Embracing Brokenness

Steve and Colleen Adams
  • 4.5 (8)
  • Christianity
  • Semimonthly

Welcome to the Embracing Brokenness Podcast. Our focus is to bring the gospel of Jesus Christ to a hurting world. To live authentically and without pretense. To encourage others toward a greater understanding of who they are and who God is. To teach the blessed HOPE that the Bible calls the “Anchor of the Soul”. That is Jesus Christ and His healing presence – not only available in this life – but in eternity to come.

  1. 1d ago

    🎙️EP180. Sit to Rise: Patric Young on Suffering, Identity & Trusting God

    What happens when the future you thought you could see suddenly disappears? Former Florida Gators basketball star Patric Young had built a life around strength, competition, achievement, and independence. Then, in June 2022, a devastating car accident caused a spinal cord injury that changed the course of his life. In this episode of the Embracing Brokenness Podcast, Patric joins Steve Adams for an honest conversation about suffering, identity, dependence, faith, and discovering purpose when life looks nothing like you expected. Patric describes the journey through a powerful image: sometimes the streetlights illuminating your future become a flashlight—and eventually only candlelight, giving you enough light for today. In those moments, he says, God asks: Do you still believe I am who I am? Do you still believe I am in control? And do you still believe that I am crazy in love with you? Steve and Patric talk about: • How being an elite athlete shaped Patric’s identity• The accident that changed everything• Learning to accept dependence after a lifetime of physical strength• Why suffering exposed the “idol of self”• Wrestling honestly with God in adversity• The difference between surrender and giving up• Why Patric believes his best days are still ahead• Discovering purpose in suffering• The story behind Sit to Rise• Why embracing brokenness can become part of our transformation Patric also shares how his experience led him to establish a foundation helping others facing life-altering circumstances—and why he believes there is purpose even in the places we would never have chosen for ourselves. Near the end of the conversation, Patric captures the heart of the episode: “Embracing the brokenness, embracing it as your journey, as your story, as your unique path—I think that’s where the strength comes in.” ABOUT PATRIC YOUNG Patric Young is a former University of Florida basketball standout and professional basketball player, broadcaster, speaker, author, and founder of the Patric Young Foundation. His book, Sit to Rise: Turning Your Darkest Pain Into Your Brightest Victory, chronicles his journey through catastrophic injury, faith, resilience, and purpose. LEARN MORE Patric Younghttps://www.patricyoung.com/ Sit to Rise on Amazonhttps://www.amazon.com/Sit-Rise-Turning-Darkest-Brightest/dp/B0CN1SXL42/

  2. Oct 19

    🎙️EP179. Get Out of the Boat: What It Really Means to Follow Jesus | Richard Blackaby

    What does it actually mean to follow Jesus? Richard Blackaby joins Steve Adams for a conversation that challenges one of the most common assumptions in modern Christianity: that believing in Jesus and following Jesus are automatically the same thing. Richard argues that Jesus never simply invited Peter, Andrew, James, and John to agree with a set of beliefs. He told them: “Follow me.” That meant leaving the security of the fishing boat, surrendering their own agenda, and learning to recognize where Jesus was leading next. In this conversation, Steve and Richard explore why churches can emphasize decisions more than discipleship, how we can unknowingly make people disciples of us instead of Jesus, how to recognize the leading of the Holy Spirit, and why discipleship is ultimately a relationship—not simply a program. Richard also shares a deeply personal lesson from his father, Henry Blackaby. Whenever Richard came to him asking what decision he should make, Henry resisted simply giving him the answer. Instead, he taught his son to go to God, listen, discern, and follow Jesus for himself. The conversation also turns toward one of the harder dimensions of discipleship: sometimes following Jesus means recognizing that a good assignment or season has ended and being willing to move wherever He leads next. And Richard leaves us with a practical challenge for anyone wondering: “Am I really following Jesus?” Sometimes the first step is simply being willing to get out of the boat. Learn more about Richard Blackaby RichardBlackaby.com https://richardblackaby.com/ Get Following Jesus: God’s Ancient Path to Spiritual Maturity Lifeway: https://www.lifeway.com/en/product/following-jesus-P005852910 Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Following-Jesus-Ancient-Spiritual-Maturity/dp/B0GRFSBR3N Learn more about Embracing Brokenness Ministries https://embracingbrokenness.org/

