’s episode of Back Porch Theology – which was taped live at our 2025 Kerygma Summit a few weeks ago. And yes, we happen to be hugely biased, but y’all this bevy of Bible scholars could aptly be described as Wonder Women. Dr. Lynn Cohick is the Distinguished Professor of New Testament and Director of Houston Theological Seminary. Dr. Eva Bleeker is assistant professor of Chaplaincy and Pastoral Care at Denver Seminary. Dr. Irini Fambro, she and her family reside in Dallas where she serves as president of The King’s University. Dr. Dorian Coover-Cox is a beloved Old Testament professor at Dallas Theological Seminary and has tutored hundreds of students in Hebrew over the years. And rounding out this dream team is Dr. Nicole Massey Martin. She’s currently the COO for Christianity Today, and served as a senior VP at The American Bible Society. Today’s episode is going to be FIRE, y’all ~ so please grab a great big iced mocha. Welcome to the porch – we’re so glad you’ve chosen to hang out with us today! You can find the Tame Your Thoughts book and Bible study at MaxLucado.com (https://maxlucado.com/tameyourthoughts/) or wherever you buy books!

Purchase A Jesus-Shaped Life here. Today’s conversation on Back Porch Theology is a part two, so if you haven’t listened to last week’s conversation with our friend Katherine Wolf, I encourage you to do so. Now before we dive in, I’d like to read a brief excerpt from Katherine’s latest book titled, Treasures in the Dark: “David taught me that laughter and worship aren’t so different. In fact, they are simply two of the shapes that hope takes. Both laughter and worship are most powerful when offered from full brokenness of body or of circumstance. Sure, it’s great to celebrate and praise God when life is good. But whooping with laughter when you can hardly speak or raising your hands in worship from the seat of a wheelchair…now that’s evidence of a soul who has found transcending security and joy in Divine Love. Suffering can harden us to the good things in life, or it can open us up to receive them with abandon.” Grab your Bible if you’ve got one and welcome to the porch…we’re really glad you’re here. You can find the Tame Your Thoughts book and Bible study at MaxLucado.com (https://maxlucado.com/tameyourthoughts/) or wherever you buy books!

Purchase A Jesus-Shaped Life here. Today’s conversation on Back Porch Theology is with my friend Katherine Wolf about God’s compassionate purpose with regards to our pain. Many of you have probably heard or read some of Katherine’s story – she suffered a massive stroke when she was 26 years old, not long after giving birth to her and her husband Jay’s first son, James. Her story is riddled with debilitating physical and emotional suffering – which she endures to this day – and yet she honestly oozes hope. Because she learned to find treasures in the dark by asking the hard and awkward questions pain prompts: Where is God in this? Am I alone? What is the point of all this suffering? Is hope just a cruel, false promise? Katherine dared to wrestle for answers without letting go of God. This is a rich and layered conversation so it’s best to listen slowly and give the tenderest places in your heart time to soak it all in. Thank you for carving out the time to be with us today…we’re really glad you’re here. You can find the Tame Your Thoughts book and Bible study at MaxLucado.com (https://maxlucado.com/tameyourthoughts/) or wherever you buy books!