Lead Defend

In the last episode of season 3, the guys sit down with J. Warner Wallace from the Lead Defend 2022 Conference. You might recognize Wallace as this isn’t the first time he’s been at Lead Defend! Wallace is a cold-case detective, and you might’ve seen him on Dateline. He’s a national speaker and best-selling author. The guys chat with him about finding the truth, marriage, and life in the Christian...

In this episode, Ryan and Brock talk with Brett and Erin Kunkle of MAVEN. They were speakers at this year’s Lead Defend Foundations Conference MAVEN was created by Brett and Erin to help equip and mobilize youth and beyond to share the Gospel in a broken world. The guys talk to them about their mission, what they’ve seen through it and how it came to be.   You can check out and connect with MAVEN...

In this episode, Brock sits down with one of Lead Defend Foundation speakers, Kolby King. Along with his wife, Mary Beth, the King’s created ThreeThirty Ministries . They travel to churches, camps, youth groups, etc. sharing the Gospel in fun and unique ways like ventriloquism, fire-eating, balloon animals, drama, humor, stunts and more. Brock and King talk about rooting yourself in the truth, how...

As we continue our series of hearing from Lead Defend 2022 Conference speakers, Ryan sat down with Jamar Andrews, pastor at Word Baptist Church in Jonesboro, Arkansas. Andrews led a session on how to defend your faith with scripture and led students through an exercise where he pretended to be an atheist or non-believer and challenged students on how to answer his questions and defend their faith....

In our first episode live from the Lead Defend 2022 Conference, Ryan sat down with Rhyne Putman to talk about this new “fade” of Deconstructing Christianity. He led a session at Lead Defend this year on this very topic, and the dynamics behind the reason people are going towards this new trend - and how we can deflect from it. Putman is the Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs, Director o...

In another live episode from the Evangelism conference in January, Brock and Ryan sat down with National NextGen Director at the North American Mission Board, Shane Pruitt.  Shane loves Gen Z and shares his heart for how God will use them. They also talk about his time touring with Winter Jam, how we're called to ministry/missions right now, not just the future, how to share the Gospel better and...

In this episode of Lead > Defend, we recorded a couple of live shows at this year's ECON (Evangelism Conference) held in Little Rock with the Arkansas Baptist State Convention.  Ryan and Brock sat down with Dithson Noel, who works with the International Mission Board (IMB) and the Go2 Initiative. They talk about that work, plus dive into why it's important for college students to consider doing...

In the last live recorded show from the Arkansas Baptist State Convention in October, Ryan and Brock sit down with Warren Gasaway, Student Ministry Specialist on the Church Health team at the ABSC.  They start chatting about Warren's time at the 1994 Razorback Championship game, something most of us have only heard about, and then wander into how parent/child relationships change over time as they...

As we continue with our live recorded shows from the Arkansas Baptist State Convention in October, the guys sat down with University of Arkansas student, Matt Sparks.  Sparks didn't take the traditional route of going from high school to a big, 4-year university. Instead, he took a detour and did a few years at the community college before transitioning to a bigger school. It's a non-traditional r...

Welcome back to the Lead Defend Podcast! We hope you had a great Christmas/New Year's break, but we're hitting the ground running with new episodes here in 2022.  Back in 2021, Ryan and Brock recorded a couple of Live Shows at the Arkansas Baptist State Convention on October 25-26. In this very first one, they sat down with Chris Roller, Student Pastor at First Baptist Church, Rogers, and Brock's...

In this week’s episode of Lead Defend, we talk to Nick Hobbs. Nick is the Chief Operating Officer at JB Hunt and has worked for the company for a total of 37 years! Nick discusses his personal story on how he got to where he is now and his leadership experience. He gives advice on leadership and how we can grow as leaders, wherever we are and whatever position we find ourselves in. To watch the vi...

In this episode of Season 3, Ryan and Brock sit down with Sam Bierig at Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. Sam serves as serves as the Vice President of Undergraduate Studies, Dean of Spurgeon College, and Assistant Professor of Biblical Studies at Spurgeon College.  They chat about leadership and Sam’s journey to becoming an important leader at Midwestern. Discussing ways he has been called...

