Canadian Church Leader's Podcast

Jason is joined by Phil Kniesel this week, Lead Pastor at Hope City Church in Edmonton. In the conversation, they reflect on Phil’s succession journey from leading a young adults ministry to transitioning into the lead pastor role over a six year timespan.  Bio | Phil is the Lead Pastor of Hope City Church in Edmonton, a multi campus church with campuses throughout the city.  He is their primary communicator and brings vision to their staff and direction.  Give today to CCLN and help seed a hopeful future for the Church in Canada. Show Notes: Hope City Church Website Hope City Church Instagram Phil's Instagram  Mark Sayers Audio Download Get Connected! Blog & Episode write-up Website Join our Mailing List!  Subscribe on YouTube Follow on Instagram  Share a Canadian Church Story

Episode 79 | Father Matthew is the Parish Priest at Holy Apostles Orthodox Mission, Chilliwack, B.C. He helps people to unite themselves to God through life in the Body of Christ, participation in the Holy Mysteries, and through encountering Jesus Christ - in the Scriptures and in all of life. He is also the Regional Director, BC & Yukon, Canadian Bible Society - He helps people in B.C. in Yukon to hear God speak through the Bible. Give today to CCLN and help seed a hopeful future for the Church in Canada. Show Notes: Holy Apostles Chillawack Instagram - @fathermatthewfrancis Canadian Bible Society Mark Sayers Audio Download Get Connected! Blog & Episode write-up Website Join our Mailing List!  Subscribe on YouTube Follow on Instagram  Share a Canadian Church Story

Episode 78 | After leading New Life Fellowship Church for 26 years, Pete Scazzero co-founded Emotionally Healthy Discipleship, a groundbreaking ministry that moves the church forward by slowing the church down in order to multiply deeply changed leaders and disciples.  Give today to CCLN and help seed a hopeful future for the Church in Canada. Show Notes: Emotionally Healthy Discipleship Book Emotionally Healthy Website Get Connected! Blog & Episode write-up Website Join our Mailing List!  Subscribe on YouTube Follow on Instagram  Share a Canadian Church Story

Episode 77 | Milissa is the Lead Pastor at Redwood Park Church in Thunder Bay, ON. She is passionate about preaching God's Word, seeing men & women grow into the people God made them to be, and embracing the Church's call to engage in God's ministry of reconciliation. Milissa is a graduate of The University of British Columbia, Arrow Leadership, and finishing her studies at Tyndale Seminary. She loves spending time with her husband, Jay, and two daughters. In her free time, you will find Milissa painting, reading, trail running, skiing, swimming in lakes, or cycling. Give today to CCLN and help seed a hopeful future for the Church in Canada. Show Notes: Redwood Park Church Book: Winn Collier  - A Burning in My Bones Twitter: @milissa_ewing Get Connected! Blog & Episode write-up Website Join our Mailing List!  Subscribe on YouTube Follow on Instagram  Share a Canadian Church Story

Episode 76 | Brandon is passionate about seeing individuals transformed and empowered by the love of God. He met his wife Emma in 2008 and, after several years of long distance dating, chose to attend Redeemer University College together. In 2012 they got married and finished their undergraduate degrees in 2014. They have pastored Slate Church for seven years now and continue to feel desperate in their pursuit to see and walk alongside people as they come alive in Christ and experience His grace. They call Waterloo home and enjoy life with their three kids, Kenzington, Claire and Theo. Give today to CCLN and help seed a hopeful future for the Church in Canada. Show Notes: Slate Church Website Get Connected! Blog & Episode write-up Website Join our Mailing List!  Subscribe on YouTube Follow on Instagram  Share a Canadian Church Story

Episode 75 | Tyler Staton is the Lead Pastor of Bridgetown Church in Portland, Oregon. Previously, he served as co-founder and Lead Pastor of Oaks Church Brooklyn. His passion is a community that is unexplainable apart from the love and power of God. Tyler is also the author of Searching for Enough and is currently working on a second book, this one on the topic of prayer. Give today to CCLN and help seed a hopeful future for the Church in Canada. Show Notes: Praying with the Church - Scot McKnight Searching For Enough - Tyler Staton Tyler Staton's Website Get Connected! Blog & Episode write-up Website Join our Mailing List!  Subscribe on YouTube Follow on Instagram  Share a Canadian Church Story

As we finish off 2021, we wanted to take a moment to look back on some of the conversations we have had this past year that encouraged us in ministry, shifted our thinking, and brought us back to a deeper abiding in Christ. For links to all the episodes featured, you can find them here.  Give today to CCLN and help seed a hopeful future for the Church in Canada. Get Connected! Blog & Episode write-up Website Join our Mailing List!  Subscribe on YouTube Follow on Instagram  Share a Canadian Church Story

