The Alisa Childers Podcast

In Part 1 of my conversation with Matt Schmidt, we explored his argument that many deconstruction stories reveal a deeper problem: faith that was ultimately built on something other than the person and authority of Jesus Christ.

In Part 2, we put that thesis to the test by watching and analyzing real deconstruction stories posted online. We hear from former Christians whose faith unraveled over questions about morality, the Word of Faith movement, biblical criticism, the Epic of Gilgamesh, the nature of faith, and more.

With each story, we ask four important questions: What was their faith originally built on? What caused the first crack? What replaced that foundation? And was Jesus himself ever really the problem?

Along the way, Matt and I discuss why Christianity must ultimately be grounded in the person, work, and authority of Jesus Christ—and why understanding what someone is actually rejecting may be crucial to helping those who are deconstructing reconsider the faith they left behind.

Webinar Registration: https://www.e360m.org/alisa
Fall Training offerings (including the Deconstruction Discussion group): https://www.e360m.org/fall2026
E360 Store with shirts meant to spark conversations: https://e360.printify.me/
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This video is sponsored by:

BRAVE BOOKS
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RANGE LEATHER
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Booking: www.alisachilders.com/booking

To Purchase the new CD, “Beauty from the Ash”, go to www.alisachilders.com/music
There you can get the CD, backing tracks, string charts, rhythm charts and stems.

Support us on Patreon: www.patreon.com/alisachilders

To order “Another Gospel”: www.alisachilders.com/another-gospel/
To order “Live Your Truth": www.alisachilders.com/live-your-truth-and-other-lies/
To order “The Deconstruction of Christianity”: https://alisachilders.com/the-deconstruction-of-christianity/

Potential Sponsors: https://alisachilders.com/sponsor-request-form/

Why do people really deconstruct their Christian faith? Church hurt, hypocrisy, doubts about the Bible, science, sexuality, and politics may trigger a crisis—but what if they aren’t the root cause?

After years of studying deconstruction stories and having thousands of conversations about Christianity, apologetics, and evangelism, Matt Schmidt has noticed a striking pattern: often, the faith that eventually collapses wasn’t actually built on the unique authority of Jesus in the first place.

In this episode, Matt joins Alisa to unpack what happens when our faith is built on a pastor, church, parents, personal experience, theological system—or even the need to have every difficult biblical question resolved. They discuss why Jesus’ life, miracles, death, and resurrection must be the foundation, how His authority grounds our confidence in Scripture, and how parents and churches can help Christians build a faith sturdy enough to withstand serious questions and doubt.

Webinar Registration: www.e360m.org/alisa
Fall Training offerings (including the Deconstruction Discussion group): www.e360m.org/fall2026
E360 Store with shirts meant to spark conversations: https://e360.printify.me/

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This video is sponsored by:

BRAVE BOOKS
Entertainment that Engages the Imagination for Good.  
Go to www.bravebooks.com/childers for more information
Use my code: CHILDERS

A'DEL NATURAL COSMETICS
Elevate your skincare routine with A'del's toxin-free cosmetics. 
Experience the difference in quality and purity. 
Go to www.adelnaturalcosmetics.com for more information. 
Use my code: ALISA 

FOUNDATION WORLDVIEW
Foundation Worldview creates curriculum series that will empower your child to think
Biblically in a deceptive world. 
Go to www.foundationworldview.com for more information.
Use my code: ALISA

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Booking: www.alisachilders.com/booking

To Purchase the new CD, “Beauty from the Ash”, go to www.alisachilders.com/music
There you can get the CD, backing tracks, string charts, rhythm charts and stems.

Support us on Patreon:  www.patreon.com/alisachilders

To order “Another Gospel”:  www.alisachilders.com/another-gospel/
To order “Live Your Truth":  www.alisachilders.com/live-your-truth-and-other-lies/
To order “The Deconstruction of Christianity”: https://alisachilders.com/the-deconstruction-of-christianity/

Potential Sponsors: https://alisachilders.com/sponsor-request-form/

In Part 1, former Point Loma Nazarene University students Noah and Ashley Shaw shared their firsthand experiences with progressive Christianity on campus. In Part 2, we bring the receipts. We examine what PLNU publicly claims to believe and compare it with what professors are actually teaching, publishing, promoting, and platforming.

From PLNU connections to Queering Wesley, Queering the Church, to professors contributing to a book arguing that the Nazarene Church should become fully LGBTQ+ affirming, to academic work incorporating transgender identities and abortion into discussions of motherhood, the evidence raises serious questions about how deep the theological drift goes. And because every PLNU student is required to take multiple theology courses, Noah and Ashley argue that these influences aren't confined to some obscure corner of campus.

