Practically Christian: Recent Episodes
Luke Heirendt
The word “Christian” literally means “little Christ,” so if you’re a Christian, people should be able see the character of Jesus in you.
This is a high calling that—if we’re being honest—we get wrong much of the time. The question is: how do you grow in becoming like Jesus?
Podcast hosts Luke & Janelle Heirendt and Jake Silvera share honestly about their own failures and successes in seeking to live out the Jesus way of life in a conversation designed to help you know Jesus more deeply and follow Him more faithfully.
Join Luke and Janelle Heirendt and Jake Silvera as we discuss wrath and how to work to become slow to anger--like the Lord.
Join us as we continue our conversation about the seven deadly sins. Hosts Luke and Janelle Heirendt and Jake Silvera tackle the sin of envy and explore the differences between good and bad jealousy.
In this week's episode cohosts Jake Silvera and Luke and Janelle Heirendt discuss the deadly sin of pride.
Join hosts Jake Silvera and Luke and Janelle Heirendt as we kick off a discussion about the seven deadly sins. This week we dive into the sin of pride.
Join Luke and Janelle (Jake is out camping with friends) as we answer three listener submitted questions:
Did Jesus stay human even after His ascension to heaven?
If Jesus was not the biological son of Joseph, how was He a descendant of David?
And: Do tough times mean God is pruning us?
Join Luke, Janelle, and Jake as we share what we've been reading and what we've been learning. Plus, listen to the end for our least favorite books of all time (reader beware!).
Welcome to our final installment of our "Can a Christian...?" series. In this episode we discuss and debate whether or not Christians can break "harmless" laws or not.
Please note: We are covering a sensitive topic today. However, this is an important subject to learn about, so let's get practical and discuss death by suicide.
Join us for a practical conversation about whether or not Christians should get a tattoo--in light of the Old Testament prohibitions.
In this final installment of our series about raising children in the Christian faith we discuss the concept of ownership: How can we help kids and teens make their walk with Jesus their own?
In this enlightening episode, we dive into the essential role you play in nurturing faith outside the church walls, especially with the children in your life. We discuss the potential risks of leaving spiritual education solely in the hands of "professionals" and explore the importance of integrating faith into the everyday aspects of life, rather than confining it to Sunday mornings. Our conversation covers spontaneous "teaching moments" that arise unexpectedly, the value of encouraging questions about faith without needing perfect answers, and the power of storytelling in spiritual education.
As parents, friends, relatives, and mentors we have an impact on the children, youth, and young adults in our lives. Join us as we begin to discuss ways Christians can effectively pass on the faith to he the next generation.
Christians often talk about God's "glory," but what is it? Does God do things for His glory? What does it mean to do things for the glory of God?
Join us in this final installment (for now) of our series on Metaphor and the Bible and find out!
Join us for part 2 of our "Metaphor in the Bible" series. Because it is true that what you hope for shapes what you live for, it is crucial for followers of Jesus to correctly understand our shared eternal hope.
Join hosts Luke and Janelle Heirendt and Jake Silvera as we address a listener submitted question.
In this episode we respond to two different youtube videos by atheists addressing the interrelated problems of Christian hypocrisy, and the high level of morality of atheists in comparison to other world religions.
You can access the first video we discuss here: https://youtu.be/jtTr8k6sh78
You can access the second video we discuss here: https://youtu.be/sRAjw2f2Xsg
Join us for our final conversation about artificial intelligence. We've learned that A.I. is a powerful tool, so we should not be afraid to put it to work. But how is it being used on us?
This is episode two out of a three part series exploring Artificial Intelligence. Join us as we discuss how to think Christianly about using A.I. in a productive way.
Join us as we explore the intersection of theology and technology. In this series we explore Scriptural and practical aspects of Artificial Intelligence.
In part one, we explore the Image of God and A.I. The basis of this conversation is an educational seminar the Luke Heirendt presented at Creekside Community Church in 2023.
In this final installment of our series on how to hear God's voice we address common questions and fears. We all have fears about hearing God incorrectly or not at all, such as:
- How can I tell the difference between the voice in my head and God?
- What if it is Satan disguising himself as God?
- What if I mishear God?
- Would God mislead me or lead me on?
- What if I pray, and He doesn't speak to me?
In this episode we explore these questions and more.
