Breaking Bread Podcast
226 episodes - English - Latest episode: about 11 hours ago - ★★★★★ - 38 ratingsAround the meal table, needs are met. As participants we celebrate the common solution to our physical need - bread. While we do so, bread of another type is broken as well. Help, hope and encouragement are shared to meet the needs of our struggles, heartaches and questions. Breaking Bread is reminiscent of these life giving conversations. This podcast strives to meet some of our common needs through our common solution – The Bread of Life.
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Episodes
Making Peace with Pain (Part 2 of 2)
April 29, 2024 06:00 - 16 minutes - 29.5 MBThe question before every human being is not if they have pain, but rather, what they do with the pain that they have. Some people make peace with their pain. Unfortunately, many do not. In this Breaking Bread two-part series, Brian Sutter and Kaleb Beyer help us understand what making peace with pain means, why it is important and how to do it. Show notes: What does making peace with pain mean? Answer: Making peace with pain happens when we change our relationship with pain. Inste...
Making Peace with Pain (Part 1 of 2)
April 15, 2024 06:00 - 22 minutes - 41.3 MBThe question before every human being is not if they have pain, but rather, what they do with the pain that they have. Some people make peace with their pain. Unfortunately, many do not. In this Breaking Bread two-part series, Brian Sutter and Kaleb Beyer help us understand what making peace with pain means, why it is important and how to do it.
When Our Kids Make Poor Choices
April 01, 2024 05:00 - 22 minutes - 40.7 MBOne of the pains of parenting is watching your children make poor choices. What should we do when there is not much we can do? In this episode of Breaking Bread, Brian Sutter and Craig Stickling speak to the do’s and don’ts of parenting through these challenges. Show Notes: So your child made the wrong decision. Remember this Mom and Dad: Hang in there with them. Protect your relationship with them. Have a posture of grace with them. Be learners together. Allow natural co...
4 Cautions with Spiritual Disciplines
March 18, 2024 05:00 - 18 minutes - 34.5 MBSpiritual disciplines are ancient. Yet they are growing in popularity with our contemporary Christian culture. What are common cautions that should accompany our wise application of spiritual disciplines? In this episode of Breaking Bread, Isaac Funk helps us understand four cautions: legalism, agency, syncretism and mysticism. Show Notes: Spiritual disciplines are those practices we habitually do in the body that form us into Christlikeness. Reading the Word, silence, solitude, fasting,...
Oral History
March 04, 2024 06:00 - 27 minutes - 50.7 MBThis episode of Breaking Bread, Fred Witzig and Erica Steffen give us a history lesson. Not a history lesson about our past. But a lesson about how to capture our past into history. Oral history is the means for getting this done. Fred and Erica will both explain how to carry out this collection of history as well as cast a vision for our participation in a larger Elder Teaching Resource effort.
Understanding Depression (Part 2 of 2)
February 19, 2024 13:10 - 15 minutes - 29.3 MBHope exists. Depression is not a life sentence. In this episode of Breaking Bread, Kathy Knochel and Ted Witzig Jr. chart the course for walking through depression to the other side. Show notes: There are different kinds of depression. Treatments can vary. However, the path through depression typically has three benchmarks. The first is changing behavior. The second is a shift in thinking. The third is an improved mood. 1. Behavior activation: · Physical activity: movi...
Understanding Depression (Part 1 of 2)
February 05, 2024 20:55 - 17 minutes - 31.7 MBDepression is real and prevalent. Many live in the felt reality that the skies are cloudy, and no sun exists behind them. In this episode of Breaking Bread, Kathy Knochel and Ted Witzig Jr. speak to the realities of depression - what it is, what it feels like, and what effect it has on living. Show notes: What it is: Clinical depression is a mental condition that flags five of the following nine symptoms: · Sad or depressed mood. · Loss of interest in things once ap...
Whole Brain Living: Using the Left and Right Brain (Part 2)
January 22, 2024 13:14 - 13 minutes - 25.2 MBWhile we might lean more towards left or right brain thinking, we use them both. In fact, it is important we do. And we can. In this episode of Breaking Bread, Ted Witzig Jr., Brian Sutter, Kaleb Beyer and Kathy Knochel help us understand how important it is that we connect with people with both halves of our brain.