We also investigate progressive churches connected to PLNU faculty, controversial chapel speakers, process theology, and what happens when Christian leaders refuse to confront false teaching.

If you're a Christian parent considering PLNU, a current student, or anyone concerned about theological drift in Christian institutions, this is an episode you don't want to miss.

Links:

Professor Stephanie Smith-Matthews’ dissertation: https://irbe.library.vanderbilt.edu/server/api/core/bitstreams/c859c543-a780-44bc-81c6-87a4d1e96313/content

PLNU Professors sermons from Normal Heights United Methodist Church:

https://nhunited.org/podcast/guest-preacher-dr-stephanie-smith-matthews/
https://nhunited.org/podcast/guest-preacher-dr-stephanie-matthews/
https://nhunited.org/podcast/guest-preacher-rev-dr-montague-williams/

Former PLNU Professors contributed chapters to "Why the Church of the Nazarene Should Be Fully LGBTQ+ Affirming" https://www.amazon.com/dp/1948609940?lv=shuf&bestFormat=true&social_share=cm_sw_r_ffobk_cp_ud_dp_KXF7X3K5943WDX4ZVY6S&channelId=704&ref_=cm_sw_r_ffobk_cp_ud_dp_KXF7X3K5943WDX4ZVY6S&plpRedirect=mhFallback

Professor Jennifer Guerra-Aldana showcasing Friere’s Pedagogy of the Oppressed https://www.instagram.com/p/C1FqdW4SlMs/

Normal Heights United Methodist Church: https://www.google.com/url?q=http://nhunited.org&sa=D&source=docs&ust=1788670911469458&usg=AOvVaw1mPi42U1uFGQcBWsAJI4NC

Song added to NHUMC for Pride season: https://nhunited.org/news/new-song-added-to-worship-this-pride-season/

Noah Shaw, "The Apostasy of Normal Heights United Methodist Church: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=49TBuVUSL8E

Part 2: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZdWw1SSOVt8&feature=youtu.be

Catherine Keller for Wiley Lectures: https://lomabeat.com/catherine-keller-explores-intersection-of-faith-and-creation-at-wiley-lectures/

Dean of Students Jason Cha's dissertation, "The Raging Waters of Whiteness: Addressing White Evangelical Racism in Higher Education" https://www.proquest.com/docview/2851748156/fulltextPDF?%20Theses&parentSessionId=Z1WICa5WdtrbTyM38ZAL2L5fwHrHZXkopllLyBqupdo%3D&pq-origsite=primo&sourcetype=Dissertations%20

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This video is sponsored by:

SEVEN WEEKS COFFEE
Taste the Coffee that is Saving Lives.
Go to http://www.sevenweekscoffee.com/ for more information.
Use my code: ALISA

RANGE LEATHER
American-Made Craftsmanship from Wyoming
Go to www.rangeleather.com for more information
Use my code: ALISA

GOOD RANCHERS
American Meat Delivered
Go to https://go.goodranchers.com/alisa for more information.
Use my code: ALISA

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Booking: www.alisachilders.com/booking

To Purchase the new CD, “Beauty from the Ash”, go to www.alisachilders.com/music
There you can get the CD, backing tracks, string charts, rhythm charts and stems.

Support us on Patreon: www.patreon.com/alisachilders

To order “Another Gospel”: www.alisachilders.com/another-gospel/
To order “Live Your Truth": www.alisachilders.com/live-your-truth-and-other-lies/
To order “The Deconstruction of Christianity”: https://alisachilders.com/the-deconstruction-of-christianity/

Potential Sponsors: https://alisachilders.com/sponsor-request-form/

For the first time, John and Korey Cooper of the Grammy-nominated, multi-platinum rock band Skillet are breaking their silence about the church abuse that devastated their family and turned their community against them.

For years, the Coopers were deeply embedded in Korey’s lifelong church, never realizing that its leadership embraced beliefs and practices associated with the New Apostolic Reformation (NAR). Those beliefs weren't clearly disclosed, but as John and Korey began to understand what was really being taught and practiced behind the scenes, they started asking questions—and everything changed.

What followed were prophetic words, accusations, pressure to submit to spiritual authority, fractured family relationships, and efforts to turn members of their own community against them. With Korey’s brother-in-law serving as the church’s “apostle” and her father remaining an elder, walking away came at an enormous personal cost.

