In the middle of navigating the coronavirus pandemic, people everywhere are trying to find creative ways to continue to create their work and develop community. We wanted to profile people who are finding creative solutions to keep moving forward in our new normal. Today’s episode is the second in this series. In Part Two, we talk with Matt Penz about the way his dental practice has adapted to the realities of Covid-19 while keeping the office a safe, warm, and welcoming place for patients, as w...
Sep 01, 2020•57 min•Ep. 100
In the middle of navigating the coronavirus pandemic, people everywhere are trying to find creative ways to continue to create their work and develop community. We wanted to profile people who are finding creative solutions to keep moving forward in our new normal. Today’s episode is the first in this series. In Part One, we talk with Ben Grace and Karyn Thurston about Heathen Happy Hour and some of their other creative projects. Learn more about Ben’s music at BenGraceMusic.com and find the Hea...
Aug 12, 2020•1 hr 5 min•Ep. 99
2020 has looked a bit different than we imagined, hasn’t it? As the coronavirus pandemic officially hit the United States, we were convinced we just needed to sit on the couch, wait it out, and watch Netflix - but our expectations of newly found free time turned into the hard reality of quarantine. In this episode we discuss our experience so far of the pandemic and the ways that life has changed over the last several months. Through it all, what are we seeing? What have we learned? How might we...
Jul 16, 2020•39 min•Ep. 98
For today’s episode, we’re revisiting our live event with Drew Hart. To dig deeper, visit SandboxCooperative.com and click on the discussion tab. On May 7, 2017 we welcomed Drew Hart for one of our Sandbox Live Events. Drew is a Theology Professor, Church Anti-Racism Trainer, and Justice Activist and author of the book, Trouble I’ve Seen: Changing the Way the Church Views Racism, as well as the upcoming Who Will Be a Witness: Igniting Activism for God's Justice, Love, and Deliverance. We talked ...
Jun 17, 2020•37 min
A few weeks ago a groundhog told us how much longer winter would last, and that a new season is right around the corner. It got us thinking about seasons in our own lives, paying attention to where we are and what’s next. What season are you in? Are you in between seasons? What could be next in your story?
Feb 26, 2020•25 min•Ep. 97
In today’s episode we talk about gratitude. What would it look like for us to practice gratitude more consistently? How might that shape our view of our lives and the world around us? Web comic, I’m Honestly Fed Up With All The Bad News, So I Illustrated 50 Of The Best Ones From 2019 : https://www.boredpanda.com/positive-news-2019-illustrations-mauro-gatti/
Feb 12, 2020•30 min•Ep. 96
Dale Fredrickson is a teacher and a poet. He is the author of multiple books and albums, most recently Blessed is the Man . Blessed is the man is the story of how men can grow their capacity for mutual love and become openhearted, emotionally expressive, and relationally connected. Through poetry and the sounds of banjos, mandolins, saxophones, violins, and guitars Dale seeks to inspire men and women alike to let love shape their lives and write their stories. For more about Dale and his work, b...
Jan 22, 2020•54 min•Ep. 95
We hope you are all enjoying the holidays and have the chance to be rested and encouraged this season. We’ll be taking a short break from the podcast, but will be back in mid-late January. In the meantime, here’s a quick word from us and a gift of a poem, On This Night I Wonder , from our friend Dale Fredrickson .
Dec 25, 2019•8 min
In today’s episode we talk with Emmy Kegler about her book, One Coin Found: How God's Love Stretches to the Margins . In addition to talking about the book, Emmy shared her experience of tension with the Bible and the Christian story, specifically in the ways scripture has been used to marginalize people based on sexuality, race, or beliefs. She hopes that through her book, and we hope through this episode, people who have had a broken relationship with the Christian story might have the chance ...
Dec 04, 2019•44 min•Ep. 94
In today’s episode each of us share a story of an experience we had that was somehow important - one of those experiences that seemed to be full of life, where we truly noticed something special about what was happening. They’re all tied together, but maybe in surprising ways. Here are a few things to listen for in today’s episode. Why were these awesome? What made these experiences memorable or important? What experiences have you had that you would put in this category?
Nov 20, 2019•30 min•Ep. 93
For today’s episode, we share our conversation with Rick and Rose Admiral of New Life Prison Ministry in Pella, Iowa. We met Rick and Rose on our trip to Houston last summer and talked with them about their work starting a church inside a prison. They shared stories of hopefulness, encouraged us to consider restorative justice, and remind us of the value of all people, even those we might otherwise cast aside. Find out more about their work at newlife-prison.org ....
Oct 30, 2019•33 min•Ep. 92
Today we’re excited to share a conversation we had with some folks from Decolonize Lutheranism. What started as an internet meme in response to jokes about Sven and Ole and Lutherans eating Jell-O has shifted into a movement advocating an expansive Lutheran tradition that includes and values the contributions of Lutherans from all cultural backgrounds and identities. If our faith communities are to be places of healing and of growth together, then we need to do better to provide space for other ...
Oct 16, 2019•42 min•Ep. 91
Today marks something a little something different here in the Sandbox as we interviewed Dave about his time away this summer. We had the opportunity to learn a little bit more about his travels and what he learned during his time of sabbatical. We talked about his study of celtic spirituality, the need for rest and taking time to step back, and heard a couple of the essays he wrote while he was away.
Oct 02, 2019•37 min•Ep. 90
In this episode we share our conversation with Stephen Bouman, Director for Domestic Mission in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). Stephen shares stories about a variety of experiences in his years as a pastor, church leader, and now with the ELCA, and encourages us to trust in the value of relationship and community to bring change to our neighborhoods.
Sep 18, 2019•39 min•Ep. 89
In this episode we talked with Ruthie Kolb, owner of Kindling Communication, about how to have healthy conversations around human sexuality and our sexual identities. Using researched-based best practices in sexual health education, Ruthie facilitates strengths-based, interactive, age-appropriate, and inclusive conversations about sexuality that are adaptable to diverse settings: from schools to church groups and community organizations. Learn more about Ruthie and Kindling Communication at www....
Aug 28, 2019•41 min•Ep. 88
In today’s episode, we’ll hear from two women who represented the Women and Justice social statement at the National Youth Gathering in Houston, Texas last summer. We had the chance to sit down with them and learn a lot about the process of creating a social statement and why this one is especially important. As you’ll hear in the episode, in the ELCA, the Lutheran church organization that hosted this gathering, a social statement is a document that explains how Lutherans live out their understa...
Jul 24, 2019•24 min•Ep. 87
Many of our conversations over the last several months came from our trip down to Houston last summer. One of those conversations was with an organization called Water to Thrive, a faith-based American nonprofit that funds the building of wells in eastern Africa and spreads awareness about the African water crisis. We had the opportunity to meet with Jazzy Schwolert and Lindsay Pease, who work for Water to Thrive, and learn about their work to bring clean water to all. Learn more at WaterToThriv...
Jun 26, 2019•35 min•Ep. 86
In our world we see a lot of perfection, end result, and final product, but not a lot of the process of the people and things that inspire us. That might lead us to think our own work isn’t good enough if it doesn’t match someone else’s standard of success. But maybe something is worth doing just because of the joy it brings - even at our own level and pace.
May 22, 2019•28 min•Ep. 85
Have you ever thought: “You know what somebody should do…? Somebody should…” Could it be that the “somebody” you are talking about is you? Last summer we had the opportunity to meet with Brad Otto, the founder and president of Acts of Wisdom, a non profit organization dedicated to assisting people in rural Africa in their quest to obtain quality, relevant education. We had a great conversation with Brad, and we’re excited to introduce him and his work. Visit ActsOfWisdom.com for more information...
May 08, 2019•24 min•Ep. 84
In the final episode of our immigration series, we connected again with our friends from St. Michael’s in Albuquerque, New Mexico to see what they have learned over the last 9 months or so since we had our initial conversation. With new developments on the southern border, St. Michael’s has expanded their work in immigration to meet the need, and once again they inspired us with their compassionate work, and the new things they are doing.
Apr 25, 2019•42 min•Ep. 83
As we continue our series on immigration, we’ll share our conversation with Marian Bock. We had the opportunity to connect with Marian through David and Joe, who shared about their community, St. Michael’s, in our last episode. Marian is a member of the Albuquerque Friends Meeting House , a quaker community in Albuquerque providing sanctuary for a woman named Emma. We had a great conversation, and learned so much about our immigration system, the joys and struggles of sanctuary, and the place th...
Apr 03, 2019•37 min•Ep. 82
The conversation on immigration is incredibly heated in our culture. But we believe the conversation can change when we begin with the dignity and value of all people - and our guests today showed us just that. As we continue our series on immigration, we’ll introduce you to the community at St. Michael Episcopal Church in Albuquerque . We felt an instant connection with them, and they had so much to share and teach us - not only about immigration - but about openness....
Mar 20, 2019•46 min•Ep. 81
We are about to enter into yet another election cycle, and once again immigration issues are at the forefront of it all. We are no experts on the matter, but we wondered - what does the conversation look like if we start with the worth, value, and dignity of all people? In future weeks these episodes will include conversations we had in New Mexico last summer, but we want to begin this topic by replaying a conversation we had in Episode 12. A few years ago the Syrian refugee crisis was all over ...
Mar 06, 2019•36 min
About a month ago we asked the question, “What do you wonder about?” We invited listeners to message us and let us know. In today’s episode we heard from a listener named Kelly. She was wondering what it means to live as a person of belief in a pluralistic society. What does it mean to maintain and strengthen relationships while still remembering that you are good just as you are? We’d love to know what you wonder about too, so let us know! It’s easy - send us a message via social media, email u...
Feb 20, 2019•22 min•Ep. 80
While we were on a road trip we met leaders from Generation Justice in Albuquerque, New Mexico who taught us that love, listening and honoring people’s stories can change the world. Generation Justice is a multi-racial project that centers race equity to train youth to harness the power of community through leadership, media, narrative, and critical consciousness. Their mission is to inspire youth to become multidimensional leaders who are committed to social transformation. In New Mexico, Gener...
Feb 06, 2019•38 min•Ep. 79
In this episode we talk with writer and organizer Carla Godwin and musician Ben Grace about a new song they co-wrote called “Preacher’s Daughter.” The song sparked conversation on a wide range of topics from creativity, to faith, and to discovering, claiming, and using your voice. About Ben Grace Australian singer-songwriter Ben Grace’s impeccably crafted songs hover in the space between lightness and the depths, wrestling their way through humor and melody to peel back the layers and reveal the...
Jan 23, 2019•42 min•Ep. 78
Have you ever experienced a change in your life, your relationships, your work… and just plowed ahead like everything is fine and nothing is different? How do we acknowledge when a season has changed and lean into a new reality? In this episode we will explore these ideas and consider some ways to get unstuck, to look up, and live into the “new thing.” Check out the video from May 2, 2013 : Mowing Snow Special thanks to Julie Stevens and Charles Ortloff for their thoughts in this episode....
Jan 09, 2019•29 min•Ep. 77
With Christmas and New Year’s coming, we are taking time to pull some new stories and podcasts together for 2019… and there is a whole lot of exciting stuff to look forward to: St. Michael's Church in Albuquerque, Generation Justice, and more conversations from our time in Houston last summer. But between now and then, we want to hear from you… What do you wonder about? What inspires your curiosity? What do you want to know more about or wish you had an answer to? Would you share your answer wit...
Dec 20, 2018•6 min
A lot of our holiday traditions revolve around food… but maybe none more than Thanksgiving with its iconic turkey, stuffing, and mashed potatoes and gravy. As we enter this season current estimates are that more than 800 million people - or 11% of the world’s population - are hungry. Thankfully, there are organizations working to change this every day. In this episode we share our conversation with Mikka McCracken. Mikka works with ELCA World Hunger, an organization that offers health clinics, m...
Nov 28, 2018•25 min•Ep. 76
We live in a society that values speed, productivity and efficiency; and our technology drives this in a way that can often be unhealthy. These are good things to a point, but maybe we’ve gone a bit too far. In this episode, we talk about some practices that might help us get back on track and allow us to own our devices, rather than letting our devices own us.
Nov 14, 2018•28 min•Ep. 75
