This episode is part of an emphasis we're making this fall on the Bible. Dr. Jennifer Holloran is president and CEO of The American Bible Society (the first woman to hold the this lead role in its 209 year history). Dr. Holloran has a long history in bible advocacy, having spent 22 years at Wycliffe Bible Translators USA and served on all kinds of boards and with nonprofit organizations that champion Jesus and his Word. I’m honored that she’s taken time to be with us at AoH to talk about a growing theme in this fall’s Art of Holiness library … the Word of God for the people of God. 

Dr. Instone-Brewer received his PhD from the University of Cambridge, where he specialized in early rabbinic literature. Today he is a Baptist minister in the UK who served for twenty years as a research fellow at Tyndale House in Cambridge, He is the author of lots of books and articles, including Divorce and Remarriage in the Bible (which my friend Gordon Spivey recommends) and also The Jesus Scandals, Moral Questions of the Bible, and Science and the Bible. He has helped develop a solid Bible app called STEPBible -- one more way the academy is shaping the practice of ordinary Christians, especially as they engage scripture. Oh, and Dr. Instone-Bridges is on the NIV translation team … which totally fascinates me and is the reason I asked him to join us on AoH. 

J.R. Briggs is a pastor, seminary professor, coach, consultant, and writer. He has served in megachurches, church plants, and house church networks. In 2011, he founded Kairos Partnerships -- "an organization committed to equipping leaders with the perspective and tools they need to lead with clarity, health, and confidence." He works with The Ecclesia Network and Fresh Expressions. Find him in Christianity Today and read his books, including The Sacred Overlap, Eldership and the Mission of God: Equipping Teams for Faithful Church Leadership, A time To Heal and most recently The Art of Asking Better Questions: Pursuing Stronger Relationships, Healthier Leadership, and Deeper Faith ... and that’s why we wanted to have this conversation!

Tara Beth Leach has been with us before. She is a friend of New Room (and a friend of mine!), a pastor, preacher, writer, and advocate for women in ministry (find her latest blog on that topic if you are a woman leader who needs a little encouragement. Its powerful). Currently, Tara Beth serves as the senior pastor at Good Shepherd Church in Naperville, Illinois. She previously served as senior pastor of First Church of the Nazarene of Pasadena (“PazNaz”) in Southern California (that story is also worth finding and reading). She is the author of Emboldened, Radiant Church, and Forty Days on Being a Six. Today, we’re talking with her about a new book that releases this week called The Great Morning Revolution. She’s here to help us get back to the basics and discover how a morning devotional routine can revolutionize your life. I hope you not only listen ... but live this. 

I found this author by the title of his book -- You Are Not Your Own. Just the title alone was enough to want to interview Alan Noble, who is Associate Professor of English at Oklahoma Baptist University and a fellow at the Keller Center for Cultural Apologetics. Dr. Noble is the author of books like On Getting Out of Bed, and Disruptive Witness. His latest book (published by IVP and on sale now wherever you buy your books) is a testament to biblical freedom. It addresses yet one more paradox of the gospel: when we give ourselves away to Christ, we become not less but more free, more human, more whole. 

Sterling Allen is a pastor in the Global Methodist Church, but he's also a musician with tremendous contributions to the world of worship. He has given us a hymnal of curated hymns from Charles Wesley's vault, and now he is working togetehr with Seedbed to produce worship planners for each liturgical year. We used the opportunity of this great resource to talk with Sterling about worship elements and planning for the year ahead. Especially if you're a pastor, this is a great listen! 

Dr. Ben Witherington is hands down one of my favorite profs and favorite people. Just a solid, good man who happens to be brilliant and crazy-prolific with more than 60 books to his credit … and counting (he is working on two right now … one of which we’ll talk about today). He has been consistently chosen as a Christianity Today book of the Year (or among the top ten). He is a John Wesley Fellow for Life, a research fellow at Cambridge University … and a member of a bunch of other very impressive academic societies. He is also the regular go-to when religious stories break for news outlets like the BBC and CNN. When Ben Witherington speaks, people listen. And I trust you’ll be fascinated by this conversation about three “ologies” that Ben is thinking about a lot these days …  

A JD Walt conversation is always a joy. This time we're talking abouat a new study on Romans, part of the Daily Seeds collection at Seedbed. Romans: From Sin Management to Love Unleashed is 80 daily readings from Romans, along with reflection and questions and prayers, all designed to help us get a handle on how the Apostle Paul would have us live in this world as followers of Jesus. It releases officially on September 2, but you can pre-order now wherever you buy your books. We encourage yout to check out seedbed.com first. You’ll get the best deal there and support the work of that great ministry. JD has served as the Sower-in-Chief at Seedbed since its inception and hosts the Daily Text … or you might know it as the Wake Up Call … for a really long time. Thousands listen every day … and you should too! 

Jessica and I spent an hour talking about the art of preaching and she is just. so. good. If you want to remember the joy of preaching or learn it, you should listen. 

A.J. Swoboda is a pastor, teacher, theologian, and author of such books as The Gift of Thorns, Subversive Sabbath, Slow Theology, After Doubt … to name a few. He serves on the faculties of George Fox University and Fuller Seminary where he teaches biblical studies, theology, and church history. He pastors Theophilus church in Portland, Oregon and leads a great podcast together with Nijay Gupta called Slow Theology. His most recent book, A Teachable Spirit, caught my attention because of its title. Few of us have that spirit, and more of us need it. Maybe I should speak only for myself. Let’s talk about what it means to be spiritually and intellectually flexible enough to learn from peers, children, the culture … even our enemies.