Summary

In this conversation, we get to hear from 2 people who have spent their career faithfully serving in public education. Irvin Scott emphasizes the critical role of teachers in society and the importance of showing appreciation for their hard work, and encourages listeners to reflect on their gratitude towards educators and highlights the challenges they face in their profession. And Jim McKenney shares some insights of his time in public education, how he has navigated the challenges faithfully with the Lord and with others.

Wherever you're listening—Spotify, Apple, or YouTube—subscribing, rating, and reviewing the show helps others discover what we're doing here. It's a small way to support the mission—and it means a lot to us.

Resources

• Download the episode transcript here
• Learn more about ChristianEducators.Org
• Learn more about Association of Christian Administrators
• Book Recommendations

  • Leading with Heart and Soul: 30 Inspiring Lessons of Faith, Learning, and Leadership for Educators

    Author: (Our Episode Guest!) Irvin L Scott

  • Kingdom Calling: Vocational Stewardship for the Common Good

    Author: Amy Sherman

  • Taking Jesus to School: The Fruit of the Spirit on Display

    Author: Dr. Jacqueline Minor

Summary

We are pleased to announce that The Faith & Work Podcast is the recent recipient of the Christian Media Association's CONTENT Award for Best Podcast in the Education Category! Host Ross Chapman and Faith & Work Podcast Producer Naomi Hartman celebrate the many who have come before them to lay the groundwork for this honor, and celebrate how the Lord has blessed us in stewarding this medium!

Enjoy a replay of the episode submitted for this award: You Are An Agent of Flourishing a special interview with Amy Sherman. In this conversation, Joanna Meyer and Amy Sherman discuss the importance of shalom, the concept of vocational power, and the shift towards a public faith that engages with the common good. The conversation highlights strategies for churches to effectively serve their communities, the significance of asset mapping, and essential principles for community involvement.

Wherever you're listening—Spotify, Apple, or YouTube—subscribing, rating, and reviewing the show helps others discover what we're doing here. It's a small way to support the mission—and it means a lot to us.

Thank you to our listeners for supporting our podcast Resources

• • Download the episode transcript here
  • Learn more about CONTENT Christian Media Awards here

Summary

In this episode of the Faith in Work podcast, artists Jake and Hannah Weidmann discuss how their work disciples them, how their work as artists has revealed to them different aspects of God and how their marriage has also shaped their art and business. The conversation emphasizes the importance of storytelling in art, the balance between craftsmanship and entrepreneurship, and the encouragement for others to embrace their creativity as a form of worship.

Wherever you're listening—Spotify, Apple, or YouTube—subscribing, rating, and reviewing the show helps others discover what we're doing here. It's a small way to support the mission—and it means a lot to us.

Highlights

On Work Discipling Us

"Something we always say about our work is we feel very much discipled by our work privately before we're ever given permission to share it publicly. And so something that like putting our hands to like tangible embodied work, think is, especially in a digital age and the culture that we live in, we just notice more people want tangible and slowness. And so I think imitating God in that way and creating and it's very much a human experience has been something that I think the arts do extraordinarily well."- Hannah Weidmann On Worship and Liturgy

"In all of the different art forms that I practice, I'm always looking back into the annals of history and rehearsing the strokes of past masters. And that's what gives me a common language for my art. In a lot of ways, I think that, you know, craft... is like the liturgical practice of my art. It gives me a common language to use and utilize so that when I do speak, I'm speaking with a common language that's been spoken for hundreds, if not thousands of years. That so much of what I do in creating meaning through my work is upholding sacred symbols. And so if I don't have an understanding of what that symbolism is and what it points to, then I'm just a clanging gong, resounding symbol. And that's what a lot of, unfortunately, a lot of postmodernist art is about. It's about creating as you feel. It's not following any sort of precedent laid down by previous generations, and it points back at itself."- Jake Weidmann

Resources

• Download the episode transcript here
• Jake & Hannah's Website
• Jake Weidmann's Website
• Everyday Heirloom Website
• Made To Last Podcast
• Suffering Servant in a Single Stroke by Jake Weidmann
• More videos of Jake's Art
• Jakes Book: Old Soul, New Creation

Summary

In this episode of the Faith and Work Podcast, host Ross Chapman engages with TC Johnstone, an impact documentary filmmaker, to explore the intersection of faith, storytelling, and the arts. They discuss the importance of storytelling in various contexts, the role of curiosity and self-awareness in engaging with others, and the SPEAK framework for meaningful conversations. The conversation also touches on the influence of AI in the arts and offers encouragement for the church to embrace creativity and community.

Wherever you're listening—Spotify, Apple, or YouTube—subscribing, rating, and reviewing the show helps others discover what we're doing here. It's a small way to support the mission—and it means a lot to us.

