Gary Wilkerson Podcast

Unhealthy habits in life usually begin in small steps. They start when we say, “Oh, I can stay up late for this event and still wake up early for work tomorrow. I can splurge with my diet this week and work it off later.” Sooner or later we may find that these small choices have begun to build into serious health problems. This week, Gary Wilkerson talks with a Christian nutritional counselor, Laura Harris Smith, who shares her descent into a deadly medical condition, the way God healed her body and her journey into good health.View show notes: wcm.link/gwpod41c Support this podcast

Shame and feeling incomplete or insignificant often leads us to seek out worldly solutions. As we spiral into isolation and harmful patterns of living, we can quickly find ourselves with addictions that we’d never imagined having. No one sets out to become a pornography addict, but many have found themselves caught. Unable to pull away from explicit material, they feel forced to watch as it consumes their thoughts and lives. This week, Gary Wilkerson and Bob Ditmer discuss the deeper injuries to our hearts and souls that can lead to addictions like pornography. They want believers to know that we can find healing that leads to freedom.View show notes: worldchallenge.in/gwpod40c Support this podcast

Shame is a feeling everyone knows. It is born out of something deep in our hearts, and we need God if we want to find freedom from it. As we are on this journey of healing and freedom from shame, we need people who point us toward God and pray for us. God calls us to live as a body in active connection with one another and constantly aware of one another’s needs.View show notes: worldchallenge.in/gwpod39c Support this podcast

When we go through heartache and crisis, God has many different ways to reach us. He may use loving relationships, the beauty of nature or even our work. Whatever that unique space is, he can use it to show us his goodness and glory in the darkest places of our lives. Music is how he reached our guest this week, long-time Christian musician Matthew Ward, after he tragically lost two of the closest people in his life. Life can be incredibly painful at times, but God is always near to his children, and he wants to show us how he will heal and transform our grief into something glorious. As we grapple with pain, we must always know that we can go to God and he will never turn us away.View show notes: worldchallenge.in/gwpod38c Support this podcast

We need God our entire lives the same way a very small child needs a loving caregiver. Trying to live as if we can take care of ourselves will only hurt us in the end. God wants us to rely on him for his transformative power in our lives. This week, Pastor and Counselor Doug Welbourn joins Gary Wilkerson to share how dependency on God has enormous benefits for our spiritual and emotional health.View show notes: worldchallenge.in/gwpod37c Support this podcast

Last week, Nate Larkin shared his personal testimony about struggling with a pornography addiction and how he eventually found freedom. This week, he and Gary discuss the types of sexual addiction and where they can spring from in our pasts. God wants to heal these deep heart wounds. As we heal from internal injuries and shed addictions, we will find it easier to forge deep and meaningful relationships with others. Gathering healthy community around us will make staying on the road to recovery easier. While the path may not be any smoother or less steep, faithful friends can walk beside us and remind us of our heavenly Father’s promises.View show notes: worldchallenge.in/gwpod36c Support this podcast

A pornography addiction can feel like a hopeless trap. When we pray and pray for it to go away, we can get stuck in a cycle of despair when the addiction remains. This week, visiting speaker Nate Larkin talks about his own sexual addictions and how he eventually found freedom.View show notes: worldchallenge.in/gwpod35c Support this podcast

The United States is often called the richest country in the world. Often, as believers, we feel guilty about the money or nice things we own. Should we, though? Money is a resource that God chooses to give to us, as well as a blessing. If that’s the case, should we feel guilty about owning a nice house or car? Today Jim Palumbo and Gary Wilkerson discuss the answers and how we can have wisdom with our money.View show notes: worldchallenge.in/gwpod34c Support this podcast

In the wake of Jarrid Wilson’s death, it is more important than ever to be aware of mental illness and spiritual attack, particularly for pastors. In response, Gary Wilkerson discusses the unique nature of depression for church leaders. He also opens up about how people in the church can help their pastors.View show notes: worldchallenge.in/gwpod33c Support this podcast

Those in the church seem to suffer from anxiety every bit as much as those outside it. God’s work of salvation would seem to free us from fear and stress, but instead it often seems to do the exact opposite. This week, Gary explores the deeper reasons many believers struggle with anxiety, despite our faith.View show notes: worldchallenge.in/gwpod29c Support this podcast

