The Way Home with Dan Darling

Why should Christians advocate for refugees and immigrants? Jenny Yang, daughter of an immigrant and advocate, says it is her pro-life convictions that compel her to speak up. Jenny is the vice-president of advocacy for World Relief. She joins the podcast to talk immigration, refugees, and Christian leadership. Show Notes * Twitter: @JennyYangWR * Website: worldrelief.org * Book: Welcoming the Str...

What does it mean to apply the Bible's vision of human dignity to all of life, from womb to tomb? At our recent Evangelicals for Life Conference in Washington, D.C., I hosted a panel and asked this question. Joining me were Ann Voskamp, bestselling author and speaker, Russell Moore, ERLC President, Jim Daly, Focus on the Family President, and Jenny Yang, Vice-President of advocacy at World Relief....

Can Christians care about pro-life issues and justice issues at the same time? Ben Watson thinks so and has used his platform as a professional football player for the Baltimore Ravens. A former first-round pick and finalist for the NFL's Man of the Year award, Watson talks to me about his Christian faith, life in the public eye, and what life after football might look like. Show Notes * Twitter: ...

He was trained for the ministry, but he serves in another kind of public role: United States Senator. What prompted Senator James Lankford to pursue a life of government service and how does he maintain his spiritual disciplines in a demanding, public life? Sen. Lankford discusses his unique calling, what issues drives him, and why he's so concerned with civility in our politics? Show Notes * Twit...

What compels a Christian to study law and defend religious liberty? Does working for religious liberty go against Jesus' command for his disciples to down their lives? Erik Stanley, from Alliance Defending Freedom, joins the podcast to discuss his life's calling and the importance of religious liberty. Show Notes * Twitter: @ADFErik * Website: adflegal.org and adflegal.org/church-alliance

How we cultivate a quiet heart in a noisy world? How do we balance our public platforms with a life of spiritual discipline? Author Sara Hagerty joins me. She’s the author of Unseen: The Gift of Being Hidden in a World That Loves to Be Noticed.  Show Notes * Twitter: @sarahagerty * Website: sarahagerty.net * Book: Unseen: The Gift of Being Hidden in a World That Loves to Be Noticed  

How can families celebrate the wonder of the incarnation throughout the Christmas season? Doctor, church elder, and author, Scott James joins to the show to talk about the rhythms of his family and about his new Christmas book for children, The Littlest Watchman: Watching and Waiting for the Very First Christmas. Show Notes * Twitter: @scott_h_james * Book: The Littlest Watchman: Watching and Wait...

How has Charles Spurgeon's ministry influenced Alistair Begg, pastor, radio teacher, and author? Today Alistair joins the podcast to talk Spurgeon, pastoral leadership, and Cleveland sports. I asked him about the difference between shepherding and mere leading and what piece of advice he'd give to a young seminarian. Show Notes * Twitter: @truthforlife * Website: truthforlife.org and Spurgeon Stud...

What do personal, spiritual disciplines have with our life on mission in the world? How does personal righteousness affect our activism? Kyle David Bennett, professor at Caldwell University and author of Practices of Love: Spiritual Disciplines for the Life of the World helps us see the connection between vertical piety and horizontal relationships. Show Notes * Twitter: @kyle_d_bennett * Website:...

He planted a church, ten years ago, with a handful of people in his parent's living room. Today, Dean Inserra is pastor of City Church the biggest church in Tallahassee. But his method is not what you'd think: City attracts people, not with killer coffee and cutting edge music, but by building relationships in the city of Tallahassee and by preaching the uncompromising gospel. Dean Inserra is a gr...

We live in the most connected time in human history and yet we maybe the most lonely people in human history. How do we develop real friendships that transcend the screen? Christine Hoover joins us. She's a gifted writer, speaker, and the author of a new book, Messy Beautiful Friendship: Finding and Nurturing Deep and Lasting Relationships.  Show Notes * Twitter:@christinehoover  * Website: gracec...

Was Benjamin Franklin a deist? Was he a Christian? Why should evangelicals care about this Founder's faith? Historian Thomas Kidd rejoins the podcast to talk about his excellent new book, Benjamin Franklin: The Religious Life of a Founding Father. Kidd is distinguished professor of history at Baylor University and the author of several books. Show Notes * Twitter: @ThomasSKidd * Website: Evangelic...

