Spiritual Life and Leadership

Kevin White, author of Audacious Generosity , shares his story of being terminated from the church he had planted just a few years earlier.  That experience could have crushed him.  But gave him deeper clarity about what really matters—and it led to a whole new ministry that blesses hundred of people every month. THIS EPISODE'S HIGHLIGHTS INCLUDE: Kevin White is the Executive Director of Glob...

God is a God who sets things right.  And that's what we see in Mary's Song-- The Magnificat --in Luke 1:46-55. As we approach the end of 2020, for many of us it is clearer than ever just how broken our world is.  Disease.  Racism.  Poverty and lost financial security.  Violence.  Division.  Injustice.  These are the kinds of headlines that dominated the news this past year. But as broken...

The Border Church is a beautiful and prophetic expression of border resistance as followers of Jesus in San Diego, California, join together at the border with Jesus-followers in Tijuana, Mexico--even sharing Communion through the border fence. In this episode, I’m speaking with Seth Clark, Director of the Pastoral Team for The Border Church . THIS EPISODE'S HIGHLIGHTS INCLUDE: Seth Clark is...

Dr. Jerome Butler, host of the Moments of Grace podcast and author of numerous books, shares about his experiences with racism and likens the African American experience to the trials of Hercules in Greek mythology—a fascinating comparison! THIS EPISODE'S HIGHLIGHTS INCLUDE: Dr. Jerome Butler is the host of the Moments of Grace podcast.  Books he has authored include Managing the Miracle , Po...

Leading like Jesus means healthy leadership. Ken Blanchard has been writing and teaching about healthy leadership for a long time.  In this interview, Ken shares about his youth, how he came to faith, what it was like when The One-Minute Manager became a massive success (including how it impacted his faith journey), and what it means to lead like Jesus. THIS EPISODE'S HIGHLIGHTS INCLUDE: Ken...

Pledge and consent are crucial in the experience of knowing.  In this episode, Esther Lightcap Meek and I talk about chapter 2 of her book, A Little Manual for Knowing .  In that chapter—and in this episode—Esther shows us that if we are to truly know someone or something, then we need to pledge ourselves to that which is yet-to-be-known.  We need to pledge ourselves to the “knowing venture” and w...

Aaron Schafer has written an excellent book titled, The Politically Homeless Christian , in which he explores the current state of politics and how we as followers of Jesus are called to engage politically. And that's what we talk about in this episode.  If you, too, find yourself politically homeless, you will find this conversation incredibly valuable. THIS EPISODE'S HIGHLIGHTS INCLUDE...

Tod Bolsinger, author of Leadership for a Time of Pandemic , knows about leadership in times of disorientation.  And 2020 is certainly a time of disorientation!  A global pandemic.  A worldwide economic recession.  Social unrest and an outcry for racial justice. But it’s not the first time we’ve experienced disorientation.  Perhaps what makes 2020 unique is the global nature of what is happening a...

Chuck DeGroat has written a fantastic book titled, When Narcissism Comes to Church , which he unpacks for us in this episode. Most of us who are in positions of spiritual leadership have some tendencies toward narcissism.  Many of us want to be loved and respected--and sometimes we think of ourselves as pretty awesome. But then there are those who are truly narcissistic, who are so unhealthy that...

Chuck Whitley knows that if you’re a leader, you have experienced anger.  Well, if you’re a human being, you’ve experienced anger. The truth is, anger is a normal, natural human emotion.  The question is, as leaders, how should we navigate our anger in a way that is ultimately productive and that leads to greater health for our organization and greater shalom for those we lead? Chuck Whitley, help...

James Choung, the author of True Story: A Christianity Worth Believing In , outlines a way of talking about Jesus that addresses, not only our need for eternal life, but also God’s desire to bring restoration to the world today and our invitation to participate with God in that work of restoration. This is a fantastic interview about sharing a Gospel that is truly good news, not only for the after...

Evangelical identity has changed. The word “evangelical” carries a lot of baggage these days.  There was a time when it primarily denoted a theological conviction that included a recognition of the Scriptures as God’s word, an understanding of our need for salvation through Jesus, and a commitment to caring for the “least of these.” Unfortunately, that’s no longer what most non-Christians think of...

