Many in our Virginia Beach community are starting a 21-day season of prayer and fasting from this Sunday Jan 7th, through January 27th. Please join us if you can! Here’s a bit of an introduction from Ross about why Christians fast.

We end our alumni interviews this year with a couple from our very first class ('19-'20), Tathan + Lindsay Bennett. Along with discussing surfing (well, at least for Tathan), work growth, and big *announcements (!!), Tathan and Lindsay invited us into their world post fellows: the ebbs and flows of the Christian walk, being a part of a church body, friendship after fellows, and more. Thank you Bennetts for being such lovely guests and representatives of what VB Fellows is all about!*Disclaimer: About a month after this episode was recorded, Tathan and Lindsay sadly lost their baby. Even so, they insisted that this episode be published, so we have shared with their permission.

In continuation of our alumni interview series, 2022 fellows' alum Parker York shared how VB Fellows built a unique and deeply impactful experience that served as a springboard for integration into the greater Virginia Beach community—particularly amongst the men.

In a refreshingly honest interview, we chatted with Meredith Welsh and Katrina Brittingham—class of 2022 alumni— about life after fellows, with particular focus on the unexpected challenges that they've faced post-fellows, and how they've found the hope to overcome.

This summer, we're delighted to catch up  with members from our previous classes as they reflect on life after fellows, and how the community and disciplines still prove valuable tools in their day-to-day lives. This episode featured Erin and Nathan Horner from the classes of 2021 & 2022. We hope you enjoy!

The fourth year of VB Fellows has come to a close, and we're excited to share the second part of our Reflections series from our 2022-2023 alumni. In this episode, Alyssa Farrell, Gracie Ziegelmann, and Abbie Trollinger reflect on how they've seen their views of God and life challenged and deepened over the course of the year through the Friday Trainings, and they share the spiritual disciplines they find most impactful as they step into their next season.

As the fourth year of VB Fellows draws to a close, we caught up with some of the fellows to reflect on two key aspects of our program: Community & Teaching.In this episode, Clay Bauer, Isaiah Sound, Carter George, and Tyler Cooper share their thoughts on being integrated into an established community, and what the support has meant to them moving forward.Hosted by Christina Webb.

In our final interview with the 2021-2022 class, we heard from Janae Powell, Lucas Honebrink, and Meredith Welsh as they shared their reflections about their post-college expectations and how their perspectives have changed. Hosted by Christina Webb.

Directors Jay McCabe and Sarah Schultz sat down to share their thoughts about Summer activities, the program's four-week session on Spiritual Gifts, and insight into preparing for the incoming class of fellows. Thanks for listening!

Fellows Taylor, Kyra, Claire, and Emma share a bit about their college experience and what it's been like transitioning into an entirely new season of life.Another excellent discussion hosted by our own Communications Manager, Christina Webb.

“What do you want to be when you grow up?” Fellows Parker, Nathan, and Katrina share their thoughts on the future, dream jobs, and the overlapping of calling and occupation. Thanks to Christina Webb, our Communications Manager, for hosting this discussion!

Almost a year ago, I wrote and recorded a piece in response to the now-infamous January 6 Capitol Riot. This is that piece. I still think it rings true.  It's not a political take.  Instead it has to do with a looming cultural problem that the January 6 riot (as well as the other riots in 2020) brought to the foreground--one that transcends Republican, Democrat, conservative, liberal. That problem is the way the internet is reshaping our lives. We used to live in a physical space and get certain things on the internet. Now we live on the internet and get certain things done in a physical space. In other words, the internet is de-incarnating our existence. It gives real life to fantasies, but no real way to embody those fantasies. So our modern lives are increasingly being lived in disembodied ways. And when we do actually try to embody our internet fantasies--as in the storming of the capitol--it’s just weird. And bad. And unsustainable. It uncovers a kind of dark dream-world politics that was never meant for the light of actual day. The storming of the capitol was less a political coup and more an internet meme come to life. And yes, it was actually violent and rage-filled. But some of the same people who fought so hard to get in the door were simply posing for selfies in their strange costumes once they got in.That's the weirdest part of the whole thing. The storming of the capitol didn't do anything in the traditional political sense. What we witnessed instead was the virtual world spilling out into (and colliding with) the very real, physical symbol of traditional politics. And it was...stupid and ineffective and meaningless and laughable and sad. But it's not enough simply to point fingers at Chewbacca-bikini-guy and his sordid friends. Not enough simply to "condemn" the mob and wash our hands of the thing from the safety of our iPhone screens. Because we were cut from the same cloth. We were all born again in the womb of the internet.Imagine a drone pilot who plays so many other video games in between his actual job that he can’t tell the difference between bombing fake people and bombing real people. Either way, it doesn’t really matter. Because his job, his entertainment, his identity is found in the virtual control chair and nowhere else.To some degree, we are all that drone pilot. Or at least slowly moving in that direction. And yet, there is no going back to a pre-internet era. So what is the Christian response to the particular technological age we find ourselves in? Where do we go from here?Thanks for listening to the VB Fellows Podcast. VB Fellows is a faith-based leadership development and apprenticeship program for recent college grads in Virginia Beach, VA. Our next deadline for applicants for next year’s class is this coming up on January 15. So if you know anyone who is interested, please let them know!