Join us as we discuss how God speaks through His Word: the Scriptures. Do we just need to read the Bible and take its lessons, or is the Holy Spirit active in our hearts and minds as we read? We invite you to practice reading the Bible in a new way with us as we look at the story of Peter walking on water with fresh eyes.
Many Christians struggle with hearing God's voice. In this series of episodes we explore the fact that God desires to speak to us. Join us as we have a conversation exploring questions like: Is prayer a one way street where we talk to God and he listens, or does it go both ways? How does he speak? What should we look out for when we are listening?
Progressivism -- for some this term represents everything right in the direction of our politics and society, and for others, it's code for everything wrong. What is the worldview of Progressivism? As Christians, how can we interact with Progressivism in a way that is faithful to the call of Jesus?
Christian Nationalism is on the rise in America and lots of other places too! What is it, and how should we think about patriotism and its intersection with Christian faith?
Well-known atheist, Richard Dawkins, wrote: "The God of the Old Testament is arguably the most unpleasant character in all fiction: jealous and proud of it; a petty, unjust, unforgiving control-freak; a vindictive, bloodthirsty ethnic cleanser; a misogynistic, homophobic, racist, infanticidal, genocidal, filicidal, pestilential, megalomaniacal, sadomasochistic, capriciously malevolent bully.”
How do you respond when people critique the picture that the Old Testament paints of God? This can be especially difficult if you yourself are disturbed by some of the stories.
In this series we dive into four of the most infamous Old Testament stores and explore them in-depth. And, spoiler alert, there is a lot more going on in these stories than it may first appear!
In this episode we explore Psalm 137, which infamously concludes with this line: "Happy is the one who seizes your infants and dashes them against the rocks." As Christians, what do we do with texts like this in the Bible? If the Psalms are our prayer book, how are we supposed to understand and even pray this?
Join us for this enlightening conversation as we explore these questions and more.
Well-known atheist, Richard Dawkins, wrote: "The God of the Old Testament is arguably the most unpleasant character in all fiction: jealous and proud of it; a petty, unjust, unforgiving control-freak; a vindictive, bloodthirsty ethnic cleanser; a misogynistic, homophobic, racist, infanticidal, genocidal, filicidal, pestilential, megalomaniacal, sadomasochistic, capriciously malevolent bully.”
How do you respond when people critique the picture that the Old Testament paints of God? This can be especially difficult if you yourself are disturbed by some of the stories.
In this series we dive into four of the most infamous Old Testament stores and explore them in-depth. And, spoiler alert, there is a lot more going on in these stories than it may first appear!
In this episode we look at the account of Achan's sin, and the subsequent killing of his entire family...even all of his animals.
Well-known atheist, Richard Dawkins, wrote: "The God of the Old Testament is arguably the most unpleasant character in all fiction: jealous and proud of it; a petty, unjust, unforgiving control-freak; a vindictive, bloodthirsty ethnic cleanser; a misogynistic, homophobic, racist, infanticidal, genocidal, filicidal, pestilential, megalomaniacal, sadomasochistic, capriciously malevolent bully.”
How do you respond when people critique the picture that the Old Testament paints of God? This can be especially difficult if you yourself are disturbed by some of the stories.
In this series we dive into four of the most infamous Old Testament stores and explore them in-depth. And, spoiler alert, there is a lot more going on in these stories than it may first appear!
In this episode we look at the account of the conquest, exploring the question: If God is good and loving, why would he command the Israelites to kill the Canaanites? Related, Is God guilty of commanding ethnic cleansing, or genocide, in this account?
Well-known atheist, Richard Dawkins, wrote: "The God of the Old Testament is arguably the most unpleasant character in all fiction: jealous and proud of it; a petty, unjust, unforgiving control-freak; a vindictive, bloodthirsty ethnic cleanser; a misogynistic, homophobic, racist, infanticidal, genocidal, filicidal, pestilential, megalomaniacal, sadomasochistic, capriciously malevolent bully.”
We're back! It has been two years since we've released an episode. Why is that? Welp, a lot of life change happened. Catch up on what has been happening with us.
Good news: If you're subscribed to the show, you will begin getting episodes every two weeks.
Why should hospitality be a cornerstone of the Christian life? And, if you're unsure about how to get started, where do you begin? Listen in as we interview our friends, Dave and Teresa Schoel about how their family practices hospitality together.
