The Flip Side with Noah Filipiak

Shane Claiborne, Author & Activist - Episode 29 - on the death penalty, celebrityism as idolatry, speaking the truth in love, and how to engage in being an ordinary radical in marriage

Noah Filipiak interviews Shane Claiborne about how to engage churches
in helping the poor, activism and justice issues.  They talk about
celebrityism within popular Christianity, about what can be done to stop
the death penalty (Shane's latest book is Executing Grace: How the Death Penalty Killed Jesus and Why It's Killing Us),
and about how to be an ordinary radical as both a single person and as a
married person (and what to do if one spouse is moved toward this and
the other isn't). 
Connect with Shane on social media:
Shane's Twitter
Shane's Facebook
Shane's Books:
The Irresistible Revolution, Updated and Expanded: Living as an Ordinary Radical
Executing Grace: How the Death Penalty Killed Jesus and Why It's Killing Us
Common Prayer Pocket Edition: A Liturgy for Ordinary Radicals
Jesus for President: Politics for Ordinary Radicals
Red Letter Revolution: What If Jesus Really Meant What He Said?
Becoming the Answer to Our Prayers: Prayer for Ordinary Radicals
Follow Me to Freedom: Leading and Following As an Ordinary Radical
Economy of Love: Creating a Community of Enough
Jesus, Bombs, and Ice Cream Study Guide with DVD: Building a More Peaceful World
Iraq Journal 2003

Noel Castellanos, CEO of the CCDA - Episode 28 - on living incarnationally among the poor, what's missing from the American Gospel and how to persevere in the thick of ministry despair

Noel Castellanos is the CEO of the Christian Community Development Association (CCDA) and the author of Where the Cross Meets the Street: What Happens to the Neighborhood When God Is at the Center. 
Noah Filipiak interviews Noel about the downside of American
Evangelicals being obsessed with going to heaven, but neglecting much of
Jesus's example and teaching.  Noel talks "behind the curtain" about
the challenge of doing urban ministry, but also the call behind it and
the purpose it brings. 
The CCDA National Conference is coming to Detroit, MI on October 4-7th, 2017 so be sure to save the date to join us.
www.CCDA.org
From
August 20 - 30, 2016 CCDA practitioners walked a 150 mile pilgrimage
from the border of Mexico and California––El Camino del Inmigrante––to
share in solidarity with immigrants who are migrating across the world. 
You can follow walkers' blogs, stories and reflections along the way. 
​
Recommended reading from Noel:
Where the Cross Meets the Street: What Happens to the Neighborhood When God Is at the Center by Noel Castellanos
Let Justice Roll Down by John Perkins
Mañana: Christian Theology from a Hispanic Perspective by Justo L. González
The Future is Mestizo: Life Where Cultures Meet by Virgilio Elizondo
Galilean Journey: The Mexican-American Promise by Virgilio Elizondo
Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption by Bryan Stevenson (on mass incarceration)
The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness by Michelle Alexander (on mass incarceration)
Christians at the Border: Immigration, the Church, and the Bible by M. Daniel Carrol R.
Welcoming the Stranger: Justice, Compassion & Truth in the Immigration Debate by Jenny Yang and Matthew Soerens

Matthew Soerens of World Relief - Episode 27 - on a biblical response to illegal immigration and Muslim refugees (with poetry by Jacob Mau)

Matthew Soerens is the US Director of Church Mobilization for World
Relief.  Noah Filipiak interview Matthew about a biblical response to
undocumented immigrants, the Mexican border, Syrian and other Muslim
refugees, and much more.  The episode closes with a poem called "Home"
by World Relief's Jacob Mau (www.jacobmaumusic.com)
Books co-authored by Matthew Soerens:
Seeking Refuge: On the Shores of the Global Refugee Crisis
Welcoming the Stranger: Justice, Compassion & Truth in the Immigration Debate
Photo
of a "40 Days of Scripture & Prayer" bookmark. Contact
EvangelicalImmigrationTable.com to get bookmarks and for your church.
Connect with Matthew:
Follow Matthew Soerens on Twitter
Like Matthew Soerens Author Facebook Page
Resources and ways to enact change:
www.worldrelief.org/seekingrefuge
advocacy@wr.org - Subscribe to World Relief's immigration advocacy updates
www.EvangelicalImmigrationTable.com
Contact your Representatives in Congress:
National House: http://www.house.gov/representatives/find/
National Senate:­­ http://www.senate.gov/senators/contact/
Hana & Saeed from World Relief on Vimeo.
The end of the episode features the poem "Home" read and written by Jacob Mau.  Connect with Jacob on Twitter, Facebook and at his music website.

