Halfway There

153: Wesley Ross Harris and Growing Faith and Mental Illness

Wesley Ross Harris is an author and personal trainer. Today, he shares his story struggling with mental illness. Wes began to give up his identity as he joined the football team in high school. In time, the Lord began to reorient him toward others which slowly changed his perspective. Things really began to change when he decided to write his story and share it to help others. Now, he writes to destigmatize mental illness and assist others who suffer with it.
Listen to Wesley’s story today!
Stories Wesley shared:
Growing up as a military kid moving all over
Moving to Austin, TX and experiencing culture shock
Struggling with depression for the first time
Beginning to reach out to God for help
How helping others helped Wes to grow
How reading the Bible resurfaced his interest in writing
The discipleship relationship that helped him grow
Deciding to write his story
Why he wrote about OCD and depression
Practices that have helped him deal with OCD
Breaking the stigma of mental health in the church
Great quotes from Wesley:
If I hadn’t been knocked around a bit, I don’t know if I ever would have turned to the Lord.
I started reading the Bible and that opened my intellectual life again.
You can follow God through it.
Resources we mentioned:
Anxiety and Depression Are (Not) Always Sins by W.R. Harris
Obsessions: Hell and Back Again: The True Story of My Battle to Find Hope in the Midst of OCD and Depression by W.R. Harris
Wesley’s website Persevering Hope
Wesley’s personal website WRHWriting.com
The post Wesley Ross Harris and Growing Faith and Mental Illness appeared first on Eric Nevins.

152: Kristen Kludt and the Art of Life with God

Kristen Leigh Kludt is co-creator of Field Guides for the Way and author of A Good Way Through: My Journey with God from Disappointment into Hope. Today, Kristen shares how art brought her closer to the Lord in a time that she didn’t understand what he was doing. Through her struggles with infertility she grew deep friendships and found a relationship with God more connected than ever before. Now, she inspires others to find their own connection with God using her experience and love for art.
Listen to Kristen’s story today!
Stories Kristen shared:
What Field Guides for the Way is about
Growing up in a Christian family in Wisconsin
What her relationship with God was like early in her life
Wrestling with God through infertility
The reflection her therapist gave her about God
How discovering creativity helped
How the Spirit works through the Bible
Learning to live in God’s love for her
Waking up and deciding to write a book
How Field Guides for the Way was born
Great quotes from Kristen:
I was afraid of the darkness inside of me.
For me, meditation looks a lot like art.
Art is less about creating a product and more a language with which I can speak and listen to God.
The beauty of God’s faithfulness was not in the fact that I got what I wanted I got what I wanted.
Resources we shared:
Field Guides for the Way
Kristen’s website
A Good Way Through: My Journey with God from Disappointment into Hope by Kristen Kludt
Old, boring, and long Bible studies getting you down? Try my brand new 8 Day Experience series designed to get you thinking about the Lord beyond quiet time.
8 Day Experience will refresh your relationship with the Lord.
The post Kristen Kludt and the Art of Life with God appeared first on Eric Nevins.

Chris Staron and Working Out the Knots

This month’s special episode is with my friend and fellow podcaster Chris Staron. Chis is the creator and host of Truce Podcast, a show that uses journalistic tools to look inside the Christian church. Chris has made two Christian movies and talks about the filmmaking process. In this conversation, Chris explains the difficulty of making a Christian film, why he supports the industry, and we talk about his podcast Truce.
This episode is only part of the story. To hear the entire conversation, support Halfway There on Patreon. It’s only $5 per month for more thought-provoking ideas.
Stories we shared:
Why he started Truce
Why he wants to use journalistic tools in the church
The kinds of issues he likes to address
The Christian film industry
What it takes to make a film
The difficulty of getting a message across in a movie
The question of whether a Christian film has to be clean
Why audiences have to invest in order to have better films
Strategies Christian filmmakers are using to create more lucrative movies
How God uses many things to reach people
Why subjective opinions are okay when it comes to art
Great quotes from Chris:
It’s a tough calling to love your enemy.
I got into Christian films because in film school, I couldn’t decide if I wanted to make movies or be a pastor.
Resources we mentioned:
Bringing Up Bobby
Truce Podcast
Donate to Chris if you can
The post Chris Staron and Working Out the Knots appeared first on Eric Nevins.

151: Leonard Olivares and the Large Community of Faith

Leonard Olivares is a podcaster, father and Christian man living for Jesus. After getting involved in gangs and drugs from a young age, Leonard saw no hope for his future but when he called out to God he realised that while he may have given up on himself, God never gave up on him. God brought him back from the edge and showed him the community and goodness in his people. God turned his life around and now works through him to help others in the community through his work uniting Christians in the singular name of God.
Listen to Leonard’s story now!
Stories Leonard shared:
Growing up the child of immigrants
His mother’s pentecostal roots
Being molested as a child and the behavior that followed
Getting into a gang
Hearing the voice of God all his life
Forming his identity in lock up
Going to boarding school and washing his mind of the world
The prayer when he called out to God for salvation
How hard it was to find a church looking like a gangster
The dream that convinced him to leave the Mormon church
Deciding he needed to be more authentic
Learning the Bible for the first time
Becoming himself in Christ and studying on his own
Getting custody of his children
How he started his podcast
Great quotes from Leonard:
I always used to say, “All my friends either kill, steal, or deal.”
The only people who would open their doors to me was the Mormons.
If your truth can’t handle the questions you need to question your truth.
You don’t have to be filled with the Holy Spirit to have a motivational speech.
Resources we mentioned:
Leonard’s podcast
Connect with Leonard on Facebook
Refresh your relationship with Jesus by changing your relationship with the Bible.
Try my brand new Bible experience, Jesus is Willing: An 8 Day Experience.
The post Leonard Olivares and the Large Community of Faith appeared first on Eric Nevins.

150: Lisa Kohut and Clarity Through Surrender

Lisa Kohut is a faith-based counselor/psychologist. Today Lisa shares her story of learning to surrender herself to God in order to truly experience all that he is. After a dream that changed her life she decided to take both her degree and her connection to the Holy Spirit into the world to bring others closer to God and all that he wants for them. God showed Lisa how close he really is all the time and wants use her to spread his love. Lisa’s story pushes us to give more of ourselves in order to receive more of God.
Listen to Lisa’s story today!
Stories Lisa shared:
Growing up in a non-christian family
Meeting a friend who operated in her gifts
Asking God to experience him fully
Having a dream and receiving an interpretation from her friend
Speaking in tongues for the first time
Learning to interpret dreams for people
How to know interpretations are from God
How she learned to yield to God constantly
Moving from Ohio to Chicago during a divorce and how that affected her relationship with God
Starting her own practice and the trust it took
Great quotes from Lisa:
Once I realized that there is more, I was not settling for the crumbs.
The question I’m always asking the Holy Spirit is “What does the heart of God want to reveal to this person?”
Healing is in the connections.
Let love be the foundation.
Resources we mentioned:
Healing Connections: Reconciling a Broken World to a Holy and Loving God
Lisa’s website
Holy Spirit Camps
Old, boring, and long Bible studies getting you down? Try my brand new 8 Day Experience series designed to get you thinking about the Lord beyond quiet time. It will refresh your relationship with the Lord. 8 Day Experience
The post Lisa Kohut and Clarity Through Surrender appeared first on Eric Nevins.

149: David Jacob and Seeking After God

David Jacob serves as the missionary in residence and chair of the intercultural studies department at Trinity Bible College and Graduate School in Ellendale, ND. He is also the author of It’s Your Call: To a Missional or Missionary Life. Today, David shares his calling to the mission field, wrestling with God’s silence, and the burning desire that led him to the classroom. Along the way, we discuss why our mission is to pursue the Lord not merely the next step he wants us to take. David’s story reminds us that if we will trust the Lord, he will make the path straight.
Listen to David’s story now!
Stories David shared:
What it’s like being a missionary in residence
Growing up in a nominal Christian family going to church on the bus
Rededicated his life at a Wednesday night group
Discipleship with his youth pastor
Becoming the midwest director of Operation Christmas Child
Wrestling with God’s silence while he sensed a call for more
The vision he had of Jesus in the car with him
Starting to sense God’s call to Asia
Fundraising as ministry for missionaries
Learning to depend on the Lord in a foreign culture
The desire to teach introduction to missions
Why he wrote It’s Your Call: To a Missional or Missionary Life
Great quotes from David:
God, I don’t understand why you’re not speaking.
I have been seeking God’s will instead of God himself.
Fundraising and speaking to other Christians…is an incredible privilege to promote the cause of missions and God’s Kingdom.
Every believer has a role to play in the Great Commission.
Resources we mentioned:
It’s Your Call: To a Missional or Missionary Call (Snapshot Series Book 2) by David Jacob
Center for Missionary Mobilization and Retention
Old, boring, and long Bible studies getting you down? Try my brand new 8 Day Experience series designed to get you thinking about the Lord beyond quiet time.
8 Day Experience will refresh your relationship with the Lord.
The post David Jacob and Seeking After God appeared first on Eric Nevins.

