I read dissertations as part of my job, and so I regularly encounter language about God that is filled with theological abstractions and lofty speech. It’s painful. But the problem isn’t just with dissertations. I’m noticing similar tendencies these days in sermons, blogs, podcasts, and church...
Program Staff Jennifer Watley Maxell and Amy Valdez Barker speak with the Rev. Dr. Danielle Buhuro (Sankofa CPE) about the difference between hurt and trauma, the importance of clinical pastoral education, and what the Japanese practice of Ikigai can teach us about differentiating our call/s...
Given the complexities and challenges facing faith communities, it is understandable that pastors and lay leaders look for a magic key that will open a clear path to the future. The temptations around this are legion. The expanding job descriptions for clergy, especially post-pandemic, make...
Program Staff Amy Valdez Barker and Jennifer Watley Maxell speak with the Rev. Matthew Watley (Kingdom Global, Calverton, MD; TKN Leadership Summit) about doing ministry at a high level, the challenge and barrier of pleasing stakeholders, and the gift of rising to meet the crisis....
"For now we see only a reflection, as in a mirror, but then we will see face to face. Now I know only in part; then I will know fully, even as I have been fully known." - 1 Corinthians 13:12 Picasso's famous “The Old Guitarist”...
Program Staff Jennifer Watley Maxell and Amy Valdez Barker speak with Rev. Dustin Mailman (Deep Time, Asheville) about the power of ministry through social enterprise, his own call to working alongside folks impacted by incarceration, and Deep Time's approach to ministry - including their coffee...
In a 1961 radio interview, writer and civil rights activist, James Baldwin famously explained, “To be a Negro in this country and to be relatively conscious, is to be in a state of rage almost all of the time… It isn't only what is happening...
Program Staff Jennifer Watley Maxell and Amy Valdez Barker speak with Dr. Thema Bryant about the importance of intergenerational coalitions for wisdom and innovative courage; the need for people of faith to offer continuity of care; and her upcoming book on healing, Matters of the...
Program Staff Adam Mixon and Amy Valdez Barker speak with Kathi Vodenicker and Adrienne Mixon (Better Days Counseling) about what the church gets right - and wrong - about mental health, the difference between healing and wholeness, and what Jesus offers us by sharing his...