Podcast
Leading Conversations
Hosted by J.D. Pearring · EN
Conversations between J.D. Pearring, Director of Excel Leadership Network, and church planting leaders, innovators, and coaches from around the country.
15episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
Conversation with Chuck Perez
3d ago00:36:14Tap to summarizeA lot of leaders wait for a dramatic calling moment, then miss the quiet invitations God puts right in front of them. JD sits down with Chuck Perez, a longtime Christian musician and pastor, to talk about what happens when you stop waiting for perfect clarity and start moving in faithful obedience. Chuck shares his journey from growing up in a strict church environment to experiencing a real, personal faith at 18, and how that transformation reshaped everything from his message to his ministry mindset.We get into Chuck’s unexpected path through the Christian music industry, touring, record deals, and the simple leadership lesson that kept showing up: just say yes. But the conversation goes deeper than career stories. Chuck explains the difference between gift and call, why worship leading pulled him toward shepherding people, and what he learned from planting churches with too much zeal and not enough structure. If you’ve ever wrestled with ministry burnout, discouragement, or feeling like you’re “doing all the right things” but missing the point, you’ll hear yourself in this.Subscribe for more conversations on church planting, Christian leadership, and practical ministry, then share this with a leader who needs fresh courage and leave a review with your biggest takeaway.Songs by Chuck PerezYou Have A Problem With ThatYour Ways / I Love Your WaysSend us Fan MailWe want to help you find your next steps in ministry.Connect here with EXCEL.
Transcribe →Conversation with Dave Bennett (Classic)
1w ago00:27:51Tap to summarizeJoining the conversation today is no stranger to the Excel Network. Dave Bennet has raised more money for churches than most of us will earn in a lifetime. In today's podcast, Dave shares the life-altering moment when his doctor spoke two words, cancer and malignant. Initially feeling abandoned by God, Dave tells JD how he saw purpose through the challenge and how it has changed his life. Listen to his story today, and you will be encouraged.Originally Posted June 1, 2023Send us Fan MailWe want to help you find your next steps in ministry.Connect here with EXCEL.
Transcribe →Conversation with Adam and Karissa King
2w ago00:36:25Tap to summarizeA single dollar on a honeymoon turned into a fight neither of them forgot and it revealed something most couples learn the hard way: marriage problems are rarely about the sombrero. We are joined by Adam and Carissa King from the Dear Young Married Couple podcast and upcoming book, and we get honest about what it looks like to love each other while still clashing over expectations, respect, and communication.We talk through their faith stories, including how early church life shaped them and how hard questions pushed Adam toward apologetics and a more grounded confidence in Jesus. That same posture of curiosity shows up in their marriage work today: you can be faithful and still need tools, coaching, and wise voices around you. They share why couples often avoid help because they fear looking weak, especially in ministry, and why breaking that stigma can change a family line.If you care about Christian marriage, marriage coaching, healthy leadership, and building a relationship that lasts, this conversation will give you language and next steps. Subscribe, share this with a couple who needs encouragement, and leave a review with the tool you want to try this week.Dear Young Married Couple WebsiteSend us Fan MailWe want to help you find your next steps in ministry.Connect here with EXCEL.
Transcribe →Conversation with Stu Streeter (Classic)
3w ago00:26:56Tap to summarizeStu Streeter is a church planter, a pastor, and oversees church planting for the North American Baptist denomination. He shares with us his journey to know Christ and how that impacted his life. He also recently completed a sabbatical and talked about the importance of taking time to refresh and renew and what it looks like to return to active ministry.Document: Ambition The Driver of IsolationOriginally Posted April 16, 2021Send us Fan MailWe want to help you find your next steps in ministry.Connect here with EXCEL.
Transcribe →Conversation with Robert Acker
Jun 100:33:33Tap to summarizeA lot of leaders talk about “finishing well” like it is a slogan. Rob Acker has lived it, from a youth group of eight kids to decades of pastoral leadership, church planting, and the slow work of staying healthy. JD and I start with a personal story of how our lives crossed, then Rob takes us back to the roots: simple discipleship, opening the Bible as a teenager, and the way the local church quietly forms a leader long before anyone gives you a title. Rob closes with a leadership framework that sticks: character, knowledge, and skills, plus the daily practices that protect the character piece. If this conversation helps you, subscribe, share it with a leader you respect, and leave a review so more church planters and pastors can find it.Send us Fan MailWe want to help you find your next steps in ministry.Connect here with EXCEL.
