Podcasts about scottsdale bible church

As we discover more of God's character as Provider, Potter, High Priest, and Patient, we are joined by a special guest, Margi, who gives a rich perspective of how she has experienced these qualities in her own life.Margi Galloway served for 16 years at Scottsdale Bible Church. She was the Minister to Women, Minister of Spiritual Life and founded and directed the W.I.L.D. (Women in Leadership Development) ministry where women were trained and equipped to serve in the church and the community. She has had a long-standing love for women, communicates with enthusiasm, and is gifted in encouraging them to be all they can be. People who have worked alongside Margi in ministry speak of her as friend, leader, teacher, mentor, woman of faith, giver of love and passionate about serving Jesus. Margi recently became a widow after being married to her husband Dale for 50 years. She has 2 adult children and 5 grandchildren.EPISODE LINKSLIFT - Conference, Aug 17WHAT IS NEUE THING?Neue Thing is a non-profit ministry, founded by Cherie Wagner, that exists to equip women with the Word of God. Cherie's life-long passion is two-fold: knowing Jesus Christ and making Him known. Author of Found On My Knees, Awake O Sleeper, Rest, Hope, Psalms for Life, and Knowing Your Name, Cherie writes Bible studies for women that will encourage them to know and believe God's Word, equip them to live it, and empower them to take it and transform this generation for Jesus Christ.CONNECT WITH NEUE THINGWebsite: https://neuething.org/Email Subscription link:https://neuething.us2.list-manage.com/subscribe?Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/neuethinginc/Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/neuethingGive to Neue Thing: https://neuething.org/give/RESOURCESKnowing Your NameFound On My Knees: The Journey from Brokenness to BlessingAwake O Sleeper: EphesiansRest: 30 Days of Exploring God's Invitation to RestHope: Tethered to an Unwavering GodPsalms for Life

I am ecstatic about today's conversation with my friend, Tracy Steel!! We have been friends for many years before finally meeting in 2019. This conversation was the first one we have had in years! Tracy is the author of "A Redesigned Life," which came out in 2019. She shares about her journey from battling an eating disorder and the pressure of numbers to finding true freedom in Christ. Hear about her experiences as a retired Air Force spouse, moving nine times in the first 13 years of marriage, and raising two children. She also discusses her role as the Women's Ministry Director at a church in Phoenix, her ministry work, and how God has used her story to help others. Enjoy this conversation and we both pray that is will help you and others in your life today! Bio: Tracy Steel graduated from Kansas State University with a BS in interior design and has a master's degree in biblical and theological studies from Phoenix Seminary. Moving from one type of interior design to another, she then worked in full-time ministry, serving as the Director of Female Students at Scottsdale Bible Church from 2003-2007, and most recently as the Associate Minister to Women at Scottsdale Bible Church from 2020-2021.  Currently, Tracy serves as the Women's Ministry Director at Palmcroft Church, is also the Co-Director of LIFT, and the Co-founder of My Only Aim & Every Life Ministries Director of Leader Development.Through these growing parachurch ministries, and through her involvement in her local church, Tracy delights in helping women of all ages and stages of life grow closer to God; enabling them to walk in the purposes and giftings He has given them. Tracy's husband, Chad, is a retired Air Force Lt. Colonel, and she is the proud mother of two teenagers, Jackson and Katie. When she isn't stuck in the school pick up line or flying off to enjoy another adventure with her pilot husband, Tracy enjoys speaking at women's ministries events nationwide and is the author of “Images of His Beauty,” and “A Redesigned Life: Uncovering God's Purpose When Life Doesn't Go as Planned.” Anchor Verse: Psalm 73:25-26 John 16:33 Isaiah 41:10 Connect with Tracy: Website: https://tracymsteel.com/  Email: tracy@tracymsteel.com  Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tracymsteel/  Book: A Redesigned Life: Uncovering God's Purpose When Life Doesn't Go As Planned: https://a.co/d/67EDX9z  Ignite Influence: A Woman's 12 week Discipleship Course For more information:https://myonlyaim.com  ***We love hearing from our listeners! Sharing your thoughts through reviews is a fantastic way to be a part of our podcast family and contribute to the conversation. If you've enjoyed our podcast, leaving a review is quick and easy! Just head to Apple podcasts or wherever you are tuning in and share your thoughts. Your feedback makes a big difference!***

For those who've ever felt the weight of unanswered prayers or questioned their calling, this episode is for you. As a sister in faith, I want to inspire and motivate you to recognize that your dreams are not impossible with God. I was praying about how to end the 2023 podcast season. It took a moment of pause and reflection to see I needed to share God's hand over every minute of the last 12 months. ***Make sure to LISTEN for 5 scriptures you need for your goals in 2024. I'm not one to boast, but I feel compelled to acknowledge how God carried me through 2023. Battling feelings of being too old or too late, I chose to turn away from the devil's lies and follow the path laid out by Jesus. With only an assistant working a few hours a week, a supportive husband, and an amazing best friend, it's truly been just me, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit navigating the journey. ✨  Looking Back on 2023 to See How God Was Always Working: Fit God's Way was #1 in New Releases for "Whole Food Diets and Women's Christian Living." Appearances on Christian TV shows such as The 700 Club, CBN, Life Today, Cornerstone, and Hope Today. Wrote articles for renowned Christian publications like Jesus Calling and Sadie Robertson Huff's Live Original Blog. Sony renewed my F.I.T. Workout Series on Pure Flix for another three years. Hosted a $5000 Healthy You Sweepstakes with Salem Radio Stations, impacting thousands. My Fit God's Way Blog appears now on 100 Salem radio stations and websites like – The Word and The Fish. Over half a million Strong. Confident. His. Podcast downloads. Created 70 new podcasts and blogs, along with videos. Hosted notable guests like Shannon Bream, Wendy Griffith, Ashley Key, Chi Braley, and Megan Alexander. Through a Fit God's Way Book launch party. Guided 3,500 women through a 21-day Fitness Bible study challenge. Launched The Fit God's Way 7Ws Social Media Challenge. Spoke at the Christian Women's Conference in Orlando. Became a regular guest on Moody's Faith Radio with Carmen Leberge. Contributed over $10,000 to charities, including Phoenix Rescue Mission, The Dream Center, St. Jude's, and Compassion. Completed an 18-month Discipleship women's ministry leadership course at Scottsdale Bible Church. Shared the miraculous story of God sparing my brother Tommy's life who died and his wife kept his blood flowing through CPR.  Witnessed the joy of my brother Johnny and his wife Brandy getting married in Playa del Carmen. Celebrated my daughter learning to drive and obtaining her driver's license. Reached millions of people to share the hope of God, the grace of knowing Jesus Christ, and the power of walking in the Holy Spirit. As I sat down to record this podcast, I had no script, but what emerged was a message of hope through my testimony. Now, I invite you to reflect on your own 2023. Grab a piece of paper, open a journal, or use your phone to jot down the moments when God's hand was evident in your life. Faith Fuel for 2024 May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope. Romans 15:13 (ESV) But they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint. Isaiah 40:31(ESV) Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. Hebrews 11:1(ESV) Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer. Romans 12:12(ESV) Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful. Hebrews 10:23 (ESV)  Remember, as we look back, let's dream again with hopeful expectations for what God will do with willing hearts and faith-filled belief. Sharing My Top Podcast Episodes From 2023 The BEST Motivational Speech: Failure is Not Your Destiny! https://www.kimdolanleto.com/blog/the-best-motivational-speech-failure-is-not-your-destiny Unhealthy Friendships: https://www.kimdolanleto.com/blog/unhealthy-friendships-boundaries-and-knowing-when-it-s-time-to-say-goodbye Shannon Bream https://www.kimdolanleto.com/blog/shannon-bream-god-s-unwavering-love-guides-sustains-us How to Unleash God's Power for Breakthrough in Your Life: https://www.kimdolanleto.com/blog/unleashing-god-s-power-for-a-breakthrough-in-your-life From Broken to Beautiful: How Your Fitness Resembles a Home Renovation Show: https://www.kimdolanleto.com/blog/from-broken-to-beautiful-how-your-fitness-resembles-a-home-renovation-show  Christian Weight Loss: Learn a 7-Step Guide to Eating https://www.kimdolanleto.com/blog/christian-weight-loss-7-step-guide-to-eating  22 Bible Verses Every Woman Needs to Control Her Emotions: https://www.kimdolanleto.com/blog/22-bible-verses-every-woman-needs-to-control-her-emotions  The Jesus Series: https://www.kimdolanleto.com/blog/the-jesus-series-20-practical-steps-to-live-like-jesus-for-your-best-health Find Out Why Your Fitness Plan Isn't Working and How To Fix It: https://www.kimdolanleto.com/blog/find-out-why-your-fitness-plan-isn-t-working-and-how-to-fix-it  When My Brother Dies, God Said, No! Hear His Story for God's Glory: https://www.kimdolanleto.com/blog/when-my-brother-died-god-said-no-tommy-danielle-dolan  The Jesus Glow Series: https://www.kimdolanleto.com/blog/the-jesus-glow-series-how-to-get-your-glow-back Merry Christmas Sister and Happy New Year. May God bless you and your family. Remember you are Strong. Confident. His. Watch the Live podcast taping on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/kimdolanletofit Never miss an Episode: SUBSCRIBE Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/44UzoG0 Spotify Podcasts: https://spoti.fi/3YtGuif

This week, Chris talks again with Rustin Rossello, Teaching Pastor at Scottsdale Bible Church. Rustin tells his story of what God did to get him to the place he is today.

This week, Chris has a time of Q&A with good friend Rustin Rossello, Teaching Pastor at Scottsdale Bible Church in Phoenix AZ. 

