Just Neighbors

2.3 million people in the U.S. are affected by incarceration each year, and less than 15% of inmates are serving life sentences (God Behind Bars). This means the majority of people in prison will be released back into society at some point. Yet, these individuals are some of the most unlikely to see and hear the love of Jesus. The truth is, people who live behind bars are often out of sight and out of mind in the day-to-day lives of Christians.

Here to change that reality is today's guest—Jake Bodine, the founder and CEO of God Behind Bars.

Jake is a passionate entrepreneur with a huge heart for seeing those who are lost find Jesus and know Him personally. He is also dedicated to using his gifts and talents to get the Church excited about prison ministry so we can uplift the forgotten society behind prison walls.

In this episode, you'll hear about our biblical call to serve the "least of these," why it is important to bring the Gospel to people who are imprisoned, how serving others deepens your own spiritual journey, and so much more.

Find resources mentioned and our takeaways in the show notes: https://theforgotteninitiative.org/jake-bodine-s2e2/

Welcome back for another season of Just Neighbors! I'm your host, Jami Kaeb, and this season I'm joined by Jamin Goggin as my co-host. Jamin is a professor at Talbot School of Theology at Biola University. He is also the co-author of several books and holds a MA in Spiritual Formation & Soul Care, an MA in the New Testament, and a PhD in Systematic Theology. He lives with his wife and four children in San Diego, CA.

We are so happy to welcome you into our little neighborhood where we are learning to practice biblical justice and compassion together. To start off this season, we are joined by Jonathan Rocke for a discussion on the topic of poverty.

Jonathan has served as the Executive Director at Pathway Ministries since 2016 where their mission is to create pathways out of poverty through Jesus. Pathway Ministries, previously known as Peoria Rescue Ministries, has been serving those in need since 1955, extending support to the people of the Peoria area and beyond through Residential Ministries and Community Services.

In this episode, we learn how to take a whole-person approach to poverty alleviation, what it really means when we say that the whole world is broken, how each and every one of us experiences poverty, and much more.

Find resources mentioned and more in the show notes: https://theforgotteninitiative.org/jonathan-rocke-s2e1/

Just Neighbors is BACK next week!

Season 2 will bring you more of the podcast created for every believer who has been transformed by the Gospel and desires to act justly, love mercy, and walk humbly with God and their neighbors in need. Join hosts Jami Kaeb and Jamin Goggin as they talk with leaders, pastors, and practitioners about how to live a life of biblical justice and compassion.

Stay tuned for new episodes next week, or catch up on last season right here: https://theforgotteninitiative.org/just-neighbors-podcast/

Can you believe it? This is the last episode of season one! We couldn't have asked for a better guest to help us close out this season than Jedd Medefind.

Jedd serves as the President of the Christian Alliance for Orphans (CAFO), and previously led the White House Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives under President George W. Bush. Jedd has also written several books, including Upended: How Following Jesus Remakes Your Words and World.

There are two extremes we can commonly fall into when seeking to serve the vulnerable. On one side, we can feel pressured to do so out of guilt or a sense of duty. In the other direction, we can seek to serve the vulnerable to make ourselves look good or even to receive accolades for our efforts. The key to avoiding either of these extremes is cultivating a healthy spiritual life where we go deep with the Father to receive just as much as we give.

In this conversation, Jedd shares what it was like to work in the White House, what led to his involvement and passion for the work of CAFO, how we can live a life of both pouring out and receiving deeply, and more.

Find links to resources mentioned and more in the show notes for this episode: https://theforgotteninitiative.org/jedd-medefind-10/

Hey, neighbors! We are honored to have you on this journey with us as we grow and practice biblical justice and compassion together.

This week on Just Neighbors, I have the opportunity to welcome Dr. Gabrielle Clowdus, the founder of Settled, which is an organization helping churches develop permanent supportive tiny home villages (called Sacred Settlements) designed to address long-term homelessness.

Gabrielle has taken the call to love your neighbor literally and devoted her life to walking alongside people in poverty, and I find the work she is doing both beautiful and inspiring.

In this episode, Gabrielle helps us understand the deep impact of homelessness on someone's life, what people who are without a home most long for and need, a beautiful vision for how the Church can literally open their doors to help our neighbor, and so much more.

Find the resources mentioned and more in the show notes: https://theforgotteninitiative.org/gabrielle-clowdus-9/

Hey, neighbors! We are honored to have you on this journey with us as we grow and practice biblical justice and compassion together.

