Faith Fuel Podcast

About Faith Fuel Podcast

Honest conversations about the complexity, frustration, and beauty of church life and following Jesus in community in the 21st century.

Publisher

Jon Sherwood

Category

religion & spirituality

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

1 Jul 2015

Latest episode

21 Jul 2026

Latest episodes

108 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   21 Jul 2026

   Can You Really Follow Jesus Without Christian Community? w/Keay's - Community as Covenant

   In this conversation, we explore what it looks like to search for real Christian community and what happens when the idea of church community meets messy reality.Jon Sherwood talks with a couple who found a microchurch online after struggling to build deeper relationships in a traditional Sunday church setting. They share how they researched the church, questioned its leaders, prayed through their decision, covenanted to a body of believers, and discovered that following Jesus in community is difficult, imperfect, and deeply worth it.The conversation explores Christian community, microchurch, house church, church membership, church covenant, biblical fellowship, discipleship, spiritual formation, carrying one another’s burdens, and the meaning of the body of Christ. It emphasizes that Christians were never meant to follow Jesus alone. Real church community is more than attending a weekly event. It means learning to love people with different backgrounds, supporting one another through difficult seasons, addressing conflict, remaining committed when relationships become uncomfortable, and continually pointing one another back to Jesus.If you have struggled to find a church, felt alone in a crowded congregation, wondered whether microchurch is biblical, or longed for deeper Christian relationships, this conversation offers an honest look at both the beauty and difficulty of following Jesus together. If you find this conversation helpful, please like the video, subscribe to the channel, and share it with someone who is searching for genuine Christian community. Chapters 00:00 Welcome to the UNpolished Church Podcast 00:21 How We Found Our Church Through the Internet 02:05 The Journey to Finding Real Community 04:56 Vetting the Church: Making Sure They Weren’t Crazy 09:15 Faith Interviews and Covenanting to a Body 11:28 The Idea vs. the Reality of Community 16:48 It’s Messy, but Beautifully Worth It 18:57 The Body of Christ: We Need Each Other 19:19 Remembering Jesus in How We Treat One Another 20:15 Why Christians Aren’t Meant to Follow Jesus Alone 21:45 Jesus Empowers Us to Love and Grow 24:16 Communion UNpolished Church Podcast exists to equip and resource Christians toward experiencing greater intimacy with one another, transformation into Christ, and impact for Jesus’ redemptive mission in the world.If you have enjoyed or benefited from this podcast, please share it with a friend and turn on notifications so you will be alerted to future episodes. Sign up to receive updates:https://www.jonsherwood.com/podcast #ChristianCommunity #Microchurch #BodyOfChrist

2. 

   30 Jun 2026

   Why is it so hard to talk about money in church? w/Martha Brown and Kathy Gibbons

   In this episode we explore why money can be so difficult to talk about in church, especially when it touches debt, shame, regret, generosity, stewardship, and our willingness to bring hidden struggles into the light. Jon Sherwood sits down with Martha Brown and Kathy Gibbons for an honest conversation about following Jesus with our finances, learning to live within our means, and discovering how freedom from debt can open the door to deeper generosity and love of neighbor. This episode looks honestly at credit card debt, consumerism, financial shame, church leadership, giving while in debt, the dangers of hiding money struggles, and the kind of Christian community where people can be met with grace instead of judgment. If you find this teaching helpful, don’t forget to like, subscribe, and share it with your friends! Chapters 00:00 Why is Money So Hard to Talk About? 01:48 Kathy's Story: The Wake-Up Call with Debt 06:22 The Trap of Credit Cards and Living Beyond Our Means 13:42 The Wake-Up Call: Giving with Debt 16:21 Leadership's Role: Creating a Shame-Free Environment 22:11 Theology of Debt: Living for Love, Not Status 29:24 Why Christians Struggle with Money: Control and Materialism 35:03 Countercultural Steps: Studying Jesus and Opening Your Finances 38:38 The Fruit of Repentance: Freedom and Generosity UNpolished Church podcast exists to help equip and resource Christians toward experiencing greater intimacy with one another, transformation into Christ, and impact for Jesus’ redemptive mission in the world. If you have enjoyed or benefited from this podcast, please share with a friend and be sure to turn notifications on so you will be alerted to future episodes! Sign up to receive updates: https://www.jonsherwood.com/podcast #moneyandchurch #christianmoney #christiandebt #debtfreejourney #financialfreedom #generosity #christiangenerosity #stewardship #christianstewardship #jonsherwood #unpolishedpodcast #unpolishedchurch #microchurch #microchurches #churchcommunity #christiancommunity #followingjesus #jesuschrist #discipleship #spiritualformation #kingdomofgod #churchleadership #pastors #consumerism #christianity #bibleteaching #theology #generousliving #debtfreedom #faithandfinances

3. 

   16 Jun 2026

   Transitioning A Traditional Church To A Microchurch Network: One Pastor’s Journey

   In this episode we explore what it means to transition from a traditional church model into a decentralized microchurch network rooted in discipleship, mission, shared leadership, and the priesthood of all believers. Jon Sherwood shares the story behind his church’s journey away from measuring success by attendance, budgets, buildings, and programs, and toward releasing everyday followers of Jesus into meaningful kingdom work in their own contexts. This episode looks honestly at consumer Christianity, church growth metrics, the dangers of pastor-centered leadership, the beauty of microchurch communities, and the slow, difficult, Spirit-led process of reimagining what it means to be the church. If you find this teaching helpful, don’t forget to like, subscribe, and share it with your friends! Chapters 00:00 - Intro 00:19 - The Journey to a Microchurch Network 01:06 - Rethinking Church Success 03:08 - Abandoning Outcomes and Ego 05:18 - From Consumer Church to Calling Culture 06:37 - Commissioning Everyday Missionaries 07:28 - Microchurches Are Not Mini Big Churches 08:26 - Why Slow Transition Matters 10:20 - What Makes a Church a Church? 11:21 - Shared Leadership and Plurality 12:48 - Life After the Transition 13:36 - Why Microchurch Is Not for Everyone 14:32 - Questions Before Starting a Microchurch Network 15:05 - Assessing the Call 16:12 - Assessing the Structure 17:09 - Assessing the Cost 18:22 - Final Encouragement UNpolished Church podcast exists to help equip and resource Christians toward experiencing greater intimacy with one another, transformation into Christ, and impact for Jesus’ redemptive mission in the world. If you have enjoyed or benefited from this podcast, please share with a friend and be sure to turn notifications on so you will be alerted to future episodes! Sign up to receive updates: https://www.jonsherwood.com/podcast #microchurch #microchurches #jonsherwood #unpolishedpodcast #missionalcommunities #organicchurch #housechurch #discipleship #christiancommunity #christian #christianity #spiritualformation #church #churchleadership #churchgrowth #followingjesus #jesuschrist #spiritualgrowth #theology #bibleteaching #kingdomofgod #priesthoodofallbelievers #churchplanting #missionalchurch #churchrenewal #decentralizedchurch #smallgroups #bodyofchrist #pastors

Reach and audience

Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.

Apple Podcasts (US)

5.0 / 5

19 ratings

Spotify

5.0 / 5

14 ratings

Contact Faith Fuel Podcast

Guest appearances

Books guests

Based on episode analysis; this does not confirm that the show is currently accepting guests.