Matt Wireman00:00:23 - 00:01:00Welcome to another episode of Off the Wire. This is Matt Wireman and I am so thankful to have with me Dr. Brian Arnold, who is currently serving as the president of Phoenix Seminary. And that is really fun to say. I met Brian while he and I were students at Southern Seminary together. And I believe we had an early church history class on Augustine together, if I'm not mistaken. And I had no idea that guys that I was going to school with were going to be president. So here you go. So I'm really thankful to have you, Brian, on this podcast. And I just wanted to thank you for your time.Brian Arnold00:01:01 - 00:01:03Well, it's great to be with you, Matt. Thanks for asking me on.Matt Wireman00:01:03 - 00:01:24Yeah, so you, we were chatting before we hit the record button and you've been at Phoenix Seminary for five years you say and then just recently have taken the post as present. Can you kind of walk us through what that transition has been like and what you find yourself busying yourself with as opposed to what you found yourself busying yourself with?Brian Arnold00:01:25 - 00:02:55Absolutely. So in 2014, actually, I got a call from a friend of mine, Dr. John Meade, who was also at Southern with us. He was doing his PhD in Old Testament and said, hey, are you looking for a job in academia? And I was pastoring at the time, and I'd love to tell more and more about that if you'd like. And he said, there's a position open to Phoenix. So I applied for it and got the position. We moved across the country in May of 2015, which is not the time to come to Phoenix to get the brunt of the brutal summers. See if you're really committed. That's why you went to Phoenix. Absolutely. And taught in church history and systematic theology for those first couple of years. What I recognized pretty quickly about myself is as much as I love scholarship and I enjoy writing and lecturing, I also noticed, one I've noticed this my entire adult life, even before, is a mentorship and a desire to help make things better. So some of my colleagues are exceptionally gifted scholars, but I always found myself drifting into more meetings and thinking through curricular issues and just noticing, especially at Phoenix Seminary, how much potential I saw here and wanted to maximize that as much as possible. And part of it was I never thought I'd actually get a job even teaching at a seminary. And I wanted to make sure the Phoenix Seminary had every chance it had in this kind of environment to be successful in the long haul. So that's what kind of led me to administration.Matt Wireman00:02:55 - 00:03:10Yeah, so your goal was not to be in higher education. It sounds like you were a pastor when you got that phone call from John. So like, what were you thinking? For one, why did you get the PhD if you knew you were going to be a pastor?Brian Arnold00:03:11 - 00:03:28So I almost had to go all the way back to college when I first got a taste for theology,late high school, early into college and started devouring just different books as I found them. I remember even I was a paramedic major in college and so I was in fire and EMS and.Matt Wireman00:03:28 - 00:03:30Eastern Kentucky, right? Is that where you were at?Brian Arnold00:03:30 - 00:05:43I like to say Harvard of the South, nobody else does. But I had a 500-hour internship program that I had to do over the course of a summer in the back of an ambulance and I was doing for a long time, 24 hours on, 24 hours off. And I wanted something substantive to read and my director for Campus Crusade said, why don't you read this book? It's a big fat systematic theology by a guy named Wayne Grudem. And so I went to Barnes and Noble, bought it. And I remember walking in the parking lot looking and seeing like, wow, Harvard and Westminster and Cambridge. And he teaches at this place called Phoenix Seminary and I've never heard of that before. But I read that that summer and fell in love with even academic theology as well as a couple of my roommates in college. And everyone I knew had gone to Southern Seminary. So that was a no-brainer. I was an hour and a half down the road and went to Southern. And really from my first day there, I remember a guy named Scott Davis was in admissionsat the time. And I said, you know, I'm going to go through the MDiv and get my PhD and I would love to teach someday. And he was like, easy there. He hears that from a lot of people. And he said, you haven't even started the MDiv yet. You don't know how hard that is. And also over that same kind of weekend, the New Student Orientation kind of things, Russ Moore, I was sitting next to him for lunch. And he said, you know, one of the founders of Southern Seminary said, if your greatest desire is not to go into the pastorate, then you probably shouldn't be teaching at a seminary. And I thought, you know, I do have a passion for the local church and I would love to pastor. So I kept those two ideas in my mind of what I kind of wanted to do. And then I was realistic. I knew how many guys go and get a PhD and never get a job in higher education. So I thought the chances of me actually teaching at a seminary are very slim, but I love the study of theology. And I knew that even doing that level of work would improve my communication skills, my ability to read better and to write clearly. And so I was really passionate about getting the PhD and either adjuncting somewhere while I was pastoring or writing or any kind of combination of those things. And there was a school near me where I was pastoring in western Kentucky that actually went out of business the day after I went there to talk to them about teaching, potentially.Matt Wireman00:05:43 - 00:05:46Where were you pastoring at in western Kentucky?Brian Arnold00:05:46 - 00:05:50So it was a little town called Smithland, Kentucky, just outside of Paducah.Matt Wireman00:05:50 - 00:05:51Okay, awesome.Brian Arnold00:05:51 - 00:05:54The school that was down there was called Mid-Continent University.Matt Wireman00:05:54 - 00:05:56Okay, okay. Very familiar with it. Yeah.Brian Arnold00:05:56 - 00:06:24They went out and I had been looking for higher ed jobs the whole time. And I told my wife, if I don't hear anything at this ETS, it was going to be ETS in 2014, I'm not going to pursue higher ed anymore. Well, that's when John Mead reached out and said, hey, are you interested? So I always wanted to go into higher ed. I just, in some ways it was hedging saying, I know that it's unrealistic that I'll actually get a position in higher ed.Matt Wireman00:06:24 - 00:06:27Just because it's such a saturation of PhDs, is that why?Brian Arnold00:06:27 - 00:06:52huge saturation of PhDs, less people are going to seminaries, there's a scaling down.There was just all the confluence of issues that make it that much harder to get into the market. I felt like we're happening. So, I'm a pastor, the Lord is really blessing our work there and it was exciting and I could have done that for an entire career and been really satisfied doing it.Matt Wireman00:06:52 - 00:07:12Mm-hmm. So what was it about Phoenix that you would make a move? I mean, because that's not just, you know, right down the street kind of seminary that like you alluded to.I mean, that's a substantial climate change, but also a substantial cultural change. And so what was it about Phoenix particularly that drew you to even apply?Brian Arnold00:07:13 - 00:07:45Yeah, if I'm just being frank, it was a job. I kept telling my wife, you know, we could be,and I always pick cold places, and we almost went to a school in Montreal, actually.That's a bit of another story, but I was like, it could be Alaska, it could be Maine, it could be Canada, and I never even thought about warmer places, and it ended up being Phoenix, and so it was an opportunity to get my foot in the door and begin teaching. So I knew to find a job in higher education, in seminary education specifically, I was gonna have to be open to moving anywhere.Matt Wireman00:07:45 - 00:07:55Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. So you were teaching systematic theology and church history.Well, your major was systematic theology, was it, or was it church history?Brian Arnold00:07:55 - 00:08:00I'm Church History, so I study under Michael Haken and particularly Church Fathers.Matt Wireman00:08:00 - 00:08:23Okay, and then you moved to Phoenix in 2014, became the president. Can you walk us through that process? Like, I mean, that's a big jump. So you found yourself more in administrative type meetings. But what was it, I mean, to go from that to, you know, to go from just being in meetings to being a president is a pretty significant change. So walk us through.Brian Arnold00:08:23 - 00:08:45When I was dean for about two months. Does that count? Say what? That I was dean for about two months before I became president. So yeah, it's a bit of a convoluted story. Our president, who'd been here for 23 years, had even been one of the founders of it back in 1988.Matt Wireman00:08:45 - 00:08:47Dr. Del Husey, is that right? That's right.Brian Arnold00:08:46 - 00:12:05That's right. You have Dr. Darolda who say he had been pastor of Scottsdale Bible Church, which is probably one of the first big mega church churches in America. And so his background was more in church ministry, but he recognized even back in 1988, Phoenix is growing. Most people would be surprised, but it's the fifth largest city in the United States. And so here you have a city that's booming and there's no place to get a seminary education. So all of our best and brightest, most talented pastor candidates are leaving to go to seminary and they don't come back. So we need something here. And we were actually a branch campus of Western Seminary in our founding and they were independent from them around 1994 or so. So I was following a pretty long presidency of Dr. Del Jose, which is already a challenge in and of itself for somebody who's that deeply ingrained here. Now he serves as the chancellor and we've got a great relationship, really thankful for him. But he even recognized that they needed somebody who had more of an academic background to take it to the next level. And hesaid, I'm just waiting for somebody to come in and say they want my job. This is my first six months at Phoenix Seminary. And I walked down to his office, I said, I love your job. And I was just kidding. And I said, I'm kidding about that. I just, I know myself, I see myself more gifted and bent towards administration and leadership. So I would love to be mentored by you and really get to understand what higher education looks like from a leadership position. And so early on in my tenure here, I was really getting involved in the leadership aspects. I helped lead us through a major curriculum change. We had a bunch of two hour classes, we moved to three hour class system. So that gave me a lot of understanding in our workings. And through all that, I was coming up under Bing Hunter, our previous provost and dean, and was kind of gearing up for that position. Well, at the same time, the presidency was coming open. And I wanted to throw my hat in the ring because I see so much potential here. I'm very thankful for where Dr. Del Jose brought us. But I also recognize we really can get to the next level here and establish ourselves as one of the major theological institutions in the West, especially the Southwest. And when you think about where Phoenix is located, we're pretty good distance away from a lot of other seminaries. We're back east, they kind of seem to pile up on top of each other. So there's a lot of even geographically speaking, room here to grow. And to really, I tell all of our team all the time, I'm asking people just to grab some basket and pick the low hanging fruit. I mean, we're here with Arizona State University, which is the largest undergrad, GCU, which is now the largest Christian undergrad,we've got a great relationship with Arizona Christian University. So I saw all these things, I kept thinking, how can we grow this potential? And as the inside guy, I knew where our challenges were, I knew where our threats and our opportunities were. And so I just wanted to make a case to the board and say, as the inside guy, I know how to tweak some dials right now, they can get us moving in the right direction. And I think it was a long shot. I was a long shot, I think, from the very beginning of the whole process. And from what I understand, just kept kind of making it through to the next level to the next level to the next level until especially I got to be able to presentMatt Wireman00:12:05 - 00:12:08Survive in advance, right?Brian Arnold00:12:08 - 00:13:53It really is exactly what it felt like. But we used Carter Baldwin, which is an executive search firm. When the rep, you get to the round of eight or nine or so, he flies around the country to meet with you wherever you're at. So we flew back out to Phoenix and we sat down to meet for our interview. His very first question, at the time I was 35, he said, you're 35, you don't have much higher education experience. Why now? You're coming into Dean's role. Why not just learn that and climb the ranks that way? I said to him, honestly, for me, it's an issue of gifting. The gifting and skill set, you need to be a really accomplished dean. A lot of times, it's a very different skill set to be a successful president. Deans are a lot of times, they're the ones that are keeping the trains moving and they're really keeping you within the lanes of accreditation and assessment and all those different pieces with the DOE and ATS and ensuring that the institution is healthy from that vantage point. I see myself more as the big picture visionary. I want to be out there preaching. I want to be casting vision. I want to be meeting with donors. Because for me, donor relationships are not only a great opportunity for pastoral ministry, but it's also a chance to just explain what my heart is and vision is for the seminary, and see if they want to partner with us. When I just look at skill set wise, I saw myself having a better skill set for the presidency. I said, that may come across arrogant, I don't mean it to. It really is just about finding the right seat on the bus for each person. I think I could sit in the presidency and do okay. Here we are.Matt Wireman00:13:53 - 00:14:46So here we are. Yeah, well, I know it's very exciting, very exciting. I'm really thankful that you're in that presidency. Because one of the things that I love about your story is that you said you could be totally content serving at a local church. You know, and a lot of times, even within higher education, Christian higher education, even, that there can be this sense of climbing the corporate ladder, you know, paying your dues and then being entitled to being a successor and all these things. But I love that you framed it and saying, I would have been content and happy and would have lived a fruitful life being a pastor in a town that people hadn't heard of, because that's valuable. Because one of the things that's unique about Phoenix Seminary, what's the tagline or the mission statement for Phoenix? This is a quiz. This is a quiz.Brian Arnold00:14:45 - 00:14:48No problem. Scholarship at the Shepherd's Heart.Matt Wireman00:14:48 - 00:15:36Yeah, so I would love for you to reflect on, not only as the president, but as a formerpastor, as someone who has a pastor's heart, a shepherd's heart, what is that relationship that you view, and you could view it in both sides, because you've had both hats on, of what that relationship is between a seminary and the church. So much of the theological fighting that took place in many of the seminaries took place because there was a divorcing of, or a assuming of, roles as opposed to a tight relationship between the seminary and the church. So I'd love for you to just reflect on why the seminary is valuable to the local church, and why then the local church is valuable to a seminary.Brian Arnold00:15:36 - 00:18:31Absolutely. I think we have to begin with what is God's plan for humanity? And a big part of that is the church. Jesus died for his bride. It is the church. That's his plan for the world. That's his mission for the world. And so I think it's important for people in my position now to always remember that we are really the quartermasters. We're the ones behind, we're off the front lines. We're equipping, we're preparing, we're training, we're sending out. But really the battlefield's out there in the mission field of the church. And so I'm very happy to be recognizing my backseat role as a parachurch ministry, helping undergird God's plan for the world. And what helped me with that is that I've been in both worlds. So I realized very quickly in my pastorate that had I not had a seminary education, I would have been in a tough spot. So why is that? Like, yeah. Yeah. So we moved to Smithland in June of 2012. And we already had a vacation that was going to be planned. So we went on that and I'm on the beach on the East Coast. And I get this phone call from one of my deacons and he was a deacon and his dad was a deacon. And he said, Hey, I just want you to know, my father's kidneys are failing. And we don't know what that's going to mean for him. My wife was just diagnosed with breast cancer and my daughter's best friend just committed suicide. And I remember sitting there on the beach thinking, okay, that was the shortest ministry honeymoon in the history of humanity. I haven't even like really landed there yet. And this is already, I'm already recognizing how messy ministry is and you're really entering into broken lives of people. Well, I was going to be preaching through Philippians first off. And here I am at a local small Southern Baptist church in Western Kentucky preaching three times a week, Sunday morning, Sunday night, Wednesday night. And I'd probably preached 10 times total before I took that position. So in my first month, I'm going to be preaching more than I've preached my entire life. And I'm going through Philippians, all of a sudden you get to Philippians two pretty quickly and you get this issue of kenosis. What does it mean that Jesus emptied himself? If I had a seminary training, the background, understanding my Christology, you can get to a text like that. It's going to take you forever to walk through the challenges that present you in that text. But I was so thankful because the seminary education put me that much further ahead, even to my own preparation and study that I was used to exegeting the text when I came totheological challenges. It wasn't the first time I'd seen them or thought through them before. So that actually freed me up to do more ministry in the church because I had a deeper understanding of the text already. Does that make sense? So, yeah.Matt Wireman00:18:29 - 00:19:32Yeah, yeah. I mean, yeah, you're not having to try to figure out like so many times I talk to guys who, you know, are in the middle of seminary training or haven't had seminary training and then they, yeah, great, great example, Philippians 2, and they're like, I didn'tknow this was an issue. And then they read one guy and they're like, I think I agree with that. And then they read another guy and they're like, I think I agree with that too. And they're like diametrically opposed to each other. And you're like, well, that will make a dramatic effect on how you for one read all of Philippians and then the entire New Testament and those kinds of things. So yeah, I hear you. And along with that, just a little side note, a lot of times people ask, well, how long does it take you to prepare a sermon? It's like, well, you know, each sermon has got, you know, 20 years of teaching behind it, you know, 20 years of education behind it. It's not something that I just kind of whip up over, you know, in a week. It's something that there is a lot of training that's going behind every single sermon. So it's kind of a misnomer to say, well, how long is your sermon prep? It's like, well, it's a couple decades. That's right.Brian Arnold00:19:31 - 00:20:06That's right. Exactly. David Allen Black says the pastor should be like an iceberg. People see the top 10% above the water, but they know that there's 90% below it as well. But I don't know that we've really helped people in the church see just how important that is or they're not connecting those dots. You know, this is not a knock on where I was coming from and I pastor it. But a lot of the pastors in Western Kentucky did not have a theological education. And I knew some of them who'd show up to church on Sunday morning, do like a flip open method of sermon prep, wherever they open the Bible. It's like, Hey, that's.Matt Wireman00:20:05 - 00:20:12like, Hey, that's, you're not, you're not exaggerating. Right? I mean, this is like, cause people joke about that, but there were people actually doing it.Brian Arnold00:20:12 - 00:20:54who did that down the road from where I was a pastor. And just to show you this, this is not to pat myself on the back, it's to pat seminary education on the back. That's right, that's right, that's right. Is I had a guy who my very first Sunday was my sermon I was preaching to get hired at the church. He's about 75, he graduated by the army. And this guy could have taken me. He's a strong, tough guy. And he pulls me to the side and he goes, we don't need a preacher. Those are a dime a dozen. We need a pastor. Do you understand what I'm telling you? And I was like, yes, sir, I know exactly what you mean. And he wanted to know that as I was coming into my late 20s, that I was going to love people, be there with them, to walk through suffering. Absolutely. I mean, that's my heart. I want to do that.Matt Wireman00:20:22 - 00:20:23That's right, that's right, that's right.Brian Arnold00:20:54 - 00:22:52Same guy, we have a great relationship, but he's not much of a talker over the next three years while I'm pastoring. My very last Sunday, he grabs me again and pulls me to the side. I doubt he even remembered that initial conversation. And he said to me, I've been in the church for 50 years, and I've never learned as much or gone deeper in my walk with Christ or understood the Bible as much as I have these last three years. I only tell that story to say, and I'll tell this to my students, is don't underestimate the power of opening God's Word and preaching through it in an expository way. God will change lives doing that. But it was my seminary education that helped me do that. And even if my church couldn't articulate it, it's like, why is our church... We were growing in a really healthy way. Other churches, you could tell people were like, okay, these people at Smith and First are really getting fed. And I wasn't sitting there drawing the lines all the time for them. But when I left, I tried to help encourage the deacon saying, think about what you said about the preaching ministry here is because I was seminary trained. So go back to that pond and fish again. Because I knew quite literally, there's a couple thousand people just down the road who love the Lord, are committed to the gospel, and have the right type of training to do it. So now on my side of things, that makes me even more passionate, having been a pastor for a couple years, knowing what I needed in the pastorate. And now I can help deliver and train that for other people who are now... You're starting to see students come back and say, oh my goodness, you're right.This is having a significant impact on my ministry. I see guys here, Matt, who have been in ministry for 20 years who are now coming back and getting seminary education, who are lamenting that. And they're saying, I put the cart before the horse. I really wish I had known 20 years ago what I know now. My ministry would have been different.Matt Wireman00:22:52 - 00:24:16Yeah. Well, I'd like to revisit this relationship between the church and the seminary and just your diagnosis of why there is, in some ways, you know, a dumbing down of the pastorate in some ways of where people are like, we don't need all that education. It's like, well, I don't know why the person has to have a Southern accent. You know, Southerners, we get beat up on sometimes. But, you know, you want to say you can preach, period. Like there's a beauty in saying, you know, if God has called you to preach, preach. And yet at the same time, we want to bridle that horse up and be able to say there's a lot of good here. But I just have found like a lot of times people are very quick, and I'm sure medical doctors get this too and lawyers get this too, where people are like, I know you studied for like 20 years, but I read this. I've got a webMD. Yeah, exactly. And a lot of times that happens at the church too, but in some ways, we havebeen the cause of that problem by saying education is not important. So I'd love for you to just kind of tease out a little bit more like how you see the seminary serving the local church.Brian Arnold00:24:16 - 00:27:36Absolutely. And this argument is trotted out quite a bit, but I think it's important. Andyou kind of said it there, people expect their doctors and lawyers to have a certain levelof training because what they're doing is of great importance. How much more the careof souls, the shepherding of people's eternity, and for people to know and understand things. Yeah, there's been a historic challenge here, at least in the last couple of hundred years between the seminary and the church. And when you think back over time, a lot of the people who were most theologically trained were week in and week out pastors. If you think about the Reformation, you think about people like Martin Luther and John Calvin, these guys were pastors who were also leaders in theology. It's really not almost until the Enlightenment where you begin to see a wedge put between the seminary and the church as higher education because of its own kind of thing, where you might have seminary professors who have not been pastors before. And so I think that even then leads further to people seeing a greater divide between them. I think it's everybody kind of knowing those places. So as I mentioned before, recognizing, yes, the church is God's purpose for the world, but there's substantial training that a pastor must have in order to faithfully execute that office. It's a high office that God has called upon. When you think about somebody like Paul man, right, he's converted. He's already well-trained and yet he secludes himself kind of more training. Even think about the apostles before they're sent off in Matthew 28. Jesus is with them for three years. I mean, that's a pretty solid seminary education that they're receiving. And Christian history for the last 2,000 years has been deeply invested in education and recognizing that we are touching sacred things and people need to know those. And so if seminaries recognize their parachurch status more and the recognition that local churches simply cannot do what seminaries can do. I know very few churches, maybe if any, where you have somebody you could teach Greek, Hebrew, systematics, church history, evangelism and discipleship, world missions, all the different things that you kind of get from a seminary education, local church can do this. So the idea is, right, there's a hub of education that many churches can pour into and get trained from and then they get sent back out to their churches. Working together in tandem like that with the recognition that a seminary should be chosen by a student if that seminary is deeply invested in the work of the local church. I mean, if they're not and they're just actually a think tank or an ivory tower, then don't go there. But if a seminary is actually saying, look, our heartbeat is for the local church, that is what God has given us. All we want to do is give you those tools that you can't get from the local church and let us equip you in those ways and then we'll send you right back. Hopefully, we're on fire for God. Hopefully, deeper in their ability to handle the text, more aware of how to do actual practical ministry, all these different pieces so that they don't get this divided. I mean, the saddest stories are oh, Johnny was a great preacher before he went to seminary or, you know, Bill was so in love with the Lord and then he went to seminary.Matt Wireman00:27:36 - 00:27:44What happens to those guys? Why is that sometimes part of the narrative, you think?Brian Arnold00:27:45 - 00:28:43It's a great question. Partly, I often wonder if it's a straw man kind of argument. I mean, you and I were at Southern Together. When I think back, whenever I'd hear people talk bad about seminary, and I'm thinking, I'm with these guys who love the Lord and are bringing their education to the pew week in and week out. I never understood that. I never understood why people say those things. And chances are, a lot of times it was going to be a person who was going to be a bad fit for ministry anyway. Seminary can't, if I can say this, maybe you'll have to edit this part out later, I don't know. But seminary cannot take a weirdo and make them not a weirdo. Right? Seminary can't take somebody who has no actual gifting from the Lord in pastoral ministry and somehow do that. I mean, there's spiritual gifts involved in this as well. Sometimes I think seminaries unfairly bear the brunt of criticism that we're not responsible for.Matt Wireman00:28:43 - 00:29:53Yeah, and in some ways, like people, you know, one of the things at Southern, and I don't know if Phoenix does this or not, I'd like to know, but you know, you have to get a reference from your church that you're a member at. And I think, and I'm afraid that many churches are not doing the hard work of saying, hey, brother, you probably need to get some humility before you go to seminary because there'll be some classes and I know you were in these classes too, not you, you weren't doing this, but there were guys in classes, I was like, I would never be a congregant in that man's church because he is abrasive, he is proud and everyone sees it. And then the seminary is supposed to miraculously just say, hey, you shouldn't be a pastor. It's like, that's not the seminary's job. It's just really frustrating that, you know, the talking heads or the, you know, the heads on a stick as it were, that gets to be the misnomer for seminaries when in fact, it's taking, you know, what Paul said, a fan in the flame, the gift that was given to you and how you do that, well, you put more fodder on the fire and how you do that, you get more training, you get more education to be able to do that.Brian Arnold00:29:54 - 00:31:24Absolutely. Yeah, they should be people that the church is already saying, we see the call of God on your life. And, you know, one of the ways this does go sideways sometimes, Matt, and this is a sad situation is where people are deeply involved and invested in their local church. People do recognize the gift that God has given them. They want them to fan it into flame. They recognize their need for education. They go to seminary and they stop being that involved in their local church. That happens, I think that's a record for