At Communitas, we hope people will be empowered and trained well for the task at hand, but to be spiritually mature we must be emotionally mature as well. Mike Kuder and Daphne Fisher share how they implement Emotionally Healthy Discipleship which is an experiential learning process done in a community and available for all. Check out the links to find out how to participate and go to the learning hub for information on accessing other training options.

This episode dives into the tools, practices, and profound insights that the Emotionally Healthy curriculum offers, including the importance of silence, stillness, and relational health. You'll hear about personal stories, practical takeaways, and the incredible impact this material has had on participants around the globe. Whether you're in ministry or seeking personal growth, this conversation offers a compelling invitation to deeper emotional and spiritual wellness.

What You'll Learn in This Episode:

About our Guests

First as team members with Mountainview church near Madrid and then with Lisboa Matrix in Portugal and as leaders of Grace Community Church, Daphne Fisher and her husband David have been involved for several years in broader roles as leaders with Staff Care and Development (SCD) and the Europe Advancement Team. As of the end of 2020, Daphne left her role as co-director of Communitas SCD to continue to follow her heart for the wellbeing of Communitas staff on a more personal, less administrative level. Together they continue to lead locally in a variety of ways that are helping people in their community get closer and deeper with Jesus and explore His desires and purposes for their lives. She loves to see others grow and to grow along with them, looking for ways to share how knowing Jesus has changed her! She also loves being a grandmother and staying in touch with her California kids and grands!

Mike Kuder was born and raised in Northern New Jersey. He spent the first 20+ years of his working life building the family business alongside his parents. In 2004 he had his first exposure to mission and ministry in Europe. Observing the vast difference between American Christian culture and that of post-modern, post-christendom Europe was a life-changing experience which led to a decade of study and practice of missional incarnational ministry. Mike served as a youth leader, and most recently as elder and pastor of a large growing church in NJ, where he trained and empowered leaders and everyday folks to embrace mission as lifestyle. “Helping others imagine themselves as God’s instruments of the kingdom” is his passion. Mike continues to reside in Northern New Jersey with his wife of 25 years, Heidi, and their two beautiful daughters, Madeleine and Brigitte. “We love the incredible culture, diversity, and yes, even the challenges that are afforded to us because of our close proximity to New York City – the greatest city in the world!”

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Stephanie Gutierrez, missionary care manager at Modern Day Missions, discusses the importance of maintaining personal boundaries and finding healthy rhythms to prevent burnout. Stephanie emphasizes the value of being moved by need, but not led by need as we respond to those around us. Learning to listen is paramount as it's so close to helping others feel loved.

About Stephanie

Stephanie Leigh Gutierrez is a certified life and leadership coach, podcast host, marriage speaker, and former missionary. She is also the missionary care manager at Modern Day Missions and hosts the Modern Day Missionaries podcast. Additionally, Stephanie and her husband Danny are the founders of Footrock, a nonprofit organization that hosts retreats for Christian missionaries and Spanish-speaking pastors.

Resources Mentioned

Podcast: https://mdmpodcast.org/

Modern Day Missions

Stephanie Leigh Gutierrez

Email: [email protected]

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Chris Coursey shares that God is glad to be with us! If we truly know that, it transforms not only us as individuals but all of our interactions with others. Those interactions are strengthened when we use the 19 relational skills that should be learned, but often aren't, during infancy. Even if we missed that early learning opportunity, there is much hope. We can form new habits when we practice these skills throughout our life.

About Chris

For nearly 25 years Chris has been developing and practicing brain-based solutions to make relationships work. He started out his career specializing in severe trauma and abuse. For a number of years he also pastored a small congregation in Michigan. Chris is a published author with ten books in print, including “The Joy Switch: How Your Brain’s Secret Circuit Affects Your Relationships…And How You Can Activate It.” He co-authored his most recent book, “The 4 Habits of Raising Joy-Filled Kids”. Chris enjoys spending time with Jen and their two sons, Matthew and Andrew. In addition to studying, writing, jogging and exercising, he enjoys the outdoors and is one of the rare people who actually likes the snow.

Resources Mentioned

https://thrivetoday.org/

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1. Website: https://gocommunitas.org/

Claudia Hendricks shares her passion for connecting with the people around her and how it has changed her into a new person. She gives examples of how each of us can do that in everyday life leading to more joy and peace.

