The Be Unbound Podcast

This week, as the Christmas season is here and we take a short break to be with family and friends, we wanted to bring you one of our favorite and most meaningful conversations from the Be Unbound archive. This episode features bestselling author and speaker Andy Andrews—someone whose thinking has deeply shaped both of us and the way we approach teaching at Unbound. Andy joined us earlier this yea...

In this episode, we sit down together to process a pretty startling headline: teens forming romantic relationships with AI. But instead of letting the shock factor drive the conversation, we dig into the deeper question— what does it look like to live as awake, intentional Christians in a world shaped by both technological opportunity and human brokenness? As we talk, the discussion moves from AI...

Today, we welcome back our friend and teammate Trent Emmack—fresh off a three-week journey across Europe and the UK. From climbing a Swiss Alp to visiting Churchill’s estate to wandering through one-thousand-year-old churches, Trent brings a fresh set of reflections on architecture, beauty, and what past generations believed about building for the glory of God. We explore why historic churches wer...

Today, we take a deep dive into one of the most urgent and misunderstood issues facing young adults today: the shifting landscape of work, higher education, and the trades. We've had some recent conversations with local business leaders about what they're looking for in their employees, and the common trends are surprising. We explore why the traditional “go to college, get a white-collar...

In this powerful episode of the Be Unbound Podcast , we sit down with Pastor Dakota Smith, senior pastor of Ottawa Bible Church in Kansas—a church that has grown from 70 to 700 people in just six years. Dakota shares why he believes this growth is the fruit of simple, consistent faithfulness: preaching God’s Word, cultivating personal integrity, prioritizing discipleship, and developing future lea...

What happens when AI leaves the screen and starts walking around your house? In this episode, we react to a new humanoid robot promising to handle every household chore—from dishes to laundry to opening the door for guests. But what does convenience like this cost us? Are we trading away the routines that keep us grounded, connected, and human? We talk about how technology has reshaped daily life...

We're so excited to sit down with Seth Barnes , founder of Adventures in Missions and The World Race , and talk with him about how a college trip to Cambodian refugee camps during the aftermath of the Khmer Rouge genocide changed the trajectory of his life. Seth shares how he blended business acumen with deep compassion by launching microcredit programs across the globe, building one of the la...

Today, we're excited to introduce you to Robynne Miller, a writer, teacher, and conference director whose story is equal parts inspiring and unexpected. Robynne shares how she went from running businesses and homeschooling her kids to becoming a published author of ten books (with nine more on the way!). She opens up about: Discovering her passion for writing through the challenges of her chil...

What does it mean to be a Christian artist in the age of AI? How do you balance creative freedom with the discipline of deadlines? In this episode, we sit down with Jared Wiggins—Unbound alum, professional graphic designer, and instructor for Unbound’s Art & Graphic Design Track. Jared shares his story of discovering art as a homeschooled kid doodling through lessons, to becoming both a profes...

What happens when a good idea takes a nap, then wakes up six years later, more alive than ever? In this episode of the Be Unbound Podcast , we welcome back Sarah Shaw, Unbound alum and founder of Lantova, a new interdisciplinary project that weaves together creativity, theology, and psychology to explore what it means to live well and think deeply in a chaotic world. Sarah shares the winding journ...

In this episode of the Be Unbound podcast, we unpack the many ways we participate in God’s redemptive plan—whether that looks like leading movements, supporting quiet acts of change, or simply being faithful where we are. It’s easy to feel pressure to do something big... to lead, to influence, to make an obvious impact. But what if faithfulness in the ordinary is just as vital as bold leadership?...

What does it really mean to be a marketer—and how do you do it well in today’s digital age? In this episode of the Be Unbound podcast, we sit down with Trey Sheneman, founder of Herald Marketing and instructor for Unbound’s Digital Marketing Track. Trey shares his story of transitioning from teaching into digital marketing, growing agencies, working with large organizations, and ultimately startin...

