Podcasts about Hallmark

Every year, dozens of ridiculous identical holiday movies are unleashed by Hallmark, Lifetime, Netflix, and the like. (They're so cookie-cutter that many of them literally involve cutting cookies.) And every year, we try to fix them by making them weirder. So we've selected a few new Christmas movies, and we're discussing their plots (featuring time travel, glassblowing, and pickleball) and casts (featuring, as always, Lacey Chabert). Then we're randomly inserting some strange new element (a camel with wings, perhaps) into each movie so it meets our strict weirdness standards. There, we just saved Christmas. Pass the figgy pudding. The Flopcast website! The ESO Network! The Flopcast on Facebook! The Flopcast on Instagram! The Flopcast on Bluesky! The Flopcast on Mastadon! Please rate and review The Flopcast on Apple Podcasts! Email: info@flopcast.net Our music is by The Sponge Awareness Foundation!   This week's promo: Earth Station Boo!    

This week of Deck the Hallmark is presented by Racine Danish Kringles. Exclusive 10% off entire order -  www.kringles.com  // Promo Code:  HALLMARK25We're wrapping up the week with one final Hallmark Christmas movie from Thanksgiving Week — The Christmas Cup.ABOUT THE CHRISTMAS CUPStaff Sergeant Kelly Brandt, recovering from a knee injury, leads her hometown team in the annual Christmas Cup, despite her heart aching for her career. She discovers there are multiple ways to serve a community.AIR DATE & NETWORK FOR THE CHRISTMAS CUPNovember 30th 2025 | Hallmark ChannelCAST & CREW OF THE CHRISTMAS CUPRhiannon Fish as Kelly BrandtBen Rosenbaum as Quinn StokleyBRAN'S THE CHRISTMAS CUP SYNOPSISThe movie kicks off with Fish returning from the army — her name is Aunt Kelly. Her brother and daughter pick her up from the bus, and when they get home, there's a surprise party waiting for her!Apparently, it's the 50th Christmas Cup! We don't know what that means yet. It turns out there's a friendly rivalry between two neighboring towns, Bridgeport and Longleaf. To make things more complicated, the towns now share a school board, police, and fire department. When the mayor of Longleaf shows up with a hot firefighter, she has alternative motives: she wants to shut down the troops' welcome-back party. The firefighter, Quinn, is clearly smitten with Kelly, but it seems like it could never work.Kelly reluctantly agrees to lead her town in the Christmas Cup this year — and ropes Quinn into helping. The Christmas Cup is a friendly competition between the towns, consisting of challenges like a snowball fight, eggnog chug, and more.Kelly soon learns she has to leave town again soon, which makes her sad. Luckily, Quinn is there to lift her spirits. He invites her on a romantic date wrapping presents for kids, and the night goes beautifully.But then she gets a call — the Marines need her to leave on Christmas Day. She tells her friend the news: she won't be there for the Christmas Cup. But what about Quinn? Kelly insists, he's a stranger, who cares! Unfortunately for her, Quinn is right around the corner and overhears everything — and he's not happy.Kelly starts to rethink leaving and goes to talk to Quinn, but he's upset: he heard what you said. She realizes she doesn't want to leave, so she announces to her family, after blowing out the going-away cake candle, that she's not leaving! The military can wait.Christmas Cup time arrives, and Kelly is initially sad to see Quinn has joined the other team. Longleaf falls behind early after losing the singing and eggnog chug challenges. But then they make a comeback, winning the light untangle and trivia challenges. Bridgeport takes the spice contest, so it all comes down to the snowball fight, worth 20 points.Longleaf is about to win, but a little girl decides to be kind and not throw a snowball at her bully. The teams agree it should be a tie, but the bully concedes: Longleaf won fair and square.Kelly and Quinn make up — and share a big, romantic kiss. Watch the show on Youtube - www.deckthehallmark.com/youtubeInterested in advertising on the show? Email bran@deckthehallmark.com Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Subscribe to get access to the full episode, the episode reading list, and all premium episodes! www.patreon.com/OrdinaryUnhappinessIt's another mailbag episode (part one of two)! Abby, Patrick, and Dan respond to listener questions about everything from the utility of psychoanalytic concepts in everyday life to the complexities of Melanie Klein to the allure of AI “wisdom” and beyond. Plus, they tackle Abraham Maslow's famous “Hierarchy of Needs” and get into the weeds of why, exactly, Hallmark movies exist, who they're for, and what libidinal work they do.Have you noticed that Freud is back? Got questions about psychoanalysis? Or maybe you've traversed the fantasy and lived to tell the tale? Leave us a voicemail! (646) 450-0847  A podcast about psychoanalysis, politics, pop culture, and the ways we suffer now. New episodes on Saturdays. Follow us on social media:  Linktree: https://linktr.ee/OrdinaryUnhappiness Twitter: @UnhappinessPod Instagram: @OrdinaryUnhappiness Patreon: patreon.com/OrdinaryUnhappiness Theme song: Formal Chicken - Gnossienne No. 1 https://open.spotify.com/album/2MIIYnbyLqriV3vrpUTxxO Provided by Fruits Music

Today Rachel talks to writers Erin Rodman and Davah Avena about the new Hallmark limited series The Twelve Dates 'Til Christmas For more from Erin go to https://www.erinrodman.com/ Today save on the perfect gift by visiting AuraFrames.com to get $35 off Aura's best-selling Carver Mat frames - named #1 by Wirecutter - by using promo code HALLMARKIES To get 15% off your next gift, go to https://www.uncommongoods.com/podcast/hallmarkies for 15% off! Uncommon Goods. We're all out of the ordinary. Our Christmas podcasts are at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X4f2KtBPzUE&list=PLXv4sBF3mPUDo41tHqhkjHCvedmZwLzHx For all of our Hallmark writer interviews https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXv4sBF3mPUBxJT6OHAOjOM3F8w48hYu5 Please support the podcast on patreon and be part of these ranking episodes at https://www.patreon.com/hallmarkies Follow us on ITunes https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/hallmarkies-podcast/id1296728288?mt=2 https://twitter.com/HallmarkiesPod on twitter @HallmarkiesPodcast on Instagram HallmarkiesPodcast.com Get some of our great podcast merch https://www.teepublic.com/stores/hallmarkies?ref_id=8581 Please support the podcast on patreon and be part of these ranking episodes at https://www.patreon.com/hallmarkies Follow Rachel's blog at http://rachelsreviews.net Follow Rachel on twitter twitter.com/rachel_reviews Follow Rachel's Reviews on youtube https://www.youtube.com/c/rachelsreviews Follow Rachel on facebook www.facebook.com/smilingldsreviews Check out our merch: https://www.teepublic.com/stores/hallmarkies Send us your feedback at feedback@hallmarkiespodcast.com Or call +1 (801) 855-6407 Follow Rachel on twitter twitter.com/rachel_reviews Follow Rachel's blog at http://rachelsreviews.net Follow Rachel's Reviews on youtube https://www.youtube.com/c/rachelsreviews Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A Charlie Brown Christmas' TV special and soundtrack turns 60 this season; the Peanuts franchise turned 75 in October! Pop culturally a classic, no official celebration has been set to celebrate the 60th anniversary. Sharing my personal memories, I flashback how A Charlie Brown Christmas came about in 1965, critique the album, and different spinoffs that evolved since. Theme Song: "Dance Track", composed by Jessica Ann Catena40 Years - A Charlie Brown Christmas60th Anniversary vinyls: Barnes & Noble, Target, Walmart"Christmas Time Is Here" - Trisha Yearwood (2025); studioCharles M. Schultz's timeline; Lee Mendelson & Vince GuaraldiUdiscover's writeupCBS Sunday Morning interview (2021)Trombone wah-wah example from A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving (1973)Gifts: Hallmark; Krispy Kreme; Vera BradleyRelated: Ep. 216 - Alicia Keys Top 10Ep. 269 - Christmas 2024 PlaylistFollow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Spotify playlists. 

This week of Deck the Hallmark is presented by Racine Danish Kringles. Exclusive 10% off entire order -  www.kringles.com  // Promo Code:  HALLMARK25--It's time to unwrap another new Hallmark Christmas movie: An Alpine Holiday.ABOUT AN ALPINE HOLIDAYFaith and Kelly, estranged sisters, reunite for Christmas in the French Alps, reminiscing their grandfather's first trip. They cherish sisterhood and romance with their guide, Frederic.AIR DATE & NETWORK FOR AN ALPINE HOLIDAYNovember 29, 2025 | Hallmark ChannelCAST & CREW OF AN ALPINE HOLIDAYAshley Williams as FaithLaci J. Mailey as Kelly GreenJulien Samani as FredericBRAN'S AN ALPINE HOLIDAY SYNOPSISThe movie kicks off with old home videos of two sisters, Faith and Kelly, spending Christmas every year with their grandma.Cut to present day: Faith shows up late at night at Kelly's apartment. She's in town from Miami for their grandma's funeral. It's clear the sisters aren't as close as they used to be.The next day, they meet with their grandma's estate lawyer. He gives them her travel journal from when she was younger. It details a trip she took to the French Alps, where she and their grandpa got engaged. Her last request is that Faith and Kelly take the same journey on Christmas Eve. They can't believe it, but they can't go against her final wish. Kelly initially says she can't go — but decides at the last minute to join Faith just as she is leaving.Their first stop is a French café to grab a croissant. They meet their tour guide, Frédéric, who was hired by their grandma but won't say why. He flirts with Kelly before realizing she's his tour guest.The sisters take the train to the French countryside and almost leave grandma's journal behind. Frédéric shows them around the town and takes them to a lodge. Faith invites him to stay with them, which is awkward considering his earlier flirtation with Kelly — but he agrees to stick around.Faith checks in with her boyfriend back home, who is a bit offended she traveled to France to get space after he proposed.The sisters visit a spa with a hot tub and cold plunge, and a fight scares Frédéric away for a moment. The argument doesn't last long, and the trip continues. It turns out Frédéric is the grandson of a woman their grandma met on her original trip.One evening, Kelly opens up to Frédéric about feeling guilty since her grandma passed away. They slow dance and kissgggg — but Kelly quickly becomes emotional, insisting she doesn't want a holiday fling.It's time for the big hike. Things go smoothly until they reach the cabin, where a big storm hits. Faith insists on continuing the hike and heads out on her own.Kelly and Frédéric set out to find her, leading to a heart-to-heart between the sisters. They eventually reach the top of the mountain, leave a lock to commemorate the journey, and Kelly and Frédéric share a romantic kiss. Watch the show on Youtube - www.deckthehallmark.com/youtubeInterested in advertising on the show? Email bran@deckthehallmark.com Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

