DHF Elder Update

In this episode Hosts Sam Sears, and Rick Grace (The DHF church liaison) interview Phil Claycomb, founder of Nexus church planting. They discuss questions like, “Why plant new churches?” and talk about the general mission of the church. They also discuss the partnership between DHF and Nexus, in planting The Stone Christian Church. You can learn more about Nexus at nexus.us You can learn more about The Stone at thestone.cc Nexus has offered a matching grant to any DHF Church that wants to support the Stone. You can give via DHF by visiting discipleheritage.org/give. Select "Other" and add “The Stone Church Plant” in the memo line. You can also give directly to The Stone by going to “Next Steps” at thestone.cc or directly here.

Hosts Sam Sears and Scott McNay interview Pastor Steven Stern. He felt led to adopt a child, and his church supported him and his wife in that adoption. Eventually this led to him founding a new ministry to help connect adoptive parents, and local churches to assist in adoption costs and support. You can find out more about God Will Make a Way Ministries at gwmaw.org/

In this episode hosts Sam Sears introduced new co-host Brandon Chappell from First Christian Church in Blue Mound, Illinois, and together they interviewed Andrew Covert and David Johansen from the Tent Making Christianity Podcast. Andrew introduces a problem he encountered with a youth pastor. A youth said that he was always told to share his faith, but no one told him how to do it. Together the 4 men on this episode discuss a bit of that “how” and how that includes Apologetics. Tent Making Christianity on Spotify tentmakingchristianity.com Facebook facebook.com/tentmakingchristianity Facebook Groups facebook.com/groups/261828104499003 Resources Tactics By Greg Koukl

In this episode hosts Sam Sears introduces new co-host Brandon Chappell from First Christian Church in Blue Mound, Illinois. Together they interview Andrew Covert and David Johansen from the Tent Making Christianity Podcast. After sharing their testimonies, Brandon gets the ball rolling asking about the role of apologetics in youth groups. Tent Making Christianity on Spotify tentmakingchristianity.com Tent Making Christianity on Facebook Tent Making Christianity Facebook Group   Episodes with Sam Sears Church Planting https://open.spotify.com/episode/4HSsOXAAFIQP6TugrPTtAP?si=oyV9QSWpTBejo8fDg7G4_w Christian Horror https://open.spotify.com/episode/4FIYxLDzTOutaVDaPGTuUf?si=uJCI3x6BTQmyoTTwnTNBmA   Resourced Mentioned Tactics By Greg Koukl  Cold Case Christianity by J. Warner Wallace The Discipleship Gospel Workbook by Ben Sobels and Bill Hull

Sam interviews returning guest, David Wolcott, who is now researching a claim that since the world Homosexual was “added” to the bible in 1946, the Bible didn't actually condemn homosexual acts. We talk about how relatively new the English word is, and takes us to the Greek, defending a conservative biblical sexual ethic.   Resources Referenced How to Lie with Statistics by Darrel Huff thedavidwolcott.com facebook.com/thedavidwolcott

In this episode hosts Sam and Rick share tips and lessons they have learned from their years in ministry. These include some embarrassing mistakes, and rather than repeat them, you can learn from them.

Hosts Sam Sears and Rick Grace reflect on lessons learned from performing weddings and provide tips for pastors, officiants, and churches on how to perform a wedding and what policies to have in place to protect a church. Resources Mentioned For Rick's Marriage Policy templates, you can email him at rgrace@discipleshipheritage.org Pacific Justice Institute's Marriage Policy Template pacificjustice.org/resources/for-churches/language-for-bylaws-and-model-marriage-policy The Prepare Marriage Inventory prepare-enrich.com Saving Your Marriage Before It Starts symbis.com/ The Five Love Languages by Gary Chapman

