Stories From A Village

The Chaos Ladder is a podcast by Steve Flowers that explores how the Bible is not a gaping pit waiting to swallow us but a ladder for us to climb. Episode 10 — Working out our own summary of the Bible can help us better understand how isolated verses fit into the Bible. We don't … Continue reading "The Chaos Ladder: Seeing The Forest – Episode 10" The post The Chaos Ladder: Seeing The Forest – Episode 10 appeared first on Stories From A Village.

The Chaos Ladder is a podcast by Steve Flowers that explores how the Bible is not a gaping pit waiting to swallow us but a ladder for us to climb. Episode 9 (Part 3 of answering “What makes the Bible inspired?”) — The first two answers (ancient believers' reframing of scripture and Jesus as the … Continue reading "The Chaos Ladder: When Inspiration is Fully Unleashed – Episode 9" The post The Chaos Ladder: When Inspiration is Fully Unleashed – Episode 9 appeared first on Stories From A Village.

The Chaos Ladder is a podcast by Steve Flowers that explores how the Bible is not a gaping pit waiting to swallow us but a ladder for us to climb. Episode 8 (Part 2 of answering “What makes the Bible inspired?”) — We can find God being revealed throughout the books of both the Old … Continue reading "The Chaos Ladder: The Greatest Revelation of God – Episode 8" The post The Chaos Ladder: The Greatest Revelation of God – Episode 8 appeared first on Stories From A Village.

The Chaos Ladder is a podcast by Steve Flowers that explores how the Bible is not a gaping pit waiting to swallow us but a ladder for us to climb. Episode 7 (Part 1 of answering “What makes the Bible inspired?”) — The ancient biblical writers and people in the Bible often reframed their understanding … Continue reading "The Chaos Ladder: Walking In The Company of Those Who Came Before Us – Episode 7" The post The Chaos Ladder: Walking In The Company of Those Who Came Before Us – Episode 7 appeared first on Stories From A Village.

The Chaos Ladder is a podcast by Steve Flowers that explores how the Bible is not a gaping pit waiting to swallow us but a ladder for us to climb. Episode 6 — An introduction and background on the Bible being inspired is shared, but that belief is complicated. So biblical inspiration is compared to … Continue reading "The Chaos Ladder: And Then God said, “Everybody down on the floor! Now!” – Episode 6" The post The Chaos Ladder: And Then God said, “Everybody down on the floor! Now!” – Episode 6 appeared first on Stories From A Village.

The Chaos Ladder is a podcast by Steve Flowers that explores how the Bible is not a gaping pit waiting to swallow us but a ladder for us to climb. Episode 5 (The Bible is not God part 2) — The Bible is not the problem. The problem is when Christians view ambiguous or objectionable … Continue reading "The Chaos Ladder: The Bible is Not the Problem – Episode 5" The post The Chaos Ladder: The Bible is Not the Problem – Episode 5 appeared first on Stories From A Village.

The Chaos Ladder is a podcast by Steve Flowers that explores how the Bible is not a gaping pit waiting to swallow us but a ladder for us to climb. Episode 4 (The Bible is not God part 1) — God inspired the biblical authors but did not control what they wrote. Failure to understand … Continue reading "The Chaos Ladder: God Didn’t Dictate the Bible – Episode 4" The post The Chaos Ladder: God Didn’t Dictate the Bible – Episode 4 appeared first on Stories From A Village.

The Chaos Ladder is a podcast by Steve Flowers that explores how the Bible is not a gaping pit waiting to swallow us but a ladder for us to climb. Episode 3 — We all bring presumptions and preconceptions to the Bible. The problem is when we are blind to or deny them because that … Continue reading "The Chaos Ladder: Yellow Lawn Mowers – Episode 3" The post The Chaos Ladder: Yellow Lawn Mowers – Episode 3 appeared first on Stories From A Village.

The Chaos Ladder is a podcast by Steve Flowers that explores how the Bible is not a gaping pit waiting to swallow us but a ladder for us to climb. In this episode, Christianity’s history includes both favorable and unfavorable consequences in its application of the Bible. The Church has used it to help everyone … Continue reading "The Chaos Ladder: The Double-Edged Sword – Episode 2" The post The Chaos Ladder: The Double-Edged Sword – Episode 2 appeared first on Stories From A Village.

