Christmas is the most wonderful time of the year…sometimes. The holiday season can bring with it beautiful and sweet moments of joy and meaning. Yet it also opens the door to many other emotions, highlighting our grief, landing us in disappointment, increasing pressure, and exposing us to challenging relationships. In this special episode with Dave Wiedis, Penny Freeman, Jon Sovocool, and Laura Yoder, we explore some of the complexities of the holiday season, and practical ways to navigate those challenges, leaning on the presence of Jesus with us.

This is our last podcast of 2025, but stay connected with us at servingleaders.org, subscribe to our newsletter, and mark your calendars for our upcoming events! We'll be back with great new content in the new year!

Worship leaders have a unique and crucial role in the church, but can often be unprepared for the spiritual and emotional challenges they face in a ministry that imposes multiple pressures, including the pressure to perform and be the instrument of growth in churches, along with unique tensions around identity. Under this burden, the worship leader is at greater and greater risk for burnout and emotional and spiritual illness. In this important conversation with Justin Unger, Founder and President of Likewise Worship, we explore 3 key pillars of health that support a worship leader in thriving as a healthy leader, intimately connected to their vital calling and deeply rooted in relationship with Jesus.

 
Likewise Worship Website
Justin Unger Website
Choosing Gratitude book 

One of the most challenging things for a leader is raising up more leaders to join them, particularly within a church congregation. In this conversation, Dave and Laura sit down with Dr. John H. Wilson, author of The Nehemiah Way: Mobilize a Church Full of Leaders. In his book, Dr. John provides a powerful strategy for how to not only create greater collaboration within your church body, but also ignite new leaders to say “yes” to engaging in what God is doing beyond the next volunteer event.
Listen as we talk about the specific steps of this strategy, what it looks like to prepare for raising up new leaders, how the fast way isn’t always the best way, the resistance leaders may encounter in their own hearts as they allow more collaboration in their church body, and much more!
Stay tuned after the episode as Dave and Laura debrief this important conversation.

Purchase The Nehemiah Way on Amazon or listen on Audible.
Bulk orders for church mobilization initiatives, small groups, or Bible studies are available through Gospel Centered Discipleship.
Here is a FREE RESOURCE KIT if you are implementing The Nehemiah Way at your church. This includes a Church Mobilization Diagnostic, Church Mobilization Checklist, and a 31-Day Nehemiah Reading Plan.

You can also see content related to The Nehemiah Way on YouTube. This channel includes video breakdowns of Nehemiah chapter by chapter, applications of the book to developing and mobilizing leaders in your church, pastor interviews, daily readings, and more. The Nehemiah Way podcast with Dr. John is available on all podcast platforms including Spotify.

For information about Workshops, Retreats, Online Courses, and other resources from The Nehemiah Way, please click here: https://www.thenehemiahway.com/forms/2149333994

Contact Dr. John Wilson at [email protected].

In this episode, Dave and Laura sit down with Dr. Phil Monroe to explore what it looks like for churches to navigate issues around sexual abuse in a healthy way…particularly when it happens in the church. We talk about some of the inherent pressures to stay silent about abuse issues, how to view these challenges as opportunities for greater ministry, and what exactly leaders can do to prevent and respond to issues when they arise. Dr. Monroe, leader of Langberg, Monroe & Associates, is a psychologist with more than three decades of clinical experience which he brings to the table in this vital conversation.

Trauma Healing Institute
Langberg, Monroe & Associates
Philip Monroe

In this conversation Laura Yoder sits down with Sandy Lapp, an elder at ACTS Covenant Church to talk about navigating transitional seasons in life. Moving into something new, whether it is a desired change or an undesired change, brings with it both intense challenge and rich opportunity for growth and deepening. Although uncomfortable, these times have the potential to deepen our walk with Jesus and be truly transformational. Learn several principles to walk through these seasons of life as a victor and not a victim.

Principles to Navigate Life Transitions

In a time where it seems like almost everyone is looking for help for their mental health, how do you know if YOU might need professional support? And what kind of support do you need? It can be difficult to discern when “normal” stress or challenges become unhealthy…and even harder to ask for help or know where to turn. In this practical episode, Laura Yoder sits down with ServingLeaders Clinical Director Jon Sovocool and Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist Betsy Burton to learn key signs indicating that you or someone you care for might need additional help and to explore the differences between three unique types of support: counseling, coaching, and spiritual direction. You won’t want to miss this practical and enlightening episode!

Interested in counseling or spiritual direction? Fill out our confidential Counseling Inquiry Form.

Interested in mediation, missionary debriefing, pastoral care, or seminars? Fill out our General Inquiry Form.

If you are unsure what kind of care you need, feel free to fill out either inquiry form or email us at [email protected].

In this episode, Dave and Laura sit down with Randy Wenger, a constitutional attorney on the front lines of litigating cases and protecting religious liberty, and Chief Counsel of the Independence Law Center in Harrisburg. In this conversation, we discuss the hopeful future of religious freedom, key cases paving the way for continued sharing of the Gospel, and why this matters for ministry leadership. Stay tuned after the episode as Dave and Laura debrief this important conversation. 

Independence Law Center Website

In this episode, Dave and Laura sit down with Bill and Kristi Gaultiere, founders of Soul Shepherding Institute to hear about their latest book “Deeply Loved: Receiving and Reflecting God’s Great Empathy for You”.

Order from Amazon here

Soul Shepherding Institute Website

Conflict: do you love it or hate it? In this conversation, Dave Wiedis and Laura Yoder discuss how to navigate conflict in a healthy way and what that can look like in churches, organizations and families.

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

Referenced in this episode: "How to Process Your Emotions to Revitalize Intimacy with Jesus: An Interview with Dave Wiedis"

In this episode, Dave and Laura sit down with world-renowned pyschologist 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.

Find the book on Amazon, Baker Publishing Group, TGC, and more.