disaster, right? So, one of the things that I'm passionate about as a president here is even mentoring. So, one of the things that I did love about Phoenix Seminary as soon as I came here is that every student has a mentor. And I've not really seen that in other seminaries before. And that's one of the areas we're going to be investing in a lot more in the next year or two. But I think about even these books on pastoral calling. The one that always sticks out to me is Paul David Tripp's, Dangerous Calling. And on the original cover, there's five endorsements on the back. Three of them aren't in ministry anymore. On a book on how dangerous pastoral ministry is. So, why are we seeing all these ministries implode? And everybody looks to me as though we're the sole solution. Now, we're going to do everything we can to help bridge that, to remind people that as deep as they go, or maybe as high as they go in academic theology, they need to go deeper into the roots of their spirituality.Matt Wireman00:31:24 - 00:32:01Trust me, just seminaries are not giving people passes. They're not rubber stamping people. They're trying to do their due diligence, teaching students humility by giving them accommodating grades. So, this is actually average or below average, go do work.So, the seminaries are...the ones who are, like you said, embedded within and see theirmission as a parachurch ministry are hugely...are very successful in what they do, but people can't start imputing upon the seminary what they ought to be doing, which is not part of their charter, right? Absolutely.Brian Arnold00:32:01 - 00:33:08That's right. But this is a big fight out there right now and debate between some theologians of what's the seminary's role in these things. And I just see a vicious cycle of churches that are not doing a good job of discipleship because a lot of their pastors were never personally discipled. I was and it changed my life. A lot of people have never had that. And then they go to seminary and they don't really learn that because the seminary says, well, it's not my job. And then we wonder why the local church isn't doing it. And they're producing people who've never seen it. And we're in this pattern.And so I want to just say, what can we do at Phoenix Seminary to just help break someof this pattern to say, look at how powerful and impactful personal mentoring can be.Now, in your church, now that you have this theological education, you've been mentored, how do you start almost like a master's plan of evangelism? I'm going to disciple my elders and deacons. And now they're going to take two or three people and they're going to disciple them. Where would our churches be? That was true. And then even thinking, you know, some people want to use the seminary like it's a Sundayschool class or something, right? Like I want to know more about theology, so I'm going to go to the seminary.Matt Wireman00:32:02 - 00:32:03That's right. That's right. But this is a big.Brian Arnold00:33:09 - 00:33:34I'm fine to train those people. That's great. Come, we'll give you a great education. But what I'm hoping is I'm putting out pastors who can take that to their church and equip the saints for the work of the ministry. So we just have this, you know, I think you used this term earlier, this dumbing down all over the place of where pastors think that what people need is something other than doctrine and theology.Matt Wireman00:33:34 - 00:35:33And other than a good kick in the pants. Yeah, at times. In that, you know, no, you did not exegete this passage appropriately. No, that word does not mean that. And no, you cannot do that. You know, like being able to help push people to say, no, no, no, we are, like you said, I thought so well put that we are shepherding souls. And there is a lot at stake. Most of the people that I have heard of and have met that have been hurt by people are by those who have not gone through the rigors of some kind of training ground. Now, it doesn't necessarily have to be a seminary. It could be a church-based training ground, but some kind of training ground as opposed to like, hey, you know, this is, you know, Johnny Preacher that feels called. And I think in so many ways, people, there are many wounded Christians because they haven't, folks haven't done the hard work of being challenged and having to come up with a biblical explanation of why they believe exe regarding this practice that they believe. That's right. You know, and I do wonder too, if in some ways the seminary is inundated with Christians who love Jesus, but who are not called to ministry because the particularly evangelical church, since that's our context, has not done a good job of heralding vocation. And what I mean by that is, you know, being able to say, hey, what are you passionate about? Did you know that you can serve Jesus faithfully as an electrician, faithfully as a plumber, faithfully as a doctor and a lawyer? Because I remember when I was in college, if you were really sold out for Jesus, you went into full-time ministry. So, you know, I've interfaced with several folks who are like, I don't know if you're called to preaching. Well, I don't think you're called to preaching ministry, but I think you're called to ministry, but your bread and butter may be from somewhere else.Brian Arnold00:35:34 - 00:37:35Absolutely. Yeah. And there's been a lot of confusion. There's been some good work recently, I think, that's overcoming some of those kind of stereotypical type of pieces that we felt when we were coming up through the ranks. It was one of the issues, though, the Phoenix Seminary, I would say, if there was a little bit of mission drift, it was more towards training people who just felt the lack of solid theological teaching in their local churches. One of the things we have in Phoenix is you will have the hour-long worship service, and a lot of times, that's it. There's no Sunday night. Wednesday night, I might have kids and youth kind of ministry things, but nothing for the adults, and then small group ministry. And we've all been helped by small groups. I think those kinds of communities are really great for developing deep relationships with people. But what's missing in the churches now is that educational element where people just don't knowthe basics of the Christian faith anymore. So, even when a person says, I've been really involved in this church, I feel called to ministry, and then they come to seminary, they don't know anything because their churches have never really invested in that. It's one of the interesting trends I think we need to keep an eye on is how many churches are kind of returning to a Sunday school type of model, recognizing the vacuum that's been left when people don't know what the Trinity is and don't know who Jesus is and don't understand salvation. We go down the list, and we have a very illiterate church population today. And this is the wrong time to have that. With the challenges that are happening in society, we need people to know the faith better than ever because there's no cultural assumptions anymore. And in that kind of hostile environment,Christians are gonna have to either know the word deeply or they're gonna be swept away in the time. And that would be really concerned for the kids. And so, yeah, we all know these issues, right?Matt Wireman00:37:34 - 00:38:47Yeah, no, it bears explicating because I think a lot of people know that there's something in the water that's not tasting right, and to be able to call it and say, no, that's arsenic. Or, you know, that will kill you if you drink it because that's...I mean, evenpart of my own story when I was serving overseas, I could smell heresy when I was talking to different pastors at different churches, but I couldn't articulate, oh, that's a heresy because that is the kenotic theory. You know, I couldn't do that, whereas, you know, seminary helped to do that for me. You know, I'd love to, as a seminary president, you're sitting down with someone who loves Jesus and is in a vocation other than being a pastor or a missionary or going into seminary. And they're like, I just want to grow in my faith. My church doesn't have, you know, Sunday school. My church doesn't...like, what you just articulated. So how would you counsel someone who doesn't feel called to pastoral or missionary work but wants to grow in their faith? Are there any books or are there different avenues that they could go down that you would encourage them to get better trained?Brian Arnold00:38:47 - 00:40:12Dr. Seheult- That's a great question, Matt. We are living in a time of great resources.When you think about what's being put out all the time, either through technology oreven through book medium, there's just a lot of helpful things out there. So I would encourage this person in a number of ways. One, if they're looking at any kind of leadership in the church, from deacon to elder, any kind of position like that, I would say seminary education would be really beneficial. You might not need the full MDiv, but getting in and getting kind of a Master of Arts in Ministry that gives you a lot of the groundwork would be really helpful. But again, for the person who just says, I'm an electrician, but I'm passionate about the Lord, I want to know more. I would encourage them to start with one of my colleagues' books, actually, and that's Systematic Theology by Wayne Grudem. He's got the second edition coming out in December. And so lots more content. And I think that's where I cut my teeth theologically. And I know there's places that people disagree with Wayne on some things. I do too. But it's still, I think, the most readable, helpful entree into theology. So I think starting there to get the kind of the whole picture of theology through the Bible is helpful. And then I would even encourage some intro kind of books to the New Testament and to the Old Testament, things like Carson and Moo on the New Testament to give them those kinds of pieces.Matt Wireman00:40:12 - 00:40:22You're talking about their introduction to the New Testament, right? Absolutely. Google it, Amazon or introduction to the Old Testament. Those are just surveys of those different books.Brian Arnold00:40:22 - 00:41:05Yep, yep. The Faith of Israel by Dumbrell might be a great place to start with the Old Testament. But as a Dominion of Dynasty by Dempster would be another great place to start with the Old Testament. So there's all these resources. And then whoever you want to teach you today, you can find it on YouTube. You can go there and get a lot of great content from some of the best teachers in the world a click away. And so take advantage of yourself those resources. What we can't say is there's not enough resources. Like there's plenty of those. We might say there's not enough time and then I'd ask about your Netflix, binging, you know, we can certainly binge some other things as well that would be more helpful and beneficial to the soul.Matt Wireman00:41:05 - 00:41:34And so some of it too is along with those resources, I've found that there are a lot of folks that feel like they're swimming in a sea of resources and they don't know which are the good ones to be able to find a someone that you trust. And I'm going to avail myself to anybody who's listening to this and I know you would too, Brian, but like, you know, if you need help and direction, just send me a message and happy to happy to direct you because there are tons of resources and there's tons of really bad resources to run.Brian Arnold00:41:34 - 00:41:47That's exactly right. One of the things, I'm happy you said that, Matt. One of the things that, when I got the bug for theology in college, my roommates and I, we'd always get the CBD catalog. Maybe that dates me a little bit.Matt Wireman00:41:46 - 00:41:51Yeah, no, it's still going strong. I still need to get up on there.Brian Arnold00:41:51 - 00:41:57Catalog, why I still use CBD for four. And then, by the way, let's just tell the listeners that's not the oil.Matt Wireman00:41:57 - 00:42:04Yeah, that's not the oil. That's Christian Book Distributors. CVD. That's right. Not O-R-D or something.Brian Arnold00:42:05 - 00:42:51Absolutely. When my wife said, you know what CBD is? I'm like, I've been shopping there for years. Let's clarify that. But that's a great place to get resources. But I can remember getting that and seeing some Old Testament books, especially Gerhard von Raad's Old Testament Theology. It was like six bucks. And I'm thinking, I don't know much about the Old Testament. I really would love a book to help with that. But I knew enough about that name to say, I need to be suspicious. That might not be the best resource. But I don't know what is. When there's almost too many resources, you go to LifeWay, and if I can say this without getting in trouble, a lot of the resources that are fronted there are the last things I would encourage people to read. You got to go back into the back into a small corner section to find the real gems there.Matt Wireman00:42:51 - 00:43:21Well, you know what's been interesting even in the resources that you mentioned is not10 ways to be a better husband or 10 steps to be a more biblical wife. It's actually learn the Bible. That's the dearth of information that we're having a problem with is that people don't know where Malachi is in the Bible. And they don't know that he was a prophet. And they don't know all these things. It's like, get to know the Bible. That's the first place you should start.Brian Arnold00:43:20 - 00:44:21Absolutely. Absolutely. And then, you know, so one of the things that was great for mewith seminary education was I'm learning to even know what the resources are. Like, that was a big part of it for me is now I feel like I can pick things up, know where theywent to school, know when they went to school there, and get a pretty good picture already of where they may stand. And then you get the grid, right, for being able to filtersome things out. But also, I hope you're at a church, and this is another plug for seminary education, where the pastor has a seminary education, who can help provide those resources, who knows those things. So I hope you're at a place where your staff is able to do that. In the meantime, if not, find somebody who is that you trust, and they would be happy. Any time that people come to me and they say, can I get a resource on X, whatever that is, that is one of the things that give me the greatest joy in answering, because that tells me there's another Christian out there who really wants to go deeper with the Lord, and I'm always happy to help resource.Matt Wireman00:44:21 - 00:44:41Yeah, yeah, no, that's great. Now, so for the person who is at a church and they feel like they want to go into full-time ministry, can you just kind of walk through how does someone come to that decision to where they're like, I think I should be a pastor or a missionary?Brian Arnold00:44:41 - 00:44:47Absolutely. I mean, step one, ps.edu, you apply online.Matt Wireman00:44:47 - 00:44:52And he will waive your admission fee.Brian Arnold00:44:52 - 00:44:57Just mention Matt Wireman in the comments or something. No, it's a great...Matt Wireman00:44:56 - 00:44:58No, it's a great. Yeah.Brian Arnold00:44:58 - 00:47:11I wrestled with that as well. I mean, here I was in fire EMS. My dad had been a fire chief.That's the world I knew. And I didn't even think I could have been satisfied in a career doing that. I know CH Spurgeon is often used, if you could do anything else besides ministry, do it. I don't really agree with Spurgeon on that one. Because of why? Well, because I think that a lot of people who do well in ministry are people of deep curiosity and they love a lot of different things and they themselves given 10 lives doing 10 different things. Well put. Right. So I would say that God calls people to ministry and it's not unique to me. It's kind of the historic answer in two ways, the internal call and the external call. The internal call is when you start to say, Lord, is that you calling me to ministry? Like, I feel a passion for this. I want to teach the Bible. When I was in seminary, or I'm sorry, my undergrad, one of the biggest kind of moments in my early life was sitting at a Bible study in Campus Crusade and my campus director is there and he's leading us through Colossians. And I remember thinking, you get paid to teach people the Bible. That's amazing. Like, I would love to do that. That's what I'm so interested and passionate about. So I had that internal call. And then I started going to other people and saying, do you see this gift in me? Could we give me some teaching opportunities where we can actually see, is this there? And could God use me in this way? And I had three or four people in my life who are still in my life to this day that all affirmed that. And so I know that question's more for, should I go into ministry? But even for me with PhD work, I remember Dr. Russ Fuller sitting me down in his office and saying, I think you should consider doing PhD work. And that was a great confirmation to me that I should move on. So I, when weighting these things, more often weigh the external call higher than the internal call because I can be deceived. But chances are, if I'm asking four or five other mature believers, do you see this call of God in my life? And they're being honest, you're going to get some really good answers to that.Matt Wireman00:47:12 - 00:48:38And I think for that person to start with a posture of, I don't see clearly, and God has given other people to me in my life to help me see clearly. Because a lot of times, you know, folks will ask me like, I think I'm called the ministry. And I'm like, well, that's awesome. Celebrate, first of all. And I don't want to stiff arm anybody in that. No, that's right. We need more laborers. But then secondly, listen to somebody that cares for you and actually is in the work of that ministry to say, hey, maybe instead of going to seminary right now, maybe you could just be here for a couple years and get some relational tools in your belt, you know, so that you can learn like, what is it you're getting into? Because maybe in two years of volunteering at a church, you know, and it's not just to get free labor for people, it's actually in a service to them to be able to say, hey, why don't you just serve here as a volunteer, because if you don't want to do it as a volunteer, then you're probably not, it's going to be even more tainted when you get paid for it. I promise you that. If you're not willing to not be paid for this, then it's going to get tainted really fast. I've seen tons of people in full time ministry who depend upon full time ministry for their salaries, and their lives become a shipwreck, because they start to treat God and divine matters as a slot machine, you know, andBrian Arnold00:48:38 - 00:49:00Absolutely. And there's not much in that slot machine. Let's just say that as well. I mean,ministry, it was really hard. I mean, I had breakfast with my wife this morning and we were just kind of going over some different pieces and remembering back to my years in pastoral ministry when things were exceptionally brutally tight. And it was a challenge.Matt Wireman00:49:00 - 00:49:07As you're getting a call about a man who just, you know, has all of those things going on in his life, right? Yeah, yeah.Brian Arnold00:49:07 - 00:50:06Yeah, exactly. And recognizing that there were times that I just needed to keep going back to 1st Corinthians 9. Woe to me if I don't preach the gospel. Like, it has to be so deep-seated in you. And this is where I will tip the hat to Spurgeon a little bit and say I get why he's saying that. Because there has to be that fire in the belly. Even if I'm not getting paid for it, even if I'm booted out of two or three churches, God has put such a call in my life, I must preach the gospel. I want to see the harvest field full of those kinds of laborers who just say, I'm here because God has called me here. And even if I don't get converts, and even if I run into wall after wall and obstacle after obstacle, God has called me to preach and I'm going to do it. And I think back about people like the Puritans as they were getting kicked out of their ministries and then you have the Five Mile Act. They couldn't be within five miles of their old parishes. And yet they're still preachers of the gospel. We need more of that in our day.Matt Wireman00:50:07 - 00:50:20Yeah, that's great. I'd love to ask what you see as a president of a seminary, what you see are some of the challenges to higher education right now, particularly as it relates to seminary education?Brian Arnold00:50:20 - 00:53:22Sure. I think there's multiple, and there are internal threats and there's external threats as well. The internal threats are a lot of what you and I have been talking about today, Matt, and that is back 20 or 30 years ago, if you were gonna go into pastoral ministry, you would not find a position without having a degree. A master of divinity degreewould have been the bare requirement expected of somebody to go in. Well, now, churches don't really seem to care about that or, you know, an undergrad degree will suffice if it's in Bible. But let's be honest, a lot of pastors don't even have that. They were in banking and felt a call on their life. And so that's part of it from where I'm sittingis how many people in churches I see who don't even care about that minimal level of expertise in the field. So that's one of those kinds of threats, I think. Another one, and these go more to external than, is there's a higher ed bubble out there anyway. And everybody kind of sees this out there as the next one that could burst. And if it bursts, that's gonna be catastrophic on undergraduate institutions. Well, I'm downstream of undergraduate institutions. So if there's fewer and fewer people going to undergrad institutions, then there's gonna be fewer people going to graduate school as well. And so I think that could be a place where we begin to take a bit of pressure and a bit of a hit with enrollment that way. I think part of it is gonna be the cultural piece. It's not getting any easier out there. I think Christian institutions in particular that are going to stay faithful on issues of gender and sexuality are going to have a very difficult road ahead of them. And this is where I hope that the Lord gives us the fulfillment of this. And that is, I hope there's always a Phoenix Seminary. If we had to lose our accreditation because of our stances on some of those issues, then so be it. If we lose a lot of donor money because of our stances, then so be it. If it's just us without walls, we're going into a church basement somewhere and teaching theology, I hope there's always something like that. I think about a guy like Dietrich Bonhoeffer with Fingermann. He's, what do you do in the midst of Nazi Germany oppression? You start a seminary, right? It's amazing. The thing that people would think, well, that needs to go. It's like, no, no, no, we need this now more than ever. So all the threats that I see, those being some of the major ones, I still believe that what we are called to do at a seminary is vital for the health and vitality of the church. And as long as the church is here, we're going to need places of theological higher ed to help prepare those people in the word. So I don't worry about the threats too much. I mean, we got to be wise and anticipate some of those things that are coming and get ready. But at the same time, I think our call is always going to be there.Matt Wireman00:53:23 - 00:53:39That's great. I'd love to hear, I got two more questions for you. Just as you explain some of the challenges to higher ed, particularly Christian higher ed and seminaries, what do you see as some of the greater challenges to the church, to the local church now?Brian Arnold00:53:41 - 00:55:19Yeah, a lot of those would be the same kind of ones, right? Is the pressure right now to conform to the world has probably not been greater in American society since our founding, right? I mean, this is a very new shift in Western civilization. And so I can't imagine being a 12-year-old right now about ready to go to junior high and high school, facing the kind of pressures that these kids are facing from a worldview standpoint. And I think churches have not been well equipped to speak into those. And so they're getting a lot of it from culture, not from the church. Well, pretty soon the churches are going to be far emptier than they are now because of just attrition to the culture. So I think that's a real serious, not existential threat because Jesus has promised that the church will not be overcome by the gates of hell. And I believe that promise and I'm not worried about the church from that aspect, but I do think the harder times are coming for the church. But a lot of that to me goes back and maybe I sound like a one-trick pony on this, but I think the deeper that a pastor is able to go and root people in, then it doesn't matter how hard the winds blow, those people will stay rooted. My fear is that we are seeing in the church these trends coming. And so instead of raising the bar, we keep lowering the bar and wondering why people don't hit it and wondering why peopleare leaving, but we're not giving them a beautiful counter narrative to it at all.Matt Wireman00:55:19 - 00:55:22Lowering the bar in what sense?Brian Arnold00:55:21 - 00:55:55Well, even kind of what we're talking about, right? Why is it that the saints of God know so little about the Bible? Why do they know so little about theology? Why is it when Ligonier comes out with these surveys that they do, they had one question in there, it was a couple of years ago now, maybe just a year or two, it was something about Jesus's humanity was Jesus, like, you know, basically was denying the divinity of Christ,almost like an Aryan kind of response. And I don't know if it was the way the question was worded or something, but it was like 75% of people who took it look like they were Aryans. That should never be.Matt Wireman00:55:55 - 00:56:21And if you don't know what an Aryan is, that's A-R-I-A-N, go look it up. That's one way to look it up. If you don't know what something is, there are tons of resources to be able to just look it up. So if you're hearing this and you're like, Aryan? No, we're not talking about a nation or anything like that. We're talking about the Aryanism. So look up Aryanism and you'll find something. Even if it's on Wikipedia, that's better than nothing.Brian Arnold00:56:21 - 00:56:24That's right. That's right. Just don't become one.Matt Wireman00:56:23 - 00:56:25Yeah, exactly, exactly.Brian Arnold00:56:25 - 00:57:34So they're just not ready. And so we have this view in the church that these concepts are so hard, so big, so difficult. We don't want it to feel like school to people. So we would rather give them 10 steps, like you said before, of healthy parenting and marriage. And everybody wants these practical pieces without understanding the substance of the Christian faith, which is the greatest place for the practical piece of Christian ministry. Like the deeper I know God, the better my marriage is gonna be. The better I know the word, the better my parenting's gonna be. I don't need these offshoots. I need people to take me deeper into the things of God through his word so that I'm prepared to handle anything that comes at us. But instead, we keep moving that lower. And I'm always amazed when you have like an astrophysicist in your church who's like, oh, I just don't really understand the Bible. Look, one of the things that we believe is in the perspicuity of scriptures. Now that's like one of the worst named doctrines ever. It just means the Bible is clear and it should be able to be understood by anyone who calls himself a Christian. So I think oftentimes it's not for intellectual ability,it's lack of trying.Matt Wireman00:57:37 - 00:58:09This has been awesome. I'd love to have our time closed by just a final exhortation that you might give to those who are listening as it relates to knowing the Bible. I think you already have done that and I'm thankful for that, but I'd love to hear, like if you were to sit down with someone who's listening to this podcast and you were to exhort them towards greater love for Jesus, a greater love for the Bible, what would you say to them over a cup of coffee?Brian Arnold00:58:09 - 00:59:55Yeah, I think I would reiterate what I have just the last thing I said is, if you really want to grow as a disciple of Christ, it's by knowing Him. It's by loving His word. And so don't think that I need something else outside, you know, the 10 lessons on this or that to actually grow in the walk with the Lord. Get deeper into those things. When I was in college, my life changed when I got deeper into theology. When I got deeper into theology, my walk got deeper. When suffering came in my life, it was the deep rootedness of my knowledge of who God is that got me through, not little trinkets on the side. And so as a theological educator and as one who is pastored, be a person who seeks those deeper things of God. Be a person who, if you're a pastor listening, take your people deeper. If you're somebody who's at a church that they just simply are not going to do that, find a new church. Life is short. You've got to be at a place that is going to take these things to the utmost seriousness. And I think by doing that, Christianity itself will be able to present that beautiful counter narrative to what's happening out there. As the saints of God, know Him better, cherish His word, and recognize that true human flourishing comes through loving God with all heart, mind, soul, and strength, and loving neighbor as yourself.Matt Wireman00:59:56 - 01:00:10Amen. Great. Thank you so much, Brian. This has been really refreshing and encouraging to be able to have this time with you. I'd love to ask you if you could just end our time by praying and thanking God for our time together and, and yeah, and then we'll close.Brian Arnold 01:00:10 - 01:01:11I'd be happy to. Matt, thanks for having me. This is great. You bet. God, I do thank you for moments like this when we get to take an hour or so and just dwell on you and think about you. And I thank you for Matt and this podcast that he's doing to help try to equip these saints out there for anybody who's listening to know you and your word better.And Lord, I do pray that there will be an awakening in your church. An awakening begins with people who are so full of the Spirit because they're so full of the Word of God. And I pray for pastors in this labor field who will really get the tools that they need and recognize that those are not some additional thing. But these are actually the tools of our trade to get people into this place where they can really love you, heart, mind, soul, body, strength, and begin to love their neighbor. And that people in this culture that is decaying will see that the gospel is full of life and full of fruit. Praise in Christ's name. Amen. Amen.Matt Wireman01:01:11 - 01:01:13Amen. Thank you, brother.Brian Arnold01:01:13 - 01:01:14Thanks again. I appreciate it.

