Shows
The Pilgrimage PodcastWinter Solace 2024: HomeAye y'all, what's good?!?! I'm back, and I missed you people. In this conversation today, I'm joined by Pastor Jenn Layte and Robert Monson (alumni guests of this podcast) and Leah Wrenne. They are all participating in the Winter Solace Conference that will be from January 12-14, 2024! This conference was started by Pastor Jenn as a space for people who are weary in their faith to divulge their disappointments and grief with the hopes of connecting them to a God who sees them compassionately. This year's theme is Home, which we talk about in this wonderful conversation I hope...2023-11-1045 minThe Pilgrimage PodcastSharifa Stevens—The Goodness of God in a World of SufferingAye, y'all, what's good?! I had my big sis Sharifa Stevens on the episode today. We talked about the legacy of colonization that affects being a Black woman in the church, the seminary space, and as a mother. We also hit on imagining the goodness of God when all seems to be going to ruin. What is God's disposition for those who worry and have been battered? I think you'll be encouraged by Sharifa's powerful reflections. I also hope you enjoy the laughter. This episode was a joy.
You can follow Sharifa's work on...2023-06-2859 minThe Pilgrimage PodcastPastor Jennifer Layte—The Pilgrimage of Shepherding and Spiritual Direction"Aye, y'all, what's good?! We got Pastor Jennifer Layte on the Podcast! She shares the story of her ministry (which my podcast shares a name with). We talked Shepherding, Spiritual Directing, Chaplaincy and More! Pastor Layte has ministered with many hats on, but most recently she's taken on the role of a Shepherd to her church and has a particular affinity for the deconstruction community who have faced many barriers to God from within the institutional religious world and guides them towards the boundless love of Jesus. I pray y'all are blessed by the conversation!
2023-06-0357 min
New Living TreyslationThe Pilgrimage Podcast: Battle Rap, Preaching, Loving, and TheologizingHey everyone! No, your podcast app is not malfunctioning. This is not a Treyslation.
This is an episode of The Pilgrimage Podcast with Zeru Fitsum, and Zeru & I (Trey) had a really dope conversation I wanted to share with y'all while 3BM is in our offseason. You can check out The Pilgrimage Podcast wherever you listen to Treyslation. Everything beneath this is copied directly from The Pilgrimage shownotes:
Aye y'all?! What's good? We have a revisiting guest in Pastor R.G.A. "Trey" Ferguson III on this episode. We chop it up...2023-05-1556 minThe Pilgrimage PodcastPastor Trey Ferguson—Battle Rap, Preaching, Loving, and TheologizingAye y'all?! What's good? We have a revisiting guest in Pastor R.G.A. Trey Ferguson III on this episode. We chop it up about how battle rap has influenced his preaching by way of helping him craft words that land and sit with people in meaningful ways. I had fun with this one, family. We talk about pastoral care, love, and accountability. Also, Trey is writing a book!! It's called Theologizin' Bigger and I'm anticipating it's release ever-so fervently. In all reality, I just really trust Trey and his heart for people and his walking according to the...2023-05-1554 minThe Pilgrimage PodcastWesley Mills—Communicating Love Through MetaphorAye, y'all, what's good?! Hope y'all have are enjoying the advent of this Spring season. I know it's snowing in some of y'all's cities, so y'all must not be praying hard enough... Anyway, I brought my pastor Wesley Mills back onto the podcast to speak about the Pilgrim's journey of sacralizing metaphor. It's not an easy practice, but it is a worthwhile one. Language works inasmuch we're reaching people's hearts, and what better thing to reach people with than love? We talk about different layers of metaphor, so I have it sparks thoughts and models conversationally what can be...2023-03-1359 minThe Pilgrimage PodcastRobert Monson—"Someone to Whom I Am Important": Reflections on Being Loved and Loving God in a Cruel WorldAye y'all, what's good?! I'm so glad to be back with Season 2 of the Pilgrimage Podcast, and this season opener is a banger! Robert Monson is a Black man who aims to point us all toward softness in a world that is proficient at brutalizing. Knowing this about him, I asked him to speak about his journey of being loved by God and loving God when it hasn't always been easy. These reflections are guided by Jürgen Moltmann's quote: “I know: there is someone waiting for me, who will not give me up, who goes ahead of me, who...2023-02-1751 min
The Pilgrimage PodcastQuina Aragon—"Love Can" & Grief & Chronic PainAye y'all what's good?! On this episode, Quina Aragon and I chopped it up about her new book "Love Can." It's coming out in February, and it is the third book in a children's series about the Trinity. The First, "Love Made," is about how the Triune God created the world out of love for us. The Second, "Love Gave," is about friendship and the sacrificial love of Christ. And the third, "Love Can" speaks to the power of love that resides in us via the person of the Holy Spirit. The latter half of the convo is a...2022-12-211h 07The Pilgrimage PodcastHanna Leka—Fighting for What You LoveAye, y'all, what's good! Long time no see. In this episode, I chop it up with one of my favorite creatives, Hanna Leka. She's a SoCal resident who does photography and makes rugs. In this episode she shares many encouraging words to those of us who don't have the energy to stay the course with their gifts and dreams. We go into getting that alone time with God and listening to the voice of the Ultimate Creative who gave us our creative abilities and how relying on that knowledge can sustain us amid our discouragement. Luh y'all big time...2022-12-011h 01