  3. Oct 5

    🎙️EP178. Embracing the Way, Part 2: From Striving to Surrender

    Why does transformation sometimes seem so difficult even after we’ve chosen to follow Jesus? In Part 2 of their Embracing the Way conversation, Steve and Colleen Adams move from identifying the problem of performance-based Christianity to exploring a pathway toward a different way of living. They unpack the six movements at the heart of Embracing the Way: Remember, Clarify, Choose, Recover & Reprogram, Reclaim, and Walk. The journey begins by returning to Genesis and remembering what humanity was created for, understanding what was lost in the Fall, choosing allegiance to a different Kingdom, healing the distortions that shape us, reclaiming our God-given purpose, and ultimately learning to walk with Jesus in everyday life.   Steve and Colleen also get personal about what this journey has changed in them. Colleen shares how surrender has increasingly meant waiting for God’s direction rather than charging ahead, while Steve talks about learning to begin his days in communion with God instead of allowing his agenda to lead. They also reflect on what living this message together has done for their marriage and ministry—and end with a question worth sitting with: What would your life look like if following Jesus stopped being something you were trying to succeed at and became a life you were actually learning to receive?  Request a PDF of the Introduction to our book here: info@steveandcolleenadams.com  Learn more about Embracing The Way at https://www.embracingtheway.com/

  4. Sep 21

    🎙️EP177. Embracing the Way | Beyond Performance-Based Christianity

    Why do so many sincere Christians still feel tired, anxious, disconnected, or as though something is missing from their faith? In Part 1 of this special Embracing the Way conversation, Steve and Colleen Adams introduce the message behind their upcoming book, Embracing the Way: Discovering the Life You Were Made For in Union with Christ. Drawing from their own stories, Steve and Colleen explore the difference between performance-based Christianity and a life of genuinely abiding in Christ. They discuss success, striving, identity, the competing kingdoms that shape our lives, and the realization that following Jesus was never intended to be merely about managing sin, believing the right things, or surviving until heaven. It is an invitation to something deeper: knowing God rather than simply knowing about Him, recovering the life we were created for, and learning to walk with Jesus in His Kingdom now. This episode also introduces the six movements that form the pathway of Embracing the Way: Remember, Clarify, Choose, Recover & Reprogram, Reclaim, and Walk. Learn more about Embracing The Way at https://www.embracingtheway.com/

  5. Sep 7

    🎙️EP176. Who Told You Who You Are? | Caitlin Hawk’s Journey from Addiction to Freedom

    What if the addiction isn't really the deepest problem? For Caitlin Hawk, drugs, alcohol, destructive relationships, and years of shame were symptoms of something much deeper: she didn't know who she was. A gifted young athlete, Caitlin learned early to measure her worth through performance. When that foundation began to crumble, alcohol, drugs, relationships, and rebellion became ways to numb the pain. By nineteen, she was pregnant with twins, battling addiction and suicidal thoughts, and wondering whether her own life was worth fighting for. Then, sitting drunk and high in a parking lot, Caitlin cried out to God for mercy. What happened next changed everything. In this deeply vulnerable conversation with Steve Adams, Caitlin shares how Jesus met her in brokenness, how Mercy Multiplied helped her begin replacing lies with biblical truth, and why learning her identity as a new creation in Christ became foundational to lasting freedom. Steve and Caitlin also explore: Why destructive behaviors often point to deeper woundsPerformance-based identity and the pressure to prove ourselvesShame, addiction, and the need to numb emotional painWhat people in crisis really need from the ChurchCaitlin's unexpected pregnancy and decision to choose lifeThe remarkable story of how a bed opened at Mercy MultipliedReplacing deeply rooted lies with God's truthSpiritual warfare and the battle over identityWhy recovery is a process, not an instantaneous transformationThe importance of discipleship and safe relationshipsTurning our pain into purposeWhy sometimes we need to become comfortable with being uncomfortableCaitlin is the author of Overcomer, Overcome: Finding Freedom from Addiction, Shame, and False Identity. This isn't simply a story about overcoming addiction. It's a story about discovering that what you've done is not who you are—and what God says about you gets the final word. Connect with Caitlin: https://caitlinhawk.com/ Buy on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Overcomer-Overcome-Finding-Addiction-Identity/dp/B0GJQQ4RF9/ref=monarch_sidesheet_title 00:00 Addiction, Shame & the Lies We Believe01:16 Welcome & Caitlin Hawk05:45 Fast Five12:08 Who Am I?16:09 Church, Religion & Missing Identity20:29 Shame, Anger & Numbing the Pain24:24 Spiritual Warfare & What Lies Beneath Behavior26:56 Pregnant at 19 & Living in Bondage29:31 What Women in Crisis Really Need33:52 The Night Caitlin Cried Out for Mercy36:50 A Miraculous Door Opens37:26 Replacing Lies with Truth44:41 Learning How to Live Free49:09 Why Discipleship Matters53:35 Turning Pain Into Purpose57:20 Taking Territory59:20 What Caitlin Would Tell Her 19-Year-Old Self1:03:04 Hard Is Good1:04:15 Closing Thoughts & Caitlin's Book