This week, we are joined by Jamie Finn, who is a dear friend of mine. Jamie is the best-selling author of Fostering the Family, founder and president of Foster the Family, host of the Real Mom Podcast, founder and owner of Goods & Better, a speaker, and TBRI practitioner.

In our conversation, you'll hear how we can unite our lives with the heart of God, how Jamie learned to localize living out the Gospel, the perspective we should carry of experiencing trials, what our goal of parenting should be, and so much more.

This truly is a conversation you don't want to miss.

Find resources mentioned and more in our show notes: https://theforgotteninitiative.org/jamie-finn-8/

Hey, neighbors! We're back this week with another great episode as we explore the topic of reconciliation and how we can create communities that are crafted in a way that bring racial healing and reconcile us to one another.

Our very idea of what it means to be reconciled will likely be challenged through this conversation.

Joining us for this episode is David Bailey, a public theologian, culture maker, and change catalyst focused on cultivating reconciling communities. He is the founder and CEO of Arrabon, a spiritual formation ministry that equips the American Church to actively and creatively pursue racial healing in their communities. He is the co-author of the study series, A People, A Place, and A Just Society. David is also an ordained minister rooted at East End Covenant Fellowship, where he serves on the preaching team.

In this episode, you'll hear the connection of reconciliation to spiritual formation, how God was preparing David for years to do the work he's doing, a vision for the Church if we take this work seriously, and more.

Find the resources mentioned and more in the show notes: https://theforgotteninitiative.org/david-bailey-7/

During the month of June, applications are open to become a TFI Advocate! TFI Advocates bridge the gap between churches and agencies right in their local community. Get the details and apply right here.

The biblical call to love our neighbor is not some lofty idea to be carried out by "particularly special" people or just at a government level. When Jesus gave the call to love our neighbor, it was a call for ordinary people to act when they encounter those in need. Mercy and justice are not outside of anyone's capability, but are obtainable for everyone in any circumstance.

This week, we have Jami's very own pastor, Matt Horine, helping us explore these ideas of radical compassion and generosity in a way that everyone can apply. Matt has served as the lead pastor at Calvary Baptist Church in Normal, Illinois for over seven years. He is a seasoned pastor and a powerful communicator. Matt is married to his wife, Amy, and has two children.

In this episode, you'll hear Matt's journey of helping his church become more involved in the community, how he has learned to lead people towards the gospel with humility, and how we each can identify the areas God may be calling us to, and more.

Get links to resources mentioned and more in the show notes: https://theforgotteninitiative.org/matt-horine-6/

During the month of June, applications are open to become a TFI Advocate! TFI Advocates bridge the gap between churches and agencies right in their local community. Get the details and apply right here.

Compassion comes from the Lord. We can all agree on that. But what should we do with that compassion?

Too often, those of us who have compassion lack the confidence to know how best to put it into action. In a world where any decision can garnish political backlash, be viewed as a political stance, or impact our busy lives, how are we supposed to show love and compassion for others? Do we even know where to find the very people we are called to love and be compassionate for?

It is an honor today to have Bri Stensrud join us for this engaging and honest conversation. Bri is an author, human dignity advocate, and the Director of Women of Welcome. Her passion is to equip the Church to engage more consistently and tangibly in holistic human dignity issues.

In this episode, you'll hear why we often hinder ourselves from living as God calls us to live, how to humanize the topics that are often just labeled as "social issues," how to carve out time in our schedules to be available for a compassionate life, and so much more.

Get links to resources mentioned and more in the show notes: https://theforgotteninitiative.org/bri-stensrud-5/

This week on Just Neighbors, it's an honor to welcome Dr. Krish Kandiah, founder of The Sanctuary Foundation, a charity supporting refugees to find welcome, work, and worthwhile housing in the UK. Krish is a social entrepreneur, broadcaster, speaker, development consultant, and author. His mission is to help solve some of society's seemingly intractable problems through partnerships across civil society, faith communities, government, and philanthropy.

When we hear of those seeking refuge, many of us rightfully think of images from war-torn countries where people are experiencing extreme injustice. Today, Krish helps us understand the important work they are doing, the largest challenges he sees for people who are removed from their home, and how Christ followers should respond to the complex conflicts happening across our world. Beyond that, he guides us in seeing that displacement is happening all around us, as children are placed in foster care, people who move to a new city for their jobs, and people feel like they don't belong.

For each of us, what remains the same is our biblical responsibility to offer hospitality to others, combine word and action in our response to injustice, and provide belonging.

Get links to resources mentioned and more in the show notes: https://theforgotteninitiative.org/dr-krish-kandiah-4/