ServingLeaders Podcast

In this episode, we revisit a conversation with Soul Shepherding founders Bill and Kristi Gaultiere around the vital need of each one of us to receive the empathy of Jesus. Bill and Kristi will be the keynote speakers at the upcoming ServingLeaders Annual Celebration Banquet and will also be leading a special workshop hosted by New Story Church in Phoenixville, PA. Don't miss this special opportunity to hear from them and register today for the banquet and workshop! 

You're invited! Register for the 2026 ServingLeaders Annual Celebration Banquet
Register for the Deeply Loved Workshop

Purchase the book, Deeply Loved: Receiving and Reflecting God's Great Empathy for You

Find out more about Soul Shepherding

What does it actually mean to have confidence in Christ? In this conversation, Rebekah Hannah challenges the way we often think about identity, confidence, and leadership, especially the temptation to use “identity in Christ” as a Christianized form of self-help. Together, we explore the freedom that comes from seeing Jesus rightly, embracing both our weakness and our God-given strengths, and releasing our need for approval. Rebekah offers practical wisdom for ministry leaders navigating criticism, difficult decisions, insecurity, and the pressure to be liked—reminding us that confident leadership isn't about becoming more impressed with ourselves, but becoming more grounded in Christ.

The Secret to Confidence: Finding Lasting Confidence in Christ When Identity and Feelings Waver

Talking to Kids About Hard Things: Honest Conversations When Life Gets Complicated 

Zara and the Mean Girl: The Courage of Kindness

Q&R Podcast

In this episode, we sit down with Chuck DeGroat—therapist, professor, pastor, and author of When Narcissism Comes to Church and Healing What’s Within—to explore the question, “Who are we becoming?” Chuck is Professor of Counseling and Christian Spirituality at Western Theological Seminary, a licensed therapist specializing in pastoral and leadership health, spiritual abuse, and religious trauma, and has spent more than 25 years helping people pursue greater wholeness and wholeheartedness. In anticipation of his new book, Who You’re Becoming: The Slow and Courageous Work of Cultivating Character in a Narcissistic Age, releasing October 20, we talk about the difference between self-awareness and genuine transformation, the temptation to use therapeutic tools as a shield from accountability, “fauxnerability,” humility, and what it actually looks like to slowly become more like Christ.

Who You're Becoming: The Slow and Courageous Work of Cultivating Character in a Narcissistic Age

Chuck DeGroat's website

The Soul Care Collaborative

Sit with Chuck on Substack

In this second part of our series on “The Spiritually Healthy Leader: Finding Freedom from Self-Sabotage,” Dave Wiedis talks about what it means to live centered in the supremacy of Christ as the pathway to freedom, what to do with our longings, and how Christ's lordship supercharges our desires.

A personal recommendation from ServingLeaders Founder and Executive Director, Dave Wiedis: “I like this episode because in it we explore the supremacy of Christ as our ruling passion and why that matters. Many Christians try to kill their desires or pathologize them. A more scriptural and comprehensive approach to desires and spiritual growth is reordering our desires under the supremacy of Christ.”

Buy Dave's book here:
On Amazon
On New Growth Press

In this episode, Dave and Laura sit down with world-renowned psychologist Dr. Diane Langberg for a conversation around her newest book, "When the Church Harms God's People: Becoming Faith Communities that Resist Abuse, Pursue Truth and Care for the Wounded". They talk about what it really means to be the body of Christ, the dangers of unhealthy leadership and how to identify it in yourself and others, how to practically address issues of abuse in the church, and what healthy forgiveness and restoration look like. Stay tuned after the episode while Dave and Laura debrief our conversation with Diane.

A personal recommendation from ServingLeaders Clinical Director, Jon Sovocool: “I like this episode because it explores the incentives for churches to ignore, dismiss or cover up abuse and the unforeseen and devastating ramifications of doing so. Abuse requires the habituation of deception--including deception of the self--in order to protect the self and the organization.”

Find Dr. Langberg's book on Amazon, Baker Publishing Group, TGC, and more.

Join us in a conversation with Dave Wiedis as we take a deeper dive into the heart of sexual wholeness. In this episode, we explore how the motives and idols of the heart intersect with and drive our sexual brokenness and how to find freedom.

A personal recommendation from ServingLeaders Assistant
Clinical Director, Dr. Penny Freeman: “It can be so hard for believers to respond well to our current culture, where gender is determined by how we feel. It’s helpful to think about sexual maturity and how our ruling passions intersect with that.” 

Get Dave's book, The Spiritually Healthy Leader on Amazon here. 

Join us for a conversation with Dr. Penny Freeman, our Clinical Supervisor at ServingLeaders, to discuss the complex generational family dynamics that influence our lives. We talk about how to understand (and have context for) the differences and challenges we experience between us and our parents, grandparents, and children. We also talk about how to change family dynamics over time and experience God’s redemption in even the hardest family challenges.

A personal recommendation from ServingLeaders Ministry Director, Tucker Else: “Penny’s vast experience and wisdom should be required listening for young counselors and church leaders, and anyone who longs to serve others in a Godly, thoughtful, clinically-informed way.” 

Reflection Questions

Information about generations

In this episode, Dave Wiedis interviews missionary Jim Rhodes, who provides lessons learned from 45 years of ministry leadership to encourage and equip leaders well.

A personal recommendation from ServingLeaders Chief Operating Officer, Joe Bruni: “I love these episodes because Jim, with years of experience in ministry, shares some of the core principles for health and flourishing as a leader. Jim’s passion for keeping our heart set on Jesus as we navigate some of the biggest struggles in ministry (including enduring hardship, openness to the Spirit, creating community, navigating conflict, and creatively living out our calling) is invaluable as a vision for healthy leadership.”

In this episode, we share a special interview of Dave Wiedis on what it means to be a spiritually healthy leader. This episode was aired on the "Fueled Pastoral Resilience" podcast hosted by Pastor Raphael Mnkandhla. 

The Spiritually Healthy Leader: Finding Freedom from Self-Sabotage

Fueled Pastoral Resilience podcast 

In this episode, we host a powerful panel conversation with three women in ministry roles: Erin Bahbah from ServingLeaders who is also a pastor’s wife, Rachel Short from 938 Church in West Chester who is a teaching pastor and counselor, and Jodie Merow from Christ Memorial Church who has decades of leadership in children’s ministry. 

Together, we explore the unique (and sometime challenging) role of women in ministry roles, the joys and unique calling of ministry, and the unexpected ways we land in ministry. From behind-the-scenes support to visible leadership, each woman shares her unique journey of growing in confidence in being herself in leadership, the vital importance of community and connection, lessons learned along the way, and the meaning of a life serving Jesus.

Whether you’re a pastor’s wife, a ministry leader, or a woman discerning your calling, this conversation offers encouragement, wisdom, and a reminder that you are not alone in the journey.