This week we are joined by Ted Campbell. Dr. Campbell is a member of the American Academy of Religion (AAR) and currently serves as co-chair of the AAR’s Wesleyan Studies Group. He also belongs to the American Society of Church History, and the Wesleyan Theological Society. He is currently the Albert C. Outler Professor of Wesley Studies at SMU Perkins School Of Theology. 

Today we continue to discuss the United Methodist Church and Ted gives insight into how the church can move forward. 

Bishop David Graves was elected to the episcopacy by the Southeastern Jurisdiction in 2016. He is the Resident Bishop of the Alabama-West Florida Area, which includes the Alabama-West Florida Conference in the Southeastern Jurisdiction of The United Methodist Church.

Today we discuss denominational issues and how Bishop Graves is leading his districts through these times. We discuss how the book of discipline has changed over time and how to live and lead with a Wesleyan lens of grace.  

This week Matt and John discuss easter prep and what it means to live our faith through Christ's life, death and resurrection. They unpack the meaning of the word Kenosis and how it relates to our spirituality. 

Chapelwood.org/easter

This week we go over Harwood Institute's Civic Virus Report. This report reveals that Americans don’t feel polarized or antagonistic toward one another. They feel isolated and disoriented, like they are trapped in a house of mirrors with no way out. They are in the grips of a perilous fight or flight response. John and Matt discuss the church's responsibility in this new age of discourse and how leaders can engage in conversation.   

https://theharwoodinstitute.org/civic-virus-report

This week is the everything episode! The conversation wanders from Will Smith to the effects of TikTok on mental health. We talk about how we made community before social media and how people are trying to make connections in the digital age. We also cover some spiritual practices that John and Matt have used to unplug from technology and find balance.

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Jeremy Steele is an Associate Pastor at Los Altos United Methodist Church. Jeremy has developed an app called Zoay that seeks to engage with Gen Z and Millennials who used to attend church but do not anymore. In this conversation, we discuss Jeremy's call into ministry, some data that Jeremy has collected through the creation of his app and what it means to do ministry in the digital world. 

Bishop Scott Jones was elected to the episcopacy in 2004 and currently serves as the resident bishop of the Texas Annual Conference of The United Methodist Church with an office in Houston. Today we discuss the current state of the UMC and how we got here. We talk local church disaffiliations, conference disaffiliations, the jurisdictional conference in 2022 and Bishop Jones' hopes for the future.

This week Tod Bolsinger is back! We discuss leadership and vulnerability, spiritual formation in churches, how to ask the hard questions and the purpose of the christian life. 

Tod's Blog

Today we are joined by Teer Hardy. Teer is a UMC pastor and the cohost of the podcast Crackers & Grape Juice. Teer has been podcasting since 2016 and we hear stories about some of his favorite conversations that span over 300 episodes. We talk current church trends, doubt and faith, how Christians responded to the pandemic and much more!  Crackersandgrapejuice.com

Kenneth DeVon is the Director of Navigation Programs at The Salvation Army. In this conversation we talk about Kenneth's experience as a background vocalist for artists like Steve Wonder and Alicia Keys, his education at Berklee College of Music and how he discovered God's call on his life through a chance reconnection with his brother.  

Texas Monthly Article