Grace Based Families Podcast July 07, 2023 Episode #100 Host: Michelle Broek Guest: Rustin Russello Michellle and Rustin, a pastor at Scottsdale Bible Church, discuss his story of addiction and redemption. Ruston's addiction became severe and his wife turned him over to God. God, with the help of Alcoholics Anonymous, was able to get Rustin sober and turn his life around. Rustin shares about his experience with alcohol addiction and the role of his marriage in his sobriety and spiritual growth. Addiction is physical, emotional, relational or spiritual, or a combination of these. The importance of healthy boundaries and not enabling addicts is emphasized. Rustin shares his journey through addiction, the importance of authenticity, and doing the work to create a sober lifestyle. The Scottsdale Bible Church website: https://scottsdalebible.com/campuses/shea/ Send your question, comment and prayer requests to: family@gracebasedfamilies.com Make a donation at the Grace Based Families website

Grace Based Families Podcast May 24, 2023 Episode #99 Host: Michelle Broek Guest: Ethan Clark In this podcast episode, Michelle interviews Ethan Clark, a youth pastor at Scottsdale Bible Church, who has over six years of ministry experience. Ethan and his wife Bethany have been married for 10 years and have two children. Ethan shares his experiences with youth ministry as a student and how he was inspired by his youth pastor to pursue vocational ministry. Ethan talks about his role as a youth pastor and what his goals are for the ministry. Ethan shares his desire to outreach to the kids, disciple them, and build relationships with them. He also emphasizes the importance of ministering to families as a whole so that they can reinforce what the kids are learning at home. Send your question, comment, and prayer requests to: family@gracebasedfamilies.com Make a donation at the Grace Based Families website

