We talk with Isaac Erickson about stepping into pastoral leadership at First Baptist Church in Council Bluffs and what it looks like to strengthen a 170-year-old church through change, uncertainty, and conflict. We leave with practical wisdom on moving slow, leading without fear of man, and finding real joy through baptisms, preaching, and steady growth. 

• Isaac’s background, family, and call to ministry 
• The path from residency to pastoral leadership in Council Bluffs 
• First Baptist Church history and why legacy shapes expectations 
• Early expectations versus reality when timelines and dynamics shift 
• How conflict escalates when change moves too fast 
• Lessons learned: slow and steady, prayer, Bible confidence, support systems 
• Practical leadership counsel: get key decisions in writing 
• Joys of pastoring: baptisms, preaching growth, people maturing in Christ 
• Advice for church members joining a strengthening work: reject consumer instincts, stick it out 
• Specific ways to pray: financial stability, unified vision, solid and teachable people 

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We sit down with Pastor William Schleifer to trace the winding path from a Georgia poultry farm to Mayo Clinic cardiology fellowships and, eventually, lay eldership at Emmaus. Along the way, we talk providence, church life, and how medicine exposes both the brilliance of God’s design and the limits of human control. 

• Growing up in Georgia and learning hard work on a poultry farm 
• Being homeschooled and pursuing both biology and piano performance 
• The training road through medical school, residency, cardiology, and electrophysiology 
• How a Nebraska job lead and one phone call helped redirect long-term plans 
• Learning church life through a Phoenix church plant and Nine Marks ecclesiology 
• Coming to faith early through family worship and steady local church involvement 
• What shaped him at Bob Jones University and why strong academics mattered 
• Meeting Mary through New Testament Greek and seeing God’s quiet providence 
• Frequent moves, learning to evaluate churches, and planting roots at Emmaus 
• Studying the Bible on plurality of elders and the value of shared accountability 
• How medicine shows the curse, forces humility, and opens doors for gospel conversations 

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We walk through three tools that help us read Scripture the way Jesus and the apostles do, starting with the Bible as God speaking and ending with a practical study framework anyone can use. We navigate self-centered readings, show why the Old Testament points to Christ, and offer steady encouragement for long-haul Bible reading with helpful resources. 

• Treating Scripture as inspired, sufficient, and final authority 
• Learning from how Jesus quotes and submits to the Old Testament 
• Rejecting the idea that apostolic interpretation is only descriptive 
• Reading the whole Bible as one story fulfilled in Christ 
• Avoiding “be the hero” readings while still applying ethical lessons 
• Connecting types and themes like Passover and exodus to Jesus 
• Using Psalm 102 and Hebrews as a model for Christ-centered reading 
• Practicing the COMA method: context, observation, meaning, application 
• Refusing shortcut applications that skip context and observation 
• Reading in community through study Bibles and trusted teachers 

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We challenge the idea that the Old Testament and New Testament reveal different gods or different ways of salvation, and we lay out a clear path for reading the Bible as one unified story. We offer four tools for putting Scripture together so you can read any passage with Christ in view and avoid both legalism and lawlessness. 

• Marcion’s split between Old Testament and New Testament and why it fails 
• Common misconceptions about salvation, ethics, and “Jewish-only” readings 
• One ultimate Author in the Holy Spirit and one unified storyline 
• Covenants as the Bible’s major framework and turning points 
• Law and gospel distinction and the “grammar of the gospel” 
• Why Christ is the interpretive key to all Scripture 
• The Three Ts for connecting to Jesus: text, type, theme 

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We talk through the convictions and habits that help build a close-knit, godly family over the long haul, with family worship and shared time at the center. We also get practical about church community, parenting as a vocation, and why patient training and clear authority can restore peace and joy at home. 

• discovering family worship through hospitality and learning simple, repeatable rhythms of Scripture, prayer, and singing 
• saying no to packed schedules so our home keeps time together as the main resource 
• cultivating siblings as friends by doing life together instead of splitting into individual tracks 
• treating the local church as extended family through presence, service, prayer meetings, and staying after 
• thinking long-term about family unity and building something together beyond age 18 
• embracing parenting as a primary vocation and finding joy in the weight of the calling 
• offering hope for parents who feel behind and outlining formative training toward obedience and respect 
• explaining why law and discipline, joined with the gospel, protect kids from chaos and harm 

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We talk with Pastor Luke about how the local church adds depth to preaching because our shepherds know our lives, and we know theirs. Luke traces God’s work from Denver childhood memories and a serious music background to baseball ambition, conversion, and the slow path into pastoral ministry. 

• why preaching from pastors who know you carries unique weight 
• growing up in Denver with steady family life and formative friendships 
• learning discipline through cello, quartet performances, and orchestras 
• chasing baseball as an idol, getting humbled by reputation and injury 
• searching for truth, getting tangled in prosperity teaching, then finding gospel clarity 
• meeting Heather, getting married young, and starting a big family 
• joys of fatherhood, giving wise “sermonettes,” and building a culture of presence 
• challenges of parenting, kids mirroring our weaknesses, and modeling repentance 
• how discipleship in a healthy church shaped the move into pastoral ministry 

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1:06 — Biographical Sketch of Zach’s life.

39:41 — Advice for Navigating a Call to Ministry

1:03:01 — Rapid Fire Questions

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In this episode we discuss Pastor Ron’s time in Orlando for the 2026 SBC Annual Meeting, the decisions and resolutions that were made there, and how we perceive the current state and future of the Southern Baptist Convention.

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