In this episode of the Spirituality for Ordinary Podcast your host, Matt Brough, begins with J. Dana Trent, author of One Breath At A Time: A Skeptic’s Guide to Meditation . The second half of their conversation will feature in the next episode. Most of this conversation goes over whether the Examen is helpful when you have days that are high stress or anxiety producing. For an overview of the Examen, you may want to go back to Episode 1 of Season 2 - The Examen in a Nutshell Visit J. Dana Trent...
Apr 22, 2019•30 min
In this episode of the Spirituality for Ordinary Podcast your host, Matt Brough, has a conversation with Jen Ostash-Gooch about their individual experiences of the Examen. They open up a conversation about a number of topics: how the Examen allows awareness of what God might be doing in life. how the Examen helps us to not simply drift through life. how the Examen helps us to stay in the moment and focus on what you are doing. How our experience of community being changed because of the practice...
Apr 02, 2019•24 min
In this episode of the Spirituality for Ordinary Podcast your host, Matt Brough, goes over the five steps in practice of the Examen and shares about his own ups and downs in trying to stay focused for a 10 to 20 minute time of prayer. For an overview of the Examen, you may want to go back to Episode 1 of Season 2 - The Examen in a Nutshell Episode 2 covers... The temptation to just not do it or not try it. We can sometimes believe that any prayer practice (in this case The Examen) won't actually...
Mar 20, 2019•31 min
This is the first episode of Season 2 of the Spirituality for Ordinary People Podcast and we are about to shift the focus in a big way. For this season, we are focusing completely on a single spiritual practice - The Examen. Below is a modified version of the Examen, a prayer practice developed by Ignatius of Loyola (1491-1556). This way of going through the Examen is outlined in the book A Simple Life-Changing Prayer: Discovering the Power of St. Ignatius Loyola's Examen by Jim Manney. The text...
Mar 14, 2019•24 min
"Doubt is only a problem if certainty is the expectation."—Austin Fischer Episode 70 of Spirituality for Ordinary People features an interview with Austin Fischer. Austin is the Teaching Pastor at Vista Community Church . His latest book is called Faith in the Shadows: Finding Christ in the Midst of Doubt Key Learnings Everyone has doubts. "The problem of evil" is a cold, rational way to talk about our doubts around the pain and suffering in the world. When we face real suffering it brings a cri...
Jan 15, 2019•51 min
"Meditation is intentional about holding the space for listening for God's still small voice."—J. Dana Trent Episode 69 of Spirituality for Ordinary People features another interview with J. Dana Trent. Dana was on episode 67 speaking about the practice of Sabbath, and this time she is back sharing about Christian Meditation. She is a graduate of Duke Divinity School and professor of World Religions and Critical Thinking at Wake Tech Community College. An ordained Baptist minister and former hos...
Jan 02, 2019•54 min
"I knew all this stuff about God but I was lacking in terms of how much I knew God in my personhood, in my lived experience..."—Phileena Heuertz Episode 68 of Spirituality for Ordinary People features an interview with Phileena Heuertz. Phileena has spent her life in social justice work among the world’s poor. A member of the New Friar movement, for nearly 20 years she and her husband Chris served with Word Made Flesh in more than 70 countries building community among victims of human traffickin...
Dec 18, 2018•46 min
"It's that one day a week that shapes the remaining six..."—J. Dana Trent Episode 67 of Spirituality for Ordinary People features an interview with J. Dana Trent. J. Dana Trent is a graduate of Duke Divinity School and professor of World Religions and Critical Thinking at Wake Tech Community College. An ordained Baptist minister and former hospital chaplain, her work has appeared on Time.com , and in Religion News Service, Sojourners, Religion Dispatches, and The Christian Century. Key Learnings...
Dec 11, 2018•55 min
"Beauty is a form of truth that God uses to display His glory. Imagination allows us to tap into that again - to see God through beauty."—Manuel Luz Episode 66 of Spirituality for Ordinary People features an interview with Manuel Luz. An aerospace engineer by day jazz/pop musician by night, Manuel Luz was called to be a worship pastor 18 years ago. He continues playing gigs, has combined engineering and music in surprising ways (inventing a new musical instrument), and serves at Oak Hills Church...
Dec 04, 2018•1 hr 1 min
Matt Brough explains why there won't be any new episodes of Spirituality for Ordinary People coming out in November. He needs a bit of a buffer time as he adjusts to his new role working as the Program Coordinator for the New Worshipping Communities Initiative (Cyclical PCC) for his denomination. The role is half-time, and he will be staying on as pastor of Prairie Presbyterian Church on a half-time basis as well. Listen in as he explains the approach to starting new Churches and how it is a dee...
Nov 08, 2018•14 min
In Episode 65 of the Spirituality for Ordinary Podcast we revisit two old interviews with children's authors S.D. Smith and Laura Alary who speak about the importance of imagination, ritual, story, and how we need to inspire hope. Matt Brough also shares a bit about his own fiction writing for children, and reads from Laura Alary's new children's Bible, titled Read, Wonder, Listen. Links Matt Brough's Del Ryder Fantasy Adventure Series S.D. Smith and his Green Ember Series Read, Wonder, Listen b...
Oct 23, 2018•37 min
"Habits can be a tool, a means to an end, or they can become a distraction if we're not careful because they're not the point—God is the point—they're only there to help us pursue God."—Darryl Dash Episode 64 of Spirituality for Ordinary People features an interview with Darryl Dash. Darryl is a pastor and church planter in Toronto with over 25 years of ministry experience, and author of How to Grow: Applying the Gospel to All of Life . He serves as pastor of Liberty Grace Church and also helps ...
Oct 01, 2018•54 min
"It's not depth, it's not breadth, it's not knowledge... it's can you be consistent in your time spent with Jesus?"—Grant Vissers Episode 63 of Spirituality for Ordinary People features an interview with Grant Vissers. Grant is a pastor at St. Paul's Leaksdale Church , a writer, blogger, and host of the Young Church Leaders Podcast . Key Learnings When trying to figure out a calling, a vocation, or a next step, listen to the people around you, but make sure that the ones you are listening to hav...
Sep 25, 2018•50 min
"There is a part of discipleship that always leaves us in motion, even if we've lived in the same place our entire lives"—Michelle Van Loon Episode 62 of Spirituality for Ordinary People features an interview with Michelle Van Loon. Since coming to faith in Christ at the tail end of the Jesus Movement, Michelle’s Jewish heritage, spiritual hunger, and storyteller's sensibilities have shaped her faith journey and informed her writing. She is the author of five books and a regular contributor to C...
Sep 18, 2018•53 min
"The Celtic Christian tradition is not what I would call 'I need a hug theology.' It's deeply grounded in the revelation of Father, Son, and Spirit..."—Ross Lockhart Episode 61 of Spirituality for Ordinary People features an interview with Dr. Ross Lockhart. Ross is Associate Professor and Director of the Centre for Missional Leadership at St. Andrew’s Hall. Ross serves as the Presbyterian Director of Denominational Formation at Vancouver School of Theology as well as an Adjunct Professor of Hom...
Sep 11, 2018•59 min
"Only about 13% of Christians 'speak God' about once a week... that's shocking! Because we say we love God, we say we love faith, but we don't talk about faith..."—Jonathan Merritt Episode 60 of Spirituality for Ordinary People features an interview with Jonathan Merritt. Jonathan Merritt is an award-winning writer on religion, culture, and politics. He currently serves as a contributing writer for The Atlantic and contributing editor for The Week. Jonathan has published more than 3500 articles ...
Aug 14, 2018•50 min
"Fearing one another, hating one another, not welcoming one another... We have to somehow overcome and see what Christ has done when Jesus walked on earth. He didn't build walls, he broke them down..."—Grace Ji-Sun Kim Episode 59 of Spirituality for Ordinary People features an interview with Dr. Grace Ji-Sun Kim. Grace is Associate Professor of Theology at Earlham School of Religion and is the author of over 15 books. Her latest include... Healing Our Broken Humanity , co-written with Graham Hil...
Jul 31, 2018•1 hr 4 min
Click here and Enter for a chance to win a copy of Amos Smith's latest book, Be Still and Listen "Augustine said that people try to fill that God-shaped hole in the brothel, in the bar, with their spouse, but nothing really satisfies, gives a deep sense of fulfillment and purpose, like a direct experience of God's presence. "—Amos Smith Episode 58 of Spirituality for Ordinary People features an interview Amos Smith. Amos writes at his website about Recovering Christianity's Mystic Roots and is t...
Jul 17, 2018•53 min
"It was amazing to me that in this hard part of scriputre, there were things we could immediately apply."—Rachel Schmoyer Episode 57 of Spirituality for Ordinary People features Rachel Schmoyer. Rachel has a website called "Read the Hard Parts" which focusses on looking at some of the most difficult passages in Scripture and looks to discover what truth we might glean. Rather than the usual interview format, Rachel and I do an essentially unplanned Bible Study on Malachi 1:1-5: 1 The oracle of t...
Jun 26, 2018•56 min
"When I look beyond my own circumstances and catch these other glimmers of how God is moving and acting in the world and in other peoples' lives, then I realize He is here with me..."—Alicia Brummeler Episode 56 of Spirituality for Ordinary People features an interview with Alicia Brummeler. In it, we focus on her book, Everywhere God: Exploring the Ordinary Places . We discuss encountering God in when spiritually adrift, having or not having tangible experiences of God, encountering God in ritu...
Jun 20, 2018•45 min
"There's something about naming God's goodness in a thing that softens your heart toward it."—John van Sloten. Episode 55 of Spirituality for Ordinary People features an interview with John van Sloten. In it, we focus on three areas: 1) God's presence in popular culture 2) Our jobs as parables for understanding God The interview is a deep dive into understanding the revelation of God. How is God speaking / or revealing himself. Key Learnings There is always an opportunity to learn about or know ...
Jun 13, 2018•49 min
"God isn't just some outside force looking at me or some infinite force that created the universe but God is actually in me...and I can take these inner nudges and actions into my daily life."—Rich Lewis How can you actually get closer to God in such a way that you are really experiencing God's presence on a regular basis? Episode 54 of Spirituality for Ordinary People features an interview Rich Lewis. In it, we focus very specifically on the practice of centering prayer. We go over what it is, ...
Jun 05, 2018•46 min
"Silence is radical...Getting away from technology, getting away from everything, is radical."—Paul Angone Twenty-somethings and thirty-somethings continue to long for something more or have a sense that life or the world is not as it should be. How can we do better self-examination, especially when failure, disappointment, tragedy, or struggle is close? Episode 53 of Spirituality for Ordinary People features an interview with Paul Angone, author of 101 Secrets For Your Twenties and 101 Question...
May 29, 2018•47 min
"You don't have to have an 'S' on your chest if you have a savior in your heart."—Dan Stanford North American culture is saturated with the superhero motif. Why is that, and what hopes and needs is the pop culture superhero tapping into? Why do we flock to superhero stories, and what does it mean to embrace ordinary-ness as a better way to life? Episode 52 of Spirituality for Ordinary people features an interview with Dan Stanford, author, and pastor of The Well Church in Kenosha, WI. Dan's late...
May 15, 2018•45 min
"Good questions can change the trajectory of peoples' futures."—J.R. Briggs People are asking deep and difficult questions in their lives and there is an inclination in our culture to fixate on easy or quick-fix answers. What does it look like to sit with questions, ask better questions, and how can a focus on questions help us in our walk with Christ? Episode 51 of Spirituality for Ordinary people features an interview with J.R. Briggs, author, pastor, and founder of Kairos Partnerships . J.R. ...
May 08, 2018•51 min
Episode 50 celebrates the one year anniversary of the Spirituality for Ordinary People Podcast. Ashley Boychuk joins our host, Matthew Brough, and she interviews him. Get full access to Faithfully Creative at mattbrough.substack.com/subscribe
Apr 03, 2018•1 hr 10 min
MARCH 27 - LAST DAY TO ENTER THE BIG GOD BOOK GIVEAWAY WITH 24 BOOKS! ENTER HERE: https://spiritualityforordinarypeople.com/giveaway Episode 49 features an interview with Rev. Peter Bush. Peter is serving a one year term as the moderator of the Presbyterian Church in Canada . He is the minister at Westwood Presbyterian Church in Winnipeg and the author of several books. He is passionate about congregations and individuals living the love of Jesus in action and telling the story of Jesus in words...
Mar 27, 2018•39 min
Episode 48 features an interview with Lacey Buchanan. Lacey and her family are truly amazing. Her oldest son, Christian, was born with a rare form of cleft lip and palate called Tessier cleft lip and palate, classifications 3, 4, 5. Christian is completely blind. He is medically complex, but rocking this thing called life! Christian and his mom, Lacey, are on a mission to spread hope to others, share truths about having a disability and raising a child with one, and showing the world how to over...
Mar 20, 2018•43 min
Episode 47 features an interview with Lacy Clark Ellman. She is a spiritual director , maker , and facilitator who speaks the language of pilgrimage and is always ready for the next adventure, having traveled to over twenty countries on four continents. Lacy provides resources, courses and guidance through her website, A Sacred Journey . Partway through the interview, Lacy shares her "rule of life for pilgrims," or "Pilgrim Principles," which was awesome! She goes through all seven principles an...
Mar 13, 2018•51 min
Episode 46 features an interview with Steve Saccone. He is a pioneer in the field of unrestricted education and leadership development. For more than a decade he’s been partnering with churches nationwide to design and launch innovative internship programs. He has been in pastoral ministry for more than fifteen years, and currently works with Southeasten University. Steve is the author of several books, including the one we speak about in this interview (co-written with Cheri Saccone), Talking A...
Mar 06, 2018•48 min
