Halfway There

Have you ever wondered if God really can turn your pain into purpose?

Our guest today shares the peace he felt when he found Jesus after a lifetime of violence and how he uses it now to help others get free.

Hector "Lefty" Perez is a mental health and sobriety advocate. He works installing HVAC systems and helps as many people as he can know the love of Christ. Today, Lefty shares what it was like growing up in East Los Angeles among violence, gangs, and drugs. He tells how he got sucked into the life, the moment he decided to get out, and turning his life over to Christ once and for all.

Left also shares the difficult times he's experienced including relapse at times and how it led him to a life where he encourages others to give up drugs and live for Christ.

Lefty's story reminds us that God loves us no matter what we have done.

Listen to Lefty's story wherever you get your podcasts!

Stories Lefty shared:

Every word I read was like painkiller for my soul and I wanted more.

I was searching for peace and I only found it when I allowed Christ in my heart.

I prayed, "I've done worse things for a nobody, let me do something good for you, a somebody."

You grew up in church but suddenly, you can't tell if God cares about you. What do you do?

Our guest today shares the moment when she didn't recognize herself, didn't feel God's presence, and what she did next.

Ciara Laine Myers is an award-winning business owner, blogger, and author of Glasses Off: Seeing God When Your Vision Is Gone. Today, Ciara shares with us her reaction to trauma, the moment her secrets became known, and the practices that brought her back to health. Plus, we talk about calling and why it may not mean what you think.

Ciara's story reminds us that no matter how far we feel from God, it's only one step back.

Listen to Ciara's story wherever you get your podcasts now!

If good Ciara is being abused, I’m going to be bad Ciara.

There was one moment that I looked in the mirror and thought "I don't really feel God anymore, and it was cold."

Calling is not a career. It’s a space on Earth to live out your purpose.

Ciara’s website

Glasses Off: Seeing God When Your Vision Is Gone by Ciara Laine Myers

What was the experience for you that changed your faith dramatically?

Our guest today shares the moment that moved his faith from his head to his heart and how it changed how he sees everything.

Jeff Haanen is a writer and entrepreneur. He’s the founder of Denver Institute for Faith & Work, an educational organization that creates content and experiences around topics related to faith, work, the economy, and modern culture.

Today, Jeff shares how he found faith while recovering from an injury, his funny response to praying aloud for the first time, and how he started thinking about faith and work. Plus, Jeff shares his process as he learned humility.

Jeff's story reminds us the Gospel is best infused into every aspect of our lives.

Listen to Jeff's story anywhere you get your podcasts! 

Growing up in a Minnesota without a strong faith experience

Getting hurt before his senior year and reading the Bible and other books

Praying in a group for the first time

Joining a missions organization and going to Ecuador

Learning how to pay attention to people

Deciding to go to seminary with an insatiable curiosity

Starting the Denver Institute for Faith and Work

Noticing “cracks” in his armor

Realizing that he was looking for his identity in his work

Going on a self-awareness journey

Deconstruction how he lived his Christian life

Leaving Denver Institute for Faith & Work

How serving is crucial for work

My brain was way ahead of my heart and that's been a lot of my own faith journey. 

We need to go on a journey of seeking deep spiritual health.

A critical element of that self awareness journey is simply opening ourselves to what is and noticing what's there and not trying to fix it. 

Skye Jethani and Eternity Breaks In

Laura Flanders and The Mentored Life

Matt Fagioli and Beyond Check Box Faith

Sometimes life just doesn't go the way you planned. Give me an amen if that resonates!

When the unexpected happens, it's tempting to believe that you did something wrong or that God is punishing you. 

Our guest today says that community, communion with God, and even medication helped her overcome life's unexpected speed bumps.

Sarah E. Frazer is author of several books including her latest I Didn’t Sign Up for This. Today, Sarah shares about her friend from another denomination helped her grow, finding God while struggling through postpartum depression, and the moment she learned God isn't angry with her. 

Sarah's story reminds us that while we are sometimes surprised by life, God isn't and he's always there with us.

Listen to Sarah's story wherever you get your podcasts!

God isn’t angry at me.

God is a lot bigger than our black and white.

When we face interruptions, we are tempted to question God’s sovereignty and his goodness. We need both as we move forward into a life we didn’t plan.

