I don't know if you have ever had the chance to visit St. Benedict the Moor. It's a very unassuming parish in North Omaha, but it has the distinct honor of being the only Black Catholic parish in all of Nebraska. When I visited with my family, we were perhaps the only white people in the room, and so it was obvious that we were new. The welcome that we were given was incredible. We were immediately made to feel right at home. Now, I ask you to reverse the situation. What does a black person thin...
Nov 09, 2021•43 min•Ep. 70
I've noticed a trend over the past few years. People who are hungry for a vibrant parish community are consistently discerning themselves into small groups. There really is something about a small group that helps people to encounter the Lord in a powerful way and to connect with parishioners on a deeper level. The Holy Spirit is moving His Church toward renewal, and I'm willing to bet that small groups will have a large part in it! Tune in to hear some really practical advice on small groups. A...
Oct 19, 2021•44 min•Ep. 69
In a previous EquipCast episode, we talked about the difference between having a ministry and an apostolate, between working for the Church and living out your own personal call to holiness. Today, I bring you an example of someone who has learned to integrate her faith with her profession. Teresa Kenney works as a Women's Health Practitioner, and she is known for her holistic approach to this often unexplored area of medicine. So, what does a woman's fertility have to do with evangelization? Tu...
Oct 12, 2021•37 min•Ep. 68
A Skill Demo about how to meet new people might seem like a incredibly simple subject to tackle. Most of us probably feel like we this one in the bag. But did you know that the average American has not made a new friend in the last five years? And so, now is the moment for Catholics to step into that gap. As we seek to build missional communities, one of the best ways to start is by building relationships. A Production of the Archdiocese of Omaha
Sep 28, 2021•10 min
Last week, my guest, Tim Glemkowski, author of Made for Mission, talked to us about the importance of parish renewal. This week, he gets into the nitty-gritty. He talks practically about building a Clear Path to Discipleship in parishes, setting goals, leadership culture, and organizational health. A Production of the Archdiocese of Omaha Editor: Taylor Schroll (ForteCatholic.com)
Sep 21, 2021•38 min•Ep. 67
I’m sure you know… I talk A LOT about how Jesus calls us to be missionary disciples. And I’m also sure you know… parish renewal is HARD. So today, I talk with a friend, Tim Glemkowski, who’s book, Made for Mission, is one of the most practical guides to helping parish leaders wade through this process of renewal. I liked what he had to offer so much that we made this into two episodes! So, once you are done here, check out part 2. A Production of the Archdiocese of Omaha Editor: Taylor Schroll (...
Sep 14, 2021•37 min•Ep. 66
I have something to confess. I used to be a (bad) meeting addict. If you know me, you know that I love being around people, communicating with them. So, you'd think meetings led by me would be great! I'd like to think they are now, but I had to learn a few things first. So, if you've ever been in a meeting that was too long, boring, got in the way of you doing "the real work", or felt generally unimportant, then this episode is for you! A Production of the Archdiocese of Omaha Editor: Taylor Sch...
Sep 07, 2021•43 min•Ep. 65
Today I talk to one of my old friends from my time in FOCUS. We've had experience evangelizing in many different contexts, and we agree. The most difficult place to evangelize... is in your own heart. It can be scary to delve into our emotions and to hold our brokenness out to the Lord for healing. But, if we do this, then we can truly serve others from a place of love and relationship with Jesus. So join me in a conversation with Matt Simmons, a man who truly understands that the best expressio...
Aug 24, 2021•40 min•Ep. 64
Students encounter the Lord at conferences like Steubenville, in adoration, or in retreat settings, but then, they are thrust back into the regular cadence of a secular life. Continuing to live out their faith without a community of support can be very difficult. And so, Skutt Catholic adopted discipleship groups, small groups led by adults who accompany these students. Today I talk to Quinlan Couri as she describes these groups and how she builds up the leaders, both student and adult. A Produc...
Aug 10, 2021•36 min•Ep. 63
How do you start your day? Like many of you, I try to start mine in prayer and with the Lord in scripture. But teaching our children to do the same can be difficult. Today, I talk to Cheryl Drozd, a teacher who helps her students start every day in prayer and reading the scriptures. And, she says that the results are explosive: "God is working through me. It's His word and His Holy Spirit working. So, it's just a matter of trusting and letting God do His thing." Friends, the Word of God is alive...