Some consider work a part of the Fall. The toil. The hardship. It's a means to an end. Others wake up and love what they get to do. It's a call. A passion. It's more than a paycheck. It definitely feels like a divine opportunity. Some are fighting for their identity at work and others are using it to numb out. We call that workaholism. Wherever you are on the spectrum, we think today's conversation has something for you. We are going to talk about how to find grace at work and create a culture where people are more than means to end. Our guests today are Dr. Tim Kimmel and Michael Tooker, co-authors of the book, Grace at Work: The Secret to Getting More from Your Job than a Paycheck.   Dr. Tim Kimmel is the founder and Executive Director of Grace Based Families, a ministry that aims to see families transformed by God's grace into instruments of reformation and restoration. Tim and Grace Based Families conduct marriage and parenting conferences across the country and the world to address the unique pressures experienced by today's families.    Michael Tooker has spent most of his career in the highly competitive world of corporate America. He's seen firsthand the impact work culture makes on employee contentment and the company's bottom line. After 25 years, Michael recently moved from a corner office to serving at one of the largest churches in America, Scottsdale Bible Church in Arizona. Regardless of the type of workplace, he understands that a culture of grace makes all the difference.   Michael shares his own story of workaholism and redemption in his marriage. Dr. Kimmel brings a lens of seasoned wisdom. And as always, we just keep it real. Listen in as we talk about how to find purpose, meaning, and grace in our work spaces, no matter where we work.    To connect with Dr. Tim Kimmel, visit: ONLINE –  www.gracebasedfamilies.com SOCIAL –  LinkedIn- Tim Kimmel Facebook – Tim Kimmel & Grace Based Families Twitter - @timkimmmel Instagram - @gracebasedfamilies BOOK -  Grace at Work: The Secret to Getting More from Your Job than a Paycheck PODCAST -  Grace Based Families - Special Series: Grace at Work   To connect with Michael Tooker, visit: SOCIAL –  LinkedIn- Michael Tooker Facebook – Michael Tooker BOOK - Grace at Work: The Secret to Getting More from Your Job than a Paycheck PODCAST -  Grace Based Families - Special Series: Grace at Work If you are a female leader and looking for a way to connect with us, our Executive Coaches, Connie Armerding, Rhonda Began and I, Terra Mattson, will be leading a 6 month group coaching series. It will run through July 2023, meeting on the 2nd Tuesday of the month, 9:00 - 10:00 a.m. Pacific Time. You can register anytime. It's only $45/month and we will be covering all those unique challenges women face as leaders. To find out more, go to www.livingwholehearted.com/executive-coaching.   We LOVE that you have decided to join us this week for the Living Wholehearted Podcast. We hope you enjoyed the conversation, tips, and resources to help you transform every relationship that matters most to you. If you think this will help someone you know, make sure you send it their way or share on socials. Tag us @living_wholehearted and @terramattson! Don't forget to FOLLOW/SUBSCRIBE so you don't miss an episode and help spread the word by leaving us some stars on a review. Thanks for partnering with us to help more leaders, just like you, who want to live and lead with integrity at home, work and in the community.  You can always subscribe to our monthly newsletters at livingwholehearted.com. And, if you are a girl mom, check out mycourageousgirls.com.   Until next time, be the leader you would follow!   Grateful for you, Jeff & Terra   To connect with Jeff & Terra Mattson and Living Wholehearted, go to:   INSTAGRAM @TerraMattson @Living_Wholehearted @MyCourageousGirls   FACEBOOK @WeAreLivingWholehearted @MyCourageousGirls   WEBSITES LivingWholehearted.com TerraMattson.com  MyCourageousGirls.com   RESOURCES Shrinking the Integrity Gap        https://davidccook.org/shrinking-integrity-gap-book/ Shrinking the Integrity Gap e-Course        https://www.livingwholeheartedstore.com/e-courses Courageous: Being Daughters Rooted in Grace       https://mycourageousgirls.com/shop/p/book-courageous-being-daughters-rooted-in-grace Dear Mattsons        https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLdPzQ_cUwCbRc-MQ40KL3a6ze06CiY38l Helping Moms Raise Confident Daughters        http://cpguides.org   Living Wholehearted is a part of the Christian Parenting Podcast Network. To find practical and spiritual advice to help you grow into the parent you want to be visit www.ChristianParenting.org

