The Debrief Podcast with Matthew Stephen Brown

What is the deal with Jesus asking us to eat his body and blood? How do we hear from God when it comes to planning out our future? And why do you do when you just don't seem to fit in with "typical" Christians? Listen in as Pastor Matt Brown talks through communion and what it really means to be "clean."

Whether you’re stuck together by biology, choice or a paycheck, navigating relationships with people who disagree with you can be tough. How should a Christian respond to people who people who don’t share your morality, beliefs or opinions? And how does that change when you’re related? Listen in as Pastor Matt prepares us all for the best part of the holidays.

What do you do when you want to get more involved at church, but your spouse isn’t on board? How can you help people when you feel really messed up yourself? And where is Sandals Church headed next? Listen in as Pastor Matt and the crew talk through what’s ahead and how we’re getting there.

Is the devil everywhere? How do we balance ambition and spirituality? Does pursuing more money always mean finding more problems? Listen in as Pastor Matt and the team answer your questions on giving.

On this special Halloween episode, Pastor Matt tackles questions on how Christians should engage with the supernatural and what the bible has to say about ghosts, demons and evil spirits.

Pastor Matt answers tough questions on infertility, how to know if you’re in the right job, who counts as a leader you should listen to and whether or not it’s actually ok to cuss as a Christian. The conversation wraps up with a discussion on heaven and whether or not our loved ones will be there with us.

Leading up to a weekend of celebration in honor of the 20th anniversary of Sandals Church, Pastor Matt and Tammy Brown sit down to talk through where the church has been and where it’s headed.

Does the Old Testament say that racism is ok? How do you see eye to eye with loved ones who view things differently than you? How do we become better noticers or less socially awkward? Listen in as Pastor Matt, Justin and Stephanie tackle all kinds of follow-up and off-topic questions.

Why does God allow terrible things like the shooting in Las Vegas happen? How should (or shouldn’t) we respond? What’s the responsibility of the church in times of crisis and pain? Listen in as Pastor Matt, Justin and Stephanie answer your questions about how and why we should respond to tragedy.

Pastor Matt Brown and Dex Alexander continue their discussion about race and answer your questions about forgiveness, foolishness and how to make a difference.

Is the church a place where we should talk about race? How do we know where we’ve been too sensitive or not sensitive enough when it comes to our differences? Listen in as Pastor Matt and Sandals Church creative director Dex Alexander begin a conversation about race, ignorance and how to move forward together.

Does God want you to have a better sex life? How do you talk to your kids about porn - or stop watching it yourself? What are the best guidelines for sexual activity when you’re not married? Listen in as Pastor Matt tackles your questions on how to be wise when it comes to sex.

What if lust isn’t really about sex, gluttony isn’t really about food and greed doesn’t have anything to do with money? Have you ever wondered what really makes you so angry or so scared? Listen in as Pastor Matt and special guest, Tammy Brown, unpack how to figure out how you really work. Because let’s be honest, we’re all a little foolish somewhere.

How we spend our money shows what we value. If you end some months not sure where your paycheck went, or aren’t sure if God is cool with how you’re spending your money, listen in for an honest conversation about how to handle your finances.

How do you raise children to love instead of hate? How do you learn to have wise feelings? How did Pastor Matt accidentally stab someone? Questions need answers, and this episode is full of them. Listen in for a talk on wisdom, racism, education and parenting.

When racial tension erupts, is there a wise way to respond? And if love is the best weapon to use against hate, how do you wield it? Pastor Matt Brown talks through what happened in Charlottesville, ways to be wise and how to find the facts in a world run by feelings.

If wisdom requires listening, how do you learn to receive criticism or pay attention when you’re easily distracted? Is there a difference between gaining wisdom and learning a skill? And how do you get to the other side of the story? Listen in as Pastor Matt dishes out wisdom on how to be wise.

Pastor Matt and the crew are joined by Claude Hickman for a recap of the Supernatural series, all about rediscovering who God really is. The conversation ranges from how to better understand God to the many things we may never really understand about him.

What’s the difference between good and bad stress? Or guilt and shame? Can you really ever forgive someone who abused you? Pastor Matt has given some great answers to these tough questions over the first 70 episodes of The Debrief, listen in to hear his thoughts on divorce, his tips on studying the Bible with ADD and what he and Tammy have to say about being married.

If you’ve ever wondered if you can lose your salvation, if there are different levels of heaven or hell or what happens when a Christian commits suicide, we’ve talked about it here. We’ve also thrown in Pastor Matt’s take on homosexuality and the church, how Christians should interact with drugs and alcohol and whether Jesus was killed or chose to die.

Have you ever wondered why? Why do bad things happen to good people? Why did a so-called perfect God create a clearly imperfect world? And why does the Old Testament still matter if Jesus changed everything? On this week's episode, Pastor Matt, Tim and Stephanie walk through questions that all start with "why?"

Lots happens behind the mics before each episode of The Debrief begins. Listen in as Pastor Matt, Justin, Stephanie and lots of guests have some fun before getting to the tough questions.

Anxiety is a real thing, and it’s possible well-meaning Christians have been giving the wrong advice about it for a long time. Listen in as Pastor Matt, Justin and Stephanie share their own experiences with anxiety and answer questions about what to do when “just pray about it” just doesn’t work.

What’s so bad about wanting to be perfect? What’s the right way to pray? And how do you know when it’s time to step out in faith or wait for better circumstances? This week Pastor Matt tackles tough questions about perfection, prayer and preparedness.