What important steps can churches and Christian organizations make to protect children from becoming victims of abuse? Attorney Kimberlee Norris joins the podcast to offer guidance for Christian leaders. Kimberlee represents victims of abuse, serves as a consulting and testifying expert in abuse cases, and provides crisis management and allegation response counsel to ministries of all sizes. Show...

How can parents teach their kids the real story of Scripture? The founder of VeggieTales talks children's discipleship, theology and creativity, and what he learned from the rise and fall of a Christian media company. Phil is the founder of Big Idea Productions, Jellyfish Labs, and the creator and storyteller behind VeggieTales and What's in the Bible. Show Notes * Twitter: @philvischer and @Whats...

What was the inspiration behind the writing of the The Jesus Storybook Bible? Ten years after its publication, author Sally Lloyd-Jones joins the podcast to talk about the unexpected success of this children's classic and what she has learned about teaching the Bible to children. The Jesus Storybook Bible is, in my view, one of the most important resources for parents to own and read to their chil...

How do everyday Christians connect their Sunday worship to their Monday lives? Can work be a form of worship? Dr. Jim Hamilton, professor of Biblical Theology at Southern Seminary, helps us think biblically about our daily work lives. He's the author of a helpful new book, Work and Our Labor in the Lord.  Show Notes * Twitter: @drjimhamilton * Book:Work and Our Labor in the Lord * Websites: jimham...

What motivates the CEO of a luxury goods company to leave it all behind to work on behalf of the most vulnerable around the world? How can Christians both proclaim the gospel and live it out by serving the neediest around the world? Today my guest is Rich Stearns, President and CEO of World Vision, one of the largest nonprofit humanitarian organizations in the world. Stearns has travelled to 40 of...

Should Christians be nostalgic about days gone by or be excited about living out their faith in the 21s century? Your answer is a good indicator of how you see yourself and your mission in the world. To help us with this, I’ve invited my long time friend Trevin Wax to join us. Trevin is the Bible and Reference publisher at B&H Publishing Group. He is also the managing editor of the popular Gospel...

How can and should the church address the manhood crisis in their communities? How is leadership changing in this digital age? What is the secret to pastoral faithfulness? These are the questions I posed to my friend Johnny Hunt, the longtime pastor at First Baptist Church of Woodstock. Johnny is a former president of the Southern Baptist Convention. For more than 25 years he has hosted the Johnny...

How is the idea of grace worked out in the life of a church? Bryan Chapell joins me to discuss his new book, Unlimited Grace. Chapell is the senior pastor of Grace Presbyterian Church in Peoria, Ill. For many years he served in leadership at Covenant Theological Seminary in St. Louis, the last 20 as its president. I've been greatly influenced by Chapell's work, particularly his books, Christ-Cente...

Many of the narratives in the gospels center around water. Leslie Leyland Fields shares with us why that is important. Leslie is an author and editor. She and her family live in Kodak Island, Alaska where their commercial fishing business helps them better relate to the Jesus who both walked on and calmed the water. Leslie talks to me about why water matters to the gospel story, about her own jour...

How can pastors recover the sense of the Lordship of Christ? Bruce Ashford joins me today to discuss Christianity, cultural engagement and his new book Every Square Inch: An Introduction to Cultural Engagement for Christians. Bruce is Provost and Professor of Theology & Culture at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary.  One Nation Under God: A Christian Hope for American Politics. Show Notes *...

Is there freedom from guilt and shame? What does the gospel story speak into our brokeness? Heather Nelson, author of Unashamed, Healing our Brokeness and Finding Freedom from Shame joins the podcast. Heather speaks of her own personal crises, how pastors can help their people find healing from their past, and why the gospel is still good news for sinners. Show Notes * Twitter: @heatherd_nelson *...

What does productivity have to do with the gospel? This is the question I pose to my friend and colleague Daniel Patterson. Daniel is the chief of staff at ERLC and an expert at productivity and leadership. He also has a Ph. D. in Systematic Theology from the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. Daniel and I discuss his role as chief of staff, getting things done, and why we are both longsufferi...

What unique temptations do pastors face? Zack Eswine, author of The Imperfect Pastor joins me to discuss celebrity evangelicals, fallen pastors, and faithful ministry. Show Notes * Websites: zackeswine.com and riversidestl.org * Twitter: @ZackEswine * Books: The Imperfect Pastor, Sensing Jesus, Spurgeon's Sorrows: Realistic Hope for those who Suffer from Depression Learn more about the 2016 ERLC N...