Highlights On Creating and Storytelling "Anybody can create. And the roadblock is when they have to face the mirror. Whether it's a podcast, whether it's Instagram, whether it's photography, mean an iPhone is, I the first camera I ever had, my iPhone's 10 times better than that. So anybody can create. It's just learning to tell a story... One is courage to say something that takes some bravery to put things out there that follow your conviction. And then the second thing is just not being overwhelmed. There's so many outlets, whether it's filmmaking, photography, Instagram, I mean, all the way down to future films. It's like, where do I even start? How do I try to do everything and do nothing very well?" On SPEAK tool to help you engage stories! Watch TC's YouTube video on the tool here: https://youtu.be/kkkmiWYPnPk

• S - Story (What's your story?)
• P - Passion
• E - Encouragement
• A - Assistance/Ask (I heard you talk about this, I can offer to help/connect. What do you need help with right now?)
• K - Knowledge (Built to be generous. Who/what do you know that I need to know?)

Resources

• Download the episode transcript here
• Learn more about TC Johnstone and his work at tcjohnstone.com
• Watch TC's movie, Rising From Ashes
• Join us at our annual Women, Work, & Calling event on Fri. Nov 7. Learn more here!
• Applications are now open for the 5280 Fellowship 5-month cohort program. Learn More here.

Summary

Exclusive sneak peak into our Women, Work, & Calling 2025 keynote speaker's talk: Reverend Dr. Nicole Massey-Martin COO at Christianity Today. Dr. Martin joins us today to discuss her journey as a leader, and calls us to to crucify our ministry idols and nail our outdated leadership practices to the cross. As she shares the inspiration for her new book, Nailing It: Why Successful Leadership Demands Suffering and Surrender, Dr. Martin emphasizes the need for cruciform leadership, which and highlights the vital role women play in leadership and the workplace. Nicole shares insights on overcoming barriers, the significance of relationships in leadership, and the necessity of empowering women to lead effectively.

Wherever you're listening—Spotify, Apple, or YouTube—subscribing, rating, and reviewing the show helps others discover what we're doing here. It's a small way to support the mission—and it means a lot to us.

Highlights On Surrendered Leadership "Someone said to me recently, leadership is 59 % about what you know and 51 % about who you know. And while that may be true, I would suggest that it is 100 %about who knows you, you are known by the Father and also 100 % dependent upon a God who knows it all. The moment I get to leadership and I think I've got this worked out is the moment I stop depending on God. But to me, cruciform leadership says, God, I do not know what to do, but my eyes are on you, says Hezekiah. God, I don't know how to shape this path, but I need you to show us how to shape it." On Crucifying Perfection "What am I seeing most frequently repeated in my life and in the lives of other leaders around me? It is definitely crucifying perfection, a sense of perfectionism. I am still an overcoming perfectionist and the issue with perfectionism isn't excellence. It's not that. We want to pursue excellence, perfectionism is at its core a form of idolatry toward a God that does not exist. It is a worship of a standard that does not exist. And it is a sin for leaders and a problem and a stumbling block that needs to overcome, needs to be overcome because leaders who have an ideal of perfection, not only worship it themselves, but they train their teams to worship this fictitious idea of perfection as well. The way that we are perfect is by dotting every I and crossing every T... So the question can't be, what does it look like for us to perfectly meet our mission? The question has to be, how can we be perfectly connected to each other, to the team, to our stakeholders, to the people that we serve, so that what comes out of that exceeds what we ever imagined? This is the joy of releasing and surrendering perfection. When I release what I think is perfect, I get to embrace what God says." Resources

• Download the episode transcript here
• Women in the Workplace report by Lean In referenced
• Trends @ Work Report by Barna referenced
• Attend Women, Work, & Calling Annual Event to hear more from Nicole Martin. Available in Denver, CO, Online or at Host Sites around the country!
• Purchase Nailing It: Why Successful Leadership Demands Suffering and Surrender

SUMMARY

In this episode of the Faith and Work podcast, host Joanna Meyer engages with Tracey Gee, author and consultant, to explore the intricate relationship between purpose, desire, and calling. They discuss the challenges of discerning one's calling, especially in the context of faith, and how desire plays a crucial role in this process. Tracey shares her personal journey of navigating career transitions and the importance of recognizing and embracing one's desires. The conversation also touches on gender perspectives regarding desire, the consequences of ignoring it, and practical steps to identify and pursue one's desires. Ultimately, they emphasize the significance of engaging with disappointment and the treasure hidden within our lives as we seek to align our work with our calling.

Wherever you're listening—Spotify, Apple, or YouTube—subscribing, rating, and reviewing the show helps others discover what we're doing here. It's a small way to support the mission—and it means a lot to us.

