Latest / Cultivator Podcast / Episode 1 - Introduction with Tatum
Transcript
- Justin Stice: Yeah. Hey, what's up? Welcome to the first ever official cultivator podcast. ⁓ maybe we've had one before with our advent season, but this is like our very first one that we're starting as the cultivator ⁓ podcast. I'm excited. I have my oldest daughter Tatum hanging out with us this morning. Hey. How was class this morning? It was boring. English 1302. That's so lots of essays. Pretty horrible, actually. It is. Well, hey, thanks for Taking some time and hanging out this morning. Of course. ⁓ and jumping on with this. Yeah. So ⁓ really is. I just want us to kind of have conversation about kind of what this whole cultivator thing is. Yeah. ⁓ and all that kind of stuff. So I would just kind of love questions, thoughts, whatever you have. Let's do it. Okay. So how did this whole thing get started? From the very beginning. Let's do it. Yeah. So, man. So kind of crazy. I've been in ministry for twenty four Five, twenty-six years, worked at like small churches, big churches, and there's always been like this stirring for something more, right? Like worked at small little country churches, worked at big mega churches. And there's always been this desire of like, man, there has to be more to what we've seen and experienced and known as church, as following Jesus. And so it's led us and our family kind of on this experiment of trying to figure it out. ⁓ and so Kind of this context specifically, we felt called to the Heart of Lubbock neighborhood ⁓ a little over ten years ago. So we moved from southwest part of town down to the heart of Lubbock and we've been trying to figure this thing out. Yeah. ⁓ and it's y I mean you've lived it with us. I've lived it for most of my life. So Yeah. And so it it really is this idea of, hey, we want to be a place that is, man, inviting people into a way of life. ⁓ more than being a member of a church, more than Being whatever else, like, hey, we want to invite people into like, hey, this is what it really looks like to follow Jesus. Yeah. ⁓ and so that's kind of where we're at now is this idea of we want to invite people to be kingdom cultivators. That they're cultivating ⁓ their relationship with Jesus, but also they're cultivating the kingdom that's around them. Yeah. So from this like of moving and transitioning into something where we are pouring into people so that they couldn't go out. was that whenever we were living southwest side of Lubbock or even before we moved to Lubbock, did you feel like something was missing? Like did you feel that this just like going through the motions wasn't enough? Like Yeah, I I think so I think a lot of times ⁓ people get involved in a church and a whatever else and it becomes kind of like a a a thing you check off your list, right? Like I went to churches one, I went to Bible study. I went to whatever, which is For some people that's cool, but like there's something more, I believe, when we're asked when we're following Jesus. Yeah. And it's like we're actually called to like all of our lives to be surrendered ⁓ to him and the kingdom. And so and it really is this like us trying to figure that out what not only with ourselves as a family, but what does that look like to bring other people along? Yeah. ⁓ and so we've been so like just so blessed on like having people do life with us as we've been trying to figure this out. ⁓ I could go through All the list of the different seasons at different times people have have been trying to figure this thing out with us. Yeah. So what has been the most like major change from you ⁓ with us living on the other side of town to now moving or now in the heart of Lubbock? Like what is the most major change that you have seen over the past couple years? Like in social aspects but also like cultural, all that type of stuff? ⁓ I think the biggest change that we've seen or that even we've tried to live into is like not necessarily being consumers yeah anymore, but actually like, hey, we're actually called to be cultivators. Like we're not just to call to come and consume some religious goods and services and whatever else, but we're actually called to cultivate like where we live, right? So we're trying to be really intentional in the neighborhood. ⁓ your your mom is really intentional with ⁓ Sozo Health. Yeah. Right. And so that has been kind of the switch for us as individuals as a family, but then what we're inviting people into is like, hey, let's let's this thing of church and following Jesus isn't about consuming. Yeah. Right. What what whatever, but it's about, hey, what do I have ⁓ to offer the world around me? And I think that goes, I think we've noticed a lot of like change in intentionality. Like we have been a family focused on just trying to be intentional and see the people around us even though it's not like a normal situation type of thing. Yeah. And so and I think that's played out in s several different ways, right? So like that could be having some of our friends that are experiencing homelessness over to the house. Yeah, exactly. ⁓ it could be whenever you were in high school and and playing softball, it would be really intentional about having team dinners. Yeah. And making sure that there was a space for your team to know, man, there's people that love them, that are for them. And so I think through each season, each year, it's just how do we become intentional? Mm-hmm. ⁓ about what's going on and then how can we in that season of that space make sure that we're ⁓ cultivating our own