The Collective Table

Rob Bell….where to start. Rob Bell is a New York Times Bestselling author of 11 books including Drops Like Stars, Love Wins and Everything is Spiritual. He hosts a widely successful podcast called The Rob Cast. He tours nationally and internationally, speaking to large crowds about spirituality, mystery, ancient wisdom, what it means to be human and so much more. 

For many looking for a more expansive way to be Christian, Rob has paved the way. And he brings others along. He writes and talks about the Bible in accessible, passionate, interesting, funny, and thoughtful ways that inspire people to fall in love with God. 

Rob’s work leads to an expansive, inclusive, and truthful way of engaging in our faith. In this episode we talk with Rob about an episode titled “We Hung Our Harps”. It’s about Lament, Joy, Empire and Hope. Rob is funny, engaging, generous, relatable and just all around wonderful. If you have not listened to Rob’s podcast or read a Rob Bell book, we highly encourage you to do that…as soon as you finish this episode!

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You can listen to Rob's full sermon here 

Olu Brown is founding and Lead Pastor of Impact Church Atlanta, one of the fastest growing UM churches in the country. He is an author, coach, consultant, and speaker and is committed to empowering people and organizations to grow in the love of God. 

Olu strongly believes in an active church, one that makes a meaningful impact in the lives of individuals and communities. Impact is a multicultural community committed to Doing Church Differently™.

Olu is compelled to help bring healing, justice and compassion to the world.

In this conversation Chelsea and Dana talk to Olu about a sermon he preached on the 20th anniversary of 9/11. Using a passage found in Lamentations, Olu addresses mental health and our human need to deal with the past in order to have a hopeful and joyful future. 

He reminds us about the delicate balance between trusting God and taking action. In his passionate yet gentle way Olu inspires us to shift our perspective and view the world through a God lens. We hope you enjoy it!

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Hear Rev. Brown's full sermon here 

Rev. Joe Kim serves as Lead Pastor of Bothell United Methodist Church. Before entering parish ministry, Joe was the Director of Children’s Rights Advocacy at the General Board of Church and Society of the United Methodist Church in Washington, D.C.. Here he focused on policy and advocacy efforts to combat human trafficking and promote equal education opportunities for all children. 

He has also served as Director for Community Care at Spark12; Senior Associate for Membership Development and Services for the Conference of Non-Governmental Organizations in Relationship with the United Nations,; and Program and Administrative Assistant at the General Board of Church and Society of the United Methodist Church, United Nations Office. 

Joe has traveled around the world as a speaker, workshop leader and facilitator, encouraging people of faith to do justice, to love kindness, and to walk humbly with God.

Rev. Joe is a passionate speaker, an advocate for social justice and a deep Biblical thinker. This sermon was preached during Lent as part of a larger sermon series called the Bigger Picture. Titled “I am the Resurrection and the Life”, this sermon focuses on the scripture found in John 11 in which Lazarus dies and Jesus reminds his sisters that not only is Jesus offering life after death but also here and now.

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Yoyu can listen to Joe's full sermon here 

Dr. Robyn Henderson-Espinoza. Dr. Robyn has been described in many different ways: a scholar-activist, scholar-leader, thought-leader, teacher, public theologian, ethicist, and poet. 

Among these ways of describing Dr. Robyn, they are also a visionary thinker who has spent two decades working in the hybrid space of church, academy, & movements seeking to not only disrupt but dismantle supremacy culture by focusing their PhD studies on new concepts of being & becoming, and  decolonizing knowledge production.

They enflesh a deep hope of collaborating in these hybrid spaces where their work seeks to contribute to the ongoing work of collective liberation.  

The sermon we talk about in this episode is called “Hope as Defiant.” Preached at a United Methodist Church in New York during Pride Weekend, Dr. Robyn felt compelled to talk about a necessary component of activism and faith….hope. And in the midst of the brokenness and hurt in our world this hope needs to be bold, resilient, defiant. 

In this conversation we take a deep dive into this defiant hope and its implications on how we participate in the world.