Aug 03, 2021•39 min•Ep. 62
The rate of culture change in the last 20 years has been swift. This has created a gap in how well adults are able to relate to the youngest in our communities. And unfortunately, this inability to understand and walk with the youth has also led to many leaving the Church. In fact, the median age that a youth leaves the faith is...13. So how do we accompany Gen Z? Today, my guest, Jodi Phillips, offers a model for youth ministry that advocates discipleship. A Production of the Archdiocese of Oma...
Jul 20, 2021•58 min•Ep. 61
This is the first time in a many years that no priests were ordained in our diocese, and it's during times like these that people throw around the phrase "vocations crisis". I'm sure the idea that there is a vocations crisis will come as no surprise to you, but I think the solutions that we propose in this episode will. Today, I talk to Fr. Roza, our Vocations Director, and he suggests that the ultimate solution lies in reviving the faith of the laity. A Production of the Archdiocese of Omaha Ed...
Jul 13, 2021•41 min•Ep. 60
Growing as a missional community often means taking steps into the unknown. It means opening ourselves to the newness that God desires for us, and this often includes changing our habits, our processes, or even our expectations of what's possible. But sometimes, in our planning efforts, we don't actually make space for the only one who really knows what's going on and what needs to be done in our parishes. This week, Andy Dejka leads us through one of my favorite tools for discernment, the Disce...
Jun 29, 2021•8 min
Imagine if you were defined by the worst thing you ever did, the worst moment of your life. Jesus came to preach freedom to captives. He offers mercy, healing, and miracles to those who just reach out in faith. For most of us, this means freedom from sin. But my guest on the EquipCast today preaches freedom to literal prisons. Through Alpha, men in our local prison who have never experienced love in their life, are for the first time receiving love with no strings attached. A Production of the A...
Jun 22, 2021•59 min•Ep. 59
We talk a lot on this podcast about evangelization and mission. I can cast vision all day long, but the reality is…actually going on mission is scary. How do I recognize the people in my life that are ready to hear the Good News of Jesus? How do I get over the fear of stepping outside of my comfort zone to share my faith? There’s no one answer that will work for every person. But today, I want to hold up for you the story a parishioner in this Archdiocese. Michael Doerneman is unassuming, and so...
Jun 15, 2021•55 min•Ep. 58
When you imagine yourself Living Mercy, what comes to mind first? Do you think of the saints who gave up everything for a life of poverty or service to the sick? Does that seem impossible or very far from reach? Today, I talk to Dcn. Omar Gutierrez about Catholic Social Teaching and the lay person’s role to live ordinary mercy. He tells us, “All teachings of the Church [on this subject] start and end in the same spot: Jesus. Know him so that you can love him and so that you can be with him now a...
Jun 08, 2021•53 min•Ep. 57
On a scale of 1-10, how missional would you say your parish is? In October 2020, the Archbishop launched the Big Goal that “Each parish in the Archdiocese of Omaha would become missional by the end of 6 years”. Implicit in that goal is the recognition that none of us are there yet. So, I invite each of you to ask, “Is my community dying, declining, swelling, or growing?” While these categories sound depressing, an honest conversation about where we are at is designed to help us receive the grace...
Jun 01, 2021•1 hr•Ep. 56
We are back with our monthly Skill Demo! This time, Chris Sommers, Director of Human Resources, gives us practical advice on how to handle performance issues. I know many of you are not managers, but much of her advice is still applicable to those situations where we have to give feedback to a volunteer, friend, or family member. A Production of the Archdiocese of Omaha
May 25, 2021•18 min
Have you ever struggled to pass on your faith to your children? I know I'm not alone when I say that talking about the faith in an age appropriate way to my children is hard. When they are young, just getting the threenages to sit still at mass is difficult. And when they are older...well...nothing I do impresses the teenagers. While I'm not an expert in religious education, I am a father. So I invited other passionate fathers to join me in a conversation about evangelizing our own children. Her...
May 18, 2021•1 hr 4 min•Ep. 55
Sometimes the idea of discerning God’s will can daunting. Sifting through the emotions, desires, and the high and low points of each day, and then listening for God’s voice in the midst of it all, can at times be an intimidating task. Now add to this task of discernment, the dynamics of a team. When you have multiple people who bring their thoughts and feelings to the table, discernment can get messy. Today, Fr. Paul Hoesing gives some tips and tricks on how to discern as a team. A Production of...