Whole Brain Living: Understanding the Left and Right Brain (Part 1)
January 08, 2024 17:19 - 20 minutes - 37 MBTwo halves make a whole. This is true for everything. But it is uniquely true for our brains. Each half, the left and the right, bring a wholeness that without either one, we are much less than half. In this episode of Breaking Bread, Ted Witzig Jr., Brian Sutter, Kaleb Beyer and Kathy Knochel help us better understand the vast wonder of our created brains and give us a vision for healthy functioning that uses whole brain living. Show notes: The left brain (hemisphere) is understood to...
Christmas Hymns
December 22, 2023 06:00 - 17 minutes - 31.3 MBMusic and verse capture, preserve, and allows the participant to access deep truths with a melody that matches the beauty, mystery and hope of the message. This is what we have in Christmas hymnody. In this episode of Breaking Bread, Katie Miller, Arlan Miller, Isaac Funk, Shauna Streitmatter and Matt Kaufmann share their favorite Christmas lyrics that capture the wonder of Christmas – God with us. Show notes: Arlan: O Little Town of Bethlehem by Phillips Brooks The hopes and fears...
Tech & Kids Part 2
December 11, 2023 06:00 - 28 minutes - 51.7 MBParenting our children through the highs and lows of our technological world can be a challenge. In this episode of Breaking Bread, Jon Moser provides us with four helps. He gives us one technology lesson to instruct our children in. He gives us one technology danger to protect our children from. He provides one issue that we should be able to engage our children about and he gives us one redeeming quality that technology offers our kids. Show Notes: Instructive: · Help your ...
3 things Teen Girls Should Know
November 27, 2023 06:00 - 28 minutes - 51.3 MBWith all the voices speaking into our teenage girls today, let’s be sure ours is one. In this episode of Breaking Bread, Kathy Knochel and Katie Miller turn up the volume on 3 critical ideas from which our teenage girls would benefit. And it’s no surprise, God very much wants to speak into these important matters. Show notes: Three things teen girls should know: 1. Learn the sound of your inner voice. · Learn the difference between healthy and unhealthy self-talk. ...
Beauty and Faith: Part 2 of 2
November 13, 2023 06:00 - 19 minutes - 26.9 MBEcclesiastes 3:11 says that "makes all things beautiful in his time.” This truth is curious. It would seem that God has an intention beyond making things right. Or making things work. Or making things whole. He intends more than those...He intends to make things beautiful. In this episode of Breaking Bread, Isaac Funk and Shauna Streitmatter help us understand beauty and faith. When our senses are exercised to detect beauty, we will live a bit more as we were created to live. Show notes: ...
Beauty and Faith- Part 1 of 2
October 30, 2023 05:00 - 21 minutes - 29.8 MBEcclesiastes 3:11 says that God makes all things beautiful in his time. This truth is curious. It would seem that God has an intention beyond making things right. Or making things work. Or making things whole. He intends more than those...He intends to make things beautiful. In this episode of Breaking Bread, Isaac Funk and Shauna Streitmatter help us understand beauty and faith. When our senses are exercised to detect beauty, we will live a bit more as we were created to live. Show note...
Having the Difficult Conversation
October 16, 2023 13:26 - 23 minutes - 42.5 MBWhen it comes to having difficult conversations, many of us are avoidant. Unfortunately, this passivity is not helpful in the long run. In this episode of Breaking Bread, Arlan Miller helps us sort out the mindset and the skillset of stepping into these difficult conversations. Show notes: When might a difficult conversation be necessary? · Difficult conversations might be necessary when silence on issues that concern us and others are leading to increasingly unhealthy ends. ...
Can People Change? Part 2 of 2
October 03, 2023 00:44 - 20 minutes - 38.4 MBPersonal change can be so hard sometimes. We want to think differently and act differently. But we don’t. In this episode of Breaking Bread, three guests weigh in on the matter - a pastor, a psychologist, and a psychiatrist. Together, Jeff Waibel, Ted Witzig Jr. and Aaron Plattner explore the landscape of people change and provide hope that it is possible.
