Unshaken Faith

Alisa and Natasha both have kids in the teen years, and it’s a very interesting time for parents. You start to see how some of the things you did well as a parent in the younger years are bearing fruit and feel a sense of gratitude (and relief!). But you also start to see how the things that you maybe didn’t do as well are bearing some of their own less-than-desirable fruit. So, parenting teens is certainly a time for reflection. In today’s episode, Alisa and Natasha share what they feel are three of their biggest parenting failures specifically as it relates to discipleship…as well as three of their biggest successes.

Orange Curriculum is considered to be the most widely used Sunday school curriculum in the country. Last week, it came out that the founder, Reggie Joiner, and the CEO, Kristen Ivy have both resigned due to their admission of having an inappropriate relationship together. This came out just days before Orange's huge annual conference. These things can be rattling to those who have been somehow touched by the ministry in question, and by those who are connected to it by family or other relationship. In today’s episode, Natasha and Alisa talk about how to process the moral failings of leaders of Christian organizations and share three takeaways on how to process events like this. They also offer some hope they have for Orange going forward.

A few weeks ago, Alisa and Natasha recorded an episode called “Why the church must divide on (some) political issues.” They talked about why Christians need to care about and get involved in politics and that we shouldn’t be concerned about it being divisive. Today they talk about a related issue—why is the church so afraid to talk about politics? As Christians, we have just as much say in how our communities and our country function as anyone else. We should be EAGER to advocate for the common good. So if that’s the case, how did we get to this point where Christians feel like we’ve done something wrong if we bring up politics with other Christians or if we feel like we can say something…but just not too much?

We’ve all seen the deconstruction stories that flood our social media news feeds. We’ve heard the claims of “toxic theology,” and the #exvangelical propensity to identify historic Christian doctrine and ethics as oppressive and harmful. But what if there is a connection between deconstruction and modern impulse to seek therapy, psychological diagnoses, and therapeutic language to explain away objective truth claims about God and morality? If you haven’t heard words and phrases like Iatrogenesis, Social-Emotional Learning, and Gentle Parenting, Alisa and Natasha will define those terms and show how they represent a massive shift in the worldview of our current culture. They also explore how those topics are related to the deconstruction phenomenon.

This Sunday is Easter, and churches everywhere will rightly be proclaiming the joy and hope we have because Jesus victoriously rose from the dead and is alive today. It’s also a time when a lot of people come to church who don’t normally do so. Some are nonbelievers and some are Christians who just aren’t already connected to a church home. But in an increasingly secular and skeptical culture, churches really can’t take for granted anymore that people coming have a reference point for understanding why Christians care about the resurrection so much and why we should even believe a resurrection happened. In today’s episode, Natasha and Alisa highlight some important conversations churches need to have surrounding Easter that tend to be ignored.

Have you ever that if you grew up as a conservative Christian, you were indoctrinated into a fear-based view of God and shame-based view of yourself? Or that the fundamentalist “Christian Gospel” damages children by telling them that they are born into this world intrinsically bad and repulsive to God, learning that their sinfulness is to blame for the brutalization, torture, and death of God’s son? Well this is exactly what Jim Palmer, the chaplain for the American Humanist Association who also holds the title of Founder of The Center for Non-Religious Spirituality says. In today’s episode, Alisa and Natasha unpack some of these claims.

While Christians rightly value unity, some believe that we should not “get political” or divide over politics. Some advocate for Christians to keep their politics to themselves, while others teach we should “just preach the gospel.” In today’s episode, Natasha and Alisa discuss what true biblical unity looks like, and how Christians should engage politically in this cultural moment.

Frank Turek joins the podcast to talk about the mantra “Follow your heart” and how that is leading culture into the chaos of social media narcissism, divorce, and transgender ideology.

Over the last ten years, there have been all kinds of shifts in how culture thinks about sexuality. Clearly, the evangelical church has especially grappled with questions of homosexuality and gender identity. But there’s a whole other sexual revolution that’s been bubbling up during that time, and it’s one that the church rarely talks about. It’s the revolution of polyamory. In today’s episode Natasha and Alisa break down this cultural phenomenon from a biblical perspective.

Is it okay to come out and call yourself a “Gay Christian,” as long as you don’t act on your desires? If someone struggles with same-sex attraction or gender confusion, can they accept those as part of their identity, adopt preferred pronouns and even identifying as “trans?” According to Side B theology, the answer to both of these questions is yes. These are ideas that are being heavily promoted in conservative evangelical circles, and Christians really need to be aware of what’s coming to a church near you. In today’s episode, Alisa and Natasha give a quick primer on what side B theology is, who are some of the main players, and share some concerns for you to consider as you think through these questions for yourself.

