The Watching World

Abundant Life Church’s Women’s Ministry Leader, Jennifer Spears tells us her story, how she came about being the Leader of Women’s Ministry, and what it all involves. Being raised in a Christian home, Jennifer knew about God. She was 8 years old when she understood the gospel, knew she was a sinner, placed her trust in Christ, and got saved. It wasn’t until she was married that she really let God...

Our special guest today has a very unique story. Vanessa Johnson, one of Abundant Life’s Fusion volunteers shares with us her childhood in New Orleans in the 1960s, and how close to home the American Civil Rights Movement was, being that her own cousin, Gail Etienne, was one of the “New Orleans Four”. Vanessa describes her childhood as a good one, being close with her big family, having friends, b...

Join today’s guests, and Fusion staff members Savvy Hughes, student operations coordinator, and Paytn Godshall, student events coordinator, as we learn about their personal testimonies of being called into ministry. It was in college that Savvy felt the Lord stirring a desire in her heart about ministry. Though she was majoring in elementary education, she was drawn to ministry while leading at “O...

Get to know Abundant Life Church’s Online Campus Pastor Kyle Worsham. He is married to his bride Sarah, and has moved from Houston Texas, to the north west, to San Antonio, to Missouri where they now reside. What does an Online Campus Pastor do? Their goal is to get the congregation engaged in the church service, via the internet. Whether that be in your own home on a Sunday morning or at a nearby...

Abundant Life Church has been so blessed to have multiple campuses, in Lee’s Summit, Independence, and Blue Springs Missouri, and now they are expanding into the heart of Kansas City, opening their Crossroads Campus. Learn more about what’s happening with the new campus Pastor, Chad Glover. The launch of the Crossroads campus will provide a place of worship for regular attendees of Abundant Life w...

Get to know Brent Ewert, financial advisor, president of Community Financial Services Group, loving husband, dad, and grandpa, and faithful camera director for Sunday service at Abundant Life Church. In this podcast, Brent gives us a fresh perspective on how to handle our everyday finances, and how to take steps to prepare for the future. There are 2,350 verses in the Bible on the topic of money a...

In this episode, featuring Abundant Life Church’s Special Needs Coordinator, Quincey Nicholas, we learn more about how the church includes these individuals in various ministries. Quincey is a wife and a mother of two boys, who has a passion for special needs individuals. After becoming pregnant, she made the switch from working as a special education teacher to working at the church part-time as...

Continuing in their story of surviving Covid, Ramon and Tammy LaRue share just how intense Ramon’s sickness got. It seemed as if Ramon was in the clear, off the ventilator, and stable. Until Tammy got a call from the hospital saying Ramon had developed blood clots in his lungs. He was transferred to another hospital where he was put on a ventilator once again. After giving all the care they could...

In part 1 we chat with Ramon and Tammy LaRue and their experience with COVID. Ramon and Tammy have attended Abundant Life for seven years and have been married for 24 years with two children. They are business owners that see the importance of pouring into others. Ramon began developing flu-like symptoms while working in February. With a history of pneumonia, he knew he needed to get checked out....

In today’s Christmas episode, featuring Pastor Phil Hopper, we dive into the reason for the season. You may picture baby Jesus lying in a manger, but as we search and know the scriptures, there’s a lot more surrounding the nativity story that points us to God’s real purpose in sending His Son. The gospel accounts of Matthew and Luke describe genealogies leading up to Jesus’ birth. Matthew’s geneal...

Does faith belong in sports? Yes, says special guest Jason Romano, “If you’re a Christian, your faith belongs everywhere.” Jason Romano is a former ESPN producer, author, and podcast host of Sports Spectrum. In this episode, Jason shares his story of success to significance. Jason grew up in the Catholic Church but didn’t have a relationship with God until later in life when his brother got saved...

Learn about what a singles ministry really is like on today’s podcast featuring Dan Stiegler, the leader of Abundant Life’s Singles Ministry. Dan and his wife Debbie both come from marriages that ended in divorce. There can be misconceptions and controversy surrounding this topic but to make it clear, God hates divorce and the ripple effect it causes. God hates to see families broken up, and the h...

Special guest Chelsea Glover has tons of tips for raising godly girls. She is the wife of Pastor Chad Glover and the mother of three daughters. Today’s podcast covers topics from modesty to identity, comparison, and even preparing them for marriage. Focusing on the holiness of God is something the Glovers integrate into their parenting. It helps to encourage their daughters to be set apart from th...

