Growing Together
The typical church in the United States is growing older and growing smaller. Research indicates that as many as half of the people growing up in Christian churches today will end up walking away from their religious affiliation. The Growing Together Podcast is all about honest and hopeful conversation with leaders who are challenging the narrative and creating thriving Seventh-day Adventist Churches for all generations. The current state of the church today is not the end of the story, and you can be part of the change. Listen, learn, be inspired, and share with your network. We are stronger together.
Episodes
32 episodes
Reconciliation: What to do When our Young People Fail Us
In the Season 2 finale, Benjamin Lundquist and Kaleb Eisele return to discuss the elephant in the room - how to handle the mistakes and failures of young leaders in our communities. Some of the greatest examples of how to handle mistakes take t...
•
Season 2
•
Episode 16
•
15:14
We're Being Watched - Leading Ourselves Well
Trusting our leaders has less and less to do with what they say - and far more to do with how we see them live. Benjamin Lundquist and Kaleb Eisele return to talk about how to develop healthy habits and how to lead effectively both on and off t...
•
Season 2
•
Episode 15
•
23:03
Being the Best Neighbors, Part 3
Connecting across social and cultural barriers has proven to be one of the greatest obstacles for the Christian church today. In this episode, Dr. Heather Thompson Day takes us back to the Bible - back to the stories of Jesus - to explore how b...
•
Season 2
•
Episode 14
•
18:31
Being the Best Neighbors, Part 2
In September of 2020, a rash of wildfires tore through the Pacific Northwest. In this episode, Benjamin Lundquist and Kaleb Eisele return to talk about neighboring in disaster and times of need. How can we show up when our community needs us mo...
•
Season 2
•
Episode 13
•
15:19
Being the Best Neighbors, Part 1
Connecting with young people already in your church is important - but how can we connect effectively beyond our church walls? One tip from Alina van Rensberg - "Get in your car. Drive around the neighborhood and see who's there. See what peopl...
•
Season 2
•
Episode 12
•
16:27
Get Creative: Rethinking Youth Socials
"While we need to meet people where they are, it's better to do it with them than for them." How do we create meaningful relationship-building social events in a rapidly changing world? Are the methods we used in the past sufficient for today? ...
•
Season 2
•
Episode 11
•
12:24
Prioritizing Young People Everywhere, Part 3
What happens when you give young people a voice of their own? For Pastor Terrance Taylor, it mean allowing them to offer criticism. In one especially poignant interaction, Pastor Taylor's daughter told him, "This church isn't ready for me to in...
•
Season 2
•
Episode 10
•
14:31
Prioritizing Young People Everywhere, Part 2
Pastor Terrance Taylor returns to share how his church began implementing the Growing Young principles locally - and how simple, intentional efforts began to result in lasting change. In pastor Taylor's words, "People are drawn by relatio...
•
Season 2
•
Episode 9
•
17:22
Prioritizing Young People Everywhere, Part 1
"If they wanted to come back, what kind of church would they want to come back to?" Pastor Terrance Taylor was challenged to reshape his church culture in a time where he himself was disconnecting with the church he was pastoring. Today, t...
•
Season 2
•
Episode 8
•
17:29
Fueling Warm Community, Part 3
The internet is a place of its own. In a world ravaged by the COVID-19 pandemic and natural disasters, the internet is also a place where many communities begin. In some cases, it's a lifeline for people to connect to each other. Dr. Heather Th...
•
Season 2
•
Episode 7
•
15:24
Fueling Warm Community, Part 2
Ben and Kaleb return to discuss the role of authenticity in community building and leadership. But what's the difference between being authentic and oversharing? How do we walk the line of honesty and transparency in a way that builds real conn...
•
Season 2
•
Episode 6
•
18:05
Fueling Warm Community, Part 1
Kaleb Eisele was brought back to church after leaving for several years - but not through a great program. It was through warm community. Programs have a beginning and an end, but community is all about the long term. Ben Lundquist and Kaleb Ei...
•
Season 2
•
Episode 5
•
17:14
Taking Jesus Message Seriously, Part 3
What people often see in Christians is that we deeply defend ourselves - but does the world see us defending others with the same conviction? Dr. Heather Thompson Day returns to discuss some of the widening gaps between young people and Christi...
•
Season 2
•
Episode 4
•
16:32
Taking Jesus' Message Seriously, Part 2
Alina & Martin van Rensburg return to continue the conversation on Jesus' life and real-world applications in our current lives. Alina asks, "What are the guiding principles behind the things Jesus did?"
•
Season 2
•
Episode 3
•
14:52
Taking Jesus' Message Seriously, Part 1
As life coaches and public speakers, Martin and Alina van Rensburg are a constant presence in the lives of young people around South Queensland, Australia. Living like Jesus is something all generations of Christians try to do, but how do...
•
Season 2
•
Episode 2
•
14:16
Empathizing with Today's Young People, Part 3
Dr. Heather Thompson Day, a professor of Communication at Colorado Christian University, joins us to discuss trends and differences between Millennials and the next generation of young people coming up behind them in the church today - Generati...
•
Season 2
•
Episode 1
•
16:15
Empathizing with Young People, Part 2
What's the difference between empathy and sympathy? Although the difference may not seem important, learning it can be life changing, especially when it comes to building meaningful relationships with young people. As Justin Yang shares, ...
•
Season 1
•
Episode 16
•
16:14
Empathizing with Young People, Part 1
"In one of my first interviews with my new church, there was actually an elder that met me during potluck and pinned me to the wall and threatened me not to come. He said if you come, I will make your life miserable. That was my first introduct...
•
Season 1
•
Episode 15
•
17:42
Unlocking Keychain Leadership, Part 3
Passing over the keys can be incredibly difficult, especially if your experiences in the past haven't been great. Depending on the culture you were raised in, sometimes there are additional expectations that leadership needs to be earned as wel...
•
Season 1
•
Episode 14
•
16:17
Unlocking Keychain Leadership, Part 2
In passing down responsibilities and leadership to young leaders, a major pitfall can be doing so in a way that's patronizing. Pastor Juan Rodriguez and host Justin Khoe talk about how to work together in meaningful ways, as well as some other ...
•
Season 1
•
Episode 13
•
15:34
Unlocking Keychain Leadership, Part 1
Keychain leadership is a process of transitioning young people into leadership roles. In this episode, pastor Juan Rodriguez shares how to go about passing on responsibilities, leadership, and decision-making power to rising leaders, and how to...
•
Season 1
•
Episode 12
•
16:10
Growing Young: 6 Core Commitments
Jake Mulder, Director of Strategic initiatives at Fuller Youth Institute and coauthor of the book, "Growing Young," shares the six areas of church culture that matter most if we're going to disciple young people well. While the problems and obs...
•
Season 1
•
Episode 11
•
10:14
Mentorships 101
What is mentorship all about? When you find yourself in the position of a mentor, what are some healthy ways to handle your influence? Justin Yang, Young Adult Director at the Texas Conference of Seventh-day Adventists suggests an alternate mod...
•
Season 1
•
Episode 10
•
16:57
Points of Contact
In our last episode, we jokingly spoke about how uncomfortable it can be to initiate relationships with younger people, and the fine line we walk in order to engage them appropriately. In this episode, Dr. A Allan Martin suggests several health...
•
Season 1
•
Episode 9
•
16:40
Intergenerational Relationships
Instead of asking, "Why are young people leaving?" in this episode, host Justin Khoe asks, "Why are young people staying?"Dr. A Allan Martin joins us again to challenge some of the myths surrounding what young people tend to want in a c...
•
Season 1
•
Episode 8
•
18:19