Midtown Podcast is a simple, honest conversation about faith, growth, and everyday life. Hosted by Austin and Jay, the show feels like sitting down with friends to talk about what it really looks like to follow Jesus while building your life, chasing purpose, and figuring things out along the way.
We talk about relationships, discipline, creativity, mental health, calling, and staying grounded in your faith in a busy world. Some episodes are deep and reflective. Others are practical and encouraging. All of them are real.
If you want conversations that help you grow personally and spiritually w
Stopping for the One — Ep. 2: The Byproduct of Rest (w/ Jay Haley)
"Stop the van, get out, and give her a hug."
Austin continues the Stopping for the One series with Jay Haley — where Ep. 1 with Jake laid the foundation, this episode answers the next question: I've been marked by Jesus… now what do I actually do about it?
In this episode:
The mindset shift: "I don't stop with intentions to share the gospel. I stop to meet them where they are."
Why Jesus sent them out two by two — and what that means for you today
The parable of the sower and what "the cares of this world" is actually doing to your heart
The Kim story on Kingston Pike — the audible voice Jay heard eight years ago while nearly hitting a homeless woman who was cursing at him from the middle of the road
Why he only did it because he was "more like Gideon" and needed to hear it twice
The dance with his daughter Anya that taught him something about walking with the Father
How "stopping for the one" also means your kids, your parents, your coworker at the gas pump
A deep teaching on Peter asleep in prison the night before his execution
The peace that isn't comfortable circumstances but doesn't move when the storm does
Evangelism as the byproduct of rest — not the burden we make it
If you've ever felt like you don't know how to actually walk this out — this one is for you.
This is Episode 2 of 3-5. Ep. 1 with Jake is right below this — start there if you haven't. Subscribe so you don't miss Ep. 3.
Hosted by Austin.
Listen on every platform: linktr.ee/midtownpodcast
23 Jun 2026
Stopping for the One — Ep. 1: Why Jesus Always Left the 99 (w/ Jake)
What if the interruption is the assignment?
Austin launches a brand-new series — Stopping for the One — built around Luke 15 and the radical idea that Jesus left the 99 to find the one. In this opening episode, Austin sits down with his brother Jake for a conversation about what it actually looks like to live a life where you see people the way Jesus sees them.
Jake takes us through three stories that will reframe how you think about your day:
The hour he spent stuck in traffic that ended in him praying for a stranger newly diagnosed with leukemia (and the full-circle moment that proved God set the whole thing up)
Big Mike — blind, deaf, fresh out of prison for second-degree murder — who got baptized in his blue jeans and said "you think being in my jeans is going to stop me from getting back up?"
Rocky on the bridge downtown, and the encouragement that finally gave him purpose again
Plus the daily prayer that makes any of this possible, the difference between transparent and vulnerable, why Jesus always found the ONE in the middle of the crowd, and the hardest question — "what about results?"
This is Episode 1 of 3-5. Subscribe so you don't miss the rest of the series.
Hosted by Austin. Keep Jay in prayer through his back recovery.
Listen on every platform: linktr.ee/midtownpodcast
1 Jun 2026
The Lies you Embrace Become your Reality— w/ Luis Ortiz
What does it take to actually hear God for the first time?
Austin sits down with one of his oldest friends, Luis Ortiz, for a testimony that doesn't sound like anyone else's. Luis grew up in Puerto Rico without faith — but with a spiritual sensitivity that pulled him into Santeria, demonology, and conversations with spirits he could literally see. By 18 he'd attempted suicide, come out as gay, and started building a life around an identity he was sure was his.
He moved to Tennessee at 20, got plugged into a campus ministry, lived a double life for years, and in 2015 ended up in a jail cell where the voices in his head wouldn't stop. He started practicing meditation just to quiet his thoughts — and that's when he heard the voice of God for the first time in his life: "Finally."
In this episode:
The demonic figure who told him "we never have to be apart"
The teacher's words that became the foundation of a lie he believed for years
The suicide attempt at 18 that his mom stopped mid-act
The pastor who first "leveled the playing field" with him
The jail cell encounter that started everything
The Lord telling him: "Your identity and who you're attracted to are not the same"
Walking away from the faith in 2020 — "I'm done. You're a liar."
The youth camp sabbatical where the Holy Spirit said "just shut up. I want your heart."
The treadmill moment when he heard: "I have set you free and I'm redeeming your sight"
Becoming a husband and a brand-new dad
The birth-song he and his wife sang over their newborn daughter
A closing prayer you should not skip
Whether you've struggled with identity, addiction, same-sex attraction, the demonic, the dark night of the soul, deconstruction, or just the slow grind of trying to be a Christian without ever really meeting Jesus — this one is for you.
Hosted by Austin. Keep Jay in prayer through his back recovery.
Listen on every platform: linktr.ee/midtownpodcast Need someone to clean your home (and pray over it)? Hallel Home Cleaning Co — DM Luis.
Who has been a guest on Midtown Podcast
Names identified in recent episode analyses. Showing up to five guests.
Shawn Hatmaker
Brennon Seigler
father
Cole Palmer
Reach and audience
Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.
Apple Podcasts (US)
5.0 / 5
10 ratings
Spotify
5.0 / 5
13 ratings
Podcast Authority Score: 49 / 100
A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.
Quality
78
Social presence
0
YouTube
0
Engagement
51
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Guest appearances
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