Episodes

  • When “You’ll Be Healed” Is the Wrong Thing to Say with Jackie Aviles

    When “You’ll Be Healed” Is the Wrong Thing to Say with Jackie Aviles
    Oct 12 2026
    In 2016, doctors gave young mother Jackie Aviles six months to live. As cancer spread through her bones and lymph nodes, she prepared her children for her death and even chose a casket. Now, ten years cancer-free, Jackie tells Steve how faith, medicine, grief, and what she describes as God’s supernatural healing shaped her family’s journey. Jackie and her husband, pastor Emilio, also faced the pain of leading a church while grieving—and learned that listening can matter more than offering easy reassurance. Their conversation explores hope when healing doesn’t come, the difference between caring and carrying, and why peace may matter more than clarity. More from Jackie Aviles: Jackie Aviles’ website Learn about Embassy Church Episode Resources: More about Matt Chandler Learn about the Bright City Church team Scripture Referenced: 2 Corinthians 4 ESV 2 Corinthians 1:3–4 ESV 2 Corinthians 12:9 ESV Romans 5:3–5 ESV Philippians 4:7 ESV Romans 8:28 ESV Philippians 1:21 ESV Philippians 1:6 ESV Isaiah 40:31 ESV Isaiah 53:5 ESV Mark 4:35–41 ESV John 15:5 ESV Sign up for Steve’s Newsletter & Podcast Reminders Capable Life Newsletter Get the Assets & Liabilities pdf and the Life Giving List Join Steve at an Upcoming Intensive Capable Life Intensives Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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    52 mins
  • Small Acts and World-Changing Faith with Ryan Keating & Tommy Lee

    Small Acts and World-Changing Faith with Ryan Keating & Tommy Lee
    Oct 5 2026
    Bad news isn’t the main story of the church. On Being Human, Steve Cuss talks with pastor Ryan Keating and Resource Global founder Tommy Lee about faith in action—from feeding thousands of refugees in Turkey to equipping Christian leaders and expanding access to education in Indonesia. As part of the “God’s Expansive Kingdom” series, these conversations explore global ministry, faith and work, and the lasting impact of small, faithful investments in people. Discover how noticing God at work can interrupt anxiety, renew hope, and help you see fresh possibilities in your own community. Episode Resources: Learn about & support Resource Global Learn about Fellowship Church in Connecticut Learn about Doctor Share Timothy Keller’s Every Good Endeavor More from Alexandra Thompson: More about Tommy Lee More from Douglas McKelvey: More about Ryan Keating Sign up for Steve’s Newsletter & Podcast Reminders Capable Life Newsletter Get the Assets & Liabilities pdf and the Life Giving List Join Steve at an Upcoming Intensive Capable Life Intensives Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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    33 mins
  • Steve & Lisa Cuss: Liturgy, Life-Giving Habits, and Mental Health with Douglas McKelvey & Alexandra Thompson

    Steve & Lisa Cuss: Liturgy, Life-Giving Habits, and Mental Health with Douglas McKelvey & Alexandra Thompson
    Sep 28 2026
    In this recap episode of Being Human, hosts Steve and Lisa Cuss explore how God's kingdom expands through mental health ministry and spiritual formation. They highlight innovative church-based counseling models, including a "clinic in a box" concept, and community mental health collectives. The episode features interviews with clinical counselor Alex Thompson and Doug McKelvie, writer of the Every Moment Holy liturgy series. They discuss how ancient prayers provide grounding for modern struggles. Steve and Lisa also share personal stories of global ministry encounters, life-giving habits, and the power of liturgical prayer to connect believers across generations and cultures. Episode Resources: Learn about: Women Leaders Alliance Build your Life Giving List Partner with Cumberland Counseling Centers Douglas McKelvey’s Every Moment Holy Douglas McKelvey’s Every Moment Holy: Rites of Passage Book of Common Prayer (online version) Thomas Keating’s contemplative prayer Explore the Hope Collective More from Alexandra Thompson: More about Alexandra Thompson, LCSW More from Douglas McKelvey: Every Moment Holy Website Every Moment Holy Liturgy Downloads Every Moment Holy Live Experience Sign up for Steve’s Newsletter & Podcast Reminders Capable Life Newsletter Get the Assets & Liabilities pdf and the Life Giving List Join Steve at an Upcoming Intensive Capable Life Intensives Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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    42 mins
  • Douglas McKelvey’s Every Moment Holy

    Douglas McKelvey’s Every Moment Holy
    Sep 21 2026
    In this episode of Being Human, host Steve Cuss speaks with Douglas McKelvey, author of the Every Moment Holy series—books offering liturgical prayers for everyday and significant life moments. Both share personal journeys from skepticism toward formal liturgy to discovering its deep spiritual value. Douglas recounts how the Book of Common Prayer transformed his faith during a period of theological uncertainty, while Steve reflects on his experience as a hospital chaplain. They explore the power of communal liturgy, the specificity of prayers for modern moments, and how Douglas's latest volume, Rites of Passage, helps young adults connect with God throughout life's transitions. Episode Resources: Douglas McKelvey’s Every Moment Holy Douglas McKelvey’s Every Moment Holy: Rites of Passage Book of Common Prayer (online version) More about Andrew Peterson Scripture Referenced: Psalm 131 ESV More from Douglas McKelvey: Every Moment Holy Website Every Moment Holy Liturgy Downloads Every Moment Holy Live Experience Sign up for Steve’s Newsletter & Podcast Reminders Capable Life Newsletter Get the Assets & Liabilities pdf and the Life Giving List Join Steve at an Upcoming Intensive Capable Life Intensives Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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    41 mins
  • Is This the Church’s Bold Return to Mental Health Care? with Alexandra Thompson