He Gets Us is at it again with a new round of Super Bowl commercials. In today’s episode, Alisa comments on the broader campaign, asking who’s behind it, what’s their agenda, who are they trying to reach, and how effective are they in reaching those goals?

There’s a new small group curriculum for churches available, and you’re probably going to hear a lot about it this year because it’s both very timely and being produced and promoted by some big Christian names. It’s called The After Party, and according to its creators, it’s designed to counter the "dangerous trend" of Evangelicals having their political identity formed by “partisan forces, not by true Biblical faith." The curriculum was developed by David French (who’s a New York Times columnist), Russell Moore (the Editor-in-Chief of Christianity Today), and Curtis Chang. Natasha and Alisa did an episode on their concerns about the After Party last March when the curriculum was first announced. The reason they're talking about it again today is that it’s now been released and it's getting high profile promotion with churches and pastors nationwide. In fact, they’re making it available for free through the 2024 election. Tune in to today’s episode for some things you should be aware of before your church considers rolling this out.

It’s no secret that social media carries a tremendous amount of influence in our lives. Virtually everyone has a megaphone into the world into which they can entertain, shout their opinions, and highlight their brands. Today we’ll be discussing the influence of social media.

Dylan Mulvaney is probably the most visible transgender person in the US today. If you’re not familiar with him, he’s a biological male who documented his transition to supposedly becoming a woman through a series of TikTok videos a couple of years ago. He quickly rose to TikTok fame and has over 10 million followers there today, and huge followings on other platforms as well. In certain sense, Mulvaney has been pivotal in giving the transgender movement a new face. Today, Alisa and Natasha discuss some thoughts on how he’s become the poster child for transgenderism, and the interesting worldview insights that can come from considering that question.

What is up with the #exvangelical hashtag? If you’re on social media, you’ve probably seen this hashtag used alongside the deconstruction hashtag, and in many cases, followed by a deconversion story. In today’s episode, Natasha and Alisa talk through the history and the meaning of the exvangelical hashtag, and discuss what it is really all about.

Join Natasha Crain and Alisa Childers for a special Unshaken Faith Christmas Livestream. Alisa and Natasha will talk about Christmas pet peeves, their favorite Christmas traditions, and will share their ugliest Christmas ornaments. PLUS, they’ll take your questions live and be announcing some new Unshaken Conference dates. And it wouldn’t be Christmas without some fun giveaways. Don’t miss it! facebook.com/alisachilders youtube.com/alisachilders facebook.com/natashacrainauthor

In today’s episode, Alisa and Natasha respond to several questions they’ve encountered lately in both ministry and their personal lives. Instead of focusing on one subject like they usually do, each picked 3 questions that have come up recently. We hope you’ll enjoy the variety in subjects packed into this episode, and the “quick hits” answers they provide to these tough questions.

Many Christian parents feel the tension between what their kids want out of church vs. what they need. Every once in a while these two goals line up perfectly and the whole family is happy about what church they attend. However, this is not always the case. Should we choose our church based on their kid’s likes and dislikes, and potential social opportunities? In today’s episode, Natasha and Alisa ask the question, should you change churches for your kids?

We grieve along with you and the rest of the world about all that's going on with the Israel-Hamas war. The pain so many people are in is simply overwhelming. As Christians outside the impacted region, we can feel pretty helpless, be we also believe in the power of prayer. WE can't get so overwhelmed that we forget to turn to the Lord, who is infinitely more powerful than any human force. But we also want to acknowledge today that it can be hard to pray during times like this. In today’s episode, Alisa and Natasha share some thoughts on prayer and encourage you to pray through this conflict.

Recently, Natasha wrote an article called, “A Christian Response to a Viral Deconstruction post,” about a woman who deconstructed and has continued to post about her deconversion online. In today’s episode, Natasha and Alisa respond to one of her comments in which she makes the popular claim that you can trust your heart because your heart is “pure.” In popular deconstruction stories, it’s common for people who are leaving the faith to claim that the teaching of Original Sin (that humans are inherently sinful) is actually toxic and abusive. They teach that humans are actually good by nature, so we can trust our hearts to guide us rightly. How can Christians respond?