Grace Fox, author - Episode 26 - on industry pressure to make ourselves big when the Bible tells us Jesus must increase and we decrease

Noah Filipiak interviews Grace Fox on the pressure a Christian author faces to have to make themselves well-known, despite the Bible's emphasis that "Jesus must increase, and we must decrease" (John 3:28-30).  Noah and Grace discuss the challenge to do this in the Christian book marketplace where names must be known and books must be sold, and the damage that can be done to our souls when we get our priorities in the wrong place. 
Noah Filipiak interviews Grace Fox on the pressure a Christian author
faces to have to make themselves well-known, despite the Bible's
emphasis that "Jesus must increase, and we must decrease" (John
3:28-30).  Noah and Grace discuss the challenge to do this in the
Christian book marketplace where names must be known and books must be
sold, and the damage that can be done to our souls when we get our
priorities in the wrong place.
www.GraceFox.com
Like Grace's Facebook author page
Follow Grace on Twitter
International Messengers Canada
Grace's books & resources:
Spiritual Growth
Morning Moments With God: Devotions for the Busy Woman
Peaceful Moments to Begin Your Day: Devotions for Busy Women
10-Minute Time Outs for Moms
Moving From Fear to Freedom: A Woman's Guide to Peace in Every Situation
Moving From Fear to Freedom: A Woman-to-Woman Conversation Guide (Workbook)
Moving From Fear to Freedom: A Woman-to-Woman Conversation Guide (DVD)
Moving From Fear to Freedom - Bible Study Group Discount
Parenting Resources
Tuck-Me-In Talks With Your Little Ones: Creating Happy Bedtime Memories
Tuck-Me-In Cards: Turn Bedtime Routines into Memory-Making Moments
10-Minute Time Outs for You and Your Kids
Marriage Resources
One-Minute Romance for Couples
Couple Minutes: Questions to Keep Your Relationship Fresh and Fun
Compilations
A Taste of Hot Apple Cider
Mornings With Jesus 2016
Hot Apple Cider

Chris McKenna, Covenant Eyes - Episode 25 - On staying pure with new technology, Instagram and how he conquered a porn addiction

Chris McKenna is the new Educational Resource Manager for Covenant Eyes and also runs the website Protect Young Eyes (www.protectyoungeyes.com).  Protect Young Eyes
is loaded with free tools for parents, as Chris specializes in speaking
weekly around the Midwest to parents and students on using the
Internet better as the latest apps and devices hit the market. 
Noah
and Chris each share how they overcame addictions to pornography, as
they discuss what both kids and adults are up against today in the age
of mobile devices.  This is a must-listen for anyone who struggles with
lust, as well as anyone parenting kids in this new day and age.  Most
people would never imagine their kids are looking at porn on their
tablets or phones, but there's a good chance they are, or soon will be. 
Some will be surprised to hear all the ways their child might be
accessing porn outside of the standard internet browser (e.g. Instagram,
Twitter, etc.)
You can book Chris for speaking engagements through his website www.protectyoungeyes.com.
Get Covenant Eyes on your computers and mobile devices today; use this link and/or promo code CROSSROADS to get your first month free. 
Check out the Covenant Eyes blog.
Free e-books from Covenant Eyes (including Parenting the Digital Generation. The same link will guide you to the 3-week sermon series.).
Covenant Eyes' 40-Day Challenge App
Follow Covenant Eyes on Twitter and Facebook
Follow Chris on Twitter

Zack Eswine, 2016 CT Book of the Year winner - Episode 24 - on Pastoring and how "Large, Famous & Fast" were not Values of Jesus's