    Is This the Church’s Bold Return to Mental Health Care? with Alexandra Thompson
    Sep 14 2026
    In this episode of Being Human, host Steve Cuss chats with Alexandra Thompson, founder of Cumberland Counseling Centers, a Georgia-based nonprofit embedding state-licensed counseling clinics inside local churches. Alex introduces her "clinic in a box" model, which allows churches to launch professional mental health services within weeks. The conversation covers trauma healing, EMDR therapy, faith integration, and the church's historical role as a community healing center. Episode Resources: More about Alexandra Thompson, LCSW Partner with Cumberland Counseling Centers Overview of EMDR What Is Cognitive Behavioral Therapy? Scripture Referenced: Mark 12:30-31 ESV Sign up for Steve’s Newsletter & Podcast Reminders Capable Life Newsletter Get the Assets & Liabilities pdf and the Life Giving List Join Steve at an Upcoming Intensive Capable Life Intensives Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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    48 mins
  • Steve Cuss: Beyond the Headlines in God’s Expansive Kingdom

    Steve Cuss: Beyond the Headlines in God’s Expansive Kingdom
    Sep 7 2026
    In this episode of Being Human, host Steve Cuss launches the new theme "God's Expansive Kingdom." Drawing from years of international travel, Steve shares inspiring stories of Christians making a difference worldwide—from floating hospitals in Southeast Asia to a small women's Bible study group running a halfway house for former inmates. He also addresses the prevalence of negative narratives about the church online, acknowledging that abuse must be exposed while cautioning against cynicism and shame-driven reporting. Steve emphasizes that despite troubling headlines, countless faithful believers are quietly and powerfully advancing God's kingdom globally. Episode Resources: Steve Cuss’s Managing Leadership Anxiety: Yours and Theirs Scripture Referenced: Luke 18:9–14 ESV Sign up for Steve’s Newsletter & Podcast Reminders Capable Life Newsletter Get the Assets & Liabilities pdf and the Life Giving List Join Steve at an Upcoming Intensive Capable Life Intensives Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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    31 mins
  • Steve & Lisa Cuss: Social Media Extremes, Political Problems, and Moving from Legalism to Grace with Ryan Burge and Jessie Cruickshank & Julia Schmaltz

    Steve & Lisa Cuss: Social Media Extremes, Political Problems, and Moving from Legalism to Grace with Ryan Burge and Jessie Cruickshank & Julia Schmaltz
    Aug 31 2026
    In this episode of Being Human, Steve and Lisa Cuss explore how politics, social media, and the stories we tell ourselves shape who we become. Pastor and political analyst Ryan Burge explains how social media amplifies political extremes, distorts public discourse, and increasingly allows partisanship to shape religious identity. Jessie Cruickshank and Julia Schmaltz, co-authors of Becoming Good News, unpack how internalized narratives, legalism, perfectionism, and the Christian “Übermensch” ideal—the pressure to become a superhuman believer—can hinder spiritual growth. Steve and Lisa use these conversations to offer a path toward self-awareness, grace, presence, and embracing weakness as essential to genuine faith and transformation. Original Episodes: Being Human: How Memory, Identity, and Story Shape Discipleship with Jessie Cruickshank & Julia Schmaltz Being Human: How Politics Hijacked the Pulpit with Ryan Burge Ryan Burge’s The Vanishing Church: How the Hollowing Out of Moderate Congregations Is Hurting Democracy, Faith, and Us Jessie Cruickshank & Julia Schmaltz’s Becoming Good News: Reimagining Discipleship Through Identity, Story, and Science Nietzsche’s concept of the Übermensch More from Ryan Burge: Ryan’s Graphs about Religion Ryan on X (formerly Twitter) More from Jessie Cruickshank and Julia Schmaltz: Jessie Cruickshank’s Ordinary Discipleship podcast Julia Schmaltz’s Sermons Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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    38 mins
  • How Do Injury, Pain, and Faith Shape Our Identity with Dr. Eric Shoemaker

    How Do Injury, Pain, and Faith Shape Our Identity with Dr. Eric Shoemaker
    Aug 24 2026
    Host Steve Cuss welcomes physician Eric Shoemaker to explore the intersection of physical health, neuroscience, and spiritual fitness. Eric explains how injury and pain recovery mirror emotional and spiritual healing, and breaks down the difference between the body's "threat" and "challenge" responses, showing how faith can reshape our nervous system's reactions. Steve and Eric discuss whole-body discipleship, identity in Christ, and practical micro-habits to help rewire the brain toward trust over fear. Episode Resources: Eric’s article The Neurobiology of Victory: How the physical reality of performance reveals the spiritual power of faith Dan Allender’s Leading with a Limp: Take Full Advantage of Your Most Powerful Weakness Scripture Referenced: Genesis 32:22-32 (ESV) More from Eric Shoemaker: Eric Shoemaker’s Substack: The Divine Design Lab Follow Eric on instagram Sign up for Steve’s Newsletter & Podcast Reminders Capable Life Newsletter Get the Assets & Liabilities pdf and the Life Giving List Join Steve at an Upcoming Intensive Capable Life Intensives Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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    29 mins