The majority of pastors are not looking forward to this 2024 presidential election season. The division between parties. The vitriol online. The angst within the congregation. The last few elections have been so difficult to navigate. There has to be a better way! In this episode, Steve Carter interviews Michael Wear who is the President of The Center of Christianity and Public Life as well as the author of The Spirit of Our Politics. Michael shares how Dallas Willard’s teachings helped him understand a better way to engage with politics. This interview will help pastors reframe the conversation of politics as an invitation for spiritual formation and how our depth with Christ will help us heal, bring hope, unite, and showcase the kind of goodness that Christ embodied. EPISODE LINKS Website: MichaelWear.com IG: @michaelwear X: @michaelrwear Michael's Book: The Spirit of Our Politics @steveryancarter @craft_character Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

As we kick off 2024, Mark Scandrette offers up profound wisdom from the nine sayings of Jesus from the Beatitudes. It’s what Mark writes about in his latest book, The Ninefofd Path of Jesus. This episode is an invitation to the postures that the beatitudes provide us personally but also how to communicate these from pulpit. Mark unpacks his preaching methodology, how he arranges a sermon to be practice focused to help the congregation try on the concept.  EPISODE LINKS Mark’s book: The Ninefold Path of Jesus Website: www.markscandrette.com The Ninefold Path website: https://ninefoldpath.org/ IG: @scandrette @steveryancarter @craft_character Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Do you ever feel like the tyranny of the urgent runs your life? Do you ever feel shame for wanting to take a day off or go on a vacation? As pastors, the needs are great and time is limited. Sadly, for many this means neglecting the things that matter most: our relationship with God, family, and the health of our souls. In this episode, Mark Dance, Director of Pastoral Wellness for Guidestone Financial Resources, explains to Steve Carter that orienting our lives around the two greatest commandments一loving God and neighbor一can be a joyful, restful experience. To deny yourself, as Jesus commands, doesn’t mean you should neglect yourself. In his new book, Start to Finish, Mark explains how to reclaim the life God wants for you as a leader一a life defined by balance, peace, friendship, rest, and wisdom. Every dollar from book sales go to Mission:Dignity, an organization that honors retirement-age ministers, workers, and widows struggling to meet basic needs through advocacy and financial assistance. EPISODE LINKS Mark’s books: Start to Finish: The Pastor’s Guide to Leading a Resilient Life and Ministry Website: https://markdance.net Guidestone: https://www.guidestone.org/ @markdance @steveryancarter @craft_character Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

How much does your upbringing influence your life now? The answer for all of us is ... more than we realize. In today’s episode, Ike Miller一who pastors Bright City Church alongside his wife Sharon一shares about his new book called Good Baggage: How Your Difficult Childhood Prepared You for Healthy Relationships. Growing up in a dysfunctional family impacted by alcoholism and divorce, Ike shares firsthand wisdom about: Cultivating a regular rhythm of counseling. Why saying no is necessary to stay healthy. How to stop editing our identity to please others. How to prioritize rest and resist the idol of success. How to build a healthy church and home culture. During the holidays一a season laden with complex family dynamics and packed schedules一let this episode remind you that God is with you, loves you, and is working through your story. EPISODE LINKS Ike’s book: Good Baggage Website: https://ikemiller.com Church: Bright City Church @ikefmiller @steveryancarter @craft_character Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Every pastor needs a pastor一someone to offer wisdom, empathy, and an example of finishing well. Lee Eclov is a shepherd to shepherds, and in this episode he shares with Steve Carter: How to care more about people and less about numbers. The role of spiritual formation in preaching. The importance of working through a text in your own soul before you preach. Why thinking of Scripture as a song will enrich your preaching. How to write sermons that touch people’s minds and hearts. If you’re a pastor, please don’t miss this episode! Lee’s voice resounds with grace, is seasoned from decades of ministry, and offers countless insights that will help you finish well. EPISODE LINKS Lee’s books: Shepherding the Shepherd: Devotions for a Pastor’s Soul Website: https://leeeclov.com Sign-Up for Lee Eclov's Weekly Pastor's Devotional Newsletter: https://newsletters.christianitytoday.com/preachingtoday/subscribe.html @leeeclov @steveryancarter @craft_character Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

