Josh Nadeau, author of Heaven Meets Earth, joins me to explore what it looks like to move beyond intellectual faith into something embodied and transformative. Drawing on the Nicene Creed as a 40-day guide, Josh makes the case that goodness, truth, and beauty are the doorways into a faith that actually forms us - shaping our loves, our attention, and how we see the world around us. We talk about why the Western Church has largely lost its sense of wonder, what the ancient spiritual practices do that head knowledge alone never can, and how the ordinary moments of everyday life are already full of divine invitation - if we have eyes to see them.

Josh Nadeau is a writer and illustrator from Canada's West Coast, working to recover ancient ways of seeing God's Reality in a disenchanted age. He believes Beauty is an apologetic; a call to rediscover the holy ordinary of everyday life by participating in God's transcendent work.

He is husband to Aislinn and father to Ransom and Cassian. He holds an undergraduate degree in physics, a master's in theological studies, and a doctorate from the school of hard knocks.

Josh is the founder of Sword and Pencil and Every Day Saints.

Josh's Book:

Heaven Meets Earth

Josh's Recommendations:

For the Life of the World

Slaughterhouse-Five

Mother Night

Connect with Joshua: jjohnson@shiftingculturepodcast.com

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In this episode, I talk with theologian Jared Stacy about why conspiracy theories have taken such deep root in our cultural moment and why they often find unique traction within American Christianity. We explore how an overload of information, fear, and ideological certainty can distort the stories we tell about the world and about God. Jared reflects on the Columbine martyrdom myth, the difference between ideology and the living story of Christ, and why presence, community, and faithful storytelling may be the church’s most important response in an age where reality itself often feels contested.

Jared Stacy is a theologian and ethicist and former pastor to evangelical churches in New Orleans and the Washington, DC, metro area. He received a PhD in moral & practical theology from the University of Aberdeen in Scotland. His research focuses on the intersection of theology and politics. Specifically on ethics, extremism/conspiracy theory and US evangelicalism. Jared’s work and his story have been featured on platforms like Time, NPR, NBC News, the BBC, and Christianity Today.

Jared's Book:

Reality in Ruins

Jared's Recommendation:

Joining Creation's Praise

Connect with Joshua: jjohnson@shiftingculturepodcast.com

Go to www.shiftingculturepodcast.com to interact and donate. Every donation helps to produce more podcasts for you to enjoy.

Follow on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Threads, Bluesky or YouTube

Consider Giving to the podcast and to the ministry that my wife and I do around the world. Just click on the support the show link below

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In this episode, I’m joined by Shannon Martin to talk about her new book Counterweights and how we keep moving forward when life feels overwhelmingly heavy. We explore grief, collective trauma, and why quick fixes and toxic positivity fall short, alongside the small, ordinary practices that help us stay grounded and human. This conversation moves through faith, paradox, community, and the kingdom of God, not as something we wait for, but something we practice together here and now. If you’re carrying more than you know what to do with and looking for a way to remain present, honest, and hopeful, this conversation is for you.

Shannan Martin is the bestselling author of several books, including Start with Hello, The Ministry of Ordinary Places, and the popular Substack The Soup. Shannan is a wannabe gardener, a news geek, a fighter for justice, and a thrift store stalker. She and her family live as grateful neighbors in Goshen, Indiana, where Shannan is on staff at the local community kitchen. Find her on Instagram @shannanwrites.

Shannan's Book:

Counterweights

Shannan's Recommendations:

Shrinking

Where Do We Go From Here

Cherished Belonging

Love Walked In

All About Love

Connect with Joshua: jjohnson@shiftingculturepodcast.com

Go to www.shiftingculturepodcast.com to interact and donate. Every donation helps to produce more podcasts for you to enjoy.

Follow on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Threads, Bluesky or YouTube

Consider Giving to the podcast and to the ministry that my wife and I do around the world. Just click on the support the show link below

Support the show