
Those Who Serve The Lord
Those Who Serve the Lord is a podcast of Apollos Watered: The Center for Discipleship & Cultural Apologetics, dedicated to forming whole lives for God’s whole mission through God’s whole church—what we call missioholism.
Are you tired of all the division, media hype, and shallow answers? Do you long for clarity, renewal, and hope in an increasingly disorienting cultural landscape?
Are you burdened for your church, your family, or your calling, and wondering why the strategies that once brought growth and fruitfulness now seem to fall flat?
Are you yearning for fresh vision, deeper passion, and renewed purpose?
There is a way forward.
In a world fractured by half-truths and half-lived faith, Those Who Serve the Lord calls pastors, leaders, and everyday believers to embody the new humanity of the new creation—mind, heart, body, and soul—for the renewal of all things.
Get ready for theologically rich, culturally grounded conversations that are both profound and practical—never dry, never detached.
Join Travis Michael Fleming—pastor, public theologian, and cultural apologist—as he walks alongside you to help you live out your calling. Because your faith matters, your work is not in vain, and the Lord is with you every step of the way.
Latest episodes

Jul 11, 2023 • 54min
#191 | How Do We Disciple In A Multicultural World? Pt. 1 | Ajith Fernando
Does discipleship look the same in every culture? How does it look different? How has globalization made things similar? Is discipleship a program? A relationship? Or both? How do we disciple those who may come from a different background than us? These are just some of the questions that come into our minds whenever we talk about the subject of discipleship in our modern world with special guest Ajith Fernando as we discuss Discipling in a Multicultural World (Cross, 2019).Ajith serves as Teaching Director of Youth for Christ in Sri Lanka after being National Director for 35 years. These days his main responsibilities in YFC are counseling, mentoring, and teaching staff and volunteers. With his wife Nelun he is active in a Methodist Church just outside Colombo, most of whose members are recent believers. His grassroots ministry has been and is primarily with the urban poor. Learn more about Ajith.Some of the biases we have as Westerners approaching the Scriptures:#26 | Misreading Scripture With Individualist Eyes | Randy RichardsFor those who desire to hear how technology is influencing our spiritual formation:#95 | Restless Devices-Countering Conformity With Ancient Christian Practices, Pt. 1 | Felicia Wu Song#96 | Restless Devices-Countering Conformity With Ancient Christian Practices, Pt. 2 | Felicia Wu SongOther episodes referred to in the episode dealing with Asian culture both in the West and non-West, as well as secularization:#15 | Increase Your Vision of God and the World | Jackson Wu#34 | Rediscovering Hospitality: A Lesson from Eastern Cultures | Jayson GeorgesTips for those wanting to understand shame:#117 | Defending Shame, Pt. 1 | Te-Li Lau#118 | Defending Shame, Pt. 2 | Te-Li LauTips for sharing the Gospel cross-culturally:#115 | Good News In A Diverse World, Pt. 1 | Jay Moon & Bud Simon#116 | Good News In A Diverse World, Pt. 2 | Jay Moon & Bud SimonSign up for the Apollos Watered newsletter.God continues to grow our ministry, but He calls people like you to help do it! Support the Ministry of Apollos Watered today!

