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What can the ancient mothers and fathers of the church teach us about Advent and Christmas? Brent talks with Lynneth and Adam Renberg the authors of a new IVP book ‘Candles in the Darkness: Experiencing Advent with the Early and Medieval Church’. Lynneth is associate professor of history and associate director of the Honors College at Anderson University. Adam is assistant professor of theology at Anderson University and theologian in residence and teaching pastor at Capstone Church.   (0:50) The devotional; (1:20) Egeria in the 4th century; (5:30) Candles in Advent; (7:30) Advent in different parts of the church; (8:40) What can the church fathers and mothers teach us about Advent and Christmas? (10:15) Iraneus; (11:25) Paula the Elder; (13:20) Hildegard of Bingen; (14:40) Gregory of Nazianzus; (16:15) The Dunhuang Manuscript; (18:15) The Old English ‘Key of David’.  Links mentioned in this episode: www.christianbook.com/candles-darkness-experiencing-advent-medieval-church/9781514014226/pd/4014226?msockid=100d78d805d06b4238d66e3804fa6a56 Leave some feedback: What should we talk about? Please let us know in the comments. Did you enjoy this episode? If so, please give us a rating and leave a short review. Connect with us: [email protected] godsstorypodcast.com Become a Supporter: If you’d like to help us make more great episodes like this one, please consider becoming a Patreon supporter. For as little as $5 a month, you’ll receive early access to new episodes plus bonus episodes and other goodies from time to time, and our undying gratitude. patreon.com/godsstorypodcast Thanks to our sponsors, Liquid Edge Creative who take care of the technical stuff behind the scenes.

What if you’ve lost your delight in God? What if you’ve never really experienced it in the first place? Brent talks witn Stephanie Rouselle about her new IVP book ‘Awaken Delight: Satisfying Your Soul’s Longings for God’. Stephanie is a Bible teacher, speaker, host of the ‘Gospel Spice’ podcast and founder of Gospel Spice ministries.  Stephanie is a former atheist whose life motto is ‘God’s Glory, our delight’.  (0:50) Divine delight; (7:20) Atheism to faith; (11:45) Delight in God; (15:10) Pain; (23:25) The place of suffering in our lives. Links mentioned in this episode: www.gospelspice.com www.christianbook.com/awaken-delight-satisfying-your-souls-longing/9781514013588/pd/013588?msockid=100d78d805d06b4238d66e3804fa6a56 Leave some feedback: What should we talk about? Please let us know in the comments. Did you enjoy this episode? If so, please give us a rating and leave a short review. Connect with us: [email protected] godsstorypodcast.com Become a Supporter: If you’d like to help us make more great episodes like this one, please consider becoming a Patreon supporter. For as little as $5 a month, you’ll receive early access to new episodes plus bonus episodes and other goodies from time to time, and our undying gratitude. patreon.com/godsstorypodcast Thanks to our sponsors, Liquid Edge Creative who take care of the technical stuff behind the scenes. https://liquidedge.co.nz/

What does the book of Job have to say about suffering? Brent talks with Dennis Tucker about his new commentary on Job published in IVP’s Tyndale Old Testament Commentary Series. Dennis is professor of Christian Scriptures at Baylor University’s Truett Seminary.  He’s the author of a number of books.  (0:40) Job now; (1:35) Suffering and chaos; (4:10) Is Job guilty? (5:10) The Satan; (6:55) The dialogues; (8:45) The ‘friends’; (11:50) Chapter 28; (14:30) Job’s final defense; (13:15) Elihu; (19:20) God’s reply in chapters 38-42; (23:50) Job’s restoration; (26:00) Job and Jesus.  Links mentioned in this episode: www.amazon.com/Job-Introduction-Commentary-Testament-Commentaries/dp/1514015846 Leave some feedback: What should we talk about? Please let us know in the comments. Did you enjoy this episode? If so, please give us a rating and leave a short review. Connect with us: [email protected] godsstorypodcast.com Become a Supporter: If you’d like to help us make more great episodes like this one, please consider becoming a Patreon supporter. For as little as $5 a month, you’ll receive early access to new episodes plus bonus episodes and other goodies from time to time, and our undying gratitude. patreon.com/godsstorypodcast Thanks to our sponsors, Liquid Edge Creative who take care of the technical stuff behind the scenes.