About Claudia

Claudia is a passionate connector and trainer with vast experience in spiritual formation in Argentina, Latin America and the United States. She holds a masters in Speech Pathology where she first learned about the human brain and is completing her MDiv at Fuller Seminary, but her most valuable lessons in life came by experiencing God’s presence among the most vulnerable and marginalized people.

Currently, with her husband Michel, they are part of the Life Model Works and Thrive Training team, emphasizing the centrality of attachment to God and each other as the way to grow healthy families and communities, as well as the need of woman participation and leadership. Claudia is the Director of Life Model Works outside the US, currently focused on the Spanish speaking world. Residing in Boulder, CO they have 3 bilingual adult children. Claudia loves Jesus and spending quality time at a table with family, old and new friends, being outside in nature, dancing, cooking and traveling.

Resources Mentioned

Arbol de Justicia

Life Model Works

Modelodevida - Life Model Works

THRIVE today 

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1. Website: https://gocommunitas.org/

• Transformation is a journey that requires community support.

• "I sensed God sharing almost like his thoughts with me."

Connect with Communitas:

1. Website: https://gocommunitas.org/

Dr. Jim Wilder shares with Geoff and Joy his experience regarding the complex mechanisms of the human brain concerning the need for belonging and the fear of rejection, and the challenges of fostering a sense of belonging in church. They explore Jim's concept of 'enemy mode' and the value of loving one's enemies as the benchmark of Christianity. Jim emphasizes the importance of living from our emobied self instead of our performance self, which we do best when we're in a multigenerational community with nurturing individuals, growing spiritually and relationally.

About Jim

Dr. Jim Wilder is a Neurotheologian at Life Model Works, author, international speaker who develops ways to apply brain science and Christian practices that help all those who encounter the church to be drawn to and transformed into the character of Christ. He helps existing relational networks build joy, suffer well, love enemies and grow a mature community with the resilience to overcome trauma under the guidance of Christ’s Spirit. Wilder grew up in villages tucked into the Andes mountains of Colombia and travels learning and teaching resilience in Southern Sudan, India, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, Eastern Europe, Mexico, Korea, Thailand, Chile, Brazil, Alaska and even Canada. Wilder draws on his extensive life experience from his Ph.D. in psychology and M.A. in theology to his walk through many worlds and cultures as a lens to examine life and to tell stories. Transparency, humor, a second look at what we thought was reality and a passion to find a joyful life, create hopeful girls, restore communities and develop deep spirituality fill his books. Wilder is the thinker behind the Life Model, a lifespan guide to being fully human. He is good reading for those who would rather be alive than simply comfortable.

Connect with Jim

LifeModelWorks.org

Escaping Enemy Mode: How Our Brains Unite or Divide Us

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1. Website: https://gocommunitas.org/

On this episode, Joy and Geoff talk about tools for Spirit-led ministry with author Kristi Gaultiere who is also a therapist, spiritual director and coach. She shares the six stages of a church's development from her first book, Journey of the Soul: A Practical Guide to Emotional and Spiritual Growth, written with her husband Bill Gaultiere. They also discuss the fact that God can't heal what we're not willing to feel, a topic close to Kristi's heart and addressed in her recent book, Healthy Feelings, Thriving Faith: Growing Emotionally and Spiritually through the Enneagram.

About Kristi

Resources mentioned

Soul Shepherding;

podcasts - Soul Shepherding;

Healthy Feelings, Thriving Faith: Growing Emotionally and Spiritually through the Enneagram ;

Journey of the Soul

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1. Website: https://gocommunitas.org/

Alan talks with Geoff and Joy about his new book, "AntiBurnout," which focuses on grounded leadership and self-care to prevent burnout in leaders. He shares the importance of receiving in order to sustainably give as well as the value of setting boundaries while embracing rest as a gift! Alan emphasizes that it's impossible to find balance, and suggests that rather we look for buoyancy, learning to live in the tension of work and rest, because both are essential and should coexist.

About Alan

Alan Briggs is a mountain guide for the leadership journey. As a Leadership Coach and Sabbatical Coach he helps kingdom leaders conquer overwhelm + navigate with courage.

