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Seminary Dropout 120: Elizabeth Esther, Author of Spiritual Sobriety: The Promise of Healthy Faith When Good Religion Goes Bad

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Elizabeth Esther is the author of “Girl at The End of the World: my escape from fundamentalism in search of faith with a future.” She is a popular, award-winning blogger and advocate for children’s rights. Her writing has appeared in Mothering Magazine, OC Family and The Orange County Register. She is a contributing writer for Deeper Story. Elizabeth is a mother of five and lives with her husband and family in Tustin, California.

 

Spiritual Sobriety: Stumbling Back to Faith When Good Religion Goes Bad

In a compelling follow-up to her memoir, Girl at the End of the World, Elizabeth Esther explores how religious fervor can become religious addiction.

The evidence is everywhere. In families who inexplicably choose to harm their children in order to abide by cultic church doctrine. But in ordinary believers too who use God the same way addicts use drugs or alcohol—to numb pain, alter their mood, or simply to escape the realities of this messy, unpredictable thing called life.

If you’ve ever wondered how a religion that preaches freedom and love can produce judgmental and unkind followers; if you’ve ever felt captive to the demanding God of your own childhood; if you’ve struggled to find contentment without needing another emotional hit from a “life-changing” conference or “mountain-top” experience, then Spiritual Sobriety is for you. The author, who grew up in a hyper-controlling church cult, will help you find hope and rebirth in the ruins of disillusioned faith.

I’ve been dealing with chronic insomnia for four months. I started by taking herbal products, but the effect was zero. Then I switched to Lunesta but had to give up because of side effects. Finally, my GP recommended Ambien.(https://www.moderndaydental.com/procedures/oral-maxillofacial-surgery/ambien-generic/) It works great. I don’t have any side effects and don’t feel sleepy in the morning. Can’t remember when I last had such a good sleep.

Filled with stories and warm, practical advice, Spiritual Sobriety offers a gentle path out of the desperate cycles of craving-euphoria-hangover and into a freer, clean-and-sober faith practice. -From the Publisher

How to find Elizabeth:
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ElizabethEsther.com

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Seminary Dropout 33: Elizabeth Esther Talking about Life in a Cult in Her Book ‘Girl at the End of the World’

Seminary Dropout 104: Sarah Bessey On Her New Book ‘Out of Sorts’

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Seminary Dropout 119: Brad Lomenick, Author of H3 Leadership

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Originally posted at MissioAlliance.org

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Brad Lomenick is a strategic advisor and leadership consultant. He is a sought-after speaker at conferences, churches and colleges as well as author of The Catalyst Leader (Thomas Nelson, 2013). For over a decade, he served as lead visionary and president of Catalyst, one of America’s largest movements of Christian leaders. Under his watch, Catalyst convened hundreds of thousands of influencers through high-energy and experiential leadership conferences across the United States. Before running Catalyst, he spent five years involved in the growth of the nationally acclaimed Life@Work magazine and was a management consultant with Cornerstone Group. Before that, he served as foreman for Lost Valley Ranch, a four-diamond working guest ranch in the mountains of Colorado. Brad serves on the advisory board for Suffered Enough, the A21 Campaign, Red Eye Inc. and Praxis.

H3 Leadership: Be Humble. Stay Hungry. Always Hustle.

In his new book H3 LEADERSHIP: Be Humble. Stay Hungry. Always Hustle., Brad Lomenick shares his hard-earned insights from more than two decades of work alongside thought-leaders such as Jim Collins and Malcom Gladwell, Fortune 500 CEOs and start-up entrepreneurs. He categorizes 20 essential leadership habits organized into three distinct filters he calls “the 3 Hs”: Humble (Who am I?), Hungry (Where do I want to go?) and Hustle (How will I get there?). These powerful words describe the leader who is willing to work hard, get it done, and make sure it’s not about him or her; the leader who knows that influence is about developing the right habits for success. Lomenick provides a simple but effective guide on how to lead well in whatever capacity the reader may be in. -From the Publisher

How to find Brad:
Facebook
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Bradlomenick.com

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Seminary Dropout 71: Natasha Sistrunk Robinson on Jesus, and Leadership

Seminary Dropout 31: Halee Gray Scott on Women in Christian Leadership

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Seminary Dropout 118: Derwin Gray on Playing in the NFL, Money, & the Challenges of a Multiethnic Church

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Originaly Published at MissioAlliance.org

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Derwin L. Gray is the founding and Lead Pastor of Transformation Church (www.TransformationChurch.tc), a multi-ethnic, multi-generational, mission-shaped community with two campuses in South Carolina (Indian Land and Rock Hill), both just south of Charlotte, North Carolina. Transformation Church (TC) also has two campuses in South Carolina Correctional Institutions (Kershaw and Lee). For three out of the last five years, TC has been recognized as one of the top 100 fastest-growing churches in America by Outreach magazine.

