DEFENDING THE FAITH with Frank Harber

SERVING FAMILIES WITH CHILDREN WHO HAVE SPECIAL NEEDS with Jamie Koesema

In this Episode of DEFENDING THE FAITH, Frank Harber interviews Jamie Koesema about the R[4] Retreat Center.

Learn about the amazing R[4] Retreat Center!

The need for real connection and community support for families affected by special needs is undeniable! Why? There are often multiple services available for their children but little to no community support for them so parents/caregivers can feel extremely overwhelmed and very alone.

R[4] is working hard to change that!

Jamie Koesema is the Founder and CEO of R[4] Retreat Center, a nonprofit organization that serves families with children who have special needs. She is passionate about listening to the needs of caregivers and creating meaningful opportunities for them to feel seen, heard, loved, and connected. R[4]’s goal is to build a strong community among the families it serves, providing them with a consistent and safe place to find support, resources, and encouragement as they advocate for their loved ones.

Raised in Grand Rapids, MI, Jamie comes from a strong Christian family and learned early on the importance of opening her heart to the underserved in the community. Growing up, her family’s home was always open to those society often cast aside—people experiencing homelessness, prostitutes, and individuals struggling with addiction. The example set by her parents—their sacrifice and relentless pursuit of sharing God’s love with those in need—became the foundation for the work she does today through R[4] Retreat Center.

Now based near Dallas, TX, Jamie works hard to balance her calling at R[4] with her family life. She has been married to her husband, John, for 35 years. He serves as the Director of Operations at Dallas Life, a faith-based homeless shelter in downtown Dallas. Together, they are the proud parents of their incredibly talented adult daughter, Ashley, who currently resides in Kentucky. Jamie’s father, Earl, lives with them in their home in the Dallas suburbs and has played a key role in the formation and development of R[4] over the years.

Connect with Jamie Koesema:
📧 Email: jkoesema@r4retreatcenter.org
🌐 Website: www.r4retreatcenter.org
📌 Facebook: /r4retreatcenter
📷 Instagram: @R4RetreatCenter

 

“THE AVODA GOLF STORY” with guest Thomas Bailey

“THE AVODA GOLF STORY” with guest Thomas Bailey

 

In this Episode of DEFENDING THE FAITH, Frank  Harber interviews Thomas Bailey about the incredible rise of Avoda Golf.

 

Avoda Golf founder Tom Bailey was simply trying to make better irons for himself and ended up helping Bryson DeChambeau win the U.S. Open.

 

Tom Bailey was just trying to solve golf problems for himself and hit upon the idea to change the face of an iron to allow mishits to fly less offline. 

 

He started working with Bryson DeChambeau on those irons, designing prototypes that led to his stunning U.S. Open victory at Pinehurst No. 2.

 

Avoda Golf has now exploded on the golf scene with innovative clubs. These clubs are regarded by some as the best clubs money can buy.

 

The new golf club company, is named Avoda Golf, a Hebrew word that includes Hebrew lettering on the clubs. Avoda is a Hebrew word related to work, worship and service to God.

 

The actual logo itself is a Hebrew word that translates to precision. This logo appears on the back of the club. 

 

Tune in and hear the behind the scenes story of why and how all this came to be. You will want to hear this story.

 

Listen now to the story of Thomas Bailey and the journey of his inspiring faith!

 

To learn more please visit the AVODA GOLF website at: 

 

https://avodagolf.com

“THE ROADMAP TO CHURCH HEALTH” with guest Scotty Sanders

In this Episode of DEFENDING THE FAITH, Frank  Harber interviews Church Coach Scotty Sanders about THE ROADMAP TO CHURCH HEALTH.

 

Scotty Sanders is the FOUNDER & CEO of Life Catalyst. Life Catalyst has been Helping Churches Grow Since 2008 and is the creator of the “Who Is Your One” evangelism initiative!

 

Your church is unique. So is the Life Catalyst process. The Life Catalyst team serves your local church by coming alongside your pastor to provide coaching, consulting, and in some situations, leading. The Life Catalyst team members have years of practical, effective ministry experience. Each member has the heart to provide incredible value and service to your church. Life Catalyst does not provide “cookie cutter” solutions because each church has unique challenges. Life Catalyst seeks to design a plan specifically for your church’s needs and circumstances.

 

Scotty Sanders has been leading organizations for 35 years, initially founding and serving as CEO for a multi-million dollar business and then spending 20 years serving in executive and administrative pastor roles for two mega-churches. His expertise includes most aspects of church life, leadership development, strategic planning, creating an environment of excellence, building a volunteer base, and mobilizing people for evangelism and stewardship.

Scotty is the founder of Church Catalyst, a non-profit organization that has worked with thousands of pastors and churches nationally and internationally. He is the creator of “Who Is Your ONE?” providing training resources to over 10,000 churches and reaching over 200,000 people with the Gospel.

The author of four books, Scotty has also written countless articles, and spoken to audiences worldwide.

Scotty and his wife Cindy have been married for over forty years and reside in Flower Mound, Texas. They are blessed with two children and four beautiful granddaughters.

 

To learn more please visit his websites at: 

https://lifecatalystconsulting.com

 

and

 

https://scottysanders.com

“The Prayer Powered Pulpit” with guest Dr. Keeney Dickenson

In this Episode of DEFENDING THE FAITH, Frank  Harber interviews Pastor Keeney Dickenson about The Prayer Powered Pulpit.

 

The priority a pastor places on preaching is best measured by his investment of prayer. Wholehearted prayer reflects high priority and limited prayer means low priority. It is tragic when sermons are mechanically written as an academic exercise with a brief invocation and benediction! Dr. Dickenson has written a book Spurgeon: The Prayer-Powered Pulpit of the Prince of Preachers that contains the tools needed to develop a pulpit ministry that is prioritized in prayer. Charles Spurgeon is a worthy example of balancing theological acuity and pastoral spirituality. His example as illustrated in this book will point the pastor to Christ and call him to give himself “continually to prayer and the ministry of the word.”

 

Dr. Keeney Dickenson is a pastor, writer, consultant, and conference speaker with a passion for prayer and revival. Keeney is a graduate of Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary (MDiv) and The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary (DMin). He's a founding resource leader of the 6:4 Fellowship and has served as senior pastor of First Baptist Church in Crockett, Texas, since 2003. Keeney is in his fourth decade of pastoral experience. He has served churches in New Mexico, Missouri and Texas. He received his doctor of ministry degree in biblical spirituality from the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in 2017. Keeney is the founder and director of Prayeridigm Publishing and the author of seven books. He is married to his best friend and prayer partner, D’Ann.

Big Deal Discipleship with Andy Spencer

In this Episode of DEFENDING THE FAITH, Frank  Harber interviews Andy Spencer about Big Deal Discipleship.

 

What are some good discipleship materials? Andy Spencer has formulated a unique tool for discipleship. The Big Deal Discipleship Series is an attempt to streamline discipleship. Big Deal Discipleship is a unique discipleship tool that equips you to hold others accountable to holy living and be held accountable yourself. The Big Deal Discipleship material has been built around God's Word to help you ground your life in the truth of the Gospel. There is a series of questions for each meeting that help you ask and answer the tough questions, which in turn helps refine you spiritually in your walk with God. The Big Deal Discipleship Series is a simple way for people to meet and have 50 discussions about important truths from the Bible and our lives.

 

Andy Spencer received a BBA in Entrepreneurship/Marketing from Baylor University. While at Baylor, Andy served as the Baylor Mascot and received the Best Mascot Award at NCA Camp in 1986.

 

He joined the Arthur Valve and Fitting Company in 1987 as a salesperson in San Antonio,

Texas, working in various sales, management, and executive roles with the company. In 2002, Andy purchased the company and renamed it Arthur Fluid System Technologies. He sold the business in 2010, and now gives his time to consulting and other business ventures.

 

In 2012, Andy formed Take 5 Ministries, an organization providing leadership development for pastors through peer-to-peer learning experiences.

 

He has written a book titled Leadership from the Sidelines – Much of What I Learned

about Leadership, I Learned as a Mascot. A second book, Lift Your Pastor – Becoming a

Pastor’s Advocate, with co-author, Dr. Michael Lewis, was published in 2017. To distribute

these and other books, Andy formed a company called EnGedi Publishing, LLC.

 

Andy is continually educating himself and others in areas ranging from basic selling skills to efficiency training, change management and team building. He has spoken to classes at Baylor University, Emanuel Baptist University in Romania, and Seminary Bonn in Germany, as well as at various industry conferences.

 

He currently serves as a deacon at Great Hills Baptist Church in Austin, Texas. He has also served in church leadership as personnel committee chairman and chairman of deacons.

 

Andy’s family includes his wife, Kathy, and two daughters, Deanna (married to Scott Pratt) and Andrea. 

How a Healthy Pastor Leads to a Healthy Church” with Dr. Ronny Marriott

How a Healthy Pastor Leads to a Healthy Church with Dr. Ronny Marriott

 

In this Episode of DEFENDING THE FAITH, Frank  Harber interviews Dr. Ronny Marriott about How a Healthy Pastor Leads to a Healthy Church.

 

Listen as Dr. Ronny Marriott shares about how to have a healthy Church.

 

Dr. Ronny W. Marriott is currently the President of the Baptist General Convention of Texas. He has been pastoring for over 35 years. 

 

Currently, he serves as Lead Pastor in Burleson, Texas. Originally from Mesquite, Texas, he has been writing Christian curricula, Bible studies, magazine articles, and devotionals since 1990. Previously Ronny and his wife, Robin, have written children’s books and are now excited about their collaboration for adults in the book, So That REALLY Happened?!

Dr. Ronny Marriott is the Senior Pastor at First Baptist Church of Burleson, TX. He has also served as pastor of Sunset Canyon Baptist in Dripping Springs, TX; Shady Oaks Baptist, Hurst, TX; First Baptist Corpus Christi, TX; First Baptist Temple, TX; before coming to First Baptist Burleson, TX. Ronny Marriott is a 1987 graduate of Howard Payne University with a Bachelor of Arts in Theology. He has a doctorate degree from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas.

To buy a copy of “So that REALLY happened?! HaHa to Aha Moments” on Amazon, click here. Or email Ronny Marriott at rmarriott@firstburleson.org

“Understanding The Danger of Social-Emotional Learning” with guest Cindy Asmussen

In this Episode of DEFENDING THE FAITH, Dr. Frank  Harber interviews Cindy Asmussen about Understanding The Danger of Social-Emotional Learning.

 

Understand the dangers of social-emotional learning. Help restore our youth to the quality of education that has been around for generations, and learn how to speak truth to this emerging issue.

 

Cindy Asmussen is the Legislative Liaison and Ethics & Religious Liberty Advisor for the Southern Baptists of Texas Convention. She is also: a Mom Caucus Member; Texas Conservative Mamas; Texas Conservative Grassroots Coalition Leader; Legislative Director, Concerned Women for America of Texas; Grassroots America Champion of Freedom Honoree.

A Pastor Gets 7 Days in Jail for Keeping Church Open

Phil Hutchings, of Higher Life Church, is a Canadian pastor who was arrested and then locked up in solitary confinement for a week after his church remained open during the COVID-19 pandemic.  A federal judge in New Brunswick dismissed all charges following a lengthy legal battle that began in 2021 when he was arrested for holding church services against a provincial health order. This really happened!

“RETREAT DON’T RETREAT: CELEBRATE MARRIAGE RETREATS” with guests Sherman and Tammy Aten

In this Episode of DEFENDING THE FAITH, Frank and Becky Harber interview Sherman and Tammy Aten about RETREAT DON’T RETREAT: CELEBRATE MARRIAGE RETREATS.

 

The marriage rate in the United States has witnessed a decline since the beginning of the 21st century, dropping from over eight marriages per 1,000 individuals to six marriages per 1,000 individuals in 2019. This current rate marks the lowest level recorded since the U.S. government started maintaining marriage records for the nation in 1867.

 

While it may not have ended, marriage in America has unquestionably declined over the recent past and is now at historic low numbers for the United States.

 

The Importance of maintaining a strong and healthy marriage cannot be overstated! 

 

Sherman and Tammy Aten have dedicated their lives to building up marriages in the Body of Christ. Listen carefully as they teach on this important subject.

 

The Atens have been serving in full-time itinerant ministry since November of 1990. Many know them as worship leaders, evangelists or Three2One Marriage Conference hosts. They travelled 20 years as a family with their son & daughter ministering in worship through revivals & concerts. Today they spend an average of 30 weeks per year ministering as a couple in the U.S & internationally in churches based in Canada, Mexico, Bolivia, Wales, Romania, Russia, Venezuela, South Africa, Philippines, Ukraine, Portugal, Spain, Pakistan & Turkey.

 

God has developed in the Atens a hunger for authentic worship in the Body of Christ & a passion for Godly marriages & family through their marriage ministry, Three2One.  Sherman served as Music Director for the Conference of Texas Baptist Evangelists from 1998-2000 and then again in 2004. The Aten family are members & staff evangelists of the Acton Baptist Church, in Granbury, Texas where they make their home and ministry base. 

 

Sherman and Tammy Aten are the authors of the book “TOUCHING BASE: 52 Devotions to Connect with Your Spouse.” This book can be ordered at: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1961641046

 

“THE MYTHS OF MARRIAGE” with guests Kyle and April Clayton

In this Episode of DEFENDING THE FAITH, Frank and Becky Harber interview Kyle and April Clayton about The Myths of Marriage.

 

The way we see and hear about marriage in the media and in popular culture can often lead us to have unrealistic expectations of marriage. These unrealistic expectations can lead to disappointment, which can ultimately result in marriage counseling or even divorce. Listen to the top myths about marriage and see if they apply to you.

 

Kyle Clayton is the Lead Pastor at The Church at Quail Creek Amarillo, TX. Kyle is married to April Clayton. They are the parents to two amazing children.