Tim Winders had it all.  A beautiful home, three companies each valued in the millions.  He was, by all accounts, very successful. Then the 2008 recession hit and he and his family began the slow descent of financial collapse that culminated with the loss of their home and essentially becoming homeless. In this episode, you’ll hear how Tim’s life was transformed through this experience and how his...

Steven Garber has spent his life helping people get a clearer understanding of vocation in general, but also helping them get clear on their own unique vocations.  In this interview , he will do the same for you.   Near the end of the episode, Steve tells three brief stories to help us understand why pastors and churches need to have a robust understanding of vocation, so be sure you listen to the...

Jason Elam, host of the Messy Spirituality podcast, has an amazing story.  As a pastor, Jason had all the answers, but he didn't have a lot of love.  Then something happened.  Today, Jason Elam is no longer a pastor and he doesn't have all the answers.  But he has discovered the love of God in a way he could never have imagined before. THIS EPISODE'S HIGHLIGHTS INCLUDE: Jason Elam i...

To celebrate the 75th episode of Spiritual Life and Leadership, I'm bringing a short conversation with my twelve-year-old daughter, Macy Watson.  We talk about her thoughts on God and we talk about leadership. Oh, and what the heck is "a box with feelings"?  Well, you'll just have to listen to find out! THIS EPISODE'S HIGHLIGHTS INCLUDE: Markus interviews his daughter, Mac...

This is the third and final part of this series based on the book, Surfing the Edge of Chaos .   I’ve been talking with Jason Coker about the role of disequilibrium in regard to systems and organizations; specifically, that the experience of disequilibrium actually makes a system or organization stronger. And that goes for churches, as well, since churches are systems.  When a church lingers for t...

In this episode, Jason and I talk about the second principle in the book, Surfing the Edge of Chaos .  We talk about how the experience of disequilibrium evokes creative experimentation and fresh new solutions that leads to greater health.  And, specifically, we talk about how this unfolded in Jason’s church, Oceanside Sanctuary. THIS EPISODE'S HIGHLIGHTS INCLUDE: The four principles of Surfi...

“The edge of chaos is a condition, not a location.  It is a permeable, intermediate state through which order and disorder flow, not a finite line of demarcation.  Moving to the edge of chaos creates upheaval but not dissolution.  That’s why the edge of chaos is so important.  The edge is not the abyss.  It’s the sweet spot for productive change.” That’s a quote from Surfing the Edge of Chaos , wh...

The United States has had a long and complicated relationship with God.  And what’s really fascinating is the fact that Communist Russia played a significant role in the way many Americans think about that relationship with God today. A lot of folks think about the United States as a Christian nation—both in the United States and around the world. But is it?  And what does it mean to be a Christia...

AJ Swoboda asks an important question: If, as a pastor, you intentionally broke one of the Ten Commandments what would happen?  Well, you’d probably either lose your job or your position. Or you’d be reprimanded or given a warning. Or, at the very least—maybe for using the Lord’s name in vain—you’d get a few dirty looks. But there is one commandment that, if you were to regularly disobey it, you w...

Michael Cooper discusses his book Ephesiology: A Study of the Ephesian Movement , in which he explores the important role of the city of Ephesus in the early Roman Empire and the early church, with a special emphasis on the ways the apostles Paul, John, and Peter all worked to connect the story of Jesus to the Ephesian people in language that made sense to them. This is a timely message for us tod...

What in the world does the Kingdom of God have to do with public policy?  What does the Kingdom of God have to do with shaping governments and institutions?  And how does stewardship fit into all that? That’s what I’m be talking about in this episode with Breon Wells of the Daniel Initiative, a government relations firm that helps underrepresented and underserved populations promote positive chang...

Christendom was that period of history in which Western culture considered itself to be formally and officially Christian.  It was an era in which Christianity had a lot of cultural power--a far cry from the Pre-Christendom time of the Roman Empire. This episode will give you a lot of insight into how Christianity moved from being a marginalized and persecuted religion during its first 300 years,...

In this episode, we consider the growth of the early church in the pre-Christendom era, a time when Christianity had very little cultural influence.  Much like the church in today's world!  And yet, the early church grew.  What was their secret?  And is there anything we can learn and perhaps implement in our world today? THIS EPISODE'S HIGHLIGHTS INCLUDE: Christendom is defined as the “...