The Ferment Podcast - Conversations About Worship And Transformation

In this intercontinental episode of The Ferment, Adam chats with Bazi Baker in Christ Church, New Zealand about meeting Jesus at a youth camp, and the little seeds his dad planted throughout his life that guided him to where he is today. Bazi shares about becoming interested in music and falling in love with the guitar, as well as some of the key mentors in his younger years and the way they contributed to his formation. Adam and Bazi talk through what they’re hoping to see in the future of songwriting in the church, and some disciplines that might help us get there.

Bazi Baker is the worship pastor of Grace Vineyard Church in Christchurch, New Zealand. Second to being the husband of Rhoda Baker and the father of India Baker, most of his time is spent leading worship, leading teams of musical worshippers and writing songs for the local church. With a degree in jazz guitar, and a graduate diploma in theology, he has a heart for equipping worshippers musically, spiritually and theologically. He especially loves writing songs that empower the church to be Biblical, well rounded, creative and passionate. In his spare time he can be found chipping away in his home studio (more accurately a glorified garage), reading Biblical commentaries, or at a local park with his family.

 

In this episode of The Ferment, Adam chats with Dan Wilt about growing up as a descendant of coal miners in a small town, the profound way in which hymns drew him as a child, and his experience of waking up to Holy moments and spaces. Dan talks about the moment he learned songs are a place of healing and ministry of the Lord, the spiritual grounding and transformation he experiences through practicing a Daily Examen, and how writing prayers recently brought him through a dark season. Finally, Dan leaves us with a powerful word about cultivating a secret life of worship to the Lord.

Dan Wilt a long-time Vineyard worship leader, songwriter, teacher, and encourager of heartful worship, who believes that songs are a place we go to meet with God. He is the co-author of Sheltering Mercy: Prayers Inspired by the Psalms (Psalms 1-75) and Endless Grace: Prayers Inspired by the Psalms (Psalms 76-150) with Brazos Press. Dan is stirred by the sound of the saints worshipping—in circles and in cathedrals, in living rooms and in hospital rooms, in nature and in church halls—wherever hearts are opening to Jesus.

Serving in Vineyard, Anglican, and Wesleyan streams, Dan has a heart to fan into flame the fires of worship, and the spiritual lives of creative leaders, in both contemporary and liturgical environments. He teaches in conferences, university settings, seminaries, and churches around the world on worship, theology and the arts, and spiritual formation. You can connect with Dan through his email list at DanWilt.com.

He lives with his wife Anita outside of Nashville, TN, and they have three grown children.

 

 

Aaaaand we’re back! As we return from summer break, Adam talks with Scott Underwood:  worship leader, song writer, math teacher and family man. In this episode of The Ferment, Scott shares about the way music captured him as a child, how his prayer life has evolved over the years, his motivation for becoming a teacher, and the origin story of his song “You Bless Me Lord”.

 

Scott has written and published over 60 songs with Vineyard Worship, including “Take My Life”, “You Are God”, “Greater Grace”, and ”You Are In Control” , having received Platinum Records for both “Take My Life” and “You Are God”. He is currently in his 27th year of teaching in the public school system as a Math teacher and has recently begun driving a school bus as well! Scott, his wife of 37 years, and the youngest of their three grown children are currently residing in the great state of Tennessee, where Scott still writes love songs to Jesus and to his lovely wife Sissy.

 

 

Please enjoy this special repost of Jay Pathak's conversation with David Ruis on the We Are Vineyard podcast. David shares some things he’s been learning about the story of God through his own story of adoption, the work of music in his life, and some stories of his early encounters with the Holy Spirit and his process of reconciling them with his Baptist upbringing. David also shares his heart in seeking the Lord to hear what He wants to do during any gathering or time of worship and his practice of coming with expectation that the Lord is with us. 

David and Anita Ruis have lead, encourage, and empowered the Vineyard in Canada as the National Directors since 2014. David is a well-respected worship leader and songwriter (You're Worthy Of My Praise, Every Move I Make, and much more). His most recent album, When Justice Shines, was released through ION Records. David has also authored two books: The Worship God Is Seeking and The Justice God Is Seeking. As a team David and Anita are also known to be effective church planters and seasoned pastors having established churches in Canada and the US. David has also been instrumental in seeing Vineyard communities established in Nepal and India. Much of the Ruises' focus has been in indigenous settings, working with people experiencing poverty and subsequent marginalization. They also have significant experience facilitating leadership development and on the creative side David is known for fostering originality in song-writing and the arts in various cultural settings.

