The Discerning Leader Podcast

Host: Steve Macchia, Guest: James Hauptman "A rule of life allows us to live with intention and purpose in the present moment." - Steve Macchia How do you actually begin crafting a Rule of Life? What steps can you take, and what tools can help you along the way? In this week's episode of The Discerning Leader Podcast , Steve Macchia and James Hauptman share practical insights and concrete guidance...

Host: Steve Macchia Guest: James Hauptman "Without a humble, attentive heart our self centeredness will not lead to the abundance of a God-empowered life."   - Steve Macchia 2026 begins with a brand new season of The Discerning Leader Podcast. Featuring James Hauptman, Steve Macchia hosts a rich conversation around well-ordered living that comes from crafting a personal rule of life. Whether you'v...

Host: Steve Macchia Co-Host: Matt Scott As we step into a new year, this episode invites us to resist the urge to sprint and instead begin 2026 with deliberate, unhurried intentionality. In this final episode of Season 37, Steve Macchia and Matt Scott offer a thoughtful conversation about the gift of slowing down and embracing inefficiency. They explore how slowness creates space for the deeper fo...

Host: Steve Macchia, Co-Host: Matt Scott "Solitude and silence are a gift when experienced together. And when they are practiced within a community, they can become a place of significant growth and maturation." - Steve Macchia Many people find solitude uncomfortable. The idea of being alone with our own thoughts can feel overwhelming—even daunting. Yet solitude is not the same as loneliness. In t...

Host: Steve Macchia, Co-Host: Matt Scott "Silence is the place where the deepest work happens in our lives." - Steve Macchia Advent loses its meaning when it is overwhelmed by constant noise. Silence invites the noise to quiet down, helping us recognize the inner distractions we often ignore. It is in these moments of stillness that God works most deeply—transforming our hearts and drawing us clos...

Host: Steve Macchia, Co-Host: Matt Scott "We have to say no to the demands of this world. We have to create some space that is sacred and holy and dedicated wholly to our heart's devotion to Jesus." - Steve Macchia We often give into a compulsion to complicate the simple and clutter that which is spacious. What if this Advent was different for you? In this podcast conversation, Steve Macchia and M...

Host: Steve Macchia, Co-host: Matt Scott "Simplicity? It goes against the grain of our society. We're needing to make a concious choice to say no to the excess and to the busyness." - Steve Macchia How is it that the most wonderful time of the year often draws us into excess and exhaustion? Tune into the first episode of Season 37 as Steve Macchia and Matt Scott explore the posture and practice of...

Host: Steve Macchia, Guest: J.R. Briggs "We don't know how to ask good questions and point to another because we're just so fixated on ourselves." - Steve Macchia Steve Macchia and J.R. Briggs remind leaders that transformation begins by asking better, more honest questions. Their conversation invites us to slow down, listen deeply, and cultivate curiosity that leads to wiser, Spirit-led discernme...

Host: Steve Macchia Guest: Gary Thomas "A simple definition of spiritual formation is that the pathway to a deeper walk with God is aligning a deep understanding of the truth about God with the truth about ourselves." – Steve Macchia In this week's episode of The Discerning Leader Podcast, Steve Macchia shares a conversation with long-time friend Gary Thomas. In Gary's most recent book,  The Life...

Host: Steve Macchia, Guest: Alison Cook "To have a healthy sense of identity and focus intently on what matters most, that's what we're all longing for." - Steve Macchia Curiosity, boundaries, healing, and integration. In Episode 10 of Season 36, Steve Macchia interviews Dr. Alison Cook as she shares wisdom and insight from these themes in her recent book "I Shouldn't Feel This Way." A psychothera...

"Relational health and vitality is based on our ability to be empathetic toward one another as God has been empathetic toward us." - Steve Macchia In Episode 36.09 of The Discerning Leader Podcast, Steve Macchia interviews Bill and Kristi Gaultiere of Soul Shepherding as they share wisdom from their recent book, Deeply Loved . Together, they discuss how the life-giving and life-changing power of e...

"Reading is yet another way we can notice and discern the work of God in everyday life." – Steve Macchia Why should we read? It's a question Jeff Crosby both poses and beautifully answers through engaging personal stories, literary reflections, and spiritual insights. His rich and thought-provoking book, World of Wonders, explores how reading can be an act of worship and spiritual formation. Tune...

"There's so much of us that is yet to be explored because we don't access our imagination." - Steve Macchia   Is it possible to experience a life of fruitful obedience when we're exhausted, anxious, and busy? In their book A Fruitful Life , Ashley and Bryce Hales help readers dive deep into the Sermon on the Mount and discover Jesus' vision of a good and fruitful life. This podcast episode, hosted...