May 11, 2021•1 hr 4 min•Ep. 54
Preparation for the sacrament of marriage used to happen at the dinner table. The best preparation came from the family that you grew up in. Unfortunately, with the changes in our culture, including the very high divorce rate, couples often receive this sacrament without ever seeing a healthy marriage relationship. Today's marriage prep process, while trying to provide what couples are lacking, has regrettably become a check-list, hoops to jump through in order to get to the altar. Rachael Tvrdy...
May 04, 2021•1 hr 8 min•Ep. 53
A very real obstacle to changing culture and building a missional church is my own ability to stay organized. I can set all of the lofty goals that I want, but if I never revisit them, I am very likely to never achieve them. In this month's Skill Demo, I outline my favorite method of staying organized, the Weekly Review. It's a time where you can gather all of your thoughts and processes, review the past week, and get ready for the next one. A Production of the Archdiocese of Omaha...
Apr 27, 2021•13 min
Have you noticed? Talking to your neighbor about faith has gotten harder over the past few decades. For our grandparents, it was enough that they taught daily devotions to their children by example. And our experience of education, the law, government, and art supported our beliefs. Now, the culture is in direct opposition to our faith. We find ourselves, to quote Pope Francis, in a "change of age". So how do we "mind the gap". How do we transition well into this new age? A Production of the Arc...
Apr 20, 2021•1 hr 15 min•Ep. 52
“And he gave some as apostles, others as prophets, others as evangelists, others as pastors and teachers, to equip the holy ones for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ” (Eph 4:11-12) Today, I invited an old friend and biblical scholar to unpack the meaning or this verse. Here are just a few of his gems of wisdom: Our leaders, the apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers should not be doing all of the church ministries. These are gifts are for leaders of the Ch...
Apr 13, 2021•1 hr 10 min•Ep. 51
Happy Easter! I pray that you receive all the graces God has on offer during this season. As St. Paul says, "if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain". And so, I want Easter to have lasting meaning to each of our lives. Thus today, I give you a moment to pause and reflect. For this EquipCast, we invited Fr. Taylor Leffler to reflect on the resurrection, the road to Emmaus, and what all this means for our life. May it be as fruitful for you as it was ...
Apr 06, 2021•1 hr 1 min•Ep. 50
This episode is a Skill Demo, videoed and produced for our Equip website. We've cut and posted it here on our podcast, but if you'd like to see the presenter’s delightful face or access the resources, head over to Equip.Archomaha.org. Beth Carlson takes us through a practical demonstration of how to lead group lectio using ARRR.
Mar 23, 2021•8 min
When I hear the word stewardship, I think of money...and I bet most of you do as well. But stewardship is more than fundraising and fundraisers. A good steward connections people with the mission and ministries of the Church. Today, I talk with our Stewardship and Development Office, and they challenge us to stop selling magazines and start selling the mission. Fundraisers are transactional, but when a parish raises money, it should be transformational because good stewardship can lead to deeper...
Mar 16, 2021•48 min•Ep. 49
How well do you know your neighbors? Do you want them to know Jesus and be his disciples? The Thresholds of Evangelization give us a mental framework to approach our neighbors and to engage them in conversations about faith, but at the level they are comfortable with. Today, I want to share with you a conversation that I had with some old friends. Aaron and Brooke Keller have committed themselves to not only making friends with their neighbors but to bringing Jesus into the lives of their neighb...
Mar 09, 2021•57 min•Ep. 48
Have you ever been on a mission trip? Chances are, if you have, that you went to a different state or even a different country. On today’s EquipCast, I talk with Hope of the Poor. While they do have a ministry to the poor in Mexico, their mission is first to evangelize. Yes, they bring Jesus to the poor that they serve, but more than that, they also help the Americans that they bring to Mexico to see Jesus in the distressing disguise of the poor. The goal is then to help these same Americans fin...
Mar 02, 2021•46 min•Ep. 47
I've been on many teams throughout my career with FOCUS and at the Archdiocese. One thing I've learned is that for a team to be truly collaborative, it must have prayer as a foundation. This foundation of prayer not only leads to greater trust among team members, it also keeps our team goals focused on God's mission for us. Effective team prayer offers the opportunity for teams to grow and discern together. Today's podcast offers 5 principles for effective team prayer. Special Guest: Andy Dejka....
Feb 23, 2021•56 min•Ep. 46