In this theologically rich episode of The Reformed Brotherhood, Jesse and Tony delve into the Parable of the Lost Coin from Luke 15:8-10. They explore how this parable reveals God's passionate pursuit of His elect and the divine joy that erupts when they are found. Building on their previous discussion of the Lost Sheep, the brothers examine how Jesus uses this second parable to further emphasize God's sovereign grace in salvation. The conversation highlights the theological implications of God's ownership of His people even before their redemption, the diligent efforts He undertakes to find them, and the heavenly celebration that follows. This episode offers profound insights into God's relentless love and the true nature of divine joy in redemption. Key Takeaways The Parable of the Lost Coin emphasizes that God actively and diligently searches for those who belong to Him, sparing no effort to recover what is rightfully His. Jesus uses three sequential parables in Luke 15 to progressively reveal different aspects of God's heart toward sinners, with escalating emphasis on divine joy. The coin represents something of significant value that already belonged to the woman, illustrating that God's elect belong to Him even before their redemption. Unlike finding something new, the joy depicted is specifically about recovering something that was already yours but had been lost, highlighting God's eternal claim on His people. The spiritual inability of the sinner is represented by the coin's passivity - it cannot find its own way back and must be sought out by its owner. Angels rejoice over salvation not independently but because they share in God's delight at the effectiveness of His saving power. The parable challenges believers to recover their joy in salvation and to share it with others, much like the woman who called her neighbors to celebrate with her. Expanded Insights God's Determined Pursuit of What Already Belongs to Him The Parable of the Lost Coin reveals a profound theological truth about God's relationship to His elect. As Tony and Jesse discuss, this isn't a story about finding something new, but recovering something that already belongs to the owner. The woman in the parable doesn't rejoice because she discovered unexpected treasure; she rejoices because she recovered what was already hers. This illustrates the Reformed understanding that God's people have eternally belonged to Him. While justification occurs in time, there's a real sense in which God has been considering us as His people in eternity past. The parable therefore supports the doctrines of election and particular redemption - God is not creating conditions people can move into or out of, but is zealously reclaiming a specific people who are already His in His eternal decree. The searching, sweeping, and diligent pursuit represent not a general call, but an effectual calling that accomplishes its purpose. The Divine Joy in Recovering Sinners One of the most striking aspects of this parable is the overwhelming joy that accompanies finding the lost coin. The brothers highlight that this joy isn't reluctant or begrudging, but enthusiastic and overflowing. The woman calls her friends and neighbors to celebrate with her - a seemingly excessive response to finding a coin, unless we understand the theological significance. This reveals that God takes genuine delight in the redemption of sinners, to the extent that Jesus describes it as causing joy "in the presence of the angels of God." As Jesse and Tony note, this challenges our perception that God might save us begrudgingly. Instead, the parable teaches us that God's "alien work" is wrath, while His delight is in mercy. This should profoundly impact how believers view their own salvation and should inspire a contagious joy that spreads to others - a joy that many Christians, by Tony's own admission, need to recover in their daily walk. Memorable Quotes "Christ love is an act of love and it's always being acted upon the sinner, the one who has to be redeemed, his child whom he goes after. So in the same way, we have Christ showing the self-denying love." - Jesse Schwamb "The coin doesn't seek the woman. The woman seeks the coin. And in this way, I think we see God's act of searching grace... The reason why I think it leads to joy, why God is so pleased, is because God has this real pleasure to pluck sinners as brands from the burning fire." - Jesse Schwamb "These parables are calling us to rejoice, right? Christ is using these parables to shame the Pharisees and the scribes who refuse to rejoice over the salvation of sinners. How often do we not rejoice over our own salvation sufficiently?" - Tony Arsenal Full Transcript [00:00:08] Jesse Schwamb: There still is like the sovereign grace of God who's initiating the salvation and there is a kind of effect of calling that God doesn't merely invite, he finds, he goes after he affects the very thing. Yeah, and I think we're seeing that here. The sinner, spiritual inability. There's an utter passivity until found. The coin doesn't seek the woman. The woman seeks the coin. And in this way, I think we see God's act of searching grace. It's all there for us. And the reason why I think it leads to joy, why God is so pleased is because God has this real pleasure. To pluck sinners as brands from the burning fire. Welcome to episode 472 of The Reformed Brotherhood. I'm Jesse. [00:00:57] Tony Arsenal: And I'm Tony. And this is the podcast with ears to hear. Hey brother. [00:01:01] Jesse Schwamb: Hey brother. [00:01:02] Jesus and the Parable of the Lost Coin [00:01:02] Jesse Schwamb: So there was this time, maybe actually more than one time, but at least this one time that we've been looking at where Jesus is hanging out and the religious incumbents, the Pharisees, they come to him and they say, you are a friend of sinners, and. Instead of taking offense to this, Jesus turns this all around. Uses this as a label, appropriates it for himself and his glorious character. And we know this because he gives us this thrice repeated sense of what it means to see his heart, his volition, his passion, his love, his going after his people, and he does it. Three little parables and we looked at one last time and we're coming up to round two of the same and similar, but also different and interesting. And so today we're looking at the parable of the lost coin or the Lost dma, or I suppose, whatever kind of currency you wanna insert in there. But once again, something's lost and we're gonna see how our savior comes to find it by way of explaining it. In metaphor. So there's more things that are lost and more things to be found on this episode. That's how we do it. It's true. It's true. So that's how Jesus does it. So [00:02:12] Tony Arsenal: yeah. So it should be how we do it. [00:02:14] Jesse Schwamb: Yes. Yeah, exactly. I cut to like Montel Jordan now is the only thing going through my head. Tell Jordan. Yeah. Isn't he the one that's like, this is how we do it, that song, this is [00:02:28] Tony Arsenal: how we do it. I, I don't know who sings it. Apparently it's me right now. That was actually really good. That was fantastic. [00:02:36] Jesse Schwamb: Hopefully never auto tuned. Not even once. I'm sure that'll make an appearance now and the rest, somebody [00:02:42] Tony Arsenal: should take that and auto tune it for me. [00:02:44] Jesse Schwamb: That would be fantastic. Listen, it doesn't need it. That was perfect. That was right off the cuff, right off the top. It was beautiful. It was ous. [00:02:50] Tony Arsenal: Yes. Yes. [00:02:51] Affirmations and Denials [00:02:51] Jesse Schwamb: I'm hoping that appearance, [00:02:53] Tony Arsenal: before we jump into our, our favorite segment here in affirmations of Denials, I just wanted to take a second to, uh, thank all of our listeners. Uh, we have the best listeners in the world. That's true, and we've also got a really great place to get together and chat about things. That's also true. Uh, we have a little telegram chat, which is just a little chat, um, program that run on your phone or in a browser. Really any device you have, you can go to t Me slash Reform Brotherhood and join that, uh, little chat group. And there's lots of stuff going on there. We don't need to get into all the details, but it's a friendly little place. Lots of good people, lots of good conversation. And just lots of good digital fellowship, if that's even a thing. I think it is. So please do join us there. It's a great place to discuss, uh, the episodes or what you're learning or what you'd like to learn. There's all sorts of, uh, little nooks and crannies and things to do in there. [00:03:43] Jesse Schwamb: So if you're looking for a little df and you know that you are coming out, we won't get into details, but you definitely should. Take Tony's advice, please. You, you will not be disappointed. It, it's a fun, fun time together. True. Just like you're about to have with us chatting it up and going through a little affirmations and denials. So, as usual, Tony, what are you, are you affirming with something or are you denying again, something? I'm, I'm on the edge of my seat. I'm ready. [00:04:06] Tony Arsenal: Okay. Uh, it is, I thought that was going somewhere else. Uh, I'm, I'm affirming something. [00:04:13] AI and Problem Solving [00:04:13] Tony Arsenal: People are gonna get so sick of me doing like AI affirmations, but I, it's like I learned a new thing to do with AI every couple of weeks. I ran across an article the other day, uh, that I don't remember where the article was. I didn't save it, but I did read it. And one of the things that pointed out is that a lot of times you're not getting the most out of AI because you don't really know how to ask the questions. True. One of the things it was was getting through is a lot of people will ask, they'll have a problem that they're encountering and they'll just ask AI like, how do I fix this problem? And a lot of times what that yields is like very superficial, basic, uh, generic advice or generic kind of, uh, directions for resolving a problem. And the, I don't remember the exact phrasing, 'cause it was a little while ago since I read it, but it basically said something like, I'm encountering X problem. And despite all efforts to the contrary, I have not been able to resolve it. And by using sort of these extra phrases. What it does is it sort of like pushes the AI to ask you questions about what you've already tried to do, and so it's gonna tailor its advice or its directions to your specific situation a little bit more. So, for example, I was doing this today. We, um, we just had the time change, right? Stupidest thing in the world doesn't make any sense and my kids don't understand that the time has changed and we're now like three or four weeks past the, the time change and their, their schedule still have not adjusted. So my son Augie, who is uh, like three and three quarters, uh, I don't know how many months it is. When do you stop? I don't even know. When you stop counting in months. He's three and a quarter, three quarters. And he will regularly wake up between four 30 and five 30. And when we really, what we really want is for him to be sleeping, uh, from uh, until like six or six 30 at the latest. So he's like a full hour, sometimes two hours ahead of time, which then he wakes up, it's a small house. He's noisy 'cause he's a three and a half year old. So he wakes up the baby. The baby wakes up. My wife, and then we're all awake and then we're cranky and it's miserable. So I, I put that little prompt into, um, into Google Gemini, which is right now is my, um, AI of choice, but works very similar. If you use something like chat, GPT or CLO or whatever, you know, grok, whatever AI tool you have access to, put that little prompt in. You know, something like since the time change, my son has been waking up at four 30 in the morning, despite all efforts to the contrary, I have not been able to, uh, adjust his schedule. And so it started asking me questions like, how much light is in the room? What time does he go to bed? How much does he nap? And it, so it's, it's pulling from the internet. This is why I like Google Geminis. It's actually pulling from the internet to identify like common, common. Related issues. And so it starts to probe and ask questions. And by the time it was done, what it came out with was like a step-by-step two week plan. Basically like, do this tonight, do this tomorrow morning. Um, and it was able to identify what it believes is the problem. We'll see if it actually is, but the beauty now is now that I've got a plan that I've got in this ai, I can start, you know, tomorrow morning I'm gonna try to do what it said and I can tell. The ai, how things went, and it can now adjust the plan based on whether or not, you know, this worked or didn't work. So it's a good way to sort of, um, push an ai, uh, chat bot to probe your situation a little bit more. So you could do this really for anything, right. You could do something like I'm having, I'm having trouble losing weight despite all efforts to the contrary. Um, can you help me identify what the, you know, root problem is? So think about different ways that you can use this. It's a pretty cool way to sort of like, push the, the AI to get a little deeper into the specifics without like a lot of extra heavy lifting. I'm sure there's probably other ways you could drive it to do this, but this was just one clever way that I, that this article pointed out to accomplish this. [00:08:07] Jesse Schwamb: It's a great exercise to have AI optimize itself. Yeah. By you turning your prompts around and asking it to ask you a number of questions, sufficient number, until it can provide an optimize answer for you. So lots, almost every bot has some kind of, you can have it analyze your prompts essentially, but some like copilot actually have a prompt agent, which will help you construct the prompt in an optimal way. Yeah, and that again, is kind of question and answer. So I'm with you. I will often turn it around and say. Here's my goal. Ask me sufficient number of questions so that you can provide the right insight to accomplish said goal. Or like you're saying, if you can create this like, massive conversation that keeps all this history. So I, I've heard of people using this for their exercise or running plans. Famously, somebody a, a, um, journalist, the Wall Street Journal, use it, train for a marathon. You can almost have it do anything for you. Of course, you want to test all of that and interact with it reasonably and ably, right? At the same time, what it does best is respond to like natural language interaction. And so by turning it around and basically saying, help me help you do the best job possible, providing the information, it's like the weirdest way of querying stuff because we're so used to providing explicit direction ourselves, right? So to turn it around, it's kind of a new experience, but it's super fun, really interesting, really effective. [00:09:22] Tony Arsenal: And it because you are allowing, in a certain sense, you're sort of asking the AI to drive the conversation. This, this particular prompt, I know the article I read went into details about why this prompt is powerful and the reason this prompt is powerful is not because of anything the AI's doing necessarily, right. It's because you're basically telling the AI. To find what you've missed. And so it's asking you questions. Like if I was to sit down and go like, all right, what are all the things that's wrong, that's causing my son to be awake? Like obviously I didn't figure it out on my own, so it's asking me what I've already tried and what it found out. And then of course when it tells me what it is, it's like the most obvious thing when it figures out what it is. It's identifying something that I already haven't identified because I've told it. I've already tried everything I can think of, and so it's prompting me to try to figure out what it is that I haven't thought of. So those are, like I said, there's lots of ways to sort of get the ais to do that exercise. Um, it's not, it's not just about prompt engineering, although that there's a lot of science now and a lot of like. Specifics on how you do prompt engineering, um, you know, like building a persona for the ai. Like there's all sorts of things you can do and you can add that, like, I could have said something like, um. Uh, you are a pediatric sleep expert, right? And when you tell it that what it's gonna do is it's gonna start to use more technical language, it's gonna, it's gonna speak to you back as though it's a, and this, this is where AI can get a little bit dangerous and really downright scary in some instances. But with that particular prompt, it's gonna start to speak back to you as though it was a clinician of some sort, diagnosing a medical situation, which again. That is definitely not something I would ever endorse. Like, don't let an AI be your doctor. That's just not, like WebMD was already scary enough when you were just telling you what your symptoms were and it was just cross checking it. Um, but you could do something like, and I use these kinds of prompts for our show notes where I'm like, you're an expert at SEO, like at um, podcast show notes. Utilizing SEO search terms, like that's part of the prompt that I use when I use, um, in, in this case, I use notion to generate most of our show notes. Um, it, it starts to change the way that it looks at things and the way that it, I, it responds to you based on different prompts. So I think it, it's a little bit scary, uh, AI. Can be a strange, strange place. And there's some, they're doing some research that is a little bit frightening. They did a study and actually, like, they, they basically like unlocked an AI and gave it access to a pretend company with emails and stuff and said that a particular employee was gonna shut out, was gonna delete the ai. And the first thing it did was try to like blackmail the employee with like a risk, like a scandalous email. It had. Then after that they, they engineered a scenario where the AI actually had the ability to kill the employee. And despite like explicit instructions not to do anything illegal, it still tried to kill the employee. So there's some scary things that are coming up if we're not, you know, if, if the science is not able to get that under control. But right now it's just a lot of fun. Like it's, we're, we're probably not at the point where it's dangerous yet and hopefully. Hopefully it won't get to that point, but we'll see. We'll see. That got dark real fast, fast, fast. Jesse, you gotta get this. And that was an affirmation. I guess I'm affirming killer murder ais that are gonna kill us all, but uh, we're gonna have fun with it until they do at least. [00:12:52] Jesse Schwamb: Thanks for not making that deny against. 'cause I can only imagine the direction that one to taken. [00:12:57] Tony Arsenal: Yeah. At least when the AI hears this, it's gonna know that I'm on its side, so, oh, for sure. I, for one, welcome our new AI overlords. So as do Iye. [00:13:05] Christmas Hymns and Music Recommendations [00:13:05] Tony Arsenal: But Jesse, what are you affirming or denying today to get me out of this pit here? [00:13:09] Jesse Schwamb: So, lemme start with a question. Do you have a favorite Christmas hymn? And if so, what is it? [00:13:16] Tony Arsenal: Ooh, that's a tough one. Um, I think I've always been really partial to Oh, holy Night. But, uh, there's, there's not anything that really jumps to mind my, as I've become older and crankier and more Scottish in spirit, I just, Christmas hymns just aren't as. If they're not as prominent in my mind, but oh, holy night or come coming, Emanuel is probably a really good one too. [00:13:38] Jesse Schwamb: Wow. Those are the, those are like the top in the top three for me. Yeah. So I think [00:13:42] Tony Arsenal: I know where you're going based on the question. [00:13:44] Jesse Schwamb: Yeah, we're very much the same. So, well maybe, so I am affirming with, but it's that time of year and people you, you know and love and maybe yourself, you're gonna listen to Christian music and. That's okay. I put no shade on that, especially because we're talking about the incarnation, celebrate the incarnation. But of course, I think the best version of that is some of these really lovely hymns because they could be sung and worshiped through all year round. We just choose them because they fit in with the calendar particularly well here, and sometimes they're included, their lyrics included in Hallmark cards and, and your local. Cool. Coles. So while that's happening, why not embrace it? But here's my information is why not go with some different versions. I love the hymn as you just said. Oh, come will come Emmanuel. And so I'm gonna give people three versions of it to listen to Now to make my list of this kind of repertoire. The song's gotta maintain that traditional melody. I think to a strong degree, it's gotta be rich and deep and dark, especially Ko Emmanuel. But it's gotta have something in it that's a little bit nuanced. Different creative arrangements, musicality. So let me give two brand new ones that you may not have heard versions and one old one. So the old one is by, these are all Ko Emanuel. So if at some point during this you're like, what song is he talking about? It's Ko. Emmanuel. It's just three times. Th we're keeping it th Rice tonight. So the first is by band called for today. That's gonna be a, a little bit harder if you want something that, uh, gets you kind of pumped up in the midst of this redemption. That's gonna be the version. And then there are two brand new ones. One is by skillet, which is just been making music forever, but the piano melody they bring into this and they do a little something nuanced with the chorus that doesn't pull away too much. From the original, but just gives it a little extra like Tastiness. Yeah. Skill. Great version. And then another one that just came out yesterday. My yesterday, not your yesterday. So actually it doesn't even matter at this point. It's already out is by descriptor. And this would be like the most chill version that is a hardcore band by, I would say tradition, but in this case, their version is very chill. All of them I find are just deeply worshipful. Yeah. And these, the music is very full of impact, but of course the lyrics are glorious. I really love this, this crying out to God for the Savior. This. You know, just, it's really the, the plea that we should have now, which is, you know, maranatha like Lord Jesus, come. And so in some ways we're, we're celebrating that initial plea and cry for redemption as it has been applied onto us by the Holy Spirit. And we're also saying, you know, come and fulfill your kingdom, Lord, come and bring the full promise, which is here, but not yet. So I like all three of these. So for today. Skillet descriptor, which sounds like we're playing like a weird word game when you put those all together. It does, but they're all great bands and their versions I think are, are worthy. So the larger affirmation, I suppose, is like, go out this season and find different versions, like mix it up a little bit. Because it's good to hear this music somewhat afresh, and so I think by coming to it with different versions of it, you'll get a little bit of that sense. It'll make maybe what is, maybe if it's felt rote or mundane or just trivial, like you're saying, kind of revive some of these pieces in our hearts so we can, we, we can really worship through them. We're redeeming them even as they're meant to be expressions of the ultimate redemption. [00:16:55] Tony Arsenal: Yeah. Yeah, I, um, I heard the skillet version and, uh, you know, you know me like I'm not a huge fan of harder music. Yeah. But that, that song Slaps man, it's, yes, [00:17:07] Jesse Schwamb: it does. It's [00:17:07] Tony Arsenal: good. And Al I mean, it, it also ignited this weird firestorm of craziness online. I don't know if you heard anything about this, but Yes, it was, it was, there was like the people who absolutely love it and will. Fight you if you don't. Yes. And then there was like the people who think it's straight from the devil because of somehow demonic rhythms, whatever that means. Um, but yeah, I mean, I'm not a big fan of the heavier music, but there is something about that sort of, uh. I don't know. Is skill, would that be considered like metal at all? [00:17:38] Jesse Schwamb: Oh, that's a loaded question. Probably. [00:17:39] Tony Arsenal: Yeah. So like I found, uh, this is, we're gonna go down to Rabbit Trail here. Let's do it. Here we go. I found a version of Africa by Toto that was labeled as metal on YouTube. So I don't know whether it actually is, and this, this version of skill, it strikes me as very similar, where it's, ah, uh, it, it's like, um. The harmonies are slightly different in terms of like how they resonate than Okay. Other harmonies. Like I get [00:18:05] Jesse Schwamb: that [00:18:06] Tony Arsenal: there's a certain, you know, like when you think about like Western music, there's certain right, there's certain harmonies when, you know, think about like piano chords are framed and my understanding at least this could be way off, and I'm sure you're gonna correct me if I'm wrong, is that um, metal music, heavy metal music uses slightly different. Chord formations that it almost leaves you feeling a little unresolved. Yes, but not quite unresolved. Like it's just, it's, it's more the harmonics are different, so that's fair. Skillet. This skillet song is so good, and I think you're right. It, it retains the sort of like. The same basic melody, the same, the same basic harmonies, actually. Right. And it's, it's almost like the harmonies are just close enough to being put into a different key with the harmonies. Yes, [00:18:52] Jesse Schwamb: that's true [00:18:53] Tony Arsenal: than then. Uh, but not quite actually going into another key. So like, sometimes you'll see online, you'll find YouTube videos where they play like pop songs, but they've changed the, the. Chords a little bit. So now it's in a minor key. It's almost like it's there. It's like one more little note shift and it would be there. Um, and then there's some interesting, uh, like repetition and almost some like anal singing going on, that it's very good. Even if you don't like heavier music. Like, like I don't, um, go listen to it and I think you'll find yourself like hitting repeat a couple times. It was very, very good. [00:19:25] Jesse Schwamb: That's a good way of saying it. A lot of times that style is a little bit dissonant, if that's what you mean in the court. Yeah. Formation. So it gives you this unsettledness, this almost unresolvedness, and that's in there. Yeah. And just so everybody knows, actually, if you listen to that version from Skillet, you'll probably listen to most of it. You'll get about two thirds of the way through it and probably be saying, what are those guys talking about? It's the breakdown. Where it amps up. But before that, I think anybody could listen to it and just enjoy it. It's a really beautiful, almost haunting piano melody. They bring into the intro in that, in the interlude. It's very lovely. So it gives you that sense. Again, I love this kind of music because there's almost something, there is something in this song that's longing for something that is wanting and yet left, unresolved and unfulfilled until the savior comes. There's almost a lament in it, so to speak, especially with like the way it's orchestrated. So I love that this hymn is like deep and rich in that way. It's, that's fine. Like if you want to sing deck the Holes, that's totally fine. This is just, I think, better and rich and deeper and more interesting because it does speak to this life of looking for and waiting for anticipating the advent of the savior. So to get me get put back in that place by music, I think is like a net gain this time of year. It's good to have that perspective. I'm, I'm glad you've heard it. We should just open that debate up whether or not we come hang out in the telegram chat. We'll put it in that debate. Is skillet hardcore or metal? We'll just leave it there 'cause I have my opinions, but I'm, well, I'm sure everybody else does. [00:20:48] Tony Arsenal: I don't even know what those words mean, Jesse. Everything is hardcore in metal compared to what I normally listen to. I don't even listen to music anymore usually, so I, I mean, I'm like mostly all podcasts all the time. Anytime I have time, I don't have a ton of time to listen to. Um, audio stuff, but [00:21:06] Jesse Schwamb: that's totally fair. Well now everybody now join us though. [00:21:08] Tony Arsenal: Educate me [00:21:09] Jesse Schwamb: now. Everybody can properly use, IM prompt whatever AI of their choice, and they can listen to at least three different versions of al comical manual. And then they can tell us which one do you like the best? Or maybe you have your own version. That's what she was saying. What's your favorite Christmas in? [00:21:23] Tony Arsenal: Yeah. And [00:21:24] Jesse Schwamb: what version of it do you like? I mean, it'll be like. [00:21:28] Tony Arsenal: It'll be like, despite my best efforts, I've been un unable to understand what hardcore and medical is. Please help me understand. [00:21:37] Jesse Schwamb: Oh, we're gonna have some, some fun with this at some point. We'll have to get into the whole debate, though. I know you and I have talked about it before. We'll put it before the brothers and sisters about a Christmas Carol and what version everybody else likes. That's also seems like, aside from the, the whole eternal debate, which I'm not sure is really serious about whether or not diehard is a Christmas movie, this idea of like, which version of the Christmas Carol do you subscribe to? Yeah. Which one would you watch if you can only watch one? Which one will you watch? That's, we'll have to save that for another time. [00:22:06] Tony Arsenal: We'll save it for another time. And we get a little closer to midwinter. No reason we just can't [00:22:10] Jesse Schwamb: do it right now because we gotta get to Luke 15. [00:22:12] Discussion on the Parable of the Lost Coin [00:22:12] Tony Arsenal: We do. [00:22:13] Jesse Schwamb: We, we've already been in this place of looking at Jesus' response to the Pharisees when they say to him, listen, this man receives sinners and eats with them. And Jesus is basically like, yeah, that's right. And let me tell you three times what the heart of God is like and what my mission in serving him is like, and what I desire to come to do for my children. And so we spoke in the last conversation about the parable lost sheep. Go check that out. Some are saying, I mean, I'm not saying this, but some are saying in the internet, it's the definitive. Congratulation of that parable. I'm, I'm happy to take that if that's true. Um, but we wanna go on to this parable of the lost coin. So let me read, it's just a couple of verses and you're gonna hear in the text that you're going to understand right away. This is being linked because it starts with or, so this is Jesus speaking and this is Luke 15, chapter 15, starting in verse eight. Jesus says, or a what woman? She has 10 D drachmas and loses. One drachma does not light a lamp and sweep the house and search carefully until she finds it. And when she has found it, she calls together her friend and her neighbors saying, rejoice with me for I found the D Drachma, which I lost in the same way I tell you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents. [00:23:27] Tony Arsenal: Yeah. Yeah. On one level, this is, uh, again, it's not all that complicated of a scenario, right? And we have to kind of go back and relo through some of the stuff we talked about last week because this is a continuation of, you know, when we first talked about the Matthew 13 parables, we commented on like. Christ was coming back to the same themes, right? And in some ways, repeating the parable. This is even stronger than that. It's not just that Christ is teaching the same thing across multiple parables. The sense here, at least the sense I get when I read this parable, the lost sheep, and then the prodigal, um, sun parable or, or the next parable here, um, is actually that Christ is just sort of like hammering home the one point he's making to the tax collectors and or to the tax collectors or to the scribes who are complaining about the fact that Christ was eating with sinners. He's just hammering this point home, right? So it's not, it's not to try to add. A lot of nuance to the point. It's not to try to add a, a shade of meaning. Um. You know, we talked a lot about how parables, um, Christ tells parables in part to condemn the listeners who will not receive him, right? That's right. This is one of those situations where it's not, it's not hiding the meaning of the parable from them. The meaning is so obvious that you couldn't miss it, and he, he appeals, we talked about in the first, in the first part of this, he actually appeals to like what the ordinary response would be. Right? What man of you having a hundred sheep if he loses one, does not. Go and leave the 99. Like it's a scenario that anyone who goes, well, like, I wouldn't do that is, looks like an idiot. Like, that's, that's the point of the why. He phrases it. And so then you're right when he, when he begins with this, he says, or what woman having 10 silver coins if she loses one, does not light a lamp and sweep the house and seek diligently until he, till she finds it. And of course, the, the, the emphasis again is like no one in their right mind would not do this. And I think like we think about a coin and like that's the smallest denomination of money that we have. Like, I wouldn't, like if I lost a, if I had 10 silver coin, 10 coins and I lost one of them, the most that that could be is what? 50 cents? Like the, like if I had a 50 cent piece or a silver dollar, I guess, like I could lose a dollar. We're not really talking about coins the way we think of coins, right? We're talking about, um. Um, you know, like denominations of money that are substantial in that timeframe. Like it, there was, there were small coins, but a silver coin would be a substantial amount of money to lose. So we are not talking about a situation where this is, uh, a trivial kind of thing. She's not looking for, you know, I've, I've heard this parable sort of like unpacked where like, it's almost like a miserly seeking for like this lost coin. Interesting. It's not about, it's not about like. Penny pinching here, right? She's not trying to find a tiny penny that isn't worth anything that's built into the parable, right? It's a silver coin. It's not just any coin. It's a silver coin. So she's, she's looking for this coin, um, because it is a significant amount of money and because she's lost it, she's lost something of her, of her overall wealth. Like there's a real loss. Two, this that needs to be felt before he can really move on with the parable. It's not just like some small piece of property, like there's a [00:26:57] Jesse Schwamb: right. I [00:26:57] Tony Arsenal: don't know if you've ever lost a large amount of money, but I remember one time I was in, um, a. I was like, almost outta high school, and I had taken some money out of, um, out of the bank, some cash to make a purchase. I think I was purchasing a laptop and I don't know why I, I don't, maybe I didn't have a credit card or I didn't have a debit card, but I was purchasing a laptop with cash. Right. And back then, like laptops, like this was not a super expensive laptop, but. It was a substantial amount of cash and I misplaced it and it was like, oh no, like, where is it? And like, I went crazy trying to find it. This is the situation. She's lost a substantial amount of money. Um, this parable, unlike the last one, doesn't give you a relative amount of how many she has. Otherwise. She's just lost a significant amount of money. So she takes all these different steps to try to find it. [00:27:44] Understanding the Parable's Context [00:27:44] Tony Arsenal: We have to feel that loss before we really can grasp what the parable is trying to teach us. [00:27:49] Jesse Schwamb: I like that, so I'm glad you brought that up because I ended up going down a rabbit hole with this whole coined situation. [00:27:56] Tony Arsenal: Well, we're about to, Matt Whitman some of this, aren't we? [00:27:58] Jesse Schwamb: Yes, I think so. But mainly because, and this is not really my own ideas here, there's, there's a lot I was able to kind of just read and kind. Throw, throw something around this because I think you're absolutely right that Jesus is bringing an ES escalation here and it's almost like a little bit easier for us to understand the whole sheep thing. I think the context of the lost coin, like you're already saying, is a little bit less familiar to us, and so I got into this. Rabbit hole over the question, why would this woman have 10 silver coins? I really got stuck on like, so why does she have these? And Jesus specific about that he's giving a particular context. Presumably those within his hearing in earshot understood this context far better than I did. So what I was surprised to see is that a lot of commentators you probably run into this, have stated or I guess promulgated this idea that the woman is young and unmarried and the 10 silver coins could. Could represent a dowry. So in some way here too, like it's not just a lot of money, it's possible that this was her saving up and it was a witness to her availability for marriage. [00:28:57] The Significance of the Lost Coin [00:28:57] Jesse Schwamb: So e either way, if that's true or not, Jesus is really emphasizing to us there's significant and severe loss here. And so just like you said, it would be a fool who would just like say, oh, well that's too bad. The coin is probably in here somewhere, but eh, I'm just gonna go about my normal business. Yeah. And forsake it. Like, let's, let's not worry about it. So. The emphasis then on this one is not so much like the leaving behind presumably can keep the remaining nine coins somewhere safe if you had them. But this effort and this diligence to, to go after and find this lost one. So again, we know it's all about finding what was lost, but this kind of momentum that Jesus is bringing to this, like the severity of this by saying there was this woman, and of course like here we find that part of this parable isn't just in the, the kingdom of God's like this, like we were talking about before. It's more than that because there's this expression of, again, the situation combined with these active verbs. I think we talked about last time that Christ love is an act of love and it's always being acted upon the sinner, the one who has to be redeemed, his child whom he goes after. So in the same way, we have Christ showing the self-denying love. Like in the first case, the shepherd brought his sheep home on his shoulders rather than leave it in the wilderness. And then here. The woman does like everything. She lights the candle, she sweeps the house. She basically turns the thing, the place upside down, searching diligently and spared no pains with this until she found her lost money. And before we get into the whole rejoicing thing, it just strikes me that, you know, in the same way, I think what we have here is Christ affirming that he didn't spare himself. He's not gonna spare himself. When he undertakes to save sinners, he does all the things. He endures the cross scor in shame. He lays down his life for his friends. There's no greater love than that. It cannot be shown, and so Christ's love is deep and mighty. It's like this woman doing all the things, tearing the place apart to ensure that that which she knew she had misplaced comes back to her. That the full value of everything that she knows is hers. Is safe and secure in her possession and so does the Lord Jesus rejoice the safe sinners in the same way. And that's where this is incredibly powerful. It's not just, Hey, let me just say it to you one more time. There is a reemphasis here, but I like where you're going, this re-escalation. I think the first question is, why do the woman have this money? What purpose is it serving? And I think if we can at least try to appreciate some of that, then we see again how Jesus is going after that, which is that he, he wants to save the sinner. He wants to save the soul. And all of the pleasure, then all of the rejoicing comes because, and, and as a result of that context. [00:31:22] Tony Arsenal: Yeah. Yeah. [00:31:23] Theological Implications of God's People [00:31:23] Tony Arsenal: The other thing, um, maybe, and, and I hope I'm not overreading again, we've, we've talked about the dangers of overreading, the parables, but I think there's a, and we'll, we'll come to this too when we get into the, um, prodigal son. Um, there is this sense, I think in some theological traditions that. God is sort of like claiming a people who were not his own. Right. And one of the things that I love about the reform tradition, and, and I love it because this is the picture the Bible teaches, is the emphasis on the fact that God's people have been God's people. As long as God has been pondering and con like contemplating them. So like we deny eternal justification, right? Justification happens in time and there's a real change in our status, in in time when, when the spirit applies, the benefits that Christ has purchased for us in redemption, right? But there's also a very real sense that God has been looking and considering us as his people in eternity past. Like that's always. That's the nature of the Pactum salutes, the, you know, covenant of redemption election. The idea that like God is not saving a nameless, faceless people. He's not creating conditions that people can either move themselves into or take themselves out of. He has a concrete people. Who he is saving, who he has chosen. He, he, you know, prior to our birth, he will redeem us. He now, he has redeemed us and he will preserve us in all of these parables, whether it's the sheep, the coin, or as we'll get to the prodigal sun next week or, or whenever. Um. It's not that God is discovering something new that he didn't have, or it's not that the woman is discovering a coin, right? There's nothing more, uh, I think nothing more like sort of, uh, spontaneously delightful than like when you like buy a, like a jacket at the thrift store. Like you go to Salvation Army and you buy a jacket, you get home, you reach in the pocket and there's like a $10 bill and you're like, oh man, that's so, so great. Or like, you find a, you find a. A $10 bill on the ground, or you find a quarter on the ground, right? Yeah. Or you find your own money. Well, and that that's, there's a different kind of joy, right? That's the point, is like, there's a delight that comes with finding something. And again, like we have to be careful about like, like not stealing, right? But there's a different kind of joy that comes with like finding something that was not yours that now becomes yours. We talked about that with parables a couple weeks ago, right? There's a guy who finds it, he's, he's searching for pearls. He finds a pearl, and so he goes after he sells everything he has and he claims that pearl, but that wasn't his before the delight was in sort of finding something new. These parables. The delight is in reclaiming and refining something that was yours that was once lost. Right? That's a different thing. And it paints a picture, a different picture of God than the other parables where, you know, the man kind of stumbles on treasure in a field or he finds a pearl that he was searching for, but it wasn't his pearl. This is different. This is teaching us that God is, is zealous and jealous to reclaim that which was his, which was lost. Yes. Right. So, you know, we can get, we can, maybe we will next week, maybe we will dig into like super laps area versus infra laps. AIRism probably not, I don't necessarily wanna have that conversation. But there is a reality in the Bible where God has a chosen people and they are his people, even before he redeems them. [00:34:52] Jesse Schwamb: Exactly. [00:34:53] God's Relentless Pursuit of Sinners [00:34:53] Tony Arsenal: These parables all emphasize that in a different way and part of what he's, part of what he's ribbing at with the Pharisees and the, and the scribes, and this is common across all of Christ's teaching in his interactions and we get into true Israel with, with Paul, I mean this is the consistent testimony of the New Testament, is that the people who thought they were God's people. The, the Jewish leaders, especially the Pharisees, the Sadducees, the scribes, the, the sort of elites of, uh, first century Jewish believers, they really were convinced that they were God's people. And those dirty gentiles out there, they, they're not, and even in certain sense, like even the Jewish people out in the country who don't even, you know, they don't know the scriptures that like, even those people were maybe barely God's people. Christ is coming in here and he is going, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. Like you're asking me. You're surprised that I receive sinners and e with them. Well, I'm coming to claim that which is mine, which was lost, and the right response to that is not to turn your nose up at it. The right response is to rejoice with me that I have found my sheep that was lost, that I have reclaimed my coin that was lost. And as we'll see later on, like he really needles them at the end of the, the, uh, parable of the prodigal son. This is something I, I have to be like intentional in my own life because I think sometimes we hear conversion stories and we have this sort of, I, I guess like, we'll call it like the, the Jonah I heresy, I dunno, we won't call it heresy, but like the, the, the like Jonah impulse that we all have to be really thankful for God's mercy in our life. But sort of question whether God is. Merciful or even be a little bit upset when it seems that God is being merciful to those sinners over there. We have to really like, use these parables in our own lives to pound that out of our system because it's, it's ungodly and it's not what God is, is calling us. And these parables really speak against that [00:36:52] Jesse Schwamb: and all of us speak in. In that lost state, but that doesn't, I think like you're saying, mean that we are not God's already. That if he has established that from a trinity past, then we'd expect what others have said about God as the hound of heaven to be true. And that is he comes and he chases down his own. What's interesting to me is exactly what you've said. We often recognize when we do this in reverse and we look at the parable of the lost son, all of these elements, how the father comes after him, how there's a cha singer coming to himself. There's this grand act of repentance. I would argue all of that is in all of these parables. Not, not to a lesser extent, just to a different extent, but it's all there. So in terms of like couching this, and I think what we might use is like traditionally reformed language. And I, I don't want to say I'm overeating this, I hope I'm not at that same risk, but we see some of this like toll depravity and like the sinner is lost, unable to move forward, right? There still is like the sovereign grace of God who's initiating the salvation and there is a kind of effect of calling that God doesn't merely invite, he finds, he goes after he affects the very thing. Yeah, and I think we're seeing that here. There is. The sinner, spiritual inability. There's an utter passivity until found. The coin doesn't seek the woman. The woman seeks the coin. And in this way, I think we see God's act of searching grace. It's all there for us. Yeah, it's in a slightly different way, but I think that's what we're meant to like take away from this. We're meant to lean into that a bit. [00:38:12] Rejoicing in Salvation [00:38:12] Jesse Schwamb: And the reason why I think it leads to joy, why God is so pleased is because God has this real pleasure. Jesus has this real pleasure. The Holy Spirit has this real pleasure. To pluck sinners as brands from the burning fire. You know, it was Jesus, literally his food and drink like not to be too trite, but like his jam went upon the earth to finish the work, which he came to do. And there are many times when he says he ammi of being constrained in the spirit until this was accomplished. And it's still his delight to show mercy like you're saying He is. And even Jonah recognizes that, right. He said like, I knew you were going to be a merciful God. And so he's far more willing to save sinners than sinners are to be saved. But that is the gospel level voice, isn't it? Because we can come kicking and screaming, but in God's great mercy, not because of works and unrighteousness, but because of his great mercy, he comes and he tears everything apart to rescue and to save those whom he's called to himself. [00:39:06] Tony Arsenal: Yeah. Yeah. I love that old, um, Puritan phrase that wrath is God's alien work. And we, you know, like you gotta be careful when you start to talk that way. And the Puritans were definitely careful about everything. I mean, they were very specific when they spoke, but. When we talk about God's alien work and wrath being God's alien work, what we're saying is not, not that like somehow wrath is external to God. Like that's not what we're getting at of Right. But when you look at scripture and, and here's something that I think, um. I, I don't know how I wanna say this. Like, I think we read that the road is narrow and the the, um, you know, few are those who find it. I think we read that and we somehow think like, yeah, God, God, like, really loves that. Not a lot of people are saved. And I, I actually think that like, when we look at it, um, and, and again, like we have to be careful 'cause God, God. God decreed that which he is delighted by, and also that which glorifies him the most. Right? Right. But the picture that we get in scripture, and we have to take this seriously with all of the caveats that it's accommodated, it's anthropopathism that, you know, all of, all of the stuff we've talked about. We did a whole series on systematic theology. We did like six episodes on Divine Simplicity and immutability. Like we we're, we're right in line with the historic tradition on that. All of those caveats, uh, all of those caveats in place, the Bible pic paints a picture of God such that he grieves over. Those who are lost. Right? Right. He takes no delight in the death of the wicked. That's right. He, he, he seeks after the lost and he rejoices when he finds them. Right. He's, his, his Holy Spirit is grieved when we disobey him, his, his anger is kindled even towards his people in a paternal sense. Right. He disciplines us the way an angry father who loves us, would discipline us when we disobey him. That is a real, that's a real thing. What exactly that means, how we can apply that to God is a very complicated conversation. And maybe sometimes it's more complicated than we, like, we make it more complicated than it needs to be for sure. Um, we wanna be careful to preserve God's changeness, his immutability, his simplicity, all of those things. But at the end of the day, at. God grieves over lost sinners, and he rejoices when they come back. He rejoices when they return to him. Just as the shepherd who finds his lost sheep puts that sheep on his shoulders, right? That's not just because that's an easy way to carry a sheep, right? It's also like this picture of this loving. Intimate situation where God pulls us onto himself and he, he wraps literally like wraps us around himself. Like there are times when, um. You know, I have a toddler and there are times where I have to carry that toddler, and it's, it's a fight, right? And I don't really enjoy doing it. He's squirming, he's fighting. Then there are times where he needs me to hold him tight, and he, he snuggles in. When he falls down and hurts his leg, the first thing he does is he runs and he jumps on me, and he wants to be held tight, and there's a f there's a fatherly embrace there that not only brings comfort to my son. But it brings great joy to me to be able to comfort him that that dynamic in a, uh, a infinitely greater sense is at play here in the lost sheep. And then there's this rejoicing. It's not just rejoicing that God is rejoicing, it's the angels that are rejoicing. [00:42:43] The Joy of Redemption [00:42:43] Tony Arsenal: It's the, it's other Christians. It's the great cloud of witnesses that are rejoicing when Aah sinner is returned to God. All of God's kingdom and everything that that includes, all of that is involved in this rejoicing. That's why I think like in the first parable, in the parable of the lost sheep, it's joy in heaven. Right? It's sort of general joy in heaven. It's not specific. Then this one is even more specific. It's not just general joy in heaven. It's the angels of God. That's right. That are rejoicing. And then I think what we're gonna find, and we'll we'll tease this out when we get to the next par, well the figure in the prodigal son that is rejoicing. The one that is leading the rejoicing, the chief rejoice is the one who's the standin for God in that parable. [00:43:26] Jesse Schwamb: Right, exactly right. So, [00:43:27] Tony Arsenal: so we have to, we have to both recognize that there's a true grief. A true sorrow that is appropriate to speak of God, um, as having when a sinner is lost. And there's also an equally appropriate way to speak about God rejoicing and being pleased and delighted when a sinner returns to him. [00:43:53] Jesse Schwamb: That's the real payoff of this whole parable. I think, uh, maybe all three of them altogether, is that it is shocking how good the gospel is, which we're always saying, yeah, but I'm really always being moved, especially these last couple weeks with what Jesus is saying about how good, how truly unbelievable the gospel is. And again, it draws us to the. Old Testament scriptures when even the Israel saying, who is like this? Who is like our God? So what's remarkable about this is that there's an infinite willingness on God's part to receive sinners. [00:44:23] Tony Arsenal: Yeah. [00:44:23] Jesse Schwamb: And however wicked a man may have been, and the day that he really turns from his wickedness and comes to God by Christ, God is well pleased and all of heaven with him, and God has no pleasure in the death of the wicked, like you said, but God has pleasure and true repentance. If all of that's true, then like day to day, here's what I, I think this means for us. [00:44:41] Applying the Parable to Our Lives [00:44:41] Jesse Schwamb: Is when we come to Christ for mercy and love and help and whatever anguish and perplexity and simpleness that we all have, and we all have it, we are going with the flow. If his own deepest wishes, we're not going against them. And so this means that God has for us when we partake in the toning work of Christ, coming to Christ for forgiveness, communing with him despite our sinfulness, that we are laying hold of Christ's own deepest longing and joy. [00:45:10] Tony Arsenal: Yeah. And [00:45:10] Jesse Schwamb: Jesus is comforted when we draw near the riches of his atoning work because as his body, even his own body in a way is being healed in this process. And so we, along with it, that I think is the payoff here. That's what's just so remarkable is that not only, like you're saying, is all heaven kind of paying attention to this. Like they're cognizant of it. It's something worthy of their attention and their energies and their rejoicing. But again, it's showing that God is doing all of this work and so he keeps calling us and calling us and calling us over and over again and just like you said, the elect sinner, those estr belongs to God and his eternal purpose. Even that by itself, we could just say full stop. Shut it down end the podcast. Yeah. That's just worthy to, to rejoice and, and ponder. But this is how strong I think we see like per election in particular, redemption in these passages. Christ died for his chief specifically crisis going after the lost coin, which already belongs to him. So like you were saying, Tony, when you know, or maybe you don't know, but you've misplaced some kind of money and you put your hand in that pocket of that winter coat for the first time that season and out comes the piece of paper, that's whatever, 20 or whatever, you rejoice in that, right. Right. It's like this was mine. I knew it was somewhere, it belonged to me, except that what's even better here is this woman tears her whole place apart to go after this one coin that she knows is hers and yet has been lost. I don't know what more it is to be said. I just cannot under emphasize. Or overemphasize how great God's love is in this like amazing condescension, so that when Jesus describes himself as being gentle and lowly or gentle and humble or gentle and humiliated, that I, I think as we understand the biblical text, it's not necessarily just that he's saying, well, I'm, I'm displaying. Meekness power under control. When he says he's humble, he means put in this incredibly lowly state. Yeah. That the rescue mission, like you're saying, involves not just like, Hey, she lemme call you back. Hey, come over here, says uh. He goes and he picks it up. It's the ultimate rescue, picks it up and takes it back by his own volition, sacrificing everything or to do that and so does this woman in this particular instance, and it should lead us. I think back to there's this virtuous cycle of seeing this, experiencing this. Being compelled by the law of Christ, as Paul says, by the power of the Holy Spirit and being regenerated and then worshiping, and then repenting, and then worshiping, and then repenting, and then worshiping. Because in the midst of that repentance and that beautifulness recognizing, as Isaiah says, all of these idols that we set up, that we run to, the one thing they cannot do for us is they cannot deal with sin. They cannot bring cleanliness and righteousness through confession of sin. They cannot do that. So Christ is saying, come to the one you who are needy, you who have no money. To use another metaphor in the Bible, come and buy. And in doing so, we're saying, Christ, Lord have mercy on me, a sinner. And when he says, come, come, I, I've, I have already run. After you come and be restored, come and be renewed. That which was lost my child. You have been found and I have rescued you. [00:48:04] Tony Arsenal: Yeah. Yeah. And these, these are so, um, these two parables are so. Comfortable. Like, right, like they are there, there are certain passages of scripture that you can just like put on like a big fuzzy warm bathrobe on like sn a cold morning, a snuggy. Yeah. I don't know if I want to go that far, but spirits are snuggy and, and these two are like that, right? Like, I know there are times where I feel like Christ redeemed me sort of begrudgingly, right? Mm-hmm. I think we have, we have this, um, concept in our mind of. Sort of the suffering servant, you know, like he's kind of like, ah, if I have to do it, I will. Right, right. And, and like, I think we, we would, if, if we were the ones who were, were being tasked to redeem something, we might do it. You know, we might do it and we. We might feel a certain sense of satisfaction about it, but I can tell you that if I had a hundred sheep and I had lost one, I would not lay it on my shoulder rejoicing. I would lay it on my shoulder. Frustrated and glad that I finally found it, but like. Right. Right. That's not what Christ did. That's right. Christ lays us on his shoulders rejoicing. Right. I know. Like when you lose something, it's frustrating and it's not just the loss of it that's frustrating. It's the time you have to take to find it. And sometimes like, yeah, you're happy that you found it, but you're like, man, it would've just been nice if I hadn't lost this in [00:49:36] Jesse Schwamb: the That's right. [00:49:37] Tony Arsenal: This woman, there's none of that. There's no, um, there's no regret. There's no. Uh, there's no begrudging this to it. There's nothing. It's just rejoicing. She's so happy. And it's funny, I can imagine, uh, maybe, maybe this is my own, uh, lack of sanctification here. I can imagine being that friend that's like, I gotta come over 'cause you found your coin, right? Like, I can be, I could imagine me that person, but Right. But honestly, like. This is a, this is a situation where she's so overcome with joy. She just has to tell people about it. Yeah. She has to share it with people. It, it reminds me, and I've seen this, I've seen this, um, connection made in the past certainly isn't new to me. I don't, I don't have any specific sorts to say, but like the woman at the well, right. She gets this amazing redemption. She gets this, this Messiah right in front of her. She leaves her buckets at the well, and she goes into a town of people who probably hate her, who think she's just the worst scum of society and she doesn't care. She goes into town to tell everybody about the fact that the Messiah has come, right? And they're so like stunned by the fact that she's doing it. Like they come to see what it is like that's what we need to be like. So there's. There's an element here of not only the rejoicing of God, and again, like, I guess I'm surprised because I've, I've, I've never sort of really read this. Part, I've never read this into it too much or I've never like really pulled this out, but it, now that I'm gonna say it, it just seems logical, like not only is God rejoicing in this, but again, it should be calling us to rejoice, right? Christ is. Christ is using these parables to shame the Pharisees and the scribes who refuse to rejoice over the salvation of sinners. How often do we not rejoice over our own salvation sufficiently? Like when's the last time? And I, I don't want to, this is, this can be a lot of loss. So again, like. God is not calling every single person to stand up on their lunch table at work, or, I don't know if God's calling anybody to stand up on the lunch table at work. Right. To like, like scream about how happy they are that they're sick, happy, happy. But like, when's the last time you were so overcome with joy that in the right opportunity, it just over, like it just overcame you and you had to share it. I don't rem. Putting myself bare here, like I don't remember the last time that happened. I share my faith with people, like my coworkers know that I'm a Christian and, um, my, they know that like, there are gonna be times where like I will bring biblical ethics and biblical concepts into my work. Like I regularly use bible examples to illustrate a principle I'm trying to teach my employees or, or I will regularly sort of. In a meeting where there's some question about what the right, not just like the correct thing to do, but the right thing to do. I will regularly bring biblical morality into those conversations. Nobody is surprised by that. Nobody's really offended by it. 'cause I just do it regularly. But I don't remember the last time where I was so overcome with joy because of my salvation that I just had to tell somebody. Right. And that's a, that's a, that's an indictment on me. That's not an indictment on God. That's not an indictment on anyone else. That's an indictment on me. This parable is calling me to be more joyful about. My salvation. [00:52:52] Jesse Schwamb: Yeah. One of the, I think the best and easiest verses from Psalms to memorize is let the redeemed of the Lord say so. Yes. Like, say something, speak up. There's, there's a great truth in what you're saying. Of course. And I think we mentioned this last time. There's a communal delight of redemption. And here we see that played out maybe a little bit more explicitly because the text says that the joy is before the angels, meaning that still God is the source of the joy. In other words, the angels share in God's delight night, vice versa, and not even just in salvation itself, but the fact that God is delighted in this great salvation, that it shows the effectiveness of his saving power. All that he has designed will come to pass because he super intends his will over all things that all things, again are subservient to our salvation. And here, why would that not bring him great joy? Because that's exactly what he intends and is able to do. And the angels rejoice along with him because his glory is revealed in his mighty power. So I'm, I'm with you. I mean, this reminds me. Of what the author of Hebrew says. This is chapter 12, just the first couple of verses. Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses in this communal kind of redemption of joy surrounding us. Laying aside every weight and the sin,

