Our third interview in the Church & Trauma series is with Jeremy Smith of Smith Counseling. Jeremy specializes in complex system dynamics and much of our conversation centers around how the North American church system allows abuse and perpetua

Church & Trauma Series: Interview with Sarah Smith

12 days ago 27m 35s

In this episode during our Church & Trauma series, James sits down with Sarah Smith of Smith Counseling. Sarah is a trauma-informed licensed counselor who combines various therapeutic techniques with biblical truth in the counseling process. He

Church & Trauma Series: Interview with Trey McGruder

19 days ago 33m 37s

We have a new mini-season and series this summer on the podcast. James is interviewing each of the panelists who will be at our Church & Trauma Summit in September. First up is Trey McGruder, the founder and CEO of A Blessing of Hope, a family

Getting to Know James (Part 2)

Mar 21st, 2024 28m 41s

This month, we're taking some of the time to get to know our hosts on a more personal level. This week, we get part 2 of Roy's interview with James. In this episode, James talks about how he got involved in the world of child welfare.If you mi

Getting to Know James (Part 1)

Mar 14th, 2024 36m 28s

This month, we're taking some of the time to get to know our hosts on a more personal level. In the last two weeks, James interviewed Roy. Today and next week, the tables are turned. Roy talks with James about his journey. Where is James from?

Getting to Know Roy (Part 2)

Mar 7th, 2024 34m 37s

This month we're taking the time to get to know our hosts and here is part 2 of our interview with Roy. In this episode, Roy shares about his time at Milton-Hershey School, working at Focus on the Family, Camp Monadnock, and ultimately how he e

Getting to Know Roy (Part 1)

Feb 29th, 2024 27m 42s

We're two seasons into the podcast, but we haven't taken the time to get to know our hosts on a more personal level. Today, James takes the time to interview Roy. Where is Roy from? What experiences have significantly shaped his life? How did h

Hospitality as Discipleship

Feb 22nd, 2024 40m 5s

For far too long, the church has seen discipleship as information to learn or a class to take. But what if discipleship was something else entirely? In this episode, James and Roy talk about "hospitality as discipleship." They discuss what th

Creating Community Around Foster and Adoptive Families

Dec 8th, 2023 44m 15s

In this episode, Jenn Hook, author and founder/executive director of Replanted, joins us to discuss how churches can support and care well for foster and adoptive families in their community. We talk about where churches need to begin on the ro

Boundaries and the Holidays

Nov 30th, 2023 40m 59s

Boundaries are something we all know we should have, but can sometimes be difficult to communicate and enforce. The holidays often make this even harder. In this episode, James sits down with Rhoni Bruhn to talk about what boundaries are and of

Church Spotlight: Messiah Lutheran

Nov 16th, 2023 29m 48s

In this episode, James sits down with Dustin Lappe, associate pastor of Messiah Lutheran in Lincoln, Nebraska. They talk about what God's doing at Messiah and how to think through partnerships to advance the gospel in our cities.Like the episo

Mobilizing Churches through CarePortal

Nov 9th, 2023 34m 44s

This week, Jen Kindler from Care Portal and Libby Moderow, Families Together Supervisor at CH, join James and Roy to talk about CarePortal. CarePortal is a digital platform that helps churches connect with vulnerable families to meet tangible n

Is Our Discipleship Infected?

Oct 26th, 2023 30m 42s

In this episode, James and Roy take a step back to look at the big picture of trauma through the lens of discipleship. They try to answer the haunting question, "Is discipleship in the North American church infected or broken, and how do we get

Trauma and the Holidays

Oct 19th, 2023 38m 29s

Thanksgiving and Christmas are right around the corner! So in this episode, Amber Koehler joins James and Roy to talk about how to handle trauma during the holidays. Amber is a permanency support specialist at CH and a former foster and adoptiv

Trauma and the Church

Oct 5th, 2023 58m 18s

This week, James and Roy are joined by Janyne McConnaughey, PhD. Janyne is an award-winning author and trauma-informed advocate. Her recent book, "Trauma in the Pews," addresses the impact of trauma on faith and spiritual practices. We discuss

Stepping into Hard Places with Adults

Sep 28th, 2023 49m 3s

One of the ways we can change the future of child welfare is by focusing on helping adults who have suffered trauma as children to break cycles of abuse and neglect. In this episode, Rhoni Bruhn, our Family Mentor Coordinator, joins us again to

3 Pillars of Trauma-Informed Care (Part 2): Connection and Self-Regulation

Sep 21st, 2023 32m 17s

In this episode, James and Roy are joined by Emma again for part 2 of the 3 Pillars of Trauma-Informed Care. In this episode, we talk about connection and self-regulation, giving you practical tips and tools to learn how to help vulnerable peop

3 Pillars of Trauma-Informed Care (Part 1): Felt-Safety

Sep 14th, 2023 33m 11s

To care well for people who have suffered trauma, there are three core pillars you must know and be able to live out. They are: felt safety, connection, and self-regulation. This is the first of two episodes covering the 3 Pillars of Trauma-Inf

Viewing Trauma through a Christian Lens

Sep 7th, 2023 44m 20s

Trauma can be a hard thing for Christians to understand. Some might think it's an excuse for personal responsibility or sin. In this episode, Roy and James sit down with CH staff Emma Sugita and Rhoni Bruhn to discuss trauma and how to understa

Building Healthy Partnerships in Ministry

Jun 26th, 2023 34m 14s

What is a healthy partnership in ministry? What does it look like? Feel like? Roy and James discuss that this week and talk about the very practical ways you can partner with Christian Heritage to support vulnerable children and families.Watch

Dad at Home (Part 2): Practical Ways to Create Relational Warmth at Home

Jun 21st, 2023 32m 39s

Roy and James continue the conversation from last week and get really practical. How have they grown as dads? What do they do to contribute to relational warmth at home? How do they help their kids process emotions? They cover these questions a

Dad at Home: Cultivating Connection with Your Family

Jun 14th, 2023 26m 45s

How important are dads in a family? Research shows dads are vital for emotional, physical, and spiritual flourishing. With Father's Day this weekend, Roy and James just crack the surface of the issue of how vital fathers are in the lives of chi

Guarding Ourselves Against a Savior Complex

Jun 7th, 2023 19m 44s

If we really are more like the Coast Guard than a battleship as disciples of Jesus, how do we guard ourselves against a savior complex? How can we resist the idol of finding our identity in serving and fix problems? Roy and James explore these

Are we are a battleship or the Coast Guard?

May 25th, 2023 26m 17s

It's easy to think as Christians we're fighting a war. But is that the best metaphor for how we are to live as Jesus' disciples in a broken world? We talk about the difference between culture wars and being redemptive partners with Jesus on his

Let's (keep) talking about flourishing

May 25th, 2023 23m 53s

We continue our conversation from last week on human flourishing. We discuss the research that shows children have better outcomes when they grow up in a religious home. Like the episode? Leave us a 5-star review, comment, and share so more