The Chaos Ladder is a new podcast series created by Steve Flowers. In Steve’s words, the Bible is not a gaping pit waiting to swallow us but a ladder waiting for us to climb it. When the Bible sounds confusing or concerning, our reaction shouldn’t be distress or anger but seeing an opportunity to climb. … Continue reading "The Chaos Ladder: Beauty Amidst the Chaos – Episode 1" The post The Chaos Ladder: Beauty Amidst the Chaos – Episode 1 appeared first on Stories From A Village.

By Ivy Lamb  Money, influence, expertise — Mark let it all go when he decided to leave a toxic work situation and embrace the uncertainty of unemployment at age 63. In this episode, he shares the insights he’s gained, including learning to take joy in the small things. He also dives deep into his relationship … Continue reading "Stories From A Village Podcast: Letting Go" The post Stories From A Village Podcast: Letting Go appeared first on Stories From A Village.

By Ivy Lamb Keith was raised Catholic, but drifted away from the church as an adult. But he never lost the commitment to service his parents instilled early on. In this episode, Keith talks about his journey back to Christianity, what drives him to volunteer his time to different causes, and how that volunteer work … Continue reading "Stories From A Village Podcast: Faith in Action" The post Stories From A Village Podcast: Faith in Action appeared first on Stories From A Village.

By Ivy Lamb  From childhood through adolescence, Claudia’s Quaker faith was a fundamental part of her life. But as she got older, she lost touch with that part of her identity. In this episode Claudia talks about the process of reclaiming her faith, dealing with the stigma around divorce, working on self-compassion and discovering a … Continue reading "Stories From A Village Podcast: Recovering my Faith" The post Stories From A Village Podcast: Recovering my Faith appeared first on Stories From A Village.

By Ivy Lamb Chris is a father, an artist, a business owner and a Christian — but he’s not likely to tell you about it. For Chris, being Christian is more about how you treat people than anything else. In this episode, he shares his journey in and out of church, dealing with the death … Continue reading "Stories From A Village Podcast: Finding Hope In The Trenches of Life" The post Stories From A Village Podcast: Finding Hope In The Trenches of Life appeared first on Stories From A Village.

By Ivy Lamb Tamasha grew up in a former coal-mining town in Virginia with her deeply religious grandmother. She knew she wanted her life to be different than what she saw around her in her childhood, and she succeeded in realizing her vision for her life. But everything, including her faith, came crashing down when … Continue reading "Stories From A Village Podcast: You’re Not Broken" The post Stories From A Village Podcast: You’re Not Broken appeared first on Stories From A Village.

By Ivy Lamb Steve spent most of his life in what he now describes as a state of spiritual apathy toward LGBTQ Christians. In this episode, he recounts the journey that took him from a traditional Southern Baptist view of homosexuality to feeling called to stand with and fully affirm LGBTQ Christians. Steve’s story shows … Continue reading "Stories From A Village Podcast: How a Straight, 50-something Southern Baptist Came to Affirm LGBTQ Christians" The post Stories From A Village Podcast: How a Straight, 50-something Southern Baptist Came to Affirm LGBTQ Christians appeared first on Stories From A Village.

By Ivy Lamb Good interviewers have a trick. It seems simple, but it’s much harder than it looks. You must become comfortable with silence.  Letting a silent moment in the conversation stretch to awkward lengths is the best way to get people to open up. These moments often hit the cutting room floor in an … Continue reading "Stories From A Village Podcast: Silence as a Holy Invitation" The post Stories From A Village Podcast: Silence as a Holy Invitation appeared first on Stories From A Village.

By Steve Flowers & Jordan Flowers The 5th installment of the periodic series studying through The Gospel of Mark. Steve and Jordan discuss their favorite Bible story– The Gerasene Demoniac in Mark 5:1-20. They share how an impressive but seemingly difficult-to-relate-to exorcism is simply the background of a very rich story in which everyone can … Continue reading "On The Table: That Bible Story You Always Ignored…Until You Saw Yourself In It" The post On The Table: That Bible Story You Always Ignored…Until You Saw Yourself In It appeared first on Stories From A Village.

By Steve Flowers & Jordan Flowers The conclusion of Jordan and Steve’s discussion of specific episodes from Jordan’s growing-up years in order to ask Steve’s thoughts behind his parenting decisions to help Jordan work out his own questions. Sometimes funny, sometimes raw, it’s an earnest discussion of lessons learned by both father and son. The post On The Table Podcast: Jesus Never Had To Raise A Kid! (Part 2) appeared first on Stories From A Village.

