Summit After the Storm | Leadership, Faith and Resilience Podcast

I like this better than simply “Weight Matters” for discovery because the question creates curiosity while the second half delivers the emotional hook.

Some of the heaviest things we carry in life don’t weigh a pound.

Guilt. Resentment. Regret. Fear about tomorrow. Other people’s expectations. Responsibility for choices someone else made. The need to control outcomes we were never capable of controlling.

On Kilimanjaro, I learned quickly that weight matters. Every extra pound in your pack eventually makes the climb harder.

But the same thing happens in life.

The Bible tells us to “carry each other’s burdens” in Galatians 6:2. But Psalm 55:22 also tells us to “cast your cares on the Lord.”

So which burdens are ours to carry, which are we called to help someone else carry, and which ones were we supposed to give to God a long time ago?

In Episode 171 of Summit After the Storm, we explore an important distinction:

A cross is different from baggage.

Following Christ requires sacrifice, responsibility, commitment and sometimes pain. But worry isn’t your cross. Resentment isn’t your cross. Trying to control another person isn’t your cross.

Sometimes those are just rocks we’ve stuffed into our own backpack.

Before asking God for stronger shoulders, maybe we need to ask:

“God, what am I carrying that You never asked me to carry?”

Sometimes faith means picking up a burden.

And sometimes faith means finally putting one down.

#Faith #ChristianPodcast #Jesus #TrustGod #ChristianLiving #ChristianEncouragement #LetGoAndLetGod #Psalm55 #FaithOverFear #Leadership #PersonalGrowth #LifeLessons #Kilimanjaro #KeepClimbing #SummitAfterTheStorm

Spotify Description

What do you do when your life stops following the itinerary you planned?

Traveling through Europe reminded me that the itinerary and the journey are rarely the same thing.

Trains get delayed. Plans change. You take a wrong turn. And sometimes the moments you remember most happen between the destinations.

Life isn't much different.

We make plans for our careers, marriages, families, finances and futures. Then something happens that wasn't on the itinerary, and suddenly we're asking:

God, why am I going this way when I thought I was headed over there?

Kilimanjaro taught me that reaching a summit doesn't mean walking straight toward it. Sometimes the trail moves sideways. Sometimes it even seems to take you away from your destination.

The person who knows the mountain understands the route differently than the person simply looking at the summit.

In Episode 170 of Summit After the Storm, we explore Proverbs 20:24, trusting God when we don't understand the path, leading when the original plan no longer works, and remembering:

Just because I don't understand the route doesn't mean God has lost the map.

The detour may not be what you wanted.

It may not be what you planned.

But it doesn't have to be wasted.

Keep walking. God may still be writing the story.

#Faith #TrustGod #GodsPlan #ChristianPodcast #ChristianLiving #Jesus #Proverbs20 #FaithOverFear #Purpose #ChristianEncouragement #Leadership #LifeLessons #Kilimanjaro #KeepClimbing #SummitAfterTheStorm

“That’s how we’ve always done it.”

It might be one of the most expensive sentences in leadership.

Traveling through Europe, I was surrounded by buildings, streets and structures created for a completely different world. Some adapted and survived. Others became monuments to something that used to be.

There’s a lesson in that for all of us.

Experience matters. Processes matter. We shouldn’t throw something away simply because it’s old.

But even SOPs have revision numbers for a reason.

Markets change. Technology changes. People change. And sometimes the strategy that got us here won’t get us where we’re going next.

Kilimanjaro taught me the same thing. As the altitude, temperature and terrain changed, we had to change our approach. But one thing never changed:

The summit.

In Episode 169 of Summit After the Storm, we explore the difference between changing your purpose and changing your approach, what Isaiah 43:18–19 teaches about becoming too attached to the past, and one question every leader should occasionally ask:

Am I still doing this because it works, or simply because it’s what we’ve always done?

Keep the mission.
Keep the values.
Keep the faith.

But be willing to adjust the route.

#Leadership #LeadershipDevelopment #ChangeManagement #ChristianLeadership #Faith #ChristianPodcast #Jesus #Isaiah43 #PersonalGrowth #GrowthMindset #BusinessLeadership #Purpose #Kilimanjaro #KeepClimbing #SummitAfterTheStorm

Everybody takes a picture of the person standing on the summit.