Mosaic Knox - Sermons & MessagesMosaic Midweek Podcast ft. Zeru Fitsum: The Bible that Is Welcoming to the ConfusedToday Wes hosts the Midweek podcast and the guest is Zeru (me). I share my story about growing up in a Ethiopian Pentecostal family that loved the Bible, and about my time in the Southern Baptist community that loved the Bible as well. However, I've had some questions along this journey of a lot of exposure to the Bible. 2022-10-1926 minThe Pilgrimage PodcastBrother Jerry—Resisting Self-Reliance and Embracing the Help of JesusAye, y'all, what's good?!?! On this episode, I talk with a friend that I call Brother Jerry. We gotta keep his identity a lil ambiguous for several reasons. But, Jerry is one who knows what it's like to not have to depend on others, and the vulnerable places that dependence actually puts us in. Learning to believe we need those that are different than us is important but it's hard. And Jerry has found this piece of his pilgrimage as crucial. We speak about the tangible ways Jesus has reached out to help Jerry and his family amid gargantuan...2022-09-2656 minThe Pilgrimage PodcastDr. Sam Won—The Grace of God in a story of Immigration, Assimilation, Poverty, and Pastoral Ministryaye, y'all, whatt's good?! Man oh man am I excited about today's episode. We are joined by Dr. Sam Won, Director of Formation and Professor at Dallas Theological Seminary. In all honesty, I invited him so we could talk about the grief around closing a church that was doing well. We do talk about that, yes, but, being so interested in his family's story of immigration, we explore what Sam felt was an almost utopian childhood. We learn about his father's transition to ministry after achieving a psychology degree in Korea; his realization of embedded racism in America even...2022-09-131h 00The Pilgrimage PodcastUnsure Yet BelovedToday, I share, briefly, about my pilgrimage with my uncertainties with being Beloved. Maybe y'all will find yourself relating. Thank y'all so much for listening and traversing this journey with me. 2022-07-0812 min
The Pilgrimage PodcastPastor Trey Ferguson—Seeing the Bible as a Library and Letting it Inform our LoveAye, y'all, what's good?!?! Ever since I figured out I was going to have this conversation with Pastor Trey, I haven't been able to keep in my excitement. We talk about the Bible, the Holy Book that I grew up with and continue to love. However, this is a conversation about the Bible many who know me have not heard me voice because of my fear to share my uncertainties about the Bible. Pastor Trey walks us through how his view of the Bible evolved, how college was a crucial time for his inquisitiveness, and God's sustaining hand.
If you h...2022-07-011h 04The Pilgrimage PodcastJalynn Baker—Finding Your Voice and the Art of StorytellingAye, y'all!! What's good?! Today's episode was recorded with my friend Jalynn Baker. We chat about her story and how she grew a passion for storytelling through photography, as well as through other mediums. She shared about her journey to finding her voice in predominantly white spaces as a Black woman and offers encouragement to aspiring creatives wanting to listen to the voice inside of them that tells them to create! Hope you all enjoy the episode. 2022-06-1745 minThe Pilgrimage PodcastEbenezer Endiryas—The Role of Stand-Up Comedy and the Christian ConscienceAye, ya'll! What's good?! Excited to release this episode that I recorded with my cousin Ebenezer. We both love stand-up comedy, but we've also noticed how friends of ours in religious circles and the culture in general have had some pauses about comedy. In this episode, we try to discuss what we love about the art and try to extend understanding to those who are not fans of it, or, if not the genre in total, specific comedians. Hope y'all enjoy the convo!2022-06-101h 14The Pilgrimage PodcastBack from HiatusAye y'all, what's good?! I'm not gonna lie, for a lil bit, I thought I was just gonna drop off. But, with ample encouragement and feeling compelled by the desire within me to create content, I knew I couldn't stop. Hope y'all have been well. Luh ya big time. 2022-05-0912 minThe Pilgrimage PodcastWesley Mills—The Mission of God in the World, Listening to Others, and Eschewing Colonial, Missional TacticsAye y’all! On today's episode of the Pilgrimage Podcast we got my Pastor, Wesley Mills. We talk about missional living. The questions touch on the shifts that happened in his life that made him believe that joining God's mission in the world was the way he wanted to live. He clarifies misconceptions about the word missional and shares why living with people and loving them is more about listening to them and demonstrating a beautifully lived life through embodied living than it is about convincing them of our theological positions. These past few years, Wes, his wife, and Mosaic Kn...2022-03-0856 minThe Pilgrimage PodcastJohn Onwuchekwa—Holding Honesty and Hope Together in the Wake of SufferingAye, y'all, what's good?! Today's episode features Pastor John Onwuchekwa. Pastor John ministers in Atlanta and he also is a board member of the Crete Collective (an organization that supports and strategizes with churches led and populated by minorities). If you're in the Atlanta area, you'll want to check out Portrait Coffee, of which he is a founder.
