The First Priority Podcast

JT McCraw: Family Crisis

JT is the co-host of the Renovating Masculinity podcast, a John Maxwell certified Life Coach & Speaker, an independent life coach with Stephen Mansfield's GreatMan Coaching team, the Executive & Men's pastor at Bethel World Outreach and is one of the leading men’s ministers in the United States. He has traveled around the globe teaching men what he learned during his dark days of personal crisis.  He now coaches men and helps them build high quality noble manhood into their lives by drawing from his years as a successful custom builder. 

 

He has been married to Shelley for twenty-nine years and has five children. He spends his spare time doing projects around his home, riding motorcycles, hunting, and continuing his ongoing search for the best brisket in the nation. 

Amber Johansen: Identity Crisis

Amber was born and raised in Tampa. After graduating from Leto High School, she attended Florida State University for an undergraduate degree and then the University of South Florida for a graduate degree in Government and International Studies. She is currently completing a graduate certificate in instructional design through Florida State University. Her background includes working with at-risk teens and families, and program development.

Amber has been involved with First Priority Tampa Bay since 2009, when she began serving as a parent partner. In 2012, she consulted with FPTB as a Community Development Director, and in 2013 stepped into the position of Executive Director.

Amber’s primary focus as Executive Director is: vision casting, fundraising, program development, and ministry operations. Amber is available to speak on a wide range of topics including: the role of First Priority in the community, parenting, public education and faith based issues.

Resources mentioned in the podcast:

The Landing for students:

https://www.celebraterecovery.com/thelanding

 

Right Now Media

 

Parenting Class:

Living On the Edge by Chip Ingram https://livingontheedge.org/product/effective-parenting-dvd/

 

Books:

 

Safe People: How to Find Relationships that are Good for You and Avoid Those That Aren't

by Henry Cloud and John Townsend

 

Boundaries with Teens: When to Say Yes, How to Say No

by John Townsend 

 

Boundaries in Dating: How Healthy Choices Grow Healthy Relationships

By Henry Cloud

 

Secrets of Your Family Tree: Healing for Adult Children of Dysfunctional Families

by Henry Cloud, John Townsend

 

My Parenting Teens and Tweens blog:

amberjohansen.com

Jeff Stanford talks student leadership

Jeff Stanford is the Director of FP Greater Springfield. He has been in student ministry for over 20 years, serving the local church and helping student pastors reach their local public schools. Jeff is a graduate of Liberty University and Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary. He is married to Brandi, and they have two kids, Courtney and Austin.

Is Biblical culture in America possible in this day and age? w/Warren Robold

Warren Robold serves as EVP of Development and Ministry Relations and has over 30 years of experience in political and charitable fundraising, franchise ownership and development, direct and distribution sales, and management as well as marketing both tangible and intangible products and services in the US and internationally. He has also served in Youth Ministry at multiple churches and has served in full-time ministry as an ordained Pastor. His vision and ability to see past the difficult or impossible, has been a powerful asset for the organizations and groups that he has worked with to reach new levels of growth and success.

Can churches work together in a community? w/ Debi DeBoer

Debi DeBoer has been involved with First Priority since 1995. She had planned on going to med school to become a doctor, but God had other plans for her. She began full-time ministry in 1995 as a minister of music at her local church. Teenagers kept coming to her piano bench to talk and seek encouragement, and at the time she didn't see the big picture. She later realized that God was calling her into full-time student ministry. Debi has served in many areas of her church as well as being the Ministry and Area Director for FP Birmingham. 

Debi lives in Birmingham, AL with her husband who she has been married to for 26 years and together they have three children who are all in college. 

How Hannah McKinney became a 19 year old fundraiser!

Hannah McKinney is 19 years old and is the Intern of Donor Development at FP Front Range. Hannah, as a 16 and 17 year old, raised money so that she could do mission work in Haiti, and found a love of fundraising at that time. She spends her time calling potential donors, in person donor meetings, as well as working on social media campaigns. On the side, she works for Uber Eats and Grubhub. 

Hannah shares her reason for doing First Priority and her desire to see FP Front Range grow. 

Amber Johansen and Joel Rowland talk about the 'Why' of First Priority

Amber has been involved with FPTB since 2009, when she began serving as a parent partner. In 2012, she consulted with FPTB as a Community Development Director, and in 2013 stepped into the position of Executive Director.

Amber’s primary focus as Executive Director is: vision casting, fundraising, program development, and ministry operations. Amber is available to speak on a wide range of topics including: the role of First Priority in the community, parenting, public education and faith based issues.

Joel is the Executive Director of First Priority Front Range. His family moved to Denver in January 2020 to organize and lead the Front Range region. He has been in leadership roles for over 13 years including Lead Pastor, Jail Chaplain, Founder of a non-profit for at risk kids, Drug Court Representative, and Executive Director of First Priority in North Carolina. Joel is a Certified Speaker, Coach, Trainer, and Teacher with the John Maxwell Team. He is certified in Apologetics with the Ravi Zacharias Institute and is currently studying to become a Scholar in Biblical Linguistics and the Hebraic Context of the Bible through the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. He has studied abroad in Israel, Canada, and Ecuador.

 

Where will First Priority of America be in 5 years?

Mark serves as the Executive Director of First Priority. He spends most of his day managing the organizational side of the ministry, including fundraising and board development. He was the initiator and director of First Priority Tri-States, the 2nd oldest FP chapter. Mark and his wife Michelle manage their own small business, therefore, Mark brings years of experience in business management to First Priority of America. Mark resides in eastern Kentucky with his wife, Michelle. Mark and Michelle have three children, Nathaniel & Mikaela (Robbins) Gray, Morgan, and Micah. They also have two grandchildren, Sadie B. and Beckham.

What is the Vision of First Priority of America? w/ Chris Lane

"One of the greatest challenges and one of the greatest blessings that you will ever experience is when you can walk away and say, God used me to help get a gospel light First Priority Outreach Club on this campus. Because if you can get that going, what a legacy to say we planted an outreach church at this campus." -- Chris Lane. 

Chris Lane is the Executive Director and Founder of First Priority South Florida. He started FP in Ft. Lauderdale in 1998 and built it from the ground up. FP South Florida now has over 200 clubs in schools and is going strong. 

Chris is also husband to Wendy, and father of 4 boys (Josh, Jake, Jonathan and Josiah)

What is the Mission of First Priority of America? w/ Joel Rowland

Today we talk about the mission of First Priority, To Take the Hope of Christ to Every Student. We are starting this year off with a story. FP Director Joel Rowland asks this question of one of the students involved in FP Front Range. "If everybody in the world was listening right now and you could tell them one thing that you wish they knew about Jesus, what would that one thing be?" 

The music in the background is by Bensound (https://www.bensound.com/) and the link mentioned in the podcast about story training can be found here: www.firstpriority.club/leadershipinitiatives