The Uncontroversial Podcast

Growth in the church is something we all desire… isn't it? Whether you’re leading in a growing church or praying for your church to experience growth, this episode dives into the complexities of navigating seasons of momentum. Join Rick and Dave as they unpack the challenges, opportunities, and surprising tensions that arise when the church begins to grow.

'Authority' is a loaded topic in today’s culture, but Jesus came to establish a kingdom—and every kingdom has a King. Spiritual authority isn’t just real; it’s essential for anyone who wants to lead well in life. In this episode, we’ll unpack what spiritual authority means, why it matters, and how it can transform your leadership and faith. Stick around for Rick’s unforgettable story about his grandfather — it’ll bring this topic home in a way you won’t forget.

In today's culture, there's plenty of talk about hate speech and free speech... but what is faith speech? And how do you know if 'faith speech' is going a little too far, and becoming 'Christian Spin?' Join the guys as they explore the spirit of faith speech, because every good story needs a little mayo on it, but too much and we're getting into dangerous territory.

With the success of our ministry or leadership so often judged by results, many leaders can experence a temptation to over-promise outcomes under the banner of 'walking by faith'. Join Rick and Dave as they kick off season 2 by discussing what it means to lead with bold optimism & faith whilst staying right away from the deception of 'Christian Magic'.

Join Rick and Dave as they discuss the natural difficulties that everyone encounters when we attempt to 'balance' the pressure of ministry and family. In this episode, you'll get a glimpse into the marriages and family lives of the guys as they wrap up this first series with refreshing transparency of their own experiences.

Join Rick & Dave as they discuss the importance of building a team that engages in the leadership of a local church. This is perhaps one of the most applicable and practical episodes yet, sure to help Senior & Lead Pastors looking to empower team, church staff deal with ministry frustrations, and volunteers who are wanting to step up in their serving and building of the vision of their local church.

Come behind the curtain with the guys as they speak openly and honestly about what it means to preach, and connect with both the truth of your message and the people you're trying to reach. This episode will help your own preaching, or if you're trying to develop new people in this space... even if you just love listening to great preaching, this episode will give you a look behind the curtain!

In this episode, Dave and Rick dive deep into the concept of authenticity and ask the question, is authenticity important or is it just a cop-out? In light of the transformation that God is doing, which version me even IS the 'authentic self'? This episode offers valuable perspectives that you won't want to miss.

Dave & Rick discuss a recent trend taking place amongst critics of the local church... Sunday Bashing! Join us as we have a conversation about why, having a high sense of 'church clarity' is essential for a pastor or leader to bring clear direction to the people God has entrusted them to lead.

As pastors, we love to see people thriving and walking in the blessing of God, however blessing is all too often BLOCKED by thoughts and habits that get picked up along life's journey. Dave and Rick discuss what might be stopping you from all the BLESSING God has for you!

Every failure or mistake in church leadership is UNIVERSAL; We've all made them, or we're all about to... so let's learn from each other! The purpose of this episode is to help reduce the natural wind resistance for pastors and those leading in churches and increase and release the natural momentum.

Warning: It's confession time for Dave... Rick & Dave introduce a seven year cycle theory that follows the life of a church form when a church is planted, or gets a new pastor. There's the EXPERIMENTAL stage, the EMPOWERMENT stage, the INDUSTRIAL stage and finally the INFLUENTIAL stage. Join the boys as they follow this thought right through to the live example in Life Church where Rick is pastoring right now.

Discipleship is the BUZZ word right now, yet what is it really... and what do people and pastors mean by it? In this episode Rick and Dave compare church life, and the christian journey to the English Premiere League (EPL) the discuss best practise to maximise disciple-ship and minimise disciple-strip! They add their own wisdom and experience to the conversation.

It's the FIRST episode! When the local church puts WISDOM above POWER, it begins to see not just transformation and direction, and actually releasing MORE POWER! In this introductory episode, Dave and Rick shred their way through this and other thoughts about God and the church.

Welcome to Uncontroversial! Join Dave Gilpin and Ricky Emmerson as they discuss all sorts of topics as they relate to healthy local church.