So far in this series, we've discussed how the moment you entrust yourself to Jesus, God sanctifies you. In the last episode, we discussed how the ongoing process of sanctification involves taking off the old self--meaning demolishing bad habits/ways of life that keep you from who God wants you to be. In this final episode of the series, we discuss the concept of transformation: How do you participate with the Holy Spirit to "put on the new self" and become more like Jesus?
On this episode of Practically Christian we look at the topic of Mortification and how it plays a role in our sanctification. Mortification is the destruction of sin in our lives. While sanctification is normally understood in a positive side, becoming more like Christ, mortification is the negative side of that. It is how we become more like Christ by fighting against the sin within us.
We hope that you are able to understand the importance of fighting the sin within yourself and are able to take a step towards mortifying the sin within you after listening to this episode.
To be sanctified means to be holy-fied. While many people think of sanctification as something that happens as you become more like Christ, the Bible also speaks about sanctification in the past tense. It is something that happened to you the moment you entrusted yourself to Christ.
Discussion Questions (to process this content with a friend, family member or small group):
Name 4-5 attributes of a child of God. Why did these attributes stand out to you?
Which of these attributes are often exemplified in your life? Which are hardest for you to live out?
How might you partner with the Holy Spirit to push into the areas you are weaker?
Jesus warned us that persecution is to be expected. That's true globally for the church -- but what does it mean for us? Join the second half of our conversation about modern day persecution and how it affects us and our witness.
Suggested Resources:
Voice of the Martyrs Radio/Podcast
Write to Prisoners
Donate to Support Persecuted Christians and their Families
Discussion Questions:
Have you ever invested yourself in prayer and/or giving on behalf of persecuted Christians? If this facet of serving Jesus is compelling to you, how will you get started this week?
Do you ever find yourself comparing your "Christian status" with others? Jesus spoke with Peter after his resurrection, foreshadowing Peter's martyrdom and telling him not to compare himself with John. How does Jesus' command, "You, follow me," speak into your life?
Jesus warned us that persecution is to be expected. That's true globally for the church -- but what does it mean for us? Join our conversation about modern day persecution and how it affects us and our witness.
Suggested Resources:
Atlantic Article on Persecution
Jesus in Athens Movie
Discussion Questions:
Have you experienced persecution or marginalization because of your faith? What happened and what did it feel like to go through that?
Do you know any stories of modern day persecution of other Christians? Why was this story memorable to you?
In this final episode of our series on the theology of creation, we discuss the debate between faith and science. Are science and faith opposed to each other? Listen in on a discussion about methodological naturalism and creationism, and a bit of apologetics too!
Suggested Resources for Further Study:
Who Needs God? Sermon series from Andy Stanley
The Moral Argument (video)
Fine Tuning of the Universe (video)
The Cosmological Argument (video)
Application Questions (to process this content with a friend, family member, or small group):
- When it comes to debates about science vs. faith, do you feel you do a good job focusing on what is really most central (that there is a creator God)?
- (After watching one or more of the linked videos) Which of the three apologetic arguments we discussed is most persuasive to you? Which one have you found to be most helpful to outsiders?
If Genesis 1 is not primarily trying to teach us science or the details about how God chose to create the world, what is it trying to teach us? In this episode we the survey context of the ancient world helping you understand what the original hearers of Genesis 1 would have taken away from this amazing passage of Scripture. Understood correctly, Genesis 1 has much to say about who the Creator God is, what He is like, and the privileged role He has given to humanity.
Suggested Resources for Further Study:
Exploring My Strange Bible Podcast on Science and Faith
The Enuma Elish (Babylonian Creation Epic)
Article about the Enuma Elish
Application Questions (to process this content with a friend, family member, or small group):
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What is one of the most striking differences between what other creation accounts teach about God and humans and what Genesis 1 teaches?
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How would your attitude or actions towards other people change if you fully embraced the idea that every person is in God's image?
Application: Spend 5-10 minutes (or more!) reading Genesis 1 and worshipping the Creator God.
In last week's episode, we looked at the three main Christian views about how to interpret Genesis 1. Our take-away was that each of these views are valid approaches to understanding how God chose to create the world, and therefore, Christians should not break fellowship or leave a church because of disagreement on this subject. But that raises the question: When should you break fellowship, or leave a church because of theological disagreement? What topics are okay to disagree on, and which are not? How do we differentiate between the essentials and the non-essentials of our faith? Is there a basic standard or list of topics that we should all embrace? We believe that there is, and it is the basic confession of Christians for hundreds of years.