In their recent live stream Jazzman and Rachel explain why the recent Family Guy Hallmark parody was lame Listen to the whole live stream https://youtube.com/live/tzN0mXDU9Os To get 15% off your next gift, go to https://www.uncommongoods.com/podcast/hallmarkies for 15% off! Uncommon Goods. We're all out of the ordinary. Our Christmas podcasts are at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X4f2KtBPzUE&list=PLXv4sBF3mPUDo41tHqhkjHCvedmZwLzHx For all of our interviews https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXv4sBF3mPUA_0JZ2r5fxhTRE_-RChCj Send us your feedback at feedback@hallmarkiespodcast.com or the twitter call +1 (801) 855-6407 Check out the merch store and get our #hashtag shirts! https://www.teepublic.com/stores/hallmarkies?utm_campaign=Hallmarkies&utm_medium=8581&utm_source=affiliate Please support the podcast on patreon at https://www.patreon.com/hallmarkies Follow us on ITunes https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/hallmarkies-podcast/id1296728288?mt=2 https://twitter.com/HallmarkiesPod on twitter @HallmarkiesPodcast on Instagram Check out our website HallmarkiesPodcast.com Follow Rachel's blog at http://rachelsreviews.net Follow Rachel on twitter twitter.com/rachel_reviews Follow Rachel's Reviews on youtube https://www.youtube.com/c/rachelsreviews Follow Rachel on facebook www.facebook.com/smilingldsgirlreviews