Almost nobody takes a picture of the person who carried their tent.

Standing inside the Colosseum in Rome, I thought about the thousands of unnamed people whose labor helped build something that still stands nearly 2,000 years later. We remember emperors. We remember Caesar. But most of the people who actually carried the stones disappeared from history.

Kilimanjaro taught me the same lesson in a much more personal way.

Amanda and I were two climbers supported by an incredible 11-man team. They carried equipment, collected water, prepared food, set up camp and made our climb possible. And when our tent was nearly blown off a cliff in the middle of the night, they came running.

When you see our summit picture, most of them aren't in it.

But without them, there probably isn't a summit picture.

In Episode 168 of Summit After the Storm, we talk about servant leadership, the people doing unseen work behind our success, and the challenge of Galatians 6:2:

“Carry each other's burdens.”

So here's today's question:

Who’s carrying your tent, and when was the last time you told them you noticed?

#Leadership #ServantLeadership #ChristianLeadership #Faith #Jesus #ChristianPodcast #Galatians6 #Gratitude #Teamwork #LeadershipDevelopment #Purpose #Kilimanjaro #Rome #KeepClimbing #SummitAfterTheStorm

Ever feel like you're losing the day before it's really even started?

Episode 167 was released a little later than planned because I couldn't decide what I wanted to talk about. Then I realized the struggle to get the episode done was the lesson.

We put enormous pressure on ourselves to win everything at once. Work. Family. Faith. Relationships. The next decision. The next week. The future.

But Kilimanjaro taught me something different:

You don't climb the whole mountain at once. You take the next step.

Pole pole. Slowly, slowly.

In this episode of Summit After the Storm, we talk about why you don't have to fix everything today, how leaders can help people focus on the next achievable step, and why Jesus' words in Matthew 6:34 may be exactly what an overwhelmed person needs to hear:

“Do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself.”

You don't have to win tomorrow today.

You don't even have to win the whole day.

Make the next faithful decision. Take the next step. Then another.

Keep climbing. Pole pole.

#ChristianPodcast #Faith #Jesus #ChristianLiving #Matthew6 #TrustGod #Leadership #LeadershipDevelopment #Motivation #PersonalGrowth #Overwhelmed #Purpose #Kilimanjaro #KeepClimbing #SummitAfterTheStorm

Have you ever had a morning where one little thing after another keeps going wrong?

Mine started with traffic on the way to school.

Then came an unexpected doctor's appointment.

A school that wouldn't answer the phone.

A forgotten laptop.

No parking at Starbucks.

A coffee order that somehow disappeared.

And finally, a client offering to pay me more money to stay on a call at exactly the moment one of my kids needed me.

Every time something else happened, I kept thinking the same three words:

Not today, Satan.

It actually started as a joke between my twelve-year-old and me.

We hit unexpected traffic on the way to school. He was worried we'd be late, but we pulled into the parking lot on time.

I looked back and said:

“Not today, Satan.”

He repeated it and laughed.

I had no idea those three words were about to become the theme of my entire morning.

In Episode 166 of Summit After the Storm, I'm talking about what happens when life doesn't go according to plan—and how sometimes the real battle isn't fixing everything that's going wrong.

It's refusing to let everything going wrong change who you are.

Ephesians 6:11 says:

“Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes.”

That word “schemes” has been sticking with me.

Not every attack looks like a catastrophe.

Sometimes it's distraction.

Frustration.

Temptation.

Anxiety.

One inconvenience piled on top of another until you're irritated, hurried, short-tempered, and no longer acting like the person God called you to be.

Satan doesn't necessarily need you to abandon your faith.

Sometimes he just needs to make you frustrated enough...

hurried enough...

or selfish enough...

that you stop living it.

So when your carefully planned day starts falling apart, maybe the question isn't:

“How do I get everything back under control?”

Maybe it's:

“Who am I becoming while it's out of control?”

The enemy may be able to disrupt your plans.

He doesn't get to decide your response.

And maybe sometimes we should face those disruptions exactly the way Noah did—with a laugh and three simple words:

Not today, Satan.

You can mess with my schedule.

