Our guest this week is musician and seasoning salt tycoon Tori Johnson, aka Uncle T! Tori joins us to discuss her upbringing in a charismatic mega church, the accident that changed her life, grappling with sexuality, and how any responsible parent would sooner see their kid become a juggalo than a raver. It was a fun conversation, and you should go check out her website (www.hellounclet.com), and her music page (@your.uncle.t) on Instagram! Side Hustle Salts can be found on Instagram (@sidehustlesalt) and at the official website (sidehustlesalt.com).

This week Sam, Casey, and Jeremiah take a hard look at the recent Balenciaga scandal involving kids with S&M teddy bears, unsettling court documents used as photo props, and the resulting backlash and its effects. It’s a lot of weird. Some would argue it’s too much weird.

Of course, we wouldn’t feel right without spending some time in the Word with you folks, so we’re going back to the book of Mordecai… Oops I mean the book of Esther! Maybe you remember the parts of this story that they covered in Sunday school, but I’ll bet they skipped some of the more gruesome details. So take a break from whittling your favorite impaling pole (it’s sharp enough, man), and enjoy the show!

Pssst… if you like the show, we’d sure appreciate it if you’d leave us a review wherever you listen to it, and share it with a friend or 10. Long days and pleasant nights, traveler 🤠

Our guest this week is the fantastically-talented singer, songwriter, and creator, Ian McConnell! Months ago, we stumbled across a video of Ian performing a song called “Important,” and we knew from the lyrics that we had to talk to him. Ian spent a lot of time in church, as a kid, and really enjoyed it. However, life experience led him to question the validity of his faith. We think Ian may be one of the most positive and enjoyable people we’ve talked to, and we had a blast discussing everything from worship music, to psychedelics, to god’s righteous judgement on you filthy masturbators. If you haven’t checked out Ian’s music, it’s a must! Follow him on TikTok  and Instagram (@ianmcconnellmusic), YouTube (@ianmcconnell), and listen to his music on all streaming platforms!

But first, we absolutely MUST talk about the scandal surrounding FTX and its founder/CEO Sam Bankman-Fried. In less than a decade, SBF went from average joe to crypto billionaire. He was lauded as a visionary philanthropist and quirky genius, but over the course of a few days, he lost his entire fortune, and was laid bare as a crony capitalist scam artist. Believe me, the inevitable Netflix documentary about this debacle is going to be amazing!

This week we’re joined once again by the fabulous April Gloria (Casey’s wife), and we’re jumping back in the Word, folks! Grab a pad and pen, because we’re studying the heavenly sex offenders known as the Nephilim, and the story of Esther. I’m telling you, these Bible stories just keep getting better with distance… Follow April on Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok (@_aprilgloria)!

This week we’re joined by author and journalist Casey Parks! Casey is a Washington Post reporter who covers gender and family issues. She spent a decade at The Oregonian, where she wrote about race and LGBTQ+ issues and was a finalist for the Livingston Award. Her articles have appeared in The New York Times Magazine, The New Yorker, Oxford American, ESPN, USA Today, and The Nation. In this episode, Casey recounts her childhood as a charismatic youth, winning a trip to Alabama for leading so many people to the Lord (that’s right, soul-winning champion!), coming to grips with her sexuality, and all the ways that her family, friends, and fellow church-goers coped with that reality. Casey also has a new book out called “Diary of a Misfit,” which is about her long, difficult quest to learn about a man named Roy from her grandmother’s town that was supposedly kidnapped as a little girl but grew up live as a man. At its core, the book is a family saga about forging connections across the gulfs that divide us. Find out more about Casey and her work on her website (www.caseyparks.com), follow her on Twitter (@caseyparks) and Instagram (@caseyparksauthor), and buy “Diary of a Misfit” wherever books are sold!

Happy Halloween, friends! This week, we’re reviewing some very important warnings about this, the most evil of all holidays, from the totally sane and rational prophets of Christian TikTok. But first, Sam has some very exciting news to share… If you’re enjoying the show, we’d sure appreciate it if you’d share it with a friend or two and leave us a review wherever you listen. As always, we’d love to hear from you! Find a link to our Discord server in our Instagram bio.  

