The Church Lobby

Karl Vaters talks through some helpful guidelines with Dave Ripper about how to read, meditate, and teach from the Bible in a richer, deeper way.
Dave is the lead pastor of Crossway Christian Church, a multicongregational church in southern New Hampshire, focused on spiritual formation, and is the author of Experiencing Scripture as a Disciple of Jesus: Reading the Bible like Dallas Willard.
Karl and Dave explore who Dallas Willard was, and what his way of reading the Bible can do for us, including:
Willard’s four steps on how to read the Bible
A five-step outline for meditating on a text
The IMMERSE method
Preaching out of the overflow
How to let God speak to the church instead imposing your ideas into the text or onto the congregation

Links:
Experiencing Scripture as a Disciple of Jesus: Reading the Bible like Dallas Willard, by Dave Ripper
The Dallas Willard podcast
DaveRipper.com
Deeper Experiences with God Podcast, with Dave Ripper
Dave Ripper on Instagram
Dave Ripper on Facebook
Contact Dave Ripper

Bonus video summary
Three Warnings from Dallas Willard about How Not to Read the Bible, with Dave Ripper
In this subscriber-only bonus material, Karl Vaters talks with pastor Dave Ripper, the author of Experiencing Scripture as a Disciple of Jesus: Reading the Bible like Dallas Willard, about why Bible readers should stay away from:
Bible roulette
The “It’s all in the Bible” View
Bible deism

To get Bonus Content every week, click here to become a Financial Partner, or here to subscribe to the Free Weekly Newsletter.

Have you ever gone to a church growth conference and been told “all healthy things grow?”
Karl Vaters talks with Jeff Hoglen about what’s happening behind that idea, and why it can be a problem for a lot of pastors and churches. The conversation is based on an article Jeff wrote, called “The Church Growth Lie No One Talks About.”
Karl and Jeff talk about what that lie is, why we keep believing it, and what to do, instead.
They also discuss alternative ways to look at church health and growth, including:
How growth feels more like farming than fireworks
How most real growth is slow, often invisible, and always hard
How the slow seasons don’t have to discourage you
How to deepen before you broaden
How to pursue health over hype
The importance of celebrating the small stuff

And more.
Links:
The Church Growth Lie No One Talks About
ChurchPlanting.com
Canva
ChatGPT

To get Bonus Content every week, click here to become a Financial Partner, or here to subscribe to the Free Weekly Newsletter.

Karl Vaters talks with Brad Edwards about the shift that’s happened over the last decade or so in how people perceive institutions, especially the institutional church.
In this conversation they talk about how the rise of radical individualism has replaced once-trusted institutions, why a distrust in institutions is problematic, and why institutions—especially the church—still matter.
Brad is a church planter and pastor of The Table Church in Lafayette, CO. He’s also the author of, The Reason for Church: Why the Body of Christ Still Matters in an Age of Anxiety, Division, and Radical Individualism. This conversation also includes an overview of the reasons behind the loss of institutionalism, and especially five Church Defeaters:
Church Defeater 1: Spiritual Pragmatism
Church Defeater 2: The Sacred Self
Church Defeater 3: Counterfeit Institutions
Church Defeater 4: (Un)Civil religions
Church Defeater 5: Virtuous Victimhood

(CONGRATULATIONS to Brad on his book being named Book of the Year by Christianity Today magazine!)
Links:
The Reason for Church: Why the Body of Christ Still Matters in an Age of Anxiety, Division, and Radical Individualism
Mere Orthodoxy


BONUS TALK
Our Role in the Grand Narrative of Scripture, with Brad Edwards
Karl Vaters talks with Brad Edwards about the importance of understanding the metanarrative of scripture as a foundational teaching for life and faith.
In particular, their conversation addresses two storytelling terms. First, Main Character Syndrome, which helps us understand and clarify the dangers of the hyper-individualism of our current age. Second, the MacGuffin, a term coined by movie director Alfred Hitchcock that helps us see what our role in God’s story really is.

Links:
The Reason for Church: Why the Body of Christ Still Matters in an Age of Anxiety, Division, and Radical Individualism

To get Bonus Content every week, click here to become a Financial Partner, or here to subscribe to the Free Weekly Newsletter.

Do you know how to spot if someone in your congregation has a gambling problem? Once it’s been spotted or confessed, do you know what to do?
Karl Vaters talks with Dr. Don Lichi about one of the fastest-growing addictions in the world, including:
How is gambling defined?
Why does it have such a strong grip on some people?
Who is most likely to be addicted?
How to get help

And more
Donald Lichi is vice president emeritus of Emerge Counseling Ministries, and author of the article, Is Gambling a Problem in the Church? You Bet! in Influence magazine.

Links:
Is Gambling a Problem in the Church? You Bet! (article)
Emerge Counseling Ministries
Broken Windows of the Soul: A Pastor and Christian Psychologist Discuss Sexual Sins and the Prescription to Heal Them
YouVersion Bible App


Bonus Chat
What to Do if You’re a Pastor with a Gambling Problem, with Donald Lichi
Pastors are not immune to the temptations of gambling and other addictions.
In this short conversation, Karl Vaters talks with Dr. Don Lichi about how to recognize those tendencies in yourself, and what to do if you’re trapped in it. They also talk about who you should/should not share these problems with, and how to engage in preventative measures.

Links:
Is Gambling a Problem in the Church? You Bet! (article)
Emerge Counseling Ministries
Broken Windows of the Soul: A Pastor and Christian Psychologist Discuss Sexual Sins and the Prescription to Heal Them

To get Bonus Content every week, click here to become a Financial Partner, or here to subscribe to the Free Weekly Newsletter.

Karl Vaters talks with Dr. Jeff Forrey about grief, recovery, and how your church can help people, both inside and outside the congregation, deal with grief in healthy ways.
Grief has no rules, but there are healthy ways through it. And churches—small churches especially—are uniquely suited to provide real comfort for people in these difficult seasons of loss.
Karl and Jeff talk about some important principles, including:
Why do we need help with grief?
What kind of damage can we experience if we don’t deal with grief properly?
What's a typical time frame for experiencing grief?
What common mistakes are made in responding to grievers?

And more
Jeff Forrey oversees GriefShare, which can come alongside your church to equip you to be a resource for people in need.
Links:
GriefShare
Church Initiative
DivorceCare Session 1 Preview
GriefShare on Facebook
GriefShare on Instagram
GriefShare on YouTube
CCEF.org
Grieving Room, by Leanne Friesen

There is no bonus material for this episode.