What do mission and identity look like when grief has taken everything from you? In this episode I sit down with pastor and AMS leader Dwight Easler, who lost his son Benji in a tragic accident. We talk about the overwhelming weight of that loss, what it does to a leader's sense of calling, and how Dwight has continued to show up faithfully in ministry in the middle of his own devastation. This is not a how-to episode. It is a testimony, and it is one worth hearing.

If this conversation resonated with you, subscribe to the Heart the Mission newsletter at heartthemission.com for regular content designed to help pastors and church leaders lead with clarity and courage.

Adam didn’t get a pause button.

In this episode, Adam shares what it looked like to lose his father and keep leading anyway. While his family grieved, he stepped into a new reality overnight, carrying the weight of pastoral leadership and the responsibility of becoming the patriarch in his family.

This is a conversation for the leader who is still showing up while life is falling apart.

In this episode, we talk about:
• What grief does to your focus, energy, and leadership decisions
• How to lead a church when you feel emotionally empty
• What changes when you become “the man of the family” overnight
• The difference between performing strength and living with steady conviction
• What it means to persevere without going numb

If you’re carrying weight you didn’t ask for, this one will help you name it and lead with a steadier footing.

Subscribe for more conversations that help leaders see what’s blocking their mission and move forward with confidence and courage.

Want coaching or a mission reset for your church or team? Visit Heart the Mission at heartthemission.com.

This isn’t a highlight reel.
It’s an honest conversation about ministry, identity, burnout, leadership, and what happens when calling costs more than you expected.

Pat Gillen shares the real story behind church planting, team failure, resilience, family pressure, and learning to trust God when success disappears. No hype. No formulas. Just lived experience and hard-earned wisdom.

If you’re leading, pastoring, planting, or wondering who you are when the work falls apart—this one’s for you.

In this powerful conversation, Hank Parker opens up about the pressures leaders carry, the hidden weight of expectations, and how easily identity can get tangled in performance. This is not the side of Hank you see on TV or in the outdoor world. This is the honest, unfiltered version—the man behind the accomplishments, the trophies, and the public persona.

If you’ve ever felt like you had to keep it together, stay strong, or perform your way into acceptance…this conversation is going to hit home. We talk about calling, identity, regret, pressure, leadership, fatherhood, and what happens when the spotlight fades and you’re left with the real you.

This episode is a gift to pastors, Christian leaders, and anyone navigating the tension between external success and internal peace.

So many leaders are burning out, driven by unsustainable momentum instead of a clear, God-given mission.

The problem often starts with leading from a "borrowed identity." This episode is the solution.

In this powerful conversation, I sit down with Will Gunter to discuss the most important foundation for any Christian leader: Personal Identity.

We explore the "BURDEN" of leading from a place of validation-seeking or "shoulds" and how to find the "MISSION CLARITY" that comes from authentic, God-given purpose. This is the core of the Heart the Mission pathway.

Josh Bradley talks with Charlie Swain about life, leadership, and finding clarity when things don’t go as planned.

From heartbreak to hope, Charlie’s story shows what it means to keep leading when the path gets hard.