Can People Change? Part 1 of 2
September 18, 2023 13:08 - 28 minutes - 52.3 MBPersonal change can be so hard sometimes. We want to think differently and act differently. But we don’t. In this episode of Breaking Bread, three guests weigh in on the matter - a pastor, a psychologist, and a psychiatrist. Together, Jeff Waibel, Ted Witzig Jr. and Aaron Plattner explore the landscape of people change and provide hope that it is possible.
Gender Part 2: Three Lenses through which We View Gender Dysphoria.
September 05, 2023 16:54 - 19 minutes - 35.6 MBOn divisive cultural topics like gender identity, sometimes we miss each other. Talking past each other. Unable to relate or understand with one another. To help with this understanding, Brian Sutter presents three lenses that capture three different “starting points” for the persuasions we hold. Show Notes: Mark Yarhouse in his book "Understanding Gender Dysphoria” presents three lenses through which we view the gender identity debate. By understanding these lenses, we will understand o...
Gender Part 1: Gender Expression
August 21, 2023 05:00 - 25 minutes - 45.8 MBToday we are thinking more deeply about gender -maleness and femaleness. To help, Brian Sutter and Craig Stickling share their insights on this important matter. In this episode of Breaking Bread, we discuss biological sex and its outward expression in our gender. Show notes: Terminology is important. The words we use make a difference. Further, the meaning of the terms we use change. It is important we are informed on the definition of terms. Biological sex – The binary sex determinati...
Tech & Kids Part 1
August 07, 2023 14:40 - 25 minutes - 47.1 MBParenting our children through the highs and lows of our technological world can be a challenge. In this episode of Breaking Bread, Craig Stickling provides us with four helps. He gives us one technology lesson to instruct our children in. He gives us one technology danger to protect our children from. He provides one issue that we should be able to engage our children about and he gives us one redeeming quality that technology offers our kids. Show Notes: Instructive: Help your kids un...
Complex Trauma: What are the professional tools for treatment?
July 24, 2023 18:05 - 8 minutes - 16.4 MBCognitive behavior therapy and EMDR are helpful tools in the clinical toolbox for treating complex trauma. In this audio recording, Kathy Knochel and Brian Sutter provide some wherewithal to what these are and other methods.
Complex Trauma: What does help look like?
July 24, 2023 17:37 - 26 minutes - 48 MBGod asks us to participate in the life-giving care of people. Untangling the web trauma spins for those who have complex PTSD is one of those rewarding opportunities. In this episode of Breaking Bread, Kathy Knochel and Brian Sutter take the discussion of complex trauma to the next level. They help us see what help looks like and gives us all a role to play. Show notes: Help for those with complex trauma can be understood in three phases: Phase 1: Safety and Stabilization Stabilize t...
Complex Trauma: What is it?
July 10, 2023 12:35 - 24 minutes - 44.8 MBSometimes PTSD cannot be traced back to a single event. Rather, for a person with a web of traumatic events in their past and present, PTSD is a state of “normal”. It is the air they breathe. In this episode of Breaking Bread, Kathy Knochel and Brian Sutter teach us what complex PTSD is. For those who want to live well with people, it is a concept that is good for us to understand. Show notes: Definition: Some people experience layers of trauma. Trauma on top of trauma produces an unheal...
The Community That Disciples: 5-Essentials
June 26, 2023 05:00 - 17 minutes - 24.1 MBGod asks us to participate in the work of the Spirit in the lives of others. “Go ye therefore and make disciples,” Jesus said. The local church just might be ground zero for this important work. In this episode of Breaking Bread, Arlan Miller and Matt Kaufmann outline 5 essentials for the community that will disciple. Below are five essentials for the community that will disciple: “Here I am.” Discipleship happens in a location. The community that disciples practices being present with...
Letting Go of Control
June 12, 2023 05:00 - 24 minutes - 44.8 MBGod has knit into our frame the capacity to have dominion. At some level, it comes from being an image bearer of his. Yet, it comes as no surprise, that after the fall, our capacity to have dominion has been bent. For the worse. In this episode of Breaking Bread, Brian Sutter and Kaleb Beyer address the tendency we have towards taking unhealthy control of situations. Wonderfully, letting go of control is possible, and who teaches it better than the Lord of Lords and King of Kings ~ Jesus. ...
