The Jack Eason Podcast

Jack Eason, speaking from his home church of Cross Roads Baptist Church in Greer SC, delivers the beginning of his series on the book of Romans. He explains the beginning of the chapter and how Paul introduces himself as a servant, and how we as fellow followers of Christ can humble ourselves in the same way. Stay tuned for more teachings on the book of Romans, as Jack speaks the truth of God's word to all his listeners! You can stay connected through various podcast mediums, such as Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and even through Jack's website itself.

Attaboy’s Ryan Payne joins Jack Eason to talk about the epidemic of loneliness among young people in our culture. Their song ‘Disappearing’ gives voice to that feeling and experience in a way that anyone who has ever felt lonely can connect with the song. Attaboy believes we live in a culture obsessed with the search for what is “real.” Whether in the demand for public figures to be more honest and genuine, or in the desire for “all natural” products, or the everyday search for authentic, meaningful experiences, one thing rings true: we are a people with a deep longing for the real thing. Ryan, Jeff, Melanie, and Christian—under their musical collective, Attaboy—have noticed this ubiquitous longing for authentic social and spiritual connection, especially in the years they’ve spent touring coast-to-coast, singing, dancing, and talking with young people. Today’s youth (the “Millennials”) have been labeled by some, “the most cynical and distrusting generation ever recorded,” but Attaboy sees the situation differently. Their website can be found at https://attaboyonline.com Listen to ‘Disappearing’ now at https://attaboyonline.com/track/1808448/disappearing and read the song’s lyrics.

Dr. Patricia A. Farrell joins Jack Eason to discuss the prevalence of loneliness among the young, middle aged, and elderly. As well as our tendency to avoid social interaction to our detriment. Her recommendations for breaking the cycle of loneliness in your life are incredible. Dr. Patricia A. Farrell is a psychologist of a different stripe. She is a licensed clinical psychologist and published author with experience in the field of mental health as a practicing clinician, medical writer, researcher, educator and disability consultant. At once time, she was the National Clinical Monitor for Mt. Sinai Medical Center in NYC, where she was involved in the first national protocol (Cognex) for the treatment of Alzheimer’s Disease. https://www.drfarrell.net

Varun Soni joins Jack Eason for a discussion of loneliness. Specifically among college students - a group most people would not consider being lonely.

Ziggi Santini tells Jack Eason about the Act-Belong-Commit framework for mental health promotion. Ziggi Santini currently works at the The Danish National Institute of Public Health, University of Southern Denmark. Ziggi does research in mental health promotion and positive mental health. You can connect with Ziggi on Twitter and LinkedIn

Jack Eason speaks with Schylar Fields, a pastor in Kentucky, who has seen major changes in the life of his church as a result of coronavirus. One of the main impacts has been an increase in loneliness. Schylar Fields is a native of southern Ohio and holds a Masters of Divinity from Liberty University. He has been accepted into the PhD program in Evangelism and Preaching at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary.You can touch base with Schylar online at http://www.brunerschapel.com

Heather Nelson, Research Chair at Saskatchewan Polytechnic is Jack Eason's guest this episode of the podcast. She guessed that COVID-19 would have a potent impact in exacerbating loneliness and isolation in seniors and decided to study those effects.

Jack Eason welcomes Jason Jimenez to the podcast for a further examination of loneliness in our society. During the global pandemic, congregations and public gatherings have been curtailed. The distance being forced between loved ones, church members, and associates is damaging personal relationships.Jason Jimenez is the founder of STAND STRONG Ministries and faculty member at Summit Ministries. He is a pastor, apologist, and national speaker who has ministered to families for over twenty years. In his extensive ministry career, Jason has been a Children’s, Student, and College Pastor, and has spent a great deal of time investing in marriages, families, and helping churches have a greater impact in their communities. The three groups Jason largely focuses on are parents, millennials, and pastors leading churches.