relationship yeah with God but then we're looking and saying, all right, God, what what is it that you're w asking us to be aware of of what's going on around us? Yeah. ⁓ was there like a specific moment in your life in your like just a one specific moment that you can recall of just like the media like I like we this has got to change type of thing. Is it just one moment, one thought, one word from the Lord, like anything like that? I I think th I don't know if there was one, I think there was several that like happened, right? And so your mom and I, we had this kind of opportunity to go and help plant a campus of a of a a church. And so it was that there was that choice, right? Or there was this choice to move to the heart of Lubbock neighborhood. Yeah. And we were trying to discern what that looked like. And so I remember us praying, asking kind of guidance and wisdom and having conversations. And it basically says, Hey, we could go do this and it would be fine, but is that really what the Lord's calling? And so it was this like really saying, All right, this is what the Lord's called us to. We're gonna we're gonna move to this neighborhood and we're gonna try to figure out what this looks like. ⁓ and so that's kind of one specific but then since then it's always been kind of a tweaking and a readjusting of like it's kind of like this experiment. Yeah. Like, all right, this is working, this isn't working. And so for the last ten years almost, a little bit maybe even more, we've been experimenting about what does it look like to be about revealing the kingdom. Yeah. That's really cool. And I know that we try to get out of it or try to move out of it and the Lord said, No, you're you're good where you are. Yeah, we're still here. We're still here ten years later, which is awesome. But so like with the whole transition, were there any fears or things telling you, I don't know about this, like ⁓ I I think our biggest fear was you girls, right? So Tatum's are the oldest of our of our three daughters and there was this, Hey, is this gonna jack our kids up? Like moving to this neighborhood Like, is it gonna be safe? Like, I mean, like and we've had we had honestly when we went in the road, we had this super prophetic guy says, Hey, you like the Lord's you guys are gonna be safe. So we kind of took that word and really trusted that. And we really have. Yeah. And so that was been the one biggest thing is just safety of kids, of us. ⁓ and then just is this gonna mess our kids up? And luck luckily it hasn't. I'm glad it hasn't. So far. I can attest it has not. ⁓ but but it really has been this thing of I feel like it's one of those. Things about y'all's life, y'all's story of kind of what we've been about and what we've been doing is been formational. ⁓ I agree. In in a really good way. I agree. And we still have your youngest sister, Addie, to to figure out I agreed. so through building all of this, what has grown out of co op? Hope community, like what has sprouted from you being intentional planting and partnering and listening to God. So it really the we've seen this the the popular buzzword right now is ecosystem, but it's we've seen this kingdom ecosystem begin to kind of flourish and and and take root and begin to think. So with co op and hope community and the nonprofits and the businesses, it really is we have this really cool kingdom ecosystem of communities like these house churches, like our our dinner church on Wednesday night, the barn church, ⁓ when Danny was alive, the tattoo part, like so we've had these we have these communities that are sprouting up all over the city. We have what we call kingdom causes, which are kind of more nonprofits and people like saying, Hey, I feel like this is something the Lord's called, and then even our our kingdom commerce, our businesses. Yeah. And so we've seen this really cool ⁓ relationship between all these different aspects of life. ⁓ And what's been really cool is we've seen people kind of become alive to what it is the Lord's calling them. Because w the whole thing, we really want to say, Hey, what is God calling you to do? Mm-hmm. And how can we help? Yeah. Right. And that's what we like, that's for us is kind of what we're about. We want to be a resource to help people live into what the Lord's calling them to. Yeah. And so for how we kind of describe this now, we've kind of gotten a lot of clarity about man, a cultivator is somebody that is healthy and whole in Christ. That is making a kingdom difference where they live, work, learn, and play. Yeah. Right. And so that for us, that is a cultivator. If you're if you're living into your wholeness in Christ, right, and you're understanding your identity in Christ and and what the fullness of what that means, and then you have clarity about where it is ⁓ God is calling you to reveal the kingdom right now. Yeah. And so that's kind of for us what it's looked like. And it's taken this long to get to some of clarity, but Hey, this is what you're a we're asking people into. We're not asking people to be a member of a church. We're not asking people to this. We're like, hey, are you living into your wholeness that you have in Christ? And do you have clarity about where it is in this season that that that God is asking you to cultivate and reveal the kingdom? Okay, so how you just described how living into the fullness, how do you think that is what Jesus was modeling whenever he was alive. Like how do you think that is co s co like with Jesus, with living as a kingdom cultivator? Yeah. And so I I think