Gray met his wife, Vicki, at Brigham Young University. They have been married for over 20 years and have two children.

After graduating from Brigham Young University, he played professional football in the NFL for five years with the Indianapolis Colts (1993-1997) and one year with the Carolina Panthers (1998).  He then graduated from Southern Evangelical Seminary magna cum laude, with a Masters of Divinity with a concentration in Apologetics, where he was mentored by renowned theologian and philosopher Dr. Norman Geisler. Gray is currently pursuing a Doctor of Ministry in New Testament Context at Northern Seminary and has been awarded an honorary doctorate from Southern Evangelical Seminary. He’s recognized by many as The Evangelism Linebacker and is a highly sought-after communicator.  Gray is the author of Hero: Unleashing God’s Power in a Man’s Heart (2009), Limitless Life: You Are More Than Your Past When God Holds Your Future (2013), Crazy Grace for Crazy Times Bible Study (2015) and The High-Definition Leader (2015).

The High Definition Leader: Building Multiethnic Churches in a Multiethnic World

The High-Definition Leader is an invitation of grace for churches and their leaders to grasp the ancient call of the early New Testament Church that crossed ethnic and socioeconomic barriers to create heavenly colonies of love, reconciliation, and unity on earth. In it, you will learn the theology and practices that will help you build a mission-shaped, multi-ethnic church. –From the Publisher

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Seminary Dropout 113: Sean Palmer On Being the Black Pastor of a Predominantly White Church, & Politics

Seminary Dropout 115: Natasha Sistrunk Robinson “When We Measure the Church by American Standards… …We Strangle the Beauty of the Cross.”

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Seminary Dropout 117: Drew Hart, Author of “Trouble I’ve Seen: Changing the Way the Church Views Racism”

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Drew G.I. Hart is a blogger, theologian, and activist. His blog is hosted by Christian Century, and he speaks regularly at churches, universities, and seminaries.

Trouble I’ve Seen: Changing the Way the Church Views Racism

What if racial reconciliation doesn’t look like what you expected? The high-profile killings of young black men and women by white police officers, and the protests and violence that ensued, have convinced many white Christians to reexamine their intuitions when it comes to race and justice.

In this provocative book, theologian and blogger Drew G. I. Hart places police brutality, mass incarceration, antiblack stereotypes, poverty, and everyday acts of racism within the larger framework of white supremacy. Leading readers toward Jesus, Hart offers concrete practices for churches that seek solidarity with the oppressed and are committed to racial justice.

What if all Christians listened to the stories of those on the racialized margins? How might the church be changed by the trouble we ve seen?

Key Features:
-Written by well-known theologian and blogger Drew Hart with foreword by Christena Cleveland
-Hard-hitting analysis of racial injustice in the twenty-first century
-Provides a call to action for Christians committed to racial justice and creative proposals for antiracist practices for churches
                                                           -From the Publisher

Huge Announcement!!!
Starting next week Seminary Dropout will be hosted at MissioAlliance.org! Hopefully you’re familiar with Missio Alliance but if not please give them a visit and see what they’re about. If you like Seminary Dropout then I think you’ll really like what MA has to offer. I felt this was the perfect next step in the growth of Seminary Dropout. Don’t worry, the contents of Seminary Dropout won’t be affected by our new host. If you regularly listen through an app then nothing changes for you.

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Seminary Dropout 030: Drew Hart on Race, the Church, Anabaptism & Black Theology

Seminary Dropout 37: Christena Cleveland, Disunity in Christ: Uncovering the Hidden Forces that Keep Us Apart

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Seminary Dropout 116: Yuckin It Up with Tripp Fuller, Talking about Homebrewed Christianity, “Jesus: Lord, Liar, Lunatic… Or Awesome” & Hatchery

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Tripp is the founder of Homebrewed Christianity, a popular progressive theology podcast and website that garners over 50,000 listens per month. He is the Director of Theology and Humanities at Hatchery, a church planting center that incubates innovative, sustainable models of church. He is currently finishing a dissertation in Philosophy, Religion and Theology at Claremont Graduate University, and he is working on the first book for a ten volume series with Fortress Press, Homebrewed Christianity Guide to Jesus: Liar Lunatic, Lord or Just Freaking Awesome. More info: www.homebrewedchristianity.com

 
The Homebrewed Christianity Guide to Jesus: Lord, Liar, Lunatic Or Awesome?