How often do you think about the end times? Ever come home to an empty house and wonder if you'd been left behind?

If so, you're going to love this episode because our guest explains where that theological belief—and others you probably hold—came from.

Dr. Dan Hummel is the director of The Lumen Center in Madison, WI and a research fellow in the History Department at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He authored The Rise and Fall of Dispensationalism: How the Evangelical Battle of the End Times Shaped a Nation. 

Dr. Hummel shared his own experiences including how he developed a global perspective as a missionary kid, growing up in a cessationist tradition, and the humility he developed by studying different traditions in Israel.

We also talk about dispensationalism, a theological framework that you're probably more affected by than you realize. He details where it came from, how it still influences us today, including how you read your Bible.

Dr. Hummel's work and story reminds us that understanding our theological tradition is essential for our spiritual growth.

LIsten anywhere you get your podcasts!

Growing up as a missionary kid and developing a global perspective

How his family of origin shaped his perspective

Praying the “sinner’s prayer” as a seven year old

How his college experiences in a small church shaped his faith

Deciding to study Middle East history

The humility he had as he read different traditions

Growing up in a cessationist tradition

Spending a year in Israel and the experience of being in the minority

How studying Christian Zionism led to studying dispensationalism

The effect of dispensationalism’s “hermeneutical innovation”

Examples of the effects of dispensationalism in America today

Christianity is an inherently eschatological religion.

Dan’s website 

The Rise and Fall of Dispensationalism: How the Evangelical Battle over the End Times Shaped a Nation by Dr. Dan Hummel

How Should We Then Live?: The Rise and Decline of Western Thought and Culture by Francis Schaeffer

The Lost World of Genesis One: Ancient Cosmology and the Origins Debate by John Walton

With by Skye Jethani

Related episodes:

Have you ever tried to ask hard questions about your faith only to run into a roadblock somewhere?

Sometimes it's simple answers. Sometimes it's others who don't want to acknowledge the questions. Sometimes it's your own heart begging to keep life simple.

Our guest today says it's worth asking the questions and offers a path through the uncertainty.

Angela J. Herrington is a faith deconstruction coach and host of The Deconstructing Faith Summit who helps people break free from toxic religious culture & empowers them to recover from church hurt.

Today, Angela shares the situation that caused her to wonder if everyone could be included in her community and the questions that arose from it. She explains how an accepting community can help, and why you can't outrun yourself. Avoiding the questions doesn't work so Angela shares how she helps others release the stigma and follow where the questions lead.

Angela's story reminds us that following Jesus isn't always easy but it is always worth it.

Listen to Angela's story now in your favorite podcast app!

Being a VBS kid, steeped in Christian culture and giving her life to Christ as a young girl

Getting involved in youth group in high school and college

Deciding to raise her children in church for their good

Finding a groundedness in her faith as she got more connected

The decisions that started to crack her understanding of faith worked out

Why viewing others as “projects” is harmful

The Bible study that became a safe place to ask questions

Deciding to go to a more liberal church and finding the same problems

Feeling weary about finding safe places to discuss and the church that created that space

The ten years of deconstruction she experienced

Growing wiser about her involvement

Why fundamentalism isn’t good on either side of the spectrum

Learning how much her pursuit of connection was driven by trauma

Why you can’t outrun yourself

What she does as a deconstruction coach

Would I have been welcomed? Or would I have been a project?

What’s missing is a really humble understanding of how much in the church is influenced by power.

The more you try to outrun yourself, the more damage you’re doing to yourself.

The longer you've been in an environment that says you're bad, the longer it will take to discover your own goodness.

Angela’s website

Deconstructing Your Faith without Losing Yourself by Angela J. Herrington

Angela’s free Facebook group for people experiencing deconstruction

Brian Zahnd and The Beauty of Christ

Jacci Turner and Tumbled People

Paul Ybarra and Discovering Kingdom Character

Is heaven a far away place that you'll go to someday or an imminent reality?

Depending on what you were taught, you might have strong feelings about this. You may even wonder why the question is being asked at all.

Our guest today explains how Jesus viewed the idea of heaven and why it's a crucial idea to understand biblically.

Skye Jethani is the co-host of one of the most popular podcasts in the Christian space, The Holy Post, and author of some of the best books with the Kingdom of God in mind. His book With is a must read. And now he’s published his fourth in the What if Jesus was Serious? Series with What If Jesus Was Serious About Heaven. 

