Through pain, we find purpose. No one understands that Like Jerrad Lopes. After starting out early in full-time ministry as a pastor, Jerrad placed all of his identity in his ministry. Late in his twenties, Jerrad knew he needed to leave ministry, and his world was wrecked. Looking back, Jerrad knew he was being a bad husband and an absent father as he tried to pursue things of this earth that would fulfill him. He reached out on the internet, asking if any other fathers and husbands felt this s...
Apr 04, 2018•46 min
Today we need to talk about something really important for the life of your business: failure. Yes, failure is important! How and why we fail can teach us so much about where our business is weak, and also strong. I have noticed over the years that there are 3 Big Business Setbacks: Disappointment, Discouragement, and Distrust. I am going to break down each of these three setbacks and show you how your authentic faith can combat each of them. God has given us Scripture as a guide and a comfort w...
Apr 03, 2018•21 min
Today’s guest is John Clark. John Clark was the general manager of the Boys Scouts of America and he’s here to talk about what it took to be successful leading these organizations. Success leaves clues and today we are looking for all the clues that John’s successful career left behind. John’s favorite quote is a Teddy Roosevelt quote that says, “A job that’s worth doing is worth doing well.” Show Highlights: Failure is the inability to meet our goals. Success can look different at different poi...
Apr 02, 2018•21 min
Our guest today is Abby Abildness. You will hear all about the Kingdom Start of our nation and her study of William Penn. Have you ever heard of William Penn? You may know him by "Grandfather of our nation". He is the founder of the Province of Pennsylvania. William wrote the first founding documents of the United States of America and his peace treaties are still used today. William Penn went on to be a spiritual advisor to our founding fathers. He understood government with a kingdom mind. "Me...
Mar 30, 2018•39 min
Today on Are You Real Linked you will hear the heart and passion of one woman who has been called my God to help heal and restore women and children who have found themselves homeless. Kari Heffron is the Woman & Children Program Coordinator at The Oliver Gospel Mission in Columbia, South Carolina. They are currently serving 27 women and 19 families in their area. They are very intentional about calling themselves a "Transitional Home" and not a homeless shelter. After the Holy Spirit set Ka...
Mar 29, 2018•35 min
God has given us all a purpose and a passion, and when someone is being obedient to live out that purpose, amazing things happen. I am seeing amazing things from Shane Blackshear, and so I was excited to talk to him today about the unique passion God has given him for theology, ministry, and racial relations in the church. Shane is from West Texas where he lives with his wife and two kids. He is a podcast host with two amazing shows you should definitely check out. On Seminary Dropout, Shane int...
Mar 28, 2018•55 min
What is the soul? What does it even look like to have a healthy soul? I’m going to tackle these questions in Part 2 of our 3 part series on Spirit, Soul, and Body! When it comes to complex questions like these, I think it is best to take a basic and practical approach to understanding it. I am so thankful that God has provided us with Scripture that tells us all about our soul and how we can keep it healthy. Today, I am going to bring you Scripture from both the Old and the New Testament that il...
Mar 27, 2018•14 min
Today on Are You Real Government we speak to Chantelle Irish. She is the Senior Campaign Advisor for Zimbabwe candidates: Noah Manyika and William (Widzo) Pilbrough. They are running for President and Vice President of Zimbabwe in the 2018 election. They are running under the political party of " The Build Zimbabwe Alliance ". Despite how dangerous politics can be in their country they are ready to see a change and are helping usher in Gods favor to Zimbabwe. The country as a whole is in very ha...
Mar 23, 2018•26 min
Today on Are You Real Linked we speak with Jeremiah Bolich. When Jeremiah was young he was discharged from the military due to a drug and alcohol problem. After hitting rock bottom a Christian couple invited him into their home and took him to a Billy Graham conference. At the conference, he had an encounter with the Holy Spirit that would change his life. Now Jeremiah is gone 47 weeks of the year traveling the world spreading the good news and equipping "City Takers". You will hear all about ho...
Mar 22, 2018•32 min
Purpose is all about living out God’s plan, even if it looks nothing like anything you’ve seen ever before. Christians have a pretty good idea of what it means to do church, but today I am talking with someone who listened to the Lord when he asked him to think differently about his ministry and his congregation. This is Jordan Sutton, the pastor of Clearpath Church in Dallas, TX. He and his congregation are redefining church, and the Lord is working and speaking in mighty ways through them. Ins...
