What if the problem with discipleship isn’t that we’re not trying hard enough but that we’ve been thinking about it completely wrong?
This is Jessica Cruickshank’s second visit to Grow + Go, and to be honest, I’d have her back every single week and not be sad about it. Jessie holds a master’s from Harvard in mind, brain and education, and she has co-written the newly released Becoming Good News: Reimagining Discipleship Through Identity, Story and Science with Julia Schmalz. What she brings to the table is unique. A brilliant mind, a deep love for Jesus, and the ability to connect neuroscience and theology in a way that genuinely sets people free.
We cover a lot of ground in this conversation. We talk about why the good news is a story we live, not merely a nugget of information we hand to other people. We get into how our brains are wired to learn (and why sitting passively in a pew won’t cut it). We talk about fear . . . where it comes from, how it spreads without us realising, and what it’s doing to our children. And we talk about what it actually looks and feels like to hear from God.
One absolute belter from Jessie: “If our life doesn’t demonstrate it, we don’t know it.” Eeesh!
We talk about:
✨ Why discipleship was never meant to be about information
✨ The two types of long-term memory and why one of forgets everything you learn at church
✨ How false narratives get wired into us and how God rewires them through experience
✨ Why we are only born with two fears, and how every other fear is learned by mirroring the people around us
✨ How to practically hear from God, including what to do when you’re not sure it’s him
✨ Why shame shuts your soul down and what Jesus actually wants to do with your doubts and your mess
If you’ve ever felt like you should be further along by now, or wondered why knowing the right things still doesn’t seem to change the deep stuff — this conversation is going to help. Give it a listen.
Connect further with Jessie:
Becoming Good News | Instagram
Connect further with Em:
Substack | YouTube | emtyler.com | Instagram | Facebook | Email
Interested in having Em come speak at your event? Book Em today!
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