A burning passion for the Ruises is both practical and theological integration of creative worship in church community, and deep life engagement with issues of poverty and social injustice. The Ruises currently reside in Kelowna, BC. In their down time they love to be creative and hang with their grandkids.

In this episode of The Ferment, Adam and James Moscardini continue the “Leading Better Worship” series with a conversation about raising up leaders. James shares about the importance of knowing the people in the room you’re leading and the songs they need to be singing each week, how to lead people who are more skilled or talented in certain areas than you, and the role of healthy competition in a worship community.

James Moscardini is an Associate Pastor at Vineyard Church of North Phoenix. James was born in Reading, UK, and moved to Phoenix in 2010 to work as a part-time assistant at VCNP after an internship there in 2009. He is a worship leader, multi-instrumentalist, and producer. James is the producer for LoFi Vineyard and has appeared on many Vineyard Worship albums (Cultivation Generation: My Foundation, This is Your Kingdom Come Now, I Love Your Presence, etc.). He has a passion for helping people reach their full potential in the calling that God has placed on their lives. He currently holds the VCNP record for the number of pizza slices eaten in one sitting at Peter Piper Pizza. More than anything, he loves his wife, Samantha, their two kids, and Chelsea F.C..

 

In this episode of The Ferment, Adam and Matt Farrand talk about the transition from being a utility player and worship leader to the person in charge of worship administration. That’s right…scheduling, auditioning, and even a spreadsheet or two. After fleshing out how the function of a trellis relates to both grapes and worship ministry, they walk us through some tangible steps in creating and maintaining a catalogue of songs for your church, the process of onboarding new team members and how to co-create a set list. Administration may be your favorite thing, but we’re guessing it’s not. So Matt is here to talk you through it!

Matt Farrand is a veteran worship pastor and church communications strategist with 20 years of ministry experience. As a pastor’s son in a rural church, Matt grew up running sound, fixing gear, making the bulletin, helping lead worship… whatever was needed to make Sundays happen. He was called to ministry at an early age, and has been leading weekly services for more than 20 years. Matt studied worship arts and youth ministry at North Central University in Minneapolis, MN., served Vineyard Church in Maryville, TN for 11 years and is currently the worship pastor at Vineyard Church of the Rockies. He and his wife Teri live in Colorado with their daughter Tatum and son Mac.

 

In the first episode of our Leading Better Worship series, Anabeth Morgan shares about her practice of seeking the Lord for His invitation in day-to-day life, how to balance between leading songs and facilitating ministry moments, and tailoring a set list to meet the needs of the room you’re in. Anabeth and Adam also talk about the importance of leaders sharing their humanity, and how to incorporate and work in tandem with our personality, temperament and insecurities in leadership.

Anabeth Morgan is a worship leader, songwriter and one of the staff pastors at the Mile High Vineyard neighborhood churches since 2011.  She has been an integral part of Vineyard Worship as a leader, artist and writer, serving at Vineyard churches in Houston, Columbus, and Kansas City. Anabeth is deeply passionate about God’s presence and loves to lean into the Spirit of God in worship and prayer. Her ability to listen to the Holy Spirit, whether leading worship or groups of people, has given God the opportunity to do wonderful things in people’s lives.

She loves sharing her intimate faith in God with others, enjoys being hospitable, and is always sensitive to the people and environment around her.  Anabeth has appeared on many Vineyard albums such as Cultivation Generation: Servant Wide Awake and My Foundation; Vineyard National Conference: I Love Your Presence and Wonderful. In December 2017 she finished writing and recording her first studio album A Place Your Glory Dwells. Recently, she has had songs You Meet Me Here and Heaven’s Work released through Vineyard Worship and has published other worship songs in collaboration with other songwriters. She was married to Kyle in 2003 and they have two amazing children, Jovie and Miles.

 

In the second episode of our “Pastoring Worship” series, Adam talks with Tina Colón Williams about bi-vocational ministry. Tina shares what the Lord has been teaching her about integration, and how the pause provided by COVID allowed her to step back and reevaluate her priorities. Adam and Tina also talk about how church leadership can better include bi-vocational staff. This is an encouraging and practical episode for anyone who feels like they are pulled in multiple directions and are trying to do all of it well. Tina Colón Williams is an accomplished vocalist, immigration attorney, and worship pastor. Born and raised in Jacksonville, Florida, Tina moved to New Haven, Connecticut in 2005 to attend Yale University, and she and her husband Josh lead the Elm City Vineyard church in New Haven. Tina's powerful vocals are featured on a number of Vineyard Worship releases, including Vineyard Soul: The Chicago Sessions, Roll Like A River, Heaven’s Work and You Are God.  Her favorite things include: singing, worship music, meeting new people, eating all kinds of food, and the pursuit of justice in the world.  Tina and Josh have two young kids, ages 4 and 2.