Today, Skye discusses common misunderstandings about heaven, how those ideas can malform us, and what the biblical view actually is. He also shares how a biblical worldview of eternity changes our public discourse and decisions. 

If you're interested in heaven, this episode is for you.

Listen now wherever you get your podcasts!

Stories Skye shared:

Great quotes from Skye:

When we make that vision of heaven the goal of our faith, it displaces what ought to be the real goal of our faith which is Jesus himself.

It's the vocation of every Christian to be a priest, to be that conduit between God's presence in heaven and the reality of the earth.

The Kingdom is breaking in all the time and often it's really subtle.

The values of any nation state is going to be opposed to the values of the Kingdom of God.

Resources we mentioned:

Related episodes:

It's the new year! Were you one of those who made a commitment to read your Bible more frequently and regularly this year? If so, you're not alone.

Our guest today offers a resource to help you reach your goal easier this year.

Michelle Nezat is passionate about inspiring you to read, study, and understand the Bible. She is the host of the More Than a Song podcast where she helps you use the songs you listen to on the radio to meditate on God's Word.

Today, Michelle shares her story including how she felt called to missions, the difficult conversation that shifted her direction, and the church situation that hurt her. Along the way, Michelle shares how it all led to embracing her calling in a way she never anticipated. 

Michelle's story reminds us that a biblical worldview starts in what we consume and that God is always shaping us if we're paying attention.

Listen to Michelle's story in your favorite podcast app now!

Stories Michelle shared:

Great quotes from Michelle:

Sometimes it takes the uncomfortable to get us off a course.

This was really hard so whatever you want to teach me, don’t let me miss it.

You’re not going to have a Biblical worldview unless you actually read the Bible.

Resources we mentioned:

Related episodes:

Are you afraid to address that one thing in your life, even though you know your life would be better if you did?

Our guest today says it's time to open the door to change, no matter what mess waits for us on the other side.

Jason VanRuler is the author of Get Past Your Past: How Facing Your Broken Places Leads to True Connection. Jason is known for his ability to relate and connect with his clients and offer hope to those who have felt hopeless. Today, Jason shares how he ignored God for many years, the quiet way the Lord spoke to him, and how meeting his wife gave him the willingness to open up. Jason challenges us to find community and within it, the true love of Jesus for the broken hearted. Jason's story reminds us that no matter how far we go from God, it's only one step back.

Listen to Jason's story wherever you get your podcasts, right now!

Stories Jason shared:

• Working as a therapist and becoming an author

Great quotes from Jason:

Life distracts us from the truth.

When we become willing, things can change.

Community is really the secret sauce to growth and change.

Fear is a teacher.

Resources we mentioned:

• Jason’s website

Related episodes:

• Sarah Geringer and Transforming Your Thought Life

Does how we think about humanity—ourselves included—really matter? 

A bad understanding of the human person has led to everything from indifference to unspeakable atrocities. Worse still, some theological camps look at human beings so negatively that it shows in their interactions with others. 

Fortunately, the Bible gives us a way of viewing humanity through God's lens. Our guest today reminds us how to see humanity as the image of God that the Bible reveals us to be and what it means for us.

Dr. Carmen Joy Imes is associate professor of Old Testament at Biola University. She is the author of Being God’s Image: Why Creation Still Matters and Bearing God’s Name: Why Sinai Still Matters. Today, Dr. Imes shares with us the deep sense of calling she had as a girl, where it took her around the world, and how she entered biblical studies. She shares what the Bible says about the image of God and why it may not be what you've been told.

Dr. Imes' reminds us to treat everyone with the respect the image of God in them deserves.

Listen to the episode wherever you get your podcasts!

Stories Carmen shared:

• Growing up in Colorado in a Christian family

Great quotes from Carmen:

My worth does not come from what I do or what I produce.

We are fully embodied, three-dimensional people with loves and desires, and we need to actually attend to our loves and desires; those say much more about us than the doctrinal statements we affirm.

There is something that is truer and goes further back [than sin] and that is the imago dei.

Resources we mentioned:

• Carmen’s website 

Related episodes:

• Beth Allison Barr and Christian Curiosity