Let's tackle a question that’s weighing on the minds of many young adults: How do you prepare for a future that feels uncertain, especially with AI and other rapid changes shaping the job market? Our conversation reflects on recent student events like Apex and Basecamp, where “shift” and “change” were central themes. We dive into how these massive shifts in technology are actually affecting th...

We’ve got something really special for you in this episode. Instead of just hearing from Jonathan and David, we’re handing the mic to one of our favorite voices in the Unbound community: Victoria Schurter. If you’ve ever been part of our high school program, Equip, you already know how gifted Victoria is at crafting content that connects. She’s a phenomenal writer, a brilliant communicator, and (t...

We don’t usually wade into current events on the podcast, but when Cracker Barrel rolled out a new logo (and then rolled it right back), the internet kind of lost its mind—and we couldn’t resist jumping in. In this episode, we talk about why something as simple as changing a restaurant sign sparked such strong emotions, and what that says about our culture, our need for stability, and even our fai...

In this episode of the Be Unbound podcast, we discuss why recent graduates struggle to find jobs despite having degrees, and the surprising 'superpowers' that come from performing basic job responsibilities well. We've seen firsthand that a mindset shift can transform your work life, and that rings true for so many of the students we work with every day. Because when you show up on tim...

Today, we explore the question of how to redeem our time in a world that constantly pulls us in different directions. What's the right balance between productivity and rest? Can we really find the right blend of work, rest, and spiritual growth? Whether it's through building skills, investing in relationships, or taking well-deserved rest, we talk about the value of asking the right questi...

In this episode of the Be Unbound podcast, we talk with Sarah Holliday from the Family Research Council. Sarah gives us a candid look into her journey as a Christian journalist working on Capitol Hill. We discuss the challenge of fulfilling her role in reporting news from a biblical worldview, the importance of being rooted in scripture and prayer, and how to engage in politics without losing comp...

Welcome back for the final episode in our series about the ADULT learning framework: Act, Do, Understand, Live, and Thrive. Today, we're joined by Victoria Schurter to uncover what it means to not just survive, but create a deeply satisfying life. In this episode, we talk about why so many of us are stuck in the cycle of chasing happiness, and why joy is a totally different (and way more satis...

Welcome back to the Be Unbound podcast! In this episode, we’re diving into the fourth part of the ADULT model: Live. This one is big because it's all about what it actually looks like to take full responsibility for your life and live with purpose. We brought our good friend and teammate Riley Maas back on the show for this conversation. Honestly, she’s more like family around here, and she br...

In this episode, we sat down with a group of high school students from Acton Academy who created something pretty incredible: a documentary called Age of Isolation . It’s all about loneliness, the loss of social connection, and how we’ve slowly let go of the “third places” that used to bring us together, like coffee shops, libraries, and bowling alleys. We talked about how COVID-19 and social medi...

We're back with the 3rd episode in our series, breaking down the ADULT Learning framework that guides all of our programs here at Unbound. We've already explored the first two words in the acronym: ASK, and DO. In today's episode, we talk with our resident deep thinker, Trent Emmack, about the third word in the acronym: UNDERSTAND. This conversation places us right at the heart of gain...

Welcome to a special live episode of the Be Unbound podcast! We're thrilled to have a live audience as we discuss the unique benefits of the Ascend program. From developing practical skills like time management and project execution, to fostering an extraordinary community that supports and uplifts its members, we explore how Ascend prepares young adults for real-world success. Join us as we s...

We're back with the 2nd part of our series as we unpack the ADULT model we use here at Unbound to structure all of our programs. ADULT stands for Ask, Do, Understand, Live, Thrive. In the last episode, we talked about the importance of asking good questions and shifting to a question-based paradigm. Today, we discuss the next letter in the acronym: DO. It's not enough to ask good questions...

Over the next few episodes, we'll share the model we use here at Unbound to train young adults to thrive. We call it the 'Adult' framework—an acronym for Ask, Do, Understand, Live, and Thrive. In this episode, we explore the first part: ASK. We dive into the fundamental shift we've seen in learning from an answers-based paradigm to a questions-based one. We discuss how easy access...