Pivot Podcast

Many church leaders today feel trapped in unsustainable patterns of solo ministry, carrying everything from sermon prep to pastoral care to vision casting on their own shoulders. Dr. Eun Strawser, a physician, author, and church planter in Hawaii, discovered that these church leadership best practices aren't actually biblical at all. In this episode, she shares how moving from exhausted solo leadership to shared community leadership transformed her ministry from one community to 12 missional communities serving over 650 people, all while maintaining her medical practice and raising three children.

Eun reveals the "four H's" of biblical leadership (humility, honor, hospitality, and hope) that create better leaders than secular markers of control, crowd, and contribution. Through compelling stories from her Hawaii context, including leaders like Kelsey who serves 500 seniors and Melissa whose community provides school supplies for 1,000 families, listeners will discover practical church leadership best practices for identifying, developing, and empowering leaders throughout their congregations. Whether you're feeling isolated in ministry or looking to multiply your impact, this conversation offers a roadmap for sustainable, Kingdom-focused leadership that actually works.

The 90% of American congregations with fewer than 200 weekly attendees are gifted communities of faith. They are strategically positioned ministries with unique small church advantages for this time. In this episode, Brandon O'Brien, author of the newly revised "The Strategically Small Church" and director of global thought leadership for Redeemer City to City, challenges the narrative that bigger automatically means better in church ministry. Drawing from nearly two decades of serving pastors worldwide, Brandon reveals how small churches possess distinct small church advantages including radical particularity, authentic community, and the agility to contextualize ministry for specific populations that larger congregations simply cannot replicate.

Brandon shares practical insights about leveraging small church advantages through asset-based thinking, focusing on worship, formation, and mission as a minimally viable ecclesiology, and embracing authenticity as a powerful evangelistic tool in our current cultural moment. Whether you're pastoring a rural congregation of 15 or an urban church of 150, this conversation will help you notice your assets and strategic strengths for ministry and mission in this time. God loves congregations of all sizes. Smaller membership congregations are strategic powerhouses positioned for meaningful mission and ministry in your particular community. Discover why the future of faithful church leadership may well depend on understanding and maximizing these essential small church advantages.

In part two of our conversation with Dr. Kara Powell, Dr. Jake Mulder, and Ray Chang from Fuller Seminary, we dive deep into the practical aspects of transforming church organizational culture. Harvard Business Review reports that 70% of change efforts fail, but these researchers have discovered why some churches successfully navigate transformation while others struggle. The key lies not in solo leadership or quick fixes, but in building diverse transformation teams that can effectively guide change through four essential zones: here, there, who, and how. Our guests share compelling stories of churches that shifted from spectator-based ministry to empowering communities of co-creators, demonstrating how effective church organizational culture change happens when the right people stay at the table long enough to discern God's direction together.

Whether you're a pastor carrying the weight of change alone or a church leader seeking practical strategies for engaging your congregation in transformation, this episode offers hope and concrete tools for developing a future-focused approach. Learn why starting with "who" is more important than starting with "why," discover practical exercises for imagining your church's future through Scripture and community discernment, and explore how Jesus modeled the most effective change leadership principles. From building transformation teams with the right mix of authority and responsibility to creating church organizational culture that naturally develops disciples who live out their faith in daily life, this conversation provides a roadmap for sustainable church transformation rooted in theological conviction and practical wisdom.

Is your church organizational culture stuck in patterns that no longer serve younger generations? After working with over 1,000 congregations through their Growing Young Cohort, researchers Dr. Kara Powell, Dr. Jake Mulder, and Raymond Chang discovered that thriving churches aren't distinguished by their programs or budgets, but by their willingness to transform their church organizational culture around three key checkpoints: relationally discipling young people, modeling kingdom diversity, and tangibly loving neighbors. These aren't flashy new strategies but research-backed, kingdom-oriented practices that create the kind of church organizational culture where faith naturally forms across generations.

In this hopeful conversation, the co-authors of "Future Focused Church" share why they believe "the best days of your church are ahead" and reveal how small wins can reshape entire congregations. Learn why "culture eats strategy for breakfast," discover the four essential skills for leading change (here, there, who, how), and hear practical stories of churches that moved from programs to people, creating meaningful community in our post-pandemic world. Whether you're struggling with declining attendance or wondering how to engage diverse communities authentically, this episode offers both theological grounding and practical hope for transforming your church organizational culture.

What does authentic Christian leadership actually look like in today's cultural moment? Jason Jensen, Vice President of Spiritual Foundations for InterVarsity Christian Fellowship USA, discovered the answer through 29 years of ministry at UC Berkeley—one of the most challenging campus environments in the country. After his proven Bible study techniques fell flat in a cross-cultural context, Jason learned that authentic Christian leadership flows from character formation, not charisma or methodological mastery. His supervisor's simple question—"What do you experience in my leadership?"—launched a transformation that would reshape his entire understanding of spiritual authority.

Drawing from the Gospel of Luke, Jason reveals why the most influential leaders in God's story are often the unexpected ones, and why aiming for "healthy and holy" beats "smart and fast" every time. He shares how authentic Christian leadership develops through integrity, community discernment, and learning to follow God's movement rather than trying to fix institutional problems. Whether you're a pastor, ministry leader, or volunteer stepping into leadership roles, this conversation will challenge you to rethink what true spiritual authority looks like and discover how to lead as "secondary supporting cast" in God's ongoing story.

What if the struggle many churches face with forming deep, lasting disciples is an invitation to rediscover catechesis, the ancient practice that transformed the early church? For three centuries, when Christianity was just one option among many in a pluralist culture, the church developed a patient, comprehensive approach to catechesis that formed people in the basic building blocks of thinking, praying, and living as Christians. Dr. Alex Fogleman, author of "Making Disciples: Catechesis in History, Theology, and Practice," explores how this ancient wisdom can revolutionize modern discipleship formation.

In this conversation, Alex reveals how catechesis addresses today's cultural fragmentation through what he calls a "pedagogy of enchantment"—formation that goes beyond mere information to create genuine encounters with the living God. Discover why effective catechesis takes time, how to practice "counter-catechesis" against competing cultural creeds, and practical steps for implementing this transformative approach in your church context. Whether you're wrestling with surface-level Christian education or seeking deeper formation practices, this episode offers ancient solutions for contemporary discipleship challenges.

Most churches have fallen into the trap of only discussing money during budget season or stewardship campaigns, focusing solely on what people give rather than how they live. But what if there's a way to go beyond the tithe and help people navigate their entire financial lives through the lens of faith? Grace Pomroy, Director of the Stewardship Leaders Program at Luther Seminary, discovered this gap when she asked a room of stewardship leaders a simple question that left them speechless: "What's one way you've managed money faithfully that didn't involve giving it away?"

In this episode, Grace shares insights from her Faith and Money Learning Lab about how congregations can move beyond the tithe toward holistic financial discipleship. She reveals practical approaches for creating safe spaces where people can explore what it means to spend, save, and earn money faithfully, including spiritual practices that start with God's love rather than shame. Whether you're a pastor, lay leader, or someone wrestling with how faith intersects with your financial decisions, this conversation offers hope for engaging money conversations that transform lives rather than just fund budgets.

Church leadership challenges seem to multiply daily in today's uncertain ministry landscape. Declining attendance, budget shortfalls, aging facilities, and disengaged members can create an endless stream of problems that feel urgent to fix. But what if all the energy spent on fixing is actually getting in the way of what God wants to do? In this special Q&A episode, Pivot Podcast hosts Terri Elton, Dwight Zscheile, and Alicia Granholm address some pressing church leadership challenges facing pastors and ministry leaders today, offering a radically different approach rooted in biblical wisdom.

Rather than providing quick fixes or new programs, the hosts explore how to shift from a fixing mindset to one of listening and discernment. They discuss why encounters with the living God matter more than perfect programming, how to distinguish between institutional decline and the necessary dying that leads to resurrection, and practical ways to move toward collaborative ministry models. Whether you're wrestling with questions about preaching authority, lay leadership development, or simply feeling overwhelmed by church leadership challenges, this conversation offers hope and wisdom for navigating faithful ministry in changing times.

Many congregations today find themselves wrestling with inherited buildings that no longer fit their present reality—spaces that are underutilized, expensive to maintain, and disconnected from their neighbors. But what if reimagining church spaces could transform these perceived burdens into powerful assets for community flourishing? Tim Anderson and Tabitha Montgomery, co-executive directors of Flourish Placemaking Collective, have spent years helping churches discover exactly that possibility.

In this conversation with host Dwight Zscheile, Tim and Tabitha share their journey from community organizers searching for programming space to consultants helping churches practice what they call "placemaking"—centering the broader community rather than just congregational needs when thinking about church facilities. They discuss the practical steps churches can take when reimagining church spaces, from honest self-assessment to developing a "theology of space," and share inspiring examples like their own Center for Belonging, where a unused church basement became home to seven thriving nonprofit partners. Whether your congregation has 15 members or 150, this episode offers hope and practical wisdom for stewarding church property in ways that serve both faithful mission and neighborhood flourishing.

How do you maintain Christian identity in a culture where Christianity is "merely one option among many"? Church historian Dr. Stephen Presley argues that today's believers face challenges remarkably similar to those of the early church—and can learn much from how ancient Christians navigated their complex cultural moment. Rather than withdrawing from society or seeking political dominance, early believers practiced what Stephen calls "cultural sanctification"—being fully present in pagan spaces while maintaining distinctly Christian identity through quiet evangelism, deep formation, and faithful citizenship.

In this conversation, Stephen shares how early Christians like Polycarp could respect civil authority while refusing to compromise their faith, why conversion involved both catechesis and liturgical formation, and what quiet evangelism looked like in practice. He offers practical guidance for local church leaders who want to engage their communities faithfully without retreating from the world or compromising their Christian identity. Stephen is Associate Professor of Church History at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and author of "Cultural Sanctification: Engaging the World Like the Early Church."