You don't get to have my joy.

#NotTodaySatan #Jesus #Faith #Christianity #ChristianLiving #ChristianPodcast #SpiritualWarfare #FaithOverFear #Ephesians6 #ArmorOfGod #GodIsGood #TrustGod #ChristianEncouragement #MondayMotivation #SummitAfterTheStorm

My house is only seven years old, and I've already lost count of how many plumbing problems we've had.

Then I went to Europe and saw Roman aqueducts built more than 2,000 years ago.

That made me wonder:

Did the engineers who built them have any idea their work would still be here thousands of years later?

In Episode 165 of Summit After the Storm, we're talking about legacy—but not the kind measured by titles, accomplishments, buildings, or whether people remember your name.

The Roman Empire disappeared.

The Colosseum stopped serving the purpose for which it was built.

Someday someone else will sit in your office.

Your title will belong to someone else.

And eventually, your LinkedIn profile may begin with one word:

Retired.

But legacy is much bigger than a career.

It's what remains because you were here.

What did you teach?

Who did you love?

What did your children learn from watching you?

Whose life changed because your path crossed theirs?

On Kilimanjaro, a porter named Emmanuel became part of my answer. His name means “God with us,” and he became one of the ways God showed His face to me on that mountain.

Emmanuel may never know how far his influence traveled.

And maybe neither will we.

But then Jesus takes the idea of legacy even further.

In Matthew 5:11–12, He tells His followers that living faithfully may bring insults, persecution, and false accusations.

Then He says:

“Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven.”

If you're building a heavenly legacy, don't expect the world to always applaud you.

Following Jesus may cost you approval.

Relationships.

Opportunities.

Maybe even your reputation.

But the ultimate question isn't whether the world applauded your life.

It's whether your life was faithful to Christ.

The Roman engineers built things that survived them by thousands of years.

But even those aqueducts will eventually disappear.

Eternity won't.

So ask yourself:

What am I doing with this life that will matter in the next one?

#Jesus #Christianity #Faith #ChristianPodcast #ChristianLiving #Legacy #Purpose #Eternity #Matthew5 #FaithOverFear #SpiritualGrowth #ChristianLeadership #Rome #Kilimanjaro #SummitAfterTheStorm

The Greeks couldn't break through the walls of Troy.

So they found another way in.

The Trojans carried the enemy inside themselves.

Thousands of years later, the Trojan Horse leaves us with a warning that reaches far beyond ancient Greece:

Not every enemy looks like an enemy.

In Episode 164 of Summit After the Storm, we take a deeper turn into faith, family, deception, and spiritual warfare.

If Satan wanted to destroy your family, would he really show up looking like the devil?

Or would he use someone you're more likely to trust?

Jesus calls Satan “the father of lies.” And deception is most effective when we don't recognize it as deception.

Sometimes the Trojan horse is a screen.

Sometimes it's pornography.

Sometimes it's a career that slowly consumes everything at home.

Sometimes it's resentment toward your spouse.

Sometimes it's attention, validation, or a relationship that initially seems harmless.

And sometimes...

the Trojan horse looks like a friend.

Someone who listens when you're angry. Someone who always assures you that you're right and your spouse is wrong. Someone who gradually becomes more important than they should.

Jesus said:

“What God has joined together, let no one separate.” — Matthew 19:6

That verse has been hitting me differently lately.

Am I protecting what God put together?

Am I bringing peace into my home—or division?

Am I honoring my marriage even when my spouse isn't in the room?

And what have I allowed inside the gates without considering where it might eventually lead?

This isn't about living paranoid or blaming every problem on Satan.

It's about taking seriously Peter's warning:

“Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.” — 1 Peter 5:8

Be alert.

Protect your marriage.

Protect your children.

Protect the peace in your home.

And surround yourself with people who strengthen your commitment to your family rather than quietly undermining it.

Because sometimes the greatest threat isn't pounding on the gate.

It's something—or someone—we've already trusted enough to let inside.

#Family #Marriage #Faith #Jesus #Christianity #ChristianPodcast #SpiritualWarfare #ChristianMarriage #MarriageAdvice #FamilyFirst #BiblicalMarriage #ChristianLiving #FaithOverFear #TrojanHorse #SummitAfterTheStorm

The most dangerous person in the room...

may not be the one who disagrees with you.