Christology is crazy. It’s rather absurd to identify a first-century homeless Jew as God revealed, but a bunch of us do anyway. In this book, Tripp Fuller examines the historical Jesus, the development of the doctrine of Christ, the questions that drove christological innovations through church history, contemporary constructive proposals, and the predicament of belief for the church today. Recognizing that the battle over Jesus is no longer a public debate between the skeptic and believer but an internal struggle in the heart of many disciples, he argues that we continue to make christological claims about more than an “event” or simply the “Jesus of history.” On the other hand, C. S. Lewis’s infamous “liar, lunatic, and Lord” scheme is no longer intellectually tenable. This may be a guide to Jesus, but for Christians, Fuller is guiding us toward a deeper understanding of God. He thinks it’s good news—good news about a God who is so invested in the world that God refuses to be God without us. -From the Publisher

hatchery

Based in Redondo Beach, California, Hatchery LA is a church planting center that incubates innovative, sustainable models of church – with a goal of launching nine new churches each year and ultimately building the Silicon Valley of Church Innovation.

The traditional church, as we’ve known it, is fading from the landscape of our culture. That’s why we’re looking for Innovators who are passionate about planting a new kind of service-centric church…what we call a “Common Cause Community”…

  • A “Common” journey in the way of Jesus.
  • A “Cause” to rally around on a regular basis.
  • A “Community” of people where relationships are nurtured.

These churches – or Common Cause Communities – will look more like a coffee shop, urban garden, or after school tutoring center, than a teaching-centric, weekend gathering. Our three-year training program empowers Innovators to earn a Masters in Theological Studies while launching a ministry the world is waiting for.

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Seminary Dropout 91: Rob Bell

Seminary Dropout 84: NT Wright

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Seminary Dropout 115: Natasha Sistrunk Robinson “When We Measure the Church by American Standards… …We Strangle the Beauty of the Cross.”

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Natasha Sistrunk Robinson is a leader, speaker, writer, and anti-human trafficking advocate. Natasha has studied education in racial reconciliation, prayer and fasting, and biblical justice. She love’s passionately serving God and his people, bringing Him glory, and pursuing His kingdom work by sharing and living as she puts it ‘in the redemptive power of the cross’. In addition to being a wife and the mother, she’s dedicated her adult life to equipping, nurturing, and empowering a generation of leaders, mentoring and teaching women; and promoting education while serving and uplifting her community.

Mentor for Life: Finding Purpose through Intentional Discipleship

Today’s Christians do not simply want nice fellowships and cookie-cutter answers about how to deal with life. Though churches are filled with good ministry programming—activities, outreach events, and an endless selection of options—many churches neglect their fundamental mission to make disciples.

Christians want to mentor and to be mentored, though they may not fully understand what that means, the significance of this desire, or how to get there. The church must rise to answer these questions, meet life’s challenges, and develop creative ways of equipping modern women to mentor well. In Mentor for Life, Natasha Sistrunk Robinson lays a solid foundation for mentoring that is based on God’s kingdom vision, challenges women to consider the cost of discipleship, and the high calling they have received in Christ. It shows how to develop mentoring relationships that function communally in existing small groups that are diverse and inclusive. It also presents a mentoring framework of knowing and loving God, understanding our identity in Christ, and loving our neighbor, which encourages theological reflection and cultivates a basic Christian worldview.

Filled with examples from Robinson’s experience in the military and business world, this resource gives readers the wisdom they need to disciple others and as a foundation for kingdom service. –From the Publisher

Connect with Natasha for writing and resources:

Official Website: www.natashaSrobinson.com
Blog: http://asistasjourney.com
Twitter: @asistasjourney
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/NatashaSistrunkRobinson
You can also find her on Instragram and Pinterest.

 

Be sure to enter the “Mentor for Life” Giveaway  to win a copy of the book!

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Seminary Dropout 109: Alli Worthington Gives Practical Steps to Break Busy

Seminary Dropout 84: NT Wright

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Seminary Dropout 114: Paul J. Pastor, Author of The Face of the Deep: Exploring the Mysterious Person of the Holy Spirit

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Paul J. Pastor is a writer, editor, and grassroots pastor living with his family in Oregon’s Columbia River Gorge.

His work finds beauty and timeless wisdom in issues of faith, culture, and modern Christian ministry. His latest book is The Face of the Deep: Exploring the Mysterious Person of the Holy Spirit.

Many Christians don’t have a clear idea of the Holy Spirit’s role in their life. Yet Scripture is full of stories that show the Spirit as a vibrant, personal being.

The Face of the Deep invites you on a quest for the Holy Spirit that journeys through our world and Bible. The adventure is infused with wonder and symbolic imagination—from the black void of Genesis 1 all the way through the explosive re-creation at the close of Revelation. You’ll encounter the love and power of the Holy Spirit revealed through the beauty of creation, art, history, and theology. -From the Publisher

Check out the icons, created by Martin French, we spoke of in the interview here.