Jul 7, 2023 • 1h 25min
#190 | Listening, Loving, and Learning Their Names | Sabrina Chan & Linson Daniel
If the supremacy of Jesus is to be seen in the church in the West, then it means learning how to live together as Christ's followers from those who come from different backgrounds than us. In the West, Caucasians still make up the majority of the culture, but as our culture becomes more and more diverse, it becomes imperative that we learn to listen and learn from our brothers and sisters from around the world so that we might together be the people God intended, a sign of heaven. Often times that is not the case for those who come from different cultural backgrounds, but who were born and live in the United States. Today, we welcome, Linson Daniel and Sabrina Chan to the show, two of the four authors of the book, Learning Our Names: Asian American Christians on Identity, Relationships, and Vocation (IVP, 2022) (Sabrina Chan, Linson Daniel, LA Thao, E. David de Leon). They help us to see the unique obstacles and experiences that second-generation Asians face as they attempt to navigate the majority Caucasian cultural landscape of the United States and the church. They write from diverse perspectives within the Asian Christian community (East Asian, Southeast Asian, and South Asian) giving a unique insight into a growing and significant group. It is a conversation that helps inform and enlighten, but also carries an invitation to learn and grow in what it means to be a disciple of Jesus in a multicultural world so that the glory of Christ might shine forth. If you are from a cultural background other than Asian, listen in as they discuss their unique challenges. For those who are from Asian American backgrounds, it is an encouragement to share your story. Linson Daniel is Associate Pastor of METRO Church with locations in Frisco and Farmers Branch, TX. The son of Indian Immigrants from Kerala, he was born in Mesquite, TX. He is a married father of two. Learn more about Linson.Sabrina S. Chan is the national director of Asian American Ministries for InterVarsity, and a daughter of immigrants from Hong Kong. She is a married mother of two. Learn more about Sabrina. Find her on social media @sabrinachanwrites.Sabrina referenced the book Following Jesus Without Dishonoring Your Parents.To learn more about the various Diaspora peoples, check out:#144 | God on the Move Among Diaspora Peoples | Sam GeorgeHear some personal stories as well as what God is doing in the West through various people groups as well as various issues that came up in the conversation:#5 | Culture, Community, and Confronting Cries of Injustice | Daniel Yang#161 | Inalienable: How Marginalized Kingdom Voices Can Help Save The American Church | Eric Costanzo, Daniel Yang, & Matthew Soerens#170 | Polycentric Missiology: Everyone to Everywhere | Allen Yeh#175 | Eating Theology With The World | Gene Green#53 | The Beautiful Community, Pt. 1 | Irwyn L. Ince, Jr.#55 | The Beautiful Community, Pt. 2 | Irwyn L. Ince, Jr.#30 | What God Is Doing In The World, Pt. 1 | Todd M. Johnson#32 | What God Is Doing In The World, Pt. 2 | Todd M. JohnsonSome of the biases we have as Westerners approaching the Scriptures:#26 | Misreading Scripture With Individualist Eyes | Randy RichardsFor those who come from Asian backgrounds wanting to hear more interviews from Asian American Christians:#95 | Restless Devices-Countering Conformity With Ancient Christian Practices, Pt. 1 | Felicia Wu Song#96 | Restless Devices-Countering Conformity With Ancient Christian Practices, Pt. 2 | Felicia Wu Song#84 | Analog Church | Jay Y. Kim#160 | Analog Christian | Jay Y. Kim#74 | Holy Discontent, Heart Desire, and Hope in Desperate Times, Pt. 1 | James Choung#75 | Holy Discontent, Heart Desire, and Hope in Desperate Times, Pt. 2 | James ChoungOther episodes referred to in the episode:#117 | Defending Shame, Pt. 1 | Te-Li Lau#118 | Defending Shame, Pt. 2 | Te-Li Lau#145 | Faithful Disobedience, Pt. 1 | Hannah Nation#146 | Faithful Disobedience, Pt. 2 | Hannah NationConversation on racism:#99 | A Unifying Alternative to Colorblindness & Antiracism | George YanceySign up for the Apollos Watered newsletter.God continues to grow our ministry, but He calls people like you to help do it! Support the Ministry of Apollos Watered today!

Jul 4, 2023 • 1h 26min
#189 | Savoring Scripture | Andy Abernethy
Are you bored reading your Bible? I know you feel guilty in saying that, but we all experience boredom every once in a while. We know that God is not boring, nor is His Word, but we get bored due to a variety of factors. We get confused, we don't know always what to read or what a text means and that's when we need a guide. Travis welcomes Old Testament professor Dr. Andy Abernethy to the show as they discuss his book Savoring Scripture. In addition, to being an Old Testament professor at Wheaton College, Andy is a former college basketball player and the son of a college basketball champion, and NBA player. After a season of rebellion in his late teens, Dr. Abernethy experienced God’s mercy in Christ in a radical way and transferred to a liberal arts Christian college. A major surprise arose at his new college; though he thought the Bible was boring before, he now loved reading it, even the Old Testament. He was not naïve, however, about the challenges of understanding these ancient Scriptures. By the end of his college years, Dr. Abernethy sensed God directing him to devote his life to studying and teaching God’s word. He went on to seminary, and after a few years in pastoral ministry, undertook further study in the Old Testament.Prior to Wheaton, Dr. Abernethy was a Lecturer in Old Testament at Ridley College (Melbourne), where he benefited greatly from teaching and living with fellow Christians in a cross-cultural and post-Christian context. At Wheaton, he is excited to see students enjoy getting to know God more through the Old Testament and grow as faithful interpreters of Scripture. Dr. Abernethy's primary research area is the book of Isaiah, though Psalms, the Latter Prophets, biblical theology, and the topic of eating attract his attention too. He has written numerous articles and is also the author of several books: Eating in Isaiah (Brill, 2014); The Book of Isaiah and God’s Kingdom (IVP, 2016); Interpreting the Old Testament Theologically: Essays in Honor of Willem A. VanGemeren (Zondervan Academic, 2018), God’s Messiah in the Old Testament (Baker, 2020); Discovering Isaiah (Eerdmans/SPCK, 2021).Travis and Andy discuss the Bible and how to read the Bible in a way that is honoring God and keeps in mind His communication with us. It's a conversation that will refresh, encourage, and inspire you to read the Word of God all over again. And plus they have some discussions on basketball (so that's fun!). Learn more about Dr. AbernethyIn this episode, we referenced a couple of different other episodes: #150 Kevin Vanhoozer: Scriptural Illiteracy & Secular Imagination, Pt. 1#151 Kevin Vanhoozer: Scriptural Illiteracy & Secular Imagination, Pt. 2#170 Allen Yeh | Polycentric MissiologyAnd check episodes that help us understand the Bible better:#26 Randy Richards: Misreading Scripture With Individualist Eyes#77 Michael S. Heiser-Naked Scripture, the Supernatural, and Scared Evangelicals#88 Tremper Longman III, Pt. 1-The Bible You Need Is The One You Read#89 Tremper Longman III, Pt. 2-Scripture, Psalms, and Nourishing Your Soul#101 Esteban Shedd: Creative Communicators Engaging Global Urban Culture#106 Donald Whitney: Praying the Bible#111 John Plake: Scripture Engagement, Trauma, and Transformation in Chaotic Times#187 | The Emotions of God, Pt. 1 | David T. Lamb#188 | The Emotions of God, Pt. 2 | David T. LambFeel free to email Dr. Abernethy: andrew.abernethy@wheaton.eduSign up for the Apollos Watered newsletter.God continues to grow our ministry, but He calls people like you to help do it! Support the Ministry of Apollos Watered today!

Jun 30, 2023 • 49min
#188 | The Emotions of God, Pt. 2 | David T. Lamb
Does God hate? What does that mean? How does God love the sinner and hate the sin when biblically the two seem connected (Revelation 21:8)? Does God get envious or jealous? God's jealousy disturbed Oprah so much that she left Christianity behind. But is God jealous? And if so, is that wrong? How does our jealousy differ from His? Travis and Dr. David T. Lamb continue their discussion on his new book, The Emotions of God (IVP, 2022). Dr. Lamb is the MacRae Professor of Old Testament Dean of the Faculty at Misso Seminary in Philadelphia, PA. Dr. Lamb has extensive teaching experience, including cross-cultural projects in Nigeria, Mexico, Kazakhstan, and Russia. He is the author of The Historical Writings: Introducing Israel’s Historical Literature (Fortress, 2016), Prostitutes and Polygamists: A Look at Love, Old Testament Style (Zondervan, 2015), God Behaving Badly: Is the God of the Old Testament Angry, Sexist and Racist? (InterVarsity Press, 2011), Righteous Jehu and His Evil Heirs (Oxford University Press, 2007), The Story of God Commentary 1, 2 Kings (Zondervan). Dr. Lamb worked with InterVarsity Christian Fellowship from 1986-1999, serving as campus staff, team leader, and area director.If we are to unlock our mission, we need to know who the God we serve is and we need to know who we are. We are not machines, and God has called us in our full humanity to follow Him with the entirety of who we are. Our emotions are a gift and come from Him. Without understanding properly who He is, we can't understand who we are, and if we can't understand who we are, we can't understand what He has called us to be and do. It's a conversation that delves deep into the heart of God and helps us to fulfill the mission He has for us. Check out the first part of our conversation: #187 David T. Lamb | The Emotions of God, Pt. 1And check episodes that help us understand the Bible better:#26 Randy Richards: Misreading Scripture With Individualist Eyes#77 Michael S. Heiser-Naked Scripture, the Supernatural, and Scared Evangelicals#88 Tremper Longman III, Pt. 1-The Bible You Need Is The One You Read#89 Tremper Longman III, Pt. 2-Scripture, Psalms, and Nourishing Your Soul#101 Esteban Shedd: Creative Communicators Engaging Global Urban Culture#106 Donald Whitney: Praying the Bible#111 John Plake: Scripture Engagement, Trauma, and Transformation in Chaotic Times#150 Kevin Vanhoozer: Scriptural Illiteracy & Secular Imagination, Pt. 1#151 Kevin Vanhoozer: Scriptural Illiteracy & Secular Imagination, Pt. 2Sign up for the Apollos Watered newsletter.God continues to grow our ministry, but He calls people like you to help do it! Support the Ministry of Apollos Watered today!

Jun 27, 2023 • 48min
#187 | The Emotions of God, Pt. 1 | David T. Lamb
Does God get emotional? Does that sound strange? It isn't. We talk about God's emotions all the time. Isn't love an emotion? God is love, but the Bible also says that God hates (Proverbs 6:16-19). That begs the question: does God have other emotions? What are the emotions of God? Is there more than love and hate? Does God get sad? How does God feel compassion? Is God mad at you? Does God ever feel afraid? Surprise? Fear? Is God emotional? What does that mean for us who are made in His image? These are just some of the questions that we walk through in today's episode. Today, welcome Dr. David T. Lamb to the show to discuss his new book, The Emotions of God (IVP, 2022). Dr. Lamb is the MacRae Professor of Old Testament Dean of the Faculty at Misso Seminary in Philadelphia, PA. Dr. Lamb has extensive teaching experience, including cross-cultural projects in Nigeria, Mexico, Kazakhstan, and Russia. He is the author of The Historical Writings: Introducing Israel’s Historical Literature (Fortress, 2016), Prostitutes and Polygamists: A Look at Love, Old Testament Style (Zondervan, 2015), God Behaving Badly: Is the God of the Old Testament Angry, Sexist and Racist? (InterVarsity Press, 2011), Righteous Jehu and His Evil Heirs (Oxford University Press, 2007), The Story of God Commentary 1, 2 Kings (Zondervan). Dr. Lamb worked with InterVarsity Christian Fellowship from 1986-1999, serving as campus staff, team leader, and area director.If we are to unlock our mission, we need to know who the God we serve is and we need to know who we are. We are not machines, and God has called us in our full humanity to follow Him with the entirety of who we are. Our emotions are a gift and come from Him. Without understanding properly who He is, we can't understand who we are, and if we can't understand who we are, we can't understand what He has called us to be and do. It's a conversation that delves deep into the heart of God and helps us to fulfill the mission He has for us. And check episodes that help us understand the Bible better:#26 Randy Richards: Misreading Scripture With Individualist Eyes#77 Michael S. Heiser-Naked Scripture, the Supernatural, and Scared Evangelicals#88 Tremper Longman III, Pt. 1-The Bible You Need Is The One You Read#89 Tremper Longman III, Pt. 2-Scripture, Psalms, and Nourishing Your Soul#101 Esteban Shedd: Creative Communicators Engaging Global Urban Culture#106 Donald Whitney: Praying the Bible#111 John Plake: Scripture Engagement, Trauma, and Transformation in Chaotic Times#150 Kevin Vanhoozer: Scriptural Illiteracy & Secular Imagination, Pt. 1#151 Kevin Vanhoozer: Scriptural Illiteracy & Secular Imagination, Pt. 2Sign up for the Apollos Watered newsletter.God continues to grow our ministry, but He calls people like you to help do it! Support the Ministry of Apollos Watered today!

Jun 23, 2023 • 1h 1min
#186 | The Toxic War on Masculinity, Pt. 2 | Nancy Pearcey
Travis and Nancy continue their conversation on the war on toxic masculinity. They discuss what biblical masculinity is and what it's not, what a "good man" is, the shape of the home, the industrial revolution, and some of the differences the data reveals between men and women. Nancy shows how the Bible gives a vision of masculinity that is actually not toxic, instead, it is healthy, wonderful, and necessary for the success of society.Nancy Pearcey is the author of the upcoming book The Toxic War on Masculinity: How Christianity Reconciles the Sexes. Her most recently published book is Love Thy Body: Answering Hard Questions about Life and Sexuality. Her earlier books include The Soul of Science, Saving Leonardo, Finding Truth, and two ECPA Gold Medallion Award Winners: How Now Shall We Live (coauthored with Harold Fickett and Chuck Colson) and Total Truth. Her books have been translated into 19 languages. She is professor and scholar in residence at Houston Christian University. A former agnostic, Pearcey has spoken at universities such as Princeton, Stanford, USC, and Dartmouth. She has been quoted in The New Yorker and Newsweek, highlighted as one of the five top women apologists by Christianity Today, and hailed in The Economist as "America's pre-eminent evangelical Protestant female intellectual."For anyone who wants data to show them the benefit of Christianity, then listen in as Travis and Nancy discuss this immensely important topic. They talk about many things in the show-L.L. Bean, Nancy's love for the violin, Francis Schaeffer, and so much more. This episode will surely help equip you when you are challenged by the notion that Christian masculinity is toxic. There are many episodes referred to in and after this episode. Here they are for your listening pleasure:#185 Nancy Pearcey | The Toxic War on Masculinity, Pt. 1#78 Nancy Pearcey, Pt. 1-Sex, Self, Splits in Reality, and the Search for Meaning#79 Nancy Pearcey, Pt. 2-Loving the Body, Learning the Language, & Life Change#166 | Christopher Watkin: Biblical Critical Theory, Pt. 1#167 | Christopher Watkin: Biblical Critical Theory, Pt. 2#171 | Malcolm Guite: Transfigure Your Imagination, Pt. 1#172 | Malcolm Guite: Transfigure Your Imagination, Pt. 2#177 | Daniel Strange | Magnetic Points, Pt. 1#178 | Daniel Strange | Magnetic Points, Pt. 2#181 | Karen Swallow Prior | The Evangelical Imagination, Pt. 1#182 | Karen Swallow Prior | The Evangelical Imagination, Pt. 2Sign up for the Apollos Watered newsletter.God continues to grow our ministry, but He calls people like you to help do it! Support the ministry of Apollos Watered today!

