Podcast Ep.103: A Pastor Questions His Faith – Julian Pace

We assume pastors have it all together. After all, they stand behind the pulpit and preach the Word of God. However, did you know some pastors also struggle with their faith? That is Julian Pace’s story. And he wrote a book about it which you can order by clicking the image before. I appreciated so much Julian’s honestly. At one point he expressed that he is a better pastor for struggling with his faith.

Julian Pace is a Christian pastor and author. He currently serves as the Pastor of Central Alliance Church in Mt. Airy, Ga. He is also the President of Risen Savior Ministries a non-profit Christian ministry dedicated to evangelism and church renewal. Julian is the author of more than a dozen popular and scholarly articles that have all been featured in a variety of Christian publications. Julian’s writing is fueled by the deeply held conviction that authentic fulfillment is found only in an intimate relationship with Jesus of Nazareth, the Son of God. When Julian is not preaching, teaching, or writing you may find him singing, playing one of his beloved acoustic guitars, or spending time with his family. Julian holds an MA in Biblical Studies from Piedmont International University (now Carolina University) and is currently pursuing a ThD with a focus in Historical Theology from Evangelical Seminary in Myerstown, PA.

Podcast Ep.64: What Makes for Toxic Churches (Dr. Chris Creech)

 Let me start with a question, maybe a bit tongue in cheek. What if during this Covid 19 season while the church has been fasting from meeting corporately that the antagonist in the church have had a huge change of heart and are now determined to come back fully supporting the pastor and the church leaders?

Well, we hope this would be, but I would imagine that the pastor and church leader will in time be under attack again. I am sure for many pastors this break has been a reprieve from ongoing attack and criticism from what our guest today refers to as hero persecutors. Similar to how Satan left Jesus to tempt him again at an opportune time, I have no doubt that this respite for the pastor from attack, will resume again, at an opportune time. What do leaders need to do and understand when the church becomes a toxic environment? How can the church nurture a climate where the work of the gospel thrives even when there is conflict? I have the privilege in this Before You Quit podcast to look at these questions with with Dr. Chris Creech, author of the book Toxic Church.

Chris Creech and his wife, Faith, have been in ministry for over forty years. During this time they have served in pastoral ministry for over twenty-eight years in five churches, including one church they planted in Toronto. Chris earned an M.Div. and Ph. D. from Southwestern Seminary. He has taught at seminaries in Singapore and Malaysia as resident faculty and as adjunct faculty at other seminaries in Asia, Europe, North America and South America.  Currently they are serving Pinnacle Ministries as Directors of Pastoral/Missions/Church Health and as adjuncts in several Asian and US seminaries.

Click on book cover for order information
Click on book cover for order information

Podcast Ep.47: Learning Resilience in Ministry (Phil Howard and Jeff Gangel)

Let me start with an analogy that will help lead us into this conversation about disorientation in ministry. As a a pilot, one of the things I had to learn early on in my training was how to recover from a situation in flying called Spatial Disorientation, define as the inability of a person to correctly determine his/her body position in space. READ MORE

Podcast Ep:46 Why There is Conflict in the Church – Pastor Steve Kerhoulus

Have you ever wondered why there is so often conflict in the church? On the surface, you would think that those who come together for a common purpose of worship and serving Jesus would all get a long, but its often not that way. One reason is I think we underestimate the impact of people gathering together for that singular goal and expected to get along, but in reality often we gather with people who we might not necessarily interact with in any other setti READ MORE

Podcast Ep 32: When Your Church is Hurting (Rev. Mark Barnard)

It’s generally accepted that most people leave churches because of personal conflict, not because of theological differences. We hear too often of churches that are hurting because of conflict and sometimes this pain can last for years. Is it possible God is behind that pain more than we might think?  READ MORE