Episode 73 | Alan Hirsch and Jason connect in this week’s episode to explore mission, church leadership, and the five-fold gifts in Ephesians 4. Jason starts by asking Alan how he would even define the role he has in the church, as a speaker, writer, but also movement starter, how does he see himself? Alan jokes that he isn’t always sure, but that he feels called to start movements and speak into how the Church can better lean into its mission and stay outward oriented in it’s functions. About Alan Hirsch Alan Hirsch is the founder of 100 Movements, Forge Mission Training Network, and Future Travelers, and 5QCollective. All these organizations focus on pioneering leadership development and training and consulting on the church as a missional movement.  Known for his innovative approach to mission, Alan is widely considered to be a thought-leader in his field and has worked with churches and organization across the world, but mainly in North America, Europe, and Australia.  Hirsch is the author of nu

Episode 72 | In their conversation, Jason and Sid Koop dive into all things youth ministry, exploring the current state of youth in our churches and how churches are best reaching young people. They talk about the role of the youth pastor and how it can act as both a development role for a future position, but also as committed calling for long term service. Sid highlighted that one of the greatest ways pastors can approach youth pastor roles, is to see it as being centered on equipping and developing volunteers. Whether young and energetic, or more seasoned and less “cool”, great youth pastors develop great volunteers who can invest in the lives of young people. Give today to CCLN and help seed a hopeful future for the Church in Canada. About Sid Koop From camp speaker to local youth pastor to youth ministry professor, Sid Koop draws from a deep well of experience over a couple decades. He is the Executive Director of Youth Worker Community where he and his team are dedicated to filling in the gaps for youth

Episode 71 | Rich Villodas and Jason dive deep in this week’s episode to explore the interior world of leaders, the wrestle of celebrity, and to hear the story of Rich coming to faith and becoming a pastor. Jason asks Rich about a recent talk he gave at a Q Ideas conference where he outlined the difference between celebrity and celebrity-ism. He sees celebrity as a state often imposed by others or manifested out of simple notoriety; Jesus was a celebrity in many ways! Celebrity-ism, however, is a state of the soul and is rooted in entitlement. Rich warns us as Christian leaders to be wary of systems and cultures that can create celebrity-ism in us and the need for close accountability and accessibility to our people – no matter the size of church.  Give today to CCLN and help seed a hopeful future for the Church in Canada. Show Notes: Deeply Formed Life by Rich Villodas  Emotionally Healthy Spirituality by Pete Scazzero   Get Connected! Blog & Episode write-up Website Join

Episode 70 | Jason is joined by Francis Chan in this week’s episode to discuss his latest book, Until Unity, and what God has been stirring in him most recently. One of the things most on his heart these days is the importance of Communion. He unpacks with Jason where his deepening conviction has come from for there to be a return to Communion as a central part of our gatherings.  About | Francis Chan has been a pastor for over thirty years. He is a New York Times–bestselling author of several books, including Crazy Love, Letters to the Church, and Until Unity. He and his wife, Lisa, have been married nearly thirty years and co-authored You and Me Forever. Currently, Francis is in Northern California teaching and discipling the next generation of pastors and leaders.  Give today to CCLN and help seed a hopeful future for the Church in Canada. Show Notes: World Vision's: Connected Generation Report  Until Unity Book  Get Connected! Blog & Episode write-up Website Join our Mai

Episode 69 | Jason is joined by Shaila Visser, National Director of Alpha Canada in this week’s episode to discuss their time together at Alpha, what she is learning about evangelism, and how she has learned to invest in young leaders. About | Shaila Visser is the National Director of Alpha Canada and the Global Senior Vice-President for Alpha International. She is the Executive Producer of both The Alpha Youth Film Series (2013) and The Alpha Film Series (2016), and currently holds positions on the Board of the Damascus Road Foundation and on the Board of Regent College-an International Graduate School in Vancouver. Give today to CCLN and help seed a hopeful future for the Church in Canada. Show Notes: World Vision's: Connected Generation Report  Shaila's Website Alpha Canada Get Connected! Blog & Episode write-up Website Join our Mailing List!  Subscribe on YouTube Follow on Instagram  Share a Canadian Church Story

Bonus Episode | Danielle shares passionately with Jason in this week’s episode about how the church can step into our cultural moment with humility and courage. It’s not easy to be a church leader right now. Increasingly, people view the church as detrimental to society and harmful to individuals. As pastors, we can respond with defensiveness and aggression, or we can take a path of reflection and refinement to see how God might want to shape us. About | Danielle Strickland’s aggressive compassion has served people firsthand in countries all over the world. From establishing justice departments and church plants, to launching global anti-trafficking initiatives, to creating new initiatives to mobilize people towards transformational spiritual life. Danielle trains, advocates, and inspires people to live differently through initiatives like: Amplify Peace, Brave Global, Infinitum, and Women’s Speaker Collective. Give today to CCLN and help seed a hopeful future for the Church in Canada. Show Notes: World Vis

Episode 68 | David Kinnaman from Barna and Mark Sayers of Red Church to explore what some of the latest data and church trends might mean for the future of the church and pastoring. Barna in 2019 and 2021 did a significant research project called the Connected Generation where they interviewed 18-35 year olds on areas of church engagement, mental health, and global concerns. In this episode, they specifically explore the Canadian data and what it might reveal about the shifting trends in young christians and non christians. Something Mark emphasizes is that although many of the trends can seem discouraging, we have seen them coming; the pandemic just acted as a portal to jump us ahead faster. For example, many of the people who have left the church during the pandemic were already considering it anyways. So where does that leave us? Well, both David and Mark have hope. What remains is a faithful remnant who have chosen to stay and who are hungrier than ever for the things of God.  About | David Kinnaman