Noah Filipiak interviews 2016 Christianity Today
Book of the Year (in the Category of The Church/Pastoral Leadership)
award winner Dr. Zack Eswine.  In addition to the award-winning The Imperfect Pastor: Discovering Joy in Our Limitations through a Daily Apprenticeship with Jesus, Zack is also the author of Spurgeon's Sorrows: Realistic Hope for those who Suffer from Depression, Preaching to a Post-Everything World: Crafting Biblical Sermons that Connect with our Culture, Recovering Eden: The Gospel According to Ecclesiastes and Kindled Fire: How the methods of CH Spurgeon can help your preaching.  Zack pastors at Riverside Church in Webster Groves, MO and is the Director of Homiletics at Covenant Seminary.
Like
the themes in Zack's writing, this interview is essential listening for
pastors who struggle with burnout, significance and self-striving.  So
much of what has become normative in church culture for pastors is the
opposite of what Jesus taught and modeled for his followers.  Zack
exposes these things with such grace, experience, and wisdom, offering
the rest of us the hope from the hamster wheel of ministry he has found
in Jesus.
You can follow Zack on Twitter and Facebook.  His website and blog can be found at www.ZackEswine.com

Joseph Bataille, Haiti Country Director for World Relief - Episode 23 - on breaking patterns of dependency, helpful and hurtful ways of helping, and how to avoid compassion fatigue

Noah Filipiak interviews World Relief's Haiti Country Director, Joseph Bataille.  Haiti was the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere before the 2010 earthquake and even more so after.  All this despite millions and millions of dollars of international aid over the course of decades.  Noah and Joseph have a "behind the curtain" conversation about how Haiti got in the spot its in, what World Relief is doing about it, and what we all can do about alleviating poverty in ways that work.  Noah and Joseph also discuss the perils of compassion fatigue and how to avoid it. 

Derek Webb, musician - Episode 22 - On people walking out of concerts, agitating people with truth and the necessity of having real friends we can be vulnerable with

Noah Filipiak interviews Derek Webb about his career change from hit CCM (Contemporary Christian Music) band Caedman's Call to his solo career.  The focus of the interview centers around how to be real as a ministry leader who's in the spotlight with a public persona.  Derek's lyrics are known for being transparent, agitating and vulnerable, yet he shares how he didn't have close friends he was vulnerable until very recently when he was left with no choice.  Derek and Noah discuss this common problem among ministry leaders and what can be done about it. 
Connect with Derek on Twitter and Facebook
www.derekwebb.com - Check out tons of free music from Derek, videos, and more
Derek is also the co-founder of Noisetrade, a revolutionary tribe-building platform where artists and authors post free music and books for download.  www.noisetrade.com
From the interview, here is the RelevantMagazine.com article (copied from Derek's Facebook page) entitled "Derek Webb: On Failure, Liturgy and New Years"

Senator Todd Weiler - Episode 21 - on Utah's Resolution SCR9 making pornography a public health crisis

The State of Utah recently declared pornography to be a public health crisis via a resolution drafted by 23rd district Senator Todd Weiler.  Noah Filipiak interviews Senator Weiler about the perils of pornography, the flak Senator Weiler has received (including from Seth Myers and Whoopi Goldberg), what can be done to find freedom from pornography on a personal level, and what we can all do about it on a legislative level. 
Read Utah’s SCR9 resolution declaring pornography a public health crisis.
Connect with Senator Weiler on Twitter and Facebook.
Visit the “Find My Legislator” website
to contact your state representatives about adopting Utah’s SCR9,
declaring pornography a public health crisis in your state as well.
Get Covenant Eyes filter and/or accountability software on all of your online and mobile devices to protect yourself and your family from pornography.
Covenant Eyes’ blog for women whose husbands look at porn.
Related:
Terry Crews Speaks Out Against Pornography

Dennis Hammond - Episode 20 - on being raised in inner city Lansing, finding Christ and going to Honduras

Noah Filipiak interviews 18-year-old Dennis Hammond on being raised in
inner city Lansing, how he found Christ, his June 19-26th trip to
Honduras and how the odds are stacked against inner city black youth. 
The catalyst of this interview came from Noah helping Dennis fund-raise
for his $1600 missions trip and realizing how different it is for an
inner city black teen to try paying for a missions trip in comparison to
a white suburban teen.  The unfolding conversation between Noah and
Dennis highlights fatherlessness, crime and gang activity that riddles
inner city youth and the need for the Church to redistribute its
network, mentoring and resources to help these teens chart a new path. 
Dennis shares about how God saved him from a life of drugs, gangs, crime
and despair to a new life as a young leader in his church and an
evangelist for God's Kingdom wherever he goes.  If you can give money to
help Dennis go to Honduras this June, please visit Dennis's GoFundMe
account:  https://www.gofundme.com/75v7g5v8