Hosts Sam and Heather Sears interview Nancy Kay Grace who shares about being a pastor's wife, as well as her own journey of faith as she trusts in God during multiple occurrences of cancer. Nancy Kay Grace is the wife of DHF Church Liaison Rick Grace. And in addition to serving in ministry with Rick, Nancy is a speaker, writing coach, and award-winning author of The Grace Impact. Sign-Up for the GraceNotes newsletter at nancykaygrace.com Websites Mentioned: alongsideministrywives.com Books by Nancy: The Grace Impact: https://a.co/d/cvkjIEv 12 Words for Christmas: https://a.co/d/cvkjIEv Social Media: Facebook Instagram YouTube

Ariel Triebull joins pastors Sam and Chris, to share about training students to reach other students via her ministry at Decisionpoint.org. Ariel educates students on their rights and equips them to effectively disciple others. The ministry has seen 280,000 students hear the gospel, and 10,000 commitments to follow Christ in it's 20 year existence. She encourages students, and our listeners, to take seriously the 5 Gospel Challenges, she explains in this episode. decisionpoint.org decisionpoint.org/longterm-staff-detail-page/ariel-triebull

Olivia Davis is a missionary, musician and blogger. In this episode she joins hosts Sam and Rick and shares about a life changing moment that caused great pain, but caused her to lean on a greater God. After meeting a man at church, she changed her mind about not wanting to get married, and have kids. She saw the beauty of the love of Christ for the Church in marriage, and she fell deeply in love. Then, after being engaged, she discovered who she fell in love with wasn't who the gentleman really was, and he canceled their engagement. Heartbroken, single and suffering, she brought her pain before God, and came out on the either end, more in awe of His love. She said that “we serve a God who has scars” and that made her aware she was never alone in her suffering. She recently had blog posts about her process go viral, and has used lessons she has learned, her story and journey, to comfort others. Helping the Persecuted htp.org lookingupward.org lookingupward.org/2022/11/27/my-broken-engagement/ Resources Mentioned The Wound Healer by Henry Nouwen

Hosts Sam and Chris interview missionary, speaker, and trainer, Olin Giles about his ministry to Muslims; and particularly his time in Dearborn, Michigan which has became famous for being a high muslim population in the U.S. You can follow Olin's ministry work at Radicaltruth.net. youtube.com/@RadicalTruth youtube.com/@whychristianity8388 Resources mentioned in this episode: Ministry to Muslims ministrytomuslims.com An article series on the Trinity by Evan Minton; cerebralfaith.net/why-you-should-believe-in-the-trinity-responding-to-the-watchtower-part-1/ The Two Powers in Heaven by Rabbi Segal

Bill Westers Joins hosts Sam and Chris to discuss his podcast, and living out his faith in a secular school. Bill's website; encounteringtruth.org You can find out more about the CIA training we mentioned at crossexamined.org Additional resource mentioned: Irreversible Damage by Abigail Shrier

In this episode, Sam and Chris interview Elliot Rinehart, a missionary with YWAM and host of the Faith Forum podcast.  Elliot created the faith forum to learn about those who are currently in ministry, their motivations, where they are seeing results, and to make connections with other servants. Among Elliot's takeaways are 3 general types of pastors, how we might pursue balance, and some concerning theological drifting.  In this episode, Sam and Chris interview Elliot Rinehart, a missionary with Youth With A Mission (YWAM) and host of the Faith Forum podcast. Elliot created the faith forum to learn about those who are currently in ministry, their motivations, where they are seeing results, and to make connections with other servants. Among Elliot's takeaways are 3 general types of pastors, how we might pursue balance, and some concerning theological drifting. Youth With A Mission The Faith Forum Podcast: youtube.com/@Faith-Forum/videos= The Episode with host Sam Sears : https://youtu.be/oBEz8I0S-k0?si=aiGfdmFiVqPthG7y rinehartmissions.com/

