The Follower Podcast

Human 1: On Longing with Trevor Hudson

In this episode, Matthew and Trevor Hudson explore the themes of longing and the human experience as they discuss Matthew's upcoming book, 'Human'.
They delve into the nature of our longings, the tension between our deepest and strongest desires, and how these longings can lead us closer to God.
The conversation emphasizes the importance of relationships in navigating our longings and the transformative power of grace in our lives. Ultimately, they reflect on how our longings echo God's own desires for us, inviting us into a deeper relationship with Him.
Take aways
Longing is a pathway to understanding our relationship with God.
Our deepest longings can lead us home to God.
Navigating the tension of longing is essential for spiritual growth.
Strongest longings may distract us from our deepest desires.
Relationships are crucial in processing our longings.
Suppression of longings can lead to exhaustion.
Grace, not willpower, transforms our desires.
Restlessness can be a gift that keeps us seeking God.
Our longings reflect God's longing for us.
There are no unfinished symphonies in our spiritual journey.
Key Words
longing, human experience, spirituality, transformation, relationships, faith, Jesus, emotional health, self-discovery, vulnerability

Yes, that's the god we don't believe in. Reflections on Love in an age of fear

In the final episode of our Advent series, Matthew reflects on how our views of God can be warped by those who claim to represent Him, how Jesus is the ultimate revelation of God and how the God we find in Jesus is a God of Love.
If you enjoyed this episode you can go a little deeper by subscribing at www.wearefollower.com to receive a devotional thought and some reflective exercises that will help you explore this concept. 
As always, please leave a comment and share this episode with your world. 
Follower is funded by a group of generous people who make everything we do possible. If you would like to help us make more episodes like this through a once-off donation or monthly support please visit our website. 

You're not supposed to clap there. Reflections on Joy in an age of anguish.

In the third episode of our Advent series, Matthew speaks about Joy. In particular, He considers how our pleasures call us deeper to Joy and how, in an age of anguish and scepticism, Joy may just be the revolution. 
To dive deeper into this topic you can subscribe at www.wearefollower.com to receive weekly devotional thoughts and reflection exercises that take you deeper into the topic of each podcast. 
As always don't forget to leave a review and share this episode with your world if you found it helpful. 
The Follower Podcast is made possible by a community of supporters. If you would like to join that community and help us create more episodes like this you can do so by visiting our website. 

What do you mean He breathed on them? Reflections on Peace in an age of anxiety.

This is the second episode in our Advent series. In this episode, Matthew explores the Shalom of Jesus and how it is much deeper than the fragile peace our culture pursues. 
To explore this more, you can visit www.wearefollower.com and subscribe to receive weekly devotional reflections complimenting each episode and taking you a little deeper into the journey. 

And then there was the longing. Reflections on Hope in an age of Nihilism

This is the first episode in a four-part Advent series in which Matthew explores Hope, Peace, Joy, and Love to help us arrive at Christmas with wonder. 
In this episode, Matthew discusses the realities of our longings and how, if we allow them to lead us well, they can cultivate a Hope in us that is anchored in Jesus and transformative for our lives. 
Weekly reflections and exercises will also be sent out to help you go a little deeper into these topics. You can get those in your inbox by subscribing at www.wearefollower.com

Equipped in the prophetic with Christine Westhoff

In this episode, we team up with 24/7 Prayer South Africa and Christine Westhoff of Reframing The Prophetic for our first live Follower Podcast.
People tuned in from all over to listen to an online conversation about the prophetic and how we can walk in this gift in a biblically faithful way.
Christine offered some helpful perspectives, people were able to ask important questions and hopefully, we captured something that can benefit The Church at this time. 
If you would like to connect more with 24/7 Prayer South Africa you can do so at their website. If you would like to know more about Christine and her work with reframing the prophetic you can visit her site as well as get her book on Amazon. 
Get the book here
As always, if you found the episode helpful please leave a review and share it with your world. 
The ministry of Follower is made possible by a generous team of supporters who give either once-off or through ongoing donations. If you would like to join that team and help us create more conversations like this you can do so by visiting www.wearefollower.com
 

