<description>In spite of not knowing exactly what’s coming in our next season of life, let’s center ourselves in the security of who Jesus is and what He has done.  Let's join Him where the action is.  

Episode Highlights
0:00 Have you noticed curiosity and times of transition tend to go hand-in-hand? I share a passage of Scripture we can cling to in times of new growth and change  
1:16 How curiosity is leading to a change in Rachel’s and my life right now 
1:54 “I wasn’t trained in it, and I didn’t see it on my horizon.” What I remember most about making the decision to plant Christ Community Church in Shelbyville ten years ago
3:38 What happened when Going Outside seeped into my family life and my career 
4:27 “It was self-therapy.” How a “horrible manuscript” exploring the Go Outside lifestyle became a published book and podcast series
5:38 What do we believe about Jesus again? How Jesus’ actions on earth author and sustain our next steps 
6:44 So where are we, and what’s next? I share my gratitude and hopes for this podcast and the Go Outside journey</description>

In spite of not knowing exactly what’s coming in …

In spite of not knowing exactly what’s coming in our next season of life, let’s center ourselves in the security of who Jesus is and what He has done.  Let's join Him where the action is.  

Episode Highlights
0:00 Have you noticed curiosity and times of transition tend to go hand-in-hand? I share a passage of Scripture we can cling to in times of new growth and change  
1:16 How curiosity is leading to a change in Rachel’s and my life right now 
1:54 “I wasn’t trained in it, and I didn’t see it on my horizon.” What I remember most about making the decision to plant Christ Community Church in Shelbyville ten years ago
3:38 What happened when Going Outside seeped into my family life and my career 
4:27 “It was self-therapy.” How a “horrible manuscript” exploring the Go Outside lifestyle became a published book and podcast series
5:38 What do we believe about Jesus again? How Jesus’ actions on earth author and sustain our next steps 
6:44 So where are we, and what’s next? I share my gratitude and hopes for this podcast and the Go Outside journey

Go Outside:  Curiosity Plants a Church and Changes Lives

Are you curious about discovering how to use your unique gifts to share Christ with your local community but struggling with the fear of leaving the safety of the sidelines? 

Welcome to Curious, a five-part series of conversations inviting all tired Christians to rediscover and reclaim their God-given gift of curiosity.

In this episode, Rob Perez, owner of DV8 Kitchen and Saul Good restaurants, shares why he’s glad they didn’t wait until they had it all figured out before Going Outside and starting their social enterprise. Now with over 20 employees in early stages of drug and alcohol recovery, Rob gets real about the hard balance of loving people and making a profit in business -- and what makes the risk so worth it.   

Episode Highlights
0:00 How curiosity led Rob Perez to start a business designed to “invest in recovery” 
0:18 “It’s been bad on the pocketbook but the most rewarding experience my wife and I have ever had.” Rob shares how the mission behind DV8 Kitchen first came about  
2:42 “I didn’t bring Christ to work with me at all.” Where Rob was spiritually when his wife suggested they take on this social enterprise 
3:45 Can we love people and be profitable? Lee and Rob get practical about how to balance and sustain a social enterprise
6:31 The three “bottom line” questions Rob’s team asks themselves every week to keep them focused on what matters most 
7:33 What Rob realized was wrong about their financial model when he first “put his hands in the dough” 
10:14 Rob and Lee call out a faulty philosophy: you don’t have to have all the details figured out before you Go Outside!
12:29 “I’m not positive I’m doing the right thing.” Rob gets real about the paychecks, tough choices, and hard conversations necessary to keep DV8 going 
16:07 Rob’s encouragement to anyone who feels a tug to Go Outside but doesn’t know where to start 
18:23 Calling all cinnamon roll lovers… What DV8 Kitchen has in the works for starting a new bakery

Episode Resources
DV8 Kitchen - https://dv8kitchen.com/
Saul Good Restaurant & Pub - http://saulgoodpub.com/
On giving people a second chance - https://www.thefix.com/restaurant-gives-second-chances-people-recovery-gets-rave-reviews

Are you curious about discovering how to use your…

Rob Perez of DV8 Kitchen: Curiosity in the Workplace and Recovery

When was the last time you asked someone more experienced, “What advice would you give me?” 

Welcome to Curious, a five-part series that invites all tired Christians to rediscover and reclaim their God-given gift of curiosity.

In this episode, I share something inspired by a conversation I had with several college students, hungry to learn more. Tune in to hear the top 20 lessons I’ve cultivated after 20 years in business. You’ll leave challenged to ask others what God has taught them through their work -- and to share your own experience with others as well.