Lucas Livingston is the Assistant Director of Accessibility and Lifelong Learning at The Art Institute of Chicago. He is a nationally recognized leader concerning the intersections of the arts, museums, cultural accessibility, health, wellness, lifelong learning, and creative aging. Jack takes time to speak with him about loneliness, aging, and the arts.He is also the creator and host of the Ancient Art Podcast. You can find it online at www.ancientartpodcast.org

Jack Eason welcomes Shane Pruitt to discuss loneliness among Gen Z and Millennials.Shane serves as the National Next Gen Evangelism Director for the North American Mission Board (NAMB). He lives in Rockwall, TX with his large family. Shane is also a traveling communicator, evangelist, and Bible teacher. Every year he speaks to tens of thousands about Jesus. His articles have appeared in RELEVANT, Christianity Today, The Christian Post, The Gospel Coalition, CrossWalk, Church Leaders, The Baptist Press, FaithIt, HelloChristian, and many others. Check out his most recent sermons, articles, and speaking dates at www.shanepruitt.com

Jack speaks with Judith Smith, Assistant Dean of the Undergraduate Nursing Program at Goldfarb School of Nursing. Loneliness is of significant concern for older adults. With old age come multiple losses that compound over time. Loss associated to health, social status, friends, and their spouse all have an impact. Listen to the conversation between Judith and Jack as they explore the effects of loneliness in the geriatric community, and some of the treatment methods being implemented.Her research into Geriatric Loneliness can be found at:https://www.researchgate.net/publication/229154636_Loneliness_in_Older_Adults_An_Embodied_Experience

In this episode, Jack has a conversation with Dr. Julianne Holt-Lunstad who was a trailblazer in American research related to loneliness and how it relates to morbidity. Loneliness has a real a physical impact on the lives of those we know and love. Dr. Julianne Holt-Lunstad is a professor of psychology and neuroscience at Brigham Young University. She is a loneliness and social isolation expert whose research focuses on the long term health effects of social connections.Julianne has made the remarkable finding that being socially isolated carries the same health risk as smoking 15 cigarettes a day! And it's more predictive of early death than the effects of air pollution or physical inactivity.We recognize today that the U.S. and a number of other developed nations are facing a loneliness epidemic. And Dr. Holt-Lunstad's years of research on this issue are ahead of its time.Read more of her articles and studies online at https://julianneholtlunstad.byu.edu

Jack Eason speaks with Ainsley Hawthorn, PhD about an article she wrote about what she recognized in her friends living through the global pandemic. The shocking realization was that social isolation was already entrenched in our society long before the coronavirus broke out.Ainsley Hawthorn, PhD, is an author, cultural historian, and multidisciplinary artist based in St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador.She earned her doctorate in Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations at Yale University, and her academic expertise includes sensory studies, Mesopotamian literature and religion, Middle Eastern dance, word origins, and the history of writing. Hawthorn is a past fellow of Distant Worlds (Munich) and the Advanced Seminar in the Humanities (Venice), and she has been invited to lecture on her research at universities in Germany, Austria, Italy, Canada, and the United States. Distant Impressions, which she co-edited with Anne-Caroline Rendu Loisel, is the first academic volume on sensory studies in the ancient Near East,Hawthorn uses her academic knowledge to bring groundbreaking new ideas about the senses, history, and religion out of the ivory tower and to the general public. She blogs for Psychology Today, writes columns for the CBC, has contributed to The Globe and Mail, the National Post, The Dance Current, TheIndependent.ca, and the Newfoundland Quarterly, and is currently finishing her first non-fiction book, The Other Five Senses (represented by The Margret McBride Literary Agency).Hawthorn is also a Middle Eastern and international folk dancer with extensive teaching and performance experience. Her latest performance project is the short film Calamus by Kenneth J. Harvey, in which she is co-starring alongside Darren Ivany.In her spare time, she creates textile art. Her first solo exhibition of fine embroidery was held at the gallery of the Craft Council of Newfoundland and Labrador in March 2019. Visit her website to read her blog, other publications, and hear her podcast https://www.ainsleyhawthorn.com