148: Deanna Won and the Confidence of Providence

Deanna Won is the Founder of Keynotes to Life, international bestselling author, speaker, leadership consultant, and holistic health coach who inspires people to reach their highest potential through integrating faith and leadership principles with purposeful and healthy living. Deanna shares the story of how she overcame adversity in the Air Force Academy, cancer through holistic practices, and learned confidence in herself and God through suffering. Time and time again, Deanna found God working on her behalf even before she knew it. Her story reminds us that God is truly a loving father and working for our good.
Listen to Deanna’s story now!
Stories Deanna shared:
Becoming a holistic health professional
Growing up in a Christian family believing in Jesus
Getting into the Air Force Academy with God’s help
The conflict between creativity and “solid” careers
Learning to draw strength from the Lord in the Air Force Academy while facing opposition
Developing ovarian cancer
Deciding she would treat cancer holistically
The first time she was able to sleep after her diagnosis
Deciding to not do chemotherapy and how the Lord spoke her
How God provided a medical missionary when she needed it
Learning confidence through her suffering
Deciding to become a health coach to share what she learned
How to get a free chapter of Deanna’s book
Great quotes from Deanna:
I saw during this time that God is a provider.
I have learned through the experience I’ve gone through to always trust God no matter what it looks like, no matter what the situation is no matter how difficult or challenging it may be.
God can really take what seems like a really horrible situation and just bring so much good out of it.
Resources we mentioned:
Connect with Deanna on her website
Deanna on Facebook
Free chapter of Deanna’s book
The Hallelujah Diet : Experience the Optimal Health You Were Meant to Have
The post Deanna Won and the Confidence of Providence appeared first on Eric Nevins.

147: Patrick Meyers and the Kind Initiator

Patrick Meyers is a spiritual director, counselor, and coach. Today, Patrick shares the story of God’s kind pursuit of his life. He shares how he initially rejected the Lord’s work in his life, how God finally got a hold of him, and the process the Lord used to make Patrick dependant on him. Patrick works in his ministry, Vector Ministries and helps others experience the relationship God has given him. Patrick’s story teaches us that God is always in hot pursuit of our hearts even when we doubt him.
Please listen to Patrick’s story today!
Stories Patrick shared:
Growing up in a dysfunctional home in Nebraska
Asking God if he wanted the money in his pocket
Developing a relationship with God while in rehab
Finally finding Jesus in his life
His career in the Marine Corps and how his life unraveled
The season of loss after he was discharged
How Jesus healed his beliefs over time
Going to seminary as trusting God
Learning about the dark night of the soul and the spiritual journey
How the Lord introduced him to his wife
The season of joy and restoration
Founding Vector Ministries and his work today
Great quotes from Patrick:
I definitely see God as the initiator of every good thing in my life.
Each period of my life has its own testimony.
It felt like my life was over but God was saying, “No, it hasn’t even begun yet.”
My passion with Victor Ministries is to introduce him to people and introduce them to the goodness I’ve experienced first hand.
Resources we mentioned:
Patrick’s website, Vector Ministries
Patrick’s Facebook page
The Case for Christ: A Journalist’s Personal Investigation of the Evidence for Jesus by Lee Strobel
The Business of Soul Care
Old, boring, and long Bible studies getting you down? Try my brand new 8 Day Experience series designed to get you thinking about the Lord beyond quiet time. It will refresh your relationship with the Lord. 8 Day Experience

The post Patrick Meyers and the Kind Initiator appeared first on Eric Nevins.