As the world continues to progress technologically, how do we begin to approach this theologically. Jason Thacker, a professor of ethics and author joins Steve Carter on the craft and character podcast to help us better understand what is at stake and what we can do about it. Technology is not a net neutral conversation; but rather one we must approach with greater wisdom and discernment. With the advent of AI and other technological advancements, we as preachers have an opportunity to help our people understand what formation, ethics, and life in the kingdom truly looks like Jason Thacker serves as an assistant professor of philosophy and ethics at Boyce College in Louisville, Kentucky. He also is a senior fellow in Christian ethics and director of the research institute at The Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention. He is the author of several books including Following Jesus in a Digital Age and The Age of AI: Artificial Intelligence and the Future of Humanity. He also serves as the editor of The Digital Public Square: Christian Ethics in a Technological Society and co-editor of the Essentials in Christian Ethics series with B&H Academic. He is the project leader and lead drafter of Artificial Intelligence: An Evangelical Statement of Principles. EPISODE LINKS Website - jasonthacker.com Books - Following Jesus in a Digital Age, The Age of AI: Artificial Intelligence and the Future of Humanity @jasonthacker @steveryancarter @craft_character Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

As headlines convulse with the latest news about the Israel-Hamas war, how should followers of Jesus respond? Jon Huckins, professor, author, and founder of Journey Home, shares with Steve Carter about what peacemaking looks like一first in our own hearts, then in the world God calls us to love. This convicting conversation point us toward the way of Jesus, helping us see the image of God in people on all sides of the conflict. Jon and Steve, who recently hiked the Camino de Santiago together, reflect on the lost art of pilgrimage and how it helps us relinquish control, reawaken to the Spirit’s movement, forgive, and rest in the love of God. This inner work, in which we allow God to calm the storm inside, is the first step toward spreading peace around us. Ultimately, the conflict is not a call to coldly evaluate political and religious “sides.” It’s an invitation to pray fervently for all people, inviting the Spirit to transform us in the process. EPISODE LINKS Jon’s organization Website: https://jonhuckins.net Journey Home Jon’s books: Mending the Divides, Thin Places, Teaching Through the Art of Storytelling @jonhuckins @steveryancarter @craft_character Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

As a leader, how well do you know your people and city? As a preacher, how much does your context shape your content? For Micah Davis, the pastor of teaching and vision at a new church plant, The Sanctuary in Indianapolis, there’s a deep connection between who he serves and how he leads. After hearing God whisper “pastor your neighborhood” during a prayer walk, he’s ignited by the realization that God raises up particular people in specific places一a vision that excites and fuels his church plant. In this conversation with Steve Carter, Micah highlights some key aspects of planting a church, especially in a Gen Z, urban context: How to lead people into spiritual formation, not just more information. How to choose your first sermon series. The profound role of prayer一something that’s easy to overlook. Why it’s important to exegete your city一to know its hurts and strengths. This conversation will rekindle your heart for the place and people God is calling you to lead and teach. Also, check out Micah’s forthcoming book: Trailblazers: A Journey to Discover God’s Purpose For Your Life. EPISODE LINKS Micah’s books: Trailblazers: A Journey to Discover God’s Purpose For Your Life Website: https://www.micahedavis.com/ Church: https://sanctuaryindy.com/ @micahedavis The book Micah mentions: Joshua Becker, The More of Less @steveryancarter @craft_character Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

If you’re a parent, how do you nurture and guide your children? If you’re a pastor or leader, are you truly creating an environment that draws kids to Jesus? The responsibility of stewarding young hearts can feel immense, but the good news is: you don’t have to figure it out alone. Today’s guest is author Kayla Craig, whose new book, Every Season Sacred, is a collection of practical tools and reflective prayers to help families build a culture of discipleship in the ebb and flow of everyday life. Kayla speaks candidly with Steve Carter about the chaos of family schedules and the mystery of finding God in the midst of daily commutes, fast food drive-thrus, and the scattered moments of the day一all of which are opportunities to be intentional with our kids. This episode will inspire and equip you to lead your children well, in a way that works best for your stage of life. EPISODE LINKS Kayla’s books: Every Season Sacred, To Light Their Way Website: https://kaylacraig.com/ @kayla_craig @steveryancarter @craft_character Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

How do we call out injustice and seek shalom without becoming self-righteous? In their new book, Pivot: The Priorities, Practices, and Powers That Can Transform Your Church Into a Tov Culture, father-daughter duo Scot McKnight and Laura Barringer follow up their previous book, A Church Called Tov一charting a course for those seeking to create a healthier church culture. In this episode, they share with Steve Carter: How healthier churches exist when leaders listen to the Spirit and surrender to his leading. How to build a church culture in which power is stewarded, not abused; where people are shepherded, not manipulated; where leadership is accountable, not untouchable. How to diagnose the health of your heart and team, even when everything looks “put-together” externally. How to respond thoughtfully to abuse and scandal in the digital age. This book is a must-read for any pastor, leader, discipler, human, who aches to see the church become tov. EPISODE LINKS Scot and Laura’s co-written books: Pivot, A Church Called Tov Laura’s website: https://www.laurabarringer.net/ Scot’s Substack: https://scotmcknight.substack.com/ https://www.churchcalledtov.org/ @scotmcknight @laurambarringer @steveryancarter @craft_character Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices