Trauma-Informed Church Kid

Spencer Owen

Reconstructing religion for the hurting with theology that doesn’t hurt.

  1. 5D AGO

    These Are Your gods

    Season 2 Episode 18 of the Trauma-Informed Church Kid podcast Having agreed to the "house rules", the family of Abraham are on the eve of their wedding night to Adonai. Moses, as the mediator, is up on the mountain making things ready. But how long will he be gone? And will the people wait for him -- and Adonai -- or take matters into their own hands? This week, we encounter the infamous the incident of the Golden Calf. We will look at what a "mediator/intercessor" is, and how this role brings two parties together instead of keeping them apart. We will explore the parallels of this narrative to the narrative of the First Fall, and contemplate what that means about the life that was promised to the family of Abraham. We will ponder the connection between idolatry and sexual immorality, and consider how this connects to the wrath that follows from it. In the end, we will challenge ourselves to reject all forms of idolatry -- even (or especially) the kinds which claim the Name while worshipping someone else. I hope you will join me on this journey to find resurrection on the other side of deconstruction! Please like, subscribe, and/or leave a comment! Leave a question on Speakpipe as well: https://www.speakpipe.com/churchkidpod ----more---- SHOW NOTES/REFERENCES https://www.thetorah.com/article/attaining-and-forfeiting-adams-immortality-at-sinai https://theopolisinstitute.com/the-falls-of-man/ https://hal.science/hal-04447049v1/file/beretta_the-anasyrma-fertility-ritual-in-ancient-egypt-from-hathor-to-hermaphrodius.pdf https://www.facebook.com/spencer.owen.543/posts/pfbid02czHQdTx2Arbdu4TFEADPzL6q4k3unCWDRfqnAbAD7SorCQgDWWyWU8mBGw3cST3gl SUBSCRIBE/FOLLOW LINKS Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0LQnbcT.... Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/.../trauma... Podbean: https://churchkidpod.podbean.com/ X/YouTube: @churchkidpod FB DISCUSSION GROUP / 17atr1fasd

    40 min
  2. FEB 9

    Suffering Well (Body and Brain Healing from Trauma) -- HOW OF HURT

    Season 2 Episode 17 of the Trauma-Informed Church Kid podcast This is our third "How of Hurt" episode of the season! In this episode, we seek to examine what healing from trauma looks like -- focusing on the body and the brain. We will discuss how to create a "brave space", find out what it means to "suffer well", learn about resourcing vs coping, examine what mindfulness is (and what it is not), and discover several ways to help ourselves heal from trauma. I hope you will join me on this journey to find resurrection on the other side of deconstruction! Please like, subscribe, and/or leave a comment! Leave a question on Speakpipe as well: https://www.speakpipe.com/churchkidpod ----more---- SHOW NOTES/LINKS 988 Lifeline -- https://988lifeline.org/ Find a Therapist near you -- https://www.psychologytoday.com/us https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6125057/#bibr8-1559827614550279 https://scholar.google.com/scholar_lookup?journal=Humor&title=Experimental%20comparison%20of%20the%20psychological%20benefits%20of%20aerobic%20exercise,%20humor,%20and%20music&author=A%20Szabo&author=SE%20Ainsworth&author=PK%20Danks&volume=18&publication_year=2005&pages=235-246& https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/click-here-for-happiness/202208/what-are-grounding-techniques https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/beyond-mental-health/202405/anchoring-a-strategy-for-weathering-life https://mainlinecounselingpartners.com/progressive-muscle-relaxation/#:~:text=Gently%20shift%20your%20attention%20to%20your%20hands.,by%20a%20feeling%20of%20calm%2C%20peaceful%20relaxation. https://www.therapistaid.com/therapy-worksheet/rain-mindfulness-technique SUBSCRIBE/FOLLOW LINKS Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0LQnbcT.... Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/.../trauma... Podbean: https://churchkidpod.podbean.com/ X/YouTube: @churchkidpod FB DISCUSSION GROUP https://www.facebook.com/share/g/1CJpgo2Q9W/

