Dennis Onen, a pastor and filmmaker from Kampala, Uganda joins me for the 50th episode of the podcast, recorded in front of a live audience at the AFRU Media Summit. Dennis and I discuss the emerging filmmaking industry in Uganda, why he's passionate about storytelling, and how he lead his parents to new faith in Jesus.

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Join me and co-host Roni Shasamni as we speak with Lesley Sears (LMFT) about the relationship between faith and mental health. We explore why it’s easy to get stuck in a state of victimhood, and how pastors and leaders can differentiate between a person experiencing strong (but healthy) emotions, and someone suffering from a true mental disorder.

Support on Patreon: patreon.com/faithbackstage

Timecodes:
4:15 – Background and Testimony
18:30 – Journey to becoming a Marriage & Family Therapist and Life Coach
20:30 – Examining our personal biases and presuppositions about therapy
26:00 – Is there a difference between “faith-based” therapy and “secular therapy”?
32:15 – How do we discern the difference between true mental disorders and disorders as slang for experiencing strong emotions?
49:30 – Tools for pastors and leaders helping students who are struggling with strong emotions, or a potential mental health challenge
1:00:45 – Why it’s easy to get stuck in a state of victimhood, and how to lead people out

Bill joins Faith Backstage to discuss his role as Minister of Music and Worship, from the process of song selection to pastoring a congregation through worship. We also talk about how a song's authorship effects whether or not it will be used at Grace, the dangers of experiential worship, and how Grace balances relevance and tradition in their style and approach.

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J.W. Buck is a church planter, filmmaker, teacher, and faith-based entrepreneur. With undergraduate degrees in biblical studies and ministry, J.W. has his PhD in intercultural studies, with a focus on the problem of racial violence. He is a cofounder of Pax, a Christian organization designed to inspire and equip the next generation through slow, beautiful, Jesus-centered content created by people of color. On this episode, we discuss his latest book, Everyday Activism, where he unpacks seven radical practices from the life of Jesus—mobilizing ordinary people to do God’s work of justice in the world.

Purchase Everyday Activism

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Tony joins Faith Backstage to talk about different metrics for measuring a church's success, why people choose to attend a particular church, what keeps them coming back, and how to determine the unique vision that God is calling your church to pursue at the executive leadership level.

Tim Keller Article

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Cindy Fahy is an international journalist who has interviewed women and government leaders in 12 countries on six continents for 19 years. She is the author of Living Without Limits: 10 Keys to Unlocking the Champion in You, former features editor of World Christian Magazine and the founding teaching director of an interdenominational Bible study serving women from over 40 churches in the Los Angeles area. On this episode, you'll hear her heart for women in ministry, and how she learned the beauty of submission, both in marriage and in the church.

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The Other Side: Women in Ministry continues in this conversation with Sarah Czerwinski! When Sarah was approached with the opportunity to pastor a new young adults ministry at her church, it led her down a path of examining the Scriptures and pursuing God's intention for women in the church. Could she go to seminary? Could she teach men over 18, or accept the title of pastor? In this episode, you'll get to hear her story and her answers to these difficult questions.

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Can women hold the title of pastor? What level of authority can they have in the church? What was God's intent for gender roles in preaching the Gospel? Do these questions even matter, and can we be unified with people who answer them differently? Taylor Pircey joins me on this three-part installment of The Other Side!

Trent joins Faith Backstage to discuss the role he played in reviving a former mega church with dwindling attendance, and how he and the team used a relational ministry model to bring life and growth back to the church. We also discuss leadership development models, determining a church's unique vision and distinctives, and why he's grateful his sin was brought into the light when he was 19.

Chris joins Faith Backstage to talk about his time as an on-location news reporter, why he bought a one-way ticket to L.A. without a job or place to live, and why he's passionate about telling the stories of others.