This week, Dan addresses the particular types of trauma that form in the context of marriage, including trauma that comes after death, divorce, and the betrayal of domestic violence.

On this week’s podcast, Dan introduces a series on the role of trauma in the context of the local church. He offers three overall categories for trauma, arguing that it is far more widespread than many acknowledge, then discusses the body’s telltale responses to traumatic events. What would it look like for our churches to exist as communities of priests, prophets, kings, and queens who are aware of the pervasive, devastating nature of trauma and who offer hospitality, healing, and the possibility of redemption? “Hospitality is the core of what the community of God brings,” says Dan—“inviting people to goodness, to a feast, to sustenance, to solace, to healing.”

Dan invites us to see and to name the beauty in our lives, the parts of our stories that reflect the light and goodness of God. Knowing and telling our stories means finding the beauty and inviting others to share it. And we cannot talk about this without talking about worship, which is our response—in awe and gratitude—to the beauty and goodness of God.

On this week’s podcast, we are continuing our preview of the material explored in our To Be Told conferences. Dan discusses the necessity of looking at the wounds in our lives—the places in which we have experienced shame, loneliness, and betrayal. Evil entices us and hardens our hearts, naming us as orphans, strangers, and widows. But we are called to so much more.

For the next three weeks on the podcast, while Dan is on the road, we are excited to offer a preview of the material explored in our To Be Told conferences. In this week’s audio, Dan discusses the idea that God is the author of your life’s story, and we are all called to enter our stories in a way that reflects the character of God and reveals the nature of the Gospel.

Dr. Dan Allender talks about his hopes for his sabbatical and the imporatnace of Sabbath.