Locker Room

If you lead in any way, you are going to face criticism. Dealing with criticism is a part of leadership—period. One of the greatest weapons that the enemy uses for leaders is discouragement. Discouragement can often come from criticism. It doesn’t matter how hard you try, how much you care, how pure your motives and right your decisions are—criticism is coming—and you shouldn’t try to avoid it. It’s something that we all have to navigate. Join us this week as we welcome back Scott Nickell and Jon Weece to talk about how to face and process criticism in a healthy way.   DISCUSSION GUIDE What is the wildest piece of criticism you have ever received? Read John 15:18-21. There are so many areas of life where we can be criticized. We can receive criticism at work, at home, in church, from friends, from relatives, and the list just goes on and on. What are the areas of your life that you receive criticism most often? Whenever you experience criticism, what is your gut reaction? Do you get defensive? Defeated? Some

Resentment and bitterness can infiltrate our lives in so many ways. Things that have happened to us beyond our control can darken our hearts and eat us up from the inside, negatively impacting our emotional and physical health, even affecting our relationship with Jesus. The enemy loves to capitalize on this too, because we as men sometimes struggle to acknowledge our feelings, frustrations and fears.! Many men don’t have strong relationships where they talk about real things and it leaves them with gaping holes of unaddressed pain and legitimate frustration. We end up harboring resentment, holding grudges and building up cancerous bitterness. When we don’t address our wounds, it always, always comes out at some point. We can’t control what people do to us, but we can control our response. The only thing we control is our response to the stuff that comes our way and we need God’s power to be able to respond in the right way! On this episode of Locker Room, we sit down with our guests Jason and Parker to talk

Shame is a necessary emotion. Shame can be helpful. The way we feel about our wrong decisions and choices is meant to steer us towards God, towards repentance and towards healing. If we never feel shame, it means something is broken inside of us. There are things that we should be ashamed of, but with God’s help we don’t need to stay there. Satan tries to manipulate our emotions in an effort to keep us locked up in our shame. He wants us to fixate on our sin, poor choices, bad decisions, to live in regret. Today on the podcast we will discuss steps we can take to move forward, to repent and bring this stuff to God for forgiveness and healing.   DISCUSSION GUIDE At the start of this episode, the crew talked about their childhood bully stories. Did you have a bully growing up? How did you deal with them? With an episode surrounding guilt and shame, it is important to know the difference between the two. Scott defines guilt as, “to break or disregard God’s commands,” and shame as, “the feelings that come from si

There are no harmless lies. They all have consequences. When we exchange the truth of God for a lie, there is a price to pay. Join us in the conversation as Scott and guest Greg Chandler drill down on five specific lies that the enemy wants us to believe and how we can counter each lie with truth from God’s word about who we are and what we are called to.   DISCUSSION GUIDE Everyone in a group, play the game “Two truths and a lie.” Try and learn something new about each person in the group. Scott and Greg dove into the idea that all lies begin with Satan; that Satan is seeking to steal, kill, and destroy. One of the most significant ways Satan attacks us is through lies. Satan twists God’s word. He lies. Do you believe that Satan has the power to deceive us? Have there been any times that you realized that Satan was trying to deceive you through a lie? What comes to mind when asked this question: “What do you think you deserve?” Is this a thought that is true from God or a lie from the enemy? Which of the 5 p

God has hardwired all of us for biblical community. One of God’s greatest gifts are his people. It’s found in doing life with others. All men need this. Every man should experience this. We never graduate from the need for community and accountability. When we leverage the power of community, it helps us to deepen our faith, make us more like Jesus and empowers us to live our lives on mission. This week on the podcast, Scott and our guests John Sampson and Matt Williams sit down at the table to talk about group life: getting into a group by taking a step out of a row on the weekend to experience community with other men, and building solid, healthy relationships with other guys.   DISCUSSION GUIDE What was the first time you remember feeling part of a community or a group? (Examples could include being on a sports team growing up, participating in a school extracurricular, living in a college dorm, etc.) What has been your experience with finding community with people who follow Jesus? Has it been difficult?

