Summit After the Storm | Leadership, Faith and Resilience Podcast

Bart Wilbanks
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Summit After the Storm is a leadership and faith podcast for anyone navigating adversity, transition, or rebuilding. Hosted by Bart Wilbanks, author of Summit After the Storm, the show explores real lessons forged through hardship—including climbing Mount Kilimanjaro, surviving a near-death experience on the mountain, leading through crisis, and rediscovering faith and purpose. Each episode blends personal storytelling, leadership insight, and spiritual reflection for leaders and professionals seeking clarity, resilience, and strength after the storm. Keep Climbing! Pole Pole.

  1. 5h ago

    Episode 211: You Don’t Have to Be at Full Strength to Still Show Up | What My Torn ACL and My Parents Taught Me About Strength, Pride, and Letting People Help

    What happens when you’re used to being the one who helps—but suddenly you’re the one who needs help? After tearing my ACL, I’ve had to slow down and accept some temporary limitations. Then last week, while Amanda was out of town, my mom and dad came to stay with me and help out. At 52 years old, having my parents step back into that role hit me differently than I expected. In Episode 211 of Summit After the Storm, I share what this season is teaching me about strength, pride, family, leadership, and the humility required to accept a hand when you’re usually the one offering it. Ecclesiastes 4 reminds us that sometimes we’re the person helping someone back up—and sometimes we’re the one who needs the hand. You don’t have to be at full strength to still show up. And my book, Summit After the Storm, releases next week on November 10. Preorder your copy and learn more at SummitAfterStorm.com. #SummitAfterTheStorm #KeepClimbing #LeadershipLessons #FaithAndLeadership #PersonalGrowth

    Episode 211: You Don’t Have to Be at Full Strength to Still Show Up | What My Torn ACL and My Parents Taught Me About Strength, Pride, and Letting People Help

  2. 3d ago

    Episode 210: Your Role Can Change Without Your Value Changing | My ACL Tear, Zeke’s Season-Ending Wrist Injury & What Resilience Really Looks Like | Leadership, Identity & Moving Forward

    Within a few hours, I learned I had a torn ACL… and one of the most important players on our baseball team learned his season was over. My MRI confirmed a partial ACL tear, with bruising on both my femur and tibia. The plan now is four weeks of physical therapy, a more supportive brace, and then another evaluation to determine what comes next. That means no tennis. No jarring exercise. And the marathon I had been thinking about training for? That’s on hold. I was frustrated, but I had started accepting what the next few weeks were going to look like. Then I got another update. Zeke, number 12, one of the most valuable players on our team, injured his wrist sliding into home Tuesday night. He’s now out for about eight weeks. Our season has two weeks left. So just like that, his season is over. And yes, we’ll miss his arm. We’ll miss his power at the plate. I was planning to start him in our next game. But that’s not what makes Zeke so valuable. He encourages his teammates. He pulls for other kids to get chances. He wants them to succeed. He’s a leader. He’s the kind of teammate every coach wants. And that’s what this episode is really about. An injury can change your role without changing your value. That’s true for Zeke. It’s true for me. And it may be true for you too. Sometimes life changes what you can do. An injury. A job loss. A family change. Age. A setback. Something you never saw coming. And suddenly, you’re not playing the role you expected. That doesn’t mean you’ve lost your place. It doesn’t mean you’ve lost your purpose. It doesn’t mean you’ve lost your value. Romans 5 reminds us that suffering produces perseverance, and perseverance produces character. Resilience is not pretending nothing happened. Resilience is being honest about what changed and deciding who you’re going to be inside the new reality. So if your role has changed lately, remember this: The plan may change.Your role may change.But your value does not. And resilience means finding a way to keep moving forward anyway. 🎙️ Summit After the Storm PodcastSeason 6: Lessons in Real Time📖 Summit After the Storm releases November 10🌐 SummitAfterStorm.com #SummitAfterTheStorm #LessonsInRealTime #Resilience #ACLRecovery #YouthBaseball #Leadership #Identity #KeepGoing #Faith #LifeLessons #InjuryRecovery #Character #Perseverance #Teamwork #KeepClimbing

    Episode 210: Your Role Can Change Without Your Value Changing | My ACL Tear, Zeke’s Season-Ending Wrist Injury & What Resilience Really Looks Like | Leadership, Identity & Moving Forward

  3. 4d ago

    Episode 209: Eight Players. One Team. | We Lost a Player in the First Inning, Played Short-Handed & Still Won 9–2 | Teamwork, Resilience & My Mom’s Simple Advice for Life

