The 180 Church Podcast with Dr. Sammy and Friends

In part three of our "Spiritual Bubbles" series, Pastor Lydia and Joe talk through how believers can discern the power and "charismata" of the Holy Spirit and use these gifts in line with conviction, truth, and the word for their true purpose in mission. Biblically, it is evident that the miraculous signs in the gospel and mission work hand-in-hand, but for the church that is swept in the "charism...

Dr. Steve A. Brown is the president of Arrow Leadership, an organization dedicated to the global development of Christian leadership within a multitude of societal sectors. With the chapter on 2020 closed, and with the new year before us, Dr. Brown extends a biblical invitation to a practice of reflecting on the circumstances and sources of grief we hope to put to rest from a highly tumultuous yea...

In Part 2 of 180 Church's "Spiritual Bubble" series, Pastor Lydia and Joe expound on how from divine intervention, we are then equipped to break out of our spiritual bubbles and be on mission. Insularity ultimately prevents us from moving beyond our comfort zones and developing relationships with people who are earnestly in pursuit of the Father. What we can glean from this sermon is how we can tr...

In today's episode, Pastor Lydia and Joe usher in the New Year with a conversation about our spiritual bubbles. The first of a four part-series, this dialogue covers why it is important to acknowledge and grow awareness of our insularity and ideological thought bubbles. It is evident on a national scale and in our personal lives how consequential our bubbles and limited worldview can be in doing h...

Part 2 of a conversation between Dr. Francis Collins, Dr. Leighton Ford, and Bishop Claude Alexander. Dr. Francis Collins, M.D., Ph. D, advocates for the harmony found in the questions asked by the science and faith communities, is the Director of the National Institutes of Health, oversaw the development of Biologos Foundation, and wrote the book, “The Language of God”. This conversation includes...

Part 1 of a captivating conversation with Dr. Francis Collins, Dr. Leighton Ford, and Bishop Claude Alexander. Dr. Francis Collins, MD, PhD, is an advocate for finding harmony in the questions contended by both the science and faith communities. He currently holds the seat as director of the National Institutes of Health, is founder of the BioLogos Foundation, and is author of the book “The Langua...

In a season when the days are short, the nights are long, and the pandemic continues to leave a trail of destruction in its wake, it seems impossible to conjure up any joy. But just as Jesus was both a man of sorrows and the Prince of Peace, true joy is inexorably intertwined with the pang of suffering. While happiness stems from an absence of pain and is derived from our surroundings, joy comes a...

Though the festivities and holiday cheer can invoke feelings of warmth and joy, forgetting the “Christ” in Christmas means missing out on what this day is truly about. It is about a story of an all-powerful God losing his autonomy by becoming human so that He could understand our struggles and pains, and ultimately give the gift of Himself on our behalf. To honor Jesus’ sacrifice during the holida...

In today’s episode, Pastor Lydia and Joe discuss how the gospel saves us from the third dark proclivity: The Messiah Complex. Evidently, the purpose of the church and how it lives out the gospel has little to do with any one outstanding or extraordinary talent or personality, but how the abilities of many are called to be one body and come together to serve as the church and make disciples of all...

How do we learn to grasp true peace during this Advent season? Tune in every Sunday @12:30PM to find out!

This week's podcast features Pastor Lydia and Joe covering 2 of the 3 dark proclivities that the gospel saves us from: pride and unchecked autonomy. Evidently, these two barriers to the believer stunts their spiritual growth and points to a common theme of how a lack of self-awareness contributes to the harm we cause others and ourselves. The gospel exists to save us and to challenge our immunity...

Oftentimes, it is not entirely obvious how the Gospel works to save people and make a definitive change in our lives if we aren’t aware of what we are being saved from and why we seek change. Self-righteousness and pride tend to place blinders on the weak points and blind spots in our lives that not only harm others, but also self-inflicts it. The truth in the Gospel sheds light on the areas that...

Building up to this point in time, forces like social media have accelerated the divide between Americans — illustrated by the many in cities who celebrated the election results, while others protested and walked away in defeat. We tend to categorize ourselves under narrow identity terms and political affiliations, which makes us more prone to judge others. However, we forget that the church calls...

With the curtains closing on a tumultuous arc in American history and a tense presidential election, the United States is apprehensive of what the future holds. Former President Abraham Lincoln's second inaugural address, given during another time the nation was split, is still relevant today: a call for malice toward none and charity for all. This invokes the gospel message that appeals to a bett...

In this podcast episode, Pastor Lydia and Joe's conversation covers the value of integrity over a personality ethic, and a deeper look into why at times God's calling and purpose for our lives falls to the wayside of our priorities. The "Pocket Jesus" analogy is a much needed reminder of how at times we may just have our priorities out of order and are amnesic regarding our call in life: to lead t...

In the Social Media era, friendships have been ill-defined by follower counts, convenience, and entertainment value. But even though our culture perceives connection differently now, the spirit of true friendship remains alive in the biblical paradigm and hopes to bring out the best of us and our relationships. During a tumultuous time where friendships and connection are more important than ever,...

It's tempting to view our current political atmosphere and the mishandling of the pandemic as consequences of poor leadership. But what we value as a society — personality, charm, and success by any means necessary — points to the real root of the problem: that preoccupation with the self has brought us to where we are today. Though we can blame and replace our leaders as a temporary fix, the para...

In today's podcast, Pastor Lydia and Joe talk about what how we can nostalgically remind ourselves of the serendipitous moments at times mission feels like a chore. For many believers, we can find ourselves checking the box of our faith obligations, but we may very well miss the powerful things that God is at work in if we forget how that very same power changed our lies and fellow friends along t...

Our culture today discourages us from authenticity and honesty and instead encourages us to mask our blemishes and the worst of ourselves. As a result, we often feel resistant to confronting our sinfulness, and we find the message of the gospel offensive. But when we finally do see our limits for what they are — when the light of God’s Shekinah glory gives clarity to our weakness — we see why the...

What to Remember When God’s Calling Doesn’t Seem to Make Sense While we contend with the question of why God allows disruption and persecution in our lives, we may experience moments where the Father calls us towards the nonsensical, obscure, and uncomfortable. Why would God call us out of novel, momentous, and prosperous events? What purposes would heeding this culturally counterintuitive call se...

Although we have experienced our lives and plans come to a screeching halt due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the disruptions caused by this public health crisis offer us the perspective to distinguish the trivial from what is substantial. We live in a generation that is ensnared by the distractions of our smartphones and since the advent of social media, we find ourselves worked up over the inconseque...

How do we move from a Personality Ethic to Character Ethic? How do we move from shallow living to deeper faith? Tune in to find out!

In today’s episode, Pastor Lydia and Joe talk about how our self-interests contribute to a lack of self-awareness, and it is because of these interests that reveal a point of tension in our calling. We recognize that humans by nature are self-interested but if we can identify them and see how they shroud us in ignorance regarding our world and relationships, we can begin the process of putting the...

In today’s episode, Pastor Lydia and Joe take a moment to pause and reflect on what God is doing within the affliction we experience in our lives. Disruptions are often unwelcome because they interfere with the plans we set out and the expectations we carry, but in the same vein, the tough times and difficult moments can point to what the Father is working on if we pay attention to it. Whether we...

In the advent of a new decade, brimming with expectation and hope for new beginnings, our world was met with many forms of suffering and loss due to a history-making pandemic. With the pain of loss, the process of grieving is often overlooked in favor of coping mechanisms. To our detriment, these give us an out rather than a means of true healing and meaning to be found in our suffering. However,...