We talk about his story, an event that changed the course of his life before he went to college, the grief of losing his brother, the joys of adopting his daughter, and the work of continuing on in life. I was a k...2022-03-0141 minThe Pilgrimage PodcastRuth Buchanan—Books, Viewing Yourself as a Writer and Why We Need Each OtherAye y'all, what's good?! Man, Ruth Buchanan and I had a blast on this episode! We talk about her favorite authors and how much fun reading is. She shares with us a little bit of what she is doing over at Build a Better as a writing consultant. There are many laughs on this episode, from the tangents I start to the stories Ruth tells; it's an, overall, fun and feel-good episode. Ruth spends a lot of time encouraging me and listeners to hone their writing skills as early as possible and lets us in on wonderful ways to do...2022-02-2256 minThe Pilgrimage PodcastNatalie Jeffries—Hope in God Amidst Shattered Dreams and DisappointmentAye y'all, what's good?! Appreciate everyone continuing on the journey with me as I invite old friends and new friends to join the table with me as we discuss some of my favorite topics and highlight difficult points of our pilgrimages. On today's episode, I got my friend Natalie Jeffries sharing about a time when she was removed from a country that she loved (and still does) with no choice but to leave. As a missionary, developer of indigenous Christians to lead local churches, and leader of befriending and extending justice to unreached people groups, she and her team experienced...2022-02-081h 08The Pilgrimage PodcastYoni Fitsum—Navigating Personal Brokenness and Hurt while Finding Restored Confidence and LoveAye y'all, what's good? On today's episode, I chat with my older brother, Yonathan (aka Yoni) Fitsum! We delve into how zeal in his early life led to pretty disappointing and difficult circumstances. He shares familial disagreements, ministerial hang-ups, and the renewing power of Christ's grace in his life. We converse about how difficult it is to come by true hope and restoration, but, according to the measure Yoni's experienced it, he lets us into a fresh, helpful way of navigating the brokenness that often blinds us to the hope that restoration can come.
I hope you enjoy this episode...2022-01-251h 04The Pilgrimage PodcastReflections on the Life of Barry Kerr—Grief and Hope and Barry's SongHey, friends. My friend, Barry Kerr, unexpectedly passed away almost two weeks ago. In today's episode, I spent a few minutes verbally processing what I had been feeling on the day of his funeral. This episode's content is not particularly insightful; it is primarily revealing. It shares experiences I had with Barry; it explains his persona. Lastly, I finish the episode with the silly "Barry Songs" my friends and I would sing for him every time we would leave his house after dinner or a meeting. We love you, Barry.
2022-01-1818 minThe Pilgrimage PodcastTianna Haas—Pilgrims and Poetry: The Power and Beauty of WordsAye, y'all, what's good?! I've got Tianna Haas on this installment of the Pilgrimage Podcast. We talk about her journey to needing poetry, and its provisions for a life of genuine empathy. Written words are not simply ordinary shapes we come across on our media feeds, or in books; they are attempts to invite readers into the life and mind of the author so that humanity can be shared and greater empathy can be discovered.
Tianna encourages us to look at reading poetry in all of its forms as a sort of listening. She shares a few of her favorite w...2022-01-1159 minThe Pilgrimage PodcastAlicia Akins—A Pilgrimage to Loving Neighbors Across the GlobeAye, y'all? What's good?! In this episode, I had the privilege of conversing with Alicia Akins (author of the upcoming book Invitations to Abundance: How the Feasts of the Bible Nourish Us Today). Alicia and I discuss the joys of celebrating and embracing the cultures of people all over the world, how as priests of the kingdom of God we joyfully welcome others alongside their customs, and the worthwhile practice of challenging our inner dialogues that deem our own cultures as superior. We both believe that having a healthy amount of cynicism toward our upbringings can instill us with a...2022-01-0450 minThe Pilgrimage PodcastEbenezer Endiryas—A Pilgrimage to Embracing IncompetenceAye y'all, what's good?! In today's episode, I tackle the topic of incompetence with my cousin Ebenezer Endiryas (pastor of Perazim Church and host of Shaping the Culture Podcast). We talk about calling, failure, and continuance. This pilgrimage that we call life unloads heavy feelings of incompetence onto us, and it causes a lot of us to question whether it is wise or not to embrace said incompetence. Are we wasting our time, or are we sowing an indispensable investment when we continue through the embarrassments and loneliness of incompetence? This conversation aims to encourage those whose proficiencies are...2021-12-2856 minThe Pilgrimage PodcastThe Pilgrimage Podcast Trailer EpisodeAye y'all! What's good?! I'm so excited to introduce you to my chaotic yet purposeful life and mind. None of us are meant to get through life alone, so I want this podcast to be a place where many can find a friend in me and the guests on this show. Let's pilgrim on, fam.2021-12-2404 min