Jun 20, 2023 • 57min
#185 | The Toxic War on Masculinity, Pt. 1 | Nancy Pearcey
Two words: Toxic masculinity. It seems to be everywhere, from secular newspapers to Christian bookstores carry articles discussing toxic masculinity and for many the root of it, or one of the biggest culprits anyway, is Christian men. Is Christian masculinity toxic? We know that pundits are saying so, but what about the actual data? And what about the data from those who are not Christians? What does THAT data say? For many, subjects such as masculinity and femininity have become battlegrounds in our culture wars with Christianity in the crosshairs, but is the Christian view of masculinity actually toxic? Nancy Pearcey is back and her newest book challenges many of the secular notions of toxic masculinity. Nancy Pearcey is the author of the upcoming book The Toxic War on Masculinity: How Christianity Reconciles the Sexes. Her most recently published book is Love Thy Body: Answering Hard Questions about Life and Sexuality. Her earlier books include The Soul of Science, Saving Leonardo, Finding Truth, and two ECPA Gold Medallion Award Winners: How Now Shall We Live (coauthored with Harold Fickett and Chuck Colson) and Total Truth. Her books have been translated into 19 languages. She is professor and scholar in residence at Houston Christian University. A former agnostic, Pearcey has spoken at universities such as Princeton, Stanford, USC, and Dartmouth. She has been quoted in The New Yorker and Newsweek, highlighted as one of the five top women apologists by Christianity Today, and hailed in The Economist as "America's pre-eminent evangelical Protestant female intellectual."For anyone who wants data to show them the benefit of Christianity, then listen in as Travis and Nancy discuss this immensely important topic. They talk about many things in the show-L.L. Bean, Nancy's love for the violin, Francis Schaeffer, and so much more. This episode will surely help equip you when you are challenged by the notion that Christian masculinity is toxic. There are many episodes referred to in and after this episode. Here they are for your listening pleasure:#78 Nancy Pearcey, Pt. 1-Sex, Self, Splits in Reality, and the Search for Meaning#79 Nancy Pearcey, Pt. 2-Loving the Body, Learning the Language, & Life Change#166 | Christopher Watkin: Biblical Critical Theory, Pt. 1#167 | Christopher Watkin: Biblical Critical Theory, Pt. 2#171 | Malcolm Guite: Transfigure Your Imagination, Pt. 1#172 | Malcolm Guite: Transfigure Your Imagination, Pt. 2#177 | Daniel Strange | Magnetic Points, Pt. 1#178 | Daniel Strange | Magnetic Points, Pt. 2#181 | Karen Swallow Prior | The Evangelical Imagination, Pt. 1#182 | Karen Swallow Prior | The Evangelical Imagination, Pt. 2Sign up for the Apollos Watered newsletter.God continues to grow our ministry, but He calls people like you to help do it! Support the ministry of Apollos Watered today!

Jun 16, 2023 • 1h
#184 | Once You See: Seven Temptations of the Western Church, Pt. 2 | Jeff Christopherson
In this second part of the conversation, Travis and Jeff discuss the mindset shift needed to embrace God's work in the world today. What is that shift? Can anyone make it? What are the ramifications if we do? They continue their discussion of Jeff's newest book, Once You See: Seven Temptations of the Western Church: A Novel (100 Movements, 2022). Jeff is an author, leader, speaker, missiologist, and movement catalyst. He has served as the Executive Director of the Canadian National Baptist Convention, Executive Director at Church Planting Canada, and Co-Founder and Chief Missiologist at Church Multiplication Institute. Learn more about 100Movements.Check out the NLT.Sign up for the Apollos Watered newsletter.Help water-thirsty souls by partnering with Apollos Watered!

Jun 13, 2023 • 52min
#183 | Once You See: Seven Temptations of the Western Church, Pt. 1 | Jeff Christopherson
What happens when Jesus refugees from the majority world enter into a megachurch in the south? Have you seen God work in churches in the West in similar ways that we hear about in the majority world? Are pastors in the West today more concerned about the Sunday experience and the metrics of growth that they really don't know how to "make disciples"? Jeff Christopherson addresses this and so much more in his newest book, Once You See: Seven Temptations of the Western Church: A Novel (100 Movements, 2022). Jeff is an author, leader, speaker, missiologist, and movement catalyst. He has served as the Executive Director of the Canadian National Baptist Convention, Executive Director at Church Planting Canada, and Co-Founder and Chief Missiologist at Church Multiplication Institute. Travis and Jeff discuss the current state of evangelicalism and how evangelicalism has become stuck in a certain form of ministry built on principles of attraction within a high Christendom culture, but as they show, the culture has shifted and God is doing a new work. What is it? What is it going to look like? Listen in to find out! Learn more about 100Movements.Check out the NLT.Sign up for the Apollos Watered newsletter.Help water-thirsty souls by partnering with Apollos Watered!