Episode 67 | Kara Powell is a veteran of researching young people and bringing practical ministry ideas to pastors and leaders in churches. Jason sat down with Kara to hear some of the latest research being released in her new book 3 Big Questions That Change Every Teenager.  They begin by highlighting why this all matters and what is at stake when we talk about discipling kids and youth in our communities. Kara highlights both the ways churches can impact the lives of young people positively, but also how young people can help transform churches. Going off research from past projects as well, Kara shares about what churches reaching young people are doing well and how pastors of kids and youth ministries are best discipling their people to follow Jesus.  Jason also explores with Kara the ways parents are the primary way of discipling young people and what it means for pastors to partner with them. They talk about ideas and tactics that have been effective at encouraging parents and building relatio

Episode 66 | In this week’s episode, Jason had the opportunity to connect with Keith Taylor in the final week of his 30-year tenure at Beulah Alliance Church in Edmonton. In their conversation, Keith reflects back on 42 years of ministry and the ways he saw God move in different ways, in different seasons. He also shares about the unique history of Beulah, born out of a missionary-style movement to Western Canada in the early 1900s, and speaks to young pastors about what can help them serve faithfully for decades to come.  As Keith finished his time as the Lead Pastor of Beulah, it was also the beginning of a new era of leadership for the church. Almost five years ago, the journey began as the elders board and Keith started to look towards what would be next and how they might begin preparing for the search and evaluation process. Looking ahead, Keith says he isn’t done just yet! Although his time at Beulah is over, he is excited by the ways God might lead him to new assignments and ways to serve others

Episode 65 | Aaron White, a local ministry leader in the Vancouver area with positions at 24-7 Prayer Canada, Westminster Theological Centre, and Jacob’s Well. He shares about choosing to live in the Downtown Eastside of Vancouver and how although many people see the area as dangerous or rundown, he finds great beauty and community within it. He talks about how many people can come to the area, hoping to share Jesus with those on the streets, but are often surprised to learn that Jesus is already there.  Jason picks up on that theme, asking about what it means for churches and Christians to not come in with a prideful spirit, but to still find ways to effectively minister to the needs of their city. Aaron encourages him that if the church is the church in its own neighbourhood, that actually blesses the wider society. Not every church needs to be in the same area or trying to serve the same people, but through the fabric of the local church in a city, all kinds of needs can be met. When talking about ser

Episode 64 | Ho-Ming Tsui of Richmond Hill Christian Community Church in Toronto, Ontario joins Jason for his second conversation on the podcast. Between this interview and the previous one with Ho-Ming, multiple anti-racism movements have arisen and resonated with millions across the globe. In particular, the Stop Asian Hate movement triggered by the Atlanta shootings in March, have acutely affected Ho-Ming and the Chinese community that he pastors.  Ho-Ming with great honesty processes the many tensions he felt as he considered how to thoughtfully respond to this movement. Thousands of pastors worldwide felt the pressure to release some sort of statement or response in the wake of the shootings. Ho-Ming shares how he wanted to provide more than a statement for his congregation, but a space for them to reflect, grieve and pray together. He describes the incredible fruit of that decision.  About | Ho-Ming is the Lead Pastor of Richmond Hill Christian Community Church, a multi-generational, multi-lin

Episode 63 | Jon Thompson joins Jason this week for a unique conversation about calling in pastoral ministry. Based on a talk from a 2018 church leaders gathering, Jon shares what he believes is the foundation for long term, effective church leadership. Jon’s own journey led him to question what biblical calling looked like. Experiencing a sense of supernatural leading and divine intervention in his twenties, he came to believe pastors without that “moment” might not be called. However, after stepping back to evaluate the scriptures, he came to see four biblical models for calling that he called: 1) “I have no choice”, 2) gift-based, 3) family-based, and 4) community affirmed. Based on biblical figures, Jon shares with Jason how most pastors experience one or a combination of these before or in their early years of ministry. Jason presses Jon on common objections or hesitations people might raise from seeing the idea of calling misused in church circles historically.  About | Jon Thompson serves as the S

Episode 62 | Kevin Myers, Founding Pastor of 12 Stone Church in Georgia, is interviewed this week by Brent Ingersoll of Kings Church in Atlantic Canada. As a veteran leader of one of the largest churches in America, Kevin has an acute understanding of the challenges of senior leadership and the many seasons a leader might walk through. The two of them discuss themes such as what precedes renewals, what we can learn today from the prophet Elijah and how the Church needs to return back to the ABC's of ministry in the Kingdom.  About | Kevin Myers has been married for nearly forty years and has four children and two grandchildren. Kevin is the senior pastor of 12Stone Church, one of the largest churches in the United States. A gifted communicator, influential leader, and strategic thinker, Kevin planted the church in 1987 and has grown it to eight campuses. Kevin mentors pastors and church planters, speaks at churches and businesses around the country, and serves on the General Board of the Wesleyan Church