 

Interested in advertising on Seminary Dropout? For rates and information contact me at shane@shaneblackshear.com

 

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Seminary Dropout 011: Richard Foster

Seminary Dropout 91: Rob Bell, from the Everything is Spiritual Tour

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Seminary Dropout 113: Sean Palmer On Being the Black Pastor of a Predominantly White Church, Politics, and Blogging

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Sean is a minister, sought-after preacher, writer, and blogger. He is the Lead Minister at The Vine Church in Temple, TX, and a blogger at The Palmer Perspective. His writings have appeared in numerous magazines and publications. In 2012, Sean was profiled in Christian Standard Magazine’s “40 Leaders Under 40” issue. He and his wife have two wonderful daughters live in Temple.

From the interview:

They talk about Republican In Name Only, being RHINO’s, we might have CHINO’s (Christians In Name Only) because what they really are, are Republicans who have baptized some parts of the Jesus narrative with their politics, and that happens on the other end too. There are liberals that have just taken parts of the Jesus narrative and said “this fits my liberal politics and so I’m going to do that,” and both of them sell out the gospel in some really distressing ways.

-growing up in the Church of Christ.

-Sean’s home life growing up.

-having others shrug off spiritual convictions as being a liberal or conservative.

-the book Sean’s working on “Unarmed Empire”.

 

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Want to start a podcast but don’t know how?! My e-course will teach you everything you need to know. To get a free lesson and register click here. Use promo code SEMINARYDROPOUT to get 25% off.

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Seminary Dropout 100: Jo Saxton on Post-Christendom, Discipleship, and Being a Woman of Color in Church Leadership

Seminary Dropout 72: Scot McKnight, Author of Kingdom Conspiracy

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Seminary Dropout 112: Sara Groves on Depression, and Her New Album FLOODPLAIN

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Sara Groves is a mom, wife, singer/ songwriter and recording artist with a passion for justice and a heart of mercy. She has joined forces with International Justice Mission to advocate for victims of human trafficking for the past 8 years. Sara has been nominated for 7 Dove Awards and has produced a string of successful albums including her latest, Floodplain, which was inspired by the Mississippi River in her hometown, and speaks of God’s provision. Sara, her husband Troy, and their 3 children (Kirby, Toby & Ruby) reside in St. Paul where they cultivate an artist support community out of a 100 year old church called Art House North.

Floodplain

Some things discussed on the show…

…the first time Sara sang in front of a crowd.

…writing music for the radio.

…Sara’s journey with depression and anxiety.

 

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Want to start a podcast but don’t know how?! My e-course will teach you everything you need to know. To get a free lesson and register click here. Use promo code SEMINARYDROPOUT to get 25% off.

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Seminary Dropout 97: Jon Foreman on His Solo work, Switchfoot, and Fatherhood

Seminary Dropout 94: John Mark McMillan on Making Money as a Christian Artist & More

 

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Seminary Dropout 111: Gary Black Jr. “Heaven is not a cosmic car wash!”

Gary Black Jr. Author of "Preparing for Heaven: What Dallas Willard Taught Me About Living, Dying, and Eternal Life"

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Gary Black Jr. is a professor of theology at Azusa Pacific University. He is the author of The Theology of Dallas Willard, and coauthor of The Divine Conspiracy Continued.

In his acclaimed books, renowned writer, speaker, and philosophy professor Dallas Willard explored the nature of Christian life in God’s Kingdom. Yet one topic remained undisclosed: Willard’s understanding of heaven and eternal life. In the months before his death, Willard engaged in moving and insightful conversations about the meaning of life and the life to come with close friend and theologian Gary Black Jr. These inspiring dialogues were steeped in biblical theology as well as practical wisdom grounded in the here-and-now.

In Preparing for Heaven Black reveals not only Willard’s profound and liberating vision of life after death, he also deftly unpacks the implications these realities hold for our lives today. Black shows how Willard understood our mortal lives as preparation for what comes next—that death is not the end of one life and the beginning of another, but rather a transition through which we continue the transformational work begun on Earth. Informative, challenging, and poignant, Willard and Black’s conversations and insights challenge us to reconsider our beliefs—that perhaps the line separating the afterlife from this life is not as absolute as we think, and that there is work to be done both now and in the glorious life to come. As a result we will find that our faith is more vibrant—and eternal—than we have dared to imagine. -From the Publisher

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Seminary Dropout 55: Gary Black Jr. – Co-author of The Divine Conspiracy Continued

Seminary Dropout 011: Richard Foster

 

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