    36 min
  3. JAN 26

    The Emotions of God (Mako Nagasawa) -- EXPERT-TEAS

    Season 2 Episode 16 of the Trauma-Informed Church Kid podcast In this Expert-Teas episode, I sit down for "tea" with Mako Nagasawa to discuss a wide variety of topics. We take a look at shame and how it affects our relationship to God; we explore the true nature of justice in the Scriptures (retributive or restorative?); we discuss how empathy has been belittled and derided in our culture, and what this does to the Church. In the end, we dive deep into where our own emotions come from, if we can trust them (or not), and what they tell us about both our own nature and the nature of the Father -- who also has emotions, and who has entered into our own emotions to be able to heal those expressions of his image in us. I hope you will join me on this journey to find resurrection on the other side of deconstruction! Please like, subscribe, and/or leave a comment! Leave a question on Speakpipe as well: https://www.speakpipe.com/churchkidpod Mako Nagasawa is the executive director of The Anástasis Center for Christian Education and Ministry, teaching, training, and writing on Early and Eastern Christian restorative justice. He and his wife Ming, along with their children, have lived among friends in a Christian intentional community house in their neighborhood in Dorchester. They worship at Neighborhood Church of Dorchester where Mako serves on the Elder Team. Mako did campus ministry with InterVarsity Christian Fellowship from 2001 – 2014, and earned a Master of Theological Studies from Holy Cross Greek Orthodox Seminary in May 2019. He is the author of Abortion Policy and Christian Social Ethics in the U.S. (2021), Christmas with Irenaeus: How Jesus Honors Creation, the Human Body, and the Human Story (2022), and Lent with Irenaeus: Journeying with Jesus Towards Becoming Truly Human (2024). ----more---- SHOW NOTES/REFERENCES www.anastasiscenter.org (It's a Man's World: the Genesis 3:16 Effect) https://www.anastasiscenter.org/mansw... (The Emotions of God) https://www.anastasiscenter.org/emoti... (Shame and Glory) https://www.anastasiscenter.org/shame...   SUBSCRIBE/FOLLOW LINKS Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0LQnbcT.... Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/.../trauma... Podbean: https://churchkidpod.podbean.com/ X/YouTube: @churchkidpod FB DISCUSSION GROUP   / 1a2s3h3lee

    1h 4m
  4. JAN 20

    You Shall Not Do as They Do

    Season 2 Episode 15 of the Trauma-Informed Church Kid podcast. The family of Abraham are given the "house rules" of God's family, and are invited to partner with him in showing his heart to all the nations of the world. But has God gone far enough? Did he give them a perfect law, and if he did not -- maybe he should have? Join us as we finish our last episode on the Sinai covenant and the so-called "Law". In this episode, we will look at the comparisons and contrasts of Adonai's torah to the ANE codes. We will explore how Adonai's torah accommodates the sinfulness and hard-heartedness of the people, using specific examples. We will ponder how we are to follow/keep Adonai's torah today, or if it no longer applies. In the end, we will challenge ourselves to follow in the footsteps of Israel: to "not do as they do" in our modern society. I hope you will join me on this journey to find resurrection on the other side of deconstruction! Please like, subscribe, and/or leave a comment! Leave a question on Speakpipe as well: https://www.speakpipe.com/churchkidpod ----more---- SHOW NOTES/REFERENCES (Comparison of Torah and ANE laws) https://alhatorah.org/Ancient_Near_Eastern_Index_%E2%80%93_Parashat_Mishpatim/0?useskin=vector (Nathan Jacobs podcast on slavery) https://open.spotify.com/episode/2j9Az1fyj23uO6XuL8A974?si=Hh-Xu13dROOSYN3jxjLosA (Spencer's sermon on John 8) https://youtu.be/rDAvzFpE5Bc?si=BlSloJrdH3jaEOwZ SUBSCRIBE/FOLLOW LINKS Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0LQnbcTTqZUGfMLliJCJim... Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/.../trauma.../id1760390486 Podbean: https://churchkidpod.podbean.com/ X/YouTube: @churchkidpod FB DISCUSSION GROUP https://www.facebook.com/share/g/17ATR1fAsd/

    54 min
  5. JAN 5

    From Slavery to Sonship

    Season 2 Episode 14 of the Trauma-Informed Church Kid podcast The family of Abraham are being made a part of the family of God, through a marriage ceremony at Sinai. As part of these "house rules", they are given the Torah: the instructions or teaching of Adonai to his sons and daughters. Will they follow this "torah" and become like God? Or will they become just like the nations? Join us as we unpack more of the Sinai covenant and the Mosaic Law, tracking with Exodus 20 through 23. In this episode, we will look at the Mosaic Law as wisdom -- as "common law", not statutory law. We will explore what this means for the admonition to "be holy, as I am holy", and how this relates to making Israel like God. We will ponder the ways in which this instruction/teaching was given in order to help them deprogram from a slavery mindset and to take on a sonship mindset. In the end, we will challenge ourselves to consider what this means in our own lives: to leave the "Egypt" of trauma behind us, and to step into the divine inheritance as sons and daughters of the Most High. I hope you will join me on this journey to find resurrection on the other side of deconstruction! Please like, subscribe, and/or leave a comment! Leave a question on Speakpipe as well: https://www.speakpipe.com/churchkidpod ----more---- SHOW NOTES/REFERENCES https://www.patheos.com/blogs/anxiousbench/2018/04/the-church-of-james-dobson/ https://www.patheos.com/blogs/slacktivist/2017/11/25/james-dobson-always-sided-patriarchal-oppression-cause-political-power/ https://www.patheos.com/blogs/religionnewsroundup/2025/08/from-focus-to-fallout-the-life-and-legacy-of-james-dobson/ https://www.ancientjewreview.com/read/2018/11/29/book-note-inconsistency-in-the-torah https://www.anastasiscenterblog.org/atonement-emotional-development/atonement-theories-and-anger-part5 https://www.dneoca.org/articles/matushka1197.html https://youtu.be/pJpHDb-41VM?si=IS1XW71OWbo5xlNX Thumbnail image credit: https://www.deviantart.com/russianart23/art/God-gives-me-a-white-robe-Dream-628419009   SUBSCRIBE/FOLLOW LINKS Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0LQnbcTTqZUGfMLliJCJim... Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/.../trauma.../id1760390486 Podbean: https://churchkidpod.podbean.com/ X/YouTube: @churchkidpod FB DISCUSSION GROUP https://www.facebook.com/share/g/17ATR1fAsd/