Apologist Evan Minton joins Sam and DHF board chair Drew McClellan to discuss the Maximal Data Argument for the Resurrection. This argument is an increasingly alternative to the “Minimal Facts Argument” championed by Dr. Gary Habermas and others. In the minimal facts argument, you demonstrate that the Resurrection happened by appealing to what is accepted to most scholars, but in Evan's words in the Maximal Data Approach, “no piece of evidence is off the table.” The argument takes the time to establish the authors of the gospels and the gospels authenticity and goes from there. Those who teach the Bible from the pulpit or in a small group, can sprinkle some of the evidence mentioned into their lessons or messages, and when sharing your faith, this information can answer sincere questions and encourage people to respond to truth. You can follow Evan' work at  cerebralfaith.net/ You can learn more about the Maximal Data argument here: https://cerebralfaith.net/my-defend-talk-making-the-maximal-data-argument-for-jesus-resurrection-attractive/ Resources Mentioned Lee Strobel's Case for Christ The Case for the Resurrection of Jesus by Gary Habermas and Mike Licona  I Don't Have Enough Faith to be an Atheist by Frank Turek and Norma Giesler The Fate of the 12 Apostles Sean McDowell Undesigned Coincidences by J.J. Blunt The Works of Timothy McGrew timothymcgrew.com/ and his Wife Lydia Mcgrew lydiamcgrew.com/ Testify by Erik Manning youtube.com/@TestifyApologetics Trinity Radio with Braxton Hunter youtube.com/@BraxtonHunter

Ryan Pauly joins hosts Sam Sears and Rick Grace, to discuss Theology of the Body and Transgenderism. Ryan is the president and founder of Think Well Ministries as well as Director of Immersive Experiences at Maven. He is currently a doctoral student at Talbot. You can find out more about his ministry at think-well.org and at maventruth.com Resources Theology of the Body - A downloadable 15 page resource by Ryan Pauly Love Thy Body by Nancy Pearcy  Rise and Triumph of the Modern Self by Carl Trueman Strange New World by Carl Trueman What God has to say about our bodies: Sam Alberry Beauty Order Mystery edited by  Gerald L. Hiestand and Todd Wilson Our bodies tell God's Story By Christopher West Johnny the Walrus by Matt Walsh When Harry Became Sally by Ryan T. Anderson

Hosts Sam Sears and Chris Henderson interview David Wolcott and learn about something called “The Sparkle Creed.” David then compares that progressive “creed” to classic Christian creeds and teachings. As a Christian apologist, David Wolcott focuses on primary-source research of Progressive Christianity and understanding the Bible in the original cultural contexts. On a four-year plan to learn how to read eight languages, including biblical Hebrew and koine Greek, David is an avid reader of all kinds of books, and is passionate about helping Christians learn to apply the wisdom shared through many excellent books via his Academy at thedavidwolcott.com. thedavidwolcott.com/progressivechristianity Website Resources Home of Author Frank Turek and The Cross Examine Instructor's Academy Home of Tim Barnett's Red Pen Logic Ministry mamabearapologetics.com Book Resources Mentioned Another Gospel? Alisa Childers Live Your truth and other Lies Alisa Childers Deconstruction of Christianity Alica Childers and Tim Barnett Tactics (Koukl) Finding the Right Hills to Die On (Ortlund) Winsome Conviction (Muehlhoff and Langer)

Hosts Sam Sears and Chris Henderson interview David Wolcott and ask “What is Progressive Christianity?” As well as, “What is the Sparkle Creed?” As a Christian apologist, David Wolcott focuses on primary-source research of Progressive Christianity and understanding the Bible in the original cultural contexts. On a four-year plan to learn how to read eight languages, including biblical Hebrew and koine Greek, David is an avid reader of all kinds of books, and is passionate about helping Christians learn to apply the wisdom shared through many excellent books via his Academy at thedavidwolcott.com. thedavidwolcott.com/progressivechristianity Website Resources Home of Author Frank Turek and The Cross Examine Instructor's Academy Home of Tim Barnett's Red Pen Logic Ministry mamabearapologetics.com Book Resources Mentioned Another Gospel? Alisa Childers Live Your truth and other Lies Alisa Childers Deconstruction of Christianity Alica Childers and Tim Barnett Tactics (Koukl) Finding the Right Hills to Die On (Ortlund) Winsome Conviction (Muehlhoff and Langer)

