“Experience Jesus. Really.” with John Eldredge

The Allender Center Podcast

The Allender Center

Psychology, Religion & Spirituality, Mental Health, Christianity, Trauma, Health & Fitness, Theology

4.6 • 628 Ratings

🗓️ 13 June 2025

⏱️ 51 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

We’re living in a time that’s quietly—but profoundly—reshaping our souls.

Formed by a world of speed, efficiency, and endless information, most of us have been trained to seek quick answers, avoid ambiguity, and live with the belief that if we just do X, then Y will happen. It's not our fault—we’ve been discipled by our cultural moment, where data is king and mystery is often treated with suspicion.

In the process, many of us have come to approach faith with an overdeveloped left brain—craving clarity and control, while growing uncomfortable with the unknown, the mystical, the experiential. And yet… something deeper in us still longs for more.

In this episode, Dr. Dan Allender is joined by psychologist and New York Times Bestselling Author John Eldredge to explore the themes of John’s new book, “Experience Jesus. Really.” Together, they offer a timely, tender invitation: to recover a life with God that is not only true, but felt—a life rooted in presence, wonder, and communion.

This conversation explores:

Why our modern world makes it hard to access the presence of God
The invitation to become an “ordinary mystic”—someone who experiences God from the inside out
What it means to live as an “amphibious” being, rooted in both the physical and spiritual
How the presence of Jesus brings refuge, healing, and integration—especially in trauma
Why this isn’t just for the spiritual elite—but for all of us, here and now

John draws from the wisdom of Christian mystics, scripture, and his own story to illuminate what it means to truly walk with Jesus today—in your body, your story, and your real life.

If you’ve ever found yourself saying, “I want to experience more of God, but I don’t know how”—we invite you to listen to this episode.

Listener Resources:

Be sure to check out John Eldredge’s latest book, “Experience Jesus. Really.” here: https://wildatheart.org/books/experience-jesus-really
Revisit the webinar, “The Power of Jesus in Therapeutic Practice” with Dan Allender and John Eldredge, to discover how to authentically integrate best practices with the healing power and loving care of God in your therapy practice: https://online.theallendercenter.org/courses/stories-that-shape-us-the-power-of-jesus-in-therapeutic-practice

Transcript

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0:00.0	If you've been doing some personal work, maybe through journaling, therapy, reading, or even listening to this podcast, and yet still feel like there's something missing, you're not alone.
0:14.5	Our stories were never meant to be engaged in isolation.
0:18.6	That's why participating in a story workshop with the Allender Center can be such a powerful
0:23.5	next step.
0:24.9	I'm Rachel Clinton-Centon, and I want to personally invite you to this unique in-person
0:29.6	experience in Seattle, happening August 21 through 24, 2025.
0:35.8	Over the course of three and a half days, you'll receive live teaching from Dan Allender,
0:41.1	Wendell Moss, and myself, and other Allender Center instructors.
0:45.7	But what makes this workshop truly transformative is the time you'll spend in a story group,
0:51.7	a small, intimate setting, led by a trained facilitator who will walk
0:56.1	with you as you engage a part of your story with care and courage. It's a space marked by
1:01.8	compassion, reflection, and healing, a space where deep change becomes possible. If you're
1:08.6	feeling called to take your storywork further and to do it in community,
1:12.9	this might be the next step you've been looking for. Learn more and register now at the
1:18.7	allander center.org slash workshops. We would love to have you with us.
1:42.2	Thank you for listening to the Allender Center podcast.
1:43.9	I'm Dr. Dan Allender.
1:45.5	And I'm Rachel Clinton-Centon.
1:49.8	We're fiercely committed to providing hope and healing to a fragmented world.
1:52.2	And restoration for the heart.
1:53.8	Thank you for joining us.
1:55.5	Let's get this conversation started. Thank you. Well, dear friends, we've got, let me start with the negative.
	...

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