HeyJaredHearts Open to the Word
Rev. Dr. Charissa Howe brings vibrant energy and deep theological insight to her preaching ministry. A Presbyterian pastor of a vibrant Pittsburgh congregation and the former Director of Chaplaincy at an urban county jail, she weaves together academic wisdom with real-world…
- Indexed episodes, last 90 days
- 13
- Latest publication
- Sep 27, 2026
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- Earliest in this view
- Jul 5, 2026
Latest episodes
Imposters or Imitators? (opens the original)
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Have you ever felt the weight of Imposter Syndrome ? That persistent, quiet anxiety that you're faking it—at work, in academia, as a parent, or even at church—and that at any moment your "cover will be blown"?In this episode, Pastor Charissa explores what happens when we drop the exhausting pressure of performative religion and step into the radical freedom of Christ’s self-emptying grace. Drawing on Jesus’s confrontation with the temple authorities in Matthew 21:23–32 (the Parable of the Two So
When Is Enough Enough? (opens the original)
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Scripture: Exodus 16:2–15 & Matthew 20:1–16 When is "enough" actually enough? We live in a world driven by billionaire-backed systems and cultural narratives that insist nothing is ever enough—that our security depends on endless extraction, accumulation, and building bigger barns.In this episode, Pastor Charissa explores what happens when the Gospel disrupts our culture's zero-sum scorekeeping. Drawing on the wild story of daily manna in the wilderness ( Exodus 16:2–15 ) and Jesus’s provocative
Am I in the Place of God? (opens the original)
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When past trauma and betrayals threaten to lock us into an endless cycle of fear and payback, scripture invites us into a radical, redemptive reversal. From Joseph weeping before his brothers in Egypt to Jesus shattering revenge math with seventy-seven-fold mercy, Pastor Charissa unpacks what it means to step out of the judgment seat. Discover how recognizing that "everything is so much more complicated than you know it is" frees us to become an unclenched-hand sanctuary of mutual care, radical
No Time for Drama (opens the original)
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When someone hurts us or crosses our boundaries, our immediate instinct is often self-preservation. We retreat into our "cartoon forts," hide behind passive-aggressive "fig leaves," and triangulate others into our pain. But Jesus offers a drama-free framework for reconciliation in Matthew 18: go directly and privately . Pastor Charissa dives into Romans 13 and Matthew 18 to unpack the ancient, gritty theology of "binding and loosing," showing how Christ’s real, transforming presence is localized
Barefoot Curiosity (opens the original)
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How often do you find yourself living on a highly efficient autopilot, keeping your head down, and navigating your days with your "shoes on"—fully protected, fully scheduled, and completely blind to your surroundings? In this episode, Pastor Charissa explores what happens when God suddenly interrupts our boring routines and pre-written scripts with what looks like wild, disruptive chaos. Drawing on the iconic encounter of Moses at the burning bush ( Exodus 3:1–15 ) and Peter’s struggle to contro
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