It may be the one who always tells you:

You’re right.

In Episode 163 of Summit After the Storm, we explore what happens when leaders unintentionally teach people that agreement is safer than honesty.

People learn quickly.

What gets rewarded.

What gets shut down.

Who gets promoted.

Who gets labeled difficult.

Before long, a leader can walk into a room, offer an idea, and watch everyone nod.

That can feel like alignment.

Sometimes...

it’s fear.

Walking through the ruins of Rome made this lesson feel even more real. Under some Roman emperors, challenging the wrong leader could cost far more than a promotion.

It could cost your life.

Today, the consequences are obviously different.

But here’s the lesson:

You don’t have to threaten execution to be a threatening boss.

Roll your eyes at disagreement.

Embarrass someone in a meeting.

Lose your temper when they bring bad news.

Do that enough times...

and people stop telling you what they think.

They start telling you what you want to hear.

Kilimanjaro taught me the opposite.

Our guides didn’t care about our ego.

They cared about our safety.

If our oxygen was low, they told us to slow down, rest, and drink water.

They didn’t need our approval first.

Reality doesn’t change because nobody wants to tell you about it.

Proverbs 27:6 says:

“Wounds from a friend can be trusted, but an enemy multiplies kisses.”

And we all know the workplace version of someone who “multiplies kisses.”

This is a Christian podcast, so let’s just say...

it rhymes with “kiss class.”

Those people are usually very good at telling the boss exactly what the boss wants to hear.

But the person constantly flattering you may not be the person you should trust most.

Sometimes the person challenging you...

is the person protecting you.

So ask yourself:

Who around me can tell me I’m wrong?

And maybe the harder question:

Have I made it safe for them to do it?

Someday your LinkedIn heading may start with “retired.”

The office will belong to someone else.

Companies change.

Buildings crumble.

Even empires become ruins.

But what we build in people can outlive all of it.

The mountain taught me that. Rome reminded me of it.

#Leadership #LeadershipDevelopment #WorkplaceCulture #Management #ExecutiveLeadership #DecisionMaking #PsychologicalSafety #CorporateCulture #ServantLeadership #LeadershipLessons #BusinessLeadership #ChristianLeadership #PersonalGrowth #AncientRome #SummitAfterTheStorm

The higher you climb in leadership...

the easier it becomes to hear applause.

And the harder it can become to hear the truth.

But as I recorded this episode, I didn't feel particularly strong.

I felt tired.

Weak.

Vulnerable.

And maybe that was exactly what I needed to understand the lesson.

Because the people we lead are human too.

The employee sitting across from you may be exhausted.

The coworker who seems distracted may be carrying something you know nothing about.

The frustrated customer.

The struggling supplier.

Your friend.

Your spouse.

Everyone is carrying something.

In Episode 162 of Summit After the Storm, we explore what ancient Rome, the British Parliament, and Kilimanjaro can teach us about one of leadership's most dangerous failures:

stopping long enough to hear the people we're supposed to lead.

As leaders rise, information gets filtered.

Bad news gets softened.

Problems get summarized.

And eventually, silence can begin to look like success.

But silence doesn't always mean everything is fine.

Sometimes silence means people have stopped believing it's safe—or worthwhile—to speak.

On Kilimanjaro, our guides understood something every leader should remember. They kept asking questions because conditions kept changing:

How are you feeling?

Are you eating?

How did you sleep?

They knew:

You can't lead people well if you don't know what they're experiencing.

Proverbs 12:15 says:

“The way of fools seems right to them, but the wise listen to advice.”

Maybe leadership isn't always about feeling strong.

Sometimes our own weakness reminds us to recognize the weakness, pain, and humanity in somebody else.

So ask yourself:

Who around me needs me to stop talking long enough to actually hear them?

Then go listen.

#Leadership #LeadershipDevelopment #ServantLeadership #Listening #EmotionalIntelligence #WorkplaceCulture #PeopleFirst #Management #LeadershipLessons #Empathy #PersonalGrowth #ChristianLeadership #FaithAtWork #Kilimanjaro #SummitAfterTheStorm