Special Guest Seth Tomboli | Brand New Podcast

Pastor Shannon O'Dell sits down with Seth Tomboli, campus pastor at New Life Church

in Fayetteville, for a wide-ranging conversation about planting, measuring ministry,

and staying spiritually healthy while leading.

They get into the phone call that put a Bentonville campus on the table, why the

metrics that matter aren't the ones you'd expect (kids check-ins and dumpster size),

and how Northwest Arkansas has become a mission field that doesn't require a passport.

The back half goes personal: the father wound behind insecurity in leadership,

comparison and competition among pastors, whether sabbaticals have become an escape

instead of a tool, and what actually restores a leader. Plus honest takes on

social media, AI in sermon prep, and building a life your closest people respect.

00:00 Intro

01:05 The phone call that started a Bentonville campus

05:12 Staying in Fayetteville and raising up leaders

06:36 New Life, Pastor Rick, and Tanner stepping in

11:48 How do you know if you're winning?

12:54 Kids check-ins, dumpsters, and giving units

15:31 LifeWise, public schools, and reaching kids

18:32 Every city has idols

22:12 Is midweek still working?

25:44 Firefighter or pastor?

31:50 College students and winning families

35:32 Pet peeves: young pastors and old pastors

38:31 Comparison, insecurity, and the pastor problem

43:23 Self-awareness is the real leadership gift

44:27 The father wound

49:07 Burnout and the sabbatical debate

50:37 Saved on Saturday, dad out of prison on Sunday

51:45 A tool, not an escape

52:25 What actually restores you

54:28 "You have forsaken your first love"

56:22 Moral failure and who has your number

1:02:52 When a leader has no one

1:05:28 Social media as a doorway, not a bulletin board

1:11:52 The filter for what you post

1:19:38 AI in ministry and sermon prep

1:27:24 The Thursday deadline and the family Sabbath