Spiritual Life and Leadership
Ministry leadership is about more than just growing your church or organization. It’s about participating in God’s mission in the world. But how can leaders know God’s mission or their unique place in it? Faithful ministry leadership is rooted in a life of deep and abiding faithfulness to Jesus. In “Spiritual Life and Leadership,” Markus Watson and his guests explore what it means to be faithful leaders whose ministry flows from their ever-deepening relationship with God.
Episodes
Jews for Jesus helps Jewish people come to know Jesus, the Jewish Messiah. What’s fascinating is how Jews for Jesus has not only remained committed to that mission of sharing the hope of the Jewish Messiah, but has also adapted as the world around it has changed. As ministry leaders, we face the tension between time-honored tradition and the need for fresh approaches—and the story of Jews for Jesus offers some compelling lessons in...
Explore how real transformation in spiritual leadership begins with listening deeply to your community and letting curiosity—not certainty—shape your mission.
Tod Bolsinger and Markus Watson discuss this quote from Shannon Kiser in Ep. 280, Empowering Leaders for Creative Mission:
“Fresh expressions always start with listening and being attentive to who God is putting on your heart.”
THIS EPISODE'S HIGHLIGHTS INCLUDE:
- Lea...
What if the best leadership isn’t about having the answers, but about asking the questions that draw out wisdom, connection, and creativity from those around us? What if the most transformational moments in ministry happen not when we speak—but when we invite others to share, reflect, and dream with us?
In this episode, J.R. Briggs, author of The Art of Asking Better Questions discusses how asking great questions can open new possib...
Discover why leading in today’s church means listening deeply to people’s questions, griefs, and dreams—before ever stepping into the pulpit.
Tod Bolsinger and Markus Watson discuss this quote from Mark Glanville in Ep. 278, Preaching in Today's Post-Christian World:
"People are walking to church now, not with the Bible under their arm, but with complex and genuine questions, with hopes, with dreams, with griefs on their he...
As ministry leaders, we often imagine that building trust is the ultimate goal—once we have it, the road to transformation should be clear. But what happens when trust alone isn’t enough? The truth is, trust is only the starting point. Moving beyond it requires us to invest our trust in ways that actually make change possible, even when it means taking risks and facing loss together.
In this episode, Tod Bolsinger, author of Invest ...
Learn how transformational leaders can unlock real change by listening deeply to their neighborhoods—before making big plans for the future.
Tod Bolsinger and Markus Watson discuss this quote from Josh Hayden in Ep. 272, Beyond Church Revitalization.
"Remissioning leaders have to do the steady work of exegeting the neighborhood, and doing the exegesis work of the church before they make big plans about what success or flourishin...
Why is it that so many ministry leaders—people called to reflect Christ’s love—so often end up burned out, disillusioned, or driven by power and platform instead of humility and service? It’s heartbreaking when church leadership doesn’t “smell like the gospel,” and instead resembles the very systems of profit and self-promotion it should prophetically resist.
In this episode, Jason Jensen, Vice President of Spiritual Foundations for...
Discover why real transformation happens when leaders have the courage to journey with people into their sorrow and bring the hope of Christ to the places of deepest pain.
Tod Bolsinger and Markus Watson discuss this quote from Andrew Root in Ep. 270, Evangelism as Consolation:
"What we really need, what people yearn for, is someone who will journey with them into their sorrow and to proclaim and witness to a Jesus Christ who is...
The COVID-19 crisis pushed churches to reimagine everything from Sunday worship to committee meetings, often thrusting them onto unfamiliar digital ground. Navigating livestreams, Zoom calls, and online communion, ministry leaders have had to ask: What does it mean to truly be the body of Christ in a hybrid or even fully online world?
In this episode, Michael Huerter, author of The Hybrid Congregation, talks about the theological an...
Discover how stepping into discomfort and crossing borders—literal and metaphorical—can transform you and your leadership in ways you never imagined.
