Capital Stories

In a recent trip to Eswatini, Tara Ross and Becky Zani, interviewed William to learn more about how discipleship and stewarding the land as a God-given resource has changed lives. In this bonus episode, hear about how our compassion partners on the ground in Eswatini are feeding bodies and souls through gardening.

Lizzy Munson has faced her share of challenges—drug addiction, death of loved ones, and homelessness. Even through unbearable struggles, God found his way into Lizzy's life, and continues to provide for Lizzy in surprising and unexpected ways.

Through the Daily Discipleship series, Capital Church's staff members are considering how our faith intersects with everyday life. In McKenzie Schreck's role as Executive Pastor, she supervises most of Capital's staff. McKenzie discusses how her discipleship is tied to her leadership, as well as the leadership muscles she flexes to develop critical skills in her management.

Through the Daily Discipleship series, Capital Church's staff members are considering how our faith intersects with everyday life. When it comes to marriage, Eric Dowd and Suzanne Champ, who each have been married to their spouses for over 2 decades, share personal stories and wisdom about living out our discipleship within marriage relationships.

At the onset of the war in Ukraine in February 2022, many of us felt urged to help or support in our own way. For our guest today, that meant actually going to Ukraine and supporting the ground. Her journey is full of small and large miracles, and is a reminder of how God can grab our hearts and guide us along his intended path.

There's a difference between becoming a Christian convert and being a Christian disciple. Life with Jesus is daily! Sometimes we think of discipleship as what we do by attending a church service. That's certainly part of deepening our faith, but what about during the week? How does our discipleship intersect with our lives Monday through Friday? In this series, we'll talk to the Capital Church staff about how discipleship intersects with their daily lives in leadership, marriage, friendships, career, and other ways.

Listen in (again!) on a conversation with Greg Holder, author of Never Settle, The Genius of One, and a contributing writer for The Voice bible. He serves as lead pastor at The Crossing, reaching nearly 10,000 people in person and online, calling people from an unlikely mix of spiritual backgrounds to consider what it means to follow Jesus in today's world. Greg is also co-creator/author of Advent Conspiracy, a movement and an invitation to worship more fully in the Christmas season by spending less, yet giving more.

Circles Salt Lake is a local chapter of a national initiative, whose mission is to build circles of support around people as they transition out of poverty. According to the federal guidelines for material poverty, 15% of Salt Lake City's population lives in poverty—not all are homeless, and many have jobs. Hear from Michelle Crawford, the director of Circles Salt Lake, and Chris Robinson, one of the program's recent graduates about their experiences and perspectives around the issue of poverty.

In honor of Veteran's Day, we hear from Nikolai Wedekind, a combat veteran who's served multiple deployments with the Utah Army National Guard. As a fighter helicopter pilot, he's experienced brutal and traumatic aspects of war, as well as the challenges of reintegrating into civilian culture after deployment. He talks candidly about his faith and his life through these experiences.

The tables have turned, and Tara and Eric are the guests in this episode! As Tara steps away from her staff position at Capital Church, Kelly Preston is taking on the role of co-hosting the podcast with Eric into the future. We look back over our favorite moments on the show, get a few nuggets of wisdom, and share Tara's hopes for her future.

For 15 years, Toni and Reverend Jay Ragsdale have led Fill the Pot Ministries, which feeds hundreds of people experiencing homelessness in Salt Lake City. Every Sunday morning, come rain, sleet, hail, or heat, they are downtown with a crew of volunteers ready to serve and love. May the incredible story of this ministry's humble and inspiring beginnings compel all of us to dig deep in our own souls and ask God how we each might be more available to make an impact on the Kingdom.

For over 10 years, Capital has been sending teams to eSwatini, Africa (formerly Swaziland) through partnerships with Adventures in Missions (AIM) and local on-the-ground missionaries. This episode brings eSwatini to us! Hear from Bheki Motsa, a local Swazi who rose from within AIM's local Leadership Development program, and Greg Mullins, from AIM's US office.

We're well aware of the mental health crisis faced by teens and young adults—nation-wide & right here in Utah. Tune in to this conversation with Katie Thomas, a licensed mental health practitioner, about the scope of the issue as well as tips for teens, parents & loved ones to navigate challenges.