‘We live in an age where therapy culture dominates our culture’. Brent talks with Matthew Loftus about his new IVP book ‘Resisting Therapy Culture: The Dangers of Pop Psychology and How the Church Can Respond’. Matthew teaches and practices family medicine at a mission hospital in Kenya.  His work has appeared in ‘The New York Times’, ‘The Atlantic’, ‘Christianity Today’ and ‘Mere Orthodoxy’ among others. He is the 2025 recipient of Trinity Forum’s Michael J. Gerson Prize for Excellence in Writing on Faith and Public Life.     (1:00) Therapy culture; (4:00) The West; (5:40) Mental health; (7:15) The church and therapy culture; (10:00) Medicalization; (11:20) Suffering; (12:20) Shame; (16:10) The church and mental illness;  (18:00) The demonic? (19:30) Trauma; (21:50) Pastoral advice; (23:30) A ‘good enough’ church. Links mentioned in this episode: matthewandmaggie.org/2026/07/06/why-did-i-write-resisting-therapy-culture/ www.amazon.com/Resisting-Therapy-Culture-Dangers-Psychology/dp/1514012685 Leave some feedback: What should we talk about? Please let us know in the comments. Did you enjoy this episode? If so, please give us a rating and leave a short review. Connect with us: [email protected] godsstorypodcast.com Become a Supporter: If you’d like to help us make more great episodes like this one, please consider becoming a Patreon supporter. For as little as $5 a month, you’ll receive early access to new episodes plus bonus episodes and other goodies from time to time, and our undying gratitude. patreon.com/godsstorypodcast Thanks to our sponsors, Liquid Edge Creative who take care of the technical stuff behind the scenes.

Does beauty really exist? Brent talks with Dennis Bray about his new IVP book ‘What is Beauty? An Introduction to Art and Aesthetics’. Dennis is a philosophical theologian who integrates insights from philosophy, biblical and systematic theology, history and the empirical sciences.  He’s assistant professor of theology at Taylor University.   (0:40) The arts; (1:25) Beauty; (6:30) God’s beauty; (9:15) Plotinus; (14:30) What is art – how does it reflect God’s beauty? (21:40) Art and God. Links mentioned in this episode: www.dennispbray.com www.amazon.com/What-Beauty-Introduction-Aesthetics-Philosophy/dp/1514002361 Leave some feedback: What should we talk about? Please let us know in the comments. Did you enjoy this episode? If so, please give us a rating and leave a short review. Connect with us: [email protected] godsstorypodcast.com Become a Supporter: If you’d like to help us make more great episodes like this one, please consider becoming a Patreon supporter. For as little as $5 a month, you’ll receive early access to new episodes plus bonus episodes and other goodies from time to time, and our undying gratitude. patreon.com/godsstorypodcast Thanks to our sponsors, Liquid Edge Creative who take care of the technical stuff behind the scenes.

What are the Exodus themes in John 6:22-71? Brent talks with Dr. Alastair Roberts of the Theopolis Institute. (0:25) The crowd; (1:30) The bread; (2:30) The Tabernacle and the Temple; (3:00) Moses; (5:20) Faith and belief; (7:55) Jesus and Moses; (9:10) Wisdom; (10:20) Manna, Law and Wisdom (11:55) Exodus themes; (12:20) The Son of Man theme; (14:20) Jesus’ body.  Links mentioned in this episode: theopolisinstitute.com Leave some feedback: What should we talk about? Please let us know in the comments. Did you enjoy this episode? If so, please give us a rating and leave a short review. Connect with us: [email protected] godsstorypodcast.com Become a Supporter: If you’d like to help us make more great episodes like this one, please consider becoming a Patreon supporter. For as little as $5 a month, you’ll receive early access to new episodes plus bonus episodes and other goodies from time to time, and our undying gratitude. patreon.com/godsstorypodcast Thanks to our sponsors, Liquid Edge Creative who take care of the technical stuff behind the scenes.