Sam continues his conversion with Disney and Apologetics author Jeremy Scarborough and turns to impactful illustrations found in media. They also talk about how Christians can consume media.  You can purchase Disney and Apologetics on Amazon in book, ebook, or audio book form. You can learn more about Jeremy's book and related projects at disneyapologetics.com/ Additional resources Hollywood Worldviews: Watching Films with Wisdom & Discernment by Brian Goad

Pro-Life author Clinton Wilcox lends host Sam a hand in examining an increasingly common claim about the teaching of scripture. If you are processing post abortion trauma, please seek out counseling. There is forgiveness and healing in Christ. One resource which may help is Rachel's vineyard: rachelsvineyard.org The Case for Life by Scott Klusendorf Unstringing the violinist by Greg Koukl str.org/w/unstringing-the-violinist

James Gilbert, author, musician, and missionary, joins Sam and Chris and shares about his book, Storm Chaser. In the book he details mission work and dangerous situations with his late friend Terry Law. James or “Jim” has a contagious passion for mission work and you can hear more about his ministry by visiting jamesgilbert.org   and worldviewcourse.com

Rick Grace invites two missionaries back, to go further detail on the 10/40 Window. The 10/40 Window refers to an area that covers North Africa, the Middle East and Asia approximately between 10 degrees north and 40 degrees north latitude. Within the 10/40 Window are the largest people groups unreached with the gospel message.

Scott McNay hosts a conversation with his friend, and fellow Central Christian College of the Bible alumni, Matt Welch. Matt is currently a Hospice Chaplain, and founded a ministry to serve young women in Uganda, which you can learn more about by visiting 91four.org. Matt now attends an Eastern Orthodox church in Myrtle Beach, and together with Scott, they discuss Christmas, and Nicolas, from a broader perspective. To learn more about the art mentioned in this podcast, visit htcindy.org.

Rick Grace and Drew McClellan interview Linda and Ray about their mission work in the 10/40 Window, the impact of the Jesus Film and their personal testimonies. If you would like to learn how to support Linda and Ray, please contact Rick Grace through the the discipleheritage.org website. The Jesus Film mentioned in this episode was produced in 1979, has had 11 billion views, and 600 million decisions for Jesus made by viewers. It's available for free in numerous languages and streaming services.

Scott McNay interviews Adam Hamerlinck about small groups. They discuss where they came from and talk about some things to consider when coaching leaders and developing a strategy. Adam also shares some resources that might be helpful for church leaders who are looking for more direction.

Rick Grace interviews Sam Sears about his recent mission trip with members of DHF Churches. The team went to Poland and into Ukraine, and passed out supplies to the Roma people. The Roma people are seen as second class citizens in Ukraine and the war has increased their need for help. If you want to help the people of Ukraine, you can designate gifts to Ukraine by going to discipleheritage.org/give With DHF on this trip was Jan Barczuk, a previous guest on the podcast. If you want to learn more about his work with Pioneer Bible Translators, you can visit pioneerbible.org/janbarczuk

Sam and Chris discuss their views on tattoos, key scriptures, and their own experiences. It's a non-essential issue of the faith, but it's one that comes up often, and as Sam shares, asking someone about their tattoo can lead to an open door to share about Christ.

Scott McNay and Drew McClellan are back to talk about books, resources, and podcasts they would recommend.   Scott's Recommendations Resource - The Bible Project Book - Dictionary for Theological Interpretation of the Bible Podcast - Advisory Opinions Bonus Book - Galatians (Commentaries for Christian Formation) by NT Wright Drew's Recommendations Resource - NT Wright Online Book - The New Testament in Its World by NT Wright Podcast - Word and Table

In this episode Drew, Scott and Michael revisit the topic of worship to examine how (and how not) to transition between styles. Drew and Michael share how they do blended worship in their context and how they walked with their churches through those decisions.