This week, we’re joined by author and actor Barrett Carroll! Barrett grew up in unusual circumstances, to say the least… His father was a preacher, conspiracy theorist, and right wing political activist that kept the family moving off the grid for decades. On top of that, he was physically and emotionally abusive. Barrett found purpose and hope in the one thing he was allowed to do – acting. In this episode, he tells the story of his upbringing, his escape from his father, and the course of his fascinating career in and out of Hollywood! Follow Barrett TikTok and Instagram (@barrotdcarroll), visit his website, and pick up a copy of his inspirational children’s book, “The Acorn’s Journey,” on Amazon!

P.S. Sorry about my audio during the intro! I’m away from my home recording setup. If it’s too distracting, you can skip to the interview at 29:15.

On our first Friday Fellowship episode in quite some time, I (Casey) got to hang out with my old Michigan buddies, Ian and The Jowl! We spent an evening cackling about attending Promise Keepers rallies as kids, getting arrested for possessing various flea market weaponry, Ian’s reservations about the Heavenly streets of gold, and finally, the heartwarming Biblical account of Ehud and King Eglon from Judges 3. This is a fun episode with two of my favorite people on the planet, and I hope you enjoy it!

Last week, we aired an interview with Jeremy Courtney, who along with his wife Jessica, founded the charitable organization Preemptive Love. We had a lot to say about the controversy surrounding the Courtney’s dismissal from the charity that they had spent well over a decade building, but we thought it best to let people hear from Jeremy, first. This week, we got together with Jeremiah to discuss the accusations made against them, the tone and inflection of the articles written by two former employees, the preemptive critiques of Humanite (a new project that has only just launched and is already under assault), and final thoughts on what this mess says about the people involved, both directly and indirectly. This conversation might ruffle some feathers, but it needs to be had. The callous, enthusiastic way in which we discard imperfect people who have done so much good is infuriating. The Courtneys aren’t perfect, but they’ve been in the field helping save lives and build communities for a long time. We think they deserved better than they got. Here are the articles we discuss:

“Preemptive Love: What Happens When a Charity Runs More Like a Cult” by Ben Irwin

“Jeremy and Jessica Courtney’s misconduct at Preemptive Love, documented” by Ben Irwin

“A Donor’s Guide to Preemptive Love’s Financial Statements” by Ben Irwin

“What you should know about Humanite, Jeremy and Jessica Courtney’s new organization” by Ben Irwin

“An Open Letter to Preemptive Love” by Courtney Christenson

The Board of Directors’ Statements & Timeline of Events 

This week, we got the opportunity to sit down with humanitarian and author, Jeremy Courtney, who comes to you from his home in northern Iraq! In 2008, Jeremy and his wife Jessica founded an incredible organization called Preemptive Love, who’s mission includes providing aid in the form of food, shelter, and medical care to people caught in the midst of global conflict, as well as launching local businesses in war-torn parts of the world to bring jobs, revenue, and stability back to their communities. For over a decade, Jeremy and Jessica worked side-by-side with local partners all over the Middle East, and Preemptive Love grew to become the large, impactful organization that it is today. In late 2021, several former employees voiced complaints and concerns about the Courtney’s leadership. The organization willingly subjected themselves to a third-party investigation by Guidepost Solutions hoping to better understand the problems and how to address them. However, a couple of ex-employees went public with their grievances. Shortly thereafter, the board of directors published a statement saying that Jeremy and Jessica Courtney would not be returning to Preemptive Love. After months of radio silence, the Courtneys announced that they were partnering with many of their longtime friends and fellow humanitarians to form a new organization called Humanite Peace Collective. That’s obviously the abridged version of the story, but hopefully it gives some context…

This is the first time Jeremy has spoken publicly since leaving Preemptive Love, and we were as anxious as anyone to hear his thoughts on what happened. Whether or not you followed the Courtneys or Preemptive Love over the years, I think you’ll find Jeremy’s story fascinating. We encourage you to check out Humanite at www.humanite.org, and if you’d like to join the conversation, you’ll find a link to the official Growing Up Christian Discord server in our Instagram bio, @growingupchristianpodcast!