The Orchard Podcast

In a world of TikTok, advancing technology and new trends, how do we mobilize and develop the youngest generation for global impact? In passing the baton to the next generation, what should we focus on handing off to them? What is most important and what will endure? In this episode, we will address these questions and look at what it means to have a 100 year vision for missional impact.

Sometimes the greatest joy in ministry is found in the hardest places to serve. In this podcast episode we will shares some personal stories about how we have found joy while serving in hard places in Southern Africa. We will also provide some practical insights about the hard places and how you can serve God well despite the challenges.

When we look around at our world, it is not difficult to see that things are not the way that they should be. Our world is broken along with its systems, structures and, yes, its people--which includes all of us. In this month's Orchard Podcast, we will talk about how healing the brokenness of our world starts with breaking other things. God's dream is that his people would be repairers of the breaches in our society and the restorers of communities that have been broken down by oppression, poverty and greed. This begins by addressing the fractured places inside of us.

As we start a new year, join Mike, Michelle and Brian as they take a deep dive into Jesus' vision for the "least of these." In Matthew 25, Jesus shared a compelling vision with his followers that radically changed the way they thought about the poor, oppressed and vulnerable of the world. Whether you are a mission's leader or someone who wants to make an impact in the world, this episode will help you get clear on a vision for impact in 2022.

For this final episode of 2021, we talk about the life, ministry and leadership lessons we learned from this past year. We each prepared 2-3 lessons we learned from 2021 and shared them for the first time with each other while on the podcast. Join us at the table as we reflect on our personal and organizational development during the last 12 months.

You may have heard the saying that if you lose your why, you lose your way. In this episode of the Orchard Podcast, we will talk about Orchard's "why" and how that why has fueled our response to poverty and injustice in Southern Africa. We will also talk about how that "why" not only affects how we lead, but gets to the very heart of God's call and our our opportunity to cultivate spiritual maturity on a daily basis.

In this episode of the Orchard Podcast we are going to talk about the single most important principle in creating long-term sustainable missional impact. Jesus modeled it and Paul instructed others to follow it. We call it developing Sunday morning preachers into community leaders and it is central to the work Orchard: Africa does in Southern Africa.

Sometimes fueled by compassion and a desire to good, we do the right thing, but in the wrong way. Without knowing it, our desire to do good can devalue the people we serve and compromise the impact of our missions. In this episode of the Orchard Podcast we will share how you can make a meaningful impact in the world while also guarding the dignity of those you serve?

Is outreach a necessary part of the church? How much time and focus should we give outreach when there are people to disciple, worship to plan and ministry to lead. In this episode, we will talk about the role of outreach in the church and have a conversation to weigh the value of it in the whole scope of our lives and ministry. 

How do you stay engaged in global missions throughout the year? How do you help your church stay connected with what God is doing around the world, especially in a time when traditional methods of engagement like mission trips are more challenging. Jodi Petersen, the Director of Serve at Cornerstone Church in Chandler, Arizona, joins us for this conversation to share some of the methods she has used to keep her church engaged missionally in spite of the challenges of this past year. We will share the top ten ways you can stay connected with global missions as a church or an individual.