The Faith & Work Podcast

Ben Nussbaum, VP of Sales at OnCenter and associate director of Faith & Work Chicago, opens up about what it’s really like to stay true to your faith in the ups and downs of a sales career. He talks about the struggle of selling products he wasn’t fully behind and how he found a way to align his sales approach with his Christian beliefs. Ben also shares how practicing spiritual disciplines like prayer helps him stay grounded in the high-pressure world of meeting a quota and encourages leaders to create workplaces that honor the dignity of every employee. His approach to serving clients with integrity, even when it’s tough, is an inspiring model for Christians in any business role. On finding stability: “That is the daily reality they live in. Either the highs are high and I think I'm awesome, or the lows are low and I think I suck. It's very hard to find equilibrium or middle ground as a disciple. And that's acually why I think the gospel is such a balm for the salesperson.” On faith in work: “What Christ has to say to us when he says, 'blessed are the meek for they shall inherit the earth,' that has to mean something for the way we send emails, the way we do someone's taxes, the way that we defend someone in court, the way that we script a cold call. Whatever it is, right? It's our responsibility. This is what it means to be image bearers to live out that reality or that story." On failure: "You failed. You had a crappy performance review. You didn't hit your Q3 quota, like I don't know what it is. Christ takes the failures and those who have lost much and makes something wonderful out of them. So you know, every time I miss a quota or don't hit a deadline or I didn't measure up in my job, I'm reminded that God chose what is weak to shame the strong. It is the power of God that's made perfect in my weakness. So, be weak. Be comfortable with losing. It might mean that God is ready to use you." Download the episode transcript. Follow Ben Nussbaum on LinkedIn Learn more from Faith & Work Chicago “Be comforted, small one, in your smallness. He lays no merit on you. Receive and be glad.” - CS Lewis, The Space Trilogy A Community of Hope in a World of Rage – Sermon – Ray Ortlund Praxis Labs Redemptive Entrepreneurship Model Do you like The Faith & Work Podcast? See more great resources at Denver Institute for Faith & Work or find us on Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn @denverinstitute 

Romanita Hairston, CEO of the M.J. Murdock Charitable Trust, delivers a powerful reflection on leadership, faith, and purpose. She reveals how her journey through nonprofits, tech, and philanthropy is deeply intertwined with her identity as a woman and follower of Christ. With bold inspiration from Martin Luther King Jr., Hairston challenges leaders to rise above cultural norms, embrace their full potential, and build a "Beloved Community" rooted in love and justice. She urges listeners to lead with curiosity, courage, and conviction, offering a vision of leadership that transforms not only workplaces but entire communities through faith and service. On whole-life integration: “That leads to lots of different ways we have to see ourselves in lots of different contexts. When our relationship to our children and our family is different, with the way we keep and care for our community can sometimes be different, when a lot of things become different about how we show up in environments because we are women. But it’s always mediated through this question of ‘Who has God called me to be and how does that lead me to show up in this space?’” On leading with curiosity: “Women have a powerful ability to lead with curiosity. And that [saying] ‘tell me more’ is I think a bit of a superpower in what women can bring to a conversation. Leading with curiosity and courage. Because it’s not always, it doens’t always feel safe to be curious in a context where you’re supposed to know. So I think that’s an unique encouragement to any leader but a very unique encouragement to women to use that superpower of curiosity.” Hear more from Romanita Hairston at Women, Work & Calling Annual Event Friday, November 1, 2024 where she will be our keynote speaker! Download the episode transcript. Thank You. I’m Sorry. Tell Me More.: How to Change the World with 3 Sacred Sayings by Rod Wilson Servant Leadership: A Journey into the Nature of Legitimate Power and Greatness by Robert K. Greenleaf  Fair Play: A Game-Changing Solution for When You Have Too Much to Do (and More Life to Live) by Eve Rodsky Johari Window   Do you like The Faith & Work Podcast? See more great resources at Denver Institute for Faith & Work or find us on Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn @denverinstitute 

SUMMARY  Author Bruce Feiler claims that people experience 30 to 40 disruptors in their lives, which is about one every 12 to 18 months (Source). In todays conversation, we hear from authors Lisa Pratt Slayton and Michaela O'Donnell, PhD on the fluctuating aspects of life and how we can more mindfully and faithfully navigate change. Whether you're in a change in your life, just getting out of one or preparing to be in one, their new book Life In Flux is an essential resource for you as a faithful worker and leader which will prepare you with a set of navigational skills for the inner work that helps us be at home in flux.   HIGHLIGHTS  On Waking Up Moments: "There comes a moment… in which somewhere inside of us we realize: ‘What got us here is not going to get us to where we want to go on the way forward.’ That’s what waking up sounds like. ‘I don't want to keep doing this. I want to do it differently.’ These waking up moments, we are very prime to have them when life is in flux.” On Using Your Navigational Skills: “That’s the knee jerk [reaction], right? Is to just start running in circles. But if we stop and cut the engine, and listen and invite maybe a couple of people to listen with us, we start to see the signs and see the things and pay attention to what’s going on so that we can begin to make very small incremental steps. And that’s the work.”   Resource  Download the episode transcript. Life in Flux by Michaela O’Donnell and Lisa Pratt Slayton  Companion Resource: Navigating Change with the Enneagram Learn More about Lisa Pratt Slayton Learn More about Michaela O’Donnell In this episode, Lisa mentions “PLF” which stands for Pittsburgh Leadership Foundation  

