The Puddcast

Children’s and Young Adult author Dave Connis comes to The Puddcast to teach us the importance of laughter (and more). Dave’s hilarious and meaningful storybooks, The Inventions of God (and Eva), and The Stories of God (and Kiki) both captured our affection in a big way. We reflected on being intentional about the stories we tell our children and what we pass on to them; seeing ourselves within the continuum of generations before and after ourselves; how God invites all the parts of ourselves to co-creation; and more. If you’re a human being make sure to have a listen, and if you have kids, grandkids or nieces & nephews, make sure to grab his books from the links below.

Order The Inventions of God (and Eva), by Dave Connis (illustrations by Amy Domingo)
Order The Stories of God (and Kiki), by Dave Connis (illustrations by Amy Domingo)
Learn more about Dave’s work at daveconnis.com
Follow Dave on Instagram and Twitter.

Grab my latest book, Mornings with God: Daily Bible Devotional for Men (good for women too)
Check out my trauma-informed 30-day devotional, You Are Enough: Learning to Love Yourself the Way God Loves You.

Support the show and my other work, at jonathanpuddle.com/support
Find every book or resource I’ve talked about recently on my Amazon storefront, in Canada, the United States or the United Kingdom.

Just in time for Christmas comes a wild ride of a B-Side. Looking back at our interview with Lisa Sharon Harper, Tryphena and I reflected on themes of forgiveness and reparations, the gift of tongues as Indigenous celebration, how the monarcy dehumanizes people, the emotional impact on Europeans of that dehumanization, the myth of an American Christian nation and more. We were both deeply impacted by Lisa’s book Fortune and so we sounded off, big time.

For maximum impact, make sure you listen to the source episode, #133: How race broke the world (with Lisa Sharon Harper)

Buy my latest book, Mornings with God: Daily Bible Devotional for Men

Support the show and my other work, at jonathanpuddle.com/support
Order my trauma-informed 30-day devotional, You Are Enough: Learning to Love Yourself the Way God Loves You.
Find every book or resource I’ve talked about recently on my Amazon storefront, in Canada, the United States or the United Kingdom.

Acclaimed speaker, activist, playwright, and the author of several books, Lisa Sharon Harper is on The Puddcast! Recognized as one of the most important and powerful voices speaking to matters of justice and religion today, Lisa joined us to talk about her latest book Fortune: How Race Broke my Family and the World - and How to Repair it All. Blending fascinating ancestry research, family biography and memoir with a detailed history of race law in the United States, Fortune moved me profoundly. In this interview we discuss colonialism, radical re-connection to our stories and land; we explore shalom, confession, and the rehumanizing process of forgiveness. We talk about the lies of European supremacy and the greatness of pre-colonial African nations. There is some heavy content within, but it’s also full of hope and wisdom. Please listen today and let your heart be impacted.

Order Fortune: How Race Broke my Family and the World - and How to Repair it All, by Lisa Sharon Harper
Order The Very Good Gospel, by Lisa Sharon Harper
Learn more about Lisa’ work at lisasharonharper.com
Follow Lisa on Instagram and Twitter.

Buy my latest book, Mornings with God: Daily Bible Devotional for Men

Support the show and my other work, at jonathanpuddle.com/support
Order my trauma-informed 30-day devotional, You Are Enough: Learning to Love Yourself the Way God Loves You.
Find every book or resource I’ve talked about recently on my Amazon storefront, in Canada, the United States or the United Kingdom.

The B-Side is back! Katie Gaddini’s evocative book unveiling the factors that cause single women to feel alienated in the church triggered some THOUGHTS from both Tryphena and myself. Having both served in churches for many years, we each shared some of the ways we’ve seen “the ideal Christian woman” trope play out, why this and other things are so problematic, and what we want to see happen. We talked about a deep faith in Jesus bringing about a wide embrace of people, how we each need to be doing the work of growth and introspection, how marriage can be a framework of control, church NDAs and more!

For maximum impact, make sure you listen to the source episode, #132: Why single women are leaving the church (with Dr. Katie Gaddini).

To enter the giveaway I mentioned, head over to jonathanpuddle.com/giveaway

Buy my latest book, Mornings with God: Daily Bible Devotional for Men

Support the show and my other work, at jonathanpuddle.com/support
Order my trauma-informed 30-day devotional, You Are Enough: Learning to Love Yourself the Way God Loves You.
Find every book or resource I’ve talked about recently on my Amazon storefront, in Canada, the United States or the United Kingdom.

Sociologist and author Dr. Katie Gaddini joins us to talk about the factors forcing single evangelical women out of the church. Rather than a focus on faith deconstruction, we talked about power structures and cultural norms, such as “the ideal Christian woman,” how such stereotypes develop, and how they alienate people who don’t fit them. We touched on sexuality, purity culture, whiteness, patriarchy, affluence, wealth, and more in a quest to understand why the largest group currently leaving the church is women. This important conversation is based on Dr. Gaddini’s helpful and accessible book, The Struggle to Stay: Why Single Evangelical Women Are Leaving the Church, which I highly recommend.

Order The Struggle to Stay: Why Single Evangelical Women Are Leaving the Church by Dr. Katie Gaddini
Learn more about Katie’s work at katiegaddini.com
Follow Katie on Instagram and Twitter.