Today Rachel joins with a bunch of great Hallmark podcasters to talk with Daniel Lissing about his new movie Single on the 25th Today save on the perfect gift by visiting AuraFrames.com to get $35 off Aura's best-selling Carver Mat frames - named #1 by Wirecutter - by using promo code HALLMARKIES To get 15% off your next gift, go to https://www.uncommongoods.com/podcast/hallmarkies for 15% off! Uncommon Goods. We're all out of the ordinary. For Hallmark Mysteries and More https://www.youtube.com/@UCiUmExLycIfS2qofVLpeaKA For Girls Gone Hallmark https://tr.ee/zYCkWfwPAp Suspenders Unbuttoned https://unbuttonedmedia.us/ Everything About Hallmark https://www.youtube.com/c/EverythingAboutHallmark For our 2025 Christmas content https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXv4sBF3mPUAQKXmF4t3bW_QozFbDp-aD Our Christmas podcasts are at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X4f2KtBPzUE&list=PLXv4sBF3mPUDo41tHqhkjHCvedmZwLzHx Send us your feedback at feedback@hallmarkiespodcast.com or the twitter call +1 (801) 855-6407 Check out the merch store and get our #hashtag shirts! https://www.teepublic.com/stores/hallmarkies?utm_campaign=Hallmarkies&utm_medium=8581&utm_source=affiliate Please support the podcast on patreon at https://www.patreon.com/hallmarkies Follow us on ITunes https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/hallmarkies-podcast/id1296728288?mt=2 https://twitter.com/HallmarkiesPod on twitter @HallmarkiesPodcast on Instagram Check out our website HallmarkiesPodcast.com Follow Rachel's blog at http://rachelsreviews.net Follow Rachel on twitter twitter.com/rachel_reviews Follow Rachel's Reviews on youtube https://www.youtube.com/c/rachelsreviews Follow Rachel on facebook www.facebook.com/smilingldsgirlreviews Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We are getting into the holiday spirit - whether you like it or not ya filthy animals! We had a wonderful chat with film critic and author ALONSO DURLADE  to discuss his new book HAVE YOURSELF A MOVIE LITTLE CHRISTMAS and one of the featured films from his list BETTER WATCH OUT (2017).More about our guest: Alonso Duralde is the Chief US Film Critic for The Film Verdict and co-host of the podcasts Linoleum Knife, Breakfast All Day, Maximum Film!, and Deck the Hallmark. His books include Hollywood Pride (TCM/Running Press), and Have Yourself a Movie Little Christmas, which will be reissued in Fall 2025 by Bloomsbury in a revised and updated edition. A former host for FilmStruck, he has discussed movies on TCM, CNN, and ABC, as well as in numerous documentaries. We hope you enjoy getting into the holiday season with us! Be sure to check out Alonso's book HAVE YOURSELF A MOVIE LITTLE CHRISTMAS! Support the show