Jack Eason takes time to speak with Dr. Maria Loades, who focuses on young people’s mental health. While her attention was not centered on loneliness when the COVID-19 pandemic started, after the quarantine measures started, she discussed the impact isolation would have on young people's ability to connect socially. The concern over the impact to mental health led to a study by Dr. Maria Loades and her team.Led by Dr. Maria Loades, from the Department of Psychology at the University of Bath, the team of clinical psychologists established how loneliness and disease containment steps will impact the mental health of kids and young people alike.Dr. Maria Loades is a Clinical Tutor for the Doctorate in Clinical Psychology programme. Maria qualified as a Clinical Psychologist from the University of East Anglia in 2008. Since qualification, she has worked a variety of mental health settings, including adult mental health, a children’s inpatient unit, and various community Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS). She completed a post-graduate diploma in cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT) for children, young people and families at the Anna Freud Centre/University College London in 2013, and a Postgraduate Certificate in the Supervision of Applied Psychology Practice at the University of Oxford in 2015.Maria is an accredited Cognitive Behavioural Psychotherapist, Supervisor and Trainer with the British Association for Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapists (BABCP) and is also registered with the Health and Care Professionals Council. She secured an NIHR doctoral research fellowship in 2016 to further her research into depression in paediatric Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS/ME), which she will be undertaking in collaboration with colleagues from the School of Social and Community Medicine at the University of Bristol, and the Paediatric CFS team at the Royal United Hospital in Bath.Read more about Dr. Maria Loades' study at The University of Bath - https://www.bath.ac.uk/announcements/impact-of-childrens-loneliness-today-could-manifest-in-depression-for-years-to-come/

Lauren Mapp, award-winning journalist in San Diego, CA, joins Jack Eason to discuss navigating loneliness of the elderly during the coronavirus global pandemic. She details steps San Diego County took to keep in touch with seniors at this time through regular consistent phone calls.Lauren holds a bachelor’s degree in journalism with a minor in American Indian studies from San Diego State University, and she has three associate degrees in journalism, political science, and culinary arts/management from San Diego Mesa College. She writes as an investigative reporting intern at inewsource, a contributing editor for Times of San Diego and a freelance writer for North Coast Current. She writes online at https://laurenjmapp.com and her blog at http://www.offthemappblog.comLauren's LinkedIn page is found at https://www.linkedin.com/in/laurenjmapp/

Mark Weible and Jack Eason discuss the purpose and methods of expanding the church. Not just into the mission field by taking the gospel to the unreached, as most would think. But more importantly to expand the existing church by branching out to plant new churches in the the many communities surrounding thriving churches. Mark Weible works with the Greater Orlando Baptist Association as the Church Planting Director. He joined the GOBA team in 2002. He previously served as an associate director of missions, pastor, radio station operations manager, youth pastor, and children’s home house parent, all in Texas.Church Planting, Church Revitalization, and Leadership Development are the three parts of a successful strategy by the Greater Orlando Baptist Association. Church Planting brings new churches to communities to help reach new neighbors all over the world. Church Revitalization is intended to strengthen existing churches and help declining churches to become healthy once again. Leadership Development is important to assist churches with the tools necessary to see leadership multiplication on every level of their organization.Learn more about the Greater Orlando Baptist Association at https://www.goba.orgTouch base with Mark Weible there as well https://www.goba.org/staff-rev-mark-weible

Together, Jack Eason and Andrew Steptoe, look at how psychological experiences can influence health. Steptoe notes that social relationships are an very important part of people’s overall experience. Understanding how those thing effect health have been a major theme throughout his research.Two major groups were studied by Andrew Steptoe during the course of his research. The aged and youth. A majority of his time is spent talking with, analyzing, and studying older people as they move through their 50’s 60’s and into old age. Among older people, the effects of isolation and loneliness tend to have a marked effect on physical health outcomes.The difference is stark against the younger demographic. Heart disease and diabetes is less prevelant in the group who are also experiencing isolation and loneliness.Andrew Steptoe is a British psychologist and epidemiologist and Head of the Department of Behavioural Science and Health at University College London. He is a pioneer in health psychology and behavioural medicine in the UK and internationally, known for his work on psychosocial factors in cardiovascular disease, ageing, and positive wellbeing and health.Steptoe has made significant contributions to several aspects of health psychology and behavioural medicine. He has been involved in the identification of the psychobiological pathways that link population-level risk factors such as low socioeconomic status and work stress with atherogenesis and cardiovascular disease progression.He has advanced understanding of how psychosocial factors get under the skin by discovering that inflammatory cytokines and haemostatic factors respond acutely to mental stress, and that rates of post-stress recovery in biological measures differ critically across psychosocial risk groups.Professor Andrew Steptoe’s research, and contact information, can be found online at https://iris.ucl.ac.uk/iris/browse/profile?upi=ASTEP39

