Storm The Gates

Podcast by Mid-Texas Conference of the Global Methodist Church

Storm The Gates

Storm The Gates is the official podcast of the Mid-Texas Conference of the Global Methodist Church. Join us as we provide timely updates on events within the conference and shine a spotlight on the impactful work of God throughout the Global Methodist Church. Stay tuned for insightful discussions, inspiring stories, and deeper dives exploring why following Jesus changes everything. Subscribe now to stay connected and become part of this community that is growing in the heart of Texas to make disciples of Jesus who spread scriptural holiness across the globe.

Listen onApple Podcasts

Listen onSpotify

Latest episodes

19 October 2026

Be Holified with Dr. Preben Vang

Truett Theological Seminary at Baylor University is one of the approved seminaries for men and women called into ministry within the Global Methodist Church. Dr. Vang joins STG to share about his journey from Denmark to Texas as both a pastor and a New Testament scholar. He shares wonderful wisdom about holiness with us all today.

Dr. Preben Vang came to Truett Seminary in 2014 to lead the Doctor of Ministry program. Before coming to Truett, Dr. Vang served 10 years as professor and chair of the department of theology at Ouachita Baptist University and seven years as chair of biblical and theological studies at Palm Beach Atlantic University. While at PBAU, he led the effort to start their now thriving seminary.

Born and raised in Denmark, where his latest call was to pastor the First Baptist Church of Copenhagen, Dr. Vang’s academic interest has always been related to the global vision for God’s Kingdom. "When everything is said and done," he says, "my deepest interest is the church’s witness to the world. My interest in academics is driven by a deep calling to serve the church and her ministers.” Before hearing God’s call to ministry in his twenties, Dr. Vang worked as an engineer in electronics and circuitry.

Professionally, Dr. Vang is a member of the Society of Biblical Literature (SBL), the Institute for Biblical Research (IBR), and the Evangelical Theological Society (ETS) where he actively participates. His academic training focused on the theology of Paul, especially his pneumatology. The title of his dissertation was: God’s Empowering Presence and the Issue of Holiness: A Relational Interpretation of Paul’s Pneumatology.

Beyond his lingering interest in this area, his focus on the connection between biblical studies, theology, and the church’s witness has led to research and publications in a variety of related areas and to different audiences – from academic studies to publications directed toward pastors and ministry leaders.

https://truettseminary.baylor.edu

preben_vang@baylor.edu

00:00

01:00:33

14 October 2026

Bible News: Live Streaming Death, Pope Leo, and Robert Jeffress

If you want to support STG financially and receive early episodes of Bible News, become a Gate Stormer at patreon.com/stgpod

00:00

29:59

12 October 2026

Truth in the Age of Applause with Dr. Andrew Fox

We're honored to have Dr. Andrew Fox join STG! From being adopted at birth, raised in Nottingham England, to falling in love with his wife, having children, and moving to the United States – it’s all been a result of conversation – and the conversation continues to this present day.

Andrew is a professor of historical, theological, cultural and sociological approach to interpreting and communicating Scripture. His passion is to spark people’s imagination as a necessary component of faith towards a positive change through life’s challenges.

He has earned an MA in Missional Leadership from The Northwest University, an MA in Theological Studies from Southeastern University, and a PhD in Intercultural Studies from Assembly of God Theological Seminary.

Truth in the Age of Applause argues that society increasingly substitutes perception for truth by expanding definitions of harm, normalizing self-censorship, and rewarding conformity over independent thought. Andrew uses Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s concept of “stupidity”: not a lack of intelligence or education but a moral and social condition in which a person surrenders independent judgment and becomes captive to prevailing ideology that you know has nothing to do with reality. What he does is trace how institutions and individuals gradually surrender truth in favor of social approval, or stupidity. So, he's challenging readers to recover courage, critical thinking, and a commitment to reality even when it comes at personal cost. Andrew's personal cost was with the City of Austin in his role as a Lead Fire Chaplain.

Stay tuned to the very end for more C.S. Lewis reflections!

truthintheageofapplause.com

drandrewfox.com

00:00

59:08

05 October 2026

Eagles or Church Camp? with Rev. Mark Vowell

Which would you choose? We think Pastor Mark chose wisely as he continues to Pastor First Frisco GMC and faithfully serves as a leading voice in MidTexas and the GMC as a whole. Mark shares his testimony of coming to realize his call to pastoral ministry. He also offers a synopsis of his recent experience as a delegate to General Conference in Johannesburg, South Africa.