Summary  On this episode of the Faith & Work Podcast, we learn about cultivating creativity and imagination from cartoonist Mike Maihack. Mike is best known for his series Cleopatra in Space, originally published by Scholastic and later adapted by Dreamworks into an animated show. Through our conversation, Mike shares some of the ways he views his creative work in light of the gospel, shares how he has navigated public criticism of content creation and recounts some of his own personal journey with being a cartoonist. Highlights On Superheroes and the Gospel: “What I love about superheroes... is that there's these characters that have these immense abilities, these things that we can't even imagine being able do ourselves. And yet, instead of using these abilities for selfish purposes... They use it to do things that Jesus would do. They would help the poor. They would make sure they're saving those that cannot save themselves, they're sacrificing themselves. They're always looking at the greater good despite maybe the hurt that causes them. They're always looking at every single other person that they're around is a much greater person than themselves, despite them having these abilities." On Making Beauty: “My spiritual drive is God, he's a working God. He spent all this time creating us, creating the world. He is still working on it, and I want to please Him by cultivating that as much as I can. Really trying to contribute to that world, mak[ing] sure that world stays beautiful because I think that's the ultimate end goal right there, is to make sure this world is ready when a heavenly realm appears. And it is we're putting things in this world that he wants to see. And so that's sort of spiritually how I approach my work." Resources Download the episode transcript Instagram @mikemaihack Mike’s Website  Mike’s Graphic Novel Recommendations:  Infinity Gauntlet  Bone  Called To Create By Jordan Raynor  

This episode concludes our AI Series on the intersection of AI and faith, theology and work. This episodes guest, Andy Crouch, is a partner for theology and culture at Praxis, a venture-building ecosystem advancing redemptive entrepreneurship. His writing explores faith, culture, and the image of God in the domains of technology, power, leadership, and the arts. He is the author of five books including, The Life We're Looking For: Reclaiming Relationship in a Technological World. Andy and Jeff discuss how AI can be used for redemptive purposes, and reflect on some best practices as the increased use of AI will impact our future.

Artificial Intelligence is here to stay, but will it ever be sophisticated enough to replace the human? What does it mean to be human? Welcome to part two of our three-part AI Series on the intersection of AI and faith, theology and work. In this conversation we explore what it means to be human and how that definition challenges and interacts with Artificial Intelligence technology. Please enjoy this multi-faceted dialogue among host Jeff Hoffmeyer, speaker and writer in science and faith, Greg Cootsona, and Reuter professor and computer scientist Noreen Herzfeld, PhD.  

Stephen Presley, an author and professor at the Center for Religion Culture and Democracy, dives deep into the impact of AI on faith and work. He discusses how technology intersects with pastoral duties and the ethical implications it brings. Presley raises concerns about efficiency versus character formation, urging listeners to reflect on their spiritual virtues. Using jazz as a metaphor, he emphasizes the need for creativity alongside structure in integrating new technologies. The conversation challenges us to consider the essence of humanity in our rapidly evolving world.

Summary What are limiting beliefs and how do they affect my work? In this episode, Joanna Meyer talks with Charlena Ortiz, a life & business coach, writer, and the founder of Grit & Virtue. Together they discuss the importance of who we are as workers but also who we are as sons and daughters of Christ. Highlights On limiting beliefs: "I would say that limiting beliefs are our biggest enemy. Limiting beliefs often paralyze us from becoming who God has created us to be and from doing what God has created us to do." On starting the process of identifying limiting beliefs: "...it requires self-awareness. Sometimes we hear self-awareness just thrown out, but really, I would encourage every person listening to really peel back the layers of what it means to be self-aware. For me, journaling has been a great tool to help me become more self-aware of what's going on in my inner world. " On choosing behaviors that lead to freedom: "...when we can operate out of freedom and choose the behaviors and decisions out of our true identity, then we're able to move forward from that place [of limiting beliefs] and really know that freedom is something that is transformative and can only come from the father." Resources Learn more about Grit & Virtue and The Manifesto. You can also download our free Study on Calling.  Download the episode transcript.

Summer is a great time to rest, enjoy the nice weather, and listen to your favorite podcasts. Tune into the Faith & Work Podcast as we kick off a four-part summer series featuring some of our best content filled with practical takeaways and great insights. For our third encore episode this summer, we explore key questions about calling. How do we discover our calling? What's the difference between our occupation and our vocation? Can they even be the same thing? This interview was recorded at one of Denver Institute's earliest events where author, educator, and organizational leader Steven Garber, joins us to talk about a broader vision for vocation. Highlights On exploring my calling: "This question of 'my calling before God and service to the world' has to be marked by a deep honest sense of humility." On vocation and occupation: "I make a distinction between vocation and occupation: vocation is the deeper, longer word that makes sense of your life and mine. It's the deeper reality. It's the deeper story that makes sense of who you are, that makes sense of why you are different than your brother and your father and your best friend and your wife and your neighbor...Occupation is a word that gets at what I do day-by-day."  On the tension of work: "Everybody, everywhere has some sense of tension between what I think I was meant to do, what I really want to do, and what I have to do."   Resources Download the episode transcript. Denver Institute's FREE Downloadable Resource - “A Study On Calling”   More by Steve Garber: Visions of Vocation: Common Grace for the Common Good  The Seamless Life: A Tapestry of Love and Learning, Worship and Work    

Summer is a great time to rest, enjoy the nice weather, and listen to your favorite podcasts. Tune into the Faith & Work Podcast as we kick off a four-part summer series. In these episodes we will be featuring some of our best content filled with practical takeaways and great insights. For our second conversation we hear from scholar and nonprofit leader Amy Sherman. Amy is a senior fellow at the Sagamore Institute, where she directs the Center for Faith in Communities. She is also the author of the book Agents of Flourishing: Pursuing Shalom in Every Corner of Society.