In today's podcast, Christa Neidig talks to co-authors, Michael Tooker, Pastor of Central Ministries at Scottsdale Bible Church, and Tim Kimmel, Founder and Executive Director of Grace Based Families. Tim and Michael talk about their new book, Grace at Work. They talk about the importance of treating others the way that God treats you. Tim and Michael share tangible, grace-based principles that can be used in your workplace. We hope you enjoy this conversation!   https://www.vanderbloemen.com/blog/a-grace-filled-work-place

Guest: Dr. Kyle DiRoberts | Dr. Arnold interviews Dr. DiRoberts about prayer. Topics of conversation include, 1) A definition of prayer, 2) Common barriers/obstacles to prayer, 3) How to use Scripture as a guide for prayer,  4) What it means to pray without ceasing, and 5) Resources for further reading on prayer. Dr. Kyle DiRoberts is Department Chair and associate professor of Biblical and Theological Studies at Arizona Christian University. He also serves as adjunct faculty at Phoenix Seminary, and as the Director of the Minister in Residence and Internship programs at Scottsdale Bible Church. Dr. DiRoberts holds a PhD from Dallas Theological Seminary and is the author of The Secret to Prayer: 31 Days to a More Intimate Relationship with God (B&H Books, 2021).See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The authors of the book, Grace at Work: The Secret to Getting More from Your Job Than a Paycheck: Tim Kimmel, Founder and Executive Director of Grace Based Families and Michael Tooker, Pastor of Central Ministries at Scottsdale Bible Church, both based in Scottsdale, AZ, discussed the concepts about representing and extending God's grace in the workplace environment. The book's website is graceatworkbook.com.

The authors of the book, Grace at Work: The Secret to Getting More from Your Job Than a Paycheck: Tim Kimmel, Founder and Executive Director of Grace Based Families and Michael Tooker, Pastor of Central Ministries at Scottsdale Bible Church, both based in Scottsdale, AZ, discussed the concepts about representing and extending God's grace in the workplace environment. The book's website is graceatworkbook.com.

Kyle DiRoberts (PhD) is department chair and associate professor of Biblical and Theological Studies at Arizona Christian University in Glendale, Arizona, adjunct professor at Phoenix Seminary, and director of the minister in residence and internship programs at Scottsdale Bible Church.

Ken welcomes Diana Butler Bass, an author, speaker, and independent scholar specializing in American religion and culture. They talk about her new book (to be released March 31, 2021) Freeing Jesus. Diana shares the background that took her from the East Coast to Arizona and Scottsdale Bible Church where she made a commitment to follow Jesus. It took her to Westmont College and Gordon-Conwell Seminary where she began to have deep questions about her faith. They discuss Marcus Borg, Josh McDowell, C.S. Lewis. the Quakers, Augustine vs Pelagius, Calvinism and Dr. Richard Rohr.See Show Notes for more.Original broadcast, March 2021Become a Patron; www.patreon.com/beachedwhitemaleSupport the show (http://thebeachedwhitemale.com)Support the show (http://thebeachedwhitemale.com)

Today's guest is Sandy. He is the Director of Pastoral Care for Redemption Church. He functions as a “pastor to the pastors” to give - especially Lead Pastors - support and encouragement. He has a long history pastoring in Arizona and the “scars” to prove it. We're very thankful for the ways he uses his wisdom to bless Redemption.During this episode we talk about: being an Arizona native  growing up the oldest of four boys in a complicated family growing up Lutheran and meeting Jesus at Arizona State University going all in on Jesus in college and his girlfriend (now wife) becoming a Christian too working for YoungLife, going to seminary and becoming a Youth Pastor leading a church in Pennsylvania the challenges of being a young lead pastor of a fast growing church planting Desert View (with Scottsdale Bible Church) his role in Redemption - “being a pastor to pastors” what encourages him about this generation of Church leaders - and what concerns him what's fun about his ministry right now

http://archive.scottsdalebible.com/assets/sermons/videohd/20220102DDELHOUSAYE.mp4 Sun, 02 Jan 2022 13:33:28 -0700 Christianity no 00:35:31 scottsdale, bible, church,sermon,christian feedback@sbcaz.org (Scottsdale Bible Church)

