Living Equipped with David Tarkington David Tarkington

Jordan O'Brien is our worship leader at Island Church. As a son of a black father and white mother, he has a unique perspective on life and recent occurrences in our culture. His stories and experiences are uniquely his, but hopefully helpful for others as well.

Oh, and Jordan O'Brien is also my son-in-law. I'm proud of him and thankful we were able to record this episode.

Kevin Cloud is the author of the book "God and Hamilton" that looks at the blockbuster musical by Lin-Manuel Miranda and how the life stories of Alexander Hamilton and his wife show clear biblical teachings such as forgiveness, love, redemption, and repentance.

This discussion with Kevin goes into areas related to creative expression, the arts, and the church. The impact of story is key.
Be sure to check out Kevin's website - godandhamilton.com and get a copy of "God and Hamilton" wherever you purchase books.

Earlier this week I was invited to join a group of pastors from my state, along with our Florida Baptist Convention leaders for a conversation related to racial unity in the church. This was scheduled weeks prior to the George Floyd incident in Minnesota, but proving to be very timely now. This podcast was filmed by the Florida Baptist Convention and is part of their Ministry Coaching series (available at flbaptist.org in video format.) I was given permission to share the audio on my podcast. Featured in this episode are Dr. Tommy Green - Executive Director/Treasurer of the Florida Baptist Convention, Patrick Coats - Black/Multicultural Church Catalyst of the Florida Baptist Convention, Micah Ferguson - Strategic Initiatives Director of the Florida Baptist Convention, Pastor Erik Cummings of New Life Church of Carol City in Miami Gardens, Florida and current President of the Florida Baptist State Convention, Pastor Theo Johnson of Sweet Home Missionary Baptist Church in Miami, Florida, Pastor Ted Traylor of Olive Baptist Church in Pensacola, Florida and me.

In 2017 I reached out to Jonathan Bates, owner of Altered Egos, a local comic shop. I did not know Jonathan, but asked if I could host a Bible study in his shop because I found some clear allusions in pop culture and comic heroes to biblical theology. Jonathan told me up front he was not a Christian, so a Bible study would not be happening, but he was intrigued by the concept of conversing on this subject. Three years later, we now look back at what has become a monthly meeting called CHAT (Costumed Heroes and Theology.) It has become a monthly highlight for me to engage in these conversations. Perhaps our conversation here about the launch and growth of CHAT can be helpful for others as well.

I mention the Altered Egos podcast as well. You can listen to Jonathan's weekly updates as well. Here are some links:
https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/altered-egos-comics-podcast
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/altered-egos-comics-podcast/id924694685

In today's podcast, I spend time time talking with Jason and Kimberley McGibbon of Hamilton, Ontario. Jason and Kimberley moved to Hamilton five years ago after having taken their son Liam to the children's hospital there for some vital treatment. As a pastor in Milton, he knew their fellowship would eventually send a planter out to launch a new work. He just didn't know the planter sent out would be himself.

God has blessed Jason and Kimberley as they seek to engage the culture of Hamilton. We talk a little about the uniqueness of Hamilton and the church culture (or lack thereof) in the city.

Jason is a gifted musician and painter. I discuss with him the subject of the arts and the church and how many opportunities are missed by local congregations when it comes to artistic engagement.

Jason and Kimberley have four children - Daniel, Caroline, Liam and T.J. They range in ages from 21 to 10. T.J. has been given a unique opportunity and Jason and Kimberley see this as a Kingdom- focused outlet for God's glory. T.J. always desired to be an actress and God has opened doors for her to do voice work and star in some movies. Some are faith-based films, like the newly released "The Masked Saint." Others appeal to a broader audience, such as the soon to be released "X-Men: Apocalypse." We discuss how God has used this ten year old girl to open up conversations on television and movie sets about Christ and the challenges of parenting in this world.

The Hamilton Fellowships - hamiltonfellowships.com