The Stoop Sessions

Paul instructs Titus to train up the older women to instruct the younger women. In some church circles, the man’s role in the home and church is devalued through a lack of emphasis on the man. This is also seen in the context where men are often absent from the church and home. On the flip side, many churches, often in our own theological circles, have placed an emphasis on training men to the deg...

When Christians devour one another, the Holy Spirit is grieved. This undercuts our power in ministry. In this episode, we sit down with Kevin Smith and discuss divisiveness and unity in the church today. The church’s divisions reflect the divisions of the world. Kevin Smith is the former Executive Director for the Baptist Convention of Maryland/Delaware, professor at Southern Seminary, and now tra...

“Discover your destiny.” “Find your purpose." We live in a world which has turned “purpose” into some mysterious secret you need to figure out. It grips many in our context. And it, strangely enough, gets tied up with our pride and the flesh. In a culture so obsessed with being seen as exceptional, driven to discover your purpose, the pressure to fulfill some yet unknown destiny becomes paralyzing...

Stephanie begins this episode by asking Eric: “How do you feel about middle class congregants in an inner city church?” Listen as Joel, Stephanie, and Joel chat about the challenges and benefits of having middle class folks in a low-income church context. We discuss the issue of those who grew up on the context, achieve a middle class income, and want to leave. This presents unique challenges. We...

How did Joel, who is white, end up pastoring in a predominantly black neighborhood in Baltimore? Is that a good idea? Should church planters be looking to put roots down in a neighborhood within, or apart from, their own ethnic culture? In this episode, Eric asks the question, “Can we talk about the fact that Joel is white?” From that point, the stoop discussion takes place on this question, askin...

Private school? Christian school? Homeschool? We continue our discussion on schooling in the inner city. In our last episode, Joel and Eric made a case for why they have chosen to send their kids to Baltimore City Public Schools. In this episode, the Stoop crew calls a few friends who have taken a different approach. First, we chat with T.C. Taylor who also sends his kids to public school. Then we...

Public school? We’re there. Eric and Joel have always sent their kids to the Baltimore City Public Schools. One of the most common questions we receive from outsiders is: “What do you do about schooling for your kids?” We’re surprised that people are so often…surprised…when we answer, “Public schools.” While we’ve learned to navigate the school system, we’re open-handed on this issue. Should educa...

Does theology matter in urban ministry? Most definitely. Healthy ministry in tough places isn’t driven by good programming, it’s driven by good theology. As we kick off year two, we want to focus on the topic of justification by faith. How can a sinner be right with God? Is it really by faith alone? The answer is more crucial than any other question we could ask ourselves. Yet we are prone to atta...

Welcome back to the Stoop Sessions. One year ago, Eric, Stephanie, and Joel began hosting conversations on the stoop. Year two begins today. We took the summer off while Stephanie had a baby, while neighborhood kids took over Joel's office, and while Eric went on bike rides. But we're back! Listen to this brief episode as the crew talks about what's been going on and what's coming up. Welcome back...

Listen to this chat on the stoop with T.C. Taylor. T.C. pastors a church in Indianapolis which is ethnically and economically diverse. If the gospel is not exclusive to any race or class, should all churches be diverse reflecting that diversity? T.C. shares thoughts on diversity and dignity; how to be “boots on the ground” in your own community, and the importance of being grounded in a local chur...

Listen to this conversation with Joseph Dicks, church planting catalyst for North American Mission Board in Washington DC,, on the necessity of discipleship and a holistic view. The gospel not just on Sunday mornings, but the framework for every aspect of your life. Joseph shares his experience of growing up in church, scared into baptism and knowing what to say “yes” to, but without the freedom t...

Alejandro Molero pastors Iglesia Bíblica Sublime Gracia, a Spanish speaking church in the Washington D.C. neighborhood of Colombia Heights. Alejandro shares how God shepherded him from his Catholic upbringing in Venezuela to becoming a full-time pastor in the States. Listen in as Stephanie, Joel, and Eric discuss with Alejandro the challenges of ministry among undocumented and illegal immigrants....

