Great Conversations
Open and honest discussions are hard to come by these days. But when we get to share in such conversations, with time to share stories, it’s deeply encouraging! Over the last couple of months, I have had the opportunity to be interviewed by Norman Horn and by Alex Bernardo as a guest on their podcasts. The latter drops today.
Check the podcasts out here:
Faith Ventures Podcast with Norman Horn
How to Respond to the Decline of the Church with Alex Bernardo
I remember a great discussion with the person sitting near me on a flight. We quickly moved from our names to the philosophy of Wittgenstein whom we had both been reading. I asked why he was reading the “later Ludwig.” As he answered he opened up more telling me the passion that led him to be a philosophy major at his University. Naturally, he asked me what I did for a living. I wanted to tell him more about myself, but I was afraid. Revealing that I am a pastor has had a chilling effect on many previous conversations. But I saw no other choice. When I told him I was a minister he was, as expected, taken aback. He immediately cleaned up his language which, for him, was integral to his passion about philosophy. His responses were now measured, as if he was second-guessing what he wanted to say in the hopes not to offending me. The conversation deflated until we reverted to doing our own thing as the flight continued. I know we were both disappointed. We had come so close to a great conversation.
Thank goodness for podcasts! Norman and Alex filled had both prepared great questions ahead of time. They sincerely wanted to hear what I thought on concerns we shared in common. They followed up with other great questions. Best of all, my being a pastor didn’t throw us off track!
Some points that Alex and I touched on which will be of interest:
Why the church is in decline and what we can do about it.
Why so many people are drawn to the idea of “deconstruction” and its effects.
Radical advice for pastors from a pastor.
The future of Christianity: optimism or pessimism.
We ended our discussion looking for more ways we could connect in the future. That is what open and honest discussions are all about.
Check them out here:
Faith Ventures Podcast with Norman Horn
How to Respond to the Decline of the Church with Alex Bernardo
Enjoy! They were both great conversations. And I would love to hear what was most meaningful to you in our discussions.
-Randy