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For this episode we get an Advent gift with new music from Mystic Mercy. This Advent song invites us to review our ideas of hope. How can we exist in this current beautiful moment without all the holiday anxiety? How can we opt in to alignment with the God of rest? How can we be still in the midst of chaos? Mystic Mercy's latest song provides that much needed breath.

So take get cozy, quiet the monkey brain, and breathe as you enjoy this latest release.

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This week Rev. Chelsea and Dana sit down with Rev. Dr. Faith Conklin. Rev. Faith has served as a mentor to both Chelsea and Dana. She attended the School of Theology at Claremont, CA and earned a Master of Religion degree in 1970 and a Dr. of Religion in 1971. Rev. Faith was the first woman from Cal-Pac to be ordained an elder.

Rev. Faith has served the UMC at local, district and national levels on several boards and agencies. She was a delegate to three General and Jurisdictional Conferences.

Rev. Faith claims to be “retired” but she still serves as the Director of the Western Jurisdiction Course of Study for Local Pastors and a professor of Worship and Sacraments and Preaching at the School of Theology at Claremont, CA. She is also very active at San Dieguito UMC as a preacher and teacher.

As you will see Rev. Faith is a powerful preacher, wise teacher and compassionate leader. We hope you enjoy it.

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Shane Claiborne is a prominent speaker, activist, and best-selling author.  Shane has worked with Mother Teresa in Calcutta, and founded The Simple Way in Philadelphia.  

He heads up Red Letter Christians, a movement of folks who are committed to living "as if Jesus meant the things he said." So it’s no secret that Shane is a busy guy…speaking, writing, advocating for human rights all over the place. 

A few days before we had this conversation with him, Shane was protesting for immigration reform at the US / Mexico border. In fact, he rode his bike for over 3,200 miles to bring awareness and raise funds to support this necessary work. 

He had just gotten back from this trip when his car, which has over 300,000 miles on it, broke down. When we were chatting with him he was literally in this car on his way to advocating to abolish the death penalty and protest against gun violence, which you can read about in his latest book called, Beating Guns. 

It is evident in this conversation and in Shane’s sermon his love for Jesus and his desire for peace. It left us feeling inspired and committed to living the life of love Jesus called us to. We hope you enjoy it! 

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You can listen to Shane's full episode here 

In this episode Rev. Chelsea and Rev. Claire sit down with Bishop Yvette Flunder to talk about her sermon on the holy work of unity. Bishop Flunder truly lives and breathes the love of God - throughout our conversation, she truly witnesses to holy unity in the Church and the World. We can’t wait for you to hear this conversation!

Rev. Dr. Yvette Flunder, a San Francisco native, has served her call through prophetic action and justice ministry for over thirty years. Her call to “blend proclamation, worship, service and advocacy on behalf of those most marginalized in church and in society” led to the founding of the City of Refuge United Church of Christ in 1991.

Bishop Flunder is an ordained Minister of the United Church of Christ. In June 2003 Bishop Flunder was consecrated Presiding Bishop of The Fellowship.

She is also an award winning gospel music artist and author of Where the Edge Gathers: A Theology of Homiletic and Radical Inclusion.

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Carlos Rodriguez is passionate about reaching others with God’s radical love. He is a provocative preacher who serves communities and loves to pastor prisoners, young adults and anyone who dares to think differently. 

Carlos is the author of Simply Sonship, Drop The Stones and the upcoming book, Proximity. Carlos is also the CEO and founder of The Happy Givers NPO, a non-profit working in communities around the world to provide empowerment to those who are recovering from natural disasters and economic challenges.

In this episode Rev. Chelsea and Rev. Claire sit down with Carlos for a fun conversation! From loud shrieks to flipping tables, let us discover together how our human frustration has the potential to help us tap into the holy.

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You can listen to the full sermon from Carlos here 

Today is a double release Tuesday. Not only did we release a brand new interview with Rev. Anne Dunlap (which you can listen to here) but we also have new music from Mystic Mercy!

This new song is called "You are My Rock. Talip wrote this song during Lent this past year. It comes on the heels of "In the Stillness" (which you can listen to here). In this episode, Talip vulnerably and honestly shares about a recent situation he experienced.

Talip offers a way to ground ourselves, contemplate on God's goodness and find peace. We hope you enjoy it!

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