On this episode of “Tommy Talk,” Tommy is joined by actor and entrepreneur Andrew Walker to explore simple, meaningful ways to practice self-care during the holiday season. With work deadlines, gatherings, celebrations, and the endless to-do lists that come with the festivities, it’s easy to feel run-down and stretched in every direction. But we can't neglect ourselves, and Tommy and Andrew are sharing the ways that they nurture their minds, bodies and spirits during this busy time of year. For anyone needing to take a deep breath and re-center, this episode is for you. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

As Buffalo Bills fans, we couldn't resist checking out Hallmark's new holiday movie based around the Bills mafia. And of course, with our track record of covering Christmas Hallmark films, it only made sense to "tackle" this nauseatingly naive movie of yuletide cheer. Tune in to see what we say, and hear Martin reminisce about Bills teams of old.We're also drinking DuClaw's Pastryarchy: Peppermint Imperial Stout!Approximate timeline0:00-15:00 Intro15:00-25:00 Beer talk25:00-end Holiday Touchdown: A Bills Love StoryFestivus Series continues all holiday season!

Murr asks whether or not an A list celebrity is worthy, or should, cameo on a Hallmark movie. Wes brings up the fact that Jenna Jameson found Jesus. Austin Lewis, from Bay Life Brokerage, joins the show to shed light on why those who live in the area should give a shit about the Chesapeake Bay. Fun fact friday followed up by the Campbell's executive, who was recently fired, for his remarks about the product and those who buy their soup. 

This post contains affiliate links, which means I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.What if your romance career didn't hinge on going viral—but on quietly writing your way to 118 books and counting? In this episode, I'm chatting with holiday romance queen Samantha Chase about sustainable careers, Christmas comfort reads, and why she'll always write a Christmas book.We talk about what it really looks like to treat writing like a job (in the best way), how Samantha built a wide, library-friendly backlist instead of relying on Kindle Unlimited, and why she's more interested in consistency than fame. Then we dive into her newest holiday romance, A Holly Brown Christmas, plus a whole sleigh-full of her backlist Christmas books and a couple of festive recs from Lauren Blakely.

Showrunners Erin Rodman and Davah Avena reveal how they adapted a Christmas novel into Hallmark's first holiday limited series, built a collaborative room, and why screenwriters need a strong voice, endless ideas, social media, and even self‑publishing in their toolkit.​ For an action checklist, the show notes and a full transcript - go to: https://christmasmoviescreenwriter.com/40-inside-hallmarks-first-christmas-limited-series/ Check out the YouTube interview here:  YouTube: https://youtu.be/cMk7-vJskWE

Tracey and Sally continue into the realm of Hallmark 2025 Countdown to Christmas movies! Enjoy discussions of solid remakes and high altitude shenanigans:)

This week of Deck the Hallmark is presented by Racine Danish Kringles. Exclusive 10% off entire order -  www.kringles.com  // Promo Code:  HALLMARK25--We're back to unwrap this another new Hallmark holiday movie: The More the Merrier — where Christmas miracles, snowed-in romance, and a baby boom collide under one roof.ABOUT THE MORE THE MERRIERAlice, an emergency room doctor, volunteers to work Christmas Eve shifts at a rural hospital. During a snowy Christmas, Alice and Brian, a top-rated cardiologist, help deliver three baby booms, sparking a lasting bond.AIR DATE & NETWORK FOR THE MORE THE MERRIERNovember 28, 2025  | Hallmark ChannelCAST & CREW OF THE MORE THE MERRIERRachel Boston as Alice RogersBrendan Penny as Brian DavisBRAN'S THE MORE THE MERRIER SYNOPSISWe meet Alice, who picks up cookies before heading to the ER to volunteer. She's a nurse who volunteers every Christmas. While getting the cookies out of the back of her car, she slips and almost falls — but is saved by a hot doctor named Brian. He's a cardiologist.Brian's sister also works at the hospital and is very pregnant. Brian is shocked to learn that Alice is a doctor too — an OBGYN, in fact. He keeps trying to find out more about her, but she's a closed book. He does discover, however, that she has four job offers that would take her out of town in the new year… but no one else knows.Brian's sister goes into labor and gives birth right as the clock strikes midnight. A Christmas baby! She immediately gets to work trying to set up her brother and Alice.But honestly, that doesn't seem likely after Brian accidentally lets it slip that Alice is planning to leave the hospital in the new year.Meanwhile, another woman who brought her son in after he bonked his head ends up going into labor with twins. What a day.Alice and Brian start hanging out more during their downtime. Another pregnant woman tries to get to the hospital, but the roads are bad, so she stops at a bakery with its lights still on. Coincidentally, the people inside are the couple planning to adopt her baby. With help from a tow truck driver, they all make it to the hospital, and she gives birth.Everyone chips in to make sure all the patients and staff get a nice Christmas breakfast.Alice decides she's not taking any of the out-of-town jobs — she's sticking around. They celebrate by kissssingggggg. Watch the show on Youtube - www.deckthehallmark.com/youtubeInterested in advertising on the show? Email bran@deckthehallmark.com Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Happy Holidays!! We have a fantastic and fun Holiday Episode of You Should Know Better! with the stars Billy Flynn (The Young and the Restless) and Spencer Grammer (Rick & Morty) of Build A Prince, a fictional podcast that is like a Hallmark movie for your ears written and produced by friend of the pod Jenni Melear. Billy is playing for Echoes of Hope and Spencer is playing for Maeday Rescue. Play along with us and be sure to subscribe, rate and review wherever you listen to pods and follow us @youshouldknowbetterpod!

Today Rachel is joined by Dara o talk about 2 more Hallmark Christmas movies- 'The Christmas Cup' and 'Christmas at the Catnip Cafe' Follow Dara https://www.instagram.com/dearhallmark/ Follow Dear Hallmark podcast https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCe7R8-e6d13cee5QMo_Oltw?sub_confirmation=1 Follow her youtube channel https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCe7R8-e6d13cee5QMo_Oltw?sub_confirmation=1 Today save on the perfect gift by visiting AuraFrames.com to get $35 off Aura's best-selling Carver Mat frames - named #1 by Wirecutter - by using promo code HALLMARKIES To pick up Christmas at Pine Ridge Inn by Savannah Carlisle https://amzn.to/49DkYPL (ad) For all of our rankings https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXv4sBF3mPUCgu1AlVoiEMigO6cvdGAAW To get 15% off your next gift, go to https://www.uncommongoods.com/podcast/hallmarkies for 15% off! Uncommon Goods. We're all out of the ordinary. Our Christmas podcasts are at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X4f2KtBPzUE&list=PLXv4sBF3mPUDo41tHqhkjHCvedmZwLzHx For all of our interviews https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXv4sBF3mPUA_0JZ2r5fxhTRE_-RChCj Send us your feedback at feedback@hallmarkiespodcast.com or the twitter call +1 (801) 855-6407 Check out the merch store and get our #hashtag shirts! https://hallmarkies.dashery.com/ Please support the podcast on patreon at https://www.patreon.com/hallmarkies Follow us on ITunes https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/hallmarkies-podcast/id1296728288?mt=2 https://twitter.com/HallmarkiesPod on twitter @HallmarkiesPodcast on Instagram Check out our website HallmarkiesPodcast.com Follow Rachel's blog at http://rachelsreviews.net Follow Rachel on twitter twitter.com/rachel_reviews Follow Rachel's Reviews on youtube https://www.youtube.com/c/rachelsreviews Follow Rachel on facebook www.facebook.com/smilingldsgirlreviews Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today Rachel and Megan are here to talk about the latest holiday films in live stream To get 15% off your next gift, go to https://www.uncommongoods.com/podcast/hallmarkies for 15% off! Uncommon Goods. We're all out of the ordinary. Our Christmas podcasts are at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X4f2KtBPzUE&list=PLXv4sBF3mPUDo41tHqhkjHCvedmZwLzHx For all of our interviews https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXv4sBF3mPUA_0JZ2r5fxhTRE_-RChCj Send us your feedback at feedback@hallmarkiespodcast.com or the twitter call +1 (801) 855-6407 Check out the merch store and get our #hashtag shirts! https://www.teepublic.com/stores/hallmarkies?utm_campaign=Hallmarkies&utm_medium=8581&utm_source=affiliate Please support the podcast on patreon at https://www.patreon.com/hallmarkies Follow us on ITunes https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/hallmarkies-podcast/id1296728288?mt=2 https://twitter.com/HallmarkiesPod on twitter @HallmarkiesPodcast on Instagram Check out our website HallmarkiesPodcast.com Follow Rachel's blog at http://rachelsreviews.net Follow Rachel on twitter twitter.com/rachel_reviews Follow Rachel's Reviews on youtube https://www.youtube.com/c/rachelsreviews Follow Rachel on facebook www.facebook.com/smilingldsgirlreviews

Send us a textThanksgiving brought Hallmark's heavy hitters… but did they actually deliver?Eric and Andrea break down every single movie and special that aired over the long holiday weekend — from We Met in December to A Catnip Christmas — plus the shock eliminations on Baked with Love and Finding Mr. Christmas.If you missed even ONE premiere, this episode is your complete recap: honest takes, unexpected disagreements, big surprises, and the movie that just might be the worst of the year.Whether you love Hallmark rom-coms, mysteries, or reality shows, this episode has something for everyone. Grab a cozy drink and settle in — we're covering it all!Follow us on social media: Instagram and TikTok: @hallmarkmysteriesandmoreYoutubeOr visit our website. This podcast was created by fans for fans and is NOT affiliated with or sponsored by Hallmark or the Hallmark Channel.

Silent Santas and Ashley Williams!!We're back to recap another fun episode of Hallmark's reality TV search for the network's next leading man! We're spoiler-free, so we won't tell you who got eliminated in this episode. Instead, we're gabbing about the challenges and who gets our 'Gold or Coal' for standing out in good -- and, well, not good -- ways!Weigh in with your thoughts! Comment below and connect with us on our social media channels at www.DoYouWatchWhatIWatch.com.And, as always, may your days be merry and bright!

This is all Recent Holiday Movies ESPECIALLY ones made for TV. Tell me I'm wrong. 