Tod Bolsinger and Markus Watson discuss this quote from Seth Clark in Ep. 268, Borderless Faith:
“Somehow there is this thing happening at the border that I get to participate in, that is making a difference and reminding people of God's love and hopefully drawing them into God&apo...
Ministry can stir up all kinds of feelings, especially when we’re dealing with conflict, with grief, with change. And the better we understand what’s happening beneath the surface, the better we can lead ourselves—and our people—more thoughtfully and more effectively.
In this episode, I’m speaking with Dr. Audrey Davidheiser, a licensed psychologist and the author of Grieving Wholeheartedly. Audrey helps us understand something call...
Learn how keeping “the main thing the main thing” can transform your church’s mission, focus your decisions, and unite your community as one body in Christ.
Tod Bolsinger and Markus Watson discuss this quote from Terry A. Smith in Ep. 266, The Church as Shalom Maker:
"I work so hard to make sure that we keep the main thing the main thing, that we don't get caught up in things that keep us from who we are supposed to be as o...
Bias isn’t always about the big, obvious issues. Sometimes it shows up in the subtle, everyday moments—like who we compliment, who we listen to, and how we respond to change. It’s part of being human, but as leaders, it’s our calling to become aware of those biases so we can lead with greater humility and clarity.
In this episode, Erin Devers, author of The Unbiased Self, shares the science behind bias, why it’s so hard to see in ou...
Learn how small, daring experiments from the edges can spark meaningful change in your church—without sending everyone into panic mode.
Tod Bolsinger and Markus Watson discuss this quote from Raymond Chang in Ep. 164, Building a Future-Focused Church.
"We recommend that people consider additional, and smaller experiments from the edges that are likely to move the congregation in the direction that it needs to go without being to...
What do you do when the tried-and-true ways of doing church just aren’t working anymore? When everything you once relied on—Sunday services, eye-catching signage, the best coffee in the foyer—still leaves your church feeling disconnected from your community?
In this episode, Shannon Kiser, author of Opening Space: A Vision for Fresh Expressions of Church and Creative Mission, shares about what “fresh expressions” of church means, wh...
Learn how real transformation in leadership begins when we shift our focus from what’s happening to us to what’s happening within us.
Tod Bolsinger and Markus Watson discuss this quote from Chuck DeGroat in Ep. 262, Fro Fired to Flourishing.
“I had to turn my attention from what happened to me to what was happening within me."
THIS EPISODE'S HIGHLIGHTS INCLUDE:
- Change leaders cultivate self-awareness by focusing on t...
More and more, we find ourselves living in what we might call a post-Christian society. And more and more, preachers and ministry leaders are finding that the methods they were trained in don’t always resonate in a post-Christian context.
In this episode, Mark Glanville, the author of Preaching in a New Key, brings together his experience as a jazz musician, pastor, and a scholar of the Old Testament to invite us into a new vision...
Discover why true leadership means having the courage to make tough decisions—even when it means disappointing the people you care about most.
Tod Bolsinger and Markus Watson discuss this quote from Rich Stearns in Ep. 105, Courageous Leadership.
"Leaders have to make difficult decisions. And difficult decisions require courage."
THIS EPISODE'S HIGHLIGHTS INCLUDE:
- Leaders cultivate courage by making difficult d...
In a world that celebrates rapid growth, platform-building, and constant success, it’s easy to take on leadership strategies that promise bigger, better, and faster results. But when these approaches clash with the invitation of Jesus to embrace the cross, where does true, lasting influence come from?
In this episode, Nicole Massie Martin, author of Nailing It, unpacks the spiritual paradox a...
In a post-pandemic world, what does it really mean to be a “small,” “mid-sized,” or even “very large” church? Markus Watson and Tod Bolsinger explore Thom Rainer’s recommendations to recategorize church size, reflect on the unique strengths and challenges of congregations of all sizes, and examine why church health and faithfulness matter more than impressive attendance numbers. Whether you’re a pastor, church leader, or simply cur...
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