In continuation of last week’s episode, director of the Edmiston Center in Atlanta, Karen Ellis, shares ways Christians are to be a completely different community to the world, belonging to a God who renders diverse people as the same by the blood of Christ. Stephanie, Eric, and Joel chat with Karen regarding her concerns for the current church in America. If it’s not about Christian nationalism,...

Born in Baltimore, Karen Ellis’ love for theater took her from Broadway to places throughout the U.S. and internationally. Although her experience growing up included directing church choirs, it was not until she studied at Yale that she came to know Christ as her Savior. Today, she is the director of The Edmiston Center in Atlanta, devoted to studying the priorities, presence, and practices of Ch...

Can we ever be content? From childhood to adulthood, nothing is ever enough. We believe that we will be content if we receive. And then we receive, only to discover continued discontentment. Christians are not exempt from this problem. Pastors and ministry leaders can be driven by a lust for more. Church members are often discontent with the state of their church and the maturity of other members....

This episode features brief talks which were shared at our Intentional Living Workshop. Listen to Sharon Dickens of Niddrie Community Church and 20Schemes in Scotland, Malcom Griswold of Reformation Church in Detroit, Jamie Dunlop of Capitol Hill Baptist Church in Washington DC, and Alton Haynes of The Garden Church in Baltimore. These four come from different backgrounds and cultures, yet each of...

The church is weakened when its mission is unclear. Is the mission of the church simply to make disciples? Or is it also expanding or ushering in God’s kingdom? How does community transformation relate to our mission? Is it the church’s mission to paint every fence and feed every belly? If not, should the church do these things anyway? It is easy to confuse the church’s mission, and start acting a...

Is seeing community change a good thing? Absolutely. Can “Change the Community” become a false gospel. Absolutely. While “Transform the Community” is a tag used by many non-profits, churches, and developers alike, is that the “good news” of the church? Is bettering the community be the mission of the church? Is a blighted, unchanged community a sign that the church is not loving their neighbors? H...

“Cut off toxic people” is another false gospel that has made its way from the community to the pulpit. “Cut ‘em off” is the belief that life would be better without toxic Individuals. If only one can separate himself from them, life would have no conflict. Therefore, “cut off” the people who don’t tell you what you want to hear. In this episode, Stephanie, Joel, and Eric explain that it’s right to...

This week’s episode looks at another common excuse used to reject the gospel: God knows my heart. Many cling to the belief that salvation can be found in having good intentions, in being “less wicked” than your neighbor, in the hope that good deeds will outweigh the bad. God does know our heart, but do we? Are we autonomous and good intentioned, or actually in bondage to sin? To recognize our guil...

“I’ve gotta get myself together,” is a refrain which aptly marks our present culture. It can be a point of pride, and a stumbling block for any who believe they have to “arrive” before meeting to Jesus. Must we reach a certain standard, accomplished by their own power, before coming to God? We think outward to appearances, when change can only come through the inward work of Christ. And while “I g...

Even professing Christians can find themselves confused by distortions of the gospel. The exclusivity of only one way feels abrasive, against the belief that all ways lead to salvation, without sacrifice. Eric, Joel, and Stephanie discuss why the Gospel of the Bible is singular, what the Gospel is, and how we are to receive it. Do we earn God’s favor through being good people? By good deeds? Are t...

Brian and Dawn Sessions were both raised in Baltimore and in the church, but seeing the beauty of reconciliation through the gospel did not come immediately. God used their love of the arts to help them find their identity in Christ, and now they use the arts as an avenue through which they can share that same hope with youth in Baltimore. Their lives are not separate from their ministry, but shar...

Joining today’s episode is a member of The Garden Church, Kesia Lewis, who grew up on the east side of Baltimore. Although a close-knit community, it was also punctuated by trauma. The grief she lived through, including the loss of her fiancé and teenage brother in a car accident, has allowed her to speak into the lives of kids today, through her work with Baltimore’s Parks and Rec. Even when she...