Soil and Roots

In this episode, Brian Fisher explores Attachment Styles in relationships as the fifth Heartview indicator and examines how our earliest relationships help shape the way we relate to God, others, and ourselves. Drawing on the concepts of secure, avoidant, and ambivalent attachment, he explains how our origin stories influence the ideas, desires, and relational patterns operating beneath the surfac...

Why do we keep doing things we don't want to do? In this episode, Brian explores behavior as one of the clearest indicators of what is happening inside the human heart. While many people focus on changing actions directly, lasting transformation requires understanding the deeper beliefs, desires, fears, and motivations driving those behaviors. By examining the connection between the heart and...

Can your health reveal something about your spiritual formation? In this episode, Brian Fisher explores Health as the third Heartview indicator and examines how our physical, mental, and spiritual well-being reveal deeper realities about the heart. Many Christians think about these areas separately, but Scripture presents human beings as integrated persons living in an integrated world. What affec...

In this bonus episode, Brian Fisher brings together the major themes explored throughout Seasons 1 and 2 of the Soil & Roots Podcast. Revisiting the Great Omission, Deep Discipleship, the Six Core Ideas, the Five Elements of Formation, and the Discipleship Dilemma, he explains how these frameworks work together to shape spiritual transformation. Brian also reviews the role of hidden ideas, the...

What are your emotions trying to tell you? Many Christians have been taught to distrust or suppress emotions, yet our emotional responses often reveal important truths about the condition of our hearts. In this episode, Brian explores the role emotions play in spiritual formation and why learning to recognize, understand, and process them is essential for growth. Rather than treating emotions as e...

What do your thoughts reveal about the condition of your heart? In this episode, Brian explores the relationship between spiritual formation and our thought life. The ideas we repeatedly entertain shape our assumptions, perceptions, and decisions in ways we often fail to recognize. By learning to pay attention to recurring thought patterns, we gain insight into the deeper forces shaping who we are...

Welcome to Season 2 of the Soil & Roots Podcast. This season explores what we call the Discipleship Dilemma. Throughout Christian history, many spiritual leaders have taught that growth requires both the knowledge of God and the knowledge of self. Yet while modern Christianity emphasizes studying God, it often provides little guidance for understanding ourselves. The result is a dilemma: becom...

Why do Christians struggle to change even when they sincerely want to? In this season finale, Brian brings together the major themes of Season 1 and revisits the central challenge of deep discipleship. From the gospel of the Kingdom to human formation, ideas, identity, value, and transformation, this episode provides a comprehensive summary of the journey so far. Follow Soil & Roots for more c...

Why does church growth not always result in disciple growth? In this episode, Brian examines the modern emphasis on church growth and explores whether larger ministries necessarily produce deeper disciples. He considers the strengths and weaknesses of contemporary church culture and asks important questions about spiritual formation, success, and Kingdom impact. If you've ever wondered how chu...

Why aren't churches producing more mature disciples? In this episode, Brian explores spiritual formation and the challenges facing modern discipleship. He examines the gap between information and transformation and asks why sincere Christians often struggle to experience lasting change. Drawing on both experience and spiritual formation theory, this conversation offers a framework for understa...

Why do so many people struggle to feel valuable? In this episode, Brian explores the question of human value and the competing stories our culture tells about worth, identity, and significance. He examines how Scripture grounds human dignity and why a healthy understanding of value is essential for spiritual growth and emotional well-being. If you've ever wrestled with comparison, performance,...

How do you know what's really happening inside your heart? In this episode, Brian explores self-awareness and the challenge of recognizing the hidden patterns shaping our lives. By paying attention to thoughts, emotions, behaviors, and other indicators, we gain a clearer understanding of who we are becoming. If you've ever felt disconnected from your inner life or struggled to understand y...

Why don't our beliefs always change our lives? In this episode, Brian explores the powerful role ideas play in shaping the human heart. Drawing an important distinction between ideas and beliefs, he explains how our lived assumptions influence our emotions, behaviors, relationships, and spiritual lives. If you've ever wondered why you continue to struggle despite knowing the right answers,...

How does spiritual transformation actually happen? This bonus episode brings together key ideas from the opening episodes and introduces a framework for understanding deep discipleship. Brian explores the forces that shape our lives, the role of intentional formation, and why genuine transformation involves more than behavior modification. If you've been looking for a practical way to understa...

Why do so many Christians stop growing spiritually? In this episode, Brian explores stages of spiritual growth and the common experience of boredom, stagnation, or frustration within church life. He examines how disciples mature over time and why growth often requires more than information alone. If you've ever felt spiritually stuck or wondered whether there is more to life with God than what...

What does it really mean to be human? Many of our struggles can be traced back to mistaken assumptions about human nature, identity, and purpose. In this episode, Brian explores Christian anthropology and examines how Scripture describes the human person. Understanding what we are profoundly shapes how we relate to God, others, and ourselves. If you've ever wrestled with questions of identity,...

Is the world getting worse, or are we misunderstanding the Christian story? In this episode, Brian examines Christian fatalism and the widespread belief that decline and despair are inevitable. He explores how certain assumptions about the future shape our attitudes toward culture, discipleship, and hope. By revisiting the teachings of Jesus and the Kingdom of God, this conversation challenges lis...

What is the Kingdom of God, and why did Jesus talk about it so often? In this episode, Brian explores the nature of God's Kingdom and the ways it intersects with everyday life. Rather than viewing the Kingdom as merely a future destination, he examines how Jesus invited people into a present reality shaped by God's reign and presence. If you've struggled to understand the central theme...

What is the gospel Jesus actually preached? Many Christians can explain how to get to heaven, but struggle to describe the message that stood at the center of Jesus' ministry. In this episode, Brian explores the Gospel of the Kingdom and why recovering Jesus' original announcement changes how we understand discipleship, salvation, and everyday life with God. If you've ever sensed that...

What does it actually mean to be a disciple of Jesus in the modern world? In this opening episode, Brian introduces the concept of deep discipleship and explains why many Christians experience a gap between belief and transformation. Drawing from Scripture and the work of Dallas Willard, he explores the difference between simply identifying as a Christian and intentionally becoming an apprentice o...