Mar 21, 2018•57 min
What’s so creative about business? Everything! Especially if you are an entrepreneur, you are extremely creative. Businesses thrive when we are using our God-given creativity. When we don’t we get caught in a cycle of constant striving, and strife is the opposite of creativity. You were made in the image of a creative God, and I think some commonly overlooked creative processes will be the key to your success in business. Today, I want to give you easy tools to help you access your creativity, a...
Mar 20, 2018•20 min
How would you define success? We tend to define things in our lives incorrectly because we are either using someone else’s definition of success or following the world’s definition. When we take a close look at our definition, we may start to realize some unrealistic expectations. Today is your chance to redefine success so that you can actually see it manifest in your life. I am going to show you how! There are five areas of my life where I need to have a balanced definition of success: Faith, ...
Mar 19, 2018•16 min
Hey, everyone! Welcome to Are You Real Government episode 07. Today we speak to Jenn Bara. You will hear all about her incredible journey about how God is using her in both the Government and Business Mountian. When Jenn was young she wanted to be a women's pastor and work in the church, because that is where she thought God moved the most. After attending Bethel Church's Heaven and Business Conference God opened her eyes to all seven Mountains of Influence. In episode two we explain in depth th...
Mar 16, 2018•26 min
We are so excited to continue the conversation about "City Taking". In episode 5 "City taking 101" we had a great time with George and Sarah from City Light Church about how to start "taking" your city back for the Kingdom. We recommend going back and listen before you dive in today. (Link below) Today we had the pleasure of speaking with Naomi Volkman. She is a 12-year old Christian and is making a huge difference in her community. When Naomi was young her Mother was diagnosed with cancer, and ...
Mar 15, 2018•37 min
More of then than not, you are in the middle of your purpose before you realize it’s even started. God has a funny way of taking us on a journey to find our calling, and he is certainly capable of working through us all in a might way, even if we can’t see it. This is why I am so excited to have Matt Brough on the show today. Matt has many passions that seemed to have all converged at this moment in time. Primarily, Matt is a family man in Winnipeg, Canada. When he isn’t spending time with his f...
Mar 14, 2018•52 min
If you are going to live a healthy life, you have to take care of your body, your soul, and your spirit. This week, I want to set us off on a three-part series that will change the way we think about taking care of our spirit, soul, and body. Jumping right in, let’s talk about how we can nurture and feed our spirit by looking at the words the world uses to describe health and applying them to things in the spiritual realms. The spirit is what allows us to communicate with God. When we pray, read...
Mar 13, 2018•13 min
Sometimes, God gives his followers a talent for the creative arts, and so they are called to ministry through the art that they create. Other times, the calling comes first, and the skills follow. This is exactly what happened to Jon Egan, this week’s guest on Are You Real: Creative. Jon had a knack for the drums, but he didn’t know he would lead and write worship music until later in life. God’s call was crystal clear, and Jon listened faithfully. God would continue to ask Jon to be faithful, e...
Mar 12, 2018•42 min
Christians today are very good at the priestly practices but are often find themselves uncomfortable or intimidated by the kingly practices. God’s Kingdom on earth functions in much the same way as an earthly one. There is a ruler, a structure, and a line of command. You and I, as followers of Jesus, have inherited the kingdom from God’s own son. We can participate in princely powers and activities just as he does. It isn’t just a privilege, it is our birthright. To give us a complete understand...
Mar 09, 2018•39 min
Today on Are You Real Linked Christy Austin speaks to Anthony Turner. He is the founder of Destiny Ministries International, in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Almost 40 years ago God spoke to Anthony and told him to: “Elevate minds and disciple men to be examples of God’s awesome power, tender mercies and everlasting love.” ever since, he has been doing just that. In 2012 Anthony and his wife Alicia started Destiny Ministries International with a goal to disciple, equip and mobilize the next genera...
Mar 08, 2018•37 min
God has gifted and equipped all of us differently. Some of us are prayer warriors, and others glorify God with their service. A few of us have been called to teach and to study and know God’s Word. We tend to see these teachers up in the “ivory tower,” somewhat removed from the mission and the people. I’m here to tell you today that not all teachers are distant from the people they teach. That is the exact opposite of my guest, Preston Sprinkle, who is a clearly gifted scholar and teacher who wa...
