Best Nish Weiseth Podcasts (2024)

This Is My Story is a special season of Impolite Company focused on telling the stories of women who have made voting an act of faith. In this first episode, we talk with Megan Westra, a Milwaukee-based pastor and author of the new book Born Again and Again: Jesus' Call to Radical Transformation. You can find Megan online at meganwestra.com and buy…

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Bonus: Q & A: Lynne Hybels, Paul Young & Ted Dekker 19:52

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4y ago19:52

19:52

Q & A: Lynne Hybels, Paul Young & Ted Dekker

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S3: Coming Soon: A Special Season of Impolite Company 3:31

4y ago3:31

3:31

Coming Soon: This Is My Story, a special season of Impolite Company, focused on telling the stories of women who have made voting an act of faith. TRAILER TRANSCRIPT: I’m Amy Sullivan, and you’re listening to This Is My Story, a special season of Impolite Company. In the conservative Baptist church in the Midwest where I grew up, women weren’t allo…

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35. Germs and Jesus - Jonathan Salgado 9:35

4y ago9:35

9:35

A boy whose parents continually reminded him of washing hands, saying prayers, not getting germs, learning more about Jesus, eventually wondered about the importance of these two things — germs and Jesus — neither of which he could see! We can, though, see both germs and Jesus. The important thing, Jonathan suggests, is getting infected by them. In…

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34. Jesus Saving Everyday - Nish Weiseth 15:16

4y ago15:16

15:16

Nish shares with us her story of becoming a mom. Through pregnancy and birth and the dark moments of postnatal depression, she reminds us of that small voice that speaks when we are at the edge, the voice that speaks when the lies are loud. It is the voice that says, “You are not alone. You are rescued. You are seen. You are valued.” And it is the …

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33. Jesus Bringing Down Walls - Mark Braverman 10:23

4y ago10:23

10:23

Mark, feeling at home in the synagogue where the Simply Jesus Gathering is taking place, reminds us of the meaning of “synagogue”: a place of assembly; and he tells the story of his becoming fully Jewish as he progressively knew more of Jesus, the best Jew. Among other incidents, this happened when he was in the Holy Land, daily walking back and fo…

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32. Holding the Ropes for Miracles - Dick Foth 10:25

4y ago10:25

10:25

Dick loves miracles. And he believes the world is hungry for them. He shares about miracles in his life and draws our attention to the miracle of Jesus first forgiving and then physically healing the paralytic who was lowered through the roof by his friends. Those friends, whose actions were affirmed and whose faith was commended by Jesus, literall…

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31. Jim and Casper Go to Church - Paul Young 15:59

4y ago15:59

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God is a God of all people. And we, as the church are a “group of people who get to express what is already true for everybody.” Paul tells of how his friend Jim “bought” an atheist’s soul online for $500. For every $10, Casper, the atheist, would go one time to the church of the buyer’s choice. Paul then met Casper who told him that after having v…

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30. Bible: Object or Subject? - Len Sweet 18:25

4y ago18:25

18:25

Len Sweet’s children had two different experiences of studying the same bird — one dissected it, the other observed it in its live habitat. One study was objective — objectifying the specimen, the other subjective — considering the specimen as a subject. And this, Sweet challenges, is our challenge when approaching the Bible; to treat it like a sub…

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29. What Does God Look Like? - Floyd McClung 12:23

4y ago12:23

12:23

Floyd McClung’s young daughter once asked him, “What does God look like?” He doesn’t look like a mean old grandpa, an exacting judge, or Santa Claus. God looks like Jesus—welcoming little children, talking to the Samaritan woman, saving the wedding feast. Floyd tells the story of throwing a birthday party for Jesus in the red light district of Amst…

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28. A Boy, His Teacher and His Identity - Ted Dekker 4:46

4y ago4:46

4:46

Ted Dekker shares that he has spent his life on a journey to understand his own identity and that of his father. He tells the story of a boy and his teacher walking in the Savana. Happening upon a lion and a hyena, the teacher expounds upon the infinitude of God and the smallness of evil. The boy, understanding, finally, God’s greatness, questions …

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27. Jesus the Outdoorsman - Leah Kostamo 9:31

4y ago9:31

9:31

Leah reminds us that the setting of the story is important, and that Jesus’ story was largely set in the outdoors—his birth, death, baptism, wilderness experience, his parables’ settings and objects, his time of prayer with his Father. In a story of an intern finding a rare species of fish at the environmental center where Leah lives and works, she…

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26. Rewriting Stories - Bart Tarman 12:51

4y ago12:51

12:51

The story of two poets. One man’s beautiful epic saved another man’s life. The saved man went on to rewrite the saving story, distorting, as he did, the first poet’s character of hope, twisting her to despair. The first, deeply troubled by the loss, again rewrote the story. “When people read the rewritten version of the rewritten version of the bea…

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25. Audacious Waiting - Idelette McVicker 10:59

4y ago10:59

10:59

Idelette gives a stirring call to keep our lamps filled with the oil of hope, just as the five virgins did in Matthew 25. Alluding to her South African heritage, Idelette takes us on a journey to the prison cell where Nelson Mandela was held for 27 years of his “night of waiting” — a small and confined space. In which small and confined places can …

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24. Touching Jesus - Jawahar Gnaniah 8:27

4y ago8:27

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Jawahar Gnaniah shares the stories of Mother Teresa and his own son with muscular dystrophy to illustrate that when we touch those who are in need, we are touching Jesus himself. Danny, Jawahar’s son, who lived with Jesus, touched many people through his life and his death. Are we ready to touch Jesus?…

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23. The Scandal of the Samaritan - Jonathan Martin 15:08

4y ago15:08

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In the parables, Jesus revealed grace through scandal. The parable of the Good Samaritan is much more shocking than we see because of our familiarity and hesitation to modernize parables as it may lead us to the “dangerous” place of being out of control, disordered, and disrupted. This is how it is with all the parables — multi-layered challenges t…

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22. The Yes that is a No - Cheryl Bridges Johns 12:03

4y ago12:03

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Another story of two sons, one who said yes and didn’t follow through, the other who said no but then did the father’s will. Ruby Turpin, a fine southern woman in Flannery O’Connor’s story, was a follower of Jesus, and respectable in her own mind. But when she encountered a “white trash” woman who spoke a piercing message to her from Jesus, she had…

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21. Knowing the Messenger - Rick Lawrence 9:01

4y ago9:01

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Rick shares candidly about a dark time in his life when he felt the heavy weight of many troubles. During that period he received weekly encouraging messages in his mailbox — anonymously. Rick confesses that the messages themselves didn’t actually touch him that deeply, but when he found out who the messengers were his heart was pierced through wit…

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20. Turning Toward Jesus - Dave Schmelzer 10:47

4y ago10:47

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Dave tells the story of Bill, an angry Jewish guy who is changed by Jesus in Dave’s church plant in Cambridge, MA. Dave suggests that “just” turning people toward Jesus was the key in Bill’s and many others’ conversions. To address the thought that perhaps “just” listening to Jesus’ voice and turning to follow him fails to deal with the reality tha…

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19. Not "Us & Them" - Andy Braner 8:25

4y ago8:25

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Andy, once himself close-minded toward Muslims due to the paradigm of fear, challenges us to be open-minded as we follow Jesus and encounter Muslims. He shares three insights toward this end: explore people, invite people to explore with us, and give grace in conflict. We needn’t be afraid, Jesus is with us.…

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18. Jesus: Best Teacher Ever - Conrad Gempf 14:01

4y ago14:01

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Conrad Gempf addresses the point of whether Jesus was actually one of the best teachers ever. He wasn’t usually clear and convincing, his answers weren’t really based on good use of facts, and he often completely avoided the stated question. When the Pharisee asked Jesus who is his neighbor, Jesus answered with a story that spoke to the man’s unspo…

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17. God Speaks Our Language - Paul Young 14:28

4y ago14:28

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God, as a great communicator, knows our love language. He acts in ways that demonstrate his profound respect for our individual ability to hear and understand him. He spoke to Abram when he asked him to sacrifice his son. But, unlike common interpretations of the story, it was not for himself that he asked the sacrifice. God was revealing to Abram,…

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16. Tigers and Strawberries - Ted Dekker 4:38

4y ago4:38

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Ted reminds us that Jesus told us we would have troubles in this life. And, indeed, we do. Daily. Ted’s story of a woman chased by tigers in the jungle challenges us to maintain perspective and enjoy the sweetness of the present.

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15. The Beauty of Humanity - Paul Young 9:55

4y ago9:55

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Paul assures us that God has a high view of humanity, as seen in the incarnation and stated in Karl Barth's words: “God will not be God apart from us”. Paul celebrates this humanity, as he remembers those who have been his family and passed on, telling anecdotes of the beauty and brokenness our humanity embraces. Asking the question who is “us” and…

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14. How Many Points? - Paul Young 3:19

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Paul wonders if we really believe the list of things found in Romans that cannot separate us from God. He tells a story of a man going into heaven, listing the reasons he should get in. The insightful twist of a punchline reminds us that we don’t have to play that game.