What does it mean to be happy? How do you know if you’ve heard the voice of God or just your own subconscious? And how on earth can an a-hole, well, stop being an a-hole? Pastor Matt Brown gives real answers to tough questions about happiness.

What do you do when work isn’t working for you? How can you find meaning in your job - no matter what it is - and how do you know if God wants you to find a new place to work? Pastor Matt tackles real questions about happiness in the workplace.

How can we really be happy when we’re in the midst of parenting small children or working in a job that is anything but what we dreamed it would be? Was Jesus actually happy when he was on earth? Listen in as Pastor Matt answers our questions and shares some of the secrets to real happiness.

Is it possible to be truly happy in an imperfect world? Is plastic surgery ok for Christians and when/how do you walk away from crazy? Pastor Matt and the crew answer these questions and more while unpacking a sermon all about holding onto happiness.

Can you be a gay Christian, how do you apologize to an ex and how do you know if your guilt is from God or the enemy? Pastor Matt Brown shares his thoughts on how to grow in your faith, not become a slave to money and how exactly to go about enjoying God.

Can Christians get help from hypnotists and mediums? What about marrying someone who is divorced or reading the “other” books from the bible? Sometimes things just aren’t quite black and white, especially when you’re trying to follow Jesus. Listen in as Pastor Matt gives real answers to tough questions about what is and isn’t sin.

Can we really know what the afterlife, heaven, and hell are really like? And why do we focus so much on the size of the church? Or can a non-sexual dating relationship between two people of the same gender be okay? Pastor Matt, Justin, and Stephanie walk through your questions across a handful of topics while teaching us what it means to be real in serving the church.

If Jesus says we’re forgiven, why do we still talk about judgment day? And what do you do when you keep asking God to change the way you feel, but nothing seems to be happening? Pastor Matt, Justin and Stephanie walk through your questions about coworkers, God’s judgment and serving at church.

Two weeks after Pastor Matt taught on sexual temptation, the Debrief team got overrun by your questions about sex. In this episode, Pastor Matt, Justin and Stephanie talk through questions on forgiveness, sex, homosexuality and porn.

Pastor Mark Driscoll joins the show to talk through some off-topic questions with the crew. Listen in as Pastor Matt, Pastor Mark, Justin and Stephanie talk through gender roles, how to have a more interactive relationship with God and what to do when you act on bad advice.

How do you find someone to date? What happens when the person you’re dating changes their view on church and faith? And where exactly is the line? Pastor Matt gives real answers to your tough questions about dating.

The bible says “bad company corrupts good character” - so how do you find and keep the right friends? Listen in as Pastor Matt talks about friendships, the most dangerous thing to Christianity and the best thing to help a toxic person in your life.

From melting down toddlers to defiant teenagers, Pastor Matt answers listener questions on how to raise kids in an ever-changing world. Pastor Matt, Justin and Stephanie talk through how to navigate one of the hardest and most rewarding jobs there is.

People are hard, and somehow the people we fall in love with and choose to spend our entire lives with can be the hardest. What do you do when your spouse doesn't share your beliefs? Or won't forgive you for something you've done? And how do we not just survive marriage, but make it great? Listen in as Pastor Matt, Justin and Stephanie talk marriage.

Pastor Matt, Justin and Stephanie start to break down Genesis and the story of how we all got here and how we all got so messed up. In this episode, Pastor Matt talks about the bad side of religion, what your gender says - and doesn’t say - about you and what forgiveness really is.

Pastor Matt, Justin and Stephanie talk through how to be real with others. Listen in as they talk through whether or not to attend a gay wedding, how to confess sin and actually experience forgiveness and how to heal from things that have wounded you.

Pastor Matt's wife Tammy joins the show for a special episode all about their marriage and relationship. Listen in as they share about their highs and lows, the times they almost didn't make it and what they've learned about being real in the process.

Pastor Matt, Justin and Stephanie tackle lots of off-topic follow-up questions from listeners. Listen in on an honest conversation about sexual boundaries in dating, how to be better at reading your Bible and what Sandals Church has to say about the pro-life/pro-choice debate.

How should Christians respond to the refugee crisis, what’s the role of religion if God just wants a relationship and what does “God is love” actually mean? Pastor Matt, Justin and Stephanie talk through how to be real with God.

Recorded live with 300 of their closest friends, Pastor Matt, Justin and Stephanie talk through how to be real with ourselves by identifying our core struggles and strengths.

What do you do when your family isn’t ok with you being real? How exactly do we humble ourselves? Is all religion pointless? Listen in as Pastor Matt, Justin and Stephanie talk through what it means to be real.

Did God give people free will to knowingly send some to hell? Does forgiving someone mean you need to like them? And where did the Sandals Church vision of being real come from in the first place? Pastor Matt, Justin and Stephanie answer listener questions and dive into the Sandals Church origin story.

How does Sandals Church view homosexuality, what exactly is the unforgiveable sin and is it ever possible to lose our salvation? This week Pastor Matt tackles the tough questions we hear quite often at Sandals Church.

Plenty happens before we record each episode of The Debrief, and most of the time the mics are on. Now's your chance to listen in on some behind the scenes fun with Pastor Matt, Justin and Stephanie and some of our most recent guests.

How do we know if God will answer our prayers or not? What makes God more likely to perform a miracle? Pastor Matt, Justin and Stephanie wrap up the book of Acts and share what’s ahead for the Debrief in 2017.

What happens when a Christian commits suicide, are some sins worse than others and do people really have free will? Pastor Matt, Justin and Stephanie talk through Acts 26 and what the greatest Christian of all time had to say when he was on trial.