Jun 9, 2023 • 1h 3min
#182 | The Evangelical Imagination, Pt. 2 | Karen Swallow Prior
Is the Christian ideal that we aspire to in our lives really Christian? In our families? In what we do pursue? How do we separate the Gospel from the evangelical culture? And what happens when you address these things in our evangelical institutions? This week on Apollos Watered, we finish off our conversation about Karen's forthcoming book, The Evangelical Imagination: How Stories, Images, and Metaphors Created a Culture in Crisis (Brazos 2023). Travis and Karen talk about all things evangelicalism and culture and how they overlap. They also discuss her departure from the Southern Baptist Convention, and her desire for the church in North America going forward. Karen Swallow Prior, Ph. D., is a reader, writer, and professor. In addition to her newest book, she is the author of On Reading Well: Finding the Good Life through Great Books (Brazos 2018); Jane Eyre: A Guide to Reading and Reflecting (B&H 2021), The Scarlet Letter: A Guide to Reading and Reflecting (Read and Reflect with the Classics) (B&H 2022), Frankenstein: A Guide to Reading and Reflecting (B&H 2021), Sense and Sensibility: A Guide to Reading and Reflecting (B&H 2020), Tess of the d'Urbervilles: A Guide to Reading and Reflecting (B&H 2022), Fierce Convictions: The Extraordinary Life of Hannah More—Poet, Reformer, Abolitionist (Thomas Nelson, 2014); and Booked: Literature in the Soul of Me (T. S. Poetry Press, 2012). She is co-editor of Cultural Engagement: A Crash Course in Contemporary Issues (Zondervan 2019) and has contributed to numerous other books. She has a monthly column for Religion News Service. Her writing has appeared at Christianity Today, New York Times, The Atlantic, The Washington Post, First Things, Vox, Think Christian, The Gospel Coalition, and various other places. She hosted the podcast Jane and Jesus. Karen gives frequent lectures and talks on her work. Among the places she has spoken are Wheaton College, University of Minnesota, Indiana Wesleyan University, Northwestern University, Grace College, Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary, The Gospel Coalition Conference, Redeemer University College, Toronto Baptist Seminary, United Theological Seminary, Festival of Faith and Writing, Baptist General Convention of Oklahoma’s Women’s Conference, Roanoke Regional Writers Conference, The Row House Forum, Q Boston, the Glen Workshop, and the Humane Society of the United States.She completed her Ph.D. at the State University of New York at Buffalo and her undergraduate studies at Daemen College in Amherst, New York. Her academic focus is British literature, with a specialty in the eighteenth century, a period she loves for its emphasis on philosophy, ethics, aesthetics, and community, as well as its efforts at correcting the universal human impulse to gravitate toward extremes. Her scholarly work has appeared in 1650-1850: Ideas, Aesthetics, and Inquiries in the Early Modern Era; The Shandean; The Scriblerian and various literary encyclopedias.She is a contributing editor for Comment (an online magazine we love), a founding member of The Pelican Project, a Senior Fellow at the Trinity Forum, a Senior Fellow at the International Alliance for Christian Education, a former Senior Fellow at the L. Russ Bush Center for Faith and Culture and is a former member of the Faith Advisory Council of the Humane Society of the United States. She and her husband live on a 100-year old homestead in central Virginia with dogs, chickens, and lots of books.Check out our other conversations on the imagination and how evangelicalism has developed and how it has shaped our imagination and how we live. #181: Karen Swallow Prior | The Evangelical Imagination, Pt. 1#114 J.D. Payne: Rediscovering The Apostolic Imagination#154 David Bebbington The Dominance of Evangelicalism, Pt. 1#155 David Bebbington The Dominance of Evangelicalism, Pt. 2#158 Mark Noll | What's An Evangelical? | It's Complicated, Pt. 1#159 Mark Noll | What's An Evangelical? | It's Complicated, Pt. 2#171 | Malcolm Guite: Transfigure Your Imagination, Pt. 1#172 | Malcolm Guite: Transfigure Your Imagination, Pt. 2Check out the NLT.Sign up for the Apollos Watered newsletter.Help water-thirsty souls by partnering with Apollos Watered!