Together 4 Good: Making Sense of Life and Faith

What Are Invisible Disabilities and How Can Faith Communities Help? A Conversation with Wayne Connell

What does it mean to believe someone when their pain, illness, or disability is not visible? In this episode of Together 4 Good, Pastor Nate talks with Wayne Connell, founder of the Invisible Disabilities Association, about chronic illness, compassion, suffering, isolation, and the kind of community people need when life becomes hard in ways others cannot see. This conversation is about more than disability awareness. It is about learning how to listen, believe, support, and show up for one another with the love of Christ. What You’ll Learn: * What invisible disabilities are and why they are often misunderstood * Why phrases like “but you look good” can unintentionally dismiss someone’s pain * How churches and faith communities can better support people with chronic illness * Why compassion means suffering with people, not fixing them * How presence, listening, and belief can become meaningful care Chapters: 00:00 Welcome and introduction to Wayne Connell 00:50 Wayne’s background in technology, broadcasting, and RadioShack 02:30 How Wayne met his wife, Sherri 05:00 Sherri’s diagnosis with MS and Lyme disease 09:45 The phrase “invisible disabilities” is born 12:00 Launching the Invisible Disabilities Advocate website 15:00 The book But You Look Good 17:00 Encourage, educate, and connect 20:00 Disability, chronic illness, and language 22:00 Faith, value, and being made in the image of God 24:00 Churches, suffering, and accessibility 28:30 Romans 5 and why we cannot skip suffering 34:00 Sitting with people in the ashes 36:00 Compassion means suffering with 39:00 Isolation, presence, and showing up 41:00 Why “How are you doing?” matters more than “How are you feeling?” 45:00 Listening, believing, and supporting people 47:00 Invisible disability as a mission field 49:00 Wayne’s calling and the work ahead Like, subscribe, and share this episode with someone who needs a more compassionate way to talk about disability, chronic illness, faith, and community. Connect with Bethany: 📍 Bethany Lutheran Church – Denver, CO 🌐 Learn more: www.bethany-denver.org [http://www.bethany-denver.org] Connect with Wayne: https://invisibledisabilities.org/

Sunday School Remix: Why Did God Call Moses?

What if the story of Moses and the burning bush is not about Moses being brave, but about God calling someone who was unsure, reluctant, and full of questions? In this episode of Sunday School Remix, Pastor Nate looks at Exodus 3 and 4 and explores how God meets Moses in the wilderness, hears the suffering of the people, and works with what Moses already has. What You’ll Learn: * Why Moses’ call begins with God hearing human suffering * What the burning bush shows us about mystery, doubt, and holy ground * Why God’s name, “I am who I am,” still invites wonder * How God uses ordinary gifts for holy work * Why reluctance does not disqualify anyone from being called Like, subscribe, and share this episode with someone who needs a fresh way to hear an old Sunday school story. Chapters: 00:00 Introduction 00:32 Moses in the wilderness 01:06 Moses’ backstory 02:03 Holy ground and the burning bush 02:43 God’s name: “I am who I am” 04:17 Yahweh and the sound of breath 05:14 God hears suffering 06:42 Moses walks toward mystery 07:37 What if people don’t believe me? 08:23 What is in your hands? 10:05 Moses’ reluctance 11:18 God sends Aaron 12:01 Take your staff with you 13:00 God works with what we have 14:00 Closing Connect with Bethany: 📍 Bethany Lutheran Church – Denver, CO 🌐 Learn more: www.bethany-denver.org [http://www.bethany-denver.org]

How Does Faith and Neuroscience Help Us Handle Stress? A Conversation with Julie Hutchinson

In this episode of Together 4 Good, Pastor Nate talks with Julie Hutchinson about resilience, neuroscience, faith, and what it means to lead from the heart instead of reacting from stress. Julie shares how her own experience with burnout, anxiety, and surrender led her into work that helps leaders, executives, and organizations reconnect their minds, bodies, and spiritual lives. Together, they explore how scripture and science can speak to each other, why stress affects the way we show up in the world, and how practices of faith can help us become more grounded, compassionate, and whole. What You’ll Learn: * How stress shows up in the body and shapes our reactions * Why “leading from the heart” is more than a nice idea * How scripture connects with neuroscience and resilience * What Sabbath can mean in the middle of everyday stress * Why vulnerability, faith, and love matter in leadership Chapters: 00:00 Introduction 01:00 Julie’s background in resilience and neuroscience training 02:45 What happens in the body during stress 04:15 Sabbath, stress, and self-regulation 06:30 Julie’s faith story and Christian connection 08:15 Scripture, science, and guarding the heart 10:30 Aligning the head and the heart 14:00 Reading scripture with the whole self 16:30 Heart mapping, mind mapping, and leadership 18:30 Showing up as the person God created you to be 21:30 Worship, spiritual practice, and everyday life 23:30 AI, authenticity, and what makes us human 27:30 Vulnerability, suffering, and connection 29:30 Leading from love in real life 31:30 Closing reflections If this conversation helps you think differently about stress, leadership, faith, or what it means to show up with more love, like, subscribe, and share it with someone who may need it. Connect with Bethany: 📍 Bethany Lutheran Church – Denver, CO 🌐 Learn more: www.bethany-denver.org [http://www.bethany-denver.org] Connect with Julie: https://coreperformance.us/

