NEPC: Recent Episodes
Northeast Presbyterian Church, Josh and Betsy Desch
"Metaverse Madness" Have you heard about the metaverse? Are you living in the metaverse already? Why is Facebook now called Meta? And do you need to take out a second mortgage and buy the new Apple Vision Pro glasses? Josh and Betsy are here to guide you through all these issues and more, so [...]
"A Bridge Too Far — Assisted Death in Canada" Who has the right to determine when they die? For most of history, taking one’s own life has been viewed as something society should prevent at all costs. Yet in Canada today, assisted suicide is on the rise. In fact, the government has made it [...]
"F·R·I·E·N·D·S, Friendship, and the Secret Sauce" “The passing of Matthew Perry, the actor known to so many as "Chandler Bing" on the popular TV Show "FRIENDS", has the world talking about this show again. Josh and Betsy offer their take on why this iconic show has remained nearly as popular today as it was [...]
"THROWDOWN - Is the Casualization of Clothing in Our Culture Good or Bad?" “Josh and Betsy are ready to rumble! In this debate style episode they take opposite sides on the question of whether or not the casualization of clothing in America has been a good thing. This episode was prompted by the recent [...]
"A Christian Perspective on Mental Health -- Are Mental Health Professionals the New High Priests?" Mental health is an area of constant growth and awareness in our country. We have certainly seen the demand for mental health services increase since COVID. So how should Christians navigate these challenging waters, especially as it relates to [...]
"Every Human Has A Story" Stories. We read them, we watch them, we live them. Every person has a story, and every person has to make sense of life in terms of a story. That is to say, everyone believes some story about how we got here, what is our purpose, and what happens [...]
"Résumé Virtues vs. Eulogy Virtues" Have you heard of the difference between ‘résumé virtues’ and ‘eulogy virtues’? This distinction, first brought to the public’s awareness by NY Times columnist David Brooks, is worth contemplating for all of us. What are we living for? What virtues are we cultivating? Are we more concerned with the [...]
"Cultivating Intellectual Humility over Intellectual Suspicion" PCA pastor and writer Derek Radney joins Josh and Betsy to talk about our culture of suspicion and bad faith readings of those we disagree with. Why has our culture become so polarized? When should we confront others? What does it mean to have intellectual humility without compromising [...]
"You Are Not Your Own... and Why That's a Good Thing" Oftentimes we hear about the benefits of home ownership, but what we don't think about is that our culture is constantly talking to us about self-ownership. We are all constantly hearing the message that we belong to ourselves, and no one else, and [...]
"The Gospel According to Elf (The Movie)" Have you seen the movie "Elf", the 2003 comedy starring Will Ferrell? Josh and Betsy love that particular film. But more than the movie, they love one theme that radiates throughout the movie and throughout the Bible: hope. We live in a cynical age. In this episode, [...]
"David French on the Fracturing of Evangelicalism" Josh and Betsy are joined by nationally recognized writer, speaker and constitutional lawyer David French to discuss what is happening inside of the American Evangelical Church. What makes an evangelical? Why is there so much division? What should Christians be aiming for in political engagement? Finally, David gives [...]
"Why Can't We Be Friends? A Conversation about Toxic People" Our culture now regularly labels people and statements as "toxic." What does toxic mean in this sense of the word? Should we cut toxic people out of our lives? Is our culture evolving in a positive way or is this a concerning trend? Josh and [...]
"Why Are Americans Becoming More Isolated and Does It Matter?" New research shows that more and more people are retreating into their interior worlds. In others words, we are becoming less social people. We are interacting with other people less than prior generations. Is there a price we are paying for being less social? [...]
Exploring Trauma - A Review of the Book "The Body Keeps the Score" Josh and Betsy engage a heavy, but extremely important topic in this episode, that of trauma. It’s easy to believe that trauma is just about what we can remember with our minds, but ground-breaking new research has shown that trauma is [...]
“Singleness, Celibacy, and Christian Ministry with Rev. Dr. Greg Johnson” Josh and Betsy are joined by Greg Johnson, the Lead Pastor at Historic Memorial Presbyterian Church in Saint Louis, to discuss the topic of singleness, celibacy, and Christian ministry. Has the American evangelical church ignored or marginalized singles? How can the church better care [...]
“The Restorative Power of Silence” Season five is here! Josh and Betsy kick off the new season by discussing the power of silence in our lives. Why is silence hard? What good can it do for us? Drawing on the insights of Dallas Willard, they present a strong case for building in times of [...]
“Staying Dapper as a Dad” The finale is here! Josh and Betsy are joined by Andrew Eckstrom to talk about how to stay dapper as a dad of four kids. In addition to discussing this important topic, they talk about Andrew’s efforts to raise money for cancer research and the importance of men being in [...]
“From Branding Products to Branding Ourselves” Social Media . . . these days, platforms like Instagram are the dominant channel through which many brands advertise. But in our quest to gain followers and get likes, have we become the product? Are we now branding ourselves? And if so, what impact is that making on our [...]
“Wake Up, People...You're a Miracle” What an amazing universe we live in! There are over 100 billion galaxies in the universe. Each galaxy contains hundreds of billions of stars. In this episode, Betsy and Josh discuss the book, Astrophysics for Young People in a Hurry, By Dr. Neil deGrasse Tyson. Why does our amazing universe [...]
“Clothing, Consumption, and the Christian Life” Clothes, we all own plenty of them, and they help define who we are. But why have clothes gotten so cheap? What is the story behind the clothes we wear? Where were they made? Who made them? And should we care? Josh and Betsy bring a Christian worldview to [...]
“Football vs Fútbol” Are you ready for the debate of the century? Josh and Betsy are back to debate one another on this question: Which sport is better, American Football or what the rest of the world calls Football/Futbol? Producer Billy Grooms serves as the debate judge and picks a winner at the end. This [...]
“Learning to Love the Gospels, Part 2” Josh and Betsy are back with Dr. Dan Doriani to discuss what makes each of the four gospels unique. Dan also shares about how he came to love the gospel of Matthew, and what gospel stories are deeply meaningful to him. Finally, he shares a bit about his [...]
“Learning to Love the Gospels, Part 1” Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. We all know about the four gospels. But do we love them? And what's wrong with just reading other parts of the Bible, like the Psalms or Paul's letters, while not focusing on the gospels? Josh and Betsy are joined by Dr. Dan [...]
“The Messy Work of True Love with Jim Pocta Pt. 2” In the second part of this interview, counselor Jim Pocta shares how we can develop a culture of grace where all kinds of people are enveloped and discipled. Jim also addresses repentance, and how we can grow our witness to the world through a [...]
“The Messy Work of True Love with Jim Pocta Pt. 1” Josh and Betsy are joined by Jim Pocta, a ruling elder in the PCA, and a professional counselor who lives in Dallas, Texas. Jim joins them to talk about the messy work of true love. In first part of this interview, Jim shares his [...]
“Worship Pt. 2: Working Your Worship Muscles” Josh and Betsy are back with the second half of their interview on worship with Jeremy Buzzard and Kerri Roberts. What should you do when you don’t feel like going to church and worshipping? Are worship and discipleship connected? How do we worship God with both our minds [...]
“Worship Pt. 1: Growing as Worshippers” Josh and Betsy are joined by Jeremy Buzzard and Kerri Roberts to discuss the topic of worship. What does it mean to be a lead worshipper? What is a worship culture? Where in the Scriptures do we see worship? This dynamic discussion with two incredibly gifted lead worshippers will [...]
“Getting Healthy for the Glory of God - Part 2” Josh and Betsy continue their discussion on why our health matters to God. Because Christians know that we are going to heaven after we die, it can be easy to neglect our bodies while we live. Praise God that this life isn’t all there is! [...]
“Getting Healthy for the Glory of God - Part 1” Well, the holidays are upon us! And that means lots of cookies and sweets of all kinds. Josh and Betsy love sugar as much as the next guy, but where does our Christian faith come in when it comes to what we eat? Or more [...]
“Exploring Social Media and Identity” Why do we all use Social Media? What do we get out of it? How does it affect us? What are its positives and negatives? In this episode, Josh and Betsy explore under the hood of Social Media and offer biblical analysis on how we should think about and use [...]
“Atomic Habits: A Book Review” Habits! We all have them. Ones we like, ones we don’t like so much. On this episode of Intersect, Josh and Betsy talk about the book, Atomic Habits. What is the role of habits in the Christian life? What can we glean from this fascinating book? Whatever your habits, join [...]
“Exvangelicals — Deconstruction and Deconversion Pt. 2” In part two, Josh and Betsy continue their discussion on the trending Exvangelical phenomena. In this episode, they address how Christians should respond. Is evangelical still a label worth keeping? What should the foundation for the evangelical movement be in the future? Tune in and figure out where [...]
“Exvangelicals — Deconstruction and Deconversion Pt. 1” Exvangelical. Have you heard the term? There is a growing number of people rejecting the label evangelical. Many are doing so for political reasons, but there are actually a number of factors at work. Josh and Betsy kick off season 4 with a provocative discussion on those who [...]