What are the Exodus themes in John 6:1-21 and why are they there? Brent talks with Dr. Alastair Roberts of the Theopolis Institute in the States. (0:30) The 4th and 5th signs; (0:40) John’s account; (2:15) Passover and the sea crossing; (3:30) Exodus themes; (4:40) The grass; (5:50) 5,000 (6:40) 12 baskets and 5 loaves; (9:00) The Lord’s Supper; (12:30) Walking on the water; (15:40) The ‘I Am’ statements; (17:25) The sea and sea imagery. Links mentioned in this episode: theopolisinstitute.com Leave some feedback: What should we talk about? Please let us know in the comments. Did you enjoy this episode? If so, please give us a rating and leave a short review. Connect with us: [email protected] godsstorypodcast.com Become a Supporter: If you’d like to help us make more great episodes like this one, please consider becoming a Patreon supporter. For as little as $5 a month, you’ll receive early access to new episodes plus bonus episodes and other goodies from time to time, and our undying gratitude. patreon.com/godsstorypodcast Thanks to our sponsors, Liquid Edge Creative who take care of the technical stuff behind the scenes.  https://liquidedge.co.nz/

Do you feel tired, distracted, or hungry for a real connection with God? Brent talks with Brian Plachta about his new Whitaker House book ‘Divine Flow: Reclaiming the Lost Art of Contemplation for Everyday Life’. Brian is a spiritual mentor, speaker, and author who helps busy, spiritually hungry people quiet their minds so that they can experience God in everyday life.  After years as an attorney, Brian’s journey led him into the contemplative tradition and the practical rhythms that make prayer doable for real life.     (0:55) What is a divine flow? (4:30) The contemplative tradition; (7:00) The church and the contemplative path; (8:30) The monastic movement; (9:30) Quiet time; (13:30) Spiritual reading; (17:30) Spiritual community; (18:50) Spiritual direction; (22:30) Spiritual gifts.    Links mentioned in this episode: www.brianplachta.com www.amazon.com/Divine-Flow-Reclaiming-Contemplation-Mindfulness/dp/B0FVRW9422 Leave some feedback: What should we talk about? Please let us know in the comments. Did you enjoy this episode? If so, please give us a rating and leave a short review. Connect with us: [email protected] godsstorypodcast.com Become a Supporter: If you’d like to help us make more great episodes like this one, please consider becoming a Patreon supporter. For as little as $5 a month, you’ll receive early access to new episodes plus bonus episodes and other goodies from time to time, and our undying gratitude. patreon.com/godsstorypodcast Thanks to our sponsors, Liquid Edge Creative who take care of the technical stuff behind the scenes.

How do we actually discern what our vocation is? Brent talks with Brian Brock in the second part of our series on his Baker Books title ‘Joining Creation’s Praise: A Theological Ethic of Creatureliness’. Brian holds a personal Chair in Moral and Political Theology.  He joined the University of Aberdeen following postdoctoral studies at the Friedrich Alexander University Erlangen-Nurnberg and a doctorate in Christian Ethics at King’s College London. Brian is the author of a number of books.     (0:50) Dust and the ground; (1:40) Genesis and ethics; (2:30) Vocation; (4:30) Discerning vocation in community; (5:30) The church and vocation; (10:40) Noah’s Ark a new Eden; (11:20) The Tabernacle and Temple; (12:05) Jesus; (12:40) Modernity’s Edenic alternatives; (14:30) Work desacrilized; (17:30) Eden and mission; (19:00) Gardening in a fallen world.  Links mentioned in this episode: www.abdn.ac.uk/people/b.brock www.amazon.com.au/Joining-Creations-Praise-Theological-Creatureliness/dp/1540963268 Leave some feedback: What should we talk about? Please let us know in the comments. Did you enjoy this episode? If so, please give us a rating and leave a short review. Connect with us: [email protected] godsstorypodcast.com Become a Supporter: If you’d like to help us make more great episodes like this one, please consider becoming a Patreon supporter. For as little as $5 a month, you’ll receive early access to new episodes plus bonus episodes and other goodies from time to time, and our undying gratitude patreon.com/godsstorypodcast Thanks to our sponsors, Liquid Edge Creative who take care of the technical stuff behind the scenes.

