What our technology “wants” – Kevin Kelly
Oct 21, 2017
Show notes
We live in an age of innovation, and a debate is raging about whether technology is improving our lives or making them worse. But Kevin Kelly, co-founder of Wired Magazine, says we’re not asking the right questions. He believes we need to find out what technology is really after. Can technology be a force for the greater good, and if so, how do we thoughtfully engage new inventions? Kevin will attempt to construct a radically fresh answer to one of culture’s nagging questions.
Pursuing spiritual formation in our approval-driven age – Banning Liebscher & Rebekah Lyons
Oct 14, 2017
Show notes
Embracing the supernatural - Banning Liebscher / Jesus Culture
As we gather with other city, church, and cultural leaders, we desire for transformation to come to those around us and the places we occupy. But what role do we really play in those results? How does God’s power intersect with our passion? In our information-saturated, result-oriented world, we are tempted to put our faith in our own clever strategies more than God’s unfolding plans. Banning Liebscher, founder of Jesus Culture, helps us learn how to expect the unexpected.
Audience of One - Rebekah Lyons / Q Ideas
When have you felt moments of freedom in your life? Most of us glimpse this freedom less and less as we pursue other endeavors: achievement, career, family, or success. Author Rebekah Lyons reminds us that God has created us — at the core of who we are — to be someone unique and beautiful, and free. Through sharing her own story and search for freedom, Rebekah will encourage us to uncover who we already are: free in Christ and deeply loved.
How the Gospel informs our everyday lives – Paul Williams and Terry Timm
Oct 07, 2017
Show notes
Our lives are increasingly complex and so is our modern world. As a result, Christians often struggle to connect what they believe with what they do day by day. Paul Williams and Terry Timm share their vision for how ReFrame provides a Biblical foundation for how God is renewing all of creation. How does our story and day to day life fit into God's story? Learn how Christians can better connect faith with all of life.
Hope for the broken heart of man – Jason Pamer
Sep 30, 2017
Show notes
Listen in as Gabe Lyons shares a conversation with Jason Pamer, filmmaker, producer and writer of the upcoming film, The Heart of Man, releasing in theaters for a one-night only encore special event on October 17.
The Heart of Man is a story inviting the sons and daughters of God to leave behind our broken, moralistic and religious way of thinking and relating to God and to others. Once we begin to know who God is (and as a result who we are), we have something to invite the world into. Freedom from performance. Freedom from managing our behavior so we appear acceptable to God. Freedom from our addictions, compulsive behaviors, secrecy and double lives. This film tears the veil of confusion over the church's current identity crisis and enables it to invite the rest of the world to the banquet God is throwing all of us.
Does religion contribute to society? The Halo Effect – Brian Grim, Byron Johnson, and Rick McKinley
Sep 23, 2017
Show notes
Forty-six percent of Americans believe religion is part of the problem in our society. Yet faith is the motivation for many of the critical social services and programs that benefit the most vulnerable populations. Congregations, faith-based businesses, and charities lift people up in times of need in ways that few other institutions or government programs can. In this conversation, you will see the important role faith-based organizations play in renewing civil society.
Also, what would it look like for a church to not only release its people into the world to fulfill their mission but to come beside them to enable their dreams? In Portland, one of the most progressive and unchurched cities in America, Imago Dei has learned how to empower their people to do more than show up on Sunday mornings. They train them to become restorers. Learn from Pastor Rick McKinley the principles that have made his community a beacon of light in the midst of a fog of disbelief.
Managing technology – Andy Crouch
Sep 16, 2017
Show notes
Over half of children think their parents check their phone too often, with a quarter of parents agreeing they want to look at their devices less. Yet it's difficult to pry ourselves away from technology, so social media is in large part making us less social. Andy Crouch reflects on these issues in his forthcoming book, The Techwise Family, and will help us think through utilizing tech in a way that contributes to relationships instead of taking away from them.
Restoring the justice system – Bryan Stevenson
Sep 09, 2017
Show notes
Much of what's happening in the American justice system remains overlooked. America boasts the highest rate of incarceration in the world, but even more alarming are the system’s endemic injustices. Minority communities are far more afflicted by the justice system, a reality that affects the psyches of the children who grow up in them. Additionally, our system treats you much better if you’re rich and guilty than if you are poor and innocent. Bryan Stevenson believes these realities are fundamentally changing our world, and he’s devoted his life’s work to finding solutions.
Having the helpful conversation on race and reconciliation – part 2
Aug 26, 2017
Show notes
"Implicit Racial Bias" refers to subconscious preferences for members of our own group. This silent and subtle tendency to "otherize" has loud and lasting effects, from perpetuating racial prejudices inside society to reinforcing personal hidden biases.
Having the helpful conversation on race and reconciliation – part 1
Aug 19, 2017
Show notes
"Implicit Racial Bias" refers to subconscious preferences for members of our own group. This silent and subtle tendency to "otherize" has loud and lasting effects, from perpetuating racial prejudices inside society to reinforcing personal hidden biases.
The future of discipleship – Ed Stetzer
Aug 12, 2017
Show notes
The very last words of Jesus in the Gospel of Matthew are summed up in The Great Commission, a call for the Church to make disciples. Yet the Church has approached this process in different ways throughout history. How are today’s Christians carrying out the Great Commission, and what are the unique challenges to disciple-making in the 21st Century? Ed Stetzer presents new research on this topic as he paints a portrait of the future of discipleship.