Transcribe →Conversation with Geoff Wells (Classic)
May 2500:17:10Tap to summarizeIf you have ever been to an Excel Discovery Center, then you have probably met today's guest. From its beginnings, Geoff Wells and his wife Sharon have been a part of Excel Leadership Network. As a retired Army officer, he is often referred to as "The Colonel." Geoff's life story is worth listening to. For anyone that has been lucky enough to meet him, you walk away from that meeting knowing that he is passionate about supporting church planters and how Excel plays a role in expanding God's kingdom. Listen and be encouraged.This episode originally aired on March 1, 2022Send us Fan MailWe want to help you find your next steps in ministry.Connect here with EXCEL.
Transcribe →Converstation with John Jackson (Classic)
May 1100:34:58Tap to summarizeIn this episode, JD has a conversation with Dr. John Jackson. He is currently serving as the President of William Jessup University. In his ministry life, he has been a church pastor, a church planter, and a mission leader of a denomination. He has a passion for the local church and a passion for leadership. His ministry experience has taught him valuable lessons about himself and what is essential when someone is in that role. Don't miss this conversation; you will be encouraged and gain valuable leadership lessons.This episode was originally published on July 3, 2023.Send us Fan MailWe want to help you find your next steps in ministry.Connect here with EXCEL.
Transcribe →Conversation with Peyton Jones (2026)
May 400:42:37Tap to summarizeIf your church can draw a crowd but struggles to develop leaders, you’re not alone and you’re not stuck. We sit down with church planter and author Peyton Jones to get painfully practical about the missing link behind sustainable church planting and long-term mission: mobilising everyday people to reproduce disciple makers, not just attend services. Along the way Peyton shares what he’s learning right now in his Carlsbad church plant, from meeting at noon in a beach community to building Sundays around circles, food, and real conversation. Peyton unpacks the core idea behind his new book Disciplogy, “the art and science of making disciples,” and why he believes many churches aim for multiplication while skipping the deeper work of mobilisation. We dig into leadership development as the true bottleneck, how Paul’s ministry shows a learning curve, and why reproduction is a clearer, more honest word for what the Great Commission requires. Subscribe for more conversations with church planters and leaders, share this with a friend who’s building a disciple making culture, and leave a review so more leaders can find the show.Link to DiscipologySend us Fan MailWe want to help you find your next steps in ministry.Connect here with EXCEL.
Transcribe →Conversation with Paul Taylor (Classic)
Apr 2700:26:34Tap to summarizePaul is almost as passionate about Georgia Bulldogs football as he is about reaching people with the saving message of the gospel. A church planter at heart, Paul planted Rivers Crossing Community Church in 2007. Rivers Crossing is passionate about reproducing other missional churches. He has been married to Farrah for 25 years and together they have four children: Alexandria, Ansley, Gavin, and Eli.This episode was originally published June 30 2021.Send us Fan MailWe want to help you find your next steps in ministry.Connect here with EXCEL.
Transcribe →Conversation with Jon Wong
Apr 2000:37:45Tap to summarizeA search for belonging can make you fearless in all the wrong ways, and Jon Wong knows that story from the inside. Jon joins us from Vancouver, Canada, and walks us through growing up as the only Asian kid in his class, navigating third culture identity, and trying to earn a place to fit in. That hunger for acceptance spiralled into a life of drugs, dealing, arrests, and juvenile detention by the time he was sixteen, before his parents intervened and sent him to Teen Challenge. What stands out is how he describes grace: not as a slogan, but as the steady hand of God protecting him when he could not see it. If you want a Christian testimony that connects addiction recovery, calling, church leadership, and prayer, this conversation will stay with you. Subscribe, share this with a leader who needs it, and leave a review, then tell us: what does a healthy prayer life look like in your season?Send us Fan MailWe want to help you find your next steps in ministry.Connect here with EXCEL.
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