Sarah Arthur, Author - Episode 19 - on spiritually healthy ways of measuring success

In Episode 19, the one-year anniversary episode for Behind the Curtain, Noah Filipiak interviews 11-time author Sarah Arthur.  Sarah's book Walking with Frodo was the #1 bestselling youth resource in Christian publishing for the holiday season 2003, and #13 in all categories and Walking with Bilbo won the Logos Book Award at the Christian Booksellers Convention for Best Youth Book 2005.  Her most recent books include a 3-part devotional series that follow the Church liturgical calendar:  Between Midnight & Dawn, Light Upon Light & At the Still Point.  Noah and Sarah discuss the roller-coaster ride of succeeding and failing in the publishing world and how to discover spiritually healthy ways of measuring success in anything we do in life.  In a fast-forward world where everything is pressing and urgent, this interview examines how to rest in our identity as God's kids and not let other voices determine our ultimate value. 

Shawn Lovejoy, Author - Episode 18 - On workaholism, focusing on God's success measurements in spite of the pressures of Christian culture, and on leaving the megachurch he planted

Shawn Lovejoy is the author of The Measure of Our Success: An Impassioned Plea to Pastors and Be Mean About the Vision: Preserving and Protecting What Matters.  He is a church planting veteran, having planted Mountain Lake Church in Cumming, GA, which he recently stepped away from after 16 years to focus on coaching leaders and pastoring pastors at www.CourageToLead.com. 
Noah Filipiak interviews Shawn about his transition away from his
church plant, about the epidemic of church planters with non-Christlike
goals, the denominations that push these goals, and the walls pastors
hit when their disillusionment catches up with them.  Noah and Shawn
both share their own struggles in these areas, with Shawn giving great
wisdom from the hundreds of church planters and pastors he has coached
over the years in these areas.  

Tyler St. Clair, Detroit church planter - Episode 17 - on being real about ministry in the hood, fundraising as a black man and why the Church shouldn't hoard its resources in the suburbs

Noah Filipiak interviews Pastor Tyler St. Clair about his upcoming
church plant on the NW side of Detroit, the neighborhood Tyler and his
wife both grew up in.  Tyler's target location is one of the "bad parts"
of Detroit, with all of the symptoms of urban poverty ever-present. 
After being guided to plant in other more financially viable areas,
Tyler discusses why he is staying committed to this needy area.  Noah
and Tyler discuss white privilege and the challenge of ministry
fundraising as a black man.  They also discuss the lost emphasis
Scripture puts on loving and ministering to the poor and the need for
the Church to be the body and not hoard all of the resources in suburban
areas.  They also discuss how a lot of church planting movements want
to make it look like they are ministering in the poor parts of Detroit,
when they really aren't.  Tyler also shares about a season of his life
where he rejected black preaching and theologians, and how God brought
him back to his roots and ethnic identity by introducing him to many
spiritual giants of the Christian faith who come from the
African-American Church.

Andrew Maxwell, 2012 Michigan State University starting QB - Episode 16 - on being benched, hate-filled tweets, NFL tryouts and identity in Christ

Andrew Maxwell compiled an impressive career as Michigan State University's quarterback, his biggest season coming as the starter in 2012.  Maxwell finished his MSU career with 3014 passing yards, 14 touchdowns, and a 105.5 quarterback rating in 26 total games played.  After going undrafted, he had tryouts with the San Diego Chargers and New England Patriots in 2014.  In this interview, Andrew and Noah Filipiak discuss what it was like emotionally for Andrew to be benched in Michigan State's bowl game in favor of Connor Cook, what that off-season was like, and what it was like to be benched again his senior season.  Noah and Andrew discuss all the ways we find our identity in things other than who we are in Christ, football a primary culprit of this in Andrew's life, the hard lessons God has taught him about trusting God, as well as why fans say such awful things toward players. 