Destiny is IMPERSONATING an Officer?! What happened to the snowblower now?! Let’s get in the festive Hallmark spirit with “Plot Twistmas!” Here’s what’s on Destiny & Taylor’s 2025 Wrapped…

This week of Deck the Hallmark is presented by Racine Danish Kringles. Exclusive 10% off entire order -  www.kringles.com  // Promo Code:  HALLMARK25Get 10% off your first month of Better Help // BetterHelp.com/hallmark--We're back with another Christmas movie breakdown — this time diving into The Snow Must Go On.ABOUT THE SNOW MUST GO ONIsaiah Heyward returns to Broadway after a decade, but faces challenges in finding a director. He saves a Christmas musical and discovers love, family, and friendship as the greatest holiday gifts. He reunites with his family and friends.AIR DATE & NETWORK FOR THE SNOW MUST GO ONNovember 28, 2025 | Hallmark ChannelCAST & CREW OF THE SNOW MUST GO ONCorey Cott as Isaiah HeywardHeather Hemmens as Lilly-AnneBRAN'S THE SNOW MUST GO ON SYNOPSISThe movie starts with a Rudolph musical. It's safe to say this is off-Broadway. Actor Isaiah Heyward wrote, directed, and stars in the one-man show that no one cared about. He put his heart and soul into it, working on it for over a year.His sister, Jess, and her daughter, Aurora, show up to cheer him on and invite him home for Christmas. He says he has a big Broadway audition tomorrow, so he can't come.Isaiah shows up for the audition and sees a poster for a musical he was in long ago. Now, he can't even get in the room to audition before the casting director leaves for the day. To make matters worse, he gets fired from his caroling gig for showing up late.With nothing else going on, he heads home to Hancock.His sister picks him up and immediately guilt-trips Isaiah for not being around for Aurora, who is struggling to adjust to her parents' divorce. To make it up to her, he offers to pick her up from school — and naturally ends up taking over as director of the Christmas musical when the old director quits.The school guidance counselor, Lilly-Anne, gets roped into being the staff supervisor.But it turns out Isaiah doesn't just have to direct — he has to finish writing the show, which happens to be about reindeer.It doesn't take long for Lilly-Anne to open up to him about her past. Isaiah discovers that one of the kids in the theater program is the daughter of the woman cast in the musical he wanted to audition for. He hatches a plan: he's going to cast himself as the lead to impress her.Aurora hears about his plan and volunteers to help make his vision come to life.Lilly-Anne helps Isaiah learn how to work with kids, including helping one student, Steven, conquer his fear of singing in public and audition for the musical. There's a lot of confusion over why Isaiah cast himself as the lead, but Aurora convinces everyone they're lucky to learn from a Broadway legend.He starts spending more time with Lilly-Anne outside of rehearsals — holding hands while looking at Christmas lights, watching a movie together, and shopping for a bad Charlie Brown-style Christmas tree.After showing off his stage lighting setup, Isaiah and Lilly-Anne share a kiss — but he's conflicted because he hasn't told her the truth about why he's the lead.To help the kids feel comfortable performing in front of an audience, they go Christmas caroling.The more Isaiah cares about the kids, the wiser he feels — but it's time for the final dress rehearsal. He finds out a producer will be in the audience, so he goes out there and crushes it. The producer finds him backstage and invites him to the city on Christmas Eve to audition. Isaiah is thrilled — it's what he's been waiting for. Unfortunately, Lilly-Anne overhears, is upset, and demands he tell the kids the truth, or she will. It does not go well.He goes to the audition but can't focus, constantly thinking about letting the kids down. He tells the producer he has to return to Hancock to see the lead — the kids' performance — and pleads with her to come with him.She shows up just in time to give a pep talk, and Isaiah arrives behind her to apologize to everyone.The show is a smash hit. He tells Lilly-Anne this is his favorite standing ovation. He confesses that he has a new dream — one with her — and decides he doesn't want to go back to Broadway. The snow machine starts, they kiss, and he quips, “The snow must go on.” Watch the show on Youtube - www.deckthehallmark.com/youtubeInterested in advertising on the show? Email bran@deckthehallmark.com Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

This week Francis is joined by his wife Beth to watch military themed Christmas movies from the Hallmark channel. This week it's Christmas on Duty, a USAA funded movie released in November of this year. It features Parker Young and Janel Parrish, two montages, USAA branded ice scrapers, and a whole lotta heart. Two of these holiday episodes will be free, but everything after that will be on Patreon, available to buy individually, but always available to the $5 a month subscribers - https://www.patreon.com/Hellofawaytodie  And if you're looking for presents for the father figure in your life, check out the store - https://whatahellofawaytodad.com/ 

Send us a textJoin us for a warm and spirited deep dive into There's No Place Like Christmas, the new holiday romance starring Cindy Busby and Sam Page. We break down the story, performances, chemistry, standout moments, and what makes this festive film stand out in a crowded Christmas movie season. Whether you're a Hallmark-style holiday movie fan or just scouting your next cozy watch, this review has you covered.Tune in for our thoughts, surprises, and whether this one deserves a spot on your holiday watchlist! Support the showOh Brother Podcast: Support the Show! (Be The First to Listen with Early Access) Listen on all podcast platforms Subscribe on YouTube Follow us on Instagram

When the newest cohort of the Front Royal–Warren County Chamber of Commerce Community Leadership Program filed into the conference room, they didn't expect their first assignment to involve a radio interview. Yet chamber director Niki Foster insists that discomfort is part of the process. As she tells Valley Today host Janet Michael, leadership requires stepping outside routine—and this program is designed to stretch participants in the best possible ways. A Program Built to Strengthen Community Now more than 25 years old, the Chamber's leadership program remains one of the region's most impactful professional development opportunities. Since 1999, it has graduated nearly 300 people—small-business owners, town staff, nonprofit leaders, educators, healthcare professionals, and engaged residents. Niki explains that the program offers a "wide-angle lens" view of Front Royal and Warren County. Participants explore how local government works, how social services operate, what drives economic growth, how nonprofits collaborate, and what challenges shape daily life in the community. Moreover, she emphasizes that the program serves the community just as much as the participants. Graduates leave with accurate knowledge, real-world context, and the confidence to correct misinformation that spreads on social media or in neighborhood groups. A Class Filled With Motivation—and Curiosity As Janet goes around the room, the class reveals a diverse mix of personal motivations: Nonprofit Leaders Looking for Deeper Understanding Andrea Ross, representing Warren County Habitat for Humanity, hopes to better understand the inner workings of the community she serves. Rachel Ross, newly relocated and working with Warren County Department of Social Services, wants to connect locally and learn the landscape. Doris Lockwood, a 20-year military veteran, appreciates the chance to see "how the community works—and sometimes doesn't." Small-Business Owners Seeking Connection Janet Counts, co-owner of Potomac Plumbing & Gas, supports women in business and wants a clearer picture of how her business fits into the local ecosystem. Jennifer Nicholson, owner of Jennerations Hair Studio & Spa, enrolled because friends raved about the program's impact. Local Government Employees Strengthening Their Roots Eric Jorgenson and Megan Clark of the Town of Front Royal see the program as a way to understand community needs more fully and collaborate across departments. Educators & Workforce Developers Expanding Their View Anna Walton from Blue Ridge Technical Center wants to form informed opinions—not guesses—about local issues. Lisa Mauck, an adjunct professor with Laurel Ridge Community College, completed the program 24 years ago and returned for a modern refresher. A Student With a Head Start Zachary Nicholson, the youngest participant, joined simply to learn about his community—earning praise from Janet for choosing curiosity over obligation. Together, their voices paint a picture of a community eager to learn, participate, and contribute. Evolution in a Growing Region As Janet and Niki reflect on the program's history, they acknowledge how dramatically the county has changed since its inception. Businesses have expanded, new neighborhoods have emerged, and local government has evolved. That's why Niki loves when alumni return; the learning is never truly finished. Importantly, Niki notes that town staff have participated every single year—a powerful endorsement of the program's relevance. Valley Health, too, is a consistent supporter, sending team members annually to strengthen cross-sector understanding. Connecting the Dots Across Sectors Because participants represent nearly every corner of the community—government, healthcare, education, nonprofits, small business—the program becomes a living network. "We all touch different people," Niki explains. The more accurate information leaders share, the stronger the community becomes. From tours of major institutions to hands-on sessions during government and education months, the program forces participants to move beyond assumptions and see the systems they inhabit. Holiday Hustle: The Chamber's Busiest Season In the second half of the episode, the conversation shifts from leadership development to full-blown holiday logistics. And for Niki, December is no small undertaking. The Christmas Parade & Merry Market The Front Royal Christmas Parade, one of the largest annual events downtown, draws more than 7,000 attendees—making it the third-largest community gathering. Interest is so strong that parade applications were requested as early as February. Beyond the parade, Niki outlines a full day of activities: Holiday performances at the gazebo The Merry Market featuring small businesses and seasonal vendors Children's activities Pancake breakfasts, open houses, concerts, and more As Janet jokes, it's the kind of day that makes Front Royal feel like a Hallmark movie—though Niki insists it feels more like the small-town charm of Gilmore Girls. Business After Hours & Community Giving Even with the holiday chaos, the chamber continues its regular programming. December includes: Coffee & Conversation, held the first Friday of every month Business After Hours at Royal Cinemas on December 9, raising funds for Warren County foster care A free screening of Elf afterward Cocoa & Cookies at the Chamber on December 19—open to everyone, not just members Looking Ahead: Education and Local Government As the leadership class finishes its introductions, Nikki previews their upcoming sessions: December: Education — tours, presentations, and immersive learning in local schools January: Local Government — meetings with officials, facility tours, and firsthand exploration of how decisions are made Janet can't resist teasing them about Public Safety Day, warning that Warren County Fire & Rescue legend Gerry Maiatico never misses an audience. A Class Just Getting Started As the conversation wraps, the participants settle into their first day as a cohort—curious, energized, and ready for the nine-month journey ahead. Janet promises to return in June to ask them what surprised them most, what they loved, and how the experience changed their understanding of Front Royal and Warren County. One thing is certain: this group is diverse, engaged, and poised to make a meaningful impact.

This week on the Beyond Sunday Podcast, Steve Buttram, Paxton Redd, Josh Hensley, and Michael Shearon kick things off with Thanksgiving laughs, family stories, and a hilarious game of Hallmark or Holy, where they try to determine whether love quotes come from Christmas movies or Scripture. The fun sets the table for a deeper conversation as the Advent season begins with a powerful focus on hope—not the fragile kind rooted in circumstances, but the living hope found in Jesus. Paxton unpacks how hope often rises from the most unexpected places, reminding listeners that our confidence is anchored in the resurrected Christ, not wishful thinking. The guys reflect on a moving moment from Sunday's service where the church physically surrounded those who expressed a need for prayer—an unforgettable picture of the Body of Christ carrying hope together. Steve shares updates on the exciting and chaotic preparations for the upcoming Cadiz campus launch, while Michael previews next week's theme of peace in the middle of chaos. Throughout the episode, the heart of the message rings clear: God's hope is alive, active, and meant to be experienced in community. ✝️ASK A QUESTION – TELL A STORY – CONNECT WITH US    

This post contains affiliate links, which means I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.Looking for a cozy, witchy holiday romance with world-building that feels like slipping into a warm sweater? Today I'm sitting down with debut author and longtime video-game writer Morgan Lockhart, whose background explains exactly why her book feels so immersive and magical.In this episode, we chat about her 20-year career in game writing, the pivot back to her “first love” of books, and how A Spell for Midwinter's Heart blends cozy romance, magic-light vibes, and real-world emotional stakes. If you love Hallmark holiday romances but wish they had a touch of witchy charm, this is the perfect entry point into the cozy-paranormal space. We also dig into her craft, world-building, burnout, motherhood, and the comforting wave of cozy stories readers are reaching for right now.

RE-RELEASE TIME - in honor of having Stephanie Sy on the pod, we're re-rereleasing one of our favorite episodes!or: "The Harbisons Get Religion"Welp. This movie is perfect. I'd apologize, but this might have been our favorite episode to record to date. Was it because we'd consumed a bottle and a half of wine before deciding to record the podcast in the middle of the night after watching the movie because we just COULDN'T WAIT to talk about it?? Yeah, partially. But also, rarely does Hallmark give us a gift that is this GOOD! Especially when the trailer gave us the LOWEST expectations. Ugh, look at me. Look at me! I can't even stop in the caption. I must control myself.As always, thank you so much for listening and sharing. We are so grateful to our listeners!! Keep on downloading, giving us 5 stars, and sharing with your nameless best friends. Follow us on Instagram for more fun supplementary content and updates! The more you share and rate and download, the more fun stuff we can do in the future. Please, don't make Jack get a job at a restaurant.Speaking of Jack, find him on Spotify and follow him for his upcoming album here, or follow him on Instagram or both!Read Beth's backlog for other great stories and follow her on instagram, read Paige's books too or follow her on Insta for some funny content!Our insta! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this honest and engaging conversation, USA Today bestselling author Liz Talley shares her journey through the publishing world, discussing the challenges of transitioning to a new genre, the impact of AI on writing, and the differences between indie and traditional publishing. She emphasizes the importance of trusting one's own voice and vision as a writer while navigating the complexities of the industry. Liz also offers valuable advice for new authors, encouraging them to embrace their unique storytelling style and take risks in their writing careers. Chapters: 00:00 Introduction to Liz Talley 02:47 Navigating the Writing Journey 06:02 Transitioning to a New Genre 09:03 The Challenges of Starting Over 11:54 The Role of AI in Writing 14:47 The Indie vs. Traditional Publishing Debate 18:12 Taking Risks in Writing 20:53 Advice for New Authors Author's Website: www.liztalleybooks.com Social Media Links: http://www.facebook.com/liztalleybooks Author Bio: Liz Talley is the USA Today best-selling author of over thirty heartwarming stories. A finalist in both Romance Writers of America's Golden Heart and Rita Awards, Liz has published with Harlequin, Hallmark, and Montlake where she reached number one in kindle romance and was named to Publisher's Weekly mass market bestseller list. Her stories are set in the South where the tea is sweet, the summers are hot, and the porches are wide. In 2023, she also added screenwriter to her accomplishments, co-writing an adaptation of her novel The Wedding War, which landed in the Top 20 of Louisiana Film Prize. Book Link: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08VJ6XH7Y Love this episode? Rate it ⭐️ Thumbs Up

This week, we sit down with the wildly accomplished Patrick Doyle, a veteran camera and Steadicam operator with more than 30 years of experience working across the TV and motion picture industry. Pat has collaborated with some of the biggest studios in the world—MGM, Disney, 20th Century Fox, NBC Universal, Warner Bros, A&E, Sony Entertainment, Hallmark—and worked shoulder to shoulder with iconic performers like William Shatner, Julianna Margulies, Adrien Brody, Charles Dance, Liam Cunningham, and Tom Ellis.   But despite his remarkable résumé, Pat remains deeply grounded in the place he calls home: Sydney River, Cape Breton/Unama'ki.   What struck us most during this conversation is Pat's pure, unfiltered passion for his craft. He speaks about camera work not just as a technical skill, but as a creative point of view—the way he sees and feels the world. We spent time reassuring him (lovingly) that he is an artist, and that his instincts, sensitivity, and strong visual identity absolutely count.   And now, after decades of telling other people's stories, Pat is stepping into a new chapter: developing his own TV series. The anticipated project is inspired by Cape Breton's own Frank MacDonald and his book The Smeltdog Man, a full-circle moment after Frank recently joined us on the podcast. Pat hopes this series will help strengthen the film industry on Cape Breton Island, creating opportunities and shining a brighter light on a place he deeply loves.   This conversation is a reminder of what it feels like to be grateful, intentional, and awake to the creative path you've chosen. Pat's humility, humour, and heart make this one of those episodes that leaves you feeling lighter and more inspired to begin your own next chapter.   A beautiful chat about craft, home, and seeing the world with curiosity.     Watch this episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@mikeandkristen   Join our Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/mikeandkristen   Us on the web: www.mikeandkristen.ca Instagram: www.instagram.com/mike_and_kristen/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mikeandkristencreative Shoot us a message! Say hello, tell us who you think we should have on the podcast, and your deepest and darkest secrets: mikeandkristencreative@gmail.com  Review our book "You and Me" on Amazon (it helps a lot!!): https://amzn.to/3qqNCMo Intro song: “A Day in the Life" Outro song: “The Show" both by Mike (Michael S. Ryan) from his upcoming 88 song project Power Chords Mike's site: www.michaelsryan.com Kristen's site: www.kristenherringtonart.com Patrick's Instagram: @doylecam Patrick's website: https://screennovascotia.com/production-guide/members/patrick-doyle-operator/

