Aaron Williams: Transition, Songwriting & Making Disciples

This episode is a special holiday edition created with your soul in mind. We hope it can become a resource to come back to anytime you feel overwhelmed, stressed, or just need a few moments to recalibrate during any busy time of year.  10KFAM’s Spiritual Director, Paul Reeves, will guide you through a reflection and a spiritual centering practice. We pray the Spirit of the living God will meet you right where you are, that you will be aware of the nearness of Jesus, and that your heart will be open to receive the loving gaze of the Father toward you.  

In this episode, Lauren catches up with Jeff Mathena, vocal coach to many of the leading voices in worship today like Phil Wickham, Kari Jobe, Cody Carnes, Bethel, Elevation, and others. Jeff shares his own story with his voice that led him into coaching, and ultimately to the recognition of the deep connection between our voice and our identity. The conversation ventures into some things artists at the top of their game struggle with, as well as advice for singers who may be dealing with stage fright or the need to prove themselves.  Jeff shares about his app-based training community, The Unhindered Voice. He believes that if your voice hasn't yet done what you believe it can do, it's because you haven't found the right training yet. Everyone was created to sing! Check out Jeff's website, www.jeffmathena.com to learn more.

Our team did a little research on the most common internet searches on the topic of Worship. The results were things like: “What is worship? Who is worship for? What does worship actually do?” If someone walked up to you on a Sunday morning with those questions, would you be able to answer them well?  10KFAM's Content Director, Pastor Jonathan Swindal from New Life Midtown, sat down with our Executive Director to answer these questions and more. If you're in the weekly grind of leading worship or ministry work in general, this conversation is a great opportunity to step back and reflect on the bigger picture of why we do what we do. 

Evan Wickham joins Aaron Keyes on this month’s podcast! Evan is the Lead Pastor of Park Hill Church in San Diego. This episode covers a lot of ground - Evan’s journey of transitioning to a senior pastor/ church planter role after decades as a worship leader, Sabbath being the thing that changed everything for the Wickham family, and how where you sit determines what you see. The conversation closes with a vulnerable, honest question of whether Jesus experienced fear, guilt, and shame the same way we do. Lots of big questions with gentle, kind, thoughtful responses.

Aaron and Jess Leslie sit down with Jess’ very own boss, Zac Hicks, lead pastor of Church of the Cross in Birmingham, AL. Zac’s book “The Worship Pastor” (Zondervan, 2016) laid out a compelling and comprehensive vision that aligns so well with what we teach at Worship School and in this conversation we get to explore his journey from being a worship pastor to a lead pastor. Zac and Jess are a dynamic partnership leading a new church plant in Birmingham, Alabama.  We also talked about “How do you know when it’s time to leave your church?,” “How lead pastors might overstep their bounds in regards to working with their worship pastor,” and how to reach those who are slipping through the cracks of cultural Christianity. 

Aaron Keyes and Dee Wilson sit down with Elias Dummer, a Canadian musician and the principal songwriter and founding member of the City Harmonic band. This thought-provoking conversation will stir every worship leader to wrestle with the (often unspoken) desire to produce those goosebump moments on a Sunday morning. There’s a much stronger connection between behavioral science and song/set structure than we might realize. What’s really beneath it, and how does it affect what we’re communicating about God and the spiritual formation of our congregations? At the end of the day, what does it mean to actually lead HUMANS in worship?

In this episode, Aaron Keyes and Lauren Settembrini (10KFAM’s Executive Director) chat with New Testament scholar and author, Lynn Cohick. We discuss a variety of topics arising from her decades-long journey as a woman in academic and ministry spaces, the road blocks along the way, and the importance of community. Dr. Cohick is the Academic Dean, Provost, and Professor of New Testament at Northern Seminary, with whom we’re partnered for a Master of Arts in Worship degree. She’s spearheading a new Master’s degree in Women’s Studies at Northern, and has become a leading voice in the affirmation of women in leadership in the church.

Aaron Keyes and Jon Egan chat with Leslie Jordan on everything from The Fold, the non-profit she co-founded to nurture creatives of all types, to life and ministry after All Sons & Daughters. This conversation dives deep into what it means to create in a way that’s transformative, how the best art is born from tension, and the skill (and value!) of always looking for what’s good. Leslie also shares her thoughts on navigating social media and her advice to songwriters.

In today’s climate of divisive, either/or narratives, Preston Sprinkle’s Theology in the Raw podcast is quickly becoming one of the safest, most thoughtful places to engage with a variety of not-so-simple topics with a posture of curiosity and connection. Aaron has been a guest on Theology in the Raw multiple times, but in this episode we get to flip the script and interview Preston! The conversation covers everything from how his podcast journey began and how he’s living differently because of it, what breaks his heart, seeking belonging over entertainment, and a way forward that gives hope.

If you’ve been around the 10,000 Fathers & Mothers community for any length of time, you are probably acquainted with our dear friend and coach, Aaron Williams. Aaron is the co-founder of Dwell, a parachurch ministry serving both the individual Christ-follower and the church, and a resident artist at The Worship Initiative in Dallas, TX. In this episode, Aaron (Keyes) and Jess Leslie sit down for a conversation with Aaron (Williams) about discerning the will of God, songwriting, making disciples, and his first full-length record titled “The Hope of Christ,” available everywhere music is streamed/sold.