Jeremy Dowsett, "Failed" Church Planter - Episode 15 - on the flaws in Evangelical Protestantism and the freedom in gospel discovered apart from church planting

The church Jeremy Dowsett started 10 years ago closed its doors in
2015.  In this interview with Noah Filipiak, Jeremy takes us behind the
curtain of how he's handled this emotionally and spiritually.  Every
church planter who has gone through this experience is going to be
unique and Jeremy is no exception.  The interview walks through the
flaws in Evangelical Protestantism that Jeremy experienced and how that
eventually led him to convert to Catholicism.  We also discuss the
emotional weight of pastoring a church plant and what it's been like to
be away from that weight, as well as if it's possible for a church
planter to truly experience the freedom of the gospel of grace while in
the midst of shouldering the load of church planting, or if the two are
mutually exclusive. Jeremy also wrote a blog post in 2014 that got so many hits it broke the Internet, making Noah jealous, which we also discuss.Visit www.atacrossroads.net/podcast for more links and commentary about this interview.

Tom and Sandi Blaylock, authors of "Marriage on Mission" - Episode 14 - on how ministry can become a mistress to a marriage

Authors, veteran church planters, retreat leaders, and marriage and ministry leadership coaches Tom and Sandi Blaylock (Pawleys Island, SC) share with honesty, grace and transparency the many struggles they've endured as a married couple in ministry.  These experiences have given Tom and Sandi a wealth of wisdom on how married couples can heal their marriages.  This interview truly goes "behind the curtain" of the Blaylock's lives as ministry as host Noah Filipiak walks with Tom and Sandi through topics of working long hours, insecurity, woundedness, using ministry as a mistress, and what to do when a minister's spouse is not interested in doing ministry.  Many people assume ministry leaders shouldn't have marital problems when in fact the position of ministry leadership innately brings with it unique marital opposition.  Find Tom and Sandi at LifeWorthImitating.Blogspot.com and get a free copy of Chapter 1 of their book Marriage on Mission at MarriageOnMission.com

Susie Finkbeiner, Novelist - Episode 13 - on Exhaustion, Superficiality, Politics and Staying Grounded

Susie Finkbeiner has written three novels, with her recent A Cup of Dust
being released today, October 27th, with Kregel Publishers.  In this
episode, Noah Filipiak interviews Susie about exhaustion, how to handle
exhaustion, the superficiality of "puppy hug and rainbow kiss"
Christianity (and Christian fiction), politics and how to stay grounded.

Ruth Haley Barton, spiritual formation author - Episode 12 - on Performance-Oriented Drivenness, Ego, Pace, Soul & Spiritual Transformation

Ruth Haley Barton is the award winning author of 7 books and the founder of The Transforming Center.  Her book Sacred Rhythms won the Logos Book Award for Best Book Award on Spirituality and her book Invitation to Solitude and Silence won the Christianity Today Book of the Year Award for Spirituality.  In this interview, Noah Filipiak interviews Ruth about how to deal with success and failure, burnout, ego, ambition, technology, pace, false self and true self, finding who we truly are in Christ versus the facade strategies we have learned to protect ourselves, and much more.  Ruth and her Transforming Community team have extensive experience helping Christians and ministry leaders find their true self in Christ and are uniquely gifted and called to this essential work in today's hectic, cluttered, performance-driven culture we live in.  If you've ever struggled with having a dry devotional time with the Lord and wondered if there was more to experience from God than you currently know, God has led you to the right person by now connecting you with Ruth Haley Barton and the Transforming Center.

Josiah Price, Record breaking TE for the #4 Michigan State Spartans - Episode 11 - on the temptations college football players face, the pressure put on by fans and how he stays grounded

In this episode, Noah Filipiak interviews the starting tight end for
the #4 ranked Michigan State Spartans football team, redshirt junior
Josiah Price.  Price has 13 career touchdowns at Michigan State, a
record for a tight end, including 3 in the first 3 games of 2015.  He
caught the go ahead touchdown against #2 ranked Ohio State in the Big
Ten Championship game in 2013, as well as a fourth quarter touchdown in
the 2014 Cotton Bowl against #5 ranked Baylor that began a 21 point 4th
quarter comeback for Michigan State.  Michigan State was the 2013-14 Big
Ten and Rose Bowl champion, finishing 3rd overall and the 2014-15
Cotton Bowl Champion, finishing 5th overall.
Noah and Josiah discuss the temptations facing college football
players, how Josiah stays grounded, as well as the ‘superfan’ mindset of
many fans who take college football way too seriously.  Noah and Josiah
unpack death threats sent via social media to Josiah’s teammates after
bad plays, as well as how a player is worshiped and adored if they make a
good play.