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13. Awakening to My True Identity - Ted Dekker 10:48

4y ago10:48

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Ted, an author whose writing often includes elements of darkness, explores the idea that perhaps a focus on the darkness in the world comes from a fear of God. And while we can’t love what we fear, fear, like other emotions, is largely subconscious. Ted, with very moving stories, challenges us to let go of our fear, even in the dark hours, by letti…

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S3 Ep1: "I'm So Tired of Being Yelled At" 42:18

4y ago42:18

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Your eyes and ears do not deceive you! We are back with a special Campaign 2020 episode. This episode was recorded before the South Carolina primary and Super Tuesday (in other words, when many more candidates were still in the race), but we take a look at the Democratic presidential campaign in its entirety. That means finding possible silver lini…

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12. Pure Jesus is Enough - Dick Foth 15:49

4y ago15:49

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Dick, seeing Jesus in new, disorienting, magnetizing ways, talks about the simplicity of Jesus. He is like pure water, simple, but vital to our souls. But, when we add things to water it doesn’t necessarily improve it, it dilutes it, even makes it toxic. Dick tells the stories of two women. One, the widow with two mites who became iconic as a gener…

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11. The Presence of Jesus - Tamrat Layne 8:15

4y ago8:15

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Tamrat, through the story of the Transfiguration, dwells on the importance of the presence of Jesus. Peter, in Jesus’ radiating presence, said, “It is good to be here.” Tamrat, too, has experienced deeply the beauty of being in the presence of Jesus, even—he would say especially—in solitary confinement in prison. He challenges us to remember that t…

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10. Stories That Transform – Jay Pathak 11:04

4y ago11:04

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Jay Pathak shares a story about “going hunting”. Hunting for people, asking questions like “Would you consider yourself a spiritual person?” His apologetics about the problem of pain and humanistic worldviews dismantle the paradigm of a man he talks with. However, the story has an insightful twist as Jay realized that “knowing” God as Mary had not …

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9. Hope With Jesus - Lina Abujamra 10:28

4+ y ago10:28

10:28

From her experience in the emergency room, Lina shares the story of having to give terrible news to the family of a young child. “Is there hope?” the father asked. And that is the question that we all face sometimes in life, like the disciples on their way to Emmaus, as dreams are crushed, loves are lost and hearts are wounded. Lina recognizes that…

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8. Saying Yes to the Treasure - Bruxy Cavey 14:18

4+ y ago14:18

14:18

In 1 Peter 4:10 Paul says that we are stewards of God’s grace, and Bruxy would say that God has given some of one person’s grace to another person to allow that second person to administer it to the first. We are all priests and can go to one another for grace, the body of Christ as the Word of God continuing to be flesh. And in that identity, ther…

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7. Standing at the Margins – Greg Boyle 16:40

4+ y ago16:40

16:40

Greg Boyle, of Homeboy Industries, reminds us that following Jesus means standing where he stands — at the margins, in the lowly places, making voices heard. And that matters to Jesus, even if others say it is a waste. Greg suggests that we imagine a circle of compassion; then imagine no one standing outside that circle, dismantling any barriers ke…

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6. Finding Love in Brokenness - Lynne Hybels 16:59

4+ y ago16:59

16:59

Lynne candidly shares her own story of finding Jesus to be the lover of her soul and the compassionate activist for the broken. After decades of striving to please the tyrannical god she had learned about from childhood, her physical and emotional brokenness led her to search out Jesus in a new way, forgetting all she knew of Christianity and just …

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5. Peacemaking - Sami Awad 18:16

4+ y ago18:16

18:16

Sami Awad shares his family’s story of escaping war and the lessons his mother chose between—hatred or love? Revenge or Jesus? She taught her family to love, to be peacemakers and to seek reconciliation. So what does it mean to be a peacemaker? Going into a conflict to try to help bring reconciliation? Not only that, but Sami suggests it is also a …

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4. The Power of a Parable - Carl Medearis 10:38

4+ y ago10:38

10:38

Carl Medearis recounts a time when he used the story of the Good Father from Luke 15 to respond to a trick question about Israel on live Hezbollah television. “Jesus does funny things with trick questions. He either never answers them, he asks a better question back, or he tells a story that doesn’t make any sense—we call those parables.” The effec…

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3. Gambling on Grace - Brian Zahnd 17:40

4+ y ago17:40

17:40

Though Jesus never spoke the word “grace”, he embodies grace. And, as he came to fully reveal the Father, we, like the manager in Luke 16, can trust that he is a gracious God. The manager, like the son in the proceeding parable was “prodigal”—wasteful—and was fired because of it. He then preached the landlord’s graciousness to others, gambling ever…

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2. Can We Hear? - Kathy Maskell 9:43

4+ y ago9:43

9:43

Kathy vividly retells the story of the woman who is healed by touching Jesus’ cloak. She reminds us that we can blunder, sneak, or be brought into the Kingdom, but however we go we yield our lives to His life, and we are called daughters and sons. And as children of God we can go and give food to others who have been dead, as Jairus’ daughter was.…

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1. The Many of Us - Bart Tarman 18:16

4+ y ago18:16

18:16

Bart, calling to mind Jesus’ interaction with the demonized man named Legion and the story of the king who wanted a full party, tells of a dream where he was drawn to a light in a dark meadow. A beautiful person welcomed him into the cottage and said he wanted “all of you” to come in. Bart went out time and again, inviting the many aspects of himse…