  6. Aug 24

    🎙️EP175. Leap Before You Look, But God: The Grace That Kept Pursuing Chuck Mobley

    Chuck Mobley has spent much of his life leaping before he looked—jumping from airplanes and bridges, surviving near disasters, starting a business with little preparation, traveling the world, and repeatedly finding himself in situations that could have gone very differently. But beneath the adventures is another story. Chuck spent years chasing attention, affirmation, achievement, and the feeling that he was finally enough. He had known Jesus since childhood, yet his Christian journey was anything but neat. Looking back now, he sees something he often missed in the moment: the persistent grace and providence of God. In this candid conversation, Chuck talks with Steve about growing up as the youngest of eight children, the need to be noticed, running to the Cayman Islands partly to escape his Christian identity, meeting the woman who would become his wife, failure and redemption, learning to surrender his need for approval, and developing a more intimate friendship with Jesus. Chuck also explains why the phrase “But God…” became the real title and meaning of his story: God intervened. God redirected. God protected. God remained faithful. And maybe the most encouraging truth of all: God did not erase Chuck’s personality. He began redeeming it. If you have ever wondered whether your mistakes, wandering, brokenness, or years of trying to prove yourself have somehow disqualified you, Chuck’s story offers another possibility—God may have been pursuing you through more of your story than you realize. Leap Before You Look, But God is available in paperback, Kindle, and audiobook, narrated by Chuck himself. Proceeds from the book help support mission work, including family-style homes for vulnerable children in Tanzania and Uganda. Visit his site: https://www.chuckmobley.com/ Buy Chuck's book: https://a.co/d/09v9puAh Chapters 00:00 — Trying to Be Enough 01:26 — Meet Chuck Mobley 08:02 — The Fast Five 14:45 — Why Chuck Became “The Crazy One” 25:24 — God’s Faithfulness Through a Messy Life 35:06 — Running From God to the Cayman Islands 39:18 — The Woman God Put in His Path 42:30 — The Lifelong Search for Approval 45:33 — Learning Intimacy With Jesus 48:28 — Looking Back at an Extraordinary Life 55:27 — Faith, Risk, and Taking the First Step 1:01:11 — Becoming Who God Created You to Be 1:03:59 — What “But God” Really Means 1:08:53 — Turning the Book Into Mission