Resources Mentioned

Listen in to practical thoughts on living and leading effectively at Stay Forth Leadership Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/stay-forth-leadership-podcast/id1449683368

Find out more about his coaching at: http://stayforth.com/coaching

Email him at [email protected]

Purchase AntiBurnout: https://www.amazon.com/AntiBurnout-lighter-live-heavy-world/dp/B0CZP9JKB2/ref=sr_1_1?crid=3BDGZQHU8QEZL&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.3JiF-tpQ00HuOddXaz75D24lx-zdor42CPk7J0h2mowUHWHYJAelzurD9eAIA_kGvoW_Oj3WCmNLmdLrjI5gLU5dzRJtLqUBlqxFi7S_DW8wZPQfyxEDi4zteKSW5ECTpcpoJ2SfuC_QIb51ppAxgVsWgET2hMRPI4vLSSgHLu1YWynOSJ4UVJAwiLx3mf8ksRuW0IhRKFQOBF5bdLh1heC0F3wwJCJXaA9YQfOIPR8.d

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1. Website: https://gocommunitas.org/

Brad shares with Geoff and Joy his passion for catalyzing church planting and diminishing the divide between laity and clergy, with a focus on de-professionalizing the latter.

He believes that co-vocational ministry paves the way for this to happen and hopes all the people of God become activated and empowered to engage in mission outside the walls of the church.

About Brad Brisco

Brad is currently the Director of Multiplication Strategies for the Send Network at the North American Mission Board. He holds a doctorate in the area of missional ecclesiology, his doctoral thesis was on assisting existing congregations in transitioning in a missional direction. He is the author of Missional Essentials, a twelve-week small group study guide, The Missional Quest: Becoming a Church of the Long Run, Next Door As It Is In Heaven, Rethink: 12 Missiological Principles for Church Multiplication and Covocational Church Planting.

Resources Mentioned

Twitter (X) - @bradleybrisco

Blog - Missional Church Network

Connect with Communitas

Website: https://gocommunitas.org/

Instagram: @gocommunitas

Podcast episodes and more: https://linktr.ee/communitasinternational

Jon Ritner joins Joy and Geoff on this episode as they have a conversation with Michael Frost about the peculiar challenges of Christianity in the 21st Century. He speaks about the deep disturbing shift that happened during the industrial 1950s that reduced what most know as Christianity to a highly political and narrow-minded version of faith. However, he sees great hope if we utilize the collective wisdom for collaboration towards advocacy, social justice and unraveling systems of oppression.

About Mike Frost

Michael Frost is an internationally recognized Australian missiologist and one of the leading voices in the missional church movement. His books are required reading in colleges and seminaries around the world and he is much sought after as an international conference speaker. Since 1999, Dr Frost has been the founding director of the Tinsley Institute, a mission study center located at Morling College in Sydney, Australia. He has also been an adjunct lecturer at various seminaries in the United States. He is the author or editor of nineteen theological books, the best known of which are the popular and award-winning, The Shaping of Things to Come (2003), Exiles (2006), The Road to Missional (2011) and Surprise the World! (2016). Frost’s work has been translated into German, Korean, Swedish, Portuguese and Spanish.

For twelve years, he was the weekly religion columnist for the Manly Daily, and has had articles published in the Washington Post, The Tennessean, the Charlotte Observer, Le Monde, and other publications. He was one of the founders of the Forge Mission Training Network and the founder of the missional Christian community, smallboatbigsea, based in Manly in Sydney’s north. He is also well known for his protests against Australia’s treatment of refugees, some of which have resulted in his arrest by the NSW police, as well as his advocacy for racial reconciliation, foreign aid, and gender equality. He was one of the founders of the Forge Mission Training Network and the founder of the missional Christian community, smallboatbigsea, based in Manly in Sydney’s north. He is also well known for his protests against Australia’s treatment of refugees, some of which have resulted in his arrest by the NSW police, as well as his advocacy for racial reconciliation, foreign aid, and gender equality.

Resources Mentioned

 http://mikefrost.net/

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CD81RGC4/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2ADTKQKNE4Y2A&keywords=mission+is+the+shape+of+water+by+michael+frost&qid=1690852795&sprefix=mission+is+the%2Caps%2C780&sr=8-1

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1. Website: https://gocommunitas.org/