We also examine the theology and practices of the NAR, the dangers of unaccountable spiritual authority, how prophetic claims can be used to manipulate people, and what happens when questioning church leaders is treated as questioning God.

In this raw and deeply personal conversation, John and Korey take us into their darkest moments—how spiritual abuse shook their faith, what kept them from walking away from Jesus, and what anchored them when everything else fell apart.

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This video is sponsored by:

FOUNDATION WORLDVIEW
Foundation Worldview creates curriculum series that will empower your child to think
Biblically in a deceptive world. 
Go to www.foundationworldview.com for more information.
Use my code: ALISA

GOOD RANCHERS
American Meat Delivered
Go to https://go.goodranchers.com/alisa for more information.
Use my code: ALISA

SEVEN WEEKS COFFEE
Taste the Coffee that is Saving Lives.
Go to http://www.sevenweekscoffee.com/ for more information.
Use my code: ALISA

ALLIANCE FAMILY SERVICES
Alliance Family Services is a Gospel-centered organization that relentlessly advocates for
preborn children, women, and families by providing exceptional reproductive healthcare, 
Biblical discipleship, and social support.
Go to www.alliancefamilyservices.org for more information

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Booking: www.alisachilders.com/booking

To Purchase the new CD, “Beauty from the Ash”, go to www.alisachilders.com/music
There you can get the CD, backing tracks, string charts, rhythm charts and stems.

Support us on Patreon: www.patreon.com/alisachilders

To order “Another Gospel”: www.alisachilders.com/another-gospel/
To order “Live Your Truth": www.alisachilders.com/live-your-truth-and-other-lies/
To order “The Deconstruction of Christianity”: https://alisachilders.com/the-deconstruction-of-christianity/

Potential Sponsors: https://alisachilders.com/sponsor-request-form/

What happens when students attend a Christian university expecting their faith to be strengthened—but instead encounter professors who question Scripture, reject the atonement, and blur biblical teaching on sexuality?

Former Point Loma Nazarene University students Noah and Ashley Shaw share what they they experienced firsthand—from being taught that Moses wasn’t real and hearing a radically different definition of the gospel, to LGBTQ activism on campus and the backlash they faced when they spoke up. Has Point Loma Nazarene become progressive? We explore that question in the next two episodes of the podcast.

Links mentioned in the show:

Article about Noah's chapel petition: https://lomabeat.com/petition-concerning-chapel-practices-causes-tension-on-campus/

Noah's chapel petition: https://lomabeat.com/petition-concerning-chapel-practices/

Chapel petition follow up: https://lomabeat.com/chapel-petition-follow-up-discussion-prompts-desire-for-continued-conversation/

Article about campus LGBTQ protest: https://lomabeat.com/students-and-alumni-organize-to-bring-visibility-to-lgbtqia-experiences/

Deirdre Brower Latz's chapel message: https://www.youtube.com/live/J6Gh_4LuXWk

Noah's article on the gospel: https://lomabeat.com/renewal-comes-through-the-gospel/

PLNU Professor Jon Manning's article responding to Noah's article: https://lomabeat.com/christians-define-gospel-in-different-ways-and-thats-okay/

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This video is sponsored by:

WE HEART NUTRITION
From Our Family to Yours, Whole Supplements for Every Age and Stage.
Go to http://www.weheartnutrition.com  for more information.
Use my code: ALISA

RANGE LEATHER
American-Made Craftsmanship from Wyoming
Go to www.rangeleather.com for more information
Use my code: ALISA

SEVEN WEEKS COFFEE
Taste the Coffee that is Saving Lives.
Go to http://www.sevenweekscoffee.com/ for more information.
Use my code: ALISA

FOUNDATION WORLDVIEW
Foundation Worldview creates curriculum series that will empower your child to think
Biblically in a deceptive world. 
Go to www.foundationworldview.com for more information.
Use my code: ALISA

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Booking: www.alisachilders.com/booking

To Purchase the new CD, “Beauty from the Ash”, go to www.alisachilders.com/music
There you can get the CD, backing tracks, string charts, rhythm charts and stems.

Support us on Patreon:  www.patreon.com/alisachilders

To order “Another Gospel”:  www.alisachilders.com/another-gospel/
To order “Live Your Truth":  www.alisachilders.com/live-your-truth-and-other-lies/
To order “The Deconstruction of Christianity”: https://alisachilders.com/the-deconstruction-of-christianity/

Potential Sponsors: https://alisachilders.com/sponsor-request-form/