How 'Bout We Do This Together?

Listening is essential to every relationship. Most of us assume we already know how to listen, but good intentional listening does not come naturally to us. This year’s Unity Project is all about learning how to listen as a way to strengthen you relationships and navigate potential problems or conflicts.

In this episode, we'll hear from Andrew Arthur, founding partner of Genesis Mediations, as he talks about the importance of listening, and what you can expect at the Unity Project this year.

Today pastors are facing the struggle of leading and preaching to churches that are deeply polarized. This workshop will share practical and theological insight to help pastors draw their congregations around the agenda of their king, Jesus Christ.

Conflict too often brings our efforts at discipleship to a screeching halt. We see conflict as an obstacle to doing real ministry. Doug Marshall's workshop will teach church leaders and members to see conflict as an opportunity for profound discipleship, rather than an obstacle.

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Grant Hickman, pastor of coaching at Willamette Christian Church, brings his expertise to this workshop to train small group leaders to facilitate healthy small group communities.

As an educator who serves in children's ministry, Bethany is uniquely suited to present a workshop on how volunteers can minister to children with special needs in ways that are meaningful, effective, and compassionate.

Joy Wendling specializes in teaching parents and churches about how to use play to help kids fall in love with Jesus. In this workshop Joy will share her expertise in how we can incorporate play into children's ministry as an effective tool for growth and discipleship.

Tammy Adams is a former church planter who works with the Small Church Network to help inspire and equip leaders and volunteers in small churches. In this workshop she will offer her wisdom on how volunteers can fight against burnout and maintain healthy involvement in their church.

Keith Potter is a church consultant who works with churches through difficult transitions. He will be leading a workshop to help churches prepare for--and be successful in--the periods in between one pastor and the next.

This workshop is designed to help churches who are facing deep divisions that keep them from being able to move forward. Andrew is a professional mediator who will provide meaningful advise and guidance and how to reach consensus amidst division in your congregation.

One of the most discouraging challenges churches can face is when the budget doesn't balance. This can lead  to difficult decisions where churches have to balance faith in God's providence and good stewardship of his church. In this workshop Greg Shear will present on how churches can address budget shortfalls faithfully and responsibly. 

Terry Byrd is part of a ministry that provides free technology solutions for churches. His workshop will focus on the various ways that churches can use technology to support their outreach and ministries. If your church is looking for fresh ideas for the information age, this for you!

Toby Hill specializes in insuring churches, Christian schools and other ministries. He will be presenting a workshop to help church leaders identify risks and needs for coverage in their work to help churches make sure they are adequately covered for the challenges they face.

One of the common challenges for churches today a struggle to find a new senior minister. Searches are taking longer and interims are lasting longer. To meet this challenge, elders and other lay-leaders need to be ready to take on greater roles of leadership in their church. Joel Heisler is the preaching elder at Newport Christian Church, a church that made the decision not to hire a senior minister. He will be presenting on the challenges and opportunities of lay leadership in the church.

In this workshop, Grant Hickman and Ginger Morgan of Willamette Christian Church discuss the unique challenges pastors face in maintaining their spiritual health, and the practices they can use to sustain themselves in times of challenge and struggle.

Many people--even pastors--don't realize just how complicated it can be to properly file pastor's taxes. The goal of this workshop is to prepare Pastors before they make the mistake so they can prepare their taxes with confidence and accuracy.

Part 4 of Dr. Wes Wright's morning devotions on the Armor of God in Ephesians 6.

Part 3 of Dr. Wes Wright's morning devotions on the Armor of God in Ephesians 6.

Part 2 of Dr. Wes Wright's morning devotions on the Armor of God in Ephesians 6.

Part 1 of Dr. Wes Wright's morning devotions on the Armor of God in Ephesians 6.

In this final address of the 171st Northwest Christian Convention, Bushnell graduate Annalee McIntosh preaches on what it means to live in, and to share, the love of Christ.

In the fifth session of the 171st Northwest Christian Convention, Dr. Melisa Ortize Berry unpacks the calling of the Christian to live in a way that reflects the amazing calling God has placed on the church.

In the fourth session of the 171st Northwest Christian Convention, Dr. John Mark Hicks preaches on the amazing vision of the church in Ephesians 4: a body called by God to fill the earth with his glory through their radical devotion to his love.

In this third session of the 171st Northwest Christian Convention, Dr. Melisa Ortiz Berry explains how the way Jesus created the church gave them a unique nature and mission in the world. 