‘We need a new imagination to capture the hopefulness of God birthing something new in the midst of the pain of the old creation’. Brent talks with Shawna Gaines about her new IVP book ‘The Pastor as Midwife: Life Giving Leadership for the Healing of the Church’. Shawna is lead pastor at Trevecca Community Church in Nashville, Tennessee. She has 15 years of experience in congregational ministry and is a welcomed speaker for worship gatherings and church leadership conferences.  She’s the author of a number of books.    (1:00) Midwives; (3:00) Learning from midwives; (4:40) Church leadership; (6:10) Power and authority; (9:05) Jesus and birth; (12:20) The project; (17:20) Pastoring a church as a midwife; (20:10) Pain; (22:30) Trust.  Links mentioned in this episode: www.amazon.com/Pastor-Midwife-Life-Giving-Leadership-Healing/dp/1514012448 Leave some feedback: What should we talk about? Please let us know in the comments. Did you enjoy this episode? If so, please give us a rating and leave a short review. Connect with us: [email protected] godsstorypodcast.com Become a Supporter: If you’d like to help us make more great episodes like this one, please consider becoming a Patreon supporter. For as little as $5 a month, you’ll receive early access to new episodes plus bonus episodes and other goodies from time to time, and our undying gratitude. patreon.com/godsstorypodcast Thanks to our sponsors, Liquid Edge Creative who take care of the technical stuff behind the scenes.

How has Christian spirituality shaped the world? Brent talks with Gerald Sittser about the new edition of his IVP book ‘Water from a Deep Well: Christian Spirituality from Early Martyrs to Modern Missionaries’. Gerald is professor emeritus of theology at Whitworth University and a senior fellow in the Office of Church Engagement.  He’s a frequent university lecturer and writer and has authored nine books. (0:40) The book; (3:00) Spirituality and martyrdom; (6:20) The spread of Christianity; (11:30) The mystics; (16:00) St. Francis of Assisi; (20:00) The spirituality of the Reformers; (24:25) Resilience. Links mentioned in this episode: www.jerrysittser.com www.amazon.com/Water-Deep-Well-Spirituality-Missionaries-ebook/dp/B0G8DYCJN7 Leave some feedback: What should we talk about? Please let us know in the comments. Did you enjoy this episode? If so, please give us a rating and leave a short review. Connect with us: [email protected] godsstorypodcast.com Become a Supporter: If you’d like to help us make more great episodes like this one, please consider becoming a Patreon supporter. For as little as $5 a month, you’ll receive early access to new episodes plus bonus episodes and other goodies from time to time, and our undying gratitude. patreon.com/godsstorypodcast Thanks to our sponsors, Liquid Edge Creative who take care of the technical stuff behind the scenes.

In what sense is ‘Northanger Abbey’ a parody of the Gothic novel? Brent talks with Jennifer Holberg about Jane Austen’s novel. Jennifer is professor and chair of the English Department at Calvin University in the States and director of the Calvin Center for Faith and Writing.  She’s the author of the book ‘Nourishing Narratives’. (1:15) Publishing date; (4:30) Books; (7:20) The Gothic novel; (11:05) Satire; (13:00) Novels and literature; (16:00) Catherine; (20:40) Women in society; (21:30) Social events; (22:50) Austen’s society; (25:15) Henry Tilney; (29:30) Isabella; (32:10) The marriage market; (35:20) General Tilney. Links mentioned in this episode: calvin.edu/people/jennifer-l-holberg Leave some feedback: What should we talk about? Please let us know in the comments. Did you enjoy this episode? If so, please give us a rating and leave a short review. Connect with us: [email protected] godsstorypodcast.com Become a Supporter: If you’d like to help us make more great episodes like this one, please consider becoming a Patreon supporter. For as little as $5 a month, you’ll receive early access to new episodes plus bonus episodes and other goodies from time to time, and our undying gratitude. patreon.com/godsstorypodcast Thanks to our sponsors, Liquid Edge Creative who take care of the technical stuff behind the scenes.