Chris turns the tables and interviews regular co-host Sam Sears on one of his favorite subjects, apologetics. Sam defines some key terms, explains why it became his passion, and shares about his time as a full time apologist on a college campus. Resources Tactics: A Game Plan for Discussing Your Christian Convictions by Greg Koukl Cold Case Christianity by J. Warner Wallace Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis I Don't Have Enough Faith to be an Atheist by Norman Geisler and Frank Turek Maven maventruth.org Stand to Reason str.org Ratio Christi ratiochristi.org

DHF board members Sam Sears and Drew Mcclellan interview pastor, and chaplain Monte Bowers. He serves as a chaplain for the Army National Guard and recently spent time serving in Djibouti, Africa. Resources Peter Scazzero's Emotional Healthy Leader

In this episode, Sam is joined by Chris Henderson, pastor of Windsor Christian Church in Windsor Illinois, to interview Tony Gurule. Tony is an apologist, speaker, and vice president of the organization Radical Truth. His expertise is in Islam and evangelism and you can find out more about his ministry (including his own TV show aired on the NRB network) at radicaltruth.net. Tony Gurule's Episode Mentioned https://youtu.be/d_UK8YRYwoU Books Mentioned Tactics: A Game Plan For Discussing Your Christian Convictions | Greg Koukl  What did Jesus do? | Ray Comfort

Scott Mcnay interviews Wayne Kent and Jan Barczuk after their return from Poland providing humanitarian aid on the ground. Wayne is the pastor emeritus of First Christian Church Decatur Illinois, and former Executive Director of DHF. Jan Barczuk is a missionary with Pioneer Bible Translators. They are asking listeners to pray for the end of the war and if you feel led, you can join DHF in providing humanitarian aid. DHF, and others connected to DHF have raised over $300,000 and you can join them by heading to discipleheritage.org/give and selecting the “Ukraine” option.

Scott and Sam interview Dr. Ellen Moma, who is completing her time in vocational ministry. She shares with us her most important takeaways for those still serving. Beyond being a Senior Pastor, Ellen is also a board member of DHF, experienced with conflict resolution and church consulting.

In today's episode, Sam interviews author Danny Frigulti on deliverance ministry. Danny shares what a biblical deliverance ministry looks like, how it differs from the movies, and how he came to be involved. This is only the tip of the iceberg so if you would like to know more about Danny's ministry, you can head to dannyfrigulti.com. All of his books are also available on Amazon.

DHF board members, Scott Mcnay and Drew McClellan, share 3 types of recommendations that may help you grow with your ministry. Book recommendations Scott McKnight's The King Jesus Gospel Scott McKnight's A Church Called Tov Andy Crouch's The Life We Are Looking For Podcast Recommendations Unbelievable  with Justin Brierley Ask N.T. Wright Anything premierinsight.org Telegraph's Daily Ukraine Podcast Other Resources N.T. Wright's commentary on Romans ntwrightonline.org Anthony C. Thiselton's commentary on 1 Corinthians If you would like to support Ukrainian refugees in Poland, you can do so, by visiting discipleheritage.org/give and selecting the Ukraine option.

What is the gospel? Perhaps we have been imprecise in our answer to the question. Dr. Matthew Bates joins Scott and Sam to discuss a work of passion in bringing clarity to what the Gospel is.   Books by Dr. Matthew Bates: Gospel Allegiance The Gospel Precisely Salvation By Allegiance Alone Why the Gospel? Living the Good News of King Jesus With Purpose   Other books mentioned: Roman Faith and Christian Faith: Pistis and Fides in the Early Roman Empire and Early Churches by Teresa Morgan Paul and the Language of Faith by Nijay K. Gupta Paul and the Gift by John M. G. Barclay

Scott and Sam interview Jeff Kirsch from Soaring for Christ. Jeff is a missionary serving America's last frontier connecting remote individuals with the Gospel. soaringforchrist.org

Rick Grace joins Scott McNay as they hear from and interview Heather Sears. Heather is the wife of Sam Sears' (DHF Podcast co-host). She grew up in a Mormon family and shares her testimony of how she went from questioning Mormonism, feeling God was angry at her, and finding acceptance in Jesus.

