The Pulpit and Porch

What if we stopped trying to sound good when we pray?

In this Pulpit & Porch Rewind, we sit down with author, storyteller, and longtime friend Steven James for a conversation about prayer, pain, vulnerability, and what it really means to know God.

Steven is the author of A Heart Exposed, a collection of honest, raw prayers written over decades. But this conversation quickly becomes about much more than a book.

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What happens when you sit down with someone you've never met and simply start asking questions?

In this episode of The Pulpit & Porch, Tony Marr sits down with Neal Osborne, Vice Mayor of Bristol, Virginia, for a conversation that goes far beyond his public life.

Neal has served on Bristol City Council since 2018 and has served as both mayor and vice mayor. He also works with United Way of Southwest Virginia and is a fa...

What happens when the life you planned isn't the life God has planned for you?

In this episode of The Pulpit & Porch, Tony Marr sits down with retired pastor David Clark for a deeply personal conversation about calling, faith, ministry, sacrifice, family, leadership, retirement, and learning to trust the life you've been given.

David originally planned to become a lawyer. At 20 years old, a Christian conferenc...

What if the very things that made you successful are also the things keeping you from the relationships, connection, and significance you really want?

In this episode of The Pulpit & Porch, Tony Marr sits down with leadership coach, speaker, entrepreneur, and author Tyler Dickerhoof for a conversation about leadership, insecurity, success, vulnerability, faith, relationships, and the things we hide.

Tyler shares the deeply person...

What does it really mean to live a life of service?

In this episode of The Pulpit & Porch Podcast, Tony Marr sits down with Bryan for a conversation about service, purpose, leadership, and the decision to dedicate your life to something bigger than yourself.

Bryan shares his personal story and the experiences that shaped the way he sees service, responsibility, and leadership. We talk about what draws people toward a life of...

What Does It Actually Mean to Be a Man?

Our culture has given men plenty of answers: be strong, provide, lead, don't show weakness, never cry. But what if we've been asking the wrong question?

Anthony Curnutt has spent years helping men wrestle with what it means to be a husband, father, leader, and follower of Jesus. In this conversation, we talk about masculinity, loneliness, fatherhood, vulnerability, failure, and why Anthony beli...

Who decides what becomes news?

Why does it feel like half the country is living in a completely different reality than the other half?

And what if the greatest influence on your faith isn't your church... but your phone?

In this episode of The Pulpit & Porch, Tony Marr sits down with veteran religion journalist Terry Mattingly, founder of GetReligion, creator of Rational Sheep, syndicated columnist, professor, ...

What if you've believed the wrong thing about God's love your entire life?

For years, Pastor David Mullins has preached about grace, but in this conversation, he shares why grace isn't something we earn, deserve, or achieve. It's something we spend a lifetime discovering.

In this deeply thoughtful episode of The Pulpit & Porch, Tony Marr sits down with David Mullins, Senior Pastor of Colonial Heights Christian Church in Kingsport...

Jason Frazier spent nearly twenty years chasing something he couldn't quite name.

On the surface, it looked like addiction.

But underneath the drugs, prison sentences, and broken relationships was something much deeper: a longing to belong.

In this powerful conversation, Jason shares the story behind Surrender House Ministries, but more importantly, he shares the story behind the man who built it.

From a childhood shaped by sports and ...

Long before Tim Lowry became one of America's most respected storytellers, he was simply a curious young boy discovering the power of stories.

In this episode of The Pulpit & Porch Podcast, Tony Marr sits down with Tim Lowry for a conversation that goes far beyond storytelling techniques. Together they explore the experiences, relationships, moments of faith, and life-changing events that shaped the man behind the microphon...

The World Cup is the biggest sporting event on the planet, but what if it isn't really about soccer?

In this episode of The Pulpit & Porch, Tony Marr is joined by lifelong soccer fan Jono Dorsey for a conversation that goes far beyond goals, brackets, and championships.

Together they explore what this year's World Cup revealed about humanity, community, national identity, hospitality, and the universal longing to belong.

From...

Every generation has its stereotypes.

But what if we stopped talking about Gen Z and actually started listening to them?

In this episode of The Pulpit & Porch, Tony Marr and Robert Kell sit down with Ethan Kidwell, a college student, construction worker, basketball coach, and one of the funniest storytellers you’ll ever meet, for an honest conversation about what it’s really like to be 19 years old toda...

Every person has a story.

Some chapters are filled with joy. Others are marked by pain, addiction, loss, failure, and the difficult road back.

In this episode of The Pulpit & Porch, Tony sits down with author and screenwriter Peter Colter for an honest conversation about storytelling, addiction, recovery, faith, and redemption.

Peter shares how some of the darkest moments of his life ultimately shaped the stories he...

Sometimes the best conversations are the ones you never planned.

After both of our scheduled guests unexpectedly had to cancel, Robert and Tony decided to do something we’ve never done before: sit down without an outline, without a script, and simply have a conversation.

From hilarious stories and unexpected questions to reflections on friendship, life, faith, and everything in between, this episode reminds us that some of the ...

What does real leadership look like?

In a culture obsessed with influence, titles, and recognition, Jake Holmes offers a different perspective: leadership is less about power and more about responsibility.

In this episode of The Pulpit & Porch, Tony Marr and Robert Kell sit down with Jake Holmes, Mayor of Bristol, Virginia and External Affairs Manager for Appalachian Power, to explore leadership, community, service, and the futur...

What happens when you sit down with six incredible people and realize the conversations are connected in ways you never expected?

In this special episode of The Pulpit & Porch, Tony and Robert return to the porch together to reflect on their recent conversations with Jody Powell, Jason Castleberry, Luc Johnson, Amanda Marr, Thomas Dismukes, and Trevor Wentt.

Instead of simply looking back, they explore the deeper themes that emer...

In this episode of The Pulpit & Porch, Tony sits down with Jody Powell, host of Falls Count Anywhere and Men Like Us on Abundant TV Network, for an honest conversation about masculinity, mental health, ministry, authenticity, and the struggles many men quietly carry.

Jody shares his unique journey through professional wrestling, why unconventional ministry often reaches people traditional church culture misse...

In this episode of The Pulpit & Porch, Tony sits down with pastor and military veteran Jason Castleberry for a powerful conversation about war, trauma, PTSD, identity, faith, and redemption.

Jason shares his journey from growing up in Texas to serving in the airborne infantry, completing 25 operational jumps, surviving a parachute malfunction that changed the trajectory of his life, and later serving as a UAV drone operator...

In this episode of The Pulpit & Porch, we sit down with mortgage lender Luc Johnson for a conversation about integrity, generosity, leadership, and what it means to genuinely put people before profit.

Before this episode, we asked several people about Luc, and the response was remarkably consistent:
“He’s one of the most trustworthy and selfless people I know.”

In an industry often driven by numbers and ...