  7. Aug 10

    🎙️EP174. From Restored Hearts to Redemptive Communities | Rob Loughery

    What if the renewal of our communities does not begin with politics, programs or institutions—but with the transformation of the human heart? In this episode of the Embracing Brokenness Podcast, Steve talks with Rob Loughery, author of Building Redemptive Community: What Christians Can Do to Make Community Great Again. Rob has spent more than thirty years working at the intersection of business, real estate development, public service and community revitalization. But his deeper journey began when God showed him that restoring buildings and neighborhoods could never be separated from restoring people. Rob shares how a phrase he heard more than twenty years ago—“redemptive community”—captured his heart and eventually became both a calling and a way of life. He also opens up about growing up as a pastor’s kid, mistaking salvation for a spiritual “get-out-of-jail-free card,” and discovering that Jesus wanted to heal and transform the heart he had spent years protecting through performance and success. Together, Steve and Rob explore: • Why transformed communities require transformed hearts • What the Church may be getting wrong about discipleship • Why Christians must do more than attend, give and leave the work to others • How our gifts, passions and stories reveal our unique Kingdom assignments • What Nehemiah teaches us about prayer, courage and rebuilding • How ordinary believers can participate in God’s work of redeeming all things God is already at work restoring people and places. The question is not whether He will accomplish His purposes. The question is whether we will recognize and embrace the role He has invited us to play. CONNECT WITH ROB LOUGHERY Learn more about Rob’s work and Building Redemptive Community: Building Redemptive Community: https://www.buildingredemptivecommunity.com/ Nehemiah Development Company: https://www.nehemiahdevco.com/ The book is available through Amazon and Barnes & Noble. 00:00 Guarding the Heart 01:05 What Transforms a Community? 03:05 Fast Five 05:35 Rob’s Story and Calling 11:54 The Birth of Redemptive Community 16:21 Physical, Relational and Spiritual Renewal 19:33 More Than a Ticket to Heaven 23:05 Losing the Life He Was Trying to Save 26:28 What It Means to Guard Your Heart 29:25 It Is Never Too Late 32:12 What Is Wrong with Discipleship? 34:58 Has the Church Outsourced Its Mission? 40:58 Giving Is Not Enough 45:22 Pay Attention to Your Heart 47:29 Nehemiah’s Roadmap 51:56 What Can You Help Redeem? 53:12 If Jesus Gave You One Square Mile 57:25 Redemptive Community Starts Within 59:33 Find Your Role in God’s Story 01:01:30 Where to Find Rob’s Book

  8. Jul 27

    🎙️EP173. Anxiety Is a Signal—Not Your Identity | Gabriel Andreson

    Anxiety is not always our identity. Sometimes it is a signal pointing toward something deeper. Gabriel Andreson joins Steve Adams for an honest conversation about panic attacks, hidden pressure, trauma, performance-based identity, control, therapy, and healing. Gabe shares how his first panic attack at 30,000 feet became the beginning of a much deeper journey. Along the way, he discovered that lasting peace is not found by controlling every circumstance, but by learning to live with greater trust, presence, honesty, and steadiness in Christ. In this episode, you’ll hear: • Why anxiety may be revealing deeper wounds• How control and performance can intensify fear• The role of therapy, medication, exercise, and community• A practical way to identify lies and receive God’s truth• Why stillness, Scripture, and journaling can help restore peace• What it means to believe that God genuinely likes you Gabe is the author of UnAnxious: A Practical Guide to Calm Your Mind and Reclaim Your Peace in an Anxiety-Filled World. Learn more at:https://gabeandreson.com/ Visit Embracing Brokenness Ministries:https://embracingbrokenness.orgBuy Unanxious on Amazon: https://a.co/d/0eiAttcO CHAPTERS 00:00 God Doesn’t Just Love You—He Likes You 00:57 Anxiety May Be Pointing to Something Deeper 02:45 Welcome, Gabriel Andreson 04:20 Faith, Family, Business, and Marketplace Ministry 11:41 A Panic Attack at 30,000 Feet 16:00 When Anxiety Returned After Writing the Book 18:29 Anxiety as a Signal—and What May Be Beneath It 24:27 Turning Personal Pain Into Help for Others 26:23 Performance, a Father’s Approval, and Our View of God 29:28 Therapy and the Safety That Unlocked Healing 31:54 “God Talks”: Identifying Lies and Receiving Truth 35:15 “Isn’t It Great to Be Reminded Who You’re Not?” 39:03 Leadership, Burnout, Delegation, and Control 42:26 God Loves You—and He Actually Likes You 44:35 Silence, Scripture, Journaling, and Honest Venting 47:59 The First Step Out of Survival Mode 49:18 Where to Find Gabe and UnAnxious 50:24 Closing

See All (181)

Trailer

4.5
out of 5
8 Ratings

About

Welcome to the Embracing Brokenness Podcast. Our focus is to bring the gospel of Jesus Christ to a hurting world. To live authentically and without pretense. To encourage others toward a greater understanding of who they are and who God is. To teach the blessed HOPE that the Bible calls the “Anchor of the Soul”. That is Jesus Christ and His healing presence – not only available in this life – but in eternity to come.

Information

  • Creator
    Steve and Colleen Adams
  • Years Active
    2019 - 2026
  • Episodes
    181
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Steve and Colleen Adams
  • Show Website
    Embracing Brokenness

You Might Also Like