Project Pastor Podcast

Dr. Dee Stokes is a spiritual advisor, speaker, coach, and educator who focuses on ministry, purposeful leadership, and education in an effort to "Build Influential People Who Change the World." She is the new CQ director for Fresh Expressions Dr. Stokes has spent over 25 years in higher education as a basketball coach and professor. After 18 years as a coach, her dreams and desires turned to full time ministry. Although not roaming the sidelines, she still has a passion for athletes, coaches, and the game she loves: Basketball. Her passion allows her to impact coaches and stay involved in the game.

The Rev. Chad E. Jarnagin is a recognized musician, priest, & speaker. He is host of The Luminous Podcast as well as the Learning to BE Podcast, and the Founding Rector of Luminous Parish, an Anglican Mission to Nashville | Franklin, TN. He is an ordained priest within the Anglican Communion (via AMiA). He is also a postulant to the Rule of Saint Benedict. Member, President's Advisory Council on Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships (2003-2009).

Fr. Chad's debut book, Learning to Be: Reconstructing Peace, and Spiritual Health will release on November 5th, 2019 (eBook) and February 11, 2020 (paperback, Morgan James Publishing). He possesses a unique combination of talents and skills as a shepherd, artist, and thinker. Chad is a certified Enneagram Teacher, (an ancient personality typing system that identifies nine types of people and how they relate to one another and the world).

Chad grew up around Cincinnati, OH and has lived in the Nashville area for over 22 years. He has a brilliant wife and three talented boys and is continuing his family's baseball heritage by coaching in the local youth league.

In addition to being rector at Luminous Parish, Chad continues to schedule a limited number of events speaking on Learning to BE, curating Contemplative Enneagram spaces for Spiritual Direction, and caring for church and organization staffs.

Fr. Chad is a proficient communicator on topics include: Portions of Learning to Be (forthcoming debut book), sacred rhythms for spiritual health, contemplative practices and postures, as well as Anglicanism. Chad attended Carson-Newman University, Berklee College of Music, and is pursuing a M.A. of Biblical Studies, as well as a psychology certification (Cognitive Behavior Therapy).

Matthew Sleeth is an author, speaker, and advocate of creation care. A former emergency department physician, Sleeth wrote his first book, Serve God, Save the Planet, in May 2006. Since then, he has spoken more than 900 times in churches, schools and to media outlets about the biblical mandate to care for the Earth.

Dr. Glenn Previn Packiam, is a Malaysian-American Christian musician, guitarist, pianist, worship leader and pastor, who serves as an Associate Senior Pastor at New Life Church and the Lead Pastor of New Life Downtown in Colorado Springs, Colorado.

KEN HARRISON serves as the Chief Executive Officer of WaterStone, an organization that releases resources to support Christian humanitarian efforts worldwide. Currently WaterStone oversees donations of millions of dollars per month and manages a fund of $400+ million. He started his career as a Los Angeles police officer in the infamous 77th Division of South-Central Los Angeles, better known as Watts or Compton. There he received numerous commendations and awards. After leaving the LAPD in the 1990s, Ken went into business and built a small local company into one of the largest of its kind in the United States. He has served on multiple boards, and recently stepped into the role of chairman of the board of Promise Keepers, a well-known organization ministering to Christian men. Harrison is also the author of Victims & Victors. He has been married to his wife, Elliette, for 27 years and they have three children.

Scott and Troy discuss their favorite books of 2018. Scott even adds a great one for the "geeks, nerds and gamers" or for anyone who likes a fun novel. Here's a list with a description of each book.

Trust For Today: By the Trueface Team

This 365 day devotional from the Trueface team invites you to experience trust each day, from the mundane to the exceptional, from the deeply sad to hilarious. Touching on business, family, donuts, friendship and Adirondack chairs, Trust for Today invites you to grow in trust one day at a time.

The Divine Conspiracy: Dallas Willard

In this classic, one of the most brilliant Christian thinkers of our times and author of the acclaimed The Spirit of Disciplines, Dallas Willard, skillfully weaves together biblical teaching, popular culture, science, scholarship, and spiritual practice, revealing what it means to "apprentice" ourselves to Jesus.

How to Think: Alan Jacobs

How to Think is a contrarian treatise on why we're not as good at thinking as we assume—but how recovering this lost art can rescue our inner lives from the chaos of modern life.

Intimate Partners: Patterns in Love and Marriage: Maggie Scarf

What goes on in our intimate attachments? What patterns of relationships do couples tend to follow, and why? The bonds we create affect every aspect of our lives, and yet our grasp of them is limited by our emotional reactions and learned responses. Now, in Intimate Partners, bestselling author Maggie Scarf gives us the classic book on marriage–on how love relationships are formed and how they change over the course of the marital cycle.

Intimate Partners is a book that changes not only how we view love relationships, but also how we live them.

Quote from the book... "Grace doesn't sell; you can hardly even give it away, because it works only for losers and no one wants to stand in their line. The world of winners will buy case lots of moral advice, grosses of guilt-edge prohibitions, skids of self-improvement techniques, and whole truckloads of transcendental hot air. But it will not buy free forgiveness because that threatens to let the riffraff into the Supper of the Lamb."

Parables are some of the most familiar stories in the Bible, yet their interpretations and applications are anything but uniform. Scandalous Stories is a "sort" of commentary on these familiar stories that are steeped in God's offensive grace and loving mercy for sinners and saints alike.

Scott and Troy discuss the question...How is your relationship with Jesus different than it was at the first of the year, and how would you hope it becomes different in the coming year?

As a world-class communicator, John is a vital Trueface staff member. In addition to speaking internationally with the Trueface team since 1997, John has co-authored The Cure, Bo's Café, Behind The Mask, and his own story, On My Worst Day. John also powerfully delivered the classic Two Roads Two Rooms allegory, which the co-authors created for The Cure. This message can be heard or seen on the internet. John served for 27 years as teaching pastor at Open Door Fellowship in Phoenix, Arizona. The authenticity, longevity, and playfulness of these two communities, Trueface and Open Door, bring real-world reality and potency to the message of Trueface. John used his love for theater as a playwright and actor in Sharkey Productions, a troupe focused on gospel-anchored theater productions for those still seeking Jesus. John and his wife Stacey often create inviting environments on their backyard patio and elsewhere for people to enjoy authentic community. They are passionate parents to their three children, Caleb married to Kali, with granddaughters Maci and Payton; Amy married to Cody, with grandson Ridge; and Carly.

Ken knows the stress overload of pastoring from the inside. After hitting a wall as the Senior Pastor of a large church, he went through a painful exit and sought counseling and spiritual direction. His season of personal healing, reconciliation, and learning opened up a new intimacy with Jesus for him and propelled him into a ministry of helping pastors and leaders resolve their spiritual/emotional conflicts.

Today he brings 25 years of pastoral ministry to his role as the Pastor to the Campus Pastors at Saddleback Church, along with helping leaders from other churches and in business. He has a doctorate in Discipleship from Talbot Theological Seminary and a certificate from Soul Shepherding in "Spiritual Formation and Soul Care Ministry."

Ken's unique discipleship ministry is based on a holistic biblical theology, infused with findings from psychology and neurology.

Scott and Troy discuss the question... Are you grateful in all circumstances? Not for all circumstances but in all which is a huge difference.