Stephanie begins this episode by asking Eric: “How do you feel about middle class congregants in an inner city church?” Listen as Joel, Stephanie, and Joel chat about the challenges and benefits of having middle class folks in a low-income church context. We discuss the issue of those who grew up on the context, achieve a middle class income, and want to leave. This presents unique challenges. We also discuss middle class people from outside the context, who choose to attend the inner city church. This also creates unique challenges. The team calls our middle class listener to consider the cost and see the benefit of sacrificially integrating yourself into the community. Additionally, for the skeptic, we hit on a few ways middle class folks can help the work. Join us on the stoop for this conversation.

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How did Joel, who is white, end up pastoring in a predominantly black neighborhood in Baltimore? Is that a good idea? Should church planters be looking to put roots down in a neighborhood within, or apart from, their own ethnic culture? In this episode, Eric asks the question, “Can we talk about the fact that Joel is white?” From that point, the stoop discussion takes place on this question, asking Joel why he planted in the first place, and what landmines may be present. Topics of discussion include impure motives why anyone would desire cross-cultural work; how having black members can be twisted into a mere a marker of “success” in some evangelical circles; whether it is necessary for churches to be cross-cultural in order to be Biblical; and how partiality for our own culture can subtly sabotage table fellowship. The crew also shares wisdom and encouragement, on the importance of authenticity and humility for potential pastors and church members navigating the tides of racial discourse within the body.

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Private school? Christian school? Homeschool? We continue our discussion on schooling in the inner city. In our last episode, Joel and Eric made a case for why they have chosen to send their kids to Baltimore City Public Schools. In this episode, the Stoop crew calls a few friends who have taken a different approach. First, we chat with T.C. Taylor who also sends his kids to public school. Then we call up John Erickson and talk about Hope Academy, an affordable Christian school in inner city Minneapolis; Joe and Duncan Maye who started their own Christian school for neighborhood children in Winston-Salem, North Carolina; and Creston Thomas who, along with his wife Alina, homeschool their children in Pine Bluff, Arkansas. (Listen to part one for our chat on public school)

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Public school? We’re there. Eric and Joel have always sent their kids to the Baltimore City Public Schools. One of the most common questions we receive from outsiders is: “What do you do about schooling for your kids?” We’re surprised that people are so often…surprised…when we answer, “Public schools.” While we’ve learned to navigate the school system, we’re open-handed on this issue. Should educational choices divide believers? We don’t think so. In a city like Baltimore, this debate is further fueled by the reality of an underfunded and broken school system. However, too often we presume that children will be raised to walk with the Lord if they are simply enrolled in the right school or taught the right curriculum. While scripture never endorses a specific school system, this episode examines how Christian parents can educate their children in ways which align with our faith. Listen as Joel, Stephanie, and Eric talk through our experiences with public schools in the city. (Stay tuned for part two as we call up some friends who have taken Christian school and homeschool approaches).

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Does theology matter in urban ministry? Most definitely. Healthy ministry in tough places isn’t driven by good programming, it’s driven by good theology. As we kick off year two, we want to focus on the topic of justification by faith. How can a sinner be right with God? Is it really by faith alone? The answer is more crucial than any other question we could ask ourselves. Yet we are prone to attach to our works to our justification. That Christ has done it all, can simply sound too good to be true. Understanding justification by faith begins with knowing our own hopelessness. A clean outward appearance is useless, unless we are washed in the blood of Christ. On this episode, Stephanie, Joel, and Eric dive into the doctrine of justification by faith, exploring its impact for the urban context.

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Watch for updates on ONE HOPE Conference: Faith Alone at faithalone.eventbrite.com

Welcome back to the Stoop Sessions. One year ago, Eric, Stephanie, and Joel began hosting conversations on the stoop. Year two begins today. We took the summer off while Stephanie had a baby, while neighborhood kids took over Joel's office, and while Eric went on bike rides. But we're back! Listen to this brief episode as the crew talks about what's been going on and what's coming up. Welcome back to The Stoop Sessions.