A Historical Look at Spiritual Disciplines
May 29, 2023 05:00 - 14 minutes - 27.1 MBSpiritual disciplines are often associated with the monastic life. This can be both helpful and unhelpful. Historian Fred Witzig, with the help of Isaac Funk, helps sort out the good from the bad as it regards practicing these disciplines. In the end, Fred and Isaac help cast an encouraging vision for practicing spiritual disciplines.
The Benefits of Spiritual Disciplines Part 1
May 15, 2023 13:02 - 12 minutes - 22.6 MBThe practiced pianist, athlete, and mathematician share the commonality of making hard things look easy by way of practice. The same is true for the practicing Christian. In this episode of Breaking Bread, Isaac Funk and Fred Witzig help us understand what spiritual disciplines are and how they are helpful means to the end that we might be more like Christ.
Patience: A Requirement for Life
May 01, 2023 14:02 - 15 minutes - 28.6 MBLife is full of unpleasantness. With the unpleasantness we can’t change, we will need to endure through it. The skill of enduring this unpleasantness is patience. It is no wonder that patience is exhorted in Scripture. In this episode of Breaking Bread, Kathy Knochel highlights this fruit of the Spirit and gives us some keys on how to be more patient. Show notes: Patience is being emotionally regulated while at the same time enduring unpleasantness. Patience is not necessarily marked by...
Our Intuitive Playbook Part 3
April 17, 2023 05:00 - 22 minutes - 41.3 MBLike an athletic team running plays out of their playbook, we become skilled at running plays out of ours. However, those plays are not running or passing plays. Rather, they are intuitions- feelings and thoughts about people and the circumstances that confront us. Our reactions to these situations are so automatic, they operate in our subconscious. In these three episodes of Breaking Bread, Physician Keyna Martinez helps bring our playbook into our conscious awareness so we can learn, adjus...
Our Intuitive Playbook: Part 2
April 03, 2023 13:44 - 24 minutes - 45.4 MBLike an athletic team running plays out of their playbook, we become skilled at running plays out of ours. However, those plays are not running or passing plays. Rather, they are intuitions- feelings and thoughts about people and the circumstances that confront us. Our reactions to these situations are so automatic, they operate in our subconscious. In these three episodes of Breaking Bread, Physician Keyna Martinez helps bring our playbook into our conscious awareness so we can learn, adjus...
Our Intuitive Playbook: Why we think, feel and react to people the way we do.
March 20, 2023 16:20 - 26 minutes - 48 MBLike an athletic team running plays out of their playbook, we become skilled at running plays out of ours. However, those plays are not running or passing plays. Rather, they are intuitions- feelings and thoughts about people and the circumstances that confront us. Our reactions to these situations are so automatic, they operate in our subconscious. In these three episodes of Breaking Bread, Physician Keyna Martinez helps bring our playbook into our conscious awareness so we can learn, adjus...
Caring for Tragedy in the Church Community
March 06, 2023 17:14 - 25 minutes - 47.5 MBTragedy comes to us unannounced. It is a shock in the human experience. The new and unwanted reality has a way of troubling us to the core. Yet hope can emerge if a community is present to care for the troubled. In this episode of Breaking Bread, Ted Witzig Jr. speaks to those in the caring community. There are some things to know about support in times of crisis that will prove helpful to the troubled. Show notes: Definition of tragedy: Tragedy is a sudden, shock inducing experience tha...
What to Do if My Child has Seen Porn?
February 20, 2023 06:00 - 22 minutes - 41 MBWe do what we can to prevent our children from being exposed to pornography. But what if they do become exposed? First time exposure to porn can have long lasting effects on the young mind. In this episode of Breaking Bread, Brian Sutter and Jacob Feucht coach parents on the do’s and don’ts of engaging our children after exposure. Show notes: Consider the following tips if your child has a first time exposure to pornography. What NOT to do: Avoid shaming. This can lead to is...