By Steve Flowers & Jordan Flowers Jordan becomes a father in 2019 while Steve is an empty-nester (and soon to be G-pa!). Jordan brings up several episodes from his growing-up years in order to ask Steve’s thoughts behind his parenting decisions to help Jordan work out his own questions. Sometimes funny, sometimes raw, it’s an … Continue reading "On The Table Podcast: Jesus Never Had To Raise A Kid! (Part 1)" The post On The Table Podcast: Jesus Never Had To Raise A Kid! (Part 1) appeared first on Stories From A Village.

By Steve Flowers & Jordan Flowers The 4th installment of the periodic series studying through The Gospel of Mark. Steve and Jordan discuss Jesus’ parables with emphasis on The Parable of the Sower found in Mark 4. The post On The Table Podcast: The Purpose of Parables appeared first on Stories From A Village.

By Ivy Lamb Scott is a husband, father, and professor. Over the years, he’s slowly learned to relinquish the illusion of control. Moving past his own theories of how the world should work has been one of his greatest spiritual challenges, and yet he considers it core to the message Christianity. In this episode, he … Continue reading "Stories From A Village Podcast: Living From My Heart" The post Stories From A Village Podcast: Living From My Heart appeared first on Stories From A Village.

By Ivy Lamb How do we overcome experiences of struggle and find ways to share our gifts with the world? For Chase, the answer lies partly in practices of spiritual discipline. A relatively new high school English teacher, Chase feels called to use own experiences of struggle to empathize with and encourage his students. Journaling, … Continue reading "Stories From A Village Podcast: Breathing Goodness Into the World" The post Stories From A Village Podcast: Breathing Goodness Into the World appeared first on Stories From A Village.

By Ivy Lamb As the son of a Methodist pastor, Andrew grew up intimately connected to the church. His childhood experiences exposed some of the difficulties and shortcomings of the church, but they also helped Andrew discover his own call to ministry. Today, he serves at Stone Village Church as a musician and worship leader. … Continue reading "Stories From A Village Podcast: It Is Well with My Soul" The post Stories From A Village Podcast: It Is Well with My Soul appeared first on Stories From A Village.

By Ivy Lamb Angela is a black woman who grew up in the South attending Southern Baptist churches. Independent and always seeking, Angela has moved away from the church of her roots to a very different place. In this episode, she talks about the process of spiritual growth and how she’s reached a “quiet place” … Continue reading "Stories From A Village Podcast: Uncovering My Life" The post Stories From A Village Podcast: Uncovering My Life appeared first on Stories From A Village.

By Ivy Lamb For more than a decade, Joey identified as an atheist. Today he calls himself a Christian again, but his story isn’t what you might think. In this episode, Ivy and Joey talk about his early experiences with Catholicism, how his moral convictions led him to leave the church, and how he eventually … Continue reading "Stories From A Village Podcast: Learning to Live Beyond Labels" The post Stories From A Village Podcast: Learning to Live Beyond Labels appeared first on Stories From A Village.

By Steve Flowers & Jordan Flowers Jordan and Steve share how they came to love comic books and superheroes and then discuss where they see faith being reflected in the characters and stories of those superheroes. This episode along with the bonus OTT 8.1 episode also released today are the last OTT episodes for our … Continue reading "On The Table Podcast: Up, Up, and Away!" The post On The Table Podcast: Up, Up, and Away! appeared first on Stories From A Village.

By Steve Flowers & Jordan Flowers BONUS episode! After talking about superheroes and faith in OTT 8, Jordan and Steve kept talking about their favorite comic book superheroes, DC and Marvel movies, and DC animated movies and TV shows. There’s absolutely ZERO spiritually redeeming value in this episode. It’s solely for anyone who wants to … Continue reading "On The Table Podcast: Nerd Alert!" The post On The Table Podcast: Nerd Alert! appeared first on Stories From A Village.

By Steve Flowers and Jordan Flowers In this 3rd installment of the periodic series studying through The Gospel of Mark, Steve and Jordan discuss the five conflict stories in Mark 1:40-3:12. They reflect on the scripture, including where we might be picking a similar fight with Jesus by not recognizing who He really is and … Continue reading "On The Table Podcast: Picking Fights with Jesus" The post On The Table Podcast: Picking Fights with Jesus appeared first on Stories From A Village.

All the Flo bros are together as Heath and Tanner join their brother Jordan and their dad Steve. The brothers talk about what resonated and what didn’t in their own spiritual upbringings, a discussion that at times is serious but also at times explained in laughter (including at Dad’s expense). The conversation ends with their … Continue reading "On The Table Podcast: Flo Bros Edition" The post On The Table Podcast: Flo Bros Edition appeared first on Stories From A Village.