    We started the game with nine players. Then Zeke got hurt in the first inning. That meant we had to play almost the entire game with only eight fielders. Full infield. Two outfielders. That was it. Before the game, I had told the boys we were 3–3–1, and if we won our final three games, we’d have the best record in the league. Not because the record matters that much. But because sometimes you need something to chase. I told them: “Don’t worry about all three games. Go 1–0 tonight.” Then I reminded them why we lost our previous game. Overthrows. Missed balls. Holding onto the ball too long. Little mistakes. Tuesday night, they cleaned it up. Skyler and Karter both pitched great. Luke was outstanding behind the plate and twice hustled after passed balls to get runners out trying to score. Rhys played well at second, took a fastball to the inner thigh, walked it off, and then kept running aggressively. Reed ripped a ball that should’ve been a home run. Will turned a dropped third strike into a trip all the way around the bases because he never stopped hustling. Final score: Orioles 9. Rockies 2. And what struck me most was this: We didn’t need nine players to play like a complete team. We needed eight players willing to do their job. But this episode also has something special. My 76-year-old mom was at the game, and I asked her one final question. After surviving cancer, raising four children, watching kids, grandkids, and great-grandkids grow up, and seeing plenty of good days and hard ones, what’s one simple piece of advice she’d give to these boys and anyone listening who may be struggling? Her answer was simple: “Just keep trying.” That may be the best lesson from the whole night. You may be short-handed. You may be hurting. You may be behind. You may not have ideal conditions. But you can still keep showing up. You can still do your part. You can still keep trying. 🎙️ Summit After the Storm PodcastSeason 6: Lessons in Real Time📖 Summit After the Storm releases November 10🌐 SummitAfterStorm.com #SummitAfterTheStorm #LessonsInRealTime #YouthBaseball #Teamwork #Resilience #JustKeepTrying #Parenting #Coaching #LifeLessons #Faith #Leadership #KeepGoing #BaseballLife #ChristianPodcast #KeepClimbing

    Episode 209: Eight Players. One Team. | We Lost a Player in the First Inning, Played Short-Handed & Still Won 9–2 | Teamwork, Resilience & My Mom’s Simple Advice for Life

  4. 5d ago

    Episode 208: The Cake I Thought I Wanted | I Spent the Whole Picnic Chasing a Prize That Wasn’t What I Thought | Expectations, Contentment & the Things We Build Up in Our Minds

    I spent most of a school picnic trying to win a cake, only to discover it wasn’t even the cake I thought I wanted. Earlier this month, Noah’s school had an evening picnic. Hamburgers. Chips. Soda. Kids running everywhere. Then I saw a Nothing Bundt Cakes bag sitting near a table full of miniature Bundt cakes. If you know me, you know I have a serious sweet tooth. And vanilla Nothing Bundt Cake is one of my favorites. So while Amanda and I stood there talking, I kept one eye on the cake walk. Every time I thought about jumping in, a kid got there first. Then I thought it was kids-only. Then I saw adults participating. Then just as I was about to get in... “All adults out. Kids only.” Perfect. Later, I heard: “Last round. Everybody wins!” Finally. I grabbed a cake. Took a bite. And thought: This tastes different. Then I looked at the label. It wasn’t Nothing Bundt Cakes. It was Holey Cakes. It was still good. I still ate it. But it wasn’t the thing I had spent the last hour imagining. And that made me think about how often we do the same thing in life. A job. A promotion. A house. A relationship. A car. Something somebody else has. We build it up from a distance and convince ourselves: If I could just get that, then I’d be happy. But sometimes the version in our head is better than the real thing. Philippians 4:11 says: “I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances.” Maybe part of contentment is learning to stop romanticizing what we don’t have. So ask yourself: Am I chasing the real thing... or the version I’ve created in my mind? Because sometimes the thing across the room isn’t nearly as perfect as it looks. And sometimes... it isn’t even the cake you thought it was. 🎙️ Summit After the Storm PodcastSeason 6: Lessons in Real Time📖 Summit After the Storm releases November 10🌐 SummitAfterStorm.com #LessonsInRealTime #SummitAfterTheStorm #Contentment #ExpectationsVsReality #LifeLessons #ChristianPodcast #Faith #Philippians411 #PersonalGrowth #Perspective #Gratitude #CakeWalk #SchoolPicnic #EverydayWisdom #KeepClimbing

    Episode 208: The Cake I Thought I Wanted | I Spent the Whole Picnic Chasing a Prize That Wasn’t What I Thought | Expectations, Contentment & the Things We Build Up in Our Minds

  5. 6d ago

    Episode 207: You Can’t Sleepwalk Through the Moment | We Lost 11–4, Couldn’t Buy a Hit & One Player Still Showed Up Ready | Presence, Effort & Being Ready When Your Moment Comes

