This week I was delighted to be joined on the podcast by Melissa.

Melissa's time with "the ministry" began in Wiscasset under Carl and wove it's way through South Berwick and Lenox before her journey led her away for a time. She then found herself back in Baltimore with "the ministry" under Tom Schaller.

In this conversation we talk about her life experiences and explore the differences in being with The Bible Speaks under Carl Stevens and Greater Grace under Tom Schaller. We also talk about what leaving looked like, and all the lessons she has learned along the way.

Melissa is kind, warm, and insightful, and had so many wonderful and wise things to share-I hope you all enjoy this conversation as much as I did!

If you have stories you'd like to share, please reach out at [email protected]

In this episode, we will be taking a look at what the church's response should be when a convicted child offender wants to join their faith community, or when a member of their faith community is convicted of an egregious crime against children and wants to remain an active part of the faith community.

Specifically, we will be looking at this through the lens of how church leaders in Pawley's Island Community Church and Greater Grace World Outreach handled these requests-and what the results of those decisions were. We will also be looking at what organizations such as GRACE recommend in response to these situations.

CONTENT WARNING: this episode contains multiple references to sexual crimes against children. Please take care if you choose to listen.

Reporting credit for this episode goes to: Tim Whitaker of Tim Whitaker Speaks, The Post & Courier News/SC, WCBD News/SC, WMBF News/SC, ABC4 News/Charleston, and Fox News/Baltimore.

Constructive feedback, stories, or just a hello can be sent via email to [email protected].

Here we are-we have arrived at the big split of May 2005 at the Chicago conference after over a year of chaos, division, battles for power, and failed attempts at peacemaking.

In this episode, we will not be looking at just the Chicago conference itself, but the lens through which the lead up and result was framed by Baltimore leaders. We will also explore how this was just the beginning of a pattern that has continued to this day.

Constructive feedback, stories, or just a hello can be sent via email to [email protected].

For this episode I am joined by a special guest who is not only a great friend of this podcast but an excellent writer in her own right. Becka from the Grumpy Bex blog is here to help me break down the recent Doctrinal Clarification presented by Greater Grace.

We discuss what they clarified, what they didn't, and all the missed opportunities and pitfalls we spotted along the way. This episode is a bit longer than most, but it was a great conversation and one I hope you all enjoy listening to as much as we enjoyed having.

Becka's work can be found on Substack at https://substack.com/@grumpybex -be sure to go give her a follow, as she's doing phenomenal work!

In this episode, we explore not only what happened in the immediate aftermath of Tom Schaller being named head of Greater Grace, but also what being handed great power can reveal about people's true character. As Maya Angelou once said, "When someone shows you who they are, believe them the first time."

Welcome to part three of the series on how Greater Grace came to change hands from Carl Stevens to Tom Schaller.

In this episode, we take a look at how things went from seeming unity at Sandy Cove in February to rifts and schisms all over the place as a power struggle took place over who would actually become Carl's successor as head of Greater Grace.

Most people who have had interaction with Greater Grace, the GRACE report, previous message boards, or have even looked into the organization from the outside have seen or heard about Sandy Cove.

In this episode, we are going to take a deeper look into this conference-it's intent, what was discussed, the implications and takeaways, and how it what was meant to be the beginning of re-solidifying the alliance between Baltimore and the affiliations would instead become something entirely different.

Welcome to part one of a multi-part episode series on the decline of Carl Stevens, the rise of Tom Schaller, and the messy, messy middle in between. In these next few episodes, we will be taking a look at what happens when a leader fails, a power vacuum is created, and ambitious men pretendingto be humble servants see an opportunity too good to pass up-as well as what happens to those who dare to ask questions or get in their way.

For this episode I am delighted to welcome back Jennifer Dean as we discuss her new book, "Shadow of Joy."

We talk about the writing, editing, and launch process, along with all the emotions that come with creating and releasing such a personal project. We also talk about her book and what she wants the readers to know and to take away from the story.

For more information, you can visit her website at www.beyondtheshadow.me.

Content warning: This episode contains adult themes around coercive control and abuse.

In this episode, we talk about the latest news of Greater Grace's decision to resign from the Evangelical Counsel for Financial Accountability while under investigation for being out of compliance with one of the ECFA guiding principles, and why this kind of accountability matters.