In the second evening session of the 171st convention, Dr. John Mark Hicks unpacks Ephesians Chapter 1 and the amazing message it contains about how God has chosen the Church in Christ.

In the opening session of the 171st Northwest Christian Convention, Co-President Matt Holmes lays out the theme for the convention: the way God is displaying his manifold wisdom to the world through the church.

For more content from the 171st Northwest Christian Convention, go to ⁠www.nwchristiannetwork.com/nwcc171⁠

How can pastors lead their congregations through the tensions of a deeply-polarized political atmosphere? What if there was a better option than the two our culture gives us: partisanship or silence? In this episode guest host Daniel Malipudi interviews Matt Holmes about his upcoming workshop on shepherding through politics. They discuss the difference between how our modern culture defines politics and how the Bible defines it, and how pastors can help their congregations to adopt a wider view of politics that is less anxious and fearful, and more confident in the power of the Gospel to change our world. If you look at your ballot and wish there were better options for changing the world, this podcast is for you!

Today we get to hear from Dr. Melisa Ortiz Berry of Bushnell University, as she tells the story of her journey from loving Jesus into academia and ministry. Melisa's background is a unique blend of traditions, schools and degrees which have left her with a deep passion for Church history and the role of women in the church. In this episode Dr. Berry talks us through some of the forgotten history of women in the church, as well as some of the problems with the way key Biblical texts have been interpreted about women in the church.

In this episode we talk to Dr. Wes Wright, pastor at Santa Clara Church in Eugene and adjunct professor at Bushnell University. Wes is our morning Bible teacher for the 2023 convention. He's also passionate about the importance of Christians being able to think well and deeply about their faith. Tune in to hear Wes talk about his personal journey as a student, as well as why he has spent so much time studying a 17th century French mathematician, Blaise Pascal--and why he thinks Pascal, and other historical thinkers, have so much to offer today's Christians.

What is God doing when the church gathers? Does something happen beyond the "show" that we see? Is there something you can get from your local congregation that you can't get from watching someone else's service on Youtube? In this episode we meet John Mark Hicks, professor of theology, author, and one of the keynote speakers at this year's convention, who introduces to the "Sacrament of the Assembly"--the idea that God is present and active in the congregation, that there is value in our worship services beyond the production value and the attendance numbers.

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In this episode we talk with Lars Coburn, the instructor of our Equip Class on volunteer leadership. This course is unique because it actually comes from an existing class offered in Bushnell's Master's Degree in Leadership--meaning this class is graduate-level content, available in a one-week format. We start out by getting to know more about lars himself, then about Bushnell's leadership program, before moving into talking about the class on volunteers. Lars explains just how helpful this class will for those who leader volunteers in your church, whether they're a pastor or a volunteer themselves. This is an exciting class, so make sure you listen to the conversation!

"Volunteer Leadership" will be held 1-4pm, June 27th-July 1st. Tuition is $120. 

David Bruce is the instructor for this year's Equip Class on grief ministry. In this episode we hear from Dave about how his journey in ministry led him to seek more training and education for ministering to the grieving, how he gained the tools he needed through a Doctor of Ministry at Emmanuel Christian Seminary, and how he put that education to use in his church. Then we talk about the course itself, which Dave has designed to help train Christians in how to minister to the grieving in their congregations through a small group format called Griefworks.

"Griefworks" will be held 1-4pm, June 27th-July 1st. Tuition is $100. 

Host Matt Holmes interviews Derek Voorhees and Marcus Omdahl, who together are teaching an Equip Class on substitute preaching during the '23 convention. Their class is designed to equip non-preachers to prepare and deliver a sermon in their churches. IN this discussion they talk about the importance of having other voices in the pulpit, what it takes to make a substitute preacher (you may be surprised to find you could do it!), and the value of preparing another generation of preachers in our congregation. 

"Substitute Preaching" will be held 1-4pm, June 27-30th. Tuition is $80. 

In this special episode, host Matt Holmes interviews Doug Marshal--pastor, conciliator, communication instructor, pastoral coach, and keynote speaker at this year's Unity Project--about his journey as a pastor, his passion for Christian unity, and his vision for this year's Unity Project event.

The Unity Project is an annual gathering focused on training and encouraging Christians to live our the special command of Jesus that his disciples love each other--even when they disagree. We are not about uniting institutions, but about uniting congregations, uniting Christians with the brothers and sisters right next to them. This year's event takes place on February 25th from 10am to 2pm.