This week of Deck the Hallmark is presented by Racine Danish Kringles. Exclusive 10% off entire order -  www.kringles.com  // Promo Code:  HALLMARK25This episode is sponsored by Cozy Earth! Use promo code HALLMARK to get 40% off at cozyearth.com---We're joined by Brian to dive into another Hallmark Christmas release: We Met in December.ABOUT WE MET IN DECEMBERAnnie Lane and Dave Weeks meet in a holiday hotel, falling in love. They embark on separate quests to find each other, sharing wisdom and making significant life changes.AIR DATE & NETWORK FOR WE MET IN DECEMBERNovember 27, 2025 | Hallmark ChannelCAST & CREW OF WE MET IN DECEMBERAutumn Reeser as Annie LaneNiall Matter as Dave WeeksBRAN'S WE MET IN DECEMBER SYNOPSISWe meet Annie and Dave. They're about to say goodnight after having an amazing night together in the hotel lobby. They're talking like they'll be on the same plane in the morning, so they'll see each other again in just four hours.The next morning, he's nowhere to be found. She really has to leave for the airport. She knows his last name but not his room number, so she leaves her number on a sticky note with the lady at the front desk.Cut to Dave — his alarm was set for PM. He rushes to the airport without stopping by the front desk. Womp womp.They both start searching online for each other, but it's just impossible.We learn how they met in the first place: a bad storm delayed both of their flights, so they went to a nearby hotel. She bumped into Dave on the way in, the doors instantly flew open, and they spent the whole night talking.They know Chicago is home for both of them.Through conversations with their loved ones in the present day, we get flashbacks of the night before. We find out she's in fashion, and he's in finance and wants the perfect Christmas to honor his late father. They're different, but it works.She remembers some of the things he told her he was going to do on Christmas, including visiting his childhood home. She's explaining it to her friend, and her friend's like, “Oh, I know that house.” When they pull up, it's a new construction still being built. Dead end.He remembers her talking about this coffee shop, so he goes there. Another dead end — but he leaves his number.She posts her story on a missed-connections app and gets a hit — a guy named David asks to meet at that same coffee shop. A woman shows up saying she works for a guy named Dave. Unfortunately, wrong Dave. Hate to see it.They have another close encounter at a Christmas concert — she went to the early show, he went to the late show.He remembers that she invited him to a Christmas Eve service. He just has to find that church.But first — the Christmas tree lot. They both happen to be there at the same time but don't bump into each other.We get to see the goodnight scene again, but this time we see that he stopped the elevator from closing completely and came back to kiss her real good.They also bump into each other again at another Christmas pageant — he even sees her through the crowd but assumes he's hallucinating.She makes one last-ditch effort by asking a radio DJ to read a message on-air asking him to meet her in front of a Christmas tree — but he never shows.He discovers that his sister bought one of Annie's handmade dresses at the market. He runs down there, but it's closed. Still, he decides to give the church a shot — and wouldn't you know it? They find each other.They both say they've been looking for each other! He immediately gets her number and asks her out on a proper date. They celebrate finding each other with a kiss as the snow falls around them. Watch the show on Youtube - www.deckthehallmark.com/youtubeInterested in advertising on the show? Email bran@deckthehallmark.com Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Today Rachel is joined by Jacks and Natalie Gilbert to talk about 2 more Hallmark Christmas movies- An Alpine Holiday, A Grand Ole Opry Christmas Follow Natalie https://www.instagram.com/nngmusic/?hl=en Follow Jacks https://www.instagram.com/jacklyncollier/?hl=en To pick up Christmas at Pine Ridge Inn by Savannah Carlisle https://amzn.to/49DkYPL (ad) To get 15% off your next gift, go to https://www.uncommongoods.com/podcast/hallmarkies for 15% off! Uncommon Goods. We're all out of the ordinary. Follow Ann on twitter https://x.com/awscott21 For all of our rankings https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXv4sBF3mPUCgu1AlVoiEMigO6cvdGAAW To get 15% off your next gift, go to https://www.uncommongoods.com/podcast/hallmarkies for 15% off! Uncommon Goods. We're all out of the ordinary. Our Christmas podcasts are at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X4f2KtBPzUE&list=PLXv4sBF3mPUDo41tHqhkjHCvedmZwLzHx For all of our interviews https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXv4sBF3mPUA_0JZ2r5fxhTRE_-RChCj Send us your feedback at feedback@hallmarkiespodcast.com or the twitter call +1 (801) 855-6407 Check out the merch store and get our #hashtag shirts! https://hallmarkies.dashery.com/ Please support the podcast on patreon at https://www.patreon.com/hallmarkies Follow us on ITunes https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/hallmarkies-podcast/id1296728288?mt=2 https://twitter.com/HallmarkiesPod on twitter @HallmarkiesPodcast on Instagram Check out our website HallmarkiesPodcast.com Follow Rachel's blog at http://rachelsreviews.net Follow Rachel on twitter twitter.com/rachel_reviews Follow Rachel's Reviews on youtube https://www.youtube.com/c/rachelsreviews Follow Rachel on facebook www.facebook.com/smilingldsgirlreviews Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What do a chance encounter, a sewing hobby, and Silent Night by candlelight have in common?We're back with another fun recap and review! This one centers on Hallmark's new 'Countdown to Christmas' flick, 'We Met in December', starring Autumn Reeser and Niall Matter.We'll give you a full plot recap and hot takes galore in our 'Gold or Coal' segment, all to give you the bottom line answer: Is it worth the watch??Check us out online at www.DoYouWatchWhatIWatch.com. And -- as always -- may your days be merry and bright!

Les, Kurt, and Jason are here to talk about Hallmark's Holiday Touchdown A Bills Love Story, but Les hasn't even watched the movie that he made Jason and Kurt watch! But Les is somewhat forgiven after recounting his very long day. Then Jason announces that Kurt's Turkey Trot 5K time was better than Les', so Les is now forced to denounce all things Sarah Jessica Parker (though he only offers a full-throated denouncement of Sex and the City 2). Plus, in Blac Chyna news, there are rumblings she may be back together with Rob Kardashian! Then, it's time for Hallmark's latest NFL-adjacent movie which is heavy on cameos from former and current Buffalo Bills players and light on acting lessons for them. But with so many familiar faces for Bills fans and so many different rubbings in a car at night, this movie is charming in its propaganda to legitimize a stadium boondoggle.    As the actors onscreen are living seemingly picturesque lives in the movies talked about on this podcast, it can also make this time of year especially challenging to navigate. If you or someone you know is struggling, The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline provides confidential emotional support to people in suicidal crisis or emotional distress by dialing 988.    Bluesky: lifetimeofhallmark Facebook : lifetimeofhallmark Instagram : lifetimeofhallmarkpodcast Threads: lifetimeofhallmarkpodcast TikTok: lifetimeofhallmarkpod Theme song generously donated by purple-planet.com  

Matt Jones and Drew Franklin are still buzzing over an amazing few days of Thanksgiving NFL and Week 13! Which teams do Matt no longer consider a contender? Drew is looking for a strong finish from the Bengals. The Cowboys and Chiefs delivered a classic and leave you wondering about the future of both franchises. The Lions have lost 2 of 3 while the Packers are coming together. The Bears win makes Matt think they have a chance this season. What has happened to the Eagles and Saquon Barkley? The Rams took a surprising loss to the Panthers. Matt likes showing the locker room speeches, but thinks shirts should be left on. The Texans improved to 7-5 win a win over the Colts. Shedeur Sanders loses his 2nd start for the Browns. The Bucs ended a 3 game losing streak. The Vikings season continues to slide. Justin Herbert injures his non-throwing hand and Matt says he might be 'afraid' of Maxx Crosby. The Steelers fall to the Bills leaving plenty of questions about Pittsburgh. Drew admits to watching a Hallmark movie about the Bills. The Broncos win in overtime, could they be a Super Bowl contender? This could be the most wide-open playoffs we've ever seen. Plus, we preview the MNF matchup with the Patriots hosting the Giants. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week of Deck the Hallmark is presented by Racine Danish Kringles. Exclusive 10% off entire order -  www.kringles.com  // Promo Code:  HALLMARK25---The amazing Dave White joins us to break down this year's animal-themed Hallmark Christmas movie: Christmas at the Catnip Café.ABOUT CHRISTMAS AT THE CATNIP CAFÉOlivia Pierce, a marketing executive, discovers her late great aunt's cat café in New York, which she believes will be a Christmas miracle. As she helps plan fundraising events, Olivia gains a deeper appreciation for the feline inhabitants and the special place her great aunt created.AIR DATE & NETWORK FOR CHRISTMAS AT THE CATNIP CAFÉNovember 30, 2025 | Hallmark Movies & MysteriesCAST & CREW OF CHRISTMAS AT THE CATNIP CAFÉPaul Campbell as BenErin Cahill as OliviaBRAN'S CHRISTMAS AT THE CATNIP CAFÉ SYNOPSISThe movie kicks off with a TON of kittens. Suddenly, we flash back 30 years: a young Olivia is walking into her house when she hears something… could it be a cat? And that's it for the flashback—obviously, a necessary flashback.Cut to the present day. Olivia is checking out a place way out of her price range when she gets a text from a lawyer: they need to talk about her aunt's estate. She's been given half of a cat cafe. Olivia's wheels start turning—if she can convince the other owner, Ben, to sell the cafe, maybe she can afford that dream place!But Ben is no ordinary owner. He's an overly generous vet, giving pet care away for free and taking on way too many patients. The good news for Olivia: Ben never says no.She walks into the cafe, plays peekaboo with a cat, and dives straight into business with Ben. She wants him to sell. He's not having it—the cafe is very important to him and also acts as a place to get cats adopted.It turns out Ben lives right down the block from Olivia's aunt's house. He's searching for a binder about Catnip Christmas that's gone missing and is surprised to find Olivia there. She finds the binder, and he explains that Catnip Christmas was his aunt's pride and joy. He's not sure how he can manage it all on his own. Olivia offers to help—but only if he agrees not to delay the sale of the cafe.Ben says he doesn't want to sell. Olivia reminds him he can't stop the sale, only slow it down. She says she'll be all in on the project as long as he agrees to sell. He reluctantly agrees, thinking she won't actually want to move forward with the sale.Olivia quickly realizes she's in for a lot more than she expected: cat puppet shows, story time, and all sorts of festive events. Along the way, Olivia and Ben start getting closer. He even helps decorate her Christmas tree.Through a flashback, we learn that little Olivia once found a kitten outside her aunt's house. Could this cat cafe all stem from that moment?As they spend more time together, Ben opens up about feeling like life's big moments happen for everyone else—babies, milestones—and that he wants something for himself before it's too late. The sparks begin to fly, and while decorating the cafe for an event, Olivia and Ben share a big, sweet kiss.Complications arise when Olivia admits she still plans to sell—the life she has in California can't be ignored. She tells Ben it's hard because she really likes him. He reminds her that they made a deal, so he'll move forward with the sale.On her way out of town, Olivia stops at a mechanic and sees a kitten. The mechanic tells her he adopted it from this cat cafe. Olivia takes it as a sign and rushes back to the cafe—only to find the contract has already been signed with a developer. But the developer is holding a cat, so Olivia asks nicely… and he rips up the contract.Olivia is staying, and the movie ends with her and Ben celebrating—and kissing again. Watch the show on Youtube - www.deckthehallmark.com/youtubeInterested in advertising on the show? Email bran@deckthehallmark.com Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Merry Bingemas, one and all! On the fifth day of Bingemas, Nora Princiotti returns to talk with Jodi about the sequel to her Bingemas movie from last year, Hallmark's 'Holiday Touchdown: A Bills Love Story." This movie follows doctor Morgan Quinn (Holland Roden) and the Bills' VP of Stadium Development Gabe (Matthew Daddario) as they navigate an ornament-based mystery, an inexplicable inability to admit to being in love, and JOEY PANTS???? Follow us at instagram.com/wereobsessedpod to find our weekly schedule of movies. Host: Jodi Walker Guest: Nora Princiotti Producers: Sasha Ashall, Ashleigh Smith, and Belle Roman Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In one of our final episodes, we welcome back beloved guest Lora O'Brien, author, priest of the Morrigan, and co-founder of the Irish Pagan School. Lora joins us for a rich conversation about her newest book The Morrigan: Ireland's Goddess, exploring the goddess's role as an agent of change, sovereignty, and right relationship in a chaotic modern world. We talk ancestral trauma, accessibility in spiritual practice, kitten fostering adventures, and the shifting landscape of Irish sacred sites. Later, we're joined by Jon O'Sullivan for our very last round of Hallmark or Horror, the chaotic game no one ever wins but everyone loves. This episode is heartfelt, witchy, funny, and the perfect sendoff for two of our favorite international guests.     On Patreon:  Ad-free version of this episode!   SPONSORS   Check out the phenomenal tea blends at thejasminepearl.com and save 10% with OUR NEW coupon code WITCH2025. Free shipping on orders over $35. Make sure you let them know you heard about them on That Witch Life Podcast! Kitchen Witchery awaits!  From delectable tomato sauce to sumptuous coffees, make DELICIOUS Magick at cucinaaurora.com and save 10% with our new code WITCHLIFE.

Happy Monday, Christmas Fanatics! And Happy December! Can you believe we're here already? Buckle-up, because the days until Christmas 2025 are going to be flying by from here! To mark the start of the final month of the year, Thom, Julia, and Anthony gathered to discuss Netflix's 2025 Original Holiday Movie, "A Merry Little Ex-Mas"!  To date, Netflix's Christmas movies have been pretty hit-or-miss for the elves. How does this one, filled with nineties superstars, fare? Can it compete with Hallmark in terms of story and atmosphere? Or is it another dud? You'll have to tune in to find out! But spoiler alert: whatever our hosts think of this one, we guarantee it's a jolly, festive time you're sure to enjoy! So settle back and relax with your favorite holiday drink beside your Christmas tree, and enjoy this newest episode! As always, thanks for your love and support, y'all!

Today Rachel and Dory are here to talk about 2 recent Hallmark movies- We Met in December, The Snow Must Go On Follow All the Feels https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/all-the-feels-an-unauthorized-hallmark-movie-podcast/id1177691050 Follow Dory at https://www.instagram.com/dorybenford/ To pick up Christmas at Pine Ridge Inn by Savannah Carlisle https://amzn.to/49DkYPL (ad) To get 15% off your next gift, go to https://www.uncommongoods.com/podcast/hallmarkies for 15% off! Uncommon Goods. We're all out of the ordinary. Follow Ann on twitter https://x.com/awscott21 For all of our rankings https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXv4sBF3mPUCgu1AlVoiEMigO6cvdGAAW To get 15% off your next gift, go to https://www.uncommongoods.com/podcast/hallmarkies for 15% off! Uncommon Goods. We're all out of the ordinary. Our Christmas podcasts are at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X4f2KtBPzUE&list=PLXv4sBF3mPUDo41tHqhkjHCvedmZwLzHx For all of our interviews https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXv4sBF3mPUA_0JZ2r5fxhTRE_-RChCj Send us your feedback at feedback@hallmarkiespodcast.com or the twitter call +1 (801) 855-6407 Check out the merch store and get our #hashtag shirts! https://hallmarkies.dashery.com/ Please support the podcast on patreon at https://www.patreon.com/hallmarkies Follow us on ITunes https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/hallmarkies-podcast/id1296728288?mt=2 https://twitter.com/HallmarkiesPod on twitter @HallmarkiesPodcast on Instagram Check out our website HallmarkiesPodcast.com Follow Rachel's blog at http://rachelsreviews.net Follow Rachel on twitter twitter.com/rachel_reviews Follow Rachel's Reviews on youtube https://www.youtube.com/c/rachelsreviews Follow Rachel on facebook www.facebook.com/smilingldsgirlreviews Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This post contains affiliate links, which means I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.If you love cozy small-town romances, holiday charm, and stories that feel like emotional comfort food, this episode is for you. Today I'm chatting with fan-favorite author RaeAnne Thayne, whose Christmas novel Snow Kiss delivers all the warmth and heart of a Hallmark movie… with even deeper emotional layers.In our conversation, RaeAnne shares the inspiration behind Snow Kiss, her plotting process, why fake dating is her new favorite trope to write, and the joy of crafting holiday stories that remind readers to choose kindness. We also talk about her extensive backlist, her women's fiction summer releases, and her 2025 novel The Lost Book of First Loves. Plus—double book recs from RaeAnne across two different interviews!