Gary Robbins is a science and technology writer for The San Diego Union-Tribune. As the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) started to spread through the United States, Gary took a closer look at the impact on University and College students.This is not the first time Gary penned articles concerning students, but the discoveries he made related to loneliness and how students are handling the epidemic is telling.In the midst of the pandemic, Gary took to Reddit to hear how students were venting. Through interviews, he heard their frustration over making plans to deal with continuing education, changes in living situations, and maintaining their relationships.He wrote a long story in which he gave readers a sample of what college students were saying. Students expressed their feelings over the disruption and loneliness caused by the sudden change in their situation as a result of the spreading outbreak. You can read the article on The San Diego Union-Tribune website – titled ‘Mood turns gloomy as University of San Diego students prepare to move out of dorms.’ (Source: https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/news/education/story/2020-03-13/the-mood-turns-sad-as-university-of-san-diego-students-prepare-to-move-out-of-dorms )Another interesting article by the journalist is ‘The novel coronavirus has emptied out most of the nation’s colleges, and they might not reopen this fall,’ also on The San Diego Union-Tribune website. (Source: https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/news/education/story/2020-04-27/covid-19-inflicts-turmoil-on-colleges-and-universities )Jack Eason and Gary Robbins continue their conversation on the impact loneliness have on the lifestyle and health of the average American, while discussing some possible solutions.Gary Robbins has been a journalist for more than 30 years and currently covers science, technology for The San Diego Union-Tribune. He joined the paper in April 2010 after working for 25 years at the Orange County Register, where he was a science editor.Robbins was born and raised in Maine and attended Northeastern University in Boston, graduating in 1978. He served as a Knight Science Journalism Fellow at MIT during the 2000-01 academic year, and a Science Writer Fellow at the Marine Biological Laboratory at Woods Hole, Massachusetts in June 2001.

Timothy Eldred released his book ‘Alone Sucks’ to the world in 2017. Timothy is a seasoned pastor, author, speaker, and unrelenting voice for releasing people’s potential with a reputation for challenging the status quo. He speaks, teaches, and performs throughout the world, and his books have been read by hundreds of thousands of people.Jack Eason spoke with Timothy about the issues of aloneness and loneliness. As Timothy shares his story with Jack, it is clear there was fear when God asked him to share his story with the world. But he did as he was asked, and the warm reception of the book was proof that it was the right time for the message.You can learn more about Timothy Eldred online at https://www.timothyeldred.com

Will Wright is CEO of a health coaching company which discovered the epidemic of loneliness before many others. “The biggest problem is the feeling of isolation you get when you don’t buy into what you’re doing or the culture, and you don’t have a healthy outlet to talk about it,” he said. Jack Eason takes time to dive deeper into Will’s TEDx Talk.Will Wright was an expert in the ever-changing world of health care, where costs have been rising faster than inflation since the mid-60s.At McKinsey, he traveled almost constantly, dissecting gigabytes of claims data to help insurance companies mitigate risk and squeeze more profits from the highly competitive health-care field.He was good at it, too, though, then only in his early 30s, Wright was paying dearly for his success.“The biggest problem is the feeling of isolation you get when you don’t buy into what you’re doing or the culture, and you don’t have a healthy outlet to talk about it,” he said.More of his story can be found at https://www.al.com/news/birmingham/2017/04/before_building_company_helpin.html