What does the North Pole have to do with Bethlehem? Why do I have a reindeer and an angel in my front yard right now? Why does the radio play “Santa Claus Is Coming To Town” and “Away In A Manger” back to back? What is the meaning of the magic of our secular Christmas? Why do children everywhere find it hard to sleep on Christmas Eve? What are they anticipating? The coming of Santa or the coming of Jesus? The answer is...yes.In this (weird) episode, we do a deep dive into the unexpected parallels between the movie Elf and the story of the birth of Jesus in Luke's Gospel. In short, both are stories of blindness to what's right in front of you...and of how that blindness is healed. In Luke, the blindness has two distinct expressions: Rome (Buddy's Father) and Israel (Gimbels). Caesar is counting every person in the world, but he misses the one true king. Likewise, Buddy’s father is counting every dollar, but can't recognize his own son. Meanwhile, Israel has no room in the inn for its own Messiah. Likewise, Gimbel's “North Pole” has no room for an actual elf. The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness cannot comprehend it.Join us as Ross makes the case for Santa as a kind of John the Baptist of our modern Christmas (if you are willing to accept it). Special thanks to Jonathan Pageau for helping me think through many of the symbolic patterns of the Bible mentioned in this episode. Definitely check out his channel, The Symbolic World.VB Fellows is a faith-based leadership development and apprenticeship program for recent college grads in Virginia Beach, VA. Our next deadline for applicants for next year’s class is January 15.

What is salvation? How can we know God? In this episode, we discuss the weakness of explanations without participation--the difference between truth and reality--and the power of story to bridge the gap. As C. S. Lewis puts it in his essay "Myth Became Fact":“Human intellect is incurably abstract. Yet the only realities we experience are concrete- this pain, this pleasure, this dog, this man. While we are loving the man, bearing the pain, enjoying the pleasure, we are not intellectually apprehending Pleasure, Pain or Personality. [...] This is our dilemma—either to taste and not to know or to know and not to taste—or, more strictly, to lack one kind of knowledge because we are in an experience or to lack another kind because we are outside it. As thinkers we are cut off from what we think about; as tasting, touching, willing, loving, hating, we do not clearly understand. The more lucidly we think, the more we are cut off: the more deeply we enter into reality,the less we can think. You cannot study pleasure in the moment of the nuptial embrace, nor repentance while repenting, nor analyze the nature of humor while roaring with laughter. But when else can you really know these things? ‘If only my toothache would stop, I could write another chapter about pain.’ But once it stops, what do I know about pain? Of this tragic dilemma, myth is the partial solution.”Before listening to this episode, you might want to check out the previous episode, "The Light Princess," if you haven't already. You can also read the story here.VB Fellows is a faith-based leadership development and apprenticeship program for recent college grads in Virginia Beach, VA. We are currently accepting applications for the next class.

Nothing like a good story.In fairy tales, what is the nature of a curse and how is it broken? Is a curse placed upon someone against their will or is it willingly embraced from within? In order to be free, does the change have to come from within or must deliverance come from outside? In Christian terms, did our redemption happen "on the cross" or does it happen "in our hearts" when we repent and believe? We hope you enjoy this story by George MacDonald, adapted and read by our own Ross Byrd.  Special thanks to Will Rodriguez for the beautiful music.This episode was originally aired on the Mere Sanity podcast. You can read the story here.VB Fellows is a faith-based leadership development and apprenticeship program for recent college grads in Virginia Beach, VA. Our next deadline for applicants is today, Monday, November 15. If you know anyone interested, please let them know! The application is short and sweet, and there is no fee required.

What do we mean by "identity?" What does it mean when Christians say we should "find our identity in Christ?" In the Bible, identity is multi-faceted. Though, in the modern world, we tend to define our identity according to what we think, feel, and believe, in the Bible we find that our identities are also shaped by what we consistently do. Oftentimes it’s our habitual patterns—our rituals (though we might not call them that—or even notice them at all!)—which reveal a deeper reality that is making us into who we are. This ritual/habitual level, if you have eyes to see it, can become a window in to the deepest level of your soul: into what really makes you you: what you long for, what you need, and what you worship. In this lecture, we call these three levels of self, CREEDS, DEEDS, and NEEDS. For Further Reflection:James K. A. Smith's "Redeeming Ritual"C. S. Lewis's Mediations on the Psalms, Chapter 9, "A Word About Praising"Thanks for listening to the VB Fellows Podcast. VB Fellows is a faith-based leadership development and apprenticeship program for recent college grads in Virginia Beach, VA. Our next application deadline is this Monday, November 15. If you know anyone who is interested, please let them know! They can find out more at VBFellows.com.

