Strengthening the Soul of Your Leadership with Ruth Haley Barton

We have a special bonus episode for you today to mark Epiphany.   We dusted off our podcasting microphones to have a conversation about Epiphany. Epiphany celebrates the coming of the Magi to the manger to visit and worship the baby Jesus. In this discussion, Ruth and members of the Transforming Center staff discuss the mystery and meaning of Jesus choosing to come to earth in such an imperfect se...

This season we invite you to walk through Advent by engaging with the lectionary Scripture readings and listening for what God might want to say through them. In each episode, Ruth and members of the Transforming Center staff will read and reflect on the themes of Cycle C of the Revised Common Lectionary for Advent together.   For this last episode of our Advent season, we wanted to give all our l...

This season we invite you to walk through Advent by engaging with the lectionary Scripture readings and listening for what God might want to say through them. In each episode, Ruth and members of the Transforming Center staff will read and reflect on the themes of Cycle C of the Revised Common Lectionary for Advent together.   In this conversation, we discussed the prayers for and of indifference...

This season we invite you to walk through Advent by engaging with the lectionary Scripture readings and listening for what God might want to say through them. In each episode, Ruth and members of the Transforming Center staff will read and reflect on the themes of Cycle C of the Revised Common Lectionary for Advent together.   In this conversation, we discussed the invitation to repentance in this...

This season we invite you to walk through Advent by engaging with the lectionary Scripture readings and listening for what God might want to say through them. In each episode, Ruth and members of the Transforming Center staff will read and reflect on the themes of Cycle C of the Revised Common Lectionary for Advent together.   In this conversation, we discuss what it looks like to “prepare” for Ad...

This season we invite you to walk through Advent by engaging with the lectionary Scripture readings and listening for what God might want to say through them. In each episode, Ruth and members of the Transforming Center staff will read and reflect on the themes of Cycle C of the Revised Common Lectionary for Advent together.   In this conversation, we wondered what it looked like to “lift your sou...

Season 14 of the podcast invites leaders to walk through Advent by engaging with the lectionary Scripture readings for the New Year of the church calendar and listening for what God might want to say to us through them. In each episode, Ruth will sit down with members of the Transforming Center staff to read and reflect on the themes of Cycle C of the Revised Common Lectionary for Advent. This pod...

BONUS: Ask Ruth #3 Excerpt   In this bonus episode, we want to share another excerpt from our most recent Ask Ruth episode.  Every month we release bonus content to our patrons through Patreon. In our Ask Ruth series, patrons get the opportunity to submit questions for Ruth to answer. Ask Ruth #3 covered questions specific to season 13 of The Strengthening the Soul of Your Leadership podcast | Inv...

In this special bonus episode, we are sharing a conversation with Biz Gainey, a pastor and long-time Transforming Community alum, about his experience leading a Transforming Church. The Becoming a Transforming Church Retreat has equipped him and his team to foster a community that gathers around the presence of Christ for the purpose of spiritual transformation so that they can discern and do the...

On this last episode of season 13, listen as Ruth and Adele discuss God’s invitation to the most excellent way: love. Using 1 Corinthians 13 as a guide, they examine the counterfeits of love as well as love’s litmus tests.  We close with an opportunity to reflect on all the invitations covered in this season and ponder which one God might be nudging you to explore more deeply.   Mentioned in this...

In this week’s conversation, Ruth and Adele explore the invitation to remember. They discuss how we remember, the forces that shape our narratives around our memories, God’s invitation to allow our memories to uncover truths about the present day, and the discipline of remembering God’s goodness and faithfulness. God’s invitation to remember, both the good and the bad, can be a catalyst for healin...

In this episode, Ruth and Adele use the Lord’s Prayer to examine God’s invitation to prayer. They share what God is currently calling each of them to as it pertains to prayer. How does the “Our” in the opening line “Our Father” call us to “a seismic shift in orientation” and what does it mean to bring God’s kingdom to earth inside of us as we pray? Adele closes with practical ways to incorporate p...