Parenting the “Easy” Child
February 06, 2023 06:00 - 24 minutes - 45 MBDifficult children demand a lot from parents. Wonderfully, easy children do not. Yet, the easy child should not be overlooked. In this episode of Breaking Bread, Craig Stickling reads a letter from an easy child to her parents. It helps us see the errors we can make when neglecting our easy ones. Moreover, the undue burden that can be placed on them unwittingly. Show Notes: Definition: Some children require a lot of parenting. Whether it is a streak of rebellion or special needs, thes...
When Neurodiversity is Present in Marriage: ADHD
January 23, 2023 18:32 - 26 minutes - 49.3 MBMarriages can find themselves in places of despair. Marriages often assume the problems are symptoms of waning affection. Yet what is actually present is neurodiversity. In this episode of Breaking Bread, Kaleb Beyer educates us on the impact ADHD can have on marriage relationships and the hope that can be breathed into a marriage when this is understood. Show Notes: What is neurodiversity? The neurodiverse brain is contrasted with the neurotypical brain. The neurodiverse brain thi...
Four Action Words for the New Year
January 09, 2023 15:26 - 20 minutes - 37.3 MBThe new year carries a sense of hope for needed change. In this episode of Breaking Bread, the clinical staff from ACCFS share four words to help inspire and guide the changes we need to make. These simple four verbs will be easy to remember and promise helpful practical action. Show Notes: Four simple action words that can motivate and guide positive change for our new year. Walk – Slowing down is necessary for us to live well. It puts us in a position to live mindfully. Cultivate –...
Local Church
December 26, 2022 06:00 - 15 minutes - 27.6 MBGod saves his people into families. A nurturing community where souls are cared for and loved. In this episode of Breaking Bread, ACCFS’s church outreach team shares the vision that propels the work they do. Show notes: Vision: By God’s grace, the Church Outreach division of ACCFS is committed to supporting the local church by providing resources and teaching that equips the local church to care for its members.
Listen To Your Body
December 12, 2022 06:00 - 20 minutes - 37.6 MBOften, our bodies seem like a liability to our emotional, relational, and spiritual health. After all, our flesh is weak. Yet Jesus beautifully sanctioned the bodily experience when He came to earth in the flesh. He showed us that our bodies should not be scorned but instead listened to and exercised to the glory of God. In this episode of Breaking Bread, Brian Sutter and Isaac Funk help us see the role our bodies play in our emotional and spiritual health. Show notes: Common Misconcep...
The Elderly Advantage: Seeing More
November 28, 2022 06:00 - 15 minutes - 28.3 MBJesus saw more. He saw what others missed in a setting. He saw what mattered in an interaction. He understood the reasons for a situation when others overlooked it. Jesus saw more. In this episode of Breaking Bread, Arlan Miller and Matt Kaufmann highlight critical purpose for the elderly among us. Help us like Jesus helped his disciples – help us see more. Show Notes: Help us see what others miss: Just as a passenger in a car can see more of the surroundings than the driver, we need th...
Walking through the Grief of Suicide: A Testimony
November 14, 2022 06:00 - 44 minutes - 81.6 MB“Grief can’t be avoided; it waits for you to walk through it.” June Knobloch said this. She and her husband understand grief deeply after suffering the loss of their son Jeff to suicide. In this episode of Breaking Bread, Del and June share their story of grief and how they walked through it. Resources: 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline This Lifeline is for people experiencing a crisis and is available 24/7 in the United States. If you need help for yourself, a friend, or family member, cal...
The Benefits of Laughter
October 31, 2022 12:47 - 26 minutes - 49.1 MBLaughter is relational, healing and necessary. In this episode of Breaking Bread ACCFS clinicians Ted Witzig Jr., Brian Sutter, Kathy Knochel and Kaleb Beyer enjoy a light moment together. But don’t underestimate the weighty benefits such moments bring to our mental health. Show notes: There are many matters that concern us: struggle, hurt, loss and sorrow abound. Yet, even among these, humor exists. Sometimes laughter springs from surprising places acting as a grace from our heavenly ...
Emotional Regulation
October 17, 2022 05:00 - 28 minutes - 51.8 MBEmotion is like fuel. The right amount, at the right time and for the right purpose, yields wonderful results. However, on a negative note, emotion is like fuel. That is why healthy people know how to regulate their emotions. In this episode of Breaking Bread, Kathy Knochel and Brian Sutter coach us on how to do that. Show Notes: What is Emotional Regulation? People who have good command of their emotions use emotional regulation. In fact, emotions for these people are used in their lif...