Jesus, when he shows up, he ⁓ he's inviting people into a new way of life. And so when he shows up and he says, repent, ⁓ a lot of times that word has been used like as a like you better get your crap together, you better Whatever. It was like almost like a repentance. Yeah. So there's like this fear to repentance. And really it was like a hey, change the way you're thinking. Right? Change the whole the way that you've been thinking, specifically talking to the Jewish culture during that time. Like, hey, change the way you've been thinking about God, about how to you're connecting with God. Church. Yeah, even their I call their concept of church during that time. And so he's Change let's change the way you're thinking and and realize that the kingdom of God is here and at hand. Yeah. And so he for that it's like He was coming in in saying, Hey, there's a new way to do this, there's a new existence. And then he shows up and he says, Man, I'm I'm here to offer you life and life abundantly. ⁓ so one of my favorite quotes is from one of the early saints, Saint Aramius, it says, The glory of God is man fully alive. And I believe it is only in and through Jesus that we can become fully alive. Yeah. Right? And so that's kind of the invitation that we see. in Jesus and from Jesus. And then that's kind of what we've kind of can tried to to carry on and saying, Hey, if you want to like be fully alive and experience life to the fullest, it's gonna be understanding your wholeness in Christ and ⁓ understanding you have a you have a purpose as you're living life to reveal the kingdom. Yeah. Do you think that people could feel intimidated by this or how do you think that people could get over this feeling of this like unqualified like to do this. Yeah, I think so. I think people they have this idea there's been this this like gap between like lady and clergy, which are like super churchy terms, but basically it's like the people that work at the church, the people that are called to ministry, and like just the the normal people, the everyday people. Right. And so like there's this like, ⁓ you guys do the ministry and we just kind of show up and But and we're like, no, no, we're gonna get rid of that line. It was never meant to be there. All of us, if you're a follower, are called to ministry. Mm-hmm. Right. You might have different roles to this, but ⁓ some people get intimidated and being like, I'm just supposed to show up and go to church. And that's where we've missed it. Mm-hmm. Instead of saying no, no, like we're all called to ministry, but that looks it it doesn't look like you working at a church. It looks like you being intentional as ⁓ a a nursing student. Yeah. It looks like you be an intentional as a banker. It looks like you be an intentional as a farmer. It looks like you be an intentional as a mom with your kids at home. Yeah. Right? Like we we have As a teacher. Is a teacher. Whatever it is. It's kind of that whole thing of man, being intentional where you live, work, learn, and play. And that's kind of the thing where we have to get rid of that the line. The line or this idea of like, ⁓ I've got to separate it. Separate it out and I gotta do ministries over here. Like, no, like our whole life we're called to live ⁓ as ministry. as we're following Jesus. And so once people get over this fear, how do you think people start to discover their gifts or their callings that the Lord is calling them to to start not even a ministry, but just where they live, learn, work and play? Yeah, I think a couple of things. I think community, I think we learn our spiritual gifts the most by the community that we're in. They begin to call out and begin to like say, Hey I mean, I see this in you. I see this And so like we can you can take a spiritual gifts test or you can take what whatever. But I really think as in community that like we we begin to see these things begin to to to bubble up in people and we just begin to call them out and being like, man, you're freaking really good at this or you're doing this. And then I think the next thing is like continually to have ⁓ this idea of asking the Lord, what is it right now in this season that you're wanting me to be focused on, be aware of. And so there's always this continual dependence on hearing the Lord and saying, Hey, during this season, during whatever else, Lord, what is it that you're asking me to be really intentional ⁓ about? If that is that at my job, is that at home? Is that with my neighbors? And it might be a combination of all them above. But it really is this whole thing of like we talk about how how you actually become a cultivator. It's those three things of this way of life of be with Jesus. Yeah. Right. So you're you're living in intimacy. Mm-hmm. With the Father, like you're just continually asking, like, what are you saying? And how can I be obedient? So that's be with Jesus. The next one is ⁓ be like Jesus. So it's living in community, being vulnerable with people, man, being curious about people's stories, and letting people into your story. Right. So that Jesus was all about man being in people's stories. And in it like we think about throughout the gospels, we see Jesus kind of just always inviting people into His story, but also he's always curious about their story. Yeah. So that's being like Jesus. And the last one is do like Jesus, right? He was always about his father's business. He was always about revealing the kingdom. Mm-hmm. ⁓ and so that's kind of for us, it's those three things is if we can be with Jesus, be like Jesus, and do