This week Ruth and Adele discuss God’s invitation to wait. They process the difference between good waiting and bad waiting and ask what waiting exposes in us? The two also examine when waiting is avoidance, particularly as it pertains to justice and how to discern when to wait and when to act. Finally, they also look at what invitations to wait God might have for the church as we come out of the...

The invitation to forgive is one of our most weighty invitations, as Ruth and Adele will explore. In this conversation, they will put some definitions around forgiveness, reconciliation, and how our narratives and facts are involved when it comes to the process of forgiveness. They share wisdom for when forgiveness is needed but not offered and close with tangible support for pastors to enter into...

The invitation in this episode may be our most challenging yet: God’s invitation to admit I might be wrong. Why is it so hard to admit that we may be wrong and how does shame keep us from this invitation? Ruth and Adele discuss the invitation to teachability, confession, discerning when to allow space to be wrong and when to speak up for what is right, and more.     Mentioned in this episode:  Inv...

In this week’s episode, Ruth and Adele discuss God’s invitation to weep. Listen as the two cover the gift of tears, as well as what makes it hard to weep. As we come out of the pandemic it may be easy to miss this invitation in favor of celebrating our ability to return to the many things lost in the last year. Why should leaders create awareness and space to name these losses and mourn them? What...

In this episode, Ruth and Adele respond to God’s invitation to rest. They acknowledge the fears and cultural rewards that keep us from resting and examine what freedoms we might have found during the pandemic that we want to carry with us into a new season as it pertains to rest. And finally, they discuss soft addictions that prevent true rest and provide practical disciplines to help us respond t...

This week Ruth and Adele are breaking down the invitation to practice the presence of people. What does it mean to “shine your face upon someone” and why is our physical presence so important? Listen as Ruth and Adele tackle the notion of “relationship quotas” and share their thoughts on how to respond to this invitation in relationships that have been fractured by all that has happened during the...

For this special bonus episode, we wanted to give all of our listeners a peek into what is happening over on Patreon. This is a short sample of our bonus “Ask Ruth” series where patrons get the opportunity to ask Ruth questions and hear her responses in an exclusive to patrons episode. In this episode, hear Ruth speak to the issue many Christians are facing as they figure out how to return to a ch...

  Listen as Ruth and Adele use the invitation from chapter two of Invitations from God to examine the ways following and leading are connected in the life of Christ and what it means to steward your role as a follower well. What do we do when the leaders we follow disappoint and how does this invitation to follow fall differently on people groups depending on their historic ability or lack thereof...

In this episode, Ruth and Adele discuss chapter 1, Invitation to Participate in Your Own Healing. Ruth and Adele cover everything from the particular wounds we have encountered societally over the past year and a half to how to identify participation in healing versus passively waiting for something to happen to us. Learn what happens when we ignore this invitation and become transmitters of pain...

Welcome to season 13! Ruth is spending this season with her dear friend and fellow spiritual director, Adele Calhoun, discussing Adele’s book Invitations from God. The invitations outlined in this book are particularly relevant to us now, as we emerge from what has been a life-shaping season. In this first episode listen as Ruth and Adele discuss what attending and responding to God’s invitations...

Season 13 of the Strengthening the Soul of Your Leadership podcast is just around the corner! Join us on June 23 as we kick off a new season with Ruth’s friend and fellow spiritual director Adele Calhoun. In this special teaser episode hear Ruth and Steve share what’s in store for season 13 and learn about our revamped patron program!   If you sign up to become a patron in the month of June you wi...

Ruth and Steve conclude this season with some practical advice and discussing a persistent practice for leaders. How do we detach ourselves from all that is not God to attach ourselves to all that is God? A powerful conclusion for leaders who long to be in God for the world. We are grateful for Bob Mulholland's deeply theological and practical spiritual formation resource and encourage you to read...

Putting off the vices of the old self is only half the equation. We are to put off the old nature and put on the new nature. A great conversation flows around rest and sabbath, forbearance, and forgiveness. A helpful conversation for leaders today.   Support the podcast now and immediately receive our Lent bonus Podcast patrons at any level will receive our brand new revised digital download of Ru...