    Sometimes you can show up on time, put on the uniform, stand in the right place... and still not really be there. Sunday afternoon, the Orioles had a 1:30 game. Not 7:30 in the morning. Not some brutal sunrise start. 1:30 in the afternoon. And somehow, we looked like half the team had been up all night Saturday. We couldn’t buy a hit. We struggled with walks. We had overthrows. We looked flat. We used three pitchers, one each inning, and our first two each gave up five runs. By the time we got to the third inning, we were in a deep hole. But one player stood out. Skyler. With the bases loaded, he ripped a triple and drove in three of our four runs. Then he took the mound in the third and held them to just one run. Rhys also made a great defensive play, catching the ball and throwing out a runner at first. Final score: Orioles 4. Opponent 11. We lost. But the scoreboard wasn’t the only thing worth noticing. Because there’s a difference between being there and being engaged. Adults do this too. We show up for work. We sit at dinner. We go to church. We attend the meeting. We stand on the sidelines. But sometimes our body arrives before our attention does. Romans 12:11 says: “Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord.” Not every day automatically brings out our best. Sometimes we have to choose to engage. Choose to focus. Choose to be ready. Skyler didn’t change the final score. But when his opportunities came... he was awake for them. So ask yourself: Where am I showing up without really being present? Because you can’t control how everybody else shows up. But when the ball comes your way... you can be ready. 🎙️ Summit After the Storm PodcastSeason 6: Lessons in Real Time📖 Summit After the Storm releases November 10🌐 SummitAfterStorm.com #LessonsInRealTime #SummitAfterTheStorm #YouthBaseball #BePresent #ShowUpReady #Leadership #Parenting #Coaching #BaseballLife #Effort #Focus #ChristianPodcast #Faith #LifeLessons #KeepClimbing

    Episode 207: You Can’t Sleepwalk Through the Moment | We Lost 11–4, Couldn’t Buy a Hit & One Player Still Showed Up Ready | Presence, Effort & Being Ready When Your Moment Comes

  6. Oct 26

    Episode 206: Don’t Just Coach It. Show It. | Mom Stepped Into the Box, Crushed the Ball & Instantly Changed How Noah Heard Her Advice | Parenting, Leadership & Leading by Example

    Sometimes people don’t really believe your advice until they see you do it yourself. A couple of weeks before I injured my knee, I was in the front yard playing Home Run Derby with Noah. The rules are simple. I pitch the Wiffle ball. If he hits it in the air all the way to the neighbor’s driveway, it’s a home run. Amanda was watching and started coaching Noah on his swing. Get loaded earlier. Get your hands ready. Be in position before the pitch arrives. Good advice. But I was watching Noah’s face. He never said it out loud, but his body language was basically saying: “What does Mom know about swinging a bat?” You could see it in his eyes. He was listening... but he wasn’t convinced. So Amanda stepped up to show him. She grabbed the bat. Got into her stance. Got loaded. I tossed the pitch. And she absolutely crushed it. Straight into one of the two trees in our front yard. If that tree hadn’t been there... that ball was gone. I looked at Noah. Then I looked at Amanda. And I just smiled. Because Noah’s expression had completely changed. A few seconds earlier: “What does Mom know?” Now? “Oh.” The advice hadn’t changed. What changed was the credibility behind it. That’s true in baseball. And it’s true in parenting, coaching, leadership, work, and life. Anybody can give instructions. But people listen differently when they know you’ve stepped into the box yourself. 1 Corinthians 11:1 says: “Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ.” Sometimes the strongest lesson we give isn’t something we say. It’s something we demonstrate. And for the record... Noah kept swinging. He tried to match her. He couldn’t. Mom won the Home Run Derby that day. 🎙️ Summit After the Storm PodcastSeason 6: Lessons in Real Time📖 Summit After the Storm🌐 SummitAfterStorm.com #LessonsInRealTime #SummitAfterTheStorm #Parenting #Leadership #LeadByExample #YouthBaseball #BaseballLife #HomeRunDerby #ChristianPodcast #Faith #ParentingLessons #Coaching #LeadershipLessons #FamilyMoments #KeepClimbing

    Episode 206: Don’t Just Coach It. Show It. | Mom Stepped Into the Box, Crushed the Ball & Instantly Changed How Noah Heard Her Advice | Parenting, Leadership & Leading by Example

  7. Oct 23

    Episode 205: Just Make the Routine Play | A Possible Torn Meniscus, an MRI Wait & the Baseball Lesson About Winning Without Being Spectacular