The holidays are upon us and Sam & Matt begin the season with a stroll into Hallmark territory! They discuss both Sister Swap: Hometown Holiday and Sister Swap: Christmas In The City!Music provided by Epidemic Sound.Find Us At:Email: lostlegaciespodcast@gmail.comYouTube: @TheHiddenCityBookCoFind us at #LostLegaciesComments? Questions?? Concerns!?! Click here to text us!

This week of Deck the Hallmark is presented by Racine Danish Kringles. Exclusive 10% off entire order -  www.kringles.com  // Promo Code:  HALLMARK25---It's time to start our journey through the Thanksgiving week movies!Up first, we're joined by Alonso Duralde to dive into this year's big Saturday release: A Grand Ole Opry Christmas — where country music, Christmas magic, and time-travel nostalgia meet under one roof.ABOUT A GRAND OLE OPRY CHRISTMASGentry Wade, who gave up music after her father's death decades ago must confront her past when Nashville's Grand Ole Opry invites her to honor her late country star dad at their Christmas celebration.AIR DATE & NETWORK FOR A GRAND OLE OPRY CHRISTMASNovember 29, 2025 | Hallmark ChannelCAST & CREW OF A GRAND OLE OPRY CHRISTMASNikki DeLoach as Gentry WadeKristoffer Polaha as MacBRAN'S A GRAND OLE OPRY CHRISTMAS SYNOPSISThe movie kicks off like you're watching a VHS of an old Opry performance: the Winters & Wade Farewell Show at the Grand Ole Opry Christmas Special.Cut to present day, where we meet Gentry Wade, daughter of Jett Wade. She gets a knock at the door from her pal Mac, who keeps pushing her to let him sign her and record some songs. She insists that's not happening.Mac owns a bar in Nashville, where Gentry works and is mostly happy—despite everyone constantly asking about her father. Why did he quit music? And where is his missing guitar?Family friend Rita stops by with a plea from the Opry: they want Gentry to attend the Opry's 100th anniversary to honor her dad. Gentry isn't sure.Over drinks, we learn that Mac and Gentry have been friends since high school, but Mac insists he has zero romantic interest in her. Mmmhmm. Sure, pal.Gentry, Mac, and Rita head to the Opry and tag along with a tour guide who looks suspiciously like Erin Cahill. Backstage, Gentry bumps into Von Winters, who asks why she's hesitant about attending the anniversary. She explains she always wanted to be a songwriter, but it didn't work out, and she never earned her place in the Opry Circle. Von tells her that her time may not be up—it's Christmas, after all.She goes out onto the Opry stage to think. A blinding light hits her and suddenly—she's transported back in time. There onstage are her dad and Von doing soundcheck. Before she can talk to him, she's zapped back to the present.She runs to tell Mac, who absolutely does NOT believe her.Determined, Gentry sneaks back onto the stage again. Another blinding flash—and boom—she's back in time, bumping into a younger Rita.Mac, worried about her, goes to the Opry. He sits in a pew, gets blinded by the light, and he time travels too. He finds Gentry and she explains they're in 1995, right before the final Winters & Wade performance. She tells him she needs to find out why her dad walked away from music. Young Rita spots them and assumes they're a married couple, insisting they stay at her apartment.The next day, Gentry goes to the Opry pretending to be a label rep so she can talk to her dad. Jett tells her he and Von are getting along great and have songs ready for their next album. This makes Gentry wonder if they're in some alternate timeline where the breakup never happens. Mac urges her to stop overthinking—maybe they were brought back for a reason.Later, Gentry overhears Von talking with their manager, who wants the duo to change their style. Jett is absolutely not on board.At a Christmas party, she overhears them discussing bringing in new writers. Jett is furious. When he sees her, he assumes she's part of the label agenda and storms off.Gentry goes outside to the fire pit with Mac and opens up about memories of her father, including a song they started but never finished. Mac asks her to sing it. She does—and Jett secretly listens from behind them.The next day, Jett approaches her to apologize and tells her the song is really good. He asks why she never finished it. She says he passed away before they had the chance. He invites her to come to the Opry the next day so they can work on it together.She agrees, and they spend the day bonding while Mac records a video of them singing. Their session is cut short when Von and the manager show up—they've moved the recording session up to December 26 to prep for a world tour. But that means Jett will miss Christmas with his family, and the long tour makes him uneasy.The next day, Jett is missing. Gentry knows exactly where to find him—his “thinking spot.” She and Mac go there, and she basically convinces him to walk away from the duo and choose family.Afterward, Mac and Gentry finally kiss.The next day, Von calls Gentry in and reveals he knows she's not a label executive—but he thinks she's a great songwriter and wants to work with her.Before the big performance, Jett tells Von he's out. This will be their final show.Right before the set, Mac realizes Jett doesn't have his pick. He runs it over, trips, falls onto a pew—BOOM—transported back to the present.After the show, Jett finds Gentry, gives her his guitar, and she hugs him. Suddenly—bright light—and she's transported back to the present with that very guitar in her hands.Von is about to give a speech and calls her up onstage. He tells her that her dad was proud of her and that they actually wrote a song together. Von knows. He invites Gentry into the Opry Circle. She speaks about her father, and Von reveals he invited Brad Paisley to perform the song she wrote with Jett. As the song plays, we see 1995 Jett return to the Christmas cabin and hug his family.In the present, Von says he's ready for that songwriting meeting. Gentry gives him her dad's guitar, then goes to talk to Mac—and they kiss again. Mac shows her the video he recorded of her singing with her father and tells her he can't remember a time he didn't love her. They kiss even more, right there in front of the Opry. Watch the show on Youtube - www.deckthehallmark.com/youtubeInterested in advertising on the show? Email bran@deckthehallmark.com Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Devin, Sarah, and Tim visit the Excell family in Cedar City. Celeste and Brian have them over for dinner before their interview.Buckle up for the exciting Hallmark story of how Celeste and Brian rekindled a long awaited relationship one Thanksgiving Weekend 15 years ago. Listen in to the hilarious stories of how Celeste's older brothers teased her when she was a little girl. Stories of cousins in Utah, and stories of Brian's mission.Hear the miraculous and incredible story of how faith and the atonement helped Celeste overcome some difficult health and mental challenges and Celeste's final topic on using the atonement to enact change in our lives.Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/my-99-cousins/donations

This week of Deck the Hallmark is presented by Aura Frames. Exclusive $45-off Carver Mat at https://on.auraframes.com/DECK  // Promo Code:  DECK--Patrick is back to help us break down another episode of Finding Mr. Christmas! ABOUT FINDING MR. CHRISTMAS S02E05The hunks roll into giant plastic balls, crashing through Christmas trees in a wild Festive Face Off; with Hunter King as guest judge, teams perform a neighbourhood holiday party scene that leads to a dramatic elimination.AIR DATE & NETWORK FOR FINDING MR. CHRISTMAS S02E05November 24 2025 | Hallmark ChannelFINDING MR. CHRISTMAS SEASON 2 CAST:Angel Garet, 38 — Charlotte, N.C.Craig Geoghan, 33 — Lake Ronkonkoma, N.Y.Davey Fisher, 34 — Lake Tahoe, Nev.Marcus Brodie, 32 — Hamilton, OhioRobbie Simpson, 35 — New York, N.Y.Rustin Sailors, 37 — San Diego, Calif. Watch the show on Youtube - www.deckthehallmark.com/youtubeInterested in advertising on the show? Email bran@deckthehallmark.com Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

11-28-25 - Guad Squares - Biden/Harris - Tracy Morgan - Trump - Gordon Ramsey - Hallmark Animal Savior Brady - De Niro - Netanyahu/Gene Simmons - Nov 2024 BOSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This week of Deck the Hallmark is presented by Aura Frames. Exclusive $45-off Carver Mat at https://on.auraframes.com/DECK  // Promo Code:  DECK---Alonso is back to finish our journey through Season 2 of Mistletoe Murders with a double-episode breakdown of 'Twas the Fight Before Christmas (Part 1 & Part 2).ABOUT: MISTLETOE MURDERS – 'TWAS THE FIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMASPart 1: Emily shelters a suspect while investigating a fancy restaurant owner's murder to prove their innocence. Sam is rattled by his ex-wife's unexpected arrival.Part 2: Emily and Sam investigate a murder before a Christmas restaurant event. Emily faces danger, shares her past with Sam and stops running. Violet bonds with her mother.AIR DATE & NETWORK FOR: MISTLETOE MURDERS – 'TWAS THE FIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMASNovember 21, 2025 | Hallmark Mystery ChannelCAST & CREW OF: MISTLETOE MURDERS – 'TWAS THE FIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMASSarah Drew as EmilyPeter Mooney as SamBRAN'S MISTLETOE MURDERS – 'TWAS THE FIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS SYNOPSISWe're at a restaurant and Emily gets attacked by someone with a knife! WHAT'S HAPPENING?!Flash back one week: Emily is full of Christmas spirit, singing Jingle Bells. Famous Ray stops by to tell Emily there's a new fine-dining spot opening across town. His friend is opening it and asks if she'd help come up with a Christmas meal for the soft launch.Cut to the restaurant, where they're still scrambling to get it ready. The owner, Danny, is in a huge argument with the contractor because he owes him a lot of money. Danny can't afford anything and his wife, Lauren, is not thrilled. Danny introduces Emily to Carrie, their sommelier, and Chef John Mark. John Mark is not impressed with her Victorian cookbooks, so she leaves—only to witness Danny and Famous Ray arguing.Later, Sam gets a call: there's been a murder. Danny is dead in the snow, his knuckles red.Emily goes to talk to Famous Ray to ask more about Chimera and notices his knuckles are red. I'm sure it's nothing. She asks if he went straight to the Chimera source. While they're talking, he gets a call—Danny is dead.Flashback: Emily in her Chimera days, stealing money from a billionaire—“You gotta do bad to do some good.” She kisses Aaron (the guy from the last episode).Sam brings Lauren in to question her. She hopes Sam won't shut them down because “this is Danny's legacy.”Sam asks Emily what she knows. She mentions the contractor… and the argument she saw with Famous Ray.That night, Emily gets home and finds Famous Ray waiting inside (totally normal, very chill). He's like, “Listen, I can't have the police poking around my business. I did punch Danny, but that's it. He was fine when I left.”The next morning he makes pancakes but has to hide when Sam drops by. Sam tells her Famous Ray left town and to call if she hears anything.Emily checks in on the staff. She discovers the chef and Lauren have a past—and he took the job to be close to her, even though it was a step down. Emily also witnesses a big argument between Chef John Mark and Carrie, the sommelier.On her way out, she sees Sam—and Sam is shocked to learn that Violet's mom (his ex), Monica, is in town.Flashback: Aaron tells Emily he's the one who framed their principal back in the day. He was “just trying to protect her.”Violet meets with her mom but doesn't stay long. Clearly, there are feelings there.Emily goes to get her cookbooks from John Mark and sees the place nearly empty. So she snoops—naturally—and finds paperwork showing Lauren owns 100% of the business. Weird, huh. She tries to crack the safe but gets interrupted by Carrie, who says she probably won't be around long anyway.Later, Emily runs into contractor Jason, who apologizes for his earlier behavior.She walks into the diner and sees Monica, who asks if things are serious between Sam and Emily.Emily brings Sam to talk to Famous Ray so he can clear his name. His story holds up, but Sam warns her not to trust the wrong friend.Flashback: Emily has trusted the wrong person before. She once confronted her boyfriend after discovering some pretty bad stuff.Back in the present, Emily grows more suspicious of John Mark. Before she investigates, Sam shows up. The place looks closed, but he walks in anyway. It's dark. He pokes around. We see a hand grab a bottle of wine. Emily calls him—because she's getting nervous.We see Sam get knocked out and dragged across the floor.Emily panics and goes inside. She sees the wine trail leading to the walk-in freezer. She opens it and finds Sam. She steps inside—the door slams shut. No cell signal. But they see scratches on the steel door… maybe that's why Danny's knuckles were red?So these two lovebirds are stuck in a freezer together.Flashback: Emily confronts Aaron. He's been diverting stolen money into offshore accounts and making deals with terrorist organizations. Cops burst in. Aaron escapes.Emily tells Sam her name used to be Grace. He says it suits her… and then they KISSSSSS!!! Thankfully contractor Jason appears and rescues them.He brings them to a fire to warm up and says someone texted him to come, but he doesn't know who. Then he saw the safe had been broken into. Jason swears it wasn't him.John Mark shows up. They drop the act—he's not French. He gives in immediately.During questioning, he says they should look at Jason. Jason knew the freezer handle was broken. And he “just happened” to know to come help? Shady.Sam questions Lauren next. She says the safe was empty when someone broke into it—because she emptied it earlier and found $30k. No idea where it came from, but she used it to pay Jason so the opening could happen.Sam invites Emily to the grand opening—because all the suspects will be there.Flashback: Aaron is missing and appears to be rebuilding Chimera. The feds ask Emily to help track him down.Grand opening time. Sam and Emily walk in looking SPIFFY. First course begins. The sommelier spills wine on Jason. Lauren sends her home. John Mark then slips up and mentions Danny's chipped tooth—something no one knew. John Mark panics and runs. Sam chases him. John Mark insists Danny confronted him about not being French, flashed a chipped tooth, and then John Mark later found him dead in the freezer. He moved the body so it wouldn't ruin the opening.The sommelier returns and disappears with Lauren. Emily follows and finds the sommelier holding Lauren at gunpoint. She spills everything: Danny promised her an ownership stake in exchange for 100k, but since he didn't own anything, she wanted her money back. He didn't have it. So she trapped him in the freezer.A fight breaks out—bringing us back to the movie's opening. She holds a knife to Emily's throat. Emily fights back, kicks her down, and knocks her out. Criminal: obliterated.The movie ends with Sam bringing Emily to a gazebo for their first date. She says it's perfect. She tells him he can ask her anything. She's ready. She reveals she used to be in intelligence, was hunting someone down, and walked into a trap. Grace “died” that day. She took a new identity.He says he's glad she did. They kiss BIGGGG ONESSSSS. She says there's more she has to tell him—things she's not proud of—but he says he knows who she really is. More kissing.The next morning she wakes up excited to get coffee with Sam. There's a knock at the door—she thinks it's him.It's not.It's Aaron.“Merry Christmas, Grace. You look pretty good for a dead woman.” Watch the show on Youtube - www.deckthehallmark.com/youtubeInterested in advertising on the show? Email bran@deckthehallmark.com Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.