Inspired Human Podcast

Dr. A.J. Swoboda is the Lead Pastor of Faith Center in Eugene, Oregon, a theologian, and the author of more than a dozen books. He co-hosts the Slow Theology podcast with Nijay K. Gupta and writes the Low-Level Theologian Substack, where he reflects on theology, discipleship, and the Christian life. His recent books include Slow Theology (with Nijay K. Gupta), A Teachable Spirit , The Gift of Thor...

Today we have Dr. David Gill! Dr. Gill is a writer and teacher specializing in Christian ethics.  He retired from Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary in Boston MA where he served (2010-16) as Mockler-Phillips Professor of Workplace Theology & Business Ethics and Director of the Mockler Center for Faith & Ethics.  Prior to that he served six years as Professor of Business Ethics on the MBA faculty...

Today we welcome Pastor Michael Carlson . Michael is a close friend who has unique perspective and deep insight into both the fun and struggles of being adoptive parents. We also plunge the depths of his mind to hear how he thinks about the role of Pastor…how it’s different than therapist and how church is itself a unique place in the Kingdom. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss...

Dr. Farr Curlin holds dual academic appointments to both Duke University and Duke Divinity School. Dr. Curlin is a hospice and palliative care physician who joined Duke University in January 2014 where he holds joint appointments in the School of Medicine, including its Trent Center for Bioethics, Humanities & History of Medicine, and in Duke Divinity School, including its Initiative on Theology,...

Dr. David Wilhite is from Columbus, Georgia. He has served on the pastoral staff of two churches in Birmingham, Alabama, and he is frequently invited to speak, supply preach, and help as interim pastor for various churches. After living and studying in Scotland at the University of St. Andrews, he taught for two years at Seattle Pacific University. He came to Truett in the Fall of 2007, where he t...

We welcome a wonderful man and scholar, the one and only J. Warren Smith! Dr. Smith is Professor of Historical Theology at Duke Divinity School, where he teaches courses on early Christianity and the development of Christian doctrine. His scholarship focuses especially on the theology of the early church, with particular attention to figures like Irenaeus of Lyons. Smith is known for his engaging...

Welcome to the Inspired Human Podcast! Today we’ve got the one and only Dr. Andrew Root. Andy is a friend. He’s a prolific author. If you have never read his Ministry in the Secular Age book series, you have to stop what you’re doing right now and start reading. Most recently, Andy wrote a book with his wife, Kara, called Pilgrimage into Letting Go: Helping Parents and Pastors Embrace the Uncontro...

Inspired Human Podcast, Season 4, episode 2. Welcome Frank Shirvinski! Frank and Nick are co-authoring a book for Purpose Press with an expected publication date of late 2026 or early 2027. Frank is quite literally a jack of all trades (who has mastered them all). He is a full time aerospace engineer, Christian minister, and co-founder of Purpose Press with his daughter Abigail. Purpose Press is a...

Thanks for reading Inspired Human Substack! This post is public so feel free to share it. Welcome to Season 4 of the Inspired Human Podcast. This season is all about interviews with Christian thinkers and Christian pastors. We welcome Dr. Hans Boersma ! Why did we interview him? * We respect him. He’s a wonderful priest and pastor and a brilliant scholar. * His books on the Beatific Vision and his...

Friends! This is it. The final episode of Season 3. Let's call it an Epilogue, but it's really a conclusion with a ton of "what do we do now" kind of stuff.  It's a wrap-up, so in many ways, it could have made a great intro episode as well. Whether this is the first episode you've heard, or the final one of the season... enjoy! ///////// Throughout this season, we  wa...

Season 3, episode 8: "Parenting in the You Do You Era." This episode is our attempt at re-focusing parenting on raising disciples of Jesus. To that end, we draw from parenting "fails" that stem from the junk values of the YDYE, and ultimately encourage Christian parents to help their children see themselves in God's story. Helping our kids see themselves in God's stor...

Season 3, episode 7: "Love and Marriage in the You Do You Era." When relationships are simply an additional tool for you to be "your best self" or to find who you are...then you know you're living in the You do You Era. Today we chat about how love, and marriage itself, has been influenced by the junk values of the YDYE. But, we don't just whine and complain. We also...

