Hosted by John McGee, Senior Director of Watermark Resources, the Church Leadership Podcast discusses relevant topics for church leaders to encourage and equip them for ministry at their own churches.
Episode: 156Sep 18, 2024
Leading Through Trials and Suffering
In this week’s episode of the Church Leadership Podcast, Dave Bruskas (Director of Re:generation) shares his personal journey of working in ministry and the hardships he has faced along the way. Listen to be reminded of God's faithfulness and sustaining presence, and be encouraged of the ways He uses our challenges to shape our faith and leadership.
Care & Recovery
Church Leadership
Episode: 155Sep 4, 2024
Navigating Faith Deconstruction
On this week’s episode of the Church Leaders Podcast, explore the reasons behind faith deconstruction and gain insight on supporting those going through it. Key themes include church hurt, justification for sin, politics, intellectual doubts, cultural pressures, and personal experiences, with in-depth discussion on understanding truth, authority, and offering empathy. The discussion highlights the importance of being pastoral, patient, and loving while pointing individuals back to scripture during this process.
Care & Recovery
Church Leadership
Episode: 154Aug 21, 2024
The 6 C's of Crafting Culture
Creating a strong culture is crucial for any organization, including churches. In this week’s episode of the Church Leadership Podcast, John McGee and Dave Bruskas explore how leaders must clearly define and communicate the desired culture, recognize and correct behaviors that align or conflict with it, and consistently reinforce it over time.
Church Leadership
Staff & Teams
Episode: 153Aug 7, 2024
Leading Your Church in Economic Uncertainty
In this episode of the Church Leadership Podcast, John McGee is joined by Luke Friesen (Senior Director of Operations) and John Cox (Executive Pastor) to discuss strategies for navigating economic slowdowns and decreased giving. Learn how strong communication, building reserves, and finding creative solutions will help you lead confidently through financial uncertainties.
Church Leadership
Church Operations
Episode: 152Jul 24, 2024
How to Lead Creatives
People who see the world in unique ways and have original problem-solving approaches are a huge asset to any team. But if you want to help your creatives reach their full potential, you need to understand how to best engage with them. John McGee, Caitlin Van Wagoner (Senior Communications Director), and David Penuel (Creative Director) discuss maximizing creative gifting in the church on this week’s episode of the Church Leadership Podcast. Downloads: CLC Breakout Slides - The Creative Process
Church Leadership
Staff & Teams
Episode: 151Jul 10, 2024
How Creativity Really Works
Creativity matters because we are called to reflect our Creator God. Many of us, however, think of creativity as being accessible only to the talented few who fit a certain stereotype. This week on the Church Leadership Podcast, we gathered some of our staff’s best creative minds to demystify the creative process and explore how we can harness it for God’s glory. Downloads: Creativity is a Remix by Kirby Ferguson (Ted Talk) A Technique for Producing Ideas by William Young
Church Leadership
Episode: 150Jun 26, 2024
How to Lead Yourself After the Fall of Another Leader
When news of a pastor’s moral failure breaks, it’s appropriate to grieve for the pain the sin has caused and the damage God’s reputation has suffered. On this week’s episode of the Church Leadership Podcast, John McGee and Dave Bruskas wrestle with their own complicated feelings about recent scandals and explore how we can lead ourselves well—avoiding self-righteousness and reorienting ourselves to truth.
Care & Recovery
Spiritual Formation
Church Leadership
Episode: 149Jun 12, 2024
Sowing Seeds of Ministry
None of us are capable of making ministry fruitful, but we’re still charged with putting in the work and waiting in faith for God to bring the growth. In a special message at the Church Leaders Conference this Spring, John Elmore encouraged us to work alongside God’s Spirit and His other faithful workers in this great “co-mission.”
Spiritual Formation
Church Leadership
Episode: 148May 29, 2024
Cultivating Community
Church leaders are the first to extol the importance of biblical fellowship, but we aren’t always the best at practicing it. This special message from Harris Creek Baptist Church pastor Jonathan “J.P.” Pokluda, first given at CLC 2024, calls leaders to drop any pretenses and embrace the God-given gift of Christian accountability. This isn’t a race you can run well alone.
Discipleship
Church Leadership
Episode: 147May 15, 2024
The Priority of Prayer: A Course Correction
If you weren’t able to join us at the Church Leaders Conference this year, check out pastor Timothy Ateek’s opening mainstage message on prayer as a spiritual checkpoint. Without attentive care, it’s easy to let your spiritual priority drift from enjoying God’s presence through prayer. We kicked off our time together by taking a hard look at ourselves and discussing how we can get back on-course if we’ve drifted.
Spiritual Formation
Church Leadership
Episode: 146Apr 17, 2024
Things I Didn't Learn in Seminary: The Art of Leading and Serving Your Family
We wrapped up the “Things I Didn’t Learn in Seminary” podcast series this week with an episode on how to lead and serve in your first and most important ministry: your family. Shepherding your family well--listed in 1 Timothy as a leadership qualification--can be challenging. Whether you have a spouse and kids or hope to someday, it’s worth preparing to face these occupational hazards with eyes wide open.
Marriage
Church Leadership
Episode: 145Apr 3, 2024
Things I Didn't Learn in Seminary: The Art of Personal Interactions
Ever heard the joke, “I love ministry—it's people I can’t stand”? It’s funny because interacting with people can be difficult, but people are our ministry, and the way we interact with them matters immensely. In this week’s episode of the Church Leadership Podcast, John McGee and Dave Bruskas talk about the nuances of interpersonal exchanges, drawing from years of real-life ministry experience.
Spiritual Formation
Church Leadership