HIGHLIGHTS

Excerpt from The Magic of Knowing What You Want "Our desires have something important to say. They shake things up in profoundly generative ways to help us create what the world needs. The more I work with people coming alive to who they are, the stronger my hunch is that our desires have a central role to play in us, and the world is waiting to welcome the beautiful work our desires are capable of." On Question Overload "And I noticed that when you ask yourself, what do I want? Usually what happens is that you start asking then 60 other questions. Like, okay, what do I want? Yeah, but is that really possible? Or if I could do that, could I pull that off? Like, I don't know if I, if anyone would actually hire me, does that exist? I don't know if I can afford that. don't know. Am I allowed to ask this? Am I allowed to want this? Then not only are we trying to ask, again, this question that I think is really sacred and really central, but then we get sort of hijacked by millions of other questions that quickly pile on top of it. those are questions often, not always, but often rooted in some fear, some anxiety, some uncertainty, right, all of the above. And then we're overwhelmed and we don't know what to do with that."

RESOURCES

• Download the episode transcript here
• Book Recommendation: Parker Palmer, Let Your Life Speak: Listening for the Voice of Vocation
• "The place God calls you to is the place where your deep gladness and the world's deep hunger meet." ― Frederick Buechner, Wishful Thinking: A Seeker's ABC
• Attend Women, Work, & Calling Annual Event to hear more from Tracey Gee
• Purchase The Magic of Knowing What You Want
• Download our Getting Clear about Calling Group Discussion Guide
• Listen to Part 1 and Part 2 of our Faith & Work episodes: What Does It Mean To Be Called?

SUMMARY

What do we do when God asks us to make business risks for His kingdom? This episode dives into the world of entrepreneurship through acquisition (ETA) with two incredible stories of how God leads ordinary people into extraordinary ventures.

In the first half, we sit down with Matt Barnes, an ETA who acquired a laundry service, as he shares his story of how the Lord guided him into and through this journey of business ownership. In the second half, you'll hear a live recording from our annual Business for the Common Good event, where Denver Institute founder Jeff Haanen interviews another ETA, Bob Larkin. Each entrepreneur brings a unique perspective on integrating faith into business, creating caring work environments, and the risks and rewards of following God's call in the marketplace. Together, their stories highlight the importance of community, wisdom, and a vision for businesses that prioritize both employee well-being and spiritual growth.

HIGHLIGHTS

On Ownership as Shepherding

"We bought a small business and we're functionally the shepherds or pastors of this group of people, most of which don't find themselves in church. And we think that that's an incredible opportunity to glorify the Lord in excellence in what we do, provide a service to the front range, and then care for our employees and their families while we do it." - Matt Barnes

On Risk

"....First and foremost is surrendering to the Lord's will. Treatment tech belongs to the Lord. It's very obvious to me in how he brought the business to the table, right? That's a huge blessing to look at one business and that be the business that you acquire and allow it to grow. And so every day I can look at Treatment Tech and say, this is yours, Lord. When things are going well, you're blessing us. When things are challenging, you're teaching us. And In both circumstances, you're drawing us closer to you, and I'm open to both of those." - Bob Larkin

RESOURCES

• Download the episode transcript here
• Learn more about Matt Barnes redemptive business story here from Christ At Work or this video by Aquiring Minds
• Nominate a Founder or Mentor for our upcoming Denver Redemptive Lab this Fall November 12 to 14, 2025. Learn more about this 40-hour retreat intensive HERE.
• The 5280 Fellowship is a 5-month learning community of spiritual formation, theology for work, and professional development that equips early- to mid-career Christian professionals to more faithfully engage their work. Applications for the 2026 cohort open on Monday, Sept. 1!
• If you enjoyed the interview with Bob Larkin, join us at Business for the Common Good 2026 as we celebrate our 10th year of gathering business leaders on the Front Range.

Summary

In this episode of the Faith and Work Podcast, we delve into the profound insights shared by Dr. Uli Chi at the Business for the Common Good annual event. As we navigate an era inundated with information and artificial intelligence, Dr. Chi challenges us to seek wisdom—a rare and invaluable asset. Through personal stories and biblical teachings, he explores the essence of wise leadership, emphasizing that wise leadership is human leadership. He also highlights the surprising spiritual discipline of sleep as essential for wise leaders. Join us as we uncover how to cultivate wisdom in our lives and lead with purpose for the common good.

Wherever you're listening—Spotify, Apple, or YouTube—subscribing, rating, and reviewing the show helps others discover what we're doing here. It's a small way to support the mission—and it means a lot to us.

Highlights

On humility

"Humility is the noble choice to forego your status, deploy your resources, or use your influence for the good of others before yourself."