What is shame? Is it that one thing we deliberately push away every time we think about it? If others knew about that one thing, are we absolutely certain they’d look at us differently? Why do we feel this way? How do we find freedom? This week, Gary Wilkerson talks about the answers to these questions and more. View show notes: https://worldchallenge.in/gwpod28pb Support this podcast

Many of us deal with bad habits. Some are easy to talk about. We joke about how we need to cut out those “comfort foods” or watch less television. Other obsessions feel deeply private and difficult to discuss, especially in church. Every addiction is planted in a deeper heart problem. Too often, the church has addressed sexual addictions by simply telling us to “stop” without digging deeper to the root of the issue. Today, Gary explores some of the fears and heart wounds that can lead to pornography addiction. | View show notes: https://worldchallenge.in/gwpod27pb Support this podcast

Our physical fitness and spiritual life affect one another in surprising ways. Unfortunately, this relationship has often been ignored or misrepresented in the church. This week Eric Cartier, Senior Pastor of Rocky Mountain Calvary, joins Gary Wilkerson to look at the gracious and good connection God has made between our bodies and our souls. View show notes Support this podcast

Money is sometimes seen as a taboo or touchy subject, but it affects nearly every aspect of our lives. It can open new opportunities or allow us to pass on blessings to our children and others. It can also bring out struggles faster than almost anything else. Investment Advisor and ministry worker Jim Palumbo joins us this week to discuss money and the spiritual impact it can have. View show notes Support this podcast

Many of us have struggles that we aren’t comfortable sharing with others. These secret sins seem so taboo that if we told anyone, they might stop speaking to us. Often these deep soul wounds manifest as anxiety or anger or other sins that affect our relationships with friends, family, and community. So how do we get to the root of these issues? How do we find healing from these sins that constantly seem to trip us up? View show notes Support this podcast

On Instagram, the hashtag “loveyourself” has been used around 42 million times. In modern culture, however, this idea is usually attached to a ‘me’ mentality. But is there such a thing as biblical self-love? Can Christians unselfishly practice self-care? Yes! Learning to love ourselves in a biblical, God-centered way is the best thing we can do for our relationships. Once we care for ourselves physically, emotionally and spiritually, then we are better able to love others in a godly way. View show notes Support this podcast

A lot of people say that they’re a perfectionist. Being hyper-critical of our situation, our friends, our work and ourselves is encouraged by our culture. Many would say this is what drives us to do better. But what if it mostly just drives people to exhaustion, anxiety, and depression? Perfectionism, never feeling like anything is good enough, always feeling like you need to do better and accomplish more, is like running on an endless treadmill. Worst of all, it’s motivated by fear. What if we were motivated by love rather than the fear of being less than perfect? View show notes Support this podcast

After the outpouring of responses to our pastors and suicide episode a few months ago, Gary Wilkerson answers some of the questions that viewers sent in about the nature of depression. He also addresses some misconceptions surrounding suicide, particularly in the church. As Gary responds to viewer comments and questions, he also encourages believers with specific ways they can find healing for this kind of deep hopelessness. View show notes Support this podcast

Prayer is a central piece of the Christian life, but actually doing it challenges many believers. We often don’t pray when we have chances to do so. Not praying has been a common human issue for a very long time, but why does reaching out to God seem so hard sometimes? This week, Pastor Carter Conlon of Times Square Church talks about the incredible power of prayer, misconceptions about prayer, the strange difficulty and the true simplicity of prayer. View show notes Support this podcast

It’s easy to despair at the problems in the world, feel overwhelmed and ask, “Why doesn’t God save those poor people? Why doesn’t he do something?” Long-time ministry leader, John Bueno felt this way when faced with a seemingly overwhelming issue in El Salvador. The problem was so huge, devastating and pervasive that solving it appeared impossible. However, God led John to tackle this country-wide problem with small, simple steps and a faithful heart. This week, John joins us to share how God broke his heart and then opened an incredible opportunity for healing and redemption in this country he loves. Support this podcast