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Listen to this chat on the stoop with T.C. Taylor. T.C. pastors a church in Indianapolis which is ethnically and economically diverse. If the gospel is not exclusive to any race or class, should all churches be diverse reflecting that diversity? T.C. shares thoughts on diversity and dignity; how to be “boots on the ground” in your own community, and the importance of being grounded in a local church. He also opens up about living with OCD (Obsessive Compulsive Disorder), as a believer, the struggles we face living in a fallen world, and how to face them from a Biblical view point, knowing we serve a savior who triumphs over sin.

This episode is part of our summer series: stoop conversations with friends.

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Listen to this conversation with Joseph Dicks, church planting catalyst for North American Mission Board in Washington DC,, on the necessity of discipleship and a holistic view. The gospel not just on Sunday mornings, but the framework for every aspect of your life. Joseph shares his experience of growing up in church, scared into baptism and knowing what to say “yes” to, but without the freedom that only saving grace can bring. He also talks about 1-on-1 discipleship, pursuing the gospel community, the presence of prejudices amongst diversity, and initiating new church works in unchurched areas.

This episode is part of our summer series: stoop conversations with friends.

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Alejandro Molero pastors Iglesia Bíblica Sublime Gracia, a Spanish speaking church in the Washington D.C. neighborhood of Colombia Heights. Alejandro shares how God shepherded him from his Catholic upbringing in Venezuela to becoming a full-time pastor in the States. Listen in as Stephanie, Joel, and Eric discuss with Alejandro the challenges of ministry among undocumented and illegal immigrants. Alejandro’s congregation and ministry context are filled with those often vulnerable to exploitation, overwork, and underpaid jobs. What is the Biblical approach to caring for those who might be undocumented, running from the law, or running for their lives? What does church planting among immigrant communities in America look like and how should we think of supporting Spanish-speaking churches? Come on the Stoop and join the conversation.

*Additional Resource - Read Alejandro’s latest piece on Pastoring Undocumented Immigrants:

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In continuation of last week’s episode, director of the Edmiston Center in Atlanta, Karen Ellis, shares ways Christians are to be a completely different community to the world, belonging to a God who renders diverse people as the same by the blood of Christ. Stephanie, Eric, and Joel chat with Karen regarding her concerns for the current church in America. If it’s not about Christian nationalism, not about social justice, what is the church to be about? In a world hostile towards Christianity, Ellis discusses a need for the basics: how to pray under pressure for kingdom advance, moving forward on your knees; not your will, but His be done. Listen as Karen offers hope for a divided church in despair.

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Born in Baltimore, Karen Ellis’ love for theater took her from Broadway to places throughout the U.S. and internationally. Although her experience growing up included directing church choirs, it was not until she studied at Yale that she came to know Christ as her Savior. Today, she is the director of The Edmiston Center in Atlanta, devoted to studying the priorities, presence, and practices of Christians enduring on the margins of society. Ellis sees marginalized Christians throughout history and around the world. Her work has focused on commonalities between these communities. In this episode, the Stoop crew calls her up and discusses what we can glean from the rich history of these believers as they display God’s kingdoms from worldly disadvantage and oppression. Additionally, Karen shares resources for learning more from voices often overlooked.

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Can we ever be content? From childhood to adulthood, nothing is ever enough. We believe that we will be content if we receive. And then we receive, only to discover continued discontentment. Christians are not exempt from this problem. Pastors and ministry leaders can be driven by a lust for more. Church members are often discontent with the state of their church and the maturity of other members. Is there hope for contentment? In this episode, Eric, Joel, and Stephanie chat on the stoop, seeking contentment. Listen as the crew explores how to be content.

This episode features brief talks which were shared at our Intentional Living Workshop. Listen to Sharon Dickens of Niddrie Community Church and 20Schemes in Scotland, Malcom Griswold of Reformation Church in Detroit, Jamie Dunlop of Capitol Hill Baptist Church in Washington DC, and Alton Haynes of The Garden Church in Baltimore. These four come from different backgrounds and cultures, yet each offer excellent and unique perspectives on intentional living in their particular context. Listen and be encouraged to live near your church!

You can find the videos to these talks as well as our main sessions on our YouTube page.