    Not every win needs a highlight-reel moment. Sometimes you just have to make the routine play over and over again. After hurting my knee playing baseball with Noah and Skyler, I finally got a little more information. My doctor thinks I may have torn my meniscus. Now I’m in a brace, waiting on an MRI next week to confirm what’s going on and what happens next. So for now, there’s no dramatic fix. No big answer. Just: Wear the brace.Don’t overdo it.Get the MRI.Wait. Then Tuesday night, the Orioles gave me a lesson I needed. We were short on players. The Cardinals were even shorter. I offered to lend them one of ours so the kids could play instead of winning by forfeit. Eventually, they got enough players and we played. And honestly, we didn’t do anything spectacular. Our pitchers threw strikes. Our defense made good throws. We caught the ball at first. We picked off a runner. We got some hits, took walks, reached on errors, and kept making the routine play. Final score: Orioles 6. Cardinals 2. The game ball went to Will, our first baseman. He saw a lot of action, and I honestly don’t remember him making a mistake all night. He even nearly made a highlight-reel sliding catch on a foul ball. He came up just short. But that wasn’t why he got the game ball. He got it because when the routine play came his way... he handled it. That’s kind of where I am with my knee too. I don’t have the big answer yet. So I’m doing what’s in front of me. One appointment. One brace. One day. One routine play at a time. Luke 16:10 says: “Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much.” Maybe you’re waiting on an answer too. A diagnosis. A decision. A breakthrough. Something you can’t force today. Maybe your job right now isn’t to solve the whole thing. Maybe it’s simply to handle what’s directly in front of you well. Because sometimes... that’s what winning looks like. 🎙️ Summit After the Storm PodcastSeason 6: Lessons in Real Time📖 Summit After the Storm releases November 10🌐 SummitAfterStorm.com #LessonsInRealTime #SummitAfterTheStorm #YouthBaseball #BaseballLife #Leadership #LifeLessons #Faith #ChristianPodcast #Patience #Resilience #InjuryRecovery #Meniscus #DoTheLittleThings #KeepClimbing #Episode205

    Episode 205: Just Make the Routine Play | A Possible Torn Meniscus, an MRI Wait & the Baseball Lesson About Winning Without Being Spectacular

  8. Oct 22

    Episode 204: Sometimes You Have to Bench Yourself | A Knee Injury, Crutches, Youth Baseball & the Leadership Lesson I Didn’t Want to Learn

    I told one of my players, “I’m not going to bench myself.” Less than 24 hours later, I was sitting in the bleachers on crutches. Saturday, I was playing baseball with Noah and Skyler. I was chasing Noah toward first base with the ball when he slid headfirst right in front of me. I jumped to avoid stepping on him. Then I landed awkwardly. Pop. My right knee immediately felt wrong. I tried to stand. I couldn’t. By Sunday, I was on crutches with swelling, stiffness, and limited mobility. Before the game, one of the umpires saw me behind the dugout and asked: “Coach, what happened?” I pointed toward Amanda and said: “I’ve put myself on the disabled list. She’s coaching today.” I still put the lineup together. I still coached up some players from where I was. I still cared about every pitch. But I couldn’t coach third base, move around, or be involved the way I normally am. And sitting in the bleachers while Amanda led reminded me of something: Sometimes leadership doesn’t stop. It just has to change positions. Leadership isn’t proving that you can do everything. Sometimes it’s recognizing what you can still contribute... and trusting someone else to carry the rest. I still don’t know exactly what’s going on with my knee. The story isn’t finished. That’s why it belongs in Lessons in Real Time. Sometimes life changes your role before you’re ready. And sometimes the strongest thing you can do is adapt. 🎙️ Summit After the Storm PodcastSeason 6: Lessons in Real Time📖 Summit After the Storm releases November 10🌐 SummitAfterStorm.com #LessonsInRealTime #SummitAfterTheStorm #Leadership #YouthBaseball #Coaching #LeadershipLessons #Adaptability #LetOthersLead #BaseballLife #Parenting #Faith #ChristianPodcast #LifeLessons #KeepClimbing #Episode204

    Episode 204: Sometimes You Have to Bench Yourself | A Knee Injury, Crutches, Youth Baseball & the Leadership Lesson I Didn’t Want to Learn
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Summit After the Storm is a leadership and faith podcast for anyone navigating adversity, transition, or rebuilding. Hosted by Bart Wilbanks, author of Summit After the Storm, the show explores real lessons forged through hardship—including climbing Mount Kilimanjaro, surviving a near-death experience on the mountain, leading through crisis, and rediscovering faith and purpose. Each episode blends personal storytelling, leadership insight, and spiritual reflection for leaders and professionals seeking clarity, resilience, and strength after the storm. Keep Climbing! Pole Pole.

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