Being Human with Steve Cuss Christianity Today

So much of our experience is shaped by what gets passed down to us. Whether it's trauma, wisdom, or a signature hair color, traits and knowledge travel from generation to generation.
On this episode of Being Human, Steve Cuss welcomes George Dobeler, the chaplain who first passed down the concept of family systems theory to Cuss. Doebler and Cuss talk about Doebler's learning from Murray Bowen, who founded the theory. They discuss the importance of understanding one’s family system when it comes to diffusing anxiety. Doebler and Cuss provide real-life examples of systems theory helping people become less reactive and more in touch with God, themselves, and others. 
Their conversation covers chaplaincy, trauma recovery, and how theology shapes our responses to anxiety.
Resources mentioned in this episode include: 

Bowen family systems theory

George Doebler

Murray Bowen

Harry Stack Sullivan

Edwin H. Friedman

Genogram


Friedman’s Fables by Edwin H. Friedman


A Failure of Nerve: Leadership in the Age of the Quick Fix by Edwin H. Friedman


“Being Human with Steve Cuss” is a production of Christianity Today
Executive Produced by Erik Petrik and Mike Cosper
Produced and Edited by Matt Stevens
Associate Producers: McKenzie Hill, Raed Gilliam, and Abby Perry
Theme song by Dan Phelps
Original Music by Andy Gullahorn
Mix Engineer: Kevin Morris
Graphic Design: Amy Jones
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Some of the most beautiful art in existence was born of great trauma and pain. Think of Vincent Van Gogh, for example, or the Psalms written from a hiding place. 
On this episode of Being Human, Steve Cuss welcomes two artists who both know great tragedy and have produced remarkable creative work: Charlie Peacock and Andi Ashworth. The married couple recently published a book, Why Everything That Doesn't Matter, Matters So Much: The Way of Love in a World of Hurt, and they join Cuss for a discussion of grief, art, and hospitality. Their conversation touches some of the couple’s lowest valleys and highest mountains. They talk about Art House America, which they founded in 1991, and how music and writing have been their companions in times of joy and sorrow. 
Tune in for a vulnerable and rich discussion of marriage, self-reflection, and the hope of Christ in all things. 
Resources mentioned in this episode include: 

Vincent Van Gogh on Doctor Who


Charlie Peacock

Andi Ashworth


Why Everything That Doesn't Matter, Matters So Much: The Way of Love in a World of Hurt by Charlie Peacock and Andi Ashworth

Art House America

Greenbelt Festival

Scotty Smith

Francis and Edith Schaeffer


My Father’s Crown by Charlie Peacock

Luci Shaw

Paranassus Books


Music & Meaning with Charlie Peacock


“Being Human with Steve Cuss” is a production of Christianity Today
Executive Produced by Erik Petrik and Mike Cosper
Produced and Edited by Matt Stevens
Associate Producers: McKenzie Hill, Raed Gilliam, and Abby Perry
Theme song by Dan Phelps
Original Music by Andy Gullahorn
Mix Engineer: Kevin Morris
Graphic Design: Amy Jones
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The workplace can be a setting where people see their worth and have it honored by others. It can also be a hub of discouragement, aimlessness, and a lack of encouragement. 
On this episode of Being Human, host Steve Cuss welcomes Jeff Haanen, author of Working from the Inside Out. Haanen, who is the founder of the Denver Faith and Work Institute, sheds light on how inner work can shape outer work and what it looks like to live out Christianity in jobs and careers. He provides listeners with a starting point for thinking theologically about their work and gives pastors some tips for helping their congregants feel seen in their work lives.
Cuss and Haanen talk about dignifying all types of honest work, the value of physical labor, and what it looks like to work unto the Lord when career and passion don’t align. 
Resources mentioned in this episode include: 

Denver Institute for Faith and Work


Working from the Inside Out: A Brief Guide to Inner Work That Transforms Our Outer World by Jeff Haanen

The Center for Faith and Work 

Lesslie Newbigin

Charlotte Institute for Faith & Work

Nashville Institute for Faith and Work

Made to Flourish

“God of the Second Shift”

Treatment Technology

Babette’s Feast


“Being Human with Steve Cuss” is a production of Christianity Today
Executive Produced by Erik Petrik and Mike Cosper
Produced and Edited by Matt Stevens
Associate Producers: McKenzie Hill, Raed Gilliam, and Abby Perry
Theme song by Dan Phelps
Original Music by Andy Gullahorn
Mix Engineer: Kevin Morris
Graphic Design: Amy Jones
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Music is one of the host Steve Cuss’ favorite ways to relax into God’s presence. On this episode he welcomes two artists who help him do just that—Andy Gullahorn and Jill Phillips. A married couple in Nashville, Tennessee, both Andy and Jill are singer-songwriters. Jill also practices as a therapist and Andy has a unique healing ministry. 
The three discuss the power of songs and how the music industry has changed over time. They talk about what it means to pursue “a long obedience in the same direction,” as the late Eugene Peterson put it, and how to pursue work that is faithful and meaningful. They share practices they’d like to see uprooted in the church, as well as those they hope to see implemented. Finally, they share the experiences that generate reactivity in them and how they try to respond with gentleness and godliness. 
Resources mentioned in this episode include: 