Life is meant to be lived in community, and friendship is an important part of discipleship to Jesus. We need people to encourage us, hold us accountable, and remind us of the truth in our faith—and we're called to provide the same for others. Listen in on a conversation about spiritual friendship with Kim Perry & Bruce Helgeson from Capital's Small Groups Ministry Team.

The news and media environment has become a tricky one to navigate. Listen in as Tara & Eric wade through the topic with Becky Zani, an award-winning journalist with decades in the industry and who recently completed her master's thesis about the “Factors of the Fake News Phenomenon." We also consider how disciples of Jesus might live out Christian community in a culture of disputed facts and diverging media.

Ken Bohney is passionate about helping people discover their spiritual gifts, and equipping them to live them out in their daily lives. God uniquely wired you with abilities, and—like any other resource—these gifts should be stewarded well to make the impact within God's Kingdom that only you can!

Jonathan Tran was born out of prostitution and abandoned by his mother before he was a teenager. Despite the heartbreaking challenges of his upbringing, God found Jonathan and continues to lead him to a new path—toward a church family, toward education, and toward a purpose bigger than he could imagine.

Denise Druce has dedicated the better part of her life to helping incarcerated women rediscover the purpose God has for their life. Though the prison system in the U.S. has its flaws, and there can be a strong societal stigma around the incarcerated, these are the contexts in which Denise has seen God on the move.

Listen in on a real, hopeful, and faith-filled conversation with Nicole Vobora & Ed Peterson, two marriage counselors who've dedicated their lives and careers to helping couples thrive in their marriages. Ed and Nicole often see couples in a time of crisis, but it shouldn't take a crisis to invest in your marriage! Get insight on marriage and practical tips to improve your relationship with your spouse.

In 2013, Ned Lindholm's life was upended after a chemical explosion left him severely wounded and legally blind. Almost ten years later, as the world collectively experiences an ongoing trauma from a global pandemic and related challenges, Ned felt compelled to open up about his experience in hopes of encouraging others.

In celebration of Earth Day, we talk to Eric Schoening, an atmospheric scientist with the National Weather Service and dig into his thoughts on conservation and stewardship of this planet as both a scientist and disciple of Jesus. As Eric says, “I choose to focus on celebrating the positive outcomes if we choose to act - leaving a healthy planet for future generations, preserving the beauty of God's creation for those that come after us, thinking about conservation as an act of love, love for plants and animals and our fellow humans and in the format of a thank you note to God for creating this amazing place.” Join us for a faith-formed perspective on why and how we should and can take care of our earth.

Many Christians would say that the bible has transformed their lives—select verses have provided comfort, power, peace, reassurance, validation, and correction in the right ways at the right times. Yet, even among Christians, daily engagement with the bible isn't as high as many of us would like, and there can certainly be barriers to taking in God's ancient but living Word in the context of our daily lives today. Teaching pastor, Paul Godbout, shares his personal experience around learning and teaching the bible, and provides insight into how each of us can keep God's Word as central to our lives.

As Rev. Dr. Angela Gorrell taught her first class at Yale called “Life Worth Living,” and studied the pursuit of true joy, she was privately grieving the loss of 3 family members within the prior 6 weeks—one to suicide, one after a long road of opioid addiction, and one, at 22 years old, to sudden cardiac arrest. Though she understood the theology of joy, she was lost in the swallow of grief in the thick of these tragedies. But she found, in the grace and mercy of God, new paths to the depth and capacity of joy, felt right alongside her grief. This episode is for anyone personally searching for joy in grief or looking to learn how to best support someone searching for the grounded, resilient reality of God, found in even the darkest places.

As a physical trainer, Parker Teagle is no stranger to intentionally doing hard things every day—exercise prepares his body and his mind to face whatever challenges come his way. Just like physical exercise, Parker's disciplined connection to God prepared him for unexpected manipulation and betrayal from a trusted business partner and mentor.

Maja Teagle's story chronicles her family's journey out of war-torn Bosnia and into the United States, where they found the grit to build a new life on new land. Her experiences teach tangible ways through which we can extend powerful hospitality and love to a stranger. Maja also reflects on the challenges and rich opportunities that come from navigating differing religious and cultural beliefs in marriage relationships. And she reminds us that no matter when we ultimately meet God, He was always and will always be chasing after us, no matter where we might land.