Suggested Resource:
The Apostle's Creed
Application Questions (to process this content with a friend, family member, or small group):
- Share about a time when you had to struggle through whether or not a certain issue/topic was worth breaking fellowship over. Do you think you handled that experience well? Why or why not?
- What is your background with the Apostle's Creed?
- Read through the creed (linked above). Then discuss: What are some issues/topics that this leaves open for disagreement?
Young earth...or old earth? Did God create in six 24 hour periods of time...or over thousands of years? Is evolution compatible with Genesis 1, or are these in conflict with each other? Why do well-meaning Christians disagree on this topic, and how important is this subject really? Join us today as we give you a tour of the main three Christian views about how to interpret Genesis 1, and the strengths and weaknesses of each these views.
Suggested Resource:
Exploring My Strange Bible Podcast: Science & Faith
Application Questions (To process this content with a friend, family member, or small group):
- Where do you currently land on this debate? If you were wrong, and one of the other views was correct, what would you be missing out on?
- Who are you going to have a conversation with this week and ask about their views of creation?
- Why do you think well-meaning Christians break fellowship over this issue?
In our next series on Practically Christian, we're going to jump into a series on theology, exploring topics such as how did God create the world? What are the essentials of the faith? And, how does science relate to Christianity? To lay the foundation for this series, we begin with the basic question: How can we--who are limited humans--ever come to understand and know the unlimited God? (which is the basic task of theology) To explore these questions, we'll listen to, and then discuss, a sermon that Luke recently preached for Creekside Community Church.
If you'd like to view this sermon, you can watch on youtube here: https://youtu.be/qRSXqyKcBPA
Application Questions (to process this content with a friend, family member, or small group):
- How open are you to being challenged/corrected with your beliefs about God?
- When is a time when you were corrected about your beliefs? What happened?
- What is something you could do this week to cultivate humility and a proper attitude toward God?
If your body is not peripheral to your person, but an integral part of your created being, how does that affect practical things like beauty, exercise, and body image? Are you "allowed" to pursue external beauty as well as internal beauty? Join us as we explore these questions and more in this episode of Practically Christian.
Application Questions (To process this content with a friend, family member, or small group):
Are there any areas of your life related to your body (such as your beauty, strength, hygiene, or self-presentation) that are taking up too much of your time/attention/resources?
Are there any areas that are not receiving enough time/attention/resources?
What are some steps you will take to get these more in balance?
Are there any sources of images or information that are particularly unhelpful to you in cultivating a healthy body image? (example: magazines, social media accounts, television shows) How can you better regulate or eliminate your "intake" of these sources?
Join us on this, the first episode of two, about the theology of the Body. What does the Bible have to say about our bodies and what does it mean for how we treat our bodies, others bodies and how we look at ourselves as wholistic people?
Suggested Resources:
How Christianity Changed the World by Alvin Schmidt
Surprised by Hope by NT Wright
Application Question:
Does your view of the Body that you have been raised with mesh with the biblical view that we talked about?
Do you tend toward the overindulgence or ascetic approach to your body?
How does the hope of the physical resurrection affect your view of heaven?
On this episode of Practically Christian I(Jake) get to interview Luke and Janelle about their marriage. We talk about how to have a healthy marriage, how to prepare well for a healthy marriage, and encourage you to study healthy marriages especially if you do not have parents who have a healthy relationship.
Suggested Resources:
Mike Winger Podcast here and here
Andy Stanely Sermon Series "Love, Dates and Heartbreaks"
The Five Love Languages by Gary Chapman
Application Questions:
Consider your background. What is your parents marriage like? What are some marriages in your life that you admire and what is attractive to you about those marriages? What lessons, good and bad, can you take from those relationships and take into your relationship? Consider how you can become the kind of person that the person that you want to marry will want to marry.
Have a state of the marriage time with your spouse? Address the things that are going really well and the things that need to go better. Talk about how you can be a better team to tackle difficult issues.
Join us as we drill into the topic of dating on this episode of Practically Christian. Dating is something that the majority of Christians either have done or want to do at some point, so whether you want to be dating someone in the future, are currently dating someone, are already married, or have no interest in dating someone come and join our discussion so that you can learn about the process, be empowered to think deeply about dating and help others to think deeply about it as well.