God does not (usually) zap. Why do prayers go unanswered and lives untransformed? If God is all-powerful and all-loving, why is there still so much suffering in the world? Why doesn't he just zap all the wrong things right? How does salvation work? If we are saved, set free, and made new in Christ, why do we often feel so unsaved, enslaved, and confused? The Bible is the story of the patient marrying of heaven and earth, of trust and trustworthiness.00:00-4:38 -- Our Un-straightforward God 4:39-13:03 -- The Temptation of Christ13:03-28:29 -- Q & A on The Purpose of Suffering28:30-34:05 -- Jesus vs. Nietzsche on Suffering34:06-45:00 -- Trust & Trustworthiness45:20-57:40 -- Religions of Heaven vs. Religions of Earth57:40-1:06:13 -- The Marriage of Heaven & Earth1:06:28-1:17:50 -- If God Does Not Zap, How Does He Save?VB Fellows is a faith-based leadership development and apprenticeship program for recent college grads in Virginia Beach, VA. We're now taking applications for next year's class.

Today’s episode is a talk that was originally released on the Mere Sanity Podcast. You can find the transcript at MereSanity.com. Please let us know what you think! Why doesn't God just show himself? Why is he so un-straightforward? Why would Jesus say, "Ask and you shall receive?" if he didn't mean it in a straightforward way? Why did God tell Adam and Eve not to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil? Didn't they at least deserve a clear explanation before they ruined the world? And besides, wouldn't he have wanted their eyes to be opened?Is Christianity a religion of clarity or of confusion?Which is easier, to say to the paralytic "Your sins are forgiven," or "Get up and walk." Who do you trust when a loved one is sick, God or the doctor?  Which is better, to pour out your life savings on the ground in worship or to give it all to the poor? If God is real, why do we suffer? If Jesus came 2000 years ago to save us, why does the world still seem so un-saved? If Jesus had the power to feed thousands with a couple of loaves and fish, why did he only do it once or twice and then never again? Is Jesus not the ultimate example of the man who found the cure to cancer and then flushed it down the drain?Is Christianity a religion of heaven or of earth?  VB Fellows is a faith-based leadership development and apprenticeship program for recent college grads in Virginia Beach, VA. We're now taking applications for next year's class.

Why isn't God more obvious? Why isn't he more straightforward? Wouldn't it be easier if we could see him and walk alongside him? Except...Jesus's earliest followers dealt with the same problem when they were with him! Jesus was an un-straightforward Messiah. He did not usually operate in straight lines. Why? Because the problem he came to solve could not be solved that way. He was playing the long game. In the end, the mustard seed would become the largest tree in the garden, just as he had foretold. His kingdom is a patient kingdom. In the person of Christ, all the mysteries of Scripture come into a focus. The Bible is the story of the patient marrying of heaven and earth, of seed and soil,  of truth and trust, of God and his people.00:33-13:42 -- Christianity is Reality (The Parable of the Mustard Seed)13:58-25:39 -- Upon Which Rock? (The Problem of Peter & The Church)25:00-43:49 -- Deconstruction vs. Death & Resurrection43:50-47:10 -- Asking Hard Questions47:23-59:00 -- The Madman, The Secret Messiah, & The Problem of "Getting Through" 59:00-1:15:30 -- Jesus, The Master Soil Tiller (The Parable of the Sower)VB Fellows is a faith-based leadership development and apprenticeship program for recent college grads in Virginia Beach, VA. We're now taking applications for next year's class.

How do we make sense of the 'deconstruction' phenomenon we're seeing right now? In short, people's worlds are getting bigger and the Christian faith of their teenage years is staying the same size. So...something's gotta give. What happens when the Christian story we received when we were younger turns out to be too small--too small for the complexities of everyday life, too small for the complexities of our own hearts? We have two obvious options: 1. Shrink your world so it fits your simple teenage gospel and insist that every complexity you face from now on can be solved with that one simple formula. (Then go help the world become as enlightened as you are.)OR... 2. Let your world keep growing and leave the gospel you once believed behind.  It was naive, anyway, at best. At worst, false and repressive. You know better now. (Now go help the world become as enlightened as you are.)OR MAYBE...“The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. Though it is the smallest of all seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds come and perch in its branches." +"Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a seed falls into the earth and dies, it remains what it is; but if it dies, it bears much fruit."VB Fellows is a faith-based leadership development and apprenticeship program for recent college grads in Virginia Beach, VA. This is our podcast.[This episode was originally released on Ross's Mere Sanity podcast. You can find the transcript at MereSanity.com.]