In this week’s episode, Ryan and Brock sit down with Dr. Matz at Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. Dr. Matz is the Director of Online Student Success, as well as the Assistant Professor of Christian Studies. Here, they discuss Dr. Matz’s experience at Midwestern, as well as evidential apologetics: the idea of good evidence for the Christian faith. They talk of several different categories o...

In this episode, Ryan and Brock sit down with Buck Ortega, an entrepreneur and a former college and professional football player. They discuss Buck’s walk in his faith and leadership, as well as how he learned how to become a leader. Buck’s journey in leadership started when he began to play football and other sports, and he has translated that into other areas of his adult life. To watch the vide...

In today’s episode of Lead Defend, Adam Venters joins Ryan and Brock in the studio! Adam is the BCM minister for the Metro Little Rock area. He connects with students from across the state and world, pushing them closer to a strong and steady relationship with the Lord. In this episode, Adam talks about Proverbs 10 and what that means to the believer. He breaks down the components to give listener...

In this episode of season 3, Ryan and Brock sit down with Tyler Sykora, a former quarterback for Southern Arkansas University and an NFL prospect for the Seattle Seahawks, called to ministry during his career after some setbacks. He serves as the Chief of Staff at Midwestern in the President’s office and is a student as well. Here, they discuss his experience with leadership and how he gained conf...

In this episode, Brock and Ryan kick it off with Chris Sultemeier, a former U.S. Army soldier, and leader in the Walmart Corporation. Chris discusses where his leadership started and how he got to where he is today. Beginning in the military, he was able to lead soldiers into different experiences, which translated to his career after retirement, which includes several positions at the Walmart Cor...

In this episode, Ryan and Brock sit down with Bill Newton, Generations Pastor at FBC Hot Springs. Bill oversees ministry and events for all age groups at his church. He is a lover of movies, Star Wars, and Batman! In this episode, they discuss evolution and why it is important to us as Christians. They layout 3 reasons why Christians should care about evolution, as well as making a case for intell...

WELCOME TO SEASON 3!! In this first episode, Ryan sits down with the new season 3 host, Brock Caldwell. They discuss his testimony, his family, and his current ministry. Brock is a student pastor at FBC Rogers. Welcome him to the party! To learn more about Brock, his story, and the plan for season 3, listen here! To watch the video version, click here . 

In the last episode of season 2, the guys talk about graceful ways to exit old jobs and enter into new ones. It's a stage of life that we all go through at some point - and while you may leave one thing behind. There are things to learn and take from it as you step into a new role somewhere else. This is also Seth's last episode with the Lead Defend Podcast family, as he himself steps into a new r...

Last, but certainly not least, we have our interview with Alycia Wood!  The guys sit down with Wood and talk about her first experience with apologetics and how she got involved with it, as well as how we can find evidence for ourselves and truly believe what we believe.  It's all here so don't miss it!  Our speaker videos from the conference are now live! Click here to view and listen to them.   ...

In this episode, the guys sit down with Mary Jo Sharp before the 2021 Lead Defend Conference. Sharp joined us last year and we were excited to have her back again at this year's conference!  They chat about questioning the logic in arguments from atheists, but also how we should question ourselves in our own logic with Christianity. To be what God intended us to be, we need to really know our God....

In this episode, the guys sit down with Dr. Frank Turek before the 2021 Lead Defend Conference. Turek was one of three apologists who spoke at this year's conference!  They chat about his journey into apologetics, how his show CrossExamined came about and what it's all about, his most asked questions at college campuses and more about apologetics you don't want to miss.    LINKS: Lead Defend Podca...

In this episode, Seth and Ryan discuss the most commonly asked question: Why does God allow pain and suffering?  A complex question with some simple answers. 

In the very first video episode of the Lead Defend Podcast, Ryan and Seth are talking about everything you need to know for the upcoming Lead Defend Conference!    Be sure to tune in for all the details! To register, click here .