As Christians, we are called to a life of ministry, and it all beings in our homes. In today’s podcast, we learn from Bill and Karen Ward, authors and parents of five adult children, as they discuss the importance of family discipleship. Having not grown up in spiritually foundational homes, Bill and Karen were driven to create a biblical environment for their own children. As they submitted to Go...

Ever wonder what a missions trip entails or how to get involved? Missions Pastor Bill Gibbs of Abundant Life Church walks us through these questions. He’s been to 27 different countries, has a heart and a passion for missions, and he’s an obedient and faithful servant of God. Going on a missions trip can sound intimidating, but you aren’t thrown into a place with anything to do. Usually, you are p...

God’s love for us is immeasurable and the fact that He is mighty to save is a miracle in and of itself. Hearing testimonies of how God has saved the lost is always a reason to praise Him and brings immense joy to our hearts as Christians. In this talk, Marcus Penwell, security director at Abundant Life Church in Lee’s Summit, MO tells of his salvation and what God has done in his life since. Growi...

Continuing from Daniel Arnautov’s story of growing up in a communist country, he tells his father's miraculous adventures as part of the underground church in Ukraine. Daniel is a husband and father and served in the Fusion ministry at Abundant Life in Lee’s Summit MO. After arresting Daniel’s Grandfather, the KGB was after his father. In order to continue his work for the Kingdom, Daniel’s father...

Today’s podcast highlights the incredible life of one of our Abundant Life members, fusion volunteers, husband, and father of three, Daniel Arnautov. Growing up in Ukraine, he did not have it easy, living in a communist country as a Christian. Even as a young boy in first grade, Daniel was strong in his faith in God. He was bold to decline the red star, which would symbolize his allegiance to the...

This episode features Toshaun Avery, pastor of Fusion, husband, and father of two. He is a very gifted and caring leader of Abundant Life Church’s teens. Today he discusses how to navigate teens dating, and the dangers of pornography. Many might ask the question “what age is appropriate to start dating?” But Toshaun asks another question, “why?” What is the purpose of dating at this young age? Is...

In the last episode of the series: Sharing the Gospel in Post-Christian America and why we can trust the Bible, we explore Why the resurrection of Jesus Christ is true, featuring Lead Pastor Phil Hopper and Ed Croteau, founder of FSE University. Our faith rests or falls on the resurrection. The cynic might say it is not scientifically possible. Science can tell you how something works but not how....

In today’s podcast, author Robin Walsh tells of her incredible story of surviving suicide. In her book, “My Morning Song Psalm 23, My Journey Back From Suicide” she explains how trauma can have long-term effects, but no matter how deep the hurt, God is always with you and will never abandon you. After the death of her father, her mother became depressed and turned to alcohol. All five children wer...

Join us today as we talk with Kaleb and Michaelah Weaver. Kaleb is the Worship Pastor at Abundant Life. They are PK's (pastor kids) parents of twins, real coffee people, and splattered with musical gifts from God.  Worshipping is more than singing. It is a part of who they are, almost a native language. Both growing up in a Christian home they saw their parents model and live out their faith. T...

In today’s podcast, special guest Louie Giglio, the pastor at Passion City Church in Atlanta GA. Based on Psalm 23, Louie writes about how God prepares our table, and yet the enemy is prowling around waiting to get a seat. He doesn’t need an invitation, he plants seeds of thought in our minds to attempt to steal, kill and destroy everything that brings glory to God. He targets our minds, self-wort...

Join host Les Norman with today’s guests Cory Weeda, facilities director, and David Jones, technical director, as they explore all the hard work that goes on behind the scenes on Sunday mornings. As soon as the last service wraps up each Sunday, the team starts preparing for the next week’s sermon. It takes not only technically savvy people, but also the artistically gifted, to create the vision o...

In this episode featuring Lead Pastor Phil Hopper, Ed Croteau, and host Les Norman, we’re tackling the claims that Jesus made about himself, was he a good person, a prophet, or was he God? We live in a culture today that dances around Jesus’ claims or writes them off completely. It’s common to hear people say Jesus was a good person, but ignore what the Bible actually has to say. In truth, Jesus w...