Mar 07, 2018•54 min
Let’s talk about money! What does it mean to make “good money?” Can money even be good? How much do I really need? These are all excellent questions that I am going to tackle in this installment of Are You Real: Business. I think all money can be good money. Like any gift from God, when we use our money for his kingdom and glory, God blesses us with a full and satisfied life. Yes, I said it! Money can be an enormous blessing, but we have to steward it well. I am sharing with you today stories fr...
Mar 06, 2018•19 min
Transformation---how does it happen? We get caught up in the idea of a saved person “becoming a different person” than what they were before. In actuality, the change happens as self-perception changes, which is the way we define ourselves. We are talking in today’s show about The Transformation Principle—something that brings curiosity to all of us. Join me for more about this topic. More in this episode: Ephesians 5:13---The Transformation Principle The change occurs as variations of your “I A...
Mar 05, 2018•10 min
America is a nation that has forgotten who she is. The mandates of our founding fathers still ring as true today as they did when our nation was born. Now is not the time for the church and her leaders to hide in the cellars and wait for Jesus’ return. It is time for us to consider seriously whether or not we are called to the government mountain. We can shape our nation from the top of the mountain, but to get there we must start on our knees. Today, my guest, Vanessa Chavez is going to declare...
Mar 02, 2018•41 min
We are told that our purpose is to be the “hands and feet” of Jesus on earth. Today, I am chatting with a guy who has taken that calling to heart…even though he has neither hands nor feet. No, you did not read that wrong! Nick Vujicic was born disabled, but rather than letting that define or ruin his life, he praises God every day for the incredible speaking platform he has been given as a result. Nick wants nothing more than to use his story and the truth of Scripture to plant seeds of faith in...
Feb 28, 2018•48 min
A daily movement practice is absolutely essential for our health and wellness, but one threat to our functional movement is injury. If you’ve been an athlete for any length of time, or if you are starting out by yourself, you might be familiar with the aches and pains that come when we push our physical limits. What if I told you that it didn’t have to be this way? You can absolutely accomplish any fitness goal you want, injury free. I have an expert on the subject with me today, and he is going...
Feb 27, 2018•38 min
Most of the time, we hear stories of success and rapid fame out of the music industry. It’s rare to hear the behind-the-scenes perspective of how that artist got there and the sacrifices they had to make for a worthy cause. Today, I am speaking with a young up-and-coming artist that you need to know about. Joel Vaughn is on the rise, but his path to the music industry was anything but straightforward or easy. He’s going to give you the inside scoop on what it takes to sign to a label, produce a ...
Feb 26, 2018•36 min
The level of influence you can achieve at the top of the government mountain can shape nations. God wants to bring his government to earth, and we know he is using gifted individuals to do that. Today, I am speaking with Dr. Reuben Egolf, Chairman of the United States Global Leadership Council. If anyone embodies what it means to be a Kingdom Statesman, it’s Reuben. He is incredibly skilled at establishing relationships with influential people and then maintaining peace during difficult negotiat...
Feb 23, 2018•42 min
Last week we talked about how to “go” to your city. We’re city takers, remember, so how are we taking our city? By the art of giving. And what are we giving? We are giving love. In this continuing study on Luke 10, we are going to learn today how to give to our city. Luke 10 is filled with practical acts that we can do for our cities, in love. It’s also a good time for me to remind you to go back and listen to an earlier episode of Are You Real Linked, where I had guests George and Sarah William...
Feb 22, 2018•26 min
Your true calling is found where your passions and your gifts collide. It’s a great feeling to know what God has called you to, but what happens during the period of time where it’s not quite time to quit your day job? How can we reconcile this deep, spiritual knowledge with practical wisdom? Here to talk about calling, theology, passions, and ordinary acts of obedience are Chris Date. By day, Chris is a software designer. His true passion is writing about and teaching on theology, specifically ...
Feb 21, 2018•50 min
Entrepreneurs have a lot on their shoulders. Between the demands on their business and their home life, it can seem like there is not enough time or energy to go around. That is a lie! You can have a balance between your business life and the rest of your life. I am going to give you 4 guiding principles that will help you get there. Business success is within your reach, and what you do outside of business is just as important as what you do within it. In order to remain balanced, you have to s...
Feb 20, 2018•20 min