What if you saw your hobbies as a form of worship? Brent talks with Brianna Lambert about her new IVP book ’Created to Play: How Taking Hobbies Seriously Grows Us Spiritually’. Brianna is a writer and author from a rural community outside Indianapolis.  Her articles and essays have appeared in a number of publications including ‘Christianity Today’ and ‘The Gospel Coalition’. Brianna serves on staff at Gospel-Centred Discipleship and writes for the women’s ministry at her local church.  (0:50) Why are our hobbies important? (3:00) Enjoying our hobbies; (4:30) Doorways to worship; (6:00) Brianna’s hobbies; (7:10) Makers; (10:15) Curators; (16:10) Restorers; (17:00) Histories; (19:55) Beholders. Links mentioned in this episode: www.amazon.com/Created-Play-Hobbies-Seriously-Spiritually/dp/15140115 Leave some feedback: What should we talk about? Please let us know in the comments. Did you enjoy this episode? If so, please give us a rating and leave a short review. Connect with us: [email protected] godsstorypodcast.com Become a Supporter: If you’d like to help us make more great episodes like this one, please consider becoming a Patreon supporter. For as little as $5 a month, you’ll receive early access to new episodes plus bonus episodes and other goodies from time to time, and our undying gratitude. patreon.com/godsstorypodcast Thanks to our sponsors, Liquid Edge Creative who take care of the technical stuff behind the scenes.

What’s the place of truth and morality in a society? Brent is joined by Hannah Long to discuss Jean Renoir’s classic 1939 movie ‘The Rules of the Game’. Hannah is a passionate cinephile.  She writes cultural commentary and film criticism for a number of publications including ‘The Despatch’, ‘Angelus News’, ‘The Bulwark’, ‘First Things’ and ‘Christianity Today’.   (0:40) Jean Renoir; (2:50) The title; (5:25) The actors; (8:10) The photography; (9:30) The setting; (14:10) Love; (17:30) Class differences; (19:50) The hunting scene; (22:05) Octave; (25:00) Andre; (26:30) Truth; (28:00) Desire; (29:30) The ending. Links mentioned in this episode: Leave some feedback: What should we talk about? Please let us know in the comments. Did you enjoy this episode? If so, please give us a rating and leave a short review. Connect with us: [email protected] godsstorypodcast.com Become a Supporter: If you’d like to help us make more great episodes like this one, please consider becoming a Patreon supporter. For as little as $5 a month, you’ll receive early access to new episodes plus bonus episodes and other goodies from time to time, and our undying gratitude. patreon.com/godsstorypodcast Thanks to our sponsors, Liquid Edge Creative who take care of the technical stuff behind the scenes.

How does Jesus bring new water? Brent and Dr. Alastair Roberts of the Theopolis Institute talk about John chapter 5.  (0:50) Water; (1:55) Water and wind; (3:20) A new Moses and Joshua; (4:55) Sabbath; (9:00) Jesus and the Father; (10:50) A disciple; (13:00) The coming hour; (13:55) Resurrection; (15:00) A new Israel; (17:50) The authority of Jesus; (19:15) Daniel 7; (20:00) Witness; (21:05) Glory; (22:00) Scripture. Links mentioned in this episode: theopolisinstitute.com Leave some feedback: What should we talk about? Please let us know in the comments. Did you enjoy this episode? If so, please give us a rating and leave a short review. Connect with us: [email protected] godsstorypodcast.com Become a Supporter: If you’d like to help us make more great episodes like this one, please consider becoming a Patreon supporter. For as little as $5 a month, you’ll receive early access to new episodes plus bonus episodes and other goodies from time to time, and our undying gratitude. patreon.com/godsstorypodcast Thanks to our sponsors, Liquid Edge Creative who take care of the technical stuff behind the scenes.