like Jesus, that's kind of this idea of what it looks like to live as a cultivator. Yeah. And do you think people can like differ from or get the idea of trying to be like Jesus or try to please Jesus, do you how do we differ from like actually cultivating the kingdom from like just doing like the good deeds or volunteering or how do we differ from that and what are we actually called to? Yeah, no, that's huge. I think 'cause what happens is ⁓ any of our our doing has to come from our being. Mm-hmm. Right. So if we're if we're trying to go do stuff for God, mm-hmm. in this idea that's gonna make God happy or we gotta do this to check it off the list or like whatever, it it's gonna lead to a couple of things. It's gonna lead to burnout. It's gonna lead to disappointment. It's gonna lead to but it it has to, anything that we are going and doing has to come from our being with Jesus. It has to come from a place of like, this is what I f the Lord's calling me to do. So like one of our values is hearing God's voice. Yeah. And so like we don't want to go and just do a bunch of things just because that's what we think we're supposed to do or because Whatever, it's no, like I wanna do whatever it is that you're asking me to do in this season, what we're doing. And so it has to come from this place of I'm not doing something so it like it makes God happy. Yeah. It's we actually start from the place of like when God sees you, he's already happy. Mm-hmm. Like you're not doing something to please God or make him happy. You're it's like you go do something because you're overwhelmed with yeah. That experience of man like I've gotta go share this, I've gotta go because this is what the Lord's calling me to. Yeah. And that's like that's a special gift. It's really I think that's really exciting for somebody to feel that, to feel how the Lord is bubbling something up inside of me and like you I you just can't keep it in any longer. And I think that's really special. So ⁓ through the steps that we've shared, like being a kingdom cultivator, how can somebody today, tomorrow, this week What are these small little steps they can take to start living into this cultivator aspect of life? I I think the first one is, man, are you allowing Holy Spirit to cultivate your own life? Yeah. Like are you getting into a space and a place where you're allowing Holy Spirit to just cultivate ⁓ your own kind of inner life? Are you are you giving space and attention to your own soul? Right? Because I think some so much in today's cultural society We're so just busy and so caught up in all the things. And I feel like it's really hard if we're not experiencing shalom. Yeah. To offer shalom to the world. Right. So shalom is this idea of wholeness, of peace, of all those things. And those we have that in Christ. Yeah. Right. But it we have to first be really intentional about living into and experiencing that shalom that we have in Christ. Then out of that, then we can offer that to the world. Yeah. And so it's really being intentional about, hey, I I need to be s experiencing this intimacy with with the Father. And that comes through so many different things, right? ⁓ we're actually so this is kind of the first of the the keynote cultivator. We're actually fixing to jump into a a sh a season of in Lent, right? For the next episodes after this for the Cultivator Podcast, it's gonna be about these identity disciplines, spiritual disciplines. And they really are about cultivating a a ⁓ a life of just being disciplined and creating space to remember our identity in Christ. And so I'm excited that how this is our first kind of official podcast. But then now the next few are going to be kind of as we're going through Lent, we're going to be talking, I'm going to be talking with Scott and Dave. Yeah. ⁓ and we're going to be talking about these identity disciplines that'll go into this thing. And I think it's going to be really helpful to set us up of hey, these are the kind of things we need in our life to be a cultivator. ⁓ and so like I want you and and everybody else to to to check in and listen ⁓ into what we're we have coming up. ⁓ because I I think once we can kind of begin to have these disciplines in our life, these identity disciplines, it's gonna allow this idea of cultivating the kingdom around us to become a lot more natural and easy. Yeah. So awesome. That's really cool. Hey, I thank you. Thank you. For coming hanging out with us. So you will definitely want to have have you come back on. Okay. ⁓ I'm down. You down? Yeah, I'm down. Awesome. So hey, so thankful for you and so proud of you. Yeah. ⁓ I don't know what I would have done. Been here. I I wouldn't be the person or the that sounds cringy, but it's true. Like I I wouldn't be who I am without like growing up in this neighborhood with the people I've been surrounded by. I think it's just been a really, really cool like experience and journey that'll like will forever be with me, even through the rest of my life. So I love it. Well, hey, once again, so glad that you guys so man, we're still trying to figure out this whole cultivator podcast thing, trying to figure out all the things, but we we're we just want you to kind of just be on the journey with us ⁓ as we're fleshing this out, having conversations about what it looks like to be a cingdom cultivator. And ⁓ so make sure that you ⁓ stay connected with us as we're releasing these and let other people know ⁓ about it. So once again man so thankful for you guys checking us out and so thankful for you to everybody. Thank y'all.