The church is weakened when its mission is unclear. Is the mission of the church simply to make disciples? Or is it also expanding or ushering in God’s kingdom? How does community transformation relate to our mission? Is it the church’s mission to paint every fence and feed every belly? If not, should the church do these things anyway? It is easy to confuse the church’s mission, and start acting as if we are God, instead of relying on God. In this episode, the Joel, Eric, and Stephanie discuss the primary mission of the church, as well as, the nuanced role it plays in the community. As the church makes disciples, disciples “love their neighbor.” And things change. Listen in and join the conversation!

Morgan Proudfoot was brought up with an unstable childhood. From inner city Seattle to the cornfields of Pennsylvania, his only understanding of “Jesus” was as a word of profanity. As a teenager, his elderly neighbors undeterred by the generational gap, invited him to know Jesus in a new way: as God himself. When life did not become easier, he clung to the belief that God was loving, and that a loving God would not abandon him in suffering. Morgan is now a pastor of Grace Harbor Church, a recently planted church in New Bedford, Massachusetts, In this episode, Morgan chats with the Stoop crew and reflects on how God brought him through insurmountable challenges and has been at work throughout his entire life. Morgan now hopes to display the gospel to an underserved city and share this hope of Christ with the lost and broken.

Is seeing community change a good thing? Absolutely. Can “Change the Community” become a false gospel. Absolutely. While “Transform the Community” is a tag used by many non-profits, churches, and developers alike, is that the “good news” of the church? Is bettering the community be the mission of the church? Is a blighted, unchanged community a sign that the church is not loving their neighbors? How should Christians think of Gospel-centeredness and community transformation? Listen as this final episode on “false gospels” examines how a “Change the Community” false gospel can be stumbling block to truly reaching the community.

“Cut off toxic people” is another false gospel that has made its way from the community to the pulpit. “Cut ‘em off” is the belief that life would be better without toxic Individuals. If only one can separate himself from them, life would have no conflict. Therefore, “cut off” the people who don’t tell you what you want to hear. In this episode, Stephanie, Joel, and Eric explain that it’s right to have wisdom when choosing friends, but expose this false gospel. Listen as this stoop conversation discusses how this worldview depends on a dishonest view of self: that you are pure, and only others possess toxicity. How do we Biblically approach difficult relationships? Where would we be, if God cut off all who are toxic, tainted with sin?

This week’s episode looks at another common excuse used to reject the gospel: God knows my heart. Many cling to the belief that salvation can be found in having good intentions, in being “less wicked” than your neighbor, in the hope that good deeds will outweigh the bad. God does know our heart, but do we? Are we autonomous and good intentioned, or actually in bondage to sin? To recognize our guilt without hope is a burden that crushes the spirit, overwhelmed with the reality that we are never going to be good enough. Listen as Eric, Joel, and Stephanie examine the phrase “God knows my heart” through a theological and Biblical worldview. But they don’t stop with a critique. The Stoop crew presents a Savior who can remove our hearts marred by sin, and replace in us, a heart that holds the promise of eternal life.

“I’ve gotta get myself together,” is a refrain which aptly marks our present culture. It can be a point of pride, and a stumbling block for any who believe they have to “arrive” before meeting to Jesus. Must we reach a certain standard, accomplished by their own power, before coming to God? We think outward to appearances, when change can only come through the inward work of Christ. And while “I gotta get myself together” can be a works-based salvation, it can also simply be an excuse. In this episode, Joel, Eric, and Stephanie discuss some of the narratives that drive this false gospel, the barriers we put up, and excuses we make to put off the clear call of the true Gospel.

Even professing Christians can find themselves confused by distortions of the gospel. The exclusivity of only one way feels abrasive, against the belief that all ways lead to salvation, without sacrifice. Eric, Joel, and Stephanie discuss why the Gospel of the Bible is singular, what the Gospel is, and how we are to receive it. Do we earn God’s favor through being good people? By good deeds? Are there any sins that cannot be blotted out? To know the work of Christ, we must know why we all need of it. This episode is the first of a short series of episodes examining various “false gospels” in the inner city. Before we examine false Gospels, we must know the true Gospel.