By Steve Flowers and Jordan Flowers In this episode, Steve and Jordan discuss the opening portrait Mark 1: 2-39 paints of Jesus — both the path to and initial acts in Jesus’ public ministry. Jesus’ preparation included strategies for us all to consider and his initial ministry acts reveal the primary traits Jesus will exhibit … Continue reading "On The Table Podcast: The Opening Portrait" The post On The Table Podcast: The Opening Portrait appeared first on Stories From A Village.

By Steve Flowers and Jordan Flowers In this episode, Steve and Jordan discuss what Christian and worship music are for each of them, both as they were growing up and today. The post On The Table Podcast: What’s in a song? appeared first on Stories From A Village.

By Steve Flowers and Jordan Flowers The first episode in a periodic series studying through The Gospel of Mark. In this initial installment, Jordan and Steve discuss why Mark is special to each of them, the important issues in the book’s background, and what the first verse establishes, all of which aid in better understanding … Continue reading "On The Table Podcast: The beginning of the good news…" The post On The Table Podcast: The beginning of the good news… appeared first on Stories From A Village.

By Steve Flowers and Jordan Flowers Jordan and Steve talk about changing churches, including their recent and current experiences looking for a new church and discussing “When is it ok to change?” The discussion touches on topics that are also relevant for examining the relationship with your current church even if you’re not looking to … Continue reading "On The Table Podcast: You do y’all" The post On The Table Podcast: You do y’all appeared first on Stories From A Village.

By Steve Flowers and Jordan Flowers Initial episode of a new podcast series called On The Table in which a father and son talk about faith issues that cross both of their lives. In this initial installment, Steve and Jordan introduce the podcast by talking about the podcast name, their spiritual background, and topics for … Continue reading "On The Table Podcast: Introduction" The post On The Table Podcast: Introduction appeared first on Stories From A Village.

Ivy sits down with Stone Village pastor John and one of the church’s worship leaders Quinn to talk about Pride. We cover it all: Why it’s sometimes difficult to “come out” as Christian to your fellow LGBTQ folk, why Pride matters to us as a Christian community, and the aspects of Pride we grapple with … Continue reading "Stories From A Village Podcast: PRIDE and Why it matters" The post Stories From A Village Podcast: PRIDE and Why it matters appeared first on Stories From A Village.

Where do we turn in our darkest moments? In this episode, Ivy talks with Aimee about how she turned to God for help, even when she wasn’t certain she belonged in church. Aimee talks openly about the long road to finding safety and acceptance after a turbulent childhood and unhappy marriage, the things she still … Continue reading "Stories From A Village Podcast: Love Found Me" The post Stories From A Village Podcast: Love Found Me appeared first on Stories From A Village.

In this episode, Ivy talks to Leo, a self-described “spiritual seeker.” Leo is a gay man who came of age in the 1960s. While he wondered if he would ever find acceptance in the Catholic church, he says he never doubted the love of God. He talks about how his spirituality has served as an … Continue reading "Stories From A Village Podcast: Who I Am Called To Be" The post Stories From A Village Podcast: Who I Am Called To Be appeared first on Stories From A Village.

In this episode of Stories from a Village, Ivy talks to Stacey, a life-long Christian raised in the United Methodist Church. Stacey reflects on the positive experiences she’s had in her church community and the strong Christian women who shaped her. But Ivy and Stacey also wrestle with some of the hard parts of being … Continue reading "Stories From A Village Podcast: Seeking a resurrected life" The post Stories From A Village Podcast: Seeking a resurrected life appeared first on Stories From A Village.

In this episode of Stories from a Village, Ivy talks with Sonya about faith, art, politics, and self-acceptance. Sonya grew up in West Virginia and learned early-on that being a good Christian meant not doing bad things like smoking, swearing, or watching R-rated movies. Today, she’s a Christian who cusses a little (and sometimes maybe … Continue reading "Stories From A Village Podcast: I love Jesus but I cuss a little" The post Stories From A Village Podcast: I love Jesus but I cuss a little appeared first on Stories From A Village.

In this episode, Ivy sits down with Irene, a devout Catholic who also had a deeply meaningful “born again” experience in the Evangelical church. Intrigued yet? Listen to hear how Irene has navigated the many twists and turns in her faith journey. This podcast is produced by Ivy Lamb. Music credit: Fire Tree by Axletree … Continue reading "Stories From a Village Podcast: Searching for a tangible God" The post Stories From a Village Podcast: Searching for a tangible God appeared first on Stories From A Village.