Noel Heikkinen - Episode 10 - On Anxiety, Avoiding Burnout & Guarding Against Ego and Sexual Sin

Noah Filipiak interviews Noel Heikkinen, one of the pastors at
Riverview Church in Holt, Lansing and East Lansing, MI.  Riverview is a
church made up of around 3000 - 4000 people that has 4 venues in the
Lansing area.  Noel and Noah discuss the hardest thing about being a
pastor, including a helpful discussion about the anxiety pastors and
church planters face, how we can combat anxiety, and how churchgoers can
help their pastors feel less anxiety.  They discuss how churchgoers can
help their pastors stay healthy, avoid burnout, and stay at their
current ministry post longer.  They also discuss the dangers of church
planting and book publishing, including good reasons to do such ventures as well as sinful reasons.Noel is a director with the Acts 29 Church
Planting network and is author of a book with the working title
"Unchained" coming out in early 2017 with David C. Cook publishers.

Luke Gilkerson - Episode 9, Why do pastors look at porn and have affairs? - “Behind the Curtain” Ministry Podcast

Noah Filipiak interviews Covenant Eyes'
Luke Gilkerson on why pastors look at porn & have affairs.
Applicable to men, women, pastors and churchgoers, this is a must listen
for the Church.Luke is the Educational Resource Manager at Covenant Eyes, he also runs the Covenant Eyes blog where he is also a frequent author.  Luke’s personal blog is www.intoxicatedonlife.com and he is the author of The Talk: 7 Lessons to Introduce Your Child to Biblical Sexuality & Coming Clean: Overcoming Lust Through Biblical Accountability.

Chris Pruett - Episode 8 - “Behind the Curtain” Ministry Podcast

Noah Filipiak interviews Chris Pruett, the self-titled “Happiest Homeless Person in
Lansing.”  Chris attends Pastor Noah's church and does a great job of shedding the
light of love and humanity onto homelessness.  Learn about homelessness
from the eyes of a homeless person.  Chris is intelligent, creative and
funny.  See www.atacrossroads.net for a small sampling of the various signs (and boxes
for his head) that Chris wears around Lansing.

Zachary Bartels - Episode 7 - "Behind the Curtain" Ministry Podcast

In this interview Noah talks with Zachary Bartels
on the balance of being both a pastor and a Christian fiction author. They  talk about the required "self-promotion" of the author world and the
safeguards that have to be put in place to make sure this doesn't become
sin.  Noah shares the insecurities he faced when he began trying to get
published, including embarrassing moments due to this insecurity.  They
talk about making money as an author and using fiction as a medium for
communicating gospel truth like a ninja. 

Jessa Anderson - Episode 6 - “Behind the Curtain” Ministry Podcast

Recording artist Jessa Anderson and Noah talk about the tension in the
Christian music industry between making good music with good theology,
how all of life’s struggles can’t be fixed in a 3 and half minute song
with a pretty bow at the end of it, and the lure of writing in a way
that will get you on the radio.  They talk about the depression and
anxiety ministry leaders face and how our churches and Christian music
need to give more exposure to these darker sides of our faith walk.  If
you are a music fan of any kind, are a ministry leader, or want to know
how to better support your ministry leaders, this is a great episode for
you.

David Singleton - Episode 5 - "Behind the Curtain" Ministry Podcast

Youth pastor David Singleton and I talk about the different narratives of the white and black cultures and how this relates to the Church. We discuss the Baltimore riots, racial segregation in churches, the differences between suburban and urban youth ministry, and steps we can take to be the Church Jesus intended.  David has been the youth pastor at Crossroads Church in Lansing, MI for the past year and prior to this did urban youth ministry in Philadelphia, PA / Camden, NJ as well as Watts and Compton (Los Angeles), California.  David is also a spoken word artist and performs his poem "Dad Was Locked Up."