    48 min
  6. 12/22/2025

    The Blood of the Covenant

    Season 2 Episode 13 of the Trauma-Informed Church Kid podcast   The family of Abraham are led by Adonai in the wilderness toward his home: the mountain of God. They are given a choice – do they want to partner with him as “one flesh”? Or do they want to join themselves to the gods of the nations? Which one will the betrothed of Adonai choose for herself, and for all creation?   Join us as we follow the Israel-assembly (plus the Mixed Multitude) at the foot of Sinai, tracking with Exodus 19 and 24. In this episode, we will look at the Sinai covenant as a wedding ceremony, patterned after ANE covenant marriages. We will explore the nature of the “law” that is given as “house rules”, and will discuss how they are meant to be freeing (not constricting). We will ponder what it means to seal a covenant with blood, and to bind the two together as “one flesh” in a sacrificial meal. In the end, we will challenge ourselves to consider the beauty of being married to YHWH: the specially chosen and redeemed one(s) who are being transfigured from a slave-mindset to a bride-mindset, in order to undo the First Fall and bring healing to all creation.   I hope you will join me on this journey to find resurrection on the other side of deconstruction! Please like, subscribe, and/or leave a comment! Leave a question on Speakpipe as well: https://www.speakpipe.com/churchkidpod ----more---- SHOW NOTES/REFERENCES https://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/3676643/jewish/Meditation-on-an-Embrace.htm https://onscript.study/ancient-marriage-contracts-and-the-sinai-covenant-oliver-hersey/ https://www.alephbeta.org/playlist/marriage-of-god-and-israel https://bibleproject.com/podcasts/two-takes-test-mount-sinai/ https://drmsh.com/the-cosmic-mountain-and-trees-in-old-testament-theology/ https://www.youtube.com/live/RXGdaJFIB8M ----more---- SUBSCRIBE/FOLLOW LINKS Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0LQnbcTTqZUGfMLliJCJim... Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/.../trauma.../id1760390486 Podbean: https://churchkidpod.podbean.com/ X/YouTube: @churchkidpod FB DISCUSSION GROUP https://www.facebook.com/share/g/17ATR1fAsd/

    36 min
  7. 12/11/2025

    Not All Who Wander Are Lost

    Season 2 Episode 12 of the Trauma-Informed Church Kid podcast The family of Abraham has endured the waters of wrath, and are now in the wilderness -- a place of scarcity, hunger, and thirst. Are they just wandering, or being led? Where are they headed, and why is this the path that was chosen for them? Join us as we follow the Israel-assembly (plus the Mixed Multitude) on their journey to Sinai, from Exodus 15-17. In this episode, we will look at their grumblings against Adonai and Moses. We will explore what Adonai's response to this is -- grace, or wrath? We will ponder what it means to be in the wilderness in the first place, and what the purpose of being there is. In the end, we will challenge ourselves to remember that even in our wanderings we need not be lost. We can always follow the cloud of the Presence and be followed by the Rock of Christ to find our way home: the place where Adonai dwells in our midst. I hope you will join me on this journey to find resurrection on the other side of deconstruction! Please like, subscribe, and/or leave a comment! Leave a question on Speakpipe as well: https://www.speakpipe.com/churchkidpod ----more---- SHOW NOTES/REFERENCES https://bibleproject.com/podcasts/why-does-god-lead-israel-into-the-wilderness/ https://bibleproject.com/articles/israels-rebellion-wilderness/ https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/biblical-topics/new-testament/water-from-a-walking-rock/   SUBSCRIBE/FOLLOW LINKS Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0LQnbcTTqZUGfMLliJCJim... Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/.../trauma.../id1760390486 Podbean: https://churchkidpod.podbean.com/ X/YouTube: @churchkidpod FB DISCUSSION GROUP https://www.facebook.com/share/g/17ATR1fAsd/

    31 min
5
out of 5
22 Ratings

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Reconstructing religion for the hurting with theology that doesn’t hurt.

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