Soil and Roots

In this special bonus episode, Brian invites his two young adult sons, Caleb and Zachary, on to the show to discuss spiritual formation in different generations.

Caleb and Zach grew up in the church and are now involved with a church plant in their area.

Both share some of their stories of apprenticing with Jesus, what they find fascinating about Him, and their perspective on discipleship and institutional churches.

We hope you enj...

Brian, Doc, and Handsome Kyle engage in a lively, honest conversation about what it means to live a relaxed life, just like Jesus.

Instead of the performance-driven, always-busy version of Christianity so many of us grew up with, they reflect on Jesus’ calm, centered presence—rooted in His secure attachment to the Father.

From raccoons clinging to shiny distractions (yes, just like our anxieties) to the distinction between intellec...

Brian explores one of Jesus’ most surprising traits—how deeply relaxed He is—and why that matters for deep discipleship.

Building on this season’s portrait of Jesus (emotionally secure, living as the Beloved, relationally shrewd, just, and gentle), Brian shows how Jesus moves calmly through storms, conflict, and pressure without losing agency or love.

The invitation? If we’re becoming like Jesus, we’ll grow in that same inner ease—...

Most of us would never talk to a friend the way we talk to ourselves. Yet our inner “talk tracks” run all day—and they quietly shape how we relate to God, others, creation, and even our own souls.

In this episode, Brian and Doc take a fresh look at self-gentleness—what it is, why it’s missing from most church conversations, and how it deepens real discipleship. (Kyle’s out this week at a very important men’s hair and beard conventio...

What does it really mean to be gentle? Is it weakness, meekness, or something far stronger? In this episode, Brian explores the biblical virtue of gentleness through surprising stories—from Andre the Giant in The Princess Bride to the quiet strength of Jesus on the cross.

We’ll look at how gentleness is often misunderstood in Western Christianity, especially around masculinity, and why true gentleness is actually power restrained, s...

Greenhouse time!  Handsome Kyle, Doc, and Brian review Ep 126, which was all about Jesus as judge.  

We all make judgments every day, about people, information, events, and conversations.  Yet we live in an age where we are repeatedly told not to judge one another. We should just “live and let live.”

Let’s take a look at what Jesus said about judging, and how He did or did not judge.  Since we are to become more like Him over time, h...

We all judge—and we all get judged. But what does it mean to judge like Jesus?

In this episode, we explore one of Christ’s lesser-discussed traits: his role as judge. We unpack the tension between “Do not judge” and “judge with righteous judgment,” examining why judgment is inescapable, how it reveals the hidden ideas and desires in our hearts, and what it looks like to remove the logs from our own eyes before helping others.

With ...

In this episode, Doc, Reverend Pastor Handsome Kyle, and Brian explore the relational discernment of Jesus and its significance for deep discipleship. 

Jesus engaged people not as categories, but as individuals—offering personal attention, deep listening, and an unhurried presence. This stands in contrast to modern Christian culture’s tendency to prioritize systems, sermons, and superficial connections over the slower, riskier work ...

What does it mean to reflect the relational wisdom of Jesus in a complex world?

In Episode 124, we explore the striking balance Jesus models between innocence and shrewdness—what He called being "wise as serpents and innocent as doves."

Jesus didn’t relate to everyone the same way. Sometimes cryptic, sometimes candid, He always saw to the heart. He navigated human motives with remarkable discernment, adapting His approach...

In this funny yet thought-provoking episode, Brian, Doc, and Handsome Kyle take on one of Jesus's intriguing characteristics—his enigmatic style.  

Jesus was sometimes puzzling, confusing, and vexing.  So, if we are to become more like Him, should we expect to be more enigmatic?  What would that even look like?

Once the guys finally settle into the topic, they debate whether this aspect of Jesus is for Him alone, or whether we ma...

Jesus often confused people—and it seems He did so on purpose. While this isn’t a characteristic we typically highlight in Sunday school, a quick look through the Gospels shows that our King didn’t always speak plainly, explain Himself, or behave in the ways people expected.

In short, Jesus was often enigmatic. He could be mysterious. Even puzzling.

So, if the goal of discipleship is to become more like Jesus, should we expect to car...

The guys head back into the Greenhouse to explore what it means to live like the beloved. 

Along the way, they wrestle with the difference between an intellectual agreement and a heart experience and how we need both for a “complete belief.” This leads to some vulnerable and transparent story-telling, as well as what it means to experience God’s love when life doesn’t go our way. 

Come alongside for this very personal episode!

Joi...

We continue to explore what it means to increasingly think, act, relate, and love more like Jesus. 

Jesus is the most relationally secure person in history. His love flows from a deep, abiding attachment to his Father, so he is not swayed by people's opinions or manipulations. 

How might we become more like that?

Today, we focus on experiencing what it means to be "the beloved." Our identity and security are ultimately w...

What does it mean that Jesus is the most relationally and emotionally secure human being in history?  

The guys jump back into the Greenhouse to dissect the idea that, based on Jesus's life, we can become more relationally secure, attuned, and restful in our relationships with God, others, and ourselves. Though this is not normally explored in modern-day discipleship, it is directly related to the biblical concept of “abiding.”

...

As we continue to explore Jesus, the object of our formation, we marvel at one of His most compelling characteristics: his relational and emotional security.

He isn't anxious, rattled, confused, or manipulated by other people's perspectives and opinions. He operates from a rock-solid sense of identity.

If we are to become more like Him, is this type of groundedness also for us?

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Web: ⁠soilandroots.org⁠ 

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What does the Bible mean by "good" in reference to the creation story? Is creation still good today? Are human beings "good"? How do we reconcile some sort of inherent goodness with the pervasiveness of harmful behaviors?

Doc, Brian, and Handsome Kyle delve into these and other challenging questions raised in the previous episode.

As our hearts continue to be formed, we seek to love more like Jesus loves. If w...

We've turned our attention to exploring what it means to think, act, relate, and love like Jesus, and the answers aren't necessarily straightforward.

At the same time, coming to an agreement on definitions of key words such as "love" and "goodness" can be challenging in our modern culture. How can we love someone if we disagree on what love is? What does it mean to "seek goodness" if we can't agree on what's good?

So, let's dig in...

As we launch further into Season 6, Doc and Handsome Kyle rejoin Brian for the first Greenhouse episode of the season. We are spending this season exploring what it means to think, act, relate, and love like Jesus. The guys briefly review the path we've taken to get here so far, and then wrestle with two key points leading into the rest of the season: -What is the difference between being like Jesus and simply doing the thin...

Welcome to Season 6!

We've mentioned numerous times that the primary purpose of following Jesus is to become more like Him. We intend to think, act, relate, and love like Him more.

It's now time to explore what that really means—and it's not as simple as we might think.

As usual when we start a new season, today we'll review the key points from Seasons 1-5. Then, we'll look forward and sketch the idea-transforming route we'll tak...