Compass Podcast: Finding the spirituality in the day-to-day

We’re revisiting a conversation with Kaitlin Curtice. We talked with Kaitlin back in 2018. She is an award-winning author, poet-storyteller, and public speaker. Kaitlin presents on the intersections of spirituality and identity and how that shifts throughout our lives. In this episode we really focused on how she uses everyday moments as instances of awareness … Continue reading "Relisten: F...

This is the June/early July 2022 edition of the Rethink Church audiomagazine presented on the Compass podcast. Throughout June of 2022, our content focused on being Spirit-filled. What does that mean? Well, we have some great posts about encountering and moving with the Holy Spirit. In this edition of the audiomag, we’ll hear: “Pigeons, boundaries … Continue reading "Spirit-filled: Rethink C...

We’ll be back with some deep topics in August: How do sit with being Christian when we don’t agree with everything being done in the name of Christianity? Whether or not there’s a reason for our hardship in our lives. The sacred represented in the natural world. And more, of course!

This was a conversation with Kate Bowler, who, at the time of original recording, was a well-regarded but not-so well-known college professor and author. She was on the verge of releasing a book called “Everything Happens for a Reason and Other Lies I’ve Loved…” which then blew up. The book came out of Kate’s cancer … Continue reading "Relisten: Does everything happen for a reason?"

Deep in the media vaults of the United Methodist denomination are old radio shows all about UFOs and extraterrestrial life. It would seem odd that a religious organization would be so invested in that topic. Meanwhile, NASA has funded theological projects and several faith leaders have invested in the astro-sciences. What is going on? Do … Continue reading "85: Do UFOs and extraterrestrials...

This episode is a re-presentation of one of our first Compass podcast episodes and it’s about our personal roles in the proliferation of racism and racial reconciliation. Despite the fact that the material presented in this episode by Rev. Brian Tillman is several years old, it’s still right on point and still really needed.

Throughout May of 2022, our content focused on connection. And we have some great posts about how we are connected in community and how we can build stronger connections–both internally and externally. In this edition of the audiomag, we’ll hear: “The Way of Righteousness and grace in the Star Wars universe” by Ryan Dunn: https://www.umc.org/en/content/righteousness-and-star-wars … Continue...

We’re talking with Lisa Colon DeLay in this episode about her journey of physical and spiritual integration. It’s a journey where she discovered that we are dualistic beings who are part spiritual and part material. We’re both/and. And recognizing that opens us up to utilizing spiritual practices that impact our physical states as well as … Continue reading "83: Integrating the physical and...

Ready to tackle a couple tough ideas? In this episode of Compass, Rev. Dr. Mark Teasdale helps us adopt a healthy understand of the Christian ideas of evangelism and salvation. Mark Teasdale is E. Stanley Jones Professor of Evangelism at Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary in Evanston, Illinois. He is ordained in the United Methodist Church, and … Continue reading "Holistic evangelism a...

Throughout April of 2022, our content focused on seeking after Jesus. And we have some great posts about some teachings of Jesus that challenge us and nurture us. In this edition of the audiomag, we’ll hear: “Christian judgement and the blessing of grace” by Joseph Yoo “Batman, Easter and rebirth” by Nathan Webb “Three teachings … Continue reading "Rethink Church audiomagazine for April 2022...

You have gifts and you are a gift to the world around you. Don Everts is a pastor who had a startling realization while dealing with the ups and downs of pastoral and personal life: everyone is a gift. Including that vocal parishioner. Including that strange relative. Including himself. Including you, too. Don is the … Continue reading "You have gifts and you are a gift"

All of us encounter anxiety. Current cultural conditions have feelings of anxiety on the rise–and for many anxiety is not a fleeting feeling. It sticks with us and locks us into a spiral of depression, shame, and mental paralysis. Rev. Jason Cusick provides a practical and pastoral approach to navigating anxiety. As he shares his … Continue reading "Disrupting your anxiety through spiritual...