Mark Vowell is a lifelong Methodist, and a third-generation Methodist Pastor. A Navy brat, Mark was born on Guam, baptized by his grandfather in Archer City, Texas, and raised in the congregation at First Methodist of Gainesville, Texas. He attended the University of Oklahoma on a Navy ROTC scholarship, and spent 10 years on active duty as a Naval Flight Officer and Mission Commander aboard P-3C Orion aircraft, tracking Soviet submarines in the North Atlantic and Mediterranean. Following active duty, Mark continued to serve in the Naval Reserves and retired as a Commander in 2001.

Mark answered a call from God to Christian ministry and retired from active duty naval service in 1992. He served as the Director of Youth Ministries at Tyler Street Methodist in Oak Cliff while attending seminary, and received his Masters of Divinity in 1996 from Perkins School of Theology, SMU.

Mark has served as senior pastor at Westview Greenville, First Whitewright, Ridgewood Park in Dallas and Spring Valley in Dallas. He was appointed as senior pastor at First Frisco Methodist in July of 2013. Mark’s grandfather was also pastor at First Frisco from 1954 to 1957. In January 2023, First Frisco became one of the first congregations in the Dallas metroplex to join the Global Methodist Church.

Mark helped launch the MidTexas Conference of the Global Methodist Church. He serves on the Connectional Council, Chairs Superintendency and Conference Personnel, and is the Presiding Elder for the Dallas District. Mark was a delegate to the 2026 General Conference.

Mark is married to Shannon. Shannon writes, teaches high school literature, and leads First Frisco’s confirmation training. The Vowell's still have two daughters at home. They cherish time with their adult kids and grandchildren in Arizona, Washington, and Texas.

Mark's passions include preaching, relational evangelism, helping folks get grounded in scripture, and helping congregations tackle once-in-a-lifetime opportunities. Mark serves on Kairos prison ministry teams twice annually. Believing that the church really is God's primary plan for reaching the world with the love of Jesus Christ, Mark loves to be part of connecting churches with God’s dreams for them. Mark points out, “God’s dreams are always bigger than our dreams, and they are always wonderful!”

00:00

57:10

30 September 2026

Bible News: Talarico Versus Paxton For Senate

If you want to support STG financially and receive early episodes of Bible News, become a Gate Stormer at patreon.com/stgpod

00:00

32:08

28 September 2026

Truth Bombs with Andy Crouch

This one is a conversation you're probably going to want to listen to a few times. Andy Crouch joins STG to drop truth bombs about AI, the church, and the late Wendell Berry, just to name a few. You can see Andy as one of the featured speakers at this year's New Room Conference at Frazier Church, September 30-October 2.

Andy Crouch is the partner for theology and culture at Praxis, a venture-building ecosystem awakening redemptive imagination, and a teaching fellow for Practicing the Way. His writing explores faith, culture, and the image of God in the domains of technology, power, leadership, and the arts. He is the author of five books (plus another with his daughter, Amy Crouch): The Life We're Looking For: Reclaiming Relationship in a Technological World, The Tech-Wise Family: Everyday Steps for Putting Technology in Its Proper Place, Strong and Weak: Embracing a Life of Love, Risk and True Flourishing, Playing God: Redeeming the Gift of Power, and Culture Making: Recovering Our Creative Calling.

Andy serves on the governing board of InterVarsity Christian Fellowship. For more than ten years he was an editor and producer at Christianity Today, including serving as executive editor from 2012 to 2016. He served the John Templeton Foundation in 2017 as senior strategist for communication. His work and writing have been featured in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Time, and several editions of Best Christian Writing and Best Spiritual Writing—and, most importantly, received a shout-out in Lecrae's 2014 single "Non-Fiction."

From 1998 to 2003, Andy was the editor-in-chief of re:generation quarterly, a magazine for an emerging generation of culturally creative Christians. For ten years he was a campus minister with InterVarsity Christian Fellowship at Harvard University. He studied classics at Cornell University and received an M.Div. summa cum laude from Boston University School of Theology. A classically trained musician who draws on pop, folk, rock, jazz, and gospel, he has led musical worship for congregations of 5 to 20,000. He and his wife, Catherine, raised two children and live in Swarthmore, Pennsylvania.

andy-crouch.com

praxis.co

practicingtheway.org

seedbed.com/newroomconference2026

00:00

01:05:56