Boundaries are easy to see in the physical world: fences to define property, lines in the road to define lanes, and boundaries at a sporting event to define what is in and out-of-bounds. Physical boundaries are for our good, and for the good of those around us. In our spiritual, relational, and emotional worlds, boundaries are just as real, but often harder to see. Establishing healthy boundaries increases our ability to love, interact, lead and care for others in a way that God is honored. It also empowers us to have healthy hearts and healthy relationships. Join us for today’s episode where we dive in on the power of establishing healthy boundaries.   DISCUSSION GUIDE If you could go back and relive one moment of your life, what would it be and why? If you had to forget one moment of your life, what would it be? Scott mentions that healthy boundaries do two things. (1) They protect what belongs to us and what's under our care and concern. (2) They keep the wrong things out and the wrong people out. What are

To follow Jesus is to fish. To say yes to Jesus’ invitation is to say yes to personal evangelism. To receive the gospel is to also share the gospel; the good news. Yet, there’s an awful lot of churches and there’s an awful lot of people who sit in the boat and they don’t fish. They don’t fish for all kinds of reasons. In this episode we will zero in on some practical things to empower men to share the gospel with people in their lives. DISCUSSION GUIDE If we asked the person closest to you (wife, relative, friend) what is a fun fact they could give us about you Have you ever rescued someone or something? Think big or small rescues. Share a story of when you “saved the day”. Read Luke 19:10. Jesus made it clear: He was here on a RESCUE MISSION. He invites his followers to join him in that mission. How does it make you feel when you are told you are on a rescue mission for the Kingdom of God? Jon equated spiritual maturity with three verbs: serving, giving, & loving. Based on that measure, how spiritually m

Today's culture is attempting to push us off the path Jesus walked, and instead onto a wide road of personal preference and, “living your own truth.” We are increasingly encouraged to choose tolerance-based values and strike down our conceptions of right and wrong about sex, gender and marriage. Even the definitions of words are changing. If we take a step back, we can see how culture at large is twisting and affecting even those inside the church. Join us for this episode of Locker Room, where our goal is to talk about the importance of choosing God’s Word to be our ultimate authority, which creates a filter (worldview) for how we interact with God and the world around us. DISCUSSION GUIDE Do you have any favorite old-school rappers? What music did you listen to in your younger days? Did you watch breakdancing in the Olympics? Could you win a dance battle? The Bible tells us we have three enemies: Satan & demons, the flesh, and the World. How have these enemies affected your worldview? (Worldview defined

The Holy Spirit is aware of what’s going on in our world. He can see things that we can’t. He knows us. He knows what we need. He partners with us to encourage us. He partners with us to challenge us and even convict us of sin. He partners with us because He knows best on how to use our lives to love and serve others.  This week on Locker Room, we are continuing a conversation with Scott and Gary on the Holy Spirit. If you missed last week’s episode, be sure to listen first and then jump in with us here. DISCUSSION GUIDE Did you watch the Olympics this Summer? What was your favorite sport to watch? If you could participate in any event what would it be? Read Acts 2:1-4. This empowering of the Holy Spirit gave the apostles the ability to lead the first church. If they needed the Spirit back then we certainly need it today. Read 2 Corinthians 13:14. When you hear the word “fellowship” what comes to mind? Gary defines three levels of fellowship with the Spirit: 1. Companionship. 2. Partnership. 3. Intimacy. Whic

When we accept the grace of Jesus and decide to follow him, God desires for us to turn from our own way of thinking and live Spirit-filled lives too. Yet many of us don’t. We meet Christians all the time whose lives could be summed up in two statements: One: “Nobody’s perfect. And two: “God understands.” There’s almost a despair about those two statements. It seems that, for many, life is merely a long string of joy and sorrows, but with the hope of Heaven at the end. Here’s the problem with that. If the Christian list is merely “doing our best,” then there’s no need for the Holy Spirit in the first place. So, all we have is OUR best, not GOD’S best for our lives. I don’t know about you, but my VERY, VERY best is still FAR from being like Jesus. Join us this week as Scott and Gary Black begin a conversation about the power God provides IN us—the Holy Spirit. DISCUSSION GUIDE How would you rank the four fast food restaurants that Scott and Gary discussed at the beginning of the podcast: Chick fil a, Cane’s, Ta