In this edition, we present the latest stories from the Rethink Church website and one of our most-read articles from years past. Throughout March of 2022, our content focused on faithfulness. And we have some great posts about what faithfulness looks like in this new age and how we personally nurture our own faith. In … Continue reading "Faithfulness: Rethink Church audiomagazine for March...

This Compass episode explores how Lent leads us into a deeper spiritual connection. Pierce Drake and Ryan Dunn discuss the meaning of Lent and how this special season in the Christian year moves us to seek a spiritual-centeredness through discipline and practice.

Did you know that there are daily practices you can utilize to seemingly slow down the pace of life, center yourself and cause some Divine disruptions in your perception? AJ helps us see that contemplative prayer is for everyone, no matter where you are in your spiritual journey. If you’re breathing, you’re capable of contemplative … Continue reading "Powerful peace and contemplative prayer...

This is the February 2022 edition of the Rethink Church audiomagazine presented on the Compass podcast. Throughout February of 2022, our content focused on commitment. And we have some great posts about what commitment looks like in this new age and how we personally nurture our own feelings of commitment. In this edition of the … Continue reading "Commitment: Rethink Church audiomagazine Fe...

The words we use matter. Words are both a reflection of what we feel inside and a means for influencing our own states of mind. Jonathan Merritt helps us understand how an inability to “speak God” might lead us to feel far from God. He also reveals how utilizing the language of faith influences our mindsets and … Continue reading "Unleashing the power of words with Jonathan Merritt"

In January of 2022, we’ve focused on resilience. And we have some great posts about how you can keep on keeping on through 2022 (and beyond… as these ideas are not bound by this particular place in time). In this episode we’ll hear: “How faith builds your resilience skills” by Ryan Dunn. “Learning resilience in … Continue reading "Resilience: Rethink Church AudioMag January 2022"

We’ve taken several of the most-read articles from the Rethink Church page (www.umc.org/rethinkchurch) and brought them to you in audio form, so you can now get tips on spiritual practices, ideas on social justice interventions, and perspectives on healthy living wherever you listen. In this initial edition of the Rethink Church AudioMag: “5 ways to … Continue reading "Rethink Church AudioMa...

It’s year-end reflection time! Hosts Ryan Dunn and Pierce Drake review the moments they felt like God “showed up” in 2021. How did you see God showing up in your midst?

Amy Julia Becker is helping us disrupt the cycles of division in our society. Overcoming systems of injustice feels overwhelming for one single person, we don’t feel like our efforts could make a difference. Amy Julia shares her experience with those doubts and committing to justice anyways. Amy Julia Becker is an award-winning writer and … Continue reading "Healing our divides with Amy Juli...

It’s easy to exist in an echo chamber these days. But the holidays, and Jesus’ story, remind us that beloved community neither begins nor exists in spaces where everyone else is just like us. Beloved community begins when we are intentional about participating in settings where we may not have much in common with some … Continue reading "Who is at your table?"

Jacqui Lewis shares how a fierce love that starts with loving ourselves well will change the world. We are fully who we are–fully human–when we realize that we belong to each other. Everyone’s success depends on everyone’s success. So we are called to love one another as we love ourselves. Rev. Dr. Jacqui Lewis is … Continue reading "Bonus: Fierce Love with Rev. Dr. Jacqui Lewis"

We all have questions about faith. Sometimes those questions are so burning that they start a proverbial fire that threatens to burn our whole system of belief down. Brian Zahnd joins the podcast to share about the ways God is revealed through both the fire and the daily workings of life. Brian Zahnd is the … Continue reading "Reconstructing burned out faith with Brian Zahnd"

What is God doing when bad things happen? In this episode, we discuss this question and the place of hope in the midst of our messy lives with Bishop Jake Owensby. Hope is not merely wishful thinking. Hope digs deeper and moves us in a way that wishful thinking cannot. There is hope because we … Continue reading "Hope when life gets messy with Jake Owensby"