The Central Peninsula Church Podcast

In this CPC Together episode from Central Peninsula Church, Brandon, Josh, Rachel, and Nico banter about missing dry evenings, Bay Area stereotypes and sports fandom, and a “would you rather” about living without mirrors or socks, leading to a discussion of cold feet, favorite socks, and memorable experiences like 1990s Pizza Hut, sunrise/sunset on El Capitan, fishing the Kenai River, and chaotic family reunions. The conversation shifts to John 7, where Jesus initially says he won’t attend the festival, then goes in secret and speaks publicly, prompting a thought experiment about whether people today would recognize Jesus and how religious systems can miss his presence. They explore the difference between information and experiential knowing in relationships and faith, linking it to evangelism as sharing how Jesus has shown up personally rather than only offering apologetic “info.” The episode closes with a thematic summary of Exodus that foreshadows the gospel: enslaved people cry out, receive a deliverer, journey toward a destination, and must choose trust and faithfulness daily amid repeated failure.

In this CPC Together Podcast episode, Kevin, Brandon, Nico, and Rachel banter about dental “chomper updates,” Sensodyne, flossing habits (including Cocofloss), and early toothpaste marketing before shifting to a discussion of Kevin’s sermon and why people often view God differently than Jesus. They recap the woman caught in adultery: the missing man suggests a trap, Jesus’ unflappable composure as he writes in the sand, and his response that upholds the law while exposing partiality. They emphasize God’s pattern of pardon before “go and sin no more,” linking salvation to healing, and highlight Jesus’ self-described inner disposition as gentle and humble, warning against mapping shame and self-condemnation onto God.

On this week's CPC Together Podcast, Kevin, Brandon, and Rachel recount a chaotic 48-hour attempt to get home from Newark after United’s system outage, thunderstorms, a seven-and-a-half-hour tarmac delay, a canceled flight, lost access to checked bags, no available rental cars, a broken-down Amtrak in Delaware, and a taxi driver using a breathalyzer en route to a successful flight out of DC. They also share a humorous, dramatic story about a pickleball tournament where a calf injury ended Brandon's play while his partner won with a replacement. The conversation then shifts to John 6 and Jesus’ “hard teaching,” exploring how people reject teachings they understand but don’t want to accept, the call to wholehearted trust rather than lukewarm faith, and a communion framework—take, bless, break, give—describing Jesus receiving what we bring, affirming belovedness, bearing brokenness, and giving his life to believers.

Recorded backstage at Mount Hermon during family camp, Brandon, Sandy, and first-time guest Darcie swap Mount Hermon stories, reflect on “thin places,” and dig deeper into Sandy’s John 6 message, “Bread for the Journey.” They talk about how immediate appetites can numb deeper needs, why Jesus doesn’t just fix circumstances but offers himself as the Bread of Life, and what it looks like to trust God for “daily bread” through abiding, silence, and surrender. The conversation closes with a challenge for longtime Christians: familiarity with church isn’t the same as intimacy with God—spiritual formation is learning to receive life from Jesus.

In this CPC Together podcast, Brandon, Rachel, Nico, and Josh trade “see it to believe it” stories before discussing Josh’s sermon on John 5 at the Pool of Bethesda, where Jesus heals a man who couldn’t walk. They explore how the passage functions as a legal narrative in John, describing movements of crime, accusation, and deposition, and how the Jewish leaders’ fixation on Sabbath law blinds them to the miracle. Josh revisits Jesus’ warning to “stop sinning,” frames it as a call to repentance rather than blaming disability on sin, and reflects on how believers can miss God’s activity, using hindsight, daily reflection, and examples of believing before seeing throughout Scripture.

On this episode of the CPC Together Podcast, Kevin, Brandon, Rachel, and Nico debate whether a baguette or floppy naan can be thrown farther and plan to test it, then discuss feeling misled by “sugar-free” Tic Tacs due to labeling loopholes. They play a “Name That Gospel” trivia game using ChatGPT-sourced questions, with many “only gospel” answers pointing to John, and they talk about synoptic gospels and differences in the passion narratives. The conversation shifts to faith and doubt, noting how some church cultures treat doubt as taboo and portray faith as a currency tied to blessing, echoing prosperity-gospel themes. Kevin outlines faith as three “load-bearing walls”: it begins with reason, develops through trust and volition (chair/tightrope examples), and matures through suffering, with reflections on empiricism, presuppositions, and how hardship can deepen a relationship with God.

Central Peninsula Church’s CPC Together podcast welcomes Kevin Sneed, Rachel, and mission partner Bobi (Boban) Jakimovski from North Macedonia to reflect on the recent team visit and the church’s ongoing partnership through an annual family camp that includes believers and spiritually open friends. Bobi explains how meeting Christians from another culture prompts honest conversations about Jesus, and the group discusses the woman at the well, emphasizing Jesus’ boundary-crossing welcome and how shame isolates people from God and community. Kevin unpacks the sermon theme that happiness isn’t found in realizing desires, citing Tolstoy, David Foster Wallace, Camus, and C.S. Lewis to argue that misordered desires and worship of anything but God “eat you alive.” They close with Bobi describing how his family and church practice open-door hospitality as a witness in a shame-influenced culture.

In this CPC Together episode from Central Peninsula Church, Kevin and Brandon banter about favorite nuts, then discuss one host’s appendicitis surgery experience and a detailed “Chomper” dental update involving a difficult root canal, an extra tooth canal, and a buildup after a crown wouldn’t fit. The conversation shifts to spiritual health, using dental avoidance as an analogy for ignoring deeper issues, and explores what “born again” means by letting Jesus define it in John 3 with Nicodemus. They explain the Greek anothen as both “again” and “from above,” connect being born again with repentance and surrender, note the American cultural and political connotations of the term, and consider how Jesus’ teachings confront false visions of the good life, calling for transformed loves and longings through prayer and renewed attention to God.

On this episode of the CPC Together Podcast, Brandon, Rachel, and Sandy share experiences of being invited into things they wouldn’t have chosen. The conversation then shifts to Sandy’s sermon theme that people both desire and fear being fully known, tracing how insecurity and the need to fit in often start in junior high and show up through bullying, achievement, or hiding perceived flaws. They discuss finding rest in being known and loved by God, releasing pressure to be everything, bringing hardship to church, practicing confession, and living from Christ’s verdict rather than performance, using John the Baptist and Jesus’ interactions with Nathanael and Peter as examples.

On CPC Together, Brandon, Rachelm and Josh—dubbed the “mystery man”—talk about his ideal 24-hour day: waking at 4 a.m. in London with Tif, spending quiet time praying and reading, taking a long walk, sailing or fishing, enjoying great meals (minus blood sausage), and even watching a dramatic Oakland A’s win before dinner and late-night hanging out. The conversation turns to why the question “Who are you?” matters, arguing that identity is often wrongly built on accomplishments, roles, or vices rather than on being a child of God, which can lead to aimlessness and destructive substitutes. They discuss John’s Gospel as distinct from the synoptics due to its broader audience in Asia Minor, its use of Greek concepts like logos, and its emphasis on belief as trust and relationship, concluding with practical “come and see” steps toward deeper trust in God.