Missionaries BJ and Mary Leonard join Scott McNay and Sam Sears to share about their current ministry in “The Block” as well as their new calling to Kenya. To support the Leonards you can go to: cmfi.org/bmleonard Book Mentioned: Jd Payne, Apostolic Church Planting

Scott and Sam interview Wayne Kent in this second installment focused on hiring. Wayne is pastor emeritus and FCC Decatur and former executive director of DHF. In this episode, we lean on his broader experience with other churches to learn about the process of hiring a new senior lead, or solo pastor. Wayne speaks both about potential candidates for being a new pastor, as well as to the elders who would hire them.

In this episode, Scott and Sam interview Wayne Kent, Former Executive Director of DHF and pastor Emeritus of First Christian Church Decatur. Wayne shares lessons learned from hiring a large number of staff throughout his ministry. Wayne encouraged us to ask questions about the following six topics; Scripture, Salvation, Baptism, The Holy Spirit, Women in Ministry and Sexual ethics. The answers would help clarify if the person was in alignment with the church on these important issues. Wayne mentions a few websites to place job openings: churchstaffing.com chemistrystaffing.com

Scott and Sam interview author Rona Swanson about how she processed the loss of her daughter. In her book “More Than Can Be Measured”, Rona talks about her experiece. When Rebekah was little she would ask “How much do you love me mommy?” and Rona would respond, “more than can be measured.” That love remained, even after Rebekah went passed away, and Rona shares how she brought the raw grief before God and continued her journey.   More than can be Measured | Rona Swanson

In this episode Scott, Sam and Rick are all together again for part two of Guard Your Heart. Prompted by a recent well known church pastor temporarily stepping out of the pulpit, we continue our discussion on what it means for leaders in the church to protect others and themselves.   WHY THE PAST 10 YEARS OF AMERICAN LIFE HAVE BEEN UNIQUELY STUPID - Article from The Atlantic

In this episode Scott, Sam and Rick are all back together. Prompted by a recent well known church pastor temporarily stepping out of the pulpit, we begin our discussion with younger pastors learning from an older pastor in a round table discussion. Peter Scazzero | The Emotionally Healthy Leader

Nick is a Christian apologist who blogs at deeperwatersapologetics.com He has become well known for his humorous style when defending the virgin birth, his connection with pop culture, as well as the unique perspective his Aspergers allows him to have when engaging in apologetics. He Joins hosts Scott and Sam and shares how his own divorce has impacted his Christian walk. Resources mentioned: Iby Craig Keener and Médine Moussounga Keener Impossible Love: The True Story of an African Civil War, Miracles and Hope against All Odds Mike Wingers “Full and exhaustive” study on Divorce and Remarriage Facebook group for Christian divorced men  

Tony Kirkman joins the cast to talk about the ministry of mental health. Books referenced and recommended; You Are Not Your Own by Allen Noble Crying in the H Mart: a Memoir by Michelle Zauner 5 Love languages of Children by Gary Chapman and Ross Campbell 5 Love languages of Teens by Gary Chapman How the Body Keeps The Score by Bessel van der Kolk M.D. Get Out of Your Head by Jennie Allen Atlas of the Heart by Brené Brown  

Current DHF Board President Kim Holley discusses the present and future of DHF. discipleheritage.org

Today, we interview Pastor Joe Ensley on "Selecting Worship Sets." Joe has degrees in church music and theology and brings both to bear on this practical discussion on song selection and designing worship celebrations. Check it out and let us know what you think! Joe's YouTube Channel Episode with Sam and Joe Books Referenced Canoeing the Moutnains - Tod Bolsinger Worship Matters - Bob Kauflin Look and Live - Matt Papa

In this episode, we interview Dr. Doug Harvey, one of the three co-founders of DHF. We survey the beginnings of DHF to better understand the ministry to which God has called us. If you are new to DHF, or just want a refresher, this is for you!

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