Episode Highlights
0:00 The question I was asked by curious college students that inspired this episode: what advice do you have after being in business for 20 years? 
1:33 One opportunity you have once everyday 
1:58 Be distinct (and how it’s paid off for me) 
2:42 Be fluid (and some Scripture to help you stay open to the unexpected) 
2:48 It’s not all about us looking good. 
4:34 “Owner absenteeism doesn’t work, but persistence does.”
4:52 Develop a system (and what my workflow looks like)
5:33 I share the friend who inspired #9: Drive a different way home 
6:13 “Almost everything can wait one night.” 
7:25 One way you can help people decide if they want to join in on your vision
7:44 Big opportunities are the same as small opportunities. 
8:49 “When the time comes to take a big risk, you’ll be ready.” Why it’s best to stay low 
9:20 Are you using your gifts to help others? 
9:38 What I do every day before leaving the office

When was the last time you asked someone more exp…

Curiosity in Small Business:  20 Lessons Learned After 20 Years in Business

What if I told you that reading well could actually help make you a better steward of language on Twitter?
 
Welcome to Curious, a five-part series of conversations inviting all tired Christians to rediscover and reclaim their God-given gift of curiosity.

In this continuation of Episode 1, I’m joined by Dr. Karen Swallow Prior, author of On Reading Well, to talk about how being curious in reading literature is necessary preparation for navigating our culture of polarized thinking. Dr. Prior reminds us that Christians are “people of the Word” and that as Outsiders, we have the responsibility to own and steward the language we speak, type, and interpret every day.

Episode Highlights
0:00 Reading as a virtue? I set us up for Part 2 of my conversation with Dr. Karen Prior
0:25 My reactions to what The Great Gatsby teaches on the virtue of temperance, as discussed in On Reading Well
1:57 “On Twitter, you have become a target for extremists on both sides.” Dr. Prior explains why studying virtue through literature equips her for navigating our polarized culture
3:31 “When we try to avoid one error that we should avoid, we swing to the opposite side and commit another error.” Dr. Prior on what she’s observed from extreme stance-taking in both the classroom and the church
5:54 What allegory and Pilgrim’s Progress has to teach us about the language we use (and interpret) on social media
9:36 Why I believe Dr. Prior’s theory on virtue in literature is a framework for faith leaders everywhere
10:40 You could call us modern-day monks. Why Dr. Prior says it’s the responsibility of Christians, the people of the Word, to preserve literacy in our decaying world
13:15 Where you can find Dr. Prior and how you can contribute to the Reading Well movement
14:30 Now it’s Dr. Prior’s turn: her question for me about reading and writing

Episode Resources
Part One of this episode 
On Reading Well
Dr. Prior’s Twitter
Dr. Prior’s Speaking Engagement Schedule
The Great Gatsby
A Tale of Two Cities
Pilgrim’s Progress
The Outsiders

What if I told you that reading well could actual…

Curiosity Promotes Learning, with Dr. Karen Swallow Prior, Part 2

What if I told you that you could live counter-culturally today just by reading extra slowly? 

We’ve all heard that leaders are readers, but nobody actually enjoys plunging through a long checklist of titles as fast as they can. 

Outsiders, we need a new approach. It’s time to slow down and be curious again.  

Welcome to Curiosity, a series of five conversations that explore the recovery and rediscovery of our curiosity, the God-given fuel behind Go Outside. In Part 1 of this first episode, Dr. Karen Swallow Prior, the author of one of my favorite books, On Reading Well, is here to help us rethink how and why we read. Together, Karen and I explain how reading well is a straight-out rebellion against our fast-paced culture but also a deeply rewarding virtue that slows us down, opens us up to notice, and makes us powerful stewards of language.

Episode Highlights
0:00 Would you call yourself curious? Why curiosity is foundational for Go Outside  
0:40 Any bookworms tuning in? I share my latest curiosity: literature (and introduce a guest who’s got quite the appetite for reading herself!)
1:10 “I don’t think most people dare to go that far.” Dr. Prior’s response after I asks about the most important thing we have in common 
3:25 A week-in-the-life: Dr. Prior talks her chaotic schedule of traveling, teaching, and living in rural Virginia   
5:50 The story behind how Dr. Prior’s book ended up in my hands
9:21 Do you also struggle to enjoy reading in our fast-paced world? Dr. Prior talks about the time, patience, and attention it takes to read well 
11:10 “Reading good literature is a radical, rebellious act against our culture.” What Dr. Prior says a counter-cultural mindset towards reading should look like and feel like
13:31 Reading is a virtue? Dr. Prior gives us a refresher on what it means to live in tension between having too much and not enough
17:00 Karen Prior shares her 4 favorite virtues (as of today, at least)
18:55 The young adult novel that inspired both me and Dr. Prior 
20:45 Christians should read more than self-help books? Dr. Prior explains why she chose the books she did for her top 100 reading list

Resources
- On Reading Well by Karen Swallow Prior
- Karen Swallow Prior on Twitter: https://twitter.com/ksprior
- Her website: www.karenswallowprior.com
- The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton
- The History of Tom Jones by Henry Fielding
- The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald

What if I told you that you could live counter-cu…

Curiosity Promotes Learning, with Dr. Karen Swallow Prior, Part 1

The book, Go Outside, was published in 2016 by Alton Lee Webb.  These three episodes capture the essence of the movement that helps others get up, get out, and change the world.

Go Outside with Alton Lee Webb

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