The GoodLion Podcast

Deconstruction is a growing trend in religious and philosophical circles. While many Christians have begun to address deconstruction, we don’t often engage with deconstructionist ideas directly. In this episode, Aaron and Brian are joined by Dominic Done, author of When Faith Fails: Finding God In the Shadow of Doubt and founder of a ministry to skeptics and doubters called Pursuing Faith. Aaron,...

As Aaron and Brian get ready to go on an official break, they reflect on the importance of rest, the pitfalls of workaholism in ministry, and the call of Jesus to ruthlessly eliminate hurry from our lives and embrace a lifestyle of resting in Christ as we live and serve with Him. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, vis...

In today's world, many of us are afraid of confrontation. Confrontation is uncomfortable. None of us like to be in a disagreement with someone, especially if we believe we need to tell them that they're wrong about something. We are currently living in an age of postmodern thought, causing us to question the very foundation of truth.  But confrontation is an essential part of helping someone see J...

In this episode, Aaron and Brian explore the way that postmodern thinking is currently effecting young people. As two former youth pastors, we have a huge heart for young people. They aren’t just the future of the church, they are the present. If you’re a young person between the middle school and college age listening to this, we appreciate you, and we are glad you are here. One of the biggest pr...

We've got a special treat for you guys: Aaron has asked his old friend Mike Winger to come on and chat about the power and potential of doing ministry work online. Mike started out as a youth and assistant pastor at a local church, before God started leading him to a new mission field: the internet. Mike runs the theology and apologetics youtube ministry, Bible Thinker. For anyone looking to find...

Postmodernism may be today’s common thinking, but is that a good thing? In this episode, Brian and Aaron push past the facade of freedom postmodernism offers to explore some of its dangers. The second episode of this new miniseries begins with a quick recap on what postmodern thinking actually is, something that is not always easy to define. With that definition in mind, Aaron and Brian highlight...

Why are Millennials and GenZ kids who grew up in the Church leaving in droves? How can we reach people struggling with doubt and deconstruction? Evan Wickham, pastor of Park Hill Church in San Diego, has a lot of perspective to offer on this topic. Between his time as a youth pastor, traveling worship leader, and spending years pastoring in Portland (a culture hostile to the Christian faith), Evan...

In this episode Brian & Aaron begin to scratch the surface of a notoriously hard to define topic: postmodernism, specifically postmodern philosophy. While western culture has been in the grip of a postmodern movement and mood since the 1960s, many Christians struggle to identify what exactly postmodernism is, and why it presents a problem for the Church. In part one of a new miniseries, the gu...

In this midweek message, Brian takes us through the example of Peter and shows us a path to get out of "survival mode" as we fix our eyes on Jesus. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit goodlionpod.substack.com

Have you ever wondered if you are actually saved? if Jesus' work on the cross was enough to really save you? Have you ever been discouraged about how sometimes the Gospel can seem so complicated, and there seems to be a ton of hurdles you must clear before you can truly be saved? If you've wondered these things... this message is for you. Aaron takes a look at the Simple Gospel as taught by Paul i...

In this GoodLion midweek message Aaron shares with us about the evil twin brother of faith - doubt. Doubt is not a very fun topic to talk about because it's not something that's often very accepted at church... but it's something vitally important the church talks about and engages with. We need to see how Jesus responds to those who doubt. What better character to study on this topic than the man...

Brian Higgins sits down with church planting veteran Pilgrim Benham to discuss the ins and outs of everything you need to know before you plant a church. Show Links: - Join the GoodLion Community on Discord! - Submit questions that you want Brian and Aaron to answer or make content about! - Submit questions specifically about youth ministry! - Visit our website! This is a public episode. If you wo...

In this BONUS episode Aaron & Brian square off to see who can fire off the most "Christainese" phrases in rapid succession. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit goodlionpod.substack.com

Abortion is a hot button topic that is often debated by both Christians and non Christians. Ryan Lynn (Founder of the Speak Life Collective) is here to challenge us on how we can think through this divisive topic as followers of Christ. In this discussion, Aaron and Brian dialogue with Ryan about the value of an unborn life, how to respond to those who hold pro-choice views, what it means to be pr...