Disagreement in Marriage: When Spouses Don’t Share the Same Ideals
October 03, 2022 13:13 - 26 minutes - 48 MBDisagreement in marriage is real. Anyone who is married understands the wisdom of being “equally yoked.” Fortunately, Christians are “equally yoked” on the basis of faith in Christ. Yet, there are many other ideals, values and dreams we might not be so “equally yoked.” In this episode of Breaking Bread, Kaleb Beyer gives us a path forward for finding unity in the midst of the conflict this reality brings. Show notes: Background: Conflict around values and dreams are uniquely challenging ...
Shepherding Our Child’s Image of God
September 19, 2022 17:58 - 24 minutes - 44.5 MBYouth is a time of life when all manner of ideals are being formed in a person: reasoning skills, social skills, character qualities, work ethic, and academics. And yet, greater than these is the formation of the image our kids will have of God. Their God image is the sum total of their beliefs and feelings about who God is. In this episode of Breaking Bread, Brian Sutter speaks to the importance of shepherding this important formation in our children. Why God Image is important? It is th...
Living in the Ordinary (Part 2 of 2): Silence and Solitude
September 05, 2022 05:00 - 17 minutes - 40.4 MBWe live in a God-bathed world. He is everywhere and in everything. But too often, we are moving to quickly to see Him. In this episode of Breaking Bread, Isaac Funk coaches us on how to slow down so we can catch up with God. When we are restless with our ordinary lives, we are forgetting: Jesus took on flesh to show us that ordinary is okay. Posture is more important than performance. God is in the boring; the maturing Christian has eyes that see Him everywhere. Experiencing God is ...
Living in the Ordinary (Part 1 of 2)
August 22, 2022 05:30 - 18 minutes - 41.3 MBFolding laundry, mowing the lawn, cooking, cleaning, fixing and working. Life is pretty ordinary. God must be disappointed in my life. Or is He? In this episode of Breaking Bread, Isaac Funk helps us understand the beauty that is possible in the ordinary.
The Freedom of Commitment
August 08, 2022 05:00 - 18 minutes - 33.5 MBAren’t options great? So much to choose! Yet Kathy Knochel brings a surprising twist to the bliss of options. In this episode of Breaking Bread, she will help us see the shadow of options and the surprising value that comes by way of commitment. Commitment frees us in two ways. It frees us from and it frees us to. It frees us from options which frees us to focus. It frees us from distractions which frees us to invest. It frees us from paralysis which frees us to purpose.
Stewarding Our Attention
July 25, 2022 05:00 - 17 minutes - 40.9 MBAttention is currency. It has purchasing power. No one needs to explain this to Facebook, Instagram and Snap Chat of course. But for those of us who spend our attention a little here and a little there, we may be surprised to discover attention is not just petty cash. In this episode of Breaking Bread, Arlan Miller and Matt Kaufmann connect the dots between what we pay attention to and who we become. Wonderfully, hope grows large. God intends to use our attention to grow us into the likene...
The Past’s Impact on the Present Marriage - Attachment
July 11, 2022 16:29 - 24 minutes - 44.3 MBMarital distress happens. Pain will occur. And when it does, our attachment styles will kick into full gear. Soon we will be behaving according to a script that was written a long time ago. However, these powerful scripts can be rewritten. In this episode of Breaking Bread, Kaleb Beyer explains what attachment styles are, how they are written, how they can be rewritten and the difference it makes in the marriage relationship. Four Attachment Styles: Secure Attachment – when distress occu...
Dealing With Anger (Part 2 of 2)
June 27, 2022 12:14 - 19 minutes - 44.8 MBI should know by now that yelling seldom works. Moreover, it most often works against me. Fortunately, we don’t have to be screamers. On this episode of Breaking Bread, Brian Sutter explains how an introspective person makes gains on his/her anger. Emotions respond to an impetus and fuel a response. While some emotions fuel a deactivation of our system, anger activates our system. The impetus’ that provoke anger and the response it fuels are often constructed from our past experience wi...