In the season 2 finale, co-hosts Chad and Becca DeKay talk with Casey and Matt Holmes about why they love the Northwest Christian Convention, and their vision for next year's gathering. The theme is "Through the Church": a celebration of everything God is doing through his church, in EVERY congregation. Speakers will include Dr. Melisa Ortiz-Berry of Bushnell University and Dr. John mark Hicks of Lipscomb University. Listin in on the conversation to find out more about what's going to be happening next June at the Northwest Christian Convention #171!

Co-hosts Matt Holmes & Chad DeKay have an incredible conversation with Dr. A.J. Swoboda covering a wide range of topics, all of them leading to Jesus. They discuss the 'why' behind higher education and how to navigate the cultural hot topic of 'deconstructionism' while still pointing people to Jesus. Dr. A. J. Swoboda (PhD, Birmingham) is a pastor, professor at Bushnell University, and an award-winning writer. For nearly ten years, he served as a college pastor on the campus of the University of Oregon. Then, for another decade, planted and pastored a missional church in urban Portland, Oregon called Theophilus that continues to worship to this day.

A recap of the week, and a call to the kind of TRUST that leads us to active faith and life transformation not just for us, but for our communities.

Dr. A.J. Swoboda leads us through the conversation on deconstructing our faith (or more often our faith institutions) and reconstructing our faith with trust in Jesus.

Co-hosts Chad Clark & Casey Holmes discuss Scott's roots, his upbringing, his band 'The Nobodies' and their brief stint in Tennesse, and how he left a great-paying job to go into worship ministry. During the conversation we hear about the importance of curating worship music and what matters most when putting together a worship service. In his long career as an indie artist, Scott has toured the globe (four continents and counting!) playing his music for new friends far and wide. He's had a #1 hit on Christian radio (along with other Top 20 songs) and received honors from the Dove Awards and the John Lennon Songwriting Contest.

Scott Riggan shares through his experience what it takes to lead worship in an ever changing culture, and how to minister to the team you bring with you.

Co-hosts Daniel Mallipudi & Sean Bitzer talk to Troy Dean about his church planting roots in Southern California and how that ministry prepared him to serve the students and staff in college ministry over the last dozen years. Troy Dean is the Campus Pastor and Associate Profession (Christian Ministry) and Bushnell University in Eugene, Oregon. He's responsible for the planning, organizing, and providing direct leadership to the campus ministry programs of Bushnell including chapel services, Christian faith formation, spiritual development, programming, worship opportunities, and pastoral care.

Pastor Troy Dean invites four of our NW pastors to the table to have a a conversation on what called them to ministry, what keeps them in ministry, and how they are moving forward despite the overwhelming hardships of ministry in the Church.

Co-hosts Daniel Mallipudi & Troy Dean have a great conversation with Sean on what it was like to be a 27-year-old senior pastor, what advice he would have for congregations with a young pastor, and why it's VITAL to invest in family ministry, even if it's hard. Sean Bitzer came on staff at Monmouth Christian Church in Monmouth, Oregon as an intern for the Children's department in 2007. After fulfilling that fun and challenging role, he was asked to serve full time where he practiced serving the church body in a wide range of positions. Since 2012, Sean has served as the Lead Pastor. In addition to serving at MCC, Sean is also, an advisor to the Northwest Christian Network, a founding member of the podcast Pastors in Quarantine (find where ever you listen to podcasts), and the director of the "Northwest Christian One-Day Conference, which happens in Oregon every fall.

Pastor Sean Bitzer gives a frank description of the expense and effort involved in having a growing family ministry--and a challenge that family ministry is worth what it costs for the future of the church.

Co-hosts Chad & Becca DeKay have a revealing conversation with Chap Clark about his ministry over the years that has focused on adolescence. It's a reality check and a discussion that will bring you hope. Chap Clark (MA, MDiv, Fuller Theological Seminary; PhD, University of Denver) is the leader of two nonprofit organizations: ParenTeen™, committed to train and equip adults, schools, churches and communities to understand and respond to the developmental and spiritual needs of adolescents and emerging adults; and the Institute for Ministry Leadership (IML), a congregationally based recent graduate leadership program that helps churches to nurture and equip young people in their calling as agents of Christ and His Kingdom.

Northwest Christian One-Day Conference: www.nwchristiannetwork.com/oneday

Dr. Chap Clark, using the story of the woman who wipes Jesus' feet with her tears, talk to us about the healing power of trust in Jesus. 

Dr. Chap Clark leads us through the moment when Peter steps out of the boat, and walks on water with Jesus. What causes him to step out of the boat? What causes him to begin to sink? And what happens next?