We’re kicking off a new series in season 13 of Locker Room, and it’s simply called Power. We’re going to look at some key aspects and opportunities God gives us to usher His power into and through our lives. This week we’re digging out the power of rest. Jesus invites us into a healthy rhythm, where we pour out our lives for the Kingdom: pouring into our home, our work and the world around us; and then we stop and rest. We connect with the King, and allow Him to fill us and replenish us. DISCUSSION GUIDE Scott just spent a portion of his Summer on Sabbatical. What has been the longest period of time you’ve had to rest? What would you do if you had a month off of work to intentionally rest? Is it easy for you to rest? Why or why not? What does it look like for you to rest in a healthy way? “If you don’t know how to stop, life will do it to you.” Have you ever come to a breaking point where life forced you to stop? What stuck out to you when Scott mentioned the symptoms of hurry sickness? (You treat everything

We’ve covered a lot of ground together this season on the podcast. This week Scott is joined by Ian Schweitzer to review and expand on some of the biggest subjects we’ve tackled this year. We’ll also talk about an important event coming up in the fall specifically for men, 18 years of age and up, from any of our campuses—our first Men’s Retreat. October 18-20. Locker Room will be back on August 30 for season thirteen. Have a great summer! DISCUSSION GUIDE What have been the episodes from this season that you learned from the most? Who can you think of that you can send episodes to from this season? Let us know, how are you using Locker Room? Email lockerroom@southland.church Scott and Ian reviewed the whole season. Did you have an episode that you think every man needs to hear? If so, please share it with them! NEXT STEPS  If you’re wrestling with Christianity, would like to become a Christ-follower, or need help figuring out your next step, email us at lockerroom@southland.church.   Join a Group at south

In our world, sex before marriage is normal, hooking up is normal, funky sex is normal, and pornography is normal. Normal is: sex is casual and inclusive, not exclusive and monogamous. In college, having a “body count” is normal. Normal is riddled with shame and regret. Normal is broken. Normal is living in guilt. Normal is unchecked and distorted desires that make us more like animals than God’s prized creation. Normal is struggling dating relationships. Normal is struggling marriages. Normal is divorced. Normal is habitual sexual sin and sexual addiction. Let’s not be normal! Let’s stop being normal, like everybody else! God made you for love—don’t settle for lust. The gospel is about freedom in Christ—don't settle for crippling addition. “Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.” — Romans 12:2(NIV) Join us this week on Locker Room as we talk about a subject

If you are a parent and have kids in your home, you are passing on something to them. Whether you’ve been intentional or not, well-meaning or not, you are building a legacy. The question is, will that legacy you are giving them be good, healthy and eternal? Or is it something else? John Sampson joins Scott on the podcast this week to talk about leaving a legacy for our kids of loving God and others, and preparing them for life as an independent adult.   DISCUSSION GUIDE We started off with some fun in the podcast, which of the Chuck Norris lines did you like the most? The role of parents is, “teaching and training our kids to love God, love people, and leave home.” After hearing that, does it change your view on what it means to be a parent? A couple of acknowledgments have been made. 1. Parenting is the hardest job on the planet. 2. There are no perfect parents, no perfect children, and no perfect families. Does that reminder release any stress you have about either being a parent or potentially being a pare

Phones, technology and social media are simply tools for communication. The effects of using a tool depend on the purpose for which it is used, but the tool itself is neutral in origin. It’s similar to having a hammer. You can build something with a hammer. You can also destroy something or hurt someone. The tools are not the problem. How something is used is the problem. The same is true with social media and smartphones. In this episode we’ll discuss how to use technology appropriately and navigating when and how to introduce technology safely into the lives of your kids. Our guest on the podcast this week is Scott Harvey. Scott has 20 years of experience in law enforcement, specializing in hostage negotiations and communication. He is also a husband and girl dad, and author of the book, Silence Kills: Communication Tactics to Speak with Confidence and Build Your Influence.   DISCUSSION GUIDE What was the first cell phone you owned? What year did you get it? What did you primarily use it for? Which tool (li

