The Glass House

Send us Fan Mail A recent study discovered that over 1/2 of pastors over the age of 50 had less than $50,000 in their retirement fund and no expectation they would ever retire. On today's episode of The Glass House, Ben and Lynley dive into a topic that no pastor likes talking about: finances!  Dr. Hance Dilbeck from GuideStone joins in this conversation and shares alarming research and stati...

Send us Fan Mail Too often pastors and their wife feel pressure to step into any role necessary and serve the church. However, we all have different personalities, gifts, strengths, and yes, even weaknesses. On today's show Ben and Lynley discuss Clifton Strengths Finder with Ed O'Neal. Ed O'Neal is an American Veteran, leadership developer, and executive coach for leaders of non-pr...

Send us Fan Mail Ministry leaders typically spend time caring and discipling their congregation, and often times forget the very people they're in the trenches with. Caring for your staff and team is crucial for the overall health and impact of a church's ministry. On today's show, Pastor Mark and Jenna Hallock share ways they've created a healthy culture and cared for their st...

Send us Fan Mail We all know that living in the glass house is hard, but growing up in it can be even harder. Today Ben and Lynley are concluding this 3 part series on what it's like to grow up in the glass house. Today's conversation is two Lifeway employees, Tyler Litton and Heather Burczynski. Tyler is the manager of Media Creative and Heather serves as the Executive Assistant to Pres...

Send us Fan Mail One of the most common feedback we hear is how much you love hearing about raising kids in the glass house. You've spoken, and we've listened! We're so excited to share this series with you! Over the next few episodes you'll hear from those who grew up in the glass house. And even though all of these people were pastor's kids, they all have unique stores! ...

Send us Fan Mail One of the most common feedback we hear is how much you love hearing about raising kids in the glass house. You've spoken, and we've listened! We're so excited to share this series with you! Over the next few episodes you'll hear from those who grew up in the glass house. Today's we're kicking off this series with Kelly Minter. Kelly Minter is an auth...

Send us Fan Mail The Glass House is starting a new series interviewing pastors' wives! We will hear from the different generations what it required of them to be a pastor's wife when they were younger. On today's show we have Veronica Geear, wife of JD Greear, Senior Pastor of The Summit Church in North Carolina. Veronica shares some incredible wisdom in having people speak into our...

Send us Fan Mail Have you ever asked your spouse a simple question, like, "whats for dinner?" and all of a sudden they're making a snarky comment back to you? Have you ever found yourself responding out of irritation and frustration when your spouse or kids simply ask you a question? On today's show Nicole Zasowski describes to us what happens when we are operating in our pain...

Send us Fan Mail On August 23rd, 2005 people all over the country were glued to the television watching the largest hurricane in recent history move towards the Gulf Coast. As if a category 5 hurricane wasn’t enough of a threat, the levees that protect New Orleans, Louisiana from incoming water, collapsed. On today’s show Dr. Fred Luter shares his experience of losing everything to a natural disas...

Send us Fan Mail What happens when we hide who we really are? What happens when we let God do a work in 90% of our life, while trying to hide the other 10% from Him? It's so incredibly powerful to come clean to people in your life and confess your sins to others. Typically, it's where the healing that needs to take place begins. In today's episode you'll hear a message that Ben...

Send us Fan Mail Today, on this special episode of the Glass House, we are dropping into your feed on a Friday to bring you an important re-air of an episode that means a great deal to us at the Glass House.  This episode on transitioning  church, with our guests, Adam Mason and Dr. Phil Jett, is especially dear to us because of Dr. Jett's recent passing. It was our desire to honor him by put...

Send us Fan Mail In today’s episode, The Glass House shares a sermon Ben preached recently at Sagemont Church in Houston, Texas. The message is from Luke 16, where Jesus tells of a shrewd manager who used worldly wealth to gain friendships. Ben shows how the most important thing a church can do – including both staff and members – is to invest in its relationships with one another. He concludes wi...

Send us Fan Mail With only 20 days left in the year many of us are reflecting on the past and looking ahead to the new year. This season is often seen as an opportunity for reflection, gratitude, renewal of commitments, and the setting of new goals. But what does a new start really bring us? Do we have more excitement in the anticipation of a new season, or in the actual season we’ve been waiting...