Reconciling the Sexes with Katia Adams and Terran Williams

In this episode, we sit down with Katia Adams and Terran Williams to discuss the role of women in The Church and explore why a wound of which we seldom speak is, in fact, an issue of reconciliation that needs to be considered in the Christlike Spirit of Love. 
Katia is an author, preacher, and the founding pastor of The Table Boston. Her book, Equal, explores what the bible says about Women, Men and authority and her online course called Her Voice is designed to equip women preachers. Katia is also married to Julian with whom she is the director of Frequentsee Inc. and is the mother of two children
Terran is an author, speaker, and pastor of Signal church in Cape Town, South Africa. In his book, How God Sees Women, Terran points to God's desire for the unity of men and women, in creation, in the church, and in Christ in what has been described as a landmark book for our generation. Terran is also married to Julie and is the father of five children.  
Both Katia and Terran engaged in this conversation with a rare combination of conviction and grace that made it as encouraging as it was challenging.
If you (or someone you know) are wrestling with what to think or how to pray around the role of women in the Church and why that matters for the world, we hope that you'll be helped by this episode. 
For more on either Katia or Terran and to get their books and other resources, you can visit their respective websites. 
Katiaadams.org
Terranwilliams.com
As always please subscribe, share and leave a review if you enjoyed this conversation and, if you would like to help us make more conversations like this available, you can give a once-off or ongoing donation at www.wearefollower.com
 
 

Socio-economic reconciliation with Dani Scott and Brandon Brand

In this episode we sit down with two friends from very different world to discuss what reconciliation across the socio-economic divide that is so present in South Africa and many other parts of the world might look like. 
The gift of this conversation is that it's not purely theoretical. Both Dani and Brandon share insights on how we might become bridges in our divided societies that they have learned form participation in that holy, healing work. 
As always we pray that this conversation will help you follow Jesus to the depths of His heart and the ends of the earth, particularly into the lives of those who seem to be so different from you.
If you enjoyed this conversation, please subscribe, leave a review and share it with your world. 
You can also help us make more episodes like this through a once off or ongoing donation at www.wearefollower.com

Healing wound of The Holy Land 2 with Dr Salim Munayer

In our desire to present a more balanced perspective on the current conflict happening in Israel and Palestine we wanted to speak to a Jew (As we did in the previous episode with Orna Grinman) and a Palestinian, which is what we have done in this episode.
Our guest for this conversation is Dr Salim Munayer.
Dr Munayer was born to a Christian Palestinian family in the city of Lydda where he interacted with the different Jewish, Muslim and Christian populations from a young age. From this diverse upbringing and after academic studies in theology, he founded Musalaha ('Reconciliation' in Arabic), an organisation promoting teaching, facilitation and reconciliation between Israelis and Palestinians where he has served as director for over 30 years. 
Dr Munayer is also adjunct Professor at Fuller Theological Seminary, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, and Bethlehem Bible college and serves as the Regional Hub Coordinator of the Middle East and North Africa region for the Peace and Reconciliation Network (PRN) of the World Evangelical Alliance (WEA).
To say that this conversation was challenging would be an understatement. Dr Munayer sheds a stark but necessary light on both the historical context of the current conflict as well as the ideological and political influences that, in his words, are normalising a genocide in our time. 
This episode is longer than most of our conversations and is not easy listening, but it is important. We pray it helps you engage in this issue and the broader issues of reconciliation in a more meaningful way. 
For all of the resources mentioned by Dr Munayer you can go to his website here.
As always, If this episode was helpful for you, please leave a review, share it with your world and consider giving a once off or ongoing donation so that we can create more conversations like this by visiting www.wearefollower.com
 

Healing the wound of The Holy Land with Orna Grinman

Few regions in the world are as historically contested and culturally contentious as Israel, Palestine and the surrounding areas.
It would be easier to avoid discussing the conflict that currently rages there, it would certainly be less risky, but a podcast on reconciliation at this moment in history would be remiss in avoiding this conversation for the sake of playing it safe. 
As a Jewish woman currently living in Jerusalem and inspired by her faith in Jesus (or Jeshua as she likes to call Him) Orna Grinman has been working for reconciliation between Jews and Arabs in this region for years. 
This podcast is far from the last word on the matter. It isn't trying to be. Instead, we hoped to have a discussion that wrestled with the tension of what has become a polarising conversation and to do so in such a way that ultimately pointed people to Jesus. 
I think we did that.
There were many questions I still had, and some of Orna's perspectives that I'm not sure I completely agree with, but overall I appreciated her humility and the very evident love she carries for Jesus and the people He has called her to serve. People that, without the love of Jesus it would have been easy for her to hate. 
If you would like to find out more about Orna's work you can go to Ot OoMofet Ministries to get connected.
As always, if this episode has been helpful to you, please subscribe, share and leave a review. 
If you would like to help us produce more podcasts like this you can give a once-off or ongoing donation www.werarefollower.com