The Stoop Sessions

Before he died, Jesus prayed for us. He prayed for our display of Christian unity. In a polarizing culture, even the church can find itself on opposite sides of a divide. In this episode, the Stoop squad calls up Isaac Adams, an associate pastor at Capitol Hill Baptist in D.C., to talks about unity and prayer. Prayer is as simple as it is powerful, but when it is lacking, we are led by our pride....

Why pray? For some Christians, prayer seems unnecessary. In some churches, prayer has become a mere transition between the songs and ceremonies of the service. In contrast, prayer should be our natural habitat, as water is to a fish. Is prayer absent in today’s church? Does prayer feel too holy, mystifying, boring, or awkward? In this episode, Joel, Eric, and Stephanie discuss public prayer, what...

Burnout is not simply being tired, but a state of physical, emotional, social, and spiritual exhaustion. Burnout can stem from a wrong perspective, measuring worth in what we produce, and measuring ourselves against others. When our eyes are set on outward performance, our ego can work us like slaves. Eric, Joel, and Stephanie discuss the signs of approaching burnout, and how we can avoid or recov...

In scripture, elders are addressed as a plurality, not as a role to be served by a single individual. Joel and Eric, both pastors at The Garden Church, share insight into the importance of having both paid and lay (unpaid) elders serving the inner city church. What does it look like for an elder to have full-time secular work, but still hold the same authority as the senior Pastor? Listen in as we...

In this episode, Marla Walker, a member of The Garden Church and ONE HOPE intern, shares her story of addiction, shame, and feeling not good enough to go before God. Being introduced to alcohol at only 8 years old, Marla was put on a path to drug dependency and a series of recoveries and relapses. From trap houses to recovery houses, Marla’s life represents the cycle of so many. Yet, unlike many o...

In this episode, our continued conversation on addiction looks at how the church should respond to the broken and downcast. Churches can become structured only for the “clean-cut” of a certain socioeconomic status, neglecting those who may disturb our comfortableness. Discussed are ways in which the church can be a community that humbly works towards restoration for all, knowing that God’s grace r...

In the previous episode, Stephanie, Joel, and Eric define addiction from a Biblical perspective. Recognizing what it is, what can we do about it? What are some practical ways to care and help the addicted? In this episode, a question arises on the use of Methadone and Suboxone.. How should we think of using drugs to treat drugs? The team makes a random phone call to Dr. Mark Plaster who shares his...

When the subject of addiction enters a conversation, it is easy to deflect and downplay its gravity. It is easy to dehumanize those caught in substance abuse, failing to recognize their worth; people made in the image of God. Addiction is both willful rebellion and simultaneously held in bondage to a substance. It devastates, not only the individual, but families and communities. Substances can al...

In 2007, Mez McConnell was hired as a pastor for an outreach post in a Scottish scheme. As a scheme is similar to any project or inner city neighborhood, few members of this “mission” actually lived in the neighborhood. Mez, himself, was encouraged to live elsewhere by those who hired him. Listen to our conversation with Mez on how he moved into this neighborhood, re-planted a church, and now lead...

Intentionally living in a poor neighborhood for ministry might appear spiritually uprigh, but it can easily give root to gentrification and a savior mentality. In the third episode on intentional living, conversation centers on how to love your neighbors and be witnesses, without the goal of fixing a neighborhood to fit your preferences. How the wrong approach, the wrong hope, brings about despair...

Darkness is potent in many neighborhoods of Baltimore, where violence, poverty, addiction, and corruption, is an everyday reality that can weigh heavily on the soul.  In this second episode on the theme of intentional living, Joel, Eric, and Stephanie, share some of the reasons why they have come, committed to, and continued to counter darkness in a Christ-like manner. In having hearts grieved by...

“Intentional” may be a buzzword of contemporary Christianity, but what does it tangibly look like for the church to be living with intention?  Joel Kurz, Eric Hill, and Stephanie Greer discuss the benefits and difficulties of intentionally living in the same neighborhood they serve. In a city like Baltimore, where many might see only a ministry “project,” they have seen a home and how a constant p...

Welcome to The Stoop Sessions. These weekly sessions present candid conversations about life and ministry from the stoop in Baltimore, MD. Join Stephanie, Joel, and Eric and catch a glimpse of their ups and downs, challenges and celebrations, discouragement and encouragements. All ministry is hard. Inner city work has its unique challenges. That's what this podcast is all about. Listen in to this...