Pastor Neil Montgomery, Associate to the Senior Pastor of Scottsdale Bible Church, teaches on procrastination from the Book of Acts 24:22-27. Part 75 from the "Acts: We're on a Mission from God" series. North Chapel is a part of the Scottsdale Bible Church family Sunday Worship Services | 8:30am & 10am (Arizona Time) Join us live at https://www.nclive.net​ Previous Sermon Messages: https://www.northchapel.net/sermons-series

Hey Girl Hey!In today's episode of Motherhood Mindset, I chat with Susan Miller of JustMoved.org, as she offers 3 Steps to Navigating Life's Challenges, Moves and Tough Transitions. Susan Miller is founder of Just Moved Ministries, author of After the Boxes are Unpacked and host of Hope for the Uprooted podcast.We talk about Nicks and Dings, similar to what you might see on a car; she defines those tough moments in life: A planned move, a new job. That's what is considered a Nick.Versus those unplanned moments: a divorce, a bankruptcy, loss of a spouse, unexpected events that take you to the lowest depth, full of Sadness, Anger & Shame. These are what she calls Dings.Susan offers 3 Actionable Steps to finding the goodness in the hard places, to turn those nicks and dings into a calling and a purpose greater than ourselves.Want to grab a copy of Living Your Best Life or After the Boxes are Unpacked? Stop by the Scottsdale Bible Church bookstore and grab yours today.  Also, sign up to a JustMoved.org class. Not in the Phoenix area? There are classes in just about every state. You can take an online class or start your own bible study.Scriptures: Galatians 6:9, Deut 31:6-8, Matt 10: 29-31He is your anchor in the midst of the storm. Don't be afraid, for the Lord will go before you and will be with you. He will not fail you or forsake you. Deut 31: 6-8About the Show:Hey mama, are you ready to live life to the full instead of the busy, exchanging guilt for grace? With humor and relatable stories, we'll find goodness in the hard places. It's time to become the person God created you to be, Yourself! Here's to Living Your Best Life!Please call 480-788-1805 for sponsorship or speaking engagements.Steph's Bio:Stephanie Pletka is a motivational speaker and author of Living Your Best Life. With humor, she tells relatable stories to help women let go of what doesn't serve them, to chase their dreams and write their story. She's a mom of 4 who who turned her pain into a platform of change to help moms find the goodness in the hard places. A family of 6, they hit the road for a life of adventure, traveling, educating and working on the road, visiting 45 states and 10 countries. She now resides in Scottsdale, AZ enjoying the beauty of the West.Links:justmoved.orgreachus@justmoved.org@stephaniepletka IGstephaniepletka.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

My guest Jake Embleton and I discuss the upcoming SouthwestMission ConneXion Conference at Scottsdale Bible Church on November 5th and 6th.  The "why" of the conference is to understand clearly   “What's Our Role in the Great Commission?” – Highlighting that everyone who is a follower of Jesus has a role to grasp, based on each person's abilities, gifting's and calling – to fulfill the Great Commission Jesus left us, His Church, to do. Guest: Jake Embleton See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Kyle DiRoberts (PhD) is department chair and associate professor of Biblical and Theological Studies at Arizona Christian University in Glendale, Arizona, adjunct professor at Phoenix Seminary, and director of the minister in residence and internship programs at Scottsdale Bible Church. He is married to Lolly and the father of Kaden, Oliver, and Carson. With any free time, he hangs out with his wife and kids, his favorite people, going to Michael Bublé concerts, cooking, traveling, eating good food, and getting to coach his kids in golf and baseball. Related Links: WEBSITE: KyleDiRoberts.com TWITTER: @kdiroberts INSTAGRAM: @kdiroberts BOOK: The Secret to Prayer: 31 Days to a More Intimate Relationship with God

"A Secret of Secrets: Humility the Soul of True Prayer"- Andrew MurrayMany Christians struggle to pray for a variety of reasons. In today's podcast, we had the privilege to interview Kyle DiRoberts about his new book The Secret to Prayer: 31 Days to a More Intimate Relationship with God. Kyle is Department Chair and Associate Professor of Biblical and Theological Studies at Arizona Christian University in Glendale, Arizona, adjunct professor at Phoenix Seminary, and director of the minister in residence and internship programs at Scottsdale Bible Church. But more importantly, he is a husband and father who loves Jesus. In his book, Kyle seeks to help us demystify talking to our Heavenly Father and approach God with confidence in His promises. To get your own copy of Kyles book go here: https://www.lifeway.com/en/product/the-secret-to-prayer-P005831296Follow Kyle on all social platforms @kdirobertsOr just check out his website: https://www.kylediroberts.com/

Having a high impact life for Christ comes with certain must haves, like: attention to the little things, being genuinely humble, being caring, and being fully engaged. Pastor Neil Montgomery of Scottsdale Bible Church shares what it takes to live large for Jesus. Part 60 from the "Acts: We're on a Mission from God" series.

Rustin Rossello talks with Mike Broomhead about an uplifting story! See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Join North Chapel Bible Church as Pastor Mike Burnidge of Scottsdale Bible Church shares a sermon on the importance of living lives full of compassion for others. Sermon Series: À La Carte North Chapel is a part of the Scottsdale Bible Church family Sunday Worship Services | 8:30am & 10am (Arizona Time) Join us live at https://www.nclive.net​ Previous Sermon Messages: https://www.northchapel.net/sermons-series

Ken welcomes Diana Butler Bass, an author, speaker, and independent scholar specializing in American religion and culture. They talk about her new book (to be released March 31, 2021) Freeing Jesus. Diana shares the background that took her from the East Coast to Arizona and Scottsdale Bible Church where she made a commitment to follow Jesus. It took her to Westmont College and Gordon-Conwell Seminary where she began to have deep questions about her faith. They discuss Marcus Borg, Josh McDowell, C.S. Lewis. the Quakers, Augustine vs Pelagius, Calvinism and Dr. Richard Rohr. See Show Notes for more.Edition 84Support the show (http://thebeachedwhitemale.com)

In this episode of the Entrepreneurial Ministry Leader Podcast, we talk with Shannon Cox, Director of Local Outreach for Scottsdale Bible Church. We talk about lessons learned, observations, and differences working as a marketplace leader, nonprofit executive, and now in her role at a church. We also talk about funding during this time of COVID.

Big Picture: 2020 saw a surge in self-proclaimed prophets who made predictions that didn’t come to pass leaving some with feelings of disillusioned and others very confused as to what to believe. The Bible remains the Gold Standard source for revealing what can be counted on for the future.Sunday Worship Services  |  8:30am & 10am (Arizona Time)Join us live at www.nclive.netDr. Bobby Brewer, Lead Pastor of North ChapelNorth Chapel is a part of the Scottsdale Bible Church family

Episode Summary: Today we’re going to be talking about how life often doesn’t go the way we planned for it to go, which often makes us wonder where God is or if he sees or cares. My guest today, Tracy Steel, is a lover of both interior design and theology who combines these two passions to creatively help women find peace and understand who God is and his purpose for them whenever their life doesn’t go as they hoped or planned for. Quotables from the episode: We can’t find comfort, security, and contentment in anything but God. The only thing that remains constant is God himself. Sometimes when we experience greater loss, it sets the stage to experience more of God’s comfort. Is God your focal point? Scripture References: 1 Corinthians 15:58 “So, my dear brothers and sisters, be strong and immovable. Always work enthusiastically for the Lord, for you know that nothing you do for the Lord is ever useless. Psalm 33:11 “But the Lord’s plans stand firm forever; his intentions can never be shaken.” Hebrews 2:10 “God, for whom and through whom everything was made, chose to bring many children into glory. And it was only right that he should make Jesus, through his suffering, a perfect leader, fit to bring them into their salvation.” Recommended Resources: “A Redesigned Life: Uncovering God’s Purposes When Life Doesn’t Go As Planned” by Tracy Steel A 5-Day Reading Plan for Uncovering God's Purpose For You by Tracy Steel - Bible.com Reading Plan “Praying God’s Word” by Beth Moore Free Download: How To Fight Fearful/Anxious Thoughts and Win Breaking Anxiety’s Grip: How to Reclaim the Peace God Promises by Dr. Michelle Bengtson Breaking Anxiety’s Grip Free Study Guide Free 7-Day YouVersion Bible Reading Plan for Breaking Anxiety’s Grip Hope Prevails: Insights from a Doctor’s Personal Journey Through Depression by Dr. Michelle Bengtson, winner of the Christian Literary Award Reader’s Choice Award Hope Prevails Bible Study by Dr. Michelle Bengtson, winner of the Christian Literary Award Reader’s Choice Award Social Media Links for Guest and  Host: Connect with Tracy Steel: Website / Facebook / Instagram / Twitter For more hope, stay connected with Dr. Bengtson at: Order Book Breaking Anxiety’s Grip / Order Book Hope Prevails  /  Website  /  Blog  /  Facebook / Twitter (@DrMBengtson)  /  LinkedIn  /  Instagram / Pinterest / YouTube / Podcast Guest: Tracy Steel graduated from Kansas State University with a BS in interior design in 1998 and has a master’s degree in biblical and theological studies from Phoenix Seminary. As a project designer, Tracy created and coordinated the design and space planning of commercial spaces for clients such as Bank One, Wells Fargo, Express Scripts, DHS, and Lockheed Martin. Moving from one type of interior design to another, Tracy then worked in full-time youth ministry, serving as the director of female students at Scottsdale Bible Church. God’s true design for Tracy now involves improving the interior space of the hearts and minds of women around her. Currently stationed in Washington, DC, this military wife and mother of two enjoys linking up with other bloggers, leading Bible studies at her local church, and speaking at various moms’ groups and women’s ministries events nationwide. She is also the author of Images of His Beauty, a 10-week Bible study for young women that focuses on identity, overcoming and healing through Christ, and bearing the image of Christ. Hosted By: Dr. Michelle Bengtson Audio Technical Support: Bryce Bengtson

Neil Montgomery, Congregational Care Pastor at Scottsdale Bible Church, quoting Larry Crabb, defines agape love as "putting the needs of another person ahead of my own at any cost." Neil says the true expression of our worship is without doubt the way we relate to one another. Neil articulates, "We are simply to be like Christ in walking with people through their problems", rather than fixing them. "When you surrender and taste freedom and you begin to truly see yourself as a worshipper 24/7, then God turns you -- and you begin to pour out your life in generosity." Neil shares a powerful time when God brought him to the end of himself, and he gave up the control of the outcomes. "Let God control the outcome, and learn to feed your soul. Learn to abide and rest in him, and let the fruit of the spirit be the thing that comes out."See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Dave knew what he wanted from an early age - the money, the wife, the house, the cars - everything he could possibly get his hands on. Then, everything changed. We discuss how his dedication to his job negatively impacted not only life at home but also the relationships in his life. He lost his marriage, his business partner and made a conscious choice to end his own life. When he finally found Jesus, it was his faith that allowed him to not only recover to a stable state professionally, but also reconcile the relationships that he had lost due to his selfish greed. Alongside his role as CEO and president of Integrity Capital, he is also an Elder at Scottsdale Bible Church, where he has been going since 2010. He has a ministry called Aiming at True North, which is centered around evangelism to people in the marketplace. To learn more about Integrity Capital, please visit https://www.integrity-capital.com/ You can connect with Dave on LinkedIn.

Pastor Dustin Daniels interviews Pastor Rustin Rossello from Scottsdale Bible Church. Have you been a Christ-follower for years but still fall to the temptation of lust and porn? Could it be that by looking at porn at home, at work or on your mobile device....you are actually inviting evil into your life?