 

 

The Life of the Mind with Caleb Maskell is the first in our PASTORING WORSHIP series. In this episode of The Ferment, Caleb and Adam talk about the discovery process that the new national team is moving through and how it is shaping the future of Vineyard USA. Caleb also talks about the beauty of embracing reality as Bible people, how the life of the mind has been woven into the Vineyard since the beginning, and how it relates to rich encounters with the Holy Spirit. Caleb and Adam discuss expanding our understanding of what a theologian might look like and lastly, Caleb leaves us with a word for worship leaders. 

 

Caleb Maskell is the Associate National Director of Theology and Education for Vineyard USA. Born in London, he immigrated with his family to New Jersey in 1986, at the age of nine.

Caleb has been involved in leadership in the Vineyard movement for twenty-five years. After spending a gap year at the Toronto Airport Vineyard School of Ministry in 1995, he went to the University of Chicago to study theology, philosophy, and literature in the interdisciplinary undergraduate Fundamentals program. While there, he joined the core planting team of the Hyde Park Vineyard Church, where he served as a worship leader, a small group leader, a setter-up of chairs, and whatever else Rand Tucker asked him to do.

After college, full of questions that had emerged from the beautiful collision of serious academic study and the practical realities of church planting, Caleb enrolled in the M.Div. program at Yale Divinity School. For four years, he immersed himself in the study of theology, church history, and scripture, while also leading worship and working with middle school and high school youth groups.  After graduating in 2004, he worked for three years as the Associate Director of the Jonathan Edwards Center at Yale University.

In 2007, along with his wife Kathy and their friends Matt and Hannah Croasmun, Caleb planted Elm City Vineyard Church in New Haven, Connecticut. That year, he also began a Ph.D. program at Princeton University, focusing on the history of American religion, with an additional emphasis in African-American Studies. After moving to Manhattan for four years while Kathy went to seminary, the Maskells ended up in suburban Philadelphia, where Caleb completed his Ph.D, while teaching regularly at Princeton Theological Seminary, and serving as the Worship Pastor at Blue Route Vineyard Church.

Since 2010, Caleb has led the Society of Vineyard Scholars, which exists to foster and sustain a community of theological discourse in and for the Vineyard movement. Caleb is passionate about developing leaders and institutions that will help to produce a healthy, courageous, and hospitable future for the church in the twenty-first century. Caleb and Kathy now live with their two kids, Josiah and Emmanuelle, in the heart of Denver, where Kathy pastors East Denver Vineyard Church.

 

Show Notes:

The Other Half of Church by Jim Wilder

https://amzn.to/3sHmFpC

 

John Wimber in Christianity Today, 1997, “God’s Wonder Worker”

https://bit.ly/3ChsCfK

We could not be more pleased to introduce you to "We Are Vineyard", a brand new podcast by Vineyard USA with conversations to help us grow in life with Jesus and each other, hosted by National Director Jay Pathak! Check out the first episode right here with special guest Phil Strout, the former National Director for Vineyard USA. You can catch new episodes every Wednesday and hear from leaders inside the Vineyard as well as authors and leaders outside the Vineyard!

In this episode of We Are Vineyard, Jay and Phil discuss “Equipping the Saints”…where this principle comes from biblically, what it means, and how you do it. They also talk about the vital role of mentors in a leader’s life, share personal stories of pursuing the mentors who have shaped them and cared for their souls, and subsequently how they have learned to recognize leadership on those coming up behind them.

For several years, Phil served in the Vineyard on the board of directors for Vineyard USA, as a Regional Leader, and as the Senior Pastor of Pathway Vineyard Church, a multisite church based in Lewiston, Maine. He has also done extensive work in church planting around the world, especially in Latin America, and along with his wife, Jan, is bilingual (English/Spanish). Phil is the author of God’s Relentless Pursuit: Discovering His Heart for Humanity and Thrive: How to Successfully Navigate the S-Turns of Leadership. He brings a non-hyped, down-to-earth, passionately authentic spirit and vision to leading the Vineyard Movement in its divine assignment.  Phil and Jan have been married since they were teenagers and have two kids, 6 grandkids and 2 great-grandkids.

 

Show Notes:

We Are Vineyard Podcast with Jay Pathak
https://vineyardusa.org/podcast/

Faithwalking
https://faithwalking.us/

Reason for God by Tim Keller
https://amzn.to/3GWztMQ

Walter Ciszek
http://www.ciszek.org/About_Ciszek.html