Andy Gullahorn

Jill Phillips

Lyle Lovett

Albert Borghman

“My City of Ruins” by Bruce Springsteen

“The Brave One” by Andy Gullahorn

“Grand Canyon” by Andy Gullahorn


Justin Timberlake & Chris Stapleton, Country Music Awards, 2015

Steven Curtis Chapman


Long Obedience in the Same Direction: Discipleship in an Instant Society by Eugene Peterson


The Pastor: A Memoir by Eugene Peterson

Brad Jersak

Celebrate Recovery

“Died: Thomas McKenzie, Defender and Definer of Anglicanism” by Daniel Silliman


“Being Human with Steve Cuss” is a production of Christianity Today
Executive Produced by Erik Petrik and Mike Cosper
Produced and Edited by Matt Stevens
Associate Producers: McKenzie Hill, Raed Gilliam, and Abby Perry
Theme song by Dan Phelps
Original Music by Andy Gullahorn
Mix Engineer: Kevin Morris
Graphic Design: Amy Jones
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

"In Christ, God has come near and has walked with us. The transformation that is other than us has actually come near so that we could be changed and transformed.”
So says pastor and author Geoff Holsclaw as he joins host Steve Cuss on this episode of Being Human. Holsclaw, who cohosts the Embodied Faith podcast and runs Western Seminary’s doctor of ministry program in spiritual formation and relational neuroscience, is deeply interested in how people grow, transform, and connect to God.
On this episode, Holsclaw and Cuss talk about attachment theory, philosophy, and theology. They discuss liturgical practices that shape people and communities and consider how physical bodies relate to one another in spiritual spaces. Their conversation includes Holsclaw’s participation in the Vineyard Movement, what it looks like to combine the charismatic and liturgical, and what drew Holsclaw to brain science.
Tune in for an episode that incorporates all parts of what it means to be human, from the spiritual and emotional to the mental and physical.
Resources mentioned in this episode include:

Geoff Holsclaw

Vineyard USA

Augustine

Hegel

Doctor of ministry program at Western Seminary: Spiritual formation and relational neuroscience


Does God Really Like Me?: Discovering the God Who Wants to Be With Us by Cyd Holsclaw and Geoff Holsclaw


Embodied Faith podcast

Richard Foster

Dallas Willard


Devotional Classics: Selected Readings for Individuals and Groups by Richard Foster

Attachment theory

The Enneagram


The Change Monster: The Human Forces that Fuel or Foil Corporate Transformation and Changeby Jeanie Daniel Duck


“Being Human with Steve Cuss” is a production of Christianity Today
Executive Produced by Erik Petrik and Mike Cosper
Produced and Edited by Matt Stevens
Associate Producers: McKenzie Hill, Raed Gilliam, and Abby Perry
Theme song by Dan Phelps
Original Music by Andy Gullahorn
Mix Engineer: Kevin Morris
Graphic Design: Amy Jones
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Presence has a profound impact on our lives. So does its opposite—absence.
On this episode of Being Human, Steve Cross welcomes author, professor, and public theologian Esau McCaulley. McCaulley’s book Reading While Black is dedicated to his father, which may lead people to believe that they had a close relationship. But, McCaulley says that dedication was his way of declaring, “I forgive you.” 
During their conversation, Cross and McCaulley talk about how the absence of paternal love can shape a child. They discuss how McCaulley’s childhood affects his parenting, the role of humor in processing trauma, and the power of memory. They talk about racism, shame, and the roots of dehumanization. And they consider the presence of God’s love and redemption.
Resources mentioned in this episode include:

Esau McCaulley


Reading While Black: African American Biblical Interpretation as an Exercise in Hope by Esau McCaulley


How Far to the Promised Land: One Black Family's Story of Hope and Survival in the American South by Esau McCaulley


The New Testament in Color: A Multiethnic Bible Commentary by Esau McCaulley

Horatio Alger

Marvin Williams


Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis


The Reason for God: Belief in an Age of Skepticism by Timothy Keller


Simply Christian: Why Christianity Makes Sense by N.T. Wright


The Seven Storey Mountain by Thomas Merton


“Being Human with Steve Cuss” is a production of Christianity Today
Executive Produced by Erik Petrik and Mike Cosper
Produced and Edited by Matt Stevens
Associate Producers: McKenzie Hill, Raed Gilliam, and Abby Perry
Theme song by Dan Phelps
Original Music by Andy Gullahorn
Mix Engineer: Kevin Morris
Graphic Design: Amy Jones
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices