Todd Seifert provides a podcast that usually appears on this site Fridays. Some are stories or interviews that reflects on the Christian faith by telling the story of a person, a congregation or even a community.
Other weeks, Todd provides reflections on scriptures in the Bible. His passion is for helping the Bible come alive for people who either haven’t read the Bible before, find the Bible confusing or who simply want a refresher on what the passages mean for us in the 21st century.
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Award-Winning Episodes
2021 Religion Communicators Council winner — In the wake of the death of George Floyd in Minnesota, Todd produced a 4-episode series featuring African-American pastors telling their stories.
- Black Lives Matter — Six pastors share their life experiences.
- Response to Racism — Educating ourselves about white privilege.
- Let’s Talk About Race — Pastors white and black serving in small towns and throughout the UMC.
- Color of Law — Author Richard Rothstein explains redlining and economic disparities.
2019 United Methodist Association of Communicators — In this premiere episode, Todd tells the story about brokenness and resurrection of an entire town. On May 4, 2007, the Rev. Terry Mayhew found out he was being moved from Plains and Kismet United Methodist Churches to the town of Greensburg. Less than an hour later, a tornado nearly wiped Greensburg off the map. People from near and far worked together to serve as Christ’s hands and feet to rebuild. Download the episode.
Recent Episodes
Getting to Good: A Book and Discussion with Rev. David Livingston — We still struggle with some of the same problems as Jesus’ first followers — and some problems they didn’t have to face. In this episode, Rev. David Livingston, lead pastor at Old Mission United Methodist Church in Fairway, Kansas, talks with Todd about his new book, “Getting to Good.” David’s first published book explores seven common struggles of contemporary life.
Catching Up with Bishop Wilson — We kick off recording in our new sound studio with a discussion with Bishop David Wilson. The bishop shares reflections on General Conference, the Great Plains Annual Conference session and the challenges facing delegates at the upcoming South Central Jurisdictional Conference.
United Methodist General Conference Previews
Todd talks with five Great Plains Annual Conference delegates to the General Conference about priorities they hope to see approved during the meetings April 23 to May 4, 2024, in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Episode 106 — Rev. Mark Holland, co-founder of Mainstream UMC
Episode 107 — Lisa Maupin, Great Plains Conference lay leader
Episode 108 — Rev. David Livingston, pastor at Old Mission UMC in Fairway, Kansas
Episode 109 — Rev. Amy Lippoldt, pastor at First UMC in Wichita and a member of the Standing Committee on Central Conference Matters
Episode 110 — Rev. Adam Hamilton, pastor at Resurrection, a United Methodist Church, and the leader of the Great Plains Conference delegation
Episode 105 — Nebraska United Methodist Foundation grants — The Nebraska United Methodist Foundation has a series of grants to help local ministries get started, expand and augment their reach to their communities. This episode tells the stories of three ministries assisted by these grants in Nebraska — an entrepreneurial idea at Connection Point in Lincoln, children’s and youth curriculum for The Vine United Methodist Church in Scottsbluff, and a different way to help Brady UMC in the North Platte area worship without a pastor.
Civil Rights Immersion Series
The Great Plains and Louisiana conferences of The United Methodist Church combined for a civil rights immersion trip in July of 2023. The goal was to educate and inspire for anti-racism work moving forward in both conferences. These three episodes share what the group saw, the emotions stirred by those glimpses into history, and how the journey changed them.
Episode 104 — Third of Three
Episode 103 — Second of Three
Episode 102 — First of Three
Episode 101 — The Ark: Packing Perseverance — As we continue our lessons from the Ark, we’ll explore what it means to persevere. We know we’ll face storms in life, so how can we be prepared? And how can we endure? Thankfully, we can lean on the Holy Spirit as our traveling companion.
Episode 100 — The Ark: Packing Compassion for the Journey — As we continue considering lessons from the ark — as learned through other passages in scripture — we come to compassion. Just a little of it, along with encouragement, can go a long way toward lifting up others.
Episode 99 — The Ark: Building Our Spiritual Strength — Our short series on lessons from the ark begins in earnest with looking at our need for spiritual strength when the storms of life arise. And that means we have to prepare. In this and the remaining episodes about the ark, we have a special guest, Rev. Dr. Richard Randolph, a United Methodist pastor and director of stewardship for the Nebraska United Methodist Foundation.
Episode 98 — The Ark: Built in the Sunshine — Todd starts a five-episode series on lessons we can learn from Noah and the ark. In this first episode, we explore the importance of faith and of preparation.
Episode 97 — The Caring Congregation — Rev. Karen Lampe, founder of The Caring Congregation, explains how the organization she founded helps both clergy and laity realize the importance of caring for each other and how doing so can be a real tool for building and maintaining congregational vitality.
Episode 96 — Native American Heritage Month — Bishop David Wilson talks with Todd about Native American Heritage Month, when we celebrate the contributions of Indigenous peoples during the month of November. This conversation covers an immersion experience in Oklahoma, recognition of U.S. Indian Boarding Schools, and more about the bishop’s travels across the country.
Episode 95 — Series on Acts: The Acts of Using the Tools We’re Given — Paul makes use of an empty altar to explain to skeptics who Jesus is and about our all-powerful God. We’ve been given all the tools we need to share the good news, even if we sometimes have to improvise. This episode wraps up our short series on the book of Acts.
Episode 94 — Series on Acts: The Acts of Accepting All People — The study of the book of Acts continues with a lesson about how we sometimes make following Christ more difficult than it needs to be. Love God, love others, and make disciples. A story about a Dallas-area pastor augments the scripture about Peter and Cornelius.
Episode 93 — Series on Acts: The Acts of Showing Trust in God — After a longer-than-expected hiatus, the podcast returns, and we resume our study of the book of Acts, the sequel to the Gospel of Luke. Saying we believe is fine, but actions speak louder than word. Ananias teaches us that lesson.
Episode 92 — Series on Acts: The Acts of Staying Curious — The story of the Ethiopian eunuch and Philip teaches another lesson from the book of Acts. It’s important for us to act on our faith by remaining curious and embracing the questions we ask about our faith.
Episode 91 — Series on Acts: The Acts of Speaking Boldly — As we explore what the book of Acts has to teach the church today, we explore what it means to speak boldly for Jesus in the world today. And, yes, we are all capable of speaking up for Christ.
Episode 90 — Series on the Book of Acts — We begin a multi-episode series on the book of Acts. We’ll look at the book as a sequel to the Gospel of Luke and a continuation of Jesus teaching how to lift up the lowly, engage the outcast, and embrace the outlaw. In this first episode we look at 3 lessons Jesus taught during his ascension to Heaven.
Episode 89 — Bishop David Wilson: 100 Days — On the 100th day of Bishop David Wilson’s tenure as bishop of the Great Plains Conference, he shares in a discussion with Todd what he’s been up to so far in Kansas and Nebraska, as well as plans for the weeks and months ahead.
Episode 88 — Lessons from Pandemics Past — One of the biggest disruptions in the life of the church in the past few decades was clearly the COVID-19 pandemic. The Congregational Excellence team of the Great Plains Conference wants to help clergy and laity process what has happened and realize there is hope for the future. Author Rev. Rebekah Simon-Peter will be making a book tour in late April and early May. She is chief visionary for Rebekah Simon-Peter Coaching and Consulting Incorporated, which has a flagship program titled “Creating a Culture of Renewal.”
Episode 87 — Enhancing Worship & Protecting Your Church — CCLI and similar licensing services allow for churches to make song sheets, project lyrics and use other tools to enhance worship. Their efforts support the composers whose work we use while also protecting churches from copyright concerns. Todd talks with two representatives from CCLI, who explain how they work and what CCLI and other similar organizations do.
Episode 86 — Laity Summit 2023 — One of the newer traditions in the Great Plains Conference is our annual Laity Summit. Guests in this episode include Lisa Maupin, conference lay leader, and Rev. Rebekah Simon-Peter, our keynote speaker for this day dedicated to training and education specifically for laity. The 2023 edition is scheduled for March 18. The theme this year is “And They Dreamed.”
Episode 85 — Center for Pastoral Effectiveness — Our world today is filled with anxiety, and the church is not immune. The Rev. Bill Selby recognized that long ago and launched what is known as the Center for Pastoral Effectiveness. He has made it his ministry to help pastors better navigate anxiety and improve connections with congregants and their communities.
Episode 84 — Space at the Table — The Space at the Table event in mid-November talked about the bright future of The United Methodist Church and featured Rev. Dr. Mike Slaughter, panels of young clergy, academics and bishops, and discussion about how to strengthen the Black church. This episode features excerpts and brief interviews from Lovers Lane UMC in Dallas.
Episodes 77-83 — Episcopal Candidates for the South Central Jurisdiction.
This short series features brief interviews involving the seven known candidates for bishop in the South Central Jurisdiction of The United Methodist Church.
- Rev. Dee Williamston, director of clergy excellence and assistant to the bishop in the Great Plains Conference.
- Rev. Dr. David Wilson, assistant to the bishop in the Oklahoma Indian Missionary Conference.
- Rev. Dr. Laceye Warner, associate dean for Wesleyan Engagement and the Royce and Jane Reynolds associate professor of evangelism and Methodist studies at Duke University Divinity School.
- Rev. Dr. Eddie Rivera, provost of the New Mexico Conference.
- Rev. Dr. Randall Partin, senior pastor of St. John’s United Methodist Church in Albuquerque, New Mexico.
- Rev. Laura Merrill, Capital District Superintendent in the Rio Texas Conference.
- Rev. David Gilmore, Northwest District Superintendent in the Missouri Conference.
Episode 76: Future of the UMC — Bishop’s Reflections — Bishop Ruben Saenz Jr. shares some reflections on what has transpired in The United Methodist Church, the process of disaffiliations, and his hope for the future of the denomination as we conclude a short four-episode series on the future of the UMC.
Episode 75: Future of the UMC — Disaffiliation & Relationships — In the third of four episodes in the short series, we learn about what it means to disaffiliate, a perspective from a church that is leaving the denomination, and the philosophy used by trustees as they work with disaffiliating churches.
Episode 74: Future of the UMC — Where We Have Been — Our short series on the future of The United Methodist Church continues with a look at the history of the human sexuality debate within the denomination. Todd is joined this time by Rev. David Livingston and Randall Hodgkinson, who provide their perspectives and some historical context to what has happened since the first debate in 1972 through today.
Episode 73: Future of the UMC — Where Things Stand — A new series looking at the future of The United Methodist Church kicks off with this episode that examines where things stand at this moment in the life of the denomination. The series kicks off with an interview with the Rev. Adam Hamilton, lead pastor of United Methodist Church of the Resurrection, the largest congregation in the denomination based in Leawood, Kansas, but with five campuses across the Kansas City area.
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Episodes are listed in order of most recent to oldest.
In Layman's Terms 