Suggested Resources:
The New Rules for Love, Sex and Dating by Andy Stanley
Focus on the Family Dating
Application Question:
What kind of person do you want to date?
What is one way you can make your dating relationship healthier and how make sure that you are vetting the person you are dating well?
What is one way you can help someone who is single or dating make good decisions while looking to date, or dating?
On this episode we talk about Singleness, how to do it and how to wield it effectively. Often we only think about singleness either as a state of not-yet being married or as those only gifted with singleness permanently, but it is so much more than that. Singleness is a time of life where you have flexibility to work in God's Kingdom, but it is also a state where you need to establish accountability and strong friendships.
Application Question:
As a single person how can you wield your time effectively?
If you are not single, how can you help provide accountability, support and empower people in your life who are single?
Friendship is one of the greatest gifts from God. Understanding friendship will help us evaluate our relationships, dig deeper into our friendships and challenge us to cultivate deeper relationships. Join us as we discuss what friendship is, what it's purpose is and how we can develop them further.
Suggested Resources:
The 4 Loves by C.S. Lewis
Kitchen Table Counseling: A Practical and Biblical Guide for Women Helping Others
Application Question:
How can you build up a friend this week? How can you build a friendship deeper going forward?
How should we pray? And what keeps us from praying in the big, bold, audacious way that Jesus taught and modeled? As in all areas of our lives, there's room to grow no matter wherever you land in "prayer proficiency." We hope our conversation inspires you to expand and deepen your conversations with God and others!
Suggested Resource:
- Tim Keller's book, Prayer
Discussion Questions (to process this content with a friend, family member or small group):
What is something you have been praying persistently? Is there an audacious prayer that you need to pray? What are some barriers you face when you have an audacious request in your heart and mind?
When Jesus called us to make disciples of all nations, what did that signify? Although many reduce making disciples to "evangelism," we believe that Jesus had much more in mind.
Suggested Resources:
Love Thy Neighborhood podcast on evangelism
Alpha (free evangelistic video series)
Speaking of Jesus (book) by Carl Medearis
Discussion Questions (to process this content with a friend, family member, or small group):
If you could re-write your faith story, how do you wish you would have been evangelized to? How do you wish you would have been discipled differently?
Follow-up question: How can you provide for others what you wish you had received? How can you make sure to pass on to others what you are grateful you received?
Following Jesus means learning from Him in order to become like Him. This means that we must not only seek to follow Jesus's explicit teaching, but also the example of how He lived His daily life. In this episode we discuss the habits of Jesus--what many people refer to as spiritual disciplines--and how they function in spiritual growth.
Suggested Resources:
The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry (book) by John Mark Comer
After You Believe (book) by N. T. Wright
Celebration of Discipline (book) by Richard Foster
Atomic Habits (book) by James Clear
Discussion Questions (to process this content with a friend, family member, or small group):
The five pairs of spiritual disciplines we discussed are:
1) Prayer and action
2) Solitude and community
3) Fasting and feasting
4) Meditation and instruction
5) Rest and work
Question: Which one of these disciplines are you missing out on? Which of these pairings is most out of balance for you?
This week we continue a four-week series on the topic of discipleship. On this episode we take a deep dive into how first century discipleship functioned. When Jesus called Peter, James, John and His other followers to become His disciples, what did they understand that invitation to mean? And what does that mean for us today?
Suggested Resources:
Scot McKnight One.Life (book)
Andy Stanley sermon series: Follow
Ray Vanderlaan article.
Discussion Questions (to process this content with a friend, family member or small group):
Do you have a Paul in your life (someone you imitate)? Who is that person? How are you actively learning from them on a consistent basis?
For this week's episode we kick-off a four-week series on the topic of discipleship. Many people make excuses when it comes to following Jesus. "But I'm not perfect," "I'm only human," "I'm not Jesus." But are these excuses valid? How human was Jesus really? And what does that mean for us as His followers?
Suggested Resources:
Son of Man Bible Project Video
Mere Discipleship by Lee Camp (book)
Telford Work Introduction to Theology Course
Discussion Question (to process this content with a friend, family member or small group):
When it comes to the challenge of following Jesus and seeking to become like Him, where are you currently making excuses?