On rest

"Being wise means recognizing the gift of being finite creatures, not least by containing our compulsion for ceaseless work."

Resources

• Download the episode transcript
• Uli Chi references an image that was projected during the event. You can view that painting HERE.
• Learn more and register to attend Business for the Common Good 2026

SUMMARY

In this episode of The Faith & Work Podcast, Ross Chapman is joined by Matt Randerson of Barna Group to offer a sneak preview of the Trends at Work data report set to be released soon. Drawing from this new research, Matt unpacks key themes—like influence, compassion, and change—that are reshaping workplace culture across the U.S. You'll hear what the data reveals about employee well-being, faith integration, and what really drives retention and satisfaction at work. Whether you're leading a team or just starting out, this episode will challenge and equip you to shape culture in ways that reflect God's heart for your workplace.

HIGHLIGHTS

On vulnerability in the workplace

"Vulnerability about what's happening in our personal lives I think the idea of bringing more of our full selves into the workplace that does have complexity with it for sure but it goes back to that idea that the workplace is starting to take on more weight and expectation and so when we are experiencing something on the weekend or we're experiencing a challenge within our family or personal lives we are more inclined to probably want to bring that into the workplace. And so I know that requires more energy of all of us, but I think it's our opportunity, whether we are individuals or managers, to recognize that vulnerability is a part of the human experience. It's a part of the way that God designed us. Vulnerability opens us up to care for one another, to administer compassion, as we talked about in the framework. And so for all of us, how can we actually help cultivate a sense of trust and vulnerability in our workplaces because it's pretty essential to the experience."

On the CEO experience

"...20 % of CEOs say that they always are often are feeling lonely at work and 19 % are saying, they always are often feeling burned out. Those numbers are very similar for non-CEOs. So maybe there's comfort in recognizing, hey, loneliness and burnout is a common shared experience, whether you're the CEO or you're a manager or an individual contributor."

RESOURCES

• Download the episode transcript
• If this topic interested you, you can explore more the more about the Trends @ Work report and similar studies at https://www.barna.com/trends-at-work/

YOU'RE INVITED

• Culture is what you're really leading: A gathering to explore new research on how your workplace is forming people and gain leadership insights to help you lead a thriving organization.
• Wednesday, August 27, 2025
• 7:30 am - 9:30 am
• Greenwood Community Church, 5600 E Belleview Ave.,Greenwood Village, CO 80111
• Cost: $30, full breakfast included

SUMMARY

In this episode of The Faith & Work Podcast, Ross Chapman welcomes Robin John, CEO of Eventide Asset Management, to discuss his new book The Good Investor: How Your Work Can Confront Injustice, Love Your Neighbor, and Bring Healing to the World. Robin shares how his personal journey—from growing up in India to working in finance—shaped his vision for investing that advances the common good. He offers a biblical framework for aligning your financial decisions with values that honor human dignity and promote justice. This conversation invites you to see investing not just as a way to grow wealth, but as a meaningful opportunity to join God's redemptive work in the world.

HIGHLIGHTS

On values

• "...it doesn't matter what Robin John's values are. What I really want to do is to try to explain what I see in the Bible. What are the values that I see God wanting us to promote in the world? And ultimately, the freedom and dignity of all people is something that really matters to God. And so life at all stages, it's very much connected to that as well. And so for us, we want to be investing in companies that promote life, that promote dignity, that promote freedom, and that could mean freedom from addiction."

On generosity

• "Our generosity should be holistic. You know, when a person chooses to be a teacher, when they can become an investment banker, they've made a decision to love their community. That is God-honoring decision. Maybe the investment banker can make more and give more, but generosity, think as Christians, we have to be careful not to measure generosity only by what we give away. It's how we live our lives. It's where we choose to work, how we choose to work, how we choose to make our money, where we choose to invest or allocate capital. These are all generosity decisions. And then we should give away our money as well. That's part of generosity."

RESOURCES

• Download the episode transcript
• Order The Good Investor: How Your Work Can Confront Injustice, Love Your Neighbor, and Bring Healing to the World by Robin John before July 22, 2025 and receive a 20% discount for pre-ordering. LINK HERE to pre-order with discount or order on Amazon HERE.
• Learn more about the book, Robin John & Eventide at GoodInvestor.com
• Read the Biblically Responsible Institute's Investing Study HERE

YOU'RE INVITED

Join author Robin John & Denver Institute for a book launch celebration

• Monday, November 17, 2025
• 6:00 to 8:00 p.m.
• Denver Institute Office 8100 E Arapahoe Rd, Suite 303 Centennial, CO 80112
• Cost: Free; registration required. All guests will receive a free copy of Robin's book!
• RSVP HERE