Marc and Rustin Rossello from Scottsdale Bible Church discuss if the COVID-19 is causing disruption or is it exposing disruption that already existed?  Show Notes-  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There is a vast difference between living in the Spirit and living in the flesh. The flesh tells us to do in order to receive. The Spirit says to accept God's grace and receive. The moment we cease living in the flesh and embrace God's Holy Spirit, we truly start living as we are called to and His radiance is quite evident in our lives. Join North Chapel as Guest-Speaker, Pastor Neil Montgomery of Scottsdale Bible Church delves deep into this topic within the 2nd chapter of the Book of Acts.

Marc and Rustin Rossello from Scottsdale Bible Church discuss "authenticity" and the benefits of living a life that's authentic/raw. It's OK to not be OK but it's NOT OK to stay that way! See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What makes your home beautiful is YOU! -Tracy Steel Do you love design shows like “Fixer Upper” or anything else on HGTV? Most of us would love for Joanna Gaines or the Property Brothers to stop by and give our homes a fresh look! However, I’m talking with my friend and fabulous interior designer, Tracy Steel about how you can freshen up your heart and your home this summer. Make sure to check out the photos of Tracy’s beautiful home on the blog page. Not only is she a military wife, mother of two, and a talented designer, but Tracy just graduated from Phoenix Seminary with a Master’s Degree in Biblical and Theological Studies in May 2019. She loves teaching God’s Word and equipping people to fully embrace the space they’re living in. In today’s Better Together podcast, Tracy shares five ways to freshen your heart and home by combining wisdom from God’s Word with practical design advice: Look up (ceilings/Colossians 3:1-4) Clean up (declutter/Colossians 3:5-8) Brighten/Change up: (re-polish/repaint/refurbish walls/doors, change out accessories/Colossians 3:12-14) Hang up: (picture wall/ Colossians 3:15) Open up (doors/windows/Colossians 3:16) Tracy’s new book, A Redesigned Life: Uncovering God’s Purpose When Life Doesn’t Go As Planned releases this August 2019. Listen to the podcast to learn more about some of the free and fun giveaways Tracy will offer – like a FREE design consult! CONNECT WITH TRACY STEEL  Website |  Facebook  |  Instagram  | Twitter   About Today's Guest Tracy Steel... Tracy Steel graduated from Kansas State University with a BS in Interior Design in 1998. Eager to change her clients’ lives by improving the interior space they occupied, she thought she had the blueprints for her future completed. In the midst of designing corporate spaces and sorting through fabric samples, Tracy fell in love with Jesus Christ and He changed everything. Since 2001 Tracy has been involved in youth and women’s ministry and served as the Director of Female Students from Scottsdale Bible Church from 2005–2007. In May 2019, Tracy graduated from Phoenix Seminary with a Master’s Degree in Biblical and Theological studies, and is the author of Images of His Beauty and A Redesigned Life. But Tracy is most proud of her military man and of her two spirited kiddos that call her mama. To learn more about Tracy, please visit tracymsteel.com About your Better Together Host... Barb Roose is a popular speaker and author who is passionate about equipping women to win at life with Christ-empowered strength and dignity. Barb loves speaking at women’s conference and leadership events such as the Aspire Women’s Events, She Speaks Conference and the UMC Leadership Institute. Barb is the author of multiple books and Bible studies, including her newest releases: Winning the Worry Battle: Life Lessons from the Book of Joshua and Bible study called Joshua: Winning the Worry Battle. Barb’s writing has been featured in magazines or blogs such as Simple Truth Magazine, iBelieve.com, Crosswalk.com, More to Life Magazine, Just Between Us Magazine, Cherished, InCourage and Women of Faith. An avid traveler, reader, and lover of all things chocolate-peanut butter, Barb lives in NW Ohio and she is the proud mother of three adult daughters. Visit Barb’s online home at barbroose.com.  

Incorporating God's word into our parenting is sometimes difficult to do.  Join us today as Tracy Steel helps us to know how to remove the lies that our children believe and replace those lies with the truth of His word.  We will be discussing her book Images of His Beauty. Tracy Steel is an author speaker, mentor and shepherd of teen and young adult women.  She graduated from Phoenix Seminary and formerly served as the director of female students at Scottsdale Bible Church in Arizona.  She is happily married to a pilot in the air force and has 2 children.

Have you ever been concerned about how consumed your children are with their image?  Join us today as Tracy Steel helps us to know how to help our children find their identity in Christ alone.  We will be discussing her book Images of His Beauty and she will share some great tips and tricks of how to steer your children away from an eating disorder. Tracy Steel is an author speaker, mentor and shepherd of teen and young adult women.  She graduated from Phoenix Seminary and formerly served as the director of female students at Scottsdale Bible Church in Arizona.  She is happily married to a pilot in the air force and has 2 children.

On this episode of Fresh Hope for Mental Health, Pastor Brad Hoefs talks with Author and Senior Pastor of Scottsdale Bible Church, Jamie Rasmussen about his book; “How Joyful People Think: 8 Ways of Thinking That Lead to a Better Life." Why is it important that we change our thinking? How does the Bible tell us to think? Is it possible to have joy when your depressed? We encourage you to share this podcast with your friends via your social media connections. After listening to this podcast, we encourage you to email us at info@FreshHope.us with a comment or question that we will share on our next podcast.   If you are listening to this podcast on iTunes, we encourage you to leave a comment regarding the podcast. Or you can leave a voice message for us on the site:  www.FreshHope4MentalHealth.com Pastor Brad Hoefs, the host of Fresh Hope for Mental Health, is the founder of Fresh Hope Ministries, a network of Christian mental health support groups for those who have a diagnosis and their loved ones. In other words, Fresh Hope is a Christian mental health support group.  Brad was diagnosed with bipolar disorder in 1995. He is a weekly blogger for www.bphope.com (Bipolar Magazine). He is also a certified peer specialist and has been doing pastoral counseling since 1985. Brad is also the author of Fresh Hope: Living Well in Spite of a Mental Health Diagnosis, which is available on Amazon or at www.FreshHopeBook.com If you are interested in more information about Fresh Hope, go to www.FreshHope.us or email info@FreshHope.us or call 402.932.3089. To donate to Fresh Hope go to http://freshhope.us/donate/  For a complete list of where Fresh Hope groups are presently meeting, go to www.FreshHope.us and click on “find a group.”  Or you may attain an online group of meetings of Fresh Hope by going to www.FreshHopeMeeting.com If you are interested in starting a Fresh Hope group within your faith community, contact Julie at Julie@FreshHope.us  Fresh Hope for Mental Health is a production of Fresh Hope Ministries.  Fresh Hope Ministries is a non-profit ministry.   The copyrights of this program belong to Fresh Hope Ministries and may not be duplicated without written permission.  All of the podcasts of Fresh Hope Today, as well as numerous other videos, are all available on our YouTube channel: Fresh Hope Network  Fresh Hope for Mental Health is on Facebook at  www.Facebook.com/FreshHopeforMentalHealth  

Guest speaker Ethan Collins of Scottsdale Bible Church shares some insight into the nature of our heavenly Father through the Parable of the Friend at Midnight.

A Warrior's Faith: Navy SEAL Ryan Job, a Life-Changing Firefight, and the Belief That Transformed His Life. The biggest film in America has a companion story you must know. “American Sniper” follows the life of Navy SEAL Chris Kyle, the most deadly sniper in American history and his Navy SEAL Team 3 brothers. The movie made history of it’s own by becoming the largest grossing film debut in the month of January ever, raking in over $107 million dollars in it’s opening weekend.  The movie version of “American Sniper” was adapted from Kyle’s New York Times #1 best selling book, which was dedicated to Kyle’s NAVY Seal teammate and close friend Ryan “Biggles” Job (pronounced Jobe), a central character in both the book and film. Hollywood actor Jake McDorman portrayed Ryan Job in the film version, while “American Sniper” co-producer Bradley Cooper plays Kyle. The real life Ryan Job lived, and tragically died, in Scottsdale Arizona.  Chris Kyle and Ryan Job were SEAL teammate on SEAL Team 3. The two were on a rooftop in Ramadi, Iraq when Job was shot in the face and gravely wounded by an enemy sniper. Job miraculously survived but was rendered permanently blind in the incident, captured in one of the movie’s most harrowing sequences.  Shortly after returning stateside for facial reconstructive surgery and rehabilitation, Ryan Job settled with his wife in Scottsdale, where he attended Scottsdale Bible Church, became involved in wounded veteran’s causes and befriended Robert Vera.  Vera, a former U.S. Senate aide on military affairs, trained with Ryan in the hills around Phoenix for Job’s blind hike to the summit of Mt. Rainier.  At 14, 411 feet Mt. Rainier is one the most challenging and deadliest peaks in America. An avid hunter, the totally blind former SEAL also managed to successfully hunt a massive 980 pound bull elk. Vera and Job were close friends, and trained together to race Ironman triathlons. Ryan earned his college degree with honors and served as a spokesman for disabled veterans organization.  Tragically, after surviving the deadly attack in Iraq and with his wife pregnant with their first child, Ryan Job died of a medical overdose at Maricopa County Medical Center, two days after a round of facial reconstructive surgeries. Ryan Job’s real life story is more complex, more inspiring and in some ways even more tragic than Chris Kyle’s, says Vera, who pays tribute to his fallen friend in a new book; “A Warrior’s Faith: Navy SEAL Ryan Job, a Life-Changing Firefight, and the Belief That Transformed His Life”. The book will be released March 3rd by HarperCollins. “I hope that readers will come away as inspired by Ryan’s courage, determination and faith, as I was,” Vera said.  Vera, who was also friendly with Chris Kyle, says that the runaway success of the film “American Sniper” and seeing his friends portrayed on the silver screen has taken him by surprise. “The movie was a little eerie for me, it was like seeing a ghost because Jake McDorman actually looked and sounded a lot like Ryan”.  Vera gave the eulogy at Ryan’s funeral in Scottsdale that was attended by several hundred Navy SEALs from around the globe. He was also in attendance at Kyle’s funeral service in Texas in 2013.   “A Warrior’s Faith” chronicles’ Job’s amazing life from the time he was wounded and made blind to his summit climb of Mt. Rainier and his elk hunting adventure, all while blind, his unstoppable spirit and unshakeable faith, until his tragic death in 2009. Robert Vera enjoyed a twenty-year career in the banking industry. In 2006 he took a leap of faith to follow his dream to become an entrepreneur. Robert serves on a number of non-profit boards and as a mentor to returning veterans. He earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science from Boston College.

How the principles in the "Poverty of Nations" apply to poor countries when Scottsdale Bible Church supports mission work - Fred Beasley and Dr. Wayne Grudem

We continue our conversation with Pastor Darien Bennett, addressing questions such as:  What does true love look like from a Godly man?  Are you angry and don't know why?  Are you trying really hard to not do what you know is wrong? Guest: Darien Bennett, Pastor of Men's Ministries at Scottsdale Bible Church Click here to join our free online community! Like what you hear?  Support the ministry through prayer and becoming a financial Purity Partner. Click Here! 

Pastor Darien Bennett tells us his amazing testimony of his old football days, corporate life at IBM, and the way he treated anyone who got in his way. Guest: Darien Bennett, Pastor of Men's Ministries at Scottsdale Bible Church Click here to join our free online community! Like what you hear?  Support the ministry through prayer and becoming a financial Purity Partner. Click Here! 

This message goes over the vision of Scottsdale Bible Church for the next few years.

This message goes over the vision of Scottsdale Bible Church for the next few years.

This message goes over the vision of Scottsdale Bible Church for the next few years.