Buy my latest book, Mornings with God: Daily Bible Devotional for Men

Support the show and my other work, at jonathanpuddle.com/support
Order my trauma-informed 30-day devotional, You Are Enough: Learning to Love Yourself the Way God Loves You.
Find every book or resource I’ve talked about recently on my Amazon storefront, in Canada, the United States or the United Kingdom.

To commemorate the launch (and the irony) of my latest book (a men’s Bible devotional), my friend Anthony McLean returns to host the show and interview me! We talked about men’s mental health, overworking ourselves, permitted male emotions, and purity culture… and then we riffed deep on original sin, brokenness and how to understand freedom and love in a beautiful wide open field of grace. This ended up being one of my most favourite conversations and I hope you’ll listen to the whole thing.

You can order my brand new book, Mornings with God: Daily Bible Devotional for Men, right here.

You can learn more about Anthony McLean at anthonymclean.org

Listen to the earlier episode when Anthony interviewed me about learning to love ourselves.

Support the show and my other work by becoming a Patron or making a one-time donation, at jonathanpuddle.com/support
Order my trauma-informed 30-day devotional, You Are Enough: Learning to Love Yourself the Way God Loves You.
Find every book or resource I’ve talked about recently on my Amazon storefront, in Canada, the United States or the United Kingdom.

Professor, researcher and podcaster Dr. Holly Oxhandler is my guest, talking about the supports that helpers need to keep on helping. Whether we’re talking about parents, therapists, pastors, teachers or literally anyone else who helps, Holly’s research has shown the importance of seeing the divine inside ourselves so that we can connect with the divine in others. Her book, The Soul of the Helper: Seven Stages to Seeing the Sacred Within Yourself So You Can See It in Others, has been very impactful in my life and we unpacked her social work research, what she’s found, and why it works. This is gentle and vulnerable and practical, like all good Puddcasts should be. Get in!

Order The Soul of the Helper: Seven Stages to Seeing the Sacred Within Yourself So You Can See It in Others, by Dr. Holly K. Oxhandler
Listen to Holly’s podcast (with Robert Vore), CXMH: a podcast at the intersection of faith & mental health.
Learn more about Holly’s work at hollyoxhandler.com
Follow Holly on Instagram and Twitter.

Buy my brand new book, Mornings with God: Daily Bible Devotional for Men

Support the show and my other work, at jonathanpuddle.com/support
Order my trauma-informed 30-day devotional, You Are Enough: Learning to Love Yourself the Way God Loves You.
Find every book or resource I’ve talked about recently on my Amazon storefront, in Canada, the United States or the United Kingdom.

Time for another B-Side! Tryphena and I kept the mics rolling after we bid farewell to Jonathan Martin, and we leaned into his thoughts on God walking with us, even as we think we’re walking away. We riff on the divine power revealed in human agency, finding peace in the knowledge that God is present in everything, discerning the simple next steps in front of us, and walking life out in community.

For maximum impact, make sure you listen to our source episode, #129: Finding hope on the road away from God (with Jonathan Martin).

Buy my brand new book, Mornings with God: Daily Bible Devotional for Men (it’s women-friendly!)

Support the show and my other work, at jonathanpuddle.com/support
Check out my trauma-informed 30-day devotional, You Are Enough: Learning to Love Yourself the Way God Loves You.
Find every book or resource I’ve talked about recently on my Amazon storefront, in Canada, the United States or the United Kingdom.

Pastor, writer and social leader Jonathan Martin returns to the show to explain how the journey that we’re each on is the journey we need to be on. Using the story of the disciples leaving Jerusalem on the road to Emmaus, Jonathan explains that even when we think we’re walking away from God, love finds us on the road. Tryphena and I ask him about the risky nature of doubt, of how granting freedom works as a pastor, and how to be honest about the harm done to us, while holding on to hope that perhaps healing is possible after all. It’s beautiful and raw and real, if you’ve felt at all disillusioned by God or church or the world in the last few years then I commend this to you wholeheartedly.

Order The Road Away from God: How Love Finds Us Even as We Walk Away, by Jonathan Martin
Listen to Jonathan’s podcast, The Zeitcast.
Learn more about Jonathan’s work at jonathanmartinwords.com
Follow Jonathan on Twitter and Instagram.

Buy my brand new book, Mornings with God: Daily Bible Devotional for Men

Support the show and my other work, at jonathanpuddle.com/support
Order my trauma-informed 30-day devotional, You Are Enough: Learning to Love Yourself the Way God Loves You.
Find every book or resource I’ve talked about recently on my Amazon storefront, in Canada, the United States or the United Kingdom.

This here’s a B-Side, folks! As Tryphena and I walked back through our interview with Kevin Sweeney about mystics, mushrooms and the power of letting go, we found ourselves camped out discussing our value and worth when we’re not productive. Tryphena asks, if a flower shines with no one to see its beauty, is it still beautiful? We shared some dark night of the soul stories and challenged each other to live present, right here and now, in this cosmos, rather than escape.

For maximum impact, make sure you listen to our source episode, #128: Mystics, mushrooms and the power of letting go (with Kevin Sweeney).

Support the show and my other work, at jonathanpuddle.com/support
Order my trauma-informed 30-day devotional, You Are Enough: Learning to Love Yourself the Way God Loves You.
Find every book or resource I’ve talked about recently on my Amazon storefront, in Canada, the United States or the United Kingdom.