Season 3, episode 6: "Technology is Forming You and Failing to Transform You." Your phone is not a tool.  It is not neutral. Your phone is a cash-cow device designed to get you to pick it up, use it,  never put it down, and in the process, make other people lots and lots of money. Friends , we are being formed by an algorithm, created by neuroscientists and computer programmers in Califo...

Season 3, episode 5: " Depression thrives on the You Do You Era's narrative ." Humans have never had more access to self help media and mental health drugs than right now.  And yet, depression and anxiety are the hallmark pathologies of the You Do You Era.  All the statistics show the same thing: We're more depressed, more anxious, and less happy, even though we have more creat...

Season 3, episode 4: "The World has Lost its Enchantment." Key to the You Do You Era's self-focused ideas for what it means to be a human is this: The world is disenchanted; everything has a natural explanation; God is cool and all, but he can't be involved in the world and in our lives because it sounds dumb to say it out loud. How do we talk about God in light of scientific d...

Season 3, episode 3: " How the Concept of Faith has been Distorted and Makes us More Selfish. " Friends! Faith is a private matter, and God just wants you to do what feels good, be the best version of yourself, and be a good dude, as long as you aren't hurting anyone.  Right?  These are the claims about FAITH that the You Do You Era preaches. And these claims are shallow, unfulfilli...

Season 3, episode 2: " Seeing Yourself in God's Story ... not the other way around ." Friends: To be fully human is to be authentic to yourself and your inner voice above all others...That's the mantra of the You Do You Era.  But, this way of being human overpromises (that you'll be happy and whole!), and it under delivers (we end up unfulfilled). One way we attempt to bre...

Following Jesus in the You Do You Era . Season 3 is here! Be true to yourself... Follow your heart... Be authentic to yourself... Live your best life... You are the captain of your fate... Chart your own path... Walk your own way... Live your life for yourself... Friends-  Welcome to the You Do You Era : Where listening to your own voice above all others, and expressing yourself in whatever way yo...

Nick and Dairus team up to talk about "When Things in Life Just Don't Work out."  - When you move the chess pieces of your life the right way, but you still don't get the job or assignment or position. - When you marry the right person and have a great family, but you still find yourself lonely and tired and wondering if life is supposed to feel this way. - When you find out th...

Welcome to Dr. Matthew Sleeth! Dr. Sleeth: - Former ER physician and Chief of Medical Staff. - Resigned to teach about faith and health. - His uncle wrote a book with J.R.R. Tolkein!! - His first religion was the American Dream. - Then, after embracing Christian faith, he and his family sold their huge house and moved to a place the same size as their old garage and started a new life. Dairus talk...

Dairus sits down with John Garland, pastor in San Antonio, TX. John has spent his entire career in ministry serving in places with extreme poverty and suffering, notably along the southern border. They talk about: - Suffering as a pit. - The Gospel as a path. - Using the Psalms in your prayers. - The difference between trauma management and stress management.  - Why and how Christianity has transf...

Hello friends! Nick sits down with senior chaplain for U.S. Special Operations Command, Dave Bowlus. He and I reflect on the low points and high points of his ministry over the last 20 years, and chat about how families might “keep the wheels on the bus” in the midst of military life.  As a reminder: The views expressed in this podcast are those of the speaker(s), and do not necessarily represent...

Dairus sits down with 3x CrossFit Games athlete, former Army Officer, former West Point collegiate wrestler, and all-round INCREDIBLE human being, Chandler Smith. We chat about set backs...how they surprise us, and  how an active reflective practice combined with a trustworthy circle of like-minded friends is the pathway through the pain. Did we mention how much we love Chandler Smith yet?  This i...

Welcome Mike Sanders, former Strength and Conditioning coach at the University of Denver, and current Human Performance Coach for U.S. Special Operations Forces.   Mike's an OG. He's been around. I absolutely love his wisdom, probably even more than his feats of strength. We chat about human potential, that feeling we get after accomplishing something great and assuming it was going to d...

“Behind every act of valor, there is love.”  Dairus talks with award winning documentary producer Justin Roberts. While serving in Afghanistan as an Army Chaplain in the 101st Airborne Division’s “NO SLACK” battalion, Justin armed his Soldiers with Go Pro cameras. He wanted to capture their experiences. But the war was far more intense than he imagined it would be. And their experiences needed to...