Ask GoodLion: What are your strategies for avoiding sin? Brian and Aaron discuss the importance, of confession, openness, accountability, and resisting the devil so he will flee from YOU (instead of the other way around.)    -----------    Ask GoodLion is a video series from Aaron Salvato & Brian Higgins, two Bible-theology nerds and hosts of The GoodLion Podcast ( https://goodlion.io/glp/ ) ...

GoodLion is starting an online young adults ministry! Aaron preaches the first message on the importance of Faith, Hope, & Love in a world desperate for all three. - GoodLion Ministries is an online young adults discipleship group that focuses on helping young people follow the way of Jesus. We meet monday nights 6PM pst, where we have sermons and discussion. If you're interested in joining, e...

When God made the world, he called it good... and yet when we look at the world today, a lot of times it doesn't really seem very good. It's filled with pandemics and violence and racism and division. And that's just this year, when we look back at human history, it is filled with all kinds of terrible things. We've talked to on this podcast about whether or not God causes evil, and while we recom...

Ask GoodLion: How are ways that Christians “major on the minors?” Aaron and Brian discuss eschatology, Calvinism / Arminiamism debates, LGBTQ issues, and how the way we talk about these things impacts our Kingdom Witness. ----------- Ask GoodLion is a video series from Aaron Salvato & Brian Higgins, two Bible-theology nerds and hosts of The GoodLion Podcast . These guys love theology, deep thi...

Ask GoodLion: Are words necessary when preaching the Gospel, or is the often attributed to St. Francis of Assisi quote “Preach the Gospel.... and if Necessary use words” good advice? Aaron and Brian dive into the necessity of preaching when it comes to “preaching the Gospel.”  ------------------- Ask GoodLion is a video series from Aaron Salvato & Brian Higgins, two Bible-theology nerds and ho...

Aaron gets invited to come onto Brenna Blain's podcast "Can I Say That?", a podcast that tackles tough topics around Christianity and faith. In the episode, Aaron speaks with Brenna about the topic of Progressive Christianity. What is progressive Christianity? What are some common held beliefs of those who would consider themselves to be progressive Christians? Why is this an important topic to st...

In this episode, we dive into some dangerous territory: questions about God's sovereignty.  The sovereignty of God can be an extremely challenging topic for Christians. A lot of the debate centers on the phrase "God is in control." What do we mean when we say God is in control? For many, this question leads to an even bigger one: if God is in control, does that mean he causes evil and suffering? B...

Brenna Blain (host of the Can I Say That? Podcast) shares her story about the unique challenges of being a same sex attracted woman of faith. She tells us about her testimony of following Jesus, what led her to embrace an orthodox view of sexuality and faith,  the important role that sensitive/empathetic youth ministry can play in a SSA child's life, and answers questions like "are all Christians...

No one wants to admit they are weak. Our culture puts a high value on strength. But even the strongest among us have weaknesses. Everyone does, even though we all try to mask it. In this episode, Aaron and Brian open up about their own weaknesses and vulnerabilities, how they have effected them in life and ministry, and most importantly, how they have found strength in Christ in their moments of w...

Aaron sits down with his old friend Jordan and her boyfriend (now fiancé since the time of this recording!) Hip-Hop and R&B artist Jon Keith to discuss dating, sex, and waiting for marriage to engage in sexuality. In this culture it's harder than ever for couples to wait, and many don't even really have a theology for "why" they should wait or what the purpose is. Many people who have struggled an...

The way to win is not through violence, revolution, or political power. The way to win is through the person of Jesus, and for Christ followers our strategy is laid out all throughout scripture. This is how you win: Remember that our leader Jesus has overcome the world, the battle is already won. (John 16:33) Do not use violence as a method of bringing about God’s kingdom. He who lives by the swor...