Parents work really hard to be intentional when their kids are young. In those early years we teach them so much: how to walk, talk, eat, have manners, to say they're sorry, to learn to play with others, to be grateful…all these things. But the decisions our teenagers make in middle and high school have bigger consequences. The stakes are higher; the fallout greater. The decisions they make in these seven years set up their lives in college or young adulthood, and in turn can set the tone for the next forty years of their lives. So we want to do our best to take advantage of these seven years in middle and high school. In today’s episode of Locker Room, we circle up with members of Southland’s Student Ministry: Connor Hall, Casey Whitehead and Peter Sohn to talk about some of the unique challenges facing our teens as they navigate our current culture.   DISCUSSION GUIDE What were you like in your teenage years? “Parents are primary, student ministry is secondary.” What encourages you about the partnership bet

This week on Locker Room we’re kicking off a four-part series on parenting. In this first episode we are looking at raising littles: from babies up through elementary. If you’re a dad or a parent with little kids—you will find encouragement in our conversation today. Next week we'll talk about raising teenagers (middle and high school) and we’ll navigate some really relevant topics that are on the forefront of culture right now. In week 3, we’ll look at navigating parenting with smartphones and social media in a digital world. Week 4, we’ll talk about raising girls. Our guests around the table today are from our Southland Children’s team: Jason Byerly, Kelsi Collins, and Krista McCoy Tudor. Join us as we dive into the wild ride that is parenting littles! Southland also has a Parenting Podcast that you can find at southland.church/podcasts or anywhere that you get your podcasts. Scott Nickell is leading that effort—it’s a great podcast that’s really encouraging for parents. You should check it out!   DISCUSSIO

The Bible describes David as “A man after God’s own heart”, yet his life got sideways and there was a season where David lived a double life. David wasn’t the only person on the planet that has lived a hypocritical double life as a child of God. No doubt there are some of us that are currently living a double life. We may be compartmentalizing our own sin and trying to manage our own darkness while projecting a different image towards others. Our guest Alan Chan joins the podcast this week to talk about the process of overcoming past shame and embracing the transformation of walking a new path with Christ.   DISCUSSION GUIDE If you could put together the perfect fast food meal what would it be? (Ex. Entree - Chick-fil-A chicken Sandwich, Side - Arby’s curly fries, Drink - McDonald’s diet coke, dessert - Cookout Milkshake) What was your first full-time job? How did you connect with the other employees? An invite to volleyball and Thursday night dinner connected Alan to the church. Who helped you connect to the

At some point in our lives, we all have to do battle with hard things.  We’re back this week with Chris, Edgar, and Matt to share more of their stories. We’ll share stories of navigating the pain of divorce, choosing to partner with God on mission in your daily work, and the experience of walking through faith with a family member in the last steps of life. If you missed last week’s episode, be sure to check it out first and come back here for part 2. DISCUSSION GUIDE What can we as men learn from Chris as he shared how he walked through divorce and healing from that? Chris talked about how hard divorce was and how the enemy attacked him. How can men rally around other men going through this? He talked also about how he was prepared for the hard moments going into dating and marriage again. What can we learn from that preparation even in the hardest things? Chris mentioned his non-negotiables. These are super specific and deep. What challenged you about that list? “Men, we are not our vocations.” How have y

  /* Revised version with complete episode */ Each of us has a story to tell from the battles we have faced in our life. This week on the podcast, Scott sits down with three guests to share from their experiences. Chris, Edgar and Matt share their stories: fighting legalism and its ability to trip us up in our faith, stepping up as a new believer to become the spiritual leader of our home, and making a radical change of heart to quit taking grace for granted and start chasing after the things God has for us to do. -- A quick apology to our listeners: we misfired this week and released this episode incompletely. This release is an updated version with the full content! DISCUSSION GUIDE What is the worst injury you’ve ever had? Where have you served/volunteered in the church? Where have you served/volunteered outside of the church The men discussed the impact Fight Club has made on their lives. What group or team has made the biggest impact in your life? The lie of legalism uses this equation: Salvation = Jesus