Send us Fan Mail Over the last several episodes we’ve talked about the unique challenges of ministry leaders living in the glass house of church leadership. We’ve recently received a letter challenging one of our episodes addressed to small churches, and the lack of relevancy to the "super small church", a category of churches we didn’t realize we weren’t speaking to. According to feedba...

Send us Fan Mail Picture yourself in a situation where telling a small lie could potentially save someone from a great deal of harm. Is it ever morally justifiable to deceive for the greater good?  Welcome to another thought-provoking episode of "The Glass House" with Ben and Lynley Mandrell. It’s a special episode this week as our producer, Angie Elkins, puts us “on the spot” with a ser...

Send us Fan Mail Ministry is complex and making mistakes is inevitable. On today’s show Ben and Lynley sit down with three ministry couples who are transparent about their biggest mistakes they’ve made and learned from over the years. Jarrett and Debbie Stephens, Corey and Melody Caine, and Mark and Janet Dance share with us how they have navigated the challenges of ministries and what they have l...

Send us Fan Mail Church staffs are inundated with male leadership . On ministry nights or get togethers where spouses are included , husbands of women on staff can easily feel like the odd man out . On today’s show Ben and Lynley explore the complexities of this dynamic with Robert and Tasha Calvert.   Robert and Tasha Calvert have been married for over 20 years , together they shar e four daughte...

Send us Fan Mail When a pastor or ministry leader falls, it impacts the entire family and community. Walking through a tragedy like this is difficult for everyone. Today’s guest has walked this road firsthand as a daughter of a pastor who had a very public fall from their church ministry position. Lisa Whittle shares with us how her father’s actions and the reaction from the church community deepl...

Send us Fan Mail All of us, including pastors and pastor’s families, need God’s grace every day. The question is not whether we will fail, but where will we turn when we do? On today’s episode Ben and Lynley have a candid conversation with Dr. Ed and Kathy Litton as they share their unique challenges and the mistakes they made in pastoral ministry.   Ed and Kathy Litton live in Mobile, Alabama whe...

Send us Fan Mail One third of special needs families say they have left a church because they didn’t feel seen and welcomed, or because there wasn’t a ministry for their child. With 1 in 36 children in the United States being identified with autism, it’s time for the America n church to not just welcome families with special needs, but to truly serve them! On today's show Ben and Lynley have...

Send us Fan Mail True or False : Hiring your friend is a great idea?   On today’s show we tackle the conversation of friendships and whether or not you should hire your friends. Friendships can be complicated as it is, so at what cost do you risk th e friendship to have the opportunity to work together? Ben and Lynley share personal stories about their own friendships over the years, how the quote...

Send us Fan Mail In today’s episode we have an honest conversation with couples Chris and Libby Philips and   Landon and Tara Dowden about their biggest mistakes in ministry. Our guests don’t hold back as they confess to a range of mistakes, including betrayal of a confidence , overcommitment, people- pleasing, and even a fistfight between one of the couples’ own children on the front pew!     Lif...

Send us Fan Mail As ministry leaders we know the order of priorities are God, family, church, but we also know that’s not how it always works. Too often our priorities are distorted due to us living outside of our means with our energy, time, and gifts. Overworking ourselves inevitably leads to affecting the overall mental, emotional, and spiritual health of our family.     Dr. Heidi Warner gradua...

Send us Fan Mail In design, it is often said, there should be an unexpected element in every room .  We have decided to lean into this rule in podcasting as well and throw in something completely unexpected . We have asked our prod ucer, Angie Elkins, to completely surprise us with questions that we hope will help you get to know us better, provoke you to think about some things that you have not...

Send us Fan Mail With differing personalities, marital needs, and rhythms of shifting seasons it is inevitable that mistakes are going to be made along the way. We have made plenty of them and today we are excited to sit down with Nick and Meredith Floyd to talk about their biggest mistakes throughout their ministry journey.     Nick and Meredith met when they were both attending Liberty Universit...