Sunday School Remix: Why Does Pentecost Still Matter Today?

What if the miracle of Pentecost is not just that people spoke in different languages, but that people heard one another across every division? In this episode of Sunday School Remix, Pastor Nate explores Acts 2, the Jewish festival of Shavuot, the Tower of Babel, and the Holy Spirit’s work of sending people outward in love. Pentecost is not about keeping faith private. It is about God’s Spirit moving through community, language, diversity, and grace. What You’ll Learn * Why Pentecost was already a Jewish festival before Acts 2 * How Shavuot connects to God giving the law at Mount Sinai * Why the Holy Spirit pushes faith outward, not inward * How Pentecost echoes and reverses the Tower of Babel * What Acts 2 teaches us about diversity, community, and God’s mission Chapters 00:00 What if Pentecost is about hearing one another? 00:39 Why was it already called Pentecost? 01:25 Shavuot, Sinai, and God’s promise 02:42 The disciples gather in Jerusalem 03:20 Wind, breath, and the Holy Spirit 04:34 Divided tongues of fire 05:43 Recognizable languages, not random babbling 06:26 Faith moves outward 07:36 Pentecost and the Tower of Babel 09:09 Spiritual experiences are not just for us 10:12 The whole world is included 11:42 What does this mean? 12:22 Community helps us discern God’s voice 13:28 When people dismiss what makes them uncomfortable 14:35 Heaven and earth overlap 15:31 The body of Christ is sent outward Like, subscribe, and share this episode with someone who is curious about faith, community, or what Pentecost still has to say today. Connect with Bethany: 📍 Bethany Lutheran Church – Denver, CO 🌐 Learn more: www.bethany-denver.org [http://www.bethany-denver.org]

How Do Teenagers Think About Faith, Doubt, and Church? A Conversation with Evelyn Preisinger

In this episode of Together 4 Good, Pastor Nate sits down with his oldest daughter, Evelyn, for a snow day conversation about faith, confirmation, doubt, church, and what it means to grow into your own understanding of God. Together, they talk about the questions many people carry but do not always say out loud: What if faith does not look the way we expected? What if the Bible is meant to be wrestled with? What if loving God is less about having everything figured out and more about remembering we are part of something bigger than ourselves? What You’ll Learn: * How confirmation classes can create space for honest questions about faith * Why Bible stories can still speak when we stop flattening them into easy answers * How young people wrestle with stereotypes around Christianity * Why faith can change us in subtle but meaningful ways * What it means to remember God in everyday life Chapters: 00:00 Coming up on Together 4 Good 01:00 Meet Evelyn on a May snow day 02:14 Looking back on confirmation 04:10 Why “Tough Questions” mattered 05:20 Bible history, sacred texts, and big questions 08:05 Reading the Bible as story and metaphor 09:20 Jesus, parables, and flexible faith 11:00 Being stubborn, honest, and a pastor’s kid 13:00 Assumptions about Christianity 16:00 Rethinking prayer, Bible study, and church language 18:30 Why Scripture can be read in new ways 21:00 Jesus, hospitality, and love of neighbor 23:00 What does it mean to love God? 26:00 Faith, science, wonder, and the universe 28:30 How do we love God in everyday life? 31:00 Faith changes us slowly 33:00 Compassion, judgment, and seeing people as people 35:00 Law, gospel, mercy, and love 36:00 Closing thoughts If this conversation resonates with you, like this video, subscribe to Bethany Lutheran Church, and share it with someone who is asking honest questions about faith, church, or God. Connect with Bethany: 📍 Bethany Lutheran Church – Denver, CO 🌐 Learn more: www.bethany-denver.org [http://www.bethany-denver.org]