Host: Steve Macchia, Guest: Bill Simmons "We tend to go other places…our work, our relationships, our hobbies, our attachments as opposed to simply finding our rest in God." - Steve Macchia In this episode of The Discerning Leader Podcast, Steve Macchia welcomes Bill Simmons to share themes from his new book, The Way of Interruption: Spiritual Practice for Organizational Life . Bill is the preside...

Host: Steve Macchia, Guests: Mimi Dixon "Let us reflect with gratitude on this movement-making piece of literature that has entered our hearts and the spiritual formation world. We are so grateful for the faithfulness of Richard Foster." - Steve Macchia Miriam (Mimi) Dixon began her ministry in  1979 and has been building up local churches ever since. Holding both an MDiv and DMin degree from Full...

Host: Steve Macchia, Guest: Jimmy Mellado " When we have an awareness of a need, will we run to the need? Are we going to be known for our generosity or for our stinginess? " - Steve Macchia   Steve Macchia and Jimmy Mellado connect in Episode 04 of Season 36. After serving for more than 20 years as the president of the Willow Creek Association, Jimmy has been the President and CEO of Compassion I...

Host: Steve Macchia, Guests: Nicholas and Sheila Rowe " We've been instructed to act justly, to love mercifully and to walk humbly with the Lord. We want to take the risk of extending friendship across the lines that have historically separated us. " - Steve Macchia   In Episode 03 of Season 36, Nicholas and Sheila Rowe offer their expertise in helping leaders process painful and traumatic experie...

Host: Steve Machia, Guest: Dave Ripper " In essence, the number one question we ought to be asking ourselves is 'How can I help you draw closer to God?'"   - Steve Macchia   In Episode 02 of Season 36, Steve Macchia hosts Dave Ripper, author of 'Experiencing Scripture as a Disciple of Jesus.' In this conversation, Steve and Dave discuss Dallas Willard's approach to reading the Bible and how we can...

Host: Steve Macchia, Guest: Suz Skinner " Our prayer is that our eyes will be open, our ears will be attentive, and our hearts will receive the gift of the parables of Jesus . " - Steve Macchia   Season 36 begins with a conversation between Steve Macchia and Suz Skinner. They share about their soon-to-release book, Praying the Parables of Jesus , an immersive encounter with the teachings of Jesus....

Host: Steve Macchia, Guest: Gordon Macdonald   This episode originally aired on May 5, 2022 as Episode 6 of Season 18   " Expect to reorganize your interior life every 7-10 years. " –Gordon MacDonald   Gordon Macdonald joins Steve Macchia again for the conclusion of this 2-part conversation around his book "The View from Eighty." Sharing the final 8 insights that make for success or failure in min...

Host: Steve Macchia, Guest: Gordon Macdonald   This episode originally aired on April 28, 2022 as Episode 5 of Season 18   " Your number one priority in the Lord's work is your family. " –Gordon MacDonald   Gordon Macdonald joins Steve Macchia for the first of two conversations, drawing from his book " The View from Eighty. " A summary of 15 things that make for success or failure in ministry, Gor...

Host: Steve Macchia, Guest: Eric Peterson   This episode originally aired on April 7, 2022 as Episode 2 of Season 18   " God is in everything, in all the details of life, and not just the pleasant ones. " – Eric Peterson   In this REWIND episode, Eric Peterson joins Steve Macchia to reflect upon the luminous trail of spiritual discernment. Using the metaphors of mountain climbing and hiking, Eric...

Host: Steve Macchia, Guest: Carolyn Arends   This episode originally aired on October 13, 2022 as Episode 2 of Season 22   " The promise we always have is not no pain – it's no wasted pain. There's nothing that He can't redeem . " – Carolyn Arends   Carolyn Arends joins Steve Macchia to share watershed moments of her life story. Highlighting several major turning points and milestones, she offers...

Host: Steve Macchia, Guests: Bill and Kristi  Gaultiere   This episode originally aired on November 10, 2022 as Episode 6 of Season 22   " Ohh , I need to do some more inner journey work. This is an invitation. " –Kristi Gaultiere   Bill and Kristi Gaultiere join Steve for a rich conversation about spiritual practices, discernment and soul care. In their book Journey of the Soul , they reflect on...

Host: Steve Macchia, Guest: James Bryan Smith   This episode originally aired on November 3, 2022 as Episode 5 of Season 22   " Every need that my soul has, Jesus meets them – every single one of them. " – James Bryan Smith   James Bryan Smith joins Steve for a conversation about how our view of God transforms our understanding and experience of spiritual disciplines. In this REWIND episode of The...