Michael Rogers is a busy man.
He teaches sixth-grade social studies at Jefferson Elementary, writes a successful series of books, and pastors Jar Ministries with his wife Carrie. The duo also has their own channel on Roku and Amazon Fire, “Filled to Empty,” where they host two shows: the eponymous “Filled to Empty” and “Jar TV.”
The channel and the shows both sprang from the couple’s ministry and Rogers’ own work as an author.
“My wife and I moved down here a little over three years ago, and we started up Jar Ministries in January 2023,” Rogers said. “We realize that there are a lot of churches doing great work around here, but we’re looking for people who have maybe been hurt by the church. We call it PTSD, ‘Post Traumatic Sanctuary Disorder,’ and want to offer a place for those people who might have a bit of trouble walking into a church normally to come and feel comfortable.
“It looks different. It feels different. We meet at a different time, so the pastor can sleep in too. So with us you can get up, get around, have some lunch, and then come to church at 4 in the afternoon.”
Rogers said the church service is rather similar to other churches for the first hour, but the last half hour is a little different.
“For the last half hour, we give the congregation four questions about how they can put into practice what they have learned,” he said.
It’s this last feature in particular that made its way into “Jar TV.”
“It’s just me and my wife,” he said. “We preach together here at the Jar, and our sermons become fodder for our show. The show is just a natural back and forth about the sermons. We really don’t plan out who’s going to say what, so it’s more of a conversation. Towards the end of the show there is a time to pause so you can consider the questions.”
While “Jar TV” is the newest show, “Filled to Empty” goes back three seasons. It traces its roots back to his “Finding Hope: Faith for the Frustrated” series of books.
“I’m writing a series of books about people who are frustrated with the church and what to do about it,” Rogers said. “It’s a seven-book series, and when my publisher read the first one and heard about my plans for the other six, she told me she felt this message was too important to leave only in a book. She asked if I’d consider doing a TV channel.”
The publisher was the one with connections to Amazon and Roku, and soon Rogers found himself making a TV show.
“The very first season was me with an iPhone and a Google Pixel 7,” he said. “I did all the filming and editing. I learned a little bit about lighting and did my best. So you can tell the first episodes are a homemade production.”
By season two, however, he had some help.
“David Delgado with Ardmore Multimedia is our videographer,” Rogers said. “He started working with us in season two and by season three he was working with us full time. That has really upped our game.”
Viewers have also noticed as both shows continue to grow.
“We had 7 million views last year, and we only had 24 episodes total at that time,” he said. “The one show has grown 12% in the first quarter, and we didn’t start the second show until the last week of January. It already has over 2 million views. At this point we’re averaging almost 2 million views a month.”
Rogers plans to continue with both the channel and his writing. He has two books set to come out later this summer, “Seannchai” which comes out on Monday and “Make” which will come out in July. Both books as well as his previous publications will be available on Amazon and Barnes and Noble.
He also has book signings set for Ardmore. He will be at Stranger Than Fiction from 1 to 3 p.m. on July 12 and at Ardmore Public Library from 10 a.m. to noon on Aug. 9.
